Texas Tech football: The most underrated players of the Mike Leach era

WR Detron Lewis

College Station native Detron Lewis is a player most Red Raider fans remember.  But the career he had might surprise quite a few people.

Another player that never had the type of massive season that is required to reach superstar status, Lewis was often the second option but what a great No. 2 receiver to have.  He sits fifth in program history with 238 receptions.  That puts him one spot ahead of his former teammate, Michael Crabtree.  While it must be pointed out that Crabtree amassed his 231 career catches in just two seasons, you could still win some money off of a lot of people by betting them that Detron Lewis had more catches than the best receiver in Tech history.

After 120 yards as a true freshman in 2007, he went on to post three-straight 800-yard seasons to round out his career.  He and Eric Ward are the only Red Raiders to ever have three-straight seasons with 800 or more yards.

In 2008, he had his best season with 913 yards and 3 TDs on 76 grabs playing in the slot next to Michael Crabtree.  But after Crabtree left for the NFL, Lewis moved to outside receiver and continued to produce.

He put up 844 and 852 yards respectively in 2009 and 2010 while catching six TDs in each season.  He wound up with 2,729 career receiving yards, good for 8th in Tech history.

The most important play of Lewis’ career came in the 2010 Alamo Bowl against Michigan State.  Played just days after Texas Tech fired Mike Leach, the game took on more importance than just your average run of the mill mid-tier bowl game.

With Tech down 31-27 with 8:05 to play in the game, Lewis hauled in an 11-yard TD catch from Seth Doege which proved to be the game-winning score.  It was a terrific moment for a broken and reeling Red Raider fan base and the most notable moment from the career of one of the most underrated receivers in Texas Tech football history.