Texas Tech football: Red Raiders add former A&M DE Tyree Wilson

Monday, the Texas Tech football program confirmed the addition of DE Tyree Wilson, an undergrad transfer from Texas A&M.

Remember when the Texas Tech football program was simply looking for warm bodies at defensive end?  That was just a year ago.  Now, the Red Raiders are swimming in options at that position and on Monday, they announced that they have added to that group by bringing aboard Tyree Wilson, a transfer from Texas A&M.

A 6-foot-6, 280-pounder from New London, Texas, Wilson is an undergraduate transfer who will need a waiver to be eligible this fall.  After redshirting in 2018, he still has three years of eligibility remaining making him a potential long-term answer at DE.

A year ago, Wilson was credited with 12 tackles while seeing action in 12 games.  Counted among those stops was 1.5 sacks and 3.0 tackles per loss.

When he signed with the Aggies, Wilson was rated by 247Sports.com as a 4-star prospect.  He was the No. 16 weakside defensive end in America and the No. 32 overall player in Texas.   His offer list included Arkansas, Florida, Washington State, Baylor, Mississippi State, Nebraska, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, and Texas among others.

Wilson played a hybrid edge rusher position last fall in College Station and that could very well be where he finds a home in Lubbock despite his possessing prototypical size for a defensive end.  But what is almost certain is that he will provide some versatility to Keith Patterson’s defense.

When he signed with A&M in 2018, head coach Jimbo Fisher gushed about what Wilson could bring to the field.

"“He came on his official visit my first weekend here and I think he weighed about 210 or 211 pounds, 6-foot-6.” Fisher said. “You saw on film the athleticism, the length, the ability to be a drop guy or a rush guy, to play in space, and that length and size. I like to say that big people do more by accident than some people do on purpose and he has that ability. The way he’s growing….I walked back in my office right after Christmas and he walked in and I said ‘What the heck happened to you?’ All of a sudden he’s one of those guys just maturing as he goes. He was 14 pounds heavier in three weeks. It was in his chest, his arms, and lifting.”"

This is the sixth transfer Tech has brought into the program this offseason as Matt Wells continues to utilize the transfer portal as much as any coach in the Big 12 to replenish his roster.  Only time will tell if that plan pays off but there’s no question that Wells is fully committed to this new method of talent acquisition.