For the Red Raider Wire positional previews, we shift our attention to the defensive side of the ball. The Texas Tech secondary in 2026 stands out because it needed little change. Outside of the loss of standout safety Cole Wisniewski to the NFL Draft and a couple of reserve cornerbacks, nearly the entire two-deep that helped anchor the nation’s most-improved defense is back in Lubbock. It’s a group with a real case to claim the title of the best in the Big 12.
Brice Pollock, a program-defining cornerback
Much like the Texas Tech tight end room, the secondary has a defining centerpiece in Brice Pollock. The Snellville, Georgia native arrived at Texas Tech in 2025 after a modest career at Mississippi State. Pollock was not the most sought-after transfer portal addition, as he ranked No. 85 among portal prospects nationally by ESPN.
However, defensive coordinator Shiel Wood and cornerbacks coach Darcel McBath unlocked something in Pollock. His 2025 season was one of the best cornerback seasons in the Red Raiders’ history. He would record 48 tackles, four tackles for loss, a team-leading five interceptions, and six pass breakups.
He was a unanimous First-Team All-Big 12 selection. Another standout season like 2025, and Pollock could be remembered as the best cornerback the program has ever produced. He would join the company of names like Eric Felton, Lemuel Stinson, and Sammy Walker, to name a few. But Texas Tech has never produced a transcendent player at the cornerback position.
Pollock announced he was running it back for one more season after Texas Tech’s Orange Bowl loss to Oregon. NFL draft evaluators already have him projected as no worse than a third-round pick in the next NFL Draft.
An experienced cornerback room
Luckily for Red Raider fans, Pollock won’t have to worry about locking down the entire field. Amier Boyd returns after splitting time as a starting cornerback in his first season in the Big 12. Boyd’s return gives Tech a proven complementary piece opposite Pollock.
Sophomore Tarrion Grant, who was the No. 1 player in the state of Tennessee by the On3 and 247Sports composite rankings, gives the room a blue-chip talent still on the rise. Ashton Hampton adds further experienced depth as he appeared in 13 of 14 games last season.
The one notable portal addition in the secondary this cycle was Davin Martin. A junior transfer from UTSA, Martin appeared in 29 games over his UTSA career with 10 starts. He is expected to compete for a starting or key rotational role. A pair of true freshmen were also brought in to continue building out the room.
Replacing Cole Wisniewski at safety
The safety room is where Texas Tech has the most to answer after Wisniewski, who led the defensive backfield with 78 tackles a year ago, departed for the NFL. That responsibility now falls to Brenden Jordan, the only safety on the roster with significant starting experience.
The senior from Mansfield, TX has steadily improved across three seasons in Lubbock. In 2025, he finished fifth on the team in tackles with 59, two of them for a loss, an interception, a pass breakup, and a forced fumble. He’s never been the cornerback to alter game plans by opposing passing attacks, but he’s been dependable. The Red Raiders need him to take another step forward as the clear leader of a safety room that is, by comparison to the cornerback unit, largely unproven.
Sophomore Peyton Morgan, a well-regarded recruit out of Round Rock, is considered the most likely player to push Jordan and get first cracks at the snaps behind him. Malik Esquerra, Mikal Harrison-Pilot, Oliver Miles III, and Miquel Dingle Jr. round out a deep but experience-light room.
What does it mean for 2026?
Texas Tech’s secondary offers something the rest of the roster largely doesn’t: continuity. Pollock should be playing at an All-America level. Boyd and Grant provide proven depth at cornerback. Jordan is poised to anchor a talented but green safety room. There are not any notable concerns with this secondary, which tees them up to be one of the best pass defenses not just in the Big 12, but the entire country.
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This article originally appeared on Red Raiders Wire: Breaking down Texas Tech’s secondary for 2026 football season
Reporting by Andrew McCleary, Red Raiders Wire / Red Raiders Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Andrew McCleary, Red Raiders Wire | USA TODAY Network
