Texas Tech University Athletics
2025 Football Roster
Roster

Jersey Number 31
David Bailey
- Position:
- Outside Linebacker
- Height:
- 6-3
- Weight:
- 250
- Class:
- Senior
- Hometown:
- Irvine, Calif.
- High School:
- Mater Dei
CAREER HONORS
2025 SEASON (SENIOR)
PRIOR TO TEXAS TECH
HIGH SCHOOL
PERSONAL
- AP All-America First Teamย (2025, Sr.)
- USA TODAY Sports CFB All-America First Team (2025, Sr.)
- FWAA All-America First Team (2025, Sr.)
- AFCA All-America First Team (2025, Sr.)
- Sporting News All-America First Team (2025, Sr.)
- Sportsย Illustrated All-American: First Team (2025, Sr.)
- On3 All-America First Team (2025, Sr.)
- The Athletic All-America First Team (2025, Sr.)
- CBS Sports College Football All-America First Team (2025, Sr.)
- PFF All-America Team (2025, Sr.)
- PFF All-Big 12 Teamย (2025, Sr.)
- Pony Express Award Winner w/ Jacob Rodriguez (2025, Sr.)
- DCTF All-Texas College First Team (2025, Sr.)
- Panini Senior Bowl Game Invitee (2025, Sr.)
- Big 12 Defensive Newcomer of the Year (2025, Sr.)
- Big 12 Defensive Lineman of the Year (2025, Sr.)
- All-Big 12 First Team (2025, Sr.)
- Lombardi Awardโข Finalist (2025, Sr.)ย
- Bednarik Award Semifinalist (2025, Sr.)
- PFF National Team of the Week, EDGE - Nov. 10ย (2025, Sr.)
- Lombardi Awardโข Semifinalist (2025, Sr.)ย
- The Athletic Midseason All-America Team (2025, Sr.)
- Sporting Illustrated Midseason All-America Team (2025, Sr.)
- Lombardi Awardโข Midseason Watch List (2025, Sr.)
- Midseason DCTF Defensive Player of the Year (2025, Sr.)
- First-Team Midseason DCTF All-Texas CFB Team (2025, Sr.)
- CBS Sports Midseason All-America Team (2025, Sr.)
- PFF Pass Rusher of the Week - Oct. 13ย (2025, Sr.)
- PFF Defensive Player of the Week - Oct. 13ย (2025, Sr.)
- PFF National Team of the Week, EDGE - Oct. 13ย (2025, Sr.)
- Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week - Oct. 13ย (2025, Sr.)
- Panini Senior Bowl Top 300ย (2025, Sr.)
- Lombardi Award Watch Listย (2025, Sr.)
- Bednarik Award Watch Listย (2025, Sr.)
- PFF Preseason All-Big 12 Teamย (2025, Sr.)
- Bruce Feldmanโs College Football Freaks List (No. 43)ย (2025, Sr.)
- Shrine Bowl 1000ย (2025, Sr.)
- Preseason DCTF All-Texas College second teamย (2025, Sr.)
- Preseason Phil Steele All-Big 12 first teamย (2025, Sr.)
- Preseason Athlon All-Big 12 first team (2025, Sr.)
- Lott IMPACT Trophy Watch Listย (2025, Sr.)
- All-Big 12 Preseason Team (2025, Sr.)
- ACC Linebacker of the Week (Sept. 23, 2024, Jr.)
- 2024 All-ACC Academic Team selection (2024, Jr.)
- Pac-12 Defensive Lineman of the Week (Sept. 5, 2023, So.)
- True Freshman All-America selection by 247Sports (2022, Fr.)
2025 SEASON (SENIOR)
- Quickly became a household name for Texas Tech fans in his lone season as a Red Raider โฆ ranked as one of the nationโs top defensive players en route to leading the Red Raiders to a historic season โฆ will go down as one of the top defensive players - especially at defensive end/outside linebacker - in school history despite only one season as a Red Raider.ย
- Appeared in all 14 games for the Red Raiders with 13 starts โฆ saved his best season for his time as a Red Raider, finishing with 52 tackles, 19.5 tackles for loss and 14.5 sacks, all career bests โฆ contributed to Texas Techโs FBS-leading 32 takeaways with three forced fumbles and a fumble recovery โฆ all three of his forced fumbles were the result of sacks โฆ officially credited with 13 quarterback hurries on the season as well as three pass breakups.ย
- Already one of the nationโs top pass rushers prior to arriving at Texas Tech but still managed to match his three-year total at Stanford with 14.5 sacks โฆ his 19.5 tackles for loss marked the first time to reach double digits in his illustrious career and were the second-highest total for a Red Raider since 2005, trailing only Jordyn Brooksโ 20.0 from the 2019 campaign โฆ became the first Big 12 player to record at least 14.0 sacks and 18.0 tackles for loss in the same season since a fellow Red Raider in Brandon Sharpe did so in 2009.ย
- Recorded at least a share of a sack in 11 of 14 games overall and had a tackle for loss in all but one game (at West Virginia) โฆ finished with multiple tackles overall in 12 games, reaching at least four or more stops in seven different contests โฆ disruptive in key games with 8.5 tackles for loss and 5.0 sacks in the five games Texas Tech played against teams that ended the year ranked in the top 25 .. his 8.5 tackles for loss in those games were tied with Miamiโs Rueben Bain Jr. for the most in the FBS.ย
- Combined with Romello Height to be the lone duo in the country to both record at least 10.0 sacks on the season โฆ became only the 30th FBS duo since 2005 to both have 10.0 or more sacks in a season and only the third to do so from the Big 12, joining Texasโ Sergio Kindle and Brian Orakpo in 2008 and Jackson Jeffcoat and Cedric Reed in 2013 โฆ combined with not only Height but also Lee Hunter and Jacob Rodriguez to give the Red Raiders four players with at least 10.0 tackles for loss โฆ the Red Raiders were one of only two FBS teams with four or more players with that total, joining only Indiana โฆ marked the first time a Big 12 program had four players with at least 10.0 tackles for loss since Oklahoma State in 2021.ย
- Ended the season as the nationโs highest-graded defensive player by Pro Football Focus, finishing with a 93.3 overall grade โฆ one of three Red Raiders to rank in the top-five nationally, joining Jacob Rodriguez (93.0) and fellow edge rusher Romello Height (92.5) โฆ publication awarded him the second-highest pass rush grade (93.8) in the country behind only Clemsonโs Avieon Terrell (94.1).ย
- Recorded 623 defensive snaps on the season, according to Pro Football Focus, the seventh-highest total on the team and the most for any front-four players โฆ credited with 81 total pressures by PFF, the second-highest total in the FBS behind only Miamiโs Rueben Bain Jr. (83), who played in 16 total games as opposed to his 14 โฆ developed into a complete pass rusher and potential top-10 pick as a Red Raider as his 81 total pressures were 10 less than his career total entering the season.ย
- ALL-AMERICA RECOGNITIONS: was a unanimous first team All-America selection by all five NCAA-recognized organizations in the Associated Press, USA Today, FWAA, AFCA and Sporting News โฆ joined with teammate Jacob Rodriguez to become the seventh and eighth unanimous first team All-Americans in program history and the first since tight end Jace Amaro in 2013 โฆ was the first defensive lineman or outside linebacker to be named a unanimous All-American in program history โฆ garnered first team All-America recognition from several other organizations as well, including Sports Illustrated, On3, The Athletic, CBS Sports and Pro Football Focus.
- AWARDS AND HONORS: tabbed the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year and Defensive Lineman of the Year by the conference coaches โฆ became the first Red Raider to be named the conferenceโs Defensive Lineman of the Year in school history and only the second to be recognized as the leagueโs top defensive newcomer, joining McKinner Dixon in 2008 โฆ was the only unanimous All-Big 12 first team honoree by the league coaches โฆ collected All-Big 12 first team accolades by the Associated Press and Pro Football Focus as well โฆ named a finalist for the Lombardi Award, which is presented to the nationโs top lineman or linebacker, giving Texas Tech two of the four finalists with Jacob Rodriguez being the other โฆ a semifinalist for the Bednarik Award, presented to the nationโs top defensive player โฆ combined with Rodriguez to win the Pony Express Award, which is presented to college footballโs most-outstanding duo, regardless of position โฆ selected to the All-Texas first team compiled by Dave Campbellโs Texas Football (DCTF) โฆ named to the Pro Football Focus National Team of the Week twice - on Oct. 13 following a win over Kansas and again on Nov. 10 after victory over BYU โฆ was the publicationโs National Defensive Player of the Week and Pass Rusher of the Week for his efforts against Kansas โฆ garnered Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week following the Kansas victory as well โฆ preseason candidate for the Lott IMPACT Trophy and a member of the Shrine Bowl 1,000 list.ย
- IN THE TEXAS TECH RECORD BOOK: finished a half-sack shy of matching the Texas Tech single-season record, ranking second all-time in program history behind Brandon Sharpeโs 15.0 from 2009 โฆ easily snapped the single-season record for tackle for loss yards after his 19.5 stops behind the line of scrimmage resulted in 142 yards lost for opponents โฆ broke the previous school record of 123 yards that was set by Adell Duckett in 2003 and Brandon Williams in 2008 โฆ joined with Romello Height to become the first Texas Tech teammates to each record 10.0 or more sacks in a season in school history. โฆ part of a Texas Tech defense that set the single-season team record with 41.0 total sacks.ย
- IN BIG 12 RECORD BOOK: among the top players in reaching the quarterback in league history, ranking third all-time in the Big 12 single-season record book for sacks โฆ his 14.5 sacks finished tied for third with Texas A&Mโs Keith Mitchell (1996) and Kansasโ Ron Warner (1997) โฆ the top-two sack totals in Big 12 history both came from the 2009 season with Texas A&Mโs Von Miller notching 17.0 and Texas Techโs Brandon Sharpe finishing with 15.0 of his own.ย
- IN THE NCAA RANKINGS: shared the FBS high with his 14.5 sacks, finishing tied with Western Michiganโs Nadame Tucker โฆ sack total resulted in 133 yards lost for the opposition, easily the most in the country โฆ was third in the FBS for sacks per game (1.04) and ninth for tackles for loss a contest (1.39) โฆ his 19.5 tackles for loss were the second-highest total in the FBS behind only Tuckerโs 21.0 with Western Michigan.ย ย
- IN THE BIG 12 RANKINGS: was the conference leader for both total sacks and tackles for loss, becoming the third Red Raider in school history to lead the league in both categories, joining Adell Duckett (2003) and Aaron Hunt (2001) โฆ was the first Red Raider to lead the Big 12 in sacks since Pete Robertson had 12.0 during the 2014 campaign โฆ became the second Red Raider to lead the league in tackles for loss under Joey McGuire, joining Tyree Wilson, who did so in his first season in 2022.
- SEASON HIGHLIGHTS:ย
- Combined for five tackles during non-conference play with two stops each in wins over Arkansas-Pine Bluff (8/30) and Oregon State (9/6) โฆ lone tackle in the win over Kent State (9/6) went for a sack, pushing the Golden Flashes back seven yards โฆ had at least a share of a sack in all three wins, with a shared sack versus Pine Bluff and a solo sack against the Beavers โฆ credited with a season-high four quarterback hurries in the win over Oregon State โฆ combined for only 82 defensive snaps over those three games due to Texas Tech enjoying large leads at the half of each win.ย
- Opened Big 12 play with three tackles, including a key sack in the win at Utah (9/20) โฆ sack came on 3rd-and-8 play late in the fourth quarter, pushing the Utes back 10 yards to set up a Jacob Rodriguez game-sealing interception a down later โฆ was his fourth of eight-consecutive games to start the season with a sack and the first of four to begin Big 12 play.
- Dominant two weeks later at Houston with four tackles, including 3.0 tackles for loss and 2.0 sacks โฆ first of his two solo sacks stripped the ball loose of Houston quarterback Conner Weigman on third down, forcing a 3-and-out early in the second quarter โฆ the Cougars punted following his other sack in the third quarter, which resulted in a 3-and-out drive โฆ credited with three quarterback hurries in the official stats, including one that blew up a fourth-down attempt midway through the second quarter โฆ Pro Football Focus listed him with 12 total pressures in the win and a 93.8 overall grade, both season highs.ย
- The Houston win kicked off three-consecutive weeks with 3.0 tackles for loss, bolstering his case as one of the nationโs top pass rushers โฆ had six tackles and 3.0 tackles for loss in the win over Kansas (10/11), all sacks โฆ four of his six tackles versus the Jayhawks were sacks after combining with Romello Height for the first one to disrupt a 3rd-and-11 attempt by the Jayhawks to start the game โฆ recovered a fumble on Kansasโ next offensive play, giving the Red Raiders the ball in plus territory to take an early 15-0 lead โฆ stripped Kansas quarter Jalon Daniels on a sack midway through the third quarter, pushing the Jayhawks back 15 yards on first down to force a quick punt โฆ found Daniels again with Height in the fourth quarter to stop a potential Kansas drive near midfield with the Red Raiders enjoying a 35-17 lead โฆ named the National Defensive Player of the Week and Pass Rusher of the Week by Pro Football Focus after the win as well as the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week.ย
- Made his presence known early in Texas Techโs lone regular-season loss at Arizona State (10/18), finishing with five tackles, 3.0 tackles for loss and 2.0 sacks โฆ both sacks came on back-to-back plays on Arizona Stateโs second drive of the game, negating good field position for the Sun Devils, who started at their own 48 after a 31-yard punt return.
- Ended his eight-game streak with a sack in the shutout win over Oklahoma State (10/25), finishing with three tackles, including a shared stop for a loss โฆ followed with one tackle - a sack - a week later in the win at Kansas State (11/1) โฆ sack sent the Red Raiders to the two-minute timeout before halftime, eventually giving the Red Raiders the ball near midfield for a Stone Harrington 55-yard field goal as time expired for a 12-7 lead at the break.
- Recorded four tackles, a tackle for loss, two quarterback hurries and a pass breakup that halted BYUโs opening drive of the game โฆ later stuffed BYU running back LJ Martin for a one-yard loss on third down early in the second quarter, forcing a failed field goal attempt โฆ the Red Raiders followed with a successful field goal of their own the following drive to take a 13-0 lead in the highly-anticipated matchup of the top-two teams in the league.
- Totaled seven tackles over the final two games of the regular season with three stops in the Senior Day win over UCF (11/15) and then four in the regular-season finale at West Virginia (11/29) โฆ sacked UCF quarterback Tayven Jackson for a seven-yard loss on fourth down midway through the second quarter, giving the Red Raiders the ball back in plus territory to score five plays later for a 28-2 lead โฆ the shutout win over the Mountaineers, meanwhile, marked his lone game of the year without a tackle for loss after leaving before halftime with an injury.ย
- Returned a week later for the Edward Jones Big 12 Championship, totaling five tackles, a 1.5 tackles for loss, a sack, quarterback hurry and a forced fumble in the win over BYU (12/6) โฆ quarterback hurry alongside Romello Height thwarted a BYU third-down attempt on its opening drive of the third quarter, resulting in a missed 46-yard field goal attempt โฆ later got home to quarterback Bear Bachmeier for a seven-yard sack and forced fumble on BYUโs final drive of the game in the fourth quarter, helping seal Texas Techโs first big 12 title in school history.ย ย
- Put on a defensive display in the College Football Playoff quarterfinal loss at the Capital One Orange Bowl versus Oregon (1/1) โฆ finished with a season-high nine tackles versus the Ducks, including 2.0 for a loss and a sack โฆ found Oregon quarterback Dante Moore on the gameโs opening drive, forcing the Ducks to a field goal for an early 3-0 lead โฆ broke up two of Mooreโs passes near the line of scrimmage, with one stopping the Ducks on fourth down at the 2-yard line during the second quarter โฆ paired with Jacob Rodriguez to stuff Oregon on fourth down again to start the third quarter, negating a long punt return that set the Ducks up in plus territory.ย
- POSTSEASON ALL-STAR GAMES: received an invitation to play in the Panini Senior Bowl Game (did not play in game).
- NFL SCOUTING COMBINE: one of a school-record eight Red Raiders to receive an invitation to the NFL Scouting Combine.ย
PRIOR TO TEXAS TECH
- Arrived at Texas Tech as one of the nationโs top prospects out of the transfer portal โฆ will play his final season of eligibility with the Red Raiders following three seasons at Stanford โฆ appeared in 33 games over his college career with 16 starts.
- Among the most disruptive edge players in college football with 22.5 tackles for loss and 14.5 sacks during his three seasons at Stanford โฆ finished with 111 tackles (73 solo) over those three seasons to go along with seven forced fumbles and a pass breakup โฆ will enter his final collegiate season tied for second among active FBS players with seven career forced fumbles โฆ tied with the likes of Mikail Kamara of Indiana and Harold Perkins Jr. of LSU, trailing only Red Murdock of Buffalo, who has 11 career forced fumbles.
- Ranked as the highest-rated returning edge player in college football upon signing with the Red Raiders by Pro Football Focus โฆ credited with playing in 1,142 defensive snaps over his three seasons with the Cardinals where he created 91 total pressures (15 sacks, 11 quarterback hits and 65 hurries) โฆ received a 90.9 overall defensive grade by the publication as a junior, which was sixth nationally among edge players and leads all returners for the 2025 season โฆ graded slightly behind Penn Stateโs Abdul Carter, who was the No. 3 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft by the New York Giants.ย
- 2024 SEASON (JUNIOR at STANFORD): recorded 31 tackles (22 solo) over his 12 games played as a junior, including two starts โฆ led the Cardinal in tackles for loss (8.0), quarterback hurries (8), sacks (7.0) and forced fumbles (5).
- Ranked fourth in the FBS for forced fumbles as it marked the most by a Stanford player in a season since Chase Thomas had six in 2011 โฆ his 7.0 sacks, meanwhile, were the most by a Cardinal in a single season since Casey Toohill had 8.0 in 2019.
- Credited with 39 total pressures over his 364 defensive snaps by Pro Football Focus โฆ received a 93.2 grade as a pass rusher by the publication, which led all FBS players.
- Recorded multiple stops in eight of the nine games he had a tackle โฆ put together two multi-sack games on the season, finding the quarterback twice at Syracuse (9/20) and at N.C. State (11/2) โฆ became the first Cardinal with a pair of two-sack games in the same season since James Vaughters in 2014 โฆ recognized as the ACC Linebacker of the Week following Stanfordโs win over Syracuse โฆ forced two fumbles against N.C. State as part of a five-tackle performance in the losing effort โฆ tied his season high with six tackles the next week versus Louisville (11/16) ... previously set his season high a few weeks earlier with six stops against SMU (10/19).ย
- Recognized for his work in the classroom as part of the All-ACC Academic Team.
- 2023 SEASON (SOPHOMORE at STANFORD): played in 10 gamesย withย five starts as a sophomore โฆ led the team in tackles for loss and sacks as a sophomore, building off his successful freshman campaign โฆ finished with 34 total tackles, including 6.0 for a loss and 5.0 sacks.
- Posted multiple tackles in all but one game on the season, which came late at Oregon State (11/1) โฆ started the season with six tackles at Hawaii (9/1), which featured career highs with 4.0 tackles for loss and 3.0 sacks โฆ added solo sacks later in the year during Pac-12 play against Arizona (9/23) and UCLA (10/21) โฆ sack versus Arizona was part of five tackles, his most during Pac-12 that season.
- Added five stops late in the season versus Cal (11/18) before finishing with four a week later in a non-conference rivalry matchup with Notre Dame (11/25) โฆ had three tackles in three games during the league slate against Southern California (9/9), Oregon (9/30 and UCLA.
- Listed with 364 defensive snaps by Pro Football Focus on the season โฆ highly-regarded again as a pass rusher with a 77.7 grade after creating 24 pressures (5 sacks, 2 quarterback hits and 17 hurries).
- Tabbed to the preseasonย Chuck Bednarik Award watch list โฆ also tabbed to the preseason All-Pac 12 second team by Phil Steele and as a preseason honorable mention selection by the media who covered the league.
- 2022 SEASON (FRESHMAN at STANFORD): emerged as one of the top true freshmen in college football, making nine starts in his 11 games played for the Cardinal โฆ tabbed a True Freshman All-American by 247Sports following the season โฆ earned Stanfordโs Outstanding Freshman award.
- Totaled 46 tackles on the season, including 8.5 for a loss and 2.5 sacks โฆ was frequently in the backfield with 13 quarterback hurries and two forced fumbles โฆ made multiple stops in eight different games and had four or more in five of those contests.
- Made a splash in only his second collegiate game, totaling nine tackles, including 1.5 for loss โ all sacks โ versus Southern California (9/10) โฆ was one of three games with multiple tackles for loss on the season after recording 2.0 tackles for loss against both Oregon State (10/8) and at UCLA (10/29) โฆ performance versus the Bruins was part of a career-high 10 tackles and a forced fumble, his lone outing in double digits during his Stanford career โฆ one of his two tackles for loss went for a sack versus the Bruins.
- Majority of his season total came during Pac-12 play with six stops at Oregon (10/1), four versus Oregon State and nine against Washington State โฆ went four-consecutive games with a tackle for loss during that stretch, which began at Oregon and ran through the Washington State trip.
- Credited with 430 defensive snaps at the end of the season by Pro Football Focus, which listed him with 28 total pressures (3 sacks, 3 hits, 22 hurries) โฆ received an impressive 70.5 overall defensive grade as only a true freshman, which included a 70.5 grade in rush defense and a 73.9 grade as a pass rusher.
HIGH SCHOOL
- Attended Mater Dei High School, one of the top prep programs in the state of California โฆ led Mater Dei to a 12-0 season and a victory in the California State Championship Open Division his senior season โฆ program went wire-to-wire as the No. 1 high school team in the country by MaxPreps.
- Named the statewide Defensive Player of the Year as a senior by the website CalHiSports.com after totaling team highs with 20.5 tackles for loss and 15.5 sacks over 12 games โฆ recorded an impressive 20.5 sacks over his prep career โฆ was second on the team with 54 total tackles, including 42 of those that were solo.
- Tabbed the Trinity League Defensive Player of the Year as well as a first-team All-Trinity League selection โฆ recognized as the Orange County Registerโs Orange County Defensive Player of the Year following his 2021 senior season โฆ later played in the prestigious All-American Bowl as one of the nationโs top players.
- Three-year letterwinner at Mater Dei โฆ honors student throughout high school tenure and member of the Principalโs Honor Roll.
- A consensus four-star recruit by the likes of 247Sports, On3, Rivals and ESPN โฆ was the first player left off the five-star list by 247Sports โฆ among the top prospects in the country, ranking as high as No. 33 nationally by 247Sports โฆ was No. 50 overall among recruits in the 2021 class by On3 and then No. 79 by Rivals and No. 121 by ESPN โฆ was the No. 3 edge player in the country by 247Sports and No. 8 by On3 โฆ listed as an outside linebacker by both Rivals and ESPN, ranking as high as No. 6 and No. 11 in that position group.
- Ranked as the second-best prospect out of California by 247Sports and a consensus top-10 state prospect by all four publications โฆ was third in the state by On3, No. 6 by Rivals and No. 7 by ESPN.
PERSONAL
- David Bailey โฆ son of Anthony and Monica Bailey โฆ originally born in Orange, Calif.ย โฆ has three siblings, DJ, Antoinette and Shawn โฆ older brother, DJ, previously was a three-year letterman as a defensive end for Harvard from 2015-17.
- Earned a bachelorโs degree in science, technology and science from Stanford in less than four years โฆ was enrolled in graduate school during his lone season at Texas Tech.
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