Texas Tech football fans received an early Christmas present on Thursday. Texas Tech Athletics announced that defensive coordinator David Gibbs signed a two-year contract extension. Gibbs will receive a raise from $550,000 a year to $650,000 a year and is signed through the 2019 season.

"We are fortunate to have one of the top defensive coordinators in the country in Coach Gibbs," Texas Tech head coach Kliff Kingsbury said. "Since the conclusion of the regular season, finalizing this new contract to keep Coach Gibbs at Texas Tech has been a priority for myself and (Athletic Director) Kirby (Hocutt). We look forward to continuing to build one of the nation’s top defenses in the years to come under Coach Gibbs."

On Wednesday, FOX Sports College Football Reporter Bruce Feldman reported on Twitter that Gibbs was being targeted by Herm Edwards at Arizona State to become his new defensive coordinator. Those talks never materialized and the contract extension was finalized a day later.

According to Texas Tech Athletics, this year's Red Raider defense forced a Big 12-leading 27 takeaways through the end of the regular season. The Texas Tech defense is also ranked sixth, nationally, in forcing takeaways.

"There isn’t a better person to work for than Kliff Kingsbury, and I’m looking forward to continue building this program with him," Gibbs said. "There is still plenty of work that needs to be done, but I’m excited about the future of our team."

Texas Tech Football has one more game on the schedule: a December 23rd appearance at the Birmingham Bowl against the University of South Florida. The national broadcast of the Birmingham Bowl will be aired on SportsRadio 1340 The Fan and Lonestar 99.5 with kickoff at 11 a.m.

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