How Skyler Gill-Howard remains one of Texas Tech's best leaders while injured

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Standing on the Jones AT&T Stadium field, resting his leg on the scooter necessitated after ankle surgery a few weeks earlier , Skyler Gill-Howard looked to the stands, a subtle grin coming across his face.

Seeing the east side of the stadium packed full for College GameDay's visit, the support of the fans hours before kickoff against BYU , is just one of the reasons why Gill-Howard has gravitated toward the Texas Tech football team from the moment he got on campus.

"It was the people showing how much they care about me," Gill-Howard said of his love for the Red Raiders . "When the person shows you how much they care about you, you tend the feel the same way back."

Gill-Howard was quickly embraced by Texas Tech fans, for his passion and desire as much as his ability to produce. He established himself as the emotional heartbeat of a team he'd only been around for a few months. Even sidelined after his ankle injury suffered against Kansas , Gill-Howard has continued to be a key presence in the Red Raiders' run to the College Football Playoff.

"That's what I tell guys all the time. It could always be worse," Gill-Howard said. "I've been through so much in my career to where something like this, obviously it sucks, and I'm not going to sit here and act like it's nothing, but I've been through a lot, so to me, it is nothing, and something I can definitely bounce back from."

Following his surgery, Gill-Howard refused to be designated as out for the season. He wanted to leave the door open, no matter how small the crack could be. His return won't come against Oregon in the Orange Bowl, having already ruled out for the game three days before kickoff. Yet he's remained locked in on all aspects of the game, going through the same pregame preparations as his healthy teammates, offering his vantage point whenever he can.

"Still hasn't missed a meeting," defensive line coach Zarnell Fitch said. "Every practice, being a vocal leader not only for our group but for his whole team. Every game we played in since Skyler, he is going to be talking to the team the night before, and then he's going to talk to the team before we break to go to the locker room. He's the one who's talking to this whole team."

Fitch called Gill-Howard unselfish for how he's handled the disappointment of being sidelined in Texas Tech's best season in history. That's because Gill-Howard has been through it all just to get to this point, so a setback like this is nothing he can't handle.

"I told the guys the next week at practice, I was like, I can live with what happened because I was grateful for every moment that I had," Gill-Howard said, "and I never took anything for granted. So just to be able to still be here for the team in whatever way I can is just super exciting."

Gill-Howard's presence also has great gravitas. He never misses an opportunity to hype up a fellow teammate, like he did during Texas Tech's Orange Bowl media day, joining Reggie Virgil in encouraging the mild-manner David Bailey to talk himself up to Shawn McFarland of the Dallas Morning News.

"How many sacks?" Gill-Howard and Virgil hollered, making Bailey blush during his breakout session.

"His voice travels," Fitch said of Gill-Howard, "and it shows respect, not only from our players, but from his coaching staff and community. Everybody loves Skyler."

This article originally appeared on Lubbock Avalanche-Journal: Skyler Gill-Howard continues to be key presence with Texas Tech football