Evander Ja Mel "Ziggy" Hood (born February 16, 1987) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Missouri Tigers, and was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round (32nd overall) of the 2009 NFL draft. Hood was also a member of the Jacksonville Jaguars, Chicago Bears, Washington Redskins, Miami Dolphins, and New Orleans Saints.

Hood attended Palo Duro High School in Amarillo, Texas, where he was a two-sport star in both football and track.^[1] In high school football, he earned All-District honors his junior and senior seasons. As a junior, he made 76 tackles, including 5.0 sacks and returned an interception for a touchdown. As a senior, he was named 3-4A Defensive Player of the Year after making 93 tackles, including 13.0 sacks, and scoring three defensive touchdowns.

In track and field, Hood was one of the states top performers in the throwing events. He got top-throws of 15.50 meters (50 ft 8in) in the shot put and 50.55 meters (165 ft 7in) in the discus throw.^[2]

Hood played college football at the University of Missouri.^[1] During his college career, he played defensive tackle. He finished with 170 tackles (98 solos), 15.5 sacks, 22.5 tackles for loss and 22 quarterback pressures. He also had five forced fumbles, recovering three.

Hood was named by his father after former professional boxer Evander Holyfield, of whom his father was a fan. He is of half Mexican ancestry. During his childhood, his Mexican grandmother could not correctly pronounce Evander, so she started calling him by the name of her favorite cartoon character, Ziggy.^[18]