Lam Dinh

I’ve been thinking the same thing. I think Robertson gets more push than Cole in short yardage, and I still think Stroh gets beat off the snap way too easily for guys who do not have elite BGO (i.e. Sam Houston, UTEP). I’m also wondering if maybe Conner Robertson and Neto at LG is an even better combo. I get that Hutson has been a vocal leader on the team, but he has usually graded out very poorly in PFF, even going back to when he started some games as a true freshman.

We’re gonna be fine but we also don’t have the red zone receivers with the same wiggle/separation as Bond and Golden last year. We got bigger bodies but they don’t get separation in close quarters.

Are Kobe Black and Graceson Littleton starting? They’ve been out there already.

Yes that is still in effect, but lots of smaller deals are likely to go through since most athletes will be getting less than 100k from NIL, which should not (in theory) raise as many flags.

It looks like CSS (governing body of NIL) just reversed course and will now allow NIL deals from booster-backed collectives — as long as they involve real activities like merch, autographs, or appearances. This fixes a major issue where valid deals were previously being blanket rejected (just because they were being facilitated by a collective), threatening the main way non-star athletes get paid. Now, schools like Texas with strong collectives can legally support more athletes, giving them a major NIL edge moving forward. Most athletes not named Arch Manning rely on collectives to source NIL opportunities. Only the superstars like Arch likely negotiate directly with big brands like Vuori, Red Bull, etc, and therefore don't necessarily need the help of a collective. This should open the door for the Texas One Fund (our collective) to flex its muscles to help us separate from the pack financially.

https://x.com/CFBKings/status/1945957863727268276

Sark not being phased by the Aggie War Hymn was most likely because he didn't even recognize what the Aggie War Hym was. Sark has spent most of his life in California and out of Texas, and that war hymn is not recognized by anyone outside of the state of Texas. Do I know the Michigan fight song? Yes (thank you EA sports). Do I know the Ohio State song, unfortunately that has been imprinted in my head after years of ESPN. The Oklahoma song, again, unfortunately yes its' beat is undeniable. The "Aggie War Hym"? I couldn't pick it out of a lineup, and obviously neither could Sark 🙂

Haha, I do have kids and now you got me thinking about how I can better allow my hate to grow and develop so that hate is not a zero sum game. This is why OTF is the greatest community 🙂

It doesn’t take artificial intelligence to come to the conclusion that A&M is not a real rival in anyone’s head other than theirs, haha.

I love the imagery of this response, haha. It’s true when one side of the “rivalry” cares so much more than the other, it feels almost like having an unwanted stalker. I hope we develop a new rivalry with Georgia or Alabama over the next decade because we are constantly competing for national championships, not for who gets more top in state recruits.

I appreciate the history of the two schools and it makes sense that A&M was more a threat in the 90s. My point is just that if we are truly one of the blue bloods of college football, we can’t let a program whose biggest accomplishment came prior to World War 2 to still suck this much oxygen out of the room when discussing Texas football. We should be talking way more about Georgia and Alabama, then care about what goes on in college station.

Yes, it seems like a lot of the hatred/rivalry is passed on through family over the generations, which I can appreciate. My hatred has always burned hotter for OU because they actually won Big 12 titles, competed in the CFP, and brought home Heismans. However, since joining the SEC last year I have felt my hatred grow for A&M (and my OU hate subside slightly) because we now have to share the same room, even though A&M has still achieved nothing to actually earn my hate, since going 8-4 and not winning conference champions is something that many lesser programs accomplish regularly. In a weird way, I feel almost sorry to OU that I have had to split my overall hate tank with A&M now, when OU has done so much more to deserve it, LOL. Maybe as a thought experiment, Is there a more lopsided "rivalry" that Texas vs. A&M? I can't think of one.

Hey Longhorn family, UT alum here (Class of 2011), born and raised in California, and I’ve got an honest question: Why is Texas A&M considered one of our main rivals? I’m not trying to start a fight—genuinely asking. Because when I look at what usually fuels a real rivalry, it comes down to some combination of envy driven by: Football success Academic standing Location appeal A true rivalry needs some give-and-take—each school should be able to claim superiority in at least one area. When one school checks every box, it starts to feel less like a rivalry and more like a one-sided plea for attention. Let’s look at a few examples: Michigan vs. Ohio State – OSU has had the edge in the last 20 years in football, but Michigan still has national titles, tradition, and academic clout. They each count national titles and are the flagship public universities for their respective states. USC vs. UCLA – USC dominates football, but UCLA wins on academics and location (Westwood vs. South Central). This causes Trojan fans to want to desperately win the crosstown rivalry each year because it still reminds them of the areas where they are still inferior. Army vs. Navy – Equal footing in tradition and national respect. Now compare that to Texas vs. A&M… and I’m having a hard time seeing it. 1. Football success? By any objective football metric, Texas is clearly superior. I understand the OU rivalry—they’ve got 7 AP titles, more conference wins, and are a top-5 all-time program. But what does A&M have that elevates them above the Baylors and TCUs of the world? Metric Texas Texas A&M AP National Championships 3 (1963, 1969, 2005) 1 (1939 — yes, really) Total Wins (All-Time) 968+ 770+ All-Time Win % ~.705 ~.602 Conference Titles 32 18 2. Academics? Texas is a Public Ivy with top-ranked programs across the board. A&M has its strengths, but unless you're majoring in animal science or cadet marching, it’s not a comparison. 3. Location? Come on. Austin vs. College Station? One is a major cultural and tech hub. The other... has a Tractor Supply and a Whataburger. As someone who didn’t grow up in Texas, I can tell you: Nobody outside the state even knows what state A&M is in unless you spell out “Texas A&M.” It’s not hate—it’s just obscurity. So I ask sincerely: What exactly does A&M bring to the rivalry equation besides proximity and resentment? Is it because RC Slocum had a good decade in the '90s? Because 8–4 is now a celebrated tradition? Because someone has to be UT’s in-state foil? I don’t see A&M as a true rival. I see them like Baylor, TCU, or SMU—regional programs with occasional flashes but no sustained national presence. Heck, at least those three other programs have at least made a CFP. A&M is still waiting on that despite a 10 year lead in the biggest conference in America. I’m open to being educated here. So please, explain it to this naive California Longhorn. Hook ’em 🤘

Does having the #1 2025 recruiting class (and great young depth from the 2024 class) actually hinder our ability to recruit a Top class in 2026? I think the answer could be yes with regards to two specific positions where the fanbase is most nervous about so far in recruiting: Offensive Tackle and Tight End. 1) Offensive Tackle - OTF is already claiming that true Freshman Nick Brooks is a future NFL 1st rounder at offensive tackle. If he locks up the left tackle position for the 2-3 years post Trevor Goosby in 2025, would that not cause other top tackle recruits to second guess if they will get a legit shot to start at LT in the future? Sam Roseborough chose A&M, Malakai Lee chose Michigan, Turntine and Ojo are not yet sealed and delivered despite us being heavy favorites for a while. I'm sure these guys pay attention to the depth chart of Texas more than us fans since their future earnings depends on it. Plus, offensive tackles don't rotate so if one guy has a position locked up for years, there might not be much upside to come in behind him. 2) Tight End - Who has received more mentions by OTF on the offensive side of the ball (despite not being enrolled in Spring ball) than Nick Townsend ? Combine that with Spring Ball surprise newcomer Emaree Winston, not to mention a RS Freshman in Jordan Washington who projects as a multi-year starter, and the room already looks loaded with youth ready to start for the next few seasons. I'm not saying Mark Bowman was scared of competition, but I have to think when your projected starters are either Freshman or RS Freshman, that is a more difficult situation to recruit into than where the starters are already upper classmen.

Per Bobby's comments on Coffee and Football today, I also believe Texas is under-ranked in transfer portal rankings but I believe it is due to 3 factors: 1) Transfer Portal class sizes vary tremendously. Texas' transfer class was ranked #17 by On3. Of the teams ranked above them, many schools had transfer class sizes much larger than Texas - Kentucky (26 players), UCLA (30 players), North Carolina (42 players)...Texas only had 11 players in its transfer class and the ranking services dinged them for this. 2) Recruiting Services give more weight to High School rankings than actual on field College production. Case in point: Look at Micah Hudson from Texas Tech (5-star prospect who had 8 catches on the season and couldn't win a starting job at Tech) vs. Emmitt Mosely V (3-star prospect who had 48 catches as a true Freshman at Stanford). Who was ranked as a higher transfer prospect? Micah Hudson. Recruiting services need their transfer rankings to weigh actual college production more than what somebody did in 5A High School football at Lake Belton. Seems obvious but these recruiting service guys watch more HS football than actual College football tape (except for the estimable Gerry Hamilton). 3) Transfer Recruiting Rankings don't weigh whether actual Team Needs were met. If you're a top program like Texas or Ohio State, you're not going to take as many players from the Portal, and that's a GOOD thing. What you really need is to fill the actual needs you have, not to try to accumulate a bunch of 4 stars just to fill up a class. Texas did an incredible job of filling the key positions of need at WR, TE, D-line+++, and specialists (Kicker + Punter). This is not reflected in their grade. Hook em'!