Robert Gilbert

Fantastic news

Great. Thanks for clearing that up for me.

One of the final topics on today’s Coffee and Football dealt with a question about more resources being spent on recruiting in say for example, Georgia. Great topic and great respondences by the panel. Does UT or any college use or employ ‘stringers’? The term comes from journalism and it is essentially a free-lance writer being used to write and have articles published periodically. MLB use to use scouts/stringers to comb the countryside looking for talent. My favorite story deals with Tom Greenwade scouting Mickey Mantle for two years and signing him on his HS graduation day. Anyway, is it legal for a college to use this type of ‘scout’ in small rural towns to supplement our own staff? And not just for football but for baseball, basketball, tennis, T&F, and all other sports? Or has the internet, Hudl, 7 on 7, and summer leagues made that type of ‘scouting’ obsolete?

OJ’s legacy is a complicated one with two sides. On one hand OJ was one of the first crossover African American celebrities. He exploded upon the college football stage in the late 60s by winning the Heisman and USC winning the national championship. As the #1 pick of the Bills he was soon the best running back in the NFL and set the then record of 2,003 rushing yards in a season. Off the field he was a media darling whose good looks, charm, and personality resonated with both the black and white communities. After his football career ended his popularity and visibility increased. Movies, TV shows, and commercial opportunities flooded in for him. He was everywhere, loved by millions, and respected by all Americans. On the other hand, his legacy is one of murder and betrayal. Of course many of our celebrities have committed murder, rape, or been jailed for drug charges. For example, Ali was stripped of his title and went to jail for failure to enter military service. OJ’s arrest ans subsequent acquittal divided Americans along racial lines. Most African Americans believed him to be innocent and whites viewed him as quilty. OJ’s betrayal was not to the two people I believe he murdered. That act alone should condemn him in America’s eyes. No, his betrayal was to the American people. Ali lost his title and went to jail but he came back and rewon the title and the hearts and respect of America. OJ was the first ‘modern’ hero/celeb whose actions, off the field, destroyed his legacy from the field. JMO.

OJ was one of the more polarizing figures in America over the last 50 years or so. While I personally believe he killed his wife there are millions who believe he was framed. However, there was no doubting his on the field talent. If you can separate the football talent and his personal life (I realize that is a difficult task) there is no denying he was of the top 5 RBs in football history. At one time he was on every TV in America whether it was commercials, movies, or TV shows. Women loved him and men wanted to be like him. Of course that is similar to saying that, “Hitler loved his mom”. Whatever demons he dealt with in life will probably follow him into the Afterlife. There are very few people whose death I would celebrate (Hitler, Stalin, Mao, Saddam, Castro, etc) OJ is not one of them. I hope his death will allow millions to put his life and deeds, good and bad, behind them.

One reason I left OB was to get away from people like you trying to be funny and failing.

His profile lists him at 6’2” and 204 lbs with a 4.58 forty. Is he a multi-sport guy? Does he have an interest in UT?

I have been a member of OB for 20 years and IT for about 2 years. While both have many positive aspects to them they have some negative as well. OB has far too many drama queens who believe all their comments are suppose to be funny, which most aren’t. IT’s on air talent, while very knowledgeable, just cannot hold my interest (aside from Paul Wadlington). Looking forward to OTF becoming not only the best YouTube site covering UT football but also the best UT website.

I sadly missed the beginning of OTF this morning, which is usually what I do to begin every morning. However, as soon as I saw your new premium content I immediately signed on. I look forward to the content only OTF can provide.

Congrats to Rickey on becoming a Longhorn. Congratulations to OTF for beating everyone else with the news.

I would think he would be on campus for at least four years with two years as a starter. More than likely, he stays all five years and has three years as a starter. That 25 game threshold, as a starter, that Quinn has mentioned seems like a good target number. However, if Arch starts several games in 2024, due to injury, then that could change the dynamic. As mentioned, both uncles stayed on campus and used up their eligibility. Of course, the game and perceptions have changed since Eli finished college.

Tremendous write up. Thanks

That is very impressive.

I had always hoped for Washington to come to UT but until he can get his weight under control, he will never live up to his potential.

He looks to be a better runner than the QBs Sark has recruited at UT. IMO, if you are recruiting two QBs and they are roughly equal in throwing talent take the taller of the two. Just my opinion.

My first thought is that I hope he (Scruggs) is able to overcome whatever demons he is battling. Secondly, I hope this does cause several of Michigan’s players (especially the D-line players) to look towards the portal.

It is hard to grasp that Sark and the staff are looking into 2027 recruits while in the middle of recruiting 2025 players. This staff’s effort to bring in and evaluate talent is something I have never seen at UT before.

Thanks for the info. Looking forward to tomorrow’s Coffee and Football to hear the discussion between Gerry and you.

I am thrilled to get this inside look into UT football. I am as starved for Longhorn football as everyone else. These little doses feed my addiction and fuel my obsession.

This is one of the better features of OTF. Since I spend so little time on social media, I can come here and see what media around the country, the players themselves, and the university is saying and doing about UT sports.

I’d say you proved my point. While I believe both Baxter and Blue are capable of rushing for 1,000+ yards (though not in the same season), neither has proven that they can last a full season as RB #1.

https://247sports.com/college/ohio-state/LongFormArticle/college-footballs-best-rb-rooms-entering-2024-spring-practice-ohio-state-penn-state-boast-prolific-duos-228534104/ While I feel that #9 is too low, they do have a point that no one in the UT RB room is a truly proven player. Yet.

I agree. I have read a number of accounts of the incident and they all varied slightly. Did he know that peanuts were life threatening? Did he think that they would just give him a rash? Did he really try to clean up the peanuts from the locker when he learned how dangerous they might be? I do not know, and to be honest I doubt anyone on this board knows for sure. However, if anyone who has posted opposition to this recruitment and has driven under the influence (liquor or drugs) then your hypocrisy is showing. Those of you questioning Sark over this remind me of his first two years when you were calling for his firing (or PK, Choate, Gideon, etc) and who now scream his praises. To the original topic, I trust Sark will not do anything to jeopardize the program. He has as much, and in some ways more, than any of us to lose if this goes South.

I agree with the panel that at least 8 of the decade’s teams make the playoffs, possibly all 10. Rod’s statement about Mack coaching scared brought back memories. No knock on Mack but Ced B’s career didn’t really begin till after the OU game his Fr. year. His unwillingness to open up the offense, especially early in the decade, could have cost UT some games.

Watching it now. There were just so many good UT teams during that decade.