Blake Munroe

We’re 25 days away, and No. 25 has two of the best running backs to ever come through Texas... plus one of the more memorable single-game performances in recent Longhorn history. Chris Gilbert was an absolute monster in the late 1960s. He finished with 3,231 career rushing yards and 28 touchdowns, became the first player in college football history to rush for 1,000 yards in three straight seasons, earned Consensus All-America honors in 1968 and was a three-time All-SWC selection. He’s also a member of the College Football Hall of Fame. Jamaal Charles finished his Texas career with 3,328 rushing yards and 36 rushing touchdowns. He was a three-time All-Big 12 selection, the 2005 Big 12 Freshman of the Year and, of course, a member of the 2005 National Championship team. Chris Warren III had five career 100-yard rushing games, but everyone remembers the explosion against Texas Tech in 2015: 276 yards and four touchdowns. That day he set Texas freshman single-game records for rushing yards, rushing touchdowns and longest run with a 91-yard TD.

Fortunately I had enough data to put together a Top 15 fan vote. That's awesome. It will debut tomorrow, along with our Top 25 Longhorns of the Modern Era.

Some other factoids to consider before I release this tomorrow: Cedric beats Bijan for No. xxx despite appearing on five fewer ballots. Michael Huff beats Casey Hampton by ONE POINT: 226 to 225. Earl Thomas is only five points behind Hampton. The worst rating VY received was No. 4. One person voted Quinn Ewers No. 1. Three people put Earl Campbell in their top 10, despite him playing many years before the start date of this poll.

Just FYI... I excluded four responses from individual ranking slots because they couldn't be scored cleanly: Kevin Durant, “DBU Members,” “Ricky Williams & Colt McCoy” in one slot, and “Bijan & ROJO best RB and leadership duo” in one slot.

Voting will now be closed. Thank you all for your submissions. Hundreds of votes are amazing. Great set of data points.

We've had WAYYYY more participation than I anticipated, with 25 responses coming in just in the last five minutes alone. Going to be fun to go through the data.

I'm closing this at 12:00 PM CT today, so please vote if you haven't already!

We’re officially 26 days away from Texas football, so today we’re looking back at some of the best Longhorns to wear No. 26. Johnny “Lam” Jones headlines this group. The Olympic gold medalist was a two-time All-American, two-time All-SWC selection and Texas’ 1978 team MVP before becoming the No. 2 overall pick in the 1980 NFL Draft. D.J. Monroe brought some serious speed to the number during his time on the Forty Acres. Monroe finished with 2,620 all-purpose yards and still owns the Texas record with three career kickoff-return touchdowns. And Marcus Griffin rounds out the group. A member of the 2005 National Championship team, Griffin finished his Texas career with 229 tackles, four interceptions and three forced fumbles, earning ESPN.com All-America honors as a senior in 2007. 26 days to go.

Lolol

Joe mad he had to use a dictionary. 😕

The puerile condescension is a nice touch. I’m sure confusing your personal definition of the ‘modern era’ with an objective historical standard felt terribly profound when you typed it.

I would love for ALL OTF members to participate in this. We will be unveiling our Top 25 Horns of the modern era (1992-2025) in a couple of days, but I want to do a fan vote for the Top 10. Please go to this link and record your responses. No registration required.... just be sure to submit your answers! https://forms.gle/zFmAXzFRHLujFvCy8 Please remember that this is ONLY since 1992. No answers before then will be counted. The 1992 season marked the start of college football's modern era due to structural shifts in television revenue, the rise of super-conferences, inaugural championship games, and the first coordinated attempts to match the nation's top two teams in the postseason

Figured I would get this one in super early, for the late late night crowd. Currently at midnight madness for high school football.

We’re officially 28 days away from Texas football, so today we’re looking back at some of the best Longhorns to wear No. 28. Malcolm Brown headlines the group. The former five-star running back finished his Texas career with 2,678 rushing yards, 24 rushing touchdowns and 11 100-yard games. Brown earned Second-Team All-Big 12 honors twice and was a Freshman All-American in 2011. Brandon Foster put together a huge senior season in 2007, earning Second-Team All-Big 12 honors. He finished his career with 106 tackles, four interceptions and 15 pass breakups, while his three defensive touchdowns in 2007 set a Texas single-season record. Wayne Clements handled the kicking duties for Texas from 1987-89, connecting on 46 career field goals and scoring 214 points. He also knocked through two field goals in Texas’ memorable 28-24 win over Oklahoma in 1989. And more recently, Jerrin Thompson wore No. 28 in the Texas secondary. Thompson finished with 170 tackles, five interceptions and 18 pass breakups, earning honorable mention All-Big 12 honors twice. He picked off three passes during Texas’ 2023 Big 12 championship season. 28 days until kickoff. Who’s your favorite?

Watch Wednesday's C&F when Jeff filled in for Gerry. He goes in depth on his hatred.

Speaking of Josh Thompson, he will join us on C&F in the near future.

Some guys who didn't finish with 29, but wore the number: Charles “Cotton” Speyrer - WR (No. 29 in 1968) Ryan Palmer - CB (No. 29 from 2005–06) Josh Thompson - DB (No. 29 during 2017–19)

We’re officially 29 days away from Texas football, so today’s countdown spotlights a couple of Longhorns who have worn No. 29. From 1990-93, Phil Brown rushed for 2,102 career yards and 16 touchdowns, while also adding 72 receptions for 686 yards. He finished his Texas career with 2,788 yards from scrimmage and was part of the 1990 Southwest Conference championship team. His best season came in 1993, when he posted 770 rushing yards and seven touchdowns. Then there’s current Texas DB Graceson Littleton, who made an immediate impact as a true freshman in 2025. Littleton played in all 13 games with eight starts, recording 46 tackles, 4.0 tackles for loss, two interceptions, six passes defended and two forced fumbles. He also earned 247Sports True Freshman All-American honors. Just 29 more days. Who’s the first Longhorn you think of when you see No. 29?

Few defensive players in Texas history were as dominant as Kiki DeAyala. He still owns the school record with 40.5 career sacks and set the single-season mark with 22.5 in 1982, earning Southwest Conference Defensive Player of the Year honors before being inducted into the Texas Athletics Hall of Honor. Aaron Ross followed with one of the greatest seasons ever by a Longhorn defensive back. The 2006 Jim Thorpe Award winner was a consensus All-American, Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year and a key member of Texas' 2005 national championship team. His lockdown coverage helped anchor one of the best defenses in school history before becoming a first-round NFL Draft pick. Current Longhorns carrying No. 31 into the 2026 season are James Simon and Yaheim Riley.

The US LBM Preseason Coaches Poll is out, and Texas will open the season ranked No. 4 nationally, behind Ohio State, Oregon and Georgia. The Longhorns’ schedule is loaded, with seven preseason-ranked opponents on tap: No. 1 Ohio State, No. 8 Texas A&M, No. 9 Oklahoma, No. 10 Ole Miss, No. 13 LSU, No. 18 Tennessee and No. 25 Missouri. The Horns open their season against Texas State on Saturday, September 5th at 2:30 PM. Find the full list here: https://sportsdata.usatoday.com/football/ncaaf/coaches-poll

When it comes to No. 32 at Texas, the conversation starts with Cedric Benson. Benson left Austin as the school's all-time leading rusher and remains second in program history with 5,540 rushing yards and 64 rushing touchdowns. The 2004 Doak Walker Award winner became the first player in NCAA Division I history to rush for at least 1,000 yards in four consecutive seasons, cementing his place among the greatest running backs in college football history. No. 32 has also been worn by a pair of notable Longhorns in more recent years. Johnathan Gray battled through two devastating Achilles injuries to finish his career with 2,607 rushing yards, 17 touchdowns, and six 100-yard games. His perseverance made him one of the most respected players of his era. Malcolm Roach was a cornerstone of the Texas defense, recording 134 tackles, 22.5 tackles for loss, and eight sacks over four seasons. He capped his career as a team captain in 2019 before moving on to the NFL.

No. 33 has been worn by some outstanding Longhorns over the years, spanning multiple eras of Texas football. Leading the group is D'Onta Foreman, whose unforgettable 2016 season produced 2,028 rushing yards, a Doak Walker Award, consensus All-America honors and one of the greatest single-season performances in school history. Priest Holmes may have become an NFL superstar, but he also delivered several memorable moments in Austin, including earning Sun Bowl MVP honors and starring in Texas' first-ever Big 12 Championship victory over Nebraska. Defensive tackle Lamarr Houston anchored one of the best defenses in the country in 2009, earning consensus All-America honors and Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year while helping Texas reach the BCS National Championship Game. Edwin Simmons showed tremendous promise early in his career, averaging 8.6 yards per carry as a freshman and helping the Longhorns finish No. 2 nationally in 1983 before injuries unfortunately cut short what looked like a standout career. Rounding out the list is David Gbenda, a fan favorite from the Sarkisian era. Gbenda played in 52 games, helped Texas win the 2023 Big 12 Championship and was a key contributor on back-to-back College Football Playoff teams.

Another good round of guests this week on Coffee and Football. Monday - Coach Brian Randle (Landen Williams-Callis head coach) Tuesday - Former Texas RB Johnathan Gray, Former Texas LB Lance Taylor Wednesday - Thorpe Award winner, National Champion, 2x Super Bowl Champ… Former Texas defensive back Aaron Ross Still working on Thursday and Friday, but got some stuff brewing there too.

There was never any debate about who would represent No. 34. By the time his Texas career ended, Ricky Williams had rewritten both the Longhorn and NCAA record books. He rushed for 6,279 career yards and 72 rushing touchdowns, both still Texas records, while piling up 7,206 all-purpose yards and setting 21 NCAA records and 46 school records. His 1998 season remains one of the greatest individual campaigns in college football history: 2,124 rushing yards 27 rushing touchdowns 2,386 all-purpose yards Led the nation in rushing Rushed for a school-record 350 yards against Iowa State Broke Tony Dorsett’s NCAA career rushing record against Texas A&M And, of course, the hardware followed: Heisman Trophy Two-time Doak Walker Award Two-time Unanimous All-American Maxwell Award Walter Camp Player of the Year AP Player of the Year Sporting News Player of the Year Today, his No. 34 is one of the few retired jerseys in Texas football history.