who are the real freaks of Texas Football (aside from Cleve Bryant)

[shadow_operative 15932]

was just watching a Bijan Robinson highlight reel and said "what a freak" aloud which led me to wondering about this. on the one hand, the label "freak" should not be handed out gratuitously, but at the same time we've had more than our fair share of truly freakish players here. i'm particularly looking forward to some of our resident olds elucidating us soon-to-be-olds on players from the 60's and 70's. 

 

so, with that said, here are guys from my time watching Texas Football who to me fit the the bill of a Freak:

 

leonard davis

eric metcalf

derrick johnson

roy williams

ricky williams

 

vince young

ramonce taylor 

bijan robinson

earl campbell

brian orakpo

 

casey hampton

shaun rogers

brian robison

 

 

guys i'm on the fence about:

 

•bryant westbrook

•jermichael finley (with a different OC he's a freak)

•tony brackens 

•quentin jammer (playing all 5 db spots at his size is unfair)

•jamaal charles- he might be a freak, and the fact that i of all people didn't automatically include him might just me "trying to be objective" 

 

is there anyone i'm missing from this era? who else to you was a legit freak at Texas? 

 

[South Austin 52142]

I fully support adding Jamaal. The guy had another gear.

[Davis Lane 5553]

[shadow_operative2.0 15826]

Priest 

[oldhorn2 430]

Tommy Nobis......the guy averaged over 20 tackles for his career here. Add to that he made AA as an O lineman......oh....don't forget he was drafted number one...

[BurntOrange&White 39651]

Luke Brockermeyer, Jett Bush, Dylan Haines.

[nivek3 83]

#32 Cedric Benson.

[South Austin 52142]

29 minutes ago, shadow_operative2.0 said:

Priest 

Love Priest, but he’s no freak. He shined in a few games, and had an unexpectedly productive NFL career, with an amazing 3-4 year run like few backs have had. But he’s no more a freak than a guy like Emmitt Smith.

[Josef Pwag 1724]

 

[BurntOrange&White 39651]

1 minute ago, Josef Pwag said:

 

I see your DJ Monroe and raise you John Childs

[South Austin 52142]

1 minute ago, Josef Pwag said:

 

RIP

[TotallyLegit 3050]

 

[shadow_operative 15932]

18 minutes ago, TotallyLegit said:

 

great call. he slipped my mind because of mack and gdgd. imagine him with a competent OC. imagine him in the tavon austin role.

marquise goodwin junior and senior year combined stats:

59 catches, 761 yards, 5 td; 35 carries, 360 yards, 3 td. total: 94 touches, 1,121 yards, 8 td

tavon austin senior year:

114 catches, 1,289 yards, 12 td; 72 carries, 643 yards, 3 td. total: 186 touches, 1,932 yards, 15 td

 

 

Edited May 12, 2023 by shadow_operative

[South Austin 52142]

Actually, Marquis’s junior and senior years were post-gdgd. Once Colt left, Mack never had a halfway decent OC who could do something without a top notch QB, save a herp derp here or there.

[Dennis Taylor 18706]

can't find it anymore but there was a picture taken at a practice during spring ball of 2006 when Kindle was an early enrollee and he was standing next to Bobino, who was a starter on the national championship team the year before.  It looked like Kindle had brought his son to practice.  Kindle was an absolute freak from day 1.  Rak was pretty scrawny when he first showed up and became a monster. Kindle had all the potential in the world, had a nice career here but Holy shit you couldn't have created a better frame in a lab

[Steamboat1874 4032]

1 hour ago, oldhorn2 said:

Tommy Nobis......the guy averaged over 20 tackles for his career here. Add to that he made AA as an O lineman......oh....don't forget he was drafted number one...

This is the correct answer.

He is the greatest player to ever wear a Texas uniform.

[Tex Pete 20177]

Britt Hager was our version of Tech’s Zach Thomas. 
 

Dan Neil was incredible, especially taking his size into account. He was a mauler. 

[Tex Pete 20177]

Honestly, Colt McCoy was also a freak here. To win the way he did, with a terrible OL his last two years, is insane. 

[Beer Drinker 593]

Earl Thomas

[Davis Lane 5553]

This man would like to have a word with all y'all.

[Hpara759 1777]

[Tylerocks 2551]

I feel like this guy needs to at least be mentioned..

 

Edited May 12, 2023 by Tylerocks

[Hpara759 1777]

[mininghorn88 2263]

Some names with these pics would help.

[Blotto 23432]

3 hours ago, South Austin said:

I fully support adding Jamaal. The guy had another gear.

That speed was the definition of freak. Watching that motherfucker turn the corner and just blow by people was something. Was legit bummed when he elected to move on to the NFL with one year of eligibility left, because we really only got one season of full usage out of him. His 5.7 yds per carry average in the NFL verifies freak status. 

He is a speedster and he is gone, gone. 

 

[hookem17 485]

Case McCoy and Jordan Hicks. 

[Josef Pwag 1724]

6 minutes ago, hookem17 said:

Case McCoy and Jordan Hicks. 

Holding....Holding....Holding....SHIT!

 

 

[Make em eat Taco Bell 1549]

Britt Hager is the all time best UT MLB

Shane Dronett

Johnny Lam Jones ma dudes 

 

[Dennis Taylor 18706]

7 minutes ago, Make em eat Taco Bell said:

Britt Hager is the all time best UT MLB*

Shane Dronett

Johnny Lam Jones ma dudes 

 

* Not named Nobis

[alincoln 2364]

This is quickly turning into a listing of the best players in UT history as opposed to a list of freaks.

Agree with Derka's list and that Jamaal and Sergio should be added to it.  

[Hook1997 5286]

2 hours ago, South Austin said:

RIP

He’s not dead. He’s a train conductor in Victoria.  

[TexArcher 37508]

2 hours ago, BurntOrange&White said:

Luke Brockermeyer, Jett Bush, Dylan Haines.

Uhh, Scott Derry??

[Make em eat Taco Bell 1549]

13 minutes ago, Dennis Taylor said:

* Not named Nobis

he's faster and stronger than Nobis and very productive on the field, not just physical metrics. 

[Blotto 23432]

17 minutes ago, Hook1997 said:

He’s not dead. He’s a train conductor in Victoria.  

Same thing

[Dr Phil WIth Hair 268]

The Tony Brackens hit on the Tech kicker gets him on the Freak List.  He knocked him ACROSS the track around the field at the time.

[LCHorn 2585]

24 minutes ago, alincoln said:

This is quickly turning into a listing of the best players in UT history as opposed to a list of freaks.

This, in fact I think Derka’s list is too long.  I would probably just have Kindle, Roy, and Robison on there, maybe Shaun Rodgers.  
 

“Freak” to me means their athletic potential is so high that they periodically do something so amazing you wonder why they don’t it more often.  

[Make em eat Taco Bell 1549]

Keenan Robinson, with that freak body, height and wingspan, should have been the next Derrick Johnson. He was good at UT, played in the NFL, but wasn't ultra dominant. 

[Dennis Taylor 18706]

27 minutes ago, Make em eat Taco Bell said:

he's faster and stronger than Nobis and very productive on the field, not just physical metrics. 

They were roughly the same size, but Nobis was 25 years older so in his day I'd say he was probably abnormal for his era. 

I am a huge Britt Hager fan and I was in school roughly the same time as him and he was a bad motherfucker . But you said best MLB and there's simply no way there was or will be a more productive MLB at Texas or possibly anywhere else than Nobis , especially considering how different the game is. Nobis AVERAGED almost 20 tackles a game, was 3x All SWC, 2x All American, and was not only the #1 overall pick in the draft he was the first pick in the history of the Atlanta Falcons franchise. Absolutely no disrespect to Britt, DJ or any others but Nobis's career will not be duplicated ever. 

[CycleTex87 2953]

VY was the freakiest player that ever wore burnt orange.  And I remember Earl, and Ricky, and Jamaal.

[jimmyjazz 45554]

Cory Redding was pretty freakish.

[tx ind 6999]

 

[Vertigo 20266]

I have never seen another lineman contort his body the way that Michael Huey did in that B12 championship game. 

[DefinitelyNotHollywoodColt 12301]

I'm trying to figure out the OP's grouping and it's making me irrationally angry for some reason.

[DefinitelyNotHollywoodColt 12301]

also worth mentioning, no one could tackle roy williams in college. it was like a high schooler playing (insert new name for game where everybody tries to tackle one dude) against toddlers.

[Slacks 6791]

I'm partial to Coach Bo Davis.

[Dennis Taylor 18706]

[Fondren & Main 6667]

Daje Johnson.

[Domedriver 655]

And here I was hoping for some Freak Nasty stories!

[cochamps 1876]

2 hours ago, Make em eat Taco Bell said:

he's faster and stronger than Nobis and very productive on the field, not just physical metrics. 

No.  Not stronger, not that close.

[ImissWallyPryor 9045]

2 hours ago, Dennis Taylor said:

* Not named Nobis

…or Johnson.