As the NFL season winds down this weekend with the Super Bowl, the XFL is just beginning.
Several former Longhorns made the upstart league’s final cut, including receiver Jerrod Heard of the Dallas Renegades, offensive lineman Patrick Vahe and defensive end Cedric Reed of the Los Angeles Wildcats, and offensive lineman Kent Perkins of the St. Louis Battlehawks.
Heard, who played for the Longhorns from 2014 to 2018, is far and away the most exciting player among the bunch. Recruited by Texas as a quarterback, he broke Vince Young’s single game record for offense for the Longhorns (527 yards of total offense.) But the honeymoon period between the Longhorn Republic and Heard under center wouldn’t last.
In 2016, he was moved to wide receiver. Despite a few big plays down the stretch of his remaining eligibility, such as a touchdown reception in the first of a double overtime win over the Kansas State Wildcats in 2017, his playing career seemingly stalled from there.
Heard was drafted in the opening rounds of the inaugural 2020 XFL Draft.
Making the cut and representing the Longhorns were WR Jerrod Heard (Dallas Renegades), OL Patrick Vahe and DE Cedric Reed (Los Angeles Wildcats) and OL Kent Perkins (St. Louis Battlehawks). #HookEm https://t.co/AoTMfVTbYo
— Danny Davis (@aasdanny) January 27, 2020
WHAT THE WISE MEN ARE SAYING ABOUT THE LONGHORNS
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NEWS FROM ELSEWHERE IN LONGHORN LAND AND THE BIG 12
- It’s rivalry day for Texas women’s basketball (13-6), as the Longhorns prepare to take on the Oklahoma Sooners (10-9 in Norman tonight. Texas is currently on a four-game conference win streak and hopes to capitalize on a down Sooners squad. Tip off is at 7 p.m. Central.
IT'S GAMEDAY!
— Texas Women's Basketball (@TexasWBB) January 28, 2020
Oklahoma
7 p.m. CT
Norman, Okla.
Fox Sports Oklahoma
https://t.co/Dcwizd60sl
https://t.co/wCPwCrWhPn
https://t.co/XdDCLNY8Ge
#AllForTexas pic.twitter.com/Zyn7Qelg7v
- Have we mentioned how Texas baseball practice is officially underway? No? Well, it is. The Longhorns are set to kick off their 2020 season against the Rice Owls in Houston on Feb. 14.
Right around the corner. #HookEm pic.twitter.com/HQ7XupLjw5
— Texas Longhorns (@TexasLonghorns) January 19, 2020
- As the Longhorns continue to flounder, West Virginia Mountaineers men’s basketball climbed four spots to No. 11 in the latest USA Today Coaches Poll and two spots to No. 12 in the Associated Press top-25. Makes sense, given how they blew out Texas last week.
.@WVUHoops moves up in AP and Coaches Top 25 polls after two blow-out wins. #hailwv https://t.co/uhdXFR8OXC pic.twitter.com/TgDIwMJAR5
— The Smoking Musket (@smokingmusket) January 27, 2020
- 247Sports ranks Texas quarterback Sam Ehlinger among the top 2021 NFL Draft prospects. From 247Sports: “Ehlinger was draft eligible this season, but chose to return for his senior campaign. The Austin native completed 65.2 percent of his passes this season for 3,663 to go along with 32 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He was also an enormous factor on the ground, per usual. Ehlinger rushed 163 times for 663 yards (4.1 average) and added seven scores in that department. For his final season in Austin, Ehlinger will have a new offensive coordinator in former Ohio State passing game coordinator Mike Yurcich. This is a make or break season for both the Longhorns and Ehlinger as he looks to make himself a sure fire first round pick. The Sept. 12 contest at LSU will go a long way in determining that.”
Taking a look at the top-10 draft-eligible quarterbacks for 2021:https://t.co/DvSzvkS7SO pic.twitter.com/HIZu3PYa4H
— 247Sports (@247Sports) January 25, 2020