Texas DT Alfred Collins out for Louisiana-Monroe game

After the Texas Longhorns suffered a handful of injuries during the first scrimmage of preseason camp, including season-ending injuries suffered by junior wide receiver Isaiah Neyor and redshirt senior offensive guard Junior Angilau, all but one injured player is available for Saturday’s season opener against the Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks.

The only player who is out is junior defensive tackle Alfred Collins, Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian said, although Collins was able to practice on Thursday.

“We’re excited about what it looks like for him coming out of this ballgame, but we won’t play him this week,” Sarkisian said.

Ranked as the No. 2 strong-side defensive end in the 2020 recruiting class, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings, Collins showed promise as a true freshman, recording 18 tackles (11 solo), two tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, and two pass breakups, as well as a remarkable interception in the Alamo Bowl against Colorado. In 2021, Collins made four starts and again had flashes of strong play with 25 tackles (15 solo), five tackles for loss, two sacks, one forced fumble, and four quarterback hurries.

So the expectation coming into this season was for Collins to have the breakout campaign typical for third-year players. Prior to the injury, however, it was redshirt sophomore Vernon Broughton who received praise from Sarkisian for emerging in preseason camp.

While the injury does represent a setback for Collins, especially losing reps over multiple critical weeks of practice, he’ll still have a chance to serve as a key piece of the deep interior defensive for the Longhorns when he makes his season debut.