Texas DE Breckyn Hager to honor Tommy Nobis, wear No. 60 vs Oklahoma

Once again, Texas Longhorns senior defensive end Breckyn Hager will honor Longhorn legend Tommy Nobis.

On Saturday, when Texas takes the field at the Cotton Bowl for the Red River Showdown with the Oklahoma Sooners, Hager, originally No. 44, will honor Nobis and suit up in his retired No. 60 jersey, the school announced on Friday.

A former All-American in Austin and the first-ever Longhorn to be selected No. 1 overall in the NFL Draft, Nobis passed away on December 13, 2017. Exactly two weeks later, with the blessing of Nobis’ widow, Lynn Nobis, Hager donned the No. 60 for the Longhorns’ Texas Bowl win over Missouri, in which he totaled four tackles and one tackle for loss.

Just five games later, Hager, now a team captain, is back to wearing No. 60, and doing so at the Cotton Bowl will make him the first Longhorn to wear No. 60 since his father, Britt, who donned the number in honor of Nobis from 1984-88 in what ended as an All-American career.

Through five games, this season, Hager has totaled 12 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, and provided one of the plays of the game in Texas’ Week 4 win over Kansas State, getting a hand in the passing late to force an incomplete pass, and ultimately, a punt.