No. 4 Texas Longhorns sound rested, relaxed heading into season opener vs. Colorado State
New haircuts, team bonding mark the end of training camp as possible 17-game schedule awaits
Quinn Ewers and Michael Taaffe showed up to the Texas Longhorns’ press conference on Monday with tight buzzcuts that would delight your friendly, neighborhood Army recruiter.
Taaffe said he was in the weight room with Ewers and Trey Owens when the starting quarterback pondered a question.
“Quinn was kind of just like, ‘You know, if I get a buzz cut, will y’all?,” Taaffe said. “And I was like, yeah, screw it. Why not? Senior year.”
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Haircuts and golf swings were the talk of Monday’s first press conference. Multiple players got fresh cuts while they were still doubled over laughing over running back Jaydon Blue’s golf swing last Friday during a team outing to Top Golf.
The fourth-ranked Longhorns sound relaxed and ready for Saturday’s season opener against the Colorado State Rams, possibly the first step on what could be a maximum 17-game season.
Let’s just say Blue won’t be joining the PGA Tour anytime soon. Or LIV. Or maybe even Putt-Putt.
Taaffe won’t be doing any runway modeling, either. “It's season time. It's senior year. Time to go win a natty,” Taaffe said. “So just whatever. I think it looks good, but you know, my girlfriend says otherwise.”
Ewers’ clean look Monday is what he had last year when the Horns won the Big 12. That mullet Ewers had when he arrived in 2022 is so 2022. “I probably had it a year too long,” Ewers said.
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Team functions and locker room interactions take on a whole new meaning this season. It’s widely expected to be Ewers’ last at UT. He didn’t exactly downplay that notion with reporters on Monday. Ewers is one of three Horns projected to be first-round draft picks in 2025.
So he enjoys every minute of every day while in Austin.
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“When I was younger, I think I’d rather just, you know, be at home by myself,” Ewers said. “But now, like I’ve been saying this whole time, I’m just more comfortable within the program. So being out with the guys at Top Golf, or whatever it is, it’s gotten a lot more fun for me.”
When players have a close bond, there is more accountability. There isn’t a need for Ewers or another team captain to step up and call out mistakes or slippage.
“I mean, I don’t think necessarily you need it,” Ewers said. “Every team is going to be different, year in and year out. But if that’s the case, then that’s the case. If we have 20 guys that are all on the same page, spreading the same message, I don’t think there will be an issue.”
The Longhorns already have their first example of what happens without focus. An unranked Georgia Tech team knocked off No. 10 Florida State over the weekend in Dublin, Ireland, via a game-winning field goal.
The Rams went 5-7 last season but never take any opponent too lightly.
“We don’t really need to see an example like that to know that,” defensive end Barryn Sorrell said. “We already know that any given week that team is going to be out there trying to win.”
