HornSports Staff
HornSports.com
- Joined
- Oct 20, 2013
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- 2,469
“There’s still time.â€
This sentiment has been preached by the coaching staff, by the players, by the fans, by everyone. And the truth is, we do still have time. Maybe not in the season, but Strong has time. The defensive improvements are noticeable. The team is growing together and having a greater appreciation for the sport. We have time to be the team that we are fully capable of being. We went back to basics, and we’ll need to reinvent ourselves. There is still time.
While watching Tech play in their flashy uniforms, one of many they’ve sported these past two years, I noticed something: we haven’t strayed from tradition. Coach Strong didn’t come into Texas attempting to change who we are substantially, but to prove that we can be a traditional team, with traditional values, and win. We don’t rely on new uniforms, fancy firework shows, or let’s face it, exploiting the attractiveness of a coach to play the game. Strong is no fuss.
In a day and age where flash seemingly overpowers tradition, I’m happy knowing that we still hold our essential truths. We don’t need the extra. We don’t need the style because we have the substance.
Our players will leave the team being stronger men physically and mentally. Our team wants to lead us to victory no matter how many jerseys we have to choose from. These values mean that our Longhorns won’t be pasted across the headlines for abuse, for assault, for robbery, and Strong wants to make sure of it. I would choose that type of strength over sponsors - substance over soap opera.
Basketball season is upon us, my friends. Our men’s basketball team’s performance last year was another example of the skeptics counting us out, and the Longhorns proving them wrong. Our ranking suggests that our time as a basketball powerhouse has come. We are ready. I am ready. Everyone loves an underdog story, and our team last year provided just that.
One could argue that the guys on the basketball team opted to stay another year because their draft potential wasn’t at the top of the food chain, but I like to think that the players realize the legacy that they could leave behind. Texas has had many good years as a basketball team, but now is the opportunity to be one of the greats and set up the era for the coming years.
It seems to me that every one of our sports teams got a kick in the pants this year. We are performing at a level that seemed unlikely in past years, save for volleyball. I think Strong’s presence has something to do with it. That’s not to say that the other coaches haven’t inspired their players in their own right, but a no-nonsense attitude is exactly what these players need to compete at an elite level.
I am a college student. I know how difficult it is to stay on the straight and narrow constantly. I understand that the pull of debauchery is far more appealing than the pull of the essay due in two hours. I can’t imagine the pressure that these students and athletes are put under, but I do understand how much easier it is to quit. Our athletes have taken on a journey that is unlike mine, but are doing so with dignity and perseverance that makes me continually proud to be a Longhorn.
This week I will be watching the game from the Renaissance Faire in Houston accompanied by a man dressed as a squire that I will try not to order around. Take time this weekend to enjoy the game and how far we’ve risen, no matter the outcome. Hook ‘em!
