Tag: Greg Abbott

Texas Governor Greg Abbott signs NIL bill to soon become law

The state of Texas is in the forefront of the NIL fight by signing historic bill into law

According to polling last year, I’m in the majority of people that support student-athletes being able to profit off their name and likeness. Paying college athletes is not a new conversation and dates back decades. The case that sticks in my head the most was O’Bannon v. NCAA in 2009. While I won’t go into detail, I just wanted to highlight how long this fight has been going on. Today marks an important day in NCAA history with the signing of House Bill 2804, which will undoubtedly have a ripple effect across the states.

Texas A&M and Texas aren’t always rivals when it comes to the well-being of students, and they both had an integral role in helping push the legislation through. Also, as much as teams like to say NIL is not the deciding factor, it’s still a heck of a selling point to have a solid NIL collective system when the bill becomes law in July.

I’m excited to see where this lands in the next four or five years. Hopefully, the schools also provide many financial resources to help these young adults have helpful information when dealing with taxes and contracts.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Jarrett Johnson on Twitter: @whosnextsports1.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=7]

[mm-video type=playlist id=01fvdd4pnb49trk727 player_id=01f5k5y2jb3twsvdg4 image=]

Longhorns’ Derek Kerstetter ranked the top power five pass blocker

Pro Football Focus (PFF) has ranked Derek Kerstetter as the best returning pass blocker in the power five conferences.

The Texas Longhorns will have a new man at center this season with the loss of Zach Shackelford heading to the NFL. Derek Kerstetter spent his first three seasons at right tackle. He has started 28 games and played in a total of 37. He will now move to the center for his final year on the Forty Acres. The position change couldn’t have come at a worse time due to the pandemic. He hasn’t been able to get time in with Sam Ehlinger as they work on the snap exchanges.

Recently Pro Football Focus released their pass blocking grades for returning offensive lineman with Kerstetter at the top of the list.

The Longhorns new center comes in just ahead of Penei Sewell who is viewed as the best offensive lineman in college football and a top five draft lock for the 2021 NFL Draft. Kerstetter could find his way into some NFL Draft conversations Along with Samuel Cosmi, Texas has a solid duo of lineman who could make their way to the NFL through the draft. Cosmi is viewed as a first round draft pick. They hype surrounding Kerstetter isn’t there yet but a strong season could change all of that.

The duo of Kerstetter and Cosmi give the Longhorns the only returning duo in the power five conferences with passing grades of 85 or higher. This duo should give the Longhorns offense confidence to allow Sam Ehlinger to attack defenses in the air with two guys who are the best at protecting the quarterback.

 

Governor Abbot bumps up stadium capacity to 50 percent

Texas Governor Greg Abbott has bumped up stadium capacity guidelines as part of the phase three plan to reopen Texas.

The college football season is just a little over three months away and the COVID-19 situation seems to be changing by the day. Previously Texas Governor Greg Abbott made the ruling that stadiums could operate at 25 percent capacity. That happened a little over a week ago, now the Governor has upped the limit.

Abbott’s order for “Phase 3” of the state’s reopening covers professional, collegiate, and other similar sporting events, effective immediately.

“Stadiums, whether it be where the Mavericks play or the Texas Rangers play or the Dallas Cowboys play, will be able to seat [at] 50% capacity,” Abbott told KDFW-TV in Dallas late Wednesday.’ – per Dallas Morning News

The maximum capacity of Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium is just over 100,000. With the new phase of the reopening of Texas, DKR could host 50,000 rather than the 25,000 of the previous ruling by the Governor. While COVID-19 hasn’t gone away, it feels like with the current trend that 100% capacity could be possible by the time the Longhorns kick off their season against the South Florida Bulls on September 5th.

The Longhorns have already started to put a plan in place for a return for their student athletes in preparation for the upcoming football season. Texas Athletic Director Chris Del Conte stated that the students would return in two waves.

  • First wave: upperclassmen who live off campus will arrive on June 8th and workouts start on June 15th.
  • Second wave: underclassmen living on campus arrive June 15th and workouts start June 22nd.

I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again – the health and safety of our student-athletes is absolutely our top priority. All of the workouts will be held outside at Denius Fields, three days a week and in small groups. No other athletics facilities will be used at this time. Everything will be closely monitored by our Sports Medicine and Strength & Conditioning staffs and follow a stringent set of health and safety guidelines. It’s another positive step toward the 2020 Football season, and we’re extremely excited about that. – Texas AD Chris Del Conte via Forty Acres Insider