Tag: ut schedule

Brandon Belt Looks For Bounce Back Year In 2020

Former Texas Longhorn Brandon Belt is looking for a bounce back season in 2020 for the San Francisco Giants.

Former Longhorn and current Giants’ first baseman Brandon Belt is preparing to head into his 10th season in the majors, all of which have been with the Giants. Belt received his call to the big leagues in 2011, appearing in 63 games while batting .225 with nine home runs and 18 runs batted in at the age of 23. Outside of an injury-riddled season in 2014, that would be the fewest games that Belt would play in.

In 2019, the former Longhorn and Nacogdoches native appeared in a career-high 156 games that he also matched in the 2016 season. Belt batted just .234 with 127 strikeouts to only 83 walks. He added 17 HRs and 57 RBIs. Looking for a bounce back season, Belt will report to spring training for the Giants in Scottsdale, Arizona on February 16th.

The Giants will be looking to overtake the two teams that finished above them in 2019, the Los Angeles Dodgers and Arizona Diamondbacks. The Giants finished with a combined record of 16-22 against those two clubs. For Belt, he is trying to bring the Giants back to contention. The team hasn’t had a playoff berth since 2016 and haven’t won the pennant since 2014 when they won the World Series.

Belt spent 2008-2009 with the Texas Longhorns. He decided to go to school over starting his baseball career when he was selected in the 11th round by the Boston Red Sox straight out of Lufkin High School. Belt spent 2007 with San Jacinto college where again he was drafted in the 11th round by the Atlanta Braves. He transferred to Texas where he would spend the next two seasons.

As a member of the Longhorns team in 2008, the team finished with a 39-22 record and was eliminated in the NCAA Regionals after falling to Rice 7-4. The following year Belt transitioned to first base and gave up pitching due to his shoulder. The Longhorns finished as runner-up in the 2009 College World Series. He was drafted by the San Francisco Giants in the fifth round of the 2009 MLB Draft.

Brandon Belt’s MLB Accolades

  • National League All-Star (2016)
  • Two-time Wold Series Champion (2012, 2014)
  • Career Batting Average .261
  • Career Home Runs: 129
  • Career Runs Batted In: 472
  • Career On Base Percentage: .354

Pitcher Andre Deplantier II Wearing Cast On Non-Throwing Hand

Texas freshman pitcher and infielder Andre Deplantier II was seen with a soft cast on his non-throwing hand.

The Texas Longhorns baseball team is only a matter of weeks away from their season opening series against Rice. Freshman Andre Deplantier II was seen with a soft cast on his non-throwing hand according to Dustin McComas of Orange Bloods.

The fractured hamate bone injury might push Deplantier to focus on just pitching for the immediate future. According to his Texas bio, Deplantier was a force on the mound and in the infield.

Lettered in every season at Summer Creek High School under head coach D.J. Wilson…named the 2019 Summer Creek baseball team MVP and Pitcher of the Year…unanimous first team All-District pitcher and second team third baseman…helped lead the team to the most wins in school history and the first playoff series win…recorded a 9-0 record in 10 starts with 90 strikeouts and batted .304 with 33 RBI as a senior…played third, shortstop, and pitched…named first team All-District pitcher as a junior and senior and second team All-District at third base in both of those seasons…named to the Perfect Game World Wood Bat Championship All-Tournament team as both a hitter and pitcher on three occasions (2016, 2017, 2018)…member of the National Honor Society.

With the injury to Deplantier, recovery will be key to get him back on the diamond and help bring Texas back to the top of the college baseball world in the Big 12.

Texas Longhorns Miss Out On Baseball America’s Top 25

Baseball America has released their preseason top 25, with three Big 12 teams in the polls the Texas Longhorns miss making the cut.

Baseball season is almost upon us and the Texas Longhorns are looking to return to Omaha in 2020 for the College World Series. The Longhorns didn’t have the best regular season a year ago but they were able to finish with the best conference record. It marked the first time since 2015 that Texas would get to Omaha.

With the success of last season, the Longhorns are looking to repeat as conference champions. They finished the regular season without being ranked in the top 25. Baseball America has come out with their preseason top 25 rankings and the Longhorns didn’t make the cut.

There are three teams from the Big 12 ranked in the preseason rankings with Texas Tech (6), Oklahoma State (16) and Oklahoma (19). The Longhorns will need another 2018 like season to take down three of the best teams in the country to build upon last year’s success.

WATCH: 2021 Texas OLB commit showcases impressive footwork

Four-star 2021 Texas commit Derrick Harris Jr. showcases impressive footwork.

It’s within the first few weeks of the offseason, where excitement begins to increase over the young players committed to making a difference at the University of Texas.

Outside linebacker and edge rusher Derrick Harris Jr. is an intriguing commitment in the Longhorns 2021 recruiting class. Harris is recognized at New Caney High School as an explosive freak athlete and threatening blitzer who recorded 181 tackles, 38.5 tackles for loss and 8.5 sacks over the past two seasons.

The importance of quick footwork in football players can’t be stressed enough. It impacts every change of direction, sprint, block or tackle. This shouldn’t be an issue for Harris when he arrives on the Forty Acres, as evidenced by the training video below.

Harris is a four-star recruit that is ranked by 247Sports as the No. 12 OLB in the nation and No. 29 overall player in the state of Texas. Adding bulk to his frame could lead to a bright collegiate career in Austin.

How to watch, listen, or stream Texas Longhorns vs Central Michigan basketball

Everything you need to know to catch the Texas Longhorns basketball team take on the Central Michigan Chippewas

The Texas Longhorns basketball team looks to continue its winning ways as they are set to take on the Central Michigan Chippewas this Saturday. Texas is sporting an 8-1 record and riding high on five straight wins. Though the record looks nice, it hasn’t been enough to rejoin the top-25. Close wins against weak teams don’t inspire much confidence in voters, and that has been reflected in the polls. At this point, Texas just has to keep stringing the wins together and plan on making noise come tournament time.

Nov 21, 2019; New York, NY, USA; Texas Longhorns forward Kai Jones (22) shoots the ball against Georgetown Hoyas forward Jamorko Pickett (1) and center Qudus Wahab (34) and forward Josh LeBlanc (23) during the second half at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Here is everything you need to know to catch the Longhorns in action:

Date: Saturday, December 14

Time: 1 p.m. CT

Location: Frank Erwin Center, Austin, Texas

TV: Longhorn Network

Stream:  WatchESPN

Radio: TexasSports.com/audio —Austin 104.9FM, 99.3FM, 98.5FM, 1260AM; Dallas 1080AM; El Paso 600AM; Houston 790AM; San Antonio 1200AM — Spanish: Austin 105.3FM; Dallas 990AM, 99.9FM

How to watch, listen, or stream Texas Longhorns vs. TAMU Aggies basketball game

How to watch, listen, or stream Texas Longhorns vs. TAMU Aggies basketball game

On Saturday afternoon, the rivalry is renewed on the basketball court as the Texas Longhorns travel to Texas A&M to take on the Aggies. The Longhorns are 7-1 but on the outside looking into the top-25. A win here would extend Texas’ record to 8-1 and make it tougher to keep it unranked. The Aggies are only 3-4 and are in the midst of a three-game losing streak – dropping games to Fairfield, Temple, and Harvard.

Texas has been led by junior guard Matt Coleman (13.8 points, 4.9 assists per game) with senior Andrew Jones (12.4 ppg) coming off the bench for an offensive spark.

Here is everything you need to know to catch the Longhorns’ matchup with the Aggies:

Date: Sunday, December 8

Time: 2 p.m. CT

Location:  Dickies Arena, Fort Worth, Texas

TV: ABC

Stream:  ABC App

Radio: TexasSports.com/audio —Austin 104.9FM, 99.3FM, 98.5FM, 1260AM; Dallas 1080AM; El Paso 600AM; Houston 790AM; San Antonio 1200AM — Spanish: Austin 105.3FM; Dallas 990AM, 99.9FM

O/U: 125

Spread: Texas -10

(Odds via BetMGM. Access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated 11/30 at 10:45 a.m. ET. )

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

Watch: Former Longhorn Jaxson Hayes viciously posterizes Cheik Diallo

Former Texas Longhorn Jaxson Hayes threw it down with ferocity in the New Orleans Pelicans’ matchup with the Phoenix Suns

Wow, Jaxson Hayes. He really just doesn’t quit. Since his time at Texas up to now, his rookie season in the NBA, Hayes won’t stop putting opponents on posters. His latest victim is Cheik Diallo during the New Orleans Pelicans’ close loss to the Phoenix Suns. Hayes brought his head above the rim and soared to the basket, throwing it down with ferocity – Diallo just happened to be in his way.

Hayes finished the game with 17 points and 5 rebounds in 33 minutes of play. He averaged 10 points, 5 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks in his only season at Texas. Check out the demoralizing poster here:

Texas basketball beats UAB 67-57: on to the Aggies

Texas Longhorns basketball beats UAB 67-57: on to the Aggies

On Tuesday night, the Texas Longhorns basketball team improved its’ record to 7-1 with a 10-point win over the UAB Blazers. Texas shot the ball well, rebounding from a disappointing shooting performance against McNeese State over the weekend. Texas barely escaped that game with a 73-71 win and shot only 29% from three and 50% from the free-throw line.

Against the UAB Blazers, the Longhorns corrected that as they went 44% from three and 72.7% from the line. Andrew Jones was the star for Texas, going for 20 points, 2 rebounds, and 2 assists in 27 minutes. He set his career-high as he hit 6 three-pointers and provided a surge to the Longhorns’ offense.

Up next for Texas is Texas A&M on Sunday. The Aggies are 3-4 coming off a loss against the 2-6 Fairfield Stags. On that topic, if it seems the Longhorns’ schedule is a little softer this year, it’s because it is. Texas currently has two ranked teams on the schedule – No. 2 Kansas and No. 18 Baylor. The out of conference schedule is riddled with teams that don’t project to make the tournament like McNeese State, Central Michigan, and Prairie View.

For Texas to secure a top-6 seed in the tournament, they need to minimize losses to teams like that and come out with at least one upset over Baylor or Kansas.

Look: Texas A&M Twitter reacts to getting trounced by LSU 50-7

Texas A&M Aggies Twitter reacts to getting the doors blown off by LSU 50-7

It seems like just yesterday that the LSU Tigers barely scraped by the Texas Longhorns 45-38 in the second game of the season. Fast forward to this Saturday night and LSU is facing off against one of the other Texas teams, but this time it was no contest. The Texas A&M Aggies just got absolutely demolished by LSU 50-7 in a game that was so uncompetitive it would have been boring to watch if not for all the Twitter reactions. The Aggies put up a whopping 169 total yards and one score on the Tigers’ defense after Sam Ehlinger and Co. went for 530 yards and 38 points.

Enjoy diving into the salt mine.

Yes, thank goodness!

Who was the MVP in Texas’ convincing win over Texas Tech?

There are more than a few deserving names, but who was the Offensive MVP in the Texas Longhorns’ win over the Texas Tech Red Raiders?

After walloping the Texas Tech Red Raiders 49-24, the Texas Longhorns are closing out a disappointing season on a high note. Any team that puts up 49 points in a game will have a bevy of options for MVP, and that is not untrue here. Quarterback Sam Ehlinger had an efficient 431 total yards and 3 total touchdowns on 19/27 passing, and former third-string QB-turned-RB Roschon Johnson had 105 yards and three touchdowns on the ground in the best performance of his career.

While both Johnson and Ehlinger are valid choices, my pick is wide receiver Devin Duvernay. Duvernay has stepped up in a big way as a senior, posting monstrous season totals of 103 receptions for 1294 yards and 9 total touchdowns. Saturday’s performance was the cherry on top of a great season, as the speedy wideout went for 199 yards and a touchdown on 6 catches, including this beautiful 75-yard touchdown from Sam Ehlinger:

While Duvernay was questionably snubbed from the final watch-list for the Biletnikoff Award, which is given each year to the best wide receiver in college football, he has definitely seen a rise in draft stock. Duvernay’s top-end speed, reliable hands, and quick feet will make him a very useful tool in the NFL from day 1.