New Environment, Same Old Story For Two Tide Transfers

The Texas Longhorns are one of college football's premier programs and many expect them to improve on last season's 5-7 showing. The Burnt Orange has a heavy Alabama influence after hiring former Crimson Tide offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian to be its new head coach in the 2021 offseason.

Ironically for Sarkisian and company, the Longhorns will host the Crimson Tide in Week 2 in one of the more anticipated matchups of the season.

Texas opened up its fall camp this past week and Chip Brown of 247Sports gave an insider's report on the Longhorns, which included a nugget on each of the former Alabama players on the Texas roster.

Brown reported positive news for running back Keilan Robinson and his special teams ability. It appears a player Nick Saban once complimented by saying he "has the juice" will get the first opportunity to return kicks for the Longhorns.

It was a less than complimentary report for the other two Crimson Tide transfers, Agiye Hall and Jahleel Billingsley. Both players appear to be facing obstacles similar to what they saw in Tuscaloosa.

Brown reported Hall has a long way to go and has already been before the Longhorns' leadership council. A report that Hall himself, shockingly, refuted on Twitter.

Get our free mobile app

Brown also reported problems with Billingsley that Alabama fans are familiar with. A team source called him lazy and in Wednesday's practice the tight end took himself out of practice with hamstring tightness.

Jeff Banks said of Billingsley, “He’s shown signs of what he did at Alabama. He’s got to prove it to us the next 30 days that he’s going to continue to grow."

The Longhorns host the Crimson Tide on Sept. 10 at 11 a.m. CT. It remains to be seen how much the Alabama defense will have to deal with their former teammates in Robinson, Hall and Billingsley. If Brown's reports are valid, the Tide can probably guess, not much.