The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Hall of Honor
- Induction:
- 2016
Sport: Football
Inducted: 2016
One of only two Thorpe Award winners as the nation's top defensive back in UT history, Aaron Ross earned the award and was first-team All-America in 2006. He also was a key member of the 2005 National Championship team that defeated No. 1 USC, 41-38. Ross, a two-time Super Bowl Champion with the New York Giants, is one of only a handful of Longhorns to win both a National and NFL Championship. Playing in 51 career collegiate games, he helped Texas to 44 wins in that span, including three bowl wins (two Rose Bowls), and three Top-15 rankings (two Top-Five), while totaling 205 tackles, 33 PBU, 10 INTs, three forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries. He was also the Longhorns' top punt returner for his last three seasons, returning 76 career punts (No. 6 on UT's all-time list) for 893 yards (No. 5 on UT's all-time list) and three TDs (T-No. 1 on UT's all-time list). As a senior in 2006, Ross was named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year by multiple outlets and was a unanimous first-team All-Big 12 performer. He started all 13 games and finished third on the team in tackles with 80, to go along with six interceptions, 19 PBU (T-No. 7 on UT's single-season list), three TFL, one sack, three forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries. He also returned 23 punts for 240 yards and a TD. That year, Ross had two interceptions and returned a fumble for a TD to seal a victory over Oklahoma, while his forced fumble late at Nebraska set up the game-winning score. He also tallied six PBU against Iowa State that still stand as the single-game record at Texas. He finished the season pulling down a key interception in the Longhorns' 26-24 Alamo Bowl win over Iowa, leading to Defensive MVP honors. He was also one of two team MVPs for the season with Colt McCoy and was chosen as a team captain. During the undefeated National Championship season of 2005, Ross posted 500 punt return yards, which are the third-most in a season on UT record, including two touchdowns. His 14.7 yards per return average is tied for fourth on the single-season list. He also tied for the team lead with three interceptions, while ranking third in PBU (nine) and seventh in tackles (62). Ross played in all 12 games of his sophomore season, which featured an 11-1 record, a Top-Five final ranking and Texas' first BCS Bowl win in the Rose Bowl over Michigan. Following his collegiate career, Ross was selected 20th overall by the New York Giants in the 2007 NFL Draft. He was a member of two Super Bowl Champion teams with the Giants in the 2007 and 2011 seasons, while also playing for the Jacksonville Jaguars and Baltimore Ravens before his career was cut short by injuries. Prior to that, he played in 83 career games with 52 starts, including 24 in the Giants' Super Bowl seasons (15, 2011/9, 2007), while posting seven of his 11 career interceptions those years (4, 2011/3, 2007). Ross was an all-state selection out of John Tyler High School in Tyler, Texas, after originally attending Fox Tech High School in San Antonio. He is married to former Longhorn track & field star and four-time Olympic gold medalist, Sanya Richards-Ross.
