The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Hall of Honor
- Induction:
- 2018
- Class:
- 2018
One of the most powerful, versatile and durable offensive linemen in Longhorns history, Justin Blalock was four-year starter at Texas who set the UT record for consecutive starts with 51. During that span, he was starter for three consecutive bowl wins, including back-to-back Rose Bowls and the 2005 National Championship, a two-time All-American and a three-time first-team All-Big 12 pick. Over his four years, Texas posted a 44-7 record. He capped his career with a senior season that saw him become the Longhorns' 18th unanimous first-team All-American at the time, along with being named a finalist for the Lombardi Award (nation's top lineman) and Outland Trophy (nation's top interior lineman). He was also selected as the inaugural Big 12 Offensive Lineman of the Year in 2006 when he helped Texas gain 162.6 rushing yards per game (34th NCAA), 391.5 total yards per game (23rd NCAA) and score 35.9 points per game (seventh NCAA) en route to a 10-3 record and a win over Iowa in the Alamo Bowl. In 2005, Blalock started all 13 games in the Longhorns' perfect run to the National Championship that culminated in a 41-38 victory over No. 1 USC in the Rose Bowl. He earned third-team All-America honors and was a key part of a line that helped Texas rank first in the nation in scoring offense (50.2 ppg), second in rushing offense (274.9 ypg) and third in total offense (512.1 ypg), while setting school single-season records in both points scored (652) and total yards (6,657). The 652 points broke a 22-year-old NCAA record of 624 points set by Nebraska in 1983, while the 50.2 points per game average marked only the fifth time in NCAA history a team finished the year averaging over 50 points per game up until that time. As a sophomore, he was a first-team All-Big 12 selection and helped Texas rank second in the nation in rushing (299.2 ypg), seventh in total offense (464.4 ypg) and 12th in scoring (35.3 ppg). The Longhorns finished the season 11-1 with a 38-37 win over Michigan in their first appearance in the Rose Bowl, leading to a top-five ranking. Blalock opened his career much like how he finished it, with All-America honors and a 10-win season. He earned first-team Freshman All-America recognition from both the Football Writers Association of America and The Sporting News, helping the UT offense to rank sixth in the nation in scoring (41.0 ppg) and eighth in rushing offense (232.5 ypg). Blalock graduated from Texas in December 2006 with a degree in youth and community studies and a minor in business and was drafted with the seventh pick in the second round (39th overall) by the Atlanta Falcons in the 2007 NFL Draft. Over the next eight seasons, he once again showed his durability by starting all of the 125 games in which he played and at least 14 games each year for the Falcons. He graduated from UT with a degree in Youth and Community Studies prior to his final bowl game in December 2006. Following football, Blalock became the co-founder of a web community for teachers, coaches, and administrators to network and find employment. A native of Plano, Texas, he was inducted into the Plano ISD Hall of Fame in 2013.
