The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
11.25.2014 | Football
Seniors reflect on their careers at Texas
A group of 32 current or former senior players will be recognized for Senior Night prior to Texas' game with TCU on Thursday. Five of them shared thoughts about their time at Texas, their favorite memories, what they'll miss most and more.
Senior RB Malcolm Brown
On what it has been like to play alongside the other seniors: It's been very fun. Coming in with these guys and spending so much time with them, you definitely build a relationship. I consider these guys like my brothers now. I've met pretty much everybody's family and spend so much time with them. It's been a great experience to play with them and build a relationship with them.
On playing for Coach Strong: That's definitely been great. Coach Strong and the staff that he's hired, they've done a tremendous job of taking us in. I feel like we did a great job adjusting to them and adjusting to the things that they wanted. I always say Coach Strong is a player's coach. He's very easy to work with.
On running out of the tunnel for the last time: Man, wow. My emotions will probably be all over the place. For me, this is definitely a special place to be. I've enjoyed every single bit of it. There is no telling, I might mess around and shed a tear (laughs). Seeing my parents out there will be big as well. There will be a lot of emotions.
On what he will miss the most: Honestly, I'll just miss the guys and doing stuff off of the field. I'll miss hanging around those guys and really just college football. They always say the outside world is all business, and if I'm blessed enough to make it to the league, they say it's more business up there. College football is all about hanging with your boys, hanging with your brothers that you've gained over the years. I'll miss the excitement of college football and going out and playing for over 100,000 fans. It'll definitely be missed.
Senior CB Quandre Diggs
On what it has been like to play alongside the other seniors: It's been great. We've been through a lot together, and we've continued to battle through it all. I admire those guys and these friendships that will last forever. You'll never get these times back, so I always try to cherish these moments. It'll just be another great opportunity for us to go out and have that bowl game, also. I love those guys. We've been through a lot together, so it's very important to us that we finish out strong.
On playing for Coach Strong: It's been a tremendous opportunity and a tremendous blessing. That guy came into our life and turned a lot of things around. We admire him. He works us to death, but we love him to death. He's always joking around, and that's what you want in a coach. You want someone that can get on your tail, but at the same time, he can get down to a personal level with you. It's very important for people to see that and for people to understand about him as a man.
On running out of the tunnel for the last time: I think it'll be a lot of mixed emotions. It'll be one of those feelings that you'll be happy that you had this opportunity to enjoy these things. I know I'll feel a lot of mixed emotions, but when I see my mom and my family out there at the 50-yard line, I might crack a smile. Then I'll run those guys off the field so we can get the game started.
On his favorite memory from his UT career: My favorite memory will always be beating A&M in that game my freshman year. That was one of my best games I've ever played here. Being an 18-year-old kid at the time and just having the opportunity to go out and compete and play in that rivalry was very important for me.
Senior WR John Harris
On what it has been like to play alongside the other seniors: It's been a fun ride, especially this last year. It has been fun to play with Cedric [Reed] and Quandre [Diggs]. It'll be fun to play with all of my friends one final time. I've enjoyed it a lot. Being able to earn their respect this year felt really good.
On playing for Coach Strong: It's been exciting. It's been a ride. We had our ups and downs, but we finally figured it out. We got on a roll here in November, and hopefully we can finish it off the right way.
On running out of the tunnel for the last time: It'll be weird. I've actually been thinking about that – only getting to run out of there one more time. It's always been fun to run out and see the burnt orange crowd. It'll be an exciting and sad moment for me at the same time.
On his favorite memory from his UT career: My favorite memory was playing in the Oklahoma game. I've always been a big fan of that game and wanted to play in it as a kid. Getting to make those two touchdown catches during that game was really big for me. It was a fun experience.
On what he will miss the most: I'll just miss being around all of my friends. There's so much comradery you have with your teammates when you're here for so long. I think that's probably what I'll miss most.
Senior DE Cedric Reed
On what it has been like to play alongside the other seniors: It's been great. It's been really exciting. We've been through a lot together, so there's been quite a few memories we can go back and look at. Those guys are my best friends.
On playing for Coach Strong: It's been a rollercoaster, but it's been a fun one. It has been one that we needed and one that was definitely a fun ride.
On running out of the tunnel for the last time: It will be really emotional. It's one of those things that only happens once in your life. I can't really describe it right now, but I'm thinking it will be really emotional.
On his favorite memory from his UT career: My favorite moment would probably be my first sack against New Mexico State my junior year. I took off running across the field and couldn't stop. It was one of those moments that I felt like I worked so hard to get. To get that sack was fun to celebrate.
On what he will miss the most: I definitely won't miss school (laughs). I'll miss just hanging out with these people and making really good friends and networking. That's what I'll miss the most.
Senior S Mykkele Thompson
On what it has been like to play alongside the other seniors: It has been great. I've built a relationship with these guys for four years. Getting to know them more and being around them has really been a great time. It has made my college experience worthwhile.
On playing for Coach Strong: He's a great coach. He knows what he's talking about, and I'm glad I had the chance and the opportunity to play under him. The whole coaching staff, not just Coach Strong, they're all great people and know what they're talking about.
On running out of the tunnel for the last time: Of course it's going to be emotional. I'll try not to cry.
On his favorite memory from his UT career: Being out there with my friends is the main thing. I can't point out one specific moment, but I'll miss all of the moments I've had playing out there with the guys that I came in here with.
On what he will miss the most: This is one of the last times I'll be out there with the people that I came in here with. After the bowl game, I'll never play with all of them at once on the same team again. That's what I'll miss the most.
