The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
What it means to be a Longhorn: Seth Johnston
08.20.2019 | Baseball, T-Association
Read the fifth in a 14-part series on the Hall of Honor class of 2019.
This is the fifth of a 14-part series celebrating the Hall of Honor class of 2019. In these first-person vignettes, each inductee shares his/her thoughts on 'What it means to be a Longhorn.' Thirteen former University of Texas student-athletes and one former UT System administrator will be inducted on Friday, Aug. 30 into the Hall of Honor. Tickets for the Hall of Honor banquet are available at TexasSports.com/tickets.
Seth Johnston Hall of Honor bio
The very first college football game that I ever went to was the game that Ricky Williams broke the rushing record at DKR against Texas A&M in 1998. At the time I wasn't really a Longhorn fan, but that game turned me into one.
Growing up in Boerne back then, almost everybody was an Aggie fan. My best friend in high school ended up going to Texas A&M to play baseball. Growing up as a native Texan, you pay attention to Texas, Texas A&M and, because my mom was from Lubbock and my dad played football at Texas Tech, I also paid some attention to Texas Tech.
But when I came on my visit to Texas, it really was a no-brainer. I was ready to come here and it was not even a competition with some of the other schools. I had always grown up being a fan of athletics throughout the state of Texas, but I wasn't a diehard Longhorn or anything. When I went on my visit and after Coach Tommy Harmon came to my house, there was no question where I wanted to go. I take a lot of pride in being a Texan and there simply wasn't a better place to go than The University of Texas.
During my time at Texas, obviously winning the National Championship in 2002 and 2005 clearly stick out. But some of my favorite memories are from beating Ole Miss in the Super Regional my senior year to go to Omaha. That's probably one of the proudest moments of my baseball career. I also remember walking off the field in Tallahassee my sophomore year when we beat Florida State in the Super Regional to go to Omaha, giving Coach Augie Garrido the all-time Division I wins record. That was a really cool moment.
During my freshman year, and we still joke about it to this day, there was a very specific conversation I had with Coach Harmon in the third base coaching box during a practice. He called me over and we had a very direct conversation. It was a springboard for me to go build on and grow as a person and baseball player.
Some of my favorite memories, believe it or not, were 5 a.m. weights in the fall. We always said we won all those postseason games in the fall with our 5 a.m. workouts. I can promise you that in those four years, there was not another team in the country that worked as hard as we did in the weight room. I remember coming to Texas and our very first practice was way faster than any game I had ever played in. I remember the intensity. If you don't go full throttle, it's onto the next guy.
There is a tradition at The University of Texas that is unmatched in college athletics. To be a part of that, and to be represented with this particular Hall of Honor class, is special.
When I was at The University of Texas from the Fall of 2001 to the Spring of 2005, it wasn't just the baseball program that was great. The men's and women's swimming and diving teams were incredible. Our football team was incredible. Our basketball team was incredible. Women's soccer was incredible. Across the board, every sport was unbelievable and there's no doubt in my mind that each sport fed off each other. It was a very special time, not just in my life, but for the history of the University. That period of time was as good as it has ever been.
To be a Longhorn is something that, over the years, you recognize how important it is to you and to other people. Now I have three sons and they are going to have a very different upbringing than I did, because they are going to be raised in Austin and be right in the thick of it. They are going to be able to see that tradition first-hand because they are Longhorn fans.
For me personally, I met my wife through a teammate of mine, Buck Cody. If I don't come to Texas and I'm not a Longhorn, then my life is in a totally different place. Whether it's my marriage to my wife, Emily, my kids, or the job that I now have – all of these things come back to being a Longhorn. Every single part of my life can be traced back to my four years at Texas. I don't know what else can be more special than that. It has become a huge part of my identity, that I'm associated with The University of Texas and that I'm a Longhorn.
