The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
08.24.2019 | Baseball, T-Association
Read the ninth in a 14-part series on the Hall of Honor class of 2019.
This is the ninth 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.
Andre Robertson Hall of Honor bio
I'm from a little town called Orange, Texas, right on the order on the border of Texas and Louisiana. My eyes were always set on going to Lamar University in Beaumont. I didn't really know too much about The University of Texas, until I made a trip to Austin for the state track meet when I was a senior in high school. I was a high jumper, and when I was there Coach Cliff Gustafson asked me to talk with him and visit Disch-Falk Field.
My mind had always been set on playing at Lamar. Coach Gustafson and I talked about the Longhorn program and what it would be like to play at Texas, and it didn't take too much to change my mind. I saw that turf field at Disch-Falk, which was state-of-the-art back then, and it was awesome. I thought then and there if Coach Gustafson was to offer me a scholarship, then that's where I was going to go. So, I felt great pride in being offered and becoming a Longhorn.
I'll never forget, I arrived at the field with my high school letterman jacket on. One of the first things to happen was Charlie Proske, who was an All-American center fielder and had been on the 1975 championship team, telling me, "Nice jacket. You know that doesn't mean anything here, right?" I knew I had some work to do, and I've never shied away from that. I worked hard. I was actually a shortstop in high school, but I learned to play second base and ended up being a three-year starter at second. Hearing comments like that just made me want to prove more that I belonged at that school.
Coach Bill Bethea and the rest of the coaching staff was a big part of that. I worked a lot with Coach Bethea, and he helped me with my move across to second base. That work allowed me to be a starter from my freshman season until I was drafted as a junior. The players and coaches saw my determination and all the hard work I put in, and I was able to show I could play for the Longhorns.
Looking back, the best way I can describe life at UT was, there were more people at that school than in my hometown. Being a student-athlete at UT was great. It's a great campus, the people were friendly and I enjoyed my time in Austin very much. However, I spent most of my time when I wasn't in class over at the baseball field. Playing with those guys every day and going to school with them, we were a family.
My biggest takeaway of being a Longhorn is that you're a family. When I think of UT and the relationships I had from my time while at Texas, whether it be the players, coaches or others, we were a family. I lived and played baseball with those guys for three years, and I learned a great deal.
After I finished playing professional baseball, I came back to UT to finish my degree. Part of being a Longhorn is having that drive, that determination, that pride. I graduated from The University of Texas, one of the top schools out there. It's something that I take great pride in to this day.
