Forty Acres Insider: June 3

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Chris Del Conte head shot

Greetings Longhorn Nation,

We began this week with Jay Hartzell taking over as the President of our great University. I've really enjoyed getting to know Jay during my time at Texas, and especially while he transitioned into the President's role in recent weeks. Over the past 25 years, he has been a student, professor and academic leader on the Forty Acres, so his roots run deep here, he bleeds orange, and he's also been a tremendous supporter of Athletics. However, as he stated in his inspirational letter to campus on Monday, he is taking over at a turbulent time here in Austin, throughout Texas and across our country. His message to our campus community was one of compassion, hope and resolve in response to everything we are facing both as a nation and a University at this time. Jay is a great leader and an awesome person, and we're so excited about the vision, passion and wisdom he brings to the Presidency. We know he will do great things.

As we said in the message we shared on Sunday, we have heavy hearts after the senseless killing of George Floyd and the many other examples of recent and historic violence and oppression against the Black community. We need to address it head-on and do everything we can to help spark real, meaningful change.

The peaceful protests from coast to coast are a powerful force, and the message of #BlackOutTuesday yesterday was one of many tremendous, unifying efforts in our country. There are the heartwarming images we're seeing of people of all races joining together, including police officers and city leaders who have engaged our communities by taking a knee in silent protest alongside them. I do understand the range of emotions that so many are feeling after another member of the Black community senselessly and sadly lost their life, however I cannot condone the rioting and violence. That is hurting our communities and taking our eye off the ball of the necessary change we need to make in our country. The focus needs to remain on taking positive action to affect necessary and dramatic progress.

Sports have always been a place of encouragement and support and served as a galvanizing force. We have student-athletes across all of our teams who love wearing the burnt orange and white and competing for the Longhorns, and it's our duty to help them navigate this very difficult time in our nation. We also need to learn from them, hear their concerns and have both their back and their front so we can grow as a society.

We can make this a defining moment in our country and we are encouraged by the way our student-athletes, coaches and staff are speaking up and actively advocating for change. So many of them have posted meaningful and passionate messages, sharing their experiences and voicing concerns, but also focusing on hope, faith and a call to action for solidarity and change. With each one, I become more and more proud of them. We must do our part as leaders and mentors to support them, and it's our responsibility to help unite our nation alongside them.

On Monday, I spent several hours joining Coach Herman during his virtual team meeting, and over the past several days, we've heard from many of our student-athletes, coaches, staff, alumni and fans. Though they are hurting, they are resolute in their desire to be a part of the solution and to ensure things get better. I also took time on Saturday and Sunday to take my family downtown and to visit the Austin police headquarters where there were hundreds of people protesting. It brought back memories of my father taking me to Los Angeles during the 1992 riots to help rebuild their community. Here we are, almost 30 years later, and we are still struggling with inequities in our country. I stand with our student-athletes, coaches and the Big 12 men's basketball coaches in their powerful messages of unity: It's time for a change.

As former President George W. Bush put it so eloquently, "This is not the time for us to lecture. It is a time for us to listen. It is a time for America to examine our tragic failures — and as we do, we will also see some of our redeeming strengths."

We can listen, learn and work together peacefully and with resolve to make this a turning point where we all examine what we can do individually and collectively to bring about change that must happen.

Return to the 40 Update
To update you on our return to campus initiatives, we've continued to successfully manage our protocols that we implemented two weeks ago for the essential group of Football coaches and staff who returned. The job they've done to adopt them and adapt to them safely has been tremendous, and we commend their focus and commitment. With that, they've shown the effectiveness of our plan, so it's been extended in preparation for the return of our Football student-athletes. As always, the process continues to be monitored closely and evaluated regularly with guidance from the Centers for Disease Control, state and local health & safety guidelines, as well as campus and athletics medical staff.

With the first of our Football student-athletes beginning voluntary athletic activities on June 15, our Student-Athlete Return to Campus task force has been doing yeoman's work finalizing the policies and procedures to safely support those. The first phase of on-boarding will be a thorough process that includes mandatory physicals, testing, daily screening and COVID-19 safety education and training from Dr. James Bray and our Sports Medicine staff. All of that will have to be completed before workouts can begin, and it will happen in two groups. The first, which is the one starting workouts on June 15, is made up of upperclassmen who live off-campus and will begin on-boarding on June 8. The second, which starts workouts on June 22, will be made up of underclassmen who will be living on-campus and will begin on-boarding on June 15.

I've said it before, but I'll say it again – the health and safety of our student-athletes is absolutely our top priority. All of the workouts will be held outside at Denius Fields, three days a week and in small groups. No other athletics facilities will be used at this time. Everything will be closely monitored by our Sports Medicine and Strength & Conditioning staffs and follow a stringent set of health and safety guidelines. It's another positive step toward the 2020 Football season, and we're extremely excited about that.

AJ1 named Big 12 Male Sportsperson of the Year
With so many difficult things going on in the world right now, one source of incredible inspiration continues to be our own Andrew Jones. You couldn't possibly come up with a more deserving person to be named the Big 12's Male Sportsperson of the Year than AJ1, and that's just what happened last Wednesday. Obviously, we all stand in complete admiration of the courage and fight he showed in his battle against leukemia, but even beyond that, it was the composure, grace and continual positive attitude he displayed that were so impressive. He wasn't just interested in defeating his own illness, he wanted to bring others along with him – seeking out other cancer patients to share dialogue with and speaking to selected groups to provide inspiration. I can't imagine the reach and impact he had on fellow cancer patients when they saw him take to the basketball court again. It touched all of our hearts, and you could see that not only here in Austin, but in the extensive show of support in arenas all over the country as the team traveled. He defines the word ambassador, and I can't wait to see all of the good he brings to the world in the future.

Congrats to Dr. Prentice Gautt Postgraduate Scholarship honorees
Kudos go out to John Burt (Football, Track & Field) and Alison Gibson (Diving), as both were selected to receive 2019-20 Dr. Prentice Gautt Postgraduate Scholarships on Monday. Each school in the Big 12 can select two deserving winners for the scholarships, which are named in honor of the late Dr. Gautt – a former Big 12 Conference staff member and pioneer in the field of student services. Both John and Alison will receive $10,000 to go toward their postgraduate education. That's awesome, and the best part is both are continuing their education here on the Forty Acres! John is already one year into his master's program for sport management, and Alison will begin pursuit of her master's degree in advertising this fall. Great job!

Eight Years Ago, Men's Golf claimed NCAA Championship
Eight year ago, today (June 3, 2012), Coach Fields and our Men's Golf program won its first men's golf National Championship since back-to-back titles in 1971-72. It came in dramatic fashion as our Longhorns, down 2-0 to the Alabama Crimson Tide, rallied for a 3-2 victory. All-American Dylan Frittelli sunk a dramatic 30-foot putt on the 18th green to clinch the win. The match was highlighted by the marquee pairing of two of the best then-amateurs in the country in the Tide's Justin Thomas and our guy, Jordan Spieth. The match was a one-sided affair for much of the day, and Spieth eventually claimed a 3-2 win over Thomas that began the huge Texas comeback. It was the beginning of quite a run of success for Coach Fields' Horns as since 2012, we have had five Top-5 finishes at the NCAA Championship over the previous seven years, including runner-up performances in 2016 and 2019. Despite the shortened 2020 season, the Longhorns finished No. 4 in each of the national polls and earned two tournament wins, taking home the East Lake Cup in the fall and the Prestige title this spring. Texas Men's Golf, I must say, is hot!

One Year Ago, Rowing's NCAA Runner-up Finish was One for the History Books
This week, we have an opportunity to once again look back, reflect and celebrate another recent success story by one of our programs. One year ago, Tuesday (June 2, 2019), Coach O'Neill and our Rowing program made history, placing all three boats on the podium and taking second place as a team at the 2019 NCAA Championships. It marked the first time that all Texas boats finished in the top three in leading us to a record-setting finish. We're so disappointed that this season was cut short as Coach O'Neill had us destined to make a run at the championship once again. Our Longhorns had climbed the standings in each of the last three years, finishing fourth in 2017, third in 2018, and then last year's runner-up finish. Coach O'Neill took the reins five years ago and directed the squad to a Top 10 finish and Big 12 Championship every year since, so it's safe to say, Texas Rowing has arrived and is going to be a force to contend with for a long time.

Longhorn Nation, this is a difficult time, but an opportunity to come together, show resolve and help inspire change at a historical crossroads in our country. We must all do our part individually, but let's unite, be active participants in our peaceful resolutions and create effective and enduring results for our campus, city, state and nation. What we start here, will change the world!

Stay safe, be healthy and Hook 'Em Horns,

Chris del Conte signature

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HONORS & RECOGNITIONS:

Hebert claims Jan Strickland Award presented by TaylorMade Golf Company

Women's Tennis' 2020 recruiting class ranked No. 1

INTERVIEWS

Longhorns Lunch Break -- Tom Herman

Longhorns Lunch Break -- Andrew Jones

Longhorns Lunch Break -- Celeste Taylor

The University of Texas at Austin Athletics