31 days until Texas Football: Aaron Ross, the most recent Longhorn Thorpe Award winner, put DBU on the map
Inside Texas is putting a new twist on long-time photographer Will Gallagher’s time-honored countdown to Texas football kickoff. In addition to Will’s great pictures, the Inside Texas staff will go through every player on the roster by jersey number and offer a season outlook on each, from five-star to walk-on.
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We’ll also look back at other greats to wear that day’s number, with special reverence to some of Texas’ best.
Today is 31 days until kickoff. No. 31 for the Longhorns this season will be worn by Billy Walton III, a freshman EDGE. We’ll also look at Aaron Ross, who took home the program’s second Thorpe Award and wore No. 31.
Ross, one of DBU’s best
No school had ever won back-to-back Thorpe Awards until Aaron Ross took home the honor in 2006 following Michael Huff‘s award-winning 2005 season. Ross, who was also the Big 12 defensive player of the year and a first-team All-American in 2006, overcame academic problems early in his UT career to become one of the best to ever roam a defensive backfield in burnt orange.
Ross played in 51 games in his career, winning 44 games. He totaled 205 tackles, 33 pass breakups, 10 interceptions, three forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries in addition to being a prolific punt returner.
His Thorpe Award winning season saw him record 57 tackles, 2.0 for loss, one sack, and six interceptions along with a fumble recovered and returned for a touchdown. Ross was selected for the prestigious award over Florida’s Reggie Nelson and Michigan’s Leon Hall.
Ross went onto a successful NFL career winning two Super Bowls with the New York Giants. He accumulated 250 tackles, 2.5 sacks, and 11 interceptions in the NFL. He is married to fellow Longhorn legend and four-time Olympic gold medalist Sanya Richards-Ross.
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Ross was inducted into the UT hall of honor in 2016.
Billy Walton season outlook
This was originally published May 27 before it was known Walton would wear No. 31.
Walton, a 6-foot-3, 215-pound EDGE from Dallas (Texas) South Oak Cliff, arrives at Texas as a two-time state champion with the Golden Bears. As a senior, he had 102 total tackles, 33 tackles for loss, and 18 sacks. He added two interceptions, including one returned for a touchdown.
Walton played a number of positions for SOC, but his future at Texas is on the EDGE. His frame has plenty of room for growth, growth that will take place during the course of his first few months on campus under the direction of strength and conditioning coach Torre Becton.
How long that physical development curve is remains to be seen, but the typical timeline likely places Walton at Buck, or weakside EDGE, during his first year on campus. He could find time on special teams, as Jeff Banks tends to place EDGE players or tight ends behind the front line on his kickoff return unit. If not, his 2023 is likely to be spent utilizing the four-game redshirt rule.
Billy Walton as a recruit
Walton was ranked as the No. 487 overall prospect, the No. 42 EDGE, and the No. 80 prospect in Texas according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a proprietary algorithm that compiles ratings and rankings from all four primary recruiting media services. He committed to Texas on June 28 after previously being committed to Oklahoma State.
All-Americans to wear No. 31
Kiki DeAyala, DE, 1982
Aaron Ross, CB, 2006
Joe Cook co-authored this article
