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CJ Baxter out for the season

Joe Cookby:Joe Cook•08/07/24•

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CJ Baxter (Will Gallagher/Inside Texas)

Texas running back CJ Baxter is out for the season as the result of a knee injury suffered during Tuesday’s practice, the program announced. He will undergo surgery.

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Baxter had been the first-string running back throughout camp.

Here’s what Inside Texas’ Eric Nahlin reported on Wednesday morning.

All the indicators IT picking up at running back is it’s going to be next man up after CJ Baxter injured his knee during Tuesday’s practice. At this time IT does not know the exact results of his MRI but we can tell from a couple of interactions that he’s going to miss enough time that people are already talking about Tre Wisner and the two freshman, Jerrick Gibson, and Christian Clark, playing a lot this season.

Baxter, a sophomore from Orlando (Fla.) Edgewater, played in 12 games and started six in 2023. He tallied 659 yards and five touchdowns on 138 carries during a season in which he was named an honorable mention All-Big 12 selection. He was the first true freshman running back to start his first game for the Longhorns since Williams accomplished the feat in 1995. He posted a career high 20 carries and 117 rushing yards against Iowa State in Ames last year.

The Longhorns will look to Jaydon Blue to lead Tashard Choice’s running back room in the wake of Baxter’s injury.

Blue, a junior who was named to the Paul Hornung Award watch list and the preseason All-SEC third team, rushed 65 times for 398 yards and three touchdowns in 2023. He also tallied 14 receptions for 135 yards and a score. He had one 100-yard game in 2023 against Texas Tech, which included a 69-yard touchdown run.

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On3 Personal Life file

Cedric Baxter Jr. emerged onto the scene as a sophomore when he played at three different positions — running back, linebacker and defensive back — and helped play a big role in Edgewater’s run to the state playoffs. He moved to his natural running back spot as a junior and took Florida high school football by storm with around 1,700 rushing yards, 26 touchdowns and an 8.3 yard per carry average. Baxter, who goes by the nickname “C4”, originally committed to Florida State early in the recruiting process but backed away from that pledge. He plans on majoring in math in college. His parents are Cedric Baxter Sr. and Latoya Zanders.

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