Looking toward Texas football's future: Kobe Black

One of the most important plays of Kobe Black‘s freshman season at Texas didn’t count.

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Late in the fourth quarter at Vanderbilt, Black was on the field in a game where the result was in question until the clock hit 0:00. The Commodore offense was driving to try to eat into the 10-point Texas lead, and Diego Pavia was moving the football.

Pavia dropped back to pass, Black tracked the throw, picked it off, and returned it for a touchdown. Unfortunately, Vernon Broughton was flagged for targeting, wiping the play off the board and putting Vanderbilt in position to score.

Despite that play not counting, it meant something for Black.

“When you’re making a jump from high school to this level, that’s probably one of the things where they might not say it, but in the back of their mind they’re like ‘am I ready for this?’” Texas secondary coach Terry Joseph said prior to the Peach Bowl. “I think it was important for him when he got that, you could see in his eyes that he was so excited and so fired up. I was because you could see the fruits of his labor.”

The Longhorns had a top three at cornerback of Thorpe Award winner Jahdae Barron, Malik Muhammad, and Gavin Holmes. When CB4 was called upon, Black, the No. 37 overall prospect in the 2024 On3 Industry Ranking, took those snaps.

Those snaps were rare, however. Black was on the field for 110 total defensive snaps in 2024, most of them against Florida. He logged 176 special teams snaps, helping him adjust to SEC football.

It was a season Black got the most out of ahead of a bright future.

“The experience has been very fun for me,” Black said prior to the Peach Bowl. “I’ve been learning, I’ve been focused on just learning and having fun with my team.”

As mentioned, Black had a splendid example in Barron as part of an experienced room. The fifth-year senior led a group that finished the season ranked No. 2 in pass efficiency defense. Though Black wasn’t asked to do a lot in that secondary this season, the responsibilities he’ll carry next year might look a lot like the ones Barron managed in 2024.

So, what did Black do in preparation for that? He listened to Barron.

“I’m very blessed to have someone like that in front of me, not just on the field but off the field,” Black said. “He’s a great guy off the field, like a role model for me. I look up to him. Every day, I get to be with him during practice to see how he practices and see how he goes by his day every day. It’s a real good learning experience.”

Barron enjoyed instructing the next generation of Texas defensive backs.

“Him always asking questions, him always nagging and wanting information, accepting information, accepting being coached by any player, then ultimately trusting Coach Joseph’s plan, his plan will always work,” Barron said just before the Peach Bowl. “He has a formula for success. All you’ve got to do is honestly follow that blueprint. He is and he’s trying to follow it every single day.”

For an assistant like Joseph, it was a coach’s dream.

“It’s a great situation for Kobe because he’s a talented kid,” Joseph said. “He’s long. He can run. Phenomenal ball skills. To see and learn from players like Manny and Jahdae, I think, is going to be beneficial for him. He’s done a hell of job for us on special teams this season, and I think as he continues to learn and grow the future is very bright for him.”

Black finished the season with 13 tackles and a pass breakup recorded versus Vanderbilt. He was part of Texas’ kick return, kick coverage, and punt return teams with an occasional appearance on punt coverage. During his limited defensive opportunities, opponents completed four passes on seven targets for 83 total yards. Two catches for 52 yards occurred in garbage time versus Florida. The other two catches for 31 yards were at Arkansas.

That’s all to say, there’s plenty of room for improvement for Black. But the physical traits at 6-foot-2, 200 pounds are there, plus the opportunity at cornerback is as well. Barron and Holmes are off to the NFL, and Black likely has the cleanest profile for boundary cornerback among a group that currently features Muhammad, Warren Roberson, Wardell Mack, and Santana Wilson.

If he is the successor on the boundary, it won’t come as a shock to Barron.

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“More opportunities he’s going to get down the road, he’s going to present himself and he’s going to be able to showcase to the world,” Barron said. “He’s an amazing corner, one of those boundary corners with good length, good size, and good speed to him.”