Alfred Collins delivered some good news to the Texas Longhorn fan base on February 5 of this year when he signed with Texas on National Signing Day. This week, Collins got some good news of his own that should also give Longhorn fans reason to smile – he was officially accepted by the University of Texas admissions department.
“I got it (Saturday). It just felt good just to see it’s official,” Collins said. “I’ve got big things coming ahead, and I’m ready.”
Like everyone else in the country, the Bastrop Cedar Creek standout has had to adjust his life of late due to the coronavirus epidemic. He’s no longer going to school, no longer to work out in group settings, but he’s managed to get by and stay on top of his strength and conditioning.
“I’ve been working out on my own, with my family. (Texas) sent me workouts to do so I do those. They gave me a modified version, so I do the stuff without weights,” Collins said. “They sent me a big pamphlet when I committed, then they sent something during spring break.
“I can’t really lift weights, so I just have to be more disciplined. I’m doing push-ups, pull-ups, lots of sprinting. Just lots of body weight stuff.”
The 6-6, 284-pound Collins is a guy that many are expecting will have a chance to compete for immediate playing time once he steps foot on the UT campus. The Texas coaches haven’t made any guarantees, but they’ve told him to come in ready to work and he’ll get a fair shot.
“I talk to the coaches like once a week. They’re just saying keep working out, be ready when I get up there and they can’t wait to get me up there,” Collins said. “They told me I need to be ready, be working out now so when I get up there I can fit in with them and start working out with them.”
Collins chose Texas over a long list of offers and a final grouping that eventually came down to UT, Oklahoma and Alabama. He said the race finished in that order, and while the process did become stressful at times towards the end, he just felt the most at home in Austin. Staying close to home also played a part.
“It just came down to the family. I didn’t want them to have to stress about coming to see me,” Collins said. “I thought that was the place where they could see me and fit the best.”
Before everyone’s world was turned upside down, Collins was set to move up to Austin 24 hours after he graduated from Cedar Creek. Now he’s not even sure if his school will have a graduation or when he’ll hit the Forty Acres, but he said he’ll be ready when the time comes and he’s expecting big things.
“Nothing but greatness, big things,” Collins said of his message to UT fans. “I’m ready to go to work.”
