Texas spent Thursday’s second day of fall camp under scorching heat, but the mood around the team stayed light. When safety Jelani McDonald, defensive tackle Hero Kanu and running back/returner Ryan Niblett met with reporters, the conversation kept circling back to opportunity, praise for teammates and a few revealing comments about where things stand in camp.
Niblett, who has worn a lot of hats during his time at Texas, said the staff is working to get him more involved on offense this season. He didn’t pin it to any exact target, but the direction was clear.
"They are (trying to get me more touches)," Niblett said. "Not a set number, but they are definitely trying to put me in there a lot more."
Kanu, meanwhile, had plenty to say about defensive lineman Justus Terry, who flashed as a true freshman last year and is being watched closely as a player with a big 2026 ahead of him. Kanu didn’t hold back on the hype.
"He's doing well," Kanu said of Terry. "One of the guys I'm probably most impressed with.
He's definitely a generational talent I'd say. Really, really good guy.
Obviously, got to stay healthy and everything, and got to make sure he's doing his job, coming along, following the lead, and he's gonna be just fine. ... I got high expectations for him."
McDonald also singled out a young defender, freshman cornerback John Meredith III, who recently joined the team after reclassifying to 2026. Even with limited time on campus, McDonald said Meredith has already shown plenty.
"He's a very special guy," McDonald said of Meredith. "He's very competitive.
He a little quiet right now, but that's how all of us were coming in as a freshman. So that's the norm.
But just being able to see him get in there with the amount of time that he did have to learn, to get in there and just have the confidence to learn the plays and coverages that we run."
Later, Niblett was asked to name players who stood out in that same category. His list included WR Kohen Brown, WR Ryan Wingo and CB Warren Roberson. He did not include himself, even though he could have.
"I don't like to put myself in there. I'm very humble," Niblett said with a laugh.
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