Robert Griffin III just confirmed a mind-blowing alternate reality: there were *two* scenarios where he could have played for Texas instead of Baylor. On the “Joel Klatt Show,” RGIII confessed that not only did the Longhorns completely mess up his recruitment in 2007, but he also admitted that if he were a modern-day quarterback, he likely would have transferred to Texas even after finding early success at Baylor. Talk about a sliding doors moment for college football history!
Texas Blew It Back in 2007. Big Time.
So, what went wrong the first time around? Griffin was a multi-sport phenom at Copperas Cove High School, even calling himself “world-class” in track. He was a legit athlete! But here’s the kicker: the big schools like Texas and Texas A&M were skeptical. They looked at his “slight frame” and apparently couldn’t fathom how his track and field physique would “translate over to playing quarterback at the college level.” Seriously? Baylor, to their eternal credit, didn’t have those doubts. For Griffin, the decision was simple: go with the team that believed in him as a quarterback. Texas asked him to play safety, and that was the original sin in their recruitment blunder.
“If You Want to Transfer Right Now, We Will Take You.”
Fast forward to November 8, 2008. Baylor, a 3-6 team, went toe-to-toe with the No. 5-ranked Longhorns. Griffin wasn’t just holding his own, he was *making plays*. A touchdown run from him and a huge 55-yard connection with Kendall Wright tied the game at 14 in the first quarter. Texas eventually pulled away for a 45-21 win, but then-Texas head coach Mack Brown was clearly impressed. When that final whistle blew, Brown made a beeline straight for Griffin at midfield. “If you want to transfer to Texas right now, we will take you,” Griffin recalled Brown saying. He continued, “We really messed it up in your recruiting. We shouldn’t have asked you to play safety, we should have asked you to play quarterback.” Imagine that offer! But in 2008, a transfer meant sitting out a full year, and Griffin valued Baylor’s initial faith in him. He stuck it out.
What the Modern Transfer Portal Means For RGIII’s “What If.”
That’s the 2008 story. But RGIII’s big reveal on the “Joel Klatt Show” was about today. He conceded that if that whole scenario played out now, in 2026, with the wildly popular and consequences-free transfer portal, it would be a totally different ballgame. “If that happened now, you’re looking at a situation where that’s probably RGIII not playing at Baylor,” he admitted. He would have “heavily considered” transferring, even after his early success. It’s a crazy thought! Both sides ended up killing it: the Longhorns snagged a BCS National Championship in 2009, and Griffin absolutely deserved that Heisman Trophy in 2011. But seriously, the question hangs in the air: what *more* could Texas and RGIII have done together if they’d been a duo in this wild modern-day transfer portal era? We’ll never know, but man, it’s a fun one to chew on.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Fox Sports.
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