4 Days Until the Longhorns' Season Opener: The Greatest Texas Longhorns to Wear No. 4

We are four days away from the Longhorns' season-opener against Texas State.

This season, Jermaine Bishop Jr. and Jelani McDonald will be donning the number four.

While sometime down the line they may be considered for a list like this, we’ll be taking another look back on the history of the Horns and the best of them who’ve worn this number.

Phil Dawson - Kicker (1994-97)

Kickers deserve love too!

When Dawson left the University of Texas, the placekicker held an astounding 13 records. Some of the most notable include the all-time scoring record at 339 points, career field goals made at 59, consecutive field goals at 15 and 50+ yard field goals made at six.

While he may not hold those records to this day, he still acts as a major milestone test for hopeful Longhorn kickers.

Dawson’s collegiate resume eventually earned him a spot on the Cleveland Browns, where he remained the franchise’s defining kicker and a hometown favorite for 14 seasons.

In 2012, the All-American kicker was inducted into the Texas Longhorns Hall of Honor.

Kenny Vaccaro - Safety (2009-12)

Texas Longhorns safety Kenny Vaccaro | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

While Vaccaro technically did not wear the No. 4 his entire collegiate career — opting to switch to No. 2 for one game in honor of an injured teammate — he finished his career at Texas as one of the best safeties in the program's history.

The first Longhorn on this list to be selected in the first round — 15th overall pick in the 2013 NFL Draft — Vaccaro’s tackle total at Texas looked like a stock in the Roaring Twenties.

Year	Solo	Total	TFL	PD	FF
2009	13	18	0	0	1
2010	42	54	3	8	1
2011	45	67	6.5	9	0
2012	58	92	4.5	7	2

Vaccaro’s peak performance occurred during his senior year. In 2012, he earned Pro Football Weekly first-team honors, was voted to the Big 12 all-conference team by coaches and was voted as team MVP by his fellow Longhorns.

Throughout his Texas tenure, Vaccaro’s physicality and versatility in the secondary were never in doubt.

To put it bluntly, if there was even a sliver of a chance to make the tackle, Vaccaro would be there.

4 Days 🤘@kennyvaccaro #ThisIsTexas #HookEm pic.twitter.com/Jt8Jv2RVXq
— Texas Football (@TexasFootball) September 8, 2020

Roy Williams - Wide Reciver (2000-03)

Not to play favorites, but this list saved the best for last.

Arguably the greatest receiver to don the burnt orange, Williams still holds the Longhorns all-time receiving yards record with 3,886 yards — a pretty hefty margin considering he’s nearly 700 yards ahead of second place. He also still holds the all-time receiving touchdown record with 36.

But the resume doesn’t stop at the stats. His freshman season, Williams was voted as the Big 12 freshman offensive player of the year. Williams then went on to earn first-team All-Big 12 honors from his sophomore to his senior season at Texas.

This is a man who was nicknamed “The Legend” before playing a single snap of collegiate football. He had it all, the size at 6-foot-2 and 212 pounds, the speed with a sub 4.4 40-time and of course the vertical leap and body control to make out of this world acrobatic catches.

https://t.co/xr9tlOfkSQ pic.twitter.com/qPAC4waKV8
— Texas Football (@TexasFootball) April 6, 2023

The greatest four to ever play Texas football, Williams was drafted 7th overall in the 2004 NFL Draft and was inducted in the Texas Longhorns Hall of Honor in 2013.

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