Texas Longhorns Ex Tashard Choice Gives Dallas Cowboys Jaydon Blue Blueprint

There might not be anyone who knows the new Dallas Cowboys rookie Jaydon Blue better than former Texas Longhorns running back coach Tashard Choice.

Texas Longhorns running back Jaydon Blue (23) runs into the end zone to score after catching a pass from quarterback Quinn Ewers (3) while Ohio State Buckeyes safety Sonny Styles (6) runs to defend late in the second quarter as the Texas Longhorns play the Ohio State Buckeyes in the Cotton Bowl College Football Playoff semi-final at AT&T Stadium in Dallas, Texas, Jan. 10, 2025. | Sara Diggins/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

After three seasons of being on the same sideline, two former Texas Longhorns will match up opposite of each other this coming fall. When the Dallas Cowboys face off with the Detroit Lions this coming season, Jaydon Blue and Tashard Choice will be on opposite sides.

Yet, although he will not be coaching Blue as he begins his NFL career, Choice did not hold back any secrets during a recent interview with DallasCowboys.com's Tommy Yarrish. Choice gave his NFC foes, the Cowboys, a scouting report on how they should use Blue.

"Super, super fast and really good in space, and can catch the ball out of the backfield, can run routes, he's very smart," Choice said. "Him being put into space with his speed, and his stop and start, and able to make people miss in the open field, I think that's what makes him really, really good."

Texas Longhorns running backs coach Tashard Choice speaks to media at Texas Media Day at the Superdome on Saturday, Dec. 30, 2023 in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Texas Longhorns will take on the Washington Huskies in the College Football Playoff Semi-Finals on January 1, 2024. | Aaron E. Martinez/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK

But Blue isn't just all speed, as his 4.38-second 40-yard dash may falsely suggest. The 6-foot, 200-pound running back also possesses the ability to fight through contact.

"He's strong enough to break out of tackles and he accelerates very fast, and once he gets in the open field, if you ain't close to him, you're not catching him," Choice said.

If the Cowboys are looking for a blueprint - pun not intended - for what the usage of Blue could look like, they need not look further than Texas's College Football Playoff run.

"We get into this College Football Playoff run, and this is when he's getting healthy, and then he goes off," Choice said. "Every time that I called on him, every time that he was in the game, he was doing something explosive and was making plays for us to win football games, it was pretty cool to see him grow."

Blue starred in the first-round game versus Clemson, rushing for 146 yards and two touchdowns on 14 carries. That was before he found the endzone two more times in the Longhorns' CFP semifinal loss to Ohio State, where he totaled 59 yards and two touchdowns on five receptions.