Longhorns Country

Texas WR Xavier Worthy Named to PFF's 2021 All-True Freshman Team

Worthy proved his dominance as a No. 1 receiving option during his first year as a Longhorn
Zach Dimmitt|
Texas WR Xavier Worthy Named to PFF's 2021 All-True Freshman Team
Texas WR Xavier Worthy Named to PFF's 2021 All-True Freshman Team

When Xavier Worthy committed to play for Texas on April 24 of this year, the expectations were certainly high. 

Rated as the No. 8 overall receiver in his class according to ESPN's 2021 rankings, the slender speedster had the skills to provide big playmaking ability to Steve Sarkisian's offense. 

It's safe to say he did that and more during his true freshman season in Austin.

On Tuesday, Worthy was named to Pro Football Focus' 2021 All-True Freshman Team. This comes after the Fresno, Calif. native was announced as the Big 12 Freshman of the Year this past Thursday. 

Here's what Pro Football Focus had to say on Worthy's impressive freshman season. 

Worthy was the Longhorns' No. 2 recruit in the 2021 cycle and the 62nd-ranked player overall in the class. He’s a 6-foot-2, 160-pound speedster and turned into the go-to option for Longhorns in the second half of the season due to a depleted wide receiver room. Worthy was targeted on 30.4% of his routes from Week 6 on as a true freshman — the ninth-highest rate among Power Five wide receivers. He made the most of the substantial workload, racking up 2.88 yards per route run and 17 receptions of 15 or more yards in that span. In all, Worthy earned an 80.3 receiving grade for the season

Worthy was arguably the top freshman receiver in all of Division 1 this past season and he has the stats to back it up. He led all freshmen in catches (62) receiving yards (981), and receiving touchdowns (12).

In the Big 12 conference, he finished first in yards and touchdowns, while coming in at third in catches and fifth in average yards per catch (15.8). 

An established elite pass-catcher headed into this offseason, Worthy will look to continue torching secondaries next  as the Longhorns aim for a bounce-back season.

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Zach Dimmitt
ZACH DIMMITT

Zach Dimmitt is the Deputy Editor for Texas Longhorns On SI and Texas A&M Aggies On SI. He also contributes as a writer for the On SI channels of the Oregon Ducks, Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans. He was previously the editor-in-chief of Buffalo Bills on SI, Philadelphia Eagles on SI and Seattle Seahawks on SI. Born and raised in San Antonio, Texas, Dimmitt received his Bachelor’s Degree in journalism at the University of Texas at Austin in 2022. He originally started with SI’s Fan Nation network in 2021, providing extensive coverage of the NFL and NBA along with college football and basketball. In that time, Dimmitt has published thousands of stories and has reached millions of people across multiple fan bases. You can follow him on X at @ZachDimmitt7

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