Austin, TX
DeAndre Moore Jr. Reflects on Turning Practice Into Production
Despite being a top-20 player at his position in 247’s 2023 CFB recruiting rankings, now sophomore wide receiver DeAndre Moore Jr. barely played in his freshman year, recording zero catches while playing mostly special teams.
Despite this, Moore was seen as one of the hardest workers in the offseason, catapulting himself from the bottom of the WR depth chart to a starting role. Still, the receiver struggled to find a spot in the first two weeks, recording zero catches against Colorado State and Michigan even with him starting as the primary slot receiver.
But Saturday’s game against the UTSA Roadrunners saw a blossoming performance from the young receiver, capped off with a touchdown on redshirt freshman quarterback Arch Manning’s first play in the game after starter Quinn Ewers’ injury.
“To see the work that we all put in, come to life on Saturdays in front of the big DKR crowd under the lights, it was a really exhilarating moment,” Moore said.
Even with his struggles to find the ball in his hands the first two weeks, Moore relayed his emphasis on practicing how you play at all times.
“We see it every day in practice,” Moore said about the touchdown catch. “It was really nothing new for us, because we’ve already been prepped for the game, you know it really comes easy for us.”
Moore finished the afternoon with three catches and a touchdown, both tied for third most on the team. While the sophomore still isn’t the number on target like transfer Isaiah Bond, Moore brings an element that many others lack: the ability to run-block nickel cornerbacks like a pro.
Moore worked under future NFL Draft pick Jordan Whittington this last year, learning the traits that made the veteran one of the most beloved players on the team throughout his Texas career. One of the hardest-to-teach abilities for a wide receiver is the skill of run-blocking, something many star recruits deem less necessary as they try to turn into the best pass-catchers in the nation. Moore, however, has shown already his ability to help in the running game, even despite head coach Steve Sarkisian’s problems with his teams blocking on the boundary.
“Something we challenged the receivers on this morning in my meeting was, I think we need to block better on the perimeter,” Sarkisian said. “We need to get we need to get hands and hats on safeties, and we got to give our runners an opportunity to create really big runs.”
If Moore were to stay as the top blocker of the group, playing time would be assured with Sarkisian’s love for the ground game. With efficient running comes the ability to throw the ball at will and take the top off of the defense, leading to more plays near the goal line, enabling Moore to be a threat.
“The biggest thing is to want to,” Moore said about blocking. “Do you want to go put your face on that man’s face? You know what I’m saying? And for me, I love football, so every little aspect of it I’m going to go do to the best of my ability. And if it’s blocking and having to shield that man off, I’m going to go do that. “
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Small hail peppered the Austin area as strong thunderstorms moved through Saturday.
A few of the storms dropped rain and up to pea-sized hail in San Marcos, Dripping Springs and the Austin metro area.
A Severe Thunderstorm Warning was issued for Williamson County around 8:15 p.m., and then canceled shortly after. However, it was enough for the Two Step Inn music festival in Georgetown to cancel shows for the rest of the evening. Event organizers say the festival will run as planned Sunday.
KXAN’s First Warning Weather team is monitoring the storms. We will update this post as the evening continues.
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Governor Greg Abbott and the Texas Society Sons of the American Revolution unveiled a new monument at the Texas State Cemetery on Saturday, dedicated to Texas Revolutionary War soldiers.
“We must educate every generation about why it is that America grew from a tenuous 13 colonies into the most powerful country in the history of the world,” said Governor Abbott. “This monument here is an enduring testament to the heroes who fought for the freedom that is unique to America.”
The monument was dedicated to 69 soldiers who fought in the American Revolutionary War and later settled in Texas, according to a press release.
Among those that were honored, Abbott recognized:
- José Santiago Seguín, grandfather of Texas Revolutionary hero Juan Seguín.
- Peter Sides, who fought in the 2nd Battalion of the North Carolina Regiment of the Colonial Army, and was later killed in the 1813 Battle of Medina, fighting for Mexican independence against Spain.
- Antonio Gil Y’Barbo, the founder of Nacogdoches.
- William Sparks, who fought as a mounted rifleman in the American Revolution and later settled in Texas. He had two sons and two grandsons who fought in the Texas Revolution.
“This year marks the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution, which not only gave freedom to the British colonies of North America, but inspired movements for freedom and liberty all over the world,” said TSSAR President Mel Oller. “Texans played a role in the war too, and it’s important to recognize them, and the sacrifices they made for our freedom.”
At the monument unveiling, Abbott was also inducted into the Sons of the American Revolution and received its Silver Good Citizenship Medal.
AUSTIN, Texas — Inside a green wooden box mounted to a steel fence, a treasure trove of trinkets awaits. Just a few miles north is another goodie box, this time covered in leopard print and inside a craft studio. Farther east, a simple white trinket box sits mounted on a wooden pole, decorated with stars and a crow saying, “Thanks for visiting!”
These boxes, filled to the brim with stickers, keychains, jewelry, collectibles and more, are known as trinket trade boxes. Austin has seen a sudden surge in these boxes over the last few months, and despite their varying locations, one sentiment ties them all together: trinket trading is a fun way to bring a bit of joy to the community.
“Little things that bring people joy is so important right now, which I think a lot of us can agree with, and I’ve seen all sorts of people use the box so far,” said Anna Arocha, whose trinket box is in The Triangle neighborhood downtown. “Little kids and all the way up to people in their 50s and 60s, I’ve seen stop by.”
Trinket trading operates on a simple system of take something, leave something. People can swap a toy car for a lanyard, a bracelet for a Sonny Angel, or a Pokémon card for a rubber duck.
“There was somebody who was just walking by with their kid in the stroller, and there was a finger puppet inside of the box, and I saw her swap something out and walk away with the little finger puppet,” Arocha said. “And it was just such a cute moment to see a mom and a kid enjoy something like that.”
Arocha put her crafting skills to work and made her green wooden box in just one day using craft wood and a wine crate last month. Amy Elms opted for a small, white junction box to ensure it could withstand harsh Texas weather. Ani’s Day & Night on East Riverside, which has a large outdoor space for picnic tables and food trucks, gave Elms permission to place her trinket box on their property in January.
Ally Chavez used her own property, Create! Studio ATX on West Anderson Lane, for her leopard-print box that opened in March.
“There wasn’t a ton up here in the north area, so we just kind of wanted to put it together and put it up for the studio just as a way to connect with the community in a way that no one has to spend money,” Chavez said.
Since their debuts, all three trinket boxes have garnered thousands of interactions on social media. When Arocha posted about the opening of her box in March, she racked up 100,000 views on TikTok. But with the excited comments came a bit of negative attention, and her cameras caught a thief trying to take all the trinkets. Arocha now locks the box at night.
“If somebody wants to do that, so be it,” Arocha said. “We can start over, and if the joy that it brings outweighs that every time, I think it’s worth doing.”
Arocha, Elms and Chavez’s boxes are now registered on a website called Worldwide Sidewalk Joy, alongside all the others in Austin and across the globe, as trinket trading grows to become a kind of new, modern geocaching.
“Honestly, it’s been I think even better than I expected so far,” Elms said. “I’ve had people… visiting Austin from out of town, and they’re making it a stop during their visit. I’ve also had multiple people reach out to me to ask how they can start their own trinket trade box, too, which I really love.”
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