Texas Football: Derrian Brown, Peter Mpagi might not play this season

Two of the more unheralded signees of the 2019 Texas football recruiting class, DE Peter Mpagi and RB Derrian Brown, might not play again this fall.

In a recent media availability with Texas football head coach Tom Herman, the fan base figured out that it might not be until the 2021 season that they get to see two skilled redshirt freshmen suit up in actual game action. Those two rising redshirt freshmen are defensive end Peter Mpagi and running back Derrian Brown.

Last year, Brown underwent a scary medical issue that seemingly came out of nowhere. He wound up missing pretty much all football activities during the 2019 offseason, and the entirety of the 2019 campaign. And Mpagi was hospitalized twice within the last 18 months due to heart issues. He apparently isn’t ready to go this for full football activities or for the upcoming 2020 season.

Here’s more on what Herman said for Brown’s situation (monologue courtesy of Horns247).

"“Derrian is getting better,” Herman said. “He got cleared for physical activity, so he’s actually doing some modified workouts right now. Still going to speech therapy a couple of times a week, but he’s doing really well in all of his classes and we’re just kind of playing that one — I don’t know if it’s day by day. It’s maybe month by month, seeing his progress.”"

It sounds like the progress Brown is making is noteworthy, and is worth monitoring moving forward. The Buford, GA, native was a four-star recruit that signed with the Longhorns 2018 recruiting class. He could still have a bright future in football ahead of him.

Moreover, Mpagi could also have a bright future in football. But off-the-field medical issues are standing in the way for him. Here’s more on what Herman had to say about his status.

"“Peter is continuing to get lab work and tests done on his heart condition,” Herman said Thursday. “To think that he’s going to play football this season, I think, is a pretty big stretch.”"

The good news for both Brown and Mpagi is that they will only be entering their redshirt freshmen seasons, so they still have numerous years of eligibility left in their college careers. Mpagi was expected to be more of a developmental project anyway, as a former three-star weak-side defensive end recruit hailing from Richmond, TX.

Brown is the one of these two that was expected to make more of an immediate impact for the Texas backfield. But we might have to wait until the 2021 season to really see what he can do out on the gridiron.

At defensive end, the projected Longhorn starters will be Moro Ojomo and Ta’Quon Graham. Both are upperclassmen and could have an NFL future in front of them. At running back, the likes of Roschon Johnson, Bijan Robinson, and Keaontay Ingram could be leading the way this fall.