Sam Acho discusses dedication to service, Allstate Good Works Team, Longhorns’ future

Former Texas football star and Hall of Honor inductee Sam Acho has been recognized for more than a decade now for his standout play on the field in college football and his dedication and passion for work in the community. Acho is one of just a handful of Texas Exes that were All-Americans and Academic All-Americans in the same year when he received both honors in 2010.

During his time at Texas (2007-2010), Acho helped lead the Longhorns to three top-10 finishes in the AP Poll while leading the team in sacks and forced fumbles twice and tackles for loss once.

He also received the National Football Foundation’s William V. Campbell Trophy in 2010 for his work on the field, in the classroom, and in the community. The William V. Campbell Trophy is the first of many times that Acho has been recognized since 2010 for his great work on and off the field.

In 2010-11, Acho started to get recognized for his work on and off the field in two other ways. He was named the 2010-11 Big 12 Male Sportsperson of the Year and was honored as a member of the AFCA Good Works Team for the first time in 2010.

The Dallas, TX, native Acho continued to receive recognition for his work away from football while he played for the Chicago Bears in the NFL in the 2010s. He was named the Walter Payton Man of the Year in 2016 and 2017 while serving as the vice president of the NFL Players Association.

Acho joined Hook’em Headlines this week, amid Big 12 Media Days in Arlington, TX, to discuss his involvement with the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team, along with what other Big 12 nominees for the honors are doing in the community and the future of Longhorns football under head coach Steve Sarkisian.

Talking Allstate AFCA Good Works Team, community involvement, and Texas football with Hall of Honor member Sam Acho

AM: What does it mean to you to be involved in the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team for more than a decade?

Acho: Yeah, for me, it’s been awesome to be a part of the Allstate AFCA good works team, especially being nominated as a, as a college football player, being one of the 22 student-athletes get nominated back in 2010.

And then now, seeing some of the people nominated right? There’s 10, yesterday is when the nominations came out, and there’s 10 players in the Big 12 guys like Josh Newton, who’s, uh, preseason All-American corner, um, this year you see guys like Christian Jones, offensive tackle from Texas, Zach Frazier All-American offensive linemen from West Virginia.

So for me, it’s just knowing that all these guys are doing great work in their communities. I mean, look at Josh Newton. You know, Josh really started it, Zach working at hospitals, right. Josh is doing stuff with the Special Olympics in the Tarrant County Food Bank. And so, for me being involved with this Allstate AFCA Good Works Team has been everything.

AM: The University of Texas has led the way for the involvement with the Good Works Team, with around a dozen participants from the school leading the Big 12. How have you seen UT impact the community, specifically with the Good Works Team?

Acho: It’s been awesome to see the players from the University of Texas be involved with Allstate AFCA Good Works Team. But it’s bigger than just Texas. I think about guys like Robert Griffin III, one of the players who were part of this team. I think about guys like Tim Tebow, one of the players who was a part of this team. So for me, it’s just great to see that players are getting recognized for the work they do on and off the field.

I’ve written books about this, right? My most recent book is called Change Starts with You: Following Your Fire to Heal a Broken World. In that book, I talk about some of the social justice causes, the nonprofit causes, the work I’ve done off the field, and how that’s transcended football.

AM: Is there anyone in particular that you’ve noticed here in the last couple of years with the Good Works Team that made an impact on you or that you would like to highlight further?

Acho: Josh Newton, I think would be the main person. I remember watching his film last year was his first year at TCU and he was playing opposite of, and at corner. I’m watching this guy. So I like man, this guy is a football player, like he’s a follower, right?

But look at what he does in the community, whether it’s at the food bank, whether it’s with the Special Olympics. And so you see, wow, like the reason he’s a part of the State AFC, a good works team is that he wants to be great both on and off the field. And that’s what I think means so much to me.

AM: Sam, you’re a Hall of Honor inductee and one of the standouts at defensive end for Texas in the last couple of decades. And we are in the midst of Big 12 Media Days here, what do you see from head coach Steve Sarkisian in his third year? Also, what do you think about the direction and culture within the program under Sark?

Acho: I’m excited about what s bringing into the program. I think he’s changing the program and preparing the program not only for the present but also for the future.

He talked about wanting to recruit large humans. If you look at the recruiting class over the last few years, there’ve been a lot of large humans who are part of that recruiting class. And so I think he’s preparing for the SEC for sure, but he wants to win. He wants to win now.

And I think the offense is set for that guys like Mitchell transferring in from Georgia, even Isaiah, who came from Wyoming the last year. So he came a little over a year ago, and now he’s getting back healthy. I think that’s when you start to see. This team is ready to take that next step.

AM: So you think they’re ready for the transition to the SEC next year?

Acho: I still think you don’t have to be ready for that yet because you’re not there yet right now. You’re still in the Big 12.

And so I think you need to win the Big 12 and do whatever you can. But also know that whether you win or lose, there’s gonna be a new, a different animal, a different beast. And so I think he’s preparing for that while he’s doing what he’s currently doing right now.

AM: I appreciate you taking the time and we’re excited to see your continued involvement with the Good Works Team and how it’s getting student-athletes from the Big 12 involved to help different communities around the country.

Acho: Awesome. No, thank you so much.