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Jonathon Brooks drafted by Carolina Panthers

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DETROIT – Texas running back Jonathon Brooks was selected by the Carolina Panthers with the 46th overall pick in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft on Friday.

Brooks is the fourth Texas running back drafted in the last eight years, joining Bijan Robinson (2023), Roschon Johnson (2023) and D’Onta Foreman (2017). With the second-round pick of Brooks, Texas now has a pair of first-rounders (Byron Murphy II/Xavier Worthy) and two second-rounders (T’Vondre Sweat/Brooks) in this draft, matching the most picks the Horns have had in first two rounds of a draft since 2007. The four picks among the first 46 selections are the most in UT history, bettering the mark of four players drafted among the first 47 in 1982. Brooks is the second Texas player drafted by the Panthers in program history, joining offensive tackle Blake Brockermeyer who was picked in the first round of the 1995 draft. Brooks was the first running back selected in the 2024 NFL Draft, giving Texas the first running back chosen in back-to-back drafts (Robinson, 2023). Texas joins Alabama (Mark Ingram, 2011; Trent Richardson, 2012) as the only programs to have the first running back drafted in back-to-back drafts.

“I love Jonathon Brooks and his story, and I couldn’t be happier to see him drafted in the second round by the Panthers,” said Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian. “He’s a guy that absolutely worked and earned this opportunity and Carolina got a great one. Jonathon was a guy that came in with the same class that included Ja’Tavion Sanders, Byron Murphy, Xavier Worthy and all those guys. He wasn’t the most highly touted player, he came to Texas knowing Bijan Robinson and Roschon Johnson were already on the team, and he worked at his craft and really waited his turn. For two years he was playing behind those guys, soaking up everything he could from them, and when he got a chance to go in, he made big plays for us. Then year three comes and he starts getting all the reps. And you could see the natural runner in him blossom, the hands out of the backfield, the intelligence in pass protection, and he just really took off. I think there’s a lot of value in perseverance, especially in a day and age in college football where it’s all about the transfer portal and what can I get now. This guy learned and studied under two great pros who are playing in the NFL now, waited his time, but continued to grind away. Then when his number got called, he took full advantage of it. He had a heck of a year for us. I wish we had him for the whole run there at the end, but he attacked his rehab from the knee injury like he did preparing for his opportunity at Texas. Despite the injury, he remained as a critical team leader and was so valuable to our young running backs’ development. I just spent some time with him the other day, he looks great, said he feels great, and Carolina is going to get a lot of value out of Jonathon at this pick because he could have been a first-round guy if he’d been healthy. Everything he’s getting right now he’s earned. He’s the top running back off the board, and I couldn’t be more excited for him and his family.

“Jonathon’s a natural runner, he’s got great instincts running the ball, has a really good feel for making people miss in the open field and has exceptional contact balance. I think he’s a three-down back that can play on first and second down, but also is reliable in pass protection and has very good hands out of the backfield. I can’t wait to watch him in the NFL. As good of a player as he is, he’s an even better person. He has a great future ahead of him.”

Brooks, a 2023 Doak Walker Award semifinalist and Earl Campbell Award finalist, appeared in 22 games with eight starts during three seasons on the Forty Acres. He rushed for 1,139 yards in 2023, the 14th-most in program history, on 187 carries (6.1 ypc) and 10 touchdowns, while also hauling in 28 receptions for 335 yards and two touchdowns.

As a sophomore in 2023, Brooks appeared in 11 games with eight starts, earning All-Big 12 Second Team honors from the conference’s coaches and Associated Press after establishing career highs with 187 carries for 1,139 yards (6.1 ypc) and 10 touchdowns, while also catching 25 passes for 286 yards and one touchdown before sustaining an ACL injury. His 1,139 rushing yards on the year were 14th-most in a season in program history. Through the first 10 games, he ranked sixth in the nation in rushing yards (1,139), seventh in rushing yards per game (113.9 ypg) and sixth in all-purpose yards (142.5 ypg).

A native of Hallettsville, Texas, Brooks’ versatility was on display over his final eight games before the injury, rushing 161 times for 1,030 yards (103.0 ypg) and catching 22 passes for 240 yards to total 1,270 yards (127.0 ypg). He had six 100-yard rushing games, tied for the 12th most in season in program history, including a streak of four-straight games that equaled the 11th-longest stretch for a Longhorn. Over the final eight games he started, Brooks had one 200-yard performance and five 100-yard games, as well as 99-yard and 98-yard rushing games. On the year, he has 14 plays of 20-plus yards (11 rushing, three receiving) with five touchdowns, including a pair of 60-plus yard rushes and a 73-yard reception at TCU that is the fifth-longest pass play for a Longhorn running back in program history.

Brooks was a two-time member of the Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING

Jonathon Brooks

On the feeling getting the call:

It felt awesome, it felt amazing. Everything I worked for in life growing up as a kid throughout my football career, it felt like it paid off. This isn’t the ultimate goal. The ultimate goal is to stay in the league and be a productive back for multiple years. Just for me to be able to continue the Texas running back tradition, going to the league, being the first back taken, it really holds a lot of weight. Now I’ve got to go in there and do my part.

On being able to follow and lean on Bijan Robinson and Roschon Johnson and have the support coming out of Texas:

Definitely, and for me, guys like Jamaal Charles, Ricky Williams, all of them coming back to Texas, I have a lot of good feedback from them. Even Coach Choice, he didn’t play at Texas, but he has a lot of good feedback. But for me to be able to learn from Bijan and Roschon for those two years at Texas, then even after their first year in the league, they gave me a lot of good insight for what it will be like, how it is, and how you maintain your body throughout the league. It’s pretty awesome to have those guys. When you go to Texas – Malcolm Roach literally just said it – it’s like a brotherhood regardless of when you came out. Malcolm Roach at the spring game treated me like I played on the team with him, like I was one of his brothers. When you go to Texas, it’s a brotherhood and something we take a lot of value in.

On being able to lean on Fozzy Whittaker having been a running back for the Carolina Panthers:

I can lean on him a lot. Fozzy and I have a good relationship. I talk to him every time I see him. We have good conversations, and we have mutual friends. Fozzy is going to be a good person for me to reach out to, he’s played running back at Texas and Carolina, so it will be pretty cool for me.

On his family’s reaction and how that felt:

My family has believed in me my whole life. To look over and see how happy my mom was, she couldn’t even contain herself. It meant everything to me. Also seeing my brother break down in tears, it means everything because they believed in me and never stopped. For me to have changed not only my life, but theirs, it means everything, because they’re my reason why.

On his coaches and teammates at Texas:

I would like to thank Coach Choice, all the running backs I’ve been there with, the whole coaching staff, Coach Flood, Coack Sark, all the coaches since I’ve been there, and then the fans and the community of Austin. It’s been an amazing ride, and I appreciate every moment that I had there.

ON SOCIAL MEDIA





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