AUSTIN – Bernard “Bam” Blake wasn’t sure where to train his growing number of defensive back prospects in the Austin area. It was the summer of 2020 and COVID-19 forced public field closures across the city. 

Where would he train the next crop of elite defensive backs such as Pflugerville Connally’s Jahdae Barron, Austin LBJ’s Andrew Mukuba, and Westlake’s Michael Taaffe? Where there is a will, there is a way. Blake and his Austin upstarts had plenty of will. 

“We’d get cops called on us or they’d drive by and see us training without being six feet apart and kick us out,” Blake said of that summer. “We were driving from Manor to Westlake to Dripping Springs to Leander to Georgetown – anywhere we could find a field to work out.”

Barron was Blake’s first true pupil. The former four-star prospect never lacked confidence, according to Blake, but Barron did lack experience. He was a former basketball player who still believes he could start on the hardwood for most college programs. It’s that trademark swagger that’s turned him into a Thorpe Award candidate in his final season at Texas. 

But Barron wasn’t supposed to be a Longhorn. He was pledged to the Baylor Bears and signed his National Letter of Intent to play in Waco before Matt Rhule left for the NFL, which allowed Barron a chance to look around. The new defensive staff at Texas had recruited Barron at previous stops and extended the athletic Pflugerville Connally product a late offer - one he accepted without much thought.

“The smile on his face when he realized he was going to school at Texas was priceless,” Blake remembered. “From that point on, he was ready to get better and better and better.” 

Working hard was never an issue for Taaffe. He was an undersized, white defensive back at one of the premier high school programs in Class 6A. He was always underappreciated, but rarely outworked. Blake saw the fire and potential in Taaffe, even when college coaches didn’t despite interceptions in state championship games. 

Taaffe didn’t let the disrespect and the lack of offers stop him from improving. He’d work private sessions with Blake before or after group workouts to put in extra work. After all, he played for Todd Dodge. Practicing was a lifestyle. That lifestyle began to impress everyone around him, including high-end prospects such as Barron and Mukuba. 

“A lot of the guys look up to Michael because of his journey,” Blake explained. “Michael didn’t look back then like he does now, but he stuck with it. The guys would talk to the schools recruiting them about Michael and try to help get him recruited because of the respect they have for him.” 

Taaffe, who was a preferred walk-on commit at Rice, worked his way into the same opportunity at Texas following back-to-back Defensive MVP honors in Class 6A Division I state championship wins. Blake was hesitant for Taaffe to walk on for the Longhorns. His route to a scholarship seemed easier and more realistic at Rice. After all, the only white DB Blake knew who made it at Texas was Blake Gideon. The list wasn’t very long. 

“He told me, ‘I dreamt of playing Division I football at the University of Texas, so if I’m going to pay for school, I’ll pay for it where I dreamed of going.’”

Mukuba was a star. He was late to football, but his track speed and God-given athleticism made him a quick learner. If Blake taught Mukuba something once, he rarely had to go over it a second time. That led Mukuba to four-star status and offers from around the country, including the hometown Longhorns. He chose Clemson, however, after leading LBJ to a state title game. 

“I thought he was going to the NFL from the beginning,” said Blake about Mukuba. “We didn’t have anything else to do (during COVID) so we’d work out for two, three hours at a time. He caught up to everyone’s football IQ quickly.”

The trio is now back in Austin and starting for Texas. Blake, who was a defensive back at Colorado State, is relishing in the moment. Three of his original eight mentees are back under his wings. They still all train together in Austin, though it is now much easier to find a field. The group always joked about it, but the reality felt like a dream. 

“It means more than anyone could write about or any producer could capture in a clip,” Blake said about the trio reuniting in Austin to play for the Longhorns. “Even in our sessions now, you can hear and feel the excitement. I almost created myself in the new video game to get a chance to play with them in that secondary.” 

That Texas secondary required reinforcements. The Longhorns ranked 116th nationally in pass defense in 2023 while allowing 254.1 yards per game. They were 80th in FBS in touchdown passes allowed at 21. The Longhorns lacked speed in the backend, and that allowed teams such as Oklahoma and Washington to beat the Big 12 champs. 

Mukuba’s addition, as well as Barron’s move to cornerback from nickel, is already paying dividends. The Longhorns have only allowed 139 passing yards per game through two weeks of the season, which currently ranks 33rd nationally. Barron and Mukuba have two of Texas’s four interceptions. Taaffe is fourth on the team in tackles. 

Austin isn’t known as a hotbed of talent, at least not yet. That distinction goes to Dallas or Houston or even East Texas. The Cen-Tex is overlooked, even by the hometown Longhorns. This trio hopes to change that perception.

“I tell Taaffe before every game that this is for the city (Austin) and we have to pour all our love into the burnt orange and the name on your back,” Barron said after Texas thumped Michigan on the road in Week 2. “At the end of the day, this is for the 512. Me, Taaffe, and Mukuba are trying to put Austin on the map.” 

So far, so good.