Houston native Bobby Burton was pursuing his accounting degree at McCombs. Then a chance comment by his professor helped him realize how to marry his passion for sports and numbers. Now, as the Longhorns head into their first SEC season, he shares how he got to be the host of the number one Longhorn sports podcast and his predictions for this historic football season.

Q: Where are you originally from?

A: Houston.

Q: What brought you to UT Austin?

A: For 4th of July and Labor Day, my parents would take us water skiing and camping on Lake Travis when I was young. I’ve always loved UT and Austin.

Q: Tell us what an impact being a McCombs grad has had on your life?

A: The exposure to so many smart people at Texas, the exposure to different ideas and to people who had the ability to execute those ideas, was an eye opener for me. The UT business school and that exposure gave me the confidence that I could do the things I wanted to with my life and my career.

Q: Share a lasting memory of your time at McCombs.

A: I was an accounting major but I knew I wanted to work in sports when I graduated. So I had begun looking for a way to tie the academics at Texas into my love for sports. I had a great professor, Michael Granoff. One day in class, he talked about the NCAA, college sports’ governing body, only for 30 seconds or so. The next week, I went to his office hours. I shared a book I had read called The Hundred Yard Lie. He borrowed the book from me and ended up reading it himself. The next time I went to his office hours, he had a number of thoughts about the book, about the broad financial impact of college sports in the university setting, and more. He didn’t have to do that, but he did, and I’ll always be grateful to him. In his own way, he showed me that you can marry what you’re studying with what you really want to do with your life.

Q: Tell us how you continue to be involved with McCombs, and why is that important to you?

A: I try to support UT in many ways. Whether that’s by hiring young people from UT or promoting UT more generally. I think it’s important to remember the people and places that shaped you and to give back.

Q: We have just welcomed new students to our campus. Do you have any advice you’d like to share with them as the embark on their college careers?

A: You’ve made it into Texas for a reason. Life is there for the taking. So don’t just go through the motions. Apply yourself in a way that is meaningful to you. It may even take you a while to figure out what that is. But keep searching and when you find it, go for it with everything you’ve got.

Q: What is the greatest thing you’ve accomplished with your career and what do you want to do next?

A: Very early in my career, I played a central role in creating Rivals.com. College sports and recruiting websites, like Rivals and 247Sports, didn’t exist when I was growing up. We created both of those companies. I’m currently doing exactly what I want to do next. I’m going back to my roots. I’m producing On Texas Football. It’s the No. 1 podcast and YouTube channel covering the Texas Longhorns sports programs and recruiting.

Q: What are your predictions for the Longhorn’s first season in the SEC?

A: I’ll go with a 10-2 regular season.  And if they can do that, the Longhorns will be in the college football playoffs for the second straight year. Hook ’em!