Fresh off his Army Bowl showing, Sterns had his mind on his UT career
Playing in front of what amounted to a hometown crowd, Cibolo Steele defensive back and Texas Longhorn commitment Caden Sterns put on a show at Saturday’s Army All-American Bowl, recording two interceptions in helping the West secure a narrow 17-16 victory. Sterns' efforts, including a 38-yard interception return in the fourth quarter that set up the West’s game-winning touchdown, earned him MVP honors in the game. For Sterns, who will enroll at Texas later this week, it was a dream come true to represent his family and the San Antonio area on national television.
“There’s nothing better than representing my hometown, 210. It was great to come out here and show how we ball in the city and also in Texas,” Sterns said. “It was a great feeling. I’m just blessed.”
Sterns will officially pack his bags and move up to Austin on Thursday to begin his Texas career. Before then, he’s going to enjoy some time with his family while also maintaining the mindset that there’s much work to be done.
“There’s not a lot of down time. Back to work real soon,” Sterns said. “I’m going to hang with the family, enjoy this with the family the way they’ve supported me through all of this. I love them so much for this. This is for them, for the city. I’m just going to enjoy it for the family and get back to work really soon.”
As an early enrollee, Sterns will have a chance to go through the Longhorns’ offseason program and spring football season. In the moments following the Army Bowl performance, when most players were still celebrating the narrow win, Sterns had one eye on the next chapter of his playing career.
“I got chills. It’s crazy,” Sterns said of having such a strong showing in front of family and friends. “But you can’t be too satisfied with this. The next competition, everybody is good in college football, everybody is athletic, everybody is fast and all that stuff. What separates them is the mentality that they carry themselves with. So I have to go in and show out.”
After watching the Under Armour All-American Bowl on Thursday evening, a game that saw fellow UT defensive back signees B.J. Foster and DeMarvion Overshown play very well, Sterns said he was simply trying to keep up with his future teammates.
“Really, if you watched the Under Armour game, those safeties over there had a great game too,” Sterns said. “So I was just trying to live up to the reputation. I had some big shoes to fill. Hopefully I did my job. I was just trying to ball out like them and thank God I did.”
That trio of DBs, along with Anthony Cook, D’Shawn Jamison and Jalen Green, is considered to be the best defensive back class in the country. All six signees played in either the Army or Under Armour games, and Sterns is excited to see what that group can do at Texas.
“It’s the best in the country. We proved it right now, against the best of the best,” Sterns said. “We still have a lot of work to do and we’re going to go ahead and get that work done when we get up there. But I’m glad to be a part of this special class that we have and bring back DBU to Texas, where it belongs.”
Ranked No. 56 on the Rivals100, Sterns is hopeful the 2018 recruiting class – currently ranked No. 3 by Rivals.com – can help return Texas back to the level of nationally elite. The team took a step forward in 2017 in Tom Herman’s first year, getting a bowl victory over Missouri, and Sterns is looking forward to helping make continued progress within the program.
“Hook’em, that’s what’s next,” Sterns said of his mindset for the future. “Turning it around, changing the culture up there, getting started and getting ready for next year.”