One of the fun traditions the Dallas Cowboys have had at training camp over the years is rookie players trying to earn the world-famous (or perhaps infamous to some) star on the side of their helmets. They stick out at practices without the symbol and have to earn the trust of the coaching staff by making enough of an impact to be awarded the honor of wearing that sticker.
Down the road in Austin, new Texas coach Charlie Strong is apparently instituting the same policy. Only instead of freshmen being without the Longhorns logo on the side of their helmets, he's instituting the uniform change for the whole team.
It probably won't take Reed too long to earn his burnt orange logo back, considering he's one of the top players on the defense and a potential first-round draft pick if everything goes his way this year.
Strong has already established himself as the new sheriff in town and this stunt should only add to that reputation among his players. He kicked off several players before camp started and suspended a handful of potential starters, as well.
Basically, the former Louisville coach is putting the emphasis back into the phrase, "Don't mess with Texas."
The Longhorns kicked off preseason training camp on Monday in Austin. The team checks in at No. 26 in the College Football 24/7 Team Rankings and open the season against North Texas on August 30th.
As Strong tries to establish a new culture of toughness and accountability in his new program, the removal of the logos to force players to earn them back is probably a pretty good thing after the past few seasons.
For sake of himself and Texas fans, though, he better hope it leads to things turning out a bit better on the field than it has for the Cowboys the past few years.
You can follow Bryan Fischer on Twitter at @BryanDFischer.
