It’s common for football programs to spend the time prior to bowl games doing some acts of service in community outreach programs. While in New Orleans for a week of preparation ahead of the 2019 Sugar Bowl, Texas head coach Tom Herman and several members of the team made a trip to Ochsner Hospital to visit families spending their holidays in recovery.
Ochsner is a nonprofit, academic, multi-specialty healthcare system in the heart of the city that has hosted a number of teams playing in the Sugar Bowl throughout the years. The Longhorns spent time visiting families, signing autographs, taking photos and handing out Texas gear.
Andrew Beck, Texas captain and senior tight end, entered a room during the evening visit and instantly realized the patient and his family were hearing impaired. He began masterfully communicating to the family in sign language.
Beck has accounted for 27 catches for 276 yards and two touchdowns this season, but perhaps his most memorable moment of the year came in that hospital room Friday evening. Beck gave the family beanies and a lasting memory.
During a #SugarBowl hospital visit, @TexasLonghorns TE Andrew Beck realized that a patient and his family were all hearing impaired. He knew just what to say (and sign)…
: @caraline_gaston pic.twitter.com/4eGztrfqpr
— Allstate Sugar Bowl (@SugarBowlNola) December 29, 2018
Beck and the Longhorns are set to play the Georgia Bulldogs in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1 at 7:45 p.m.