For the Year: 31-34-1 (.477) ($640) ATS 47-19 (.712) SU
What we learned last week:
We learned that you can hang with Florida for a while with a bad quarterback, but that bad quarterback will make a mistake and Florida will pounce on it…
We learned that Dan Mullen has Mississippi State competitive, but they need to find an offense in the off-season if they want to go from being pesky to being a winner….
We learned that I was completely wrong on TCU. Wow. What was once a great defensive team with a manageable offense now has a great defense and a great offense. The Frogs have scored 233 points in the past five games…
We learned that Nebraska needs to keep giving Roy Helu Jr. the ball and get out of his way….
We learned that Mike Leach will send a quarterback with one leg out there, but hopefully Mike Gundy will sit Zach Robinson out a couple of games after the nastiest collision this side of Darrell’s fist to Brad’s eye on The Ruins…
And finally, we learned that Texas gets up 40-0 at the half, takes the starters out and coasts, while Oklahoma takes their starters out in a 65-10 game with 4 minutes left. You stay classy, Bobby….
Anyhow…
Earn the Right.
Nestled above a set of horns from a real Longhorn in the Moncrief-Neuhaus Athletic Center on the University of Texas campus is that simple saying. Many pass it every day, some might even pay attention to it.
But as dusk falls over Darrell K. Royal Texas Memorial Stadium Saturday night, the players will stream to the field, carefully touch the other set of horns under The Eyes of Texas and then pay tribute to the Freddie Steinmark landmark. Mad Dog will start his chant, the players will jump up and down and the smoke will fill the tunnel as the beginning notes to Texas Fight fill the stadium, and the words will never ring as true.
Earn the Right.
It was May of 2004 and another hot Texas summer was descending upon West Texas. In the small town of Tuscola, Texas, population 714, there was a rumbling making its way across town, not that that takes long.
Their quarterback was going to the University of Texas.
Colt McCoy, the coach’s son, who guided the 2A Jim Ned Indians to the state championship game the year before, was going where?
“I had people in my town, friends of mine, people real close to me saying that I would never be able to play here,” McCoy told the Associated Press recently.
If people in your own town didn’t think you could make it, then what would Texas fans, who are as hard on a quarterback as any fanbase in the country, going to say?
Well, first, Texas had bigger fish to think about. Louisiana prep star quarterback Ryan Perrilloux committed in July and looked to be the heir apparent to Vince Young. He had the passing ability to keep defenses honest, but like Young could take over a game with his feet as well.
The Longhorns’ offense got off to a slow start in 2004, getting shutout by Oklahoma and struggling against Missouri, leading some to wonder if Young should be shifted to receiver. Amid concerns about the offense, the prep quarterback started to flirt with LSU.
No, not Perrilloux. McCoy. Citing concerns that the Longhorn passing game wasn’t a featured part of the offense, McCoy started to look elsewhere, finally listening to the phone calls from LSU offensive coordinator Jumbo Fisher. McCoy even set up a visit to LSU, but a visit from Mack Brown and Greg Davis to the one stoplight town showed McCoy all he needed to know about where he needed to be.
In the end, Perrilloux of course shunned the Longhorns on signing day in a move that surprised nobody. An eleventh hour effort to recruit Southlake Carroll quarterback Chase Daniel didn’t work, so the Longhorns were left with only McCoy, a three star recruit who was ranked 73rd in the state, behind such quarterbacks as Daniel and Arkansas signee Casey Dick.
Fresh off a resounding victory against Michigan in the Rose Bowl to end the 2004 season, the Longhorn nation was amped up about their opportunity to win the national title in 2005. It briefly appeared that McCoy might have to back-up Vince Young on the road to the title game, but after a brief flirtation with law school Matt Nordgren decided to play one more year so McCoy was able to red-shirt.
The Longhorns did indeed win the national title that year, and after Vince Young bolted to the NFL, the Longhorns were left with redshirt freshman McCoy and incoming freshman Jevan Snead to duke it out for the starting job. With Snead’s stature and rocket for an arm, most fans thought it was a formality that McCoy was even given equal snaps in Spring practice that year.
But in a move that shocked most of the Longhorn nation, McCoy was named the starter for the 2006 season opener against the University of North Texas. The second play of the game was a 60 yard touchdown pass to Limas Sweed, and Longhorn fans had a new hero.
2006 was great for McCoy, as he set a school record for any class and tied a national record for touchdown passes by a freshman quarterback (29). 2007 was a disappointment, as McCoy threw 18 interceptions along with his 21 touchdown passes. And, of course, 2008 was another fantastic year as the Longhorns went 12-1 including a Fiesta Bowl victory over Ohio State and McCoy breaking his own school record by throwing 34 touchdown passes.
This season the Longhorns entered the year ranked #2 in the country, a clear path to the national championship game before them and a clear path to the Heisman Trophy presentation in New York for McCoy.
But the games aren’t played on paper. The Longhorns are still very much in the hunt for the national championship, but it is only in recent weeks that McCoy is again getting Heisman consideration after a shaky beginning to the season.
The next step is Saturday night. Win? The Longhorns clinch the Big 12 South title. McCoy has an outstanding performance in front of what should be the majority of the country? He can buy a plane ticket to New York and can start to smell the bronze on the trophy.
Earn the right to be a Heisman Trophy winner.
Win on Saturday and Colt McCoy becomes college football’s all-time leader in wins by a quarterback with 43, breaking the record set by Georgia’s David Greene in 2004. His record at Texas is 42-7. His record at Jim Ned High School was 34-2. That is a combined record of 76-9. It appears,
with all due respect, that the people of Tuscola were wrong.
Earn the right to be the all-time leader in wins.
But, of course, McCoy didn’t win all of those games by himself. He was part of a recruiting class that might have at the time been remembered for who it did not get (Perrilloux, Martellus Bennett, Fred Rouse), but will instead be remembered for who did come here (McCoy, Jamaal Charles, Quan Cosby, Roddrick Muckelroy, Roy Miller, Henry Melton). He is part of a graduating class that includes Lamarr Houston, Sergio Kindle and Jordan Shipley.
That graduating class sits at 42-7 for their career. The all-time leading class in Texas history since freshmen became eligible is the 2005 class, who won their 45th game on the floor of the Rose Bowl that January night.
Wins against Kansas, at Texas A&M and the Big 12 Championship Game would tie the record.
One more after that would break it.
Earn the right to be a national champion.
Earn the right to be the greatest class in Texas history.
For more on the gentleman pictured here, go here. Great story.
FACEBOOK NEWS FEED
Charlie Weis is having a garage sale this weekend…all my ND stuff will be on sale.
FSN we’re about as good at showing games as your high school AV class!
Pete Carroll wrote on USC Defense’s Wall: The last one out turn off the lights. This is California.
John Harbaugh has joined the group Bob Stoops’ Guide To Running Up the Score.
Case Keenum cancelled his flight to New York.
LeGarrette Blount is going to punch somebody if I don’t get some playing time.
Dick Tomey might not be going out on top, but I’ll be going out on top.
On to the games...
Ohio State -11.5 @ Michigan:
7-1. That is Jim Tressel’s record against Michigan. The Wolverines appear to have given up on life, losing four in a row with a lonely win against Delaware State the only thing keeping that from a six game losing streak. The defense has been atrocious, giving up 156 points in those four games.
The only that saves Michigan here is pride, but it doesn’t appear they have any of that left, either.
Ohio State 37 Michigan 14
ATS – Ohio State
SU – Ohio State
LSU @ Mississippi -4:
LSU had won six straight in this series until last year, when Mississippi went into Baton Rouge and won 31-13. Jevan Snead was great in that game, throwing for 274 yards, and they will likely need another great game from him to pull out the win.
Lots of attention was paid to Rebels RB Dexter McCluster last week, and rightfully so, but this is still the team that lost to Auburn three weeks ago and has lost to every ranked team they have played this year.
LSU’s defense contains McCluster, Jordan Jefferson tries to erase Tiger fans’ memories of Jarrett Lee.
LSU 27 Mississippi 21
ATS – LSU
SU – LSU
Oregon -6 @ Arizona:
In a convoluted situation, the Pac-10 has a chance to have a six-way tie for first place in the division. Of course those scenarios involve Washington State winning a game, and we all know that isn’t happening.
So in all likelihood this game is for the conference championship. Arizona is coming off a loss at Cal, but are undefeated at home this year, while Oregon rebounded from their loss to Stanford with a home win over Arizona State last week.
This one is very close. Give me Oregon’s experience to win, but Arizona’s youth, home field advantage and running game to keep it close.
Oregon 31 Arizona 28
ATS – Arizona
SU – Arizona
Oklahoma -6.5 @ Texas Tech:
Oklahoma hasn’t won in Lubbock since 2003, and please don’t bring up the “He Was In” game because that just creeps me out.
Which Tech team shows up here? If they hadn’t gotten their ass handed to them by Texas A&M I would be more inclined to go with them here, but they have been very inconsistent, especially at the quarterback position. Oklahoma has been very good on defense, but is it only a matter of time before they give up a big offensive game?
Give me Oklahoma. Tech’s rowdy student section will still be passed out in their dorm room for the 11:30 start.
Oklahoma 27 Texas Tech 17
ATS – Oklahoma
SU – Oklahoma
Kansas State @ Nebraska -16.5:
It is like we all fell asleep and woke up in 1999, except that I’m not in college anymore and the Internet isn’t this crazy new thing that we’re going to throw a bunch of money at even though we don’t even have any idea what it is.
KSU and NU went to the Big 12 Championship the first five years of the conference, and account for three out of the four North division wins in the championship game series.
But this is a new era. Nebraska looks to have the edge here due to their defense, but Kansas State has the rush defense to contain Roy Helu Jr. The Cornhuskers are going to Arlington, but that line is a bit crazy. Nebraska hasn’t even scored 16.5 points in four of their ten games this year.
Nebraska 21 Kansas State 17
ATS – Kansas State
SU – Nebraska
Kansas @ Texas -27.5:
Texas has won every game against Kansas in the Big 12 era, and with the team imploding around Mark Mangino this week, there really isn’t much evidence that that streak will end this week.
Todd Reesing makes his homecoming, but won’t be helped by a rushing attack that ranks 88th in the country and an offensive line that ranks 78th in the country in sacks allowed. Dezmon Briscoe is a dangerous receiver, but don’t you think the Horns put Aaron Williams on him and say go ahead?
The Jayhawks also don’t look to have much fight on defense, as they gave up 400+ yards to a Nebraska team that was asking Santa Claus for an offense so they might win their bowl game this year.
Texas wins easily, who knows what happens to Mangino, and Colt passes David Greene.
"I'm like anybody else. You really don't want to see your records broken," Greene told CBS Sports. "But if somebody is going to break the record, I would want it to be somebody like Colt. I don't know him personally, but you can tell by listening to him that he is a team guy and a very humble guy. I like that."
I can’t argue with that.
Texas 48 Kansas 10
ATS – Texas
SU – Texas
Random Hot Dallas Chick
For entertainment purposes only. Save your money for Charlie Tanner all-time winningest guard t-shirts.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment