2007 Texas Longhorn football team
Encyclopedia
The 2007 Texas Longhorn football team (variously "Texas" or "UT" or the "Horns") represented the University of Texas at Austin
in the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season
. The team was coached by Mack Brown
, who received the 2005 Paul "Bear" Bryant Coach of the Year award. The Longhorns play their home games in Darrell K Royal – Texas Memorial Stadium (DKR).
The Longhorns entered the 2007 season ranked third on all-time college football lists in both total wins and winning percentage. A pre-season ranking by ESPN
writer Mark Schlabach
had the Longhorns ranked eighth, while College Football News
ranked Texas third. The Longhorns came into the season ranked fourth in both the Coaches Poll
and AP Poll
. During the preceding summer five players had been disciplined for legal infractions, another suspended for NCAA rule violations, and a coach had undergone surgery for cancer. Additional players were suspended during the season.
The Longhorns played games against two opponents they had never faced previously: Arkansas State University
and the University of Central Florida
(UCF). The Longhorns narrowly achieved a victory in their home opener with Arkansas State, and in their first road game of the season, Texas was the inaugural opponent for the UCF Knights in their new stadium. In preseason speculation, games against Texas Christian University
(TCU) and Oklahoma
(OU) were considered among the top 20 games to watch during the 2007–2008 college football season.
The Longhorns lost conference
games to the Kansas State Wildcats
, the Oklahoma Sooners
, and the Texas A&M Aggies
. In two close games, they avoided upset
attempts by lower-ranked Nebraska
and , the latter game involving a 21-point fourth quarter comeback by the Horns. Texas concluded its season by winning the 2007 Holiday Bowl
against the Arizona State Sun Devils
—another first-time opponent for Texas—bringing their season record to 10–3.
The Horns finished the season ranked tenth in the AP poll and in the USA Today coaches poll. After the season, five UT players entered professional football
through the 2008 NFL Draft
and four others agreed to sign free-agent contracts with NFL teams.
had the first Bowl Championship Series
win for any Texas team and the 2005 team
won the National Championship (the fourth for the UT football program).
The 2006 team had 9 wins and 1 loss through November 4, 2006 but starting quarterback
Colt McCoy
was injured in the 11th game and Texas lost the final two regular season games in 2006, including a 12–7 home loss to division rivals Texas A&M. This took the team out of contention for the conference championship, as well as the national championship.
Between the 2006 regular season and the bowl season
, back-up quarterback Jevan Snead
transferred to another school, and Longhorn defensive coordinator
Gene Chizik
accepted the head-coaching job at Iowa State University
. The Longhorns ended up accepting a bowl invitation
to the Alamo Bowl
against the unranked University of Iowa Hawkeyes
, who had finished in eighth place in the Big Ten Conference
. Colt McCoy was cleared to play for the Horns and led Texas through a back-and-forth affair to a 26–24 win. The Longhorns finished the season with a record of 10 wins and 3 losses and received a final ranking of 13th in the nation by both the Associated Press
AP Poll
and the USA Today Coaches Poll
Texas entered the 2007 season ranked third in the all-time list of both total wins and winning percentage. They were ranked in the Top 10 by numerous pre-season polls. For instance, a pre-season ranking by ESPN
writer Mark Schlabach
had the Longhorns ranked eighth; Rivals.com ranked them ninth; College Football News
and Real Football 365 both ranked Texas third. The Longhorns came into the season ranked fourth in both the Coaches Poll
and AP Poll.
Following the final home game of 2006, construction workers demolished the north end of Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. This section was rebuilt to make the lowest seats closer to the field while planning for luxury boxes and an upper-deck. The lower deck was ready for 2007, while the upper deck and luxury boxes are planned to be ready for 2008. The modifications put the north end zone
seats thirty yards closer to the field of play. This results in several game day changes, such as Smokey the Cannon
moving to the south end-zone near Bevo
.
Each 2007 Longhorn football helmet featured a Texas Bluebonnet decal
. The decal was chosen to honor President
Lyndon B. Johnson
, Lady Bird Johnson
and the Johnson family. Brown said President Johnson used to enjoy discussing football with former UT coach Darrell K. Royal
, while the first lady was known for her conservation efforts, particularly the spread of native wildflowers.
For the second straight year, UT merchandise products were the top-selling products among clients of Collegiate Licensing Company
. UT entered into a marketing arrangement with Bluetooth SIG to deploy Bluetooth
kiosks throughout the stadium. These kiosks broadcast free game-day information to Bluetooth-enabled cell-phones in the stands.
The Longhorns played their 2007 Spring Jamboree Scrimmage
on March 31, 2007 and reported for fall practice on August 5, 2007. A public scrimmage scheduled for August 18, 2007 was canceled due to safety concerns related to the weather and to ongoing stadium construction. With rain expected over the weekend and no working pumps to help remove water from the field, Brown held a closed practice indoors instead.
During fall practice, receivers Limas Sweed
, Billy Pittman
, and Jordan Shipley
were injured. Sweed suffered a sprain to his left wrist on August 15. Pittman sprained his left shoulder during practice on August 17. Head UT athletic trainer Kenny Boyd said, "We will continue to evaluate [Pittman] and monitor his progress in hopes of getting him back in time for the season opener." Jordan Shipley had to limit his practice due to a strained hamstring
. The receiver position was considered one of the deepest positions on the team; coaches said veteran players Quan Cosby
(Texas' second-leading receiver) and Nate Jones performed well in training camp. Coach Brown said he expected to be able to play three freshman receivers in 2007: Brandon Collins, Malcolm Williams and James Kirkendoll. On August 29, 2006 Brown announced that Sweed was "probable" for the season opening game, but that Shipley was "doubtful".
Prior to the first game of the season, the University of Texas Board of Regents
voted unanimously to raise Brown's salary by $300,000, bringing his annual compensation to $2.81 million and keeping him among the five highest-paid coaches in college football. The package also includes up to $3 million in bonuses, including "$100,000 if he wins the Big 12 Championship and $450,000 for a national championship, as well as bonuses based on the percent of players who graduate." At the time, Brown's contract extended through the 2016 season and included buy-out clauses should another school attempt to hire Brown.
Greg Davis, who entered his 10th season with Texas, was the team's offensive coordinator
and quarterbacks coach
. Duane Akina
was the defensive coordinator
, and took the position vacated by Gene Chizik when he left the program. During the 2007 season, Akina performed his job on the sidelines while Larry Mac Duff
provided input from the press box. UT running backs coach
Ken Rucker announced in August that he had prostate cancer
and that he would have surgery on August 27. He coached practices until just prior to surgery and returned to the team before the end of the season. Rucker's health concern coincided with player incidents that created Brown's most tumultuous off-season since arriving at Texas.
The school suspended a total of seven players for at least a portion of the season. Six were suspended for alleged illegal activities, and one was suspended for a violation of National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) rules. Defensive end Henry Melton
and linebacker Sergio Kindle
were both arrested during the summer on charges of driving while intoxicated
. Freshman defensive tackle Andre (Dre) Jones (who had not yet played for Texas but did join spring practices) and former UT player Robert Joseph were charged with aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon. Jones was one of the team's most highly touted recruits; his high school
football career honors included Prep All-American, three-time all-state selection, first-team All-American by Parade Magazine, and Texas 4A Defensive Player of the Year by the Texas Sports Writers Association The university suspended Tyrell Gatewood indefinitely after he was arrested on two drug possession charges. James Henry was arrested on third-degree felony charges of "obstruction or retaliation and tampering or fabricating physical evidence."
The University of Texas suspended Billy Pittman for three games because he violated NCAA rules when he accepted the use of a friend's car over the summer. Coach Brown and University of Texas President William Charles Powers Jr.
issued statements concerning the important of team discipline and zero tolerance
policy for infractions.
Longhorns listed on preseason All-America
n or “All-Conference” teams or on award watch lists:
(wide receiver), and #81 Russell Carter (defensive end). Carter made the preseason roster as a defensive end while Chiles was listed as a quarterback. Jones was suspended from the team due to legal trouble.
The first Longhorn game of the season marked the first-ever meeting between Texas and Arkansas State, a NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision team from the Sun Belt Conference
. Pre-game media attention played upon the fact that both schools won national football championships in 1970. Both schools entered the game with a level of controversy attached to their teams. Arkansas State was facing criticism over its team name. The team was nicknamed "Indians" in honor of the Osage Nation
that inhabited the area until the 1800s. The NCAA
enforced restrictions on the use of Indian mascots, saying that they were derogatory to American Indians
. In 2008, the Indians changed their name to the Red Wolves. The University of Texas was dealing with player suspensions
, and passed a large pay raise for Mack Brown one week prior to the game. As part of the package, Brown received a $100,000 special payment upon completion of the game.
Two days prior to the game, Las Vegas
casinos favored
Texas by 39 points. Sportswriters John Bridges and Kirk Bohls of the Austin American-Statesman
predicted the Longhorns would have a big lead early in the game and that true-freshman quarterback John Chiles
would enter the game in the second or third quarter as the back-up to Colt McCoy. Redshirt
freshman quarterback Sherrod Harris was on the injured list and was not expected to play. Those predictions were off the mark as the Indians almost kept up with the Horns and McCoy stayed in for the entire game.
Texas scored a touchdown
on its first possession and Arkansas State answered with a field goal
. Texas made another touchdown to end the first quarter. Neither team scored in the second quarter. Texas scored seven points in the third quarter, while Arkansas State was scoreless. In the fourth quarter, Arkansas State scored ten points to pull within eight points of Texas. With approximately one minute left to play, Arkansas State attempted an onside kick
. State recovered the ball, but a controversial illegal formation penalty forced them to re-kick. On the re-kick, Texas recovered the ball and was able to run out the clock
to preserve a 21–13 win. Colt McCoy threw two touchdown passes and two interceptions; he also made two punts
. Jamaal Charles accounted for the third touchdown.
Starting Longhorn defensive end Brian Orakpo injured his right knee during the game. The team reported Orakpo would not need surgery but that it was uncertain when he would return.
Kirk Bohls was among commentators who were unimpressed by the Longhorns performance, saying, "if this becomes the pattern, look for a 7–5 season."
On September 5, Arkansas State coach Steve Roberts
said he was told by the Big 12 Conference's supervisor of football officials that game officials wrongly overturned ASU's recovery of the onside kick. He said the Big 12 Conference Supervisor of Officials told Arkansas State there had been no illegal formation, that no penalty should have been called, and that Arkansas State should have been awarded possession of the football. A Big 12 Conference spokesman said he could not confirm or deny that such a conversation took place and that any such conversation would be confidential.
The second Longhorn game of the season was the first meeting of the former Southwest Conference
(SWC) rivals since the conference disbanded following the 1995 season. Texas held a 60–20–1 (win-lose-tie) record vs. the TCU Horned Frogs
. Their most recent meeting was a 27–19 Longhorn victory.
In their annual season preview magazine, CBS SportsLine.com selected two Longhorn games — vs. TCU and against OU — as ranking in their 17 “must see” games for 2007. CBS Sportsline.com also selected TCU as one of the potential “BCS Busters” for 2007, saying, “The Horned Frogs will have one of the best defenses in the nation with nine starters back on a squad that allowed only 12.3 points per game last year, including a 12–3 victory over Texas Tech. Garry Patterson has made the Horned Frogs one of the best non-BCS schools in the nation, but unlike Utah and Boise State, they had not received the opportunity to play in a Bowl Championship Series
bowl. If TCU can get past Texas on Sept. 8, it might finally be time for the Horned Frogs to invade the BCS party.”
Texas' narrow win versus Arkansas State in week one, together with TCU's victory over Baylor, fueled speculation that the 2007 Horned Frogs
might have a chance at an upset
victory over the Longhorns. Texas dropped three places to number seven in the AP Poll and the Coaches Poll, while TCU moved up three places to number nineteen.
One day prior to the game, Las Vegas casinos picked Texas to win by 9½ points.
Both teams were scoreless in the first quarter. In the second quarter, TCU's Torrey Stewart faked a blitz
, then dropped back and caught an interception from Colt McCoy before running in for a touchdown. Later in the quarter, McCoy threw a pass that was tipped by a defender and intercepted by David Roach. The Longhorn defense kept the Horned Frogs out of the end zone following the interception, but the Frogs scored on a 19-yard field goal by Chris Manfredini. The first half ended with TCU leading, 10–0.
The Longhorns' first second-half drive culminated in a 33-yard touchdown pass to Nate Jones. A fumble
by TCU gave Texas good field position, but the Longhorns were stopped on the two-yard line and settled for a game-tying field goal. The Horns held TCU to seventeen yards of offense and no first downs in the quarter.
In the fourth quarter, Colt McCoy set up the go-ahead score with a scramble to the TCU one-yard line. Vondrell McGee scored a touchdown two plays later. Texas' next possession resulted in a second field goal by Ryan Bailey. The Longhorn defense held TCU to a three-and-out but TCU's punter fumbled the ball, and Brandon Foster ran the ball in for a touchdown, capping 27 straight points for Texas. The Frogs came back and scored 37-yard field goal by Manfredini and then attempted an onsides kick but Texas recovered the ball. UT's Jamaal Charles made a 39-yard rushing
touchdown for the game's final score. Texas won, 34–13. The attendance for the game, 84,621, was the third-largest crowd ever to watch a TCU football game.
The third game of the season was the first-ever meeting between the Longhorns and the UCF Knights. Texas was the first opponent in the Knights' new stadium, Bright House Networks Stadium
, and the game was the first of three scheduled meetings between the schools. The Knights opened their season with an upset
of North Carolina State; the victory was their second victory over a BCS opponent and the first time for the Knights to beat a BCS school since 2000. They followed the win with a week off, giving them two weeks to prepare for Texas. It was just the sixth time Texas had played in Florida
and was the team's first appearance in the state since 1965. The number six-ranked Longhorns were the highest rank team the Knights had ever played. UCF coach George O'Leary
said prior to the game, "When you talk about elite teams, Texas is an elite team from an athletics, traditions and overall standpoint."
Several Longhorn players missed the game due to injuries or suspensions. Starting defensive end Brian Orakpo missed his second straight game as a result of suffering a knee sprain against Arkansas State. Starting offensive tackle Adam Ulatoski was listed as doubtful. Backup quarterback Sherrod Harris was also injured and had not seen action since spraining his knee on August 12. Wide receiver Jordan Shipley participated in his first game since a preseason injury. Defensive end Henry Melton, linebacker Sergio Kindle and receiver Billy Pittman were serving the last game of their three-game suspensions. On September 13, Tyrell Gatewood joined Andre Jones and Robert Joseph in receiving an indefinite suspension due to alleged illegal activities. The day prior to the game, sports books in Las Vegas picked Texas to win by 18 points.
A sell-out crowd greeted the Longhorns in Florida. UCF received the opening kickoff in their end-zone and took a touchback
. UCF was not able to get a first down and before punting the ball to Texas. The Horns drove inside the UCF 20-yard line before being stopped on fourth-and-short and settling for a field goal. On their second possession, the Knights drove the ball down the field for a touchdown and a four point lead. Shortly thereafter, lightning
was spotted near the stadium and both teams were sent into their locker rooms for approximately 15 minutes before play resumed. Texas' first drive after the delay culminated in a six-yard touchdown pass to Nate Jones. When the first quarter ended, the Longhorns had a three point lead and the Knights had the ball. In the second quarter, the Longhorns and the Knights each fumbled inside the UCF ten-yard line. Texas scored ten points in the quarter to UCF's three. The score at halftime was 20–10, Texas.
Texas began the scoring in the third quarter with a 49-yard field goal. UCF needed just five plays to reply with a touchdown and cut Texas' lead to 23–17. After two punts by the Horns and one by the Knights, UCF turned the ball over on downs. On the next play, McCoy threw an interception and UCF's resulting drive culminated in a touchdown to give the Knights a 24–23 lead with 13:38 left in the game. The Longhorns regained the lead with two field goals and a touchdown. A Longhorn attempt at a two-point conversion
failed, making the score 35–24. This decision was later criticized by commentators who said that the decision allowed UCF a chance to tie the game.
With 2:14 remaining, Longhorn Jamaal Charles committed his second fumble of the game. UCF recovered the ball and completed a touchdown and a two-point conversion to cut Texas' lead to 35–32 with 35 seconds remaining. When the Knights were unable to recover their onside kick attempt, Texas was able to run out the clock and preserve a three-point victory.
Jamaal Charles of Texas rushed 22 times for 157 yards and Kevin Smith of UCF rushed 27 times for 150 yards for UCF. McCoy completed 68% of his passes for a total of 227 yards; UCF's Kyle Israel
completed 35% of his passes for a total of 133 yards. McCoy's 47 passing attempts tied a UT single-game record. His 32 completions set a new school record, besting the 30 completed by Vince Young during the 2006 Rose Bowl
and by Major Applewhite
during two 1999 games. Due to his performance in the game, Texas cornerback Brandon Foster was named the Big 12’s defensive player of the week. For the second week in a row, Foster scored a touchdown on defense. Foster was recognized by the conference the previous week for his work on special teams, making him the first Longhorn to get back-to-back conference honors since running back Hodges Mitchell in 2000. Kicker Ryan Bailey tied a school record with five field goals. Combined with his previous attempts, the five kicks made him seven-of-nine for the season at that point.
had competed in football on 89 prior occasions. The series, which began in 1914, is the fourth oldest (by number of games) in Texas history. The Owls were 21-67-1 against Texas heading into the game, including the sixth-longest streak
of one college football team winning over another team.
After their narrow victory over the UCF Knights, the Longhorns remained in sixth place in the coaches’ poll and dropped from sixth place to seventh place in the Associated Press poll. Jeff Sagarin, whose computer rankings are used as a component of the Bowl Championship Series
rankings, had the Longhorns at number twelve coming into the game. Sagarin's system had Rice ranked as the worst team in Division I-A and 181st in the country, behind many I-AA teams. Four days prior to the game, Las Vegas favored UT by 39 points. The Longhorns suspended special teams player James Henry prior to the game, but three Longhorn players—Billy Pittman, Henry Melton, and Sergio Kindle—were able to rejoin the team after serving three game suspensions. Brian Orakpo missed his third straight game due to an injury received in the season-opening game. The Owls came into the game 0–3 after losing the previous week to Texas Tech
by a score of 59–24.
The Longhorns started the game on offense and had no success on their first drive. On the first play, Colt McCoy threw an incompletion, and on the second play, Jamaal Charles fumbled the ball to the Owls. The Texas defense held Rice to a field goal attempt, which was no good. Texas scored a touchdown on a 13-play drive that included converting a 4th-and-two situation. The Longhorns extended their lead to 41–0 before Rice scored a touchdown with 18 seconds left in the first half. In the second half, Texas scored two touchdowns and one field goal, and Rice scored one touchdown. Texas won 58–14.
McCoy completed 20 of his 29 passing attempts, accumulating 333 yards through the air. For the first time in the season, he did not throw an interception. McCoy and most of the Longhorn starting players were replaced by backups after the first drive of the second half. True freshman quarterback John Chiles
made his first appearance as a Texas player in the first quarter, when he participated in a single play. He came out of the game after the play before returning in the third quarter as McCoy's replacement. On his first drive, Chiles led the Longhorns 80 yards to a touchdown, carrying the ball 4 times for 49 yards. He also threw one incomplete pass (one of two he threw in the game) and handed off to Vondrell McGee three times for thirty-one yards. Redshirt
freshman Sherrod Harris replaced Chiles for the final two drives of the game. Chiles' strong performance immediately led to media speculation as to how the Longhorns could get him more playing time.
McGee was the game's leading rusher, and had 8 carries for 80 yards. Jamaal Charles rushed 14 times for 72 yards, and John Chiles ran 9 times for 72 yards. Limas Sweed was the leading receiver with 5 catches for 139 yards and 2 touchdowns as he set a new career high for receiving yards in a single game. Sergio Kindle injured his knee, and defensive end Eddie Jones injured his shoulder, but neither injury was thought to be serious.
Texas first played Kansas State in 1913 and held a record of 5–4–0 in the series prior to 2007. Since the Kansas State Wildcats
belong to the north division of the Big 12 Conference, Texas plays KSU two out of every four years. In the 2006 meeting, fourth-ranked Texas was favored by 16 points over an unranked Kansas State team; Colt McCoy was injured early in the game and KSU went on to defeat Texas 45–42. This defeat snapped the Longhorns 17 win streak on the road as well as the national-best 21-game conference winning steak.
One day prior to the 2007 game, Las Vegas casinos picked Texas to win by 15 points. Kansas State got the ball to start the game and scored a touchdown on their opening drive. Texas answered with a touchdown on a drive that featured backup quarterback John Chiles in the game alongside Colt McCoy for some of the plays. The first quarter ended with the score tied 7–7.
In the second quarter, Kansas State took a 24–14 lead and Colt McCoy was injured and headed to the locker room just before halftime. McCoy came back as the Longhorn quarterback at the start of the third quarter, but Texas was never able to erase the point deficit and lost, 41–21. With about two minutes left in the game, McCoy again headed to the locker room early and Chiles led the Longhorns' last drive.
McCoy threw for 200 yards and had four interceptions during his worst performance of his college career. Sports Illustrated
selected him as one of the season's 10 "Most Disappointing College Players" and noted that his nine interceptions thrown to that point in 2007 were already two more than he threw during the entire 2006 season. Kansas State had no turnovers and scored 21 points on defense and special teams. The Wildcats scored one touchdown on a punt return, one on a kick return, and one on an interception. Previously, Texas had never allowed all three types of scores in a single season. The 41 points were the most scored against Texas in Austin since UCLA handed the Longhorns a 66–3 loss in 1997. The loss to Kansas State was the worst home defeat in the Mack Brown era at Texas. Stewart Mandel
of Sports Illustrated listed several factors that contributed to the Longhorns' struggles. He cited the off-field problems as evidence that no UT player has been able to show the superior leadership skills of Vince Young. Mandel said that McCoy, still only a sophomore, had not been able to completely fill that gap and that McCoy's play had not been as good as during 2006. He also said part of the blame should be placed on an offensive line that lost several starters and had not been able to consistently protect McCoy. Finally, he noted that the running game had been "equally inconsistent". The win over UT was the Wildcats' first road victory over a top–ten team in school history.
The game against the 2007 Oklahoma Sooners football team
marked the 102nd meeting of the Red River Shootout, which has been called one of the greatest sports rivalries in college football. It is Texas' second-longest running rivalry, just behind its rivalry with Texas A&M. Prior to 2007, Texas led the series 57–39–5, including the last two consecutive wins. The last match-up was a 28–10 Longhorn victory. Since 1929, the game has been held at the Cotton Bowl
in Dallas, Texas
typically in mid-October with the State Fair of Texas
occurring adjacent to the stadium.
CBS Sportsline.com listed the game sixth on its list of games to watch during the 2007 season, saying, “The annual Red River Shootout in Dallas will once again feature two top-ten teams with the winner being the front-runner for not only a Big 12 title but a factor in the national title picture. The game will also feature one of the best match-ups of the year with Limas Sweed and Billy Pittman of the Longhorns facing against Oklahoma’s excellent secondary.” Like Texas, Oklahoma suffered a defeat one week before the Red River Shootout, losing to the Colorado Buffaloes
. Texas' loss pushed it to number 16 in the coaches poll and number 19 in the AP poll; OU fell to number 10 in both polls. The ranking marked Texas' 114th straight week to be listed in the AP poll, the longest active streak in the country and tying the school record. The Longhorns had been ranked 142 straight weeks in the coaches poll, the longest UT streak in any poll and the country's longest active streak in the coaches poll. On the morning of the Red River Shootout, oddsmakers favored Oklahoma to win by 12–13 points.
The game was a back-and-forth affair ultimately won by Oklahoma, 28–21. OU's freshman quarterback, Sam Bradford
, was 21–of–32 for 244 yards and 3 touchdowns. UT's McCoy was 19–of–26 for 324 yards and two touchdowns, earning the most passing yardage against an Oklahoma team since the 2004 National Championship Game vs. USC
. McCoy threw one interception, and Jamaal Charles lost a fumble inside the Oklahoma five yard-line. For the second straight week, the Texas defense did not cause any turnovers.
McCoy, who suffered a concussion the previous week, played the game with his throwing arm bandaged from mid-forearm to biceps and took four sacks
and a blind-side late hit after one play had been whistled dead. With the loss, Texas opened conference play 0–2 for the first time since 1956. A bright spot for the Horns was tight end Jermichael Finley
, who caught four passes for 149 yards. Jamaal Charles ran for 79 yards and John Chiles carried once for four yards. Counting the sacks to McCoy, Texas had a total of 61 yards rushing.
Receiver Limas Sweed
left the game early because he re-injured his left wrist. He later had surgery to tighten the ligaments in the wrist but the injury ended his collegiate career. The Austin American-Statesman reported "Quan Cosby
likely will move to Sweed's spot at split end, with Nate Jones moving to flanker. The Longhorns likely will decide between Billy Pittman
and Jordan Shipley
at slot receiver when Texas is in its base, three-receiver set."
Defensive end Aaron Lewis fractured his elbow in the game and was taken out of the lineup indefinitely. The Austin American-Statesman reported "A depth chart issued Monday shows Lamarr Houston moving to Lewis' spot at power end, with Brian Orakpo regaining his starting job at quick end. The Longhorns have been dealing with injuries at defensive end all season." Fullback Luke Tiemann also required surgery to repair a broken wrist, but was expected to miss only two games.
Jeff Duarte of the Houston Chronicle
made note of Charles' fumble, McCoy's interception and the low rushing yardage. He said, "the Texas Longhorns went back and forth with Oklahoma for most of the game Saturday before eventually succumbing to the same problems that have taken them from a Top 10 ranking to the verge of dropping out of the national polls for the first time in seven years." The win kept the Sooners in position to win the south division of the Big12 Conference and could even allow them back into the national championship race.
Asked to assess his personal performance after the loss to Kansas State, Colt McCoy said, "I think I've had some bad luck, I'm definitely a better quarterback, definitely more experienced—I've just had some bad luck. Things that can go the wrong way, have gone the wrong way — tipped balls and that stuff." He also said there was room for improvement, "Teams are blitzing us a lot more. We've handled it well for the most part, but there's so many things we can do better... If you ask every person on this offense, they'll tell you there's something individually they can do better." After the loss to Oklahoma, Mack Brown said he did not want to hear about bad luck, "By saying we're unlucky is just a cop-out, this game isn't about luck. If you knock balls loose you should get on them. If you tip balls in the air you should catch them. We're not going to have any excuses." Brown cited the lack of big plays on defense, particularly the lack of forced turnovers, as a problem for Texas. Both Brown and Greg Davis hinted that Jamaal Charles could face less playing time as a result of his problems hanging onto the ball.
was coached by Gene Chizik
who was co-defensive coordinator for Texas from 2005–2006. Like Texas, the Cyclones were 0–2 in conference play, but they had only a 1–5 record overall. Their lone victory of the season had been against Iowa when they made a game-winning 28-yard field goal with :01 remaining. As with Kansas State, Texas plays the Cyclones two out of every four years as part of the Big 12 Conference schedule.
Despite losses to Kansas State and Oklahoma, Texas remained in the Top 25 coming into the game with Iowa State. The Horns were number 22 in the USA Today coaches poll and number 23 in the Associated Press media poll. Texas extended its streak in the coaches poll to 143 weeks and its streak in the AP poll to 115 weeks. Mack Brown said that he would not change the game plan in facing Chizik but that he would need to adjust sideline signals and snap counts since they were known to the former Texas co-coordinator.
The Austin American-Statesman predicted Iowa State's quarterback Bret Meyer and wide receiver Todd Blythe
would pose the biggest threat for the Longhorns. The paper also called the Cyclones the worst team in the Big12 north and predicted that Texas would be 2–2 in conference play after facing Iowa State and Baylor, the worst team in the south division. The Daily Texan reported that the game offered an opportunity for Gene Chizik to get a "signature win" if his team could beat Texas. Two days prior to the game, oddsmakers favored Texas to win by 16 points.
The Longhorns were in control from the beginning and routed Iowa State 56–3, the worst loss for the Cyclones since 1997. Iowa State got the ball to start the game and made a first down with a pass from Bret Meyer to Todd Blythe. The UT defense prevented them from gaining another first down and the Cyclones punted from their own 37 yard-line; Texas took over at their 42 yard-line. On the first play from scrimmage, Colt McCoy scrambled away from a blitz and saw that Jordan Shipley had broken off his route and was 10 yards behind any Cyclone defender. Shipley caught the pass from McCoy and sped away from the Cyclones to score a 58 yard touchdown. From that point, the Longhorns never relinquished the lead. They led 14–3 at the end of the first quarter and 28–3 at halftime. In the second half, Texas added another 28–points, en route to a 56–3 blowout.
The Longhorns' success passing the ball eventually gave way to the running game. John Chiles led the Longhorns with 54 yards on 9 carries. McCoy rushed for 50 yards, while Jamaal Charles carried the ball 7 times for 44 yards. The Longhorns finished with 514 total yards – 298 via the air, 216 on the ground. The Longhorns forced three turnovers, including two interceptions, without surrendering any themselves. Brandon Foster intercepted a pass from Bret Meyer and returned it for a 39 yard touchdown. Deon Beasley also picked off Meyer, who completed only 17 passes for 111 yards and no touchdowns.
Texas fullback
Antwan Cobb sprained his left anterior cruciate ligament
late in the game, an injury that sidelined him for the rest of the season. Cobb's injury left the Longhorns without a true fullback, although they had not utilized the position often during the season. The only other fullback on the team, Luke Tiemann, was expected to miss one more week with a wrist injury. Mack Brown said Chris Ogbonnaya, the second-team tailback, would move to fullback for the Baylor game. Freshman tight end Blaine Irby had taken some practice at fullback and could also be used in that position. Robert Killebrew
was benched after committing two personal foul penalties, a consistent problem for him in the 2007 season. Without a veteran fullback, Texas planned to either run the ball out of the shotgun formation
or simply focus on the passing game.
Representatives from the Holiday Bowl
were in attendance. According to the Austin Statesman, one of them said, "We’d love to have Texas, but they’re still hoping to wind up at the Fiesta Bowl." In order to reach the Fiesta Bowl
, Texas needed Oklahoma to lose two games, giving Texas a spot in the Big 12 Conference Championship game, which Texas would then have to win. Another possibility would have been Oklahoma making it to the National Championship game
and Texas being selected for an at-large Bowl Championship Series
bid."
The game against Baylor was played in Floyd Casey Stadium
in Waco, Texas
, approximately 100 miles (161 km) north on Interstate 35
from Austin, the home of the University of Texas. Because home UT games are usually a sell-out, Texas games at Baylor have found numerous Texas fans driving to Waco to watch the game.
The Longhorns first played the Baylor Bears
in 1901 and faced them annually during the days of the Southwest Conference. In the 96 meetings through 2006, Texas' record against the Bears was 70 wins, 22 losses, and 4 ties. The rivalry with Baylor is Texas' third-longest by number of games: only Oklahoma and Texas A&M have faced Texas more times on the football field. Texas won the 2006 meeting 63–31.
In the week prior to the 2007 game, Baylor assistant coach Eric Schnupp was charged with a misdemeanor count of disorderly conduct and reckless exposure after he allegedly urinated on the bar of a Waco nightclub. He was suspended indefinitely from the program. Baylor's starting quarterback, Blake Szymanski, was questionable for the game because of a mild concussion he suffered in a game against Kansas. Although Szymanski had been physically cleared to play, back-up quarterbacks Michael Machen and John David Weed were sharing snaps in practice and Baylor coaches said any one of them could get the start against Texas. Two days prior to the game, oddsmakers favored Texas to win by 25 points.
The game was initially a close-fought contest; Texas led by only a touchdown before Deon Beasley intercepted a pass at the Baylor 43-yard line with nine minutes remaining in the game. Texas scored two more touchdowns to outlast the Bears in a 31–10 victory. Texas accumulated 293 passing yards, all by McCoy, compared to 284 by Machen and Weed of Baylor. Vondrell McGee was the leading rusher for Texas, contributing 57 of the team’s 177 yards. Baylor’s Jay Finley was the Bears' leading rusher, but Baylor was held to only 8 yards rushing overall because of the sacks forced by the Texas defense. It was the tenth straight victory for UT over Baylor.
in 1933, and the Longhorns held a 7–4–0 record against Nebraska though 2006. As with Kansas State and Iowa State, Texas plays the Cornhuskers two out of every four years as part of the Big 12 Conference schedule.
On the morning of the game, oddsmakers favored Texas to win by 21 points. The weather forecast called for a high of 76 °F (24.4 °C) and sunshine with winds NNE at 10 miles per hour (16.1 km/h) to 15 miles per hour (24.1 km/h). Texas stuck with their passing game for three quarters and was trailed Nebraska most of the way; the Cornhuskers led 17–9 to start the fourth quarter. The Associated Press reported, “Once Texas figured out it should be running against one of the nation's worst run defenses, things turned out all right for the Longhorns.”
Early in the fourth quarter, McCoy took a hard hit as he scrambled outside the pocket. He was shaken up badly enough to leave the game for a play. John Chiles came in at quarterback; his one play, a zone-read handoff to Jamaal Charles, produced 24 yards. According to the Associated Press recap of the game, “suddenly Texas had figured out how to beat a Cornhuskers' team that had been steamrolled on the ground in recent weeks. Texas only threw three passes in the fourth quarter.”
Once Texas switched to the zone read offense, they quickly started gaining yards and points. Charles ran for a career-high 290 yards, including 216 yards and three long touchdown runs in the fourth quarter. His tally also set a new record for rushing against the Cornhuskers, surpassing the old record of 247 yards by Oklahoma’s Billy Simms. Charles explained "It was my time to show everyone what I can do. When I saw a hole, I blasted through it." Texas finished with 181 yards passing and 364 yards rushing; Nebraska had 315 yards passing and 132 yards rushing. The running back was named the Walter Camp
Football Foundation National Offensive Player of the Week.
The game was a milestone for one coach and a millstone for another; it was the 100th win for Mack Brown at Texas; and it put more pressure on beleaguered Nebraska coach Bill Callahan. Brown remarked on his victory, “A hundred is nice. I knew the game was going to come down like it did. It didn’t surprise me. They made sure that I’ll remember it the rest of my life.” Callahan was fired five weeks later.
From 1916 through 2006, Texas had played the Oklahoma State Cowboys football
(OSU) program 21 times and held a 19–2–0 record. Texas came into the 2007 game with a nine game active winning streak against OSU. The Cowboys' only two victories occurred in 1944 and 1997. The day before the 2007 game, oddsmakers favored Texas to win by 3 points. The pre-game festivities included an appearance by Challenger
, the first Bald Eagle
ever trained to free-fly into sports stadiums, and a fly-over by four F-16 Fighting Falcons from the Oklahoma Air National Guard
’s 138th Fighter Wing
piloted by Oklahoma State alumni.
In the 2007 game
, Oklahoma State took an early lead and led 35–14 at the start of the fourth quarter. For the fourth time in five years, the Longhorns staged a big rally to win the game. This time, Texas overcame a 21 point fourth quarter deficit to win by three points as time expired in the game. It was the biggest fourth-quarter comeback in Texas Longhorn
history.
Fox Sports
selected Jamaal Charles and Jacob Lacey as their players of the game for Texas and Oklahoma State, respectively. Charles averaged 11.3 yards per carry. ESPN remarked, "For the second straight week, Jammal Charles led a late charge for the 15th-ranked Longhorns. He scored two of his three touchdowns in the fourth quarter as Texas (No. 14 AP) outscored Oklahoma State 24–0 in the final 15 minutes." OSU's leading rusher was Dantrell Savage with 102 yards and one touchdown on 23 carries. McCoy was 20 of 28 passing attempts for 283 yards. He had one touchdown pass and three interceptions; he also rushed for 105 yards. Zac Robinson was 30 of 42 for 427 yards, one touchdown, and no interceptions. Robinson's passing yardage broke the school record, previously held by current head-coach Mike Gundy
. Together, the teams had 1,170 yards of offense. The 594 yards allowed by Texas was the most in the 2007 season. Oklahoma State ran 87 plays and used 35:11 minutes of ball possession, compared to 70 plays and 24:49 for Texas.
The Longhorns suffered several injuries during the game. According to the Austin American-Statesman
, "Center Dallas Griffin left the game with a knee injury, linebacker Jared Norton left with a right shoulder injury and Eddie Jones left with a shoulder injury. Brandon Foster injured his chest in the third quarter, and Drew Kelson left the game with a left knee injury." The paper also reported that Griffin's removal from the game may have contributed to several mistakes in snapping the ball to McCoy and that UT might not have been able to win if any of the resulting handling mistakes had been picked up by OSU.
Texas' rivalry with the Texas Tech Red Raiders
began in 1928 and through 2006, the Longhorns were 42–14–0 against Tech. In the 2006 contest, fifth-ranked Texas barely came away with a 35–31 win over an unranked Texas Tech team. Two days before the 2007 game, oddsmakers favored Texas to win by 6½ points. Pre-game speculation continued about what bowl game might select Texas. Various media predictions included the Gator Bowl
, Cotton Bowl Classic, and Holiday Bowl
. Holiday Bowl executive director Bruce Binkowski said his bowl would be very interested in pitting Texas against the USC Trojans
, whom Texas defeated in the 2006 Rose Bowl
. A BCS bowl was also still mentioned as a possibility, with Sports Illustrated saying the Orange Bowl could take Texas.
Texas Center Dallas Griffin injured his anterior cruciate ligament
against Oklahoma State and was out for the season. Griffin was a senior, meaning his career with the Longhorns ended due to the injury. Backup defensive end Eddie Jones and reserve safety Drew Kelson were also out for the game against Texas Tech.
Linebackers Jared Norton and Sergio Kindle were listed as "questionable" and "probable", respectively.
The Red Raiders were 7–3 on the season and 3–3 in the Big 12 after beating Baylor 37–7 in their most recent game. Quarterback Graham Harrell
passed for over 4,000 yards for the second season in a row, becoming the fifth quarterback in NCAA Division I-FBS (formerly Division I-A) to have multiple 4,000-yard seasons. The Austin American-Statesman reported, "Defensively, Texas must hope that the injured are quick healers because it's a given that the Longhorns will need every available body against the Red Raiders. Texas Tech fields the most dynamic passing offense in the country, and the Red Raiders also stay on the field an average of 77.3 plays per game. Tech further frustrates a defense by often going for fourth downs. They've been successful on 14 of 23 fourth-down attempts this season. A year ago, Tech was one of three on fourth downs in a 35-31 loss to Texas."
With the game falling on Veteran's Day weekend, a pre-game ceremony honored veterans and commemorated the 60th year of Texas' ROTC program. Four army helicopters from Fort Hood overflew the stadium after the national anthem. It was also Senior Day for Texas, with 25 players making their last home game appearance. As a group, they had a 42–6 record coming into the game, which represented the third-highest win total for any Texas class. The temperature at kickoff was 84 degrees.
On their first offensive series, the Horns scored a touchdown on a pass from McCoy to Shipley. Their defense held Tech to a field goal. Texas offensive tackle Tony Hills injured his leg and left the game on a cart. Texas scored another touchdown on a run by Vondrell McGee to create a 14–3 lead at the end of the first quarter. Tech's Graham Harrell threw a touchdown pass and Texas answered with a rushing touchdown. On the ensuing kick, Texas used a pooch kick which was tipped by a Texas Tech player. The Longhorns' kickoff team recovered the ball, helping put their offense to rush for another touchdown. Tech brought the game to 28–20 with another touchdown. Texas drove into field goal range but tried to throw a touchdown pass with 11 seconds remaining in the half. The pass was intercepted for a touchback
and the Red Raiders ran a short play to end the half.
Jammal Charles and tight end Jermichael Finley were injured in the second half but were able to return. In the fourth quarter, McCoy suffered a cut to his head but he did not miss any plays due to the injury. McCoy threw for four touchdowns and ran for two more. Both teams kept running their first team offense until late in the game; they combined for 47 points in the final 12 minutes and each scored a touchdown within the final two minutes of play. Tech attempted two onside kick
s in an effort to come from behind, but Texas recovered both kicks.
During his post-game press conference, Texas Tech head coach Mike Leach excoriated the officiating crew for incompetence and bias. He speculated that the officials may have favored Texas because the head official lived in Austin, because the officials were incompetent, or because the conference wanted Texas to appear in a BCS bowl because of the increased appearance fees that such a bowl generates for the conference. Jim Vertuno of the Associated Press wrote "Leach was upset officials disallowed two Tech touchdowns in the third quarter. The first was overruled when video replay clearly showed the receiver let the ball hit the ground. On the next play, a touchdown pass was negated by a holding penalty. Leach also wanted, but didn't get, a flag for roughing the quarterback." The Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
reported, "Big 12 policy prohibits coaches from commenting publicly about game officials, so Leach’s actions leave him open to reprimand, fine or worse." ESPN reported, "Leach's rant will likely draw a fine from the league and possibly a suspension." The Big 12 fined Leach $10,000, the largest fine in conference history.
The win ensured that 2007 would be the 10th straight season the Longhorns won nine or more games, a record streak for the Horns. Including Mack Brown's final two seasons at North Carolina
, Brown became the only coach in the nation to lead his program to nine or more victories in 12 straight seasons.
This game marked the 114th meeting between the Aggies and the Texas Longhorns
and was the fourth year of a multi-sport rivalry named the Lone Star Showdown. The football rivalry began in 1894 and continues to be the longest-running rivalry for both the Longhorns and the Aggies; it is the third-longest rivalry in NCAA Division I FBS (formerly Division I-A) football. Texas A&M came into the 2007 contest with a 35–73–5 record against Texas. Since the series began in 1894, the game has traditionally been played on Thanksgiving Day or Thanksgiving weekend. The 2007 game marks the fourteenth straight game to be scheduled the day after Thanksgiving.
The Aggies scored on their opening possession with a 35-yard touchdown with a screen pass
from Stephen McGee
to Mike Goodson
. The Longhorns mustered two first downs, but were forced to punt. Texas A&M ended their subsequent drive three plays later with a punt of their own. The Longhorns again successfully penetrated into Texas A&M territory, but Mack Brown opted to call a pooch punt by Colt McCoy on fourth down and four from the Aggie 37-yard line. The Aggies answered with an eighteen-play drive that stalled on the UT-14 yardline and the Aggies had to settle for a 31-yard field goal by Matt Szymanski.
The second quarter started with the Longhorns driving only six yards and being forced to punt again. The Aggies continued to press their advantage and drove down the field until Stephen McGee threw an ill-timed pass that was intercepted by Deon Beasley at the Longhorn 25. Two first-downs later, Texas was forced to punt and pinned Texas A&M on their own five yard line. Stephen McGee led the offense with several long passes and the Aggies drove to the Texas 5 but again were held short on 3rd down. On 4th and three, the Aggies faked
the field goal and the placeholder, T.J. Sanders, ran the ball in for his first career touchdown giving the Aggies a 17–0 lead. The Longhorns started their next drive on their own 20-yard line, where Colt McCoy threw a 62-yard pass to Jamaal Charles. The drive stalled and the Longhorns had to settle for a field goal and went to halftime trailing their arch-rival, 17–3.
The third quarter started with promising drives by both teams, each ending when the ball was intercepted. Brandon Foster
ran the Longhorns' interception back to the A&M eight-yard line and Texas scored a touchdown on the next play to pull the Longhorns within seven points. The Aggies drove to the Texas 34 yard line, but the drive stalled out and Texas took over on downs as the fourth-down attempt failed. Colt McCoy fumbled a few plays later to give the ball back to Texas A&M. Five plays later, Stephen McGee scampered into the end zone for a five-yard touchdown to put the Aggies up 24–10. The Longhorns took little time to answer with a touchdown of their own. Quan Cosby returned the following kickoff 91 yards for a touchdown to pull Texas within seven once again. The next drive started on the Aggie 49-yard line, courtesy of a 42-yard kickoff return by E.J. Shankle. The quarter ended on a seven-yard pass to Mike Goodson.
The final quarter of play began with A&M still moving the ball. Stephen McGee threw a 44-yard pass to Mike Goodson for a touchdown to put the Aggies ahead by the score of 31–17. The Longhorns again went three and out
and were forced to punt. The Aggies went down the field quickly and scored another touchdown on a 66-yard pass completion to Earvin Taylor, putting Texas A&M up by 21 points. Colt McCoy fumbled the ball two plays later, but A&M was forced to punt the ball away three plays after recovering the fumble. McCoy and the Longhorn offense drove the length of the field to score a touchdown, taking only 99 seconds off the clock in the process. The Aggies lost seven yards over the next three plays and were forced again to punt. The Longhorns drove 73 yards from their own 27, converted two fourth downs, and scored a touchdown. Ryan Bailey missed the extra point, but left the Longhorns only down by eight points. The Aggies took possession on their own 33 and ran the clock out to win the game, 38–30.
During the postgame celebration, ABC commentator Jack Arute asked Dennis Franchione whether he would be back with the team the following year. Coach Franchione responded by asking the announcer to let the players enjoy their victory. At the beginning of the subsequent press conference, Coach Franchione announced his resignation, effective immediately. Shortly thereafter, Texas A&M announced defensive coordinator Gary Darnell would lead the Aggies in their bowl game
.
The Longhorns concluded the season in the 2007 Holiday Bowl
on December 27 against the Arizona State Sun Devils
.
With the loss to Texas A&M, the Longhorns fell out of contention for a Bowl Championship Series
game; their bowl situation would be decided largely by the play of other Big 12 teams. Number four Missouri
beat number two Kansas
to win the Big 12 North Division. Missouri rose to the top spot in the BCS rankings prior to facing Oklahoma in the Big 12 Championship game. Oklahoma won the game to become the Big 12 Conference champion and secure a berth in the 2008 Fiesta Bowl
. Even though Missouri defeated Kansas, won their division, and outranked Kansas in the BCS standings (sixth compared to eighth) the Orange Bowl selected Kansas instead of Missouri to play in the 2008 Orange Bowl
. The Tigers were invited to play in the 2008 Cotton Bowl Classic; the Cotton Bowl Classic had first pick of Big 12 teams after BCS bowls have made their selections. The Holiday Bowl
had the next selection and chose Texas.
Arizona State University was ranked number 11 in the BCS standings; they completed a 10–2 regular season and won a share of the Pac-10 Conference Championship. The Sun Devils finished the regular season ranked number 11 in the final BCS rankings, number 11 in Coaches poll and number 12 in the AP rankings while Texas was number 19 in the BCS and number 17 in both the coaches and AP rankings. The Sun Devils were eligible for a BCS bowl themselves, but like Missouri, ASU was left out of the BCS selections.
Texas dominated the first quarter and set two Holiday Bowl records. The Longhorns' first score, a two-yard pass from Colt McCoy to nose tackle Derek Lokey, was the quickest in game history, and took place with 13:39 remaining in the first quarter. The Longhorns scored 21 points in the first quarter—two more than previous record-holder SMU
scored against BYU in 1980. Texas’ defense forced two turnovers and held the Sun Devils scoreless for the period.
The game included one of the most bizarre plays of the football season. ASU’s Rudy Carpenter
fumbled the ball as ASU was close to scoring a touchdown. Chris Jessee, a member of the Longhorns football operations staff and Mack Brown’s stepson
, stepped onto the field and may or may not have touched the ball as it bounced near the sideline. The ball was recovered by Texas, seemingly preventing an ASU touchdown. However, after a twelve minute review, the officials awarded the ball to Arizona State; the Sun Devils scored a touchdown on the next play.
The Longhorns won the game, 52–34. The 52 points were the most ever scored by the Longhorns in a bowl game. Joseph Duarte of the Houston Chronicle
called the Holiday Bowl the "biggest victory of the season in what could serve as a springboard for a preseason Top 10 ranking next season."
. Marcus Griffin was selected to the ESPN list and Tony Hills was selected by the Walter Camp Football Foundation
.
Towards the end of the season, speculation intensified about which players might enter professional football though the 2008 NFL Draft
. In November, Jamaal Charles said he would return for his senior season rather than enter professional football in the NFL. In December, sources reported Charles and Jermichael Finley had filed paperwork with the NFL to evaluate their draft potential if they decided to enter professional football in the NFL Draft instead of returning for their senior season. Quan Cosby, who spent three years in professional baseball, was reported to be still deciding whether to file the paperwork. Defensive tackle Roy Miller said he would definitely be back for his senior season. Mack Brown did not comment about specific players but said, "We always try to help our guys get as much information as possible when it comes to the NFL. We encourage and help them go through the process ... All of our underclassmen have told us they will be coming back, but if you're playing well enough to be considered an NFL prospect, going through the process can only help you better understand it and realize what you need to work on to improve your status." Charles said he would not go pro unless he was predicted to be chosen in the first round of the draft. After the Holiday Bowl Charles said, "Right now, I’m probably coming back. I didn’t think I did that good in the game. Next year maybe I’ll be up for the Heisman. I will come back." From 2000–2007, the Longhorns have had seven players taken in the first 10 picks of the NFL draft, more than any other school.
On January 2, 2008, Charles announced that he was rescinding his earlier decision and would leave Texas for the NFL. Despite skipping his senior year, Charles ranks fourth on the list of total rushing yards by a UT player, behind Ricky Williams
, Cedric Benson
, and Earl Campbell
, with 3,328 yards. Williams and Campbell each won the Heisman Trophy
in their senior seasons. With Charles' departure, quarterback
Colt McCoy
becomes the leading returning rusher for the Longhorns. Tight end
Jermichael Finley
also declared he would forgo his senior season to enter the NFL.
The draft concluded with five Longhorns selected: Limas Sweed (53rd pick), Jamaal Charles (73rd), Jermichael Finley (91st), Tony Hills
(130th), and Frank Okam
(151st). In addition, Brandon Foster
, Marcus Griffin
, Nate Jones and Derek Lokey
agreed to sign free-agent contracts with NFL teams.
On January 2, 2008, the Longhorns announced that defensive co-coordinator Larry MacDuff would not return for the 2008 season and Duane Akina was demoted to "Assistant Head Coach/Defensive Backs". The Longhorns hired Will Muschamp
as defensive coordinator; he will also coach UT's linebackers. Muschamp was defensive coordinator at Auburn University
and will earn a $425,000 salary at Texas. Running backs coach Ken Rucker transferred to a newly created position with the athletic department where he will act as a liaison to high school
athletic programs. On January 16, 2008 Texas replaced Rucker by hiring former UT quarterback Major Applewhite
.
University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
in the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season
2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season
The 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season, or the college football season, began on August 30, 2007, progressed through the regular season and bowl season, and concluded with the Bowl Championship Series National Championship Game in New Orleans, Louisiana on January 7, 2008, where the top...
. The team was coached by Mack Brown
Mack Brown
William Mack Brown is head coach of The University of Texas at Austin Longhorn football team.Prior to his head coach position at Texas, Brown was head coach at Appalachian State, Tulane, and North Carolina. Brown is credited with revitalizing the Texas and North Carolina football programs...
, who received the 2005 Paul "Bear" Bryant Coach of the Year award. The Longhorns play their home games in Darrell K Royal – Texas Memorial Stadium (DKR).
The Longhorns entered the 2007 season ranked third on all-time college football lists in both total wins and winning percentage. A pre-season ranking by ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
writer Mark Schlabach
Mark Schlabach
Mark Schlabach is an author and columnist for ESPN.com. Schlabach joined ESPN.com in July 2006 as a college football and college basketball columnist. He is notable during college football season for the weekly "Bottom 10" article....
had the Longhorns ranked eighth, while College Football News
College Football News
College Football News is a magazine and website published by College Football News, Inc., headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. News coverage includes scores, statistics, rankings, and reports on college football games. Analysis includes comparisons between teams, predictions of game outcomes and...
ranked Texas third. The Longhorns came into the season ranked fourth in both the Coaches Poll
Coaches Poll
The USA Today Coaches' Poll is the current name for a weekly ranking of the top 25 NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football and Division I college basketball teams....
and AP Poll
AP Poll
The Associated Press College Poll refers to weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling sportswriters across the nation...
. During the preceding summer five players had been disciplined for legal infractions, another suspended for NCAA rule violations, and a coach had undergone surgery for cancer. Additional players were suspended during the season.
The Longhorns played games against two opponents they had never faced previously: Arkansas State University
Arkansas State University
Arkansas State University is a public university and is the flagship campus of the Arkansas State University System, the state's second largest college system and third largest university by enrollment. It is located atop on Crowley's Ridge at Jonesboro, Arkansas, USA...
and the University of Central Florida
University of Central Florida
The University of Central Florida, commonly referred to as UCF, is a metropolitan public research university located in Orlando, Florida, United States...
(UCF). The Longhorns narrowly achieved a victory in their home opener with Arkansas State, and in their first road game of the season, Texas was the inaugural opponent for the UCF Knights in their new stadium. In preseason speculation, games against Texas Christian University
2007 TCU Horned Frogs football team
The 2007 Texas Christian Horned Frog football team represented Texas Christian University in the 2007 college football season. The team was coached by Gary Patterson, who took over the program in December 2000. The Frogs play their home games in Amon G...
(TCU) and Oklahoma
2007 Oklahoma Sooners football team
The 2007 Oklahoma Sooners football team represented the University of Oklahoma in the college football season of 2007-2008, winning the Big 12 Conference Championship for the fifth time in eight years. The team was led by head coach Bob Stoops...
(OU) were considered among the top 20 games to watch during the 2007–2008 college football season.
Big 12 Conference
The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference of ten schools located in the Central United States, with its headquarters located in Las Colinas, a community in the Dallas, Texas suburb of Irving...
games to the Kansas State Wildcats
2007 Kansas State Wildcats football team
The 2007 Kansas State Wildcats football team represented Kansas State University in the college football season of 2007. The team's head football coach was Ron Prince. The Wildcats played their home games in Bill Snyder Family Stadium...
, the Oklahoma Sooners
2007 Oklahoma Sooners football team
The 2007 Oklahoma Sooners football team represented the University of Oklahoma in the college football season of 2007-2008, winning the Big 12 Conference Championship for the fifth time in eight years. The team was led by head coach Bob Stoops...
, and the Texas A&M Aggies
2007 Texas A&M Aggies football team
The 2007 Texas A&M Aggies football team represented Texas A&M University in the 2007-2008 college football season. The team was coached by Dennis Franchione, who had coached at A&M since the 2003 season, but resigned at the conclusion of the annual game with the University of Texas...
. In two close games, they avoided upset
Upset
An upset occurs in a competition, frequently in electoral politics or sports, when the party popularly expected to win , is defeated by an underdog whom the majority expects to lose, defying the conventional wisdom...
attempts by lower-ranked Nebraska
2007 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team
The 2007 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team represented the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by Bill Callahan and played their home games at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska....
and , the latter game involving a 21-point fourth quarter comeback by the Horns. Texas concluded its season by winning the 2007 Holiday Bowl
2007 Holiday Bowl
The 2007 Pacific Life Holiday Bowl was a college football bowl game played December 27, 2007 in San Diego, California. It was part of the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season and one of 32 games in the 2007-2008 bowl season. It featured the Texas Longhorns against the Arizona State Sun...
against the Arizona State Sun Devils
2007 Arizona State Sun Devils football team
The 2007 Arizona State Sun Devils football team represented Arizona State University in the college football season of 2007-2008. The team played its home games at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona.-Schedule:-San Jose State:...
—another first-time opponent for Texas—bringing their season record to 10–3.
The Horns finished the season ranked tenth in the AP poll and in the USA Today coaches poll. After the season, five UT players entered professional football
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
through the 2008 NFL Draft
2008 NFL Draft
The 2008 NFL Draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City on April 26 and April 27, 2008. For the 29th consecutive year, ESPN televised the draft; the NFL Network also broadcast the event, its third year doing so...
and four others agreed to sign free-agent contracts with NFL teams.
Before the 2007 season
Mack Brown became the head coach of the Texas Longhorns for the 1998 season. Through 2006, he had a win/loss record of 93–22 and the best winning percentage (80.9%) of any football coach in Longhorn history. The 2004 team2004 Texas Longhorn football team
The 2004 Texas Longhorns football team represented the University of Texas at Austin in the 2004 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team was coached by head football coach Mack Brown and led on the field by quarterback Vince Young...
had the first Bowl Championship Series
Bowl Championship Series
The Bowl Championship Series is a selection system that creates five bowl match-ups involving ten of the top ranked teams in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision , including an opportunity for the top two to compete in the BCS National Championship Game.The BCS relies on a combination of...
win for any Texas team and the 2005 team
2005 Texas Longhorn football team
The 2005 Texas Longhorn football team represented the University of Texas at Austin during the 2005 NCAA Division I-A football season, winning the Big 12 Conference championship and the national championship. The team was coached by Mack Brown, led on offense by quarterback Vince Young, and played...
won the National Championship (the fourth for the UT football program).
The 2006 team had 9 wins and 1 loss through November 4, 2006 but starting quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
Colt McCoy
Colt McCoy
Daniel "Colt" McCoy is an American football quarterback for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Browns in the third round of the 2010 NFL Draft...
was injured in the 11th game and Texas lost the final two regular season games in 2006, including a 12–7 home loss to division rivals Texas A&M. This took the team out of contention for the conference championship, as well as the national championship.
Between the 2006 regular season and the bowl season
NCAA football bowl games, 2006-07
The 2006-07 NCAA College Football Bowl Games post-season schedule followed the 2006 NCAA Division I FBS regular season in college football. The NCAA divided Division I into two divisions for football in 1978. The top level, originally known as "Division I-A" and officially changed to the "Football...
, back-up quarterback Jevan Snead
Jevan Snead
Jevan Bryce Snead is an American football quarterback who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent...
transferred to another school, and Longhorn defensive coordinator
Defensive coordinator
A defensive coordinator typically refers to a coach on a gridiron football team who is in charge of the defense. Generally, along with his offensive counterpart, he represents the second level of command structure after the head coach...
Gene Chizik
Gene Chizik
Eugene "Gene" Chizik is an American football coach and former player. He is currently the head coach of the Auburn University football team, a position he has held since the 2009 season. Chizik's 2010 Auburn Tigers football team completed a 14–0 season with a victory over Oregon in the BCS...
accepted the head-coaching job at Iowa State University
Iowa State University
Iowa State University of Science and Technology, more commonly known as Iowa State University , is a public land-grant and space-grant research university located in Ames, Iowa, United States. Iowa State has produced astronauts, scientists, and Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winners, along with a host of...
. The Longhorns ended up accepting a bowl invitation
Bowl game
In North America, a bowl game is commonly considered to refer to one of a number of post-season college football games. Prior to 2002, bowl game statistics were not included in players' career totals and the games were mostly considered to be exhibition games involving a payout to participating...
to the Alamo Bowl
Alamo Bowl
The Alamo Bowl is a major American college football bowl game played annually since 1993 in the 65,000-seat Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. It matches the second choice team from the Pacific-12 Conference and the third choice team from the Big 12 Conference.Traditionally, the Alamo Bowl has been...
against the unranked University of Iowa Hawkeyes
Iowa Hawkeyes football
The Iowa Hawkeyes football team is the interscholastic football team at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa. The Hawkeyes have competed in the Big Ten Conference since 1900, and are currently a Division I Football Bowl Subdivision member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
, who had finished in eighth place in the Big Ten Conference
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...
. Colt McCoy was cleared to play for the Horns and led Texas through a back-and-forth affair to a 26–24 win. The Longhorns finished the season with a record of 10 wins and 3 losses and received a final ranking of 13th in the nation by both the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
AP Poll
AP Poll
The Associated Press College Poll refers to weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling sportswriters across the nation...
and the USA Today Coaches Poll
Coaches Poll
The USA Today Coaches' Poll is the current name for a weekly ranking of the top 25 NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football and Division I college basketball teams....
Texas entered the 2007 season ranked third in the all-time list of both total wins and winning percentage. They were ranked in the Top 10 by numerous pre-season polls. For instance, a pre-season ranking by ESPN
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
writer Mark Schlabach
Mark Schlabach
Mark Schlabach is an author and columnist for ESPN.com. Schlabach joined ESPN.com in July 2006 as a college football and college basketball columnist. He is notable during college football season for the weekly "Bottom 10" article....
had the Longhorns ranked eighth; Rivals.com ranked them ninth; College Football News
College Football News
College Football News is a magazine and website published by College Football News, Inc., headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. News coverage includes scores, statistics, rankings, and reports on college football games. Analysis includes comparisons between teams, predictions of game outcomes and...
and Real Football 365 both ranked Texas third. The Longhorns came into the season ranked fourth in both the Coaches Poll
Coaches Poll
The USA Today Coaches' Poll is the current name for a weekly ranking of the top 25 NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision college football and Division I college basketball teams....
and AP Poll.
Facilities and equipment
End zone
In gridiron-based codes of football, the end zone refers to the scoring area on the field. It is the area between the end line and goal line bounded by the sidelines. There are two end zones, each being on an opposite side of the field...
seats thirty yards closer to the field of play. This results in several game day changes, such as Smokey the Cannon
Smokey the Cannon
Smokey the Cannon is an artillery piece used as part of the pageantry of college football games of The University of Texas Longhorns. Smokey is operated and cared for by the Texas Cowboys, a University student organization. Smokey is fired each time the Longhorns score, at every kick-off, and at...
moving to the south end-zone near Bevo
Bevo (mascot)
Bevo is the name of the mascot of the sports teams at the University of Texas at Austin, a Texas longhorn steer with burnt orange coloring. The shape of the Longhorn's head and horns gives rise to the school's hand symbol and saying, Hook 'em Horns...
.
Each 2007 Longhorn football helmet featured a Texas Bluebonnet decal
Decal
A decal or transfer is a plastic, cloth, paper or ceramic substrate that has printed on it a pattern or image that can be moved to another surface upon contact, usually with the aid of heat or water. The word is short for decalcomania...
. The decal was chosen to honor President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson , often referred to as LBJ, was the 36th President of the United States after his service as the 37th Vice President of the United States...
, Lady Bird Johnson
Lady Bird Johnson
Claudia Alta "Lady Bird" Taylor Johnson was First Lady of the United States from 1963 to 1969 during the presidency of her husband Lyndon B. Johnson. Throughout her life, she was an advocate for beautification of the nation's cities and highways and conservation of natural resources and made that...
and the Johnson family. Brown said President Johnson used to enjoy discussing football with former UT coach Darrell K. Royal
Darrell Royal
Darrell K Royal is a former American football player and coach. He served as the head coach at Mississippi State University , the University of Washington , and the University of Texas at Austin , compiling a career college football record of 184–60–5...
, while the first lady was known for her conservation efforts, particularly the spread of native wildflowers.
For the second straight year, UT merchandise products were the top-selling products among clients of Collegiate Licensing Company
Collegiate Licensing Company
The Collegiate Licensing Company is an American collegiate trademark licensing and marketing company. Founded in 1981 by Bill Battle in Selma, Alabama, CLC is the largest and oldest collegiate licensing company in the United States and currently provides its services to more than 200 colleges and...
. UT entered into a marketing arrangement with Bluetooth SIG to deploy Bluetooth
Bluetooth
Bluetooth is a proprietary open wireless technology standard for exchanging data over short distances from fixed and mobile devices, creating personal area networks with high levels of security...
kiosks throughout the stadium. These kiosks broadcast free game-day information to Bluetooth-enabled cell-phones in the stands.
Practices and preseason injuries
Exhibition game
An exhibition game is a sporting event in which there is no competitive value of any significant kind to any competitor regardless of the outcome of the competition...
on March 31, 2007 and reported for fall practice on August 5, 2007. A public scrimmage scheduled for August 18, 2007 was canceled due to safety concerns related to the weather and to ongoing stadium construction. With rain expected over the weekend and no working pumps to help remove water from the field, Brown held a closed practice indoors instead.
During fall practice, receivers Limas Sweed
Limas Sweed
Limas Lee Sweed, Jr. is a former American football wide receiver for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League. He played collegiately for the Texas Longhorns. On April 26, 2008 Sweed was taken 53rd overall by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2008 NFL Draft.-High school:Sweed attended...
, Billy Pittman
Billy Pittman
Billy Pittman is a former American football player. He played college football as a wide receiver for the University of Texas Longhorns from 2003 to 2007 and was the leading receiver on the 2005 Texas team that won the BCS National Championship.- High school career :He attended C.H. Yoe High...
, and Jordan Shipley
Jordan Shipley
Jordan Shipley is an American football player who currently plays wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League . He was drafted by Cincinnati in the third round of the 2010 NFL Draft...
were injured. Sweed suffered a sprain to his left wrist on August 15. Pittman sprained his left shoulder during practice on August 17. Head UT athletic trainer Kenny Boyd said, "We will continue to evaluate [Pittman] and monitor his progress in hopes of getting him back in time for the season opener." Jordan Shipley had to limit his practice due to a strained hamstring
Hamstring
In human anatomy, the hamstring refers to any one of the three posterior thigh muscles, or to the tendons that make up the borders of the space behind the knee. In modern anatomical contexts, however, they usually refer to the posterior thigh muscles, or the tendons of the semitendinosus, the...
. The receiver position was considered one of the deepest positions on the team; coaches said veteran players Quan Cosby
Quan Cosby
Quantwan Cosby better known as Quan Cosby is an American football wide receiver for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League. He was signed by the Cincinnati Bengals as an undrafted free agent in 2009. He played college football for the Texas Longhorns...
(Texas' second-leading receiver) and Nate Jones performed well in training camp. Coach Brown said he expected to be able to play three freshman receivers in 2007: Brandon Collins, Malcolm Williams and James Kirkendoll. On August 29, 2006 Brown announced that Sweed was "probable" for the season opening game, but that Shipley was "doubtful".
Coaches
University of Texas System
The University of Texas System encompasses 15 educational institutions in Texas, of which nine are academic universities and six are health institutions. The system is headquartered in Austin and has a total enrollment of over 190,000 students...
voted unanimously to raise Brown's salary by $300,000, bringing his annual compensation to $2.81 million and keeping him among the five highest-paid coaches in college football. The package also includes up to $3 million in bonuses, including "$100,000 if he wins the Big 12 Championship and $450,000 for a national championship, as well as bonuses based on the percent of players who graduate." At the time, Brown's contract extended through the 2016 season and included buy-out clauses should another school attempt to hire Brown.
Greg Davis, who entered his 10th season with Texas, was the team's offensive coordinator
Offensive coordinator
An offensive coordinator is a member of the coaching staff of a gridiron football team who is in charge of the offense. Generally, along with his defensive counterpart, he represents the second level of command structure after the head coach...
and quarterbacks coach
Quarterbacks coach
A quarterbacks coach is a coach in charge of the quarterbacks in gridiron football. The quarterbacks coach typically operates under the offensive coordinator on a team's coaching staff....
. Duane Akina
Duane Akina
Duane Akina is the assistant head coach and defensive backs coach for the Texas Longhorns football team.In 28 years of coaching football, Akina has coached three Thorpe Award winners in Darryll Lewis , Michael Huff , and Aaron Ross , as well as five finalists for the award, among them Chris...
was the defensive coordinator
Defensive coordinator
A defensive coordinator typically refers to a coach on a gridiron football team who is in charge of the defense. Generally, along with his offensive counterpart, he represents the second level of command structure after the head coach...
, and took the position vacated by Gene Chizik when he left the program. During the 2007 season, Akina performed his job on the sidelines while Larry Mac Duff
Larry Mac Duff
Larry Mac Duff is an American football coach. He is currently the defensive coordinator for the Las Vegas franchise of the United Football League....
provided input from the press box. UT running backs coach
Running backs coach
A running backs coach is a coach in charge of the running backs in gridiron football. The running backs coach typically operates under the team's offensive coordinator....
Ken Rucker announced in August that he had prostate cancer
Prostate cancer
Prostate cancer is a form of cancer that develops in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system. Most prostate cancers are slow growing; however, there are cases of aggressive prostate cancers. The cancer cells may metastasize from the prostate to other parts of the body, particularly...
and that he would have surgery on August 27. He coached practices until just prior to surgery and returned to the team before the end of the season. Rucker's health concern coincided with player incidents that created Brown's most tumultuous off-season since arriving at Texas.
Player suspensions
The school suspended a total of seven players for at least a portion of the season. Six were suspended for alleged illegal activities, and one was suspended for a violation of National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) rules. Defensive end Henry Melton
Henry Melton
Henry Melton is a defensive tackle for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League. He is an alumnus of the University of Texas...
and linebacker Sergio Kindle
Sergio Kindle
-Baltimore Ravens:Although deemed a first-round talent by most analysts, many teams were scared off by Kindle's often-injured knee and his off-the-field incidents. Kindle fell into the second round and was ultimately drafted by the Baltimore Ravens, 43rd overall. He said in a press conference...
were both arrested during the summer on charges of driving while intoxicated
Drunk driving (United States)
Drunk driving is the act of operating and/or driving a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs to the degree that mental and motor skills are impaired...
. Freshman defensive tackle Andre (Dre) Jones (who had not yet played for Texas but did join spring practices) and former UT player Robert Joseph were charged with aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon. Jones was one of the team's most highly touted recruits; his high school
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
football career honors included Prep All-American, three-time all-state selection, first-team All-American by Parade Magazine, and Texas 4A Defensive Player of the Year by the Texas Sports Writers Association The university suspended Tyrell Gatewood indefinitely after he was arrested on two drug possession charges. James Henry was arrested on third-degree felony charges of "obstruction or retaliation and tampering or fabricating physical evidence."
The University of Texas suspended Billy Pittman for three games because he violated NCAA rules when he accepted the use of a friend's car over the summer. Coach Brown and University of Texas President William Charles Powers Jr.
William C. Powers
William Charles Powers Jr. is the 28th president of The University of Texas at Austin, a position he has held since February 1, 2006....
issued statements concerning the important of team discipline and zero tolerance
Zero tolerance
Zero tolerance imposes automatic punishment for infractions of a stated rule, with the intention of eliminating undesirable conduct. Zero-tolerance policies forbid persons in positions of authority from exercising discretion or changing punishments to fit the circumstances subjectively; they are...
policy for infractions.
Schedule
Roster
| (as of August 5, 2007) | ||||||||
Quarterbacks
Running Backs
Full Backs
|
Wide Receivers
Tight Ends
Offensive Guards
Offensive Tackles
|
Offensive Line (unspecified)
Centers
Defensive Ends
Defensive Tackles
|
Linebackers
Cornerbacks
Safeties
Defensive Backs (unspecified)
|
Kickoffs
Place Kickers
Punters
Long Snappers
Key The abbreviations indicate amount of experience:
for 1, 2, or 3 years, respectively.
An * indicates that the player is a "walk-on". (a non-scholarship player) |
||||
Watch lists
All-America
An All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n or “All-Conference” teams or on award watch lists:
- Jamaal Charles
- Maxwell AwardMaxwell AwardThe Maxwell Award is presented annually to the collegiate American football player judged by a panel of sportscasters, sportswriters, and National Collegiate Athletic Association head coaches and the membership of the Maxwell Football Club to be the best football player in the United States. The...
watch list - Doak Walker AwardDoak Walker AwardThe Doak Walker Award, first awarded in 1990, honors the United States's top college football running back. It is named after the Southern Methodist and Detroit Lions football player Doak Walker...
watch list - Athlon Sports third-team All American
- Athlon Sports first-team All Big 12
- Maxwell Award
- Jermichael Finley
- Mackey Award watch list
- Marcus Griffin
- Outland TrophyOutland TrophyThe Outland Trophy is awarded to the best United States college football interior lineman by the Football Writers Association of America. It is named after John H. Outland. One of only a few players ever to be named All-America at two positions, Outland garnered consensus All-America honors in...
watch list - Athlon Sports second-team All Big 12
- Outland Trophy
- Robert KillebrewRobert KillebrewRobert Winston Killebrew is a professional American and Canadian football linebacker free agent. He was signed by the Calgary Stampeders as a street free agent in 2009. He played college football for the Texas Longhorns.-Early years:...
- Athlon Sports third-team All Big 12
- Tony Hills
- Lombardi AwardLombardi AwardThe Rotary Lombardi Award is awarded annually to the best college football lineman or linebacker. The Lombardi Award program was approved by the Rotary Club in Houston in 1970 shortly after the death of Vince Lombardi. The committee outlined the criteria for eligibility for the award, which...
watch list - Outland TrophyOutland TrophyThe Outland Trophy is awarded to the best United States college football interior lineman by the Football Writers Association of America. It is named after John H. Outland. One of only a few players ever to be named All-America at two positions, Outland garnered consensus All-America honors in...
watch list - Athlon Sports first-team All Big 12
- Lombardi Award
- Drew Kelson
- Lott Trophy
- Derek Lokey
- Lombardi Award watch list
- Outland Trophy watch list
- Nagurski Trophy watch list
- Lott TrophyLott TrophyThe Lott IMPACT Trophy is presented annually to the college football Defensive IMPACT Player of the Year. IMPACT is an acronym for: integrity, maturity, performance, academics, community, and tenacity. The award purports to equally recognize the personal character of the winning player as well as...
- Athlon Sports first-team All Big 12
- Colt McCoy
- Maxwell Award watch list
- CBS Sportsline.com Heisman TrophyHeisman TrophyThe Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
Watch - Walter Camp Football Foundation Player of the Year Award watch list
- Athlon Sports first-team All Big 12
- Davey O'Brien AwardDavey O'Brien AwardThe Davey O'Brien Award, officially the Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award, named after Davey O'Brien, is presented annually to the collegiate American football player adjudged by the Davey O'Brien Foundation to be the best of all National Collegiate Athletic Association quarterbacks. The...
- Manning AwardManning AwardThe Manning Award has been presented annually since 2004 to the collegiate American football quarterback adjudged by the Sugar Bowl Committee to be the best in the United States...
- Roddrick Muckelroy
- Athlon Sports second-team All Big 12
- Frank Okam
- Lombardi Award watch list
- Outland Trophy watch list
- Bednarik Award watch list
- Athlon Sports first-team All Big 12
- Brian Orakpo
- Athlon Sports third-team All Big 12
- Limas Sweed
- Biletnikoff Award candidate
- Maxwell AwardMaxwell AwardThe Maxwell Award is presented annually to the collegiate American football player judged by a panel of sportscasters, sportswriters, and National Collegiate Athletic Association head coaches and the membership of the Maxwell Football Club to be the best football player in the United States. The...
candidate - Walter Camp Football FoundationWalter Camp Football FoundationThe Walter Camp Football Foundation is one of the organizations whose College Football All-America Team is recognized by the NCAA. The organization also presents various awards.-Awards:*Walter Camp Player of the Year*CT Player of the Year...
Player of the Year Award watch list - ESPNESPNEntertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
Scouts Inc. Top 10 professional prospects list - Athlon Sports second-team All Big 12
Recruiting
Texas’ 2007 recruiting class was rated by Scout.com as third-best in the nation, behind Florida and USC. Of their picks for the top 100 incoming freshman, Texas signed #8 Tray Allan (offensive lineman), #14 Curtis Brown (cornerback), #30 Andre (Dre) Jones (defensive tackle), #31 John ChilesJohn Chiles
John Chiles is an American football wide receiver who is currently a member of the Jacksonville Sharks. He was signed by the New Orleans Saints as an undrafted free agent in 2011. He played college football for the University of Texas at Austin.-Early years:Chiles attended Summit High School in...
(wide receiver), and #81 Russell Carter (defensive end). Carter made the preseason roster as a defensive end while Chiles was listed as a quarterback. Jones was suspended from the team due to legal trouble.
Arkansas State
Sun Belt Conference
The Sun Belt Conference is a college athletic conference that has been affiliated with the NCAA's Division I since 1976. Its football teams participate in the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision , the higher of two levels of Division I football competition . The Sun Belt has member institutions...
. Pre-game media attention played upon the fact that both schools won national football championships in 1970. Both schools entered the game with a level of controversy attached to their teams. Arkansas State was facing criticism over its team name. The team was nicknamed "Indians" in honor of the Osage Nation
Osage Nation
The Osage Nation is a Native American Siouan-language tribe in the United States that originated in the Ohio River valley in present-day Kentucky. After years of war with invading Iroquois, the Osage migrated west of the Mississippi River to their historic lands in present-day Arkansas, Missouri,...
that inhabited the area until the 1800s. The NCAA
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
enforced restrictions on the use of Indian mascots, saying that they were derogatory to American Indians
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
. In 2008, the Indians changed their name to the Red Wolves. The University of Texas was dealing with player suspensions
2007 Texas Longhorns football suspensions
The 2007 Texas Longhorns football suspensions were separate incidents resulting in college football players being suspended from the 2007 Texas Longhorn football team at the University of Texas at Austin...
, and passed a large pay raise for Mack Brown one week prior to the game. As part of the package, Brown received a $100,000 special payment upon completion of the game.
Two days prior to the game, Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
casinos favored
Sports betting
Sports betting is the activity of predicting sports results and placing a wager on the outcome.-United States of America:Aside from simple wagers such as betting a friend that one's favorite baseball team will win its division or buying a football "square" for the Super Bowl, sports betting is...
Texas by 39 points. Sportswriters John Bridges and Kirk Bohls of the Austin American-Statesman
Austin American-Statesman
The Austin American-Statesman is the major daily newspaper for Austin, the capital city of Texas. It is an award-winning publication owned by Cox Enterprises. The Newspaper places focus on issues affecting Austin and the Central Texas region....
predicted the Longhorns would have a big lead early in the game and that true-freshman quarterback John Chiles
John Chiles
John Chiles is an American football wide receiver who is currently a member of the Jacksonville Sharks. He was signed by the New Orleans Saints as an undrafted free agent in 2011. He played college football for the University of Texas at Austin.-Early years:Chiles attended Summit High School in...
would enter the game in the second or third quarter as the back-up to Colt McCoy. Redshirt
Redshirt (college sports)
Redshirt is a term used in American college athletics that refers to a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen his or her period of eligibility...
freshman quarterback Sherrod Harris was on the injured list and was not expected to play. Those predictions were off the mark as the Indians almost kept up with the Horns and McCoy stayed in for the entire game.
Texas scored a touchdown
Touchdown
A touchdown is a means of scoring in American and Canadian football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone.-Description:...
on its first possession and Arkansas State answered with a field goal
Field goal (football)
A field goal in American football and Canadian football is a goal that may be scored during general play . Field goals may be scored by a placekick or the now practically extinct drop kick.The drop kick fell out of favor in 1934 when the shape of the ball was changed...
. Texas made another touchdown to end the first quarter. Neither team scored in the second quarter. Texas scored seven points in the third quarter, while Arkansas State was scoreless. In the fourth quarter, Arkansas State scored ten points to pull within eight points of Texas. With approximately one minute left to play, Arkansas State attempted an onside kick
Onside kick
In American and Canadian football, an onside kick is a type of kick used at a kickoff or other free kick, or scrimmage kick or other kick during play, in which the ball is kicked favorably for the kicking team to avoid giving away the ball...
. State recovered the ball, but a controversial illegal formation penalty forced them to re-kick. On the re-kick, Texas recovered the ball and was able to run out the clock
Running out the clock
In sports, running out the clock refers to the practice of a winning team allowing the clock to expire through a series of pre-selected plays, either to preserve a lead or hasten the end of a one-sided contest.- American football :...
to preserve a 21–13 win. Colt McCoy threw two touchdown passes and two interceptions; he also made two punts
Punt (football)
In some codes of football, a punt is a play in which a player drops the ball and kicks it before it touches the ground. A punt is in contrast to a drop kick, in which the ball touches the ground before being kicked....
. Jamaal Charles accounted for the third touchdown.
Kirk Bohls was among commentators who were unimpressed by the Longhorns performance, saying, "if this becomes the pattern, look for a 7–5 season."
On September 5, Arkansas State coach Steve Roberts
Steve Roberts (football coach)
-External links:*...
said he was told by the Big 12 Conference's supervisor of football officials that game officials wrongly overturned ASU's recovery of the onside kick. He said the Big 12 Conference Supervisor of Officials told Arkansas State there had been no illegal formation, that no penalty should have been called, and that Arkansas State should have been awarded possession of the football. A Big 12 Conference spokesman said he could not confirm or deny that such a conversation took place and that any such conversation would be confidential.
TCU
Southwest Athletic Conference
The Southwest Conference was a college athletic conference in the United States from 1914 to 1996. It consisted of schools mostly in the state of Texas and one in Arkansas, with historical members in Oklahoma....
(SWC) rivals since the conference disbanded following the 1995 season. Texas held a 60–20–1 (win-lose-tie) record vs. the TCU Horned Frogs
TCU Horned Frogs football
The TCU Horned Frogs football team is the intercollegiate football team of Texas Christian University. TCU competes as a member of the Mountain West Conference in the NCAA's Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, but will move to the Big 12 Conference for the 2012 season. TCU began playing football...
. Their most recent meeting was a 27–19 Longhorn victory.
In their annual season preview magazine, CBS SportsLine.com selected two Longhorn games — vs. TCU and against OU — as ranking in their 17 “must see” games for 2007. CBS Sportsline.com also selected TCU as one of the potential “BCS Busters” for 2007, saying, “The Horned Frogs will have one of the best defenses in the nation with nine starters back on a squad that allowed only 12.3 points per game last year, including a 12–3 victory over Texas Tech. Garry Patterson has made the Horned Frogs one of the best non-BCS schools in the nation, but unlike Utah and Boise State, they had not received the opportunity to play in a Bowl Championship Series
Bowl Championship Series
The Bowl Championship Series is a selection system that creates five bowl match-ups involving ten of the top ranked teams in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision , including an opportunity for the top two to compete in the BCS National Championship Game.The BCS relies on a combination of...
bowl. If TCU can get past Texas on Sept. 8, it might finally be time for the Horned Frogs to invade the BCS party.”
Texas' narrow win versus Arkansas State in week one, together with TCU's victory over Baylor, fueled speculation that the 2007 Horned Frogs
2007 TCU Horned Frogs football team
The 2007 Texas Christian Horned Frog football team represented Texas Christian University in the 2007 college football season. The team was coached by Gary Patterson, who took over the program in December 2000. The Frogs play their home games in Amon G...
might have a chance at an upset
Upset
An upset occurs in a competition, frequently in electoral politics or sports, when the party popularly expected to win , is defeated by an underdog whom the majority expects to lose, defying the conventional wisdom...
victory over the Longhorns. Texas dropped three places to number seven in the AP Poll and the Coaches Poll, while TCU moved up three places to number nineteen.
One day prior to the game, Las Vegas casinos picked Texas to win by 9½ points.
Blitz (American football)
In American football or Canadian football, a blitz or red dog is when players on or behind the line of scrimmage during a play, are sent across the scrimmage line to the offensive side to try to tackle the quarterback or disrupt his pass attempt...
, then dropped back and caught an interception from Colt McCoy before running in for a touchdown. Later in the quarter, McCoy threw a pass that was tipped by a defender and intercepted by David Roach. The Longhorn defense kept the Horned Frogs out of the end zone following the interception, but the Frogs scored on a 19-yard field goal by Chris Manfredini. The first half ended with TCU leading, 10–0.
The Longhorns' first second-half drive culminated in a 33-yard touchdown pass to Nate Jones. A fumble
Fumble
A fumble in American and Canadian football occurs when a player, who has possession and control of the ball loses it before being downed or scoring. By rule, it is any act other than passing, kicking or successful handing that results in loss of player possession...
by TCU gave Texas good field position, but the Longhorns were stopped on the two-yard line and settled for a game-tying field goal. The Horns held TCU to seventeen yards of offense and no first downs in the quarter.
In the fourth quarter, Colt McCoy set up the go-ahead score with a scramble to the TCU one-yard line. Vondrell McGee scored a touchdown two plays later. Texas' next possession resulted in a second field goal by Ryan Bailey. The Longhorn defense held TCU to a three-and-out but TCU's punter fumbled the ball, and Brandon Foster ran the ball in for a touchdown, capping 27 straight points for Texas. The Frogs came back and scored 37-yard field goal by Manfredini and then attempted an onsides kick but Texas recovered the ball. UT's Jamaal Charles made a 39-yard rushing
Rush (American football)
Rushing has two different meanings in gridiron football .-Offense:The first is an action taken by the offensive team that means to advance the ball by running, as opposed to passing. A run is technically any play that does not involve a forward pass...
touchdown for the game's final score. Texas won, 34–13. The attendance for the game, 84,621, was the third-largest crowd ever to watch a TCU football game.
UCF
Bright House Networks Stadium
Bright House Networks Stadium is the football stadium for the University of Central Florida’s football team, nicknamed the Knights. Located in Knights Plaza on the main campus of the University of Central Florida in Orlando, Florida, the stadium was the first on-campus stadium in NCAA Division I...
, and the game was the first of three scheduled meetings between the schools. The Knights opened their season with an upset
Upset
An upset occurs in a competition, frequently in electoral politics or sports, when the party popularly expected to win , is defeated by an underdog whom the majority expects to lose, defying the conventional wisdom...
of North Carolina State; the victory was their second victory over a BCS opponent and the first time for the Knights to beat a BCS school since 2000. They followed the win with a week off, giving them two weeks to prepare for Texas. It was just the sixth time Texas had played in Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
and was the team's first appearance in the state since 1965. The number six-ranked Longhorns were the highest rank team the Knights had ever played. UCF coach George O'Leary
George O'Leary
George Joseph O'Leary is the head football coach of the UCF Knights football team that represents the University of Central Florida located in Orlando, Florida; he previously coached the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team from 1994 to 2001, and served as an assistant coach for the Minnesota...
said prior to the game, "When you talk about elite teams, Texas is an elite team from an athletics, traditions and overall standpoint."
Several Longhorn players missed the game due to injuries or suspensions. Starting defensive end Brian Orakpo missed his second straight game as a result of suffering a knee sprain against Arkansas State. Starting offensive tackle Adam Ulatoski was listed as doubtful. Backup quarterback Sherrod Harris was also injured and had not seen action since spraining his knee on August 12. Wide receiver Jordan Shipley participated in his first game since a preseason injury. Defensive end Henry Melton, linebacker Sergio Kindle and receiver Billy Pittman were serving the last game of their three-game suspensions. On September 13, Tyrell Gatewood joined Andre Jones and Robert Joseph in receiving an indefinite suspension due to alleged illegal activities. The day prior to the game, sports books in Las Vegas picked Texas to win by 18 points.
A sell-out crowd greeted the Longhorns in Florida. UCF received the opening kickoff in their end-zone and took a touchback
Touchback
In American football, a touchback is a ruling which is made and signaled by an official when the ball becomes dead behind or above a goal line and the team who is attacking that goal line is responsible for the ball being there. Responsibility is determined by which team gave the ball the impetus...
. UCF was not able to get a first down and before punting the ball to Texas. The Horns drove inside the UCF 20-yard line before being stopped on fourth-and-short and settling for a field goal. On their second possession, the Knights drove the ball down the field for a touchdown and a four point lead. Shortly thereafter, lightning
Lightning
Lightning is an atmospheric electrostatic discharge accompanied by thunder, which typically occurs during thunderstorms, and sometimes during volcanic eruptions or dust storms...
was spotted near the stadium and both teams were sent into their locker rooms for approximately 15 minutes before play resumed. Texas' first drive after the delay culminated in a six-yard touchdown pass to Nate Jones. When the first quarter ended, the Longhorns had a three point lead and the Knights had the ball. In the second quarter, the Longhorns and the Knights each fumbled inside the UCF ten-yard line. Texas scored ten points in the quarter to UCF's three. The score at halftime was 20–10, Texas.
Two-point conversion
In American and Canadian football, a two-point conversion is a play a team attempts instead of kicking a one-point convert immediately after it scores a touchdown...
failed, making the score 35–24. This decision was later criticized by commentators who said that the decision allowed UCF a chance to tie the game.
With 2:14 remaining, Longhorn Jamaal Charles committed his second fumble of the game. UCF recovered the ball and completed a touchdown and a two-point conversion to cut Texas' lead to 35–32 with 35 seconds remaining. When the Knights were unable to recover their onside kick attempt, Texas was able to run out the clock and preserve a three-point victory.
Jamaal Charles of Texas rushed 22 times for 157 yards and Kevin Smith of UCF rushed 27 times for 150 yards for UCF. McCoy completed 68% of his passes for a total of 227 yards; UCF's Kyle Israel
Kyle Israel
Kyle Israel was the starting college football quarterback for the UCF Knights football team at the University of Central Florida. He majored at UCF in radio/television. As of September 2007, Israel is being tracked as a NFL professional football prospect by NFL Draft News...
completed 35% of his passes for a total of 133 yards. McCoy's 47 passing attempts tied a UT single-game record. His 32 completions set a new school record, besting the 30 completed by Vince Young during the 2006 Rose Bowl
2006 Rose Bowl
The 2006 Rose Bowl Game, played on January 4, 2006, was a football game that served as the national championship of the 2005-2006 Bowl Championship Series...
and by Major Applewhite
Major Applewhite
Major Lee Applewhite is the Co-Offensive Coordinator and Running Backs Coach for the University of Texas. Prior to Texas, Applewhite served as offensive coordinator at Rice University under Todd Graham in 2006, and at the University of Alabama under Nick Saban in 2007...
during two 1999 games. Due to his performance in the game, Texas cornerback Brandon Foster was named the Big 12’s defensive player of the week. For the second week in a row, Foster scored a touchdown on defense. Foster was recognized by the conference the previous week for his work on special teams, making him the first Longhorn to get back-to-back conference honors since running back Hodges Mitchell in 2000. Kicker Ryan Bailey tied a school record with five field goals. Combined with his previous attempts, the five kicks made him seven-of-nine for the season at that point.
Rice
Prior to the 2007 season, Texas and RiceRice University
William Marsh Rice University, commonly referred to as Rice University or Rice, is a private research university located on a heavily wooded campus in Houston, Texas, United States...
had competed in football on 89 prior occasions. The series, which began in 1914, is the fourth oldest (by number of games) in Texas history. The Owls were 21-67-1 against Texas heading into the game, including the sixth-longest streak
Most consecutive wins over one opponent (NCAA football)
The following is a list of the all-time leading NCAA Division I FBS college football single-opponent winning streaks. Teams are ranked by the number of consecutive wins they've posted against a specific opponent. All streaks of at least 20 games are in the list.† Active Streak...
of one college football team winning over another team.
After their narrow victory over the UCF Knights, the Longhorns remained in sixth place in the coaches’ poll and dropped from sixth place to seventh place in the Associated Press poll. Jeff Sagarin, whose computer rankings are used as a component of the Bowl Championship Series
Bowl Championship Series
The Bowl Championship Series is a selection system that creates five bowl match-ups involving ten of the top ranked teams in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision , including an opportunity for the top two to compete in the BCS National Championship Game.The BCS relies on a combination of...
rankings, had the Longhorns at number twelve coming into the game. Sagarin's system had Rice ranked as the worst team in Division I-A and 181st in the country, behind many I-AA teams. Four days prior to the game, Las Vegas favored UT by 39 points. The Longhorns suspended special teams player James Henry prior to the game, but three Longhorn players—Billy Pittman, Henry Melton, and Sergio Kindle—were able to rejoin the team after serving three game suspensions. Brian Orakpo missed his third straight game due to an injury received in the season-opening game. The Owls came into the game 0–3 after losing the previous week to Texas Tech
2007 Texas Tech Red Raiders football team
The 2007 Texas Tech Red Raiders football team represented Texas Tech University in the college football season of 2007–2008. The team was coached by Mike Leach...
by a score of 59–24.
The Longhorns started the game on offense and had no success on their first drive. On the first play, Colt McCoy threw an incompletion, and on the second play, Jamaal Charles fumbled the ball to the Owls. The Texas defense held Rice to a field goal attempt, which was no good. Texas scored a touchdown on a 13-play drive that included converting a 4th-and-two situation. The Longhorns extended their lead to 41–0 before Rice scored a touchdown with 18 seconds left in the first half. In the second half, Texas scored two touchdowns and one field goal, and Rice scored one touchdown. Texas won 58–14.
John Chiles
John Chiles is an American football wide receiver who is currently a member of the Jacksonville Sharks. He was signed by the New Orleans Saints as an undrafted free agent in 2011. He played college football for the University of Texas at Austin.-Early years:Chiles attended Summit High School in...
made his first appearance as a Texas player in the first quarter, when he participated in a single play. He came out of the game after the play before returning in the third quarter as McCoy's replacement. On his first drive, Chiles led the Longhorns 80 yards to a touchdown, carrying the ball 4 times for 49 yards. He also threw one incomplete pass (one of two he threw in the game) and handed off to Vondrell McGee three times for thirty-one yards. Redshirt
Redshirt (college sports)
Redshirt is a term used in American college athletics that refers to a delay or suspension of an athlete's participation in order to lengthen his or her period of eligibility...
freshman Sherrod Harris replaced Chiles for the final two drives of the game. Chiles' strong performance immediately led to media speculation as to how the Longhorns could get him more playing time.
McGee was the game's leading rusher, and had 8 carries for 80 yards. Jamaal Charles rushed 14 times for 72 yards, and John Chiles ran 9 times for 72 yards. Limas Sweed was the leading receiver with 5 catches for 139 yards and 2 touchdowns as he set a new career high for receiving yards in a single game. Sergio Kindle injured his knee, and defensive end Eddie Jones injured his shoulder, but neither injury was thought to be serious.
Kansas State
Texas first played Kansas State in 1913 and held a record of 5–4–0 in the series prior to 2007. Since the Kansas State Wildcats
Kansas State Wildcats
Kansas State University's athletic teams are called the Wildcats. The official color of the teams is Royal Purple, making Kansas State one of very few schools that have only one official color; white and silver are generally used as complementary colors.Kansas State participates in...
belong to the north division of the Big 12 Conference, Texas plays KSU two out of every four years. In the 2006 meeting, fourth-ranked Texas was favored by 16 points over an unranked Kansas State team; Colt McCoy was injured early in the game and KSU went on to defeat Texas 45–42. This defeat snapped the Longhorns 17 win streak on the road as well as the national-best 21-game conference winning steak.
One day prior to the 2007 game, Las Vegas casinos picked Texas to win by 15 points. Kansas State got the ball to start the game and scored a touchdown on their opening drive. Texas answered with a touchdown on a drive that featured backup quarterback John Chiles in the game alongside Colt McCoy for some of the plays. The first quarter ended with the score tied 7–7.
In the second quarter, Kansas State took a 24–14 lead and Colt McCoy was injured and headed to the locker room just before halftime. McCoy came back as the Longhorn quarterback at the start of the third quarter, but Texas was never able to erase the point deficit and lost, 41–21. With about two minutes left in the game, McCoy again headed to the locker room early and Chiles led the Longhorns' last drive.
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
selected him as one of the season's 10 "Most Disappointing College Players" and noted that his nine interceptions thrown to that point in 2007 were already two more than he threw during the entire 2006 season. Kansas State had no turnovers and scored 21 points on defense and special teams. The Wildcats scored one touchdown on a punt return, one on a kick return, and one on an interception. Previously, Texas had never allowed all three types of scores in a single season. The 41 points were the most scored against Texas in Austin since UCLA handed the Longhorns a 66–3 loss in 1997. The loss to Kansas State was the worst home defeat in the Mack Brown era at Texas. Stewart Mandel
Stewart Mandel
Stewart Lance Mandel is an American sports writer who focuses on college football and college basketball. Mandel was raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, attending Sycamore High School, and is a graduate of Northwestern University with a degree in Journalism....
of Sports Illustrated listed several factors that contributed to the Longhorns' struggles. He cited the off-field problems as evidence that no UT player has been able to show the superior leadership skills of Vince Young. Mandel said that McCoy, still only a sophomore, had not been able to completely fill that gap and that McCoy's play had not been as good as during 2006. He also said part of the blame should be placed on an offensive line that lost several starters and had not been able to consistently protect McCoy. Finally, he noted that the running game had been "equally inconsistent". The win over UT was the Wildcats' first road victory over a top–ten team in school history.
Oklahoma
2007 Oklahoma Sooners football team
The 2007 Oklahoma Sooners football team represented the University of Oklahoma in the college football season of 2007-2008, winning the Big 12 Conference Championship for the fifth time in eight years. The team was led by head coach Bob Stoops...
marked the 102nd meeting of the Red River Shootout, which has been called one of the greatest sports rivalries in college football. It is Texas' second-longest running rivalry, just behind its rivalry with Texas A&M. Prior to 2007, Texas led the series 57–39–5, including the last two consecutive wins. The last match-up was a 28–10 Longhorn victory. Since 1929, the game has been held at the Cotton Bowl
Cotton Bowl (stadium)
The Cotton Bowl is a stadium which opened in 1929 and became known as "The House That Doak Built" due to the immense crowds that former SMU running back Doak Walker drew to the stadium during his college career in the late 1940s. Originally known as Fair Park Stadium, it is located in Fair Park,...
in Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
typically in mid-October with the State Fair of Texas
State Fair of Texas
The State Fair of Texas is an annual state fair held in Dallas, Texas . The fair season usually begins the last Friday in September and ends 24 days later. The fair is held at the historic Fair Park where it has been held since 1886. The 2012 State Fair of Texas will run from September 28th...
occurring adjacent to the stadium.
2007 Colorado Buffaloes football team
The 2007 Colorado Buffaloes football team represented the University of Colorado at Boulder in the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by Dan Hawkins in his second season at Colorado and played their home games at Folsom Field. Colorado finished 6-7 after losing in the...
. Texas' loss pushed it to number 16 in the coaches poll and number 19 in the AP poll; OU fell to number 10 in both polls. The ranking marked Texas' 114th straight week to be listed in the AP poll, the longest active streak in the country and tying the school record. The Longhorns had been ranked 142 straight weeks in the coaches poll, the longest UT streak in any poll and the country's longest active streak in the coaches poll. On the morning of the Red River Shootout, oddsmakers favored Oklahoma to win by 12–13 points.
Sam Bradford
Samuel Jacob "Sam" Bradford is an American football quarterback for the St. Louis Rams of the National Football League. He was the first overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft, and played college football at Oklahoma. In 2008, as a redshirt sophomore, Bradford became the second sophomore to win a...
, was 21–of–32 for 244 yards and 3 touchdowns. UT's McCoy was 19–of–26 for 324 yards and two touchdowns, earning the most passing yardage against an Oklahoma team since the 2004 National Championship Game vs. USC
2004 USC Trojans football team
The 2004 USC Trojans football team represented the University of Southern California in the 2004-2005 NCAA Division I-A college football season. Although now vacated for breaking NCAA rules, the team won the 2004 BCS National Championship by winning the 2005 Orange Bowl, that year's BCS National...
. McCoy threw one interception, and Jamaal Charles lost a fumble inside the Oklahoma five yard-line. For the second straight week, the Texas defense did not cause any turnovers.
McCoy, who suffered a concussion the previous week, played the game with his throwing arm bandaged from mid-forearm to biceps and took four sacks
Quarterback sack
In American football and Canadian football, a sack occurs when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage before he can throw a forward pass, or when the quarterback is tackled behind the line of scrimmage in the "pocket" and the intent of what he was going to do is unclear...
and a blind-side late hit after one play had been whistled dead. With the loss, Texas opened conference play 0–2 for the first time since 1956. A bright spot for the Horns was tight end Jermichael Finley
Jermichael Finley
-Green Bay Packers:Finley was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the third round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He battled Tory Humphrey in training camp to be the Packers' No. 2 tight end...
, who caught four passes for 149 yards. Jamaal Charles ran for 79 yards and John Chiles carried once for four yards. Counting the sacks to McCoy, Texas had a total of 61 yards rushing.
Limas Sweed
Limas Lee Sweed, Jr. is a former American football wide receiver for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League. He played collegiately for the Texas Longhorns. On April 26, 2008 Sweed was taken 53rd overall by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 2008 NFL Draft.-High school:Sweed attended...
left the game early because he re-injured his left wrist. He later had surgery to tighten the ligaments in the wrist but the injury ended his collegiate career. The Austin American-Statesman reported "Quan Cosby
Quan Cosby
Quantwan Cosby better known as Quan Cosby is an American football wide receiver for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League. He was signed by the Cincinnati Bengals as an undrafted free agent in 2009. He played college football for the Texas Longhorns...
likely will move to Sweed's spot at split end, with Nate Jones moving to flanker. The Longhorns likely will decide between Billy Pittman
Billy Pittman
Billy Pittman is a former American football player. He played college football as a wide receiver for the University of Texas Longhorns from 2003 to 2007 and was the leading receiver on the 2005 Texas team that won the BCS National Championship.- High school career :He attended C.H. Yoe High...
and Jordan Shipley
Jordan Shipley
Jordan Shipley is an American football player who currently plays wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League . He was drafted by Cincinnati in the third round of the 2010 NFL Draft...
at slot receiver when Texas is in its base, three-receiver set."
Defensive end Aaron Lewis fractured his elbow in the game and was taken out of the lineup indefinitely. The Austin American-Statesman reported "A depth chart issued Monday shows Lamarr Houston moving to Lewis' spot at power end, with Brian Orakpo regaining his starting job at quick end. The Longhorns have been dealing with injuries at defensive end all season." Fullback Luke Tiemann also required surgery to repair a broken wrist, but was expected to miss only two games.
Houston Chronicle
The Houston Chronicle is the largest daily newspaper in Texas, USA, headquartered in the Houston Chronicle Building in Downtown Houston. , it is the ninth-largest newspaper by circulation in the United States...
made note of Charles' fumble, McCoy's interception and the low rushing yardage. He said, "the Texas Longhorns went back and forth with Oklahoma for most of the game Saturday before eventually succumbing to the same problems that have taken them from a Top 10 ranking to the verge of dropping out of the national polls for the first time in seven years." The win kept the Sooners in position to win the south division of the Big12 Conference and could even allow them back into the national championship race.
Asked to assess his personal performance after the loss to Kansas State, Colt McCoy said, "I think I've had some bad luck, I'm definitely a better quarterback, definitely more experienced—I've just had some bad luck. Things that can go the wrong way, have gone the wrong way — tipped balls and that stuff." He also said there was room for improvement, "Teams are blitzing us a lot more. We've handled it well for the most part, but there's so many things we can do better... If you ask every person on this offense, they'll tell you there's something individually they can do better." After the loss to Oklahoma, Mack Brown said he did not want to hear about bad luck, "By saying we're unlucky is just a cop-out, this game isn't about luck. If you knock balls loose you should get on them. If you tip balls in the air you should catch them. We're not going to have any excuses." Brown cited the lack of big plays on defense, particularly the lack of forced turnovers, as a problem for Texas. Both Brown and Greg Davis hinted that Jamaal Charles could face less playing time as a result of his problems hanging onto the ball.
Iowa State
Texas first played Iowa State in 1979, and the Longhorns had won all six matchups coming into the 2007 season. Their last meeting in 2006 concluded with a 37–14 Texas victory. The Cyclones football teamIowa State Cyclones football
The Iowa State Cyclones football team represents Iowa State University in college football. The Cyclones compete in the Big 12 Conference in the NCAA's Division I Football Bowl Subdivision. ISU started playing football in 1892, however, it did not become an official sport until 1894...
was coached by Gene Chizik
Gene Chizik
Eugene "Gene" Chizik is an American football coach and former player. He is currently the head coach of the Auburn University football team, a position he has held since the 2009 season. Chizik's 2010 Auburn Tigers football team completed a 14–0 season with a victory over Oregon in the BCS...
who was co-defensive coordinator for Texas from 2005–2006. Like Texas, the Cyclones were 0–2 in conference play, but they had only a 1–5 record overall. Their lone victory of the season had been against Iowa when they made a game-winning 28-yard field goal with :01 remaining. As with Kansas State, Texas plays the Cyclones two out of every four years as part of the Big 12 Conference schedule.
Despite losses to Kansas State and Oklahoma, Texas remained in the Top 25 coming into the game with Iowa State. The Horns were number 22 in the USA Today coaches poll and number 23 in the Associated Press media poll. Texas extended its streak in the coaches poll to 143 weeks and its streak in the AP poll to 115 weeks. Mack Brown said that he would not change the game plan in facing Chizik but that he would need to adjust sideline signals and snap counts since they were known to the former Texas co-coordinator.
Todd Blythe
Todd Blythe is a gridiron football wide receiver who is currently a free agent of the Arena Football League. He was signed by the New Orleans Saints as an undrafted free agent in 2008. He played college football at Iowa State University.-External links:****...
would pose the biggest threat for the Longhorns. The paper also called the Cyclones the worst team in the Big12 north and predicted that Texas would be 2–2 in conference play after facing Iowa State and Baylor, the worst team in the south division. The Daily Texan reported that the game offered an opportunity for Gene Chizik to get a "signature win" if his team could beat Texas. Two days prior to the game, oddsmakers favored Texas to win by 16 points.
The Longhorns were in control from the beginning and routed Iowa State 56–3, the worst loss for the Cyclones since 1997. Iowa State got the ball to start the game and made a first down with a pass from Bret Meyer to Todd Blythe. The UT defense prevented them from gaining another first down and the Cyclones punted from their own 37 yard-line; Texas took over at their 42 yard-line. On the first play from scrimmage, Colt McCoy scrambled away from a blitz and saw that Jordan Shipley had broken off his route and was 10 yards behind any Cyclone defender. Shipley caught the pass from McCoy and sped away from the Cyclones to score a 58 yard touchdown. From that point, the Longhorns never relinquished the lead. They led 14–3 at the end of the first quarter and 28–3 at halftime. In the second half, Texas added another 28–points, en route to a 56–3 blowout.
The Longhorns' success passing the ball eventually gave way to the running game. John Chiles led the Longhorns with 54 yards on 9 carries. McCoy rushed for 50 yards, while Jamaal Charles carried the ball 7 times for 44 yards. The Longhorns finished with 514 total yards – 298 via the air, 216 on the ground. The Longhorns forced three turnovers, including two interceptions, without surrendering any themselves. Brandon Foster intercepted a pass from Bret Meyer and returned it for a 39 yard touchdown. Deon Beasley also picked off Meyer, who completed only 17 passes for 111 yards and no touchdowns.
Fullback (American football)
A fullback is a position in the offensive backfield in American and Canadian football, and is one of the two running back positions along with the halfback...
Antwan Cobb sprained his left anterior cruciate ligament
Anterior cruciate ligament
The anterior cruciate ligament is a cruciate ligament which is one of the four major ligaments of the human knee. In the quadruped stifle , based on its anatomical position, it is referred to as the cranial cruciate ligament.The ACL originates from deep within the notch of the distal femur...
late in the game, an injury that sidelined him for the rest of the season. Cobb's injury left the Longhorns without a true fullback, although they had not utilized the position often during the season. The only other fullback on the team, Luke Tiemann, was expected to miss one more week with a wrist injury. Mack Brown said Chris Ogbonnaya, the second-team tailback, would move to fullback for the Baylor game. Freshman tight end Blaine Irby had taken some practice at fullback and could also be used in that position. Robert Killebrew
Robert Killebrew
Robert Winston Killebrew is a professional American and Canadian football linebacker free agent. He was signed by the Calgary Stampeders as a street free agent in 2009. He played college football for the Texas Longhorns.-Early years:...
was benched after committing two personal foul penalties, a consistent problem for him in the 2007 season. Without a veteran fullback, Texas planned to either run the ball out of the shotgun formation
Shotgun formation
The shotgun formation is a formation used by the offensive team in American and Canadian football. This formation is used mainly for passing plays, although some teams use it as their base formation. In the shotgun, instead of the quarterback receiving the snap from center at the line of scrimmage,...
or simply focus on the passing game.
Representatives from the Holiday Bowl
Holiday Bowl
The Holiday Bowl is a post-season NCAA-sanctioned Division I-A college football bowl game that has been played annually at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California, since 1978. Beginning with the 2010 playing the bowl will officially be known as the Bridgepoint Education Holiday Bowl after...
were in attendance. According to the Austin Statesman, one of them said, "We’d love to have Texas, but they’re still hoping to wind up at the Fiesta Bowl." In order to reach the Fiesta Bowl
Fiesta Bowl
The Fiesta Bowl, now sponsored by Frito-Lay and named with their Tostitos brand, is a United States college football bowl game played annually at the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. Between its origination in 1971 and 2006, the game was hosted in Tempe, Arizona at Sun Devil...
, Texas needed Oklahoma to lose two games, giving Texas a spot in the Big 12 Conference Championship game, which Texas would then have to win. Another possibility would have been Oklahoma making it to the National Championship game
BCS National Championship Game
The BCS National Championship Game, or BCS National Championship, is the final bowl game of the annual Bowl Championship Series and is intended by the organizers of the BCS to determine the U.S. national champion of the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision...
and Texas being selected for an at-large Bowl Championship Series
Bowl Championship Series
The Bowl Championship Series is a selection system that creates five bowl match-ups involving ten of the top ranked teams in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision , including an opportunity for the top two to compete in the BCS National Championship Game.The BCS relies on a combination of...
bid."
Baylor
Floyd Casey Stadium
Floyd Casey Stadium is a stadium in Waco, Texas. It is primarily used for football, and is the home field of the Baylor Bears. Floyd Casey Stadium is about four miles from the Baylor campus. Floyd Casey Stadium was built in 1950 and cost $1.8 million dollars to construct...
in Waco, Texas
Waco, Texas
Waco is a city in and the county seat of McLennan County, Texas. Situated along the Brazos River and on the I-35 corridor, halfway between Dallas and Austin, it is the economic, cultural, and academic center of the 'Heart of Texas' region....
, approximately 100 miles (161 km) north on Interstate 35
Interstate 35
Interstate 35 is a north–south Interstate Highway in the central United States. I-35 stretches from Laredo, Texas, on the U.S.-Mexico border to Duluth, Minnesota, at Minnesota Highway 61 and 26th Avenue East. Many interstates used to have splits or spurs indicated with suffixed letters , but I-35...
from Austin, the home of the University of Texas. Because home UT games are usually a sell-out, Texas games at Baylor have found numerous Texas fans driving to Waco to watch the game.
The Longhorns first played the Baylor Bears
Baylor Bears
Baylor Bears refers to the sports teams of Baylor University. Baylor's men's sports teams are nicknamed the Bears, and some women's teams are nicknamed the Lady Bears. Student athletes participate in the NCAA's Division I, and Baylor is the only private school in the Big 12 Conference...
in 1901 and faced them annually during the days of the Southwest Conference. In the 96 meetings through 2006, Texas' record against the Bears was 70 wins, 22 losses, and 4 ties. The rivalry with Baylor is Texas' third-longest by number of games: only Oklahoma and Texas A&M have faced Texas more times on the football field. Texas won the 2006 meeting 63–31.
In the week prior to the 2007 game, Baylor assistant coach Eric Schnupp was charged with a misdemeanor count of disorderly conduct and reckless exposure after he allegedly urinated on the bar of a Waco nightclub. He was suspended indefinitely from the program. Baylor's starting quarterback, Blake Szymanski, was questionable for the game because of a mild concussion he suffered in a game against Kansas. Although Szymanski had been physically cleared to play, back-up quarterbacks Michael Machen and John David Weed were sharing snaps in practice and Baylor coaches said any one of them could get the start against Texas. Two days prior to the game, oddsmakers favored Texas to win by 25 points.
The game was initially a close-fought contest; Texas led by only a touchdown before Deon Beasley intercepted a pass at the Baylor 43-yard line with nine minutes remaining in the game. Texas scored two more touchdowns to outlast the Bears in a 31–10 victory. Texas accumulated 293 passing yards, all by McCoy, compared to 284 by Machen and Weed of Baylor. Vondrell McGee was the leading rusher for Texas, contributing 57 of the team’s 177 yards. Baylor’s Jay Finley was the Bears' leading rusher, but Baylor was held to only 8 yards rushing overall because of the sacks forced by the Texas defense. It was the tenth straight victory for UT over Baylor.
Nebraska
Texas first played the Nebraska CornhuskersNebraska Cornhuskers football
The Nebraska Cornhuskers represent the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in college football. The program has established itself as a traditional powerhouse, and has the fourth-most all-time victories of any NCAA Division I-A team. Nebraska is one of only six football programs in NCAA Division I-A...
in 1933, and the Longhorns held a 7–4–0 record against Nebraska though 2006. As with Kansas State and Iowa State, Texas plays the Cornhuskers two out of every four years as part of the Big 12 Conference schedule.
On the morning of the game, oddsmakers favored Texas to win by 21 points. The weather forecast called for a high of 76 °F (24.4 °C) and sunshine with winds NNE at 10 miles per hour (16.1 km/h) to 15 miles per hour (24.1 km/h). Texas stuck with their passing game for three quarters and was trailed Nebraska most of the way; the Cornhuskers led 17–9 to start the fourth quarter. The Associated Press reported, “Once Texas figured out it should be running against one of the nation's worst run defenses, things turned out all right for the Longhorns.”
Early in the fourth quarter, McCoy took a hard hit as he scrambled outside the pocket. He was shaken up badly enough to leave the game for a play. John Chiles came in at quarterback; his one play, a zone-read handoff to Jamaal Charles, produced 24 yards. According to the Associated Press recap of the game, “suddenly Texas had figured out how to beat a Cornhuskers' team that had been steamrolled on the ground in recent weeks. Texas only threw three passes in the fourth quarter.”
Once Texas switched to the zone read offense, they quickly started gaining yards and points. Charles ran for a career-high 290 yards, including 216 yards and three long touchdown runs in the fourth quarter. His tally also set a new record for rushing against the Cornhuskers, surpassing the old record of 247 yards by Oklahoma’s Billy Simms. Charles explained "It was my time to show everyone what I can do. When I saw a hole, I blasted through it." Texas finished with 181 yards passing and 364 yards rushing; Nebraska had 315 yards passing and 132 yards rushing. The running back was named the Walter Camp
Walter Camp
Walter Chauncey Camp was an American football player, coach, and sports writer known as the "Father of American Football". With John Heisman, Amos Alonzo Stagg, Pop Warner, Fielding H. Yost, and George Halas, Camp was one of the most accomplished persons in the early history of American football...
Football Foundation National Offensive Player of the Week.
The game was a milestone for one coach and a millstone for another; it was the 100th win for Mack Brown at Texas; and it put more pressure on beleaguered Nebraska coach Bill Callahan. Brown remarked on his victory, “A hundred is nice. I knew the game was going to come down like it did. It didn’t surprise me. They made sure that I’ll remember it the rest of my life.” Callahan was fired five weeks later.
Oklahoma State
Oklahoma State Cowboys football
The Oklahoma State Cowboys football program represents Oklahoma State University–Stillwater in college football. The team is a member of the Big 12 Conference and completes at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. The Cowboys are led by Mike Gundy, who is in his seventh year as...
(OSU) program 21 times and held a 19–2–0 record. Texas came into the 2007 game with a nine game active winning streak against OSU. The Cowboys' only two victories occurred in 1944 and 1997. The day before the 2007 game, oddsmakers favored Texas to win by 3 points. The pre-game festivities included an appearance by Challenger
Challenger (eagle)
Challenger is a non-releasable Bald Eagle in the care of the non-profit American Eagle Foundation. He is the first Bald Eagle in history trained to free fly into major sporting events during the National Anthem.-Life:...
, the first Bald Eagle
Bald Eagle
The Bald Eagle is a bird of prey found in North America. It is the national bird and symbol of the United States of America. This sea eagle has two known sub-species and forms a species pair with the White-tailed Eagle...
ever trained to free-fly into sports stadiums, and a fly-over by four F-16 Fighting Falcons from the Oklahoma Air National Guard
Oklahoma Air National Guard
The Oklahoma Air National Guard is the air force militia of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. It is, along with the Oklahoma Army National Guard, an element of the Oklahoma National Guard. It is considered a part of the United States Air Force, as well as of the state...
’s 138th Fighter Wing
138th Fighter Wing
The United States Air Force's 138th Fighter Wing is a fighter unit located at Tulsa International Airport in Tulsa, Oklahoma. An Air National Guard unit operationally-gained by the Air Combat Command , the wing flies the F-16 Fighting Falcon multirole fighter.-Mission:The federal mission of the...
piloted by Oklahoma State alumni.
In the 2007 game
2007 Texas vs. Oklahoma State football game
The 2007 Texas vs. Oklahoma State football game was a college football game played November 3, 2007 between the 2007 Texas Longhorns and the Oklahoma State Cowboys. Oklahoma State took an early lead in the game and led 35–14 at the start of the fourth quarter. For the fourth time...
, Oklahoma State took an early lead and led 35–14 at the start of the fourth quarter. For the fourth time in five years, the Longhorns staged a big rally to win the game. This time, Texas overcame a 21 point fourth quarter deficit to win by three points as time expired in the game. It was the biggest fourth-quarter comeback in Texas Longhorn
Texas Longhorns football
The Texas Longhorns football program is the intercollegiate football team representing The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas. The team currently competes in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision as a member of the Big 12 Conference which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National...
history.
Fox Sports
Fox College Sports
Fox College Sports is a group of three United States digital cable networks, FCS Atlantic, FCS Central and FCS Pacific owned by News Corporation, that specialize primarily in showing collegiate programming, live events, coaches shows & various DI, DII, & DIII content surrounding college athletics...
selected Jamaal Charles and Jacob Lacey as their players of the game for Texas and Oklahoma State, respectively. Charles averaged 11.3 yards per carry. ESPN remarked, "For the second straight week, Jammal Charles led a late charge for the 15th-ranked Longhorns. He scored two of his three touchdowns in the fourth quarter as Texas (No. 14 AP) outscored Oklahoma State 24–0 in the final 15 minutes." OSU's leading rusher was Dantrell Savage with 102 yards and one touchdown on 23 carries. McCoy was 20 of 28 passing attempts for 283 yards. He had one touchdown pass and three interceptions; he also rushed for 105 yards. Zac Robinson was 30 of 42 for 427 yards, one touchdown, and no interceptions. Robinson's passing yardage broke the school record, previously held by current head-coach Mike Gundy
Mike Gundy
Mike Gundy is an American football coach and former player He is currently the head football coach at Oklahoma State University–Stillwater. Gundy played college football Oklahoma State, where he was the Cowboys quarterback from 1986 to 1989. Gundy became Oklahoma State's coach on January 3, 2005...
. Together, the teams had 1,170 yards of offense. The 594 yards allowed by Texas was the most in the 2007 season. Oklahoma State ran 87 plays and used 35:11 minutes of ball possession, compared to 70 plays and 24:49 for Texas.
The Longhorns suffered several injuries during the game. According to the Austin American-Statesman
Austin American-Statesman
The Austin American-Statesman is the major daily newspaper for Austin, the capital city of Texas. It is an award-winning publication owned by Cox Enterprises. The Newspaper places focus on issues affecting Austin and the Central Texas region....
, "Center Dallas Griffin left the game with a knee injury, linebacker Jared Norton left with a right shoulder injury and Eddie Jones left with a shoulder injury. Brandon Foster injured his chest in the third quarter, and Drew Kelson left the game with a left knee injury." The paper also reported that Griffin's removal from the game may have contributed to several mistakes in snapping the ball to McCoy and that UT might not have been able to win if any of the resulting handling mistakes had been picked up by OSU.
Texas Tech
Texas Tech Red Raiders
The Texas Tech Red Raiders are the athletic teams that represent Texas Tech University . The women's basketball team uses the name Lady Raiders; however, the school's other women's teams use the "Red Raiders" name. The university's athletic program fields teams in 15 varsity sports and 30 club sports...
began in 1928 and through 2006, the Longhorns were 42–14–0 against Tech. In the 2006 contest, fifth-ranked Texas barely came away with a 35–31 win over an unranked Texas Tech team. Two days before the 2007 game, oddsmakers favored Texas to win by 6½ points. Pre-game speculation continued about what bowl game might select Texas. Various media predictions included the Gator Bowl
Gator Bowl
The Gator Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played at EverBank Field in Jacksonville, Florida. Held continuously since 1946, it is the sixth oldest college bowl, as well as the first one ever televised nationally...
, Cotton Bowl Classic, and Holiday Bowl
Holiday Bowl
The Holiday Bowl is a post-season NCAA-sanctioned Division I-A college football bowl game that has been played annually at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California, since 1978. Beginning with the 2010 playing the bowl will officially be known as the Bridgepoint Education Holiday Bowl after...
. Holiday Bowl executive director Bruce Binkowski said his bowl would be very interested in pitting Texas against the USC Trojans
2007 USC Trojans football team
The 2007 University of Southern California Trojans football team represented the University of Southern California during the college football season of 2007–2008, winning a share of the Pacific-10 Conference Championship and winning the 2008 Rose Bowl...
, whom Texas defeated in the 2006 Rose Bowl
2006 Rose Bowl
The 2006 Rose Bowl Game, played on January 4, 2006, was a football game that served as the national championship of the 2005-2006 Bowl Championship Series...
. A BCS bowl was also still mentioned as a possibility, with Sports Illustrated saying the Orange Bowl could take Texas.
Texas Center Dallas Griffin injured his anterior cruciate ligament
Anterior cruciate ligament
The anterior cruciate ligament is a cruciate ligament which is one of the four major ligaments of the human knee. In the quadruped stifle , based on its anatomical position, it is referred to as the cranial cruciate ligament.The ACL originates from deep within the notch of the distal femur...
against Oklahoma State and was out for the season. Griffin was a senior, meaning his career with the Longhorns ended due to the injury. Backup defensive end Eddie Jones and reserve safety Drew Kelson were also out for the game against Texas Tech.
Linebackers Jared Norton and Sergio Kindle were listed as "questionable" and "probable", respectively.
The Red Raiders were 7–3 on the season and 3–3 in the Big 12 after beating Baylor 37–7 in their most recent game. Quarterback Graham Harrell
Graham Harrell
Graham Harrell is an American football quarterback. He was signed by the Green Bay Packers and is currently on their scout team. He played college football at Texas Tech.-Early years:...
passed for over 4,000 yards for the second season in a row, becoming the fifth quarterback in NCAA Division I-FBS (formerly Division I-A) to have multiple 4,000-yard seasons. The Austin American-Statesman reported, "Defensively, Texas must hope that the injured are quick healers because it's a given that the Longhorns will need every available body against the Red Raiders. Texas Tech fields the most dynamic passing offense in the country, and the Red Raiders also stay on the field an average of 77.3 plays per game. Tech further frustrates a defense by often going for fourth downs. They've been successful on 14 of 23 fourth-down attempts this season. A year ago, Tech was one of three on fourth downs in a 35-31 loss to Texas."
With the game falling on Veteran's Day weekend, a pre-game ceremony honored veterans and commemorated the 60th year of Texas' ROTC program. Four army helicopters from Fort Hood overflew the stadium after the national anthem. It was also Senior Day for Texas, with 25 players making their last home game appearance. As a group, they had a 42–6 record coming into the game, which represented the third-highest win total for any Texas class. The temperature at kickoff was 84 degrees.
On their first offensive series, the Horns scored a touchdown on a pass from McCoy to Shipley. Their defense held Tech to a field goal. Texas offensive tackle Tony Hills injured his leg and left the game on a cart. Texas scored another touchdown on a run by Vondrell McGee to create a 14–3 lead at the end of the first quarter. Tech's Graham Harrell threw a touchdown pass and Texas answered with a rushing touchdown. On the ensuing kick, Texas used a pooch kick which was tipped by a Texas Tech player. The Longhorns' kickoff team recovered the ball, helping put their offense to rush for another touchdown. Tech brought the game to 28–20 with another touchdown. Texas drove into field goal range but tried to throw a touchdown pass with 11 seconds remaining in the half. The pass was intercepted for a touchback
Touchback
In American football, a touchback is a ruling which is made and signaled by an official when the ball becomes dead behind or above a goal line and the team who is attacking that goal line is responsible for the ball being there. Responsibility is determined by which team gave the ball the impetus...
and the Red Raiders ran a short play to end the half.
Jammal Charles and tight end Jermichael Finley were injured in the second half but were able to return. In the fourth quarter, McCoy suffered a cut to his head but he did not miss any plays due to the injury. McCoy threw for four touchdowns and ran for two more. Both teams kept running their first team offense until late in the game; they combined for 47 points in the final 12 minutes and each scored a touchdown within the final two minutes of play. Tech attempted two onside kick
Onside kick
In American and Canadian football, an onside kick is a type of kick used at a kickoff or other free kick, or scrimmage kick or other kick during play, in which the ball is kicked favorably for the kicking team to avoid giving away the ball...
s in an effort to come from behind, but Texas recovered both kicks.
During his post-game press conference, Texas Tech head coach Mike Leach excoriated the officiating crew for incompetence and bias. He speculated that the officials may have favored Texas because the head official lived in Austin, because the officials were incompetent, or because the conference wanted Texas to appear in a BCS bowl because of the increased appearance fees that such a bowl generates for the conference. Jim Vertuno of the Associated Press wrote "Leach was upset officials disallowed two Tech touchdowns in the third quarter. The first was overruled when video replay clearly showed the receiver let the ball hit the ground. On the next play, a touchdown pass was negated by a holding penalty. Leach also wanted, but didn't get, a flag for roughing the quarterback." The Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
Lubbock Avalanche-Journal is a newspaper based in Lubbock, Texas, U.S. It is owned by the Morris Communications Company.-History:The Lubbock Avalanche was founded in 1900 by John James Dillard and Thad Tubbs. According to Dillard, the name "Avalanche" was chosen due to his desire that the...
reported, "Big 12 policy prohibits coaches from commenting publicly about game officials, so Leach’s actions leave him open to reprimand, fine or worse." ESPN reported, "Leach's rant will likely draw a fine from the league and possibly a suspension." The Big 12 fined Leach $10,000, the largest fine in conference history.
The win ensured that 2007 would be the 10th straight season the Longhorns won nine or more games, a record streak for the Horns. Including Mack Brown's final two seasons at North Carolina
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States...
, Brown became the only coach in the nation to lead his program to nine or more victories in 12 straight seasons.
Texas A&M
This game marked the 114th meeting between the Aggies and the Texas Longhorns
Texas Longhorns football
The Texas Longhorns football program is the intercollegiate football team representing The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas. The team currently competes in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision as a member of the Big 12 Conference which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National...
and was the fourth year of a multi-sport rivalry named the Lone Star Showdown. The football rivalry began in 1894 and continues to be the longest-running rivalry for both the Longhorns and the Aggies; it is the third-longest rivalry in NCAA Division I FBS (formerly Division I-A) football. Texas A&M came into the 2007 contest with a 35–73–5 record against Texas. Since the series began in 1894, the game has traditionally been played on Thanksgiving Day or Thanksgiving weekend. The 2007 game marks the fourteenth straight game to be scheduled the day after Thanksgiving.
The Aggies scored on their opening possession with a 35-yard touchdown with a screen pass
Screen pass
A screen pass is a type of play in American football. During a screen pass, a number of things happen concurrently in order to fool the defense into thinking a long pass is being thrown, when in fact the pass is merely a short one, just beyond the defensive linemen. Screens are usually deployed...
from Stephen McGee
Stephen McGee
Stephen Richard McGee is an American football quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys. He played college football for Texas A&M....
to Mike Goodson
Mike Goodson
Michael Darryl Goodson, Jr. is an American football running back for the Carolina Panthers. He played college football for Texas A&M.-High school career:...
. The Longhorns mustered two first downs, but were forced to punt. Texas A&M ended their subsequent drive three plays later with a punt of their own. The Longhorns again successfully penetrated into Texas A&M territory, but Mack Brown opted to call a pooch punt by Colt McCoy on fourth down and four from the Aggie 37-yard line. The Aggies answered with an eighteen-play drive that stalled on the UT-14 yardline and the Aggies had to settle for a 31-yard field goal by Matt Szymanski.
The second quarter started with the Longhorns driving only six yards and being forced to punt again. The Aggies continued to press their advantage and drove down the field until Stephen McGee threw an ill-timed pass that was intercepted by Deon Beasley at the Longhorn 25. Two first-downs later, Texas was forced to punt and pinned Texas A&M on their own five yard line. Stephen McGee led the offense with several long passes and the Aggies drove to the Texas 5 but again were held short on 3rd down. On 4th and three, the Aggies faked
Trick play
A trick play, also known as a gadget play or a gimmick play, is a play in American football that uses deception and unorthodox strategies to fool the opposing team. A trick play is often risky, offering the potential for a large gain or a touchdown if it is successful, but with the chance of a...
the field goal and the placeholder, T.J. Sanders, ran the ball in for his first career touchdown giving the Aggies a 17–0 lead. The Longhorns started their next drive on their own 20-yard line, where Colt McCoy threw a 62-yard pass to Jamaal Charles. The drive stalled and the Longhorns had to settle for a field goal and went to halftime trailing their arch-rival, 17–3.
The third quarter started with promising drives by both teams, each ending when the ball was intercepted. Brandon Foster
Brandon Foster
Brandon Foster is an American football cornerback who is currently a free agent. He most recently attended training camp with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. He was signed by the Colts as an undrafted free agent in 2008...
ran the Longhorns' interception back to the A&M eight-yard line and Texas scored a touchdown on the next play to pull the Longhorns within seven points. The Aggies drove to the Texas 34 yard line, but the drive stalled out and Texas took over on downs as the fourth-down attempt failed. Colt McCoy fumbled a few plays later to give the ball back to Texas A&M. Five plays later, Stephen McGee scampered into the end zone for a five-yard touchdown to put the Aggies up 24–10. The Longhorns took little time to answer with a touchdown of their own. Quan Cosby returned the following kickoff 91 yards for a touchdown to pull Texas within seven once again. The next drive started on the Aggie 49-yard line, courtesy of a 42-yard kickoff return by E.J. Shankle. The quarter ended on a seven-yard pass to Mike Goodson.
The final quarter of play began with A&M still moving the ball. Stephen McGee threw a 44-yard pass to Mike Goodson for a touchdown to put the Aggies ahead by the score of 31–17. The Longhorns again went three and out
Three and Out
Three And Out is a 2008 British comedy film directed by Jonathan Gershfield. It premiered in London on the 21 April 2008 and was released in the UK and Ireland on 25 April 2008.-Plot:...
and were forced to punt. The Aggies went down the field quickly and scored another touchdown on a 66-yard pass completion to Earvin Taylor, putting Texas A&M up by 21 points. Colt McCoy fumbled the ball two plays later, but A&M was forced to punt the ball away three plays after recovering the fumble. McCoy and the Longhorn offense drove the length of the field to score a touchdown, taking only 99 seconds off the clock in the process. The Aggies lost seven yards over the next three plays and were forced again to punt. The Longhorns drove 73 yards from their own 27, converted two fourth downs, and scored a touchdown. Ryan Bailey missed the extra point, but left the Longhorns only down by eight points. The Aggies took possession on their own 33 and ran the clock out to win the game, 38–30.
During the postgame celebration, ABC commentator Jack Arute asked Dennis Franchione whether he would be back with the team the following year. Coach Franchione responded by asking the announcer to let the players enjoy their victory. At the beginning of the subsequent press conference, Coach Franchione announced his resignation, effective immediately. Shortly thereafter, Texas A&M announced defensive coordinator Gary Darnell would lead the Aggies in their bowl game
Bowl game
In North America, a bowl game is commonly considered to refer to one of a number of post-season college football games. Prior to 2002, bowl game statistics were not included in players' career totals and the games were mostly considered to be exhibition games involving a payout to participating...
.
Holiday Bowl
The Longhorns concluded the season in the 2007 Holiday Bowl
2007 Holiday Bowl
The 2007 Pacific Life Holiday Bowl was a college football bowl game played December 27, 2007 in San Diego, California. It was part of the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season and one of 32 games in the 2007-2008 bowl season. It featured the Texas Longhorns against the Arizona State Sun...
on December 27 against the Arizona State Sun Devils
Arizona State Sun Devils football
The Arizona State Sun Devils' football program represents Arizona State University in college football, and competes in NCAA Division I FBS as a member of the Pacific-12 Conference....
.
With the loss to Texas A&M, the Longhorns fell out of contention for a Bowl Championship Series
Bowl Championship Series
The Bowl Championship Series is a selection system that creates five bowl match-ups involving ten of the top ranked teams in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision , including an opportunity for the top two to compete in the BCS National Championship Game.The BCS relies on a combination of...
game; their bowl situation would be decided largely by the play of other Big 12 teams. Number four Missouri
Missouri Tigers football
The Missouri Tigers football team represents the University of Missouri in NCAA Division I FBS college football. The team has competed in the North Division of the Big 12 Conference since the conference's inception in 1996...
beat number two Kansas
Kansas Jayhawks football
The Kansas Jayhawks football program is the intercollegiate football program of the University of Kansas Jayhawks. The program is classified in the NCAA's Division I, and the team competes in the Big 12 Conference....
to win the Big 12 North Division. Missouri rose to the top spot in the BCS rankings prior to facing Oklahoma in the Big 12 Championship game. Oklahoma won the game to become the Big 12 Conference champion and secure a berth in the 2008 Fiesta Bowl
2008 Fiesta Bowl
The 2008 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl was a college football bowl game sponsored by Tostitos. It was part of the 2007–2008 Bowl Championship Series of the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Played annually since 1971, first at Sun Devil Stadium on the campus of Arizona State University in Tempe,...
. Even though Missouri defeated Kansas, won their division, and outranked Kansas in the BCS standings (sixth compared to eighth) the Orange Bowl selected Kansas instead of Missouri to play in the 2008 Orange Bowl
2008 Orange Bowl
The 2008 FedEx Orange Bowl game was a post-season college football bowl game between the Virginia Tech Hokies and the Kansas Jayhawks on January 3, 2008, at Dolphins Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. Spread bettors favored Virginia Tech by three points, but in a game dominated by defensive and...
. The Tigers were invited to play in the 2008 Cotton Bowl Classic; the Cotton Bowl Classic had first pick of Big 12 teams after BCS bowls have made their selections. The Holiday Bowl
Holiday Bowl
The Holiday Bowl is a post-season NCAA-sanctioned Division I-A college football bowl game that has been played annually at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, California, since 1978. Beginning with the 2010 playing the bowl will officially be known as the Bridgepoint Education Holiday Bowl after...
had the next selection and chose Texas.
Arizona State University was ranked number 11 in the BCS standings; they completed a 10–2 regular season and won a share of the Pac-10 Conference Championship. The Sun Devils finished the regular season ranked number 11 in the final BCS rankings, number 11 in Coaches poll and number 12 in the AP rankings while Texas was number 19 in the BCS and number 17 in both the coaches and AP rankings. The Sun Devils were eligible for a BCS bowl themselves, but like Missouri, ASU was left out of the BCS selections.
Texas dominated the first quarter and set two Holiday Bowl records. The Longhorns' first score, a two-yard pass from Colt McCoy to nose tackle Derek Lokey, was the quickest in game history, and took place with 13:39 remaining in the first quarter. The Longhorns scored 21 points in the first quarter—two more than previous record-holder SMU
SMU Mustangs football
The SMU Mustangs football program is a college football team that represents Southern Methodist University . The team competes in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision as a member Conference USA...
scored against BYU in 1980. Texas’ defense forced two turnovers and held the Sun Devils scoreless for the period.
The game included one of the most bizarre plays of the football season. ASU’s Rudy Carpenter
Rudy Carpenter
Rudy Carpenter is an American football quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League. He was signed by the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 2009...
fumbled the ball as ASU was close to scoring a touchdown. Chris Jessee, a member of the Longhorns football operations staff and Mack Brown’s stepson
Stepfamily
A stepfamily, also known as a blended family or reconstituted family, is a family in which one or both members of the couple have children from a previous relationship...
, stepped onto the field and may or may not have touched the ball as it bounced near the sideline. The ball was recovered by Texas, seemingly preventing an ASU touchdown. However, after a twelve minute review, the officials awarded the ball to Arizona State; the Sun Devils scored a touchdown on the next play.
The Longhorns won the game, 52–34. The 52 points were the most ever scored by the Longhorns in a bowl game. Joseph Duarte of the Houston Chronicle
Houston Chronicle
The Houston Chronicle is the largest daily newspaper in Texas, USA, headquartered in the Houston Chronicle Building in Downtown Houston. , it is the ninth-largest newspaper by circulation in the United States...
called the Holiday Bowl the "biggest victory of the season in what could serve as a springboard for a preseason Top 10 ranking next season."
After the season
Two Longhorns were named to postseason All-American lists2007 College Football All-America Team
The 2007 College Football All-America Team is composed of the following All-American Teams: Associated Press, Football Writers Association of America, American Football Coaches Association, Walter Camp Foundation, The Sporting News, Sports Illustrated, Pro Football Weekly, ESPN, CBS Sports, College...
. Marcus Griffin was selected to the ESPN list and Tony Hills was selected by the Walter Camp Football Foundation
Walter Camp Football Foundation
The Walter Camp Football Foundation is one of the organizations whose College Football All-America Team is recognized by the NCAA. The organization also presents various awards.-Awards:*Walter Camp Player of the Year*CT Player of the Year...
.
Towards the end of the season, speculation intensified about which players might enter professional football though the 2008 NFL Draft
2008 NFL Draft
The 2008 NFL Draft took place at Radio City Music Hall in New York City on April 26 and April 27, 2008. For the 29th consecutive year, ESPN televised the draft; the NFL Network also broadcast the event, its third year doing so...
. In November, Jamaal Charles said he would return for his senior season rather than enter professional football in the NFL. In December, sources reported Charles and Jermichael Finley had filed paperwork with the NFL to evaluate their draft potential if they decided to enter professional football in the NFL Draft instead of returning for their senior season. Quan Cosby, who spent three years in professional baseball, was reported to be still deciding whether to file the paperwork. Defensive tackle Roy Miller said he would definitely be back for his senior season. Mack Brown did not comment about specific players but said, "We always try to help our guys get as much information as possible when it comes to the NFL. We encourage and help them go through the process ... All of our underclassmen have told us they will be coming back, but if you're playing well enough to be considered an NFL prospect, going through the process can only help you better understand it and realize what you need to work on to improve your status." Charles said he would not go pro unless he was predicted to be chosen in the first round of the draft. After the Holiday Bowl Charles said, "Right now, I’m probably coming back. I didn’t think I did that good in the game. Next year maybe I’ll be up for the Heisman. I will come back." From 2000–2007, the Longhorns have had seven players taken in the first 10 picks of the NFL draft, more than any other school.
On January 2, 2008, Charles announced that he was rescinding his earlier decision and would leave Texas for the NFL. Despite skipping his senior year, Charles ranks fourth on the list of total rushing yards by a UT player, behind Ricky Williams
Ricky Williams
Errick Lynne "Ricky" Williams, Jr. is an American football running back for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League. He was drafted by the New Orleans Saints fifth overall in the 1999 NFL Draft...
, Cedric Benson
Cedric Benson
Cedric Myron Benson is an American football running back for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Chicago Bears fourth overall in the 2005 NFL Draft...
, and Earl Campbell
Earl Campbell
Earl Christian Campbell , nicknamed The Tyler Rose, is a former professional American Football running back. He, Paul Hornung and O.J Simpson are the only people to have won the Heisman Trophy , were first overall National Football League draft picks and are in both the Pro Football Hall of Fame...
, with 3,328 yards. Williams and Campbell each won the Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
in their senior seasons. With Charles' departure, quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
Colt McCoy
Colt McCoy
Daniel "Colt" McCoy is an American football quarterback for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Browns in the third round of the 2010 NFL Draft...
becomes the leading returning rusher for the Longhorns. Tight end
Tight end
The tight end is a position in American football on the offense. The tight end is often seen as a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Like offensive linemen, they are usually lined up on the offensive line and are large enough to be...
Jermichael Finley
Jermichael Finley
-Green Bay Packers:Finley was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the third round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He battled Tory Humphrey in training camp to be the Packers' No. 2 tight end...
also declared he would forgo his senior season to enter the NFL.
The draft concluded with five Longhorns selected: Limas Sweed (53rd pick), Jamaal Charles (73rd), Jermichael Finley (91st), Tony Hills
Tony Hills (American football)
Anthony Tremaine Hills is an American football offensive tackle for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the fourth round of the 2008 NFL Draft...
(130th), and Frank Okam
Frank Okam
Franklin Nonyelu Okam, Jr. is an American football defensive tackle for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He was drafted by the Houston Texans in the fifth round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He played college football at Texas.-Early years:...
(151st). In addition, Brandon Foster
Brandon Foster
Brandon Foster is an American football cornerback who is currently a free agent. He most recently attended training camp with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. He was signed by the Colts as an undrafted free agent in 2008...
, Marcus Griffin
Marcus Griffin
Marcus Kevin Griffin was born on January 4, 1985 in Austin, Texas. Griffin entered the 2008 NFL Draft, however he went unselected. Griffin was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Minnesota Vikings on April 28, 2008. Griffin was subsequently waived on June 30, 2008...
, Nate Jones and Derek Lokey
Derek Lokey
Derek Ray Lokey is an American football defensive tackle who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the Kansas City Chiefs as an undrafted free agent in 2008. He played college football at Texas....
agreed to sign free-agent contracts with NFL teams.
On January 2, 2008, the Longhorns announced that defensive co-coordinator Larry MacDuff would not return for the 2008 season and Duane Akina was demoted to "Assistant Head Coach/Defensive Backs". The Longhorns hired Will Muschamp
Will Muschamp
William Larry "Will" Muschamp is an American college football coach and former player. He is the current head coach of the Florida Gators football team of the University of Florida. He is a native of Georgia and attended the University of Georgia, where he played for the Georgia Bulldogs...
as defensive coordinator; he will also coach UT's linebackers. Muschamp was defensive coordinator at Auburn University
Auburn University
Auburn University is a public university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 25,000 students and 1,200 faculty members, it is one of the largest universities in the state. Auburn was chartered on February 7, 1856, as the East Alabama Male College, a private liberal arts...
and will earn a $425,000 salary at Texas. Running backs coach Ken Rucker transferred to a newly created position with the athletic department where he will act as a liaison to high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
athletic programs. On January 16, 2008 Texas replaced Rucker by hiring former UT quarterback Major Applewhite
Major Applewhite
Major Lee Applewhite is the Co-Offensive Coordinator and Running Backs Coach for the University of Texas. Prior to Texas, Applewhite served as offensive coordinator at Rice University under Todd Graham in 2006, and at the University of Alabama under Nick Saban in 2007...
.