As quarterback Vince Young slowly exited Kyle Field after Texas' 40-29 victory against Texas A&M, a crush of Longhorns fans mobbed him in the end zone.
In the sea of burnt orange, where fans held signs that read, "Win It All, Horns" and "Can You Smell the Roses?," Young flashed the traditional Texas "hook 'em" hand gesture twice and continued to walk solemnly off the field.
The victory kept the No. 2-ranked Longhorns (11-0, 8-0 Big 12) undefeated heading into next Saturday's conference championship game in Houston, and in line for a possible meeting for the Bowl Championship Series' national championship against top-ranked Southern California in the Rose Bowl. But Young was clearly less than pleased by his and his team's performance.
PHOTO: AFP
The game was supposed to be the one for Young to make his best case for the Heisman Trophy before a national television audience. Instead, he fumbled once, threw an interception and was held to 1.7 yards per carry rushing.
Young, a junior from Houston, finished with 181 total yards, 137.8 yards below his season average. The Longhorns' defense, ranked sixth nationally, surrendered its most points this season.
"I don't believe that as a team we played like the University of Texas today," said Young, who was 13 of 24 passing for 162 yards with a touchdown. "I really take that in a whole lot. Even though we got the victory and are 11-0, we can't have games like this."
Texas, which is seeking its first national title since 1970, trailed the Aggies (5-6, 3-5) by a point on two occasions and were outgained, 398-336.
The second deficit occurred after the redshirt freshman quarterback Stephen McGee, making his first start, ran 11 yards for a touchdown early in the third quarter to give Texas A&M a 22-21 lead.
But by scoring 19 of the game's last 26 points, the Longhorns outlasted the pesky Aggies before 86,617 rowdy fans in the 112th meeting between the rivals.
Texas has won the annual day-after-Thanksgiving game six consecutive years by an average score of 38-17.
"I think this is the best thing that could have possibly happened to us today," said Texas coach Mack Brown, whose team has won 18 consecutive games. "It's got our guys' and coaches' attention. They're going to go back to work now so we'll quit talking about how great we are."
The flurry of second-half points by Texas started with Ramonce Taylor's second touchdown run, with a little more than eight minutes left in the third quarter, to give the Longhorns a 28-22 lead. That was followed by a blocked punt that Cedric Griffin returned 11 yards for a score, and two field goals by David Pino.
But McGee's gutsy play in place of the senior Reggie McNeal, Texas A&M's career leader in total offense, who stood on the sideline with a left ankle injury, kept the Aggies in the game.
Directing an option attack that gained 280 rushing yards, McGee ran for a game-high 108 yards and two touchdowns on 24 carries, and passed for 83 yards.
McGee also had two turnovers -- an interception that led to Texas's first score, and a fumble at the Longhorns' 14 that killed a potential game-tying drive with less than 10 minutes left in the game. The Aggies trailed, 37-29, at the time and had moved 67 yards in nine plays.
"I should have held on to the ball," McGee said. "That's my job as a quarterback."
The loss ended Texas A&M's season on a four-game slide. For the third time in four years, the Aggies are not going to a bowl game.
Since taking over in 2003, Texas A&M coach Dennis Franchione has a 16-19 record, hardly matching the expectations the university had when it hired him away from Alabama.
Afterward, Franchione declined to comment on the fate of the defensive coordinator Carl Torbush, the architect of a defense that entered the game ranked 109th out of 117 teams in NCAA. Division I-A.
"I still believe we're not too far away," Franchione said. "We've still got more work to do."
No. 3 LSU 19, Arkansas 17
At Baton Rouge, Louisiana, JaMarcus Russell threw a 50-yard touchdown pass, Justin Vincent ran for a score and LSU's defense had another strong effort to help the Tigers clinch a spot in the Southeastern Conference title game.
The Tigers (10-1, 7-1 SEC) registered their second safety in as many games, earning two points that proved critical when Arkansas (4-7, 2-6) refused to relent after falling behind 19-3 early in the second half.
LSU will face Georgia in the conference championship game in Atlanta on Dec. 3, the second time in three years those two teams have met to decide the SEC.
The Tigers held Arkansas standout freshman Darren McFadden to 57 yards on 24 carries, but he had a 1-yard touchdown run with 10:43 left to make it a two-point game.
No. 24 Wisconsin 41, Hawaii 24
At Honolulu, Brian Calhoun ran for 149 yards, including 133 in the first half, and a touchdown to lead No. 24 Wisconsin in coach Barry Alvarez's final regular-season game with the Badgers.
Wisconsin (9-3) snapped a two-game skid and now waits to find out which bowl it will play in.
It was the 117th victory and secured the sixth nine-win season for Alvarez, who is retiring from coaching after 16 years. He will continue as Wisconsin's athletic director, a position he has held since April 2004.
Badgers quarterback John Stocco was nearly flawless, going 12-of-16 for 191 yards passing and two touchdowns. He also had a 1-yard scoring run on fourth-and-goal late in the third quarter to put the Badgers up by 17.
Wisconsin totaled 440 yards of offense -- 292 in the first half.
No. 19 Florida's (7-3) hopes of an SEC East title ended with a 30-22 loss to South Carolina on Nov. 12, but a victory over No. 23 Florida State (7-3) would give the Gators a perfect 7-0 record at home and go a long way towards ending their regular season on a positive note.
Florida State has lost two in a row, to North Carolina State and Clemson, but have already clinched the ACC Atlantic Division and will play in the league's first championship game on Dec. 3 in Jacksonville, Florida.
Both teams boast strong defenses that are ranked among the top 11 in the nation, but both teams have suffered numerous injuries this season.
Florida State may get a boost if tailback Leon Washington returns from an ankle injury that has kept him out of his team's last two game.
No. 6 Notre Dame (8-2)
at Stanford (5-5)
After going 11-13 over its last two seasons, Notre Dame would likely clinch a BCS bowl berth with a victory over a Stanford team that has lost three of its last four.
The Irish's turn around has been due in large part to the play of quarterback Brady Quinn, who has set single-season school records in completions, attempts, touchdown passes and yards. He has also set career marks in completions, attempts and touchdown passes.
Quinn's favorite receiver this season has been Jeff Samardzija, whose 13 touchdown passes are tied for fourth most in the nation. Notre Dame is a heavy favorite on the road and Quinn and Samardzija could have a big day against a Stanford pass defense that is ranked 103rd in the nation.
South Florida (6-3) at Connecticut (4-5)
South Florida needs a victory against a slumping Connecticut team to set up a matchup with West Virginia for a Big East title and BCS bowl berth.
Look for the Bulls to rely on running back Andre Hall, who leads the Big East and is sixth in the nation with an average of 120.8 rushing yards per game.
South Florida has won three in a row and beat Cincinnati by 31-16 last week. The Bulls' lone conference loss came against Pittsburgh on Oct. 15. Connecticut started the season 4-1, but has lost its last four in a row and is coming off a 24-0 loss to Pittsburgh.
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