Texas
That national championship? Two seasons ago. Ditto the Big 12 title.
As good as the Texas Longhorns were for most of 2006, they crumbled at the end to finish 10-3 with no title and a return of the empty feeling that comes when a good team fails to be great.
Ah, but that’s what always makes the start of a new season so enticing at Texas. So much talent, so much hype and such high expectations of championships.
SCHOOL COLORS: Burnt orange and white
FOUNDED: 1883
ENROLLMENT: 49,738
LOCATED: Austin
COACH: Mack Brown, 10th season at Texas (93-22), 24th overall (179-96-1)
2006 RECORD: 10-3 (6-2, 2nd Big 12 South)
LAST BOWL: 2006 Alamo Bowl, beat Iowa 26-24
STADIUM: Darrell K. Royal/Memorial Stadium (79,866)
RETURNING STARTERS: 13 (7 offense, 6 defense)
KEY PLAYERS: QB Colt McCoy, RB Jamaal Charles, WR Limas Sweed, DT Derek Lokey
KEY RECRUITS: QB John Chiles, OL Tray Allen, DB Curtis Brown
KEY DEPARTURES: S Aaron Ross, S Michael Griffin, DE Tim Crowder
COACHSPEAK: “Right now, we feel like Colt has complete control of this football team.” – Brown on sophomore QB Colt McCoy, who tied an NCAA freshman record with 29 TD passes last season.
2007 SCHEDULE
Sept. 1 – Arkansas State
Sept. 8 – TCU
Sept. 15 – at Central Florida
Sept. 22 – Rice
Sept. 29 – Kansas State
Oct. 6 – vs. Oklahoma, at Dallas
Oct. 13 – at Iowa State
Oct. 20 – at Baylor
Oct. 27 – Nebraska
Nov. 3 – at Oklahoma State
Nov. 10 – Texas Tech
Nov. 23 – at Texas A&M
Oklahoma
For a team that lost one of the most prolific running backs in school history, Oklahoma sure doesn’t seem concerned.
While it would be a luxury to have Adrian Peterson back for his senior season, the Sooners don’t expect to miss a beat with a quintet of tailbacks being groomed to take his spot.
SCHOOL COLORS: Crimson and cream
FOUNDED: 1890
ENROLLMENT: 29,721
LOCATED: Norman, Okla.
COACH: Bob Stoops, ninth season at Oklahoma and overall (86-19)
2006 RECORD: 11-3 (7-1, Big 12 champion)
LAST BOWL: 2007 Fiesta Bowl, lost to Boise State 43-42 in OT
STADIUM: Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium
RETURNING STARTERS: 15 (8 offense, 7 defense)
KEY PLAYERS: WR Malcolm Kelly, CB Reggie Smith, RB Allen Patrick, DB Nic Harris
KEY RECRUITS: LB Mike Reed, OT Phil Loadholt, QB Keith Nichol, LB Austin Box
KEY DEPARTURES: RB Adrian Peterson, LB Rufus Alexander, DE C.J. Ah You, QB Paul Thompson
COACHSPEAK: “We’ve had four different quarterbacks win four different Big 12 championships. So this isn’t anything new to us.” – Stoops, on the Sooners’ need to break in a new quarterback.
2007 SCHEDULE
Sept. 1 – North Texas
Sept. 8 – Miami (Fla.)
Sept. 15 – Utah State
Sept. 21 – at Tulsa
Sept. 29 – at Colorado
Oct. 6 – vs. Texas, at Dallas
Oct. 13 – Missouri
Oct. 20 – at Iowa State
Nov. 3 – Texas A&M
Nov. 10 – Baylor
Nov. 17 – at Texas Tech
Nov. 24 – Oklahoma State
Texas A&M
As the final seconds ticked away, the Texas A&M Aggies swarmed their embattled coach and raced to the corner of Texas’ Memorial Stadium, where ecstatic fans saluted them with “Horns Down” hand signals.
A season of wild road victories and bitter home defeats had culminated in a gritty 12-7 win over Texas, A&M’s first victory in Austin in a dozen years.
Now, it’s time to move forward. Time to prove that the landmark win over their biggest rival wasn’t a fluke, but a declaration that A&M is a Big 12 power again.
SCHOOL COLORS: Maroon and White
FOUNDED: 1871
ENROLLMENT: 46,587
LOCATED: College Station, Texas
COACH: Dennis Franchione, fifth season at Texas A&M (25-23), 25th overall (180-97-2)
2006 RECORD: 9-4 (5-3 third in Big 12 South)
LAST BOWL: 2006 Holiday Bowl, lost to California 45-10
STADIUM: Kyle Field (82,600)
RETURNING STARTERS: 16 (9 offense, 7 defense)
KEY PLAYERS: QB Stephen McGee, RB Jorvorskie Lane, RB Michael Goodson, DT Red Bryant, LB Misi Tupe
KEY RECRUITS: LB Billy Chavis, RB Bradley Stephens, DL Von Miller
KEY DEPARTURES: S Melvin Bullitt, WR Chad Schroeder, LB Justin Warren, PK Layne Neumann
COACHSPEAK: “I like this group for a lot of reasons. They were 5-0 on the road last year, and certainly that’s something to build on.” – Franchione on expectations for this season.
2007 SCHEDULE
Sept. 1 – Montana State
Sept. 8 – Fresno State
Sept. 15 – Louisiana-Monroe
Sept. 20 – at Miami (Fla.)
Sept. 29 – Baylor
Oct. 6 – Oklahoma State
Oct. 13 – at Texas Tech
Oct. 20 – at Nebraska
Oct. 27 – Kansas
Nov. 3 – at Oklahoma
Nov. 10 – at Missouri
Nov. 23 – Texas
Texas Tech
Texas Tech returns its quarterback for the first time in five years. But with so many others gone, building on the biggest comeback in bowl history will be more difficult for Graham Harrell and the Red Raiders.
Things could be different this year with coach Mike Leach’s pass-happy scheme, which will have to break in four offensive linemen and find three new leading receivers.
One thing won’t change, though: Leach’s belief in a system that brought the Red Raiders back from 31 points behind for a 44-41 overtime victory against Minnesota in the Insight Bowl, the biggest rally in Division I-A bowl history.
SCHOOL COLORS: Black and red
FOUNDED: 1923
ENROLLMENT: 29,000
LOCATED: Lubbock, Texas
COACH: Mike Leach, eighth season at Tech and overall (56-33)
2006 RECORD: 8-5 (4-4, 4th Big 12 South)
LAST BOWL: 2006 Insight Bowl, beat Minnesota 44-41 in OT (biggest comeback in D-I bowl history)
STADIUM: Jones AT&T Stadium (52,882)
RETURNING STARTERS: 9 (4 offense, 5 defense)
KEY PLAYERS: QB Graham Harrell, WR Danny Amendola, RB Shannon Woods, OL Louis Vasquez
KEY RECRUITS: QB Stefan Loucks, OL Lonnie Edwards, OL Mickey Okafor, WR Tremain Swindall
KEY DEPARTURES: WR Joel Filani, WR Jarrett Hicks, LB Fletcher Session, P Alex Reyes
COACHSPEAK: “The most important thing is to be the best team, not to have the best group of individuals. I think that’s key.” – Leach
2007 SCHEDULE
Sept. 3 – at SMU
Sept. 8 – UTEP
Sept. 15 – at Rice
Sept. 22 – at Oklahoma State
Sept. 29 – Northwestern State
Oct. 6 – Iowa State
Oct. 13 – Texas A&M
Oct. 20 – at Missouri
Oct. 27 – Colorado
Nov. 3 – at Baylor
Nov. 10 – at Texas
Nov. 17 – Oklahoma
Oklahoma State
In Mike Gundy’s second season as head coach, Oklahoma State improved enough to earn its fourth bowl berth in the past five years and finish with a 7-6 record. But the Cowboys could easily have made it an even more remarkable turnaround, if not for five losses by a combined 26 points.
“It’s pretty easy to think that, but you still have to finish and win them,” Gundy said. “There’s not much you can do to go back and change them.”
The Cowboys either led or had possession of the ball with a chance to go ahead in the final period of all five of those losses. Twice, they were unable to hold onto fourth-quarter leads.
SCHOOL COLORS: Orange and black
FOUNDED: 1890
ENROLLMENT: 31,800
LOCATED: Stillwater, Okla.
COACH: Mike Gundy, third season at Oklahoma State and overall (11-13)
2006 RECORD: 7-6 (3-5, T-5th Big 12 South)
LAST BOWL: 2006 Independence Bowl, beat Alabama 34-31
STADIUM: Boone Pickens Stadium (48,000)
RETURNING STARTERS: 15 (8 offense, 7 defense)
KEY PLAYERS: WR Adarius Bowman, QB Bobby Reid, RB Dantrell Savage, DE Nathan Peterson
KEY RECRUITS: DE Richetti Jones, WR Dez Bryant, DB William Cole, RB Kendall Hunter
KEY DEPARTURES: DL Ryan McBean, WR D’Juan Woods, OL Corey Hilliard, DL Victor DeGrate
COACHSPEAK: “If you mature as a football team, I think you can play well on the road. Is it easier to play at home? Sure it is. But (our) schedule’s not changing and our players know that, and we’re going to line up and go play.” – Gundy, on the Cowboys’ difficult road schedule.
2007 SCHEDULE
Sept. 1 – at Georgia
Sept. 8 – Florida Atlantic
Sept. 14 – at Troy
Sept. 22 – Texas Tech
Sept. 29 – Sam Houston State
Oct. 6 – at Texas A&M
Oct. 13 – at Nebraska
Oct. 20 – Kansas State
Nov. 3 – Texas
Nov. 10 – Kansas
Nov. 17 – at Baylor
Nov. 24 – at Oklahoma
Baylor
Baylor already had three Big 12 victories in the same season for the first time – and it was still October. The Bears were finally starting to grasp their new pass-happy offense.
One torn-up knee stopped all that progress and led to an all-too-familiar finish for the Bears. They weren’t prepared for the loss of quarterback Shawn Bell when he tore an anterior cruciate ligament.
SCHOOL COLORS: Green and gold
FOUNDED: 1845
ENROLLMENT: 14,040
LOCATED: Waco, Texas
COACH: Guy Morriss, fifth season at Baylor (15-31), seventh overall (24-45)
2006 RECORD: 4-8 (3-5, 6th Big 12 South)
LAST BOWL: 1994 Alamo Bowl, lost to Washington State 10-3
STADIUM: Floyd Casey Stadium (50,000)
RETURNING STARTERS: 11 (4 offense, 7 defense)
KEY PLAYERS: WR David Gettis, LB Nick Moore, LB Joe Pawelek, OT Jason Smith, RB Brandon Whitaker, WR Thomas White
KEY RECRUITS: OG James Barnard, DE Leon Freeman, DB V.J. McElroy, LB Matt Singletary, QB John David Weed
KEY DEPARTURES: CB Anthony Arline, QB Shawn Bell, P Daniel Sepulveda, WR Trent Shelton, CB C.J. Wilson, WR Dominique Zeigler
COACHSPEAK: “I sense a little bit different football team this year than we’ve had in the past. It seems to me that for the first time we have everybody in the program rolling in the same direction.” – Morriss.
2007 SCHEDULE
Sept. 1 – at TCU
Sept. 8 – Rice
Sept. 15 – Texas State
Sept. 22 – at Buffalo
Sept. 29 – at Texas A&M
Oct. 6 – Colorado
Oct. 13 – at Kansas
Oct. 20 – Texas
Oct. 27 – at Kansas State
Nov. 3 – Texas Tech
Nov. 10 – at Oklahoma
Nov. 17 – Oklahoma State