After facing real scrutiny for the first time during his tenure at Texas, Mack Brown has a clear way off the hot seat:

Get to and win a BCS bowl.

It's remarkable that a coach like Brown finds himself anywhere close to the hot seat. After all, it wasn't long ago that Brown had the Longhorns playing for the national championship.

The fact that Texas missed bowl eligibility the very next year has a lot to do with it.

But nothing helps fans forget their troubles like a big time win in a big time bowl.

Now, the Longhorns face a tough road to a BCS bowl this year. Winning the Big 12 and picking up that automatic bid is pretty much out of the question.

At least, not without some help from Oklahoma and Kansas State.

In order for Texas to win the Big 12, they must beat the Wildcats and Kansas State must lose to either TCU or Baylor. In addition, Oklahoma must lose one at least one game to Baylor, Oklahoma State or TCU.

I wouldn't put money on that.

So, what about getting an at-large bid?

First off, Texas must win out, and that includes a big game against Kansas State to end the season.

Second, Texas must rack up as many style points as possible. Their 33-7 win over Iowa State helps, but they also must beat TCU big on Thanksgiving.

But really, they need to hope that Oklahoma loses one of their final three games.

Kansas State will probably pick up the Big 12's automatic bid regardless of if they beat Texas or not. So Texas and Oklahoma will have to make their cases for an at-large bid.

And the Sooners have the distinct advantage of beating the Longhorns 63-21 this season.

Getting to a BCS bowl won't be easy or likely for Mack Brown and Texas. However, if the Longhorns can somehow pull it off, you won't hear the words "hot seat" associated with Mack Brown any time in the near future.