Texas Longhorns Look to Hook Aggies, Hold Off Sooners In BCS Race

It was a nightmare.  A year after losing a heart breaker to the Aggies in Austin, 12-7, the Horns dropped a second straight game to their hated rivals in College Station last season, 38-30.

Twice in the last two years Texas has been in the Big 12 title game mix.  Twice the Aggies have rained on the Longhorns' parade.

This season, the stakes couldn't be higher for the Longhorns as they look to stay in the thick of the Big 12 and National title hunts with a win over their maroon-clad foes. More importantly, the Horns must win in style to keep OU at bay in the BCS poll.

The Sooners gained major ground on Texas with an impressive 65-21 victory over Texas Tech last weekend.  OU has already jumped Texas in both the AP and Coaches polls and with an impressive win over OSU on Saturday, the Sooners could very well seize the No. 2  BCS spot away from Texas.

Texas must not allow their BCS dreams (or anxieties) to get the best of them.  Based on their last two meetings with the Aggies, they must be focused coming in to this game.

However, this year's A&M squad has struggled and that's putting it nicely.  The Aggies have stumbled to a 4-7 record (2-5 in conference).

The Aggie defense has been abysmal, allowing 455 yards per game.  The offense hasn't been much better, as they only score about 25 points a game.

One thing the Aggies have done well over the past few years is run the football.  QB Stephen McGee and Tailbacks Michael Goodson and Javorski Lane led the charge in a very powerful running attack.

What happened? The Aggies are averaging a mediocre 98 yards per game on the ground this season.

Well for starters, Stephen McGee is no longer the guy in College Station after being injured early in the season.  Sophomore QB Jerrod Johnson has been an effective passer, but has fallen short on his potential as a runner.

The ultra-versatile Michael Goodson has rushed for a mere 401 yards and five touchdowns, no thanks to the offensive line which has been perhaps the ugliest aspect of the team apart from the defense.

Bruising back Javorski Lane now plays fullback in Mike Sherman's offense.  Lane was the cause of many of Texas' defensive woes the last two seasons, but he doesn't figure to play a role in A&M's offensive game plan this year.

Texas' season has been dramatically different.

With three wins over top 11 teams and one last second loss to then-No. 8 Texas Tech in Lubbock, the Longhorns are on the verge of appearing in their second National title game in four years.

QB Colt McCoy has been money for the Longhorns this season, throwing for 3,134 yards and 30 touchdowns to just seven interceptions.  He has completed an astounding 77 percent of his passes and if that holds up, he will shatter the single season record for completion percentage (the current record holder is former UCF QB Daunte Culpepper with 72 percent). 

The Texas offense has been a juggernaut all season long, scoring 44 points a game.  The Horns have averaged 471 yards of offense a game as well, which doesn't bode well for the beleaguered Aggie defense.

One of the major weaknesses Texas had last season was the pass defense.  The Longhorn secondary was torched week after week by Big 12 QBs. Though this year's secondary still gives up about 300 yards a game through the air, it has improved dramatically.

The defensive improvement can be attributed to the excellent effort up front by the defensive line, led by Brian Orakpo.  Orakpo has racked up 7.5 sacks and has applied fierce pressure on some big-time QBs.  Roy Miller and Lamaar Houston have been extremely effective as well.

Texas should have no problem ripping through the Aggie defense.  Right?

There is a reason rivalry games aren't played on paper.  However, the Longhorns will beat up on the Aggies.  They have to quite frankly.  With the Sooners close on their heels, the Horns must win and win impressively.

Mack Brown spoke about sportsmanship in College Football following Texas' 35-7 victory over Kansas two weeks ago.  The Longhorns had the chance to continue scoring against the leaky Jayhawk secondary, but Mack called the dogs off.

Mack, this is not the time to be classy.  Bob Stoops and his Sooners are hungry for another Big 12 title and they will get it if your Longhorns don't blow A&M out of the water.

None of this 31-21 business.  Texas must score at least 42 points to "win", and I believe they will.  The Longhorns will have a happy Thanksgiving feasting on the Aggie defense, but Christmas could come early for the Burnt Orange if the Sooners struggle in Stillwater.

Prediction: Texas 48  A&M 17

Happy Thanksgiving