6 Reasons Why The Texas Longhorns Will Play in a BCS Game This Season

The Longhorns are off to a promising 4-0 start heading into the bulk of their schedule, with the Red River Shootout coming up this weekend.

Although none of their victories have been over very strong opponents, Texas still looks to be a good team starting to peak at the right time in the season, with convincing road victories over UCLA and Iowa State the last two weeks.

It may not have seemed possible at the beginning of the season, but the Longhorns have a good chance of playing in a BCS bowl game this season.

Here are six reasons why.

The Defense Will Keep Them Competitive

Defense wins championships.

And it’s what the Longhorns will continue to rely on to keep them in games where the offense is having trouble putting points on the board.

The last five BCS national champions have been ranked in the top 10 in total defense and in a variety of other defensive statistical categories.

With a unit that’s still improving and currently ranks sixth in pass defense and 13th in total overall defense—and that has allowed only one touchdown in the fourth quarter and forced three turnovers in the first quarter of the last two games—the Longhorns will be able to compete with every team they play this season. 

The Running Game Is Very Good

Texas has gone back to its smash-mouth approach to football.

And it’s working. 

Rather than employing the usual high-flying offense that existed when Colt McCoy and Vince Young were at Texas, the Longhorns are fully utilizing their power running game.

Malcolm Brown was touted as one of best high school recruits in the country and Texas coaches, players and fans were all looking forward to him doing big things on the football field.

He’s lived up to the hype and has been averaging almost 82 yards on the ground every game.

And its only been four games into the season.

Along with DJ Monroe, Fozzy Whitticker and Cody Johnson, the Texas running game is averaging almost 200 yards a game, and it will be a force to be reckoned with for every opponent that Texas faces the rest of the season. 

Mack Brown Is a Good Coach

After winning a BCS National Championship in 2005 with Vince Young under center for the Longhorns, people questioned whether Mack Brown could still get to the big games and win them without Young.

Brown shut down those critics by winning a Fiesta Bowl game against Ohio State in 2009 and playing in the BCS national championship in 2010.

His success continues today, and it will be another reason why the Longhorns continue to win games this season.

For one, Brown has made great coaching hires.

After a horrible campaign in 2010, Bryan Harsin was hired to be the new offensive coordinator.

Known for his trick plays at Boise State, and most famous for his statute of liberty call that won the game against Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl, Harsin has used a combination of creative calls to put some swagger back into a Texas offense that is averaging about 34 points a game.

On top of this great hire, Brown is also making the right calls on the field. 

Just look at his decisions so far to pull Garrett Gilbert and play the combination of McCoy and Ash at quarterback. He gave McCoy most of the snaps against UCLA and evenly distributed the snaps among Ash and McCoy against Iowa State.

It’s worked out pretty well so far, right?

Parity in College Football

Perfection is the exception rather than the norm the last few years in college football.

In the last five years, Arkansas, Iowa, Ohio State, Georgia and Notre Dame have all played in a BCS bowl game.

What do these teams have in common?

They all lost more than one game during the season.

If this statistical trend continues this season, you can lose two games and still have a fighting chance to play in a BCS game. The better teams—particularly the ones in the SEC—typically beat each other up.

This means that the Longhorns, even with two losses, still have a good chance to play in a BCS bowl game.

The Big 12 Isn't Really That Good

Yes, I realize the conference currently has three teams ranked in the top 15 in the polls.

However, the rankings are arbitrary at this point in the season, and Texas still has a chance against the top teams in the conference.

The key is going to lie in being able to beat at least two out of the four top teams remaining on the schedule.

Even if you were to pencil in a loss to Oklahoma in Dallas next week, as most people in the media would (although I think the Longhorns have a fighting chance), the toughest games the Longhorns have remaining are against Oklahoma State at home, A&M in College Station, and then Baylor in Waco.

Somehow, no matter how much they are down, the Longhorns always find a way to beat the Cowboys (Texas has beaten them 10 out of the last 11 years, with last year being their only loss).

Baylor was looking like it is going to be a force to reckon with, but Kansas State exposed them last week. Because it is the last game of the season, I think Texas will be improved enough to win that game.

And A&M is, well, still A&M after blowing two big leads in their last couple of games.

I like the Longhorns' chances of winning two—if not three—of the four toughest games remaining on the schedule.

Because We Are Texas

It’s as simple as that.

The name and logo of the Longhorns will get them so much attention alone if they are in contention to play for a BCS bowl game toward the end of the season.

There is a reason that Texas’ football program generates more revenue than any other sports program in the country. People know and recognize the Longhorns and like to watch them play football—even if they are not rooting for them.

At the end of the day, if Texas has one or two losses and is competing with other teams to get an at-large birth into a BCS game, Texas would probably get the nod ahead of most of those schools.

Do you think people would rather see Boise State or Texas play in a big bowl game?