DALLAS – After the win that may have saved his job, Mack Brown had a few jabs for media who figured the Red River Rivalry would be his football funeral. "Anybody can beat anybody, " the Texas coach said. ".. 's why you have to be careful what y'all say. " And then: "We've won five out the last nine [against Oklahoma] now for those of who are counting. " And then: "I don't think I was emotional [after the game]. You all wanted me to be more emotional than I was in the past. I had 97 cameras in my face and I couldn't see the band. " The feistiness bled through the entire Texas team Saturday, as the Longhorns played with an edge that some would say has been missing for years in their 36-20 upset win over No. 12 Oklahoma. The offensive line blew the Sooners off the ball from the very first drive of the game, and while most of the country reeled at the 'Horns having a 13-point halftime lead, the talk on the way back out to the field for the third quarter was anything but complacent. Mack Brown and the Longhorns had a win over Oklahoma to celebrate for the first time in four years.
Most important, blocking schemes worked. "We needed to come out with an edge, " Byndom said. "With high intensity. With presence. " The head coach had a presence all day Saturday, from before kickoff until after his cheeky news conference comments. He may have a presence for longer than people expected. For the short term, though, Sunday morning will feature anticipation rather than dread. Even the biggest Brown bashers have to admit they're curious what next week will bring. "What I'm excited about, " said quarterback Case McCoy, "is what happens after this game. " Now who would have thought a Texas quarterback would end this rivalry Saturday by saying that?
(AP) "Foot on the throat, man! " offensive guard Mason Walters said in the tunnel. "Foot on the throat! " For at least one afternoon, Mack Brown had his foot back on the throat of Bob Stoops. After losing 146-58 over the last three years of this annual duel, the Longhorns were dancing on the field by the end of the third quarter, and Texas fans actually moved to the empty seats in the Oklahoma half of the stadium to spread out and get some shade. "Look at this [expletive]! " yelled defensive tackle Desmond Jackson at the yawning sections at one end of the Cotton Bowl as the clocked ticked down in the fourth quarter. "Take your [expletive] home! " That raw emotion was the exact opposite of the feeling in the locker room following last year's blowout loss here. It was then that the Longhorns seethed and vowed to change this rivalry. "A bunch of people were mad, " said defensive tackle Chris Whaley, who had the play of the game with a pick-six off Oklahoma quarterback Blake Bell that put Texas ahead to stay.