ESPN College Football

Our NFL draftniks, Todd McShay and Mel Kiper, have released their final mock drafts before tonight's draft, so feel free to follow along as Big 12 talents get their names called.

McShay went all the way through seven rounds with his mock. Here's Kiper's mock draft , too

Here's where they slotted the first-rounders.

Robert Griffin III, QB, Baylor

• Kiper: No. 2, Washington Redskins
• McShay: No. 2, Washington Redskins

"They gave up a lot, but in the end the Redskins will get their man," Kiper writes. "I'm excited to see what RG3 can accomplish in D.C., and the work the Redskins did to add pieces to the wide receiving corps (regardless of the prices paid) will certainly make the transition easier. Great kid, big-time promise. Should be fun to watch."

Justin Blackmon, WR, Oklahoma State

• Kiper: No. 6, St. Louis Rams
• McShay: No. 7, Jacksonville Jaguars

"I had St. Louis as a team likely to move down, given that we know the front office has been openly interested in the idea. But if they're still here, I think Blackmon is the pick," Kiper writes. "He'll pay immediate dividends for the offense, and Sam Bradford will finally have a target most of us evaluators can see as a potential true No. 1."

Ryan Tannehill, QB, Texas A&M

• Kiper: No. 8, Miami Dolphins
• McShay: No. 8, Miami Dolphins

"No surprises here. I've said before I think Tannehill has been a little overhyped by the draft process, but I agree with colleague Todd McShay that the upside is undeniable," Kiper writes. "This really is the best setting for Tannehill, too. We know Miami lacks a long-range plan at quarterback, and while Tannehill isn't an immediate starter, you take him for the promise. Joe Philbin gets another young project to take on. He's succeeded with young QBs before."

Brandon Weeden, QB, Oklahoma State

• Kiper: No. 22, Cleveland Browns
• McShay: No. 37, Cleveland Browns

"For weeks we've seen Weeden as a great fit for the Browns at No. 37 overall. The problem is Weeden is the last QB in the draft after RG3 that most front office folks believe can start games early if called on," Kiper writes. "The Browns really want to find competition for Colt McCoy. If they don't get Weeden here, they risk losing him. They know they can still get a good player early in Round 2. I think you secure the QB here."

Kendall Wright, WR, Baylor

• McShay: No. 26, Houston Texans

Here's a couple snippets you missed over the weekend.

Texas, Oklahoma want Cotton Bowl upgrades for Red River

The Red River Rivalry's annual home in the Cotton Bowl needs major upgrades if the game is going to stay there, according to a report in the Dallas Morning News.

A deal to keep the game at the State Fair of Texas through 2020 could be hammered out soon, but improvements must be made if it's going to be signed.

To make those, City Hall would need to take on $25.5 million more debt that would renovate the stadium façade of the Cotton Bowl, modernize the press box, add club seating and more.

From my perspective, all three of those are badly needed. The newly enclosed bowl looks great and provides room for nearly six-figure crowds, but the outside looks metallic and unappealing.

Those changes may or may not happen, but even if Dallas stands its ground, it has the leverage here. If Texas or Oklahoma tried to move the game out of the fair, it'd have a big issue on its hands, and neither administration wants to move the game to campus sites or Cowboys Stadium.

The upgrades are needed, but don't be surprised if all the upgrades don't happen.

Good news for former Longhorn Gilbert

Former Texas quarterback Garrett Gilbert's career in Austin came to an end with boos in a first-half benching against BYU last season. After shoulder surgery, however, he'll be ready to go for 2012 at his new home in Dallas.

Gilbert announced plans this winter to transfer to SMU, and was given an injury waiver by the NCAA, meaning he didn't lose a year of eligibility in 2011, when he played less than two games before being benched and undergoing surgery.

He'll compete for a starting job next fall after finishing his undergraduate degree in May, and have two remaining years of eligibility when he gets to campus in Dallas.

"It's great for Garrett that he did a tremendous job for us, and sorry it didn't work out where he wanted to stay, but we wish him good luck and really glad that he's a Texas grad or will be a Texas grad this summer and wish him well at SMU," coach Mack Brown said.

Great news for a good guy whose career just hasn't gone like most predicted. He showed so much promise in the 2010 national title game in relief of Colt McCoy, but in the following season, was one of several reasons for the Longhorns' fall to 5-7. For whatever reason, it didn't work out in Austin, but it's nice to see he'll get a fresh start as a Mustang.

Texas offensive lineman Sedrick Flowers was also granted an injury waiver.

Oh, Paul McCartney. Yup.

• Sam Mellinger of the Kansas City Star introduces you to a new central figure in the Sunflower Showdown rivalry: a kindergarten girl.
• Jenni Carlson of The Oklahoman pitches an idea I'm all about: A Big 12-Big East football challenge. Yes. Yes. And yes. And what's the deal with the Big 12 schedule? The Oklahoman's Travis Haney catches you up on the delay.
• Chuck Carlton of The Dallas Morning News offers his thoughts on the schedule delay, too.
• Kirk Bohls of the Austin American-Statesman still wants to see Texas A&M AD Bill Byrne become the new Big 12 commissioner.
• Oklahoma State receiver Michael Harrison looked the part of a future star, but his status with the team is in doubt.
• Don Williams of the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal tracks the weight on Seth Doege's shoulders this year with dwindling numbers for Texas Tech at QB. At least those shoulders aren't hurt. Texas Tech suffered 24 long-term injuries last year.
• Gina Mizell of The Oklahoman tells the story of one of the newest Cowboys, and the community that teamed up to make his dream a reality. She also shares a little more that didn't crack the story.
• What will Texas' new class begin to look like? Here's a glimpse of guys who could be early commitments.
• Sure, former Longhorn Colt McCoy is OK. But Cleveland can do better. The Browns should grab Baylor's RG3.
• Could West Virginia's coaching staff add a former Oklahoma State head coach?
• Kansas looks like it has added an extra running back to its 2012 recruiting class.
• Condolences to Sooner legend Tommie Harris, whose wife died in Chicago this weekend at 29.
• Jarret Johnson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram introduces you to two local players being chased by Texas and Texas Tech.

We'll start taking a look at what each program in the Big 12 needs to deal with during the offseason, whether it be in the spring, summer or fall preseason camp. Maybe all three! Who knows?

Next up: The Texas Longhorns.

Invest in David Ash. Texas will bring on another true freshman this spring, Connor Brewer. The Longhorns have already been down that road. Ash is the most physically gifted of the Longhorns' quarterbacks, and that gives him the most upside. He's been in the program just one calendar year, and he got hardly any practice reps last spring and in the preseason while Texas was trying to prepare Garrett Gilbert to bounce back. If you ask me, forget competition with Case McCoy. Get Ash tons of reps and get him ready to take over in 2012. They'll be better off for it.

Find new defensive leadership. Leadership was one of the Longhorns' downfalls in 2010 after Colt McCoy left. Without Keenan Robinson, Emmanuel Acho and Blake Gideon, the Longhorns have a huge hole once again. Who's going to take over? Senior Kenny Vaccaro's probably the most talented player returning for the Horns, closely followed by junior-to-be Jackson Jeffcoat. What about Alex Okafor, the senior up front? Somebody's got to take hold of this team.

Figure out how the running backs will be used. Texas' backfield next year's going to be real crowded. Malcolm Brown and Joe Bergeron return, and Johnathan Gray, the nation's No. 1 running back and No. 2 prospect overall, will join them. All three could probably start for most teams in the Big 12, if not the country. The Longhorns need to utilize that strength, along with a maturing offensive line. Will offensive coordinator Bryan Harsin debut some new formations to get them on the field? Maybe a Wishbone redux? Copycatting Oklahoma and Oklahoma State's "Backs" or "Diamond" formation? Who takes over for Fozzy Whittaker in the Wildcat formation? Who gets the lion's share of the carries for these Horns? All are questions that have to be answered over the next seven months.

More offseason to-do lists.

The season's over, so it's time to take stock of what the Big 12 has to get done between now and next season.

Here's the list from last year. All things considered, I'd say the Big 12 did pretty well on most fronts.

Figure out who's in and who's out: That's the big question hanging over the Big 12 for now. West Virginia and the Big 12 have every intention of joining forces in 2012, but until the Big East lawsuits are settled, they can't make it official. Otherwise, we may be waiting a while to see the Mountaineers wearing the Big 12 crest on their uniforms and playing on fields and courts with the logo. Truth be told, the Big 12 won't miss Missouri or Texas A&M nearly as bad as it will national power Nebraska. But TCU and West Virginia are both in good position to play well and make it easier to forget the SEC-bound Tigers and Aggies.

Then figure out who is playing where and when: And then there's that whole thing about the schedule. The Big 12's contingency plan is an eight-game conference schedule without the Mountaineers, but an eight-game schedule poses all sorts of other problems. Teams would be scrambling for nonconference games, likely overpaying for awful matchups that were frantically strung together. Would the league receive less money from its secondary rights TV contract? One would have to think so, considering it's dependent upon a 10-team league.

Whip West Virginia and TCU into shape: West Virginia has to acknowledge the step up in competition. Simply put, the move from the Big East is like moving from 3A high school football to 6A. The best teams can compete, but can they do it week to week? TCU will deal with a more intense move, but depth could be an issue for the Horned Frogs, who have fielded solid recruiting classes, but not quite the depth of talent as other Big 12 teams in Texas. If injuries and fatigue strike next season, TCU will have to learn how to handle it.

Fix up Oklahoma, too: The Sooners are the Big 12's best shot at dethroning the SEC and bringing a national title back to the Big 12 for the first time since Vince Young went all Vince Young on the 2005 season. The Sooners, though, have all kinds of issues. Are they deep enough at running back? Are the receivers good enough without Ryan Broyles as a safety blanket for Landry Jones? Can the senior-to-be string together 13 solid games? Can the defense quit giving up the big play with Mike Stoops in charge? That's a lot of check marks. OU has to take care of them to win a title.

Find Texas a quarterback: The Longhorns are the most visible program in the Big 12, but have floundered the past two post-Colt McCoy seasons. It's not the only problem, but getting a big upgrade at the most visible position would make the whole machine run a lot more smoothly. The defense figures to be solid, but since Texas won't be bringing any junior college quarterbacks aboard, the scenario boils down to essentially this: Can David Ash grow up enough in the next seven months to lead the Horns to big things, or can Connor Brewer walk in and prove he's a wunderkind?

The Pac-10 and Big 12 nearly got married last year, but only Colorado ended up eloping with the now-Pac-12.

You know: The conference that can count!

But the Pac-12, which has, yes, 12 teams, and the Big 12, which has 10 teams (though it's often hard to keep up with which ones), play each other in three bowl games this holiday season.

Joy to the world.

So it seemed like a good time for the Pac-12 and Big 12 bloggers -- Ted Miller and David Ubben -- to say howdy and discuss all the coming fun.

Ted Miller: Ah, David, the bowl season. Pure bliss. Unless you’re the Pac-12, which is expected to get a whipping from your conference over the holidays. We have three Pac-12-Big 12 bowl games with the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl between Stanford and Oklahoma State, the Valero Alamo with Baylor and Washington, and the Bridgepoint Education Holiday matching California and Texas. And the Big 12 is favored in all three!

Poor ole West Coast teams. What are we to do? It’s almost like the Big 12 is the SEC or something. Speaking of which, how are things with your Cowboys? Are they over not getting a shot at LSU for the national title? Are they excited about getting a shot at Andrew Luck and Stanford? We might as well start with that outstanding matchup in Glendale.

David Ubben: You know, I was actually a little surprised. I stuck around Stillwater for the BCS bowl selection show announcement, and the players took the news pretty well. They found out an hour before, but there wasn't a ton of down-in-the-dumpiness from the Pokes. When you've never been to this point before, it's a bit difficult to develop a sense of entitlement. If Oklahoma had OSU's record and was passed over by Alabama and sent to the Fiesta Bowl for the 17th time in the past six years, you might have had a different reaction.

But Oklahoma State's first trip to the BCS and first Big 12 title aren't being overlooked. These players are looking forward to this game. There's no doubt about that.

I know the Big 12 seems like the SEC, but I have a confession, Ted. I wasn't supposed to tell anybody, but I can't hold it in anymore. When the Big 12 began back in 1996 ... wow, I'm really going to do this ... then-SEC commissioner Roy Kramer graciously allowed the league to keep two of his teams. The league made a similar arrangement with the Big Eight a century ago, and the Southwest Conference around the same time. Missouri and Texas A&M are really wolves in sheep's clothing: SEC teams just pretending to be in other leagues. So, that might explain the Big 12's recent dominance.

These should all be fun games, though. I ranked two of the matchups among the top three in my bowl rankings.

As for the big one, they say you learn more by losing than by winning. Stanford got its first BCS win. How do you think that experience plays into this year's game? I hate to ruin the surprise, but Oklahoma State's a bit better than the Virginia Tech team Stanford beat last season. OSU's loss to Iowa State this season is bad, but it's nothing like the Hokies' loss to James Madison last season.

Ted Miller: Not only is Oklahoma State better than Virginia Tech, it's still questionable whether this Stanford team is better than last year's. Since we're going all crazy and whispering about the SEC, there was a feeling out West that by the end of the 2010 season the Cardinal might not only be the best team in the Pac-12 but also in the nation. They were big and physical and quarterback Luck actually had a solid receiving corps with which to work. After a loss to Oregon in the fifth game, they didn't lose again until playing, er, Oregon in this year's 10th game. If we could go back in time and have the Cardinal play Auburn, I think Stanford would have won the national title.

But that's 2010. The difference this year is the season-ending knee injury to middle linebacker Shayne Skov, who was an All-American candidate, a slight step back on the offensive line and a lack of top-flight receivers. But if Oklahoma State fans are looking for something to worry about it is this: Stanford's running game.

The Pokes are bad against the run, and they haven't faced a team that is as physical and creative in the running game as Stanford. As much as folks talk about Luck's passing, it's his run checks that often ruin a defense's evening.

The Fiesta Bowl matchup looks like a great one, perhaps the best of the bowl season. But I’m excited to see Mr. Excitement Robert Griffin III in the Alamo Bowl against Washington. Of course, I’m not sure that the Huskies, their fans and embattled Huskies defensive coordinator Nick Holt are as thrilled. First, tell us about what Washington should be most worried about with Griffin. Then tell us about Baylor in general. Such as: Can the Bears stop anyone?

David Ubben: Nope. Not really.

Oklahoma State's defense unfairly gets a bad rap. Baylor's bad rap is earned. This is the same team that won five consecutive games late in the season -- but became the first team ever to win four consecutive in a single season while giving up 30 points in each.

Which, if you ask me, says plenty about both the defense and the power of RG3. They've got a lot of athletes on the defense, but when four of your top five tacklers are defensive backs, well, you need a guy like RG3 to go 9-3.

The man is a nightmare. Top to bottom, he's the most accurate passer in a quarterback-driven league. Then, you add in his athleticism, which he doesn't even really need to be extremely productive. It sets him apart, though, and forces defenses to account for it, and it buys him time in the pocket. How many guys break a 20-plus yard run before hitting a receiver for a game-winning 39-yard score to beat a team like Oklahoma for the first time?

How do you think Washington will try to slow him down? What has to happen for them to have some success?

Ted Miller: This game matches the 99th (Washington) and 109th (Baylor) scoring defenses. It has a 78-point over-under, the biggest of any bowl game. The offenses are going to score plenty, at least that's the conventional wisdom.

How does Washington stop RGIII? His name is Chris Polk. He's a running back. Baylor gives up 199 yards rushing per game. Polk right, left and up the middle is a good way to contain Griffin. The Huskies' best hope is to reduce Griffin's touches with ball control. It also needs to convert touchdowns, not field goals, in the redzone. The Huskies are pretty good at that, scoring 36 TDs in 45 visits to the red zone.

The Huskies also have a pretty good quarterback in Keith Price, who set a school record with 29 touchdown passes this year. He and a solid crew of receivers have prevented teams from ganging up against Polk. But Polk is the guy who burns the clock.

Should be a fun game. As should, by the way, the Holiday Bowl. David, Cal fans are still mad at Texas coach Mack Brown and his politicking the Longhorns into the Rose Bowl in 2004. Every team wants to win its bowl game, but the Old Blues really want to beat Brown.

Of course, neither team is what it was in 2004. Cal has an excuse. It's not a college football superpower. Sure you've been asked this before, but give me the CliffsNotes version of why the Longhorns have fallen so hard since playing for the national title in 2009.

David Ubben: Cal fans are still mad? Really? I'd suggest they get over themselves. What's anybody on that Cal team ever done anyway? It's not like the best player in the NFL missed out on a chance to play in the Rose Bowl. Now, if that were the case, we might have a problem. But honestly, I don't think Tim Tebow cares all that much about the Rose Bowl.

As for Texas' struggles?

The easy answer is quarterback play. Texas relied on Colt McCoy and Jordan Shipley more than anyone realized. When they were gone, Texas couldn't run the ball, and quarterback Garrett Gilbert never made it happen. Two seasons later, the Longhorns still don't have a quarterback.

The other big answer last season was turnover margin. Gilbert threw 17 interceptions and the Longhorns were minus-12 in turnovers, which ranked 115th nationally.

They were still only 90th this year, and without solid quarterback play in a Big 12 dominated by passers, they scored five, 13 and 17 points in three of their five losses. Texas keeps people from moving the ball and runs the ball better this year, but without a solid passing game and a defense that changes games, it's tough to rack up wins in the Big 12.

It's been awhile since Cal was in the mix for the BCS, even as USC has fallen. Oregon answered the call and rose, but what has prevented Cal from winning the Pac-10 and Super Pac-10 since the Trojans' swoon?

Ted Miller: You mention quarterback play. Cal fans ... any thoughts? You mention Aaron Rodgers. Cal fans? Oh, well, that's not very nice during this festive time of the year.

Cal has become a solid defensive team, but it's lost its offensive mojo, and that can be traced to a drop in quarterback play since Rodgers departed. The latest Bears quarterback, Zach Maynard, started fairly well, stumbled, but then seemed to catch on late in the season. It's reasonable to believe the team that gets better quarterback play -- mistake-free quarterback play -- is going to win this game.

Nice to cover a conference where quarterback play matters, eh David?

Speaking of quarterback play and winning, let's wind it up. Our specific predictions aren't coming on these games until after Christmas. But we can handicap the Big 12-Pac-12 side of things. We have a three-game series this bowl seasons.

I say the Pac-12, underdogs in all three games, goes 1-2. What say you?

David Ubben: And to think, before the season, all I heard was the Pac-12 had surpassed the Big 12 in quarterback play. Did somebody petition the NCAA for another year of eligibility for Jake Locker and/or clone Matt Barkley? You West Coast folk are geniuses; I figured you'd find a way. We can't all be Stanford alums ...

Clearing out all the tumbleweeds here in middle America, I'll go out on a limb for the Big 12 in this one. Every matchup is a good one, and I don't think Cal has seen a defense like Texas' and Washington hasn't seen an offense like Baylor's. People forget that, yeah, RG3 is outstanding, but the Bears also have the league's leading receiver and leading rusher.

Stanford-OSU is a toss-up, but I'll go with a perfect sweep for the Big 12. The Cowboys haven't played poorly on the big stage yet, so I'll give them the benefit of the doubt in this one, and they clean up for the Big 12 against what was almost its new conference this fall.

Oh, what could have been. Ubben and Miller on the same blog? Divided ultimately by a little thing we call the Rockies.

Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin III got off to a nice start, winning the opening award of "The Home Depot College Football Awards" show.

He beat out Case Keenum and Andrew Luck to win the Davey O'Brien Award as the nation's top quarterback.

Griffin is the first O'Brien winner in Baylor's history and the first from the Big 12 since Colt McCoy in 2009. A Big 12 quarterback has won the award in seven of the past 11 seasons.

He broke the NCAA record for passing efficiency this year and threw for 3,998 yards, 36 touchdowns and six interceptions.

A well-deserved honor for the program-changing Bear.

My Heisman Trophy ballot has changed every week for the last couple of months.

I'm not surprised there are more than three players going to the trophy presentation.

Five players were invited to New York for Saturday night's Heisman Trophy presentation -- quarterbacks Andrew Luck of Stanford and Robert Griffin III of Baylor, tailbacks Montee Ball of Wisconsin and Trent Richardson of Alabama and cornerback Tyrann Mathieu of LSU.

It's a shame the Heisman Trust didn't have room for three more quarterbacks because Houston's Case Keenum, USC's Matt Barkley and Boise State's Kellen Moore were just as deserving.

With five finalists going to New York, it figures to be one of the closer votes in recent Heisman Trophy history.

The closest vote in Heisman Trophy history came just two years ago, when Alabama tailback Mark Ingram edged Stanford's Toby Gerhart by only 28 points. Ingram received 227 first-place votes, Gerhart got 222 and Texas quarterback Colt McCoy, the second runner-up, received 203.

Given the number of finalists and their geographical regions, we could have another really close finish on Saturday night.

Luck, the runner-up to Auburn's Cam Newton last season, entered the 2011 season as the Heisman Trophy favorite. His performance didn't slip much this season, as he completed 70 percent of his passes for 3,170 yards with 35 touchdowns and nine interceptions.

I still feel Luck might be the most valuable player on any team in the country. Without him, there's no way the Cardinal is ranked No. 4 in the country and playing No. 3 Oklahoma State in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. Luck has done more with less, as Stanford lacks the game-changing playmakers that other teams have.

But Luck might still be the second-best quarterback in New York. Griffin, who is widely known as RG3, completed 72.4 percent of his passes for 3,998 yards with 36 touchdowns and six interceptions. He also ran for 644 yards with nine touchdowns.

Without him, the Bears wouldn't have beaten TCU, Oklahoma and Texas. Griffin's one drawback: He had a late interception that sealed the Bears' fate in a 36-35 loss at Kansas State on Oct. 1 and threw two picks in a 59-24 loss at Oklahoma State on Oct. 29. But with everything else RG3 has done this season, it's easy to give him a mulligan for the miscues.

I still believe Richardson is the best player in the country. He looked like the best player on the field in No. 2 Alabama's 9-6 loss in overtime to No. 1 LSU on Nov. 5. He had 89 rushing yards and 80 receiving yards in a game where every yard mattered. He finished the season with 1,583 yards with 20 touchdown runs and three touchdown catches. He's also Mr. Dependable, not losing a fumble in his past 520 touches and only once in 614 career touches.

Ball has been a scoring machine for the No. 10 Badgers this season, running for 1,759 yards with 32 touchdown runs and six touchdown receptions. His 38 total touchdowns are one shy of matching former Oklahoma State running back Barry Sanders' NCAA single-season record of 39 set in 11 games in 1988. Ball's production helped lead the Badgers to a Jan. 2 date against Oregon in the Rose Bowl Game presented by VIZIO.

Mathieu fell off my ballot after he was suspended from playing in the Tigers' 45-10 victory over Auburn on Oct. 22 for smoking synthetic marijuana. But his big plays helped the Tigers overcome deficits in each of their last two victories, over Arkansas and Georgia in the SEC championship game.

Mathieu -- aka the "Honey Badger" -- is the best player on the top-ranked team. He leads the Tigers with 70 tackles and has forced six fumbles and recovered five. He also is the most dynamic punt returner I've seen since Florida State's Deion Sanders. Mathieu has scored four touchdowns -- two on fumble returns and two on punt returns.

To penalize Mathieu for one foolish mistake wouldn't have been right. After all, Newton was briefly ruled ineligible at Auburn last season and 2010 Heisman Trophy finalist LaMichael James of Oregon was suspended from playing in last season's opener.

AUSTIN, Texas -- Mack Brown is preaching patience when it comes to his quarterbacks.

And the Texas coach is trying to use the past as part of his lesson.

“We cussed Vince Young around here for two years and he looked pretty good last night,” Brown said, referring to Young’s start and win for Philadelphia on Sunday night.

“We cussed Colt McCoy, he’s too young, small school, he’s not going to be tough enough to stand up here, and he looked pretty good yesterday,” he said of Cleveland’s quarterback.

“We cussed Chris Simms,” he added. “And he was 25-7 and beat the Aggies three out of four.”

It’s true those quarterbacks may have suffered criticism at the hands of an expectant fan base. But there is a difference in what Young, McCoy and even Simms accomplished as compared to what has gone on this season with the quarterbacks.

In Young’s first year, it was more the coaches taking the brunt of the criticism for not playing Young from the start or subbing him in and out of games, as they did in a bowl game loss to Washington State.

In 2003, Young, a redshirt freshman, was 84-of-143 for 1,115 yards, seven interceptions and six touchdowns. He rushed for 998 yards and 11 touchdowns. Texas made it to the Holiday Bowl.

Simms, a highly touted prospect, didn’t play much his freshman year. As a sophomore he was 67-of-117 for 1,064 yards with seven interceptions and eight touchdowns.

McCoy, who also redshirted, was 217-of-318 for 2,570 yards with seven interceptions and 29 touchdowns in his first year. McCoy did suffer a sophomore slump in 2007 and threw 18 picks. But Texas went 10-3.

Now as for comparing David Ash to those quarterbacks, all had at least a year of seasoning before being thrown into the fire. Ash started the fifth game of his career and has played in every game of his true freshman season.

That fact cannot be underestimated. To start as a true freshman at quarterback is rare and, as is evidenced by its rarity, extremely difficult.

But comparing him to Mack Brown’s most successful quarterbacks is a stretch.

Simms, Young and McCoy had visible evidence that there was hope on the horizon. Those three were maligned only when they didn’t live up to the potential that even casual watchers of the game knew they had.

It’s hard to say that same hope is being held in the current case. And that might be more due to circumstance than Ash. Texas is coming off a losing season and has gone through a season-long quarterback controversy.

But, then there are the facts. Simms, Young and McCoy all had a better stats and records than Ash has at this point.

Again, Ash is a true freshman. But it is hard to overlook the fact that he has been under center for 53 drives over the past five games and not thrown a touchdown pass. In the past two games, Ash has not led any sort of touchdown drive.

Those stats are bound to generate criticism. That criticism is hard to deflect no matter how hard you try or how far you reach back in history.

Missouri and Texas made their living with NFL quarterbacks behind center over the last half decade. Vince Young and Colt McCoy at Texas and Chase Daniel and Blaine Gabbert at Missouri took the program to new heights and did so with thousands of pass attempts.

This season? Both programs are grounded.

"There’s a little bit of a contrast there with all the wide-open offenses and the quarterbacks and the passing yards we’ve had this year and traditionally in this league the last few years," said Missouri coach Gary Pinkel. "Both of us run the ball here pretty good."

A bit of an understatement, perhaps.

While a pair of wide-eyed, first-year starters in David Ash and James Franklin take snaps, Missouri and Texas have developed the Big 12's top two running games.

"We can throw it well, but we’d like to be at least 50-50 or 60-40 run to pass," Texas coach Mack Brown said. "And if you can run the ball and and stop the run in college football, you’ve got a chance."

Texas has averaged better than 246 yards a game on the ground this year, enjoying the fruits of consecutive 400-yard weeks on the ground for the first time since 1977.

Missouri, meanwhile, averages just fewer than 245 yards a game this year. The Big 12's next best, Kansas State, averages just 217 yards a game.

Both teams, best known for slinging it this decade, rank outside the Big 12's top half in passing offense.

"We didn’t need the passing game much the last two weeks. We threw it some and threw it downfield," Brown said. "But we do feel like over the next four weeks here, we’re going to have to be more balanced. We’ll still be physical. We’ll still run the ball, because that’s what we’re doing best right now, but we also feel like when people are stacking the box, it’ll alleviate some of the pressure in the passing game."

Both have the advantage of running quarterbacks. Ash ripped off runs of 47 and 18 yards against Texas Tech and Missouri's Franklin is 11th in the Big 12 with 599 rushing yards, second among quarterbacks behind Kansas State's Collin Klein.

Franklin also leads the team with 10 touchdowns, third in the Big 12. The Tigers' Henry Josey leads the Big 12 in rushing with 1,149 yards, fifth nationally and 234 more yards than any Big 12 back.

The Longhorns are led by freshman Malcolm Brown and his 635 yards, but even though he was sidelined in Saturday's game, fellow freshman Joe Bergeron exploded for 191 yards and three touchdowns on 29 carries.

"We’re doing a pretty consistent job of running the football, but I don’t think our offense is very consistent," Pinkel said of his 4-5 team. "We’re very hot and cold. We’re having to work through that, and we’re not working through it fast enough."

For both coaches, the aim is balance. Brown cited his Rose Bowl champion team in 2004 that was outside the top 100 in passing and second nationally in rushing. With McCoy at the helm, those numbers were reversed.

Texas has shown the ability to do both with its offense, just rarely in the same season.

"We’d like to get back to where we do both really well," Brown said.

The Longhorns finally have the physical running game they looked for last year, but outside of handing it over to offensive coordinator Bryan Harsin and offensive line coach Stacy Searels, Brown couldn't venture a guess as to why it's worked this year and didn't in 2010, when the Longhorns won just five games.

But expect this game to look markedly different than the Big 12 matchups the league has become known for.

"It will be a great test," Brown said, "a real physical game and a fun game to watch."

Texas had to watch it happen last season. This season, the Longhorns are making it happen.

In an embarassing loss to Kansas State, Texas only forced the Wildcats to throw it four times.

If your running game looks unstoppable, why throw?

Today, Texas isn't getting fancy. The Colt McCoy Era is clearly over.

Texas Tech has gotten a steady diet of Joe Bergeron and Fozzy Whittaker, and Texas is making it looks easy. The Longhorns lead 52-13 midway through the fourth quarter.

They've thrown nine passes, including one by Whittaker.

The ninth was a garbage time TD from Case McCoy to Darius White for 31 yards.

The running game has averaged 8.5 yards per carry on 46 carries with six touchdowns.

Why do anything else?

Texas has had the right answer to that question all day.

Don't.

After Saturday's 55-17 win over Texas, Oklahoma receiver Ryan Broyles decided to drop some knowledge on a secondary that struggled throughout the day.

"The media doesn't watch film like we do, and doesn't see the matchups we can expose," Broyles told reporters. "They're young. We knew there would be spots in the secondary they'd leave open."

Texas has experience at safety with senior Blake Gideon, but had almost none at cornerback entering 2011. The Longhorns gave up over 300 yards in the first half on Saturday, but it won't get any easier this week when Oklahoma State comes to Austin with the nation's No. 2 passing offense, ahead of No. 5 Oklahoma.

What kinds of things could Broyles have seen to tip him off on how to exploit youth?

"Either you’re scared to get beat deep or you’re playing slow. Those two things kind of correlate," Weeden said.

It was a little early this week to say whether that was the case with new corners Quandre Diggs and Carrington Byndom at Texas, but despite the statistical struggles, Texas wasn't burnt deep against Oklahoma. It also took bad angles often and gave up yards after the catch.

"We made some mistakes, obviously, but that’s also an encouraging thing, that we made mistakes that are correctable," Gideon said. "There’s certain things you can’t correct like effort, intensity, passion, things inside of players, so it was encouraging that we kept fighting to the end, every single player."

Didn't pass that test against Oklahoma? Fine, here comes another one. Weeden threw for 288 yards and five touchdowns last week against Kansas before being benched with five minutes left in the half. Oklahoma State led, 56-7, at the break.

"We get better every week," Weeden said. "That’s part of being a good offense. Early on, my play the first couple of nights was subpar, and I feel like I kind of made it my goal to get better every week and make this offense better every week. I think we have."

Weeden's completing just under 76 percent of his passes this season, which for obvious reasons, is alarming to Longhorns coach Mack Brown.

"That was the height of what Colt [McCoy] was completing when he was here to lead the nation," Brown said. "We’re playing two of the best teams in the country here back to back."

The Longhorns secondary looks a bit overmatched after last week's debacle, but Texas at least pinpointed the problems.

"You just have to try to disguise more, and we did not get to the quarterback," Brown said. "Sometimes the uptempo caught us when we were disguising and caught us off guard. You just have to hope that, especially your young corners, have another week to see a great passing attack and they improve, because of the speed this team will put on you."

Don't expect that to change. If anything, OSU might make it more difficult on the Longhorns.

"We’re executing and our tempo is something we take pride in," Weeden said. "We’re moving fast and we’re really not letting defenses dictate what we do."

Episode 2 of Year of the Quarterback’s latest series “Depth Chart” airs Wednesday night at 7 ET on ESPN, featuring Oklahoma State.

AUSTIN, Texas -- Case McCoy had to laugh when the question came up, but with a self-aware smile, he made the confirmation.

McCoy and receiver Jaxon Shipley are, in fact, roommates.

"We've really dreamed of playing together for a long time, and that was fun tonight," McCoy said. "Hopefully, it'll be fun for the rest of the time we're here."

The players' older brothers, Colt McCoy and Jordan Shipley, were famously roommates and served up constant reminders during their years as Longhorns.

Both players' fathers were also roommates in college.

This will be the last mention of this factoid in this space.

But at this point, the only thing left to do is laugh.

The Manning Award, given annually to college football's top quarterback, has released its watch list.

The Big 12 representatives? About whom you'd expect. The league's top four returning starters.

• Robert Griffin III, Baylor
• Landry Jones, Oklahoma
• Ryan Tannehill, Texas A&M
• Brandon Weeden, Oklahoma State

Cam Newton took home the award last year, but Texas is the lone Big 12 school to have an award winner in the seven-year history of the Manning Award.

Vince Young won the award in 2005 and Colt McCoy won in 2009.

Today, we're taking a look at the tease teams across the Big 12, and the past three seasons, we've seen a good number of cases in the Big 12.

These three programs find themselves in the top 10 again this year, but here's what's happened lately. Is one of these squads simply a tease in 2011?

2010: Texas A&M

The Aggies, coming off a 6-7 season in 2009, weren't convincing enough to earn preseason top 25 honors, but the potential for a big year was there, and anyone paying attention knew it. The offense was loaded, led by the league's preseason offensive player of the year, Jerrod Johnson. Johnson, however, struggled early, throwing four interceptions in consecutive games against Florida International and Oklahoma State, turning the ball over five times in a loss to the Cowboys. The Aggies were embarrassed on their home field by Missouri to fall to 3-3, and despite a late-season rally, couldn't qualify for the Big 12 championship game.

2009: Oklahoma State

The offseason crescendo built to a pressure-packed season opener against SEC foe Georgia, but Dez Bryant and the Cowboys knocked off the Bulldogs to land in the top 5 and on the cover of Sports Illustrated. A week later, however, Case Keenum (and Dana Holgorsen, by the way) waltzed into Stillwater and gave the Cowboys a nasty buzzkill in the form of a 45-35 upset, officially derailing a championship season. OSU also suffered a pair of embarrassing 27-point losses to Big 12 South rivals Oklahoma and Texas, including a 27-0 shutout loss to Oklahoma. Kendall Hunter (ankle), Zac Robinson (shoulder) and Dez Bryant (NCAA suspension) were all forced off the field at times, but there's no doubt: That team was a tease.

2008: Missouri

The Tigers reached No. 1 heading into the Big 12 championship game in 2007, but a loss sent them to the Cotton Bowl and hoping for better luck next year. Chase Daniel and Co. opened the season at No. 6 and ran off a 5-0 start, including a 52-17 obliteration of Nebraska in Lincoln, the first win for the Tigers there since 1978. A week later, though? A program-defining win for Oklahoma State on Missouri's field, followed by an absolute undressing by Colt McCoy and Texas in Austin a week later, featuring a 35-3 halftime deficit. The Tigers were upset by Kansas before being rolled over 62-21 by Oklahoma and settling for an appearance in the Alamo Bowl. Quite the tease, Tigers.

So, which of the Big 12 teams ranked this year looks like a tease?