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Guess what, suddenly you're 60 years old, wandering toothless and alone in a post-apocalyptic wasteland!

• A year ago, the Big 12 was being left for dead. Now, it holds in its hands the fates of the Big East and ACC, writes Matt Hayes of Sporting News.
• Yahoo! Sports' Pat Forde has a series of humorous realignment emails from administration in this piece of historical fiction.
• Texas' newest quarterback commit wants to be the next Vince Young.
• As realignment spins, new Kansas coach Charlie Weis doesn't have to worry about uncertainty, writes Rustin Dodd of the Kansas City Star.
• Tommy Tuberville's business associate has been indicted, but Tuberville was not listed on the indictment.
• Skip Holtz's son -- and, thus, Lou Holtz's grandson -- is walking on with the Texas Longhorns, reports Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times.
• Charlie Weis is changing things at KU, but he doesn't like the term "change of culture," writes Kevin Haskin of the Topeka Capital-Journal.
• Just when you thought the State Fair of Texas couldn't get any more delicious ...

HornsNation has more coverage of the Texas Longhorns:

Sean Adams writes : History is telling Mack Brown that you can succeed with two QBs. However, the present climate begs to differ. If history wins out, is that the best thing for the Longhorns?

Carter Strickland writes: David Ash is learning to protect the football. He's learning the scheme, too. And as spring progresses, his confidence is growing.

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?

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."

DALLAS -- Oklahoma has been the more experienced, more prepared and more aggressive team through the first half.

As a result, the Sooners have opened up a big lead and looked dominant while doing it. If not for early red-zone struggles, this could be even more lopsided.

Even still, at 34-10, this looks ugly for the Longhorns and it's a strong statement for Oklahoma to try and gain back some of the ground it lost in the polls in past weeks.

Turning point: Trailing 13-3, Texas quarterback David Ash threw an interception downfield to Tony Jefferson, who returned it 13 yards to the Texas 33-yard line to set up an eventual five-yard touchdown pass from Landry Jones to Ryan Broyles. That put Oklahoma up 20-3 and the game began looking out of reach for Texas. It still looks out of reach.

Stat of the half: Texas had 60 yards of offense in the first quarter. The Longhorns had 38 in the second quarter, including 18 on a pass to Mike Davis on the scoreless final drive of the half. Oklahoma's defense is playing physical, pressuring the quarterback, and making big plays. Demontre Hurst already returned David Ash's second interception of the day 55 yards for a touchdown.

Best player in the half: Jones. The Sooner signal caller has made a good Texas defense look bad for most of the first half, racking up 305 yards and three touchdowns on 23-of-35 passing and kept the Sooners offense humming throughout the half. Unbelievable stats against a pretty good, albeit inexperienced, Texas secondary.

What Oklahoma needs to do: Quit giving up big plays. Oklahoma looked like it was ready to send the Longhorns back to Austin after going up 27-3 late in the second quarter, but the Longhorns stuck around when Fozzy Whittaker took the ensuing kickoff back 100 yards for a touchdown. He also cued the Oklahoma critics crying for a special teams coordinator. Texas' offense isn't built like Oklahoma's and can't sustain consecutive systematic drives. It doesn't have the experience. Big plays are all that can keep Texas in it, and if Oklahoma prevents them, it's over.

What Texas needs to do: Petition the Big 12 to vacate the results of the first half on account of ... uh ... something. Then figure out a way to shoehorn Philadelphia Eagles backup QB Vince Young into its 2011 lineup. After that, find a way to help its young core freshmen to come out of the tunnel with another year or two of experience.

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.

Last Monday, we began a week-long project looking at the most famous touchdowns from 100-plus yards down to one yard, and we'll be taking a look at each of the Big 12 entrants on the blog throughout the week.

You can see the full project here.

The eight-yard spot is taken by one of the most famous plays from one of the best players in college football history. In one of the greatest national championship games ever played, Vince Young capped a game-winning drive with a career-defining play, winning his second consecutive Rose Bowl, and doing it against one of the greatest college dynasties ever.

Jan. 4, 2006: It was fourth-and-5, but it might as well have been fourth-and-goal -- the goal being Texas' first national championship in 35 years. Quarterback Vince Young spent all night outplaying the guy who took the Heisman Trophy from him, USC tailback Reggie Bush. On the final play of his college career, Young took the shotgun snap and outraced Trojans end Frostee Rucker to the right pylon. Texas won 41-38. The confetti still rains in Austin.

-- Ivan Maisel

The Longhorn Network is just over three weeks away from its launch, but the channel has slowly unveiled its programming as the launch date has crept closer.

Now, the latest batch has been announced. Here's a look, courtesy of the Austin American-Statesman:

• Longhorn Legends -- Coach Mack Brown is joined by former players Ricky Williams, Vince Young and Colt McCoy for a roundtable discussion.
• The Season: 2005 Texas Longhorns -- A look back at Texas' fourth national championship team, led by Vince Young.
• Texas' Greatest Games -- Glimpses at the 10 best games in Longhorns football history.
• Texas' Greatest Athletes -- A panel of experts selected the greatest athletes across all sports in Texas history, and this show will give fans an in-depth look at them.
• Traditions -- Don't know how some of UT's best-known traditions began? You can learn how on this show.

Mack Brown, Colt McCoy, Vince Young and Ricky Williams discuss what it means to play football for Texas.

The BCS officially vacated USC's 2004 national title on Monday afternoon, and it's pretty clear how this affects the Big 12.

The Trojans beat Oklahoma 55-19 in the Orange Bowl to win the title and cap a perfect season, but history has been altered by heavy NCAA sanctions, including bowl bans, resulting from violations during the 2004 and 2005 seasons.

That produced an obvious question that at least a few asked via my mailbag in the hours that followed: Does Oklahoma get to claim the title now?

The answer is simple: No.

Just as Vince Young won't be collecting Reggie Bush's vacated Heisman, Oklahoma won't add an eighth national title. Neither will Auburn (led by now-Texas Tech coach Tommy Tuberville) or Utah, who both went undefeated in the 2004 season but were left out of the title.

Tuberville, though, believes the title should be awarded to his Tigers.

"Yes," Tuberville told ESPN on Monday. "Someone should be awarded (the) title. If not, the team that had to forfeit is not really punished."

I'd disagree with that.

There's validity to the argument that people remember that game, and re-writing the history books with Auburn--or any one else, for that matter--won't change anything.

Vacated means simply that: No one won the title that year, and from now on, that's how the history books will remember the 2004 season. USC's players and fans may disagree, and I'm sure millions recall that game happening, but college football history won't.

What that means is certainly up for debate, but what isn't for debate Oklahoma's trophy case, which won't be adding another title unless it wins one in 2011.

Miss our weekly chat? Here's a look back and a few highlights.

Didn't get your question answered? Stuff it in my mailbag and I'll get around to it later.

Barry Switzer in Oklahoma asked: Pre-Season rankings are kind of cool but I never really put much thought into them seeing as how every year the Top 25 inevitably shuffle around. Having said that in your opinion how big of a target does OU have on its back from the word go and do you think this OU team has the maturity to handle the pressure week in and week out?

David Ubben: It's a pretty big one, no doubt. But I agree with what Bob Stoops has reiterated all offseason. How's that anything new for Oklahoma? There are plenty of guys on this team that were around for the 2008 and 2009 seasons. It was the same thing then.

Shane in Spring, Texas asked: How many trick plays will Bryan Harsin use against OU?

DU: I'm setting the over/under at 4.5. That's not a joke.

Andrew in Bryan asked: So what happens when the horns move malcolm brown (RB) to DE ( like chris whaley) because johnathon gray is so much better. wont it be weird to have two players on defense named malcolm brown? how will they communitcate? (also asuming he (DT) doesnt decommit)

DU: That smells like Aggie discontent. Seems like Texas A&M does pretty well with two good running backs, no? Is Texas not allowed to do the same? Only one player can get all the carries, and the other will be a malcontent forced to switch positions?

Andrew in Lubbock asked: Since we're already making preseason poll predictions, let's take it a step further. Who in the Big 12 do you think ends the regular season ranked?

DU: My guesses: OU, OSU, A&M, Missouri aaaaaand ... Baylor.

Orville in Lubbock, Texas asked: David: If Ryan Tannehill tanks, what kind of a season will A&M have? How dependent are they on a good/great season by Tannehill?

DU: Tannehill playing well would take them to a great season, but A&M is still solid everywhere else. If Tannehill throws for like 2,600 yards, completes 55 percent of his passes and has like 17 TDs to 13 INTs, A&M probably wins eight games. You have to have great QB play to win big in this league, but the Aggies are good enough to do OK even if he struggles.

Filemon in College Station, Texas asked: Who would you consider the top three darkhorses in the big12-2 for the 2011 football season? Assuming UT 2010 was only a minor blip..

DU: Well, I think it's pretty clear that OU, OSU and A&M are the favorites. My dark horses? Missouri, Texas and the darkest horse of them all: Kansas State.

Clyde in Cleveland asked: Best running back in the conference?

DU: For now, Cyrus Gray. But look out for Joseph Randle and Roy Finch. Losing six of seven 1,000-yard rushers means it's probably going to be a bit of a down year for running backs in this league after a strong class last year with Kendall Hunter, DeMarco Murray, Daniel Thomas and Rodney Stewart, among others.

Coach Rhoads in Iowa asked: David, who should start? It seems like everyone has a built in excuse this spring. Jerome Tiller had a bad throwing elbow, Steele Jantz was brand new, and James Capello and Jared Barnett are really only freshmen. A little help here...

DU: Rhoads told me it was Tiller's shoulder, actually, not the elbow. A teammate fell on it trying to recover a fumble. If I had to bet, I'd go with Steele right now.

Kirk in Texas asked: All time and Big 12 offense with no weaknesses? Who you got? Some are saying this 11 aggie team, others 08 sooners and 05 Longhorns. What's your take?

DU: Uh, let's pump the brakes a bit on the 2011 Aggies. They don't have anyone on that team close to what the Sooners or Longhorns had on offense. The Sooners had one of the best O-lines in the history of college football and a No. 1 pick at quarterback. The Longhorns had one of the greatest college QBs of all-time in Vince Young. A&M? A very good offense, but nowhere near that level. No weaknesses, maybe, but nowhere near as good as either of the other two offenses.

For just the second time ever, the first round of the NFL draft will be the only part of the draft's first day, set for primetime on Thursday night.

This year, the Big 12 could have as many as five first-round picks, and five players from the league are in New York for the draft.

So, let's take a look back. Since the first NFL draft of the Big 12 era, who has the most first-rounders?

Texas: 16

• 2010: S Earl Thomas, 14th overall, Seattle Seahawks
• 2009: DE Brian Orakpo, 13th overall, Washington Redskins
• 2007: S Michael Griffin, 19th overall, Tennessee Titans
• 2007: CB Aaron Ross, 20th overall, New York Giants
• 2006: QB Vince Young, third overall, Tennessee Titans
• 2006: CB Michael Huff, seventh overall, Oakland Raiders
• 2005: RB Cedric Benson, fourth overall, Chicago Bears
• 2005: LB Derrick Johnson, 15th overall, Kansas City Chiefs
• 2004: WR Roy Williams, seventh overall, Detroit Lions
• 2004: DT Marcus Tubbs, 23rd overall, Seattle Seahawks
• 2002: OL Mike Williams, fourth overall, Buffalo Bills
• 2002: CB Quentin Jammer, fifth overall, San Diego Chargers
• 2001: OL Leonard Davis, second overall, Arizona Cardinals
• 2001: DT Casey Hampton, 19th overall, Pittsburgh Steelers
• 1999: RB Ricky Williams, fifth overall, New Orleans Saints
• 1997: CB Bryant Westbrook, fifth overall, Detroit Lions

Oklahoma: 12

• 2010: QB Sam Bradford, first overall, St. Louis Rams
• 2010: DT Gerald McCoy, third overall, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
• 2010: OT Trent Williams, fourth overall, Washington Redskins
• 2010: TE Jermaine Gresham, 21st overall, Cincinnati Bengals
• 2007: RB Adrian Peterson, seventh overall, Minnesota Vikings
• 2006: OL Davin Joseph, 23rd overall, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
• 2005: OL Jammal Brown, 13th overall, New Orleans Saints
• 2005: WR Mark Clayton, 22nd overall, Baltimore Ravens
• 2004: DT Tommie Harris, 14th overall, Chicago Bears
• 2003: CB Andre Woolfolk, 28th overall, Tennessee Titans
• 2002: S Roy Williams, eighth overall, Dallas Cowboys
• 2001: Stockar McDougle, 20th overall, Detroit Lions

Oklahoma State: 6

• 2010: OL Russell Okung, sixth overall, Seattle Seahawks
• 2010: WR Dez Bryant, 24th overall, Dallas Cowboys
• 2009: TE Brandon Pettigrew, 20th overall, Detroit Lions
• 2004: WR Rashaun Woods, 31st overall, San Francisco 49ers
• 2003: DE Kevin Williams, ninth overall, Minnesota Vikings
• 1998: CB R.W. McQuarters, 28th overall, San Francisco 49ers

Missouri: 4

• 2010: LB Sean Weatherspoon, 19th overall, Atlanta Falcons
• 2009: WR Jeremy Maclin, 19th overall, Philadelphia Eagles
• 2009: DT Ziggy Hood, 32nd overall, Pittsburgh Steelers
• 2001: DE Justin Smith, fourth overall, Cincinnati Bengals

Kansas State: 3

• 2009: QB Josh Freeman, 17th overall, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
• 2003: CB Terence Newman, fifth overall, Dallas Cowboys
• 1997: DB Chris Canty, 29th overall, New England Patriots

Texas A&M: 2

• 2003: DT Ty Warren, 13th overall, New England Patriots
• 2003: DB Sammy Davis, 30th overall, San Diego Chargers

Texas Tech: 1

• 2009: WR Michael Crabtree, 10th overall, San Francisco 49ers

Kansas: 1

• 2008: CB Aqib Talib, 20th overall, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Baylor: 1

• 2009: OL Jason Smith, 2nd overall, St. Louis Rams

Iowa State: none since 1973 (George Amundson)

A few thoughts and observations:

• I doubt many would be surprised that this list is also a reasonably accurate reflection of overall success since the Big 12's inception in 1996. Obviously, Texas and Oklahoma have dominated. Since 2000, Texas has the nation's fourth-most first-rounders. Oklahoma is No. 6. Their success has paralleled that, along with recruiting rankings.
• In that same breath, it's impossible to look at this list and not once again be impressed with what Mike Leach did. He obviously has the reputation as an overachiever, but looking big picture, he was able to do it with one first-round pick. Nobody beat Texas and Oklahoma more and Leach helped put together what is still the Big 12's longest bowl streak.
• Texas' consistency sticks out, too. Since just 2001, Texas has had two first-rounders in six different seasons. If you've got two first-rounders on your team, you're probably going to be pretty good. The Longhorns, if you haven't noticed, have been. Those two first-rounders in six seasons are more or as many as half the league has in the history of the Big 12. What else you should note? Texas is unlikely to have a first rounder this year, and after Aaron Williams is drafted, Sam Acho probably will be the next to go, which won't be until the third or fourth round.
• Oklahoma State and Missouri's rise over the past three seasons has paid off in the NFL draft. Missouri had three first-rounders in the last two seasons and figures to add two more this year after having just one in the 12-year history of the league before 2009. That's quite a streak, and even more proof of what Gary Pinkel has built at Missouri. One more piece of evidence? Despite losing those two first-rounders, Missouri should be back in the preseason polls next year after losing two of its top players. That's definitely something new in Columbia. The Cowboys figure to add more soon with Justin Blackmon at least. As long as Pinkel and Gundy are at the helm for their respective programs, expect them to continue to rise.
• Don't be surprised by Texas A&M's swoon following R.C. Slocum's departure. From 1990-1998, the Aggies won nine games every season but one. From 1990-96, the Aggies had eight first-round picks. Since 1998? Two seasons with at least nine wins and just two first-round picks.
• More evidence you can't underestimate the importance of having first-round picks? None for Baylor in the history of the Big 12 before Art Briles. In just three years, Briles may have three if the Bears add two more this year with Phil Taylor and Danny Watkins. Taylor and Watkins both came from unlikely sources. Taylor was a Penn State transfer and Watkins a juco transfer that formerly worked as a fireman in Canada.

Thanks for all the questions in the mailbag. Don't see yours? We'll have another one soon. Drop it in my mailbag.

Trey Willis in Krum, Texas, asked: Will the Big 12 lose any bowl alliances with the loss of 2 conference members next year? Also, is it conceivable, although unlikely that every Big 12 team could be bowl eligible next year?

David Ubben: I actually asked a Big 12 official about this recently. Right now it's still being ironed out. Those contracts will likely be altered, but this is one more thing that may not be finalized until the league's spring meetings in June. The Big 12 isn't going to be able to fill eight bowl spots next year.

Jesse in Amarillo, Texas, asked: Dear Ubbs, Do you think with all of the "love" Demarco Murray has been getting from Dana White and all of the UFC, that he is setting up something if football doesn't pan out? Would you step into the octagon with Demarco?

DU: I don't think that's really the plan for DeMarco. Football should work out for him. He started doing some MMA training during his summers awhile back, and I think he just developed a love for the sport. On Dana White's side, I'm sure he embraced DeMarco's interest. It's always good to have a high-profile athlete associated with a growing sport.

As for stepping into the octagon, I'd do it. DeMarco wouldn't, though. (Thanks to his NFL contract likely prohibiting it.) Guess that means I win by forfeit, right? I'll keep telling myself that.

Ronnell Lewis in Norman, Okla., asked: STOP! Hammer Time! Is it my time in Norman now that Jeremy Beal is gone?

DU: Now's the time if it's going to happen. I don't see Lewis getting beat out for a starting job across from Frank Alexander, but David King and R.J. Washington could make a push for playing time. The same goes for redshirt freshman Geneo Grissom. Get a nice start on a big year and that playing time will come, of course, but neither of those things is a given. Lewis looked like he struggled a bit with the mental side of the game last year, and the coaches barely even played him against option-attacking Air Force when he was at linebacker. He's a big hitter and a pass-rusher for sure, but to have big success, he's got to become a more complete player who better understands Oklahoma's schemes. That stuff takes time. Lewis has had it. Hammer Time is most likely now or never.

CB in Osage Beach, Mo., asked: David,Once Blaine Gabbert is drafted and signed, he will be the third straight Mizzou starting QB to make (and remain on) an NFL roster. That seems pretty rare, although not unheard-of (I think USC has a similar streak with Palmer, Leinart, and Sanchez right now). Am I right that this is pretty unusual?

DU: Yeah, it definitely is. Brad Smith, now a receiver/return specialist for the New York Jets is somewhat of a technicality, but Missouri's quarterback line is rivaled by very, very few across the conference.

Texas had Vince Young followed by Colt McCoy, but we'll see how five-star recruit Garrett Gilbert's career ends up. He may not even be the starter next year. That's still in flux. Before Young, Chris Simms made his way into the NFL. It seems like his ruptured spleen kind of derailed his career, among other things, but he's on the Titans' roster.

Oklahoma and Texas Tech have had great, great college quarterbacks who have had moderate to no success in the NFL after big college careers. Setting Sam Bradford aside (after all, he was the first Oklahoma quarterback ever to throw a pass as a quarterback in an NFL game since 1949), Jason White won a Heisman and Josh Heupel won a national title. That's pretty dadgum impressive, too.

Missouri's got a good thing going at quarterback, though, and the program has benefited. Their rise is only more evidence that having a great quarterback means wins in the Big 12 pretty often.

Hope you all enjoyed the weekend. I was up in Kansas City taking in some hoops in a great atmosphere at the Sprint Center to see the Jayhawks win their eighth title. And while we were all distracted by hoops and brackets, here's what happened in the world of Big 12 football.

Sooners unveil pre-spring depth chart

Oklahoma doesn't begin spring practice until next Monday, but Bob Stoops unveiled his pre-spring depth chart over the weekend, with plenty of changes.

The off-the-field shakeup in the secondary made the biggest impact. Jamell Fleming is not enrolled this semester, reportedly because of academic conduct. Sophomore Aaron Colvin, who impressed in spot duty last season, was expected to slide up to starting corner in Fleming's absence, but Colvin debuted on the depth chart as the starter at strong safety.

At corner, seldom-used sophomore Gabe Lynn is the starter across from last year's starter, Demontre Hurst. Lynn played in just seven games last year after redshirting in 2009, but he came to Oklahoma as the state's top prospect in the 2009 class and the No. 8 corner and No. 80 overall prospect in the 2009 class. He hadn't shown it in games, but coaches are infamous for lauding players who finally turn potential into production in valuable bowl practices. For Lynn, that might have been the case.

Now, at least until/if Fleming returns, Lynn will get his opportunity.

A stress fracture will keep running back Roy Finch off the field this spring, but check out who's at No. 2: Early-enrolling true freshman Brandon Williams, right behind Brennan Clay. The buzz around Williams when he signed is he could contribute right away, and it looks like that may end up being the case. He was the only early enroller to make the two-deep.

Fullback Trey Millard, who Bob Stoops couldn't find enough good things to say about as a freshman in 2010, is out for the spring for minor offseason surgery.

Gabbert says he scored 42 on Wonderlic

According to Bernie Miklasz at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Blaine Gabbert told Rich Eisen in an NFL.com podcast that he scored a 42 on the Wonderlic, a general aptitude test administered to draft prospects at the combine. A perfect score is 50, so Gabbert can take a little pride in the impressive mark. Gabbert recently moved to the No. 1 pick on Mel Kiper's mock draft, too. So he's got that going for him. A score of 26 is considering a passing grade.

A few notable Wonderlic scores, courtesy of Sports Illustrated:

• Peyton Manning: 28
• Eli Manning: 39
• Drew Brees: 28
• Ryan Leaf: 27
• Michael Vick: 20
• Vince Young: 16
• Sam Bradford: 36
• Colt McCoy: 25
• Tim Tebow: 22

So what's the test ultimately mean? There's not a lot of correlation in score and success. It's just one piece of the puzzle. And for Gabbert, when it comes to intelligence, it's a piece that he won't have any NFL teams doubting.