ESPN College Football

Iowa quarterback James Vandenberg has been brushing up on Greg Davis' history, both recent and ancient.

Since the Hawkeyes hired Davis as offensive coordinator, Vandenberg has watched numerous clips of former Texas quarterbacks Vince Young and Colt McCoy. Davis' last coaching stop took place in Austin, where he helped mold both Young and McCoy into elite college signal callers. As Vandenberg acclimates himself with Davis, he wants to get a sense of the system Davis has run and the quarterbacks he has coached.

But Vandenberg also is keenly aware he's not Young or McCoy. He's a different player with different skills. Will that be a problem for Davis? Hardly.

That's where the ancient history comes in.

"The one thing I always think of is he coached Gary Kubiak, who's the coach for the [Houston] Texans," Vandenberg told ESPN.com. "[Davis] was his college coach when [Davis] was only 28 years old. So he's been in the business for a long time and really knows the ins and outs and has done it with a lot of different people and systems."

Vandenberg is excited to be the next man in line. Before this offseason, Iowa hadn't made any coordinator changes -- offensive or defensive -- during head coach Kirk Ferentz's tenure.

While Vandenberg enjoyed working with former coordinator Ken O'Keefe, he echoes the seemingly program-wide excitement about having new voices in the football building and on the practice field this spring.

"It's some fresh blood," Vandenberg said. "That's what has everybody excited. There was nothing wrong with the old system, and we had a great coach. But the excitement comes with learning a new offense and hearing plays called from a new play-caller. There's a lot yet to be seen, but all these unknowns and knowing the success he's had is what has us all excited right now."

Davis' tenure at Texas ended on a down note in 2010, but his most recent success took place with McCoy and Young. The Longhorns had a top 25 offense every year between 2003-08. They led the FBS in scoring behind Young in 2005 en route to a national title and finished fifth in scoring behind McCoy in 2008.

Under Davis, Texas averaged 39 points per game between 2000-09, which ranked second nationally and first among teams from BCS automatic-qualifying leagues. While the numbers are notable, Davis' versatility has stood out to Vandenberg on tape.

"He knows how to play to his personnel," Vandenberg said. "When he had Ricky Williams there, he knew he was going to get 30 carries a game. When he had Vince Young, there was a lot of zone-read stuff. With Colt McCoy, there was a lot of empty stuff. He's adjusted to the guys he had and been successful in every aspect of offense, from power football to spread football.

"We're all excited to see what his wrinkle is for us."

Vandenberg, who racked up 3,022 pass yards with 25 touchdowns and seven interceptions in his first year as Iowa's starter in 2011, said he's familiar with most of the plays Davis wants to run, but needs to absorb new terminology and some different reads. Davis stresses the need to complete passes and get the ball out quickly, two areas Vandenberg feels are strengths of his.

Accuracy is a focal point this spring for Vandenberg, who completed just 58.7 percent of his attempts in 2011. His goal: 65 percent or better. He also wants to play smarter in games. To do so, he'll have to absorb Davis' system better than anyone else on the field.

"I'm able to bring guys along right now," he said. "I've had a little more time studying it. These practices are vital, just being to make sure we're all on the same page with all these new plays and all these new situations."

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 Bowl 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, Ariz.

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 after last season. How do you think that experience plays into this postseason's game? I hate to ruin the surprise, but Oklahoma State's a bit better than the Virginia Tech team Stanford beat last postseason. 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 season'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 of the season, they didn't lose again until playing, er, Oregon in this season'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 differences this season are the season-ending knee injury to middle linebacker Shayne Skov, who was an All-American candidate, and 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.

That, if you ask me, says plenty about both the defense and the power of RG3. The Bears have 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 then hit 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 it 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 RG3? 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. They also need to convert touchdowns, not field goals, in the red zone. 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 season. 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 season, 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 season, 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 has 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 then 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 in which 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 season.

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 alum ...

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 their 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.

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."

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.

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?

On Tuesday, the Big East wrapped up the last set of media days in college football, so it's time to take a look back at what we learned from the Big 12's annual event, as well as what we still have to learn.

What we learned from Big 12 Media Days

The Big 12's coaches weren't excited to see high school games on the Longhorn Network. Almost a week before media days, Big 12 commissioner Dan Beebe put a hold on the Longhorn Network's plans to broadcast high school games, but the league's coaches voiced their displeasure at the possibility in various ways, none stronger than Missouri's Gary Pinkel. "It's a lack of common sense there to think that the network, the university network, can have high school games," he said. Oklahoma State's Mike Gundy said his "antenna went up when I started to hear that information." Baylor's Art Briles was the only coach who said it didn't bother him, but on Monday, the league announced it would declare a one-year moratorium on broadcasting high school games, allowing the issue to be further examined by the NCAA.

Mack Brown knows what he wants from his quarterbacks. Brown said summer workouts helped Colt McCoy separate himself from Jevan Snead the last time Texas had a quarterback battle, and he's hoping the same thing happened this summer. Brown wants leadership from his quarterbacks above all, but he wants them to take care of the ball second for a team that ranked 116th in turnover ratio in 2010. Garrett Gilbert has the experience and is the most vocal of the group, but he threw 17 interceptions to 10 touchdowns last season. Case McCoy, Connor Wood and David Ash were supposed to spend their spring and summer mostly learning Bryan Harsin's new, complex offense. Now, it's time to focus on competing. The separation could happen fast, and Texas opens fall camp on Friday.

Art Briles narrowly edges out Tommy Tuberville for the league's most entertaining coach. Tuberville poked at the Big 12 on his way off the stage, but Briles earned a few more fans with a solid collection of one-liners, including one about Ahmad Dixon that somehow got overlooked. "I take a lot of pride in being able to guess how much a male weighs," Briles said of the 206-pounder. "If you looked at him, you'd say that guy looks like he weighs about 183. He's put together pretty good." Briles also argued that talking trash was "in the ear of the beholder" and compared his quarterback to famed hurdler Edwin Moses.

Oklahoma will be fascinating to watch. The Sooners got by far the most attention on Day 2, sharing the second half of media days with the four teams picked to finish at the bottom of the Big 12. Oklahoma, though, isn't shying away from the hefty preseason expectations and players also spoke openly about the death of their teammate, Austin Box, this summer. The Sooners have a few subtle tributes planned, and won't have Box far from their minds throughout the season.

Kansas State's quarterback race is over. Bill Snyder brought Collin Klein to Big 12 Media Days, which seemed conspicuous enough, but he confirmed the obvious once he made it to Dallas. "He’ll take the first snap when we start in the fall," Snyder said. Klein was the most impressive during the spring, ahead of Boston College and Blinn College transfers Justin Tuggle and Sammuel Lamur, but Snyder maintained there wasn't a lot of separation between the three following the spring game. After the summer, it looks like that's changed.

What we have yet to learn after Big 12 Media Days

How will Texas rebound? We won't know this until the Longhorns suit up against Rice and BYU to open the season, but Texas is the Big 12's biggest wild card after a 5-7 season precipitated wholesale changes on the coaching staff. The depth chart is wide open for new coordinators Manny Diaz and Bryan Harsin, and fall camp should be one of the most competitive ever for the Longhorns.

Are Big 12 realignment rumors over for now? Texas A&M said the Longhorn Network produced uncertainty about the Aggies' future in the Big 12, but the one-year moratorium on broadcasting high school games may only delay conversations about the future of the Big 12, especially if the NCAA rules in favor of the practice.

Is this Oklahoma's year? Or the SEC's decade? Bob Stoops told a crowd at an recent caravan that it was "about time" for Oklahoma to win a national title, 11 years after its seventh national championship in 2000. The Sooners have enough talent to do it, but can they play consistently and catch the right breaks to rip off the 13 wins it will take to bring a national title back to the Big 12? Texas' championship with Vince Young in 2006 was the last time any non-SEC team won a national championship.

Who will start at Texas and Iowa State? The Big 12 has just two true quarterback battles left. The Longhorns have to pick between four, but the race in Ames is likely boiled down to Jerome Tiller, who has played in spot duty behind Austen Arnaud, and juco transfer Steele Jantz.

Texas athletic director DeLoss Dodds released a statement on Wednesday, a day after Colt McCoy's wife made controversial comments on ESPN Radio.

"We take compliance very seriously at Texas," Dodds said in the statement. "We have procedures in place that enable our coaches, student-athletes and administrators to make the right choices. We are performing our due diligence as always to make certain there are no outstanding compliance issues."

On Tuesday, Rachel McCoy called in unprompted to Colin Cowherd's show on ESPN Radio, and did a six-minute interview, touching on her husband's experience with both agents and boosters, explaining how often he had to turn them down, but intimating that his teammates did not do the same.

"Colt did not himself have as much interaction [with agents], I don't think. I know he was approached quite a bit, but you know how Colt is, he can just kind of brush it off and just kind of move on and not go down that road, but I saw so many of his teammates who just, they maybe didn't have some of that self-control just to be able to say no to somebody. I can't. That's not my personality, I don't want to hurt people's feelings."

McCoy's point was to explain that boosters and agents, in pursuit of relationships with players, had to be better controlled on campus, but her comments have produced a controversy during the usually docile college football summer.

ESPN radio host Colin Cowherd spent a segment of his show today talking Jim Tressel, but got a surprising, unprompted phone call.

It was Colt McCoy's wife Rachel, who spent around six minutes on the air with Cowherd talking about how boosters and agents would try to contact McCoy, often with offers of things like a free meal or a hunting trip.

You can hear the full interview here.

Rachel McCoy, near the end of the interview, had this to say:

"Colt did not himself have as much interaction [with agents], I don't think. I know he was approached quite a bit, but you know how Colt is, he can just kind of brush it off and just kind of move on and not go down that road, but I saw so many of his teammates who just, they maybe didn't have some of that self-control just to be able to say no to somebody. I can't. That's not my personality, I don't want to hurt people's feelings."

AUSTIN, Texas -- The offense is as advertised. New Texas coordinator Bryan Harsin's fingerprints were all over the Longhorns' offense in Sunday's spring game.

They showcased constant pre-snap motions to help read and confuse defenses -- a facet not seen at Texas at any point before Harsin replaced Greg Davis.

There was plenty of trickery, which, for better or worse, became a signature of Boise State's program during its rise to national prominence over the past five seasons with Harsin controlling the offense. A scoring drive led by Garrett Gilbert was highlighted by a throw back to Gilbert from running back Fozzy Whittaker and a cute reverse to receiver Mike Davis for an 11-yard gain.

But just as Harsin was all over the Longhorns' offense on Sunday, the same was true of the players who struggled last season. Texas staggered to a 5-7 season with the nation's No. 88 scoring offense trying to compete in a decidedly offensive league.

Plenty of that pre-snap motion was followed by inaccurate passes from three quarterbacks without a clear starter among them. Running backs didn't get to the second level of the defense very often and the winning team (Texas, who beat the Longhorns 26-7, whatever that means) averaged just 3.6 yards a carry, though Whittaker and Cody Johnson had 63 yards on 10 carries.

"I thought the one offensive line was good, our second one has not had a chance all spring," coach Mack Brown said.

The losing team's top two running backs had one yard on nine carries.

The longest run of the day for either team was 15 yards. The longest pass before yards after catch on the day? A 24-yard jump ball that got caught in the wind before Darius White came back on a defensive back to catch it. Gilbert's second-quarter scoring drive, to his credit, came after an ugly interception into double coverage on an under-thrown flag route.

Blustery winds and just eight healthy offensive linemen are fair excuses for both, but no one's denying that there's plenty of work to do. If the Longhorns are going to avoid another season that ends in November they'll have to improve their offense.

"To me, we go in to the season with a lot of question marks, a lot of things we've got to fix," Brown said. "We've got to fix the turnover ratio, we've got to get better and score points and get field position advantage in the kicking game. We've got to run the ball better and help our quarterbacks until one of them gets on his feet, but all of those things are fixable."

Not easily fixable, but fixable. And no place is that more evident than at quarterback.

"It's great to be undefeated," Brown quipped as he sat down at the microphone after the game.

He's right. And Texas' status as an undefeated team won't reach far into September if it can't find its quarterback, the biggest question mark on Brown's team.

All four quarterbacks -- last season's starter, Gilbert, along with McCoy, Connor Wood and David Ash, received equal snaps throughout the spring.

McCoy was the most impressive of the group on Sunday. His solid 124 yards and a touchdown on 9-of-11 passing was highlighted by an opening drive with walk-on linemen and capped by a touchdown pass to walk-on receiver Patrick McNamara. All against the No. 1 defense. He also had the longest passing play of the day, a post pattern underneath the safeties for a 30-yard gain to Davis, the team's best receiver.

But the admitted uncertainty was perhaps only more so after Sunday.

"We're not going to evaluate them until the fall. We're really not. We're not going to walk out of here tomorrow morning and say, 'This guy is going to be the starting quarterback,'" Brown said. "You think we are. We're not.

"Because we really don't think anybody is ready to take over at this point."

Harsin's complex offense ("It's a bear," Brown said) is part of the reason why. Though Texas won't be practicing again until August, that doesn't mean the quarterback competition is dead until then. The starter will get his edge, Harsin says, in the film room, in late nights up studying the playbook.

"Bryan will expect them to know the offense when they get back, because he used very little today and there was still a little confusion with formations," Brown said.

It'll take what Brown called a great "mental summer" to earn an edge, and an even more impressive camp before that question mark at quarterback looks anything like a period. Colt McCoy made it an exclamation point for four seasons, and was on hand for Sunday's game, broadcast nationally on ESPN. Texas' success got them their own television network. The officially christened "Longhorn Network" unveiled its name and logo before the game and advertised during the match. But no amount of past success or money will get McCoy back in a Texas uniform, even if the NFL lockout extends into the fall. The change that was needed was on display Sunday.

"The big key for us right now is what do we do from this point until we come back in fall camp," Harsin said. "And you can grow leaps and bounds as a quarterback, and really every position, by studying and having a better understanding of what we're trying to get done. That will be the focus of this film session with these guys: Where do we go from here?"

Baylor, Texas and Texas Tech already have begun spring drills., but I'm kicking off my spring tour around the Big 12 campuses on Wednesday.

Here's a wide-angle look at the Big 12, with the five biggest questions hounding the conference to begin the spring.

1. Does it have a national championship contender or not? Oklahoma is by no means uncontested at the top of the Big 12, but it is a clear notch above Texas A&M and Oklahoma State as the favorite to win the conference. Additionally, there's a good chance the Sooners will open 2011 as the No. 1 team in the country. But in the two months before spring drills began, Oklahoma's had plenty of negative headlines off the field. Their best cornerback, Jamell Fleming, won't be with the team in the spring and his future is in doubt. Starting defensive tackle Stacy McGee was cited for misdemeanor marijuana possession. Star freshman Kenny Stills, a receiver, was arrested on a DUI complaint and his close friend, freshman safety Tony Jefferson -- also a California native and the Big 12 Defensive Freshman of the Year, was booked on a complaint for interfering with the official process in the incident with Stills. That's a lot of distractions, but the Sooners will need to end that list now to have the best chance of validating their preseason hype on the field. Oklahoma has no glaring weaknesses as it stands, but if academics or discipline keeps players off the field, that could change. The hype will only grow if the Sooners stay out of the police blotter and book a solid spring camp.

2. Is Texas over its "entitlement?" Is the new staff jelling with players? This should be a fascinating spring in Austin. For the first time in perhaps a decade, the Longhorns have a long, long list of things to prove. They'll try to do it with a youth-infused staff and it all begins this spring. The defense was decent last season, the offense was awful. Both will need to be great if the Longhorns are going to compete for a Big 12 title after a last-place finish in the Big 12 South. Is Texas up to the challenge?

3. Where are the quarterbacks? Think back to 2008. The Big 12 had -- by my count -- eight quarterbacks that could play for about anybody across the country. Sam Bradford won the Heisman. Colt McCoy was one of the best in school history, winning more games than any quarterback in college history and reaching a pair of BCS bowls, including a national championship appearance. Chase Daniel, Graham Harrell, Todd Reesing, Robert Griffin III and Josh Freeman were all solid. That's eight out of 10 teams in the current Big 12 with excellence under center. This year? I count four. Griffin is still around. Oklahoma and Oklahoma State are set with Landry Jones and Brandon Weeden and Texas A&M should be fine with Ryan Tannehill. Beyond that? It's pretty slim. Will we see breakout stars at Texas Tech, Missouri or Kansas State? All three have players who could be set for breakout years in Seth Doege, James Franklin and Justin Tuggle, but they'll have to win the job first and try to make a name for themselves if they can pull that off.

4. Are leaky defenses with new coordinators ready to support their teams' high-powered offenses? Texas Tech and Baylor both had offenses good enough to compete for a Big 12 title, but poor defense meant both had to settle for seven-win seasons and lower-tier bowl games. Both are back this spring with new coordinators. Veteran Phil Bennett is in at Baylor, and first-time coordinator Chad Glasgow will try to extrapolate the success he had coaching TCU's secondary into Texas Tech's secondary and defense, which ranked last in the Big 12 last year.

5. Can the Cowboys keep the status quo? Dana Holgorsen was the big story in Oklahoma State's spring camp last year, and he showed why during the season, turning the Cowboys into the Big 12's best offensive team. He's gone, and Todd Monken is taking over. Can the excellence continue? Bringing back all five offensive linemen will make it a lot easier. Skill positions look a lot better when quarterbacks have time and running backs have holes. Justin Blackmon and Brandon Weeden are back, but can their talents be showcased as two of the Big 12's best in 2011. They better be. If not, the Cowboys can rule out a Big 12 title.

Blaine Gabbert made the right decision by declaring for the NFL draft. ESPN's Scouts, Inc. has Gabbert as the No. 20 overall prospect in April's draft, and Gabbert received a first-round grade from the NFL draft advisory committee after he submitted his paperwork.

For every Jake Locker and Jevan Snead, there's a Sam Bradford: There's nothing wrong with sticking around another year if you're projected as a first-rounder, and the risk of injury is somewhat overrated.

Gabbert is a bit different. In Missouri's spread offense, he wouldn't have been much further along as an NFL prospect this time next year, and his size (6-foot-5, 240 pounds) and arm strength (ridiculous) are exactly what NFL teams want in a prospective future starter. His capability to make NFL reads and develop footwork on dropbacks wouldn't have been much further along, and for a guy with a promising future looming like Gabbert, he might as well get a head start. Now was the time.

The lack of an elite receiver like Jeremy Maclin or Danario Alexander kept Gabbert from posting jaw-dropping numbers in 2010, but he played well and notched Missouri's fourth 10-win season in school history. To Gabbert's credit, he didn't force very many plays this year, and did what he needed to do for Missouri to win games. Missouri notched 10 wins because of it.

Gabbert is a competitive guy, and he'd surely like to achieve more than he did -- he never played in a Big 12 Championship or won a bowl game -- but he still had a great career and will go down as one of the best quarterbacks in Tigers history. He'll lack the legacy of Heisman finalist and three-year starter Chase Daniel, but don't be surprised if Gabbert is better in the NFL than in college. He's an Academic All-Big 12 performer and a smart, coachable player who made clear strides for all three of his seasons at Missouri. I'd expect that to continue in the NFL.

For the Tigers, things get a bit complicated.

The knee-jerk reaction for some will write off Missouri as a Big 12 contender in 2011, but that's not necessarily what should happen. It'll be tough for Missouri to win, but they bring back plenty of talent, especially on defense and in a more experienced receiving corps with a stable of young running backs who all got experience this year. Talk about replacing starters all you'd like, but Oklahoma State lost a "franchise" quarterback in Zac Robinson and played a first-year quarterback in Brandon Weeden who had not made a start in nine years. His last start was in high school. That worked out pretty well for them. I'd say 11 wins is a pretty good season.

Replacing Gabbert will be crucial for Missouri not just in 2011, but in retaining its stability as a winner in the Big 12. Tommy Tuberville said it last week at the TicketCity Bowl: In the SEC, you win with running backs and defense. In the Big 12, you win with quarterbacks. That's exactly how Missouri has done it.

In the last four years, Oklahoma is the only team with more Big 12 wins than Missouri.

Sam Bradford, Colt McCoy, Chase Daniel, Zac Robinson, Graham Harrell, Todd Reesing -- the bar has been set high in this league, even in just the most recent few years.

And for Missouri, any hope they have of being a legitimate Big 12 contender hinges on the guy who steps in for Gabbert. And unlike Daniel and Gabbert were, choosing the next starting quarterback won't be a formality this spring.

James Franklin played more than any of Missouri's other young quarterbacks, but he was used mostly as a runner. He was a miniature version of Brad Smith, at the risk of Missourian heresy.

He has the arm strength, but his decision making ability is a question mark. His coaches probably have only a bit more information from what they've seen in practices. That's what Missouri has to figure out when spring practice kicks off in a couple months.

The true freshman threw all of 14 passes in 2010. That's not much of a sample size.

I'd expect a fierce competition between Franklin and Gabbert's younger brother, freshman Tyler Gabbert, as well as redshirt freshman Ashton Glaser.

Franklin's experience, however limited, gives him the edge. And the Tigers have a few proven playmakers in receiver T.J. Moe, tight end Michael Egnew and receivers Wes Kemp and Jerrell Jackson.

Franklin's legs produced a valuable change of pace, especially in the red zone. He ran 23 times for 116 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

But those legs won't win him the job in 2011. He has to prove it as a passer. Maybe he's Missouri's most accurate passer. Maybe it's the younger Gabbert or Glaser.

We'll find out soon. It should be an interesting spring in Columbia.

We're taking a look at some of the nation's higher profile bowl misses in 2010, and no one personified that in the Big 12 more than the Texas Longhorns.

How it happened: Well, for starters, Colt McCoy and Jordan Shipley took their talents to Ohio and the NFL. No receiver ever emerged to fill Shipley's void, and all other problems aside, first-year starting quarterback Garrett Gilbert threw 10 touchdowns and 17 interceptions. Good luck finding those kind of numbers on a winning team. No other Big 12 quarterback threw more than 13 interceptions, and only three had double-digits. Additionally, Texas' commitment to a power running game throughout the spring and fall was a certified flop. The Longhorns never found a consistent back, and the team's leading rusher, Cody Johnson, finished with just 592 yards. No one else had more than 400.

The defense had a good season on the stat sheet, but a first-quarter lapse against Oklahoma and a poor second half against UCLA resulted in a pair of early-season losses that derailed the season. The Longhorns still managed to beat Nebraska in Lincoln, vaulting them back into the top 25. But the win was a result of the Huskers getting caught off guard by Gilbert using his legs to jump out to an early lead, while the defense corraled Taylor Martinez. Texas' only win the rest of the season came over Florida Atlantic.

What needs to change: Texas has to find offense from somewhere. Freshman receiver Mike Davis offers hope, but of the Longhorns touted freshman receivers from the 2010 class, he was the only one to make a real contribution. Darius White didn't play much, and finished with just one catch. Gilbert must improve, and look for the Longhorns to ride tailback Malcolm Brown, a much-hyped 2011 commitment, in next year's offense.

Will they go bowling in 2011: Uh, we'll wait and see when they fill the coaching staff. Defensive coordinator Will Muschamp bolted for Florida, offensive coordinator Greg Davis was forced to resign and two other assistant coaches had to retire. What the Longhorns look like next year is anyone's guess. You'd like to think boatloads of top-tier recruits will get you to a bowl game regardless, but we saw this year that's not necessarily the case.

Colorado coach Dan Hawkins took to the microphone last month and explained one of the handful of reasons he was no longer the Buffaloes' head coach.

"There is way too much negativity around the program," he said. "It's important to move on and garner some energy."

Perhaps more than anything else, the same reason could be given for Greg Davis' tenure at Texas ending today. He's had "much-maligned" tacked on to the front of his job title for awhile now, and his supporters -- in Austin and elsewhere -- were dwindling.

The disaster that was Texas' 2010 campaign apparently turned the one who mattered most: Mack Brown.

The Longhorns' offensive struggles were more evident this season:

• The Longhorns' "power running game" produced no 1,000-yard rushers and a late switch back to a more pass-oriented offense was too late for a 1,000-yard receiver to emerge.
• Early-season struggles to top 35 points against Rice and Wyoming proved more than troublesome; Texas didn't score more than 22 points in a conference game this year.
• Scoring averages aside, how's this for a number: Texas scored 68 touchdowns in 2009. It scored 31 in 2010.

Even 2009 with senior Colt McCoy at quarterback saw plenty of struggles. Against two of the best defenses Texas faced all season, Nebraska and Oklahoma, the Longhorns mustered just 13 and 16 points, respectively.

Fortunately for Davis, the Longhorns' dominant defense and clutch kicking eked out a pair of wins to keep Texas perfect and on track for an appearance in the national championship game.

Davis had plenty of happy days and years as Brown's offensive coordinator, with a pair of Heisman-worthy quarterbacks and a national title for the pair's 13 years together in Austin after coming over from North Carolina.

Those years looked long gone, especially this season.

Now, with the negativity gone and the possibilities almost endless, the Longhorns can move on.