The Texas Longhorns finally had their chance.
After missing out on the BCS National Championship Game in 2008, the Colt McCoy-led Texas Longhorns had their shot at redemption, when they took on Nick Saban and the Alabama Crimson Tide in the Rose Bowl in 2009.
The stage was set. The Longhorns were confident. They were ready.
And then it happened.
“We called option to the left, and Saban blitzed the nickel off the edge and took the back away, so I had to, like, kind of duck it up in there,” McCoy said during an episode of The Triple Option podcast. “And as soon as I put my foot down, they collided with me. It wasn’t like a crazy hit, it just caught me the right way, folded me, and my whole right side just went completely numb… To be honest, I’ve dealt with that injury my whole career. It’s something that I’ve had to stay on top of. If I sleep wrong, it’s the same deal. So I’m reminded of that all the time.”
Jan 7, 2010; Pasadena, CA, USA; Texas Longhorns quarterback Colt McCoy (12) is tackled during the first quarter of the 2010 BCS national championship game against the Alabama Crimson Tide at the Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images
The one player that the Longhorns could not afford afford to lose was out of the game.
As a result, a true freshman named Garrett Gilbert took over the offense, and the rest was history. The Crimson Tide went on to win a battle that was closer than the score indicated, and the Longhorns were sent packing.
But what it if hadn’t happened? What if McCoy had stayed healthy for the whole game? Would the Longhorns have won their second national title in four years, and delayed the beginning of the Nick Saban Dynasty in Tuscaloosa?
The vast majority of Longhorns fans hold that belief.
And during the podcast, McCoy debated Mark Ingram about that very question, with each holding a… well, different point of view.
Jan 7, 2010; Pasadena, CA, USA; Texas Longhorns quarterback Colt McCoy (12) walks on the sideline during the third quarter of the 2010 BCS national championship game against the Alabama Crimson Tide at the Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
Ingram, of course, believes the Tide still would have emerged victorious.
“We still would be in the same position we are today,” Ingram asserted. “It’s much love. But when you went down, we had a plan for you, you know what I mean? We studied tape. We had a plan for you. When you went down, it threw a wrench.”
But McCoy? At the very least, he believes the Horns would have scored some points, and made things more difficult on the Tide.
“I mean, I just, I think we would have scored some points,” McCoy said. “I think, you know, Mark probably wouldn’t have gotten as many touches, because they’d have to spread him out and throw the ball. And as you know, we felt pretty good going in that game too.”
And he obviously has a point.
Heading into that game, McCoy had thrown for 3,521 yards and 27 touchdowns, while rushing for 348 yards and three more scores. Meanwhile, the Longhorns offense was averaging 545 yards of total offense, as well as 39.3 points per game – the third-best mark in the country.
So yes, it made a pretty big difference.
But McCoy being McCoy, at the end of the day, he took the politically correct road.
“I wish,” McCoy said when asked if he would have gotten a ring. “I’m happy for Mark. If there was anybody that was going to come out on top, you know Mark had a heck of a career.”
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Publish date : 2024-09-04 08:57:00
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