From the other side: UT seniors add to legacy

Austin, Texas ? They joked with one another about not crying. If nothing else, they were going to make sure someone else cried first.

Mack Brown didn’t even make it out of the tunnel. He does the same thing every year when his seniors leave the locker room at Royal Texas Memorial Stadium for their final home game.

“I’ve been in all their homes,” he said. “You convince them to come here. You hope it’ll be a great experience. Each one of them has a story. They all say something to me as they come by. I get to the point I can’t talk.”

This senior class is different than his others. This one changed the perception of Texas football.

Remember when the Longhorns were soft? Remember when they couldn’t win the big one?

This senior class is 42-6 (tied for the most victories in school history with three games left). They’ve won 17 in a row. With a victory over Texas A&M, they’ll be the sixth Texas team in 80 years to have a perfect regular season.

Vince Young, a junior, is the most important player Brown has brought to Texas. He’s the biggest reason the Longhorns are going to play for the national title.

He’s the best player on a team that may have more talent than any in school history. He’s the reason the 10-0 Longhorns make it look easy.

They have more depth at running back than ever. They’ve got NFL-caliber offensive and defensive lines. And they have a swagger.

Kansas caught the full brunt of the Longhorns on Saturday afternoon. The final score was 66-14.

The Longhorns were up 52-0 at the half. They rushed for 336 yards against a defense that had allowed an average of 64 per game (No. 1 in the country). Three different Texas backs went for more than that.

When it was over, they said something about Kansas coach Mark Mangino insulting them after last season’s game. That’s just the kind of thing players say.

They’ve got so much riding on these final games that Mangino couldn’t have given them anything more to play for. And in the course of a long season, a season when they went to Ohio State and won, a season when they finally overcame Oklahoma, this was one of those snapshot moments.

This was the day the Longhorns said goodbye to their seniors. Young is the player who leads Texas, but Brown’s seniors are leaving a legacy of accomplishment and toughness that will be the standard for every future senior class.

“It has been a long ride,” said Rod Wright, a senior defensive tackle. “We’ve been through a lot. People criticized us for not being tough and not winning the big game. We’ve got something good going now. Right now, we just want to keep it going.”

There’s also offensive tackle Jonathan Scott, who’ll be a first-round draft choice next spring. He came down the tunnel and saw his parents smiling.

“It hits you that this is the last time,” he said. “We’ll never be here again. I remember my sophomore year people said our line was soft. I don’t hear that anymore. We’ve put that in the past. That’s a pride issue.”

Did he cry?

“The first person I saw was my dad,” he said. “He stands out. He had a look that said, ‘I’m proud of you.’ I was like, ‘Whew.’ I didn’t let (a tear) fall, but I was close.”

Scott is part of an offensive line that has given Young near-perfect pass protection.

“We don’t like anyone within five yards of Vince,” guard Will Allen said. “If Vince gets touched, we get a minus.”

The seniors are the ones responsible for one of the country’s best defenses. And they’re the ones who set a tone in terms of work ethic and seriousness. This was their day.

“It’s one of those days you’ll remember 20 years from now,” Allen said. “This whole year has been like that. Going to Ohio State. Playing OU. Game after game, we’ve made memories. We’re really proud of what we’ve put on the field.”

On days like this, you’re reminded that they’re just kids. Brown’s greatness as a coach always has been his ability to recruit, to touch people and convince them he wants what’s best for them.

Once upon a time, this gift was considered a weakness. NFL personnel whispered that Brown coddled players and never got the best out of them.

Brown is guilty of this. He wears his emotions on his sleeve. He hugs his players and leaves the screaming to others.

And when his seniors approached him before their final home game, he cried.

Afterward, the Longhorns reminded themselves that they still had three games remaining, that their most enduring memories hadn’t been made yet.

“Everything we came here to do is right in front of us,” tight end David Thomas said. “We’ve just got to grab it.”