New York ? Don’t close the Heisman polls, yet.

Texas coach Mack Brown wants to make one more pitch for his 6-5, 235-pound junior quarterback Vince Young. Among other things this week, Brown said Young was one of the best players ever to play for the University of Texas and maybe in college football. “I think he’s a Hall of Famer in the NFL if he stays healthy and continues playing like this,” Brown said.

With USC off this week, Young will have the national stage all to himself today when the second-ranked Longhorns (10-0) play at Texas A&M (5-5) – a Big 12 rival that Texas has defeated five straight times – on national TV

That will give Young a shot to climb back into the Heisman race, but he may need to post huge numbers since USC tailback Reggie Bush provided us with some excitement last Saturday when he piled up a Pac-10-record 513 total yards in a 50-42 victory over Fresno State at the Coliseum. Bush might have gotten even more publicity if the Pac-10 and Fox Sports hadn’t opted for a 10:30 p.m. kickoff, eastern time.

Young has had his share of spectacular moments, too, passing for 270 yards and a game-winning touchdown in a victory at Ohio State, and piling up 506 yards total offense in a win at Oklahoma State. He is the second leading passer in the country with a 64 percent completion rate for 2,414 yards and 22 touchdowns. He also leads the unbeaten Longhorns with 774 yards rushing.

“I think the Heisman voters have a really difficult decision to make because there are three great players who have all helped their teams,” Brown said of Young, Bush and USC quarterback Matt Leinart.

Ducks in the Desert

Barring any unforeseen upsets, it looks like our projections for BCS games are on the mark.

We have Texas (Big 12) and USC (Pac-10) in the Rose Bowl; LSU (SEC) vs. West Virginia (Big East) in the Sugar Bowl; Penn State (Big 10) vs. Virginia Tech (ACC) in the Orange Bowl and Notre Dame (at large) battling Ohio State (at large) in the Fiesta Bowl.

But Oregon AD Bill Moos, coach Mike Bellotti and three members of Moos’ staff made a road trip to Phoenix in an attempt to change the future. They were lobbying hard for the Fiesta to select the 10-1 Ducks – who finished second to top-ranked USC in the Pac-10 – over Big Ten runner-up Ohio State (9-2) as a second at-large team.

If the Fiesta, which would lose its Big 12 anchor Texas to the Rose, selects Notre Dame with its first pick, as expected, the Ducks seem like a long shot since they have defeated only one ranked team, are playing without starting quarterback Kellen Clemens – who is out for the season with a broken ankle – and present a less attractive national story line than Notre Dame-Ohio State.

But what happens if the Fiesta takes Penn State instead of Notre Dame because of the Joe Paterno factor? That would all but rule out Ohio State because the two Big Ten rivals already have played Oct. 8 in Happy Valley, opening the door for Oregon since Bowls generally refrain from scheduling rematches.