Dallas ? Oklahoma football coach Bob Stoops saw his team annihilated by Southern California, 55-19, in last year’s Bowl Championship Series title game and then destroyed by Texas, 45-12, last weekend.

Yet Stoops doesn’t want to make comparisons between the teams that are the favorites to be the last two standing when the Rose Bowl hosts this season’s BCS title game.

“It’s not a fair comparison because USC is a different team than a year ago, and I’m not much on commenting on other teams and people,” Stoops said after Saturday’s loss to Texas at the Cotton Bowl.

Others aren’t so shy, and some football pollsters have said that there is no question that USC, the two-time national champion and still ranked No. 1, is without peer.

Trojans vulnerable?

Yet the Trojans have shown signs of vulnerability, trailing by 21-3 at halftime of an eventual 38-28 win at Arizona State and falling behind by 13-0 in the second quarter of a 45-13 win at Oregon.

Colorado coach Gary Barnett celebrates after his team's first of three touchdowns in the first quarter against Texas A&M. Colorado will face No. 2-ranked Texas today.

In addition, the Trojans have to visit a revived Notre Dame (4-1) this weekend, while California (5-1) and UCLA (5-0) remain on the Pac-10 schedule.

Texas, meanwhile, hosts Colorado (4-1) and Texas Tech (5-0) in the next two weeks, the Longhorns’ stiffest Big Twelve competition.

Still, the 5-0 Longhorns, ranked second behind USC (5-0), have put themselves in a position of controlling their own fate.

“You never know what can happen in college football, but if you are unbeaten at midseason, you have a chance,” Texas coach Mack Brown said.

Texas doesn’t appear to have as many offensive weapons as USC, but in quarterback Vince Young, the Longhorns have the type of big-play performer who can almost single-handedly turn a game around.

Young improved his national profile after leading the Longhorns to last season’s 38-37 win over Michigan in the Rose Bowl.

“We’re not thinking of the Rose Bowl,” Young said. “We don’t want to look that far ahead.”

Texas coach Mack brown signals a touchdown in last week's game against Oklahoma in Dallas.

Two big wins

The Longhorns have two prestige wins this season, although the victory over Oklahoma doesn’t carry the weight that was earlier anticipated. Oklahoma, which has competed in the BCS title game in three of the previous five years, is 2-3 and struggling to score.

Even the Longhorns’ 25-22 win at Ohio State lost a little luster when the Buckeyes were beaten Saturday by Penn State.

Even though the 6-foot-5, 233-pound Young draws most of the attention, Texas has plenty of other weapons.

Freshman Jamaal Charles has more than adequately replaced Cedric Benson, the fourth pick of the NFL draft now with the Chicago Bears.

Charles, who had an electrifying 80-yard touchdown run against Oklahoma before tweaking his ankle, has rushed for 563 yards and six touchdowns and is averaging 8.8 yards per carry.

The defense is among the fastest in the nation and is led by senior linebacker Aaron Harris, who leads the team with 47 tackles and four sacks, and senior safety/cornerback Michael Huff, who has 27 tackles.

Keeping up with the high expectations is another matter. While Texas is considered one of the crown jewels of college football, the fact remains that 1970 was the last time the Longhorns won the national championship, the third in school history.