Colt McCoy is the face of the ‘07 Longhorns
Longhorn fans, here’s your team leader for 2007:
He’s Colt McCoy, the 20-year-old sophomore quarterback entering his second year as a starter.
The everyman’s kid brother, the one who hasn’t touched a drop of Dr Pepper or any other carbonated beverage since junior high, topped all expectations a year ago. Now, he could be the reason the fourth-ranked Longhorns can win big in 2007.
“He is trying to get perfection with everything he does,” said Texas coach Mack Brown. “He is just so much more confident and such a great leader.”
It does seem appropriate that the milk-drinking McCoy is the de facto bell cow of the 2007 Longhorns, a team that Brown has tagged as his youngest in the decade he’s been at Texas.
The official depth chart for Saturday’s season-opener won’t be released until Monday morning. But judging by the comments made by Brown and his staff during preseason, at least 20 freshmen and sophomores will figure in the 44-player, two-deep plans.
None will have a bigger role than McCoy, but fellow sophomores, such as tight end Jermichael Finley, linebacker Rod Muckelroy and cornerback Deon Beasley, could be stars by season’s end.
Brown likes to quote coach Darrell Royal when talking about the makeup of his team. The freshmen want to play, he says. The sophomores desire to be stars. The juniors want to win. And the seniors will do anything to make the victories happen.
Brown said he’s tried to manage his team differently this August. With so many younger players, he’s even had to go over simple logistics, from pregame meals to changing where the team enters Royal-Memorial Stadium on game days.
Overall, “they’ve done everything right,” Brown said. “We have pushed them really hard, and we’ve probably hit more in the spring and in the fall because of the younger guys. They’re tired and worn out, but they want to be good.”
The youth will be complemented by a blend of older players. They’ve mentored the youngsters throughout the summer. And they’ll have a big impact as well, as they seek to improve on a disappointing 10-3 season.
“We have a bunch of guys out there ready to work who have very high goals for the team and who are all about the team,” said junior receiver Quan Cosby, who gave up pro baseball three years ago. “It has been a very inspiring camp.”
Tony Hills, a senior offensive tackle, was laughing earlier in the month that his team didn’t really have many “characters.” Everyone is more low-key, he said.
For Hills and senior receiver Limas Sweed, the game of choice is the always-controversial dominoes. Their games do get competitive, though; trash talk is exchanged.
The older Longhorns are known to be bookish, as well as athletically gifted. Twelve are set to graduate in December. Center Dallas Griffin already earned his degree in the spring and is in graduate school.