While Texas fans can debate until they are blue in the face which quarterback will go down as the best in program history, both Colt McCoy and Vince Young are the epitome of Texas football.
The question that has been asked for over a decade now “is Texas back?” is referring to the legacy left by Young and McCoy. The two combined to go 75-10 as the starters at Texas, with McCoy breaking many of Young’s records including wins as a starting quarterback (45).
However, while we all think back to McCoy as a dominant force in college, he recently revealed on the Green Light Podcast with Chris Long that after Vince Young’s historic Rose Bowl performance he had concerns about whether or not he could follow him up.
McCoy described Young’s performance as one of the best performances he has seen of all time, but in the midst of celebrating the championship Texas had just won, McCoy immediately realized he couldn’t dominate the way Young did.
While stylistically they had their differences, it is definitely fair to say that McCoy held his own as the starter at Texas. His No. 12 jersey is now retired, he became the only two-time All-America quarterback at Texas, a two-time Walter Camp Football Foundation Player of the Year winner, the 2009 Maxwell Award (collegiate player of the year), Davey O’Brien Award (nation’s top quarterback), and Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award (nation’s top senior quarterback) winner.
McCoy is now a journeyman quarterback in the NFL who has had a solid career after being drafted in the third round by the Cleveland Browns in 2010. He currently plays for the Arizona Cardinals as the backup and mentor former Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray.