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During the 2005 season that ultimately led to the most recent national championship for the Texas Longhorns, the second game was one of the most important. The No. 2 Longhorns faced off with the No. 4 ranked Ohio State Buckeyes in Columbus, Ohio. This game would catapult the Longhorns toward the BCS National Championship Game. There was some adversity, however. After leading 10-0 through the first quarter, Texas would need a comeback effort.
Vince Young and the Longhorns found themselves down 22-16 heading into the fourth quarter. With under three minutes left, Young connected with Limas Sweed for a 24-yard touchdown pass to take the lead. The final score became 25-22 after the Longhorns defense added a safety with 19 seconds left in the game. Young discussed that the Longhorns needed to set the tone for the season in this game. That was the message from head coach Mack Brown.
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So how did Brown and team set the tone against Ohio State? Young sat down with former Georgia Bulldogs quarterback Aaron Murray as part of the Campus Lore Championship Moments series presented by Amway and XS Energy Drink to discuss the game at the Horseshoe:
“It definitely helped to know who our identity was,” Young said. “For the second game of the season, playing in that hostile environment down in the ‘shoe. Under the lights, I mean it was a tough game. At the same time, it wasn’t about them — it was about us. Like I said earlier, coach made us accountable thorugh that whole offseason. So when he said, ‘Hey guys, when we go down to Ohio State, it is going to tell us what type of team we are going to be.”
Young continued, “I really felt like the respect for Ohio State, those guys are really good. But it really wasn’t about them; it was about us. [And] we had to set the tone for that game. To let everybody know from the bowl game pickers, all the people in the polls and everything what type of team we were going to be.”