Longhorns seniors learned a lot from 2005 team

McCoy and the others watched a team that had come off an 12-1 season and BCS bowl win in 2004 return with a hunger for a title.

``They knew how good they became,'' coach Mack Brown said of the transition from 2004 to 2005. ``They knew they got in the mix, they kind of smelled it and felt it.''

The biggest lesson the current team could take from 2005 is how to finish the season, Brown said. For the 2005 squad, winning the Big 12 South and the league title to get the BCS championship were big goals — but they weren't enough.

``You have to finish,'' Brown said this week as No. 2 Texas (9-0, 5-0 Big 12) prepares for Saturday's game at Baylor (4-5, 1-4). ``You can't just get there and feel proud of yourself.''

Texas this season has been ranked No. 2 or 3 all season. In 2005, the Longhorns were No. 2 all the way to the Rose Bowl.

``The (2005) thing worked perfectly for us because as much as you could run under the radar for No. 2 all year,'' Brown said.

In 2005, quarterback Vince Young was a top Heisman contender just like McCoy is this season. After a tough 25-22 win over Ohio State, Texas rolled through the rest of the regular season, their closest victory being a 40-29 win at Texas A&M.

Texas' closest game this season has been a 16-13 win over Oklahoma. The Longhorns won their next four by an average of 31 points.

McCoy, who stays in regular contact with Young, was the scout team quarterback in 2005. He said that team laid the ``foundation'' for how to pursue a championship.

``You learn a lot from Vince in how to handle the pressures from week to week. It's hard to win games every week. To be a part of that, to see how they did it, to see how focused they were ... you've got to do it every day, especially on Saturday,'' McCoy said.

Texas' lineup is peppered with starters who were redshirt freshmen in 2005.

Offensive linemen Chris Hall and Charlie Tanner and linebacker Roddrick Muckelroy, Texas' leading tackler this season, all were part of the 2005 freshman class that had only 13 players and remains the smallest Brown has signed in 12 seasons.

``We're the best class, too,'' McCoy said. ``Sometimes in the locker room we joke about the few and the proud. When we came in, nobody was talking about us.''

Also on the sideline that season was wide receiver Jordan Shipley, who was taking a medical redshirt season and is now a sixth-year senior.

``We'll claim him,'' McCoy said.

SEAT OF YOUR PANTS: Jordan Shipley was exposed — sort of.

After his 273 yards receiving (a school record) against Central Florida, his teammates told the story of how he dropped his shorts and danced after scoring a touchdown during a summer passing drill.

Shipley didn't really show anything because he had on another pair of shorts underneath. But it was a lighthearted moment from a normally serious player who seldom jokes or even cracks a smile when talking to reporters.

``It was just kind of a fun deal,'' Shipley said with a sheepish grin. ``It's one of those memories of having fun out there with the guys.''

Shipley's 75 catches this season rank second nationally and his 1,050 yards rank fourth. His lowest output of the season was a four-catch game in Texas' 16-13 win over Oklahoma.

RUSHING NUMBERS: Tailback Vondrell McGee hasn't started in a month and hasn't had double-digit carries since Sept. 12 at Wyoming, but he's still leading the Longhorns with 275 yards rushing.

Cody Johnson, who scored two touchdowns last week against Central Florida, is getting his first start of the season against Baylor.

Johnson, 5-foot-11, 240 pounds, has run for 207 yards and leads Texas with nine rushing TDs.

McCoy led Texas with 561 yards last season, the lowest total for a team leader since Phil Hadnot's 501 yards in 1991.

BOWL ELIGIBLE? Sophomore safety Christian Scott could return for Texas' bowl game if he's cleared by the NCAA. Scott has been held out all season as academically ineligible.

``If he does his work and is eligible and they release him, then he could play,'' Brown said. ``They haven

t told us that he would play, but we've appealed to try to see if they would allow him to play if he is in good standing at the end of the semester.''

Scott has been allowed to keep practicing. If he is allowed to play in the bowl game, it likely would be on special teams, Brown said.

``It gives him something to look forward to and a goal,'' Brown said.

BY THE NUMBERS: A Texas win Saturday would give the Longhorns 10 consecutive 10-win seasons, the second longest streak in the nation. Florida State won at least 10 games every year from 1987-2000. Dating back to his final two seasons at North Carolina, Brown has won at least nine games 14 years in a row. He's the only coach in the country to do that ... Saturday will be the 99th meeting between Baylor and Texas.QUOTABLE: ``It is fun when you're winning.'' — McCoy, who has 41 career victories and at no point in his four seasons at Texas has had a losing record.