This is a gold-plated invitation to go deep.

So triple op and run, out of meanness, if not anything else.

Then go deep.

His comments show his assessment not just of this team or even just recent teams. He says, “Texas has NEVER been really a tough team…physically tough team.” He even crinkles his face when he says it.

I would think that a guy as old as he is would have seen Texas teams that everyone would have agreed were tough.

Dude stepped in it.

I have to admit that the critical majority of guys who are set to play the most snaps really DON’T seem to be all that tough. Looking at the list of Longhorns expected to start or rotate in for snaps regularly, I don’t see tough guys. Tougher than I am at this point? Probably. Tougher than Schnellenberger’s guys at FAU? Probably. But as physically gifted and good at football as some of these guys are, fellow like Orakpo, Kindle, Norton, Shipley, etc. don’t really look all that tough. They’ve all been held back by little dings over the past few seasons. A few, like McCoy (for a QB, at least), do seem to rub dirt on it, grit their teeth, and try to play at full speed, even if they can’t quite play like they can when healthy, but most seem to underachieve like hell. I think a lack of inspiration has led to a lot of underachievement and a lack of toughness, and that inspiration is lacking because of inadequate team leadership. I really think that’s what Vince Young did best: he inspired his teammates on BOTH sides of the ball to be tough, play up to or above their potential, and win. I think McCoy has the chance to grow into that kind of leader over the next year or two, but it might take too long or never happen at all. That’ll really be the key to whether UT gets back on track, whether that means making this season a great one or just setting the team up for a 2009 run.

“Tough”? Not really. But they COULD be, and I attribute any shortcoming in toughness to a lack of inspiration.