Not this year, Aggies.

The pity date.

"It was tough — but that's fun," McCoy said. "You live for this moment.
Hey, if it came down to it, if we have to outscore them, then we'll
outscore them."

The Horns beat the Aggies 49-39.

The Longhorns (12-0) thrived on the ground and through the crisp night air, beating Texas A&M 49-39. They celebrated their final regular-season game as an undefeated team for the first time since the 2005 season, when NFL-bound quarterback Vince Young led Texas to its fourth national title.

This time, a different Texas quarterback was the star. Senior Colt McCoy was a tour de force, running for 175 yards and passing for 304.

He rushed for one touchdown — a 65-yard scamper down the middle of the field — and threw for four.

It was a great game.

“What a great football game,” Texas coach Mack Brown said. “I’m proud of the guys and proud of the way they continued to find a way to win.”

Can you hear the sigh of relief in his voice? The Longhorns had won their first 11 games by an average of 29 points. Only Oklahoma got close, losing by three. Since then, Texas had won five in a row by an average of 31 points.

"It goes back to doing what they tell you to do," McCoy said. "We want
back to the old-fashioned zone read. To be able to communicate the way
we did, handle the environment and stay in rhythm, that's pretty
special."

"We didn't execute very well. We didn't tackle very well. We've just
got to do a better job coaching," defensive coordinator Will Muschamp said.

The defense owes the offense dinner.

Defensive end Sam Acho stood up in the locker room and thanked the offense.

Next he should buy them lunch and dinner.

Well, he should split it with the rest of his defensive teammates.

For all the praise, awards and hype flung on the Longhorns defense this year, they almost cost Texas a shot at the national title.

Whatever else you say about this game, in the end the Aggie defense could not contain Colt McCoy.

At various points throughout the game, Texas A&M's defense was sliced, diced, chopped and smothered as the Longhorns generated 597 yards of offense. With surgical precision, Colt McCoy carved through the Aggies – picking on their linemen, linebackers and defensive backs in no particular order but with equal proficiency. In the first half, he accounted for all but 58 of Texas' 398 yards of offense.

The defense and special teams need a little work before the Big 12 championship game.

One week. So much to fix.

The Texas Longhorns walked away from Thursday's 49-39 victory exactly where they wanted to be, undefeated and 12-0.

They also walked away from the game exactly where they didn't want to be: struggling on defense and special teams.

Were the Longhorns exposed?

"I don't think so," defensive end Sergio Kindle said.

What happened?

"I don't know," Kindle said.

Thayer Evans on the Aggie game and the Horns' season in general:

And while Texas again underwhelmed Thursday night, it hardly seemed bothered. The Longhorns were instead celebrating their first 12-0 regular season.

But he did say McCoy had a spectacular performance Thursday night.

This season’s Heisman Trophy competition took another twist Thursday night with Texas quarterback Colt McCoy’s spectacular performance.

McCoy, who is locked in a wide-open Heisman race with Florida quarterback Tim Tebow and Alabama tailback Mark Ingram, completed 24 of 40 passes for 304 yards and 4 touchdowns and rushed for a career-high 175 yards on 18 carries in his third-ranked team’s 49-39 victory.

Dr. Saturday thinks the Horns have some new reasons to worry.

It could very well be that the 'Horns found themselves on the wrong end of the blossoming of a burgeoning offensive nightmare at A&M, with Johnson looking for all the world like he's finally caught up to the hype and nine of the top 10 skill players around him coming back next year as sophomores and juniors; the Aggies are an exceptionally young offense with a vault of momentum tonight they can draw on throughout the offseason.

The one thing Texas didn't need now, though, is the return of all the questions that had slowly receded as the defense continued to emerged as one of the most improved units in the country. UT had only won two games before tonight by less than 24 points (34-24 over Texas Tech and 16-13 over Oklahoma), both of which corresponded to the point spread going in. That wasn't the case tonight, which has the Longhorns looking at least slightly vulnerable for the first time, at the worst time.

Deon Beasley was back on the sideline at the end of the game.

Barking Carnival has the A&M post-mortem.

First, let’s give credit where it is due:  The Texas A&M players played a whale of a football game, especially on offense, and Mike Sherman and his coaching staff did a very fine job of preparing their team to exploit the previously un-exploitable Texas defense.  To put up 39 points on this defense is one hell of an accomplishment, giving Aggie fans everywhere another of the moral victories they have always liked to point to.

Seriously, nice job.

"After the game, I told him to go out and win a championship, a Big 12 championship 
and national championship."- Jordan Pugh on Colt McCoy.

Jerrod Johnson vs. Colt McCoy: A quarterback duel.

The 6-foot-5-inch, 240-pound junior from Humble ran for 97 yards. He completed 26 of 33 passes for 342 yards and four touchdowns, three to Jeff Fuller.

The Aggies, consequently, rolled up 532 yards, the most allowed by Texas' defense this season.

McCoy had impressive numbers, too, running for 175 yards and completing 24 of 40 passes for 304 yards and four TDs. But Johnson had to produce against a considerably stronger defense than the one that McCoy faced.

"He was going against a Heisman Trophy candidate, a possible winner, and I thought he played neck and neck with him," A&M coach Mike Sherman said.

A&M never gave up. They felt they should have won.

“There are some tears in the locker room right now,” A&M linebacker Michael Hodges said. “We're totally disappointed. No one is saying, ‘We gave them a good fight.' We wanted this game — we just didn't pull it out.”

When Aggies need a game date...

An Aggie teachable moment.

Since we’re big on teachable moments in the age of Obama, I thought it was time to give Longhorn fans a lesson in how Aggies really view The University of Texas and its fans.

This is important because too many Texas fans labor under the illusion that the Aggie you work with, or go to church with, or coach your kids’ little league team with is really a nice guy who doesn’t really buy into all that religious cult-like behavior that is ingrained into Aggie culture and collective mindset.  Trust me, your image of that Aggie is wrong.  You maintain that image of him in your mind because the Aggie, having been shamed into submission by a decade-plus of abject failure on the field of play doesn’t feel comfortable airing his real feelings in your presence.  But those feelings are there, simmering just below the surface, waiting to explode in an orgy of boorish Gomer-style taunts about “good bull” and “old Army” at the next sign of an Aggie triumph.