It is important to know who you are.
"It's extremely important to figure out who you are and what you're good at," Davis said. "You're not going to be a very good football team if you don't have an identity."
Need proof of how having an identity is important? It will be on display Saturday when the Longhorns host Colorado. Texas (4-0) has figured its identity out. Colorado (1-3) has not.
There's more to it than calling Texas a passing team or Colorado a running team. Identity might not be about passing or running at all.
"To me, having an identity is knowing what you do best and what you execute the best," Davis said. "You need to have a group of plays that you run really well, that every player is confident will work. And then those plays need to be run five to seven times a game."
Good advice from Mack Brown... Watch out for the poisoned cheese.
Ask coach Mack Brown and he will bring up Houston's shocking 58-41 loss to Texas-El Paso, a team the Longhorns blasted by 57 two weeks ago. It's a nice opportunity to coach 'em up against a team that would struggle to win an intrasquad scrimmage.
"We always talk about the poison cheese,'' Brown said, a team reference to being overconfident.
And what did your players say after hearing about the Houston collapse, Mack?
"They were saying, 'Coach, (Houston) ate the cheese,'' Brown said.
There is a lot more to Jordan Shipley besides the roommate designation.
You’d think that between having spent six years in the same program and being on pace to become only the second player in school history to have 100 catches in a season, a receiver’s value would be well-known.
But Texas coach Mack Brown still calls Jordan Shipley one of the most underrated players on his team.
"I don’t think there’s any question that Jordan Shipley is underrated," Brown said. "He’s the same guy every day. He’s got the same attitude every day. I don’t think that Jordan is appreciated like he should be outside of our team. Our team and our staff know how valuable he is to us."
There's some depth in our o-line.
The concern about depth along the Longhorns' offensive line has eased slightly. Coach Mack Brown pointed to the development of juniors Tray Allen of South Grand Prairie and Brett Mitchell.
"We did not have the depth at the start of the season on the offensive line that we have now, and even some of the offensive linemen said that it helped them a lot during the UTEP game with the intense heat to get a break and rotate," Brown said.
Defensive back Kenny Vaccaro will miss the Colorado game with a knee injury.
USA Today has a prediction.
All the Buffaloes need to do now to fulfill coach Dan Hawkins' guarantee of a 10-victory season is to run the table and win their bowl game. There's a better chance of the Lamar Odom-Khloe Kardashian "wedding" making it to the New Year. Texas 45, Colorado 13.
The Austin American-Statesman has a good article on concussions.
The Aggies have protection issues.
Texas A&M allowed a Big 12-worst 39 sacks in 2008 and pass protection re-emerged as an issue in last week's 47-19 loss to Arkansas.
A&M (3-1, 0-0 Big 12) gave up two sacks and nine tackles for loss against the Razorbacks. Junior quarterback Jerrod Johnson was repeatedly on the run and completed only 25 of 49 passes after the first quarter, when the Aggies built a 10-0 lead.
"I thought our quarterback was put under duress way too many times in order for us to be successful in the game, and obviously the offensive line plays a part in that," coach Mike Sherman said.
Oklahoma
Offensive lineman Trent Williams did not enjoy the BYU and Miami games.
A month into its season, the losses have overcome Williams and the rest of the Oklahoma team. The Sooners already have as many losses in four games as they did in 14 a season ago. Preseason national championship aspirations have come and gone.
"I beat myself up all Saturday and Sunday," Williams said. "Like, if only I could have stepped it up, maybe I could have been that difference."
More painful is the way the Sooners have lost. Rather than not being good enough, they haven’t been healthy enough.
Cameron Kenney is just what the Sooners need.
With tight end Jermaine Gresham out for the year and slot receiver Ryan Broyles sidelined for at least this week with a fractured shoulder blade, the Sooners are desperately searching for playmakers at receiver.
Kenney showed he’s capable of filling that role, after snagging six passes for 72 yards and a touchdown against the Hurricanes.
"I thought Cameron Kenney really showed some signs that are really positive for us," coach Bob Stoops said. "It was really exciting to see him make some plays when we needed him to. You hope it will continue. It needs to."
ESPN's Tim Griffin has his predictions for the weekend.
Backup quarterbacks are a hot commodity in the Big 12.
Texas Tech's Steven Sheffield and Baylor's Nick Florence were just names on a depth chart before Saturday.
Their combined college game experience totaled six passes. Then the anonymity ended.
Injuries forced Sheffield and Florence into games. Each delivered victories with clutch performances. In the process, they underscored the growing importance of backup quarterbacks in the Big 12.
Three of the six South teams went to their backups last week. The sidelined quarterbacks read like a cross-section of August cover stories: Heisman winner Sam Bradford of Oklahoma, Robert Griffin of Baylor and Texas Tech's Taylor Potts.
Need information on the Dez Bryant situation? Guess who has the story?
The North
What's the most exciting news in Boulder? Well, it isn't football. It is black bears and snow.
Dan Hawkins isn't much on motivation techniques.
"I've never been a big believer long term in extrinsic motivation," Hawkins said. "Every sports psychologist will tell you that's not the road to go down."
What team is providing the best protection for their quarterback?
Say what you want about the Iowa State football team that plays at 16th-ranked Kansas on Saturday. Just don't dis the offensive line.
That unit protects quarterbacks better, at this point in the season, than any front in the nation.
The South
The Raiders are ready for Brandon Carter's return.
Carter has switched between left and right guard all season. He started his last three games at right guard next to tackle Marlon Winn, who said he's relieved that Carter will be back for the Red Raiders' lineup Saturday against Kansas State.
"I missed him more than anybody else ‘cause I’m used to playing next to him," Winn said during Tech’s weekly news conference Monday. "I’ve played next to him for two years straight. It was a little different working out chemistry with (Tech guard Chris) Olson next to me. But we’re glad to have him back this week, and we’re just excited to get back to what we were doing."
The Bears get a boost from blocked kicks.
It’s a simple cheer, straightforward in its directive.
When an opposing team sets up for a field goal or extra-point attempt, the cry arises from the Baylor student section: "Block that kick! Block that kick!"
The Bears have been more than happy to oblige.
The Scripps Howard Heisman Trophy poll has McCoy at No. 2.
1. Tim Tebow, QB Florida 42 (6) Did not play.
2. Colt McCoy, QB Texas 31 (2) Did not play
3. Jimmy Clausen, QB Notre Dame 21 (2) 23-of-32, 422 yards passing, 4 TDs, INT
4. Tony Pike, QB Cincinnati 12 23-of-42, 270 yards passing, 2 TDs, INT
5. Case Keenum, QB Houston 10 51-of-76, 536 yards passing, 5 TDs
Florida's John Brantley and Ole Miss' Jevan Snead have Texas ties.
And finally...
Only in Arkansas. Would you want Barry Switzer as a spokesman for your business?