Alamo Bowl: David Ash named Texas starting quarterback

The Texas Longhorns have a starting quarterback for their matchup against Oregon State in the Alamo Bowl, as head coach Mack Brown revealed that sophomore David Ash will be the starter.

There have been differing reports about which quarterback has been receiving the most repetitions this year, but Brown indicated that Ash has been named the starter in part because he's healthy once again after suffering a rib injury against TCU that had him termed as "questionable" for the regular season finale against Kansas State.

Since it appears that the Longhorns will not offer a junior college quarterback for the spring, Ash is once again the odds-on favorite to be the starter for the next two seasons, barring a major surge from redshirting freshmen Connor Brewer and Jalen Overstreet.

In that regard, the Alamo Bowl game is another important contest for Ash, who needs to once again show the same improvement that he did from his struggles late in his freshman year to his solid performance in the Holiday Bowl.

That means showing an ability to handle adversity in the early going for the first time in his career, if necessary. Otherwise, Ash needs to prove that he didn't regress late after his strong start to the season.

The Alamo Bowl will be hugely important for Mack Brown and the perception of the program heading into the offseason. The game will be just as big for Ash and the quarterback position moving forward.