Hallelujah, this year's football preview magazine is done and off to the publisher -- which this year for the first time will be Lindy's. As always, putting together all the copy was both a ridiculous amount of work, but also extremely rewarding. And once again, I learned an incredible amount about Texas football, past and present.
The 2012 Texas football annual will be the sixth year that I've put one together, and as with previous years, I've put together a quiz with questions pertaining to some of the many things that I learned putting this year's magazine together. Give it a shot, and check your answers by clicking and dragging on the white text after the answer ("A: ") field. Oh, and be sure to leave a comment in the thread: I'll be randomly selecting a comment from the thread using a random number generator, and if it's yours, I'll send you a free copy of the magazine when it comes out.
1. Since 1947, nobody has attended more of the 701 Texas football games than Frank Denius, who has missed ____ home games and ____ road games.
A: Since 1947, Frank Denius has missed just 8 UT road games, and exactly 1 UT home game -- the Longhorns' 2008 home game vesus Missouri, which he missed to be in Dallas to receive the highest honor from the Congressional Medal of Honor Society.
2. Long before Reggie Bush helped the 2005 Longhorns win a national championship, one of Texas' previous title-winning teams was aided by an ill-advised lateral. Which UT team was it, and what happened?
A: The 1963 Longhorns almost had their perfect season ruined on Thanksgiving, when A&M's John Brotherton intercepted UT quarterback Tommy Wade late in the fourth quarter, only to fumble the ball attempting a lateral to a teammate, allowing Texas to score the game-winning touchdown.
3. Texas linebackers Emmanuel Acho and Keenan Robinson were the second-most productive linebacking duo in the Big 12 last year, finishing with ____ combined tackles, bested only by the 231 tackles by which pair of junior linebackers? Bonus: which linebacker led the Big 12 in tackles last year?
A: Acho and Robinson combined for 215 tackles in 2011, second only to Iowa State's AJ Klein and Jake Knott. Kansas's Steven Johnston led the Big 12 with 119 tackles.
4. As a professed admirer of advanced metrics in football, Manny Diaz will surely be glad to know that his first defense at Texas finished 4th in the nation in F/+, Football Outsiders official overall defensive rating metric. The only three defenses rated higher than the 2011 Longhorns were Alabama, LSU, and ____________________?
A: Oklahoma State finished with the No. 3 rated defense in 2011.
5. Speaking of things that make Manny Diaz smile, Texas' defense led the nation last year with 116 of these: ______________.
A: Tackles-for-loss.
6. The 2012 schedule will pit the Longhorns against three teams breaking in a new head coach this year. What teams, and who did they hire?
A: Kansas hired Charlie Weis to turn things around in Lawrence, Ole Miss welcomes native son Hugh Freeze to clean up Houston Nutt's mess, and New Mexico reached that lowest of low points where it seemed like a good idea to hire... Bob Davie. No joke.
7. The ringleader of Texas' 2013 recruiting class has already picked up a couple of nicknames. Who is he, and what are those two nicknames?
A: Jake Raulerson -- or if you prefer, "Maulerson" or "The Bell Cow."
8. Texas' trip to The Grove will be the team's _____ trip to play in Oxford, and the ______ overall meeting between Texas and Ole Miss.
A: September's game will be the Longhorns first-ever in Oxford, and the seventh match up with Ole Miss overall. The Longhorns are 5-1 all-time versus the Rebels.
9. When President Eisenhower ordered Frank Denius and the other 690 American soldiers on Hill 314 at the Battle of Mortain to hold their position "at all costs," the regiment was under attack by how many German troops?
A: Frank Denius was a forward observer for the 120th Regiment, which suddenly found itself under attack by 70,000 German troops. Thanks in no small part to Mr. Denius, the Americans held the position, and 270 men walked off Hill 314 alive.
10. After overhauling almost its entire staff last year, Texas returns both of its coordinators in 2012, but there will be plenty of new coordinators elsewhere in the Big 12 this season. How many can you name?
A: West Virginia promoted Joe DeForest and Keith Patterson to co-defensive coordinators; Mike Stoops returns to coordinate the Sooners defense; Tommy Tubberville once again changed defensive coordinators, this time bringing in UNC's Art Kaufman; Charlie Weis brings in Dave Campo to coach the defense, plus a combination of offensive coaches to coordinate the offense; and Courtney Messingham takes over as offensive coordinator for Iowa State.