Texas wins easily, now the waiting gets tough

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — All Texas and Colt McCoy can do now is wait.

McCoy passed for two touchdowns, ran for two more and No. 4 Texas snapped a two-game losing streak to rival Texas A&M with a 49-9 victory Thursday night, a performance that may or may not have been impressive enough to boost McCoy’s chances for the Heisman Trophy and his team’s position in the Bowl Championship Series.

The 40-point win was the largest in the rivalry since a 48-0 Texas victory in 1898.

McCoy was 23-of-28 passing for 311 yards and he added 49 yards rushing for Texas (11-1, 7-1 Big 12) to earn his first win over the Aggies (4-8, 2-6) in three tries. He also got career victory No. 31, passing Vince Young to set a Texas record for starting quarterbacks.

Cody Johnson ran for 102 yards and two scores for the Longhorns, with most of his yards coming in the fourth quarter when the game was already out of reach.

Texas, No. 2 in the BCS standings, now must wait to see what happens this weekend to determine if its national title dreams are intact. The Longhorns are in prime position for at least a berth in a BCS bowl, but need some help if the team that spent a month at No. 1 will be able to play for the Big 12 title and BCS national championship.

A potential three-way tie for the Big 12 South division could swing to No. 3 Oklahoma if it beats No. 11 Oklahoma State on Saturday and leaps Texas in the BCS rankings. Even if the Sooners lose, No. 7 Texas Tech still holds a head-to-head tiebreaker with the Longhorns going into the Red Raiders’ game against Baylor.

That’s why Texas needed a big win over a big rival in front of a national television audience. Style matters at this point in the season and the question now is whether Texas’ victory impressed BCS voters. The Associated Press rankings are not part of the BCS.

While the final score was lopsided, the Longhorns quickly found themselves in a physical battle.