Texas coach Mack Brown wants to run the ball. He has told anyone who will listen that very thing. He has talked about wanting to be more like a Southeastern Conference team. The SEC is physical with NFL-type players at every position. He has hired an offensive line coach, a defensive tackles coach and three defensive coordinators from the SEC. Major Applewhite was a play-caller in the SEC for Nick Saban at Alabama.
When I sat down with Brown last summer and discussed the 2009 season he said, "We could beat Colorado 38-12 and not make third down-and-2 and not worry about it. It was driving me crazy." Brown went on to say, "I knew we couldn't beat Alabama if we couldn't make third down-and-2. I wasn't worried about beating Colorado. I was worried about beating Alabama."
Brown has been successful at every place he has coached but has won his only championships at Texas. He won Big 12 titles in 2005 and 2009 with mobile quarterbacks Vince Young and Colt McCoy in a zone/option offense. They were both accurate passers, but their legs added the skill that got them over the top.