The Texas Longhorns have not won a national title since Vince Young was the starting quarterback during the 2005 season for Texas. Young led one of the greatest comebacks in college football history against the USC Trojans in the national championship game.
This game alone placed Young as one of the greatest college football players over the last 25 years and possibly all-time. He played for three seasons with the Longhorns before getting drafted third overall by the Tennessee Titans in the 2006 NFL Draft. Where does Young rank amongst the greatest players in college football over the last 25 seasons?
Texas Longhorns Quarterback Vince Young Ranked Seventh In Last 25 Years Of College Football
Bruce Feldman of The Athletic ranked his Top 25 college football players over the last 25 years. It is not a surprise that Young was ranked in the Top 10. However, he was ranked number seven on this list. For a player like Young, this feels kind of low for the former Longhorns quarterback. Feldman said,
“Texas hadn’t won a national title in 35 years before Young got rolling. There were some growing pains with Young and the Longhorns early in his career, but coach Mack Brown ended up giving Young the keys to the offense and UT took off. He ran for four touchdowns and 199 yards in a 38-37 win over Michigan in the Rose Bowl to cap the 2004 season, then became the first player to throw for over 3,000 yards and rush for over 1,000 in the same season in 2005.
He saved his best game for last when undefeated Texas faced USC, which was riding a 34-game winning streak. The Trojans had a 12-point lead with under seven minutes remaining in the fourth quarter but they just couldn’t stop Young, who ran in two late touchdowns to propel the Longhorns to the win.
“They had always had the talent, but he gave them the swagger and the confidence, which was exactly what they needed,” said CBS college football analyst Brian Jones, a former star linebacker at Texas. “He transformed that locker room. He was so special. To his credit, Mack allowed him to take control. He recognized that, ‘OK this dude is different.’””
When he had his best collegiate season in 2005, Reggie Bush of the USC Trojans won the Heisman Trophy as the star running back for that football program. Bush and Young were the two best college football players of the 2005 season.
Career: 6,040 yards, 61.8%, 44 TDs, 28 INTs, 163.9 rating; 457 rushes, 3,127 yards, 37 TDs
Best season: 2005; 3,036 yards, 65.2%, 26 TDs, 10 INTs, 163.9 rating; 155 rushes, 1,050 yards, 12 TDs
His NFL years did not go as planned, but this doesn’t take away what he accomplished at the college level. Arch Manning is looking to be the first Longhorns quarterback to lead Texas to a national title during the 2025 college football season since Young did it 20 years ago for this prestigious football program.
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