AUSTIN, Texas -- Mack Brown begged and pleaded for his team
to get into the Bowl Championship Series.
Looks like it worked.
Texas (No. 5 ESPN/USA Today; No. 6 AP) is headed to the Rose Bowl to play Michigan after
squeaking past California in Sunday's final BCS standings to grab
an at-large berth in the four big-money bowl games.
Although Cal was ranked ahead of Texas in both polls Sunday, the
Longhorns were close enough that when combined with the computer
rankings, it was enough to leapfrog the Golden Bears.
It will be the first BCS and Rose Bowl appearance for Texas
(10-1). Michigan (9-2), which already knew it was in by virtue of
its shared Big Ten title with Iowa, will be in Pasadena, Calif.,
for the second straight year.
Texas, which plays in the Big 12, needed some late help to earn
a trip West.
After his team ended its regular season with a win over Texas
A&M on Nov. 26, Brown publicly pleaded with voters in The
Associated Press media poll and USA Today/ESPN coaches poll to give
the Longhorns the boost they needed to get into the BCS.
The Longhorns trailed California by a mere .0013 in last week's
BCS standings. The Golden Bears' 26-16 in over Southern Mississippi
on Saturday night failed to impress enough voters to keep them
ahead of Texas.
"As happy as we are today, I really feel sorry for Cal," Brown
told ABC. "Cal is a great football team. The system doesn't work
and we understand that .... We'll keep working at this system where
teams like Cal will be playing in the BCS. But I'm so happy for the
kids at Texas because they deserve to be there."
Rose bowl officials deflected questions about whether they were
disappointed about losing Cal.
"We have been traditionalists," said Dave Davis, president of
the Tournament of Roses. "(But) we understand the BCS rules. We
need to comply with the BCS rules. Therefore, we're going to put on
the very best game we can for these two wonderful teams."
The snub was sure to be a bitter blow to Cal coach Jeff Tedford
and his players, who were on the verge of the school's first Rose
Bowl berth since 1959.
"We're obviously very, very disappointed," Tedford said. "If
you have to go in and try to blow people out, I don't think that
serves the integrity of the game. It's not about one game, it's
about a season."
For Texas, the Rose Bowl is a BCS bid that's been a long time
coming.
Texas missed out in 2001 when the third-ranked Longhorns lost to
Colorado in the Big 12 title game. Last year, Kansas State's upset
of Oklahoma in the conference championship again bumped the
Longhorns down to the Holiday Bowl.
After so many near-misses, Texas players weren't about to
apologize for their good fortune and the thousands of burnt-orange
fans who will descend on southern California.
"It's our time," said senior safety Phillip Geiggar, who
greeted reporters with a red rose tucked behind his right ear. "We
have a great team and we've showed that."
And while the Longhorns' good fortune will be sure to cause some
arguing about an already controversial system, a Texas-Michigan
matchup on New Year's Day is one college football purists will
appreciate.0
Michigan (842) and Texas (786) rank No. 1 and No. 4
respectively, among the winningest programs in college football
history and boast of deep and proud traditions.
"It is two of the storied programs in the country," Brown
said. "You'll never have a group that's more excited to come to
Pasadena than the Texas Longhorns .... It's something a young boy
from Cookeville, Tenn. never thought he'd be a part of."
Michigan (No. 12 ESPN/USA Today; No. 13 AP) shared the Big Ten title because it ended the regular
season on Nov. 20 with a 37-21 upset loss at rival Ohio State.
The Wolverines are led by the freshmen backfield duo of
quarterback Chad Henne and tailback Mike Hart.
Hart's 124.7 yards rushing per game ranks ninth in the nation
and Henne was the first freshman quarterback to start a
season-opener at Michigan since 1975.
"It's a game that everybody in the country is going to want to
see," Michigan coach Lloyd Carr said.
Texas, which lost 12-0 to Oklahoma back on Oct. 9, has reeled
off six straight wins behind the running of Heisman Trophy
contender Cedric Benson, the No. 6 career rusher in Division I-A
history with 5,470 yards.