Never Retreat, Never Surrender | A Texas Longhorns Dynasty

[St. Francisco]

For those not paying attention, the Big XII is 7-0 in the postseason this year. If we win, that makes a perfect 8-0 record.

[St. Francisco]

[St. Francisco]

BCS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME





#2 LOUISVILLE CARDINALS (12-1, 10-0)
VS.
#1 TEXAS LONGHORNS (11-2, 8-2)

For the second straight year, Texas appeared in the BCS National Championship game...and for the second straight year, they exited the stadium on the losing side. Up against the cinderella Louisville Cardinals, the Longhorns committed three costly turnovers and allowed 476 yards as they lost a heated offensive shootout 38-31.

Spirits may be down in Austin, but Kentucky is in full celebration mode as Louisville brings home the first BCS national championship in school history. Naturally, no player was more crucial to the team's success than senior quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, who completed 14 of 23 passes for 317 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions, and also led the team with 78 yards and another score off 19 carries on his way to being named player of the game. His go-to man was senior wide receiver Eli Rogers (pictured above), who had five catches for 115 yards and a touchdown, including a 61-yard TD pass late in the fourth quarter that broke a 31-31 tie. Michaelee Harris also had a productive day, catching four balls for 97 yards and a score. Brigewater led the rushing effort, but junior runningback Braylon Heard contributed as well, rushing for 32 yards and a pair of touchdowns off 10 carries, while backup Corvin Lamb added nine carries for 49 yards. Defensively, senior Kamal Hogan (FS) had the biggest contribution by recording three tackles and two game-changing interceptions, one of those in the endzone that killed a scoring drive for Texas.

As for the Longhorns, they were forced to swallow another bitter loss after putting together an eight-game winning streak to end the season and sneak into the title game. In his final collegiate game, David Ash wrapped up an unspectacular career by completing 13 of 23 passes for 160 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. In his three years of significant playing time, Ash completed 51% of his passes for 5,608 yards, 53 touchdowns, and 30 interceptions. Leading the receiving corps was senior Miles Onyegbule, who had four catches for 57 yards and a score. On the ground, senior runningback Joe Bergeron predictably led the team with 133 yards and a touchdown off 22 carries, averaging six yards per touch, while backup Jonathan Gray added 52 yards and a score off 10 carries. Bergeron will almost certainly go down as one of the most memorable backs in Texas history, racking up 3,694 yards and 36 rushing touchdowns for an average of six yards per carry in his three-year career. Texas' defense recorded four sacks and forced a fumble, but also allowed 476 yards of total offense in the loss.

Missing out on their second straight shot at being crowned the best team in college football, the Longhorns will now turn to the offseason, where they will graduate 16 players and look to fill the gaps left by anyone declaring for the NFL draft early.

2015 BCS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
Jan 7, 2015	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
#2 Louisville Cardinals (13-1, 10-0)	14	7	10	7	38
#1 Texas Longhorns (11-3, 8-2)	7	7	10	7	31

Team Stats Comparison
	LOU	TEX
Total Offense	476	403
Rushing Yards	159	243
Passing Yards	317	160
First Downs	18	27
Punt Return Yards	7	27
Kick Return Yards	108	106
Total Yards	591	536
Turnovers	1	3
3rd Down Converstion	6-11 (54%)	3-8 (37%)
4th Down Conversion	0-0 (0%)	0-3 (0%)
2-Point Conversion	0-0 (0%)	0-0 (0%)
Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals	3-3-0 (100%)	6-4-1 (83%)
Penalties	9-124	7-52
Posession Time	29:06	30:54

[St. Francisco]

FYI, I've added some recruiting rules and requirements for teams moving up to BCS conferences on post #1.

[St. Francisco]

[St. Francisco]

2014 SEASON STATS

[St. Francisco]

APPLEWHITE SIGNS FIVE-YEAR EXTENSION AS TEXAS HEAD COACH
Although he's had his fair share of ups and down in his three-year tenure with the team, Texas head coach Major Applewhite has made tremendous strides in returning the Longhorns to perennial national powerhouses, and has been rewarded with a five-year contract extension. Since taking over for the retired Mack Brown in 2012, Applewhite has posted a 32-9 (23-6) record, including back-to-back conference titles, three straight bowl appearances, and back-to-back national title berths. And with another stellar recruiting class coming in this season, the sky is the limit for a team that promises to be one of the most talented rosters in college football for years to come.

[St. Francisco]

[St. Francisco]

[bhurst99]

Great job with this dynasty. Love you graphics, very easy to read

[St. Francisco]

Great job with this dynasty. Love you graphics, very easy to read

Thanks man, I've had 10+ years to perfect it lol.

[St. Francisco]

DANIEL PRATT NAMED STARTER AT QUARTERBACK
Celebrated as one of the best recruits in Major Applewhite's first offseason as head coach, former athlete and third-year sophomore Daniel Pratt has been named the starting quarterback for the 2015 season. After a redshirt year, Pratt spent 2014 as the 3rd string option on the depth chart behind David Ash and Connor Brewer, but showed tremendous improvement in the spring to beat out Brewer for the starting job this year. In addition to showcasing his above average on-field awareness, and a nice blend of arm strength and accuracy, Pratt is also one of the faster players on the team, which will make him a dual threat nightmare for opposing defenses.


JONATHAN GRAY NAMED STARTER AT RUNNINGBACK
After rushing for over 1,000 yards and ten touchdowns as Joe Bergeron's backup last season, Jonathan Gray has been named the starter at runningback. Backup Daje Johnson will also see significant playing time as the team continues it's tradition of a dual-threat backfield. Johnson will also continue to handle the kick and punt return duties.


CAPPS, JINKENS, WHALEY LEAD NEW-LOOK LINEBACKER CORPS
All three of the team's starters at linebacker have graduated, ushering in a new era at the position. Third-year sophomore Joey Whaley will get the nod at middle linebacker, while sophomore Brandon Capps and junior Peter Jenkins will handle the starting duties at outside linebacker.


SECONDARY TO SEE SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN 2015
Both Josh Turner and Sheroid Evans are gone at the safety positions, allowed third-year sophomores Chris Fogle and Willie Singletary to take over the starting spots early in their careers, and grow into a fearsome duo. At cornerback, Bryson Echols has leapfrogged Kendall Sanders as the #2 cornerback on the depth chart, due in large part to his tremendous on-field awareness.

[St. Francisco]

2015 TEAM DEPTH CHART

[St. Francisco]

If you take a close look at the depth chart, the first thing you're likely to notice is that I have just one starting senior, and that's at kicker. I have only six seniors graduating, so this is going to be a very small recruiting year for me.

[St. Francisco]

2015 PRESEASON PREVIEW