Texas Longhorns

The day is here, friends.

It's Basketball Christmas.

Hope you enjoy all the games today, and it's time to celebrate a little hoops on the blog.

We've done it in the past, and I'll do it again. If I had to craft a hoops team from guys on the gridiron, here's who I'm taking.

PG: Tavon Austin, WR, West Virginia

The man makes plays with the ball in his hand. That wouldn't change on the hardwood. He led he nation in all-purpose yards and the 5-foot-9, 174-pounder could help put some points on the board. The Big East leader in punt returns is a man I'd want with the ball in his hands as much as possible.

SG: Roy Finch, RB, Oklahoma

Nobody in this league is shiftier, and Finch has the most lethal spin move in the country. Anybody stopping him from taking it to the tin? No way. Good luck staying in front of him. Maybe he's a little undersized at 5-foot-7, 166 pounds, but I'll take him as my slasher/scorer.

SF: Collin Klein, QB, Kansas State

You want versatility? (Obviously, yes). You got it with Klein. The big man can do it all. At 6-foot-5, 225 pounds, he can help get physical down low, but offer some good speed and athleticism on the outside, too. Sure, his shot looks a little wonky, but it gets the job done.

PF: Steve Edmond, LB, Texas

Edmond's packed on a little weight, and you know nobody wants a Texas middle linebacker in the middle of the paint on the glass. The 6-foot-3, 260-pounder is a little undersized in height, but he'll make up for it with toughness.

C: Tayo Fabuluje, OL, TCU

The big man in the middle checks in at 6-foot-7 and 315 pounds. You want to tell me he wouldn't be a beast on the boards? Good luck blocking him out. The man makes his living blocking others and has the size to make sure you don't get past him in the paint.

Coach: Bill Snyder, Kansas State

So, maybe my team doesn't have the best shooters. It doesn't have the biggest size -- at least, in terms of height. But you and I both know the right man for the job to bring this group together. Snyder could take a one-day crash course with Princeton guru Pete Carril and have this team in championship shape in no time.

Who's on your dream team?

We're chatting today at 11 a.m. CT. Join Sean Adams for a lively discussion of Texas' first round NCAA tournament game, spring football and more.

Submit your questions here.

It's time for your daily dose of NCAA tournament coverage. The first night of the first round saw huge rallies by both Western Kentucky and BYU who lived to fight another day.

Syracuse, the No. 1 seed in East Region (which features the Longhorns), will be without one of their best with Fab Melo being ruled ineligible.

Dana O'Neil takes a look at each team's fortunes and what will determine their tourney fate.

Here's what she had to say about Texas:

Write 'em in: This team goes as J'Covan Brown goes. The best returning player for coach Rick Barnes, Brown has basically carried a young Longhorns team to an unexpected berth, averaging 20 points per game. Point guard Myck Kabongo has been good, if at times erratic, like most young players are. Brown needs to be sensational, and Kabongo controlled for Texas to win.

Write 'em out: This team isn't terribly complicated -- take Brown out of the offense and you've essentially taken the offense out of Texas. Other guys can score, but the Longhorns absolutely need Brown to be in double digits to win.

Write it down: Since 1956, Tom Anderson, the university's carillonneur, plays songs at 12:50 p.m., using the 56-bell chimes in the Tower. Since he takes requests, may we suggest "It's a Miracle" to emphasize the Longhorns' unexpected run to the tourney?

Jason King takes a look at Thursday and Friday's games and what to watch.

Finally, President Obama has submitted his bracket. Andy Katz visited the White House. The President has picked Kansas to win it all the last two seasons only to see the Jayhawks fail. This year, the Commander-in-Chief is taking the Tar Heels.

AUSTIN, Texas -- Eventually a game and a season will come down to a kick.

There was Kris Stockton against Texas A&M in 1998. Four seasons later Dusty Mangum hit a 27-yarder to beat No. 17 Kansas State in 2002. Controversy swirled around Hunter Lawrence’s 46-yarder in the 2009 Big 12 Championship game, but the quality of the kick could not be argued. And, not enough time has passed or may ever pass for people to forget Justin Tucker’s 40-yarder to beat Texas A&M one final time in 2011.

Over Mack Brown’s 14 years, there have been eight game-winning field goals made. None have been missed. Of course it could be argued any field goal missed in a close loss is a game-losing field goal. For instance, Mangum missing from 49 in the third quarter in the 39-37 loss to Colorado in 2001 could be considered a miss that changed the game.

But when the clock is at less than two minutes and the game is on the line, Brown’s kickers have never missed.

Now Texas is missing a kicker. Missing might be a tad strong. There are two enrolled right now. It’s just that neither has ever attempted a field goal in a game. And both Ben Pruitt and Will Russ are struggling in spring practice.

“We are not going to have the experience that we have had, but we have kicked with a lot of young kickers before,” Brown said.

True enough. But Texas has only had one true freshman kicker in the Brown era. That was Mangum in 2001. (Lawrence handled kickoffs as a true freshman.)

Now with the prospects on campus not panning out, Texas could be looking to true freshman Nick Jordan to take over as the field goal kicker.

Jordan has the credentials. He was considered one of the top five kickers in the country, played in the U.S. Army All-American game and missed only five field goals in high school.

“We saw him kick out on a 60-plus-yard field goal, and he pulled it a little bit left,” Brown said. “But so we have seen him with a very strong leg.”

Jordan might be better served with nerves of steel.

Unlike Mangum, who was surrounded by experienced talent and was a happy observer of many blowout wins his freshman year in 2001, Jordan could be involved in several key situations in several key games.

While Texas’ offense might be better in 2012, expecting it to take a quantum leap from the lowly levels of 2011 is, well, taking an equally large leap of faith. This, after all, was an offense that was 107th in red zone offense last season. In 53 trips it only had 27 touchdowns. (The offense in 2001 scored 38 touchdowns on 58 trips into the red zone.) That leaves a lot of room for field goals. Which, in turn, places a lot of pressure on a true freshman’s shoulders.

Mangum, who did not have the credentials of Jordan, handled it as well as could be expected. He was 18-of-26 in 2001. His only crucial misses were the aforementioned one against Colorado. (He made three others in that game.) In the only other loss that season, Mangum had a 35-yard attempt blocked in the second quarter against Oklahoma.

If Pruitt or Russ don’t straighten out their issues, and kicks, this spring or over the summer, Jordan could be thrown into similar pressure-packed situations just a month after he starts practice with the Longhorns in August.

ESPN Bracketologist Joe Lunardi takes a look at all 68 teams in the NCAA tournament.

Before you fill out your brackets, check out the video previews of the teams here.

If you're interested, here is Lunardi's take on the Cincinnati Bearcats.

Do you think your picks are solid? Do you have a winning NCAA tournament bracket? Prove it.

Let's have a little fun with March Madness. Come join our Tournament Challenge group and fill out your bracket before the games begin on Thursday and try to beat HornsNation.

The winner takes home a free one-year subscription to ESPN Insider.

If you're up for the challenge and want to take on the HornsNation staff. Prove it.

Sign up for free and join our group here.

Our top 25 has come and gone, but we're taking a deeper look at the list throughout the day on the blog.

As we do with every list, here are the guys who were probably good enough to be on the top 25, but didn't make the cut. After all, there's only so much room.

These are listed in no particular order.

Carrington Byndom, CB, Texas: Broke up 15 passes and picked off two passes, returning one for a touchdown. Also forced a fumble and of his 54 tackles, seven were for losses.

James Franklin, QB, Missouri: Threw for 2,865 yards, 21 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. Also rushed for 981 yards and 15 touchdowns on 217 carries.

(Read full post)