Texas Longhorns

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)

We're chatting today. Send in your questions about recruiting, spring football or the Longhorns chances in the NCAA tournament.

Submit your questions here. Join us today at 2 p.m. CT.

The top 25 players list is finished, and it's time to look back and stack up the results. Here's how the list shook out:

BY TEAM

1. Oklahoma State: 5 players
2. Oklahoma: 4
2. Texas A&M: 4
4. Iowa State: 3
4. Kansas State: 3
4. Baylor: 3
7. Texas: 2
8. Missouri: 1 (Henry Josey)
9. Kansas: 0
9. Texas Tech: 0

• Both of Texas' players were defenders. Texas has actually never landed an offensive player in any of my top 25s, from the preseason and postseason top 25s in the 2010 and 2011 seasons, respectively.
• I'll list my honorable mentions later today, but Mizzou had a couple that just missed the cut. Josey probably would have been in the top five if not for his injury.
• The same is true for Texas Tech running back Eric Stephens, who simply missed too many games to warrant inclusion. He could have been top 10-15 otherwise.
• Texas A&M proves once again that it's one of the league's most talented teams ... and finished 7-6 after going 9-4 in 2010. Both years, the Aggies had as much talent as any team in the Big 12.

BY POSITION

Linebackers: 7
Quarterbacks: 4
Receivers: 4
Running Backs: 4
Offensive Linemen: 3
Defensive Linemen: 2
Cornerbacks: 1 (Nigel Malone)
Safeties: 1 (Kenny Vaccaro)

• I don't pay attention to this when I'm making my list, but the seven linebackers made my eyes pop. The Big 12 was pretty loaded at that spot this past season.
• Several cornerbacks and safeties were right outside my top 25.
• Of those four receivers, three were in the top five. All well-deserved. Ryan Broyles, Justin Blackmon and Kendall Wright are clear game-changers that scare the heck out of defenses.

BY CLASS

Seniors: 10
Juniors: 12
Sophomores: 3 (Josey, Joseph Randle, Damontre Moore)
Freshmen: 0

• Of those 12 juniors, the top two (Blackmon, Robert Griffin III) elected to enter the NFL draft. As did No. 22, Ronnell Lewis. The other nine are coming back. Should be a fun year in 2012.
• Very rare for a freshman to crack the list. Nobody really came all that close.

Offense: 15
Defense: 10

Players on the preseason list who missed the postseason list (14): WR Jeff Fuller (No. 7), LB Travis Lewis (No. 8), WR T.J. Moe (No. 11), CB Jamell Fleming (No. 12), CB David Garrett (No. 14), CB Coryell Judie (No. 15), S Markelle Martin (No. 16), LT Elvis Fisher (No. 18), LB Keenan Robinson (No. 19), S Tony Jefferson (No. 20), LB Shaun Lewis (No. 21), WR Kenny Stills (No. 22), DE Brad Madison (No. 23), LB Zaviar Gooden (No. 25)

Players on the postseason list unranked in the preseason (14): DE Frank Alexander (No. 6), QB Collin Klein (No. 7), LB A.J. Klein (No. 9), LB Sean Porter (No. 10), RB Terrance Ganaway (No. 11), RB Henry Josey (No. 14), WR Ryan Swope (No. 15), RB Joseph Randle (No. 18), LB Arthur Brown (No. 19), S Kenny Vaccaro (No. 20), C Grant Garner (No. 21), DE Ronnell Lewis (No. 22), CB Nigel Malone (No. 24), LB Damontre Moore (No. 25)

• Lots of turnover this year, much more than last year, when just nine players were shifted during the season. The preseason list, as I've stated several times, is not a predictor, but rather a measure of where the league stands in September. Injuries took a couple of these guys off the list, but there were a lot of underachievers and overachievers in the Big 12 this past season.

Once again, here's the list in its entirety. There's still time to send in your gripes, and I'll defend my picks in a mailbag.

• No. 1: Robert Griffin III, QB, Baylor
• No. 2: Justin Blackmon, WR, Oklahoma State
• No. 3: Brandon Weeden, QB, Oklahoma State
• No. 4: Kendall Wright, WR, Baylor
• No. 5: Ryan Broyles, WR, Oklahoma
• No. 6: Frank Alexander, DE, Oklahoma
• No. 7: Collin Klein, QB, Kansas State
• No. 8: Levy Adcock, RT, Oklahoma State
• No. 9: A.J. Klein, LB, Iowa State
• No. 10: Sean Porter, LB, Texas A&M
• No. 11: Terrance Ganaway, RB, Baylor
• No. 12: Jake Knott, LB, Iowa State
• No. 13: Landry Jones, QB, Oklahoma
• No. 14: Henry Josey, RB, Missouri
• No. 15: Ryan Swope, WR, Texas A&M
• No. 16: Emmanuel Acho, LB, Texas
• No. 17: Kelechi Osemele, LT, Iowa State
• No. 18: Joseph Randle, RB, Oklahoma State
• No. 19: Arthur Brown, LB, Kansas State
• No. 20: Kenny Vaccaro, S, Texas
• No. 21: Grant Garner, C, Oklahoma State
• No. 22: Ronnell Lewis, LB, Oklahoma
• No. 23: Cyrus Gray, RB, Texas A&M
• No. 24: Nigel Malone, CB, Kansas State
• No. 25: Damontre Moore, LB, Texas A&M

It's been a long and winding road, but we've finally met the end.

Sitting at the top of our 25 best players in the Big 12 in 2011 should be no surprise. He won the Heisman Trophy as the best player in all of college football, following it up with one of the most memorable speeches in Heisman history.

Without further ado, time to crown the best player of 2011.

No. 1: Robert Griffin III, QB, Baylor

2011 numbers: Completed 291-of-402 passes (72.4 percent) for 4,293 yards, 37 touchdowns and six interceptions. Ran for 699 yards and 10 touchdowns on 179 carries. Also caught one pass for 15 yards.

Most recent ranking: Griffin was ranked No. 5 in our preseason list of the top 25 players, but grabbed the No. 1 spot in the midseason ranking of the Big 12's top 25 players.

Making the case for Griffin: No quarterback accounted for more of his team's offense than Griffin, who produced 65.4 percent of Baylor's yardage. That's especially impressive considering the Bears' offense ranked No. 2 nationally in total offense. Every time Baylor needed a big play, Griffin provided it.

Need to convert a tough third down on a game-winning drive against TCU? Griffin will catch a pass in the middle of the defense and take a beating, get his wind knocked out and stay on the field.

Need to erase a three-touchdown, fourth-quarter deficit against KU? Griffin will break a long run and throw two touchdowns to force overtime, where, yes, he'll win the game there.

Need to go 80 yards in less than a minute to beat Oklahoma for the first time in school history? Griffin will scramble for almost 30 yards and throw a 34-yard game-winning touchdown pass with seconds remaining.

That doesn't even tell the full story of what Griffin means to the Baylor program he'll leave behind after this season. He changed the game and paved the way for others at Baylor. He restored some faith in the Heisman, proving that the award is a lot more than a figurative honor for the best player on the best team in college football. The best player in the game really does still win, even if his team has three losses.

Griffin's best attribute, though, may be his fierce loyalty to teammates and an unshakeable confidence which was strong and infectious. Griffin believed in his teammates. He knew what they were capable of doing. Time and time again, they proved him right, from his beefy, physical offensive line to Big 12 rushing champ Terrance Ganaway to receiving champ Kendall Wright.

The result was a historic season that made it easy to forget the difficult decade-plus in the Big 12 B.G. (Before Griffin). His arrival signified greater days were ahead. Now that he's gone, will they continue? That's the big question at Baylor, but a bowl win, a 10-win season and a Heisman Trophy assure that Griffin's time in Waco will never, ever be forgotten by the green and gold.

The rest of the list:

• No. 2: Justin Blackmon, WR, Oklahoma State
• No. 3: Brandon Weeden, QB, Oklahoma State
• No. 4: Kendall Wright, WR, Baylor
• No. 5: Ryan Broyles, WR, Oklahoma
• No. 6: Frank Alexander, DE, Oklahoma
• No. 7: Collin Klein, QB, Kansas State
• No. 8: Levy Adcock, RT, Oklahoma State
• No. 9: A.J. Klein, LB, Iowa State
• No. 10: Sean Porter, LB, Texas A&M
• No. 11: Terrance Ganaway, RB, Baylor
• No. 12: Jake Knott, LB, Iowa State
• No. 13: Landry Jones, QB, Oklahoma
• No. 14: Henry Josey, RB, Missouri
• No. 15: Ryan Swope, WR, Texas A&M
• No. 16: Emmanuel Acho, LB, Texas
• No. 17: Kelechi Osemele, LT, Iowa State
• No. 18: Joseph Randle, RB, Oklahoma State
• No. 19: Arthur Brown, LB, Kansas State
• No. 20: Kenny Vaccaro, S, Texas
• No. 21: Grant Garner, C, Oklahoma State
• No. 22: Ronnell Lewis, LB, Oklahoma
• No. 23: Cyrus Gray, RB, Texas A&M
• No. 24: Nigel Malone, CB, Kansas State
• No. 25: Damontre Moore, LB, Texas A&M

Texas is in the Big Dance, but it's a long week until the Longhorns face Cincinnati on Friday at 11:15 a.m. CT.

Here are a few links to get you ready for the NCAA tournament and help you fill out your brackets:

• Eamonn Brennan makes 10 bold predictions.


• After spending his time predicting who would get in, Joe Lunardi has turned his attention to the teams who actually will be dancing. Lunardi looks at all 68 teams and their matchups.


• There will be a few upsets. Peter Keating and Jordan Brenner do a little number crunching to look at which teams have the best chance at knocking off a higher seed. Here's the Giant Killers blog .


• If you don't want to make your own guesses, let the Bracket Predictor do it for you.

The Texas Longhorns (20-13) are in the Big Dance once again. For the 14th straight season, Texas has earned a bid to the NCAA tournament. The Longhorns are in the East Region as a No. 11 seed. They open the tournament on Friday against No. 6 seed Cincinnati (24-10).

The East Region features No. 1 seed Syracuse, No. 2 Ohio State and No. 3 Florida State. Texas

Texas is one of just six teams to make the tournament in each of the last 14 seasons. This will also be the Longhorns' 30th overall trip.

For more, here's the official bracket.

Or take on your friends and the nation with Tournament Challenge.

Here are Joe Lunardi's latest projections through Friday night. Check back Saturday for his full bracket.

SINCE THE LAST UPDATE

• Louisville becomes a top-four seed by advancing to the Big East title game.
• Dayton drops off the bubble with a loss to Xavier in the A-10 quarterfinals.
• No change for Miami or Texas.
• Colorado moves into the Next Four Out by beating Cal and advancing to the Pac-12 title game.

TOP SEED ORDER

Kentucky
Syracuse
North Carolina
Kansas

Next in line: Duke, Michigan State, Ohio State, Missouri

LAST FOUR IN

Washington
NC State
Mississippi State
Seton Hall

FIRST FOUR OUT

Drexel
Miami
Marshall
Iona

NEXT FOUR OUT

Ole Miss
Arizona
Massachusetts
Colorado

Also considered: Northwestern, Tennessee

CONFERENCE BREAKDOWN

Big East (10)
Big Ten (6)
Big 12 (6)
ACC (5)
SEC (5)
Mountain West (4)
Atlantic 10 (3)
West Coast (3)
Colonial (2)
Conference USA (2)
Missouri Valley (2)
Pac-12 (2)

AUTOMATIC QUALIFIERS

Belmont (Atlantic Sun)
Creighton (Missouri Valley)
Davidson (Southern)
Detroit (Horizon)
Harvard (Ivy)
Lehigh (Patriot)
LIU Brooklyn (Northeast)
Loyola-Md. (MAAC)
Montana (Big Sky)
Murray State (OVC)
Saint Mary's (West Coast)
South Dakota State (Summit)
UNC Asheville (Big South)
VCU (Colonial)
Western Kentucky (Sun Belt)