Texas Longhorns

2012 record: 9-4
2012 conference record: 5-4 (third in the Big 12)
Returning starters: Offense: 10; defense: 9; kicker/punter: 1

Top returners: QB David Ash, RB Johnathan Gray, WR Mike Davis, WR Jaxon Shipley, LT Donald Hawkins, RT Josh Cochran, G Mason Walters, DE Jackson Jeffcoat, LB Jordan Hicks, CB Quandre Diggs, CB Carrington Byndom

Key losses: P Alex King, S Kenny Vaccaro, DE Alex Okafor, WR Marquise Goodwin

2012 statistical leaders (*returners)

Rushing: Johnathan Gray* (701 yards)
Passing: David Ash* (2,699 yards)
Receiving: Mike Davis* (939 yards)
Tackles: Kenny Vaccaro (107)
Sacks: Alex Okafor (12.5)
Interceptions: Quandre Diggs* (4)

Spring answers:

1. Under center: Texas has finally ended all the debate about its quarterback situation and settled on David Ash. While Ash has yet to be stellar in his first two years at Texas, the junior has steadily improved -- he was top 25 in pass efficiency rating in 2012 -- and has won the trust of new quarterbacks coach Major Applewhite. Applewhite believes Ash is the quarterback best suited to run the new up-tempo, spread attack.

2. Loaded at linebacker: One year after being the worst tackling team in the Big 12, Texas went into the spring looking to shore up its linebacker position. And it had plenty of options. Texas has seven linebackers who have started at least one game. Included in that group is Jordan Hicks, who is back after missing 10 games last year because of a hip injury. Hicks will team with true sophomores, Dalton Santos and Peter Jinkens for what should be a much faster and aggressive unit in 2013.

3. Along the lines: While there were a sprinkling of injuries along the offensive line this spring (Josh Cochran and Trey Hopkins), Texas appears to have finally solved the depth riddle at that position. Tackle Kennedy Estelle was able to get quality snaps and should prove to be a solid backup and Sedrick Flowers finally emerged as an option at guard. While Texas returns all five starter from a year ago along the line, the Longhorns know that in the new up-tempo offense it will have to lean heavily on these backups.

Fall questions

1. Speed thrills: Texas wants to move the ball fast. So fast that the offensive players were even taught how to quickly get the ball back to the official so that they could put it down and Texas could line up and run the next play. But Texas only decided it wanted to play this way in mid-December when there was a change in playcallers from Bryan Harsin to Applewhite. So Texas has only had a handful of practices to get up to speed. With a schedule that has Texas at BYU for the second game of the season there doesn’t appear to be much time to get things perfected.

2. Safety dance: Texas’ defense was the worst in school history and that was largely due to the play of the back seven on defense. And now the best player in that back seven, Kenny Vaccaro, is gone. He was a first-round draft pick. That has left Texas wondering who will step up and make some stop at the safety position. Adrian Phillips takes over for Vaccaro, but he was inconsistent last season. The coaches blamed a shoulder injury and the fact he missed the spring. Mykkele Thompson and Josh Turner also missed their share of tackles but both are being called on to be possible starters.

3. Receiving praise: Texas has not had a 1,000-yard receiver since Jordan Shipley in 2009. Mike Davis had 939 yards last year and appears poised to break the 1,000-yard mark this season. But to do that he will need help. And right now there are some questions as to where that help will come from. Texas wants to go with four wide receivers but two of the four players expected to fill those roles -- Cayleb Jones and Kendall Sanders -- are currently suspended because of legal issues. Both will probably be back. But even then, Texas is very thin at wide receiver and needs some other players to step up to help take the double teams away from Davis.

AUSTIN, Texas – Quandre Diggs wants to quell all the rumors.

"I feel like we can put those rumors to rest about me playing safety this spring because that’s not what I’m doing," said the junior defensive back. "I’m playing nickel and corner. I don’t have a problem playing safety, but that is not where I’m needed right now."

There was a thought back in December that -- with Kenny Vaccaro leaving and the remaining safeties underperforming throughout 2012 -- Texas could move Diggs to safety. He even took some reps at that spot in bowl practice. Texas appeared to be deeper at corner and therefore could afford to make the move.

But there has been steady improvement, and as a direct result much more faith, in returning safeties Adrian Phillips, Mykkele Thompson and Josh Turner. Phillips is expected to be the leader of that group and the one certain starter. Many of his problems in 2012 were pinned on a shoulder injury that hampered his development.

"I have a lot of faith in those three guys in safety so we can put those rumors to rest," Diggs said.

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AUSTIN, Texas -- The Longhorns relied on plenty of their usual suspects to overcome Baylor 56-50 on Saturday. But there were some lesser-known players who contributed greatly to Texas ending the Bears’ two-game winning streak in the series.

Safety Josh Turner and tight end M.J. McFarland played arguably their best games as Longhorns and could see expanded roles because of their efforts.

Turner is listed as the backup to Kenny Vaccaro at strong safety but really played a starting role because Texas had to stay in its dime package to match Baylor’s five-wide sets.

He really made his presence known over a two-play period in the middle of the second quarter with the game tied at 28-28. The smaller Turner, who is listed at 6-foot and 177 pounds, stuffed Baylor quarterback Nick Florence for no gain and followed that up by intercepting him on the following snap.

“It was a great read,” Turner said. “It mainly came from our defensive line. They had a great push, and I was in the right place at the right time.”

After an official review upheld the pick, Texas took the ball and capped a five-play drive with a Johnathan Gray 25-yard touchdown, his first score as a Longhorn. The Longhorns never trailed again.

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AUSTIN, Texas - - It wasn’t pretty by any means, but that didn’t matter too much when Texas found itself in a shootout against a Baylor program that was looking for its third straight win over the Longhorns.

Mack Brown & Co. just needed a win, good, bad or ugly.

However you want to classify it, the Longhorns got it with a 56-50 victory at Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium on Saturday night.

Here’s how it all played out:

It was over when: Longhorns linebacker Steve Edmond caused a fumble on a run by Baylor running back Glasco Martin, which was recovered by Texas safety Mykkele Thompson at the Baylor 46-yard line with nine seconds left in the third quarter. Texas turned that into a 15-yard touchdown catch from Mike Davis to make it a two-possession game at 56-43. With Baylor’s defense unable to get a stop all night that proved to be too much of a hole to dig out of even though the Bears did score with 1:57 left to make it 56-50.

Game ball: Joe Bergeron. The sophomore bullied his way to the endzone on five separate occasions, supplying Texas with the running game it couldn’t get going against Oklahoma last week. He finished the night with 19 carries for 117 yards and those touchdown runs of 15, 2, 9, 4 and 8 yards.

Game ball, part II: Josh Turner. Texas played a ton of nickel and dime against Baylor and needed its safeties to step up. Turner did. He intercepted a Nick Florence pass with 8:30 left in the second quarter, which led to a Johnathan Gray touchdown and a 35-28 lead. The game was never tied again.

Stat of the game: Texas gave up 255 rushing yards to a Baylor team that relies heavily on the pass. In the Longhorns’ past four games they’ve given up 1,065 rushing yards. When Texas played for a national title in 2009, it gave up 1,013 yards the entire season.

What it means: The Longhorns are 5-2 and should be 6-2 after it plays Kansas next week. That’s it. This victory, especially with the way the defense played, is not going to do much to make the Texas fan base forget about what happened against Oklahoma. Baylor is still searching for its first conference victory and it’s going to be difficult to get it next week at a much-improved Iowa State. Will the Bears be able to stop anyone on defense?