AUSTIN, Texas—For a guy who one night four years ago looked a bit overwhelmed by the bright lights of Texas football, Colt McCoy sure has won a lot of college games.
Forty-one, to be exact.
And if No. 2 Texas (9-0, 5-0 Big 12) beats Baylor (4-5, 1-4) on Saturday, McCoy will tie Georgia’s David Greene for the most victories by a major college quarterback.
That would be a pretty nifty record considering he lost the second time he put on the burnt orange jersey.
McCoy won the starting job as a freshman in 2006, the year after Vince Young led Texas to the 2005 national title. Many assumed the kid from small-town West Texas would struggle to thrive in the shadow left by Young’s legacy. A 24-7 loss to Ohio State on national television in his second game only fueled those fears.
But he grew up fast.
McCoy has been the heart of the offense ever since that loss, leading Texas to at least 10 wins in each of his first three seasons. He is 41-7 in his career and has the Longhorns among the leaders in the national title chase again this season. His name is among those in the Heisman Trophy discussion.
McCoy said the wins record would be special and called it one of the “greatest records” for a quarterback, but one that he would share with teammates.
McCoy said he didn’t think about the mark until coach Mack Brown told him his 40th win (41-14 at Oklahoma State) sent him past Peyton Manning on the career list.
“If I was in it to break records, I’d have quit a long time ago,” McCoy said. “I’m here to win.”
Texas is a heavy favorite to get McCoy win No. 42. The Longhorns have won 11 in a row over the Bears and have outscored Baylor by an average of 47-12 since 1999.
But Baylor got Texas’ full attention with a rare Big 12 road win at Missouri last week that included 427 yards passing from freshman quarterback Nick Florence, a school record.
Florence wasn’t even the starter when the season began. He was sitting behind sophomore starter Robert Griffin until Griffin tore up his knee in the third game. Baylor won the next week, then lost four in a row.
Florence seemed to find all the right connections with his receivers against Missouri and rallied the Bears to the win.
“He played with a lot of poise, a lot of confidence and a lot of belief,” Baylor coach Art Briles said.
Brown was impressed by the victory.
“(Briles) turned a team that was devastated by the loss of Robert Griffin and turned them into a high-powered offense,” the Texas coach said.
Now Florence will be asked to top that performance against a Longhorns defense ranked No. 1 in total defense and rush defense. The freshman’s two victories are far short of McCoy’s 41, but he acts like he’s ready for the challenge.
“I start with the ball” on every play, Florence said. “If I don’t have confidence, then no one else is going to have confidence.”
