At one point, it looked as if the first BCS National Championship that the Texas football program would ever win under the direction of former head coach Mack Brown would come during the 2002 season. That ultra-talented 2002 Texas team led by Brown had multiple historic points it established that fall, but ultimately fell short of their top prize.
That illustrious 2002 team for the Texas Longhorns football program would be the first to really come out of the gates strong and become a nationally prominent threat under Brown’s direction. The 2001 Longhorns football squad did finished with the same record overall as the 2002 team (11-2), but there were more “what could’ve been moments” that came about in the latter of the two seasons.