MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Having coached 355 games before finally experiencing an overtime, what did Texas coach Mack Brown think of his first?
“One of the best football games I’ve ever been involved with,” he said after the Longhorns played deep into the night to edge West Virginia 47-40.
“I’ve never been in an overtime fight like this. It was special. This was big-time. This was great.”
Merely reaching overtime took some doing. Texas (7-2, 6-0) trailed by 10 in the third quarter and needed a fourth-down conversion as it drove for the tying field goal at the end of regulation.
“I’ve never been in an overtime fight like this. It was special. This was big-time. This was great.” — Mack Brown
Brown worried that West Virginia (4-6, 2-5) might have a mental edge coming off an overtime win at TCU last week. But his offense picked up two third-downs on a touchdown drive to start OT, and the Longhorns defense made it stand by holding WVU four times inside the 5.
“They’ve had to fight and claw each week, and they continue to amaze me,” Brown said. “I told them, ‘You’ll have to overcome a lot tonight because that’s the way West Virginia’s going to be. You’re going to be down, you’re going to be in trouble most likely.’ Then that all that happened and they kept fighting until they finally won.”
Next up for Texas are home games against Oklahoma State and Texas Tech, before a season finale against souped-up Baylor on Dec. 7.
After six consecutive wins, can the Longhorns navigate the upcoming month to win their first league championship since 2009?
“It will be interesting to watch them the next three weeks,” Brown said. “I won’t bet against them.”
