Texas plays Alabama for the college football national title this evening.

“Punk.”

That’s what I recall thinking to myself when I saw him.

It was January 4, 2006. I was at Scholz Garten, a bar just off the University of Texas campus. It was the big day, the day the Texas Longhorns took on USC for the football national title. There was a big stage where a local sports radio station was doing a remote, dozens of big screen TVs, and several local news crews there for the reaction.

But there he was. Some punk wearing a USC jersey, standing up there on the radio station’s stage, flexing his muscles.

He had a lot to boast about. USC was an overwhelming favorite. It had won 34 straight games and was the previous’ years national champion. Its running back Reggie Bush had beaten Texas’ quarterback Vince Young for the Heisman Trophy just weeks before.

There was hope, though. And I felt it. Behind Young, I thought the team had a chance of winning.

For three quarters I had a blast, drinking beer and watching the Horns battle it out with USC. But it all seemed to fade away in the fourth quarter. With about 7 minutes left to play, USC went up 38-26. I recall walking to the bathroom, hanging my had down in despair.

Texas scored on its next possession, bringing the game to within five points with four minutes to play. In order to have a shot at winning, Texas needed to stop USC from scoring on its next possession. USC marched down the field, only to find itself two yards short of a first down with 2:13 to play. Instead of punting, SC went for it. If it made two measly yards, it won the game.

But Texas’ defense stuffed ‘em, turning the ball over to Texas on downs. At that point, despite being down five points with only 2:09 to play and 55 yards to the endzone, I knew Texas was going to win. With the ball in Vince Young’s hands, it was over.

Indeed it was. After nearing the goal line, it took Texas a few plays to get the ball in. It came down to one final play, fourth and goal from the 9. Longhorns announcer Craig Way:

“All the dreams, all the hopes for the national championship come down to this play…Young from the shotgun. Back to throw. Vince looks, under pressure. He’ll tuck it and run! Vince to the 5! Young, touchdown Texas! Touchdown Vince Young! He’s done it again!”

I don’t remember the next few minutes very well. I recall news crews switching on their cameras to record the mayhem. I remember jumping up and down on top of a table, beer sploshing through the air.

The game wasn’t over, as USC took possession again with under 20 seconds left. But Texas stopped them, and more celebration ensued.

After about five more minutes, people took to the streets to run over to the campus. As I exited Scholz Garten, I saw an object on fire in the street. It was a jersey. A USC jersey. His USC jersey.

Running a few blocks to MLK Blvd, all you could hear was the sound of honking car horns for miles. MLK, which abuts campus, was backed up for miles with cars streaming to campus. The main bookstore swung open its doors to sell National Champion t-shirts, but the store wasn’t accommodating to claustrophobic customers.

It’s four years later, and tonight Texas again plays for the National Championship. Like last time, Texas is the underdog. And like last time, Texas’ quarterback lost the Heisman voting to its opponent’s running back.

Texas isn’t as dominant as it was during the ‘05 season. They may not even be as dominant as they were last year, when they were snubbed from the title game due to a Big 12 tiebreaker. And the mood in Austin is a bit different, having been just four years since the last championship. But it should still be a great evening, and a memorable one.

Hook’em horns.

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