Last year, Chris Simms wore No. 1 but finished No. 2 to Major Applewhite. This year, he'll wear No. 2 but be No. 1 all the way.

No more Applewhite means no more QB controversy in Austin. And, according to the team's new motto, no more excuses. Simms has 11 picks and 0 TDs in three starts -- all losses -- against Top 10 teams. So no, he hasn't lived up to the unrealistic hype placed on his shoulders. But the 6'5", 225-pound senior could still become the first QB in UT history to achieve consecutive 10-win seasons. And if one of those wins comes over Oklahoma on Oct. 12, it could mean more to Simms and Texas than just redemption -- their first No. 1 ranking since October 1984.

	Will Chris Simms finally break through?

Simms has a couple of sideline shooters in junior WRs Roy Williams and B.J. Johnson, but it's RB Cedric Benson who really can ease the pressure on a QB. Benson didn't start until the sixth game last year, but he still became the first UT frosh to top 1,000 yards. And under Mack Brown, Texas has never lost when outrushing its opponent.

Six starters are gone -- most notably CB Quentin Jammer -- from the first UT defense to lead the nation since 1983. But this season's unit still boasts LB Derrick Johnson, the Big 12 co-Defensive Freshman of the Year, and the DE duo of Cory Redding and Kalen Thornton, who camped out in opponents' backfields last year (25 TFLs). For Simms and the Horns, there really are no more excuses.

HOT WIRE

Teammates call junior CB Nathan Vasher "ESPN3" for being a highlight package unto himself. Vasher could be for Texas what Charles Woodson was for Michigan. Potentially the most electrifying player in the country, he led the Big 12 with seven picks and had a school-record 554 yards in punt returns (15 yards per) last season. And his move from strong safety will only increase his impact on the game.

TRIP WIRE

Last year the Longhorns played Colorado, Missouri and Kansas from the Big 12 North. This year they get Nebraska, K-State and Iowa State. Even if the Horns upset Oklahoma in Week 6, they face Nebraska in Lincoln, where no visitor has won since 1998, when Texas beat them 20-16.

WIRE TAP

"Do whatever you can to get people around Simms, because he panics. Send guys from all over the field -- stunt, stem, anything to create chaos. And if your DBs have good hands, you'll get picks because he locks on his receivers worse than any QB we've played in years. But if he gets comfortable, you're done, because he has too many weapons. So make him think."

BRISTOL WIRE

Trev Alberts: "On paper, there's no reason this team shouldn't go to the BCS championship game. But Texas won't even win its own division in the Big 12, because Mike Stoops will confuse Simms again."

The ESPN Power 16
1	Oklahoma	9	Colorado
2	Florida State	10	Washington State
3	Miami	11	Washington
4	Texas	12	Oregon
5	Tennessee	13	Nebraska
6	Florida	14	Michigan State
7	Georgia	15	Virginia Tech
8	Ohio State	16	LSU

This article appears in the September 2 issue of ESPN The Magazine.