ROOT FOR THE HOME TEAM

EVEN AMONG A GROUP OF NATIONALLY CONTENDING TEAMS, FOOTBALL REMAINS THE KEY TO TEXAS’ SUCCESS.

In the past, whenever I traveled — whether my trips took me to Los Angeles, Manhattan, Germany or even Grand Junction, Colo. — I could always spot someone bearing the Longhorn silhouette on a hat or shirt. These days, not so much. Even at the Austin airport, you need to work hard to count at least a dozen people dressed in Texas garb. Fridays may be the one exception — if the Longhorns are playing on the road.

At one time, a group of folks stood around The Longhorn Store’s television screens to watch the never-ending loop of Vince Young beating the USC defense to the corner of the Rose Bowl ...