Texas QB McCoy to return for senior year

The Texas Longhorns didn’t get a chance to play for the BCS Championship this year, but they’ll have another good shot in 2008.  Further boosting their chances is the announcement by star QB Colt McCoy that he’ll return for another year and not explore the possibility of jumping to the NFL.

Initially, McCoy indicated that he would seek an evaluation from a NFL advisory committee about his draft prospects but recently decided against taking that step.  He’s now focused on winning a National Championship with the Longhorns—a feat that would only enhance his market value.  McCoy’s intentions to return to Texas were reported in the Austin American-Statesman, where the redshirt junior QB stated:

"I'm not going anywhere. I'm coming back because we have a solid coaching staff. And I'm coming back because I feel like I can develop the young receivers we have."

The Longhorns finished the regular season ranked #3 behind Oklahoma and Florida with an 11-1 record.  McCoy was the linchpin of the Longhorn offense and set all time Texas records with 3,445 passing yards and 32 touchdowns as well as leading the team in rushing with 552 yards.  Texas will meet Ohio State in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl on January 5th in Tempe, Arizona.

While McCoy’s decision to return to UT for his senior season was definitely a relief to the program and its backers, it wasn’t that much of a surprise.  McCoy strongly suggested that he’d be back in an interview with The Sporting News earlier this year which included this quote:

"I've been blessed to be able to play here. Not very many people get to [start] here for four years, so what an opportunity."