2005 Texas Longhorns Among Century's Greatest Teams

The 2005 Texas Longhorns will go down as one of college football's best teams all-time.

Texas Longhorns running back Ramonce Taylor celebrates defeating the Southern California Trojans during the 2006 Rose Bowl. | Imagn Images

It's been almost 20 years since the Texas Longhorns defeated the USC Trojans in the Rose Bowl to win the 2005 national championship, and in the process, cement their place among college football's all-time great teams.

That Longhorns team featured several outstanding players, including quarterback Vince Young, running back Jamaal Charles, safety Michael Huff and more. Additionally, they blew out nearly every team they faced. Their only one-possession games were three-point wins against the Trojans and the Ohio State Buckeyes in Week 2. Aside from that, they essentially scored at will, with their 652 points being a single-season record at the time.

For those reasons and more, The Athletic's Stewart Mandel ranked the 2005 Longhorns as the third-best team of the 21st Century, only behind the 2001 Miami Hurricanes and 2019 LSU Tigers.

Texas quarterback Vince Young outruns the Southern California defense for the game-winning touchdown in the 2006 Rose Bowl. | Robert Hanashiro / USA TODAY NETWORK

"Despite averaging 50.2 points per game, Texas was overshadowed by the more glamorous Leinart-Bush USC team — until the Longhorns upset the Trojans in Pasadena," Mendel wrote. "Heisman runner-up Young, who in September threw a game-winning touchdown at Ohio State, threw for 267 yards, ran for 200 and cruised to a last-minute touchdown run on fourth-and-5 to end the Trojans’ 34-game winning streak.

"Texas won 13 games by an average of 33.8 points, including a 70-3 win against Colorado for the Big 12 title — the most lopsided conference championship game ever."

Since this point, the Longhorns have yet to hit the same highs. They made the national championship game again a few years later in 2009, but Colt McCoy's injury doomed them in a 37-21 loss to the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Fortunately, they're now finally back on the right track. Steve Sarkisian has led the program back to the top of the sport, with back-to-back appearances in the College Football Playoff semifinals. This year may mark the Longhorns' best chance at a national championship game in over a decade and a half, especially if Arch Manning lives up to the hype.

Even if they do win the title, though, it will be hard for the Longhorns to top their legendary 2005 squad.