Texas Football: Matt Leinart still knows who deserved 2005 national title

The last National Championship for the Texas football program came over Matt Leinart and the USC Trojans to cap the 2005 season.

The 2006 Rose Bowl/BCS National Championship Game was an instant classic and might be the best game in college football (televised) history. The Texas football program stuck behind the efforts of star quarterback Vince Young to top the uber-talented and No. 1 ranked USC Trojans.

When the Texas Longhorns football program downed former star quarterback Matt Leinart and USC in early January 2006, it shocked the college football landscape. VY and the Longhorns escaped USC, with a few mistakes from Leinart and fellow star teammate Reggie Bush.

According to an interview with uscfootball.com (part of the 247Sports network), Leinart opened up on the feeling he had during and after the 2006 Rose Bowl loss to Texas. He opened up on a number of topics surrounding the 2006 BCS National Championship Game, including who really deserved to take the crown that year.

"“First of all, you lose after you’re up 12 with five minutes left,” Leinart said of his heart-breaking loss to Texas in the 2006 BCS National Championship game. “I think when you’re on the field and you’re so upset, then you get a microphone in your face, and just the emotions were there, and I was pissed off. I thought we should have won that game.But yeah, I was upset. Part of the reason why I came back for my senior year was being on a great team, wanting to be in college and having the chance to win three titles in a row, which had never been done. To be that close, and just lose it the way we did, that was a tough pill to swallow, and it still is when I think about it.”"

Here’s the rest of the monologue piece from Leinart, describing that feeling he had after the 2006 Rose Bowl loss.

"“Years passed, and you realize (Texas) deserved (to win the BCS Championship). It was a great football game,” he said. “I’ve said it a million times, Vince Young and Texas deserved to win. They were a great team, but he was just a one-man wrecking crew.”"

Leinart would win the Heisman Trophy in 2004, and finish in third place in 2005. VY finished second in the Heisman voting in 2005, behind Bush. VY, Bush, and Leinart were the three Heisman finalists and were also three of the most polarizing college football players since the turn of the century.

https://twitter.com/TexasFootball/status/1245886643707490307

USC would not win another national title under the direction of former head coach Pete Carroll, and neither would Texas under former head coach Mack Brown. Texas will be trying in the near future to get into the College Football Playoff under the direction of current head coach Tom Herman. And we’ll see how much USC head coach Clay Helton’s seat heats up this coming season.

The 2006 Rose Bowl was just re-aired on ESPN last month, and featured a lot of former Longhorns watching and giving their take on the game. VY was even active on social media during the re-air.