Only one disappointment over the most entertaining high-stakes college football game I've ever seen: We're pretty much guaranteed to not have any big ticket sporting event as interesting and exciting as this one this year. But at least we had a fantastic, fantastic one last night.

Going into the game last night, I "sort of" wanted Texas to win. The underdog thing. The USC overhype thing. The "tired of Leinart [although not Bush] and Pete Carroll" thing.

But I hadn't really watched Texas all that much, seing only the beginning of the Missouri-Texas game this October and pieces, I think, of the Big 12 Championship Game. And last year's Rose Bowl, although that was viewed in the awful company of the boy [good] and his boring roommate [bad], so I didn't get to see much of it. So, fact is, I didn't realize how great Vince Young was.

By four minutes into the game, I was glued to the TV and cheering for Young, mostly because he's that fun to watch. I don't actually believe he's an NFL quarterback, but I do believe he's the best college quarterback I've ever seen. Or, at least, that was the best game I've ever seen by a college quarterback.

A few football-related things about the game:

- The fact that USC's players were so poorly coached that they used a timeout after the touchdown reflects very poorly on Pete Carroll.
- The fact that Pete Carroll had Reggie Bush on the bench for fourth-and-2 in the fourth quarter speaks reflects very poorly on Pete Carroll.
- The fact that Pete Carroll had Reggie Bush on the bench for fourth-and-1 in the first quarter reflects very poorly on Pete Carroll.
- The fact that USC went for fourth-and-1 in the first quarter with a 7-0 lead and an imminent lead reflects very poorly on Pete Carroll.
- Brandon Hancock's dropped pass on second-and-7 was a bigger play than the ensuing missed fourth down with two minutes less. (I don't like Brandon Hancock. He came off as a tool in his first-person story about his early enrollment and first spring practice experience in Sports Illustrated in, I think, 2002.) The fact that USC was passing to their reserve fullback on second-and-7 while only needing to run down the clock reflects very poorly on offensive coordinators Steve Sarkisian and Lane Kiffin. Also, on Pete Carroll.
- The fact that Reggie Bush had only 13 carries reflects very poorly on both the offensive coordinators and also on Pete Carroll. Bush had had fewer than 13 carries only four times this season, all in blowouts of 27 or more points. [That is, he didn't play much in any of their second halves.]

- Texas' secondary is awesome. That interception was one of the finest plays I've ever seen.

Also, I don't like Matt Leinart, and I'm happy to see him lose. Very happy, in fact. I guess it was a nice story that he played the "just happy to be in college, why would I leave this" game this year but, really, it was also a self-serving thing.

Stay in college, and he:
1) Builds his own legend, as he's surrounded by some of the best offensive talent ever
2) Perhaps wins a second Heisman trophy, for the same reason
3) Probably wins a third national championship, for the same reason
4) Enjoys BMOC status and his pick of the best looking college girls (and Hollywood types) for another year

Leave college, and he:
1) Winds up with the San Francisco 49ers. Not good.

And yes, the fawning over him was absolutely obnoxious.

But, anyway, I felt good over the bad thoughts I had had about him when I saw the postgame interview with him. "I still believe we're the better team, they just got the best of us today," he had the gall to say after the game. Gracious? Nope, whiny.

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Regarding the telecast:

Keith Jackson is an institution, but a few glaring mistakes were too huge to ignore. "I think John David Booty's being told to warm up." "Why didn't any time run off the clock? [on that two-point conversion.]" He missed a call on a field goal, calling it good when it was clearly wide right. And he suggested that a timeout was called when, in actuality, it was the end of the third quarter. And he regularly used the phrase "times out," rather than "timeouts."

I don't think Keith should be forced to retire. But I do think he should retire gracefully. To many he's college football, but, to me, he was distracting.

I'd rather have a well-called broadcast (think Brad Nessler or Mike Tirico or, if Bob Davie's not there, Ron Franklin) without all the fantastic colloquialisms. (I believe Jackson, at one point, uttered "he's all hamstrings and leather," which doesn't make sense to me but sounds awesome.) However, I'd rather Brent Musberger went away. Now. Ewww. And I'm not interested in Brady Quinn's sister either, dammit.

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Regarding my recent espn-related post, petenemo checked in with this article, written by people far smarter than me.

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Talked to a prospective employer today, and didn't even get told to shove off and quite calling. That's a step forward.