The Texas Longhorns are certain about several aspects of Saturday's game against Texas Christian:
* The Longhorns beat the Horned Frogs 27-19 in front of 63,342 at Memorial Stadium.
* The Horns improved to 8-1-1 and 5-0 in the Southwest Conference, a half-game ahead of Baylor for the conference lead.
* The Horns moved from No. 10 to 9 in the Associated Press Top 25 poll and from No. 8 to 7 in the USA Today/CNN coaches' poll.
However, it was the one uncertainty that seemed to be just as important as the team's accomplishments.
Texas quarterback James Brown moderately sprained his left ankle with about five minutes left in the game and is questionable for Thursday's contest against Baylor (7-3, 5-1) at 7 p.m. in Austin.
Brown incurred the injury when TCU defensive end Chris Piland landed on Brown's ankle after Brown rolled right and ran with the ball.
"It feels a lot better than it did after the game Saturday," said Brown, who was wearing a mobilizer boot and was on crutches Sunday night. "I feel I'll be there [against Baylor]. If I don't practice during the week and if I get a chance to play on Thursday, I'll be there because I'm going to be mentally ready."
Brown received two medical treatments after the game and had two more on Sunday, Texas coach John Mackovic said.
"James is in an undetermined status. He's questionable at least," Mackovic said Sunday. "We'll just have to wait. He's getting rehab two and three times a day." Mackovic added that it will likely be a game-time decision as to which player gets the starting nod.
"We have to put a game plan together, though, and we have to get [backup QB Richard Walton] ready. No matter what happens, we have to be ready to go Thursday night."
And the Horns will need to perform better than they did early against an inspired Horned Frog team (6-4, 3-3) vying to keep its bowl hopes alive. Unlike the Horns' last two games -- both blowout wins -- Saturday's game wasn't completely in check until 24 seconds remained.
Trailing 27-19, TCU began its final drive from its own 29-yard line with 2:01 to play and got as close as the Texas 26. But the Horned Frogs' hopes for a potential tie were crushed when TCU quarterback Max Knake was crushed by defensive end Tony Brackens. The hit jarred the ball loose and Brackens recovered it, sealing the win for Texas.
Brackens had earlier recovered another fumble that led to the Horns' final touchdown, a 2-yard plunge from tailback Shon Mitchell with 2:08 left in the game.
Many of the Texas players, however, were far from pleased with their performance, albeit a winning one.
"Everybody wasn't hyped," said Mitchell, who rushed for a team-high 109 yards on 20 carries and scored twice. It was also the third straight week Mitchell ran for 100 yards. "It seemed like nobody was ready to play. The fourth quarter came and we all came on, started moving the ball. James went out and that really hurt us, but we still managed to score."
Said Texas offensive tackle John Elmore: "We didn't play well today. At times, we did some things good, which is probably what pulled us out."
Like the rest of the Texas offense, Brown did not have one of his more memorable showings. He finished 12-of-29 for 127 yards, had one interception and no touchdown passes. Texas mustered just 335 yards of total offense; TCU didn't fare much better, totaling 307.
Longhorn free safety Chris Carter, who came away with two interceptions Saturday, realizes the team as a whole will have to pick up its game if Brown can't go.
"If Richard has to start, Richard's going to have to step up, the offensive line is going to have to step up, defensively -- all the weight that James carries is going to be distributed to everyone else on the team."
Walton, a redshirt freshman quarterback known for his strong arm and drop back style, said Sunday he would be ready should he have his first career start.
"I prepare myself every week as a starter because you're always one play away being the second man," Walton said. "It might be a better chance for me to start than normal, but I'm still going to do the things I always do."
TCU running back Andre Davis gave the Frogs a lift with his play in his first game back from a four-game NCAA suspension. Davis carried a career-best 35 times for 141 yards. He also caught eight passes for 51 yards.
Tied 13-13 at the half, TCU kicker Michael Reeder connected on a 23-yard field goal with 8:17 to play in the third to give the Frogs a 16-13 lead. Texas running back Wane McGarity's 1-yard TD run put Texas ahead 20-16 with 1:17 left in the quarter.
The Frogs cut the margin to 20-19 after Reeder hit his fourth field goal of the afternoon, a 23-yarder at the 11:51 mark of the fourth. The score remained that way until Mitchell's second TD run, which came after back-to-back fumbles -- one from TCU's Davis and the other from McGarity.
"This was not a peak performance but it was a quality performance of effort, being tough and getting in and doing what we had to do to win the game," Mackovic said. "We had to go win the game in the second half. TCU was not going to give it to us."
* Injury update: Linebacker Tyson King (hip), receiver Justin McLemore (bruised shoulder), linebacker Robert Reed (bruised shoulder) and receiver Matt Davis (finger) are questionable to probable for this week. Tight end Derrick Scott tore his anterior cruciate ligament during pregame drills Saturday and is out for the year.
It seems strange, but a controversial call might actually have helped the Texas Longhorns beat Texas Christian Saturday.
With 8:47 left in the game and the Horns leading 20-19, Texas wideout Mike Adams made a catch on a third-down play and looked like he was stopped short of the first down at TCU's 28-yard line.
But as he was pushed back, TCU safety Rick LaFavers stripped the ball from Adams and the Frogs recovered the ball. Those on the Texas sideline and most of the fans at Memorial Stadium thought he should have been ruled down.
"The referee said that he felt that Mike's feet were still moving and that he was still trying to make a play," Texas head coach John Mackovic said. "Most of us thought it was a stop. We were just hoping to get a conference."
The call brought boos from the stands, and for once they weren't directed at the home team.
On TCU's next play, a handoff to Andre Davis, Davis appeared to fumble but the officials said he was down and the Frogs kept possession.
Those two plays not only woke up the Texas fans but it lighted a spark under the Longhorn defense.
After the Adams fumble, TCU's next four drives ended with a punt, an interception and two fumbles.
"We were upset with the call. We can't say that we weren't. We thought it was a bad call," Longhorn safety Chris Carter said. "[All game] we felt we were going to have to make plays. When [the call] happened we just reinstilled that back in our minds that we have to go out and make a play now."
Carter also credits Texas' home-field advantage.
"Anytime you play at home and the crowd gets up and they start yelling and you can't hear anything but the crowd, that intensity, that feeling, all that energy comes to the players," Carter said.
The defense was led again by end Tony Brackens and Carter. Brackens made 12 tackles, three for a loss; recovered two fumbles, one forced by him; and sacked TCU quarterback Max Knake once.
"Of course, Tony Brackens played at a different level at the end of the game," Mackovic said. "He definitely came to make the plays, get control of the football game and that's what you need from your best football players."
With TCU needing a touchdown and a two-point conversion to tie Texas, the Frogs mounted one last frantic effort. Knake led the offense to the Texas 26 with 33 seconds to play. But on second and 10, Knake faded back to pass and was hit head-on and full-speed by Brackens. The collision caused the TCU quarterback to fumble and Brackens ripped the ball from Knake's grasp and the Horns sealed their eighth win of the year.
"He pumped like he was going to throw it and then he stepped toward me and I was there," Brackens said.
"The great player made a great play," Texas defensive coordinator Gary Darnell said simply.
Carter's two interceptions give him a team-leading four for the season and stole crucial momentum from the TCU offense. He is Texas' second-leading tackler this year and added 11 more against TCU. Darnell praised Carter for his efforts Saturday and for the entire season.
"I've seen him play hurt, I've seen him play smart, I've seen him play exhausted and Chris has really had a good year," Darnell said.
The Texas defense allowed only 307 yards of total offense and didn't give up an offensive touchdown. TCU's only score other than a Michael Reeder field goal came via a 65-yard punt return by John Washington.
"They played good defense in the red zone. We missed some executions and that's just that," Knake said.
Brackens said Texas not blowing out TCU might help the Horns in the last two games.
"I look at it as a positive," he said. "It let us know that no one is going to lay down and let us win. TCU proved that. They had something on the line and we had something on the line and the best man came out on top."
Texas Christian 3 10 3 3 -- 19
Texas 10 3 7 7 -- 27
TCU--FG Reeder 20
Tex--FG Dawson 24
Tex--Mitchell 24 run (Dawson kick)
TCU--Washington 65 punt return (Reeder kick)
Tex--FG Dawson 43
TCU--FG Reeder 39
TCU--FG Reeder 22
Tex--McGarity 1 run (Dawson kick)
TCU--FG Reeder 23
Tex--Mitchell 2 run (Dawson kick)
A--63,342.
TCU Texas
First downs 21 19
Rushes-yards 41-168 42-208
Passing 139 127
Return Yards 43 31
Comp-Att-Int 19-30-2 12-29-1
Punts 4-40 4-48
Fumbles-Lost 3-2 2-2
Penalties-Yards 5-41 5-50
Time of Possession 32:12 27:48
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING
Texas Christian - Davis 35-141, Woods 2-2, Washington 1-38,
Knake 3-(minus 13).
Texas - Mitchell 20-109, Williams 12-68, Brown 7-28, McGarity 2-3,
Walton 1-0.
PASSING
Texas Christian - Knake 19-30-2-139.
Texas - Brown 12-29-1-127.
RECEIVING
Texas Christian - Davis 8-51, Collins 6-54, Washington 2-17, Tucker 1-9,
Woods 1-5, Moore 1-3.
Texas - McLemore 5-56, Adams 4-58, Williams 2-0, Fitzgerald 1-13.