Colt McCoy – Quarterback for the Texas Longhorns

By Danny Reagan / Abilene, Texas

FINAL UPDATE: Statesman.com reports that Colt suffered a severely pinched nerve in his neck. A "full recovery" is expected, but there's no speculation whether Colt could play if the Longhorns get into the Big 12 title game if OU loses tomorrow.

LATEST UPDATE: Less than an hour ago (about 6:30 p.m.), Colt McCoy walked out of a hospital in Austin under his own power, so that means there is no serious injury. Whew! The guy's tough, but that was scary for a while.

UPDATE: Colt is at a hospital in Austin for "observation," but he reportedly has use of "all of his extremities," so that's good news.

EARLIER: Two wicked hits in the final minutes of the game were too much for the gutsy quarterback. One was a cheap shot that resulted in an ejection, and the last was brutal from every replay angle.

Hopefully, the "immobilization" precautions in the final 20 seconds were just that, and all - and I don't say "all" lightly - he sustained was a concussion. Stingers and concussions aren't to be sneezed at, but at least they aren't broken bones or spinal cord injuries.

As far as the loss, I don't think it was rust for the Longhorns, although Colt sure didn't look like himself except on the short out-passes.

At the end, it was pretty simple.

The Aggies knew how to convert third downs - especially in the fourth quarter - and the Longhorns couldn't quite shake a funk that started when McCoy sustained a stinger in Manhattan, Kansas, two weeks ago.

The TV announcers suggested Colt's arm strength wasn't back to normal. Some costly underthrown passes (2 of which resulted in interceptions) might point that way, but I can't imagine Mack Brown would put him back in still ailing - not with Jevan Snead ready to go.

What a difference two weeks makes. From talk of possibily repeating the national championship to a real possibility of not even playing in the Big 12 title game.

But guess what ... when you're saying a prayer for someone, outcomes of games and BCS rankings don't mean much.