By ALAN FERGUSON
STATS Writer

UCF (5-3) at No. 2 Texas (8-0), 12:00 p.m. EDT

Amid the pressure of the Big 12 race and the BCS title game
hunt, Texas would appear to catch a break with Saturday's
non-conference game against Central Florida.

The second-ranked Longhorns, however, know very well not to take
the Golden Knights lightly.

Texas (8-0) moved past Alabama into second in the BCS standings
after last week's 41-14 win over then-No. 13 Oklahoma State. The
Longhorns picked the Cowboys off four times, nearly a year after
their defense faltered in a stunning last-second loss at Texas
Tech that cost them a shot at the national title.

Defensive backs Curtis Brown and Earl Thomas, who allowed the
Red Raiders' Michael Crabtree to score the winning touchdown in
last season's only defeat, returned interceptions for TDs last
Saturday.

"That was a bad feeling, and I think (Texas coach Mack Brown)
kind of put it on the seniors' shoulders and said, 'Hey, this is
your team. You control your destiny. Don't let it happen
again,"' said Colt McCoy, who threw for 171 yards and his 100th
touchdown.

Since winning the national title in 2005, November has been the
Longhorns' most treacherous time. Two defeats in the month in
2006 kept them out of the conference title game, as did last
season's loss in Lubbock on Nov. 1.

Texas missed out on a chance to share the Big 12 South
championship in 2007 after a loss to Texas A&M.

For the first time since their championship season, the
Longhorns will play all of their November games in their home
state. After hosting the Knights, they travel to Baylor, host
Kansas and face Texas A&M on the road.

Texas had been scheduled to face Texas Tech this week, but that
game was moved up to Sept. 19.

"We've got a lot at stake now, and we understand that," Brown
said. "When you get past OU at our place, there's some more
stuff out there for you. When you get past Oklahoma State, this
was a game everybody was looking for, so we can't say now that
it's over, we're there.

"We have to restart and make sure that we keep our foot on the
gas and make sure we move forward."

The Longhorns begin the month against a team that nearly upset
them two seasons ago.

In the only meeting between the schools, Texas pulled out a
35-32 road win Sept. 15, 2007, rallying after trailing by one in
the fourth quarter. Central Florida scored a touchdown with 35
seconds left and forced Texas to recover the final onside kick.

"We've got to be prepared for them," said McCoy, who was 32 of
47 for 259 yards and a touchdown in that game. "I just remember
we didn't finish it like we wanted to. We got up a little bit
and never put it away. We just let them hang around and hang
around. We had to make some plays at the end to actually win
that game."

Central Florida (5-3) could again prove to be a tough opponent.
The Golden Knights boast the nation's seventh-best rush defense
at 87.8 yards per game and are sixth with 3.3 sacks a contest.

Two of their losses, road defeats to Southern Miss and East
Carolina, came by a combined 12 points. Central Florida, though,
needed a last-minute touchdown to beat Marshall 21-20 on Sunday
night.

With 23 seconds left, Rocky Ross caught a 1-yard score from
Brett Hodges, who finished with a career-best 325 yards and two
TDs.

"These kids have a lot of fight in them," coach George O'Leary
said. "They don't worry about mistakes. They worry about making
the next play, and that's what we did. When we needed a play,
somebody stepped up and made it."

Central Florida will face the top-scoring team in the nation and
third-best defensive squad this week. Texas is averaging 41.0
points and giving up 240.8 yards per game.

The Longhorns also own the country's best rush defense, giving
up 52.9 yards a game on the ground.