Whaddya know, Young's a quarterback: I'm not the only in the dunce line. There are coaches, players and scouts with me, too

It's just plain ugly, what else can you say? The throwing motion, the mechanics, the footwork. He does everything you're not supposed to do and somehow makes it oh-so-right.

Do you believe yet?

How many more improbable, inconceivable moments do we have to witness before we suck it up and admit that, yeah, son of a gun, this incredible athlete has become a quarterback? We're two weeks into the season, and already we have a clear leader for the Heisman Trophy.

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Texas quarterback Vince Young. The guy who couldn't win a big game without his legs won one with his arm.

"Where are those doubters now?" Texas tight end David Thomas says.

Either everyone else in line took one step back and left me hanging, or I'm the only one with the, uh, guts to admit it. Vince, can you blame us? You throw the ball like a shotput. You take way too many chances and make ill-advised passes that put your team in precarious situations that you somehow salvage, anyway.

You get knocked down, pushed around and kicked in the head. You make two horrible decisions that force you and your team into a seemingly untenable situation on the road at Ohio State in the most anticipated regular-season game in eons. Then, with time running out, with one flick of the wrist the Eyes of Texas suddenly are weeping with joy from a heart-pounding, I-can'the-believe-what-I-saw 25-22 win.

"It doesn't have to be pretty," Young says. "You just have to want it."

There's a game the Texas quarterbacks play before every practice. They sit in the quarterbacks meeting room with a trash can and wad of paper and take shots, moving the can all over the room to increase the difficulty.

"If he loses," Texas offensive coordinator Greg Davis says, "I can't get him up for practice. He wants to win so badly with everything he does."

This is the essence of Vince Young. Those who compete compete at everything.

Some embrace pressure; others wilt under the enormity. Doesn't matter if it's a wad of paper or a heap of expectations. Ever since his superhuman performance in the Rose Bowl, Young has been in the middle of it all--and mostly by choice. Why shy away from it now?

He walked into Davis' office a week after the bowl game and said he had to be a more complete quarterback. Said he wanted--no, he needed--to get better. He organized voluntary workouts in the summer to develop timing and chemistry with Texas' young receivers. He left notes in his teammates' lockers that read, "Ohio State is working. Are you?"

Then he went out and showed us all in a game Texas would have lost had it not been for his ability to make key throws. The Buckeyes focused on the running game and forced Young to beat them by throwing--following the scouting report to the letter.

Better get a new report.

Look, I'm not saying Young is Dan Marino. He made mistakes and will continue to make mistakes. But he also did things against a stout, athletic defense that he couldn't have dreamed of in previous seasons. He trusted his protection. He slid around in the pocket and bought time--ignoring his instincts to run--to give receivers an extra second or two to beat man coverage. He went through progressions and didn't lock on receivers.

On the winning touchdown, Young noticed Ohio State was playing cover 2 for the first time in the game. He looked away from primary receiver Limas Sweed long enough to prevent OSU safety Nate Salley from rolling into double coverage, then made a perfect throw only Sweed could catch.

Let me emphasize this: Young looked off Salley, who made a late break on the ball and couldn't get there in time to help cornerback Ashton Youboty. That's a quarterback play.

And there were others. The 33-yard slant to Billy Pittman in the first quarter. Another deep cross to Pittman in the third quarter that went for 63 yards after Young slid around in the pocket and gave Pittman a chance to get open, then threw a dart on the roll. The numerous touch throws to the flats--two on the final drive--to tailback Jamaal Charles that made Ohio State pay for pinching inside to take away Young's running ability.

"He's a different quarterback now," Salley says.

No, he is a quarterback now.

INSIDE DISH

Boise State is 0-2 for the first time since 2001 and has lost three in a row (dating to last year's Liberty Bowl) for the first time since 1997. The Broncos have given up 122 points in those three losses but don't blame just the defense. Ball security has been a problem: In those three losses, QB Jared Zabransky has five interceptions and four fumbles."(Zabransky) is too careless with the ball," says one WAC coach. "He carries it away from his body when he's running, and he's not always set when throwing, which makes his balls float. If you can pressure him, he's a turnover waiting to happen" * The best part of Notre Dame's 2-0 start and resurgence under coach Charlie Weis? Now two national title contenders--Southern California and Tennessee-suddenly have a tough nonconference game in South Bend. Who could have imagined that Notre Dame would be a factor-one way or another-in the national title chase in Year 1 under Weis? *