Michigan vs. Texas: Revisiting 2005 Rose Bowl where Vince Young promised, 'We'll be back'

No. 3 Texas and No. 10 Michigan meet in a top-10 showdown at Michigan Stadium on Saturday in the first regular-season matchup between the teams.

If it's as memorable as the 2005 Rose Bowl between the Wolverines and Longhorns, then we are in for an instant classic. Texas beat Michigan 38-37 in a star-studded matchup where Vince Young foreshadowed what would follow the next season with a legendary proclamation – "We'll be back."

What did that mean? What else happened in the 2005 Rose Bowl? A closer look.

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Michigan 2004-05 college football season

The Wolverines split the Big Ten championship with Iowa in 2004 and were in the Rose Bowl for the second straight season under coach Lloyd Carr. There were still questions about their reputation knowing the Wolverines lost to unranked Notre Dame and Ohio State on the road that season.

Freshmen phenoms Chad Henne and Mike Hart formed a talented backfield, and Biletnikoff Award winner Braylon Edwards had 97 catches for 1,330 yards and 15 TDs that season. All-American guard David Baas anchored the offensive line and the defense featured All-American defensive backs Marlin Jackson and Ernest Shazor along with linebacker LaMarr Woodley.

Texas 2004-05 college football season

Texas finished 11-1 under Mack Brown, and first-year defensive coordinator Greg Robinson installed a new-look defense. The Longhorns' lone loss to Oklahoma – a 12-0 shutout – kept Texas out of the Big 12 championship game.

Young was a dual-threat quarterback who had 1,849 passing yards, 12 TDs and 11 interceptions. He also rushed for 1,079 yards and 14 TDs. Doak Walker Award winner Cedric Benson finished with 1,834 rushing yards and 19 TDs. All-American linebacker Derrick Johnson was the star of the defense. The Longhorns won six straight games heading into the 2005 Rose Bowl matchup with the Wolverines.

The Sooners went on to the BCS championship game and lost 55-19 to USC.

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Revisiting Texas-Michigan 2005 Rose Bowl

Texas entered the Rose Bowl ranked No. 6 in the AP Poll. Michigan was No. 13.

Henne connected with Edwards for two TDs in the first half. Young scored on a 20-yard run and a TD pass to David Thomas, and the teams were tied at 14 at halftime.

Then the shootout started in the second half. Young scored on a 60-yard run with 12:53 left in the third quarter, but the Wolverines responded with 17 straight points. Henne hit Edwards for a 9-yard TD – his third of the game – and Steve Breaston for a 50-yard TD. A Garrett Rivas field goal gave Michigan a 31-21 lead heading into the fourth quarter.

Then Young took over. Young scored two rushing TDs – including an incredible 23-yard run with 4:56 remaining for a 35-34 lead. Michigan answered with another Rivas field goal with 3:04 remaining, but that was too much time. Young put Texas in position for the game-winning field goal, which Dusty Mangum drilled from 37 yards out for a dramatic 38-37 victory.

Henne had 209 passing yards and four TDs in the loss. Edwards had 10 catches for 109 yards and three TDs.

Young finished with 180 passing yards, one TD and an interception. It was the 192 rushing yards and four TDs that offered a glimpse of what was to come the following season.

Why did Vince Young say 'We'll be back?'

Afterward Young closed his post-game interview on the field with a bold prediction: "We'll be back."

"We'll be back! I thought, 'C'mon Vince,'" Brown said in the documentary "05." "Don't be talking about that already. You got a lotta work to do. So I asked him, after he got done, 'What are you doing?' He said, 'Coach, I'm planning on coming back, and the national championship game is here next year."

The 2005-06 BCS championship was at the Rose Bowl, and Young backed up at the promise. Texas finished 13-0 the following season. The Longhorns averaged 50.8 points per game, and Young led Texas to the national championship with a 41-38 victory against USC.

Young finished with 267 passing yards, 200 rushing yards and three TDs – including the game-winner with 19 seconds remaining. Sporting News voted the 2006 Rose Bowl as the No. 3 most-impactful game of all time in its SN 150 series.

Michigan vs. Texas players in NFL Draft

Michigan had 19 players drafted from 2005-08. Edwards was the No. 3 pick in the 2005 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns. Marlin Jackson also was a first-round pick, and cornerback Leon Hall was taken in the first round of the 2007 NFL Draft. Jake Long – a freshman starter on the 2004 team – was the No. 1 pick in the 2008 NFL Draft.

Texas had 22 players drafted from 2005-08. Benson was the No. 4 pick in the 2005 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears. Johnson was also a first-round pick that season. In the 2006 NFL Draft, Young and safety Michael Huff were both selected with top-10 picks. Michael Griffin and Aaron Ross were first-round picks in the 2007 NFL Draft.