No. 1 Texas comes to rowdy No. 6 Texas Tech

"I thought he was good last year but I think he's improved," he said. "He's bigger and stronger looking than he has been in the past, and I think he's faster, too."

Harrell could improve his shot at the Heisman with a win over Texas. He leads the No. 2 offense in the country and has thrown 28 touchdowns, half to All-American receiver Michael Crabtree.

Now it's Harrell's turn to run a Texas-like gauntlet. The Red Raiders, tied atop the Big 12 South with the Longhorns, set up the Texas showdown with a 63-21 rout of then-No. 19 Kansas. Waiting for them are No. 9 Oklahoma State at home, a bye week and a trip to No. 4 Oklahoma.

Texas defensive tackle Roy Miller offered a blunt illustration of the challenge.

"We're not Kansas," he said.

This is the second time in four years the Red Raiders and Longhorns have reached their game undefeated. Texas won 52-17 in Austin in 2005 on the way to the national championship.

Leach's most recent trip to Austin was pretty unpleasant, too. Upset by two disallowed Texas Tech touchdowns in a crucial third quarter, Leach was fined a record $10,000 by the Big 12 Conference last year for his harsh criticism of game officials after the 59-43 loss.

But Leach brings into this game something he didn't have last year - or most years, really. The nation's leading passing attack (418.4 yards per game) actually has a decent complement in the 64th-best running game (138.5 yards).

The Red Raiders also will have a stadium filled with fans wearing "Blackout Texas" T-shirts. They shouldn't be late, because a local television station has been doing a constant on-screen countdown to kickoff.

"They really get after it," Texas defensive end Brian Orakpo said of Tech fans. "They make the opposing team very uncomfortable. But we're used to it. We're Texas. We've been in hostile environments before."

In fact, the Longhorns have already played the biggest game in the history of a West Texas city once this year. They beat UTEP 42-13 in their first game against the Miners in El Paso.

"They'll be pumped up and that's the atmosphere you want to play in as a college football player, for both teams," Texas coach Mack Brown said. "Both teams have a lot on the line."