The University of Texas won a football game.

That fact is significant, even against a not-very-good Rice team. If you're a Longhorn fan, take a moment and let the feeling of victory wash over you . . .

OK. Texas certainly did not look like a championship caliber team in its Saturday night opener, maybe not even like a Top 25 team, but it was able to begin exorcizing last season with a group of pretty spectacular freshmen and a quarterback who seems to be getting his confidence back.

The new offense is fun to watch. Co-offensive coordinator Bryan Harsin threw everything into the game. No fewer than half a dozen players took a snap from center. We saw long bombs, a double-reverse pass, the Wild Fozzy, the Wildcat . . . you name it, Harsin did it. And UT ran for a respectable 229 yards, again, against a not-very-good Rice team, but it was a start.

Let's take a closer look at the goals I laid out for Texas in its opener:

1) Build confidence. Garrett Gilbert needed to play well and he did. While he only attempted 23 passes (completing 13), he threw the ball all over the field including at least four deep throws of more than 50 yards. Two of those passes were completed to Mike Davis, a sophomore who sent notice that he is a legitimate, stretch-the-field deep threat. The chemistry between Gilbert and Davis will only get better.

Gilbert had no turnovers, no batted balls and made only one boneheaded mistake trying to pitch the ball back as he was being sacked. That fumble was recovered by Fozzy Whittaker for a 12-yard loss. Otherwise, Glibert was able to hold his head high.

2) Test the young'uns. There were kids flying all over the field and no fewer than a half dozen players took a snap from center. Freshman Jaxon Shipley scored the first touchdown of Texas' season, his first as a collegian. Shipley has great hands, runs tight routes and may be faster than his now Cincinnati Bengal brother Jordan (who incidentally attended the game to watch his little bro's debut).

Shipley will be as big a star for Texas as his brother was.

Welcome to the Longhorns Malcolm Brown. The Texas coaches handed the freshman tailback the ball 16 times and he delivered with 87 yards — all in the second half — the most yards in a freshman debut since Jamaal Charles in 2005. The Horns found their rushing future Saturday night. Whittaker, the senior leader of this team, has great hands and good speed, but is not the north-south, run-over-them runner Brown can be. Whittaker and Brown complement each other well and should give Texas hope for a renewed rushing game.

The offensive line did open holes and keep Gilbert's shirt clean. There are still questions to be answered though as Rice was able to put pressure on Gilbert if not outright sack him. This was Rice, not BYU. BYU will be better.

On defense, the young cornerbacks acquitted themselves well. They didn't allow the Owls' receivers to get behind them and they made tackles. The defensive tackles, however, were a different story. Besides Kheeston Randall, there isn't much there. Defensive coordinator Manny Diaz rotated a lot of players through the line, but none seemed able to put significant pressure on Rice quarterback Taylor McHargue, and none seemed able to effectively close off running lanes.

Rice averaged more than four yards a carry . . . this is Rice we're talking about here. That can't continue against good teams.

3) Build team leadership. Gilbert is becoming the leader he must be. He played with energy and emotion . . . he even threw a fist pump after his first touchdown pass. The entire Texas team came out a bit flat early, almost afaid to lose. The second half saw a Texas team playing to prove something, probably more to themselves than to any of the 101,000 fans in the stands.

The team leadership must maintain that motivation week to week.

Specifically here were my keys to Texas success and how the Horns responded:

• Protect the ball — Zero Turnovers on offense, two or more takeaways on defense. Texas got two, but lost one fumble late in the game.
• Throw the ball — Get Garrett Gilbert 40 throws, let him air it out deep, let him play the whole game. Gilbert threw only 23 times but he did air out several long balls with great success. He played all but the last possession.
• Run Malcolm Brown — Brown should get at least 12 carries and see what he can do. Can he average more than four yards per carry? Sixteen carries, 87 yards, averaging 5.4 yards per carry, all in the second half. Wow.
• Hold Rice under 200 yards of total offense. The Longhorn defense needs to dominate the game. Rice finished with 224 yards, only trailed 13-9 in the third quarter. Texas' D did not dominate, but it did control the Owls, which was good enough for this game.

Brigham Young comes into Austin on Saturday and the Cougars will be a challenge. They are a much better team than Rice — stronger, faster, better coached. Texas team mantra this year is "brick by brick."

The first brick in the foundation has been laid, but the Longhorns may need the whole wall built by gametime this Saturday.