BOWL UPDATE : COTTON : Longhorns’ Thomas Can’t Stay Silent

Before Texas’ game against Texas A&M; this season, Longhorn offensive tackle Stan Thomas boasted to a group of reporters that the Texas starters would be out of the game by the third quarter, “eating hot dogs and telling Aggie jokes.”

Although Texas did indeed win the game, 28-27, Thomas, a senior from El Centro, Calif., got some friendly advice from Texas Coach David McWilliams: Keep your enthusiasm in check--or at least out of the newspapers.

It doesn’t appear that Thomas took the message to heart, however.

Thursday, surrounded by reporters at the Cotton Bowl, he predicted that Texas would beat Miami in the New Year’s Day game, 28-10, and described the Hurricanes in a variety of unflattering terms, “gangster-looking” being one of them.

Apparently what set Thomas off was a joint appearance by the teams at a barbecue given by the Cotton Bowl at a Dallas club Wednesday night.

“I thought I was in the Huntsville (Tex.) penitentiary,” Thomas said. “I can’t wait to play them. They walked around like they owned the whole place. That’s their attitude. They’re arrogant.”

Most of the Miami players reacted to Thomas’ comments with shrugs. “We were a little more relaxed (at the barbecue). The Texas guys stayed pretty much to themselves,” safety Charles Pharms said. “Maybe they do feel like we’re cocky. I just thought we were trying to relax.”