Texas Utes looking forward to big game

Utah's trip to the Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth will be a homecoming of sorts for five Texans on the Ute roster. They'll have a little extra fan support in the Dec. 23 game against Tulsa.

"It's great. It's great to go home," said cornerback Brice McCain, who's hometown of Terrell is just 50 minutes or so outside of Fort Worth.

The sophomore hasn't been back to Texas since summer. After the game, he'll stay behind for the Christmas holiday.

"I'm going right home and get some Southern cooking from my grandma," McCain said. "It'll be good. I'm ready to go home."

McCain added that he's excited to show his teammates what Texas is all about.

Offensive lineman Robert Conley grew up in La Marque, a four-hour drive from the bowl site.

"It's going to be fun to play in front of my family," he said.

Besides McCain and Conley, Utah's other Texans include Johnson (Baytown), as well as freshman defensive backs Joe Dale (Irving) and Justin Jones (Marshall).

And that's not all. Assistant coach Jay Boulware is from Irving.

WEDDLE-MANIA: Counting his second-team recognition on the Associated Press squad, senior Eric Weddle has now been named to seven All-America teams.

The other honors include first-team honors from the American Football Coaches Association, SportsIllustrated.com, CBS Sportsline.com, SportingNews.com and rivals.com — making Weddle Utah's first defensive first-team All-American since Luther Elliss in 1994.

The Walter Camp Football Foundation placed Weddle on its second team.

EXTRA POINTS: The Utes are taking some time off to take final exams. They're scheduled to practice again Thursday, Friday and Saturday ... Former Utah cornerback Ryan Smith, who transferred to Florida, joined Weddle on the AP All-America second team. He had eight interceptions for the Gators this season ... Funny line from the Baltimore Sun concerning the Armed Forces Bowl: "In keeping with the military budget experience, tickets to the game will cost $29,500 each."

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E-mail: dirk@desnews.com