his collegiate career in the next game against Iowa State on a 48-yard pass to Mike Davis. Ash scored two touchdowns in a 37–14 victory against the Cyclones. In the annual Red River Rivalry against Oklahoma, Ash threw another touchdown but also threw two interceptions. Texas lost, 17–55, their worst loss against the Sooners since 2003. Because of McCoy's uneven performance in that game, Ash was named the starter for the next five games, during which the team went 2–3, and Ash was twice replaced by McCoy. After McCoy nearly sparked a comeback against Kansas State, Ash lost the starting job to him against Texas A&M and Baylor. But a poor performance in the Baylor game, combined with good practices by Ash, led to another change at quarterback and Ash started in the Holiday Bowl against California. In that game he completed 14 of 23 passes for 142 yards and one touchdown while also catching a 4-yard touchdown pass from Jaxon Shipley, and was named the game's offensive MVP. 2012 season During the 2012 Texas spring game, Ash began the game with the Horns team to start the game and flipped between the Horns and Texas team throughout the scrimmage. However, Ash only threw seven passes, of which six were completed for 87 yards, including one touchdown. Ash also ran for only six yards on five attempts. The Texas team won the scrimmage 35–28. After the spring game and throughout the offseason, it was undecided whether Case McCoy or Ash would be the Longhorns' starting quarterback, with both appearing in preseason drills. However, on August 22, 2012, Ash was finally named the starting quarterback for Texas over McCoy. Ash made his first start of the 2012 season against Wyoming on September 1. In the season opener, Ash completed 74.1% of his passes for 156 passing yards. Ash's single touchdown came on a 16-yard strike to wide receiver Jaxon Shipley. The quarterback also ran three times for eight yards, helping the team to a 37–17 victory to begin the 2012 season. Against New Mexico, Ash once again threw no interceptions and completed a 72.7% completion percentage. Ash also threw for two touchdowns, including a 45-yard shovel pass to Daje Johnson in the third quarter, and a personal best of 221 yards. Through the first 10 games, Ash led Texas to 8 wins, including gutsy road wins against #22 Oklahoma State and