As absurd as this statement may sound … the answer is yes, according to columnist Mike Finger.

Before facing the Bears in the 2009 Big 12 tournament, Barnes was 24-0 against Baylor. He’s 2-6 since.

From 1999-2009, UT won 17 NCAA tournament games, while Baylor had none. In the last three seasons, Baylor has six, and the Longhorns have one.

And in the most jarring change for the man who once ruled signing day, Barnes no longer gets the best recruits, either. In each of the past three years, Drew’s top recruit (Perry Jones III in 2010, Quincy Miller in 2011 and Isaiah Austin this year) has been rated higher nationally than Barnes’ best signee.

Texas was young last year – three of its best four players were freshman – and the Longhorns lost their best player to the NBA draft (Brown). It finished sixth in the Big 12. Baylor, Kansas, Missouri (Ed. SEC, duh) Iowa St. and Oklahoma State all will probably be better than Texas next year.

Hook ‘em? [San Antonio News Express]