Bearkat Sports Forum

Bradley, US Soccer wasted 2011

2011-06-28T22:24:00.000-05:00

I have taken a few days to digest the US Men’s National Team performance in the Gold Cup. First off, I was thrilled getting to see them play in person. Clint Dempsey scoring the game winner in the 77^th minute was almost a storybook finish to the game.

But even during that game, the deficiencies of the US team became clear. They were slow, lacked any creativity up top, technically were not very good with the ball and tactically they were not very good either. Some of that falls on head coach Bob Bradley and rest falls on the US Soccer Federation.

The first question that gets asked is should Bradley keep his job? That really depends on what the focus of the US Soccer Federation and president Sunil Gulati is. If the goal is to put a competitive side on the pitch that will play hard, compete and every few years surprise someone, then Bradley is the guy. If the goal is to win the World Cup, then a change needs to be made. Not just with the coach, but with the philosophy.

Bradley and US Soccer gambled big time in this Gold Cup, and lost not once but twice. In terms of player development, 2014 is not that far away. This is the summer they should have been identifying and preparing players for 2014. If that wasn’t going to happen then they HAD to win the Gold Cup. Unfortunately they did neither.

I think one of the main problems is they were blinded by the success of the 2009 Confederations Cup. Beating Spain and pushing Brazil to the brink was a great moment for the US. It was hailed as a huge success as a tune-up for last summer’s World Cup. I would be more inclined to believe it was that vital of an experience had the World Cup be a little more successful. It took a 93^rd minute goal from Landon Donovan just to get out of a soft group and they then lost in the round of 16.

But Bradley and the US put all of their eggs in the Gold Cup basket this summer in hopes of qualifying for the 2014 World Cup preview a year earlier in Brazil. (Side note: are there going to be stadiums for 2013 Confederations Cup in Brazil?) So they rolled the dice and put out a veteran laden squad in hopes of earning that coveted 2013 invitation to Brazil. By losing, Bradley and US Soccer pretty much wasted an entire summer of international soccer for the US.

Had they gone into the tournament with a goal of preparing for 2014 and started playing a few more guys who are going to feature in three years, then the loss to Mexico would not have been as bad. At least they would have been able to begin to develop the next crop of national team players. Instead, neither goal was accomplished this summer.

When looking at the way the team was put together, I have no problem with Donovan, Tim Howard or Clint Dempsey being on the squad. Those guys have been here before and know what it takes to win. They also will probably still be in the mix for 2014. Howard would be 35 at that point and doesn’t show any signs that he won’t still be a top keeper. Donovan (29) and Dempsey (28) both should be in pretty good form in 2014 (personally I am ready for Donovan to just go away).

With the exception of inserting Juan Agudelo (19), Eric Lichaj (22) and Alejandro Bedoya (24) into the lineup and Tim Ream (23) had a cup of coffee with the team, what else did Bradley do with his players to start preparing for the next World Cup?

Some of the biggest questions about decision made by Bradley and US Soccer come at the back.

Howard is one of the top goalkeepers in the world and is without question the US’s No. 1. He would be a great guy for a young keeper to learn from. However, the other two keepers on the Gold Cup roster are either his age or older.

First off, why is Marcus Hahnemann even in the player pool? He is five years older than I am, and by the time 2014 rolls around he will be 42. He got his last start in goal in March of this year. Who is that going to benefit? If Howard gets a night off, Bradley should be thinking about 2014 and maybe who the keeper will be when 2018 qualifying starts five years from now. Playing Hahnemann in a friendly does nothing for anyone, and was pretty much a waste.

Even the third-string keeper on the Gold Cup roster, Nick Rimando, is 32 years old and will be 35 when Brazil rolls around. He played in January of this year, earning his first cap in more than six years. Once again, if the goal is to win the World Cup, why is he on the roster? I can’t imagine he is in future plans past this year.

The situation in front of the keeper is beyond a disaster. Steve Cherundolo and Carlos Bocanegra have been fixtures for the US backline for nine years. But they will both be 35 the next time the World Cup rolls around. Similar to Howard, I think both are guys who a young player can learn from, but unlike Howard, can’t see any way they are a significant factor in 2014. While Lichaj and Ream (who was benched) did play, no one else who played defense for the US this month will or should be in the plans for 2014.

As for the rest of the guys on the pitch, I think there is a good group to build around. What they need is some consistency. At times the midfield looks like they have never played with each other (in Jones case, he hasn’t). There just doesn’t seem to be much chemistry or connection between the mids and the guys up top.

Finally, they need a finisher not named Landon. Is it Altidore? He hasn’t show enough to think he can get the job done. Is Agudelo the guy? While he has shown some flash, he disappears for stretches of the game. Maybe there is someone else? That is the question Bob Bradley and the US Soccer Federation need to answer by next summer. They can’t expect to plug a striker in sometime in late 2013 and expect him to be a force in Brazil, assuming they qualify.

NCAA Tournament predicitions

2011-06-03T10:39:00.002-05:00

The NCAA Baseball Tournament gets underway today with 32 games going across the country. This will be the first time since 2006 I will not be attending any NCAA Baseball postseason games. But at the same time, I am going to attempt to predict the field anyway.

Charlottesville Regional – I think the clear winner here is Virginia. They are the No. 1 National seed and maybe the favorite to win the whole thing.

Los Angeles Regional – UCLA is the host as the top seed, but they are a little shaky with a 33-22 record. Fresno State has played the role of Cinderella before winning the national title as a four seed in the regioanal. They enter here as a No. 2, but in the end, UCLA wins.

Super Regional – South Carolina beats UCLA

Fort Worth Regional – Good field where TCU is the favorite. Oklahoma and Dallas Baptist will push the Horned Frogs, but I think TCU ends up winning it. The

Houston Regional – There was talk two weeks ago that Rice might not host a Regional. Not only are they at home this week, but they are the No. 8 national seed. I think Rice might be a little shaky, but they managed to draw the worst 2-seed in the field, 29-26 Baylor. Rice moves on to host a Super Regional.

Super Regional – TCU and Rice. I might just have to get down there for that one, oh wait, the Braves are in town and I have tickets to Rock of Ages on Saturday. Oh well, TCU has the pitching to get back to Omaha.

Tallahassee Regional – FSU is the No. 5 national seed and has a pretty good regional. UCF and Alabama are the No. 2 and 3 seeds, and neither even finished above .500 in its own conference. Florida State wins this one.

College Station Regional – Texas A&M is the host and one of the best teams in the Big 12. But their non-conference record at Olsen Field late in the year wasn’t great (4-4). I think Arizona will take a game from the Aggies, but Texas A&M historically doesn’t drop a first-round series at home and I don’t think it happens this year either.

Super Regional – Texas A&M will travel to Tallahassee and I think the Seminoles punch a ticket to Omaha.

Clemson Regional – This field is loaded. Three of the four teams have 41 wins on the season and Sacred Heart is no slouch at 34-21. Clemson was the team I rooted for in Omaha last year, but I think they fall at home. People dogged the Big East for getting three teams in, but I see UConn getting through.

Columbia Regional – The Gamecocks will begin their defense of a national title at home. NC State was one of the last teams in the field and Stetson is the No. 2 in this group. Just can’t see the title holders falling here.

Super Regional – Uconn heads to Columbia and the Gamecocks get back to Omaha.

Gainesville Regional – Florida and Miami make this an interesting regional, with the Gators playing at home. It is the ESPNU Regional so we will get to see it play out. Gators swept a three-game series earlier this year in Gainesville. Don’t expect a different result.

Atlanta Regional – Georgia Tech is at home but Southern Miss is not going to be an easy out. The Golden Eagles will pull off the upset here to advance.

Super Regional – Southern Miss heads to Gainesville and the Gators will take it in two.

Tempe Regional – A 42-win Charlotte team with a win over North Carolina this year is an intriguing upset pick as a three-seed. But a near cross-country trip may be too much for the 49ers. It may push to the if necessary game, but this is the first big upset of the tournament with Charlotte.

Austin Regional – Texas is the No. 7 national seed, but gets a regional with two other 40-plus win teams. Texas State is the No. 2 seed and the setting is familiar for them. Depending on how the pitching stacks up, they could give the Horns a run, but in the end it will be Texas.

Super Regional – Charlotte at Texas. No upset here. Horns go back to Omaha after an absence last season.

Nashville Regional – Vanderbilt is one of the top teams in the country and have the No. 6 national seed. Troy is the No. 3 in that regional and poses a bigger threat than No. 2 Oklahoma State. But Vandy wins and moves on.

Corvallis Regional – Oregon State is the host and the former national champs have been good in the post season. But they draw a good Creighton as the No. 2 seed. I see the Jays pulling the upset and advance to the Super Regional.

Super Regional – Creighton continues a strong run and will upset Vandy to play in front of the home folks in the new TD Ameritrade Park in Omaha.

Fullerton Regional – The other ESPNU series shouldn’t be much of a problem for the hosts. Stanford may make some noise, but Cal State Fullerton will advance.

Chapel Hill Regional – FIU returns to the postseason, but without the fanfare of the Garrett Whittles hitting streak like last year. North Carolina shouldn't have much problem getting out of this.

Super Regional – Fullerton has to cross the country to take on North Carolina. I think this one goes three, but look for Carolina to advance to Omaha.

College World Series teams

1. Virginia

2. TCU

3. FSU

4. South Carolina

5. Florida

6. Texas

7. Creighton

8. North Carolina

Championship Series - Virginia has the best pitcher in the country in Danny Hultzen and will pull the rare feat of winning the national title as the No. 1 seed.

Twas the morning of the NCAA Tournament

2011-03-17T11:27:00.002-05:00

Twas the morning of the NCAA Tournament and all through the land

The best days in sports are finally at hand

The brackets were hung around the house with care

In hopes of a Cinderella or two will appear

And mamas got her final Four, I have mine too

Should I be worried we have the same teams getting through?

The First Four has been played, so the field is now set

UTSA got in, are they thinking of pulling an upset?

The DVR is set. As the games are a must see

Does anyone know exactly how to find TruTV?

The experts are weighing in, giving locks and teams to watch

Yet when the show is over, they have the 1-seeds ruling March

I turn to CBS for a little pre tournament chatter

Hoping for some insight from Jay Bilas or Billy Packer

When what to my wondering eyes should appear

It was Charles Barkley, what’s he doing here?

He and Kenny Smith are Turner’s NBA gurus

What do they know of the Hoyas or the Purdues?

I’m a huge fan of Reggie Miller and he’s calling the Penn State game

But the last time he was in college the uniforms were pretty lame

The tournament will be seen on four different channels

Meaning I no longer will gripe because they are showing us the Vandals

So as the first tip draws near, let me leave you with my two cents:

May your upset bids come to fruition as we witness another year of shining moments

National Championship game blog

2011-01-10T19:41:00.082-06:00

Here is a running blog during tonights national championship between Oregon and Auburn.

I really don't have a rooting interest in this one, but I think Oregon will win this 37-35. Also, The uniforms are not as bad as they could have been.

Wow, I don't think I have seen that stat before about Newton. 19-of-19 passing on opening drives this season. That is pretty impressive.And then he throws an incomplete pass. Of course.

11:44 1st - Maybe the upset of the night. Both teams are scoreless after their opening drives. After watching all the buildup, they would have you believe this would be at least a 14-7 game after five minutes of play.

9:19 1st - First turnover of the game is a tipped INT. Sloppy start so far. This is why 5 weeks is a long time to wait and play a championship game.

I'll be curios to see how Cam Newton does tonight.

And there is my answer. That was not a good throw and Oregon has it right back.

7:38 1st - ready to see that explosive Oregon offense. Something needs to get this game going. We have played nearly 10 minutes with no points. And another pick by Auburn. Bad pass, but a great pick. not one you would expect to see caught.

4:29 1st - We are in danger of having a scoreless first quarter. Could have had a lot of takers if I wanted to bet that was going to happen about two hours ago.

00:48 1st - We might get points. This is what we have been expecting from the Oregon offense. Well not this quarter it doesn't look like.

Auburn 0, Oregon 0 - End of First

Well I don't think anyone saw this coming. They have called this a defensive battle early on, but it is more of sloppy play by the offense. Mark May said Oregon will NOT be slowed down because of the time off. I should have known right then they would struggle early. Mainly because Mark May is ALWAYS wrong. It once again amazes me he continues to draw a check from ESPN.

14:53 2nd - Is anyone planning to block Auburn tonight??? Surely they saw 90 once or twice on film making plays this season.

13:01 2nd - This is looking for like what we expect to see from a Heisman Trophy winner. Newton is making some plays right now.

12:09 2nd - and the first review of the night. Hell of a catch, but I think they will rule it incomplete. Just a bit of a bobble there at the end. But a great effort. It is incomplete and Auburn goes right for it and scores. No one had Burns on that. WOW. He was wide open. Auburn 7, Oregon 3

11:55 2nd - There is the explosiveness. How did he not score? Now we have a game. As much momentum as Oregon can get from that big play, they can give it right back if they cant get in the end zone here.

That was a great play by Oregon on the Touchdown. And it a FAKE!!!. They faked the PAT and got two points. WOW. What a call. And it is a rare 11-7 lead for Oregon.

9:34 2nd - I think it was important for Auburn to not give the b all right back to Oregon. Even if they don't get points out of this, they are eating a little clock and letting the momentum of that offensive series continue.

5:34 2nd - Did we really need Musberger to explain the Cam Newton situation? As if this story hasn't been told over the last few weeks.

3:54 2nd - Auburn goes on fourth down and it was there for them. The strong armed Heisman winner leaves it short. Unbelievable. It is still early in the game. Take the points. Now Oregon has a chance to seize control here before the half.

3:26 2nd - SAFETY! again, the Tiger line gets in the backfield and this time it results in two points. 11-9 Oregon.

Auburn now has a chance here at the end of the half. Good field position and some time to work with. Also two timeouts. No need to rush anything here.

2:16 2nd - Auburn now starting to use their size and strength. And it is a touchdown for the Tigers. ANother receiver wide open in the Oregon secondary. There was a little bit of pressure on Newton, but he was easily able to shake it off and find the open receiver. Auburn 16, Oregon 11

1:26 2nd - I don't think Oregon is concerned about the clock here. Already across midfield and the still have three timeouts. Just saw the replay of the penalty, he is luck to still be on the field and not have gotten his marching orders for that. WOW.

It was big for Auburn to get the stop after that and not allow the penalty to cost them points.

00:13 2nd - I really thought Auburn would just take a knee and run out the half. Surprised to see them take a shot at this, but they might actually get points out of it. But the Hail Mary hits the ground and that will do it for the half.

Auburn 16, Oregon 11 - Half

That was an entertaining second quarter. We saw three touchdowns, a safety and a fake PAT for a two-point conversion. The game is there for the taking right now.

I am surprised to see so many people slipping out there tonight. For a championship game, you would expect better field conditions. It hasn't affected play greatly yet, but you just have to feel it is a matter of time before someone goes down on a big play.

I think Cam Newton is holding his own so far. He has really put some throws on the money and they are picking up yards through the air in big chunks at a time. Also, he has time to throw which has been big. On the other side, Oregon has not done a very good job protecting. They have got to keep the blue jerseys out of the back field.

Watching Saban and Meyer at the half and it looks like Meyer is actaully keeping notes. He has his pen in his hand and several yellow note pad sheets in front of him. Saban doens't look like he has touched the note pad in front of him. And why are there two SEC guys on the desk? Rick Neuheisel wasn't available? Come one ESPN, I know you have a lot invested in the SEC, but let's see both conferences represented.

13:54 3rd - Once again, another player is on the turn. You just can help but think the long layoff is contributing to this. I laugh when defendants of this format defend the break off and try to act like these teams and coaches are too good to let the time off affect them.

12:48 3rd - Newton playing like the best football player in college. Another great throw right on the money. Not so much on that third down pass. Was he throwing it away? That was real high. Victory for the Ducks holding to a field goal. 19-11 Auburn.

Oregon really needs to get things going. Outside of the 81-yard pass, they really haven't done much on offense this game. It is important for them to respond with points, and I think they really need a touchdown.

11:11 3rd - What a stupid play by Fairley. Right in front of the official at that after you have already been accused of being dirty. Stupid. Stupid. And two plays later Fairley is UNBLOCKED AGAIN! Have they not watched film? Auburn lucky to have not given up points on that drive.

6:25 3rd - It was there! New just put a little too much on it. That would have been 6 easy. Now Auburn will have to punt. Once again, Oregon really needs to do something with this drive.

5:07 3rd - That might have been the most panicky fake punt I have ever seen. What a call.

And what a catch on the next play. Oregon has it going their way again. Can they finish?

2:30 3rd - WOW. They don't finish it off. Both coaches go for it on fourth on the goal line and they both come up empty. That could be a big blow for the Ducks. Have to get something there.

If Auburn can put something together here, they can maybe put this game away. Oregon lost all momentum off the fake punt.

Auburn 19, Oregon 11 - End of 3rd

Auburn might want to look at shortening this game now. Eat some clock and put points on the board in the process. Make this a two possession game and put it on your defense. They has stood up to the challenge so far tonight.

12:15 4th - Just when it looked like the Ducks were done on that drive, Thomas delivers a huge strike for a first down. Now they have something going.But once again, the Duck drive stalls. Time is beginning to run out.

After the second quarter, where 27 points were scored, I thought we were on our way to having the game everyone thought we were going to have. But just three points in the last 20 minutes of football. Game starting to loose a little luster.

10:06 4th - Was that not delay? I guess not and Newton picks up a huge first down on a 3rd and 12 scamper.

Another big third down conversion by Auburn. They are putting this game on the Heisman winner's shoulders and he is responding.

6:49 4th - 3rd and 12 - Can he do it again? Not this time, although that was close.

So Oregon will get the ball back here, and because of the decision to no kick the field goal following the fake punt, they are now in a position where they will have to now go for 2 following a touchdown.

6:21 4th - Oregon has to start doing something on first and second down. Can't keep relying on third down conversions.

4:54 4th - FUMBLE! Is this the break Oregon has been looking for? They do get the ball, but back it up 15 after a deadball penalty.

Another near pick for Auburn. They have had a few in their hands tonight. Thomas just have been off his spot all night. A big fourth down here. And a huge play. Oregon is now in striking distance.But once again, they are having trouble finding the end zone.

2:33 4th - TOUCHDOWN Ducks. Great little inside pitch. Now for two. And they GOT IT!. Throw back across the field and a great catch. We are tied at 19

That was not an easy grab on the conversion. Defender was right there. Now you have what you want. Two and a half to play, tie game, ball in the hands of the best player in college football.

1:56 4th - Heads up play by Dyer. He keeps going when everyone else stopped and picks up an additional 30 yards. But will they rule him down? NO! The play stands and Auburn is sitting pretty now.

00:10 4th - Unexpected. Auburn is setting up for the field goal and Dyer breaks loose and scores. Or does he? They are going to take a look at this. But at any rate, it is a chip shot from here.

It looks like they are going to put this on the foot of the kicker. Or are they. Newton heading out. A failed sneak by Newton will now set up a potential game-winner. This has not been the amount of point we were expecting, but certainly the close finish.

00:02 4th - Kick is up and good and Auburn wins the National Championship. No real suspense in the chippy.

Auburn 22, Oregon 19 - Final

That makes it five in a row for the SEC. Game was very sloppy and neither team looks poised to take it. Oregon one got the tying TD after a mistake by Cam Newton.

AP vote still to come. Do the voters dare to give the crown to TCU. I know I would like to see the Horned Frogs and Tigers square off.

2010 Sports Year in Review

2010-12-31T01:31:00.004-06:00

As 2010 wraps up, I decided to take a look back at the year for me personally in the world of sports. With a trip to the World Series, College World Series, MLS All-Star game and two trips to the NCAA Tournament, this was easily my best year in sports yet. I managed to cross five items off my list of 100 things to do in sports.

Here is just a quick rundown of some of the things I got to do this past year: Game 5 of the World Series, first eight games of the College World Series, MLS All-Star Game, NCAA Basketball first round, NCAA Basketball Regional, Shell Houston Open and Monday Night Football. I went to six Major League baseball games in three different ballparks, four NFL games, the Shell Houston Open and a minor league baseball game.

The Games

It is hard to pinpoint the highlight of the year, but going to Rosenblatt Stadium and the College World Series was an amazing trip. The College World Series has always been a dream trip for me. Adding the fact that this was the final year at Rosenblatt Stadium makes it just that much more special.

Also, I got the chance to see Manchester United play against the MLS All-Stars. Two of my other favorite teams, Dallas Cowboys and the Atlanta Braves, are much easier to pick up on a yearly basis and Penn State has been to two bowl games in Texas in the last 10 years. I can get in a car and drive to see any of these teams play. Man U is a different story, though. You can’t just jump in the car and drive to Manchester, England. So when I got the chance to see the Red Devils in action at Reliant Stadium, it was an amazing experience. Add to that I got to see Macheda and Chicharito score goals, it was a day I’ll never forget.

Any other year, a World Series clinching game would be at the top of my list, but Game 5 between the Giants and Rangers at the Ballpark in Arlington actually ranks third. The experience was great and the seats were awesome, but it is hard to beat the College World Series and Manchester United.

The Miles

Also, the past year, I didn’t fly anywhere, so all of my travelling was done by car. Not counting Sam Houston State events with the exception of the NCAA Tournament in New Orleans, I spent a total of 6,621 miles in the car. Add in my trips with the Bearkats and that number is easily more than 10,000 miles.

The Teams

In college we had a guy working at SHSU who had seen every NCAA men’s Division I team play. I think at the time it was 307 teams. By no means I am actively pursuing that, but that doesn’t mean I’m not keeping track. I added seven new teams this year including a pair of legendary programs, Kentucky and Duke. I also saw Notre Dame, St. Mary’s, Old Dominion, Cleveland State and Purdue.

I picked up two new NFL teams, Baltimore and Tampa Bay. I added three new ballparks to my list, Rosenblatt Stadium, Turner Field and Dr. Pepper Park.

The Players

Homeruns (11) – Brian McCann 2 (Grand Slam), Jason Heyward 2, Alex Gonzalez (Walk-off), Kevin Cash, Lance Berkman, Carlos Lee 2, Clint Barmes, Nelson Cruz and Edgar Renteria.

Touchdowns – Willis McGahee, Derrick Mason 2, Andre Johnson 2, Jacoby Jones 2, Josh Wilson (OT pick 6), Marion Barber, Roy Williams 2, Kevin Walter, Corey Lynch, Arrelious Benn, Arian Foster and Kevin Ogletree.

Scorers (goals, big point outings) – Soccer - Federico Macheda 2, Javier Hernandez, Tom Cleverly, Darron Gibson, Brian Ching, Dwayne De Rosario, College Basketball - Anatoly Bose, Nicholls, 40; Nolan Smith, Duke, 29; Eric Bledsoe, Kentucky, 29.

The List

In my list of 100ish things to do in sports, here are the five items crossed off in the last 365 days:

3. Watch Manchester United play
7. See the Braves play in Atlanta
~~37. Watch a college baseball game at Rosenblatt Stadium.~~
~~44. Go to the World Series~~
~~51. Go to the College World Series.~~

The Top 5

ESPN is running its top games of 2010, so I am going to run my top 5 games of 2010 that I was in attendance for. There were some big games that I went to this year, like SHSU beating SFA for the Southland Championship, but that game was never really in doubt. These five games al had the drama you want when you go to a sporting event.

5. Southland Conference Semifinal, SHSU vs. Southeastern Louisiana – This game was the ultimate nail-biter. A trip to the SLC finals against SFA was on the line and the Lions weren’t going to make it easy. In a tight game all the way, Lance Pevehouse hit a 3 with 1:06 left to give the Kats the lead 85-83. With the game tied at 85 and 11 seconds left to play, Ashton Mitchell hit a jumper in the paint to give the Kats the win. I paced the Merrell Center the entire game, watching the final minutes from the top row.

4. Dallas at Houston – A few weeks after meeting in the preseason, the Cowboys and Texans meet in week 3 of the regular season. The Texans were 2-0 and on an emotional high. The Cowboys were 0-2 and in desperate need of a win. Regardless of how the rest of the season played out, on Sunday afternoon, this was a huge win for the Cowboys and a thrill to be there to see it in person.

3. Monday Night Football, Baltimore at Houston – It was the football equivalent of a walk-off homer. In overtime, Josh Wilson intercepted a Matt Schaub pass and returned it for a touchdown to win the game for Baltimore. It capped off a night that the Texans thought they were pulling off one of the greatest comebacks in franchise history. They rallied from 15 down in the fourth quarter to tie the game on a touchdown and two-point conversion with 21-seconds left to play. Top that off with a big sack on Baltimore’s first possession in OT and it looked like Houston had the win in the bag until Schaub’s interception. It was another crushing loss for the Texans and thoroughly fun to watch as it unfolded. It was the first time in five years a game has ended with a pick-6 in overtime.

2. World Series Game 5, San Francisco at Texas – What more needs to be said about this. Game 5 of the World Series and a chance to win it for the Giants. The Rangers got on the board first on a homer from Nelson Cruz, but with two outs in the top of the seventh, Edgar Renteria hit a three-run shot that held up to give the Giants the win. In the Bottom of the ninth, Brian Wilson mowed through Josh Hamilton, Vlad Guerrero and Nelson Cruz to close out the game.

1. Atlanta Braves vs. St. Louis – My first trip to Atlanta to see the Braves. I have seen them play more than 30 times in Houston and once in Arlington, but never at Turner Field. It was a Saturday afternoon Fox game in September and the Braves were in a pennant race. The last thing I wanted was to drive 900 miles to see the Braves lose. With the game tied at two in the seventh, Jason Heyward hit a solo shot to give the Braves the lead. The Cards answered right back and tied the game in the 8^th on a fielder’s choice by Albert Pujols. The game went extra innings until Alex Gonzalez hit a three-run walk-off homer to give the Braves the win.

Looking ahead to 2011

While there is little doubt it will be hard to top 2010, there are already a couple of events in 2011 I am looking forward to. It won’t take long to scratch another item off the list when I go work the FCS National Championship game in Frisco on Jan. 7. I will also work my second Final Four in April. Then in June, the Gold Cup semifinals will be held at Reliant Stadium where I am hoping I’ll get the chance to see the US Men’s National Team play.

Just like this past year, we will just have to see how the rest of 2011 plays out. The Braves trip didn’t come together until about two weeks before the game and the World Series didn’t happen until I got a text message at 11:30 the night before. All I know is I am looking forward to seeing what is in store.

All-Star game blog

2010-07-13T19:52:00.043-05:00

Once again, home field avantage in the World Series is on the line tonight, nd the National League is long overdue for a win. Also, since the Braves are four games up in the East, this game means a little something more to them tonight than it has in the past. And with five guys in Anaheim (four eligible to play) hopefully they will play a key part in the outcome. I really wish Jason Heyward was playing in this game, but I am glad he is thinking about the team first. Braves are going to need him healthy in the second half.

Top of the 1st - David Price looked good out of the gate. The American League has some good pitching tonight and is going to be tough to beat. I think the NL is going to have to pick up some early runs in this. The longer it goes, the worse.

Bottom of the 1st - Wow I am really getting into this. Big double play turned there. Needed to keep the AL off the board in the first.

Top of the 2nd - Second time Cano has bobbled a ball at second, this time it cost them a baserunner. A good double play to put a quick end to the inning. That was a good turn. But the hit means another year will go by without a no-hitter in the All-Star game.

Bottom of the 2nd - As a third baseman, Evan Longoria continues to be one of my favorite players to watch. he has such a good stroke. Need to leave him stranded, though. And the soft roller from one second baseman to another ends the second still scoreless.

Top of the 3rd - Hey Clemens, see what happens when someone comes out and says "I'm sorry. I made a mistake." Pettitte is pitching in the All-Star game.

Bottom of the 3rd - Maybe this is the year of the pitchers. The first four guys to throw tonight have been overpowering.

Bottom of the 4th - Great catch for Braun. That is what makes for a good pitching duel, when you have great plays on defense.

Top of the 5th -It is hard to root for a Met. If David Wright pays attention his is standing on third wqith no outs. And that would have been a run. Hopefully the NL can get on the board here. Two outs and McCann now in the game. Come on B-Mac, do it for home field in October. Ahhhh, I thought that might get out.

Bottom of the 5th - Evidently all Dodgers get to play here in the fifth. Did they say lefties are hitting .000 against this guy??? Amazing. Yet against a string of lefties, Kuo gives up the first run of the game. Leadoff walks will always kill you. 1-0. Hopefully they can get out of this with just the one run. Good play by Hanley for the second out.

Top of the 6th - Prado probably hitting his last atbat of the night. Glad he is an All-Star. Very deserving, just wish he would have gotten a hit. Can Prado be the NL MVP. If he wins the batting and the Braves make the playoffs, I hope he is in the mix.

Top of the 7th- Need to get something going here. Fortunately, the AL doesn't have Riveria in the bullpun tonight. The 9th won't be the slamdunk it has been in the past...A little something cooking here. Great hustle play by Rolen to get to third with just one out...Good to see Young is still in the same form he was in last night during HR Derby...Loaded up for B-Mac. Come on McCann. YESSSSSS! McCann coming through big. Love to see a Brave step up in the clutch. 3-1 NL

Bottom of the7th - Now it is time to lock this thing down and notch a win for the NL. Come on Cards. Don't screw this up. Need a double play ball here. OK, two outs. Silence the home fans... There you go. Two innings left to play.

Top of the 8th - Infante needs to get in the game, either here or in the 9th. The ball is just dying tonight. There have been ome good looking balls of the bat that are not even making it to the track.

Top of the 9th - I blinked and missed the only Astro of the night to play.Byrd thinks everything Valverde is doing on the mound is funny.

Bottom of the 9th - Let's make this a quick one. 1-2-3 and get out of here ... Damn. Here we go... 6-4-3??? That ball has a little something extra behind it. Tough pitch to hit up in the eyes. Lets get a game ending double play. Big play by Byrd. Only Ortiz is going to get thrown out there. FINALLY!!!

It has been a ling time coming for the NL. I have to think the MVP would be McCann. It was his big hit that gave them the W.

That was a really good baseball game. The MLB All-Star game cntinues to be the best in sports. It is competitive and the players seem to care about the outcome. I am not a huge fan of home-field advantage being on the line, but the last few years, the game has been really fun to watch.

I quit cold turkey -- and I've never been happier

2010-07-09T01:46:00.001-05:00

It was 12 years ago that I simply walked away.

I was as passionate of a fan as they come. It started with the Rockets being my hometown team and eventually I gravitated to a team that fit my personality – Indiana.

The Pacers had the flash that I loved with Reggie Miller, but they were also the underdog and I love an underdog. Always the team up against more history and a better story. It was first the Celtics, and then the Knicks and finally the Bulls. There was always a sexier team for the NBA to have move on in the playoffs.

From 1993 to 1998, during the playoffs I wore my Reggie Miller jersey religiously on game day. It didn’t matter where I was, if the Pacers were playing, I had that jersey on. If the Pacers lost, I was crushed. I was in high school and my friends were going out every night during the summer. I was usually there as well, unless the Pacers had lost that day – or the day before in some cases.

I even wore my jersey underneath my gown on the day of my senior baccalaureate. The Pacers and Knicks were playing Game 7 that day of the Eastern Conference Semifinals. People were wondering if I would even go. I did, but the jersey was right there with me. Afterwards, everyone went to a senior party. I went home, put in the tape and started watching.

I even opened up my speech at graduation with an update on the Rockets-Spurs Western Conference Finals. There was no doubt I was a fan.

The Pacers were always a victim of circumstance. There was always a better team for the League to play in the Finals. The NBA needed New York in 1994. They needed to have Shaq and Orlando in the finals in 1995, after all, Houston-Indiana wasn’t going to draw the ratings the league needed.

But it was 1998 that delivered the final crushing blow to me. The Pacers met the Bulls in the Eastern Conference Finals. Jordan had already announced he was “retiring” at the end of the season, so this was his “last” run. Anyone who watched that series knows the Pacers outplayed the Bulls. But with Utah waiting in the finals, and the need for Jordan to go out on top, the Bulls were handed a ticket to a sixth title. The Pacers were the better team, but the Bulls were in the finals – again.

I woke up the morning after Game 7 and said I was done. I was interning at the Baytown Sun that summer and wrote a column writing off the NBA. No one believed me. Why would they? I was the biggest fan most people knew. I was going to get over it.

“When the Pacers are in the playoffs next year and you are on the couch jumping and screaming I am going to get this column out,” my dad said with a knowing smile.

I was simply overreacting like I did following a handful of other losses by the Cowboys, Braves, Nittany Lions and of course the Pacers. But to their surprise, and to an extent mine, I never came back. I think it helped the NBA had a lockout and cancelled a good chunk of the next season. Once again at the end of the year, the Pacers were screwed and once again, it was a move the League needed to happen. The Spurs were already in the Finals, and the League needed a story following the lockout – it needed the Knicks. I don’t remember watching any of that series. I was working in a newsroom that didn’t have a TV, and I didn’t go out of my way to watch. It ended as I expected it to.

The 2000 season was no different. The Pacers finally made the finals, but Kobe and Shaq were the story. The duo was looking to bring glory back to LA. It was pretty obvious who was going to win that one. The only game of that series I saw was the last one, in a pool hall in Baytown. I was there with a friend who talked me into playing in a darts tournament. I lost early – he went to the finals. So I had a pitcher of Shiner and the Pacers on the only TV in the bar. I watched, emotionless. The game ended, the Lakers won the title, and I truly didn’t care. I was done with the NBA.

I have watched just twice since. A year later in 2001, my wife bought us tickets to see the Pacers play in Houston. She said I would regret never seeing Reggie Miller play in person. She was right. I would have regretted it and I am glad I did it. The only other time I went to a game was when I was in San Antonio for the NCAA Regional and I got free tickets, as luck would have it, to see the Pacers. I honestly nearly fell asleep during the game. I really would have been better off staying in the hotel doing nothing.

I have moved on, and have been so much happier for it. I feel like I had my eyes opened at an early age and I am grateful for it. I hear people talking about the NBA and just wonder why they haven’t seen it yet. I see the statues on Facebook during the playoffs, and I actually feel pity for these people who still follow David Stern’s puppet show. They have not had come to the realization yet that I did in 1998.

I am sure I am not alone in this. I have friends who, over the years, have moved away from the NBA. I am sure there are people who have a specific moment that they stopped watching – the lockout, the Malice in the Palace, ect. Something turned them off.

I think the way the LeBron James decided to handle his free agency, and maybe more importantly, the way ESPN has decided to cover it, may be bringing more people to the other side. I saw an ESPN analyst during the day today say he thought this was great for the NBA. “When is the last time we were talking about the NBA this deep into the summer?” he asked. I certainly don’t have the pulse of the nation on this, and I am sure I look at it a little different than most. But I can’t imagine this fiasco will bring more fans to the table. I am sure there are some LeBron fans who will shift allegiances. The Heat will probably show a boost in ticket sales, jersey sales, ect. But when you are talking about the league as a whole, I have to think more people will walk away tonight.

I once thought that being a sports fan meant I had to be an NBA fan. Believe me when I say this, if you do decide to walk away, you will be much happier for it. There are plenty of sports out there to fill the void. Don’t worry right now about what you will do in June when the playoffs are on. Just step away, and trust me, the rest will work itself out.

The best sports day of the year -- and I didn't see any of it

2010-07-03T18:06:00.001-05:00

A week ago Wednesday was a sports fans dream. The US pulled off a thrilling victory over Algeria to advance to the knockout round of the World Cup, Isner and Mahut played an incredible 118 games of the fifth set at Wimbledon and TCU rallied in the 8th with a grand slam to beat Florida State in an elimination game at the College World Series.

It was a day that was set up perfectly with the US game going in the morning, Isner-Mahut lasting for the better part of the afternoon, and TCU capping thing off at the end of the night. It was great day to be at home on the couch or even in the office watching on the laptop. As someone who loves sports theater, this was a day tailored for me -- a constant flow of nail-biting dramatic sports moments playing out on TV from morning to night, with very little overlap. Unfortunately, I saw none of it.

I spent that Wednesday in the car for 19 hours driving home from Omaha. The only images of the day we got to see were briefly during lunch at Eskimo Joe’s in Stillwater.

We were relegated to ESPN Radio coverage and satellite radio broadcasts of the games. People say they won’t forget watching Landon Donovan score the game winning goal against Algeria. I have been told stories of how they reacted to the goal. The cheers you could hear in the office from everyone watching on laptops. The scenes captured on Youtube of the celebrations across the world. I was on the Kansas Turnpike.

We were going old school with this one, kind of. There wasn’t even a radio station in Kansas broadcasting the game, so we were going with the iPhone app and hoping the 3G coverage stretched the to middle of nowhere (had one little glitch in the 80th minute). Even if we wanted to stop somewhere for a quick break to catch the finish, there was no where to go. We were somewhere between Topeka and Hell and there just aren’t a lot of sports bars you can pop into on that stretch of road.

When we decided a year ago to make a trip to Rosenblatt Stadium and the College World Series, I knew I was doing it during a World Cup year. Ideally I would have picked another year to go to Omaha, but this was the final year at Rosenblatt – it was now or never. I was willing to take the risk.

We made the hotel reservations and decided we were doing the first four days at the CWS – eight games in four days, we were going to get the most bang for our buck. Shortly after booking the rooms, the World Cup draw came out. The England match was going to be no problem to watch. It was on Saturday, several days before we left. However, the last two games of the group stage were on the two driving days. I had hoped the last game wouldn’t matter. Unfortunately, it was a do or die for the Americans, and all I had to get me through it was the sounds of JP Dellecamera and Tommy Smyth.

The drive was excruciating. With every elevation in Delecambre’s voice Brian and I leaned closer to the radio as if we were going to get a look at the action. It looked like the World Cup run wqas going to end in the group stage for the US. The worst part was there was still 12 more hours of driving ahead. It would have been a much longer day had that game finished 0-0.When Landon Donavon scored it was pure elation. I’m really not sure how I kept the car on the road.

We listened to all the post match analysis, interviews and opinions. It wasn’t long that we started hear the first reports of what was going on at Wimbledon. Isner and Mahut were in the fifth set tied at 25. “Wait what? Did you just say 25 all in the fifth?”

It didn’t sound real. Most of the talk on the radio was about the US match. But between the brief updates as well as posts on Facebook and Twitter we were able to keep up. 30 all, 35 all, 40 all. This can’t keep going can it? 45 all. Are they going to get to 50? 55 all, 56 all, 57 all, 58 all and finally 59. Match was suspended at 59. From the time we left Omaha to the time we were stopping for lunch in Stillwater, Isner and Mahut had been on the court.

We were passing through Norman and listened to Clemson finish off Oklahoma in the College World Series. It was the conclusion of the game we were watching at Rosenblatt the night before. As we were driving through Dallas we decided to check out the TCU-Florida State game. For about 15 minutes we were able to pick up the TCU broadcast on the campus radio station and then it was gone. FSU had gone up big and we didn’t worry about it after that.
Somewhere south of Dallas, TCU we check the score and TCU was starting to put something together. We had the Rangers game and that was getting out of hand, so we decided to see if there was a satellite station with the College World Series on. We found the game and 10 seconds later – PING! The Horned Frogs had just connected for a grand slam to take the lead after trailing 8-2.

We watched the first eight games of the College World Series – it was game No. 9 that produced the first dramatic come-from-behind victory of the final season at Rosenblatt. That is how our day was going.

We had been on the road for about 15 hours listened to a dramatic World Cup match that will have non-soccer fans talking for years, listened for updates on a tennis match that defying all reason and logic and heard Rosenblatt make a noise we didn’t hear in four days there.

The rest of the drive was left reflecting what had happened that day, and how we had seen none of it. A week or so later, I have a different look at things. The trip to Rosenblatt was a dream trip that will never happen again, and while I didn’t get to see the drama of that day unfold, I have a feeling because of the circumstances, I will never forget were I was the day the US stunned Algeria, the day Isner and Mahut played tennis all day with no result and the day TCU electrified the crowd at Rosenblatt for one of the final times.

The Back Page

2010-06-13T00:13:00.000-05:00

After seeing all the British tabloids before the World Cup, I decided the Bearkat Sports Forum needed a back page. So here is the back page following the US victory over England.

Chili Dogs and Fish and Chips

2010-06-12T13:31:00.032-05:00

We have waited 188 days for this matchup. This is US vs. England. I'll be blogging my thoughts throughout the match.

I am hoping for a good showing for the US. It is not a must win for the US, but they HAVE to play well. There is no way the US can afford to go out and play bad in this game. And I promise I will lay off of Donavan today.

I am glad Martin Tyler is calling this game. He has a great voice and his delivery is spot on.

4th Minute
The concern for the US was the back line and they just got shreaded there. Not a good start at all. Have to settle down and recover from this.

9th minute
Have to do a better job holding posession. Only getting one or two touches before losing it. We aren't going to be able to put anything together like this.

12th minute
Posession looking a little better here. Working a few corners in. We just have to do something with it. Don't panic with the ball.

17th minute
I don't think we have to have a goal here in the first half, we have to have some pressure on offense.England is winning everything at the back line right now.

19th minute.
Jozy has to get that. You are not going to get that many scoring opportunities. It should be 1-1.

21st minute
England responds. Three good lokks at goal in just a matter of minutes. They are so good at getting back and having an answer to the US.

28th minute
Game has settled in a little bit now. A few nervy moments in the box.

30th minute
Howard being down is not a good sign. If he can't go our World Cup is over. I have no faith in Guzan Heskey went in studs up on Howard. Don't like that challenge at all.

33rd minute
Don't really like that shot by Altidore. Need him to step it up. I'd love to keep as little pressure on Howard as mush as we can for the last 12 or so minutes.

35th minute
Rooney has been quiet, which is scary, because you know he is going to get loose at some point. Of course, he could get frustraded, and he is not very good when he plays frustrated.

40th minute
DEMPSEY!!!!!!!

It was a very soft goal but we will take it. Dempsey just puts a ball on target and the US gets something out of it. I was surprised to see Green in goal and he gave us one.

44th minute
Nothing cheap here late. Let's take a draw into the half.

Halftime tied at 1-1

Very fortunate to be tied at the half, but the US needs to take advantage of this. England is shaken right now no doubt. We need to come out and try to put on on the early. It will be interesting to see if Green comes back on the field for the second half. The goal was soft, but the US has momentum right now and they need to take advantage.

Start of second half
A second replacement for England. They only have one left. I wonder if that will come back to cost them.

50th minute
We have survived the first five minutes. That was big to get through that stretch.

52nd minute
Big save by Howard. That was a very good run by Heskey. A good opportunity for England stopped.

59th minute
England is getting frustraed and nervous. I have seen a red given on that challenge by Gerard before. Studs up on the knee.

61st minute
A good opportunity for the US on the free kick. England gets back so fast though. they are attacking less than 30 seconds after a US attempt on goal.

64th minute
What a great strong run by Jozy. Would have been a spectaular goal.

70th minute
20 minutes to play. Who is going to step up and make the big play? Someone can become a hero and forever be remembered.

74th minute
Good run by Robbie Findley, but two minutes later he picks up a card. We have racked up a few yellows this match.

76th minute
Two more big saves from Howard. Rooney starting to get involved in the match. England os starting to get some good chances in the box. Have to hold on. Buddle coming on now. I like this change.

82nd minute
THe chants of USA starting to ring a little over the sounds of the vuvuzelas

Final 1-1
This was a huge victory for the United States. They are going to carry confidence into the next two matches. England is a bit shaken. We can now look at taking the group and hopefully avoid Germany in the round of 16.

Tim Howard was huge today. He is no doubt the man of the match. It was a lucky goal no doubt, but Howard kept the US in this one. A few hug saves, especially late. After seeing him on the ground for a few minutes in the first half it was great to see him bounce back and play, not just solid, he was money.

World Cup is finally here

2010-06-11T14:01:00.001-05:00

It is the opening day of the World Cup and I am pumped. I actually had a hard time getting back to sleep after waking up early this morning, for fear I might sleep through a portion of the opener.

I have always been a fan of soccer and the World Cup. I played for seven years, so I have an appreciation for the sport. World Cup has always been fun to watch, and spending a few weeks in Europe during the 1994 World Cup gave me an even greater apperception for it.

I have some very good World Cup memories, especially from 1994. I had the chance to sit and watch Cup games in Italy and Greece with people who are truly passionate about the sport. It was unlike anything I had ever seen, or have seen since.

It seems as though this year I am even more excited than I have been in the past. The main reason might be because I have really stepped up my viewing in the past two years. I have begun closely following the English Premier League, as well as keeping tabs on the other leagues around the world through Champions League. I certainly know who more players are this time around than I have ever before and I think that adds a little something to it.

Also, I think there is just a greater expectation for the US team this time around. After the success they had last summer in the Confederations Cup, people are expecting a deep run at the Cup. I am not in the camp that sees us making a final, but a trip to the quarters is possible.

The other factor that has interest so high is the opening round match against England. To a lot people in the United States, England is soccer. Just like the win over Mexico eight years ago, this is a measuring stick match. The win over Spain last year was nice, but this is England, this is Wayne Rooney, this is the World Cup.

If Mexico was looked at as our big brother, then England would be our dad. That moment you finally beat your dad in anything is always a special landmark. I think that is the thinking here, we have not arrived until we beat England.

While I don’t think this is the year for the US, I think this campaign is a huge step. With the youth on this year’s team, I think they are setting up for 2014 in Brazil. However, those plans can be derailed if the US has a poor showing over the next month. I think we took a big step back after the 2006 Cup, and we are really just starting to recover from that.

England is immensely talented and should e able to handle the US, but we saw last year against Spain, the American are capable of pulling off a shocker. As much as I would love to knock off England, I don’t think this team is capable of a magical run. If we have just one huge shocker in us, I would rather it come in the knockout round.

A draw would be something special and a big-time result. While I would love 2-2, I think we probably fall 2-1. But, don’t be surprised if we regroup and knock off Germany in the round of 16.

As for the rest of the Tournament, I think it will be fun if the African countries do well, I will be pulling for Netherlands and I think Spain wins it in the end.

Predicitions for the College World Series

2010-06-04T11:34:00.000-05:00

After giving much thought and in some cases, not much thought at all, here are my predictions for this year’s College World Series:

Regional Rounds

Tempe Regional – Arizona State shouldn’t have much trouble getting out of this regional.

Fayetteville Regional – Arkansas will get a little pressure from Washington State but I like the Razorbacks here.

Auburn Regional – I’d love to see an Auburn/Alabama Super Regional, but I like Clemson to get out here.

Atlanta Regional – Home team should take care of business here with Georgia Tech moving on.

Charlottesville Regional – Virginia and Ole Miss will battle here, but in the end I think I like Virginia to get out here.

Norman Regional – No one expects anything from the ninth-place team out of the ACC. That is why North Carolina wins this.

Columbia Regional – Virginia Tech is on a roll right now and hopefully we will get to see their sweet Astros style rainbow jerseys.

Myrtle Beach Regional – Coastal Carolina might be a dark horse national champion. I look for them to advance.

Austin Regional – Texas shouldn’t have much of a problem here.

Fort Worth Regional – TCU is the best team here with a loaded pitching staff. Might drop a game, but still see them getting through.

Norwich Regional – Uconn is the home team, Florida State is the top seed, but I think Oregon pulls off the shocker and gets through

Louisville Regional – The Cards play on an all synthetic field and will have the home field advantage as they know how to play all of the hops.

Los Angeles Regional – LSU gets shipped out west for the first time in school history. They are still the defending champs and will continue their hot play.

Fullerton Regional – Fullerton is at home and the 2-seed Stanford is not that strong. Titans shouldn’t have a problem.

Coral Gables Regional – Interesting Regional with FIU and Wittles hitting streak and the Aggies, but I think Miami still gets through.

Gainesville Regional – Another magical run for the Beavers? No, Florida wins it, but might get pushed a little.
Super Regionals

Arizona State/Arkansas – Sun Devils will make it out of this regional in two.

Clemson/Georgia Tech – Tigers go on the road for the second straight week, but Georgia Tech will win this in three.

Virginia/North Carolina – Both teams very familiar with each other, but I think the ACC Champs will put an end to UNC’s streak of four straight trips to Omaha.

Virginia Tech/Coastal Carolina – Coastal Carolina will earn its first trip to the College World Series taking this in three.

Texas/TCU – TCU has the pitching to win this, but in the end, the Longhorn will return to Omaha.

Oregon/Louisville – The Ducks’ Cinderella runs ends here.

LSU/Fullerton – LSU won’t get a chance to defend their title, falling to Fullerton.

Miami/Florida – A good rivalry game that I think Florida will end up winning.

College World Series

The Big 12 tournament was not the Texas we are going to see in the postseason. I think the Longhorns win this year, knocking off Arizona State in the championship series.

Field of Dreams - CWS style

2010-06-01T23:24:00.004-05:00

I am going to do predictions later in the week, but since I am going to be in Omaha, I am going to first do my College World Series wish list. These are not the teams I think will make it to Omaha, but rather the teams I want to see at Rosenblatt.

There are a couple of factors involved here and a few will actually clash so I will have to make a few concessions. The main factor is program prestige. Cinderella need not apply, so UConn, I am a big fan of your basketball program, but I would like to leave it at that. Also, College of Charleston, Louisville and Florida Atlantic can stay home as well. Prestige factor will overrule every other reason for making my list.

The next major factor is whether I have seen the team play before. I am always looking to add new teams to my list, so UCLA, Baylor and Rice, I have no need for you in Omaha. Southern Miss and Ole Miss, you are out as well.

A potential good rivalry game always makes for a good story in Omaha, so I will have to see if there is the potential for a historic matchup at Rosenblatt. After seeing what happened with Alabama and Auburn at the SEC Tournament, it is a shame they are slatted to meet up in a Super Regional. Had they had a potential opening round matchup they would have been a shoe in for my fantasy CWS field.

Historical significance will play a part. Is there anything that can happen that will always be remembered and I can say, I was there for that. Most of the time you can’t plan for that, like Warren Morris hitting a walk-off to beat Miami in the 1996 final (BTW, the only other team to beat Miami that postseason was Sam Houston State). Others you can plan for, like Robin Ventura extending his hitting streak to 58 games with hits in his first two.

Finally, potential to see future pro prospects will make a team intriguing. We will already know who has been drafted by the time the World Series rolls around, but right now I am looking at prospects and who has the most.

With all that in mind, here is my CWS wish list:

Tempe/Fayetteville Regional - Arizona State is pretty much a slam dunk here. They have 21 appearances and five titles and I have never seen them play before. The Sun Devils have two top pitching prospects with Seth Blair (No. 34) and Jordan Swagerty (No. 61). Arkansas is the other intriguing team there with Zack Cox who is rated the No. 6 prospect in this year’s draft and Brett Eibner who is rated No. 23.

Auburn/Atlanta Regional – There are a couple of good teams here and it makes it a tough one to pick. No one in these two regionals has a national title and I have only seen Southern Miss play before. Alabama, Auburn and Georgia Tech all got consideration here, but I think I am going with Clemson. They have made 11 trips to Omaha, one less than the other three combined. I have never seen them play before and outfielder Kyle Parker is a potential first round pick.

Charlottesville/Norman Regional - North Carolina has made the last four College World Series and features pitcher Matt Harvey who is a potential top 20 pick. They, however, have no national titles and didn’t even make the ACC Tournament this year. Oklahoma has been nine times and claimed two titles, the last in 1994. I’ve never seen them play and even with no real prospects, the Sooners still get the nod here.

Columbia/Myrtle Beach Regional – This is tough to pick and I think I am going to have to break my rules here. South Carolina has the most history with eight trips, but no titles. Virginia Tech has never been and NC State was only there in 1968. College of Charleston would be Cinderella here and I have no interest in them. Coastal Carolina is a national seed, but no prospects or history. I’m leaning toward South Carolina because of the history, but it is kind of a toss up with Coastal.

Austin/Fort Worth Regional – Texas, enough said. They have 33 trips to the CWS and six titles. They also have six other trips to the title game. A lineup full of pro prospects headlined by pitcher Brandon Workman (No. 19). Yes, I have seen them play before, but Rider and Arizona are the only two teams here I haven’t seen play.

Norwich/Louisville Regional – This was another fairly easy pick. Florida State has made 19 trips to the CWS, but don’t have a title. Still, they have been a staple in Omaha and I’d like to hear the War Chant ring around Rosenblatt.

Los Angeles/Fullerton Regional – Wow! Tough, tough, tough. Cal State Fullerton, LSU and Stanford have a combined 47 CWS appearances and 12 titles. I have never seen any of them play and there is lots of historical significance. A potential second round match up against Texas would be a Finals rematch for both Fullerton (1984, 2004) and LSU (2009). Stanford is just not sexy enough for me, and really has no top pro prospects for this year’s draft. LSU, being the defending champs, feels like the pick here. But the potential to see them in person is better than the chance to see Cal State Fullerton in future years. Plus Christian Colon and Gary Brown both being potential top 15 picks this year ultimately gives the Titans the nod. On a side note, throw in Minnesota’s three titles from the 50’s and 60’s and these two regionals have a combined 15 championships.

Coral Gables/Gainesville Regional – I really want to say Florida International here just to see Garrett Wittles extend his amazing hitting streak. It would be in the 60s by the time he got to Omaha and already be an NCAA record. The chances of FIU getting out of the first round are slim and even more remote they get through a Super Regional. Texas A&M could give an Aggie/Longhorn rivalry game, but the Aggies don’t really excite me. I know Cody wants to see Florida, but I have to go Miami here. Like Texas, I have seen them play before (1996 loss to Sam Houston State – Eat’em Up). But 23 appearances is second-most behind Texas and they have four titles. A top catching prospect in Yasmani Grandal helps the ’Canes cause here as well. There is also the potential for a Miami/Florida State second round pairing which helps.

That gives a loaded right side of the bracket with Texas, Florida State, Cal State Fullerton and Miami battling it out for a spot in the championship series -- can’t argue with that. There is only a combined 91 CWS appearances in that grouping.

Looking forward to see how it all plays out.

The last road to Rosenblatt

2010-05-31T20:18:00.001-05:00

Congratulations UCLA. You have been awarded a home game in the NCAA baseball tournament. Your reward – the No. 6 national seed and a brutal opening round regional. The Bruins will welcome LSU and UC Irvine to LA this week with a trip to the Super Regional on the line.

The Los Angeles regional is the toughest of the draws with the defending champs coming across the country to begin its title defense. LSU has finished the year hot and is playing its best ball at the right time. With UC Irvine in the regional as well, there is a lot of Omaha experience in LA.

That is one of 16 regionals announced today as the start of the march to Omaha begins. The UCLA bracket will be a fun one to watch; unfortunately it was not picked up by ESPN. The two featured regionals will be the Coral Gables Regional and the Fullerton Regional.

The Coral Gables Regional will have Miami against Dartmouth and Texas A&M against Florida International. The story to watch in this regional will be FIU’s Garrett Wittles. He will bring a 54 game hitting streak into the regional, just four shy of the NCAA record. I watched Chris Andres finish the season with a 26-game hitting streak. These things are not easy, and the fact that he has a 54 game streak is amazing. While his chances of advancing are remote, I hope he gets four games and a chance to at least tie Robin Ventura’s record of 58.

The other televised regional I have virtually no interest in and probably won’t watch much of it.

I will of course be looking forward to the two Texas Regionals, but I am a bit bummed they are paired up against each other in the Super Regional.

Texas cost itself a shot at the No. 1 overall seed by dropping all three games in the Big 12 tournament and will host Louisiana-Lafayette and Rider to Austin along with perennial tournament power Rice. The Owls are down this year by Rice’s standards, but are no strangers to the tournament and won’t be fazed by the Longhorn crowd.

The Fort Worth Regional features this year’s lone Southland team, Lamar. The Cards made a great run in the Southland Tournament, but will probably be out in two here. Baylor got hot late and Arizona is kind of the surprise entry here. Two former SWC rivals will hook up for a trip to the Super Regional.

There are three other regionals that will be worth watching this weekend. The Charlottesville Regional, the Norwich Regional and the Norman Regional all have interesting stories that should be fun to follow.

In Virginia, the Cavaliers will welcome last year’s Super Regional partner Ole Miss. The two teams played a great three game series last season and will battle it out to get back there this season. Add in a 40-win St. John’s team and this will make for a good regional.

In Connecticut, we have the interesting situation where UConn is the host team despite not being the No. 1 seed in the regional. Florida State won the ACC Tournament and will have to make the trip up to Connecticut as the top seed. It is the second straight year the ACC Tournament champ has been sent on the road (Virginia).

The other intriguing regional is in Oklahoma. The Sooners get to play host to the other interesting ACC story. North Carolina makes it into the field despite not qualifying for the ACC Tournament. The Tar Heels advanced to Omaha the last four years and will try to make it five as the No. 3 seed in Norman.

I am looking forward to seeing it all play out as I, along with 64 teams start making plans for Omaha.

Lima Time Baby, Believe It

2010-05-24T23:28:00.002-05:00

I was never much of an Astro fan, but in the late 90’s and early 2000, you couldn’t help but be a Jose Lima fan. He was just fun to watch. I always have had two Lima Time stories that I knew were probably not unique to me.

I couldn’t believe when I had head of his passing this past weekend. Listening to talk radio today, it seemed like everyone had a Jose Lima story. I just wanted to share my two.

The first was at the dome in 1999. We were in the mezzanine for batting practice and Lima was shagging fly balls in the outfield. There was a guy on the front row who had a ball hit his bare hands and fall to the field.

Lima started giving the guy a hard time.

“How can you come to batting practice and not bring a glove?” Lima yelled at the guy with that great Lima accent. “That is why we have gloves. If it was easy to catch barehanded, we wouldn’t use gloves. This is just embarrassing. Use my glove.” And Lima tossed his glove to the guy. About five minutes later, another ball headed to the same guy. He reached out with Lima’s glove – and dropped the ball. Lima Time really let the guy have it after that, and said he wanted his glove back before the guy cursed it.

A year later when the Astros moved into Minute Maid, we were going to a lot of games. One day in the Crawford boxes, Lima was out shagging fly balls, and had a big bag of seeds in his back pocket. I asked him if he could come off a bag. At first he just laughed and said he didn’t think so. I told him I was a poor college kid and the Astros weren’t going to miss one bag of seeds.

About 15 minutes later, Lima came back out and yelled to me “seed boy.” I looked down and he tossed me a bag of seeds. I thanked him and told him he was awesome. The best part of the story is I was back about two weeks later in the Crawford Box for batting practice. After being there for about 20 minutes, I hear “Seed boy.” I look down and Lima Time is pointing at me. I give him a point back and he tosses me a bag of seeds. He then told me I better graduate college, especially for how much time I am spending at Astros games.

I don’t think there will ever be a cooler pro athlete than Jose Lima. About every five nights I was a Houston fan. He passed away much too soon. He still had a lot to give to the sport and the fans as well. He will be missed, “Believe It.”

A little pressbox humor

2010-05-15T12:10:00.000-05:00

I have spent my life around baseball and have seen my fair share of rain delays. In fact I have been on just about every end of a rain delay.

I have sat countless times in a dugout as a player wondering if we were going to get the game in. I have been in charge of the grounds and been the person to decide when to tarp the field and then at what point we take it off. I have pulled more tarps on and off fields then I care to remember. Most recently, I have been in the press box just sitting around waiting on a decision to be made.

One of the best parts of rain delays is seeing what everyone does to pass the time. In the press box, the stories start coming out about rain delays past. The longer people have been in baseball, the better their stories are.

I have my own fair share of rain delay stories, but what happened last night might top the list. The Bearkats were getting ready to play the first of three against Central Arkansas with bad weather in the area.

Just as batting practice was ending, the lightning hit and the tarp came out on the field. I had about three of my student workers in the booth and I start telling some rain delay stories. Finally, one of my students who will remain unnamed looks at me with a bit of a confused face.

“So how does this work?” she said.

“We will sit here and wait. They are going to try to get this game in,” was my reply.

Still not fully grasping what was going on, she asks another question.

“So how do they see the bases with the tarp on the field?”

Everyone else in the booth turned and looked at me. I wasn’t sure what to say.

“So I’m taking it this is your first rain delay,” was about all I could get out.

We had to then go on to explain the purpose of the tarp and that they in fact do not play with it on the field.

I texted a few people after the fact, and got some pretty good responses that I wanted to share.

I got a few “No ways” and “You’re making that up.” I got a “Is she blonde?’ text as well. One of the better responses was “Tell her that is what they have base coaches for.”

But by far the best response came from Mike Coffin, who works for the Corpus Christi Hooks and has a sense of humor like no one else. Coffin hit a pair of homers last night with two separate responses. His immediate response was “Tell her to go and find a box of curveballs.” And hour later, he followed that up with “I’m looking for the keys to the batter’s box at the moment.”

There is no telling how many more rain delays I have left in my life, but I now know I will always have a good story any time the tarp is on the field.

Dez, Tebow, TJ and Chucky

2010-04-22T23:05:00.001-05:00

On the whole I like the draft on Thursday night. In the end it worked for me. I had some doubts about how it was going to go, but it went really well. There was good energy in the room both in the crowd and on the set.

First off, I think the highlight of the draft was John Gruden. He did a tremendous job all night and after Mel had his say though the first 10 picks or so, Gruden took over. He was first to talk most of the time after a pick and his analysis was very good. He left Kiper waiting to talk and I can’t remember when the last time that happened.

Kiper was his usual self-serving self early on. It is the kind of stuff I think makes everyone roll their eyes when he talks. Gruden was the one who realized it, and took over the show. Had he not, it would have been disaster for ESPN. Chris Berman was off all night. Did Steve Young add anything to the show? And then there was Tom Jackson.

What an embarrassment for ESPN. He made a total jackass of himself, even before the Tim Tebow pick. When Denver took Demaryius Thomas at No. 22, he clearly didn’t like the pick. He was agitated when Ed Werder said the Bronco brass thought he reminded them of Brandon Marshall. His posture was slumping and he clearly needed to step away for a bit.

Unfortunately for ESPN, Denver traded back up and took Tim Tebow. Jackson show his true colors at that point. He was pissed and it showed. He didn’t speak more than two words for the next hour. I have to think ESPN is going to take a hard look at his behavior tonight and think about his future with the network.

As for Tebow, I am glad he was taken in the first round. He may or may not ever be a regular quarterback in the NFL, but I think he is a hell of a football player. The guy broke Emmitt Smith’s career TD rushing record at Florida and Hershel Walker’s rushing touchdown record in the SEC. Think about that for a little bit and let it soak in. He did so much at Florida, I think those two accomplishments have gotten lost in the shuffle.

I got agitated at times when all you heard about from ESPN was Tim Tebow, but I don’t think he deserved all the criticism he has been getting leading up to the draft. I think it has been proven time and time again that nobody knows what makes a good NFL quarterback, so why have so many people been so quick to write Tebow off? There have been a lot of can’t miss guys who have failed miserably. I think he is the type of guy who will be able to step on the field right now in some capacity and help his team win.

As for the Cowboys pick, I love it. Dez Bryant is a guy I talked about in September hoping the Cowboys would have a chance to get. But at the time Bryant looked like a top 10 pick and I certainly hoped Dallas wouldn’t be drafting anywhere near that. I am not at all concerned about “off-field” issues around him. I never agreed with the suspension from the NCAA to begin with.

Bryant has the potential to be a great receiver for a long time in Dallas. Hopefully this spells the beginning of the end for Roy Williams. It just got so hard watching him drop balls left and right. Bryant can step in right now and be a great compliment to Miles Austin (not the other way around Steve Young.)

I had hoped the Cowboys would go safety, but when the opportunity was there to get Bryant, I am glad they did. The best thing is, Taylor Mays is still on the board going to round 2. Dallas picks 27th on Friday, so Mays probably won’t falls to them, but with two fourths, they might be able to make another move to go up and get him. If Dallas could pull Bryant and Mays in this draft, it wouldn’t matter what else happen, it would be a hell of a three days for Dallas.

Edit - 11:38 p.m.

One last thing on the first round. Are the Rams now kicking themselves seeing they could have Clausen to start the second round? I don't think there is a huge difference between Bradford and Clausen. They chose Bradford who I don;t think was a No. 1 pick. Looking at it now, they could have had a guy like Suh and Clausen. You have to think there is some second guessing going on tonight as they prepare for day 2.

The 2010 NFL Draft

2010-04-22T18:36:00.043-05:00

I'll be blogging during the draft throughout the night tonight. Probably won't be going pick-by-pick, but just posting some general thoughts as the draft goes prime time for the first time.

I had mixed feelings about the first round moving to Thursday night. I really kind of like getting up and watching on Saturday and Sunday mornings. But then I remembered for the last five years I have always worked on Saturday and Sunday mornings, and can't remember the last time I was able to watch the draft. So maybe this is a pretty good deal. I'll at least get to watch the first round before having to work on Friday and Saturday.

The Rams are now on the clock:

6:40 No. 1 pick - Rams
So Sam Bradford goes No. 1 overall. No real surprise. I don't think I get why the Rams took him No. 1. I was never sold on Sam Bradford. That is a lot to put on a guy who really doesn't have a lot of experience. He seems like a good guy. Just don't know if he is THE guy.

6:43 No. 2 pick - Lions
Suh to the Lions. Congrats. We won't hear from you again until free agency in four years.

6:52 No. 3 pick - Bucs
McCoy to Tampa Bay. He looks very happy about this pick. Good to see a guy who doesn't expect everything coming his way. I think he will do good in Tampa. Can't believe the Bucs were last in the league against the run. They have fallen off hard.

Dallas had a field day against the Bucs through the air in week 1. Romo went for 353. They need some more work I guess.

6:59 No. 4 pick - Redskins
Trent Williams will have the task of pretecting McNabb (which I still think is a good trade). When are teams allowed to start drafting players from other conferences?

7:10 No. 5 pick - Chiefs
Eric Berry is good. Real good. He was a guy I wouldn't have minded the Cowboys jumping up and getting.

7:15 No. 6 pick - Seahawks
Okung from Oklahome State. Again, not a big surprise here. The Cheifs must have thought when Berry told them he played for UT, he was a Longhorn in college. Aren't we just taking Big 12 players tonight?

7:21 p.m.
Does Todd McShay need a step ladder to reach ESPN's fancy new touch screen?

7:23 No. 7 pick - Browns
Joe Haden corner from Florida. How many guys are left in the Green Room. I am ready for some suspense. Every time they cut to a guy on the phone crying, it just takes a little bit out of the commish going to the podium and making an announcement.

7:29 No. 8 pick - Raiders
Ahhh, the Raiders. Nothing like getting a curve from the Raiders in the draft. I guess this started the run on SEC players.

7:31 No. 9 pick - Bills
Spiller. Very nice pick. Bills must have been thinking, no way he falls to us. They wasted no time with that pick. I will have him high on my fantasy board since we get return yards as well.

7:37 No. 10 pick - Jaguars
Alualu to the Jags. I love how just because Mel didn't have a player high on his board, it is a huge reach and a surprising pick. Get over yourself. "Most people had him going at the end of the first." Come on Mel, who else do you listen to other than youself. Don't try to sell us on the fact the Jags were the ONLY team who liked Alualu. If they thought they could have gotten him lower, they would have. Mel is going to make this a long night. I'm begining to rethink prime time is a good deal.

7:46 No. 11 pick - 49ers
Now the draft is about to get interesting. This could be the first of several trades for the next few picks. I just wonder who on the desk at ESPN will be able to keep track of who is now drafting where.

7:57 No. 13 pick - Eagles
Brandon Graham taken to Philly. How long till a Philly fan pukes on him?

8:01 p.m.
News producer to rookie camera man. "We don't think Tim Tebow will get drafted tonight, but we are going to need you to set up across the street from his house and just see what he is doing all night. Welcome to television kid."

8:06 p.m. No. 14 pick - Seahawks
Earl Thomas. I kind of thought he might go a little higher. Another guy I was hoping the Cowboys. Does Taylor Mays fall to 27? For some reason I am locked in on a safety this year.

8:13 No. 15 pick - Giants
Pierre-Paul from South Carolina. Great, another pass rusher for the Giants. Doesn't bother me any. We have been blocking them for years.

8:32
All of these linemen are boring me. Time for some sizzle. We haven't seen what Tebow is doing lately. Can I get a cut to his house? Are there even any receivers available this year? The NFL should have waited until there were a few more playmakers before going primetime for the first time.

8:37 No. 20 pick - Houston
Jackson from Alabama. Texans need a good strong corner, this guy might be that. They need someone to stop Manning. The offense seems to be taken care of. Texans need to stop teams.

8:39
Finally the quarterback updates. What took so long??? Now I see why Clausen stayed home tonight. He gets to spend draft night with Erin Andrews. Screw New York. I'd take that as well.

8:41 No. 21 pick - Bengals
A tight end goes. The first pass catcher is Gresham, a tight end, not a receiver. When was the last time that happened? Kyle Brady in 1995?

I do have to give credit to ESPN tonight. They have managed to go three hours without mentioning Rothlisberger.

8:46 No. 22 pick - Broncos
Thomas from Georgia Tech. Finally a receiver is gone. If Bryant keeps falling, I am changing my tune on a safety to Dallas.

Is Tom Jackson a Bronco? I can't tell. His is pissed. Dude needs to step off the set for a bit, get a drink and calm down.

8:59 No. 24 pick - Cowboys
Yessssssss. I wanted Safety, but I didn't think Bryant would fall. I love this pick.

9:06 No. 25 pick - Broncos
Tebow. Glad he went in the first round. I think he is going to be a very good NFL player at whatever position he steps on the field in. He had a Bronco hat on pretty quick. I want to know how many different hats he had at his house. I am assuming the NFL game them all to him, because they were the "new draft day hat"

9:31 No. 28 pick - Dolphins
Odrick to the fins. A Penn State guy goes in the first round. Nice to see after seeing all the Penn State first round busts the other day. Hopefull Odrick doesn't fall into that.

9:44
The set is starting to get a little heated. Tom Jackson is hard to watch. They need to take him off the set. He has not been part of the show for the last hour

9:55 No. 31 pick - Colts
Hughes from TCU. And we all get reminded of those hideous helmets the Horned Frogs wore. I knew they were going to come back and huant us.

10:04 No. 32 pick - Saints
Drew Brees just plugged Madden. I wonder if the NFL knew he was just going to get free advertising for EA Sports?

First round done in 3 1/2 hours. Going to miss the rest of the draft. Glad I got to see this.

An Opening Day to remember

2010-04-06T22:24:00.002-05:00

I love college football. Dallas Cowboys dominate Sunday’s in the fall. There is nothing more thrilling than the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament. When asked what my favorite sport is, my response is usually ‘what season is it?’

But there is just something a little extra special about Opening Day. No matter what age and what level of baseball, Opening Day always had a special feeling to it. In Little League it was the one game everyone was introduced and ran out on the baselines just like the pros. One year we had Milo Hamilton come out and speak to us on Opening Day.

High school and college baseball all get started in early February. Little League gets going sometime in March and Major League Baseball usually gets going that first week in April. Each celebrates the first day of the season.

In college I made a point to get down to the Dome on Opening Day. If the Astros weren’t home, then I went to the home opener (we also always made it out a day or two later for magnetic calendar night -- very important). The tradition was always the same. It didn’t matter where I was sitting down for the first MLB game of the year, I always had a dog. Sometimes it was a “Dome Dog,” sometimes it was a dog cooked in my kitchen and for the last five years it has been a hot dog at “Fat Boys.”

For 14 years, opening day was also the start of what was to be another championship season for the Atlanta Braves. From 1992 to 2006, the Braves opened the season the same way, by unveiling the championship banner from the previous season. It became old hat. You started to take it for granted.

Opening day was always a great day for the Royals, Orioles, Pirates and Cubs fans, because there was the optimism. “Maybe this is going to be the year.” Opening Day for me was always me laughing at the experts who were predicting this was going to be the year a different team won the East. I knew they were going to be wrong. That was one of the joys of Opening Day. While most people’s season was going to be over by late July, I knew I was going to be rolling strong well into October.

The last few years have been a different story. Things have changed a bit in baseball and the Braves have not been part of the postseason. As a result, Opening Day didn’t have that same luster as in the past. There was no banner being hung at Turner Field. The question being asked now has been, are the Braves going to get back to the playoffs. As good as the Phillies (and Mets to an extent) have been, it was easy to see the answer was probably "no."

Monday however was a little different. No banner was being hung at Turner Field and the Phillies are pretty much considered the best team in the National League. So why did I feel an extra sense of excitement going into Monday? The Braves have had a good spring, but they usually do. No real big free agents came in during the offseason (Billy Wagner is a nice addition, but nothing to get overly excited about). Chipper is coming off a season where his batting average had dropped 100 points from the season before.

But I was really looking forward to the game against the Cubs. It didn’t take long to figure out why I was so excited. It was the arrival of Jason Heyward. He has been the story of the spring for the Braves. The can’t miss prospect who had played just 50 games above the Class A level. While I liked everything I had read about him, it was something that happened on August 7 of last year that had me excited about this season. I was at Joe Davis Stadium in Huntsville, Ala. watching my third AA game in three nights. The Mississippi Braves were in town and we were sitting behind home plate. I had a great view of an absolute mammoth shot by Heyward. He hit a ball that I think landed sometime last week. He was just 19 at the time, but you could tell he was going to be a special player.

Heyward isn’t the reason I was watching the Monday afternoon game. I would have been watching because it was Opening Day. Heyward might be the reason I left work at 2 p.m. on Monday to be home by 3 so I could watch the game on my TV sitting on my couch.

When the lineup was announced, I was a little upset when I saw he was hitting in the seven-hole. Unless the Braves had a good first inning I was going to have to wait until the second to see him make his Major League debut. Well the Braves did have a good first inning, and Heyward got that chance to hit in the first. I think because the Braves scored three in the opening frame before his at bat, was actually good for him. He didn’t have time to think about the moment. He just stepped in the box and on the third pitch took a hack.

I had the windows open in the house and I think I could hear the Turner Field crowd roar from 800 miles away. At the very least, I know my neighbors could hear me. Replays where you could hear the fans chanting “Let’s go Heyward” just moments before connecting on a three-run bomb, gave me chills. I wrote one time about “the noise.” A moment in a game that gets the crowd and atmosphere in general to create a noise that "might swim in your ear canals and rustle your soul and electrify your skin and maybe even prolong your life." This was one of those moments.

Yes, there are still 161 more games to go, and the Braves are probably an outside shot at making the playoffs. But this season already seems to have a little more energy, a little more life. I am not going to go Cub fan on you and say that this is our year, but if the rest of the team can feed off the youthful exuberance of a 20-year old in the clubhouse who performed like a seasoned vet on opening day … maybe.

Miracle on Ice - 30 years later

2010-02-22T00:02:00.001-06:00

It has been 30 years, but the "Miracle on Ice" is still the measuring stick for upsets in sports. Not since David cast his stone has someone overcome so much to go on to victory.

That is what we have always been told right? I mean I saw Kurt Russell himself on the big screen convincing me it is the greatest upset ever and has still not been topped. I was just three when Mike Eruzione and his plucky bunch knocked off the Soviets, so I really don’t have much to go off of other than what I see on TV.

But by all accounts, this game is the undisputed underdog story. A true David vs. Goliath, right? How could it not be? It wasn’t until I stumbled across a story in the Toronto Sun that I realized not everyone felt the way I had perceived the whole world did.

Bill Lankhof, a columnist for the Toronto Sun has a differing opinion, sort of. In his column, Hockey’s little Miracle, (the headline alone should have told me his real thoughts) Lankhof gives the impression he is making a case for that 1980 triumph in Lake Placid as the greatest upset ever.

His lead looks like it is going to set up a look back at the signature Winter Olympic moment.

There are moments in history when time, place and opportunity converge to create magic.

One of those Cinderella events unfolded Feb. 22, 1980, when 20 fuzzy-cheeked college kids pulled off the greatest upset in sports history.

He continues

It was the day that hockey came of age in the U.S. American colleges began taking hockey programs more seriously. It was the impetus that helped change the face of the National Hockey League so that today it has 216 American-born players. In 1980, it had a mere handful. It hastened the development of a sport that has allowed the NHL to put teams in non-traditional places such as Dallas, Florida, Nashville and San Jose. It fostered minor hockey programs in every state.

It is the day the sport took root in America and allowed it to grow into one where players -- like their basketball and baseball cousins -- now earn millions of dollars.
…

What also set The Miracle On Ice apart from ordinary upsets is that this was about much more than sports. The Cold War was still casting a chill over the globe. U.S. president Jimmy Carter was considering a boycott of the Moscow Games. The Iron Curtain divided the world, the Iran hostage crisis was unfolding and America was still binding the wounds left by the Vietnam War.

This wasn't just a game as much as it was a war of lifestyles; it was capitalism vs. communism, a clash of cultures and societies that had political implications.

Just taking these excerpts, it would appear Mr. Lankhof is on board with what the rest of the world thinks, right?

Well mixed in with the admiration and praise for what the underdog American’s did on that day is a slew of backhanded shots and anti-American sentiment.

When the United States defeated the mighty Soviet Union at Lake Placid, television commentator Al Michaels called it a miracle.

In other words, supernatural: Something incomprehensible, improbable and beyond human understanding. It is a comment meant in the noblest of fashions. But, it has also left a lingering impression that it was a victory not so much earned as one that came like a lucky roll of the dice; like a bolt of lightning from the hockey gods, perchance angered by the smugness of the almighty Soviets and Canadians.
…
Eruzione's goal to put the U.S. ahead came with 10 minutes to play. And, thus was born the chant of "U.S.A., U.S.A!" that has energized and nauseated (depending on your point of view) the world ever since.
…
Unfortunately, America didn't hear it. While the game was shown live in Canada, it was on a tape-delayed basis in the U.S. Even then, even at home, they got disrespected. Two days later the Americans beat Finland to seal their gold medal. But the U.S. had lost a chance to wave Ol' Glory in the world's face -- and when can anyone remember that ever happening?
…
It allows the hockey intelligentsia to smile and nod and maybe, acknowledge that, "Well, yes, that was cute!" -- then, dismissing Monday's anniversary as just a day 20 kids caught lightning in a bottle.

This article is such a conflicting piece. You can almost see the writer’s inner angst and anguish as it is written. He wants to “believe” but he just can’t. For every bit of praise he heaps on the Americans, his next sentence is there to discredit it.

Evidently the Canadian’s 1972 victory over the Soviets was a big win. I’ll have to take Lankhof’s word for it, because it is the first I have heard of it. The 40th anniversary of that great Canadian moment is coming up in two years and I will be interested to see Lankhof’s tribute to that. One thing I am pretty certain of is no one from the New York Times or Washington Post will give it any ink.

The 1980 game changed so many things in the world of sports, from the way they are covered and televised (do you think anything like that will EVER be tape delayed again?) to just the attitude of any athlete at any level who is facing a near impossible challenge.

So was the “Miracle on Ice” the greatest upset in the history of sports? I’d like to think it was. I mean here we are 30 years after USA beat the Soviet Union and a Canadian is still getting worked up about it – the game just keeps giving.

I think I am starting to dislike the Super Bowl

2010-02-09T13:58:00.000-06:00

As I have gotten older, I think I am starting to like the Super Bowl less and less.

This was a good game this year, there is no doubt about it. You have to hand it to the Saints, they played a good game and are the champions. It was an entertaining game, but not the best this season. There were a lot of better games this year.

The main problem I have with the Super Bowl is it seems it is the one day out of the year people who are not football fans can pretend they are. They will go to parties and discuss why they know the Colts are going to win based on the extensive knowledge they learned from Tony Dungy.

I don’t need to get excited about the Super Bowl to prove I am a football fan. I think that was taken care of at some point during the last 20 Sunday’s when I was on my couch in front of my TV while 80 percent of the 106 million Super Bowl viewers were shopping, eating, jogging or whatever else it is that non-football fans do on any given Sunday.

You can always tell who the non-football/sports fans are by the questions they ask in the days before and after the Super Bowl:

The first, who do you have winning the game? I hate when I get asked that question. They don’t care who I think is going to win, they just want me to know they are aware there is a game that society tells them they are supposed to be interested in.

Do you have any money on it? Again, another question I hate. First off, no, according to NCAA rules, I can’t have money on it. But the reason for the question is basically so they can then tell me about the great pool their cousin got them in that is paying out $1,000 per quarter plus it has these new bonuses that are unique to their pool only and last year they almost won $2,500 if it wouldn’t have been for that catch by that one guy at the end of the game.

When I tell them I really don’t have a rooting interest, (and I really got asked this question this year), do you think you would be a little more excited if the Cowboys were playing in it? Well no shit, obviously. What tipped you off, the Romo jersey I wear every Sunday or the Cowboy polo I wear to work every Monday after a Dallas victory?

Then the questions on Monday after the game:

Did you watch the game? Of course I watched the game. I always watch the game. And I am not just talking about the Super Bowl. I am talking about nearly every game that comes on TV here. I am a football fan. That is what I do.

What did you think of the game? I thought it was a good game. Not really sure what you want here.

Did you go to a party? No I watched the game. I thought we covered this already.

Can you believe they intercepted Peyton Manning and returned it for a touchdown? (substitute any big play from any Super Bowl here – can you believe that big guy ran all that way and no one tackled him; can you believe that guy caught the ball on his helmet; can you believe they kicked to Hester; can you believe Brady was drafted in the sixth round, I bet every other team feels stupid now; can you believe the Titans almost scored at the end; can you believe Elway dove like that and got spun around; can you believe they threw the ball directly to Larry Brown, twice; can you believe Lett had the ball knocked out of his hand at the goal line; can you believe that field goal went wide right; can you believe the 49ers scored on that last drive; can you believe the Fridge scored a touchdown; can you believe Swann made that catch; can you believe how cold it was at that game; can you believe they finished the year undefeated; can you believe the MVP was from the losing team; can you believe Namath guaranteed they would win and then they did; can you believe Max McGee had seven catches?) Yeah, I can.

I think the hyperbole that surrounds the Super Bowl actually takes something away from the game. The Super Bowl is becoming bigger than the sport. It is becoming its own event that is not about football anymore. Because of the hype, the media feels the need to then try to make this bigger than it should be.

The funny thing is, the players and coaches get it. On more than one occasion, a player came out and said they are going to treat this like any other game and everyone thought it was lip service. The fact is, it is just like any other game.

Yes, the stakes are higher and a championship is on the line. For that reason, there doesn’t need to be any added drama. The game is its own dramatic moment and nothing artificial needs to be built in to it. Just let it play out like we did for 99 percent of the other games played this season (Brett Favre and the Packers reunion excluded).

This is shaping up to be a fun tournament

2010-01-26T22:00:00.002-06:00

This March I will get to make my sixth trip to the NCAA basketball tournament when the regional is played at Reliant Stadium in Houston (and maybe a first round trip as well if things go right).

The NCAA Tournament is easily one of the best events in all of sports. I have had the privilege of going as a fan twice, a member of the media and twice working the event. I have seen the games from the nose-bleeds and five feet from the court. The best part of the tournament experience, is it doesn't matter where I have been sitting, the games are just as exciting.

The way things are going this season, the tournament is shaping up to be a very good, balanced field. There just isn't that one great team that looks like they can run away with it. Kentucky is very good, but they are young and that scares me. The rest of the contenders have all shown a tendency to take a night off. In the Dance you can't afford to let that happen.

That is why this year's field could be a really fun one to see play out. There might be 15 teams capable of winning six straight in March. It just seems this season there have been a lot of top-10 teams losing to unranked opponents. Even when a pair of top-25's hook up, the lower-ranked team has been the team pulling out the win.

There are some mid-majors that can get in the dance and make some noise this year that wouldn't be a surprise. Northern Iowa looks to be tough, as does Butler and St. Mary's. While debatable about actually being a mid-major, Gonzaga is a threat again this year.

While I expect a few mids to make some noise early, I think the surprise this year could come from the mid-ranged seeded teams. Two years ago, every No. 1 seed made it to the Final Four. I could very easily see none make it this year. And while it is unlikely, there might not be a 2-seed advance to the last weekend either.

The way things are shaping up this year, this might be the season for the teams in the 5-9 range to make some noise. That is where you will see might see Baylor, Oklahoma State, Florida State, Georgia Tech and a handful of Big East teams. All are capable of winning a few games and getting a step away from Indianapolis.

The tournament is less than two months away and there is still a lot of basketball to be played. But if the first two months are any indication, this year's bracket will be anything but chalk.

Speaking of the Big Dance...

2010-01-26T21:57:00.001-06:00

Just looking ahead at the future NCAA Tournament sites, there are lots of opportunites within driving distance over the next few years to go watch basketball in March.

This year the NCAA Regional will be in Houston, but 2011 is the year I really have my eye on. The Regional is in San Antonio and the Final Four will be in Houston. Tulsa will be hosting as well in the first round, meaning I could cross one thing off my list if I can go watch all three weekend of the NCAA Tournament.

Here are the opportunities over the next few years:

2011 Division I Men's Basketball Championship

1st and 2nd Rounds: March 18 and 20
BOK Center, Tulsa, OK
Host: University of Tulsa

Southwest Regional: March 25 and 27
Alamodome, San Antonio, TX
Host: University of Texas-San Antonio

Final Four: April 2 and 4
Reliant Stadium, Houston, TX
Hosts: University of Houston, Rice University

2012 Division I Men's Basketball Championship

Final Four: March 31 and April 2
Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, LA
Host: Tulane University

2013 Division I Men's Basketball Championship

1st and 2nd Rounds: March 22 and 24
Frank Erwin Center, Austin, TX
Host: University of Texas

South Regional: March 29 and 31
Cowboys Stadium, Arlington/Dallas/Fort Worth, TX
Host: Big 12 Conference

2014 Division I Men's Basketball Championship

Final Four: April 5 and 7
Cowboys Stadium, North Texas
Host: Big 12 Conference

2016 Division I Men's Basketball Championship

Final Four: April 2 and 4
Reliant Stadium, Houston, TX
Host: University of Houston, Rice University

The BCS Championship game

2010-01-07T20:24:00.058-06:00

Here is my running blog of the BCS title game. Just some random thoughts as the game goes. They might not even have anything to do with what is actually happening on the field.

11:35 p.m.
With the pending legislation in Washington right now, Alabama might be the last FBS "National Champion" for a long time as long as they don't determine it with a tournament.

11:30 p.m.
Not that it really matters, but who is No. 2, Florida or Boise? I hope it is Boise. Don't want the SEC to go 1-2.

11:25 p.m.
Blake Gideon probably cost Texas a chance at two national championships. If he intercepts the ball last season against Tech, Texas probably plays for it. This year if he doesn't intercept the ball on the fake punt, everything is then different with Texas' play calling and Colt doesn't get hurt. That has to be tough to live with.

11:10 p.m.
You have to hand it to Colt for stepping in front of a mic and take some questions right there at the end. That couldn't have been easy.

11:07 p.m.
If I am Saban, I frame that shirt, stained and all. I wouldn't let that thing hit a washing machine.

11:03 p.m.
The art of the Gatorade shower has been lost. I have seen too many bad Gatorade showers where the cooler hits the coach. You guys are too big and strong to let that happen. 37-21 Bama, Final

11:00 p.m.
Gilbert and the Texas D made this a much more interesting that it looked like it was going to be at halftime. Just too much to ask after losing McCoy. Game plan and everything had to be changed. Everyone on the offense had to do things differently.

10:57
Once again, can't believe they looked at that. Pretty clear cut and the official was right on top of the play.

10:54
You knew they would go to the Heisman winner there. As expected he punched it in. Would have been really disappointing if he didn't. Hate it when Heisman winners don't perform in the bowls. Bama 31-Texas 21 2:01 to play.

10:50
Any chance they hold them to a field goal???

10:49 p.m.
Herbie just jinxed them. Asking Gilbert to rally the troops was probably asking a little too much. It was fun for a while thinking what if.

10:47 p.m.
No matter what, Texas should have a top 3 preseason ranking next year now that there won't be as many questions about the Horn offense heading into 2010.

10:45 p.m.
Does this just have the same feeling as the last time Texas was here?

10:44 p.m.
This is a huuuge play for Texas. Need a stop on third and long

10:39 p.m.
Do we see Ingram on this drive? They need him here.

10:35 p.m.
That is why they should have gotten Shipley involved earlier in the game. The guy is a playmaker. He is just about the only one Texas has on the field right now. How is Alabama letting him get that open??? There is no one else on the field who can hurt you. 24-21 Bama, 6:15 to play

10:33 p.m.
Herbie, we have a game now 11 points with 7:30 to play. You don't have to make something of it that isn't there. just call the damn game.

10:32 p.m.
Gilbert is getting no help around him. Too many penalties and drops.

10:28 p.m.
College football looks at waaaaay too much stuff for review. I didn't think that was even close live. If you look at any play close enough, you can probably pick it apart.

10:26 p.m.
Texas is going to need points of some sort here on this drive. It need to happen fast as well.

10:21 p.m.
Not a good call on the PI. Let's see how it affects this drive. Another 15 yards against Texas. Both weak calls.

10:20 p.m.
How different is this game right now if Texas takes a knee at the end of the half.

10:17 p.m.
Texas defense playing like we thought they would. Just like the offense was flat after McCoy was hurt, I think it took a little out of the defense as well.

10:08 p.m.
Texas pulling out all the stops. ABC has to love this. It is a game again. Well on second look, I think that was just a lucky bounce on what was just a low squib kick.

10:06 p.m.
You had to figure they were going to find Shipley eventually.

10:01 p.m.
Usually if you are the quarterback at a school like Texas, your first few games are against North Texas, UTEP and New Mexico. Not Alabama in the Rose Bowl. Can't blame Gilbert for not being ready for this. He went to LA wondering what his $500 bowl gift was going to be. He had no concern for the coverages in the Bama secondary or the blitz schemes he was going to see.

10:00 p.m.
Gilbert might be the quarterback of the future for Texas, but at what point do you worry about his confidence going forward? This could be mentally damaging for a long time.

9:54 p.m.
ESPN is showing 30 for 30. The Deuce has World's Strongest Man. Next year, the Southland needs to see if we can get in this time slot for a basketball game. Might be our best shot at a ESPN appearance.

9:48 p.m.
OK. Shipley has to make that catch. Never mind.

9:47 p.m.
Got to find more ways to get the ball in the hands of Shipley. Too good of an athlete not to be involved in the game like this.

9:46 p.m.
A Williams receiver for Texas with multiple drops in the game. Where have I seen this one before???

9:41 p.m.
On my ESPN Streak for the Cash, I decided to go with Ingram rushing for more than 53 yards in the first half. I got the win for that one. Now I need to have a touchdown of 30 yards for more in the second half to give me three wins for the day.

9:38 p.m.
A fan on the field might be the most exciting thing to happen in the second. Half. I hate when tv stations cut away to something else while they are chasing the "idiot" around. I like what ABC did just now. They went to the blimp cam so you could see what was going on, just no closeups to give the guy his moment of glory.

9:36 p.m.
Gilbert has virtually no chance of getting back into this game, but the penalties are not going to help the kid out.

9:30 p.m.
WOW. The ABC scoreboard to start the second half was 0-0. Is Fox running this production?

9:28 p.m.
The Horns need to go a different route with this offense right now. Gilbert may have a great future ahead of him, but that can only go so far. With no McCoy they rest of the way, I don't like the way this second half is going to go.

9:24 p.m.
Was Corso drunk during that halftime report? I didn't understand anything he was trying to say. Just spit it out already. It might be time to send him the way of Beano Cook.

9:20 p.m.
So does Colt pull a second half Willis Reid and try to came back in and play? I would have to think he is going to try and give it a shot. I just can't imagine a senior not going to give it a go. Even if he is just out giving handoffs, I think there might just be a little more life in this Texas team. They are dead right now and they need something to pick them up. I don't think there is any way they come back to win this, but they could at least keep it respectable.

9:11 p.m.
Texas is now down 24-6 at the half and this thing is over. I am sure at this point they are looking for Legendary Texas High School coach Bud Kilmer to give McCoy and injection so he can finish the game. The question is, does Jordan Shipley step in and do his best James Vanderbeek and stop it from happening?

9:08 p.m.
You could tell Saban isn't even excited about this game because Colt is not in there. It has even taken the edge out of him. He is not even interested in the game anymore.

9:03 p.m.
DID THAT JUST HAPPEN????

9:00 p.m.
A minor victory for the Longhorns. Crazier things have happened, but I just don't see them coming back. They can at least feel somewhat good about their chances.

8:57 p.m.
If Mark Ingram wore No. 23 instead, would people still compare him to Emmitt.

8:55 p.m.
If Texas can hold them here to at least a field goal, they can consider this still a ballgame.

8:51 p.m.
I will not recognize this victory for Bama. I put is in the same category as the Rockets two championships. Put a big * next to this one.

8:46 p.m.
This game really has lost its shine. How does ABC keep anyone around after halftime. Can't wait to hear the enlightening conversations Herbie and Musberger have.

8:41 p.m.
Well that should just about do it for this game. I don't think they can sneak VY into the game as the unknown "third stringer" 14-6 Bama 2nd quarter.

8:37 p.m.
Texas is going to have to create something on defense. I don't see the offense putting a drive together. I love how Herbie is trying to keep it interesting. "This is a young man with a great arm and he will be able to throw it around if Davis wants to open up the offense."

8:32 p.m.
Anything else good on TV tonight? 7-6 Alabama 2nd quarter.

8:27 p.m.
If Gilbert can't go, they just need to put Shipley in the shotgun and go Wildcat the rest of the way.

8:24 p.m.
Kirk Herbstreet has gotten worse the longer he has worked with Musburger.

8:20 p.m.
That is ball game. There is no way Texas comes back to win this game if Colt is not in the game.

8:11 p.m.
If Colt is going to be out the rest of the way, Texas has to come away with more than six points there on those two possessions. Even if the defense plays lights out, those two series might have cost them the title. 6-0 Texas 1st quarter.

7:40 p.m.
Wow. Can't believe Saban just called that fake punt. I thought he was going to be the difference maker in this game, but not because he was going to make decisions like that.

Boys back in postseason

2010-01-03T20:09:00.005-06:00

Last week we knew the Cowboys were back in the playoffs for the first time in two years. Now we know the opponent and where.

With a win over the Eagles, the Cowboys win the NFC East and get a first round home game and the No. 3 seed in the playoffs. The problem is, the first round opponent for Dallas is Philadelphia.

I guess that is why I am not as excited about the playoffs as I probably should be. It is not even about the whole "you can't beat a team three times in one season." I don't buy into that theory. It only gets talked about when it doesn't happen. No one keeps track of the times someone has beaten a team three times in one season.

What makes me nervous is Philly. The recent history between the two has not been kind. Yes the Cowboys took both games this season, but you don't have to look far to find a 44-6 beating at the hand of the Eagles to keep Dallas out of the playoffs last season. Andy Reid and Donavan McNabb have been a thorn in the side of the Cowboys for a long time which is one reason why I despise them so.

Two years ago I thought it was the year. Dallas had a great season end after the first playoff game in a loss to the Giants. The aftermath of that game was not pretty and spawned the creation of this blog. But that year they went into the playoffs losers of two of their last three and couldn't turn it back on after playing so well all season long.

2006 was much the same. Dallas backed into the playoffs losing three of the last four after an 8-4 start to the season. They ended up having to go on the road for the first round of the playoffs and lost a heart-breaker to Seattle.

That is why I am hoping this year is different. Dallas has won three straight including two wins against playoff teams (New Orleans and Philly). They are peaking at the right time which is something they have not been able to do the last three years.

They started the run with a win on the road at New Orleans against an undefeated Saints squad no one thought Dallas would beat. They then knocked off Washington on the road followed by today's win against Philly.

The best part about the last two games is they have done it with a stifling defense. By blanking both Washington and Philly, the Cowboys recorded the first back-to-back shutouts in franchise history. Take a moment to let that sink in -- first time EVER. That is not just the JJ era, but Tom's boys as well. The Doomsday Defense never had consecutive games like Dallas just did.

When you look at the playoff picture, there is reason for hope. Just like the Cowboys last two trips to the playoffs, the top contenders are not going in on a high note. Top-seeded New Orleans is riding a three-game losing streak after having visions of a perfect season. Minnesota is not playing much better. Sure they thumped New York today, but it was a lame-duck Giant squad that had nothing to play for. The previous four weeks, Minnesota has just one win to show for its efforts. Even the fourth seeded Cardinals are just 2-2 in their last four.

That is why there is reason to be optimistic about a playoff run. That is also what makes Saturday's playoff game even more nerve racking. In a year when things look like they might be setting up for the Cowboys, you have the Eagles standing in the way. Today's result really means nothing as far as how the playoff game will be played. You can't expect the Cowboys to shut out the Eagles again, and you can't expect Philly to play this bad again. I never felt comfortable about the game this week and I won't ever feel comfortable about next week's game until it is over.

100-ish things I want to do in sports

2009-12-31T20:46:00.010-06:00

Here is a list of things I want to do in sports. It is kind of a running list I have always had in my head, but just never put on paper. Some of them are already crossed off the list. Some of these things seem pretty simple, I just haven't gotten a chance to do it yet.

My teams

1. Watch Penn State play at Beaver Stadium
2. Watch a game from the sideline at a Cowboys regular season game (I have done it for a scrimmage against the Texans).
~~3. Watch Manchester United play.~~
~~4. See the US men's soccer team play~~
5. See the US men's soccer team play outside of the United States
6. Watch the Bearkats win an NCAA Tournament game (not the opening round)
~~7. See the Braves play in Atlanta~~

~~8. See the Cowboys play on the road~~
9. See the Cowboys play on the road in a game not in Houston
~~10. Go to a Cowboys game on Monday Night~~
11. Go to a Cowboys game on Thanksgiving

~~12. See the Cowboys play in the playoffs~~

13. See the Cowboys in the NFC Championship Game

~~14. Watch UConn play in college basketball~~

The Rivalries

15. Watch Duke-Carolina basketball game

16. Go to the Iron Bowl (Alabama-Auburn)

17. Go to Texas-OU football

18. Go to Texas-Texas A&M football

19. Go watch Army-Navy football

20. Go see Harvard-Yale football

21. Go see a Yankee-Red Sox game

22. See the US men's soccer team take on Mexico

23. Go to a Cowboys-Redskins game

24. Go to Michigan-Ohio State football game

25. See Federer vs. Nadal

The Stadiums

26. Watch a game at Old Trafford
27. Watch a football game at the Big House
28. Watch a football game at LSU
29. Watch a football game at Notre Dame
30. Watch a football game at Tennessee
~~31. Visit the Roman Coliseum~~
32. Visit every Major League Baseball ballpark
33. Visit every minor league ballpark in Texas. (MLB affiliated clubs only)
34. Watch a college basketball game at Rupp Arena
35. Watch a college basketball game at Pualey Pavilion
36. Watch a college basketball game at Madison Square Garden
~~37. Watch a college baseball game at Rosenblatt Stadium.~~
38. Watch a Big 5 game at the Palestra.
39. Watch a game at Cameron Indoor Stadium
40. Watch an afternoon game at Wrigley Field from the bleachers
41. Watch a game at Lambeau Field

The Events
~~42. Go to the Final Four.~~

43. Go to the Super Bowl
~~44. Go to the World Series~~
45. Go to the BCS National Championship game
46. Go to the Cotton Bowl (the game, not necessarily the stadium)
47. Go to the Rose Bowl.
48. Go to the Sugar Bowl
49. Go to the Fiesta Bowl
50. Go to the Orange Bowl
~~51. Go to the College World Series.~~
52. Attend the Masters.
53. Attend the US Open
54. Attend the British Open
55. Attend an English Premier League match
56. Go to the MLB All-Star Game
57. Go to a World Cup match
58. Go to a World Cup match outside of the United State
59. Go to a World Cup Final
60. Attend the Heisman Trophy presentation

~~61. Attend an NHL game~~

~~62. Attend an NHL playoff game~~
63. Attend a Stanley Cup Final
64. Attend an NHL game in Canada
65. Attend a NASCAR race (I just have to see what the big deal is)
66. See a UEFA Champions League Match
67. See a UEFA Champions League Final
68. Attend the Olympic opening ceremonies
69. Attend the Olympic closing ceremonies
70. Attend an Olympic event
71. Attend the NFL Draft
72. Spend a weekend at the Big East basketball tournament
73. Spend a weekend at the ACC basketball tournament
74. Attend the Big 12 football Championship game
75. Attend the SEC football Championship game
~~76. Attend the FCS National Championship game~~
77. Go to a Texas High School Football State Championship game.
78. Go the McDonald's All-American game.
79. Go watch a match at Wimbledon
80. Go to the tennis US Open
81. Go to the French Open
82. Go to the Kentucky Derby

Just do it

83. Take batting practice at a major league ball park.
84. Play a round of golf at Pebble Beach.
85. Play a round of golf at St. Andrews.
86. Sit in the outfield for home run derby.
88. Catch a ball during an MLB game.
89. Never see another NBA game in person again (Last one was 2007 in San Antonio and I only went because it was free.)
91. See every NFL team play
92. See every Division I men's basketball team play
~~93. Touch the Heisman Trophy~~
94. Walk 18 holes (as a spectator) with Tiger Woods
95. Hit a hole in one
96. Step in the batters box against a major league pitcher
97. Watch the first round of the NCAA Tournament at a casino in Vegas (obviously if I don't work in college athletics)
98. Broadcast a game at Madison Square Garden
99. Go to a Texas HS 6-man game
100. Go to all three rounds of the NCAA Tournament in the same year.
101. Do a bowl game tour (see as many bowl games as possible in the same season.)

102. Play in the Main Event of the World Series of Poker

The Empire is Evil again; baseball offseason

2009-12-09T21:57:00.004-06:00

I cringed this morning when I heard the news -- Curtis Granderson will be going to the Yankees. You have got to be kidding me. Granderson is such a good guy and someone I like to root for. I can't do that if he is in New York.

The Tigers have always been my American League team to root for, so I took a liking to Granderson. He is just a guy who seems to play the game the right way. Plus with everything he is involved in off the field as well, you just can't help but wish for good things for him.

Now he is a Yankee. My only hope is it doesn't last long.

The Braves have spent the offseason looking for a couple of arms for the pen and seem to have found them in Takashi Saito to replace Rafael Soriano and Mike Gonzalez. I think Saito is solid, but I don't know what to expect from Wagner. I have seen him play quite a bit going back to his Houston days.

If Wagner can settle into the closer role, I think the back end of the pen is in good shape. The Braves are also set with the starting rotation, with six starters signed right now. Someone is probably going to have to go and I wouldn't mind it being Derek Lowe.

The last think they need to address is getting a stick. If they move Lowe's 15 mil off the books, that could really open up some opportunities for Frank Wren in the free agent market. The two big names out there right now are Jason Bay and Matt Holliday. I think Atlanta will probably be priced out of those negotiations meaning they will have to take a look at the next level of guys, including Jermaine Dye. I wouldn't mind seeing the former Brave coming back to Atlanta.

After the strong push at the end of the season, with Wild Card talks going to the last week of the season, there is reason for some excitement going into this season. I think they do need one, maybe two more bats to put the whole package together.

Has it been that long?

2009-11-13T17:33:00.003-06:00

Wow. I can't believe I haven't been on here since the first of May. I guess it has been busy around here. We have wrapped up a pro baseball season and are damn near through with college football, at least for the Bearkats.

I am going to have to get on here more, because there is so much that has been going on. The Braves made a run this year and then just ran out of gas at the end. But I do like the direction they are going and think next season they have a good chance to contend for another division title.

The Cowboys are always going to be a rollercoaster ride, and frankly, it is the only rollercoaster you will ever see me on. A month ago, Romo was crap and on his way out the door and Wade wasn't going to finish the year. Now after four staright wins, people are talking a playoff run and I have even heard "Super Bowl contender" from someone in the national media.

I don't know what to think about the Cowboys. They still scare me to death. My heart was racing a mile a minute for fear they were going to get destroyed last week at Philly, and why not? What have they ever done in recent memory to make me think otherwise. After beating the Eagles I jumped up, gave a fist pump, and nearly dislocted my elbow in the process.

Penn State is playing some good ball and is in position for a New Year's Day Bowl game again. I had hopes of a BCS Bowl early in the year, but knew they my fall short on the offensive end. Don't get me wrong, Daryl Clark is a great quarterback, but it is tough to replace three senior receivers and win the Big 10.

My Bearkats have been, well, we will leave that one alone. But basketball looks to be in position for a great season, and this may be Bob Marlin's best team top-to-bottom yet. I watched practice the other day and they looked good. Can't wait to see them Saturday night. Also can't wait to get back on the air. I haven't call a game since June when baseball was in the NCAA Regional in Rice.

Looking forward to a great finish in 2009 for the Cowboys and Nittany Lions and hopefully Marlin and the Bearkats will make the first few months of 2010 one to remember as well.

And with the 151st pick of the NFL Draft …

2009-05-01T11:35:00.002-05:00

The New York Giants select – a story line.

So Rhett Bomar is going to be in New York. For most athletes making the move from Sam Houston State to the Big Apple would be a huge shock to the system. I am sure Rhett will experience some of that.

One of the aspects of playing in New York that a lot of people seem to have problems with is dealing with the New York media. That is an area I don’t think Rhett will have any trouble with. He is certainly better equipped to handle the throng of reporters in New York than any other athlete coming out of Sam Houston State.

First off he was the starting quarterback at Oklahoma as a freshman. Since the Sooners are about as close to a professional team as you get in Oklahoma he has had a taste of what it is like being in the spotlight.

Since coming to Huntsville he faced no shortage of interview requests and the questions were all the same. I didn’t matter how good of a game Rhett had played for the Bearkats, the national media only wanted to talk about Oklahoma. ESPN’s Outside the Lines was on campus to do a feature on Rhett before he ever played a down for the Kats.

In addition, Rhett has done interviews with Sports Illustrated, LA Times, The Dallas Morning News and The Houston Chronicle just to name a few. I can’t tell you have many interviews he did over the last three years or how many we turned down because we just had a bad feeling about it.

All the interviews were the same. The guys would start off asking about life in Division II football and Rhett would have to correct them and tell them this is Division I. Then they would lob a few softball questions about how the season is going before working their way to Oklahoma. Rhett always answered the questions the same way, but each reporter had is set in their head they were going to be the one to uncover “the real story” at Oklahoma.

Three quarterbacks were selected in the first round this past weekend and they will all get the scrutiny that comes with being a first-round QB. There will be a host of other rookie quarterbacks heading to camp this weekend and they will be just like any other player new to the team. When they do talk to the media it will mostly be about what happened on the field that day.

Rhett will face the media this weekend as well. Someone will toss him an easy question about how his first day went and he will handle it like any other rookie. But unlike the other rookies, Rhett will then have to respond to questions about something that happened more than four years ago. It won’t matter how seasoned the reporter, no one will ask Rhett a question he hasn’t already heard. He also won't give an answer they haven't heard.

A few college basketball items

2009-03-14T22:22:00.001-05:00

I posted this on the 12th Street blog as well, but I wanted to get it up here as well.

One story that has not gotten much coverage is a situation that happened this week in the America East Conference.

Voting for all-conference can be tough. I have done it for seven years and there are always varying opinions on who should make first team and who is the player of the year. Most of the voters only see a player in action once or twice in a season and have to make a determination at the end of the year of who are the most deserving 15 players.

It can be a difficult process and there is always going to be someone left out. It is the nature of the beast. But what happened in the America East Conference this week is inexcusable. Binghamton won the regular season and guard D.J. Rivera led the league in scoring. He was also top 10 in rebounding, but when the all-conference list was announced, he was not player of the year.

The problem with this story is that he also was not named to the first team. Rivera, along with a teammate were both second team selections. Apparently, Rivera was denied the honor by a group of coaches in the league as a protest to an NCAA decision to allow Rivera to play after transferring from St. Joseph's without sitting the required season for moving from one Division I university to another. Rivera was granted a hardship waiver from the NCAA and was allowed to play this season.

The most unbelievable part of this story is the conference office is not only confirming the coaches voted with an agenda, but is also condoning it. Conference commissioner Patrick Nero said "It wasn’t a protest toward the kid at all. It was a protest toward the NCAA in allowing him to be eligible. It’s unfortunate, I don’t think it’s right. It’s unfair to the young man. He didn’t do anything wrong."

Nero should be ashamed of his comments. This should have never been made public. If Nero had any sense what-so-ever, he would have taken care of this internally. The coaches who left Rivera off should have had their ballots thrown out and never counted toward the final vote total. Rivera may still have not been the player of the year, but my guess is he would have been a first team selection where he belonged.

Binghamton and Rivera got their revenge, winning the America East Conference Tournament to grab a spot in next week's dance. Rivera fittingly was named tournament MVP.

I stayed up for all 6 OT's

When I got home from Katy on Thursday, I wasn't planning on watching much basketball. After seeing the Kats knocked out in the first round, I just wasn't up to it. But the Big East tournament game between Syracuse and UConn was on and I have always been a Husky fan so I turned the game on to watch the second half. Little did I know that would turn out to be a three hour commitment.

I was texting a few people at the end of regulation after they declared Eric Devendorf's 3 to win the game had come as the final horn was sounding. Syracuse seemingly had a victory and it was taken from them. A few people wanted to see the game end that way, but I was glad it was going to OT. I am a sucker for drama and overtime always brings drama.

Midway through the second overtime I sent out a text saying they might as well play 5 OTs. And then the fourth OT came and went and I really couldn't believe I was watching a game go to the fifth. In the fifth OT I didn't think either team was going to score. Both teams were gassed. Syracuse resorted to playing a walk-on who had a total of 60 minutes all season.

After the fifth overtime ended, I didn't see any foreseeable way either teams was going to win. It was a tournament, so someone was going to have to move one. Even though I was rooting for UConn to win, I wasn't upset when Syracuse sealed the deal in the sixth and final OT.

It was fun to watch those guys lay it on the line for 70 minutes of basketball. They were still diving on the floor and running and gunning even though you could see the guys who had been out there the whole time had nothing left.

I still think UConn is a No. 1 seed. Despite the loss in the first round, I think they showed enough in that game they deserve a spot on the top line of the bracket. Amazingly Syracuse knocked off West Virginia the next night in overtime once again, and then pushed Louisville to the brink. I always like Syracuse in the NCAA tournament. Jim Boeheim is one of the best coaches in college basketball and he always finds a way to win. I just have to wonder how much this run in the Big East Tournament will affect them in nest week's Big Dance.

The search of the "noise"

2009-01-08T21:32:00.008-06:00

I am reading a book right now called "Bloody Confused" by Chuck Culpepper that I am really enjoying. He is a sportswriter who has become disenchanted by American sports so he spent a spring in England watching the English Premier League.

During the early part of the book he talks about the reason people love sports is for a particular moment. What he calls that noise. An moment in a game that gets the crowd and atmosphere in general to create a noise that "might swim in your ear canals and rustle your soul and electrify your skin and maybe even prolong your life."

He writes about a goal between Portsmouth and Manchester City as being that it moment for him that truly hooked him into the EPL. He was not even at the game, but watching on TV, but he could just feel the noise through the television.

As a sportswriter Culpepper has covered 11 Super Bowls, seven World Series, five Olympics, 25 major golf tournaments and countless bowl games among other events. But one he remembers most is a moment he missed. When Kirk Gibson hit his famous home run off Eck in the '88 Series, Culpepper was in the hallway outside the Oakland locker room waiting to interview the supposed winning pitcher Dave Stewart.

He witnessed one of the biggest home runs in baseball history on a monitor in the hallway at Chavez Ravine and said he only wishes he knew what the noise in the stadium sounded like.

That got me thinking about whether I have ever experienced that noise. That moment in sports that "rustled my soul or electrified my skin." Have I ever experienced a moment that some people search their entire sporting lives for? Some never find it.

I guess I have been lucky. In my 31 years of the pursuit of the "noise" I can pinpoint four times I experienced it. That moment that not only qualifies as a fantastic moment in a game, but changes the environment around you. For that reason, the finish to the Sam Houston State/Eastern Washington playoff game in 2004 doesn't qualify because the game was in Cheney, Washington. Although the silence in that stadium was awesome.

The first was in 1997 at the Alamodome at the NCAA Basketball Midwest Regional. With the UCLA Bruins trailing 73-72 to Iowa State Cameron Dollar sprinted the length of the floor after a shot by Iowa State's Shawn Bankhead scored to put the Cyclones up with 10 seconds left in overtime. Dollar floated a 3-footer over the outstretched arm of Kelvin Cato to give the Bruins a thrilling victory.

To top it off, it was the second game of what had to have been one of the most exciting nights in NCAA regional history as Minnesota had beat Clemson in double overtime the first game of the night. When Dollar hit the shot, the place erupted. I have never experienced anything like. It was my first NCAA Tournament and I loved every second of it. Probably because of that night, I have been to the Big Dance four more times.

My second it moment was another college basketball game (this is going to be a theme here.) This is my only Sam Houston game on the list. It was the 2003 Southland Conference Championship game. In overtime, Donald Cole hit a 3-pointer with 18-seconds left to beat Stephen F. Austin.

I was sitting on press row right next to the Bearkat bench. The final moments of that game are a blur. To noise in Johnson Coliseum was indescribable. I have since watched the shot again and it looks nothing like I remember it in person. I had been to the NCAA Tournament two times before, but that shot meant I was going to see my Bearkats in the Big Dance. That was one of those moments.

The next one stings. Simply known as the 18-inning game. The 2005 playoff between the Astros and the Braves. As a Braves fan the game was absolutely gut-wrenching to watch. I don't remember what inning it was in, maybe the 15th or 16th, but the Astros hit a ball that looked like it was in the Crawford Box, that just drifted foul. For a moment I thought I was going to puke.

After getting stop after stop and forcing yet another inning, I just kept feeling like the Braves were finally going to break through and get a run. And then in the bottom of the 18th Chris Burke of all people hit a bloop that managed to find its way into the seats.

The Minute Maid crowd erupted. It was easily the most energy I had ever felt from a stadium. I don't think I even saw Burke cross home plate. As soon as the ball dropped in the Crawford Box I was out of my seat and heading to the exit.

The thing I remember the most is being in the concourse afterward and heading down the escalators. We were the only two people out there as you could here the noise out in the stadium. There was an eerie clam heading down the escalators. Little did I know at the time, but that is the last time Atlanta has walked off the field in the postseason.

The final moment for me was this past year at the Final Four. My fifth trip to the NCAA Tournament and my first Final Four. I was assisting the media services staff and had the fortunate pleasure to watch the games courtside. I was standing just off the baseline on the opposite end of the court when Mario Chalmers hit the 3-pointer to force overtime in the National Championship game.

Once again, the energy in the Alamodome that night was indescribable. While there was still five minutes of overtime to play, you just had a feel there was no way Kansas was going to lose. Before the game started a friend sent me a text and asked me who I thought was going to win. I sent back and said I didn't care, I just wanted to see the greatest game in NCAA Championship history. I think Chalmers certainly gave me a chance to make that claim.

All of these moments are ingrained in my memory not because of what I saw, but because of what I felt in that moment. Culpepper says these are the moments in sports that "rustle your soul and electrify your skin" and I have never thought about it that way before, but it is so true. Now here's to hoping they also help prolong my life.

One more video clip

2008-12-19T10:39:00.003-06:00

Here is one more clip that I was able to get together. This is probably not one of my finer moments on the sideline. I honestly have no idea why I did it. I guess I was just pissed we let them score right before the half.

Video by request

2008-12-17T23:03:00.003-06:00

I was asked to put this clip up on the web so here it is. This is during the 2001 SFA game. Obviously at the time I thought this was a horrible call and reacted accordingly. Looking back on it I think the ref made the right call.

The Greatest Pitcher You'll Ever See

2008-12-11T11:21:00.005-06:00

It was kind of sad the other day seeing Greg Maddux hang up his spikes for good. For so long Maddux was a big part of the Braves and one of the best pitchers to ever lace them up.

I always think back to the Sports Illustrated cover from 1995 saying Maddux was "the greatest pitcher you'll ever see." Being a Braves fan I got to see a lot of him, just about every fifth day.

Unlike some of the top pitchers in the past, Maddux didn't have the overpowering fast ball he could resort to if the other stuff wasn't working. Maddux wouldn't blow the ball past any one. Instead he had to out think the opposing hitters. More often than not, that is exactly what he did.

For that reason, he never had the huge strikeout numbers that some people use to judge a pitcher's career. He didn't have a no-hitter in his career either like some of the top throwers in baseball did. But he was about as efficient as a pitcher who ever took the hill.

Maddux went one season nearly having fewer walks than wins in the season, finishing the 1997 campaign with 19 wins and 20 walks. Two years earlier he put together one of the best single seasons for a pitcher going 19-2 with an ERA of 1.63 and an astonishing WHIP of 0.81. In fact, even with some down years at the end of has career, he still finished with a career WHIP of 1.14. Only Johan Santana has a better career WHIP (1.10) among active players.

His years with Atlanta were clearly his best, although he did win a Cy Young with Chicago. In 10 years he went 194-88 and twice had an ERA under 2.

I don't know how many times I saw Maddux pitch in person, but there is one game I remember specifically. It was two days after I graduated high school. Maddux went seven innings against the Astros without giving up a hit. Jeff Bagwell was leading off the 8th and I looked at my friend and said if he can get past Bagwell he has a good chance to throw the no-no. Bagwell then took him deep. Maddux then retired the next six hitters for a one-hitter. It is the closest he ever got.

Maddux will be a first-ballot Hall of Famer and that will be a speech I don't plan on missing. I figure I have seen more than 200 major league baseball games and have watched guys like Randy Johnson, Nolan Ryan, Dwight Godden, Roger Clemens, Kevin Brown, Andy Pettitte, John Smoltz and Tom Glavine toe the rubber and I still can't argue with SI, Maddux is the greatest pitcher I will ever see.

Don't give up ... Don't ever give up

2008-12-10T00:35:00.003-06:00

It has been more than 15 years since Jim Valvano delivered his "Don't give up" speech at the ESPY's and to a crowd at NC State and it still gets me to this day.

ESPN can be accused of over hyping a lot of things. Every week on the network has some sort of corny tag like "Rivalry Week" or "Showdown Week" or the build up to the "Collision in the Coliseum."

Most of the time it is just some petty attempt to hype something that either A) doesn't need hype to begin with, or B) isn't really that big of a deal, but ESPN is trying to convince everyone it it. Usually it is the latter.

But with "Jimmy V Week," they have flat out nailed it. The cause aside, Jimmy V Week is such a special week because we get to relive the speech Jim Valvano gave on the podium at the ESPY's in 1993. I don't think I got choked up the first time I saw the speech, because I was a sophomore in high school and you just didn't do that.

But at the time, I had not had anyone in my life fight cancer. As a 31-year-old with a family, it is much different. I can relate more to what Jimmy V was saying on that night as his gestures and nods to his family really hits home.

Every year during the Jimmy V Classic I try to catch the speech between games. If I am not home I try to record it. By the time it is done, I always have a massive knot in my throat and usually a little moisture in the eyes.

I was talking to a group of students a few weeks ago, and I was amazed they have never seen the speech before. I have to remember they weren't born yet when Jimmy V was running around the court in 1983 after winning the national championship. When he was giving his speech in 1993 they were about eight years old and more concerned about a lot of other things on TV than some old coach wearing a tux and speaking to a group of people they had never heard of.

I told them all to google his speech and watch it. I don't know if any of them ever did. So if you are reading this, I have found a link to the speech and you now have no excuse for not watching it.

My brother knows how much I liked Jimmy V even before he passed away, and especially how much I have grown to like him in the years since. For my birthday he ordered a DVD of the ESPY speech from the V Foundation and with the DVD came a blue wrist band with "Don't give up ... Don't ever give up" written on it.

No matter what the situation, where I am or what the dress code is, I don't take that band off. In fact since I have had it, I have worn it more than my wedding band. Without really even thinking about it, not a week goes by I don't stop and look at it and think about the words written on it.

In Jimmy V's speech he has another part I think of quite a bit and repeat to other people at times:

"When people say to me how do you get through life or each day, it's the
same thing. To me, there are three things we all should do every day. We should
do this every day of our lives. Number one is laugh. You should laugh every day.
Number two is think. You should spend some time in thought. Number three is, you should have your emotions moved to tears, could be happiness or joy. But think
about it. If you laugh, you think, and you cry, that's a full day. That's a heck
of a day. You do that seven days a week, you're going to have something
special."

Not a day goes by that I don't laugh and at least spend some time in thought. I probably don't cry enough for Jimmy V's liking, but I guess that is what his video is for. It is amazing how often at the end of the night that I have had a really bad day that I think back and realize I just blew through the day and didn't spend time doing any of the things Jimmy V talked about doing every day.

This turned into being much longer than I was anticipating it being. I really just wanted to get a link of the speech up. Now I am not really sure how I want to close it, so I guess I do it the same way Jimmy V did.

"I thank you and God bless you all."

New teams added to the list

2008-11-25T14:40:00.002-06:00

I will get to pick up two new teams to my NCAA basketball list beginning with tonight's game against Western Michigan. On Saturday, Wright State will come to Huntsville to take on the Bearkats.

This will put me up to 58 NCAA basketball teams I have seen play. I probably will not add to the list again this season (unless I got to Lafayette) since I will not be going to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in two years unless the Bearkats are involved.

I have to give it to SHSU head coach Bob Marlin. Over the last few years, he has done a great job of brining in some good Mid-Major programs to Johnson Coliseum. Just in the last three years, I have gotten the chance to see Loyola-Marymount, Central Florida, Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Fresno State, Cal-Irvine, Texas Tech (not a mid-major but a great home game), Southern Miss and North Texas.

People around here always seem to get really excited when the Bearkats play host to Texas Tech or head on the road to Texas A&M and with good reason. I got excited to see Bob Knight patrol the sidelines here last season as well. I intentionally set up my seat on press row next to the Tech bench just so I could get a close look at a legend at work.

But the problem is, to a lot of people, our season ended last year with the home victory over Tech and it won't start this year until the Bearkats head over to College Station to take on the Aggies.

We are afforded a rare opportunity to watch some really good basketball not just in January and March when schools like SFA and Northwestern State come to Huntsville, but in November and December while the football diehards are waiting for the bowls to come around.

There was a time when a mid-major wouldn't come down to Huntsville. The non-conference slate was full on the Schreiner's and the Austin College's. While they are still on the slate, we do get treated with three or four good games a year as well. It is just a shame more people in the area don't realize what they have. Who knows how long we will continue to have this opportunity.

If a game is played but no one can watch it, did it really happen?

2008-11-21T14:22:00.003-06:00

So the Mountain West wants everyone to take the league seriously. They say Utah should be a national championship contender. They say BYU is one of the top offenses in the country. TCU puts one of the best products out there each season.

All you have to do is give them a chance and watch a game and you will be convinced. Tonight is one of the biggest games of the season as Utah gets set to take on BYU. Great, I am ready to watch.

What channel is the game on?

How can a league expect anyone to take it seriously if the only network that is covering its biggest contest is The Mountain. That sounds more like a type of beer than it does a television network. I wouldn't even had known the network existed had the Bearkats not played a game on it last season. I remember a producer calling me telling me he was from The Mountain looking for video of our basketball. I guess he assumed I know what The Mountain was.

Utah is ranked No. 7 in the BCS and they can earn a bid to one of the four BCS games with a victory. There are people who are trying to argue a case for Utah to play in the national championship if things fall right.

I can't argue one way or another, because I haven't seen them play since they beat Michigan the first week of the season. That game is looking less impressive with every passing day. A few weeks ago TCU was playing Utah and it was being billed at the time as the biggest game in the Mountain West history.

I get home that night to watch it on TV and can't find it. I start flipping through all the usual stations and I find World Series of Poker on ESPN2, some Division II game on ESPNU and none of the family of Fox networks had the game.

I see the score running on the bottom line so I know the game is on. I decide to get online to look it up and see The Mountain is carrying it. How can you expect people to take you serious if no one can see you play.

Right now I can make a better case for Ball State to be in the national championship picture than I can Utah because the Cardinals are on ESPN damn near every week. I know what we are getting with them because the MAC made it a point to get its games on national TV and get some exposure to the league's teams and players.

While the teams in the MAC may not be as good as the top teams in the Mountain West, I have a better feel for what they are capable of because the opportunity is there every week to watch them play. I come to work, and people stick their head in my office and say "Hey did you see that game in the fog last night."

Because it was on ESPN there were people watching. I don't think anyone all season long has asked, "Did you catch that Wyoming game last night?"

If you want to be a serious player on the national football landscape then you have to start acting like one. If that means some Tuesday and Wednesday night game, so be it. The big boys all play on ESPN. It is about time you did to.

Someone call me and let me know who wins this one.

That is how you finish off a game

2008-11-16T22:25:00.002-06:00

It took a long time for this game to come. I'm not just talking about having to wait for the last game of the day or even having to wait through a bye week.

We have been waiting for this game since Tony Romo first broke his finger at the end of the Arizona game. Things were starting to look bad for Dallas and then losing Romo really hurt. From the time we heard how long he was going to be out, the Redskin game was the one the was circled on the schedule.

The job was just to survive the three games without him. They salvaged a game against Tampa Bay, putting themselves in position to make a run at the playoffs. That is what made this game so big. Not only were the Cowboys essentially playing for their playoff lives, but it was against the Redskins.

It is a little early to be throwing out the "must win" label on a game, but this game was a must win. A loss to the Redskins probably would have marked the end of Wade Phillips' tenure as the head coach of the 'Boys. It would have also marked the end of the of the postseason hopes for a team that had high aspirations heading into the season (seems to be a theme with my teams this season).

No one wanted to commit either way during the pregame shows about what they thought would happen in this game. There seemed to be a wait-and-see attitude toward this game. There is no doubt the Cowboys can be good. The question that had to be answered was will they be good.

At times they were good, especially on the defensive side of the ball. They also had some areas that still need some work. They most impressive thing about the game was the Cowboys ability to finish off the game.

With a little more than six minutes to play Dallas got the ball and never gave it back to Washington. There is something to be said for a team that can do that. Too often you see teams lose games because they can't finish. Marion Barber made sure that was not going to be the case for the Cowboys.

In a place that has been hard to play, Dallas came up with a big win when they had to. There is still a lot of season left, but the most important thing is, there is a lot of season left to play for.

They have to avoid the let down game next week against San Francisco and see if they can get this thing back on a roll. Get hot, get into the playoffs and see what happens. It was a formula the Giants used successfully last season.

Recruiting in Texas

2008-11-11T15:23:00.006-06:00

I get asked this a lot and have heard it twice in the last two weeks. People want to know why Sam Houston can't recruit a top quarterback straight out of high school.

With the exception of Brett Hicks, all the top quarterbacks at Sam Houston since 1999 have been transfers. Chris Chaloupka (Oklahoma State), Josh McCown (SMU), Dustin Long (Texas A&M) and Rhett Bomar (Oklahoma) were all transfers and all had or have had in the case of Rhett, great careers.

What people don't understand is truly how difficult it is to recruit a quarterback in the state of Texas. You are not just competing against the other Texas schools, you are competing against the nation when it comes to quarterbacks.

I was listening to Rivals Radio this morning and they had a recruiting expert on the show. The topic of quarterbacks came up and he started talking about Texas. He said there are 20 to 25 quarterbacks in the state of Texas who are going to get FBS scholarships this year and that number is only going to go up in the years to follow.

Take a look at the landscape of college football right now and everyone is going to the spread. One of the reasons Texas has become such a hotbed for quarterback recruiting is because so many high schools have switched to this offense. Also, because 7-on-7 has become so big in Texas and kids are learning how to sit back and play pitch and catch.

If you look at college football, there are countless numbers of quarterbacks who are from Texas. In fact, I decided to take a look. I pulled the list of the top 120 quarterbacks in the nation in terms of passing yards and here is the list of guys from Texas:

1. Graham Harrell, Texas Tech, Ennis Tx
3. Case Keenum, Houston Abilene, TX
4. Chase Daniel, Missouri, Southlake Carroll
6. Chase Clement, Rice, Alamo Heights
9. Todd Reesing, Kansas, Austin Westlake
10. Colt McCoy, Texas,Tuscola, TX
13. Matthew Stafford, Georgia, Highland Park, TX
15. Chase Holbrook, New Mexico St, Hurst TX
16. Bo Levi Mitchell, SMU, Katy TX
19. Casey Dick, Arkansas, Allen TX
21. Giovanni Vizza, N Texas , San Antonio, TX
26. Trevor Vittatoe, UTEP, Bedford, TX
27. Jerrod Johnson, Texas A&M, Humble, TX
34. Brian Johnson, Utah, Baytown Lee TX
51. Jevan Snead, Ole Miss, Stephenville, Tx
56. Robert Griffin, Baylor Copperas Cove, Tx
61. Andy Dalton, TCU Katy, TX
67. Kevin Moore, Tulane Highland Village, Tx
74. Jarrett Lee, LSU, Brenham Tx
80. Christian Ponder, Florida St, Colleyville, Tx
86. Daniel Raudabaugh, Miami (OH), Coppel, Tx
112. Nick Stephens, Tennessee Flower Mound

That is 22 guys in the top 112 who played high school ball in Texas, nearly 20 percent. The list is very top heavy with Texas guys, with six of the top 10 and 14 of the top 34.

That is why schools from across the nation are coming into Texas to recruit, which makes it increasingly more difficult to pull some of the top talent in Texas to Sam Houston State. Fact of the matter is, kids in Texas will almost always be drawn to the allure of "big-time college football."

Even if it is UNLV, Miami Ohio, Utah or New Mexico State, 18-year-olds are going to be more inclined to take a look at an FBS school even if they may be a better fit at Sam Houston, where the offense is tailored for a quarterback to shine. Part of it is ignorance and part of it is arrogance. They can tell their classmates they got a scholarship to play "Division I" football.

While I don't think the answer is to stop recruiting the best talent you can get to play quarterback, you have to always have your eye open for a transfer. Too many people make that to sound like a negative, like that is all you can get. However, what needs to be done is go after that talent and then hope after a year or two has passed those kids will realize they have made a mistake and opt to come back to a school that had been recruiting them all along.

Showdown at the Shoe

2008-10-25T10:18:00.002-05:00

I am really surprised ESPN hasn't come up with a catchy name for this game. Ever since the "Collision at the Coliseum" proved to be more of a collapse, I think ESPN has gotten away from really over hyping a game like this.

Not that it hasn't gotten plenty of run with constant updates on the bottom line all week and Gameday showing up in Columbus, I am glad ESPN has sort of gone away from over-hyping a game.

It is No. 3 Penn State at No. 9 Ohio State, but is really has the feel of a top-5 matchup. For Penn State, this game is huge. Maybe the biggest game for this school since 2005 Michigan. Three years ago, the Lions stumbled once, and finished the year No. 3.

That same year, Texas went on to face an unbeaten USC team for the national championship. The Nittany Lions did work their way back to No. 3 in the BCS. As devastating as the Michigan loss was at the time, I was able to look back at the end of the year and see Penn State might not have played for the national championship even had they gone undefeated.

I don't think that is the case this year. Sitting at No. 3 in the BCS and facing the toughest team left on the schedule, I think Penn State can get into the National Championship with an undefeated season.

Once again Texas sits above them in the polls ahead of No. 2 Alabama this time around. I just don't see both of them going the rest of the way unbeaten. I thin one will fall before the end of the regular season potentially opening the door for Penn State if the Lions can take care of business.

It is not going to be an easy task. Ohio State is not the same team they were a month ago. Early in the year they looked vulnerable. Bennie Wells was hurt and a true freshman was stepping in at quarterback.

People were already telling me the door was open for the Nittany Lions. I knew better. The game was a long way away and a lot of time for Ohio State to right the ship. They have played in the last two national championship games so I knew they Buckeyes were not going to just lay down.

I have avoided talking much about Penn State's chances of winning the title. I have been saying I'm not going to really start getting excited until after this game. I Penn State is undefeated at the end of the night, then I will start thinking about the possibilities.

Until then. I will just sit and wait.

Bomar is officially a Bearkat

2008-10-09T23:29:00.005-05:00

I should have seen this coming, but I didn't. It never dawned on me this would come up this week. And that just goes to show how accustomed we have become to having Rhett Bomar at Sam Houston State.

Two years ago and even last season, I was on edge the week of the Texas-OU game, and not because of its annual national title implications. But because it would bring the national media out of the woodwork, clamoring to the "Piney Woods" to talk to the quarterback who was supposed to be playing in that game.

Oklahoma is in Rhett's past. He has said it on numerous occasions, and I believe him. I have come to believe it myself. That is why when I set up an interview this week with Rhett and Austin Murphy at Sports Illustrated, it never dawned on me he would want to talk about the Texas-OU game.

Rhett has moved past it. I guess I assumed everyone had too. I sat in the office and listened to Rhett talk to Murphy. The conversation started innocent enough. He was asked a little bit about the conference and the opponents he has faced.

It sounded like a question about the Kansas game came up and now he had Rhett talking about a Big 12 team. That is when he started asking about the game this weekend, and not the Bearkats' game against Central Arkansas. The Horns and the Sooners were the topic of the next few questions.

Rhett's posture changed. He was no longer sitting up in the chair but instead slumped over with his head on the desk. He had been here before with this line of questioning, but it had been a while. Rhett gave an answer to just about every question, giving Murphy just enough of a quote to tease him, before stopping short.

From there the questions moved to Rhett's situation at Oklahoma. While visibly put out by line of questions, Rhett kept talking. He answered the questions just like he always has, refusing to give out any information about anyone but himself.

Just as he has done time and time again, he took responsibility for his part of what happened at Oklahoma, and on more than one occasion, reminded Murphy he has moved on and is happy. Murphy is a pro. He could see he was not going to get any farther with those questions, so he changed topics.

That is when I realized Rhett truly is a Bearkat now and not a "former Oklahoma quarterback." Murphy started asking Rhett questions about the prisons. Anyone who has been in Huntsville for any amount of time has been asked about the prisons.

It is the favorite topic, and often a punch line by the national media, when talking about Sam Houston State. For people like me, who have been associated with this school as a student, alum, writer and now employee, we have heard the questions over and over. They are our "Oklahoma" questions if you will.

If a writer has nothing else to write, he writes about the prisons, and just like when Rhett gets asked about Oklahoma, it get old fast. But Rhett has handled everything better than could be imagined. I know he has to get frustrated. I do.

Nervously I have waited for the article to hit the web on SI.com. It could have been written any one of several directions, but I had a good idea of which way it would go. With everyone talking about Texas-OU, Rhett's past was bound to be more of a focus rather than his bright future at SHSU and later in the NFL.

The story was released Thursday, and it was pretty much what I expected. But the lead is what confirmed Rhett is now truly a Bearkat.

"One of the first things people told Rhett Bomar when he got to Huntsville,
Texas: Don't pick up hitchhikers. Situated in the Piney Woods, 70 miles north of
Houston, Huntsville is the location of Sam Houston State, Bomar's second
college. It's also home to eight prisons, including what was for many years the
nation's busiest execution chamber."

No mention of Oklahoma. This might be the first story about Rhett not written by the Huntsville Item to do this. A good chunk of the story was about the "Red River Rivalry" and about Rhett's past at Oklahoma. Murphy attempts to read between the lines to try to gain more of an understanding about what might have happened at that car dealership in Norman three years ago.

I have started to realized that no matter how much I or Rhett or his family or anyone else has moved on, Rhett's ties to Oklahoma will always be there. 20 years from now there will be people who remember Rhett for what happened at Oklahoma and nothing else. That is pretty much a given.

Just like people who worked at SMU in the 80's are still asked about the "Death Penalty" and Hall of Famer George Brett is still asked about the pine tar incident, Rhett will be asked about Oklahoma. It will always be a footnote to his career and life.

There are not many 19, 20 or 21-year olds who have had to go through what Rhett has endured the last three years of his life. He has handled it better than ever could have been expected.

Everyone does things in college that they regret and 10 years later sit around the poker table with friends and talk about how stupid they were and how lucky they are that nothing serious ever happened to them. They can laugh about it now. Difference is, 99 percent of those people never had a story written about what they did. ESPN wasn't looking for an interview to talk about. Sports Illustrated didn't call three years later still looking for more to the story.

While I thought this was just about over, I am starting to see that over the course of Rhett's life, this story may still be in the early stages.

In the three years I have gotten to know Rhett, one thing I have come to realize about him is his strength, and I am not talking about in the weight room. While he will always carry this around with him, I am confident it will become merely a footnote in his life and not the incident that defines him.

What a return to TV

2008-09-16T00:46:00.003-05:00

OK, so I went 61 1/2 hours with no TV. I think the last time I had a stretch like that was Hurricane Alicia in 1983. I really can't think of another stretch of nothing. Not even a glance at a TV in passing.

Saturday afternoon I was able to get the XM radio going on battery power and listen to about three quarters of the Penn State game. Sunday night I caught the last inning of Carlos Zambrano's no-hitter on XM as well.

I was getting phone calls and text messages throughout the weekend giving me scores and updating me on my fantasy teams, but access was definitely limited.

So my first thing to watch was the Monday Night game with the Cowboys and Eagles. After a little pregame show it felt good to be watching sports again. This game didn't disappoint. I think I would have been excited with any Cowboy victory, but that game was something else.

The people we are staying with in Austin didn't really know what to expect. Meagan has been with me for Cowboy and Penn State games before, but her boyfriend Costa has only met me a handful of times and never when a game of any importance was on TV.

So right out of the gate I was up screaming. TO's long touchdown and Felix Jones' kickoff return for a touchdown. He also saw the other side of me when the Eagles took the lead in the second quarter. I was pissed and it showed. He ended up leaving the room for a while and I am not really sure why.

Everyone has to go to work in the morning and went to bed in the third quarter, so I had to do one of the hardest things imaginable, watch the game in near silence. I use near very loosely, because I did have some minor outbursts. Fortunately the Cowboys pulled it off and I had a very enjoyable return to TV.

Just saw the Fresno State/Wisconsin game from Saturday night is on ESPN2. I really have no idea what happens in this one, so I think I will watch a little while.

It is good to have you back old friend.

Post Ike

2008-09-15T22:01:00.009-05:00

It feels good to just have air right now. I went 48 hours without TV but we have escaped to Austin so I have the Cowboys on a 48" TV with HD. There is no telling how long we are going to be without power.

Here is some video of the storm as it passed over my house. We caught the left edge of the eye while the storm was a Cat 1. The first clip is a little before sunrise around 6:30 a.m. We lost power about 4:30 and the winds really started getting bad about 5 a.m.

This next clip is about 7 in the morning. The only thing that saved the fence was the wind was blowing with it and not against it. The plank that is missing was gone early in the storm.

This last video is about 8 a.m.

After driving through the neighborhood the next day we really got lucky. There were at least two tornadoes that touched down within about half a mile from our house. As we drove around there were several houses with significant damage and there were at least 10 cars damaged, and we only drove though less than a quarter of the neighborhood.

Hurricane Ike

2008-09-11T21:45:00.003-05:00

Last Saturday was strange. I was actually home. My Saturdays are usually spent at Bowers Stadium getting ready for a Kats game. If I'm on the road it is a mix of hotels, buses and other stadiums.

I can usually grab a score here and there and maybe catch a highlight here and there. With the 11 a.m. kicks usually I can squeeze in the the first half, and if a press box has a TV I might catch a few moments of a game or two. Then I am relegated to the late-night Pac-10 game or maybe a Tivoed Penn State game.

Very rarely do I have a Saturday of just sitting around the living room watching football.

So even while I was on the couch watching the Nittany Lions, something felt weird, like there was something else I was supposed to be doing. I enjoyed the day, but there was just a different fell about it.

Now all of a sudden I find myself with a second consecutive Saturday off. I was supposed to be getting ready for Prairie View A&M, and now I am getting ready for Ike. Going into this morning, the option was still open to playing this weekend. Saturday looked out, but we thought the game might get moved to Friday or Sunday.

But when the university closed for Friday that was out and when Prairie View called and said they couldn't get a bus to bring them to Huntsville, Sunday was out as well.

So here I am again, looking over the TV listings for Saturday wondering if I am going to get my Nittany Lions again. I actually had it planned right if Ike would have just stayed on course and gone to Corpus. With a 6 p.m. kickoff for the Bearkats and a 2:30 start for Penn State I was going to get to work and set up the video equipment early and just watch the game in my office on ESPN360.

Now I don't know what I am going to do. I don't have 360 at my house so that option is out. The game is an ABC regional game so there is a glimmer of hope. With the Texas/Arkansas game postponed, that opens up the schedule for the 2:30 time-slot. I will just have to wait and see which game they decide to show.

Of course if I lose power on Saturday, none of that really matters.

Bob Costas....

2008-08-21T22:21:00.006-05:00

Bob Costas has a tough job. He has to basically direct traffic so to speak on the NBC broadcast keep people up-to-date on all the happenings in Beijing. The hard part is he is having to bounce between live events and stuff that happened the night before in Beijing.

And while we pretty much know what happens, Costas' job is to keep you interested and attempt to hold the suspense before they show an event that might be more than 12 hours old.

In a society that has become results in real-time and on-demand, Costas is facing the challenge of reporting half-day old news as if it is fresh. It is a job I don't envy. Not to mention he had to sit next to Bela Karolyi and pretend to understand what Bela was saying.

You could see him at times just shaking his head in agreement and you knew damn good and well he didn't understand a word that was being said.

We sometimes criticize sports broadcasters for hyperbole and getting caught up in the heat of the moment. If they had time to digest everything that happened and then talk about it, the thinking is they might be able to lend a little bit better commentary to the event.

Costas however might be proving that may not be true. He has had a few interesting one-liners the past few nights, but tonight was the worst. I don't know if Costas has a bad pun writer or if he just sits up at night thinking this stuff up himself.

After showing the replays of the two US sprint teams drop the baton in the relay, Costas drops this gem on the American viewers, "So the American men's and women's teams go out and lay an egg at the Birds Nest."

Really Bob? That is the best you can do?

Al Michaels gets "Do you believe in miracles?" and that is what you are coming with?

Hits and misses with the Olympics

2008-08-20T15:30:00.005-05:00

There are a few things every two years that always seem to grab my attention when it comes to the Olympics. The first is just the novelty of the sports. We don't get to see swimming that often, so when it is on I naturally tune in just because it is something different.

The second is I am a sucker for live sporting events. There is just something about not knowing what is about to happen and getting to see it at the same time as everyone else. I have found myself sitting up a 2 in the morning watching Champions League soccer from Russia simply because it was live.

That is where the biggest hits and misses of this year's Olympics come into play.

I think NBC hit a home run this year by getting the swimming finals early in the morning Beijing time allowing us to watch them live in prime time. I was glued to the TV watching not just Michael Phelps but all of the finals as the Americans dominated the pool.

I am also not a big gymnastics fan, but have found myself sitting and watching the events, simply because it was live. Had the gymnastics been taped like the individual events were, I probably would not watch, or at the very least not stay tuned in 100 percent.

But it seems my undivided attention to NBC in prime time ends there. The track and field has been very hard to watch because the results start moving across the wire at 9 a.m. It is hard to go the day with out know the results all day. Between constant work on the computer and 45 minutes of talk radio on the way home, there was no way to avoid hearing about Bolt obliterating the field in the 100.

I had NBC on that night just to see the race but it obviously didn't hold the same excitement as it would have seeing it live. Because there are just certain events that can't be held in the morning, a good bit of the Olympics has been hard to watch because it it taking place at 4 in the morning.

The exception has been in soccer where I had to set the alarm clock to watch the US play just because I am a huge soccer fan. I got up at 4 a.m. to watch the US and Japan play and the other two matches fortunately came on mornings I didn't have to go to work so I recorded them and watched in the morning.

Soccer has been the only "mainstream" sport I have really watched however (I know soccer isn't considered a mainstream sport by most, but on a world stage it is). Baseball, basketball and tennis, sports I generally watch on a regular basis has seen very little time on my TV. Part of it is because of the time it is on, but the other part goes back to the novelty of the sports in the Olympics.

The baseball is just not that great to watch from what I have seen and I really have no interest in the USA basketball team. As for the tennis, I don't think the players even care about the Olympics, so why should we? Federer lost to Blake and just shrugged his shoulders and congratulated his opponent. It barely even got a mention on the bottom line. If this were Wimbledon or the US Open, it would be huge news.

So the interest level in some of these sports is already down, and putting them on TV at 3, 4 and 5 in the morning definitely kills the buzz.

You don't leave games early

2008-08-03T12:40:00.005-05:00

I don't leave games early. I just don't do it. When you pay for a ticket, you pay for the game, not the first three-fourths of a game. It is like going to the movies. If you pay for a ticket, you watch the whole movie.

The same applies to sports. When you buy that ticket, you should stay to see how it ends. I hate the argument people make about wanting to beat the traffic. What a load of crap. If that is all you are concerned about, then stay home.

It always kills me to see people getting up to leave a game, especially baseball, in the seventh or eighth inning. That is the best thing about baseball is it doesn't have a clock. A team can be down by nine and down to their last out, and still come back to win.

That is why you don't leave, you never know what you might miss. Not that I needed any reinforcement of this, but I got it two weeks ago at the Astros game. They were playing the Pirates on a Monday night.

Houston was up 3-2 heading into the ninth and they brought in Jose Valverde to close out the game. Some people must have thought he was a lock and started to head out before the ninth even started. Are you kidding me?

After he got an out to start the inning, Jason Bay hit a solo shot to tie the game. A single by Xavier Nady followed by a home run by Adam LaRoche put the Pirates up 5-3 -- and the exodus began. Over the next five minutes an announced crowd of 34,624 had dwindled to about 4,000 people.

What the other 30,000 people missed was something that doesn't happen very often in baseball. Freddy Sanchez hit a ball off the right field wall angle of the Astros' bull pen, just out of the reach of Hunter Pence. The ball then kicked back toward the right field line, rolling along the warning track. Sanchez never broke stride and beat the relay throw home for an inside-the-park home run.

I have been to more than 200 MLB games and seen one other inside-the-park home run. Even if you consider the all the games I played in and the countless high school and college games I have watched over the years, I have seen just a handful of true inside-the-park home runs (mine being one of them).

The Pirates went on to win the game 9-3 and the shame of it is, most of the people who left probably saw the final score and are glad they left when they did. Which means they won't hesitate to do it again.

So I will continue to go watch a baseball game while everyone else will just be there to see some baseball, and next time when something else special happens in the ninth, I'll be in even more select company than when the game started.

Another milestone night

2008-06-28T19:53:00.002-05:00

Friday night proved to be a good one for me. I have waited a long time for this, but with the Boston Red Sox in Houston this weekend, I was able to finish off my list of every major league team seen.

The thing about the Red Sox, is it has been down to just them for several years. In 2000 I got to see the Mariners and Angels on my honeymoondwindling the list to two. I had Baltimore and Boston left to see.

I picked up Baltimore a few years ago when they came to Houston leaving just the Red Sox. Every year I would try to plan on going up to Arlington to see them play, but it seemed everytime they were in town, it was a bad weekend for me.

So I have waited. Finally the time came, but it wasn't easy. The Astros jacked up the ticket prices and then made you register and the only way to purchase the tickets was if you won a lottery. I registered with both mine and Patty's e-mail and neither one was chosen the first time around.

I had to wait a few weeks later before getting an e-mail that I was selected on the second chance drawing. Without hesitating I picked up two tickets.

Finally the game came, and it turned out to another milestone for me. During batting practice I caught my 21st ball. It was a homerun hit by Mark Loretta. I was in the Crawford Box when I made the grab. It was also my second straight batting practice to get a ball. The nice thing about this one was it was a home run I caught on the fly. It has been two years since catching a homer during batting practice.

MLS is just bad soccer

2008-06-26T21:59:00.002-05:00

Don't get me wrong, I enjoy watching the MLS from time-to-time. I'll usually turn the Dynamo on if they are on TV and watch, but the more I watch, the more I realize it is just bad soccer.

I think it becomes so apparent after watching the Euro 2008 for three weeks on TV. Then I turn on the Dynamo and FC Dallas and really see how bad it is. I have been out to see the Dynamo play twice and thoroughly enjoyed it. But you just have to take it for what it is.

The MLS is a second-rate league. It is probably the equivalent of AA baseball. The guys are good players and they have the potential to be good, they are just not there yet.

You just really see the difference after watching the European Championships and then the MLS. The play is very choppy and the pace never gets going. There is a bad pass or bad touch around every corner, and I am not sure anyone knows how to play defense. In the 30 minutes of the Dynamo and FC Dallas game tonight, I saw three separate shanks on attempts to clear the ball. Two of the sailed several rows into the seats.

On defense, there is a bunch of grabbing and late tackles. I guess because it happens all the time, half the stuff never gets called. There were several that could possibly draw a card on the international stage that didn't even get a whistle. Good runs never came to fruition and free kicks sailed 10 feet over the crossbar.

Now none if this will really keep me from going to see the Dynamo play. The games are still fun, especially in person. But I am going to have to stop watching on the same day as I watch a good international match.

It really goes to show how far behind the US is compared to the rest of the world. If this is what we have to offer, then some work still needs to be done. Granted more-and-more players are now going overseas to play and that is a good sign. More just need to start breaking through with some of the top level teams.

I think that is one of the reasons I detest Landon Donovan so much. He was playing at the top level in Germany and decided to come back and play in the MLS. He had a chance to prove that US players can play with the best in the world but gave it up. I think it says a lot about Donovan as well and his inability to consistently compete at a high level. You see flashes of greatness from him, and then he disappears for a stretch.

A big part of that is because he does not compete against the best in the world on a regular basis, so when he does, he chokes. The MLS does nothing to prepare Donovan or any other US player to compete on the world stage.

I used to think the MLS was coming along, and if more players would just stay here and play, it would help legitimize the league. As much as I would love for that to happen and get to the point where top players from other countries are coming to play here, it doesn't look like it will happen anytime in the next 10 years.

In the meantime, the US team is suffering because many of the players are not going against top level competition. It is kind of a catch 22 situation because the MLS needs the players here to continue to develop the league, but the US needs them overseas and playing to help develop them as world-class athletes.

BTW - I picked Spain before Euro started, so I am looking good going into the final. I really don't want Germany to win.

MLB Draft final count

2008-06-18T15:06:00.003-05:00

Here is the final count of everyone I have seen play who was drafted this year. I am sure there are a few that I missed with some of them coming from the Stan Musial World Series and then a name or two that just slipped past me.

But the count right now is 69 players who I saw in either high school or college or and some cases, both. Also, there are two other players I know, but never saw play who were drafted, Hunter Cervenka who is Patty's cousin and Kirkland Rivers who's parents are a long-time family friend with my family.

Here is the list:

19 from Chicago Cubs – Andrew Cashner, Conroe HS
39 from St. Louis – Lance Lynn, Ole Miss
43 from Arizona – Wade Miley, Southeastern Louisiana
45 from Boston – Bryan Price, Rice
67 from Detroit – Cody Satterwhite, Ole Miss
75 from NY Yankees – Scott Bittle, Ole Miss
93 from LA Dodgers – Kyle Russell, Texas
188 from Milwaukee – Jose Duran, Texas A&M
210 from Chicago White Sox – Jordan Danks, Texas
217 from LA Dodgers – Cole St. Clair, Rice
225 from Padres – Adam Zornes, Rice
237 from SF – Scott Barnes, St. Johns
244 from Oakland – Jeremy Barfield, Klein HS
275 from St. Louis – Aaron Luna, Rice
285 from San Diego – Kyle Thebeau, Texas A&M
286 from Philidelphia – Cody Overbeck, Ole Miss
306 from Minnesota – Evan Bigley, Dallas Baptist
345 from San Diego – Tyson Bagley, Dallas Baptist
347 from Colorado – Kyle Walker, The Woodlands HS
351 from Cleveland – Matt Langwell, Sam Houston State
372 from Seattle – Ken Kasparek, Texas
391 from Washington – Blake Stouffer, Texas A&M
403 from Detroit – Jared Gayhart, Rice
427 from LA Dodgers – Clay Calfee, Conroe HS
432 from Seattle - Luke Burnett, La Tech
433 from Detroit – Tyler Conn, Southern Miss
446 from Baltimore – Jason Gurka, Brenham HS
457 from Dodgers - Albie Goulder, La Tech
468 from Arizona – Bobby Stone, Montgomery HS
500 from NY Yankees – Luke Anders, Texas A&M
549 from Toronto – Bobby Bell, Rice
574 from Oakland – Michael Hart, Texas State
581 from Chicago Cubs – David Macias, The Woodlands HS
588 from Arizona – Joseph Gautier – Bayomon Vaqueros (Stan Musial)
611 from Chicago Cubs - Jericho Jones, La Tech
619 from LA Angles – Beau Brooks, Troy
637 from LA Dodgers – David Sever, Saint Louis
638 from Milwaukee – Lucas Letuge, Rice
670 from Atlanta – Bryan Carter, Texas A&M
697 from LA Dodgers – Brian Ruggiano, Texas A&M
721 from Washington – Chris Kelley, Rice
723 from Texas - Adam Cobb, La Tech
737 from Colorado – Thomas Field, Texas State
739 from LA Angles – Taylor Jungmann, Georgetown HS
765 from San Diego – Logan Power, Ole Miss
777 from SF – Ryan Lormand, Houston
879 from Toronto – Justin Cryer, Ole Miss
883 from Detroit – Keith Stein, Sam Houston State
885 from San Diego – Omar Gutierrez, A&M Corpus Christi
915 from San Diego – Bobby Verbick, Sam Houston State
995 from St. Louis - Kevin Thomas, SFA
1033 from Detroit - Bryan Pounds, Houston
1043 from Tampa Bay - James Bagley, Huffman
1079 from Cincinnati - Erik Greggerson, SFA
1108 from Florida - Drew Clothier, Army
1124 From NY Mets - Tim Erickson, Lamar
1171 From Washington - James Kiethly, UTSA
1215 From San Diego - Colin Lynch, St. Johns
1221 From Cleveland - Tim Palincsar, UTSA
1222 from Boston - Sam Stafford, Klein Collins
1224 from Pittsburg - Chris Simmons, Army
1229 from Cincinnati - Justin Walker, Lamar
1254 from Pittsburgh - Cole White, Army
1264 from Oakland - Kent Walton, BYU
1321 from Washington - JP Padron, Rice
1391 from Colorado - Jimmy Cesario, Houston
1440 from Chicago - Dylan Mosley, Louisiana Tech
1442 from Detroit - Casey Moore, Saint Louis
1479 from Pittsburgh - Craig Parry, South Dakota State

My 20th BP ball and a 12th Street recognition

2008-06-14T12:48:00.003-05:00

I went to the Astros-Yankees game last night and had a bit of a milestone moment for me.

I was in the Crawford Boxes during batting practice, and it was a pretty uneventful day. Not much was getting hit our way. A few balls rung off the back wall but nothing of note close to me. I had my usual spot standing in the steps about halfway up in the Crawford Boxes.

It is a spot I have stood in for years and never had a problem there. In the middle of the Yankees' batting practice, an usher came down and told me I had to stand in the seating area. I didn't argue. I moved down to a spot on the second row.

I was only there about 10 minutes when a ball came my way. It wasn't off a bat however. The ball was tossed into the seats by a Yankee bullpen pitcher. The ball sailed over the front row and was heading directly over my head.

It was headed for the kids standing behind me until I jumped an was able to pull the ball in. It was the 20th ball I have gotten during batting practice. I am not sure who tossed the ball in the seats, though. Since players now wear the batting practice pullover jackets, it make it hard to tell who is who if you don't know the players.

I was shutout last season during batting practice, so this is my first ball in two years since the "Twin Killing" when I caught two balls hit into the Crawford Boxes by the Minnesota Twins.

I was hoping No. 20 would come off the bat, but it is nice to get the milestone ball out of the way. I don't think I'll do BP at the Braves/Rangers game on Wednesday, so I'll get my chance at No. 21 in two weeks when the Red Sox come to town.

That game will also be a personal milestone for me as it will complete the list for MLB teams for me. I have been waiting to add the Red Sox for quite some time.

Another funny thing happened at the game last night. During batting practice, I noticed the guy standing next to me kept looking at me and occasionally whispering something to his friend. This went on for about 30 minutes before he finally said something to me.

He first asked if I worked as Sam Houston and when I said yes he asked if I was on TV. When I said yes he told me he is a freshman at Sam and he watches the 12th Street Sports Bar every night.

It was my first recognition from the TV show outside of Huntsville.

MLB Draft Day 2

2008-06-06T11:04:00.016-05:00

Scanning through the draft on day two, more names are coming up that I have seen play. After eight the first day I expect a bunch here in the final 44 rounds.

Texas' Jordan Danks was taken with the 210th pick in the seventh round. I saw Danks play last week at Rice.

Another guys I saw last week at Rice was Cole St. Clair. The Owl hurler was taken at 217 by the Dodgers. I have seen St. Clair throw several times in his career.

At 225 another Rice Owl was plucked off the board when Adam Zornes was take by the Padres.

The Houston regional is starting to get popular here in the draft. Scott Barnes, the hurler from St. John's was taken at 237 by San Francisco. Barns tossed a gem in the opening game of the regional shutting down Texas 2-1.

At 244 Jeremy Barfield was selected by the A's. I saw Barfield as a sophomore at Klein High School against Huntsville.

Back to the Rice guys, as Aaron Luna was taken at 275 by St. Louis.

Back-to-back picks at 285 and 286. Kyle Thebeau from Texas A&M first went to the Padres followed by Cody Overbeck from Mississippi to the Phillies. Overbeck played against the Kats in the Oxford Regional last season.

In the 10th round at 306 Evan Bigley from Dallas Baptist was pulled off the board by the Twins. The Patriots are regular visitors to Huntsville each season.

They are really starting to roll in. With pick 345 The Padres took Tyson Bagley a pitcher from DBU who threw against the Kats this season. Two picks later, Kyle Walker, a pitcher from Texas was selected. I actually didn't see Walker last week in Houston (edit to add I did, he just didn't last very long). I saw Walker pitcher several times when he was at The Woodlands.

At 351 the first Bearkat is off the board, sort of. Matt Langwell, from Rice, spent his freshman season at SHSU before getting hurt and then transferring to Rice.

At 372, Seattle took Ken Kasparek in the 12th round. Kasparek threw the opening game last week against St. John's and was the tough-luck loser in that game losing to Barns and St. Johns.

Another Aggie in the 13th with Blake Stouffer going to the Nationals at 391.

Jared Gayhart from Rice goes at 403 to Detroit. He surrendered a run late in the game in the Kats win over the Owls in Huntsville this year.

In the 14th round at pick No. 427, the Dodgers took Clay Calfee from Angelo State. I saw Calfee play three years ago at Conroe High School against the Hornets.

Just a few picks later at No. 433, Tyler Conn from Southern Miss was taken by the Tigers. Conn was one of the top closers this past season. Last year against Sam Houston he blew a lead in that thrilling 11 inning game. The Kats got to Conn in the 9th and 10th before winning it in the 11th.

At 446, Baltimore selected Jason Gurka from Angelina CC. Gurka pitched a couple of times in the playoffs at Don Sanders for Brenham.

Bearkat signee and Montgomery product Bobby Stone was selected in the 15th round, 468 overall by the Diamondbacks. I have seen Stone play once against Barbers Hill in the playoffs last season.

With pick 500, Luke Anders from Texas A&M goes to the Yankees. He homered last month against the Bearkats in Huntsville.

Another vet of the Houston Regional, Robert Bell of Rice was taken at 549 by Toronto. Bell came in the game against the Bearkats with a 3-2 lead and shut down the SHSU lineup for three straight innings.

It has been a while, but the second SLC played has finally been taken. Michael Hart from Texas State was selected in the 19th round by Oakland with the 574th overall pick.

Another Woodlands product, at pick 581 by the Cubs, David Macias was taken. Macias, out of Vanderbilt was once considered one of the top middle infield prospects in the country out of high school.

Back to the Oxford Regional from last year. Beau Brooks from Troy entered the game late as a pinch hitter and singled in the Kats's 5-4 win to eliminate Troy from the postseason. Brooks was selected No. 619 overall by the Angels.

Another set of back-to-back picks. First David Sever from St. Louis pitched in Huntsville at the beginning of the season against South Dakota State and got roughed up, allowing 8 runs on 10 hits. He was taken 637 overall by the Dodgers.

With the next pick of the 21st round, Lucas Letuge from Rice was selected by the Brewers. Letuge was one of the many Owls to pitch in that 13-12 game in March.

The Braves take the first player I have seen play with Byran Carter, from Texas A&M going with the 670th pick. Another Aggie goes 27 picks later to the Dodgers when they selected Brian Ruggiano.

Back to rice, I think their entire pitching staff has now been drafted. Chris Kelley, who started the St. John's game was taken at 721 by the Nationals.

Another Bobcat is selected when Texas State's Thomas Field goes 737 overall to Colorado. Two picks later, Georgetown High School's Taylor Jungmann is taken by the Angels. Jungmann played a playoff game at Don Sanders Stadium.

Another Oxford Regional guy from Ole Miss with the selection of Logan Power. He was taken in the 25th round, No. 765 overall by the Padres.

A Houston Cougar goes at pick 777 by the Giants. Saw him play last season when Houston visited Huntsville.

Finally some Bearkats are on the board. I skipping ahead a bit, but Keith Stein and Bobby Verbock were just selected. Stein goes in the 29th round by the Tigers and Verbick was a 30th round pick by the Padres.

Great to see these two guys go. They have both been a huge part of the Bearkats' turn around the last two seasons, and both are great guys as well. It will be nice to have a few extra guys to follow in the minors as well. Now we wait for Sebek to see is he will get taken.

Now back to the draft.

Justin Cryer, from Ole Miss goes in the 29th round No. 879 to Toronto. Cryer tossed the final three innings against the Bearkats in the Oxford Regional opener.

Two picks after Stein, another SLC guy gets selected. Omar Gutierrez from A&M Corpus Christi goes to the Padres. Gutierrez pitched a gem to open the SLC tournament to beat No. 1-seed UTSA.

Going back a little bit, one of the guys I saw play last summer in the Stan Musial World Series was selected. Joseph Gautier from Bethune-Cookman was taken No. 588 by Arizona. He pitched for the Puerto Rican team. I'm sure there are more from the SMWS, but I don't know how I'll find all of that out.

Back to the draft. 20 rounds to go, and I think I will just try to get a qucik rundown of just the names from here on. I'll also go back and pick up some names I missed.

432 from Seattle - Luke Burnett, La Tech
457 from Dodgers - Albie Goulder, La Tech
611 from Chicago Cubs - Jericho Jones, La Tech
723 from Texas - Adam Cobb, La Tech
995 from St. Louis - Kevin Thomas, SFA
1033 from Detroit - Bryan Pounds, Houston
1043 from Tampa Bay - James Bagley, Huffman
1079 from Cincinnati - Erik Greggerson, SFA
1108 from Florida - Drew Clothier, Army
1124 From NY Mets - Tim Erickson, Lamar
1171 From Washington - James Kiethly, UTSA
1215 From San Diego - Colin Lynch, St. Johns
1221 From Cleveland - Tim Palincsar, UTSA
1222 from Boston - Sam Stafford, Klein Collins
1224 from Pittsburg - Chris Simmons, Army
1229 from Cincinnati - Justin Walker, Lamar
1254 from Pittsburgh - Cole White, Army
1264 from Oakland - Kent Walton, BYU
1321 from Washington - JP Padron, Rice
1391 from Colorado - Jimmy Cesario, Houston
1440 from Chicago - Dylan Mosley, Louisiana Tech
1442 from Detroit - Casey Moore, Saint Louis
1479 from Pittsburgh - Craig Parry, South Dakota State

First day of baseball draft

2008-06-05T21:56:00.003-05:00

I don't know why, but I always look forward to the baseball draft. Not like football where I love sitting for two days and just watching the draft, with baseball I like reading through the list after each day is done to see who I have seen play.

Between Sam Houston and then the high school baseball I watch each year, I probably see about 50 games a year. Since we didn't host any playoff games this past season, I didn't get to see as many high school games as I normally do, in fact, I didn't see one single HS game this year.

But even with that said, there are still quite a few guys who were taken on the first day of the draft that I got to see play at some point in their high school or college careers.

The first guy to come off the board that I saw play was Andrew Cashner. Cashner is a pitcher from TCU who I saw play when he was at Conroe High School. He wasn't that impressive at Conroe, earning honorable-mention all-district. He went to Angelina Community College before going to TCU. The Cubs took Cashner 19th overall.

Twenty picks later, Lance Lynn from Ole Miss was selected by St. Louis Cardinals. I saw Lynn play last season in the Oxford Regional against Southern Miss. He took a no-hitter into the sixth of that game going the distance allowing just two hits. I actually saw him for the first time two nights earlier at the Library.

It only took four more picks for the next guy I have seen play get selected. With the 43rd pick, Arizona selected Wade Miley from Southeastern Louisiana. I saw Miley throw two weeks ago at The Don in the SLC baseball tournament.

The next pick came even faster when the Boston Red Sox took Bryan Price out of Rice with the 45th pick. I saw Price on March 4 this year when the Owls visited The Don. Price came in the game in the 9th and gave up the winning run in a 13-12 Bearkat victory.

Another product of the Oxford Regional, Cody Satterwhite was taken with the 67th pick by the Detroit Tigers. Satterwhite pitched an inning of relief in the regional final against the Bearkats.

Eight picks later, the third pitcher from a very good Ole Miss pitching staff was selected when Scott Bittle was taken with the 75th pick by the Yankees. Bittle got the start in that regional final game against the Kats and was touched up pretty good. SHSU tagged him for eight runs on 10 hits in just 3 2/3 innings of work. Ole Miss of course won the game 21-13.

With the 93rd pick, the Dodgers selected Kyle Russell out of Texas. The last time I saw Russell was a week ago in Houston at the Houston Regional. He hit a ball in the first inning of the game against the Bearkats that I'm not sure has landed yet.

It took a while, but the next player I had seen play was selected at 188 when the Brewers took Jose Duran out of Texas A&M. Duran had a pretty good game at The Don, tagging the Kats for three hits.

So seven of the top 93 players selected I had seen play and a total of eight on the first day with 6 rounds in the book. The draft concludes Friday, and there should be quite a few more names added to the list.

It really wasn't a strong year for Texas prospects and not many guys from high school were taken on Day 1.

My directorial debut

2008-06-03T15:51:00.004-05:00

I had to wait awhile before I could do anything with this, but I have been told I can now release this. I made my directorial debut this past winter, and I must say, I did a bang up job.

Greg Hinze, my Associate AD had visions of getting on Big Brother. He needed to do a 2 minute audition video and wanted to use the interview room downstairs for the video. We decided to go with the Coors Light theme with the coaches press conferences.

The shooting took about 30 minutes and we shot each scene about four or five times each. We tried to keep with the theme of the commercials where we were cutting back and forth from him to the reporters. I wanted to keep the look of them not necessarily in the same room as him.

The one thing I changed at the end was when he was going off on his "Mike Gundy" impression and comes walking out from behind the podium. I placed Lance at the edge of the backdrop, because in the Gundy rant, there is a girl just standing there watching as well.

After the video was sent in he got a call back saying the video was one of the most unique they have ever received. The cast for Big Brother 9 was already set, but they would keep him in mind for Big Brother 10.

He had to be secret about a lot of the developments, but come to find out he got a semifinal interview and went down to Houston in late April. They said they would get back in touch with him by the end of May to fly him out to LA for a final interview if he was selected.

It is now June and he hasn't heard anything, so I have been given the freedom to release the video to the world.

So here it is, the Greg Hinze Big Brother audition video.

I could never be a hockey goalie

2008-06-02T22:33:00.006-05:00

I love playoff hockey. It is funny because I can't watch it during the regular season (actually do they even show it on TV during the regular season?) The games just don't get me excited from November to May (is that how long the season runs?)

The best part about it is when the games go to overtime. It is sudden death and one shot ends the game. Unlike the NFL's sudden death OT, you can't see this one coming. In the NFL, unless there is a long pass or run or an interception for a TD, you pretty much see the buildup to the finish.

In hockey, the game can swing so fast. One team can take three shots on goal and 10 seconds later there is a counter attack the other way and a shot on the other goal.

The first time I remember staying glued to the TV during a hockey game was in 1996 during the Red Wings and Blues playoff game. I was supposed to go out with some friends, but couldn't leave the TV as a scoreless game went into the fifth overtime.

The game was scoreless into the fifth period, when an innocent-looking giveaway by Wayne Gretzky at center ice turned into a magical moment by the Wings' captain. Steve Yzerman ripped a slap shot from just inside the blue line over the shoulder of a stunned Jon Casey. The game ended with Yzerman's first career overtime playoff goal and arguably the most memorable of his 70 career postseason goals. (Thanks to espn.com for that, I couldn't remember the year).

As I sit and watch the Penguins and Red Wings play in second OT in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Finals, this is shaping up to be another classic. The Wings looked to be 30 seconds from winning the Cup before the Penguins scored to tie the game at 3. The Detroit fans were ready to celebrate a championship until the arena went silent.

Which brings me to what I love the most about overtime hockey, the reaction of the crowd on the game-winning goal. I go back and fourth on this one as to what I am rooting for. Hearing the arena erupt when the home team scores is pretty cool, but then again, hearing a dead silence with the exception of the horn in the arena is pretty cool as well. Since I am a Penguins fan (I love the jersey's if anyone is thinking about a birthday present. July 14 is right around the corner) I am pulling for dead silence.

Speaking of arena sounds, I don't know if there is a more excruciating sound in all of sports (other than the sound of Joe Theismann's leg breaking) than the clang of a puck hitting the post in OT. On both sides, for a split second, breaths are held waiting to see if the game is over or if they will continue to skate.

If the Penguins can win this, I'm rooting for this to go to a Game 7 for the Cup and then I'm rooting for overtime.

UPDATE: 11:20 p.m. - The Penguins just held off a power play in the closing seconds of the second OT to force a third. I'm in this for the long haul.

UPDATE: 11:48 p.m. - SILENCE!!! Just before midnight, the Pens get one in to force Game 6 back in Pittsburgh.

"Get out of here baby!"

2008-05-26T10:10:00.007-05:00

OK, I am just now starting to recover from this past weekends Southland Conference Baseball Tournament. The Kats completed a sweep through the field winning four straight games to advance to the NCAA tournament.

A year ago we were shipped to Oxford for the regional, and that weekend was a blast. I called all four games on the radio for that. It was the first time I had done play-by-play for baseball in over a year, and I remembered how much I loved calling baseball.

The third game of the tournament was an 11-inning game against Southern Mississippi. The Kats trailed 7-1 going into the bottom of the seventh and put four runs on the board to cut the lead to 7-5. They then scored two in the 8th to tie the game up.

In the top of the ninth, Southern Miss put two on the board to go back up, only to watch as the Kats put two on the board to force extra innings. After the Eagles scored in the top of the 10th the Kats had to rally again.

In the top of the 11th, the number 9 hitter for the Eagles, who had a .100 something batting average hit a solo shot to center and you just started wandering if it was going to be the Kats' day. But just like they had done the previous four innings, the Kats rallied. This time they scored two in the bottom of the 11th to win the game and advance to the regional final against Ole Miss.

That was the most nerve-racking and exciting game to call and I get chills when I think about that game. I never thought I would experience anything like that again.

Well it took less than a year to get that feeling again. Friday night's semifinal against A&M-Corpus Christi may not have been on the same level as the Southern Miss game in term of the constant comebacks, but it was close, and the excitement level was certainly about on par.

It started in the 7th once again, with the Kats down 2-1. Seth Hammock hit a solo shot to left to tie the game back up. However, the Islanders answered back with a two-out, three-run homer in the top of the eighth.

While a lot of teams would have been done by a crushing blow like that, the Kats seemed undaunted by it. They put together a rally in the bottom of the 8th, scoring three, two of those with two outs.

After a 1-2-3 ninth, the bottom of the frame, and a trip to the SLC Championship game was set up for a dramatic finish. During the break, I looked at the three other guys in the booth with me and told them I have never called a walkoff on the radio before. I then told them Keith Stein was going to do it.

Ryan Weber drew a walk to start in inning and then Todd Sebek moved him to second, to bring Stein to the plate. The senior wasted no time. On the first pitch he saw, a curveball, Stein sent a shot over the wall in right-center to put the Kats in the championship.

Afterwards, I couldn't even remember what the call was when the ball left the yard. I have to go back after the press conference to listen to me yelling "Get out of here baby!" as the ball sailed over the wall. It was pure emotion that had been building as the game progressed. The call on Hammock's blast was the same way, but the Stein call was complete raw emotion.

I don't think I could have asked for a better game, a better situation or a better team to have my first walkoff call.

Bearkat Minor League update

2008-05-16T22:05:00.003-05:00

Here is an update on the Bearkats playing minor league ball.

Dustin Martin is off to a good start playing for the New Britain Rock Cats. Martin was not projected to be a starter for the AA Twins affiliate, but he made an immediate impact and has been a regular ever since.

Martin made his Double-A debut on April 5, when he went 1-for-3 with a double. He went on to hammer out 13 hits in his first six games. That included a four-hit performance on the road in Portland on April 12 that put his then league leading average at the time at .619 (13-21).

In 32 games with the Rock Cats Martin is hitting .315 which is second on the team among Rock Cat regulars. He is third on the team in RBIs (26), hits (40) and runs (23).

Jordan Tata is still attempting to recover from a broken hand suffered during spring training. Tata, who aw time with the Tigers last season is currently playing for the Class A affiliate Lakeland Flying Tigers.

He has made just two appearances this season, getting touched up pretty good in his first outing. On April 22, he worked just 1/3 of an inning walking 4 and allowing four earned runs. He worked again May 14 and went two innings, picking up the win,

Robert Manuel has gotten the call up to AA ball in the Cincinnati Reds organization playing now for the Chattanooga Lookouts.

He has made 13 appearances this season, all out of the bullpen and has been nearly lights out. Manuel has worked 18 innings this season, allowing just two earned runs giving him a 1.00 ERA.

One of the things that made Manuel a strong prospect causing the Reds to trade for him was his strikeout-to-walk ratio and once again that mark is solid. He has fanned 22 batters this season while allowing just three walks.

Manuel has also picked up a win this season as well. He worked three scoreless innings on April 28 to get the win.

The Mets need to stop whining like little softball girls

2008-05-13T12:10:00.004-05:00

I am so sick of the Mets. Every thing they do has to be a story. I really wish they would just fall apart and go away. Of course they would probably make themselves the story then.

What got me started was Nelson Figueroa, the New York pitcher. He was a little miffed last night for what he perceived to be excessive cheering from the Washington Nationals.

Said Figueroa after he was tagged for six runs and allowed five walks:

"They were cheering in the dugout like a bunch of softball girls," he said. "I
am a professional, I take great offense to that. ... They won tonight, but in
the long run, look who they are, a last-place team."

Maybe Figueroa needs to look at who he really is, a 33-year-old journey man pitcher who carries a career 9-20 record and a 4.17 ERA. In his last seven outings, Figueroa has an ERA over 8. Oh and guess what Figgy, professionals don't call other players a "bunch of softball girls."

You just got your ass beat by a last-place team. Maybe if you worried about your pitching and not what the other team was doing in the dugout, you might have been able to at least escape with a no decision. Instead, you fall to 2-3 on the season and your ERA is up over five.

You may be a professional for now, but if you keep getting spanked by a "bunch of softball girls" the next time your name makes it on the bottom line will be in the transactions when you are designated for assignment.

The Final Four

2008-04-12T22:25:00.005-05:00

In case you haven't heard, I was at the Final Four.

It was my fifth trip to the NCAA Tournament, and I have been in several different capacities. I attened my first in 1997 when Brian and I went to San Antonio for the regional the Minnesota ended up winning.

I was back in 2001, once again as a fan this time in New Orleans for the first and second round. In 2003 I got the chance to go as a member of the media, covering my Bearkats as they took on Florida in Tampa.

It was my first time on press row for an NCAA tournament game and the experience was unreal. I had sat courtside for plenty of games, but being right there for the Dance was something completely different.

In 2007 I worked the Regional in San Antonio as a member of the media services. Once again I was courtside and once again, it was an unreal experience.

But none of that compared to the thrill of being on the floor of the Final Four. The energy in the building was like nothing else I had ever felt. After the first day of games, I got a text message from a friend of mine that read "What a shitty ass Final Four." The thing was on TV it may have felt like that, but in the arena I never felt that way.

The first game of the night was the Memphis and UCLA game. Kevin Love and Derrick Rose were all that we expected to see. Both made some plays that freshmen aren't supposed to be able to make. The thing that stood out the most was the quickness of Rose.

I had seen him play on TV several time this season and knew he was good, but damn. When you are siting 30 feet from the court, you see just how quick he really is. Westbrook is one of the top defenders in basketball, and Rose ran past him on a couple of plays like he was a practice walk-on.

While Memphis pretty much controlled the game, sitting there and watching it, you never felt like it was a bad game, because it was well played.

The second game of the night was the UNC-Kansas game. Once again, two of the top teams in the country squaring off. No Cinderellas in this match up either. North Carolina was the top over all seed and a lot of people's pick to win the whole thing.

That is what made the first 15 minutes so unbelievable. Kansas was shooting lights out and as the lead built, I just sat there wondering how big the lead could get before the Heels woke up. Kansas got it to 28 and had three good chances to get it to 30. Kansas wasn't supposed to be doing this.

Everyone knew UNC was going to make a run, but it was just a matter of when they were going to get started and how close they are going to get. As it turned out, they cut the lead to four and had a 3-pointer go in and out that would have cut it to one. From that point on, the air was sucked out of the UNC players and crowd.

Kansas ended up running away with it making the final minutes of the game a throw-away, but that didn't take away from the first 33 that was really captivating to watch.

The championship game was something else all together. The Kansas fans were the strongest contingent, but Memphis brought a great group as well. That just added to the atmosphere and gave exactly what you want in a championship game.

It only took about 10 minutes to realize this was going to go down to the wire. I'll fast forward to the end of the game. A lot of people are harping on the mistakes that Memphis made down the stretch, but to be honest, Kansas just made more plays.

Everyone is pointing at the missed free throws, and that was a big part of it, but it is not like they were a great free-throw shooting team that choked in the clutch. They can't shoot free-throws and everyone knew, so I don't know that was a big of a factor as it has been made out to be.

There is even the argument that Calipari lost the game because he didn't call a time out after the free throw by Rose or foul. I don't buy either one of those arguments either. There are strong arguments against doing either. I have seen team call a time out and let the opponent set up an offensive play to win the game.

A few weeks earlier, Sam Houston was in the same situation against McNeese, and they fouled in the final second up by three. Problem was, the other player was able to get a shot attempt up from 40 feet away and was awarded three free throws. Fortunately for the Kats, he missed two of the shots and SHSU won.

The spot where I thought Coach Cal cost his team, was by not calling a timeout after Chalmers tied the game with 2.1 second left. Some of the most memorable moments in NCAA Tournament history have happened with less than two seconds to play. Tate George anyone?

He had the time out, and could have drawn up a play that would have given them a better effort than that mid-court heave by Dozier. I think everyone in the building could sense the change in momentum, so it was no surprise when Kansas ran away with the game in OT.

Before the game started, I really didn't have a rooting interest. I sent a text before it started saying I just wanted to see one of the greatest championship games of all time, and I think I got it.

BTW - "One Shining Moment" on the big screen in the arena was awesome.

Finally one of the 10 percent

2008-04-12T21:48:00.003-05:00

It has been almost 12 years since I played my first round of golf. That first time out on the course was brutal. It as at San Jacinto Junior College, a nine-hole course in Pasadena.

I knew I was bad, but damn, that first ever round was down-right embarrassing. The real wake-up call for me was in 2000 when I played the TPC at The Woodlands in the Southland Conference football media day scramble. I was playing with Bobby Williams and once again really sucked. I knew then there was no way I could continue to be that bad going in to my field of work.

Over the years I have steadily gotten better. The last few years I have been consistently shooting just above 100.

I have flirted with the century mark on a few occasions. The first was in 2003 at Texas National. I was standing on the 18th needing birdie for 99. Despite the fact I hadn't had a birdie the entire round (or that year for that matter), I still stood over my ball about as nervous as can be.

The drive proceeded to go straight left into the trees. I followed that with about a 50-yard worm-burner and then an approach shot into the bunker. When all was said-and-done, I walked off the 18th with a six and a 102 for the round.

It took a while before I seriously challenged the 100 mark again. Last year at Brian's bachelor party we played Raven Nest. I opened with a front-nine 54 and pretty much didn't give thought to a sub-100 round. But the back-nine went pretty good for me. a couple of pars put me in contention and when I got to 18 all I needed was a par for 99. I had pared the hole twice before, so I knew it was a real possibility.

I stood over the ball and once again locked up. I stepped back and went right back up to the ball. I then hit one of the worst drives I have hit since playing the TPC in 2000. Not wanting to let it end there, I took my one mulligan of the day and reteed. This time, a hard slice right.

A nice recovery shot to get me back in the fairway was then followed by a five-iron into the front green-side bunker. I then flew the green and a three-putt gave me another round of 102. We played another 18 and I didn't do any better, carding a 108.

The silver lining of the day however was the middle 18. I played my first back-nine and second time on the front-nine in a 100. I knew I was getting close.

That brings us to Monday at Alamo Golf Club. My first time out on this course, and I didn't know what to expect. There were several tricky par-3's that got me early, but I still went out in 48. I had a chance.

The back-nine was going pretty good. I had a blow up on a par-3 and carded a six, but I was pretty much playing bogey golf. I got to 18, and decided not to look at the scorecard. I have stood over that ball twice before and let it get to my head. It wasn't going to happen this time.

A rare par-3 finishing hole looked simple enough. I tried not to think about the 99. I hit my first shot 10-feet to the right of the green. A little pitch put me 15-feet from the cup and a two-putt gave me the bogey. DJ added up the scores and I couldn't look. I just waited and when he said "95" I couldn't believe it. I had finally cracked 100.

I remember reading a stat one time that only 10 percent of the people who play golf ever break 100. For the longest time, I figured I was going to be the 90 percent. I hope to get back out in a few weeks and see if I can do it again. It might take a while before I ever do it again, but when the time comes, hopefully I can approach the tee-shot on 18 a little more calm than in the past and just enjoy the moment.

It's been a while

2008-04-10T15:10:00.004-05:00

I'll have a few offerings to catch up on as I have not been on in a while. I have added some new teams to the list on the left. I picked up three new college baseball teams this year by adding Central Arkansas, Saint Louis and North Dakota State to the list.

I also picked up a new basketball team while I was in San Antonio with Kansas. I had already seen Memphis, North Carolina and UCLA in previous NCAA Tournaments. With that, I also added a new event attended with the Final Four.

Big win for the mids

2008-03-10T22:46:00.002-05:00

I originally posted this over on the 12th Street, but I think it is worth repeating.

The Sam Houston State basketball team will begin its run to the NCAA Tournament on Thursday when they take on McNeese at 2:30 p.m. at the Merrell Center in Katy in the first round of the Southland Conference Tournament.

But before we get to that, I will be doing what any fan of the Southland and the NCAA Tournament should be doing, rooting for as many mid-majors to make the dance as possibly. As George Mason showed in 2006 when they made their improbable run to the Final Four, the mids can be dangerous in the Dance.

We all love to watch teams like Valpo, Santa Clara, Butler, Richmond and Northwestern State pull off the big win on Thursday or Friday of the Dance. It just makes for a more exciting game when one of these 11, 12 or 13 seeds is about to knock off a big dog. Face it, when a team like NC State is sitting at No. 11 and taking on No. 6 Michigan State there isn't much of an interest in the game. But if it is George Mason trying to pull off the upset, it captivates a nation.

Tonight was a big night for the mids, and for fans who don't want to see and 11th seeded Syracuse team on Thursday morning when they are skipping work next week. First in the WCC. Gonzaga is in. They are always in. The Zags have been the poster boys for the mid majors the last 10 years.

Last night San Deigo knocked off St. Mary's (who will probably get in the dance as well) put themselves in position to possibly steal a bid in the conference final against the Zags. Playing on their home court, USD pulled off the upset, most likely giving the West Coast Conference three bids next week.

Then in the Slum Belt, South Alabama (26-6) was the prohibitive favorite to get the bid out of what was going to be a one-bid league. However, Middle Tennessee put an end to that with a win in the SBC semis. While Gonzaga is a lock, South Alabama will have to wait until Sunday to learn their fate, but they will most likely get in over a mediocre major conference school.

Spring Kats

2008-03-10T21:28:00.003-05:00

I am going to try and keep up with the Kats playing minor league/major league baseball as spring training progresses and then into the season.

Today is an item I found on Jordan Tata who is in the Tigers camp.

Tata has been struggling so far this season and last week, lost his temper after being pulled from a game against the Braves.

Tata, who struggled through his first three spring training outings, punched a wall with his pitching hand as he entered the locker room.
"I don't usually do things like that," Tata told the Detroit Free-Press. "The last three outings all came to a head at that moment. It was stupid. I wasn't thinking."

Tata will see a hand specialist and his return to the mound is uncertain.

This is unfortunate, because Tata is the best prospect in baseball that hails from Sam Houston. Dustin Martin, now in the Twins organization after a trade last season is expected to play AA ball this year, while Luke Prihoda will be starting his first full season on pro ball this year.

The Phillies and the Mets

2008-02-28T09:52:00.002-06:00

So they are the team to beat in the NL East huh. Normally this would drive me crazy, but I am actually loving the fact they are completely discounting the Braves this year.

They haven't been to the playoffs in two years, and you would think the entire franchise is in complete shambles. Fact of the matter is, with three weeks to go last season, Atlanta was right in the thick of the NL East race, not to mention the wild card race.

With a pitching staff of Smoltz, Hudson, Glavine and hopefully a healthy Hampton and the Braves are going to have a pretty salty rotation. Then you put out a lineup that includes Chipper Jones, Jeff Francouer, Brian McCann and Mark Teixeira.

If Rafael Soriano can do the job as the closer, there is no reason to think the Braves won't be right in the thick of the NL East race.

So the Phillies and Mets can spend all their time talking about who is the front runner, whole the one team that dominated the league for 14 years quietly waits in the background poised to take the title back.

Jackass of the Year - Candidate No. 1

2008-02-20T18:12:00.005-06:00

Texas Tech head baseball coach Larry Hays

Some people just don't know when to shut their mouths. John Rocker comes to mind. But Rocker has taken his fair share of verbal abuse. This is about Texas Tech head baseball coach Larry Hays.

Hays' Red Raiders were scheduled to open the season at home against Northern Illinois. Because of the recent shooting on campus, the Huskies may not make the trip, leaving the Red Raiders potentially without any games on opening weekend.

Hays told the Lubbock Avalanche Journal he was looking at some options on where to play if Northern Illinois can't make it.

"(The NIU situation) is a deal that we have total respect for and we're not going to say anything one way or the other," Hays said on Sunday.

If only he would have stopped there. But no, like so many other people who get into situations like this, he kept talking.

"At the same time we've got to look out for ourselves on the deal and if we
lose four games, we could never make that up. Losing one game out of this will
be difficult enough."

Yeah. losing a game is sooooooo difficult. You only have 52 more to play. You know what is difficult, losing a kid. Something some Northern Illinois parents are having to deal with. But I guess the pain and suffering they are going though pales in comparison to what this might do to his pitching rotation.

"That messes up two weeks of pitching rotation right there," Hays said. "(Associate head coach Dan) Spencer has worked hard to get our rotation the right amount of rest and to get our pitching staff in position at the end of the year where we have live arms ready to go. If we end up with a dead-arm situation right off it destroys everything we've done up to this point."

What a complete Jackass. This interview was probably conducted on the field during practice, so there was nobody from the university there to put an end to that interview. You know they are cringing after reading those comments.

Hays had a chance to do something positive with the situation, yet he comes off looking like a total ass. I know losing four games to start the season isn't easy, and behind closed doors he can say anything he wants. But, when talking to the media, this guy has to think before spouting off like this.

It is still early in the year, but he is a strong candidate for the first "BSF Jackass of the Year" award.

Mark May is an idiot

2008-02-18T19:25:00.004-06:00

I have never really liked Mark May. Every time he talks he comes across as so smug. It is great to hear other people taking shots at his as well.

Terrell Pryor, the top recruit in the nation is still undecided and on Monday, broke his silence about signing day by taking a shot at May.

"That day was tough because I was being criticized by everyone for not making up my mind and signing," he said. "Mark May from ESPN is criticizing me on national television and he doesn't even know me. That kind of stuff really bothers me, when people who know nothing about me are talking about me like they know anything. There was so much media there that day that I had to address the issue, but I'd prefer to be left alone."

That is great. I think Pryor's decision to wait is one of the most refreshing of this signing season. So many colleges are pressuring these young men to make a commitment to their program as a junior or they will leave them hanging out to dry.

Too many times, kids decided on a college too soon and end up regretting the decision they made. I talk to kids every year who say the same thing. Pryor is taking his time on this and making sure the school he chooses is absolutely the right choice for him.

I commend him for it, and applaud him for taking a shot at May. If only more people would, maybe ESPN would realize they officially have an idiot on their hands and can send him the way of Trev Alberts.

The 2-3 Zone

2008-02-16T12:11:00.009-06:00

It never ceases to amaze me how good of a coach Jim Boeheim is. He is one of the best guys you really never hear of outside of the Big East.

I have seen his team play a few times this year, and they never really impressed me, but as the season has gone on, they seem to be getting better. I think the main reason is they are starting to run that 2-3 zone to perfection. I am watching the Georgetown game right now, and they look like they have never seen this defense before.

The Hoyas are too good of a team to get down by 20 in the first half, but they have no answer for what the 'Cuse are doing (on another note, those Syracuse uniforms are horrible). They may come back and win this game, but it won't be because Boeheim isn't doing the job from a coaching stand point. He has a young team right now and has already lost one of his top players for the season in Eric Devendorf (it seemed like he has been there for seven years).

I know a lot of teams run the 2-3 zone, but no one seems to do it like Syracuse. Over the years, Boeheim's defense has become the model for how to run it. After Pat Knight's first win he told ESPN reporters he got out the Jim Boeheim 2-3 zone defense video and really studied it. He was almost embarrassed to mention that on air, but it just goes to show the respect he has for Boeheim.

I flipped over to the UConn/South Florida game, and the Bulls are running the 2-3 against the Huskies pretty effective right now as well.

BTW, I love ESPN360. All college campuses get it for free, so I am sitting in my office going back and forth between the two games.

UPDATE: Syracuse held off Georgetown to pull off a 77-70 win and kept their NCAA hopes alive.

UPDATE2: What a finish in the UConn/USF game. A big 3 by the Bulls at the end of Regulation to force OT and then a pair of baskets in the final 6 seconds and UConn won it by 1. I really do like ESPN360.

Mmmmmm, meat pies

2008-02-14T11:53:00.004-06:00

I forget how much I like meat pies.

There isn't a whole lot that comes out of Louisiana, but meat pies are one of them. A few years ago I discovered Lasyone's in Natchitoches. We had heard that they make a mean meat pie. I had never had one before so decided to try them.

I had no idea they would be so good. From then on, trips to Natchitoches revolved around a stop at Lasyone's. And then they changed their operating times, and were no longer open for dinner. I haven't had a meat pie in about four years.

Last night after practice we went to dinner at a place called The Landing. My love for meat pies was rekindled. While I didn't get a full order, what I had was just enough to remind me of the deliciousness they possessed.

On another note, I practiced with the team last night. I was doing some post drills. It was about a 10-minute workout. This was the first time I have participated in full speed basketball action since that fateful night in Johnson Coliseum eight years ago.

Last night went slightly better. My left ankle is only slightly swollen. It wasn't as bad of an injury this time, but still hurt pretty good this morning when I woke up. I was able to finish the drill without anyone knowing.

I don't know that I will ever play full speed basketball again.

My health and sports

2008-02-11T23:22:00.000-06:00

This is kind of in support to my welcome post.

There is an article in the New England Journal of Medicine linking heart failure to die hard sports fans.

The study was done during the 2006 World Cup in Germany on Germans watching the games. They found that on days the German team played, cardiac emergencies more than tripled for men and nearly doubled for women. How the team played, the overall importance of the match and whether the winner was determined by a shootout all affected fans’ heart risks.

The risk was highest for fans who already had heart disease. Their chance of having a heart attack or other cardiac events during the tournament was four times higher, while risk doubled for those who didn’t have a prior history of heart problems.

Of course the study made no mention of the fact many of these German fans were probably regular drinkers and probably mixed in the occasional hot wing, nacho, cheese fries or whatever the hell they eat.

That stuff couldn't have helped either.

I really don't like officials

2008-02-11T22:32:00.000-06:00

I try not to make a big issue about this, especially on the air. There is nothing I hate more than someone blaming a game on the officiating.

I'll admit, I did rip into the officials once this year during the Bearkats nonconference game against Central Florida. Jeremy Thomas was leveled out of bounds in a two-point game with less than a minute to play and the officials called it a turnover I think I called the call trash.

But Monday night I saw two things that probably would have caused me to loose it had I been broadcasting the games. Both Villanova and the Rutgers women have reason to complain after the outcomes of their games on the ESPN family of networks.

First off let me say I am a fan of Georgetown. Depending on their draw, I'll probably have them in my final four, but they got a gift in their 55-53 win over the Wildcats. With less than a second to play in a tie game, Nova's Corey Stokes was called for a bump foul, more than 70 feet away from the basket.

Jonathan Wallace went on to knock down both free throws to give the No. 8 Hoyas the victory.

"At first I thought I stepped out of bounds," Wallace said, "because I was trying to make a play with the time running down. But I did kind of [feel a] nudge when I was trying to turn the corner."

"So," Wallace shrugged, "a call's a call."

Villanova coach Jay Wright didn't have much to say on it after the game.

"I can't complain about it," Villanova coach Jay Wright said, "because I didn't see it."

In other words "No comment."

Vivian Stringer, the coach for Rutgers, was a little more vocal after her squad fell to the Tennessee Lady Vols in Knoxville. Trailing by 1, the Vols got an offense rebound with .2 second left to play and a foul was called sending Tennessee to the line to win the game.

I wasn't watching this game, but after seeing the highlights, Rutgers got screwed. There is no doubt there was a foul after the rebound, but the only problem is, it occurred more than a second after the clock ran out.

"The game did not deserve this. Tennessee didn't deserve this. Pat didn't deserve this," Stringer said. "Those great players didn't deserve this and neither did my great team deserve this. It is what it is."

Now I am certainly no Stringer fan, but I am glad she came out and said something.

I go ahead and speak for both coaches and steal a line from Mike Gundy about the calls at the end of both games.

"It's garbage."

Most overhyped day of the year

2008-02-06T09:16:00.000-06:00

Well, it is national signing day.

I'll give you a moment to let that sink in.

Now for most of the country, no one will know what that means. I try to explain it to my family and they don't understand. Quite frankly I don't really get it either, and this is all my day is consumed with today.

I actually heard there are people who take the day off from work just so they can sit at home and see who is signing where. ESPNU has dedicated the entire day of coverage to signing day.

Seriously, if the highlight of your life is to see what an 18-year-old kid is going to do, you have issues. I understand the interest in the day itself. Wanting to see who signed with what school and you can start breaking down the next season. You can take a look and see if any of the guys might play immediately.

But outside of that, all of the attention is insane. Our office phones start ringing at 8 a.m. from people wanting to know if our list is done yet. Just sit back, worry about your work and when you get home this evening, check out the list. Load up the press conference and see what the coach had to say and then be done with it.

Anything else is just unhealthy.

They last thing I need is to find out some guy who should be following the radar at air traffic control, is on his laptop hitting the refresh button on rivals.com to find out if Terrelle Pryor has made a decision yet.

Experts will get on the TV and tell you who were the winners and losers this year on signing day and they will rate the top classes in the nation and by conference.

I'll go ahead and do that now with out ever looking at a list. You know who had the best signing day today? The team that wins the national championship in about three years.

If you want to sit down and look at a signing list, get the one from about three or four years ago, and see which players have panned out the most and then rank them for me. I bet you are going to find out LSU, Georgia, Ohio State and USC all had pretty good days. I don't need Todd McShay to tell me that, I just got a pretty good hunch.

"Piney Woods" Update

2008-01-28T14:04:00.000-06:00

Here is an update on the Battle of the Piney Woods and another reason I hate SFA.

So Friday night I am at Wal-Mart and I was wearing an old long sleeve Bearkat shirt. It has the old Clemson paw print on it, but it is one of the most comfortable shirts I own.

As I am leaving I see a guy checking out wearing an SFA sweatshirt. Still feeling good from the win on Thursday night, I give him a nod.

He then tells me "You know that is a Clemson paw print on your shirt don't you?"

Seriously. That was the best smack he could come up with. Just another reason to hate SFA.

The Battle of the Piney Woods

2008-01-25T12:02:00.000-06:00

Ok, so I have high blood pressure. I recently went to the doctor and he couldn't believe how high it was. I was immediately put on medication and a work-out regime. He kept telling me I am too young to have blood pressure this high.

He started asking me questions about my life that might give him an indication on why it is so high and see if we can pinpoint the problem. Well, I think I have found it. It is called the "Battle of the Piney Woods." Nothing gets my blood pumping more than seeing SFA on the opposite sideline.

I have a serious distain for a lot of teams in sports (Yankees, Redskins, Giants, Eagles all come to mind), but nothing like SFA. On a day to day basis, they never really cross my mind. But on gameday there is no one I despise more then the Lumberjacks.

The thing is, I know and like a lot of people who went there, but on gameday that doesn't matter. Just like my anti-Oiler tendencies, my hatred for SFA was part of my upbringing. Long before I officially became a Bearkat, I had a deep dislike for the Jacks. My parents were Bearkats and they raised me right.

It wasn't until I got to school and realized how inherently evil Lumberjacks really are. It is like the Loch Ness Monster or Bigfoot. You have to see it and experience it for you to truly believe. There is nothing good about Nacogdoches. I am normally a calm mild-mannered guy, except on SFA gamedays.

Hating them is one thing, but what really causes the unhealthlyness about the whole situation is the deep fear I have of losing to them. Especially in football, because you have to wait a year before you see them again. And there is never a blowout in the rivalry. You never coast to a win. They are all nail-biters.

So my doctor wants to pinpoint my cause for high blood pressure. I offer him this time line:

October 12, 1996 - My first Battle of the Piney Woods in Nacogdoches. No. 4 SFA and their arrogant fans were up 10-7 . With 4:04 left to play Yohance Bree returned a punt 71-yards for a touchdown. The Bearkat defense then made a goal line stand in the final seconds for the win.

November 8, 1997 - Bennie Wylie breaks free on 4-and-1 with 1:22 left to play and sprints 48 yards for a touchdown to knock off the No. 7 jacks in Huntsville.

Nov. 7, 1998 - We got our asses kick in nac. That sucked pretty bad.

Oct. 16, 1999 - We had one of our better teams in years, and were feeling good about this one. But SFA came to Huntsville on Homecoming and won in a Shootout 45-31 despite 497 yards passing by Chris Chaloupka and an early 14-0 Bearkat lead. What really sucked about this one is I was on the air for it.

Jan. 20 and Feb. 19, 2000 - The first year basketball was meaningful again at Sam Houston was my senior year (the second one). And although SFA sucked that year (3-15) neither game was easy. We won by 12 at home, and squeaked out an eight-point win in nac. We went on to win the championship that year. (On a side note, the loss in the semifinals that year to Northwestern State didn't help much either. I got really drunk the next night.)

October 14, 2000 - We returned the favor. In another shootout, the Kats hung 52 on SFA in a 52-41 ball game. After trailing at the half, the Kats returned a kickoff to start the second half. Every time SFA score, the Kats answered. It was my second win in Nacogdoches.

Jan. 6, 2001 - Basketball heads over to Nacogdoches. Once again, another nail-biter. Kats pull out a tight 62-56 win over the Jacks.

October 18, 2001 - In the to-15 for the first time in 10 years, the No. 15 Kats took on No. 19 SFA on the Thursday night in Huntsville on TV. Like all games, this one was a tight one and the Kats pulled it out 24-21. They went on to win the SLC that year.

Oct. 19, 2002 - The Bearkats were down that year, but once again pulled out a big win in Nacogdoches. Maurice Harris scored with 6:43 to play to put the Kats up 10-7. The defense then stepped it up and got the ball back for the offense. On third down and the clock clicking down, Travis Tobaben ran a play-fake to Michael Darnell to seal the third-straight victory over the Jacks.

Jan. 18, 2003 - The first of three meetings between the two teams in basketball. Donald Cole hits a jumper with 27 seconds left to force overtime. In OT the Kats score just two points and fall for the first time in nine tries to the Lumberjacks.

Feb. 22, 2003 - The rematch, this time in Huntsville with first place in the Southland on the line. Trailing in the second half, Jason Stephenson hit a 3 to tie the game at 53 with 8 minutes to play. That sparked a 14-4 run and the Kats went on to win 69-62 and win the Southland Conference.

Mar. 14, 2003 - "He hit the shot." The Southland Conference Championship game in Huntsville. I think I said before the game if we lost to the Jacks with a trip to the dance on the line I would throw myself off the top of the coliseum. The Kats let a 14-point second-half lead slip away and watched the Jacks tie the game at the end of regulation. In overtime, with the Kats trailing by one, Cole hit a three from the corner with 17 seconds left to send the Kats to the Dance. (BTW - pretty much the entire 2003 basketball season was like this. I had nightmares the night before game that we were going to lose the next day. It was pretty bad, and probably wasn't good for my health.)

Oct. 16, 2003 - Playing on TV again it was SFA's turn to put a dagger in the Kats' hearts. We jumped out to a big lead in the first half but watched as SFA chipped away at it. A fumble and a blocked punt allowed the Jacks to score 10 fourth-quarter points including a 54-yard field goal by Ryan Rossner with 1 second left to give SFA a 34-31 win.

Jan. 29, 2004 - Back in Nacogdoches. First meeting since the SLC Championship game and this one was on TV. Another back-and-forth basketball game. Othello Alford went off for 26 points, unfortunately that was mostly in the first half and SFA squeaked out a 68-67 win.

Feb. 28, 2004 - The rematch in Huntsville, and things got worse for the Kats. In a game that could have decided a hoe court advantage in the first round of the postseason, the Lumberjacks put a 10-point beating on the Kats.

Mar. 8, 2004 - Rock bottom. This is not supposed to happen in basketball, but in the first-round of the Southland tournament, SFA put an 85-53 ass kicking on the Kats. Once again, that really sucked.

Oct. 30, 2004 - Maybe one of the most memorable games in the series history, the Kats were once again in the hunt for a conference championship, but would have to get past SFA. In the second half, the lead changed four times. With 8:59 left to play, Dustin Long hit Bernard Campbell to put the Kats up 31-28. Then with 30 seconds left, Steven Hagler blocked a field goal to preserve the win. Following the game a bench clearing brawl broke out and I just happened to be in the middle of it.

Jan. 15, 2005 - Carrying a one-point lead into the half, the Bearkats pull out a six-point win over SFA.

Feb. 14, 2005 - On Fox TV, the Kats finally win in Nacogdoches and falling in their previous tries, 78-64.

Oct. 20, 2005 - This one was fun. The Kats were just 1-4 on the season, but we throttled SFA 52-24 on TV. Not much pressure on this one, but still got the blood pumping pretty good.

March 4, 2006 - The only regular season meeting between the two teams in the regular season finale. The Jacks built a 70-56 lead with 4:17 left on the clock before the Kats rallied back. SHSU went on a 16-0 run to take a 72-70 lead with seconds remaining. But Josh Alexander hit a 3 with 10 seconds left for the win.

Mar. 9, 2006 - The rematch didn't take long. After pulling out a thrilling double-OT game over Texas Arlington in the first round of the tournament, the Kats and Jacks were meeting again in the Southland semis. Once again, SFA built a big lead, going up by 12 in the first half. They led most of the second until Shamir McDaniel (remember that name, it will come up again) scored to tie the game at 58. He then hit a pair of free throws with 10 seconds left to seal the win. We lost three days later in the SLC championship game.

Nov. 4, 2006 - A rare game under the lights in Nacogdoches. The first time back since the brawl and emotions were high for this one. SFA jumped out to a 14-0 lead. The Kats tied it in the third and early in the fourth score to take a 21-17 lead. The defense held the rest of the way, including a big defensive stand inside the 10-yard line with 2 minutes to play.

Jan. 18, 2007 - SFA built a 13-point lead in the second half and with 4:12 remaining led by 10. Then the Kats went on a run, scoring the final 13 points of the game to pull out a 55-52 victory.

This brings us to Thursday night. At 2-2 in SLC play it was pretty much a must-win game because if they lost they would fall two games back of SFA with a trip to Nacogdoches still to come. The Lumberjacks controlled the game most of the way. The Kats tied it up with 12:40 to play and the game was back-and-forth from there. With 17 seconds McDaniel hit a 3-pointer to take a 2-point lead. A last shot by SFA failed and the Kats pulled it out 58-56.

Now keep in mind this is just a sampling of games against SFA over the past 12 years or so. Sprinkle in the occasional nail-biters against Southwest Texas, Lamar, Northwestern State, McNeese, San Antonio, UTA and Southeastern Louisiana and you can start to see where this is not that healthy for me.

Welcome

2008-01-24T10:28:00.000-06:00

I would like to welcome everyone to my new blog. I got this inspiration from a friend who just started his own. I am a former sports writer who is now working in college athletics. The blog is named the Bearkat Sports Forum, which was the same name as a Sam Houston State fan site I started about eight years ago (wow, doesn't seem that long ago) for Rivals.com.

In 2002 I gave up control of the Bearkat Sports Forum and it later became Katfans.com. While the name of the blog is Bearkat Sports Forum, this is really a general blog about my life as a sports fanatic.

I tend to take things a little serious at times when it comes to sports. Especially as it pertains to my Bearkats, Penn State, the Dallas Cowboys and the Atlanta Braves.

Let me give you some background on why these teams, since growing up in the Houston area, people expect me to be a fan of the "hometown" guys. When I was young and dumb that was the case. You will believe anything as a kid and I believed I was supposed to be a Houston Astros fan.

I was a member of the Astros Buddies and my favorite player was Jose Cruz. I loved spending nights in the bleachers with my dad and brother rooting for Glenn Davis, Jerry Mumphrey, Kevin Bass, Nolan Ryan, Mike Scott and of course Cruz.

In the summer of 1986 I kept a scrapbook with all of the 'Stros box scores and pictures from the Houston Post (I didn't read the Chronicle then and I still don't). For the playoffs we put together a special playoff edition which I still have somewhere. When the Mets won I was crushed.

When I turned 11 I started to learn the realities of pro sports. The Astros traded Davis. Nolan Ryan left for the Rangers. Worst of all, Cruz became a Yankee. All of a sudden, the Astros were no longer the team I rooted for. All of the guys I cared about were gone and someone by the name of Mizerock (or miserablerock as we called him) was behind the plate instead of Alan Ashby.

Then in the summer of 1988 my family got cable. I discovered TBS and the Atlanta Braves. They sucked back then just like the Astros, but it was finally something different to watch. They then changed their uniforms and in the summer of 1991 I got my first Braves hat. That year they went on to win the NL West and advance to the World Series. I was a freshman in high school and had no idea when they lost to the Twins in the World Series (a world series where it later came out the Twins cheated) that I was beginning a life long obsession.

The Cowboys is easy to explain. I was raised the right way in an Oiler-free home.

As for Penn State, I have family from Pennsylvania, and after taking a trip there in the mid-80's I became a fan of the Nittany Lions. A year later they won the National Championship over Miami in the Fiesta Bowl and I was hooked. I have seen them in person three times and they have won all three (once against Texas, twice against the Aggies.)

To a fault I live and die with these teams. I was told once that as I get older that would all subside and I would realize there are bigger things than sports.

Whoever told me that was dead wrong. I am 30 now and it is getting worse. With each meltdown I seem to be taking it to another level. I try to tell myself I am not going to take things as serious, but I can never seem to follow my own advice.

I recently destroyed some lawn furniture.

The first chair was completely on purpose. The second was kind of an accident. I am hoping maybe this new outlet for me will be a way to vent and let a little steam off from time-to-time. We shall see.