Mark May is an idiot

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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.