Losing the Longhorns to the Big Ten? I don’t think so

What’s it going to take to get me to update my blog? Apparently, it has to be as ridiculous as the notion that the Big Ten wants Texas.

Valentine’s Day is the next holiday coming up, not April Fool’s, folks. I haven’t heard anything as silly since some people from Tulsa made a push to get the Olympics here.

The idea is absurd on so many levels, I’m not sure where to start. Let’s begin with the obvious.

Geography

Texas teams make up a third of the Big 12 Conference. Travel-wise, it’s a lot more economical to visit Waco (102 miles) or College Station (106 miles) than say, play at State College, Pa. (1,548 miles) or even your closest conference opponent in Champaign, Ill. (1,032 miles). It’s not fan-friendly, to say the very least.

Recruiting

I have to think it would hurt in this area a bit, because if I were a college athlete, I’d want to compete in front of my family and friends in person, not just on TV. It goes back to geography, in that the road games would be SO far away, there would be few to no fans in overwhelmingly hostile arenas and stadiums.

Novelty

The novelty factor of visiting new venues would wear off as soon as someone crunches the numbers on how much it’s going to cost to fly teams to hotels across the upper Midwest, or the first time Texas plays terribly due to jet lag or subfreezing temperatures. Save the novelty for nonconference, bowl games and the NCAA Tournament.

Rivalries

Fans want to play the teams they know and love — to hate, that is. The novelty factor is fun (play Ohio State in football or Michigan State in men’s basketball), but it doesn’t compare to the Longhorns’ decades of history between the Sooners, Aggies and others.

Money

Ah, the most important factor of them all. The Big Ten does have its own TV network, but is that enticing enough? And there are reports the league wants to expand possibly up to 14 teams. That’s a lot of revenue sharing.

Bottom line

Who wouldn’t want the ultimate cash cow school? The Longhorns won the Big 12 championship in football last season and went on to the national championship game. They’ve been hit and miss recently in men’s basketball but are still an elite program.

Besides, I’d hate for the Big Ten to have to come up with a new logo. The one they have is pretty clever, sneaking an “11″ into the words.

Anyway, the Longhorn brand brings in more money than anyone, and I think they know they are best off right where they are.

So, Big Ten, refocus your efforts to taking Missouri. I’m sure the Big 12 will throw in Iowa State for free.

Baby, it’s below zero outside

Well, the wind chill is anyway. It’s all anyone, including myself, can talk about. My Facebook feed is totally clogged with statuses by cold-lovers and heat-seekers alike.

Through a quick Google search, I have learned that in most parts of the world, it can never be too cold to snow. However, looking out my window, that seems doubtful. The radar says it’s snowing, but I see nothing. All I see is icy ruts in the street, a pristine white blanket on my back yard, and I hear my wind chimes going crazy.

Speaking of my back yard, no, the drift that formed against our back door has not yet melted enough for us to get out there. (Well, I probably could squeeze through there, but not Jonathan.) The drift’s top has melted and frozen and refrozen since it blessed us with its visit two weeks ago.

So the forecast for my area is this:

Today Chance Flurries Hi 15 °F

Tonight Mostly Cloudy Lo 3 °F

Friday ColdHi 12 °F

Friday Night Mostly Clear Lo 0 °F

Saturday SunnyHi 17 °F

Saturday Night ClearLo 5 °F

Sunday SunnyHi 36 °F

Sunday Night Mostly Clear Lo 22 °F

Monday SunnyHi 39 °F

Here’s a link to the NOAA site.

While I’m dishing out links, here is a great story appearing in today’s World. A good read for people who scoff at cold but deep down, it scares them (like me).

To me, cold is cold. Not sure if it’s because I grew up in Texas or what, but there’s a difference between 97° and 103° to me. But 12° and 17°? Same thing.

Thankfully, I have all the hair-crushing hats, durable gloves, thick socks, cozy scarves, robust boots and sturdy coats I need to keep me warm. But apparently there’s a lot of kids in my city who don’t have such necessities, which is one reason why school is closed for the next two days. Many of them must wait at the bus stop or walk to school.

I’m glad school officials are taking the cold weather seriously. It makes me want to donate some of my lesser-used stuff to people who really need it. No one, especially a child, should be out in subfreezing wind chills or temperatures without proper bundling.

Anyway, enough about the cold. Here are some odds and ends that have been floating around in my head because they never formed into full blogs:

*TCU broke my heart. The Horned Frogs looked out of place at the Fiesta Bowl, and I feel really bad for the guy who dropped that sure touchdown. I was glad for Boise when they beat OU in their instant classic, but now I’m tired of them.

*Where do I start on the Cotton Bowl? I’ll save that for another blog.

*I want Texas to win the BCS national championship tonight. By many accounts, Heisman winner Mark Ingram seems like a standup guy, but I’m not rooting for Nick Saban. Plus, conference pride, right? Go Big 12… do something, anything, good this year.

*Gundy suspends Perrish Cox for the Cotton Bowl for breaking curfew. Ford suspends Marshall Moses for Coppin State for marijuana arrest. These situations have generated a lot of chatter, and outsiders (including myself) who spout off opinions about punishments don’t usually know anything about what’s going on behind closed doors. Cox’s too harsh, Moses’ a slap on the wrist? Perhaps. Gundy says even the stars must play by the rules, and Ford says trust me, this kid has run many miles of laps.

*Darren Oliver. WHY. The third time will not be the charm for this guy. His career ERA as a Ranger is 5.28. On paper, he appears to have found success in the bullpen (3.10 ERA as an Angel), but that seems like an anomaly to me. The real question is, can he pitch in his own stadium? Surprisingly, the best baseball Web site ever, baseball-reference.com, didn’t have the answer, but I think we all know it’s no.

*”The Hangover” is the first movie I have seen that truly lived up to the hype. EVERYONE was raving about how it was the funniest movie ever, and it really was quite good in all its gross-out hilarity. I think I read somewhere they are making a sequel about what happened that night. (The characters spend most of the first movie putting together the booze-soaked puzzles pieces of the previous night to help find their missing friend.)

Well, I’m just getting started here, but hunger has set in. I’ve got some of Giada’s lentil soup with beef in the fridge. We’ll be eating it for a week, as it made enough for an army. (Less stock, more lentils next time.)

Stay warm, y’all!

Parity party

I am really kicking myself for going home from work on time.

Four minutes left, Texas Tech leads Houston 28-23. A few of my co-workers are glued to the TV, and most of us have logged off our computers for the night.

Don’t get me wrong – I was very interested in how the final minutes would turn out. But it was midnight, and I had gotten up at 7 a.m. and was SO ready to go home.

Came home, drag racing had come on ESPN2. So, I caught the replays on SportsCenter later. Still, it’s not the same as watching it live.

Anyway, like WHAT!? I totally called this one. Mike Leach, if you are out there, listen to me next time.

(Sorry, I have to celebrate the little victories… I’m not usually right about things like this.)

I feel a little bad for calling out West Texas’ favorite pirate. I read a quote from him earlier this week about how he said it is reckless to overlook a team with less prestige, and he sounded pretty serious. So I give Houston the credit.

I always root for the Big 12, but I have to say Houston is a fun dark horse team. Aren’t we all tired of the Boise States, the Utahs, the TCUs of the mid-major world? All they do is play weak schedules then whine about how they don’t get respect because they’re not BCS.

Well, Houston’s schedule is no gauntlet, but at least they haven’t whined yet.

Anyway, it’s high time Conference USA crashed the party. While I have really come to like Tulsa as a team, they kind of just have this mental block when it comes to big games. They melt like cream cheese on a scalding hot bagel.

Case Keenum and the Cougars have beaten TWO big-time Big 12 South teams this year. That’s phenomenal. I can’t hazard a guess as to where Houston will end up in the polls though, for two reasons:

1. Saturday was CRAZY. Like, upset city. (Mostly) everybody’s moving.

2. At this point in the year, you get into this “I need to move A up, but I can’t move them past B because B beat A, but B lost to C who beat A,” etc. etc.

Every Saturday, my boss (who has a vote in the Associated Press poll) goes through this routine at the end of the night. I shudder to think of what time he must leave the office. But I admire his dedication to always voting fairly and logically, not based on name recognition. Even if it takes hours.

I suppose I could mention why a night-timer like me was up so early this morning. Jonathan rode in a 30-mile bike race with a friend, and I went as moral support. Basically, I sat in the car for two hours and read a book. I was on standby in case he got ill or hurt, but he actually did an amazing job in his first bike race.

They didn’t keep official times for the ride, which was kind of a bummer, since I am pretty sure he was one of the first to finish. (It was hard to tell because rides of other lengths were also going on and there was no distinction between who was doing what length.)

He and Ryan took off in the green hills between Tulsa and Owasso at 8 a.m. Jonathan expected to be back around 10:30 and Ryan 11:30 (he did the 50), but Jonathan made great time.

I sat in the car with the windows down (it was a gorgeously crisp, sunny 60 degrees) and read for a while. I was actually at a really tense point in my book when he rolled up to the window and nearly scared the life out of me.

Anyway, I’m really proud of him. Not sure if he needs me to come to any more races, because he seemed to do just fine. Next time, I’d like to get a little more sleep though.

Flowers bloom as a season ends

I originally planned to write this blog on Sunday, but I procrastinated. Then I found out on Monday afternoon that a friend from college had died. So this blog topic  is oddly appropriate, and in a way, a tribute to her.
RIP Stefanie.

******

Well, I’ve had a lot going on since OSU’s hard-fought loss to top-seeded Pittsburgh in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday. That’s why I didn’t write this sooner.

Normally, I get over season-ending losses pretty quickly, but I got really worked up and excited and dreams of the Sweet 16 danced in my head until late in the game and it’s kind of hard to come down from that without a thud.

You kind of have to put the end of the season into the context of the seven stages of grief. For example:

1. Shock and denial: (OSU is  down eight points with 17 seconds to go…) ::final buzzer:: “Are you serious? That’s it?… But they played so hard… What about the seniors? What about Byron Eaton and Terrel Harris? And Anthony Brown??”
2. Pain and guilt: “Ugh…. this sucks!! If only I had gone to more games, maybe I could have cheered them to more wins. Gallagher-Iba was so empty this year.”
3. Anger and bargaining: “Maybe they can send the tapes of all the non-calls to someone at the NCAA. The refs were awful!!!”
4. Depression, reflection and loneliness: “Sigh… Only seven months until the new season. What will I do until then? All my other teams suck.”
5. The upward turn: “Well, it was a hard-fought season… Look at how improved they are from two months ago. Keiton Page is just a freshman, and he will only get better with time. And what a great ending for Travis Ford’s first season, to turn around a team that had lost in the first round of the NIT three straight years. Oklahoma State will be a force in 2009-10.”
6. Reconstruction and working through: “What’s this? An email about fantasy baseball starting up again? Wow, didn’t realize it was that time of year already. That’ll be a nice distraction.”
7. Acceptance and hope: “Oh well. At least the Cowboys went down with a fight. A moral victory, I guess. And I hear they have some decent recruits waiting in the wings. I’m especially proud to wear orange after this postseason.”

So, in this postseason, winter is over and spring is here (although there’s a chance of snow later in the week).  It became apparent a couple days ago that those ugly plants by our front door are daffodils. I like them (and their yellow flowers) now that I know what they are. And I’m thankful for all the rain we have gotten, too.

A very good Friday: OSU beats Tennessee

Just watched my alma mater, Oklahoma State, beat Tennessee 77-75 in the most evenly matched basketball game I have seen in a long time.

The teams were like mirror images of each other. Tennessee can hit 3s, but the Vols also went ice cold on shooting late in the first half, continuing into the second half. Bad Tennessee looks a lot like bad OSU.

But enough about bad OSU. When Byron Eaton drove to make it 76-75 OSU, I about lost it. Nice way to end the first NCAA tournament game of the senior’s career.

I really thought the Cowboys would dig themselves too far into a hole with foul trouble, but somehow they pulled it off. I began mentally preparing myself for a loss when James Anderson picked up his fourth.

Really, the only thing that kept me thinking OSU could win were two very interesting stats that our OSU beat writer, Jimmie Tramel, dug up.

1. Tennessee usually wins when it turns the ball over MORE than its opponent.
2. Tennessee nearly always wins when it outshoots its opponent, and it nearly always loses when it doesn’t.

The final stats? Vols 11 turnovers, Cowboys 12. FG percentages: Vols 42.9, Cowboys 56.6.

So Pitt is next (assuming). I picked Pitt to win it all in at least a couple of brackets. Don’t know much about them, but I am looking forward to the game anyway.

Speaking of brackets, mine are all blown up. I filled out about six because I kept getting invitations, and I thought, why not?

My brackets are like snowflakes this year: Each is unique.

I got way too cute with upsets, even I though I myself said there wouldn’t be too many this year.

One good one I did get away with was Western Kentucky over Illinois. I almost got away with Utah State over Marquette, and I picked North Dakota State over Kansas in five of my brackets. I saw virtually nothing of that game, but the score atop the screen indicated it was pretty close most of the game.

But enough about brackets. They are kind of like fantasy teams; no one cares about yours, just their own.

And while it’s fresh on our minds, let’s talk about the flippin’ sweet OU game last night. If you haven’t heard or seen the flip yet, watch any game today. I guarantee it is mentioned at some point.

For the record, a Morgan State player flipped Blake Griffin over his back, WWE style. Griffin just popped up and smirked after coming dangerously close to having his neck broken.

Obviously, that kind of thuggy behavior and lack of self-discipline has no place in the game. But I have to admit as cheap and dirty as the foul was, it looked kind of cool. (Obviously I can only say that because Griffin appeared OK, for the most part.)

I know a lot of people are tired of Blake coverage and were secretly glad to see a cheap foul like that, but 1) it only gives him more air time (literally) and 2) makes him look like a saint for not retaliating. So there.

Well, I have to run some errands before I go to work today. I am slotting, but the only real late thing we’ll be waiting on is the Tulsa-Auburn NIT game. I really wish it was on TV.

The most wonderful time of the year

Don’t get me wrong. I have forgotten more about pro hockey and baseball than I know about college basketball.

But I do have a growing affection for the most hectic sports month of the year: March. You can’t beat the Cinderella dreams, Selection Sunday, mammoth upsets, overtime classics and of course, the brackets.

Besides, what other time can you turn on the TV at practically any given hour and see a decent hoops game?

Anyway, what a day for Big 12 basketball. Baylor beating Kansas, OSU coming out on top in a crazy Bedlam finish… long day.

Add in the high school basketball state tournaments, a.k.a. gold trophy weekend, and you have a looong week. Really, it’s a long month until all the local teams have been bounced.

I really think that, barring major injuries, OSU could be a Sweet 16 team this year. I wouldn’t have dared think that two months ago, but the surprising Cowboys seem to have really jelled. Marshall Moses gets the title of “luckiest man alive” (he supplants the man who survived jumping into Niagara Falls on Wednesday).

I know he was frustrated over his fifth foul, but there’s no excuse for the naughty language that got him T’d up. OU made 1 of 2 of its free throws on the technical and 1 of 2 on the foul, tying the game at 64-64. Considering the final margin was 71-70, he is very lucky his lack of discipline didn’t cost his team the win. John Wooden would not approve.

OU has further proven that it really is a one-man team. Shut down Blake Griffin, shut down the Sooners. Poor guard play plus 19 turnovers equaled the Bedlam that got away.

Analyzing the game is hard because it was a combination of OU throwing it away with a pesky OSU team using heart to overcome a superior foe. I think OU has been exposed, but I also think the Cowboys got lucky in that they caught the Sooners at just the right time.

All in all, it was definitely a classic Bedlam, no matter which side you are on.

Speaking of classics, how about Syracuse-UConn? Six overtimes?! 102 points scored AFTER regulation?! Those poor guys looked exhausted.

UConn took the loss, but the Huskies might have also gotten the better end of the deal. The Orange has to play West Virginia today with dead legs. UConn gets to rest until the tournament starts.

I hope Tulsa plays well against Alabama-Birmingham today. TU will be shorthanded, as Bishop Wheatley was suspended one game for a flagrant foul committed Thursday against Rice. But the Blazers went to overtime yesterday, which might have worn them down a bit.

The Golden Hurricane is rolling right now, but unless TU beats Memphis (or Houston) for the Conference USA title, it’s NIT City. As of 1 a.m. Friday, TU’s RPI had fallen to 63 on collegeRPI.com. Not good enough. A weak schedule really hurts them.

Well, I’m not sure what to make of OSU-Missouri (RPIs of 18 and 15, respectively). When they met earlier in the season, OSU nearly rallied back from a 19-point deficit, and would have too if not for a suspect foul call during a frenzy under the net in the waning seconds.

I know Missouri prides itself on being the “Fastest 40 Minutes in Basketball,” but I think OSU is athletic enough to keep up. And the Cowboys have confidence after the big win Thursday. I just hope they aren’t already emotionally spent.

OSU is a tournament lock. I think it would be OK to lose tomorrow just to catch up on rest and heal up any nagging late-season injuries.

No matter what, it’ll be an action-packed weekend.

Or should I say month?

Mike Singletary: Man on a mission

Wow!! Texas Tech just overcame a 22-point deficit to beat Texas A&M in the first round of the Big 12 Tournament. Mike Singletary led the Red Raiders with 43 points, breaking the tournament scoring record of 38.

The game ended about 40 minutes before deadline. Go figure the best game of the night is the late game. My heart goes out to my colleagues at work tonight.

I have to admit this game was only on because we were too lazy to change the channel after OSU’s win over Iowa State. That was a good game too, although it was too close for comfort most of the game.

I’m really impressed by Marshall Moses. Finally, OSU has some kind of inside presence. I’m pumped for Bedlam III tomorrow.

You know what they say, it’s hard to beat a good team three times.

P.S. It’s Byron “EE-tawn”. Not “Ea-TAWN”. Stupid announcers.

Hard to watch

On a rare Saturday off, I spent the better part of a beautiful, 75-degree February afternoon indoors watching college basketball. And I’m a little frustrated.

First off, the world is not right when Oklahoma State sucks at basketball. (The men, not the women. The Cowgirls can hold their own.)

OSU got whooped by Kansas, 78-67, in Lawrence. Yes, the Jayhawks are ranked, defending national champions and were at the Phog.

But I don’t care. I hate OSU’s style of offense right now.

I admit I know much less about basketball strategy than baseball, football or hockey. But even I can tell when something is broken.

You live by the 3, you die by the 3. OSU died by it today. Missed shots all over the place. And when a shot would clank off the rim, a Kansas player nearly always snatched it up. That made for many short possessions, which is frustrating to watch. OSU gets the ball, brings it down the court, takes a quick shot from beyond the arc, misses, and it’s KU ball again. Over and over. It’s a very impatient offense.

My favorite thing to yell at the TV is “REBOUND!!!”, and I did that quite a bit today. (“FOUL!” is a close second.) It drives me crazy when no one is there to get the ball back after a missed shot.

I have to admit that when the system works, it is too much fun to watch. The 3-pointer is one of the most exciting plays in all of sports. I think it’s the delicious anticipation that occurs between the release and the swish. And I have seen it work for OSU this season against lesser competition. That style of offense is great when it works, but unbearable when it fails.

One more thing: While I love the exposure of nationally televised games, I hate the announcing. While I am certainly not the first person to complain about this, the mistakes were ridiculous today.

During the OU-Colorado game, the announcers were talking about the work ethic of Sooner bench player Ryan Wright, and how “Kelvin Sampson” works with him in practice. Really?! This is only Jeff Capel’s third season at OU! Give the man some credit.

And during the OSU-KU game, someone said Rotnei Clarke (a former Oklahoma high school standout) was at Mississippi State. He’s actually at Arkansas. Ugh.