PAYDAY!

Celebrating an e-brake from Big Mac, here is the Friday offering:



Owens tries to ruin the Eagles …This dude is insane.

"If Donovan wasn't hurt our record would probably be better," Owens said Thursday night.

ESPN analyst Michael Irvin recently said the Eagles would be undefeated if Favre were the starting quarterback.

Asked for his thoughts on Irvin's comment, Owens said: "That's a good assessment, I would agree with that, just with what [Favre] brings to the table.

"A number of commentators will say he's a warrior, he's played with injuries. I feel like him being knowledgeable about the quarterback position, I feel like we'd probably be in a better situation."

Now, whether that is true or not, why would you say it? What possible productive result could emerge from that? Dude is freaking out of his mind. Shaq and Kobe without the rings? Look for a Keyshawn-type exit sometime soon…

Finly on the curse of the cash …

He called the Mavs' contract, which paid him approximately $50 million over the last four years, a "blessing and a curse."

"My contract called for me to be a superstar, and I wanted that role, but the coaching staff didn't want me in that role," Finley said. "They're paying me this money to be a superstar, but the coaching staff is holding me back, for legitimate reasons. But from the outside looking in as a fan and media, you don't see that.

"You see Finley making all this money and doing nothing. If you look at the big picture, the coaching staff was holding me back so other players could flourish. I just wanted to be a team guy. I could have easily been selfish and talked bad about everybody, but that wasn't me."

I guess I am late to the dance on this, but Cuban versus Barkley and Smith is pretty amusing.

Cuban blog post #1 …

Only downer of the night was listening to the idiots on TNT after the game. Its not unusual if we win a TNT game for us to turn it on in the locker room and hear what Charles, Kenny and co have to say. They havent gotten any better.

Let me just say this. There is a reason why Kenny and Charles havent gotten head coaching jobs. THere is more to running a team these days then thinking you know what you are talking about. Kenny, if you want to bust on us for switching on the pick and roll, get some stats to back it up. We track conversion rates on everything we do. High pick and roll, elbow pick and roll, whatever, we track it. If its not working Kenny, we adjust. I know that is probably a new concept to you and Charlie B, but thats the NBA of 2006. With all that money you guys make (hey if you are going to talk salaries, lets see how you like it), go out and hire some kids to track what actually happens in a game rather than having TNT bring in kids to go out and get donuts.

And then here is the latest …Do you think it is tough to draw Cuban offsides?

In the game of the week, Tech hosts A&M tomorrow night. Tech is a favorite by more than two touchdowns! Houston Chronicle gets Coop to ponder Tech vs. Aggies for who is #2 in the state?…

As a longtime sports radio personality in Texas, Chuck Cooperstein can come up with a clever way to discuss anything.

But he doesn't mince words when the subject is Texas Tech's football program overtaking Texas A&M for the No. 2 spot in the state behind Texas.

"I would disagree with that strongly," Cooperstein said. "I know Tech is doing pretty well out in Lubbock right now, but when Tech can put 85,000 people into a football stadium to watch them play then maybe we can revisit that.

"Tech has plenty of money, and they've spent that money, but they don't have the money the Aggies have."

But the results on the field, especially the last 10 years, suggest the Red Raiders have been able to do more with less.

Texas Tech has won seven of the last 10 meetings between the two Big 12 South schools and has won five in a row against the Aggies in Lubbock during that time.
When the 5-3 Aggies venture into Jones SBC Stadium on Saturday for the 63rd installment of this game, they'll do so as 16-point underdogs.

Certainly, the pendulum appears to be swinging in the Raiders' favor these days.
"If you are just strictly looking at the state of the program, maybe you can make that argument," Cooperstein said. "But overall, if you go outside of the state of Texas and ask people what is the second football school in Texas, I would think that just about all of them would say A&M.

Meanwhile, Sherrington tackles the Coach Fran stuff …

He's a good coach. Organized, driven, inventive. Proved it at several stops, notably TCU. And most Texas media figured it was only a matter of time before he did the same at A&M.

Only it hasn't happened. Certainly not this season. He's nearly three years into his dream job, working under a deal that pays him $2 million a year through 2012, and what have the Aggies gotten for their money?

A 16-16 record. And it doesn't look like the returns will be any better any time soon.

The Aggies are on the road against Tech and Oklahoma and finish at home against Texas, a bitter rival making an emphatic case for the Rose Bowl.

Chances are good A&M ends up 5-6. And that'd make two losing seasons in Franchione's first three.

A little perspective: R.C. Slocum coached 14 seasons at A&M and never had a losing record.

Times are different. Slocum coached a little more than half his A&M days in the old Southwest Conference, and the Big 12 is a tougher league.

Or at least it was until this season. And being unable to compete in a not-so-Big 12 only makes matters worse.

Mavs track refs numbers …



After getting pounded 4-1 by Middlesboro, ManU panics, And Ruud says this is the worst he has known …

“We're not playing well. We have difficulty keeping the ball. We're not having flowing attacks. We don't play in the opponents' half, with crosses coming in, second balls won. We're not applying pressure on our opponents. Our confidence seems to be down. Sometimes we hold back when we have to go for it."

Too bad. Poor United.

And, bagofnothing.com has Revenge of the Sith Easter Eggs …

Finally, the Lewisville fighting Vikings, our football team, in the 7-8 year old age bracket, plays the city championship tomorrow at high noon in Lewisville’s Lake Park. Bring the title home, boys.

PS: I found this gold nugget on the new bobanddan.net forum: