Tuesday, August 29, 2006

Longest Blog of the Month



NY Times On the Case


Owens, who may need to spend some of his three-year, $25 million contract on a better alarm clock, smiled for the cameras, apologized for his tardiness and maintained that he was not trying to cause a stir.

But Owens draws attention whether he tries to or not, whether riding an exercise bike, or simply walking through the locker room. His controversial aura is a challenge for the Cowboys, a team with Super Bowl aspirations led by an intense coach and an aggressive owner, Jerry Jones, who gambled that Owens could help the team reach that goal. Three games into the preseason, Parcells has found answering questions about Owens more troublesome than coaching him.

“At the end of the day, I knew when we acquired this player that I was going to be the one that had to deal,” Parcells said. “What anybody else thinks, present company included, anywhere nationwide, all those chatterboxes, I don’t care. I’m going to do what I think is best for the Dallas Cowboys. Whatever opinion anyone else has is totally irrelevant to my line of thinking, because they don’t have all the facts and I do. I consider things that you people don’t even think of. The only thing that’s tedious to me is having to talk about it all the time.”


Revo on Parcells


The CliffsNotes version of what's going on at Valley Ranch, according to Parcells, is absolutely nothing.

Everything is hunky-dory. Move along people. There's no story here.

Maybe somebody got fined. Maybe they didn't. Parcells won't say, though eventually t.o. did finally 'fess up to the sin of sleeping through a rehab session, a team meeting and showing up late for an offensive team meeting Friday.

Personally, I'm less concerned about t.o.'s tardiness than I am about Parcells' state of mind.

I want to know that he still has control of his football team; that he has his gnarly old heel on t.o.'s larynx; that in any battle of wills with any player, but especially this one, Big Bill's grip is as tight as it ever has been.

But I don't have that answer for you today.

"He hasn't been a problem at all," Parcells said with a straight face, which is strange because normally this coach can find a problem with almost anything.

Parcells obviously has a problem with kicker Mike Vanderjagt, who was jumped by the coach when he told him he couldn't kick Saturday night. He had a problem with Terry Glenn nursing blisters and not practicing at Oxnard.

But t.o., to hear Big Bill tell it, is Mother Teresa in cleats.

Owens continues to miss practice with a tender hamstring, gets his wallet lightened by $9,500 for basically taking Friday off and that's not a problem?

What concerns me is that this might be Parcells taking the easy way out. If he doesn't acknowledge a problem, he doesn't really have to deal with it, now does he?


What does Deion think? …I swear, Deion and Irvin are amazing when it comes to TO…



Deion Sanders, former Cowboys star, appearing as guest with Andrew Siciliano and Nate Newton on FOX SPORTS RADIO, was asked about the media coverage of Terrell Owens not practicing: "First of all, if he's hurt, how could he practice?! Has anybody said anything about Steve Smith? Has anybody said anything about Hines Ward really not practicing or playing? Has anybody said anything about those two individuals? No, because you know what you're gonna get, when it's time to put-up."

"Now, I would be concerned about who's gonna throw to T.O. because I know T.O. is gonna catch and he's gonna give an all-pro performance.

"I'm not worried about what T.O.'s gonna do, I'm worried about what Drew Bledsoe, the Statue of Liberty back there in the park is gonna do or the new guy Tony Romo what he's gonna do and he's never performed under pressure. That is what I'm concerned about not T.O."




Texas decides (and desides) on Colt over Jevan


Texas quarterback Colt McCoy has impressed enough coaches and teammates during fall drills to earn the starting job in Saturday's season opener against North Texas.
Depending on what happens in that game, McCoy could be the only Longhorns quarterback to take a snap against the Mean Green, coach Mack Brown said Monday.

That's a departure from previous statements, when Brown said he anticipated early playing time for both McCoy and Jevan Snead, the two freshmen vying to replace Vince Young in the Longhorns' lineup.

It's also a departure from past seasons, when Texas coaches scripted playing time in September games when quarterback duties were shared by Major Applewhite and Chris Simms or Chance Mock and Young.

"Colt deserves the right to start," Brown said Monday. "He's really improved since spring. Every scrimmage, he's done well and he's been consistent."

As for Snead, a Stephenville High School product who enrolled in January, Brown said: "We do not have a plan for how we're going to play Jevan."

Ideally, Brown wants Snead to make his college debut Saturday. But he said coaches learned a lesson about the dangers of assigned playing time from past quarterback situations.


Meanwhile, by popular demand yesterday, we now include Sooner


The Sooners have conceded none of their lofty expectations. Should they lose a game early, regrets of missed opportunity could crash in on the quarterback position. OU fans are particularly harsh on their QBs. Teammates maintain standards as well.

With the offensive focus sure to shift even more reliant on Adrian Peterson, what are his chances at making a run at OU's fifth Heisman Trophy?

If healthy, Peterson will be back at the party in The Big Apple. He's too good. And he'll carry a load full of opportunity, with an increased role in the passing game also in the works.

Defenses will dog Peterson like never before, until Thompson and the passing game command respect. And an unproven offensive line must do its part.

But Peterson's main hurdle may be the media machine that will inevitably carry the candidacy of Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn, should the Irish star get it going.
So can an offensive line with just one returning full-time starter be good enough to protect Thompson and plow for Peterson?

OU coaches don't dismiss the danger of inexperience. But they also believe there's talent on this young unit. And they'd rather have talented youngsters than experienced mediocrity.


Wednesday Morning: Dirk versus the USA


The bracket says the United States will be facing Germany in the quarterfinals of the FIBA world championships Wednesday.

In truth, the U.S. is facing Dirk.

"Man, they have Dirk," U.S. point guard Chris Paul said. "He's one of the best players in the NBA and one of the best players in international ball as well."
Everyone here is on a first-name basis with Dirk Nowitzki, the Dallas Mavericks' star forward who has joined the ranks of the one-name basketball stars.

There's Kobe, Shaq, LeBron and Yao. And Dirk.

"He's an amazing player," U.S. guard Kirk Hinrich said. "He poses unbelievable matchup problems for any team, either in the NBA or here. He is used to playing internationally and with his German teammates. He poses a real challenge."


The World Championship Brackets

Evan Grant attempts to explain the Rangers situation


The offense has played tight. The acquisition of Lee was supposed to give the Rangers an indomitable offense for the stretch run. Instead, the hitters have swung as if sensing the outcome depends solely on them.

The result: a team that looks like it is pressing, evidenced by the club's inability to score runs late. Since Lee arrived, the offense has been outscored 32-15 in the eighth and ninth innings. The Rangers did not score a run in the final two innings on their recent trip through Detroit and Tampa Bay.

The result: No come-from-behind wins.

Since the All-Star break, the Rangers are 0-21 when tied or trailing after eight innings, 2-20 when tied or trailing after seven and 3-20 when tied or trailing after six.

Comeback wins are the kind that most energize a team and have the most potential for carryover.



Hicks explains everything


"Underachieved? Yes," Hicks said. "I don't want to call them underachievers, [but] I think they would say it about themselves. We've never been able to have a consistent streak of playing good baseball. If you look at the teams that have really good records, they do it in spurts. And we haven't been able to do that."

Hicks, wearing a white Augusta National golf shirt, khaki pants and sunglasses, held an impromptu news conference in front of the Rangers dugout before Friday's series opener, just hours after he had arrived back in Texas. He said he had followed the Rangers on his computer while in South America, rejoicing when they took three of four from the Tigers and sulking when they followed by losing three of four at Tampa Bay.

"To lose three to Tampa Bay is frustrating anyway, but to be that far away, it ruined a couple of dinners," he said. "I had a lot more fun following the Detroit games."

---

Hicks did not waver when asked to evaluate Showalter, who has been criticized recently by some in the local media.

"That's the nature of talk radio. Buck's our manager," Hicks said. "Buck doesn't swing the bat or throw the ball. He just needs to manage. Buck's a great manager. ... He's our manager."

Hicks said he plans to thoroughly evaluate the organization after the season as he does every year to "figure out how to get better."

At the moment, Hicks said, he knows the Rangers are close to where they need to be as they chase the red-hot A's, who have gone 16-5 in August.

"A lot of things have happened that, had they gone the other way, we would have won 10 or 15 more games," he said. "It just didn't happen. There's no reason we couldn't do what Oakland's done this month. The good news is we still mathematically have a chance to contend because our division hasn't been very strong this year.


Adam Morris looks at the issue: Is Gary Matthews a good defensive CF or are we fooled by the highlights?


GMJ ranked next to last in CF, ahead of only Coco Crisp.

Yeah, I know...it is heresy to suggest that GMJ is anything other than a gold glove caliber centerfielder this year.

But is there maybe some truth to that ranking? Or should it just be dismissed as nonsense, proof that your eyes tell you more than the stats do when it comes to defense?

I don't really know. I do know, though, that BP's rankings have GMJ as a well below average defensive centerfielder. And he ranks below the majority of A.L. centerfielders in defensive Win Shares, as well.

Historically, Gary Matthews Jr. has been viewed as something of a tweener, a great defensive corner outfielder who didn't hit enough to play everyday at the position, or a decent hitting centerfielder whose bat wasn't enough to justify his glove out there.

So the question becomes, are the numbers lying, and is GMJ really an elite defensive centerfielder this year?

Or have some acrobatic catches and great throws deluded folks into thinking that GMJ is a better defensive centerfielder than he really is?


I am not sure what to think on this issue. I think he is great, but why do the numbers disagree?

Reggie Jackson on A-Rod


"New York's stuck with him and he's stuck with New York," former Yankee great Reggie Jackson said. "He's not going to get traded and he's not going to go anywhere. We're stuck with each other."


Proof that you can’t make this crap up: Jeff George is back!


Jeff George is back. No, really.

The quarterback hasn't played in the NFL since Sept. 24, 2001, but the Raiders just signed him to a veteran's-minimum $810,000 contract Monday morning.

He worked out for team officials Sunday, passed a physical and practiced Monday afternoon in a No. 3 jersey, the same number he wore for Oakland in 1997 and '98.
"It feels like I never left," George said. "I've always said when that call comes, I want to make sure I'm ready, and I've kept myself in pretty good shape."

George, who turns 39 in December, spent last year dabbling in real estate and running a run-and-shoot offense for a fourth-grade football team in his hometown of Indianapolis.

The Raiders and George have been in contact since coach Art Shell was hired in February. When backup quarterback Andrew Walter sat last week with shoulder trouble, the Raiders decided this was a good time to bring in George.

George was fourth in line for quarterback snaps during practice behind Aaron Brooks, Walter -- he's better now -- and Marques Tuiasosopo. The 53-man roster must be finalized Sunday, and Shell isn't against carrying a fourth quarterback as "insurance."

"I've always been intrigued by the guy and couldn't figure out why a talent like him doesn't spend his years in one place," Shell said.

For starters, George's career has been potholed by arguments with his head coaches. He got into a shouting match with June Jones in Atlanta midway through the 1996 season and was unceremoniously dumped.

George also got into a sideline run-in with Washington's Marty Schottenheimer in 2001, and was cut loose after two games. George had brief roster stints with Seattle in 2002 and Chicago in 2004, but did not play.


Peter King MMQB

Baby Fart

How to lose an Election in 30 seconds

The Real Men of Genius Archive Page …wow. Genius!



Where can you buy $34 popcorn? At Terrellowens.com …Seriously!

And now, Email:


This whole QB controversey......got me to thinking:

If diehard Mavs/Dirk fans are considered Nowitznesses, then when Tony Romo is dominating the NFL in a couple years, and people are feeing the same way about him as they used to feel about Troy and Roger, will the die-hards be referred to as "Romosexuals"?

-Good P1 Nick in Austin

---

Sports Sturm:

If you get an opportunity, please check out the amazing links on You tube below. This story is of an amazing father and the even more amazing spirit of his son. It is the story of Team Hoyt. Watch, view and be reduced to tears as I consistently am. As a result of this story, I am training to push my 4 year and 1 year old daughters in our double stroller at this year's White Rock Marathon on 12/10/06. My oldest girl has Autism and she gets great pleasure out of taking rides with me when I go running. I know have any trouble viewing this links just go to Youtube.com and google Team Hoyt. Please watch the "Can" video. It will hit you in the gut and make you feel like a peanut of a man compared to Dick Hoyt and his son Rick.

Perhaps you guys could mention this site and story this week if you have not already done so in the past.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryCTIigaloQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D52rJd9GX10&mode=related&search=

Thanks for making my days as a generic businessman pass by with some good
laughs and great HSOs. You boys from 0530 to 1900 hrs are first rate.
Great work by all of you.

Gary
---

Someday my blog while be as good as yours!!

http://onelugnutshort.blogspot.com/

enjoy if you ever have some free time.

Phil Tripp

-----

Bob

I've been reading your blog and I thought you would like to check out mine.

http://txsports-moth.blogspot.com/

I cover all DFW sports

and my squidoo is on the cowboys. all the cowboys news in one place. it's a pretty cool deal.

http://www.squidoo.com/dallascowboysnews/

If you like them feel free to put a link on your page. I'm going to link your blog. it might be there by the time you see this.

thanks
sam



Today’s Youtube:

Greatest Card trick Ever?



Aggie reminds us of Stephen McGee

27 comments:

Anonymous said...

First and Gay

Anonymous said...

Getting to work early is a positive sometimes!!!

Seriously though, how are we gonna sort out District 3-5A?

Abilene, Abilene Cooper, Midland, Lee, Permian and Odessa High are ALL great programs.

Any predictions Bob?

Anonymous said...

Damn you AttnyDan! You may be first today, but I am still the most gay of all!!!

Unknown said...

that card trick was gay.

Anonymous said...

Sub par defensive players often seem to make amazing plays because they have to try so hard to get to balls that good defenders would make look routine.

GMJ may be above average at leaping at the warning track, and maybe he has really good eye/hand/leg coordination so he is good at diving catches, but if he doesn't get to balls that a better defender would get to, then he's not a good defender, no matter what our eyes tell us.

And the fact of the matter is, once you quantify the amount of balls he turns into outs in his area of the field vs other CFs, he's not a great defender.

This isn't to say that he might not be better than what the Rangers have run out there in years past, or an asset with the bat.

Freddy Guzman in center is the best defensive option. GMJ in right, assuming his bat doesn't disappear, would be nice, and would be a pretty good defensive outfield... and Guzman would be a solid 8/9 hitter.

cracker1743 said...

Nate Newton has a job? I hope this one doesn't involve pot sports boxes.

Anonymous said...

who are Bum and Labban?

also, they spelled meredith wrong on that banner

Anonymous said...

Speaking of spelling...

"Texas desides on Colt over Jevan..."

Love the long blog!

Anonymous said...

A competitive eater on the show??? Bad radio is truly bad if you guys are calling that a sport.

Anonymous said...

McGee nearly handed it to the champs last year, that's why.

Colt McCoy???hehe

Anonymous said...

Eggzackly (I got that from yesterday's Sooner's dictionary). McGee was the 2nd qb in the state (behind Bomar) out of high school. It sure seems like a lot of hype out of Austin for a kid who they settled for when they couldn't land Perrilloux.

And it really sounds like a lot of hype out of Norman for a kid they didn't even want at qb a month ago.

Anonymous said...

A&M's defense may let them down again, but Stephen McGee won't.

Anonymous said...

It is amazing how Aggy loves to forget that McGee stopped running after he got blasted a couple of times and that he also had a crucial turnover as well in that game. And only Aggy would brag about an 11 point home loss.

Anonymous said...

The Rangers have several problems. Gary Matthews Jr. in center is not one of them. I guess some stat geeks are hard up for something to write about.

Real Rangers problems.

1. What happened to Teixeira's bat?
2. Hank Blalock is the easiest out in the lineup (by the way no one should be called "The Hammer" who has 15 HR's this late in the season).
3. Adam Eaton is an injury prone flake.
4. Vicente Padilla gets chastised for showing some sorely needed nastiness on a team of boy scouts.
5. Buck Showalter is still here.
6. Danks and Diamond need to be pitching in the big leagues now. It's September and time to give them a taste of the show.
The Rangers can't make the mistake the Cowboys did last year and not get a look at young players because they are not mathematically eliminated. Season is over - time for everyone to realize it and get a head start on next year.

P.S.

F T.O.

cracker1743 said...

^^After the season we had last year, it was all we had, jackace.

Speaking of McGee and that game, has anyone else heard rumors about McNeil's "activities" during his time in B/CS? Apparently, Reggie had a less than stellar reputation there and was quite the clubhouse cancer. It's been said that the team was ecstatic when McGee took over for McNeil in the UT game. Has anyone else heard stories along these lines?

Anonymous said...

At least McGee is playing for a D-1 school. Anybody remember the last few black QBs that OU had? Anybody?

Check that arrest record.

Suddenly, Tech's consolation prize doesn't seem so bad

Please pray with me: "Dear God, please let Mike Leach tie Graham Harrell to a post for the year so that I don't have to retract my ugly comments".

Lubbock has a few bars...from what I hear.

Anonymous said...

At least McGee is playing for a D-1 school. Anybody remember the last few black QBs that OU had? Anybody?

Check that arrest record.

Suddenly, Tech's consolation prize doesn't seem so bad

Please pray with me: "Dear God, please let Mike Leach tie Graham Harrell to a post for the year so that I don't have to retract my ugly comments".

Lubbock has a few bars...from what I hear.

Anonymous said...

Bob, when you do your preview of college football teams in Oregon tomorrow, don't leave out Oklahoma. They're the best team in Oregon. Also, I hope Colt McCoy doesn't fail...his dad is one of the best footbal players in Abilene Christian history.

Anonymous said...

Card trick -
The guy has the blue card (5 of spades) on the bottom of the deck with the red card 5 of spades directly above it.
Player picks any card, then he "shuffles" it to the middle of the deck, but just below the original bottom card.
When he shows you the 8 of diamonds, he is actually turning over 2 cards, the blue 5 of spades and the red 8 of diamonds. He then discards the blue 5 of spades and his deck has the red 5 of spades on the bottom. He "shuffles" again always keeping the bottom card put, finally he shows you the red 5 and off we go.

Unknown said...

like i said...gay card trick.

Anonymous said...

That sums up aggy in all of their efforts...GEt the s*it knocked out of you by an All American (now wearing a national championship ring) and get in their face...If VY would have done it he would have been called cocky, but when they poured the Aggy Kool-Aid that morning they mixed in "HE's got guts and heart"...Scoreboard

Anonymous said...

WHAT NO MENTION OF THE FAVRE Abortion last night! Packers 2-12, here we go!

Anonymous said...

McGee is a stud and is going to kick whorns ass this year.

Gig'em Aggies!

Anonymous said...

Thanks for giving the Sooners some blog time, Bob. You still show your favoritism by having a picture of Colt "I haven't done anything yet" McCoy and not Adrian Peterson, but I can understand that. You have to please the small minded around here.

To the guy who said that OU didn't even want Thompson at QB a month ago -- get real. Rhett Bomar was probably the best QB in the NCAA this year (OK, maybe Quinn is above him) so the Sooners had to put Thompson on the field somewhere. Now that he is at QB there will be no drop-off. Thompson is the most athletic quarterback in the Big 12 and the whole country probably. His QB play last year was part of OU's strategy to get Bomar on the field and move Thompson to WR without making the alums mad. (Just a theory, but I think its not that crazy)

All this talk about defenses stacking the box against Adrian is crazy and uniformed. Defensive coordinators know that Paul will BURN them if they do not respect what he brings. He has everything Vince had plus, he can PASS. Vince never could and never will be able to pass the football. I know I know, he had a stupid inflated rating which doesnt tell you anything. I can't think of one time that he won a game with his arms instead of his leg.

I pick OU in the south, followed by Tech, then Texas. I picked OU last year too but they were held back by some bad decisions and did not reach their real potential. Texas has a CHANCE to finish second but I dont see it happening because there QBs are young, unexperienced, and probably pretty bad at this point. Maybe next year Texas has a shot at a good record, but this year there a 3 loss team (or worse).

Good luck to the Big 12 though. If Texas is playing a non Big 12 team you will find me probably rooting for Texas. I want Texas high school kids to succeed, even if they aren't good enough to get an offer at OU!

Anonymous said...

Take him drunk he's home.

Bottom line - if your punk QB isn't taking money he didn't earn, Thompson is competing for reps at wide receiver. Tap the brakes on comparing him to Vince "Rose Bowl MVP" Young.

Poor guy. He wants so bad to believe things are okay in Norman.

"Bomar Sooner!"

Anonymous said...

It sure seems like a lot of hype out of Austin for a kid who they settled for when they couldn't land Perrilloux.

Texas got the McCoy commit well before Perriloux made his decision.

-JB

Kipster198 said...

Apparently Dan McDowell found a computer with an internet connection in Arkansas last night:

At 9:06 PM, Anonymous said...
"WHAT NO MENTION OF THE FAVRE Abortion last night! Packers 2-12, here we go!"

Ok, ok, so they're so bad that the NFL drops them as a franchise after only 14 games? I guess the last 2 games are free wins for the opposing team in week 16 and 17????