Fat Little Girlfriends

You can say a lot of things about them, but you also have to include devotion and loyalty.

BYU Rally Cry

Big 12 Preview - Travis County Jail

It pains me to write this, but I have the Horns going 12-0 this year. The difference between the Horns and the Sooners for this year: returning offensive linemen and receivers, and Will Muschamp. My Little Pony is the likely Heisman winner this year. A couple of weeks ago, the DMN predicted the Big 12 South would be a 3 way tie again, with Boone State, OU and UT being the co-champions. It was an interesting story line, but not probable. If my prediction of returning o-line and receivers makes the difference in the Red River Rivalry game, then it means the Horns have to lose to someone else in Big 12 play. They’ve lost to the Pokes ONCE since the end of World War II, in 1997. The Horns fired their coach at the end of that year. Mack has lost two conference games in Austin in 11 seasons, so it’s unlikely to happen there. Looking at the Horns road games, they get Baylor in Waco (Mack is undefeated against Baylor); Oklahoma State (ditto); Missouri (ditto); and Texas A&M (Aggies are 2-3 at home against Mack). Unless Colt has another injury, I don’t see this happening. So if UT makes it through the murderous Louisiana-Monroe/Wyoming/UTEP non-conference schedule, wins out at home and beats OU, the table is set for another undefeated season. If not, look for a lot of crying in Austin.

Big 12 Preview - Sooners

Oklahoma – the Sooners only return one offensive lineman starter this year, and also lose Iglesias and Johnson from the receiving corps. Sam Bradford probably won’t get 50 TDs this year, but I’m sure he’ll have an excellent year. To show you how good Sam is, and how the passing record book is still emerging in Norman, in the second game of his junior year, Sam wilI pass Jason White, who got a Ph D in kinesiology while playing seven years, as the career leader in passing yards. Four more TDs and he’s also the career TD passing leader.

I expect the Sooners to run more frequently this year, to take pressure off the green o-line and feature the strengths of one of the better running back tandems in football , Chris Browne and DeMarco Murray. Gresham returns as an all-world TE, and Mossis Madu, Adron Tonnell and Ryan Broyles should provide some fireworks from the outside. On the defense, the Sooners return a fabulous d-line, and a LB corp with Keenan Clayton, Travis Lewis and Ryan Reynolds should be much improved this year. The key questions on the defense are: 1) will DeMarcus Granger stay healthy’ 2) will the dominance of the d-line and LBs compensate for the inexperienced safeties, and 3) what game does Ryan Reynolds blow a knee. The Sooners will miss Lendy Holmes in the defensive backfield, and the inexperience of the safeties and offensive linemen will probably hurt the Sooners in the losses in Dallas to the Longhorns and to the Dust Pirates in Lubbock, and they'll end up second in the Big 12 South. The good news to that is we can play a lesser team in the BCS like the Horns normally do, and win a bowl game.

Here’s hoping I’m wrong, and that we have another successful season, with a Big 12 Championship.

Big 12 Preview - Dust Pirates

In case you’re wondering if TT is going to have a dropoff in the passing game with Harrell and Crabtree's departure, here’s some interesting tidbits for you:

Kliff Kingsbury threw for 5,017 yards and 45 TDs in his senior year with the Red Raiders. The Red Raiders went 9-5 in 2002.BJ Symons succeed K-squared and threw for 5,883 yards and 52 TDs. TT went 8-5 in 2003. Sonny Cumbie succeeded Symons and threw for 4,742 yards and 32 TDs. TT went 8-4 in 2004. Cody Hodges followed Cubmine and threw for 4,197 yards and 31 TDs. TT went 9-3 in 2005. Harrell followed Hodges and threw for 4,555 yards and 38 TDs his sophomore year. TT went 8-5 in 2006.

What all this means is that Harrell has left for the UFL, but you can still expect 35 TDs and 4000+ yards from the next TT QB. And the Red Raiders will win 8-9 games. Unlikely to repeat the magic of last year’s W against Texas, but they’re much more likely to beat OU in Lubbock (won their last two against OU in Lubbock). I have the Dust pirates going 9-3 in the regular season, with their losses coming on the road against Texas, Nebraska and Boone State.

All this to say that Leach and the Red Raiders should have confidence this year won't be a big dropoff in Lubbock.

Big 12 Preview - Boone State

Oklahoma State – It's been an interesting offseason for the Pokes.First of all, Holder suspends the building program because Boone's investments have gone in the crapper; then the Pokes start getting a lot of coverage as a team to watch this year…they tie Ole Miss for the “sleeper picked so much to be a sleeper so they’re really not a sleeper”.

Zac Robinson is back for his senior year, and Dez Bryant returns as a junior. Coach Hair Gel is going to call is own plays again this year, and the Pokes added alumnus Bill Young as defensive coordinator this year. Young also coached for the Sooners during the Blake era, but was let go as Blake “brought his own people in”. Young was d-coordinator under Shamangino at Kansas during their resurgence, and is well-respected in the game. It remains to be seen whether that will translate into success for the Pokes; they haven’t had good defenses there since – well, I can’t remember when. Probably when Jimmy Johnson was coach.

Boone’s boys start off the year hosting Georgia, who will be solid, but lost Stafford and Moreno to the NFL this off-season. It will be the first non-conference game against a BCS foe in Stillwater since 2002. If they pull off the W (it would be the first non-conf W against BCS conf foe since a 1998 W vs Miss St), they’ll be poised to be 7-0 and hosting Texas. I don’t see them beating the Dawgs or the Horns, nor the Sooners at home, so it’ll be 9-3 and on to San Antonio for the Alamo Bowl.

Education: If Cowboys go 9-3 in the regular season and win their bowl game, it will be the first time the Pokes finished with fewer than 4 losses since 1988. Gundy would finish the season with 37 wins, and rank as the 3rd winningest head coach in the 109 year history of the program.

Big 12 Preview - Baylor

Art Briles and Robert Griffin return for their second season in Waco, and they’ve also added Coppell stud Tyler DeLoach to the roster this year. Bruce Feldman had a nice article in ESPN the Magazine about the Baylor resurgence, and I can't figure out how to link to it. Defensive stalwarts Pawelek and Lake return on the defensive side for another year of Bear excellence. I see the Bears finishing 7-5 this year for their first winning record since 1995 and first trip to a bowl game since 1994. The Bears will win their four non-conference games, then go 1-3 in their next four against OU, Iowa State, Boone State and the Bugeaters. The Bears will then beat Mizzou, scare Texas before falling, beat the Aggies in College Station (this first Bear W in College Station since 1984) and then lose to the Dust Pirates at Cowboy Stadium to end the regular season. The big news at the season finale will be either a) Bear fans in shock that parking at Cowboys Stadium costs more than a ticket at Floyd Casey, and b) they made a home game an away game by allowing all the DFW based Tech alumni easy access to a Red Raider game.

The problem for the Bears will be they will be participating in the Independence Bowl in Shreveport, where the Baylor fans will hit the casinos and hope not to be noticed by their Baptist brethren. It’ll look like Halloween in with all the people wearing Art Briles masks. The last time a group of people were so excited to be in Shreveport was 1999, when the Sooners went there in the first year of Stoops reign.

Briles' focus on fundamentals will be the key to the Bears resurgence this year.

Big 12 Preview - Cash Machine U

I would imagine some Aggie fans are ready to name the stadium after RC Slocum. RC lost 37 games while winning 84 in the final 10 years of his 14 year career. In the six seasons since, the Aggies have gone 36-37. The Aggies have the erratic-to-date Sherrod Johnson at QB, and there’s no Wrecking Crew for the time being. The only thing that’s wrecked is the bowl hopes of the Aggie faithful. Coach Sherman may turn this thing around, but how long will it take? Last year, Baylor was picked last in the conference by all but one voter. This year, it’s the Aggies in that slot. I’m projecting a 6-6 record for Cash Machine U, with the Ags losing to Arkansas, and going o-fer against the Big 12 South. Aggies our proud of their history, and it’s a great university. They won’t look back fondly upon this era.

Now, you readers get to pick the footall poster for the Aggies this year. Click through to the website to vote for Pressure, Tradition, or History

Big 12 Preview - Nebraska

Nebraska gets year 2 of Bo Pellini this year, combined with a weaker North division, and I expect them to end the season as the North Division champion. They’ve got to replace the QB, but expect Zac Lee to fill in capably for Joe Ganz. Defensively, the Huskers have had a full season and two springs to acquaint themselves with the Pellini defense, and I expect the Bugeaters to continue to improve there as well. I’ve got the Bugeaters going 10-2 overall and 7-1 in conference play, with their lone loss in regular season Big 12 play coming at the hands of Sooners. The non-conference loss is on the road at Virginia Tech. If my prediction of 10-2 is correct, this gent will have plenty to celebrate in Lincoln.

Big 12 Preview - Kansas

Phog U lost the heart of their defense with the departure of their linebacking corp to the NFL and CFL, and only return one of their top 4 tacklers from last year. However, Todd Reesing is back, as is the entire receiving RB corps. Kansas first four games are against Northern Colorado, UTEP (on the road!), Duke and Southern Mississippi. I see them winning those and their first two conference games, but then the wheels come off with as they lose four of their next five, with the losses coming to the Sooners, Dust Pirates, Bugeaters and Austin County Correctional Facility. The Jayhawks will end the season at 8-4, second in the Big 12 North and in a bowl game. If Mangino’s team can sneak in a couple more upsets, perhaps this lady will change her tattoo to incorporate the football team.

Big 12 Preview - Missouri

The Tigers lost six players to the NFL last year, in addition to college great Chase Daniel. The Tigers hadn’t had that many players go to the NFL since the 1981 draft. After that draft, the Tigers went 8-4, but didn’t match that win total again until 1998. I don’t expect the Tigers to be very good this year (they lost a lot on offense, and not enough on defense), but the bottom has fallen out of the Big 12 North again. The Tigers will lose on the road to start the year against the Illlini, on the road to Nevada, to the Bugeaters, Boone State, Austin County Correctional Facility, at home against Baylor (!), and to border rival Missouri. Just don’t tell this guy. That’s still good enough for 3rd in the Big 12 North.

Big 12 Preview - Colorado

Phil Steele points out that Cody Hawkins became the first 1-A QB to play for his father since Rodney Bryant played for Steve Bryant at Ohio in 1989. The Ohio Bobcats went 1-9-1 that year, and Bryant was replace by Tom Lichtenberg. Anytime you’re replaced by someone whose name rhymes with the Hindenberg, that’s not a good sign. Anyway, back to the Buffs. The Buffs return nine starters on an offense that – to put it mildly – sucked. They were last in the conference in rushing and points per game, and 11th in passing. I’m not sure it’s a good thing to return starters in that instance. I see Colorado finishing 4th in the North and going 4-8 this year, with losses at Toledo, at West Virginia, at Texas, to Kansas, Missouri, Cash Machine U, at Boone State and to the Bugeaters. There's little margin for error at this point in the Buffs history, so they need to make sure they listen to the coaches.

Big 12 Preview - Iowa State

Our number 5 prediction for the Big 12 North is Iowa State. Gene Chizik parlayed last year’s victories against Kent State and North Dakota State into a higher-profile job at Auburn. Let’s let that sink in for a minute. Cyclone coaching legend Dan McCarney, who turned the program into a competent BCS program, is LHAO, showing people his National Championship ring at Florida. Iowa State got back at Auburn for stealing their coach by hiring their fired defensive coordinator, Paul Rhoads. The last hire with Auburn DC ties worked out so well for the Cyclones. It’s Rhoads first head coaching gig, and he inherits 15 starters from last year’s team. I don’t know if that’s a good thing. I see the Cyclones going 4-8 this year, with wins against North Dakota State, Kent State, Army and Kansas State. I used to refer to Iowa State as Baylor North, but that’s insulting to Baylor.

Big 12 Preview - Kansas State

We're starting off our Big 12 preview today with Kansas State, our pick for cellar dwellar in the Big 12 North this year.


Back in the day, I think Bill Snyder did the single best coaching job ever by breathing life into the Wildcat football program. However, the coaching staff of Leavitt, Mangino, Venables and Stoops is gone. Josh Freeman is gone. Snyder has his customary mix of juco transfers to close the gap, but I see too much turmoil in the program, and Ron Prince just wasn’t a good hire (note to self: don't hire an offensive coordinator as a head coach if his last three teams have decreased production from the prior year). I see the Wildcats as 3-9 this year, with wins against UMass, Louisiana-Lafayette and Tennessee Tech. They might suit this guy up.

Lubbock Fire Saftey

Horns claim Big 12 conference championship

Texas claims 2008 title; then renounces it.

Tarheel Motivational Posters

Since Kommandant Obama has picked the Heels to win the tourney, I thought the UNC motivational posters should have an Obama slant. I didn't rotate them to the left, though.

Syracuse Motivational Poster

Leach and Texas Tech

Today we read even more about the negotiations between the Great Pirate and Texas Tech. TT Chancellor Kent Hance and AD Gerald Myers seems to really be botching this one, in my opinion. On one side, you have Leach, who seems to be a candidate for every BCS conference vacancy out there, and doesn't denounce the rumors. On the other hand, Myers is 67 years old and by accounts I've heard has an absolutely horrible relationship with Leach. So, the Tech administration has to decide, do you want to create an environment where the coach with the highest winning percentage in school history wants to stay? Or do you want to put contract language in place that exists in few, if any, football coaches contracts.

This thing is getting caustic, and public, and I do believe if it's not solved shortly it will harm Texas Tech football. While I don't like getting beat in Lubbock every other year, I don't want them being a novelty in the Big 12 south either.

Let's look at the TT coaches since WW2 with a over 60% career winning percentage.

• David McWilliams (1986) - parlayed a 7-4 record in one season into a gig at Texas.
• Steve Sloan (1975-7) - went 6-5, 10-2 and 7-5 and bailed out to Ole Miss.
• Jim Carlen (1970-4) - went 37-20-2 and ran off to South Carolina.

People, it's not exactly the cradle of coaches.

Leach has actually stayed 9 years. Even if it appears it's only because no one's made him an offer, he hasn't gone anywhere. Do something to make him want to stay.

SEC Speed