I read this weekend that federal authorities seized season tickets on the 45 yard line and four OU-Texas tickets from David Ray Gaddis, who owes the feds $309,000. The tickets were then sold through a ticket broker for an undisclosed sum.
My question is, for how much? According to stubhub.com, one could sell those tickets easily for north of $750/seat, and probably closer to $1k per seat. The OU-Texas tickets (which would be really nice seats, assuming same priority as the 45 yard line seats) are worth at least $400 each.
We know that the government has exhibited great business acumen in the past. The Mustang Ranch, a legal brothel in Nevada and the largest of its kind, was seized by the feds initially in 1990. It was put up for auction - and sold for $1.49 million to the man they seized it from. In 1999, the feds seized the property again, while seeking restitution for a $16 million tax lien. The property sat padlocked for four years, then the Bureau of Land Management sold the property for $145,000. So, they got about 1% of their money back.
So, my question is, can we find out via the FOIA how much the feds got for the tickets? They should have easily recovered $4,000 from these tickets, which probably have a face value around half of that. With the feds long demonstrated business acumen, they probably swapped the tickets out for a Jason White autograph and tickets to the OSU / Grambling State contest.
Another interesting element here is that for the ticket holder to have secured four season tickets on the 45 yard line, the gent would have had to make a sizable donation to the Sooner Club. Clearly Mr. Gaddis hasn't bee focused on paying the federales back.
And some of you want the government to fix the banking, automobile and healthcare industries. Good luck with that.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Saturday, August 29, 2009
USC Self Reports
In the wake of the Sooners reporting another minor violation to the NCAA, our sources on the west coast indicate USC has also self-reported some minor violations.
In their report, the Trojans disclose that a booster apparently left the keys to a million dollar home along with a pound of coke and four strippers outside QB Matt Barkley's dormitory room.
The Trojans contend that the booster left keys to the wrong home, that Corp is just moved into a rental flat near campus at market rates from the booster, who owns property adjacent to campus. The cocaine and strippers incident is not an infraction, as those items are readily available immediately off campus at all hours of the day to any student.
The NCAA has declined to comment, and only indicate they are reviewing the matter internally.
In their report, the Trojans disclose that a booster apparently left the keys to a million dollar home along with a pound of coke and four strippers outside QB Matt Barkley's dormitory room.
The Trojans contend that the booster left keys to the wrong home, that Corp is just moved into a rental flat near campus at market rates from the booster, who owns property adjacent to campus. The cocaine and strippers incident is not an infraction, as those items are readily available immediately off campus at all hours of the day to any student.
The NCAA has declined to comment, and only indicate they are reviewing the matter internally.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
2009 Season by the Letter
A - Allen, Drew. Met his dad at the OU-Texas game last year. Will he play in 2009. If he does, it's probably not a good sign for the Sooners.
B - Bengals. OU plays it's first game ever against the Idaho State Bengals. And hopefully the last.
C - Cowboys Stadium. The Sooners play the first meaningful American football game in Cowboys Stadium.
D - Defensive line. With Alexander healthy all year, Granger and McCoy back, and Auston English healthy, as well as many others, this unit should dominate it's side of the ball.
E - Eldridge, Brody. He may be the best center we have. I hope that's Bob screwing with the media. You hate to waste an all-conference fullback like that.
F - Fightin Mormons. The Sooners are winless against the Cougars, with one butt kicking at the 1994 Copper Bowl. This game was Gary Gibbs last as a Sooner. The Sooners look to avenge that as well as the 1984 National Championship, where BYU went undefeated against powerhouses like a 6-6 Michigan squad, Utah State, Baylor and Tulsa. Don't even bring up the Orange Bowl.
G - Gresham, Jermaine. aka Keith Jackson, Jr. Likely to be a primary option for a relatively inexperienced receiving package for the Sooners.
H - Holiday Bowl. If the Sooners are in San Diego in December, it's been a disappointing season.
I - Injuries. Will DeMarco Murray stay healthy the entire year?
J - Jarboe, Josh. Budding rap star is third on the depth chart for the Troy Trojans as a redshirt freshman.
K - Kickoff coverage? Will it be any better this year? We got lots of practice at this last year, and never mastered it.
L - Longhorns. The Oct 17 matchup is a big 'un. The victor gets an inside track to a Big 12 South Division title, though the last two years victories have done nada for the Horns in that regard.
M - McCoy, Gerald. The leader of the defensive line.
N - Nebraska. A trip to Bugeater Stadium on Nov 7 could be the prequel to the Big 12 Championship game.
O - Offensive Line. If I were ranking stories I'm tired of reading this summer, it would be: 1) Brett Favre; 2) Michael Vick; 3) Oklahoma's offensive line.
P - Pooh. The nickname of Adron Tonnell, who we need a big year from in the WR position.
Q - Quentin Carter. A few more hits like this and he'll be a household name.
R - Ryan Reynolds. The most talked about knees since Jason White.
S - Sam Proctor. If Sam has a good year at the Strong Safety position, it could solidify the Sooner secondary.
T - Tulsa. The game where Bradford sets the career mark for passing yards by a Sooner QB.
U - The U. The Sooners travel to play the U in South Florida. Will the Sooners crush the Hurricanes? Or will the offensive staff shakeup launch the Canes into a new era?
V - Vanquish. What the Sooners will do to their foes this year.
W - Woody Glass, Mike Balogun's lawyer. His talents may be more important than Brandon Crow's.
X - x-wife. Former Sooner D-Coordinator Mike Stoops is headed to splitsville with the missus. Apparently coaching at Arizona is hard on a marriage.
Y - Young, Bill. The new Boone State d-coordinator could raise the intensity of the Bedlam series to an actual rivalry.
Z - Zero. The chance of me going to the Idaho State game.
B - Bengals. OU plays it's first game ever against the Idaho State Bengals. And hopefully the last.
C - Cowboys Stadium. The Sooners play the first meaningful American football game in Cowboys Stadium.
D - Defensive line. With Alexander healthy all year, Granger and McCoy back, and Auston English healthy, as well as many others, this unit should dominate it's side of the ball.
E - Eldridge, Brody. He may be the best center we have. I hope that's Bob screwing with the media. You hate to waste an all-conference fullback like that.
F - Fightin Mormons. The Sooners are winless against the Cougars, with one butt kicking at the 1994 Copper Bowl. This game was Gary Gibbs last as a Sooner. The Sooners look to avenge that as well as the 1984 National Championship, where BYU went undefeated against powerhouses like a 6-6 Michigan squad, Utah State, Baylor and Tulsa. Don't even bring up the Orange Bowl.
G - Gresham, Jermaine. aka Keith Jackson, Jr. Likely to be a primary option for a relatively inexperienced receiving package for the Sooners.
H - Holiday Bowl. If the Sooners are in San Diego in December, it's been a disappointing season.
I - Injuries. Will DeMarco Murray stay healthy the entire year?
J - Jarboe, Josh. Budding rap star is third on the depth chart for the Troy Trojans as a redshirt freshman.
K - Kickoff coverage? Will it be any better this year? We got lots of practice at this last year, and never mastered it.
L - Longhorns. The Oct 17 matchup is a big 'un. The victor gets an inside track to a Big 12 South Division title, though the last two years victories have done nada for the Horns in that regard.
M - McCoy, Gerald. The leader of the defensive line.
N - Nebraska. A trip to Bugeater Stadium on Nov 7 could be the prequel to the Big 12 Championship game.
O - Offensive Line. If I were ranking stories I'm tired of reading this summer, it would be: 1) Brett Favre; 2) Michael Vick; 3) Oklahoma's offensive line.
P - Pooh. The nickname of Adron Tonnell, who we need a big year from in the WR position.
Q - Quentin Carter. A few more hits like this and he'll be a household name.
R - Ryan Reynolds. The most talked about knees since Jason White.
S - Sam Proctor. If Sam has a good year at the Strong Safety position, it could solidify the Sooner secondary.
T - Tulsa. The game where Bradford sets the career mark for passing yards by a Sooner QB.
U - The U. The Sooners travel to play the U in South Florida. Will the Sooners crush the Hurricanes? Or will the offensive staff shakeup launch the Canes into a new era?
V - Vanquish. What the Sooners will do to their foes this year.
W - Woody Glass, Mike Balogun's lawyer. His talents may be more important than Brandon Crow's.
X - x-wife. Former Sooner D-Coordinator Mike Stoops is headed to splitsville with the missus. Apparently coaching at Arizona is hard on a marriage.
Y - Young, Bill. The new Boone State d-coordinator could raise the intensity of the Bedlam series to an actual rivalry.
Z - Zero. The chance of me going to the Idaho State game.
Will Georgia Take Over Boone Pickens Stadium
interesting article on the lenghts Georgia fans go to get tickets to watch their Bulldogs play. We'll see how the Pokes represent themselves.
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Eric Thunander Arrested
Saw today where former Sooner LB Eric Thunander was arrested for lewd acts with a child. It's a sad day. I'm terribly saddened for the girl and her family, and I pray that she can somehow overcome the emotional and physical scars.
Thunander wrote a book last year, Silent Thunder, that made me cry several times. Thunander is deaf, battles depression, was sexually abused as a child himself, and just grew up in an absolutely horribe environment.
Unfortunately, it doesn't appear that he was able to stop the cycle. At least not yet.
Eric, our prayers are with you as well.
Thunander wrote a book last year, Silent Thunder, that made me cry several times. Thunander is deaf, battles depression, was sexually abused as a child himself, and just grew up in an absolutely horribe environment.
Unfortunately, it doesn't appear that he was able to stop the cycle. At least not yet.
Eric, our prayers are with you as well.
All 2009 Big 12 games predicted
I'm sure you were just sitting around today thinking, "wouldn't it be great if LandThieves would publish predictions for each game involving a Big 12 team"?
You weren't? Well, here it is anyway.
09-03
Iowa State defeats North Dakota State
09-05
Colorado defeats Colorado State
Baylor defeats Wake Forest
Nebraska defeats Florida Atlantic
Oklahoma defeats BYU
Texas defeats Louisiana-Monroe
Kansas defeats Northern Colorado
Georgia defeats Oklahoma State
Illinois defeats Missouri
Texas A&M defeats New Mexico
Texas Tech defeats North Dakota
Kansas State defeats Massachusetts
09-11
Toledo defeats Colorado
09-12
Iowa defeats Iowa State
Missouri defeats Bowling Green
Nebraska defeats Arkansas State
Oklahoma defeats Idaho State
Kansas State defeats Louisiana-Lafayette
Oklahoma State defeats Houston
Texas defeats Wyoming
Texas Tech defeats Rice
Kansas defeats UTEP
09-19
UCLA defeats Kansas State
Colorado defeats Wyoming
Missouri defeats Furman
Oklahoma State defeats Rice
Oklahoma defeats Tulsa
Baylor defeats Connecticutt
Virginia Tech defeats Nebraska
Kansas defeats Duke
Texas A&M defeats Utah State
Iowa State defeats Kent State
Texas defeats Texas Tech
09-25
Nevada defeats Missouri
09-26
Iowa State defeats Army
Nebraska defeats Louisiana-Lafayette
Oklahoma State defeats Grambling State
Baylor defeats Northwestern State
Texas defeats UTEP
Kansas defeats Southern Miss
Kansas State defeats Tennessee Tech
Texas A&M defeats UAB
Texas Tech defeats Houston
10-01
West Virginia defeats Colorado
10-03
Arkansas defeats Texas A&M
Iowa State defeats Kansas State
Baylor defeats Kent State
Oklahoma defeats Miami (FL)
Texas Tech defeats New Mexico
10-08
Nebraska defeats Missouri
10-10
Oklahoma defeats Baylor
Texas defeats Colorado
Kansas defeats Iowa State
Texas Tech defeats Kansas State
Oklahoma State defeats Texas A&M
10-17
Kansas defeats Colorado
Baylor defeats Iowa State
Nebraska defeats Texas Tech
Oklahoma State defeats Missouri
Texas defeats Oklahoma
Texas A&M defeats Kansas State
10-24
Texas defeats Missouri
Nebraska defeats Iowa State
Oklahoma State defeats Baylor
Oklahoma defeats Kansas
Colorado defeats Kansas State
Texas Tech defeats Texas A&M
10-31
Missouri defeats Colorado
Texas defeats Oklahoma State
Oklahoma defeats Kansas State
Nebraska defeats Baylor
Texas Tech defeats Kansas
Texas A&M defeats Iowa State
11-07
Texas A&M defeats Colorado
Oklahoma State defeats Iowa State
Baylor defeats Missouri
Oklahoma defeats Nebraska
Texas defeats Central Florida
Kansas defeats Kansas State
11-14
Colorado defeats Iowa State
Oklahoma State defeats Texas Tech
Oklahoma defeats Texas A&M
Texas defeats Baylor
Nebraska defeats Kansas
Missouri defeats Kansas State
11-19
Oklahoma State defeats Colorado
11-21
Missouri defeats Iowa State
Nebraska defeats Kansas State
Texas defeats Kansas
Texas Tech defeats Oklahoma
Baylor defeats Texas A&M
11-26
Texas defeats Texas A&M
11-27
Nebraska defeats Colorado
11-28
Oklahoma defeats Oklahoma State
Texas Tech defeats Baylor
Kansas defeats Missouri
Big 12 Championship Game
Texas beats Nebraska
You weren't? Well, here it is anyway.
09-03
Iowa State defeats North Dakota State
09-05
Colorado defeats Colorado State
Baylor defeats Wake Forest
Nebraska defeats Florida Atlantic
Oklahoma defeats BYU
Texas defeats Louisiana-Monroe
Kansas defeats Northern Colorado
Georgia defeats Oklahoma State
Illinois defeats Missouri
Texas A&M defeats New Mexico
Texas Tech defeats North Dakota
Kansas State defeats Massachusetts
09-11
Toledo defeats Colorado
09-12
Iowa defeats Iowa State
Missouri defeats Bowling Green
Nebraska defeats Arkansas State
Oklahoma defeats Idaho State
Kansas State defeats Louisiana-Lafayette
Oklahoma State defeats Houston
Texas defeats Wyoming
Texas Tech defeats Rice
Kansas defeats UTEP
09-19
UCLA defeats Kansas State
Colorado defeats Wyoming
Missouri defeats Furman
Oklahoma State defeats Rice
Oklahoma defeats Tulsa
Baylor defeats Connecticutt
Virginia Tech defeats Nebraska
Kansas defeats Duke
Texas A&M defeats Utah State
Iowa State defeats Kent State
Texas defeats Texas Tech
09-25
Nevada defeats Missouri
09-26
Iowa State defeats Army
Nebraska defeats Louisiana-Lafayette
Oklahoma State defeats Grambling State
Baylor defeats Northwestern State
Texas defeats UTEP
Kansas defeats Southern Miss
Kansas State defeats Tennessee Tech
Texas A&M defeats UAB
Texas Tech defeats Houston
10-01
West Virginia defeats Colorado
10-03
Arkansas defeats Texas A&M
Iowa State defeats Kansas State
Baylor defeats Kent State
Oklahoma defeats Miami (FL)
Texas Tech defeats New Mexico
10-08
Nebraska defeats Missouri
10-10
Oklahoma defeats Baylor
Texas defeats Colorado
Kansas defeats Iowa State
Texas Tech defeats Kansas State
Oklahoma State defeats Texas A&M
10-17
Kansas defeats Colorado
Baylor defeats Iowa State
Nebraska defeats Texas Tech
Oklahoma State defeats Missouri
Texas defeats Oklahoma
Texas A&M defeats Kansas State
10-24
Texas defeats Missouri
Nebraska defeats Iowa State
Oklahoma State defeats Baylor
Oklahoma defeats Kansas
Colorado defeats Kansas State
Texas Tech defeats Texas A&M
10-31
Missouri defeats Colorado
Texas defeats Oklahoma State
Oklahoma defeats Kansas State
Nebraska defeats Baylor
Texas Tech defeats Kansas
Texas A&M defeats Iowa State
11-07
Texas A&M defeats Colorado
Oklahoma State defeats Iowa State
Baylor defeats Missouri
Oklahoma defeats Nebraska
Texas defeats Central Florida
Kansas defeats Kansas State
11-14
Colorado defeats Iowa State
Oklahoma State defeats Texas Tech
Oklahoma defeats Texas A&M
Texas defeats Baylor
Nebraska defeats Kansas
Missouri defeats Kansas State
11-19
Oklahoma State defeats Colorado
11-21
Missouri defeats Iowa State
Nebraska defeats Kansas State
Texas defeats Kansas
Texas Tech defeats Oklahoma
Baylor defeats Texas A&M
11-26
Texas defeats Texas A&M
11-27
Nebraska defeats Colorado
11-28
Oklahoma defeats Oklahoma State
Texas Tech defeats Baylor
Kansas defeats Missouri
Big 12 Championship Game
Texas beats Nebraska
Where's the Baylor Gear
Took an afternoon field trip to the PGA Superstore in Plano, TX today. It's quite the place (I think I had the same feeling that my girls has when I took the to American Girl Place). They have an entire wall devoted to various collegiate apparel. You can get Virginia Tech gear, Auburn gear, TCU gear (surprise!), OU gear, Boone State gear, Duke gear, They had Iowa State stuff (?), Red Raider stuff, Cash Machine U stuff. Nebraska? check. Kansas? Check.
Baylor? No check. Nada.
They even had North Texas stuff. Seriously. Have you even seen anyone wear North Texas gear with pride? Or even without pride. I didn't even know North Texas licensed their stuff. Figured they stopped when Hayden Fry and Mean Joe Greene left town in the early 70s. But nope, you can get it at the PGA superstore.
But Baylor? Nah. The store's in the middle of Plano, TX, home of Six Flags over Jesus (aka Prestonwood Baptist) and several other immense Baptist churches, and the good folks at the PGA superstore don't want to waste the wallspace with little Baylor Bear headcovers, puttercovers, etc, ballmarkers, etc.
I don't know who to be disgusted with...the Baylor faithful, for not buying enough of their stuff to create a market, or the PGA superstore folks who thumb their nose at Art Briles, Reverend Rob and the rest of the Bears.
Baylor? No check. Nada.
They even had North Texas stuff. Seriously. Have you even seen anyone wear North Texas gear with pride? Or even without pride. I didn't even know North Texas licensed their stuff. Figured they stopped when Hayden Fry and Mean Joe Greene left town in the early 70s. But nope, you can get it at the PGA superstore.
But Baylor? Nah. The store's in the middle of Plano, TX, home of Six Flags over Jesus (aka Prestonwood Baptist) and several other immense Baptist churches, and the good folks at the PGA superstore don't want to waste the wallspace with little Baylor Bear headcovers, puttercovers, etc, ballmarkers, etc.
I don't know who to be disgusted with...the Baylor faithful, for not buying enough of their stuff to create a market, or the PGA superstore folks who thumb their nose at Art Briles, Reverend Rob and the rest of the Bears.
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