Tag Archives: Texas Football

Red Can’t Believe he is Blogging About an Impromptu Dance-Off

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USA Today Sports has the skinny on a brawl at a high school football game in Dallas – and this time it did not involve the football teams.  The rival dance teams from Wilmer-Hutchins and James Madison High Schools got a little too excited during an impromptu dance-off after the game and chaos ensued.  Fortunately no one was seriously injured and no arrests were made.  The incident did cause the Dallas ISD to make the following statement.

“Impromptu dance-offs are not part of the approved performance for dance teams and fighting is never acceptable. Disciplinary actions will be taken as appropriate.”

Who knew we needed an “impromptu dance-off” policy?  For his part, Red fully supports not only impromptu but any other form of dance-off.  He does draws the line at impromptu full contact girl fights.

Red’s Texas College Football Game of the Week

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This week we travel to the South Plains for an interesting matchup between the Texas Tech Red Raiders and the TCU Horned Frogs.  Tech coach Kliff Kingsbury is still looking for a signature win in his third season as head coach.  He has a prime chance on Saturday afternoon with the somewhat wounded Frogs coming to a sold-out AT&T Stadium Lubbock.  The last ranked opponent Tech beat was a rising Arizona State program in the 2013 Holiday Bowl.  Last year was a major step in the wrong direction as the Red Raiders went 4-8 and were almost shut out in the Big 12.

Is there an upset in the making?  Well Red likes both of these teams, but has picked TCU to make it to the 4 team playoff – so Red is not completely disinterested here.  Normally, Red wouldn’t bet against the Frogs, but things have not gone smoothly for the Frogs in losing some key defensive starters and Coach Gary Patterson has had distractions aplenty this week.

Tech has already improved from last season when the Red Raiders were 119th in turnover margin (minus-13) and dead last in the country in penalty yards per game (89.2).  The Red Raiders lead the Big 12 with the fewest penalty yards per game (46) and are tied for second with a plus-5 turnover margin.  The ability to put points on the board was also in doubt at times last season, but Tech is averaging a spanking 54.3 points and an astounding 590 yards per game so far against admittedly second-rate competition when compared to TCU.

On the other side of the line of scrimmage, the Horned Frogs will be playing several new defensive starters.  But  Coach Patterson has consistently put together excellent defenses and will be ready to throw the book at Tech to disrupt KK’s game plan.

Ultimately, Red thinks this game will turn on the quarterbacks. TCU quarterback Trevone Boykin is Red’s favorite to  win the Heisman Trophy.  Meanwhile, Tech seems to have finally found a signal caller after a few years in the wilderness.  Tech quarterback Patrick Mahomes actually has more passing yards than Boykin (1,029 to 985), a better completion percentage (66.4 to 65.7) and is almost even  with Boykin in yards per attempt and touchdown passes.

In the end, Red thinks that experience will out and Boykin will make the key plays in the stretch to win a game that will be a lot closer than expected.  But it will be an exciting affair, so get someone else to take the nachos out of the oven; you don’t want to miss a minute of this one.  The oddsmakers think so too as the line has dropped considerably with Tech now a 6.5 point dog at home.  Red likes Tech to cover and the over at 80.5.  TCU 45 Tech 42.

Football Gets Uglier

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Two players from San Antonio John Jay HS have been suspended after they blindsided and speared an official in a game at Marble Falls on Friday.  Two players from Jay had been ejected from the game prior to the play and there were some controversial calls, but no one can ever recall seeing such a blatant and cowardly attack on an official at any level.  It is possible that the players were egged on by comments from a Jay assistant coach.   CNN has the video.  It’s bad when your high school team is making the national news for this kind of thuggery.

Reaction has been swift and severe.

“The first thing we want is that those two kids never play football again,” Austin Football Officials Association secretary Wayne Elliott said.

“These types of actions against any game official at any level are inexcusable,” said a statement by NFL Referees Association executive director Jim Quirk. “We fully support the suspensions of the players involved, along with a full and complete investigation by the Texas University Interscholastic League (UIL).”

The referee involved wanted to press charges and it is very possible that the two players may face criminal charges.

TCU and Baylor Flying High in AP Preseason Poll

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Texas and Texas A&M – not so much.  Ohio State pulls off a first ever sweep of the 61 first place votes up for grabs in the AP Preseason Top 25.  TCU ranks second and Baylor (despite current travails) is in fourth place in the meaningless annual preseason exercise.  Ohio State has been top-ranked 7 other times at the beginning of the season and has never won the national championship in any of those years.

Texas comes in unranked but in 38th place in the voting with a mighty 3 points.  A&M lands just outside the rankings with 61 points in 26th place.

The Longhorns at least have a chance to move up quickly when they face Notre Dame in South Bend on Labor Day weekend.  The Aggies also would get a huge boost from beating a highly regarded Arizona State team in the Texas Kickoff Classic at NRG Stadium in Houston on September 5  and probably would move into at least 15th place.   As usual, most of the top 25 play the typical first game assortment of lower division patsies, perennial doormats and conference weak sisters.  A handful of the top 25 may face actual tests in the first week.  Notable matchups other than Texas v. Notre Dame and A&M v. Arizona State include:

No. 1 Ohio State at Virginia Tech

NO. 2 TCU at Minnesota

And the likely game of the week in  No. 3 Alabama v. No. 20 Wisconsin

Just How Worthless is Your College’s Football Coach?

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In most cases, pretty darn worthless it turns out.  The Count of Wall Street Journal fame has run the numbers of the coaches at the major football schools.  Rather than looking at won-loss records or conference championships, the Count analyzes exactly how well each coach did against opposing teams that were ranked in the Top 25 at game time.  This eliminates stacking of the records against lower division opponents, perennial doormats and the intra-conference weak sisters.

Who is the best college football coach?  Not surprisingly, it is the coach of defending National Champions Ohio State – Urban Meyer with a .707 mark.  The highly regarded Nick Saban is a piker by comparison with a .597 career average against quality competition.  So who is number two?  Jimbo Fisher at Florida State has racked up a .666 winning percentage in his 18 games against ranked competition.  But really, the oft-maligned Bob Stoops is likely the better coach – coming in batting .649 when going against the big boys in 77 games.

In Texas Gary Patterson at TCU is at the top of the heap with .559 winning percentage in 34 such contests.  A&M’s Kevin Sumlin is a respectable second with a .500 mark in his 20 top tier tests.  UT’s Charlie Strong (3-6) and Tech’s Kliff Kingsbury (2-7) don’t have enough games (at least 15) to make Red’s list – but neither is trending in the right direction.  And you have to wonder at UT’s hiring of Strong when he had an all-time 2-1 record in games against real teams before joining the Longhorns.

Who looks really bad?  Wunderkind Mike Leach is a pathetic .236 in 55 games against ranked competition and is fading fast having gone 1-11 at Washington State.  Kansas State’s legendary Bill Snyder is more legend than reality with a .278 record in 79 games.  Flavor of the Month Art Briles is on similar ground at .286 with all 10 of his wins over Top 25 opponents coming at Baylor.  And at the bottom of the heap is Colorado’s Mike MacIntyre who has yet to get on base (.000 in 15 games).

Who is coming on strong?  Mark Richt at Georgia racks up considerable numbers by virtue of playing in the SEC and is looking respectable at .535 in 71 games against the Beasts of the Southeast and others.  David Shaw sports an impressive .625 mark in his 24 games – all at Stanford. The only other coaches above the .500 mark are Gus Malzahn (Auburn), Les Miles (LSU), Brian Kelly (Notre Mama). Jim Mora (UCLA)  and Steve Spurrier (S. Carolina).

How the Mighty Have Fallen

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The Amway Coaches Poll has neither UT nor Texas A&M in its top 25 preseason poll.  The only Texas teams to be ranked are TCU at No. 2 and Baylor at No. 4.  Both of the formerly down-trodden programs are clearly holding onto the recent success.  More recent in the case of Baylor.  TCU has been performing on a fairly high level in the last decade.

Longhorns a Long Way from Respectability

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USA Today reports that the University of Texas football team is not ranked in the pre-season polls for the first time in 17 years.

For the first time since 1998, Texas will begin the season without a number next to its name.

The Longhorns  are unranked in the Amway Coaches Poll, which was released Thursday. It’s not surprising given that the team finished 6-7 in 2014, capping Charlie Strong’s first year as head coach with a 31-7 loss to Arkansas in the Texas Bowl.

Texas had its worst season in recent history in 2010 when it followed a national championship loss to Alabama with a 5-7 record. The program hasn’t been the same since, going 36-28 the last four years without a single 10-win season. Still it always found a way into the preseason poll in that span, averaging a 19.5 ranking.

Not this year. Texas only received eight points, putting them at No. 38 outside the poll.

Thank God Somebody Finally Figured Out What is Wrong with the UT Football Team

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Short Answer:  They suck!

For an in depth analysis for the ultimate sports geek, please turn to SB Nation which runs through a myriad of statistics and graphical analyses to come up with a precise answer as to why the Longhorns have underperformed over the last 5 years.  And the answer is – They suck! 

To illustrate the Longhorns’ suckiness, SB Nation presents exciting and allegedly meaningful visual aids such as –

Not to mention insightful analysis like –

And if that doesn’t get you excited about the upcoming season, try –

And if you haven’t fallen asleep – Hook ’em.

No Thanksgiving Game for Texas A&M this Year

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LSU has rejected the possibility of the Tigers playing Texas A&M on Thanksgiving in Baton Rouge in 2015 according to CBS Sports.

LSU athletic director Joe Alleva told The Advocate there has been a push to move this year’s regular season finale against Texas A&M to Thanksgiving night, but prior traditions and the quest for ratings will not shake the AD’s stance on home games in Tiger Stadium.

Last season, the Aggies hosted LSU in a 23-17 loss on that Thursday night — the slot previously dedicated to their annual rivalry game against Texas. While Texas A&M may continue that tradition at home with the Tigers, Alleva said there is no chance the game gets moved from Saturday to Thursday under his watch.

“As long as I’m here, we will not play in Tiger Stadium on a Thursday,” Alleva said “I guarantee you that.”

It is possible, according The Advocate, that the game gets moved to the Friday after Thanksgiving, a spot on the calendar where LSU has frequently played Arkansas in the past.

Too bad for Red, who really likes watching the Cowboys and the Aggies lose on Turkey Day.  Unfortunately, he also gets to see the Longhorns lose.

Image from http://www.tigertailgating.com

Notre Dame Won’t Let Quarterback Transfer to Texas

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Texas fans continue to wonder how Ohio State can win the national championship with a third-string quarterback at the helm, while the Longhorns struggle to find even a decent starter. The Longhorns may be in desperate need of a major college quality quarterback, but they will have to look to someone other than Everett Golson.  The Notre Dame quarterback has indicated that he will to transfer to another school for his last year of eligibility.  Because Golson has graduated (despite missing the 2013 season for academic reasons), he can play immediately for a quarterback-hungry team.  Golson who led the Fighting Irish to a 8-5 record in 2014, including a Music City Bowl win over LSU, has thrown for 5,850 yards, 41 touchdowns and 20 interceptions in his college career.  He threw for 3,445 yards and 29 touchdowns last year, but his 14 interceptions and losing 4 straight games to end the regular season were enough to open a competition with Malik Zaire. Zaire was ahead in the competition after spring training prompting Golson’s decision to transfer.

But Notre Dame can control the terms of releasing Golson from his scholarship.  Coach Brian Kelly will apparently refuse to allow Golson to transfer to Texas – where he would likely be the frontrunner  – because Notre Dame opens against Texas in South Bend next year.   Maybe just maybe there is a quarterback out there somewhere for the hapless Horns.