Okay, let’s get this hat nonsense sorted out.
My hat was found on Saturday during the basketball game at Oklahoma State. I wasn't the one that found it and I didn’t realize it was found until later that night. Surely had I been informed during the game that it was found, things would have gone differently. Not necessarily better, but differently. Texas lost that game Saturday, of course, putting the likelihood of making the NCAA Tournament in peril. Hat and I have been through a lot so I decided to give it one more shot. Big Monday, ESPN prime time, No.11 Baylor. It started off well, Texas jumped out to a nice lead… but Baylor whittled away and the Horns had no answer for the 40-year old Quincy Acey (seriously, are they filming a “21 Jump Street” sequel about college kids or something? He looks older than me) and Texas lost. Now the Horns are in real danger of not making the Tournament for the first time in the Rick Barnes era. It’s clear now that the hat has lost all the mojo and needs to be replaced. And for that I am sorry.
You could argue that Texas is a team full of young players learning a new system under a demanding coach who isn’t going to alter his approach. You could argue that the upperclassmen on this team have, for the most part, not been front-line starters and “go to” guys very often (if at all) until this year and they are learning their roles as well. A point could be made that when a roster is turned over annually by NBA departures that eventually the law of averages catches up and there will be a down year. Had the three underclassmen (Tristan Thompson, Corey Joseph, Jordan Hamilton) come back to school, a case could be made that Texas would have been the No.1 team in the country going into this season. They did not come back, obviously, and Texas was left to rebuild with freshmen and role players. And these new guys weren't given much time to adjust as the Horns had the 15th toughest schedule in all of basketball and a host of upperclassmen-heavy ranked opponents in the conference to deal with. Texas played well but struggled to win those games, but put a nice little 4-game run together that got them on edge of getting to the Dance. It can be said Texas got fat on the worst teams in the league (A&M, ou, Tech) and the Horns are right where they should be, which is improving and growing.
You could make a case for all that. But you shouldn't do that because it's WRONG. Dead. Wrong. Texas lost these last two games because my lost hat came back, unannounced. Texas must now win out, including a roadie a Kansas and probably must get at least one win in the Big 12 Tournament to get to the NCAA Tournament. I'm sorry. I should have done something about it the moment it showed back up and Texas lost. This is on me, and I take full responsibility.
The old hat will be sent to Hat Valhalla this week as a new one is brought in. Not sure what it will look like, but the fact that the Co-op has about 1,000 different ones means two things: 1. I will have a new one by the time this basketball team plays again and, 2. it will take me about an hour to pick it out.
And while I let you, the team and myself down this week with the hat, I will also pick us back up when the Horns start another run and find some late February/early March magic and fight their way into the NCAA Tournament. I mean, if it's hat's fault it all went bad, then it must be hat's efforts that turn it around, right?
That makes perfect sense to me.
Let's take a look at some football-related items this week, shall we?
Spring Practice
The Horns are set to start practice on Thursday and will end with the Orange-White Game on Sunday, April 1st at ~ 2 pm and there will be two open practices (4pm on both March 2nd and 3rd) for your viewing pleasure.
There is plenty of work to do. New faces and new names will need to emerge in many places for Texas to take the next step. So what are we looking for? What do we need to happen? Who needs to step up? Who needs to fill in? We are going to get deep, deep, deep into this starting next week, but my first reactions to what the Horns need to do this spring are:
- David Ash and/or Colt McCoy to have a mohawk. It doesn't actually have to be a mohawk. It can be a big tattoo, or shock white hair, or a big Viking beard. I want one of these guys to own this job and own this position. I'm sure many of you have seen how polite and kind Major Applewhite is. While he is those things, when he was playing he was different. He had this presence and attitude about him that owned the room. He had this “you need something you come talk to me” aura that stood out in the crowd. It's called swagger. He knew he was good and he wanted his team to be good and he understood that he had to lead from the front. He barked at the sooner schooner, he barked at the CU bench, etc... to show his teammates that he was emotional and dialed in. I've seen a few flashes of that, but it's time for one of these guys to say “I got this” and run with it. It doesn't mean he has to win every game by himself, it means he makes the plays when has to and makes sure everything is running smoothly and everyone is doing their job. He needs to be part sheriff, part cheerleader, part spokesman and part play maker. Teams can win without the quarterback being the best player on the team, it happens all the time. But you need a guy who is a fearless leader that won't whither under the spotlight and will make plays when he has to. I've seen some of that on the field, but I need to see the personality come through for one of them for this team to take the next step.
- Bennie Wylie makes nine Kasey Studdards. Kasey Studdard was a mean and nasty son of a gun on the football field. Bennie Wylie is building this team in the off-season and it seems he does as much for the mental side of the game as the physical. With a full year under his tutelage I want to see what the Texas offensive line looks like, and what I really want to see is eight or nine Studdards running around out there looking for a fight.
- Mike Davis to turn the corner. Davis was the best receiver on the team in 2010 and last year he sort of fell into the sophomore slump and had a case of oven mitts. There were rumors that he might not want to be at Texas anymore around Christmas, but it looks like he's really committing to the off-season and wants to take the next step. Davis has all the tools to be great, but he needs to clear the mental hurdle of grinding it out every day and becoming consistent. That's what I want to see this spring, is a consistent Mike Davis making plays, giving the qb's another weapon.
- A tight end. Who wants this job? Who wants to be a pass-catching, run-blocking tight end? Can someone do that? Who will that someone be? The line forms to my left.
- The JuCo kids to blow up. Texas needs offensive tackle Donald Hawkins and defensive tackle Brandon Moore to fit in and mesh immediately. With the loss Kheeston Randall and the dismissal of Calvin Howell, Texas is very thin at defensive tackle. The ready-to-play Moore can ease many concerns and fill a big void if he can step in this spring and win the starting job opposite Ashton Dorsey. If Hawkins can slide into the offensive tackle role this spring, it allows Trey Hopkins to move inside to guard and play his natural position. So far early reports are both Junior College kids are competing for those two jobs and my hope is they lock them down by the Orange-White Game.
- Demarco Cobbs to be everything he seems. Demarco Cobbs got famous this off-season for his encounter with soon-to-be-backing-up-DGB-at-Mizzou Darius White and the crazy athletic ability he possesses. I've read he works out like twice a day and is the first one in and last one out at all team activities. He has terrific speed and playmaking ability (ask the Cal quarterback) and seems to be one of the team leaders right now. I've said many times that a team needs an imposing leader on the defense and it usually is a linebacker. Torrance Marshall at ou in 2000, Al Wilson at Tennessee, all the Miami guys, Brian Jones, etc... you need that guy that everyone respects, follows and occasionally shuts their yap and listens to. Cobbs seems to be that guy. I want to all be true. We will see soon enough.
- An All-American Secondary. It could happen. Texas is loaded in the back four and Duane Akina is really showing his worth with his efforts. Quandre Diggs, Carrington Byndom, Kenny Vaccaro and Adrian Phillips have the chance to be special.
- Will Russ to be the breakout star of Spring Practice. The Longhorns have lost Justin Tucker and for the first time in what seems forever there is no honor candidate kicking for Texas. There is a kicker coming in this summer, but the third-year sophomore Russ has the chance to win the job this spring. He had a huge leg in high school and can both kick and punt. I desperately want him to own this spring and leave no doubt who the kicker at Texas will be the next few years.
- The rumors of new uniforms to be true. I don't want Texas to change their uniforms at all, but I would like to see what they looked like if they changed them. Rumors are out there that Texas might try something at the spring game with a new look? No idea if it's true or not, but I'd like it to be.
- Hungry, unsatisfied and mad. I want this team to be angry about how things went last year, not happy they got a bowl win in San Diego. I want them working and thinking about getting another crack at K-State, and ou and Baylor and showing the world that those games were N.O.S.- Not Our Standard. I want to see a team that wants to be better and am doing all the things necessary for that to happen.
There is more, and we will get into it next week, but that is what's on my mind right now.
Texas Football Schedule
The new Big 12 starts this year and going into to 2012 there are three conference champions in the league: Oklahoma State, TCU and West Virginia. The early top 25 for next season has six ranked teams in there: No.4 ou, No.7 West Virginia, No.12 K-State, No.15 TCU, No.19 Oklahoma State and No.22 Texas.
Here's the Horns' schedule for next season:
09/01 Wyoming
09/08 New Mexico
09/15 @ Ole Miss
09/29 @ Oklahoma State
10/06 West Virginia
10/13 oklahoma
10/20 Baylor
10/27 @ Kansas
11/03 @ Texas Tech
11/10 Iowa State
11/24 TCU
12/01 @ Kansas State
Texas gets a nice two weeks to get comfortable with Wyoming and New Mexico before traveling to Ole Miss. The Grove is a heckuva spot to hang, I'm here to tell you. And the weird thing about Ole Miss is how many of the students are from Texas. Really odd. Anyway, the Horns have a manageable early quarter before hitting murderer's row with a trip to Stillwater, the game in Dallas and top ten WVA in Austin in three consecutive weeks. Weird and wacky things happen at Oklahoma State (girls want to fight you, OSU fans changing into ou gear in the parking lot) so who knows how that goes. And Texas/ou is its own thing, you already know that. And you get to follow that up with No.7 West Virginia the following week. Yay! I wonder if Oliver Luck will be done telling everyone about how his son was interested in Texas but didn't get an offer by then? That was uncalled for, I know. But stop it. Another manageable stretch in October before our new bestest in-state buddy TCU comes to town for Thanksgiving. That is going to be weird. Not necessarily bad-weird, just weird. I will not miss the Aggies, but I will be very aware of their absence if that makes any sense. Whoop!
The game, though, that sticks out to me is that last one. Texas at Kansas State, 12/01. Texas hasn't played well up there in 10 years and even then it was only once. There was the 1998 game when Ricky Williams' Heisman campaign and Mack Brown's first year magic was nearly undone in a beat down, there was the Colt McCoy-neck-game that cost Texas a shot at a Title defense in 2006 and there was everyone-is-getting-fired game in 2010. It's going to be cold, it's going to be loud and there is a chance that No.12 K-State could have their own Heisman campaign going for Collin Klein and a conference title on the line. Of course the same thing could be on the line for Texas if they get through that stretch in October. It makes me very nervous seeing that game on the schedule so late but it also makes me happy to see (hopefully) a very meaningful game on the day the other leagues will likely have their conference championship games. So settle in, Ags, you'll get a chance to watch two teams that beat you in your first year in the SEC and two teams that beat you in your last year in the Big 12 AT THE SAME TIME! Whoop!
You can't take anything for granted, but we will see in October where this Texas team is.
Texas Recruiting
I told you last week the Horns are slowing down their practice of offering scholarships at the Junior Days and right now, unlike in the past, only the best-of-the-best are getting those offers. You have to expect that these superstar kids will take their time and be sure because everyone wants them and they have the ability to slow it down and not be pressured into committing for fear of losing their offers. Now some of those kids are starting to commit.
Last week Texas got a commitment from Tyronne Swoopes. The 6-foot-5, 220-pound quarterback is the top ranked player in the state and a national top 25 recruit, meaning he has the 5-star ranking already. He's a tremendous athlete that reminds many of Vince Young in high school. Not a bad comparison, eh?
He's joined in the class of five by 4-star wide out Jake Oliver, a 6-foot-4, 195-pound wide out from Dallas Jesuit who has nearly 3,000 yards and 36 td catches in two years. He's got speed, hands and runs great routes and was on everyone's wish list, including ou. Also in there is 4-star athlete Kyle Hicks from Arlington Martin. Hicks looks like Fozzy Whittaker, but a bit more filled out and athletic at the high school level. The Horns are killing it in D/FW, adding Arlington Heights defensive tackle A'Shawn Robinson as well. He's 6-foot-4, 303 pounds and the sixth-rated player in the state and No.69 nationally. He joins Celina lineman Jake Raulerson (also 4-stars but teetering on the edge of a 5th) as the two big fellas in the fold.
Barring some crazy attrition, I don't see Texas taking more than 20 guys in this class, but if all 20 are as blue chipp-y as the first five, the Horns are set.
In Conclusion...
I'll take care of the hat thing. My fault. It will NOT happen again. Probably.
See you next week when we break down spring practice in depth. |
