Austin

For the purposes of this post, the game which took place in Provo last night did not occur. I prefer my happy memories.

We recently returned from Austin, TX, where we watched BYU play Texas in a close game, and I thought a travelogue was in order. We were fortunate to have our friends Matt and Amber Nielsen with us. They have been great friends for a long time, and Matt and I go back to freshman year at BYU over 14 years ago.

Austin is a great town. As soon as we arrived, we went to see the Texas State Museum. Did you know that Texas was once it's own country? If you didn't, you would after about 1 minute in that museum. and if you missed that mention of it, you would have an opportunity to hear it again every 10 steps or so. Texans do not do small. It was a very nice museum, with some very nice artifacts.

We were hungry at that point and headed to a restaurant that I found on Urbanspoon- Curra's Grill. We had an outstanding meal with excellent service. Each of us ordered enchiladas, choosing from something like 15 different sauces. I chose a Mole sauce that was fantastic. We had great tamales and guacamole. We were very full.

After that we watched the bats feed underneath the Congress Bridge near downtown. It was interesting, but anticlimactic given how highly it ranks as a tourist attraction. There were a lot of bats.

We had breakfast the next morning at The Magnolia Cafe. Delicious. Seemed a favorite hangout of many of Austin's quirkier citizens. We met some very friendly Longhorn fans.

We enjoyed visiting some off the quirky shops in the SoCo (South Congress) area, especially a candy shop, the name of which I don't remember. I learned that there are many, many, many used boots for sale in Austin.

We then toured the state Capitol, which was more interesting than the museum. Did you know Texas was once it's own country?





We had a decent lunch before the game at Darrell K. Royal Stadium. It is a giant stadium, and we were at the very top. Here we are, with a fortunate backrest.



The fans were great, very welcoming, and despite the sad outcome for BYU it was a great trip. I hope to return.

We were fortunate to have my sister and brother-in-law welcome our three kids into their family of 6 for the weekend. We were grateful to know that the were in such good hands.

Bet on Beck

John Beck is one of my all-time favorite BYU quarterbacks. His last-second win over Utah in his final season will forever be a treasured memory.

He is fighting for the starting quarterback slot on the Washington Redskins. From an effort standpoint, he would win it. But there is more involved. Washington is a tough market, with a difficult owner and little patience. We'll see what happens. If he gets a chance, he will have better tools at his disposal than he did during his abysmal season playing for the Dolphins.

Super Fail

You may have heard that more than 1000 fans were kept from their seats at the Super Bowl. Some of what happened to those fans is chronicled in this article, that also puts a critical eye on the NFL's response.

The NFL will not be able to make this ugly occurrence go away fast enough.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Sporting News

Ahead of the big National Championship game scheduled for tomorrow night, here are a few things I read this past week-

• Jason Whitlock interviews NBA Commissioner David Stern. I have a lot of respect for Stern. His interviews are often very good.
• Frank Deford explains why the NCAA makes a mockery of itself, especially with recent rulings the Ohio State players.
• Nike Chairman Phil Knight enjoys a very unique experience as Oregon's most important alum and benefactor. There is very little independence from his will at the school.
• Andy Staples looks at the challenge of playing against Oregon's speedy offense.

CFB Post-Mortem

I have a goal to have 300 posts this year. This is number 2.

BYU and Miami finished their seasons in very different ways. After many early stumbles, BYU looked pretty good. One catalyst for that was the firing of Jaime Hill, BYU's defensive coordinator. The other day BYU's offensive coordinator, Robert Anae, resigned in what looks to be an almost complete shake-up of the offensive staff. The Salt Lake Tribune's Gordon Monson explains why this is a good thing for the Cougars. I'm inclined to agree with his analysis, and given the improvement in quarterback Jake Heaps and some of the other good pieces in place, I am excited to see what next season may bring.

Miami's problems continued with an embarrassing loss to old rival Notre Dame. Despite his success keeping his players out of trouble, Randy Shannon couldn't seem to master the duties of a head coach, and the Miami Herald's Manny Navarro looks at that as well as some other challenges awaiting new coach Al Golden. Miami has some talented players, but there is a lot of work to do, and making Stephen Morris the named starter right now would be one good step.

I am hopeful this will be one of those times when a new coach comes in and can make some magic happen. More likely, this is a two year project, making 2012 Golden's year to get it done.

We'll see what happens next August.

Be Young or Go Home

That seems to be the trend in College football coaching, according to SI.com's Stewart Mandel.

The situation in West Virginia is especially distressing, and betrays expectations for success that seem a bit overblown.

Hire'em up

Andy Staples, of SI.com, explains why Miami and Florida both made good hires, even if one of them doesn't pan out. I'm inclined to agree with him.

Punk Jets

My least favorite NFL team is the New York Jets. The behavior of the Jets strength and conditioning coach in last night's game doesn't help things. Jason Whitlock puts the blame on coach Rex Ryan, who's created a culture that seems to bring out the worst.

The Jets have suspended the man for the remainder of the season and fined him $25,000. I respect him for apologizing so quickly, but think their penalty was probably sufficient, given the good health of the player affected.

2 weeks of tough losses for the Jets is a delight to me. Especially if one comes from my underperforming Dolphins.

Sporting News

Hasta luego

Urban Meyer's departure seemed anticlimactic in light of what happened one year ago. It is interesting to me that Gator fans do not have a bigger sense of disappointment for a coaching tenure that seems short.

I don't know Urban Meyer or his family. I respect his choice to be with his family. I think that is always a good decision. I just expected more prolonged lamentation at his resignation. I suspect it will be difficult to replicate his success, especially winning two national championships over a six year span. In public Meyer was not endearing. In my only interaction with him I found him aloof, almost a little unfriendly. I understand the need to put up boundaries in a place like Gainesville, where every obsessed Gator fan wants to be the coach's friend and give their two cents. I think this may be part of why people are not more devastated at what seemed to be, last year a least, a premature end to his career at Florida. I wish him well, not that he needs my blessing.

PTI

Michael Wilbon is now writing for ESPN.com. I think this is very good for ESPN, and I'm more likely to read his column than when he was writing for The Washington Post. Here is his first column. I like what he has to say about Michael Jordan. I agree that no current player will surpass him, though people like Kobe are, and Lebron may be, very, very good.

Doing it Right

Randy Shannon's firing as coach at the University of Miami was unfortunate, especially because he has been linked to that program for so much of his athletic and professional career. His interest in the program went beyond a job. He truly cared about the players and he could understand where they came from, because that is where HE was from.

This post from the Miami Herald's Eye on the U blog highlights a perfect example of Shannon's concern for his players. He left notes for many of them, if not all. A classy gesture.

Play of the Day

BYU lost a heartbreaker to the Utes. Miami lost in overtime, at home, and is looking for a new head coach. Not a lot of be happy about, football-wise, but you will love this amazing play by an Oklahoma State defensive back:

They lost the game, but what a play!

Regarding Shannon's dismissal from Miami- I think very highly of Shannon as an individual. I was disaapointed by the Canes performance this year, given the level of talent on the team. They regressed as the year went on, rather than improving, and you must win those home games. It is a sad thing, as he was exemplary in keeping his players out of trouble.

I am much happier about BYU, the loss notwithstanding. We improved steadily during the last half of the season, and it makes me optimistic for next year.

Awesome Video Saturday CLI

These are scenes from last years overtime victory of BYU over Utah.



I don't know that we are good enough to beat Utah this year. We have improved dramatically. It should be a good game (3:30 EST on CBS College Sports).

Footballin'

BYU has greatly improved since the beginning of the football season. Jake Heaps, our freshman quarterback, seems to have found his stride. A win this weekend will make us bowl eligible, and I still hold out hope for a surprise victory over Utah to end the regular season. Here are some pictures from my trip to the game.

That's Eric, Nate, Justin, myself and Jon. Matt took the picture.

It is a little hard to see, but Justin has a sweet 'stache.

In other good news, the University of Miami has received a $5 million donation to its athletic program that will allow some nice improvements to their facilities.

Max Hall's Chance

A few weeks ago I mentioned an article by SI's Peter King where he made some favorable comments about Max Hall. Hall is now the starting Quarterback of the Arizona Cardinals and this is a nice write-up from ESPN.

I'll root for Hall's success, but don't have any real connection to the Cardinals and don't plan on rooting for a team besides the Dolphins. I do hope he does well.

True Story?

I think this story is a true one. In a fascinating story published in Sports Illustrated, a former sports agent shares his experience. It includes numerous violations of NCAA regulations and specific examples of payments made to players.

A friend who read said it was not surprising, but still shocking. I agree.

Friday Night

The Cougs are killing me tonight. I know we are injury-depleted, but it is still a bummer to be playing this way at Utah State. The Aggie coach needs to learn where the sideline is.

Two weeks ago I texted my friend Matt that I hoped BYU would learn to tackle sometime this season. Still waiting.

I like what I've seen so far from true freshman Jake Heaps. He sometimes forces the ball, or throws into coverage, but he has a strong arm and pretty good accuracy. He's made some costly errors, such as the interception that JUST happened. Strange throw. I think this one is out of reach at this point. Despite his errors, Heaps has me optimistic for the future.

As for this year? I'm going to the BYU-Colorado State game. I thought it might be a gimme, but this year? Wish I knew for sure. But I'll be at a game with good friends, so it will be a good time. Better than tonight I hope.

Bad News Tarheels

There was a really interesting piece today from Yahoo! Sports about the ties between a former UNC coach, a suspended player, and a prominent sports agent. The article is very detailed, and it means big trouble for North Carolina. It seems reasonable to expect that they will receive sanctions more severe than those received by USC a few months ago.

Another piece from Yahoo! Sports (getting it done today!) talks about why the investigation is important. It is emblematic of a sport rife with violations. It's not surprising given the huge sums of money at play.

I've respected Butch Davis ever since he rescued the Hurricanes from their own NCAA penalties through solid recruiting and high quality (low trouble) players. It will be hard for him to keep his job if the allegations prove true.

Doing Good at the U

Win or lose, Randy Shannon is making a positive impact at the University of Miami. I hope we win though, and I think we will tonight against Pitt.

Read this article for more on the good things happening in Coral Gables.

Trouble

I was actually a little surprised by this article from the Gainesville Sun's Pat Dooley. In the past I have felt he was a little too forgiving of the rather poor law enforcment experience of the Gators in recent years. For some reason the Gators have had a large number of players arrested for felony or misdemeanor crimes. I don't think Urban Meyer is a bad guy, but there may be an institutional failing in the recruiting process employed by the Gators (and other schools with similar issues).

On a separate note, NCAA enforcement (humanized somewhat by Stewart Mandel in this piece) is confronting a challenging environment with agents and the many others who also work in that field. This is not a high point for the sport from this perspective, as many prominent programs have seen their players face eligibility issues.


On a lighter note I really enjoyed this article by Pat Forde about the University of Texas.

After-action Report

This was an important weekend, and not because of football, although football played a role.

As everyone is aware, it was the 9th anniversary of 9/11/2001. I'm sure none of us will forget where we were or who we were with that day. As the years have passed, the pain from the day seems to have faded. At least it seems that way sometimes

During the broadcast of the BYU-Air Force game, one member each from the NYPD and NYFD were invited to the game. The fireman had lost two of his brothers in the Towers. It was an important reminder that some things simply matter more. The officer and fireman expressed their gratitude for the commitment and effort of the airmen at the game and the work of our entire armed forces. In my small way I want to echo that. It certainly matters more than the outcome of a football game.

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Miami and BYU both lost their games. Here is a rundown of facts and information on the Cougs. I guess if we have to lose, why not to Air Force on 9/11? They certainly earned the win.

I felt like Miami's loss was less frustrating given who they were playing, but still disappointing given the history. Here is some post-game analysis from Manny Navarro at the Miami Herald.

I went to the Gator Game for the first half. We left as it was brutally hot and the Gators looked terrible while we were there. It will be an interesting season.