Morning Coffee Returns

by PB @ BON on Mar 5, 2008 12:34 PM CST in Quick Hits

Best in show? Kirk Bohls makes the case for Rick Barnes as Coach of the Year in the Big 12 in an excellent feature article I agree with completely. The award could plausibly go to Barnes, Bill Self at Kansas, Scott Drew at Baylor, or Frank Martin at Kansas State, but the job Barnes has done stands out above the others. A win Sunday clinches at least a share of the Big 12 championship for the Longhorns; it would be the university's third under Rick Barnes.

Year two... As much as Texas basketball has exceeded expectations this season, in hindsight, perhaps we shouldn't quite be so surprised. Recall years two of both the TJ Ford era and the Gibson-Aldridge era, probably Rick's two best teams at Texas. In '02-03, the Ford-led Longhorns finished 13-3 in conference, earned a #1 seed in the NCAAs and made the Final Four. In '05-06, year two of Gibson-Aldridge, Texas also finished 13-3, earned a #2 seed, and were an overtime loss away from the Final Four.

Here we are again, in the second year of another outstanding recruiting class. It's incredible to think that Rick's accomplished this without Durant, but perhaps we shouldn't be so surprised that the Augustin-James-Mason class has leapt forward in year two, as well. Could this portend another deep tourney run? Let's hope so.

(By the way, as a fun thought experiment: imagine this team with Kevin Durant. Would we have lost a game this year?)

15 commitments in the books. Texas picked up its 15th football commitment of the year when Irvine LB Tariq Allen announced for Texas. I've not seen any film of Allen, but his offer list is a-okay and the recruitniks indicate he might be the top Texas LB in the class of '09. Good enough for me. Welcome to Austin, Tariq.

Dude, this is different. Anyone else enjoying reading the practice reports at MB-TF this spring? Normally, the reports are full of boring coach-speak and players talking about nothing much at all. This year? The player quotes are exciting, and at times hilarious.

"I got chewed out today for not hitting the running back hard enough to concuss him. Coach hated that. He called me a Nancy. 'Let's go, Nancy! Is that a jobck strap or a thong! LET'S GO!'"

Okay, I made that up, but it's honestly not too far off from what the kids are saying about the intensity of spring workouts. Thumbs up.

What the blog? I'm having trouble embedding this, but... click through for Trev Alberts' awkward pleas to bloggers to engage him in tourney talk.

--PB--

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Trev Alberts

PB -

Is there going to be a thread to answer his questions? Is this intended to drive traffic to BON, or is he going to be pulling comments from here to use during his analysis? Just curious.

by utcopt on Mar 5, 2008 1:26 PM CST 0 recs

Well

I think we could discuss it, but I dunno that we have the strongest case to be #1. In fact, I'm pretty sure we don't.

This was just a nice marketing effort by Trev, et al that works nicely for both parties involved - BON gets a nice mention, and Sprint gets a nice plug on BON.

Winner-winner!

--PB--

by PB @ BON on Mar 5, 2008 1:40 PM CST up 0 recs

how many scholarships do we have this year?

i thought i read somewhere we wouldnt have more than 20 to give, and we're already at 15 with some big name recruits like mcfarland, blake, and walters yet to accept. could we be missing out on some of the big ones?

by titans10 on Mar 5, 2008 1:32 PM CST 0 recs

I'm getting to where I discount a lot

of what comes out of Orangebloods. It can't be the case that every recruit we get is the next Ricky Williams or Derrick Johnson, but that's par for the course for Orangebloods. I'm sure Allen is a nice get, but the "best linebacker in the state?" He's #65 in Lone Star Recruiting, probably a 3 star. IMO, the key targets, in order, are McFarland, the DE from AZ, and Walters.

I'll never forget ol' what's-his-name.

by Horntod on Mar 5, 2008 4:55 PM CST up 0 recs

3 star?

Allen is at least a 4-star. He is in scouts #100 nationally, and will be much higher in the next version of Orangebloods LSR. He is #28 on the Aggies version of Texas ranking ...

Get your ass going! You ain't hurt!

by Cyrus on Mar 5, 2008 5:53 PM CST up 0 recs

Trev Alberts - What the Blog?

I found this part of Morning Coffee the most interesting after watching the video. I just listened to Skip Bayless and Jay Crawford on ESPN First Take talk about why there isn't much hype about March Madness this year.

They seem to think that there isn't much hype because there isn't a big time player of the year competition going on--like there was between Durant and Oden. They also attribute the lack of hype to all the off-the-field news going on in other sports or major NBA trades that took place recently. That may be true for the media hype, but I think there is plenty of hype on blog sites such as ours and in the commentary sections of the ESPN main site.

I'm glad to see that some of the media is still giving Texas credit and a chance at getting back to the Final Four; even though we apparently have a bunch of "no names", as Trev so eloquently put it. Since when is DJ Augustin a no name?

by UTAth on Mar 5, 2008 1:34 PM CST 0 recs

Lack of Hype

There's a pretty simple reason why there isn't much hype about march madness yet...the selection committee hasn't even started to meet yet. The hype last year wasn't about march madness, it was about the POY competition. Once the brackets are released it'll go back into full swing just like it does every year.

by ryanlionrah on Mar 5, 2008 3:00 PM CST up 0 recs

I can certainly understand

why there is no hype around Bayless gag gag. Who would want to talk to him anyway?

If you're reduced to talkin' about the hype itself, you don't have any relevant info at all. [See: Bayless]

*******
If he doesn't know DJ's name, we must ask:

Who in the fuck is Trev Alberts?

And why does he purport to talk about basketball at the national level?

I see Bayless syndrome in action.

by whills on Mar 5, 2008 6:21 PM CST up 0 recs

there is currently 1 comment

on that youtube clip and it is as follows: "Trev Alberts likes it in the pooper."

awesome.

by billyzane on Mar 5, 2008 3:05 PM CST 0 recs

It reminds me

Of a sign from the (2003?) KSU game where ESPN Gameday came to visit in Austin that read, "Trev Alberts likes it up the poop chute." I still quote that from time to time.

I myself had a sign in reference to the Rush Limbaugh controversy (which was timely), but it was deemed offensive and the ESPN crew yanked it from my hands.

by Meekrob on Mar 5, 2008 3:16 PM CST up 0 recs

Some other good signs I remember

At an Okie State game, "Eddie Sutton looks like Skeletor." Bonus points for the He-Man reference.
At a Kansas game, "Kansas, as cool as a fanny pack" and "There are no trees in Kansas."

By the way PB, the TJ Ford Final Four run was 2002-03.

Please refer to the Rose Bowl as Vince Young Field at the Rose Bowl -- he owns that place

by ghostoftheplaymaker4 on Mar 5, 2008 7:07 PM CST up 0 recs

My fave:

Guy dressed in a sheep costume at the a&m game with a sign that says "Baaa mean's 'No'". I know. Get's plenty of pub. But there's a reason for that.

by GoHorns on Mar 6, 2008 8:17 AM CST up 0 recs

Typo

Good catch. Thank you, sir.

--PB--

by PB @ BON on Mar 6, 2008 1:06 PM CST up 0 recs

had to say it....

Big 12 Championships:
Rick Barnes - 3
Mack Brown - 1

by brentmcd on Mar 5, 2008 5:34 PM CST 0 recs

No countee chickee

until pluckeed.

Today it's 2-1.

by whills on Mar 5, 2008 6:25 PM CST up 0 recs

Do ties count as half?

by Wells on Mar 5, 2008 7:52 PM CST up 0 recs

And while I am on the subject

the big 12 football championship, since it involves a mini-playoff and bequeathes a BCS birth, is more like the Big 12 Basketball Tournament, and winning the South and getting to the championship game in football is more like a big 12 regular season basketball championship, so I guess it is 2-2, with Mack 1-0 up on the Tournament/Championship thing.

by Wells on Mar 5, 2008 7:57 PM CST up 0 recs

Of course, you have the contrast

of a one-game neutral site play off versus a tournament (somewhat neutral site) where you must play three games to win.

So, the risk is much higher in basketball in that respect. Maybe makes it even worth more if you should win both, because you can get in the tourney without winning the divisional championship.

A long shot, but does the All-Sports Championship differentiate and give points for each step?

My first comment was in deference to the jinx factor, to which you've been attuned before.

by whills on Mar 5, 2008 9:02 PM CST up 0 recs

PB... Is that a funny?!

"I got chewed out today for not hitting the running back hard enough to concuss him. Coach hated that. He called me a Nancy. 'Let's go, Nancy! Is that a jobck strap or a thong! LET'S GO!'"
Okay, I made that up....

I'm so proud of you.

by GoHorns on Mar 6, 2008 8:18 AM CST 0 recs