No doubt PB's cerebral cortex finally blew a fuse after juggling the BON, the Preview Guide, Law School, and his latest exploitation, BON Groupies & eHarmony.com (apparently Web Masters are straight pimpin' now, who knew).

So I figured I'd chime in with a little Morning Coffee starter kit of my own...I call it "54Brunch." It's not quite breakfast, it's not quite lunch, but you get a piece of burnt orange cantaloupe. So pull up a chair, grab a danish, some crispy bacon, and a side of new potatoes, and enjoy another football-less Saturday, if you can...

• Sticking with the Java theme, Longhorn baseball fans will be interested to know that Taylor Teagarden's having a cup of coffee with the Texas Rangers this weekend on the road up in Minnesota. He started at catcher last night filling in for an ailing Jarrod Saltalamacchia, going 0-3 with two SO's. Not exactly an historic start, but then again, it looks like all the Rangers' big bats left their offense at the All-Star game getting blanked 6-0 by the Twins.

If you want to watch him in action, Teagarden should start tonight and tomorrow before getting sent back down to the minors.

He was also named to the U.S. Olympic team this week, so he's got that going for him, which is nice.

[UPDATE]: Teagarden leads Rangers to 1-0 victory over the Twins with his first Major League homerun (and hit), a solo shot in the 6th off Scott Baker who was working on a perfect game up to that point.

• And the big story from yesterday was the announcement that UT will in fact be retiring the numbers of several Longhorn greats including football legends Bobby Layne (22), Tommy Nobis (60), and the incomparable, Vince Young (10). For basketball, it'll be Kevin Durant (35) and a real blast from the past, Slater Martin (20), who led the 'Horns to their highest NCAA finish ever (3rd) in 1947. Baseball will retire four greats...Burt Hooton (20), Greg Swindell (21), Scott Bryant (23), and Brooks Kieschnick (25).

Normally, the retiring of numbers isn't that unexpected, but considering Texas has only retired four numbers total, from any sport, in its 100+ year existence - Earl Campbell (20), Ricky Williams (34), T.J. Ford (11), and Roger Clemens (also 21) - this is big news.

When asked, "why now," Deloss Dodds simply said that there was no real reason and it's simply something they've been kicking around for quite some time.

Personally, I think the pressure to retire VY's and Durant's numbers probably served as the real catalyst (more on that below) and they realized there'd be an outcry if they didn't pay homage to some of the other greats as well.

And unless UT is announcing stars from the womens sports separately, noticeably absent from this list is softball pitching great, Cat Osterman (who is also my unrequited sports crush...Cat, call me). 

NOTE: If you've got some personal memories to share about any of the greats mentioned above, particularly the ones from way back, please share in the comments section below. I still remember Brooks Kieschnick basically willing the Longhorns to victory as both a power pitcher and power hitter. He was truly a man amongst boys.

• Lastly a little commentary...there's a nice debate that's begun over in the comments section and while we've certainly covered the VY vs. Durant legacy debate before on the BON, I think it's worth revisiting given the latest developments.

BON'ers still seem to be somewhat divided over Kevin Durant's Longhorn legacy, especially when compared with VY's. There is no question Durant has the numbers and the hardware to make a case for retiring his number. Plus, he's just an outstanding individual off the court on top of it. But I can still imagine having this conversation in five years with someone not familiar with Texas basketball...

"Dude, did you see Durant go for 40 and 20 last night for the Sonics?"

"Yeah, he's unreal. Hard to believe he was once a Longhorn."

"No shit, he played for the 'Horns?"

"Oh yeah, he put up some sick numbers...one of the best years ever by a college basketball player."

"No doubt. So how far did you guys go in the Big Dance?"

"Not so good. Ousted in the second round."

"That's unlucky. But I'm sure Durant helped UT win the conference title..."

"Well, Texas had a chance, but Durant twisted his ankle in the Phog and we blew a big lead."

"What about the conference tourney?"

"Um, yeah, not so much there either. The Horns blew another big lead against KU in the title game. Durant had a shot to win it in regulation, but missed, and then disappeared in OT."

"But I'm sure there were some huge regular season wins where he just went off."

"Well, he did help UT beat the Aggies in Double-OT."

"The Aggies? Do they even have a basketball team?"

"Hard to believe, but yeah, they were pretty good that year."

"So what do you remember about Durant at UT?"

"Well he did win the Naismith and every other POY Award."

"Wow, your man Vince Young didn't even win the Heisman."

"No, but in my mind, VY won the trophies that mattered."

Burnt Orange People love their Longhorn heroes, but in the end, it's still the W that counts.

Agree, disagree, agree to disagree, coffee getting cold...let's read it from ya.

54b

Bonus: A little more food for thought...Dodds mentioned that the group that nominated the most recent players to have their numbers retired is also trying to come up with criteria to use for considering other players in the future. So what should the criteria be?

• National POY Award Winner
• Led the Longhorns to a National Championship
• Represented the 'Horns on and off the field
• Spent a minimum number of years at Texas or earned a diploma
• Did exceedingly well in the professional ranks

When looking at the players whose numbers are being retired, I couldn't really identify one thing they all had in common other than they contributed significantly to their team's success.

Should there even be certain criteria in place or should a player's worthiness simply be decided on a case by case basis?   

On Mackovic. Talking to my brother this evening, he noted that he wished I'd delved further into details on Mackovic's career at Texas. Honestly, I'd planned to, but it's time to start digging into Greg Davis, and that's going a lot slower than I'd anticipated. Left to choose between wasting a full day or two on Mackovic or posting a summary of his career that more sets the stage for Davis' arrival, I went with the latter.

Plus, even two hours into the damn research and I was feeling nauseous.

Every time I think of losing to Baylor....

Cotton Bowl renovations near complete. I had completely forgotten until The Other Andrew reminded me, but the Cotton Bowl has been under construction, with long-overdue renovations and seating expansion nearing completion. As part of its bid to ensure the Red River Shootout remained at the State Fair for years to come, the City of Dallas and State Fair of Texas (SFT) in August 2006 issued a report acknowledging the following deficiencies:

* Undersized concourses cause overcrowding and gridlock
* Rest room fixture counts significantly below accepted standards
* Inadequate concessions with restricted queuing areas
* Outdated score boards; no video boards; inadequate sound system
* No club seating or suites
* Inadequate utility services
* Stadium does not meet ADA standards
* Inadequate seating capacity for major events; seats installed in 1968 nearing the end of their useful life

The City of Dallas and SFT committed $50 million to addressing the deficiencies, accepting bids on a two-phase renovation project, to be completed by September '08. In terms of seating, the renovations called for increased capacity to 92,000, and by the looks of some recent photos, they're well on their way:

Click either photo to enlarge. More photos here.

Wait, what? The Statesman reports that Robert Joseph has reached a plea deal for his summer crime spree. That's not huge news, but the comment from his attorney certainly shocks the senses:

[Attorney Jerry] Smith said Joseph has been contacted by several teams interested in signing him, including Oklahoma State and Houston.

Really? Joseph has quite a troubling track record with the law - the '07 crime(s!) weren't even the first on his record. Is this just his attorney blowing smoke or does he have a future at a D-1 school? I personally find it hard to believe. Ramonce Taylor agrees.

Bill Simmons takes on DJ. I received a couple post-draft emails asking me to take on Bill Simmons following his less-than-glowing take on Charlotte's selection of DJ Augustin at #9 in the NBA Draft. From Simmons' 'Draft Diary':

5:24: Our first stunner of the night: Charlotte reaching for D.J. Augustin at No. 9, followed by a shot of a devastated Brook Lopez in the stands. Hey, any time you have a chance to grab a career backup with the ninth pick, you gotta do it.

(Do you think Charlotte's war room is located on the ninth hole at MJ's golf course? Like, it's basically him on his cell phone and two other guys on Treos trying to rush the pick in before they sneak in nine more holes? The Bobcats might be the worst-run franchise in the league. And that's saying something. If MJ's Bulls career was like Ted Danson's run on "Cheers," then his Wizards comeback was "Becker," and this current Bobcats debacle is definitely "Help Me Help You.")

5:26: Stu explains Augustin is only 5-foot-11, but he has the wingspan of someone who's 6-3½. Well, that changes everything! At the very least, he's wearing the most interesting outfit tonight: a gray suit with a purple shirt and a pink tie. That will be a good look for him when he's Charlotte's 13th man next season.

5:34: I don't know how Jerryd Bayless just fell to the Pacers at No. 11, but it happened. Oh, wait, I know -- the Bobcats took a backup point guard at No. 9. That's right.

As I noted in my DJ Augustin draft profile for Rush The Court, I thought Augustin was lottery-bound and deservedly so. But I have to be honest here: it would be hypocritical of me to try to call out Simmons here. When the ESPN columnist was busy drooling over our Kevin Durant, he became for a short while a fan of the Longhorns. For an even shorter while, he became a fan of Burnt Orange Nation, and we even exchanged a few pleasant emails.

Then Simmons started picking on Barnes, I galloped to Rick's rescue, and by March, Texas fans - myself included - were expressing our annoyance with Simmons' intrusion. (In a rather funny development, it looked for a while like Bill had walked right into a Texas-sized curse. It got even better when the Patriots lost, prompting me to take petty retribution to a whole new level. Alas, the last laugh goes to Bill.)

Now that you've got the backstory: the crux of my argument last March was that though Bill Simmons knows the NBA as well or better than any sports writer out there these days, he was betraying a fundamental lack of understanding about the college game with his careless analysis of Barnes. I thought it was lazy and, if I was able to forgive Simmons for being so casual with his column-writing in, say, a mailbag or an NFL picks column, I expected better for basketball.

I still think that's true, and though I no longer carry a grudge in my back pocket (I chuckled when the Celtics won and Simmons was released from his mini-curse), I do still think he displayed a disappointing lack of understanding of the college game with his Barnes slams, and I wish he'd defer to those with a more informed opinion. Like, say, Texas hoops junkies.

And that's also why I can't really jump in and say that Simmons is a fool for dismissing Augustin's NBA chances. Because truth be told, I barely follow the NBA, and if Simmons really does think DJ's got an uphill battle to be more than a reserve... well, he'd know better than I.

I certainly hope he's wrong, and after watching DJ for two years I certainly think he's wrong. But I can't say that I would know better.

I wouldn't.

Stuff to read. Kirk Bohls features Brian Orakpo... Texas finishes fifth in the Director's Cup... The Louisville Courier-Journal's Rick Bozich wastes $40 buying five preseason mags... Don't make the same mistake! PB's The Eyes of Texas 2008 is almost off the press and for $12.99 gives Texas fans all they need for the upcoming season. More details soon.

PB on DJ. The always excellent Rush The Court college hoops blog demonstrated their always excellence by asking me to profile DJ Augustin for the upcoming NBA Draft.

Relatedly, I'm a little ticked at A.J. Abrams for the way he handled himself during NBA Draft season deciding to return to Texas just as my profile piece on how well he'd fit in with PANATHINAIKOS ATHENS was about to run.

(And with that... I'm done with the lashings. Welcome back, A.J.)

I'm told they're developing a snarkier form for the future. Poor Mark Rosner of the Austin American-Statesman has been asked to start blogging, and on Tuesday he was forced to issue his first blogology:

SORRY FOR THE BRAINLOCK

In a blog on Tuesday, I mentioned returning Longhorn basketball starters without listing Connor Atchley, the senior center-forward.

Now that was a glaring omission. Just last week, I wrote that two NBA draft sites list Atchley as a second-round pick in 2009.

All he did last season was lead the Big 12 in blocked shots while anchoring the back of the Longhorns defense, setting good screens and hitting three-point shots.

Sorry about that, Connor.

Oh, Mark, you poor, poor thing: Either you're missing the whole spirit of the enterprise or the Statesman has a standard-issue apology form:

SORRY FOR THE BRAINLOCK

In a blog on ______, I mentioned ______ without ______.

Now that was a glaring omission. Just last (week/month), I wrote that ______.

[Please insert "sarcasmo-graf"¹ here]

Sorry about that, ______.

¹Refer to "AAS Blogging Policies and Procedures, Appendix C: Terms and Definitions" for guidance on appropriate insert.

Gold. SBN's Sunday Morning Quarterback is respected by 99% of his peers for his outstanding analysis, but from time to time he also dips into the satirical bag. Though the results are always fine efforts, this one takes the cake as a post to remember. I can't really recommend it enough.

What he said. Ever since SMQ brought it up two weeks ago, I've been meaning to post on this -  since he won't go away - but Brian beat me to it:

His name is Tim Stephens, and he is a very stupid man. He proposes that college football is moving inexorably towards four sixteen-team superconferences and a four-team playoff between the winners. Nevermind that the WAC was briefly a creaky sixteen-team "superconference" before all its members decided that was an incredibly stupid idea and broke off. Nevermind that it's just a matter of time before the creaky sixteen-team Big East basketball "superconference" splinters. Nevermind that he actually titles a post "could five dollar gas spur the playoff debate" (his answer: yes!) and then, like, in the very next post about his incredibly stupid idea puts Notre Dame in the Pac-10. Nevermind that every team past 12 dilutes the financial impact of a championship game.

These are all reasons that Tim Stephens is a man propounding a very stupid idea and wasting everyone's time, but the main thing is this: at the absolute most, teams will play nine conference games. When you have a "super conference" that's basically two eight-team divisions in which you play seven games and then two games against the other division, which is not a conference at all, really, and is the main reason the WAC exploded.

What a waste of time.

Yes.

Texas-UCLA game set. The Big 12-Pac 10 Hardwood Series continues this winter with game two between the Longhorns and Bruins. Conference officials released the lineup for this year's slate of games and the Longhorns and Bruins will tip in Austin on December 4th at the Frank Erwin Center. Texas defeated UCLA 63-61 on the road last year.

While Texas will be trying to find a new DJ Augustin-less identity, UCLA loses both Kevin Love and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute to early entry in the NBA Draft. Gutty Little Bruins has reports on both Love and Mbah a Moute's departures.

Mmmm... stat porn.  My appreciation for numbers and analysis-based approaches to sports fandom is a product of my long love affair with Baseball Prospectus; hence the great appreciation I have for football sites like SMQ, MGoBlog, and Football Outsiders.

Though I've pointed to the outstanding work being done at Rock M Nation to fellow bloggers on many occasions, this is a great time to publicly shout out the greatness of the research being presented by SB Nation's Missouri bloggers, as well.

Most recently, Rock M Nation's Bill Connelly released his latest research on gridiron success based on down, distance, and field position. For the stat lovers in the crowd, I'd recommend starting with RMN's stat glossary here before proceeding to the research released this week. For a good overview summary of Bill's latest work, SMQ has your primer.

You have to admire his testicular fortitude. Appropriate that a blogger who goes by the handle 'cocknfire' is the first to come out and announce that, yes, he's considering Notre Dame for his preseason Top 25 list. From SBN's excellent Garnett And Black Attack:

NOTRE DAME :: There, I said it. Yes, Notre Dame. This team was pathetic last year. The 3-9 record does not do justice to a team that averaged 75 yards on the ground and 167 through the air. But... Even accounting for their diminished state, the Fighting Irish have nine winnable games on their schedule. (Gotta love being an independent.) In case you're skeptical, they are: San Diego State, at Michigan State, Purdue, Stanford, at North Carolina, at Washington, Pittsburgh, Navy (in Baltimore) and Syracuse. And last year might serve as what our fathers used to call "a character-building experience." If only... The Irish hadn't been so incredibly awful in 2007.

The man has a point with the schedule, though I'll be more interested in the Irish' performance within those games, more so than whether they win. See my note on Kansas from this Top 25 draft ballot in 2007; it was their domination of the weak that had me willing to rank them higher than I might otherwise.

Related: Rakes of Mallow has a look at ND's September slate of games.

Actually... yeah. Though Crimson and Cream Machine admirably tries to defend the current crop of Big 12 quarterbacks, the article he's responding to - "Big 12 Passers not High on NFL Wish Lists" - makes a valid point. A lot of the offensive strength in the Big 12 is systemic.

Even so, a big part of the conference's recent offensive success is a product of the quarterbacks manning those systems. I'll save my full thoughts on this for a full post, but to make a long story short: since the Texas UIL started allowing 7-on-7 during the summer, the landscape of Texas high school football has changed dramatically. From pioneers like South Lake Carroll to the general improvement of Texas quarterback prospects generally, it's had an enormous affect on offensive potency throughout the state and region:

* Chase Daniel and Todd Reesing are both Texas QB products. Ditto Elite 11 member (and possible LSU starter) Jarrett Lee. The number of highly-regarded Texas QB prospects has increased dramatically since UIL changed its rules.

* A lot of this started when teams like Southlake Carroll began dominating the state with better systems executed by inferior athletes. Texas high school football has evolved at a mind-boggling pace, and UT fans should pay attention. Lake Travis five-star and Longhorn commit Garrett Gilbert ran the pass spread attack (now more the statewide norm) to perfection.

And so on. I'll save the rest for a full post, but it's worth noting now that there's been an offensive sea change in the Big 12 that's a reflection of both the change in Texas UIL rules and the arrival of Mike Leach in the conference.

Texas A&M's student newspaper The Battalion reports that the search for the school's next mascot is ongoing, with no definite timetable for a coronation selection. Despite initial concerns that school officials would not take the search for Reveille VIII seriously enough, those fears have been quelled:

The 16-person committee made several recommendations on the type of dog that would best serve A&M. It suggested that the next mascot be, among other things, outgoing, comfortable with loud noises and large crowds, have a "Collie-like" appearance and be approximately 1 1/2 years old or older.

No word yet whether the 4,600-person committee dispatched to change a light bulb at the Langford Architectural Building had succeeded in rotating the structure a full six revolutions around the replacement bulb.

I'm sure all of you old dudes are at work by now, but this is when I finish walking the dog, so them's nuts.  -HB

Not sure that this will be more than an occasional stealing of the show, as Peter has informed me that he's knee deep in slum-lords today, so don't get your panties all in a wad if I'm ruining your daily dialogue with Peter.  He'll be back.

Quick, name our running backs.  If you said Vondrell McGee or Fozzy bear, then you're right, but you're not all right.  Chris Ogbonnaya (would you believe I have a tougher time with the 'h' in his first name than his entire last name?) gets interviewed over at the spin factory, but in a way that you'll like.  You've got to love his attitude.  He talks like the guy that goes to every practice, never complains, helps out his teammates anyway he can, and if on game day the coach goes with someone younger and faster, he'll be right there slapping on his chin strap and telling him to watch the blitz.  Beyond that, though, Chris says he's slimmed down a bit this summer, which could help us out a tiny bit.  Recall during the A&M game that we had a third and I believe 5 (don't quote me) on the goal line, Davis put in Chris O and the Aggies all yelled "PASS!"  Colt made a quick handoff to Obi-Won and he force-pushed his way into the endzone.  Having a slightly more explosive third down back introduces a neat little change-up to your arsenal.  Let's hope that's what we get.

Colt McCoy doesn't get to hold the knife.  While Tim Tebow is probably in the Philippines circumsizing newborns, Colt took a week in Iquitos, Peru on his own mission trip.  McCoy told the AAS that he had rice for every meal and lost 10 pounds while teaching little Peruvian kids the "other football".  Luckily for the kids, UCLA COACH Rick Neuheisel sent along a scouting crew, and has reportedly scheduled an official visit from a few of the kids, who picked off Colt countless times.  The little Juan was excited, but reportedly muttered under his breath, "I'll have to remember to forward Colt some of my signing bonus."  Greg Davis blamed the heat and the communication barrier between the Tuscola, TX native and his Peruvian receivers.

AJ Abrams scores a workout!  AJ worked out with the Sacramento Kings Monday, along with everyone's other favorite shot-specialist, Drew Neitzel from Michigan State.  I saw ol' baldy up close a few times at the Sweet Sixteen game in Houston after we trounced Stanford.  He was the only Spartan who didn't slap my brother's outstretched hand either going or coming from the court, and even gave him a weird look, as if to say, "Me touch you?"  Hate that guy.  If he's there with Abrams, though, they may be looking for a sharpshooter.  Oh, what's that?  My left brain just reminded me that AJ will return to school.

Another NEZ update, brought to you by Wells Fargo.  Here are some pictures of the north endzone at DKR and it's progress.  Looking good so far.  They're even putting up some Texas banners in select places.  The chairs are cute now, but hopefully they'll realize they can seat more people on bleachers.  I find it funny that part of the reason we were so excited about the NEZ is the noise potential, and they're trying to keep everyone comfortably seated with their eyes fixed on the Fargo commercial on the Godzillatron across the field.  Flaming will be accepted in my email .

Even through most of the summer recession, there's always at least a little bit of news or a topic I'm ready to write about. But I vowed this year that I'd take some of the slowest days this summer and have some fun with other topics of interest. To that end, this marks the first of the "Ten To Love" series, which will pop up who-knows-when as a chance to lay out some of my favorites that have nothing to do with the 'Horns.

I'm kicking off the series with my ten favorite TV shows of all time. Ideally, I'm interested in others' lists as well - Mt. Rushmore style.

Before I lay out the list, let me emphasize that I'm not commenting on these shows as any kind of TV critic. For starters, the only television I see these days is via DVD and I'm woefully out of touch with what's on, what's good, etc. (I've never seen 30 Rock or The Office, for example.) But more importantly, I'm just not a TV snob in the slightest. I like what I like.

On to the list, presented in alphabetical order.

1. Arrested Development - Shameful truth be told, I resisted this show at first, and not for any good reason: MMHorns and Jimmer were watching it before I was and having the grandest time reciting entire episodes back and forth to one another. God forbid I feel left out, I defiantly decided the show was overrated. "I choose not to join in on your Afternoon Delight. Hmmph."

Yeah that didn't work out. And how could it? The show has everything on my comedy checklist: truly unique characters, outrageous plot lines, and enough hyperbole to make Bill Walton blush. I honestly don't know how anyone could be silly-minded enough to have scripted that show. Just awesome.

"Seven grand— you better believe I love them. I mean, look... look what you’re wearing. You look like crap. I mean, at least this is... What...? Who did this?"

Continue reading this post »

DJ Augustin continues to impress suitors. One of the myths about NBA Draft prospects - most recently promulgated over at Barking Carnival - is the over-emphasis on a player's height, be it with shoes or without. Logical as it may seem, hoops junkies know from experience that it's a player's reach and wingspan which greater define his build in the vertical dimension.

(As a fun aside: I learned this in 8th grade when we played Kealing Middle School and I for the first time met Wells. Like me, he was tall, skinny, and pretty gangly, but unlike me he was a defensive menace far beyond his height because of his utterly stupendous reach. It wasn't until we became friends in high school that I realized the full extent of his freakdom: Wells can touch his knees with his hands without bending his back. Go ahead - try it. See?)

The issue is worth mentioning because pro scouts aren't nearly as dismissive of Augustin as one might conclude just based on his standing height. Though he remains one of the most vertically challenged players in this year's draft class, DJ's standing reach measured out at 7'10.5", which as ESPN.com's Chad Forde notes ($), puts him among company who've already proven they can play the NBA point:

Continue reading this post »

Rick Barnes signs Alabama guard to '08 class. The Statesman is reporting that 6-2 combo guard Varez Ward (Montgomery, AL) signed with Texas on Sunday, joining J'Covan Brown as the second member of the '08 class. Ward became a big ticket late in the recruiting season after he backed out of his commitment to play for Cincinnati. UT Assistant Coach Rodney Terry helped secure Ward's signing over Kansas State, Marquette, Florida State, and others. Ward is known primarily as an elite defender.

Baseball season ends... Now what? Baseball's season officially ended with Sunday's 7-4 loss to Rice, making it three straight seasons Texas has failed to reach the super regionals. So... now what?

Really, all that's left now is waiting for football. Expect content to start drifting that way, with a 2009 recruiting round up, some depth chart projecting, and the like.

Saban Rule killing Pete Carroll. Interesting article in the LA Times on the new rule prohibiting coach contact with recruits in May and how much it's driving Pete Carroll crazy to stay off the road. If you're unfamiliar with the so-called "Saban Rule," college coaches used to be able to travel to watch high school players during May , so long as they didn't formally contact the player. The new rule disallows coach visits during May, in part because coaches like Carroll and Alabama's Nick Saban were so active during this period when many other coaches preferred not to be out on the road. As the AJC's Tony Barnhart wrote last week, the go-getter coaches hate the new rule.

Early signing period for football? Speaking of recruiting, ESPN.com's Bruce Feldman weighs in on the early signing idea for football ($), concluding he doesn't think it would solve the issues its proponents say it would.

If a big portion of the recruiting process is shifted to the sophomore and junior years of a high school recruit, there is too much of a gray area for many, if not most recruits, not just in terms of the physical evaluation but also from a character and academic perspective.

The other point, and this is one of two big distinctions of why football recruiting and basketball recruiting are so different in regards to early-signing periods, is that most of the coaching turnover in college football happens between the proposed early window and Signing Day.

Surprise Friday starter. Texas baseball coach Augie Garrido announced on Wednesday that Kenn Kasparek will start Friday against St. John's. Why not Chance Ruffin? "St. John’s has a predominantly right-handed lineup. I think that seven of their nine hitters are right-handed."

I have no particular disagreement with the decision for a number of reasons, most notably because I trust Augie Garrido. But I sure wish college baseball had a good site of split stats I could handily access, because whatever Augie's real reason for starting Big Bird this Friday, Chance Ruffin was so far and away the most statistically dominant pitcher for Texas this year that there's no possible way the explanation given to the media is what's on Augie's mind.

Like I said, whatever Augie's real reason is fine by me, but I do wish I knew what it actually was. I'd bet it's far more interesting and revealing than the quote he decided to give reporters.

First his Dad, now the media? Who's next to embarrass AJ Abrams? I'd nominate myself, but I'm not sure I ever let go of the baton after the Abrams' unbecoming surprise announcement the evening before DJ's momentous day. If you missed it in the FanShots, I was annoyed enough to take a snarky shot in a Mock Draft link one week ago; two days later, I played the same song to a different tune, this time after it was the reported Abrams said he had received one of the 64 invites for the Orland NBA workouts.

Go ahead and add the Statesman to the list of indulging parties. After running the above-linked Bevo Beat blurb last Friday, the paper was forced to note in the same space today that Monday's actual release of the Orlando invites did not include AJ Abrams. Mark Rosner writes:

Abrams thought last week that he was going. Others, in the media, predicted that Abrams would make the list of players competing there. But when the list was released by the NBA Monday night, Abrams was not one of the 64 players included.

Whoops.

What's so sad about this whole affair is that it's not what would have been an otherwise perfectly acceptable charade:

AJ Abrams declares quite separately from DJ Augustin that he's going to test the professional waters. With a wink. The undersized junior will take advantage of the summer after his junior season to get a feel for the NBA process he'll be gunning for next year when he graduates. Playing professional basketball is his dream.

Under those circumstances - or, heck, even if Abrams' Dad hadn't acted so blatantly exploitative but the family still believed he had a real shot at the NBA this year - I would at least be cheering on Abrams, consistent with my default position as a burnt orange super fan. As is, today's correction in the Statesman looks more like a bad punch line from a scripted reality show whose ending we all foresaw.

By contrast... Long time reader and valued commenter Cyrus decried what he has seen as too much antagonism towards Rashad Bobino, particularly from yours truly:

Ugh! Stop dissing Bobino!

He played waaaaaaaaay better than PB and you give him credit for.

A response is merited. Not only is the content on this website is as open to criticism as are the players on the 40 Acres, but the preceding Abrams story and Cyrus' objections combine as a convenient catalyst for a related, worthwhile point.

Readers who have been around for at least a year will remember some of my preseason aspirations for talking Texas in 2007 . Among them:

2. I will do a better job of making separate my criticisms of coaches and my support of the players. It's easy to be critical of the team we follow most closely, and goodness knows there's always room for improvement.

While I'll never shy away from being appropriately critical of the team's weaknesses, I vow to do a better job of showing my support for the kids who are out there doing this stuff. We all want conference and national titles, and we all want to point out what went wrong when they don't come to pass... but I need to do a better job of noting my unadulterated support for the kids out there, win or lose.

Looking back, that seems both a worthy goal and a bit simplistic, given my generally cynical view of amateur athletics. And I'm hardly out on a limb on the latter front: In a sport wherein the mile-long march to a playoff is going to take all 5,280 baby steps to get there, we've hit something like mile marker 4,250, in which one of the university presidents actually talks on record about the 800-pound gorilla in the room - as always, money.

Getting home to my computer for the first time today, reading Cyrus' comment for me again brought to a head the interconnectedness of it all. And at least in one way, I was probably too harsh on Bobino last year.

But not because his on-field play was superior than I or others gave him credit. More like because Bobino's one of the overwhelming majority of NCAA athletes who make fans proud, whatever their contributions. Not only that, but he's a leader on the team, well-respected and highly valued by teammates. As much of our criticism was coach-directed last season, it's a good reason to remember that for most of the players, nearly all of it should be.

The coaches are the ones who make exorbitant salaries. The Texas athletics department is at the forefront of an arms race which profits enormously on the backs of these kids. Asked about whether there was such thing as excess in college athletics spending, the UT AD's chief financial administrator sidestepped the point: "We eat what we kill." (Translation: the fans don't seem to mind.)

All told, among the relatively innocent should be Rashad Bobino, who did everything he could to try and help Texas win last year. His case is a lot stronger than those on the Texas staff, who had to throw out their entire '07 game plans after the loss to A&M. This, just to get to where most fans were after Arkansas State.

In modern college sports, there are good and bad coaches, players, universities, and future interests all mingled together. Sometimes, the kid deserves some heat. Like AJ Abrams, for how he and his family are handling this draft stuff. Sometimes, whether the kid is the starring player or just on the practice squad, they're doing all they can and giving fans precisely what it is we want.

I'm not sure if Cyrus was getting at that point or if he thinks Bobino's on-field contributions are just vastly underrated. I'm glad he raised it either way.

Housekeeping. With a summer clerkship starting yesterday and a move to my summer lease this weekend, I'll be sporadic for a bit, but I'm around. If anyone comes across TV notes on the CWS, please post. I'll be taking breaks to watch that as its available.