On Monday, I spent the evening at Hill Country in Manhattan with Horndogger, a BON semi-regular, and hundreds of other Longhorn fans, eating, drinking and watching Texas pull out a miraculous yet somehow never in doubt comeback win over Ohio State.  Following is my take on the night and, for your amusement, a collection of musings (think BZ's News and Views) recorded during the game by my girlfriend, presented Sports Gal-style.  Click through the jump to read it.

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My old friend TW (forgive the anonymity--dude works in banking and, like, feels grateful even having a job these days) headed down from New York to attend his first Austin City Limits Music Festival. He asked me a while back if he could write this year's post-festival review and, not being able to attend, I was happy to have him weigh in. Your own thoughts on this year's festival in the comments below. (Also be sure to check out ATVS's festival thoughts here.)

I'm back from my second trip to Austin and first stab at ACL .. I still haven't taken off my bandana or made a serious effort to remove the Austin.com temp tatt I got the first day .. My only basis for comparison is my April trip out to Coachella Music Festival in California .. Lineups aside, the edge has to go to ACL given the amenities that come with corporate sponsorship .. The Dell and AMD stages might not be as cool as the Mojave or Sahara tents but if large-cap tech branding comes with better logistics I'm all for it .. ACL had more porta-jons, multiple exits at the end of the night, even better grid booklets and entry wristbands .. Austin natives might also find it hard to believe that Coachella has designated "beer gardens" so you can't actually drink while listening to your favorite band .. Quite a contrast from the 24oz Lone Stars they were handing out at Zilker Park .. Only upsides to Coachella were more art exhibits, the dance tent, and less children .. I hope to have kids one day but I don't look forward to explaining what "that smell" is .. After three diligent days in the sun, here are my key takes .. Thanks to PB for letting me sound off and apologies that my photo journalist "forgot" her camera.

BANDS I LIKE MORE POST ACL: Delta Spirit who has a solid album but sound even better live. "Trashcan" is by far their best track which sounded as good as I imagined and "People C'mon" was a lot of fun. Okkervil River reminded me how much I liked them with an awesome version of "Black." It was also the first time I got hit by a beach ball at a show and I totally blew the volley. Stars played a great set and "Take Me to the Riot" stood out. Hot Chip played a cool new version of "Over and Over." And Band of Horses played an incredible twilight set kicking off with "The First Song" & "Is There a Ghost" while the sun was still out and finishing with an upbeat "The General Specific" and a cover of "Am I a Good Man" in pitch black.

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After what has easily been the most hectic 24 hours in my four years of blogging, I'm at the point I've known from the beginning would be the hardest: figuring out what I need to write. Burnt Orange Nation is not a news organization, and I am not a reporter.

However, we are a vibrant community of Texas fans, which means that on occasion outside groups come to us, as the Texas Premier Football Camp did when it asked us to promote its upcoming football camp. After being assured the event was for charity (a site policy), I agreed to promote the event, and did so enthusiastically here.

Because of that and that alone, I'm reporting on details pertaining to that camp that have subsequently surfaced. After careful consideration of what should and shouldn't be reported on the blog, I've decided that camp participants and potential registrars are entitled to the following information, broken down by subject:

ROY WILLIAMS

Two attorneys for Creative Artists Agency, Tracy Lartigue and Mark Heligman insist that Roy Williams will not be attending the camp on July 10th and 11th. Mr. Heligman issued the following statement to me at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday: "Though Roy wishes his good friends B.J. and Sloan all the best in their endeavors, he will not be attending their camp."

At 5:30 p.m., I heard a radio interview with Roy Williams from last week in which he very much sounded like he was attending the camp. After I posted this update to BON, Tracy Lartigue phoned me to say that the commitment heard on the radio was a soft one and that Roy was not in fact attending.

At 7:00 p.m., B.J. Johnson told me that he had just spoken to Roy Williams personally. Johnson said Williams was "trying to make his schedule work so that he could attend." Camp participants who are counting on seeing Roy Williams should follow up with the camp office if they have any questions; as far as I'm concerned, I've hit an impasse. BJ says he believes Roy's going to make it. Mr. Lartigue insists he is not. I have no idea.

MICHAEL GRIFFIN

I spoke with Michael Griffin today at 1:15 p.m.; he informed me that he had never agreed to do the camp and in fact is hosting his own camp a week after the TPFC.

B.J. Johnson told me at 7:00 p.m. that Michael Griffin's name will be removed from the camp website.

BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF THE CAPITAL AREA

At 6:45 p.m., Mark Kiester, CEO of the Boys and Girls Club of the Capital Area, told me that my phone call marked the first time he was hearing about the football camp and that B&GC had not authorized the charity's name to be used with the event. He noted that Michael Huff and Derrick Johnson had previously done a terriffic basketball event for his organization, but that he had not been informed of any upcoming football camp run by BJ Johnson, Sloan Thomas, or Roy Williams.

When I told BJ Johnson this at 7:00 p.m., he said that the charity was being coordinated through Roy Williams' aunt, who has been involved with the TPFC from the beginning. Johnson also mentioned Michael Huff's previous basketball event as a connection to the Boys and Girls Club.

I phoned back Mark Kiester, who said, "I could not have nicer things to say about Michael Huff and Derrick Johnson and the work they've done for this organization. They are two of the best success stories of the Boys and Girls Club I can think of. However, it is absolutely necessary that if BJ Johnson and the Texas Premier Football Camp would like to continue to list the Boys and Girls Club of the Capital Area as its partner, they need to immediately phone our office to go through the partnership procedures, as we do with every event."

CONCLUSION

Among the many things that became clear to me today was that "no-shows" among confirmed guests are common at these types of camps. Given that and the careless manner in which this particular camp has been organized (a charitable characterization, given the Griffin and B&GC situations), Burnt Orange Nation will no longer promote any camps of this kind in the future.

I will not be reporting on the record anything else from today. If camp participants have any further questions that they think I can help them with, they may phone me at 949-910-9238 or send me an email. I will help best I can.

NOTE: COMMENTS FOR THIS POST ARE CLOSED.

Though I will withhold specifics pending the conclusion of my investigation, I feel obligated to note - following Monday's enthusiastic endorsement of the 2008 Texas Premier Football Camp - that I am working late into Tuesday night on an investigation  involving allegations against the very same camp. If those allegations are proven false, there's quite a story about another Texas football camp (the source of the charges); if proven true, there's no way I could possibly stand by my initial endorsement.

In the meantime, I felt it important to state publicly that Monday's endorsement is on hold, pending the outcome of my inquiry.

[UPDATE 9:05 a.m.] While I try to get at the final story behind all this, let me note on the record that I just spoke with B.J. Johnson, who emphatically denies the misrepresentation I'm investigating: "Every [player] listed on the Premier Camp website is coming to the camp." More as soon as I can put the last pieces of this together. This is one of the most bizarre sequences of events I've ever personally encountered.

[UPDATE 11:34 a.m.] I just got off the phone with Roy Williams' attorney Mark Heligman, who informs me that Williams will not be in attendance at the Texas Premier Camp and that CAA has sent a cease and desist letter to BJ Johnson and the camp organizers.

[UPDATE 11:59 a.m.] To clarify a question I received, there's nothing criminal being investigated here. This started because BON wrote a glowing endorsement for the Texas Premier Camp, and took a turn last night when a relevant party informed me that the camp was misrepresenting the participating parties. Both sides have since accused the other of lying, and I've been working to sort it out. In the meantime, I just didn't feel right leaving that initial endorsement post up. We rarely agree to promote events at BON; in this case, it's proving problematic.

[UPDATE 1:28 p.m.] I just got off the phone with Michael Griffin, who also stated he will not be in attendance at the Texas Premier Football Camp. Details in the full story, which is coming together quickly now. (If you're wondering, the answer is yes, he was surprised that the person asking him questions concluded the conversation with a big hat tip to his Rose Bowl interception in 2006.)

[UPDATE 5:43 p.m.] Just when you think things are coming together... they change. As of late last week, Roy Williams was on the radio saying he'd be participating in the camp. As of today, obviously, he's not. The story remains on hold while people try to bridge that gap for me.

[UPDATE: Burnt Orange Nation's endorsement of this event is withdrawn, following the findings in this report.]

Cool: Attending a football camp hosted by B.J. Johnson, Roy Williams, and Sloan Thomas.

Cooler: Attending a football camp whose coaches include Nathan Vasher, Jonathan Scott, Richard Hightower, Michael Huff, Chris Simms, Bo Scaife, Michael Griffin, Derrick Johnson, and Kasey Studdard.

Coolest: Part of the proceeds go to support the Boys and Girls Club of the Capital Area.

For those with youngsters in the region, the 2008 Texas Premier Football Camp will once again be held in Austin during July. This year's camp will take place at LBJ High School on Thursday, July 10th and Friday, July 11th, with each practice running from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The cost of the program is $225. Frankly, I'm shocked it's not more - that's a great price for two days the kids will never forget. (Seriously. I still vividly remember watching TJ Ford lead the dribbling drills at a camp I was attending, then being overjoyed when I was singled out for proper execution of the backwards loopty-loop thing. Or whatever it was called. Who remembers these things?)

Best of all, a chunk of the proceeds support a great organization, so if you're on the fence trying to decide between camp and gasoline for a week... do the right thing. Support a great local charity and save the environment while taking the bus because you're too broke for gas. Everyone wins.

What: 2008 Texas Premier Football Camp

Who: Young football enthusiasts (ages 7-18) and their coaches, who you may recognize

When: July 10-11, from 9:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.

Where: LBJ High School (map)

How: To register, visit the online application center

Why: You heart charity and Texas football and your kids. Right?

Right.

Join the fun here as #7 Texas goes up against defending champions #4 Georgia, in a rematch of an indoor event that the 'Horns lost 4-2.  The match is on ESPNU, and you can also follow it at Tulsa's tournament site .  Check the comments of this post to answer some basic questions about the game format.

Georgia's #1 singles player transferred from UT to Georgia and won a national championship last year.  Let's show him he didn't have to go so far.

Hook 'em!

[Note by Horn Brain, 05/20/08 7:46 PM CDT ]  Texas takes the doubles point with wins on courts 2 and 3, despite Georgia nearly taking the match on 1.  Texas needs to at least split the singles matches to win the championship.

[Note by Horn Brain, 05/20/08 9:49 PM CDT ]  Congratulations to the back-to-back champion Georgia Bulldogs, but more importantly, congratulations to the Longhorns.  They put together a hell of a run through this tournament, beating the #2, 3 and 9 teams in the process.  This is the farthest Texas has ever advanced in the NCAA tourny, so one step at a time, I guess.  Did I mention Big XII champions?  Hook 'em 'Horns!

As with Orange 44's running diary of the National Spelling Bee a couple days ago, we have on our hands another post that deserves instant, solo attention.

Brian from MGoBlog offers a defense of soccer that is among the best pieces of sports writing I've read this, or any, year. It manages to be both thorough and concise at the same time, covering every major sport with the fluid touch only the most thoughtful and talented writers can draw on.

There is a reason that Brian is one of the most-cited, oft-praised sports bloggers in this little college sports universe that we traverse. He is, I think more and more every day, the best sports writer I know.

Go enjoy.

--PB--

*The Dallas Morning News has a feature on former quarterback James Brown, who is one of those guys remembered for one play more than anything else. "I get asked about 'Roll Left' probably about every two weeks," Brown said. "We had run that play many times before. But everybody remembers that one because of the atmosphere of the game."

*Tough luck if you're among those who want Greg Davis gone, like, yesterday. The AAS reports that Davis is happy where he is and not going anywhere.

*The hoops team falls slightly in this week's rankings, netting a 7th rank in the AP and 8th in the Coaches Poll. ESPN's newest bracket projection, meanwhile, downgrades the Horns to a #2 seed, but notes that they can easily play their way back to a #1, and probably will.

--PB--