GrayEagle

Has the grounds for the lawsuit ever been stated? To me, the suit makes Baylor the laughingstock of the FBS. Man up Bears! As to what, if anything, we might do for ourselves...mostly wait for the fallout. At this point we don't know who the leftovers will be. Does Texas go independent? Do they try to put together a conference that will tolerate the Longhorn Network deal? Who stays and who goes? There are too many questions unanswered to even try to coalesce with another university (if we even have a friend). Personally, I wouldn't mind North Texas prostituting itself to join with UT in whatever conference they can put together. Whatever payout the revised conference would offer is no doubt larger than the new ESPN contract with the Sun Belt Conference would be.

As far as doing anything it's too early; even if you knew that Texas, Texas Tech, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State were to bolt for the Pac12. Were that to happen, Missouri and Kansas become the next prominent players. If the Big 12 continues to exist I believe that it would need a minimum of five to keep the league active. Any less and the MWC controls. This should be off-season stuff but it's gathering as much limelight as the season itself.

Of course our offensive line play will never equal that of OU's but I like the talent that's available. Of the five O linemen only JJ was at the same position and he had a year's staleness (game time that is) and was lost early in the FIU game. The rest were inexperienced at that position so were likely not able to pick up the defensive formations and stunts that FIU threw at them. I thought that they handled their blocking assignments reasonably well. Most of the pressure on our quarterback came from the outside. The containment of Dunbar was that of a defense designed to stop the run so it seemed that there was always an extra rusher on our running backs. I was having a little computer trouble and didn't see much more than half of the game but I don't recall sweeps or screens to counteract clogging the middle. I do remember Byrd making a couple of nice gains on wide sweeps. We did try to pass but were never very effective due to the outside rush. The defensive tackle play was pathetic. Brooks had a tackle on the safety and Abbe had an assist. That was it for defensive tackles for the entire game. I hope that Coach Mac will focus on this position beginning today. Boutwell has to give up 30-50 pounds to his blocker and most of his rushing strengths are nullified. Brooks appears to be our best DT and needs more playing time. I have no clue about the others.

1. Coach Mac inherited perhaps a worse team, talent-wise, at ISU than he did here. 2. The competition, especially teams like Oklahoma and Nebraska, was far superior to anything in the SBC. 3. McCarney had never been a head coach before. 4. His staff had not worked with him before. Dan McCarney has learned what it takes to win. His staff knows what it takes to win. There is no comparison with a first-year coach and the seasoned veteran that he is now. He is still behind many of the teams on his schedule in talent but he will catch up in time. He'll win some games based on his (and his staff's) experience. He'll still lose some games because he just doesn't have the horses but he'll also win some with lesser talent because of motivation and desire. We were out of the FIU game before we could adjust. The second and third quarters we were at least able to stop the bleeding. I think that he has some pretty decent talent now but they lack experience. Freshmen and sophomores are 40% of his two-deep. They need a little time. There really isn't any way to compare his coaching at ISU with what he'll do here; especially from a time factor.

You have named two of the three reasons why I no longer listen to the Ticket. May George soon be able to rub Junior and Gordo's faces in it.

One thing I believe about this coaching staff...they will take this game, correct the mistakes and you will see a much different team against Houston.

Right you are. It's all about viewers. If North Texas can raise the ratings more than another team in a smaller market then you go with increased number of viewers who are potential buyers; allowing the provider to raise their rates because of a larger audience.

Please don't take this as a slam against Overlander. But to add another shooting guard when we are losing two 6'7" players and only have two scholarships to give somehow doesn't mesh. We need at least one more body who can play in the paint. We have two 6'8" forwards who will be seniors next year when this class comes aboard. The only two tall players left after that year will be Robinson and Mitchell. If the NBA offers an amount of money that's virtually impossible to turn down then Mitchell could well be gone. I don't think that we have a prayer of getting Ibeh but there are a couple of big guys that aren't out of the question...yet. I just wish that we could've withheld announcing (or accepting) both Overlander and Pye until we know a little more about some rebounders/shot blockers who also might be able to add some points in the paint. I hope that our recruiters know something that we don't.

Only two of those universities were in the Big West when we were and they're much higher caliber now. Boise State has been a Top 10 team for a couple of years and will likely be again this year. Nevada was in the higher teens this past year. That's nothing similar to the old Big West where attendance of 8-10,000 was the norm and no one was rated. Even with the loss of their Big 3 Mountain West attendance should range from 20,000 at the low end to 50,000 at the top when Fresno State, Hawaii and Nevada enter the conference. The WAC won't exist as a viable football conference in two years although they would if we joined. Based on prior years they won't have anyone capable of drawing a 20,000 average except possibly Louisiana Tech. That's quite a difference.

I don't feel slighted because this was a somewhat special situation. Six former Southwest Conference members had games against one another this coming weekend. They even brought Bill DeOre back to draw the mascot caricatures for this situation. Now if UNT gets omitted in tomorrow's paper I'll cancel my subscription and I hope that others would also.

It just keeps getting ridiculouser and ridiculouser. FYI, Orsini, SMU would not be returning to an AQ because they were never there. It didn't exist when SMU was in the Southwest Conference. There is only one candidate if the Big 12 wants to keep a fairly similar status should A&M leave...Brigham Young. They have a student body of almost 34,000 and regularly has attendance at football games above 50 thousand. I call that big time. The other name that Chuck Carlson banters about, Notre Dame, while listed as an independent, has their other sports teams in the Big East and they are an automatic qualifier through the Big East. Why would they want to give that up for a not-so-stable Big 12? Arkansas is already in a better conference and it's also silly to think that they'd move and lose so much money. Only if the Big XII is interested in expanding beyond ten members would SMU, Houston, North Texas, Air Force, or Colorado State have a chance. I eliminated TCU because they are already in a Big Six conference. If that should happen, or if there is movement by Texas or OU, then it might be a topic for discussion. Until then, get real SMU!

Scott Hall epitomizes the old adage of "He couldn't run. He couldn't pass. All he could do was beat you." Yes, I know that he could run and pass but he was at his greatest when he needed to be.

Good exercise. I hadn't thought of doing it that way but probably because I know how it would come out. Seven of my Top 10 are in CUSA so they're bound to win. Houston (natural rival, similar in size, academics and close enough for easy travel) SMU (would be a great backyard brawl) Air Force (always great to play a service academy and I actually have a discharge from the USAF) Rice (well-known and close; should be a decent draw every year) UTEP (Texas school and we have a good history with them) Memphis (would help our basketball recruiting even more) Louisiana (I love me some Cajun food) Tulsa (some history from the MVC and a good regional opponent) Colorado State (Mean Green vs. lean green) Southern Miss (a lot of our staff passed through there) Boise State (only because they're so good) San Diego State (selfish; my daughter and her family live there) Tulane (I love me some Cajun food...didn't I already say that?) UNLV (great trip; I've made that one before) New Mexico (good basketball; Southwest flies there) In spite of that I think that the MWC will have the better teams and thus a higher ranking. It would not disappoint me if we were able to land in that conference. Our having the largest number of alumni in the DFW market would benefit the Mountain West moreso than CUSA. Frankly, I don't expect that East Carolina and UCF will be in CUSA much longer if the Big East expands. If that happens CUSA may not even look as attractive as it does now. That's still not enough to dissuade me from eight teams that I'd really like for conference mates. I also think that the Sun Belt will show improvement albeit at a slower rate. They should consider going to 12 teams even if it means a smaller payout for awhile.

Fantastic!!!! I wish that I could give you a +100. Really well done.

So, if all five conferences with less than twelve want the 13th game who sits out? If BYU stays independent and would be willing to play one of the conferences it would work but the other alternative is Notre Dame and I'd need some long odds to bet on that happening. Also, we would be relegated to playing the WAC, who may all be independents in a couple of years. The proposal needs work, IMO. It might be as easy to go to 12 and play an SBC championship game.

Just to set the record straight there are 120 teams in the FBS and 35 bowls scheduled for 2011. The BCS championship will have two repeat teams so there will tentatively be 68 teams in 2011-12 bowls. If we can have a .500 record, we are virtually assured of a bowl game even though the SBC is only tied to two bowl games. There are 345 Division I teams that compete for the 68 slots in the NCAA Basketball Tournament. It takes a much better record (percentage-wise) to get into that tournament, or the NIT. So, if you base success on the ability to compete in the Big Dance, you are handicapping basketball since it is much harder to qualify. Yep, it's pretty much apples and oranges. That's why you can't set appearing in a bowl game as football success and require appearing in the Dance as success in basketball.

Success is somewhat like beauty; it is mostly in the eyes of the beholder. However, I don't think that you can equate appearing in a bowl game with appearing in the national tournament. Almost half of the 120 teams are eligible to appear in bowl games and the vast majority do. Only about 20% of the basketball teams can appear in the dance. I don't have a media guide so I don't know the exact figures but I believe that we have appeared in the NCAA Tournament two of the last five years. We have had five or six 20-win seasons in a row which would be the equivalent of 8-win football seasons. We were fortunate this past year to have a ranked recruiting class; not counting last year's #12 recruit in the nation, who should be eligible next semester. Our basketball rankings have been roughly the equivalent of being in the top third in the nation, again approximately the same as being ranked #40 in football and we would kill for that, especially five years in a row. It may be moderate success but it is success nonetheless.

I'm not sure what your criteria for undersized is. Most defensive ends being recruited are less than 250 lbs on the weakside and 10-20 lbs heavier on the strongside. In my opinion, Akpunku should start because he is strong, extremely quick, and experienced. His weight is OK but ideally he needs to be a couple of inches taller. I would not be surprised if Bellazin starts on the other side. He's up to 255, slightly larger than Obi, and has a ton of potential. As of now, it's hard to know whether McCoy will be an end or a tackle. He has had to play tackle because of the lack of development of DTs. Another in the same boat is Ryan Boutwell. I think that his natural position is at strongside DE but he too, has been relegated to playing tackle. If the tackle candidates (Cantly, Abbe, Brooks and Thompson) can develop to the point that Sarge and Boutwell can move back to their strengths then I think that we'll be a much better defense. Mason was a late developer, is undersized, and needs a redshirt year to grow into a FBS defensive end.

All I can say is our DC is high on Will Wright. I firmly believe he'll start.

I thought that it had already been established based on his spring performance. Also, it would seem a little embarrassing to have a team captain sitting on the bench.

Source??? I thought that A. Johnson was a tackle.

Wouldn't the MWC have a rule prohibiting the transfer to another conference school? Hawaii will be a football-playing member of the MWC by the time he would be eligible.

Guys, I'm sorry to bump this back to the board again but I wanted to thank all, and the verbal well-wishers especially, for the kind remarks. I can't live up to the kudos given but they were humbly appreciated. And to Jim if I can make it to Wednesday, Jessica and I will have completed 54 years of marriage. I'm having some health issues at the moment but I'm hopeful that everything will be under control by September 10 when I'll see you at one of the greater events of my life. Not quite equal to my wedding day or the birth of my children but damn close. I cherish the friendship of those on this board, met or unmet, and hope that we are beginning the greatest era of success in the history of our alma mater.

I'm thinking what you're thinking.

Interesting article. It says that there are eight serious contenders for the starting jobs but only two are settled. Maybe it's just me but I feel that four are fairly well settled. I think that Tomlinson, JJ. Johnson, Fortenberry and A. Johnson will be starters but there are several contenders for the fifth spot. To me the problem is Y'Barbo. Originally I thought that Y'Barbo would be moved to center (because of his height) and become the heir apparent when J.J. leaves. That was before Boone Feldt committed and it's looking as if center will not be a problem for the next four years. Y'Barbo may be too good to be stuck with the twos and needs to move to a position where he'll have a better chance of starting. The other two serious contenders for starting positions IMO are Feeley and Adedipe. Feeley's knee may be iffy and Adedipe had missed a couple of seasons before showing up here last year, plus he was a little overweight and out-of-shape. Both seem solid backups and capable of starting. The eighth player is likely Anyiam but it might also be the freshman Lemon, who I believe was a good find. If Bean has gotten his legs rehabbed maybe he could even be a contender. This year is the concern but thinking ahead...seven of whom I consider the top ten offensive linemen return plus the two Feldts. The o-line could easily become the highest-rated unit next year.