AND THEN THERE WERE NINE!

Well let's see, when we last left our hero, he was hanging on for dear life, by a thread if you will, and then_____________

Kinda feels like that, or worse a badly written Soap Opera, thats what the BIG XII should be called-- another "Peyton Place"... (for those of you too young to remember that particular Soap Opera, ask someone over 50!)

Alright, so here's the deal.... Texas A&M has now officially left the BIG XII Conference to take their toys and move to the Southeastern Conference  (aka SEC), and it has been said, so they will no longer be made fun of, joked about, or disrespected! REALLY?????

So much for over 100 years of tradition, 100 years of being a part of a rivalry that is pretty much the fabric of College Football, no, they took their toys and left, because the University of Texas has their own network, and didn't share with the rest!

Lets back up a moment, shall we? 

Oklahoma University (OU), Oklahoma State University (OSU), Texas Tech (TT) and Texas (UT), were all ready to bolt the BIG XII to head to the PAC 12... but wait-- the PAC 12 said.... NO WE DON"T WANT YOUR LITTLE SORRY ASSES HERE IN OUR CONFERENCE.. well maybe thats not a DIRECT quote, but you get the jest of the subject! So they decided to hang-- but there's a caveat, brought upon by OU, they wanted current BIG 12 commissioner Dan Bebe to resign! Which HE DID! IN DOING SO, the conference is now back together, because OU said they would stick, and with that, OSU HAS to stay, because by Oklahoma legislature they have to be together (joined at the preverbal hip as it was. Now Texas never really wanted to leave, and Texas Tech is sort of the younger brother and will do whatever Older brother says! in this case Texas.

NOW! With Nebraska, and Colorado leaving, and Texas A&M sprinting off next year, they will leave the BIG IX, unless they find someone to fill the other three spots!

Here are some schools being considered-- BYU (Brigham Young) TCU (Texas Christian) SMU (Southern Methodist), and Houston (UH).  Now I am not sure about TCU since they reneged on their situation with the Big East, since both Syracuse and Pittsburgh have decided to go to the ACC.... TCU has decided to return to the Mountain West Conference, though if they were to come to the BIG IX they would have a great rivalry with Baylor, and IF SMU comes in, with their cross I-30 rival! But what about Texas.. they still have Oklahoma, but they two schools had a rivalry long before they were in the same Conference- -in FACT-- Oklahoma once upon a time ago was in the SouthWest Conference-- they left and went to the BIG 8, and yet the rivalry survived on the 2nd Saturday of October during the State Fair Of Texas... now will Texas A&M Continue their rivalry with Texas during the Thanksgiving Holiday? Interesting thought don't you think?

So here we sit, once again trying to figure out-- Good bye to Texas University, So long to the Orange and the White... Good luck to dear old Texas Aggies... They are the boys who show the real old fight

Really? SERIOUSLY? YOU BUYING THAT?

Not any more-- those are the words to their own fight song-- they make direct reference to the school that they hate so much-- and yet they ran from, when they, (UT) was able to solidify a Television deal with ESPN to make their own network-- REALLY? AGGIES? THE BOYS WHO SHOW THE REAL OLD FIGHT? C'mon now!

Alright-- so here's what might happen-- the BIG IX will once again get two or three teams to join to take the place of the ones that have departed-- Texas and A&M might continue their rivalry somewhere down the road but now right away!

118 years-- that's how long this rivalry has been going on-- that's almost FIVE GENERATIONS that have grown up knowing about this hatred for each other-- that's 118 years of telling each other to "GO TO HELL".. that's A&M Sawing off Varsity's Horns... and Texas saying Texas Fight, Texas Fight and its GOOD BYE to A&M in their fight song! So now who are they going to call out?

Texas and A&M will continue their rival game-- it just won't have the same impact-- sorta like when Texas used to play OU in the old days before the BIG XII... when The Southwest Conference and the BIG 8 were still in business-- they kept the second Saturday of October date at the Cotton Bowl during the State Fair-- then after 1996-- it became a real game-- a fight if you will for a Conference win or loss-- Now with A&M it will just be a none conference game that will count in the overall wins and losses for the season! Here's to old traditions-- in hopes that something's never die!

Just a thought!

SEPTEMBER 11, 2011 TEN YEARS LATER

THIS IS A DAY THAT WILL LIVE IN INFAMY!

Words that sound familiuar to those of you that are old enough to know your history.... President Franklin D. Roosevelt said those same words on December 8th, 1941, to declare war on the Empire of Japan.

However, on a clear, crisp September morning, Tuesday to be exact, two airplanes, commercial airplanes for that matter, were hijacked, and flown directly into two buildings, in New York, then a thrid smasked into the side of the Pentegon and yet another flight was headed for either the White House or the Capitol, until i twas taken back by passengers who knew they were doomed!

Where were you when you heard the word, or saw the images? What were you doing? What did you feel?
We ask our parents or grand parents how they felt when they first heard that the Japanese had attacked those Naval Ships that were moored in the Harbor, and we saw images of the plumes of smoke bellowing from the hulls of the great battle ships, the USS Arizona listing, then sinking, the USS Oklahoma capsizing and loosing all that life that were on board or shot and killed by straffing aircraft.

This was different-- this was not war, this was innocent lives that were taken, they had not taken an oathe to protect or defend our nation against all enemies, foreign or domestic, they were just people going about their lives, going to work in Lower Manhattan, in two office towers that stretched into the sky! They were secretaries, lawyers, accountants, diamond brokers, just every day people doing what they do, day in and day out. They were passengers on aircraft, going to business meetings, or seeing family, or whatever took them to the destination they were choosing to go. They were pilots, and flight attendants who were in charge of taking care of those passengers. They were Policemen, and Firemen who were asked to protect and to serve the public in New York, they lost their lives as well when the two towers were dropped after those two aircrafts smashed into them.

The military was attacked as well at the Pentegon, when the third airplane smashed the side of the outer ring, our leaders were being protected, we had no idea what else was about to happen.

I was living in Lufkin, Texas, and for 18 and half hours, we were on the radio trying to bring calm, just to another portion of the country, to assure them that we were going to be safe, at least for that portion of the state.

We had politcal leaders on the air with us, to talk to the community, and to try and make some sense of all of this, even though no one knew any information, we had no idea who was actually behind the attacks, we had no idea if there were going to be more, or if this wave of terror was it for the day. The sounds outside our radio station in Lufkin, Texas was absolutely quiet. No sounds at all. No cars on the roads, no airplanes flying overhead, and the talk was in hush tones.
Remembering that during the first moments, when word came to us that a plane had struck the first World Trade Center building, we all thought the same thing, "Oh the tragedy!" That someone had mis-calculated, and flew his plane into the building, then we saw how much damage was casued by the plane, and it wasn't long after that, while watching live television, we see a second plane smash into the other tower, and the person who i was on the air with, and eveyrone in our office said the same word at the same time-- TERROIST!

From that moment forward, our lives changed, some for the better, others, not too sure how that worked out, but none the less, we found out quickly, that once again, a sleeping Giant had been awaken, and those who were responsible for this were hunted, and back on May 1st, the proclaimed leader of the attackes Osama Bin Lauden, was killed by an elite team of Navy Seals, only to have lost their lives not too many weeks ago themselves when they were shot down out of the sky by another faction of terrorist.

Remembering what we were doing, what we said, what we were feeling... for me it will be the Friday of that week, when America decided that we were not going to allow this event stop our lives completely... the 14th of September was a night that was somber, it was special, it was nieghbor, friend, stranger, teacher, parent, student, athlete, stepped into a stadium, the lights were turned on, and the first strains of the National Anthem was playing... EVERYONE stood, and placed their hand over their heart, their mouths didn't sing the words, they almost shouted them-- for once those words were not just something said out of habit-- they actually had meaning... Tears streamed down faces, and arms wrapped around people to assure them that WE, as a community and as a nation were going to be ok!

Everyday since that horrible moment, we have changed our life, we have had our difficulties, we have had our differences, but the same constent theme continues.... you don't mess with America! THIS IS ONE NATION, that is going to fight back, and not be taken lightly!

To those who wear uniforms of our armed forces we salute you and applaud you for a job that at times is thankless.. and to those a little closer to home... there is a reason why you are known as the Finest and the Bravest, because you do a thankless job-- and you do it selfleshly, rushing into harms way at times, protecting and serving us so no harm comes to us!
We will ask for G-d to bless those who need comfort on this day of rememberance, and to our country to keep her strong, and to keep our protectors as strong!

Just a thought!

What a Tangled Web We Weave!

It starts with a single drop of a pebble into the water and we watch the ripple affect.

That’s what is happening with the Big XII… or TEN or whatever you wish to call the conference these days.

The Texas A&M Aggies have informed the conference of its intentions of leaving the conference in June of 2012, and in doing so, possibly going to the Southeast Conference (SEC), and no sooner is that announced, the Pac 12 has said, they are entertaining the offer of Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas and Texas Tech to join their conference to make it the Pac 16.

NOW, that leaves teams such as Kansas, Kansas State, Iowa State, Missouri, and Baylor to fend for themselves.

Speculation is that the Iowa State, Kansas and Kansas State might go Big East or ACC. Missouri to the Big 10/12 (whatever) and that leaves Baylor- dog paddling to find a home.

This also leaves SMU, and Houston, that thought about joining the Big XII remaining in Conference USA, or maybe another conference. So what would happen if—the Big XII were to maintain Baylor as the corner stone, and bring (now hold your breath) SMU, Houston, Rice, UTEP, maybe Tulsa, Tulane, and Arkansas State into a conference of 8 teams, and call it (wait for it) The Big 8 or Southwest Conference—OH perish the thought!!

REALLY! Those who are much brighter than me, have stated that would give those schools a fighting chance to have some sort of opportunity for recruiting, and keep those schools in major markets (i.e. Dallas/Ft. Worth being the biggest, followed by Houston) How much would that help? I have no idea, other than I can’t see this working, but Bob Stoops and Mac Brown have both stated that this is about money, and making Super Conferences, and when you consider that if that happens, College Football will have to truly consider the possibility of a playoff system to crown a National Championship.

In my own opinion, I think that the temptation that the Pac 12 is offering needs to be held off, that the 10 year plan that the Big XII had put in place needs to be maintained, and bring in two more teams (and make your choices as they are), but in the end, the SUPER CONFERENCES will make the sport more convoluted, and watered down. I think that the power house teams will find out that they are going to be the top schools year in and year out, and that the also ran in the conferences will be left out in the cold.

Schools such as Vanderbilt, or Cal, that haven’t sniffed a National Championship will never make it to that tier. That they will always be looking up, and what does that get you in your conference, other than when you find them on your schedule, you mark it as a WIN. It happens year in and year out!

Look at schools such as Northwestern in the Big 10, they have gone to the Rose Bowl once in the last dozen years, or Indiana, when was the last time they played in a major bowl, what about Arkansas—how’s that really working out for you Razorbacks, when was the last time they were close to the National Championship—1969? Really? Baylor? The same—Texas A&M 1930 something? And you have a better opportunity to run the table and be in a major BCS Bowl this year than any other year—Texas is not the same team as they were two years ago, Texas Tech is getting there—Oklahoma will most likely be playing for the a Championship, maybe LSU out of SEC, and who in the Pac 12 will lead them to the promise land—USC is on probation, and in the Big 10? Take your pick…

Super Conferences might be the way of the future according to Stoops and Brown, but the facts are, it will be the same schools just different conferences, and the lesser schools will still be fighting for their lives.

The ripple affect is spreading and, it doesn’t have a ending, or if it does, it might not be a good one.

“Oh what tangled web we weave when we first practice to deceive”—Walter Scott

Just a thought….