I spent the bulk of the day yesterday in the car.
I traveled from Austin to Houston to visit my Mom and then from Houston back to Dallas later that night. It had just gotten dark as I passed through Fairfield, Texas. Right on the other side of that town, lights were flashing on the overpass. It was one of those county roads you see constantly as you drive through Texas. FM 833. A throwback to the America that required special roads to get folks from Farm to Market. There was a firetruck on the bridge above the highway - it's lights blazing. Beside it, two police cars - also running their lights. I started to make that tense "I hope everyone's ok" face when it became clear that something different was happening here.
There were a dozen or so people, some of them in uniform (be it firefighters or police officers or sheriff's deputies) emergency personnell standing alongside plain-clothesed citizens and children - there, above the highway, in the dark of night... there on a small Texas road in the middle of Interstate 45 - they were hooting and hollering and waving American flags.
It would have been a remarkable display on any day, but on September 11th it was jaw-dropping - not just that these people were waving flags and celebrating their country, but that they found a way to share it with strangers driving by.
It took a second to realize what was going on... and then, of course, the moment was gone. I felt as if I should have honked my horn or waved out the window. I was still thinking about it 6 or 7 miles down the road when I approached Ranch Road 246 in Streetman, Texas, and there they were again. Another group with a fire truck, an ambulance, a police cruiser - officers and responders... husbands, wives and children. This time I laid on the horn and saw arms shoot up in the air as I zoomed by.
In all, this scene played out in front of me 6 or 7 times in a half-hour span. It never got old.
I'm sure the terrorists had quite a celebration on that day in 2001. The breadth of the destruction they caused had to have wildly exceeded even their loftiest hopes. But boy I'll bet our resilience was also vastly underrated.
I saw and heard all sorts of inspiring tributes yesterday. September 11th will clearly never be forgotten. But sometimes it's the simplest things that resonate the most. Thanks to all the good folks along I-45 between Fairfield and Corsicana. I was so busy yesterday that I really didn't get to soak it in and pay fair tribute... at least not until Exit 206.
Monday, September 12, 2011
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Green With Envy
The plot thickens.
The Aggies want out. Hell, the Aggies ARE out… mostly. But now the A&M move to the SEC is being blocked by potential legal action. The theory being that the Aggies departure is the first domino that leads to a mass exodus – and some of the lower-profile schools will be left out in the cold. It’s not a bad theory at all. Schools like Iowa State and Kansas State were counting on the Aggies to keep to their word and honor the agreement they made with the rest of the Big 12. Millions of dollars and national relevance hang in the balance.
But the leader of this lawsuit crew… the school that is actually the fly in the ointment here… is Baylor. And while I DO think that the argument is valid… and I DO think that the Aggies are setting off a series of events that will cripple some of these schools, I am forced to address the Baylor Bears for some of the most incredible hypocrisy I’ve ever witnessed.
The Aggies want out. Hell, the Aggies ARE out… mostly. But now the A&M move to the SEC is being blocked by potential legal action. The theory being that the Aggies departure is the first domino that leads to a mass exodus – and some of the lower-profile schools will be left out in the cold. It’s not a bad theory at all. Schools like Iowa State and Kansas State were counting on the Aggies to keep to their word and honor the agreement they made with the rest of the Big 12. Millions of dollars and national relevance hang in the balance.
But the leader of this lawsuit crew… the school that is actually the fly in the ointment here… is Baylor. And while I DO think that the argument is valid… and I DO think that the Aggies are setting off a series of events that will cripple some of these schools, I am forced to address the Baylor Bears for some of the most incredible hypocrisy I’ve ever witnessed.
If you go to Baylor’s website today, there is a propaganda festival happening – one worthy of a political campaign. Baylor talks about how important football is to the fabric of the state of Texas. They invoke the Dallas Cowboys into this argument and tug at our heartstrings with talk of the Friday Night Lights of the high school game. Now, apparently, that Texas football tradition is being threatened. Directly from their site:
- Will Texans stand by and watch hundred-year-old rivalries be cast aside as the state's largest universities align themselves with other states across the country?
- Will Texans sit and watch as Texas' flagship universities pledge their loyalties to other states?
- Will Texans stand by as our most promising student athletes are lured out of Texas by new rivals?
- Will Texans watch as our most precious resources—the great minds of the next generation—are exported to new conference institutions?
In 1994 the Southwest Conference was in trouble. Arkansas had already left and there were only 8 teams remaining. The Big 8 was interested in merging with some of the bigger-name schools and, just like now, there were several schools that looked like they’d be left holding the bag. Baylor lobbied. They fought, clawed, and schemed. When the dust settled, the Bears had won. They were going with Texas, Texas Tech and Texas A&M to a new conference. So who got stuck with the short end of the stick? TCU. Houston. SMU. Rice. 4 TEXAS SCHOOLS!
Look again at their 4 big points from the website:
1) Baylor stood by and watched rivalries be cast aside. Texas and TCU started playing in 1897 and have faced off 82 times. Baylor didn’t care.
2) Baylor sat and watched as Texas’ flagship universities pledged their loyalties to other states. The Longhorns and Aggies went from playing 7 conference games a year versus in-state teams to 3. Waco wasn’t indignant.
3) Baylor stood by as our most promising student athletes were lured out of Texas. You think Blaine Gabbert goes to Missouri if they’re not affiliated with the Texas schools? Baylor was just happy that they were going.
4) You get the idea. Baylor watched. Baylor PARTICIPATED.
If Baylor cared about the fabric of our state, they wouldn’t have stabbed four Texas universities in the back 17 years ago. Hey, Texas did it, too. I’m not saying we were better. I’m saying we aren’t using revisionist history here.
I understand. I do. Baylor is desperate. The way this thing appears to be headed, a private school without a big media market is in a lot of trouble. They signed a deal with the rest of the Big 12 just last year and the bait and switch the Aggies are pulling is really going to stick it to some of these lower-profile teams. But my friends in green and gold have GOT to change their argument.
Because the Aggies aren’t doing anything to Baylor that Baylor didn’t do to SMU… and Houston… and TCU… and Rice.
Friday, September 2, 2011
365 Dog Days
It was a year ago today that my wife and I walked into a canine rescue shelter called “A Different Breed.” And boy is that ever what we brought home.
For the past twelve months Augie has been 10 pounds of frustration, disasters, anger, destruction… and hair. Oh so much hair.
11 – internet articles I’ve read on the topic of “separation anxiety”
4 - times he managed to escape from a locked crate
3 – rooms in the house in which he has defecated
21 – average number of jumps per hour
4 – sets of full-length wooden blinds pulled off the wall and destroyed
1– hole in the door I’ve punched in with my fist
2 – tables we’ve found him standing on and licking
7 – boards on my fence that have been replaced
3 - times early on that there were SERIOUS discussions of taking him back
6 – chew toys shredded beyond recognition
2 – times that chew toy shreds have been knowingly ingested
8 – pounds of lotion he’s licked off of my wife’s arms and legs
237 – conniption fits thrown when encountering other dogs on a walk
0 – times he has avoided being directly under foot
9 – average number of minutes it takes for him to pee if I’d REALLY rather be inside
He has destroyed a shoe, peed ON a fireman, escaped down the block (TWICE), protest peed out the side of a cage, clawed through a door, and spread feces all over his crate and himself... he's had a busy year.
Every piece of clothing I own has at least one of his hairs on it.
But here’s the thing: Augie has become the sweetest little guy ever. There were some growing pains in the early going for sure, but now - he makes us laugh all day every day. We have little private songs about him (which he dances to) and we could write a dictionary of new terms and phrases we have coined. His "running & wrestling" matches have become a thing of legend and when he lies down and rests his chin on you, good luck not melting. He’s a best friend when one of us is alone in the house and the happiest little greeter when we come home from work.
So as it turns out he’s also 10 pounds of love, friendship, dedication, comedy… and hair. Still a lot of hair. Happy “birthday” Augie.
For the past twelve months Augie has been 10 pounds of frustration, disasters, anger, destruction… and hair. Oh so much hair.
Some Augie facts by the numbers:
2 – times he’s had “kennel cough”11 – internet articles I’ve read on the topic of “separation anxiety”
4 - times he managed to escape from a locked crate
3 – rooms in the house in which he has defecated
21 – average number of jumps per hour
4 – sets of full-length wooden blinds pulled off the wall and destroyed
1– hole in the door I’ve punched in with my fist
2 – tables we’ve found him standing on and licking
7 – boards on my fence that have been replaced
3 - times early on that there were SERIOUS discussions of taking him back
6 – chew toys shredded beyond recognition
2 – times that chew toy shreds have been knowingly ingested
8 – pounds of lotion he’s licked off of my wife’s arms and legs
237 – conniption fits thrown when encountering other dogs on a walk
0 – times he has avoided being directly under foot
9 – average number of minutes it takes for him to pee if I’d REALLY rather be inside
He has destroyed a shoe, peed ON a fireman, escaped down the block (TWICE), protest peed out the side of a cage, clawed through a door, and spread feces all over his crate and himself... he's had a busy year.
Every piece of clothing I own has at least one of his hairs on it.
But here’s the thing: Augie has become the sweetest little guy ever. There were some growing pains in the early going for sure, but now - he makes us laugh all day every day. We have little private songs about him (which he dances to) and we could write a dictionary of new terms and phrases we have coined. His "running & wrestling" matches have become a thing of legend and when he lies down and rests his chin on you, good luck not melting. He’s a best friend when one of us is alone in the house and the happiest little greeter when we come home from work.
So as it turns out he’s also 10 pounds of love, friendship, dedication, comedy… and hair. Still a lot of hair. Happy “birthday” Augie.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Conference Call
The Longhorn Network is on the air and the Aggies are on their way out. The times, they are a-changin’.
As Longhorn fans, we have collectively kept quiet. We’ve sheepishly hung our heads and shrugged our shoulders – nearly apologetic when the topic of the Longhorn Network pops up… and so the shouting continues: “Texas has ruined the conference.” And again, we say nothing.
Well, no more.
First of all, let’s all remember that there would BE no conference without Texas. Our bags were packed. We were headed for the PAC-10 and we were taking Oklahoma, OSU and Tech with us. A&M was splitting off and going to the SEC. It was practically a done deal. Texas would get a nice chunk of big conference TV money AND they would still have been able to have their own network. So what happened? The Big 12 and its other members begged us not to go. They offered us a bigger piece of the pie if we stayed. Texas put a roof over the heads of Kansas, Kansas State, Missouri, Iowa State and Baylor. Did they get a sweet deal in the process? Sure. This is America. The biggest contributions get the biggest compensation. But guess what – each one of those schools is also getting more money this year than they did last. EVERYONE got more money. Texas just got… more more.
And now I’m hearing grumbling from Oklahoma – from a column in yesterday’s Tulsa World:
“OU, like those who still want to make the Big 12 work, is reportedly fed up with Texas seeing how far it can push the others around with tactics like the Longhorn Network.” The columnist suggests that Oklahoma and Oklahoma State may be next to look for greener pastures.
Where to begin?
TACTICS like the Longhorn Network? It’s not like this came as some big surprise. This was a major part of the discussions on keeping the conference together – it wasn’t snuck in the back door. The conference bylaws were re-written to allow ANY school to do this. You want to start the Sooner Network? Do it. (In fact, they’re talking about it.) Just because the Cyclone Network broadcast live from Ames would have zero interest doesn’t mean Texas did something wrong.
I’m standing up. I’m rejecting this “Texas as evil empire” idea.
If other schools (who agreed to and even PUSHED the current revenue split) are unhappy now and want to run for the hills, it is THEY being selfish. And calling for other schools to be “fed up” with the Longhorns so-called superiority and look for other options is irresponsible and FAR worse than anything Texas has done here. Make no mistake - in College Station it’s all about A&M. They’re not lifting a finger to help Baylor. Nobody’s mentioning that the Aggies get more money in the current arrangement than Missouri (which they absolutely do) because right now there’s only one villain. If the Oklahoma schools start looking for another home it’s not for the greater good, it’s because they’re jealous of the deal that they themselves brokered with the Longhorns just 14 months ago. I’m not saying the folks in Austin are being philanthropic here, but the simple truth is that without Texas none of the lower-profile schools would even have a home right now. I don’t hear Kansas State complaining about Texas. They’re happy to have more money than they’ve ever had and a place in a BCS conference.
You want to see messy? Keep bad-mouthing the school that pays all the bills. Maybe then it will be Texas that gets “fed up”… and then where will all those smaller schools be? Oh, that’s right… nobody but Texas seems to care.
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
A New Hope
I’ve heard Mack Brown speak literally hundreds of times. I covered the press conference when he was hired by the Longhorns in December of 1997 and for the past 13 seasons I’ve been listening to him. Mostly it’s before or after games - heat of the moment stuff… press conferences and hit-and-run interviews on the field at halftime. I like our coach. He’s decent in front of a microphone – doesn’t get me too fired up, but never says the wrong thing. Granted 90% of the things I hear him say fall into the same categories: complementing the kids on his team, expressing frustration (and usually accepting blame) when things aren’t going well, and game-specific “x’s and o’s” type stuff.
Tonight I got the other 10%.
I was invited to a “meet the coaches” event here in Dallas and packed into a hotel ballroom with 500 or so of my closest burnt orange-clad friends to hear Mack Brown tell us about how things are going in Longhorn Nation.
In many ways it was a pep rally. In some ways it was an infomercial for the Longhorn Sports Network. It was even, at times, a recruiting tool for the Dallas Longhorn Club. Mack said a lot of the things that I’m sure any coach would have said, but here’s the catch: he said it so well that I was mesmerized.
This was the Mack Brown that high school stars must see in their living rooms – the one that has had a top-5 national recruiting class in 6 of the last 7 seasons. This Mack Brown was engaging. This Mack Brown was funny and anecdotal when called for and he was serious and steadfast when required. This Mack Brown was humble and apologetic for the failures of the past while being spirited and excited about the prospects of the future. If this Mack Brown wasn’t our football coach he’d be our Governor.
For about an hour our football coach held court like I’ve never seen before. The crowd was riveted and not in the way you’d get in a concert hall. This wasn’t entertainment – this was a conversation. Mack took questions, provided even and fair answers and was even a little cheeky when the questions were a bit silly. He told stories of times with Darrell Royal, joked that another Christmas at home without a bowl game might cost him his marriage, and managed to express such confidence in his team and his staff that a Sooner living in College Station would believe him.
Mack Brown says that they’re starting over. As far as he’s concerned this is everyone’s first year in Austin – that it’s the first year for new offensive coordinator Bryan Harsin – the first year for senior leaders like Emmanuel Acho and Blake Gideon – and the first year for coach Mack Brown – and I feel like I’m hearing him for the first time, too.
I’m realistic. Words don’t make your team better. You don’t fix a wealth of problems simply by changing the message. But there’s a new spring in the step of the messenger… and that’s a great place to start.
Tonight I got the other 10%.
I was invited to a “meet the coaches” event here in Dallas and packed into a hotel ballroom with 500 or so of my closest burnt orange-clad friends to hear Mack Brown tell us about how things are going in Longhorn Nation.
In many ways it was a pep rally. In some ways it was an infomercial for the Longhorn Sports Network. It was even, at times, a recruiting tool for the Dallas Longhorn Club. Mack said a lot of the things that I’m sure any coach would have said, but here’s the catch: he said it so well that I was mesmerized.
This was the Mack Brown that high school stars must see in their living rooms – the one that has had a top-5 national recruiting class in 6 of the last 7 seasons. This Mack Brown was engaging. This Mack Brown was funny and anecdotal when called for and he was serious and steadfast when required. This Mack Brown was humble and apologetic for the failures of the past while being spirited and excited about the prospects of the future. If this Mack Brown wasn’t our football coach he’d be our Governor.
For about an hour our football coach held court like I’ve never seen before. The crowd was riveted and not in the way you’d get in a concert hall. This wasn’t entertainment – this was a conversation. Mack took questions, provided even and fair answers and was even a little cheeky when the questions were a bit silly. He told stories of times with Darrell Royal, joked that another Christmas at home without a bowl game might cost him his marriage, and managed to express such confidence in his team and his staff that a Sooner living in College Station would believe him.
Mack Brown says that they’re starting over. As far as he’s concerned this is everyone’s first year in Austin – that it’s the first year for new offensive coordinator Bryan Harsin – the first year for senior leaders like Emmanuel Acho and Blake Gideon – and the first year for coach Mack Brown – and I feel like I’m hearing him for the first time, too.
I’m realistic. Words don’t make your team better. You don’t fix a wealth of problems simply by changing the message. But there’s a new spring in the step of the messenger… and that’s a great place to start.
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Grin and Bear It
It’s official. We have hit a journalistic apocalypse.
The Green Bay Packers just beat the Chicago Bears for a spot in the Super Bowl and the only thing anyone wants to talk about is the outcry about Jay Cutler’s knee.
In case you missed it, the Bears' quarterback got hurt during the NFC Championship Game. He came out to start the second half, played one series and realized he couldn’t plant his foot and throw. It hurt too much and he needed to sit the rest of the game out.
Apparently, instant feedback is now the only kind of feedback that’s relevant, and boy was there plenty of it.
Players around the league went crazy. Facebook, twitter, myspace, youtube – you name it. FELLOW NFL PLAYERS ripping Cutler for not going back into the game because on TV he didn’t LOOK hurt enough. They called him a quitter and questioned his heart, eluding to the idea that he simply wasn’t playing well, so he wanted to stop.
That’s on a very short list of the most ridiculous things I’ve ever heard.
He wasn’t playing very well. I’ll give you that. He had thrown an interception and no touchdowns. But this is Jay Cutler we’re talking about. If he was going to quit playing every time he threw a couple of picks we would never have heard of the guy. Hell, in Washington this year he stayed in until the bitter end after four interceptions! If there’s anything we know about this guy it’s that he’ll keep slinging the thing even if it looks completely hopeless.
Never mind the fact that, as it turns out, an MRI revealed a partial tear of the MCL in his knee. Mention that to the instant sports world of experts and analysts and do you get an apology? Far from it. You get things like, “Man shoot that shit up with a needle. He ain’t got to do much jus drop back and throw the ball.” That’s a direct quote from a grammatically-challenged tweet flowing from the advanced mind of a defensive back named Asante Samuel.
Even guys paid for their opinion piled on.
“As a guy who had 20 knee surgeries you’d have to drag me out on a stretcher to Leave a championship game!”
That’s Mark Schlereth from ESPN. Apparently you now aren’t a true team player unless you destroy your career to stay out there. Maybe that’s WHY Schlereth needed 20 surgeries.
Here’s a thought. Maybe the REAL “team” thing to do is say, “I really want to be out there, but I can’t be any help right now. I can’t throw and we’ll have a better chance if I stay on the bench.” That takes guts, too.
The real problem here is that Cutler had the gaul to be unpopular. People don’t like the guy much. I’m sure he’s contributed plenty to that dynamic. I really don’t care. Personally, I’d have liked to see him wearing a headset and holding a clipboard – doing anything he can to help the backups. To me, that’s the bigger crime.
But to call him soft… to say “If I’m on chicago team jay cutler has to wait till me and the team shower get dressed and leave before he comes in the locker room” (thanks to the philosopher Darnell Dockett for that little gem) – to say that he’s supposed to be out there on a bad leg or he’s worthless… it’s irresponsible and it’s dangerous.
Because fans read tweets. Kids have facebook. We live in a world now where idiots with blogs are taken seriously. You’re reading this, aren’t you? Jay Cutler didn’t deserve this. But people around the league don’t like him and now they have an extremely deadly weapon to use against him.
There’s no longer any responsibility for what becomes mainstream media. Instant feedback has become an instant problem.
The Green Bay Packers just beat the Chicago Bears for a spot in the Super Bowl and the only thing anyone wants to talk about is the outcry about Jay Cutler’s knee.
In case you missed it, the Bears' quarterback got hurt during the NFC Championship Game. He came out to start the second half, played one series and realized he couldn’t plant his foot and throw. It hurt too much and he needed to sit the rest of the game out.
Apparently, instant feedback is now the only kind of feedback that’s relevant, and boy was there plenty of it.
Players around the league went crazy. Facebook, twitter, myspace, youtube – you name it. FELLOW NFL PLAYERS ripping Cutler for not going back into the game because on TV he didn’t LOOK hurt enough. They called him a quitter and questioned his heart, eluding to the idea that he simply wasn’t playing well, so he wanted to stop.
That’s on a very short list of the most ridiculous things I’ve ever heard.
He wasn’t playing very well. I’ll give you that. He had thrown an interception and no touchdowns. But this is Jay Cutler we’re talking about. If he was going to quit playing every time he threw a couple of picks we would never have heard of the guy. Hell, in Washington this year he stayed in until the bitter end after four interceptions! If there’s anything we know about this guy it’s that he’ll keep slinging the thing even if it looks completely hopeless.
Never mind the fact that, as it turns out, an MRI revealed a partial tear of the MCL in his knee. Mention that to the instant sports world of experts and analysts and do you get an apology? Far from it. You get things like, “Man shoot that shit up with a needle. He ain’t got to do much jus drop back and throw the ball.” That’s a direct quote from a grammatically-challenged tweet flowing from the advanced mind of a defensive back named Asante Samuel.
Even guys paid for their opinion piled on.
“As a guy who had 20 knee surgeries you’d have to drag me out on a stretcher to Leave a championship game!”
That’s Mark Schlereth from ESPN. Apparently you now aren’t a true team player unless you destroy your career to stay out there. Maybe that’s WHY Schlereth needed 20 surgeries.
Here’s a thought. Maybe the REAL “team” thing to do is say, “I really want to be out there, but I can’t be any help right now. I can’t throw and we’ll have a better chance if I stay on the bench.” That takes guts, too.
The real problem here is that Cutler had the gaul to be unpopular. People don’t like the guy much. I’m sure he’s contributed plenty to that dynamic. I really don’t care. Personally, I’d have liked to see him wearing a headset and holding a clipboard – doing anything he can to help the backups. To me, that’s the bigger crime.
But to call him soft… to say “If I’m on chicago team jay cutler has to wait till me and the team shower get dressed and leave before he comes in the locker room” (thanks to the philosopher Darnell Dockett for that little gem) – to say that he’s supposed to be out there on a bad leg or he’s worthless… it’s irresponsible and it’s dangerous.
Because fans read tweets. Kids have facebook. We live in a world now where idiots with blogs are taken seriously. You’re reading this, aren’t you? Jay Cutler didn’t deserve this. But people around the league don’t like him and now they have an extremely deadly weapon to use against him.
There’s no longer any responsibility for what becomes mainstream media. Instant feedback has become an instant problem.
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
A League of Their Own
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve sat around with sports fans having the “different levels of competition” discussion. Could the best high school football team in the country beat an average college team? Could the college national champs hang with a bad NBA team? It’s a fun conversation, but the answer is always “no.” I don’t care how dominant the College World Series champs might have looked… the Pittsburgh Pirates would kick the crap out of them. The levels just aren’t the same.
So why do we insist on comparing things about which there is no comparison?
ESPN has been falling all over themselves this week to tell us about the UConn women’s basketball team and their amazing streak of 89 consecutive wins. I use the word “amazing” here, because that’s what I think it is. It’s amazing to win 89 straight games and the Lady Huskies and their fans should be very proud. We may never see anything like it again in women’s hoops. But ESPN goes a step further. “With its 89th victory, UConn passed the 1971-74 UCLA men's program, which won 88 straight, to claim the longest win streak in NCAA Division I basketball history.”
I’m sorry. It’s just not the same.
To start with, it’s LITERALLY not the same game. It might look the same, but there are differences. The 3-point line is closer. The ball is smaller. But the real difference comes in the level of competition. The UConn women are dominant in a sport that has very little depth. Take a look at their streak. They have AVERAGED 30-point wins for 89 straight games. Very rarely has anyone even been CLOSE to beating them. You could argue that it makes the streak even MORE impressive. I agree. But it also proves why you can’t compare the two streaks.
They got their 89th win last night against a pretty good Florida State team. In fact, FSU was ranked #20 in the country. So obviously that means this would be a real nailbiter and that the streak was really in jeopardy. Um… no. UConn predictably rolled ‘em. It was a 27-point game by halftime. The game that “tied” the UCLA record? A 31-point thumping of the 11th-ranked team in the nation. There is very little competition below the top 5 or so teams in women’s basketball. That means that in a typical season (and postseason) UConn really only will play 2 or 3 games against teams with any realistic chance to beat them. Most of the time it’s just leading lambs to slaughter.
UCLA was tested much more often. Forget 4 or 5 teams in the COUNTRY that are formidable. The Bruins had 4 or 5 teams in their CONFERENCE. It’s apples to oranges.
ESPN got caught up in a local phenomenon that I saw a lot in TV news: the story closest to you is the biggest story. If the baseball and hockey teams are both playing and you happen to be AT the hockey game... there’s a decent chance that you’ll over-inflate the value of that game. It’s only natural – you got a little too excited being in the middle of it.
ESPN – the “worldwide leader in sports” makes their home in Bristol, Connecticut. I guarantee that over the past few weeks as this streak was reaching its apex, folks in Bristol were talking about it – a LOT. You probably couldn’t go anywhere in town without hearing about it. Lady Huskies talk at the grocery store and the hairdresser… at the Blockbuster and the Dairy Queen. Would this story be getting the same kind of ESPN attention if it was the Lady Longhorns team from Austin? I doubt it.
ESPN got a little too excited.
UConn did something remarkable - something that may never be seen again in women’s basketball. But it’s a record that should be reserved for WOMEN’S basketball. UConn has no more to do with UCLA’s record than women’s softball has to do with the New York Yankees.
You may be thinking, “but they’re not even playing the same game!”
Exactly.
So why do we insist on comparing things about which there is no comparison?
ESPN has been falling all over themselves this week to tell us about the UConn women’s basketball team and their amazing streak of 89 consecutive wins. I use the word “amazing” here, because that’s what I think it is. It’s amazing to win 89 straight games and the Lady Huskies and their fans should be very proud. We may never see anything like it again in women’s hoops. But ESPN goes a step further. “With its 89th victory, UConn passed the 1971-74 UCLA men's program, which won 88 straight, to claim the longest win streak in NCAA Division I basketball history.”
I’m sorry. It’s just not the same.
To start with, it’s LITERALLY not the same game. It might look the same, but there are differences. The 3-point line is closer. The ball is smaller. But the real difference comes in the level of competition. The UConn women are dominant in a sport that has very little depth. Take a look at their streak. They have AVERAGED 30-point wins for 89 straight games. Very rarely has anyone even been CLOSE to beating them. You could argue that it makes the streak even MORE impressive. I agree. But it also proves why you can’t compare the two streaks.
They got their 89th win last night against a pretty good Florida State team. In fact, FSU was ranked #20 in the country. So obviously that means this would be a real nailbiter and that the streak was really in jeopardy. Um… no. UConn predictably rolled ‘em. It was a 27-point game by halftime. The game that “tied” the UCLA record? A 31-point thumping of the 11th-ranked team in the nation. There is very little competition below the top 5 or so teams in women’s basketball. That means that in a typical season (and postseason) UConn really only will play 2 or 3 games against teams with any realistic chance to beat them. Most of the time it’s just leading lambs to slaughter.
UCLA was tested much more often. Forget 4 or 5 teams in the COUNTRY that are formidable. The Bruins had 4 or 5 teams in their CONFERENCE. It’s apples to oranges.
ESPN got caught up in a local phenomenon that I saw a lot in TV news: the story closest to you is the biggest story. If the baseball and hockey teams are both playing and you happen to be AT the hockey game... there’s a decent chance that you’ll over-inflate the value of that game. It’s only natural – you got a little too excited being in the middle of it.
ESPN – the “worldwide leader in sports” makes their home in Bristol, Connecticut. I guarantee that over the past few weeks as this streak was reaching its apex, folks in Bristol were talking about it – a LOT. You probably couldn’t go anywhere in town without hearing about it. Lady Huskies talk at the grocery store and the hairdresser… at the Blockbuster and the Dairy Queen. Would this story be getting the same kind of ESPN attention if it was the Lady Longhorns team from Austin? I doubt it.
ESPN got a little too excited.
UConn did something remarkable - something that may never be seen again in women’s basketball. But it’s a record that should be reserved for WOMEN’S basketball. UConn has no more to do with UCLA’s record than women’s softball has to do with the New York Yankees.
You may be thinking, “but they’re not even playing the same game!”
Exactly.
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