The Rangers And The Little Southwest Conference

I know it's really football season, but I have to talk a little about the Rangers. Some of us never thought it would happen. The Texas Rangers have won 2 games in a series for the 1st time in franchise history. Big bats and great pitching have led the Rangers to the brink of a berth in the American League Championship Series. Cliff Lee and C.J. Wilson got the job done on the hill, and the offense scored 11 runs in 2 games. Game 3 is Saturday. Let's hope they can put the Rays away on Saturday and move on to the ALCS.

Now to high school football. It is time. The Little Southwest Conference opens play today. What a treat for everyone in West Texas. The last 2 years were a little more empty without the Abilene, Midland, and Odessa schools getting together every Friday night to decide the District Championship. Great traditions, great stadiums and passionate fans. Both Steve Warren and Mike Spradlin said this week that if you don't come to play on any Friday night in this district, you will probably go home with a loss in the books.

The top matchup of the week looks to be between undefeated Cooper and undefeated Midland Lee. I am looking forward to seeing how the Cougars will do in a game against tougher competition for the 1st time since the 2nd week of the season.

Abilene High opens district against Odessa High. The Broncos are a running football team, and if history tells us anything, it tells us that if you bring a one dimensional team up against the Eagles, you will lose.

It is great to have the old district back together, again.

That's not the only great district in the Big Country. District 5-3A looks like it's going to be a dogfight this year. Well, at least a dog and cat fight. The Brownwood Lions are most likely the favorite as the top ranked team in the state in Class 3A, but Snyder, Wylie, Sweetwater, and Big Spring will be right there on their heels. It's a good district and it will be fun to see which 3 teams come out and head to the playoffs.

Now let's sit back and enjoy the fun. The fight for the high school football playoffs is here.

I Tweeted!

So there I was watching the Dallas Cowboys and the Washington Redskins on Sunday night, and I decided to do something I haven't ever done. I tweeted on BCH Sports Twitter for the entire game.

Yes, the guy that was scared to death when KTAB finally got computers in the newsroom back in 1999. My wife even came into the living room and asked me who I was texting with. I said, "I am tweeting about the game." She answered, "I bet you never thought you would say that phrase in your life, did you?" "You have no idea", I replied.

I am what you call "old school". I am usually about 2 years late on most trends, especially when it comes to technology. But that was me, on my couch with my cell phone "tweeting". I can finally see that Twitter is good for things like Sunday night's game between the Cowboys and the Redskins. If you aren't able to watch the game, you can get info from a person or organization like Big Country Homepage Sports on Twitter.

I end this by saying it is hard to teach an old dog new tricks, but it is not impossible. This old dog used Twitter for 3 hours, and I even enjoyed myself.

Things Have Changed In 20 Years

Personally, I am about to celebrate my 20th anniversary at KTAB. That is a great accomplishment because many folks were not sure I would last 1 month. None of the high school athletes we cover were born when I got my big break at KTAB on September 4th.

A lot has changed in 20 years. Let me take you back to the football scene in Abilene in 1990. Abilene High and Cooper each won just 1 game and lost 9. Wylie was the good team, but they were not WYLIE we know now. The Bulldogs advanced to the 3rd round for the 1st time in school history that year. College football, HSU restarted their football program and won 4 games. That's good for a 1st year program and it was the best of any Abilene university. Like AHS and CHS, ACU and McMurry each won 1 game and lost 9.

In 1990, Abilene high schools and universities were 16-47.

In 2009, Abilene high schools and universities were 57-18. AHS won state, Wylie went to the championship game, and ACU went to Division II playoffs.

It's been a great 20 years and I am looking forward to more down the road.

Football practice is rocking and rolling and preparations for the 2010 season are going all over the Big Country and that includes Big Country Homepage Sports. Manny and Tyler are traveling all over the area talking to the coaches and the players of our Big Country schools.

In just 2 weeks, we've been to: Abilene High, Cooper, Wylie, Brownwood, Bangs, Albany, Clyde, Cisco, Eastland, Snyder, Rotan, Roby, Anson, Hawley, Jim Ned, Breckenridge, Sweetwater, and Roscoe. In short we've been busy. All of that on top of the fact that we are planing a Tailgate party at Double Dave's on August 21st to get the season started in the right way. We will be playing games and giving away prizes from 4:30 to 7 that Saturday night to get the rest of you as excited about the new season. We will cap the night with a live television event from 6pm to 7pm at the Tailgate party when we will preview the upcoming 2010 season.

One more thing, the next time you see Manny Diaz out and about be sure to congratulate him on his marriage to his new wife Candace.

Why Are We Doing This Again?

Why are we doing this again?

The United Baseball League is bringing another test series to the Big Country to see if there is a market for minor league baseball.

This is the 3rd time a league has tried to bring minor league baseball back to the Key City and the Big Country since the Abilene Prairie Dogs of the Texas-Louisiana League folded. The previous tries at Driggers Field and in Sweetwater were failures. Why are we doing it again? Why are people going to come to ACU's Scott Field to watch 2 teams they don't have anything invested in?

Simply, they aren't going to come and watch the games. That may be an over simplification. Some people will come watch baseball no matter who's playing. The organizers, 1 of which is former Prairie Dogs general manager Byron Pearce, are hoping for at least 1500 people per game. If that happens, Pearce has said that he might start the process of bringing a team back to Abilene. Let me say the United Baseball League and Pearce the trouble, 1500 people will not come to Scott Field to watch the games.

I think it's great that people want to bring professional baseball back to the Big Country, but until we get someone to bring an affiliated minor league baseball team with a new baseball stadium, minor league baseball is not going to work in Abilene.

May 21, 1988: "THE DAY"

As nice as it would be to remember every detail of every day, there are certain days in your lifethat stick out more that others. That's just a fact of life. Athletes have championships. Historians have July 4th. Teachers have the last day of school. Accountants have April 15th.

I call them, "1 of those days." They are the days that I will always remember.

-September 8th, 1994 and March 14th, 1996 are 2 of "those days" because they are the days my daughters were born.

-Texas A&M beat Texas in 1985, 42 to 10 for the Southwest Conference championship. I was at Kyle Field. That was "1 of those days".

-ACU beat West Texas State in 1987 for the Lone Star Conference basketball championship. I was in the 2nd row of Section F of Moody Coliseum. That was "1 of those days".

-I got to cover Abilene High's victory over Katy for the State Championship in 2009. That was "1 of those days".

-On September 4th 1988, I met Conni Birdwell for the 1st time. That was "1 of those days" that led to THE day.

All of those are great, but the most important day of my life was May 21st, 1988. That is the day my wife, Conni, and I tied the knot. That day was "THE DAY" for so many reasons. That day shaped how my life was going to go.

"THE DAY" helped motivate me to complete my college education and get a job.

I am working at KTAB now because I got married to Conni on "THE DAY." When I was in college I wasn't the most motivated person in the world. I would hear about jobs and not pursue them because I was lazy. After we got married, I heard about a job doing stats for David Bacon during high school and college football games. 2 years later, David got me a job at KTAB, and the rest is history.

I am sure I am a better person because I married Conni on "THE DAY". She has a heart of gold, and I am driven to be like her as far as her compassion for others, her passion for life, and her drive to live a life that would please God.

Conni helped me get through the death of our oldest daughter, Hillary. As you can imagine, our world was rocked when she died shortly after birth because of a heart defect, but Conni and I had each other to help us get through it.

My marriage to Conni on "THE DAY" helps me be a good father to our daughter, Allison. Conni has a tender touch as a mother, and I try to emulate that touch in my approach. I am driven to be a good dad because I want our daughter to grow to be a Christian and a good person who will be a leader for her generation, and I want to please my wife.

Everyone's life is changed the day they got married, so I don't want to say mine was changed more that anyone else. I'm just saying, not everyone is as keenly aware of how important their wedding day was for them, as I am.

May 21, 1988 was "THE DAY". The most important day of my life, and I am so fortunate that God put Conni in my life.

Happy Anniversary, Bun.

Mock Draft For 2010

The NFL Draft is coming up, so I decided to take a shot at who will pick who in the 1st round. Remember, I am guessing just like everyone else, so cut me some slack.

2010 NFL Draft

1. St. Louis: Sam Bradford, QB, OU

2.Detroit: Ndamukong Suh, DT, Nebraska

3.Tampa Bay: Gerald McCoy, DT, OU

4.Washington: Russell Okung, OT, OK State

5.Kansas City: Trent Williams, OT, OU

6.Seattle: Eric Berry, S, Tennessee

7.Cleveland: Bruce Campbell, OT, Maryland

8.Oakland: Bryan Bulaga, OT, Iowa

9.Buffalo: Jimmy Clausen, QB, Notre Dame

10.Jacksonville: Rolando McClain, LB, Alabama

11.Denver: Derrick Morgan, DE, Georgia Tech

12.Miami: C.J. Spiller, RB, Clemson

13.San Francisco: Dez Bryant, WR, Ok. State

14.Seattle: Jason Pierre-Paul, DE, South Florida

15. N.Y. Giants: Dan Williams, DT, Tennessee

16.Tennessee:Joe Haden, CB, Florida

17.San Francisco: Anthony Davis, OT, Rutgers

18.Pittsburgh: Golden Tate, WR, Notre Dame

19.Atlanta: Kyle Wilson, CB, Boise St.

20.Houston: Earl Thomas, S, Texas

21.Cincinnati: Taylor Mays, S, USC

22.New England: Brandon Graham, DE, Michigan

23.Green Bay: Sergio Kindle, DE/OLB, Texas

24. Philadelphia: Sean Weatherspoon, LB, Missouri

25. Baltimore: Jermaine Gresham, TE, OU

26.Arizona: Brian Price, DT, UCLA

27.Dallas: Charles Brown, T, USC

28.San Diego: Ryan Mathews, RB, Fresno St.

29.N.Y. Jets: Markuis Pouncey, C/G, Florida

30.Minnesota: Matthew Cody, DT, Alabama

31. Indianapolis: Mike Iupati, G, Idaho

32. New Orleans: Everson Griffen, DE, USC

Also:

-I think the Browns will take Texas quarterback Colt McCoy in the 2nd round.

-Former ACU Wildcat lineman Tony Washington will be taken by the Cowboys in the 3rd round.

-Look for Tim Tebow to be selected somewhere in the 2nd or 3rd round.

Tiger says, "I am sorry."

An apology, no questions, and he's gone. I have a statement, an apology, another statement and I'm gone.

Tigers apology:

Tiger Woods finally spoke to the world today. He didn't say much about the affairs that he had on his wife, but he did acknowledge that he had affairs. He let people know that he is sorry for the pain he caused his wife and children. He went on to say that his wife and his children were the most important things in his life.

Tiger went further in apologizing to fans, co-workers, and the students in his foundation for his "irresponsible" behavior.

My statement:

It sounds like he has turned a corner. We will see. A tiger doesn't change his strips easily, and we will see if Tiger is the exception to the rule.

I have a real problem with Tiger not letting people ask his questions. He says most of this issue is a private matter, but I am not buying it. He is a public figure. He put himself on the world stage. He made his "private life" public in the profession he chose.

You want to control the story anyway you can, and Tiger is the ultimate control freak. I get it, it is the smart thing to do. However, it would have shown me more if he had spent the morning in front of camera's and reporters for 2 hours answering questions.

My apology:

I am sorry that Tiger apparently didn't know that fooling around on his wife was wrong. I am sorry that Tiger was amoral for most of his adult life. I am sorry that his friends did not see that his arrogance was going to get him in trouble.

Another statement:

I am a Tiger Woods golf fan. I will watch this guy play golf as long as he plays golf. My dad had Jack Nicklaus, and I have Tiger Woods. However, I will not look at him the same. I made the mistake of putting him on a pedestal. I tell my daughter not to do that in relation to celebrities. I should have listened. I am a fan of his golf. I hope to be a fan of his life one day.