Monthly Archives: November 2011

Oklahoma City Thunder

The NBA Lockout and What it Means for the Thunder

3 Comments

In case you hadn't noticed, the NBA has locked out it's players.  Is there hope for an eventual deal and salvaging of this season?  In short, no.  Why?  Because the players are greedy.  What's that?  It's the owners fault you say?  Yes, the owners are greedy too and it's also their fault.  It's everyone's fault and no one is stepping up to try and clean up the mess.

Continue reading The NBA Lockout and What it Means for the Thunder →

The owners are to blame for getting themselves into this situation by overpaying players for years and years and agreeing to a ridiculous collective bargaining agreement the last time around.  So it would only make sense to make things right this time around, right?  Well, yes and no.  Sure they need to clean up a few areas, but they have already given so much in the past that they have now backed themselves into a corner where the players expect to get silly money and now you want them to agree to much, much less?  I don't care if it makes more sense.  These are professional athletes we are talking about here.  When backed into a corner they know only one thing: fight back.

The players are to blame because they were offered, most likely, the best deal they were going to get, but since they felt pressured and cornered, they took it personally and let their emotions take over instead of thinking clearly.  When they responded with a definitive "No" without any counter offer it was clear the players had no intent on meeting on any sort of middle ground.  They were prepared to take financial losses that will be impossible to ever fully recoup simply out of pride.  They say it's about looking out for the players long term and those coming into the league in the next few years.  I say it's about a bunch of bloated ego's and the few speaking for the many.

So, what does all of this mean for the Thunder?  Well, for starters, it more or less ruins any sort of momentum this young team may of had going into the 2011 – 2012 season.  These are valuable games the Thunder are missing out on and being a young team that is still trying to perfect their chemistry, especially with the addition of Perkins last season, is not doing them any favors.  And we're not talking about just missing games.  They aren't even allowed in the team facilities.  That means no practice time, no scrimmages, no shoot-arounds, nothing.  Sure Kevin Durant has made a point to take his talents across the country in various charity events and outdoor leagues, but what are the rest of the guys doing?  Is Thabo out in his backyard working on his jumpshot? Is Perk working on his free throws?  Is Westbrook working on passing the ball?  Sure, they might be, but don't count me as an optimist.

In short, the Thunder need this lockout to end as badly as anyone.  They are in a fragile state and on the brink of something great.  Now is not the time to be putting a fork in the road and possibly messing it all up.  I don't care how it gets done, but I just want to see some basketball this year.  Owners, players, and all others involved: put your pride and greed to the side for one minute and make a deal.  The NFL found a way.  The MLB found a way.  NBA: find a way.

Oklahoma Sooners

The Sooner Defense is Broken

5 Comments

Currently, the Sooner defense is ranked #62 in the nation in average yards given up at 385+ yards/game. This includes games against Missouri (532), Texas Tech (572), Texas A&M (527), and Baylor (617). Teams ahead of them in the rankings include such powerhouses as La. Tech (58), La. Monroe (30), and Kent State (22). Of course, the two best teams in the nation, Alabama and LSU are #1 and #2 in the defensive rankings. I have heard the argument that “if those teams had to play in the Big 12 with spread offenses they wouldn’t be any better.” Hmmm. Is that why Texas is #10 on the list? Apparently they play a little defense (but have no offense).

The problem is varied and I want to list a few of the possibilities here (briefly).

Continue reading The Sooner Defense is Broken →

Complacency/Success. How do you question Stoops who has won Seven Big 12 titles and One National title? Sooner fans are you really that spoiled? I'm so tired of people saying Sooner fans are spoiled because we want more. What's wrong with wanting a defense like Bama or LSU? What is wrong with even "expecting" something better than what we have? After all, it wasn’t Sooner fans who started this year talking national title and a push for #8. It was Bob Stoops and Sooner players. We have become victims of our own success. The urgency to fix something is not there because we have already won more consistently over the past 11 years than anyone else in the Big 12. Bob has built up such a resume that he no longer can be questioned. It doesn’t seem that assistant coaches are held accountable for the repeated poor performance of their players.

Recruiting. We primarily recruit offensive players and then convert some of them to defense. Next year's recruiting class is a primary example with 10 of the 14 commits being on the offensive side of the ball. We recruit a ton of WRs and then when some of them don't pan out we make them DBs. How's that working out for us? One would think with Stoop's background in defense that he would be the first to realize that defense indeed does win championships. Maybe we need to consider offering scholarships to guys who can actually “cover” someone.

Players. This relates to the recruiting issue but one has to ask the question if these guys have been oversold or overvalued? Several of them “appear” to be legitimate talents. But several seem to be victimized repeatedly which makes one wonder about their talent or their ability to understand their assignments. Ultimately they are the ones responsible but I tend to place less blame here than some.

Coaching. Bob started off as a DB coach and uhh this seems to be the biggest weakness. Is it his fault? Sometimes our biggest strength can become our biggest weakness. Is it Martinez, the DB coach? His background is in the SEC at Georgia. His resume sounds good but who knows? Is it Brent Venables? There is no doubt about his passion but what about the defensive schemes? I have heard it suggested that we rely so much on our DBs for run support that they lose focus on their primary task, covering receivers. Is the problem partially in our front seven for not being able to stop the run without help from the secondary? Some have suggested that our schemes are just too complicated. At some point someone has to say “this just isn’t working.”

Will there be coaching changes? Doubtful. Stoops has no history of firing assistants. The only way change will happen is if Joe Castiglione or David Boren get involved. The only way that happens is if we have 2 or 3 bad seasons in a row. The program is making too much money to worry too much at this point.

What’s the answer? It seems that Sooner fans will have to just accept something less than national titles. Barring a magical season like 2000 it doesn’t seem that the Sooners are really at the level of competing for national titles.

Why? Because the defense is broke and no one wants to admit it.

Oklahoma State Cowboys

With Heavy Hearts…

1 Comment

First and foremost, what happened to women's head coach Kurt Budke and three other plane crash victims is beyond my words. Our thoughts and prayers are with every person associated with the Oklahoma State family. God be with you all during this time.

It's almost hard to even begin to talk about the football game with all things considered. However, the game went on, and not like anyone in the country thought it would.

Continue reading With Heavy Hearts… →

Iowa State is not a joke. They play hard for Paul Rhoads. They LOVE to play for him, and recently, they have loved playing spoiler at home. The first game that comes to mind was a couple years ago against Texas that wiped away any hope for the horns to win the Big 12 Championship.

The game just had that sense of an upset early on. The Pokes, very uncharacteristically, turned the ball over a lot. Interceptions and fumbles came early and often against the Cowboys. When a team does that, especially on the road, it spells "upset city". The Cyclones, any other day, had no business being on the field with the pokes. However, that's why they play the game. We all expected Weeden, Blackmon and Randle to have a field day against an inferior opponent. The game drug on, the Cowboys mounted a 24-7 lead early in the third quarter and from that point on, nearly every American would have labeled this game as "done".

The Pokes, once again, allowed over 500 total yards of offense. You just can't expect to win over and over giving up so many yards. In the only two recent close games, OSU hasn't had those timely turnovers that had guided them to a number 2 ranking in the BCS. Teams just can't rely on the turnover margin game after game and expect it to work.

Something happened after Weeden hit Tracy Moore early in the third for a touchdown. The Cowboys owned a 24-7 advantage. The Cyclones marched right back and forced a couple of Weeden interceptions that ultimately won the game in overtime. Was it pressure? Was it heavy hearts? Was it a pure lack of concentration? You tell me. I think it was a combination of Iowa State being in prime game mode. I think it was a sense of worry that they hadn't faced all year. Freshman quarterback Jared Barnett really shined. He accounted for over 450 total yards and three scores. He's going to be a headache for a lot of teams in the next three years for the Big 12. The Cowboys just couldn't find an answer and to me, it's unexplainable. In the end, scabbed by Weeden's third interception, Iowa State scored in three plays to end the game in double overtime 37-31.

Here are a few quotes from the OSU locker room after the game:

–"This one stings. This one's tough," said Oklahoma State quarterback Brandon Weeden, who threw three interceptions.

–"I hate it for the guys. But it's real simple. If you lose the turnover battle in such a big fashion, it's extremely hard to win a game, especially on the road," Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy said.

What a tough loss for OSU, who were poised to march into New Orleans in January to play for the crystal ball. WAIT A SECOND, the Cowboys only slipped to number 4 in the BCS. That means, if Arkansas beats LSU, then Georgia somehow wins the SEC, who knows what can happen! A strong finish by the Cowboys, and with what has happened in this crazy season, anything can happen! It should be a fun ride!

Oklahoma Sooners

The Stars Align and the Sooners Fail…Again

1 Comment

The image above has become a familiar image not only this season, but a reoccurring theme in recent Sooner history.  Every season the Sooners inevitably slip up against an inferior opponent midway through the season and just when we think all hope is lost…the stars align.  You know, all the other undefeated teams that the media deems unbeatable somehow lose and all the other top one loss teams manage to fall to the back of the line.  Such a scenario presented itself once again this year when USC upset Oregon and the Pokes fell to unranked Iowa State.  All the Sooners had to do was win out and they were once again the favorites to be inserted to the National Championship game.

But then the Sooners did what the Sooners always do. 

Continue reading The Stars Align and the Sooners Fail…Again →

They failed to show up against yet another lower tiered opponent and let the Baylor Bears put up the most yards against them of any team in the entire Sooners history.  Yes, the same Baylor Bears who had never beaten the Sooners.  Not once.  The same Baylor squad who only a few weeks ago were blown out in back to back games vs Texas A&M and OSU.  The same Baylor squad that barely squeaked by a Kansas team in overtime who haven't won a game since week 2.  That very same Baylor team lit up the Sooners secondary for 45 points including a last second heave in the back of the end-zone to erase a 14 point 4th quarter Sooner comeback and send the Sooners right back into familiar territory.

The Sooners find themselves once again out of the national title picture and left only to play spoiler now to the Cowboys BCS dreams and hope for another Fiesta bowl appearance.  But lets not get ahead of ourselves.  Does a team loaded with this much talent even deserve to be playing in a BCS game at the end of the year after falling flat twice in the past month?  As embarrassing as the loss to Texas Tech was, this loss may be even more embarrassing.  More embarrassing because a perennial bottom feeder of the Big 12 is able to get their first win ever over Oklahoma just when the BCS was ready to forgive them for their lone loss and praise them for their superb wins.  More embarrassing because Brent Venables had to have seen the holes the Red Raiders sliced through our secondary yet refused to make any adjustments.  Baylor has no business putting up 600+ yards on any team, led alone the #5 ranked team in the nation supposedly fighting for a shot in the National Championship game.

The Bears probably did the Sooners a favor in the end saving them from the possibility of having to face a far superior SEC opponent and being embarrassed on the national stage again.  Now the Sooners may be able to "salvage" the season by knocking off the Cowboys in Stillwater and winning back to back BCS games.  That would have to be considered a success, right?  I'm sure it would be for a school with less tradition, but Oklahoma football comes with high expectations and simply going 10-2 every year is just not going to please the masses.  Is that fair for Stoops and company?  Probably not, but this is Oklahoma football and they know good and well what is expected out of them.

I will be forever grateful to Stoops for the 2000 National Championship, but Sooner Nation is becoming weary if another will come during the Stoops era.  The sad reality is that our defense has let us down year after year and not been the same since Mike Stoops left for Arizona.  If only Bob would welcome his baby brother back into his arms and show Venables the door…oh if only.

Oklahoma State Cowboys

Strike the Pose?

As the season has progressed from the Cowboys, one thing has remained eerily quiet. Has Brandon Weeden established himself as the front runner for the coveted Heisman Trophy? I for one think it's really not even up for discussion. With the success he's lead his team to this season, and the near flawless statistics, one would think this would be a landslide. Will the voters give it to a 28 year old, ex-Yankees pitcher? I don't see why not. His numbers are crazy compared to about everyone in the country, except maybe Case Keenum, who I think is a comparison to Graham Harrell or Colt Brennan, a product of the system. Weeden hands the ball off and watches his plethora of backs score seemingly as much as he connects with Blackmon, whereas the previously mentioned QB's are a throwing system altogether.

Continue reading Strike the Pose? →

Weeden stats through 11/16/2011 (10 games)

313/428 – 3,635 yards – 31TD/9INT

Andrew Luck stats through 11/16/2011 (10 games)

221/313 – 2,695 yards – 29TD/7INT

You can make a case that Luck and the Stanford Cardinal have a run first offense, however, the stats speak for themselves. Luck has suffered a loss, Weeden hasn't. Bottom line. The stats are really similar, but Luck's interceptions strike me faster than Weeden's for the simple fact that Weeden has put the ball in the air nearly 100 times more this season. Two more picks in 100 pass attempts. That's pretty good odds that Luck will throw at least 4 more in the next 100 he throws.

In this day and age, stats have taken a back seat to wins and losses for the Heisman winner. Oklahoma State is 10-0. Stanford is 9-1. That stat alone, in years past has led to the winner. If I had a vote today, I'd vote: 1) Weeden 2) Luck 3) L.James (Oregon)

Rejoice would be in the air for another Heisman winner to walk the campus of Oklahoma State, but I'd be willing to bet they'd trade all this in for a hand on the crystal ball in January. Only time will tell and only one real game left until "Orange Power" travels south to play for it all.