Tag Archives: NCAA

Tuesday, May, 10, 2016 – Here’s What I’m Thinking – or Déjà vu all over again.

Tuesday, May, 10, 2016 – Here’s What I’m Thinking – or Déjà vu all over again.

Given that I somehow picked up a cyber bucket load of friends over the weekend I thought I better tell everyone about Here’s What I’m Thinking again. I am already wondering how many have Unfollowed or Unfriended me already.

I write a weblog called Here’s What I’m Thinking (HWIT). The blog then connects to Facebook and other social media sites. The easiest way to read what I am thinking about is to Google Drdrd85.me. It should take you directly to the website.

The purpose is to make at least one person smile/laugh or think every day – Monday through Friday and sometimes on the weekend. Notice: it is not called Here’s What I Believe. Nor it is called Here’s What I think You Should Believe.

During the seasons (college football and college basketball) I write about sports. But it is not your ordinary sports column – mine include critiques of all fashion attire from the press box to the field. “Bent Mushberger? Who dressed you this morning? Please retire and go away.”

Monday is always My Monday after Football Weekend Awards. You can almost bet money that The Ugliest Uniform Award will go to the West Coast and probably from Oregon. Is there NIKE factory just for pukey yellow?

I write about teams I like and teams that play teams that I like. This includes The Fighting Texas Aggies, the LSU Tigers, the rest of the SEC except for Florida and any school from that peninsula. I write about Uncle Will Muschamp at SC or whatever school happens to have hired him. I write about the Baylor Bears, THE University of Texas at Austin and what is left of the Big 12 Conference, the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks and Notre Dame or RL and refer to them as the NBC Network Conference.

Sidebar: Alabama. I have nothing to say about the school at the moment. But I know if I do not specifically mention Alabama, the Roll Tide Roll readers will comment.

Somedays I think about politics. Since none of us seem to know what to think about this year’s presidential election, I am a bipartisan snark. For example: Please sign the petition to get Hillary to stop wearing the green brocade jacket. It looks like you made it from the parlor curtains. Or perhaps to Mr. Trump – Sir, if elected will you have your private plane repainted as Air Force One or will you purchase a new one?”

I seem to have a diverse group of readers representing many views and experiences. Please know I respect you and your views. While I may disagree with you on some issues I will defend to the death and Remember the Alamo your right to say it.

Some days I write about the Texas public education system and the educational institution. You think the loss of cursive writing is an issue. See what else is happening to the youth of America.

As the first Native Born Texan in the family, I post many topics about Texas.

Texas Wall 2 (800x592)

My Proud to be from Texas Wall.

But as my dear Mama used to say “The only thing that separates a Coon Ass from a Jack Ass is the Sabine River.” Some days Louisiana gets the topic de jour. See French. Good, huh?

And of course I write about my family and friends. This is how I get readers. They live in fear of what I am going to say. If I know you or have known you, I WILL write about you at some point in time. You should hope I refer to you with a loving nickname because I like you and only you know who you are. If I don’t like you, I might add all of your personal information including a MapQuest link to your house.

At least 98% of what I post is my original work including photographs. The remaining 2% comes from other postings only if I am impressed or too lazy to post my own work. If I use some one’s photo, I try to give credit to the photographer or from whose collection I borrowed it.

That is a summary of Here’s What I Thinking. Thank you for reading. I hope you find something along the way to make you smile or think about.

Texas Flag @ Sunset (800x600)

Photo by me.

CC: Hillary Clinton’s email server

Monday, March 21, 2016 – Please Excuse – One Sweet 16 Ready To Go and One Sweet 16 on the Court Tonight.

Monday, March 21, 2016 – Please Excuse – One Sweet 16 Ready To Go and One Sweet 16 on the Court Tonight.

To Whom It May Concern: Please excuse all Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks from work and school today because they lost by one point to Notre Dame. Way to go Jacks for almost another upset and for a great season. Please note: Do Not play Notre Dame on a Sunday – especially the Sunday that kicks off Holy Week.

And speaking of miracles – Please excuse all Texas Aggies from work and school and anybody who watched the most amazing comeback in NCAA men’s basketball history. How many had already changed the channel with the Texas Aggies behind by 12 points to University of Northern Iowa with 44 seconds to play? Shut up, Barkley. If the other team should have won, it would have. Remember you went to Auburn. If you went to Texas A&M you would know “I’ve seen ‘em win; I’ve seen ‘em lose, but I’ve never seen ‘em give up!”

But that was yesterday and yesterday’s gone. Tonight coming to you live from Reed Arena in College Station The Fighting Texas Aggie Women will tip off against Florida State University. This is Anriel Howard. – Aka Lashes by her team mates.

Lashes 2 (800x450)

Texas Aggie #5 Anriel Howard photo by me

She is a freshman and on Saturday she set an NCAA Tournament record with 27 rebounds in a single game! She is a 5’11” forward from Atlanta, Georgia. In high school she enjoyed setting records in multiple sports not to mention being crowned homecoming queen, yearbook editor, and National Honor Society. http://www.12thman.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=3327

Check out the hair. Big Basketball Hair– Even I can see her eyelashes from my seats and I just had cataract surgery. Check out her legs. She is a two-sport athlete and will compete in the triple jump with the Aggie track team when basketball season ends. Her gait while running down the court is beautiful to watch. This young lady has it going on. Check out the fashionable shorts.

Congratulations to #5 Anriel Howard.

To the entire team: BTHO Florida State.

Sunday, March, 20, 2016 – Get Your Facts on the Jacks Straight, Man!

Ax'Em Jacks!

Sunday, March, 20, 2016 – Get Your Facts on the Jacks Straight, Man!

This was on Yahoo Sports this morning. “For a team that only began its basketball program in the mid-1980s, the Lumberjacks have carved out a niche for themselves in the Southland. This is their third straight NCAA appearance — fourth overall — and their second victory. As a 12 seed in 2014, the Lumberjacks upset fifth-seeded VCU. https://www.yahoo.com/sports/news/ncaa-tournament-2016-stephen-f-223500563.html

Then what sport were the Lumberjacks playing in Shelton Gym when they won all of those NAIA championships in the 1970’s? More specifically during the 1967- 1971 when I was a student “neath Texas pines where we’ve found peaceful shrines”

Let’s give the sport’s writer the Ax, Jacks.

Perhaps the sportswriters have just discovered what is behind The Pine Curtain.

Ax’Em, Jacks! Beat Notre Dame!

Buddy Glasses

Wednesday, March 9, 2016 – Your Basketball Bracket Primer – Going Dancing – Part I – The Women’s Tournament

Wednesday, March 9, 2016 – Your NCAA Basketball Tournament Bracket Primer – Going Dancing – Part I – The Women’s Tournament

Gather ye basketballs while ye may, the time is still a flying; And that same team that flies today; tomorrow will be dying.

Monday evening the ESPN will air the selection show for the NCAA Division I women’s tournament. Sixty-four teams will be selected to go to the dance. Let’s start with terminology.

Automatic bid – these are teams who win their conference or their conference tournament. It is like going to the dance with your long-time boy/girl friend.

At large invitation – these are teams who did not win their conference or their conference tourney, but will get to go to the dance. It like hoping you get asked to the big dance by somebody.

Bracket – a funny little chart showing which teams play against one another. More to come on brackets after Monday.

Bracket Virgins – your first time to complete a tournament bracket.

The Dance – the championship tournament is referred to as “the dance.” I do not know why.

Final Four – the last four teams left after everybody has played through their bracket. These teams play to be crowned 2016 Basketball National Champions.

Hardware/Bling – Hardware refers to the trophy; Bling refers to the BIG diamond rings you get if you win the tournament. The bling is the size of the nob on your dresser drawers.

Ticket punched – this is the term that a team received an automatic invitation and is loading the bus or plane to travel to a destination selected by people who actually get paid to watch, analyze and make up brackets for sporting events.

Let’s see who already has their tickets punched to the Dance and the conferences represented.

  1. George Washington – A-10 Conference
  2. Notre Dame – ACC
  3. Chattanooga – Southern
  4. South Carolina – SEC
  5. Maryland – Big 10
  6. Oregon State – Pac 12 – Go Beavers! It is not the usual champ – Stanford. Sorry Tara V. I hope you get an at-large bid.
  7. Iona – MAAC Conference. I must admit I was devastated when Iona upset Quinnipiac 57-41.
  8. Yale – Ivy League
  9. St. Johns – Big East Conference. It is St. Johns first trip to the Dance since 1988. Come on – you got to like St. Johns. Their band plays New York – New York – “Start spreading the news; I’m leaving today…”
  10. Baylor – Big 12 Conference
  11. UNC Wilmington – Colonial Conference
  12. University of San Francisco – WCC
  13. Florida Gulf Coast – Atlantic Sun
  14. UNC Ashville – Big South
  15. Northern Iowa – Missouri Valley
  16. Austin Peay – Ohio Valley

I have never heard of most these teams either and my TV automatically turns to ESPN so do not fret.

Still to come – tournament winners from the following alphabet soup of conferences: West Coast; Mountain West; American East, MAC, SWAC, Big Sky MEAC, WAC. No, I have no idea what the letters stand for either. You have Google on your computer, look them up.

I think I left out a team. Oh yes – UConn from the AAC. I refer to this team as Geno and his Giants. I shall yell for any team playing UConn.

The at-large bids will “round out” the field of 64 teams. This should include Texas A&M, THE University of Texas @ Austin, and other teams that are really good basketball teams.

Then play begins. There is no tomorrow. You win or you go home. The objective is to continue to play until there are only four teams left. This is called The Final Four. Notice: there are four teams I have bolded. These are my Final Four predictions. Notre Dame, South Carolina, Baylor and UConn.

Another prediction: Baylor will win the Championship Game against UConn.

But then again it is not called March Madness without reason. Yale or any other team could throw the ball toward the basket on a desperate shot and win on a buzzer beater. A buzzer beater is defined as: with the scored tied and only seconds left to play in the game, a desperation shot is attempted; the ball goes through the basket and the team wins. Shades of Louisville several years ago and all Baylor fans wanted to (or did) throw up.

As we wait for Selection Monday, let’s begin to cheer for teams we want to win somewhere in the tournament. Sic’ Em Bears. Gig ‘Em Aggies and yes, even Hook ‘Em Horns. Somebody bring that hardware and bling back to The Lone Star State from Connecticut! Geno and the Giants already have too much hardware and too much bling. It is someone else’s turn for hardware and bling.

GB & Me (800x600)

GB (Gary Blair – Texas A&M women’s basketball coach) and me. Photo by the crazy women who shoved me out of the way to get her photo made with GB.

Thursday, January 8, 2015 – The Birthday of the ELVI

Thursday, January 8, 2015 – The Birthday of the ELVI

Today would have been Elvis Presley’s 80th birthday.  Happy Birthday to one of the most significant cultural icons of the 20th Century.

I suppose you are bringing in the firewood, layering up, covering your petunia or hunkering down in frigid anticipation of The Big FREEZE. It is 23 degrees here in the Brazos Valley this morning with more cold and the dreaded precipitation coming this weekend.  Stay warm.

I see where the Oregon football team does not get to practice as much as THE Ohio State football team.  It seems with the new playoff system, the excess of the way too many NCAA rules has created some unforeseen problems.  It has to do with the start of the semester.  When the university is in session, as in the case of Oregon, a team can only practice 20 hours per week or 4 hours per day. However, THE Ohio State is not yet in session so the Buckeyes can do whatever they want.

Don’t you hate it when academics and athletics collide?

On a serious note – today’s “to do” list.

  1. Draw or look at a cartoon today in memory and honor of the French political cartoonists killed in the terrorists attack.
  2. Say prayer (or moment of silence) for peace and
  3. Remember freedom of the press is a cornerstone of democratic nations.

Lent Day Eighteen

Lent Day Eighteen

Saturday, March 22, 2014 – Oh future bright, Neath the purple and white, all hail to SFA; Neath Texas pines, we have found peaceful shrines where every month is May. Long live our alma mater; honor to thee for aye; As years unfold happy memories we’ll hold; all hail to SFA. Yes, I still remember the words to the SFA school song. I can also say the Greek alphabet while holding a burning match and get to Omega before the flame burns out. Something else I learned at SFA besides the school song. VCU, you can kiss my axe! Last’s night’s game was one of those happy unfolding memories we’ll hold. Here’s to the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks first NCAA victory in what was an incredible and unbelievable basketball game. There have been no blow out victories in the tournament. In fact, there have been many “poopy undies victories,” because the favored, big name school was taken down to the final minutes or seconds before escaping with a win over a small school, but obviously powerful team. The NCAA women’s games begin today. The bracket of the POTUS has the Catholics playing the Baylor Baptists, I mean Bears, in the Elite Eight for the Championship of Notre Dame Region. We both have ND winning. He also has UConn and Texas A&M playing for the Championship of the Lincoln region. We both have UConn winning. Reveille, you can take down that Huskie. OK, maybe not. Maybe Gary Blair can bore Geno to victory. I have great admiration for Coach Blair, but dang he talks slow. The POTUS has ND and UConn in the Championship Game. I do too. The irresistible force and the immoveable object. Baring a major upset this will be the first in NCAA women’s basketball history where the final two teams come in undefeated. UConn will have one loss when the lights go out.