Change is neither good nor bad, change is just change

We'd love to give credit to whomever first gave us the memorable quote that is the title, but we can't remember. We started this blog almost a year ago basically so that we would have a reason to talk almost every day. Is that pathetic? Does that play right into the theory that we're not really friends, but in fact an old married couple? That's for others to judge.

The point is, sometime in the last year it turned out that someone other than our parents and eight of our friends started to read this thing. So this post is to let all of you--we still don't believe there are more than 15 of you out there--know that there will be a bit of a slowdown here on 40 Acre Sports. We will continue to keep the site up and post to it regularly. Our thoughts on LSU, Tulane, the Cardinals, the Saints, the Hornets, the Red Sox/Nats/whomever Jeff is pretending to be a fan of today (go Capitals!), and some Texas items will remain here. But, the bulk of our Texas posting will now take place on Burnt Orange Nation. So go there. Now.

It could be a great month...

Will Muschamp for defensive coordinator?

Darrell Scott to replace Jamaal Charles?

Football season to mercifully end?

A whole bunch of older Texas fans to descend on San Antonio for the Army All-American Bowl to convince high schoolers significantly younger than them from various states throughout the country that Texas is the correct institution for them to continue their educational pursuits?

We're hoping that January will be a great month.

A Great Time to be a Longhorn

First, we readily admit that this is a classic offseason thing to notice. But, we're noticing it anyway. The thought shot from the back of our minds to the front of our blog during a recent round of golf with an Alabama fan. Our initial conversation was born when he saw our Longhorn head covers, golf towel, and divot-repair tool. The exchange went like this:

Bama Guy: Texas fan, huh?

Us: Yeah; what tipped you off?

Bama guy: Well, it's a good school to pull for; they win a lot, and do it with class.


This level of respect from a total, non-conference outsider got us thinking actively again: we are a lucky bunch of fans. We are blessed to have three classy winners as coaches in the three biggest sports. The combination of Mack Brown, Rick Barnes, and Augie Garrido is enough to make almost any American university jealous. These guys generally bring in good kids, good athletes, and win the right way. They run high-profile programs in a manner that can make us proud that they are the most recognizable faces of The University. So the next time one of the Horns' ball teams is in the middle of a sub-par season, don't get sucked in by some of our more hotheaded brethren who are calling for firings. Instead, remember: this guy is our coach, and if we continue to trust him he'll bring us a winner next year. Enjoy these men. It won't last forever, folks.

Baseball Round Up -- History in Stillwater

In 26 years of play at Allie P Reynolds Stadium, Oklahoma State had never been swept. That was until this weekend. Oklahoma State came in averaging nearly 9 runs per game, but only scored 4 runs the entire series (3-2, 7-2, 7-0). Longhorn batters flashed their power, hitting 5 HRs in the series. The pitching staff saw great relief appearances from Randy Boone and Joseph Krebs. Austin Wood was solid in a Sunday start, to go with a solid 5 innings from James Russell and 6 1/3 from Adrian Alaniz. Jordan Danks struggled mightily at the plate but Chais Fuller had a solid weekend of defense and hitting from the shortstop position.

The sweep gives Texas a 3.5 lead in the Big XII standings. Taking two of three from Missouri next weekend would clinch the Big XII regular season title for the Horns. Texas returns to action next Friday night in Austin against Mizzou.

Baseball Preview v. #12 Oklahoma State

The #5 ranked Texas Longhorns will travel to Stillwater to face on #12 Oklahoma State this weekend in a key Big XII battle. Texas brings a balanced attack of solid pitching, timely hitting and good defense to face an offensively-focused Cowboys ball club. Oklahoma State ranks #1 in the Big XII in batting average, runs, hits, doubles, and home runs. Conversely, Texas ranks #1 in the Big XII in many pitching categories, including ERA and wins. A series win here would be the 12th straight for Texas and could all but seal up the Big XII regular season title. Texas leads Oklahoma State by 2.5 games entering this weekend's crucial series.

PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS
April 27, 2007
Texas: LHP James Russell (8-3, 3.66 ERA)
Oklahoma State: RHP Jeff Breedlove (2-0, 2.88 ERA)

April 28, 2007
Texas: RHP Adrian Alaniz (10-2, 2.54 ERA)
Oklahoma State: RHP Oliver Odle (4-3, 4.80 ERA)

April 29, 2007
Texas: LHP Joseph Krebs (5-0, 2.63 ERA)
Oklahoma State: TBA

Well...Crap

Way back when we were in school, there were a few things we knew to be true. Oklahoma sucked, Vince Young was the best player in college football history, and Jason Klotz was a mix of Ivan Drago and Connor Atchley...before Connor was Connor Atchley.

I must break you!

Additionally, there was one immutable, unchangeable certainty more rock solid than the law of gravity and theory of evolution (outside of Kansas) combined, and that was that Texas A&M did not beat Texas. Oh, sure, they would get lucky with a half court shot in basketball every once in a while, and they could have women's soccer because soccer isn't a real sport.

But over the aggregate assortment of all sports, Texas had always been and would always be king. We even had Aggy agree to an annual award confirming our dominance over them: the Lone Star Showdown. Texas cruised in the first two years of the award but this year, unbelievably, we're running into trouble.

With last night's softball loss to Aggy, Texas A&M has climbed to within a point (8 1/2 to 7 1/2) of Texas with 3 points left. Odds are we'll win Men's Outdoor Track and Field, which leaves us needing to win either Women's Outdoor Track and Field or baseball to take the cup.

It's pretty unbelievable that we've reached this point. Let us all root for both track and field and baseball to right this wrong. And we can all thank our lucky stars that meat judging wasn't included in the standings, because we'd be screwed if it was.

Baseball Round Up -- Kyle Russell Goes for the Cycle!

Normally we wouldn't recap a routine win against over matched UTPA, but we wanted to recognize Kyle Russell hitting HR #24. Then Kyle went and hit for the cycle, including a mercy-rule inducing single to end the game in the seventh. Kyle's final line: 4/5, 2b, 3b, HR, 3 R, 5 RBI. Not a bad night at the Disch. Baseball returns to action Friday in a crucial series against Oklahoma State.

Baseball Round Up -- Texas v. Nebraska

The Longhorn baseball team bounced back from a disastrous Friday night to take a 3-game series against Nebraska, winning Saturday and Sunday in impressive fashion. Nebraska was coming off series wins against Oklahoma State and Oklahoma, and presented a significant challenge for the Horns.

Nebraska pitcher Tony Watson pitched a complete game two-hitter on Friday night as Nebraska won 7-0. James Russell (8-3) took the loss for the Horns.

Adrian Alaniz (10-2) and the Texas offense proved Friday night was an abberation in a 8-4 win. Kyle Russell hit his school record 22nd HR of the season in the top of the first, but Texas would have to rally from down 4-2 after three innings. Texas responded with three in the fourth and two more runs in the fifth inning to take a 7-4 lead. Alaniz would go 7 2/3 innings and Randy Boone would work the final 1 1/3.

Adrian Alaniz

Texas earned its eleventh straight series victory with a win on Sunday. The game was delayed nearly 40 minutes in the third inning because of rain. Joesph Krebs (5-0) picked up the win for the Horns with 6 1/3 solid innings, giving up two unearned runs on four hits. Kyle Russell hit is 23rd HR of the season in the top of the first to stake the Horns to a 2-0 lead. Nebraska tied it up in the bottom of the first but Texas would respond with four runs in the top of the third. Randy Boone finished the game off, pitching 2 2/3 innings, giving up only one hit and striking out three.

Texas has UT-Pan American on Tuesday night before travelling to Stillwater to face Oklahoma State. Seemingly the only questions left for the Horns to answer are when will they seal the Big XII title and how many home runs can Kyle Russell hit?

Sooners to be Bomar'd at Cotton Bowl Until 2015

The Dallas Morning News is reporting that a deal has been reached to keep Texas-OU at the Cotton Bowl for the foreseeable future. According to the article:

Dallas Mayor Laura Miller will announce Friday that the future of the Texas-OU game at the Cotton Bowl during the State Fair will be extended through 2015, several Dallas officials said Thursday.

This is great news for the future of the Texas-OU game which we feel strongly is one of the best in college football. There's just something unique to this series about seeing half a stadium filled with burnt orange and the other half emptying as Rodrique Wright does his best Carl Lewis impersonation while Rhett Bomar contemplates about his future as a car salesman.

On Beating Aggy and Baseball

A few morning ramblings to get you through the day:

• Congrats are in order for the UT women's tennis team for defeating Texas A&M and bringing the Lone Star Showdown magic number down to 1.5 for the Horns to clinch for the third straight year. Texas now leads the "showdown" 8.5 to 6 with 4.5 points remaining.
• The Cardinals still can't hit
• Dice-K is getting the Pedro treatment from the Bo Sox. Tuesday's outing: 7 innings, 3 hits, 10 strikeouts and getting saddled with a 2-1 loss. As usual, all of America will undoubtedly tune in to watch Yanks-Sox this weekend as all three games are on national TV.
• Caption Contest #2 will be open through Sunday, limit two entries per person. At the end of the offseason, the person with the most Caption Contest victories will receive a prize.

Kyle Breaks the Record, Rice Breaks the Streak

The 5th-ranked Longhorns baseball team fell 7-4 to #6 Rice in Houston tonight in a steady drizzle. The loss breaks a 10-game Texas win streak against the Owls. The last time Texas lost to Rice, Tim Moss and Omar Quintanilla were roaming Texas's middle infield. All things considered, losing one game in every 11 against your top-10, in-state rival is nothing to lose any sleep over.

Rice played a very impressive ballgame. Starting pitcher Chris Kelley looked nearly unhittable at times. He scattered 4 hits and 2 runs over 6 innings of work--but one of those hits (and one of those runs) was Kyle Russell's record-breaking 21st homer of the season on the top of the 6th. It was against the wind, opposite field, and a no-doubter. Kyle is now the Longhorns' all-time leading single-season homerun hitter, and with plenty of ABs still to go.

Russell's bomb, however, was the lone bright spot for the usually-daunting Texas offense. Leadoff hitter Jordan Danks and number 2 man Chance Wheeless combined for an 0-for-9 night, and both scored the Golden Sombrero with 3 strikeouts each.

The Owls gave themselves a comfortable cushion in the bottom of the 5th, when Texas reliever Pat McCrory walked the first 2 hitters who both ended up scoring on DH Aaron Luna's double which chased McCrory. That one-hit, 2-run frame left Rice with a 4-1 lead.

The Horns entered the 7th trailing 6-2, but gave themselves a shot to get back in the hunt. Nick Peoples and Chais Fuller led off with back-to-back singles, and then Rice reliever Scott Lonergan pulled a 2006-World-Series-Detroit-Tigers move by throwing away a sure out at 3rd on a Travis Tucker bunt, allowing Peoples to score. Fuller then scored on a Lonergan wild pitch which put Tucker on 3rd base with nobody out. But a failed safety squeeze by Danks, a K by Wheeless, and a pop-out by Bradley Suttle ended Texas' best threat of the night, and the Longhorns could get nothing going for the rest of the night.

Tonight was an indication of just how good Rice's pitchers are when they're on. Aside from Lonergan's tough night, Rice got great outings from Kelley and Cole St. Clair. On the orange side, starter Austin Wood gave up 2 runs and 3 hits in just 3.1 innings of work, but those numbers don't indicate a couple of bailouts he received from his defense. The middle-relief combo of McCrory, Hunter Harris, and Keith Shinaberry, although they were not terrible. Randy Boone had one batter, 3 pitches, and one strikeout. Alex Posey pitched the 8th and did not allow a run.

The loss is just the 11th of the year for Texas, and you can bet that Augie's boys are hoping to get another shot at Rice in Omaha in June. Next up, the Longhorns travel to Lincoln for a big conference series against Nebraska. All 3 games are televised, kind of: Friday's is on CSTV, Saturday's is on FSN Southwest, and Sunday's game is on ESPNU. For the 2 of you who get that channel.

Baseball Round Up -- "There are killer bees in Central Texas"

Travis Tucker's AB and base running in the bottom of the seventh in Sunday's final game against Texas Tech can be described with one word: Augieball. Trailing 2-1 in a game where the bats just weren't working, Tucker led off the seventh. Knowing that the Longhorns needed base runners, Tucker quickly worked a four pitch walk. Tucker stole second base, then stole third and scored the tying run on a Jordan Danks single up the middle two batters later. Texas would score three runs in the seventh and sweep the series with Texas Tech (7-2, 10-1 and 4-2). The series was their second Big XII series sweep and their 10th straight series victory.

The Horns showed several reasons this weekend why they may be going far in June.

• Starting pitching: All three starters went at least 6 innings, combining for 24 strikeouts and 4 earned runs. James Russell and Adrian Alaniz have been doing this more or less all season, but if Joseph Krebs is pitching well then the Horns will be a very tough out.


• Relief pitching: Aside from a few appearances, Randy Boone has been lights out this season. Sunday was really the only time Texas needed solid relief pitching and Boone responded beautifully with 3 innings, 22 pitches and no hits to pick up the win. Hunter Harris and Pat McCrory also pitched spectacularly in limited appearances. Relief pitching is certainly not a strong suit of this team, the bullpen does seem to be coming together at just the right time.


• Power: Just about the only thing that didn't happen this weekend was a Kyle Russell home run. Bradley Suttle hit his 10th homer of the season on Friday, Chance Wheeless went yard on Saturday, and Texas put up three or more runs four times. Considering they were playing in the vacuum that is Disch-Falk, Texas is proving that it has one of the best offenses in the country


• Defense: Statistically speaking, this Texas team is tied with the 2005 team as the best defensive team in the Augie era (both had a .978 fielding percentage). There's not much more to say about this other than to note that comparisons to the 2005 team are a good thing.


• The lineup: Right now, the Texas batting order is like a murderers' row. They can hit for average, they can hit for power, they can steal bases and there aren't a whole lot of holes. Kyle Russell is slugging an insane .874, the team is averaging 8.2 runs per game with Danks leading off and Tucker, Danks and Nick Peoples have stolen a combined 43 of 47 bases.

Throw in Joseph Krebs reaching career highs in innings and pitches thrown and it was a great weekend for the Longhorns. About the only thing that went wrong this weekend was a stoppage of play in the bottom half of Sunday's critical seventh inning after a Tech outfielder was attacked by "killer bees", as Keith Moreland described it. We've said it once and we'll say it again, Texas has the finest home field advantage in the nation.

Texas v. Texas Tech Game 1

James Russell returned to form, scattering 9 hits over 6 2/3 innings. Russell struck out 11 and gave up just two runs. Pat McCrory was solid in two scoreless innings of relief. Bradley Suttle went 3 for 4 from the plate with 3 RBI, including a solo shot to start off the 3rd inning for the Horns.

Adrian Alaniz is on the mound for the Horns tomorrow...oh, wait, the score. Friday's game was suspended because of rain with 2 men on, 2 outs in the top of the ninth with the Horns leading 7-2. Matt Smith is at the place for the Red Raiders facing a 2-1 count. The last inning, hopefully a two pitch strikeout, will be concluded Saturday.

Several non-conference basketball games announced

The Statesman is reporting that UT has firmed up a number of its non-conference basketball games for next year, and it is an impressive list. In addition to playing in the inaugural Legends Classic, the Horns will play at UCLA, Arkansas and Michigan State (Palace at Auburn Hills).

The premiere home game appears to be a December 29th date with Wisconsin. The non-conference schedule should be a great test for the Horns in what could very well be a down year for the Big XII.

The VY Rule

Definition: Once in a lifetime player. Professional superstar. Immediately among your favorite pro teams after being drafted

I mean...just look at this!

Examples: VY, Kevin Durant, TJ Ford, Huston Street (borderline)

ESPN Classic Reaction: "NO....NO!"

The Chris Simms Rule

Hype starts NOW

Definition: Chris Simms...that's it. During his four years on the 40 Acres, you either hated Chris Simms or thought he wasn't so bad. He set several Longhorn records, won a ton of games and ended on a high note with a great Cotton Bowl victory versus LSU. He also never beat Oklahoma, ruined any chance for the Horns to go to the national championship game in 2001 and wasn't Major Applewhite. Those that grew up loving the Major don't like Chris. Those that liked bowl games early in bowl season loved him.

Examples: Chris Simms

ESPN Classic Reaction: Why didn't he throw to Roy Williams more? Or...why did he throw to Roy Williams there?

The Drew Gressett Rule

Drew would have totally shut down Carmello Anthony

Definition: Fan favorites for quality teams. Players who either rarely saw the field or did so in a limited capacity. Jewish is a plus. No real chance at a professional career.

Examples: Drew Gressett, Brett Robins, Michael Unger, Ivan Williams (borderline)

ESPN Classic Reaction: Laugh out loud

Just Not To The Celtics...

Rumor has it that KD is set to announce as soon as this afternoon that he'll be going pro. If that's truly the case, thanks for the memories Kevin! We'll update as soon as we hear something a little more concrete.It's unclear just how much Kevin leaving will hurt next year's team although Connor Atchley getting more touches can only be a good thing, right? For now let us celebrate every additional moment that KD is a Longhorn...

4:00 EST Update: Burnt Orange Nation reporting that KD is gone, expecting a press conference sometime soon. We'll file a longer long range forecast of how this affects Texas basketball (short answer -- a lot) later in the week.

Kyle Russell: Man or Machine?

We won't pretend to an all-out analysis of the Thursday-Saturday baseball series that the Longhorns won in Lawrence this weekend; for that, visit the official Texas Sports website; that is, if it isn't down again.

But, this guy was fortunate enough to be visiting Middle Bro, who attends KU, and thus got to go to the rubber game on Saturday (as well as the ugly last couple of innings on Friday). The KU starting pitcher, Andy Marks, was very impressive Saturday, throwing a confusing mix of junk that had Horns' hitters frustrated most of the afternoon. It was a good enough performance to make a casual observer wonder why the Jayhawks haven't won more games this season. But, the Longhorns uncharacteristically won the game via the long ball. Nick Peoples started it off with a solo shot. Then, the very powerful Kyle Russell joined in the party--first with a 3-run dinger to give Texas a 4-0 lead, then with a solo bomb of his own to tie the game at 5-5. The game-winning run came on an RBI double off the center field wall by Russell Moldenhauer in the top of the 8th, after he had fouled off 2 bunt attempts. Hmmm...small ball, huh?

Kyle's second dinger tied him with Jeff Ontiveros for the Texas all-time single season home run record with 20 for the year. Ontiveros set the record in the CWS championship season of 2002 in which he played 72 games. Kyle tied the record playing in just 38 games and with at least 21 games remaining in the season (going out on a limb to say this Horns team will at least make the NCAA tournament). Consider that the Longhorns have been playing baseball for quite a while and historically Texas has had one of the top programs in college baseball, all which makes Kyle's season all the more spectacular. Hopefully we'll get to see Kyle hit a few monster shots out of Omaha in a few months.

Joseph Krebs pitched admirably, but the Texas gloves left something to be desired. Kansas put together a game-tying 4-run rally in the bottom of the 5th. However, it should be noted that all 4 runs were unearned because, with the bases loaded and 2 outs, second baseman Travis Tucker committed a fielding error that allowed the inning to continue and the first run to score. Tucker seemed to be in a hurry to field the ball and tag the runner headed to second, but with 2 out all he needed to do was sit back and make the easy play to first. So, Krebs did not get the win even though he performed well enough to earn it.

The silver lining on the mound was the relief effort of Randy Boone. Boone came in to stop the bleeding in that 5th inning, and after giving up an RBI double on his first pitch and allowing a go-ahead run in the 6th, he shut the 'Hawks down for the remainder of the game to take the win.

All in all, it's nice to get a series win on the road--particularly in cold, windy conditions against a Kansas squad that clearly brought its A-game. Since starting 2-4 and losing its first two series, the Longhorns have won 8 straight series going 26-6 in the process. They now stand at 28-10 overall for the year.

Zach Johnson and more

A few hours earlier it seems we prematurely predicted a Tiger Woods victory in the Masters. The Sunday afternoon of the Masters is arguably the most enjoyable/beautiful period of television of the entire year but apparently nobody wanted to win the tournament this year. What is undeniable is that Tiger-proofing Augusta National plus extraordinarily difficult course conditions made the course far tougher this year and nearly led to the highest finishing score in the history of the tournament. Zach Johnson eventually won the whole thing and in the process tied the highest finishing score of one-over par which came in 1956. This year's tournament contrasts sharply from Tiger's 1997 tournament victory in which he shot 18-under par on the very same course.

As to Kevin Durant, the internet rumors stem from a draftexpress.com article which says that "according to multiple sources, both from the NBA and close to the player himself, Kevin Durant will be announcing in a press conference mid next week that he will be putting his name in the draft." It's not that we dispute that KD will be going pro, but the fact that no "major" news organizations have picked up on this creates doubt as the authenticity of the report...right now. If/when Kevin goes pro, Longhorn nation should wish him nothing but the best.

Finally, as the sports seasons go round and round, readers will notice that 40 Acres Sports revolves around one college team, one NFL team (the Saints) and two Major League teams (Red Sox and Cardinals) and until Kevin Durant declares pro, we'll hold out on die-hard support for an NBA team.

As far as the Red Sox go, they've started out somewhat slowly although Dice-K's spectacular debut was...spectacular. At 2-3 right now, the biggest concern may be the depth of the starting pitching. Question marks still remain for the bottom of the line-up and relief pitching but the season still looks to be in great shape. Tonight, the Red Sox try to salvage a game from the Rangers with Curt Schilling on the mound. Already Papi's gone yard twice.

You can read all about it tomorrow on Curt's blog. That's it for now, we'll be back later with a recap of the weekend that was in Longhorn baseball.