BON used to be all about the discussion, the debate, the quasi-intellectual inquiries tangent to our beloved Longhorns.  My first season on BON was the 2005 football season, so we didn't have much to bitch about.  But following that season, even if things went awry on the field, BON posters maintained a sense of respect and humility in their comments.  Today, BON is still a better source of news and discussion board than, say, Dallas Morning News online, but it's fallen a step or two.  It's a nice website, but I feel that the integrity of the BON community is compromised when posters spout off hateful shit.

Immediately after Wake Forest destroyed our dreams of getting slaughtered by Kentucky, the dams gave way and some posters really let the venom spew.  Some posts were unfair, and I responded with the following:

I'm sick of the personal attacks on the players.  Did some of them suck at times?  Yes.  Does that give fans license to be complete assholes?  No. Some didn't live up to YOUR expectations, but guess what, they busted their asses for their team, their coaches, their university, and (even though sometimes we don't deserve it) they busted their asses for us.

Why all the fucking ad hominem attacks?  It's not enough to say "damn I'm frustrated with Jordan Hamilton's shot selection."  Instead people suggest or declare outright that he's just stupid.  Perhaps it's not that he's stupid or selfish, but that he was so fucking uptight, and so desperate to make things happen for his team that he threw up bad shots or drove with the ball when he should have passed.  Fuck, I'm so frustrated with the personal attacks, the bitching (yes, I'm bitching right now, I realize the irony). 

Pittman?  Here are the typical points: He's lazy.  He doesn't care about this team.  He's a failure.  It's obvious by the way he....fouls easily, misses close range shots?  I'm not sure how he's a failed project.  He came in as a three star 400 pound butterball.

Mason?  Oh this guy -- just a loser, right?  Fuck no.  This guy did every damn thing he could.  He swallowed his pride, and played his ass off.  And for those with selective memories, he had a handful of really nice performances this season, especially right after Dogus went down.  And even if he didn't have good performances, he doesn't deserve the hostility.  Shit, some people are deluded, that somehow they're entitled to fling personal attacks from their computer. 

JCB.  Head case, right?  Look at this guy jack shots, practically begging the team to fast break the other way.  Yeah, he made some bad passes and took some sorry shots.  But at some point, some posters shifted from critiquing his game to questioning his character.  Like he's selfish or petulant, arrogant, no wonder his HS coach kicked him off the team, right?  Fuck that.

I'm done with this section about the players.  I saw the poor play, too.  Pittman, Hamilton, Mason, others all had flaws in their game this year.  Sometimes players plateau.  Barnes has a lot to do with it, i agree.  But damn, let's keep it above the belt.  Imagine how pissed you felt when you heard Aggies calling Colt a pussy after that nasty Kellen Heard hit.  (yeah, slightly different context).  But there's some line that most of us can sense that separates personal attacks from critiques of one's game or abilities.  An aside, I would approve of personal attacks if the kid was a verifiable asshole (ripping on teammates, getting arrested for armed robbery, etc)  Some feel just fine hurling insults and questioning these kids' character.  I think that this sort of behavior falls under the "dick move" classification.  Steve Polycronopolous would insult the kid instead of the kid's game.  You know what Steve Polycronopolous is?  A self-proclaimed dick.

Cooling down now.   I just blew my top after reading through some of these comments.  I noticed some F-bombs, plenty of shit flying down on Pittman.  (really?  it's the end of the season, just lost a pretty exciting game against a deserving opponent, and people rush to proclaim Pittman's failure of a career?  Really?  That's the headline?)  God, Texas fans are so entitled.  It's a nice feeling, being able to expect 11-1 seasons in football, CWS every summer, and top 25 basketball.  I just wish people could appreciate that instead of ripping the kids who provide all these pleasures of being on top of the college sports world.

Forgive me if this has already appeared on BON.  I've been watching the second half of the RRS, and I saw something that I completely missed on Saturday.  My father alerted me to one of the many fascinating features of the victory over OU.

It appears Colt McCoy and his receivers have been taking some improv classes.  Or maybe they've been studying film on baseball coaches.  With a three point lead in the fourth quarter, 1 and 10 at the Texas 36, 4:46 on the clock, Chris Ogbonnaya took what appeared to be a fairly standard handoff (possibly zone read?) to the right and hauled down the field for 62 yards.  It was a great run, springboarded by fantastic blocking.  Two linemen released and led the way, and the Sooner defenders were caught off guard, so to speak.  It was a nice play all around, and it led to the final touchdown of the day.

Now, if you have DVR, watch this play again.  Rewind to pre-snap and watch Colt McCoy.  Before the snap, Colt stepped forward, looked to his left and seemed to adjust the play call.  Colt got the attention of Shipley and made a twirling motion with his arm -- something along the lines of "spinning wheel" or "move it forward" or "let's keep it going".  He motioned deliberately, as if he wanted someone other than Shipley to see.  Shipley, upon receiving the signal, then turned to his left and made the same signal to Quan Cosby.  This signaling from QB to WR to WR clearly caught the attention of at least three OU defenders. 

I have concluded that this was an act of deception.  It was an inside joke that carried a special message: "They have no clue what's about to hit them."  Sure enough, some OU defenders flinched (perhaps suspecting a pass to the left), Texas executed, and #3 busted a big run.  I'm not suggesting that Colt's hollow signal to the WRs was the direct cause of the success of the play, but it seemed to, at very least, create a moment of hesitation among some on the OU defense.

Maybe this kind of stuff happens a lot during the game, and I just miss it all because I'm not seasoned enough as a football viewer/critic.  Aside from that, this moment of improvisation is yet another indication of Colt McCoy's comfort and sense of ownership within this offense.  A QB who thinks his way through every play doesn't have time to perform mind tricks on opposing linemen.  A QB for whom the offense is second nature can find the time to sprinkle that kind of creativity into a gameplan.  It gave me one more reason to trust this QB and this offense.  Stay tuned for more improv with Colt McCoy.

Hook 'em   

They loosened up some time during the 2004 season and let VY do his thang.  I thought this behavior signaled a shift in offensive coaching philosophy at UT.  I was desperately wrong.  Vince Young saved the Horns from their offensive coordinator, and it would take a one loss 2006 season to convince me otherwise.  I believed that it was ultimately Greg Davis more liberal approach to play-calling that had changed the atmosphere in the Horns' huddle, but clearly it was the one of a kind presence of Vince that kept the offense running like it did in 2004 and 2005.

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OU quarterback Rhett Bomar was cited for under aged drinking and he should be applauded for this.

I would also like to congratulate the OU coaches for maintaining an atmosphere of respect and accountability in Norman.

If there's one thing OU is known for, it's that the football team is a collective class act, top to bottom. When a player screws up, we can count on Bob Stoops to rectify the situation. He has too much respect for his colleagues, the University of Oklahoma, and the game to let this one slide.

Keep up the good work, OU. Here is the link..

Maybe he's been celebrating that National Championship a little too hard.  Maybe he's lost focus since VY went pro.  For whatever reason, Ramonce Taylor, apparently, hasn't lived up to his coaches' expectations regarding his academic responsibilities.  He has been relieved of spring ball duties in order to focus on his school work.  From the Dallas Morning News:

"I felt like he needed to focus on his academic work," Brown said. "He can now go work with (football academic adviser) Brian Davis and his staff. We want him to have full focus on that, and we want him to understand it's important for us that he do his work."

This is a bit disconcerting if you figure that RT will play a pivotal role in the 2006 offense.  It's too bad that he can't spend spring learning the rhythms and styles of the two QBs.  On the other hand, if this prevents a PJ Tucker, I can't really complain.  Here's the link to the full article, which isn't much of an article:  

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/colleges/topstories/stories/030506dnspouttaylor.85dd 9593.html

This is addressed to everyone, but mainly at TR, since he lives in little d.  I heard through the grapevine that a Texas fan has rented out one of the theaters at Movie Tavern on University for a Rose Bowl viewing.  I think it's something like 5 bucks to get in, and, obviously, no USC gear.  

Another thing, TR, where do you kick it usually?  We may have met at some point at a bar and made small talk about Texas, etc.

peace.

Michael Wilbon, columnist for the Washington Post published a piece last Saturday in which he advocated the position that Vince Young should declare for the NFL Draft after this season.  I enjoyed the read, as it was filled with glowing, almost homeristic, evaluations of our beloved Texas Two-Stepper.

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