the emerald bowl...

will have Florida State (6-6) against UCLA. The Florida State Seminoles are playing in the Emerald Bowl!?! Time for Bowden to step down and let someone fresh lead the Seminoles out of mediocracy.

martin gramatica???

Are you freakin kidding me? You cut the best kicker in the history of the NFL for Martin Gramatica, who in his last NFL season was a mere 58% kicking field goals. The year before that, just 63%... Mike Vanderjagt may not have been getting it done the way Parcells would like, but what are smoking to bring in a guy who's been out of the league for 2 years and sucked the 2 years prior to that? Vanderjagt was 13 for 18 (72%) so far this year... did we actually upgrade the kicker position? I think not.

not your usual pregame

Lebron's pregame warmup.

varsity's horns were sawed off

It was over when... Texas quarterback Colt McCoy was intercepted at midfield by Mark Dodge with just over a minute left in the game.
Gameball goes to... Stephen McGee. The Texas A&M quarterback rushed for 95 yards, eight of them coming on the game-winning score.
Stat of the game... 244. The Aggies rushed for 244 yards against Texas, which came into the game No. 1 in the nation allowing 42 yards per game.

btho t.u.

Junior Red Pot Kevin Weatherford walks away from the Student Bonfire Tuesday night, moments after setting it ablaze along with the seven other Red Pots. The Aggie Student Bonfire symbolizes the 12th Man's burning desire to 'beat the Hell outta t.u.'

ohio state v. michigan in 210 seconds

If you happened to miss last Saturday's Michigan-Ohio State game, you can see it and more in this 3 minute 30 second video. Somebody took the time to stitch together images of Ohio Stadium from a campus web cam. The video begins with the tarp being taken off the field on Friday and shows the stadium through the night. Then pregame preparations begin early Saturday and you can watch the stadium fill to capacity. The game begins in daylight and ends under the lights, with fans spilling onto the field. The Buckeyextra web site has a link to the web cam and you can view it by clicking here.

Days since Michigan's last victory over Ohio State in football: 1097

high school game of the week

Matchup's hype reaches prime time - Matt Wixon, Dallas Morning News

Friday's Southlake Carroll-Euless Trinity game has garnered national attention

So Southlake Carroll and Euless Trinity will finally meet. Champion against champion. Flash vs. Smash. The most highly anticipated high school game ever.

Well, maybe if you're under age 20. Or if you bleed Carroll green or know all the words to Trinity's haka chant.

That's not to scoff at the enormity of Friday's matchup of Trinity, last year's Class 5A Division I state champ, and Carroll, the Division II champ the last two years. Carroll has won 43 straight games, Trinity has won 26 and both teams are ranked in the National Prep Poll. They'll clash for the first time in a game fit for Texas Stadium.

And, apparently, a game fit for the national news. Last week, a staff member of the CBS Evening News with Katie Couric contacted Trinity coach Steve Lineweaver about a story. Seriously.

That's pretty big time. But the biggest game ever in North Texas?

If we had a way to measure hype, maybe. But the best way to judge interest is by fan support, like the 49,950 who watched Plano beat Port Neches-Grove in the 1977 4A final at Texas Stadium. That was the largest crowd ever at a Texas high school football game, and Carroll and Trinity won't reach that figure.

Most likely, nobody ever will.

"Only one team [from each district] went to the playoffs then, so I really think that helped attendance," said Tom Kimbrough, who coached Plano from 1976 to 1991. "Before, you had people from other towns who were going to see the game."

This week, however, the titanic matchup comes when many playoff teams are still sailing. It's part of a week filled with heavyweight bouts, including Cedar Hill (11-0) against Hebron (10-1) in 5A, Highland Park (11-0) against Texarkana Texas (11-0) in 4A, and Madison (10-0) against Celina (11-0) in 3A.

Most of the past Games of the Year – or Decade, or Century, depending on your perspective – have come deeper in the playoffs:

The 1964 matchup of Garland and Amarillo Tascosa that drew 42,000 to the Cotton Bowl was a state semifinal. The '77 Plano miracle comeback against Highland Park was a state quarterfinal, as was Trinity's painful loss to Hurst L.D. Bell in the '82 playoffs (Bell advanced on the old "penetrations" rule). The Friday Night Lights game of 1988, featuring Carter vs. Odessa Permian, was a state semifinal, and last year's Carroll-Plano matchup of unbeatens, which drew nearly 35,000 to Texas Stadium, was a region final.

The Trinity-Carroll game will be unique in another way. The University Interscholastic League began splitting the playoffs into two divisions in 1990, and since then, reigning 5A champions have never met in the playoffs. But it happened four years ago in 4A, when reigning Division I champion Denton Ryan and reigning Division II champion Ennis met in a state semifinal at Texas Stadium.

In that game, Ryan scored 15 points in the final two minutes to win, 18-14. If the first matchup of 5A champs is anywhere near as dramatic, it probably will make national headlines. Maybe even bring Katie Couric to Texas.

It's a big one, no doubt. And no matter what game fans are at Friday, most will want updates from one of the greatest matchups in history.

Especially if it becomes one of the greatest games in history.

morrow tweaks his groin

DALLAS (AP) -- Dallas Stars captain Brenden Morrow didn't skate in practice Tuesday and likely will miss at least one game because of a slight groin strain.

Morrow didn't return to Monday night's 5-4 victory over Colorado after he was gimpy coming off the ice during a shift change in the second period. He was evaluated Tuesday.

Coach Dave Tippett said the injury wasn't as bad as feared, but that the Stars wanted to be cautious to make sure it doesn't become a long-term problem.

While Morrow likely won't play Wednesday night at home against Nashville, right wing Jere Lethinen could be back in the lineup after missing three games with a sore leg.

Morrow scored twice in the final three minutes of the first period Monday to help Dallas forge a 2-2 tie.

you've got to be kidding me - a rematch?!?

The BcS is showing exactly why voters should never determine a national champion. Michigan got beat, beat by more than the 3 points indicated on the scoreboard. It was an 11 point game late until a questionable pass interference penalty led to the last minute Michigan touchdown. Without that late call and the unforced turnovers by Ohio State that led directly to 10 Michigan points, the game could have been a blow out. Instead the final spread was just 3 points and the voters who would surely have dropped Michigan more than 1 spot had they lost this game early in the year decided to give them a chance at the national title game and with the help of the computers, the Wolverines may get their wish. Potentially better 1 loss teams such as USC, Arkansas and Florida wont get the chance to prove their worth on the field. What makes Michigan better than a 1-loss USC team or an SEC champion Arkansas team? What if Michigan doesn't get the garbage TD at the end of the game? Voters shouldn't decide who the two best teams are. Here's the real kicker... lets say Ohio State and Michigan play in a rematch, USC plays in the Rose Bowl and Arkansas in the Cotton. Arkansas and USC win their bowl games easily and then Michigan just barely beats Ohio State. Who's the best team now? The voters will have to say its Michigan, but that sounds like BcS to me.

the real ncaa title game?

Ohio State has opened as a 7 point favorite.

definition of a lucky cover...

Line: Mavs -6
If you watched any of this game, you'll know the Mavs were lucky to escape Portland with a win, let alone covering.

15 years ago today...

Magic Johnson retired from the Lakers after announcing he had tested positive for the HIV virus.

britney's back on the market

Look who's available again... and looking good

only at the cma's

As Carrie wins the Female Artist of the Year, Faith Hill appears to be in disbelif.

jane skinner... south carolina fan?

Jane knows who the top cock is... welcome to youtube Janey.

rangers hire buck's replacement

Ron Washington has always been a popular coach with players, stressing communication and letting them be themselves. Now he will get his chance as the manager of the Texas Rangers, who wanted and needed somebody with those characteristics... a players' coach.

nhl games on google video

Now you can download full-length NHL games and watch them on your time. Whether it's a memorable game or a keepsake of your first in-arena experience, NHL Video is available on Google. Check it out here.

interesting a&m fact...

Texas A&M is currently one of four schools in the country to be ranked in the coaches poll in football, mens and womens basketball. LSU, Ohio State and Tennessee are the others.

dont piss off dale hansen

Listen to this exchange between Dale Hansen and John McCaa on last Friday's 10pm newscast.

Here's Dale's explanation of what happened.

defending champs....

The Miami Heat opened the NBA season last night by hoisting their World Championship Banner to the rafters and hosting the Chicago Bulls. I guess maybe they celebrating getting those rings too much as they go drilled by 42 points, the worst loss every by a defending champion to open the season.