Sportsman of the Week Ending 3/31/2024

The Road to the Final Four "March" -ed on with a number of top seeds holding serve, but it was a double-digit seed that stole the headlines of the Sweet 16 round.  The North Carolina State Wolfpack are partying like it's 1983 with huge upset after huge upset sending them to their first Final Four in 40 years.  Senior guard DJ Horne has been the consistent energy propelling the Pack and he led by example over the weekend.  Horne netted a consistent 19, then 20 points in wins against 2-seed Marquette, and 4-seed Duke.  Add 9 total rebounds and 4 assists.  All of this coming off a miracle ACC Tournament run (in which Horne had 29 points in the final) to seal their NCAA bid which was in doubt.  Will this Wolfpack mimic the Jim Valvano miracle run of 1983?  Tune in, with Horne at the helm, I would not bet against them!

Sportsman of the Week Ending 3/24/2024

It's the time of year.  March Madness!  Circled on the calendar for many as a highlight of the Sports calendar (so robbed in 2020 for the pandemic) but this year it's in full swing.  One of the short list favorites to crash the Final Four in Glendale are the top seeded Purdue Boilermakers.  Led by senior Zach Edey who dominates on both sides of the floor.  Through the first weekend, Edey showed why he will make Purdue a tough if not impossible out.  In two textbook wins, national scoring title holder Edey scored 26.5 PPG and 17.5 RPG.  In limited minutes of blowouts over outclassed Grambling State and Utah State (averaged 29 minutes).  That's a point per minute and three rebounds every 5 minutes of play (rounded).  The Canadian hit 19-28 from the field with 12 offensive boards and 23 defensive wipes.  Throw in 5 assists, 2 steals, and 6 blocks and he was a one-man wrecking crew.  Purdue is looking for their first basketball title after two Final Four appearances and this may be the year thanks to the Longhorndave Sportsman of the Week!

Sportsman of the Week Ending 4/2/2023

One game and one shot defined the Final Four in Houston as a thrilling contest came to a conclusion after the buzzer as the ball tickled the bottom of the net.  San Diego State had trailed their matchup with Florida Atlantic since about midway in the first half by as many as 13 as it seemed the 3-loss Owls were headed to the National Championship final.  Until they weren't.  Holding FAU without a score for 3 minutes to pull near even in the last four, the Aztecs set themselves up for success.  And Lamont Butler delivered.  Deciding not to foul, SDSU got the ball with six second left and that was enough for Butler.  Opting not to call a timeout (which can more help the defense set up than the offense), Butler took the ball from the rebounder and dribbled down.  Left.  Right.  In.  Back.  Jumper.  Called Game.  Just like we all dream of doing on the playgrounds growing up.  And Butler wasn't their leading scorer just the guy who was ready for the big moment.  And is the Longhorndave Sportsman of the Week!

Sportswoman of the Week Ending 3/26/2023

March Madness hits a crescendo in the Sweet Sixteen to Final Four round as the field in the tournament is winnowed from teams kind of in the Top 25 to the best teams in the land.  And stars emerge on the big stage.  There may not be a bigger star in the sport than Iowa guard Caitlin Clark.  Clark averaged 36 points and 10 assists in two critical wins in the Regional Semifinals and Finals to lift the Hawkeyes to the Final Four.  The two-time Big Ten Player of the Year shot over 50% from the field and beyond the arc in the big victories over Colorado and Louisville to net Iowa its first Final Four since 1993 and second in program history.  The six-foot Junior Clark is the player to watch in the Final Four and our Sportswoman of the Week!

Sportsman of the Week Ending 3/27/2022

As the blue blood programs rose to the top of the NCAA March Madness heap, Villanova proved once again they were built for tournament play.  For the third time in seven years (only six Final Fours) the Wildcats are among the elite.  The last two, and three of the last four, they won the National Championship.  Against a surging Michigan, and perhaps the most dominant tournament team to date Houston, Villanova moved along relatively easily.  Led by a rare senior Jermaine Samuels Jr., they punched their ticket, Samuels Jr. led the team in scoring over the South Regional Semifinals and Finals with 38 points.  But it was efficiency that was his calling card, with a 61% field goal percentage as well as 8-8 from the free throw line.  All in 68 minutes and only 3 personal fouls enabling his team flexibility in keeping him on the court.  Will Samuels Jr. complete his career after his freshman year National Championship in 2018 with another?  Our Sportsman of the Week will give his all!

Sportswoman of the Week Ending 4/4/2021

Sports fans across the United States were deprived of March Madness in 2020.  The reward in 2021 is that much sweeter.  After recognizing as a Sportsman of the Week a player on the men's side last week, it was the Women's Final Four that was the story of the weekend.  Enter an all Pac 12 final, and enter our Sportswoman of the Week from the National Champion Stanford Cardinal.  Haley Jones of the Cardinal led a 4 guard attack that couldn't be slowed down in two, single point Final Four victories.  Jones chipped in 24 points in the semifinal against South Carolina Gamecocks, then another 17 against fellow Pac 12 rival Arizona to end the Final Four averaging over 20 points a game.  The Stanford Cardinal were champions for the first time in 29 years and Jones is the deserving Sportswoman of the Week!

Sportsman of the Week Ending 4/8/2019

The Virginia Cavaliers won their first Men's NCAA Basketball Championship and it was due in large part to a balanced guard attack as they survived late surges and drama in the Sweet 16 and Final 4.  But it was Junior Ty Jerome who filled the stat sheet more than most.  The 6'5" Jerome led the Hoos with 14 assists total in the last two games, but surprisingly notched 15 rebounds while scoring 37 points of his own over the two games, well above his 13.6 PPG regular season average.  This was coming off a 24 point performance in the Regional Finals, he simply was the engine that led Virginia to their first National Championship and is our Sportsman of the Week!

Sportsman of the Week Ending 3/31/2019

The Madness of March is dying down now that we're in April, but the Auburn Tigers have redefined the role of unexpected party-crasher.  Having beat the Big 12 powerhouse Kansas in the second round of the NCAA tournament, they faced the top seeded ACC North Carolina Tar Heels in the Sweet 16.  Led by Jared Harper and 11 assists and 9 points in 25 minutes, the Tigers separated quickly from Carolina for a 97-80 victory.  But it was in the Elite 8 against another powerhouse and fellow SEC rival Kentucky that Harper really shined.  He poured in 26 points, highlighted by 11-11 from the free throw line (and 12 points in overtime out of his team's 17 total) to defeat the Cats and avenge their last loss on February 23.  Yes.  They haven't lost in over a month.  The Tigers look poised to beat their next Goliath and it will be on the leadership of our Sportsman of the Week, Jared Harper!

Sportswoman of the Week Ending 4/1/2018

If you want to be the best, you have to beat the best.  And that's just what the Notre Dame Women's basketball team did.  The Fighting Irish completed an improbably National Championship season by defeating the seemingly invincible Connecticut Huskies (36-0) and last year's runner up Mississippi State Bulldogs (37-1).  But it was the style in which our Sportswoman of the Week defeated them that will make her legend.  Arike Ogunbowale didn't shoot particularly well in either game, but was unstoppable at the end.  Ogunbowale first slayed the Huskies with a 19 foot jumper with just a second left to break a tie in overtime.  Then against the Bulldogs, she hit a fall away three pointer under guard as the buzzer sounded.  She averaged 22.5 points her game in willing her team to the title.  The Irish overcame injuries to four players throughout the season to complete the improbably run, and Arike Ogunbowale made it happen as our Sportswoman of the Week!

Sportsman of the Week Ending 3/25/2018

March Madness reaches its crescendo with the Final Four in San Antonio, TX.  None of the National Quarterfinal match ups was more of a back and forth brawl than elite programs Kansas and Duke squaring off on Sunday.  And it went to overtime.  And that's when our Sportsman of the Week took over.  Kansas' Malik Newman scored 13 points in overtime.  That was all of Kansas points, and enough to win the game by 4 (would have been 7 if not for a meaningless 3 by Duke).  Newman finished the game with 32 points, including 5-12 from beyond the arc and 11-12 from the free throw line.  In the Sweet 16 match up against pesky Clemson, he also led his team in scoring with 17 points including 4-7 from 3-pointers.  He had 7 rebounds in each game as well.  Newman also played 83 out of 85 minutes over the weekend.  He willed Kansas to the Final Four, can our Sportsman of the Week will them to a championship?

Sportswoman of the Week Ending 4/2/2017

March Madness winds down, with an impressive new champion against the odds.  The South Carolina Lady Gamecocks marched right through the brackets for their first title in school history.  Despite Connecticut being the prohibitive favorite to win their fifth straight title (and seventh in ten years), it was South Carolina who took home the hardware.  Led by star big woman A'ja Wilson, whose play on the offensive end and on the boards was the Final Four's most outstanding player.  In the National semifinal, Wilson was held to 13 points, but tallied an astounding 19 rebounds (including 8 offensive) and 3 blocks in a win against a red hot Stanford team.  In the National final, she led the Lady Cocks with 23 points, hauling in 10 boards with 4 blocks.  The 6'5" junior will lead the Cocks in attempted repeat next year, and is our Sportswoman of the Week!

Sportsman of the Week Ending 3/26/2017

"The Shot."  Or to some (with deference to Christian Laettner) "The Shot Part 2."  North Carolina slayed a feisty young Kentucky team on a last second jumper that ended a wild sequence just after Kentucky had tied it up.  The shot sent the Tar Heels to the Final Four.  Sportsman of the Week Luke Maye did the work in his last second (well, 0.3 left) bucket to slay the Wildcats and break the hearts of the Bluegrass faithful. But really, the entire regional finals, Maye was a portrait of efficiency.  Coming off the bench for the two games (first one a win against Butler), the 6'7" sophomore tallied just 45 minutes, one full regulation plus overtime game.  In that time, he netted 33 points and 15 boards, more than 0.75 points per minute of action, and 1 rebound every 3 minutes.  No other Tar Heel was so efficient in scoring.  But make no mistake, his winning Sportsman of the Week is about the clutch.  He'll be ready to tangle in the desert in the next round.  A round North Carolina may not make without his heroics.

Sportsman of the Week Ending 4/4/2016*

There's a seldom exercised rule in determining the Sportsman of the Week that if you made a clutch play that will go down in the annals of history of your sport, you probably get the nod.  Villanova's Kris Jenkins gets the nod.  In what some are calling the best NCAA Finals game in history (okay, media, slow your roll), Kris Jenkins made the world stop and realize they just saw greatness.  After North Carolina's Marcus Paige made what can only be called a circus shot (double clutch from the hip) three pointer with 4.7 seconds to tie the game at 74, Villanova calmly moved the ball down the floor and Jenkins was ready to etch his name in history.  The Junior knocked down the 3-pointer with a release at 0.5 seconds, the bottom of the net with the red light on.  Villanova 77, North Carolina 74.  It should be noted, he was a great player all weekend, with 32 points (12-21 from the floor) and 10 boards in the Final Four in Houston.  Foul trouble limited him to just 21 minutes in the final game.  But it was the Jenkins dagger that will forever be remembered.  And he is immortalized as the Longhorndave Sportsman of the Week*!

* Sportsman of the week usually ends on Sunday, this week, we include Monday

Sportsman of the Week Ending 3/27/2016

Another thrilling weekend of college basketball, and another hero emerges on a favored team.  Brice Johnson of the North Carolina Tar Heels came through time and time again to push his number one seeded team to the Final Four in Houston.  The only number one seed to make it.  Johnson scored 45 points and 22 rebounds in just under 70 minutes of action in defeats of surprising Indiana and gritty Notre Dame.  An efficient he was, at 15-26 from the field, and 15-17 from the line.  He also swatted away four shots from the opponents.  If Carolina is to cut down the nets once again, they'll need our Sportsman of the Week on top of his game this weekend in Houston

Sportsman of the Week Ending 3/29/2015

Another week of March Madness and new stars emerge.  Wisconsin was probably the least heralded one seed, with their workman-like approach to breaking down opponents.  They find themselves in another Final Four led by a pair of forwards.  But it's not Frank the Tank we give the nod, but Sam Dekker.  The lanky junior (6'9", 220 pounds) lit up North Carolina (Sweet 16) and Arizona (Elite 8) to lead the Badgers to a showdown with Number One Kentucky in the Final Four.  Dekker went for 23 and 27 points in the games respectively with 18-26 from the field (69%) and 15 boards over the two games.  And he has an outside shot with 5-6 against Arizona.  All around game is what it's about, especially for our Sportsman of the Week!

Big XII: 1996 - 2011

I come not to bury the Big XII but to praise it.

First a disclaimer, for the most part I intend to keep this blog very objective. I am a fan of the University of Texas and therefore have personal opinions of the Big XII. I'm not going to write about that, but rather the facts, but take my facts in context.

You were born in 1996, really a two years earlier. But it was a good move at the time football being the focus. The Big 8 and Southwest Conference were struggling for relevance. While Nebraska was at the cusp of winning three out of four national titles, OU had regressed, Kansas State hadn't ascended, and it was one big fish in the Big 8, and with Texas A&M's probation and Texas still floundering (no bowls 1991-3) about zero big fish in the SWC but some potential. What might have sealed the fate of the SWC was 1994, when there were five (yes five, to include Rice and Baylor) co-champions all at 4-3. Texas A&M was on probation and ineligible for the title while finishing 6-0-1. The five champions all lost to A&M and went 2-2 against the others. Ironically, the last place finisher in the conference was SMU. At 0-6-1, they tied A&M.

What transpired for the next 14 years (and one to go) was nothing short of taking the best of both and not looking back. A Big XII team (not necessarily the champion) played in the title game for 8 of the 14 years. Two other years teams (1996 NU, 1998 KSU) were upset in the title game and denied. Only the SEC matched the Big XII's 57% appearance rate. Next best is ACC with 29%, all Florida State, all before 2000.

The Big XII garnered 4 Heismans (Williams, Crouch, White, Bradford), one more than any other conference (SEC 3, Big 10 3, Pac10/USC 3, ACC 1).

The following 8 teams made runs at National titles (#3 or better, November 20 or later): Oklahoma, Texas, Nebraska (all 2 or more appearances winning one), Kansas State (1998), Colorado (2001), Missouri (2007), Kansas (2007), Texas Tech (2008). I defy you to find another conference that had 8 teams make a run like that. The SEC is the only conference to have more champs (Tennessee, LSU, Bama, Florida) than the Big XII (Texas, OU, Nebraska), no other conference had more than 1.

As for baseball, Texas having won two national titles equals the Big East (Miami x2 pre 2004) and one short of SEC/LSU (3 titles) and the Pac 10 (two Oregon States and a USC). Again right there.

Basketball over the last 10 years (data most easily found) shows that the Big XII has had 6 Final Four appearances only eclipsed by the Big 10 with 7 and the ACC with 9. The Big East also had 6 but has like 18 teams. In that, the Big XII had four different Final Four teams (KU, OSU, UT, OU), eclipsed by 5 for the Big East and matched by the Big 10 and ACC.

There was no doubt that on the field, court, swimming pool, the Big XII was as good as they came.

So what has led to its untimely demise? It was never a comfortable marriage. But rather arranged. The South always felt content, the the SWC teams having taken their tradition forward, and OU and OSU feeling really at home. But since 2000, there has not been a North team favored in the title game. A North team won in 2001 and 2003 upsetting National title hopes, but they were anomalies. The low point might have been Texas' 70-3 thumping of Colorado in 2005. Nebraska made a game of it last year (and might very well win the conference this year) but something was amiss. The old Big 8 lost its feeling of comfort and it didn't seem like the Big 12 was really a cohesive unit.

So enter Big 10 commissioner Jim Delany. Some think he masterminded a big takeover, I really think he was always just acting in the best interest of the Big 10. But when he said expansion, the glue that held together the arranged marriage fell apart. It was like a marriage on the rocks were on Temptation Island. Didn't take long before everyone was protecting their #1 interest. Interesting coincidence that the states of schools in the Big XII all bordered the SEC, Big 10, and Pac 10. It made them ripe for the picking, and everyone (commissioners, presidents, ADs, media) knew it. See the above successes, very very ripe additions only one state away.

So the demise was met. The Big XII tried to put together a pinky swear of everyone vowing to stay in, but the risk of not moving outweighed the potential benefits of staying. It hurt that the region of the Big XII just didn't have near as many TV markets as the other major conferences. So it was set.

It's interesting, as far as baseball, the SWC was always still superior to the Big XII. Despite only having 7 teams. From 1997 - 2009, the Big XII had 12 teams appear, the SWC would have had 15 (add Rice +7, subtract Nebraska +3, OSU +1). Texas, Baylor and Texas A&M count for both.

RIP Big XII, you led a great life, cut too short by marketability, longevity, and too many big programs looking attractive to the market. You end as you began, in the elite of conference competition.