Posted February 22nd, 2013 by Brian
Filed under: Basketball
Looking for something else this afternoon and stumbled on this month-old Grantland article with some extremely complimentary comments from Suns’ coach Alvin Gentry on former Longhorn PJ Tucker:
P.J. Tucker has come out of nowhere this year, stolen Michael Beasley’s minutes, and played really good defense. What is his single best defensive skill?
Determination.
That sounds like some classic coach-speak.
Yeah, it’s just determination. He decides he’s going to guard his man, and that he’s not going to let him score. I do think defense is one of those things where it’s 75 percent effort and 25 percent skill.
Really?
Oh yeah. He just brings it every night, against every single person that he plays against. Even the last two games, he’s guarded Paul Pierce and Monta Ellis, and Monta Ellis went 5-of-19, and Paul Pierce went 3-of-10. That’s two pretty good efforts from a guy no one heard of last year. [Note: Gentry nailed these shooting numbers exactly, without checking.]
When did you have an idea he might help you guys this much? Did you realize by the end of camp, or were you still wary of playing a pretty unknown guy in real games?
I saw it in training camp, but really first in the summer. The toughness he brought to our Summer League team, we thought, We may have something here. Our basketball operations guys did a great job finding a guy like him over in Europe. He’s one of those guys every coach would love to coach.
Tucker’s road to NBA success has been a long, winding one so it’s great as a Texas fan to see him having a good season and getting recognized for it.
Aggies are wanting to call themselves DBU now? Pretty funny and typical Aggie. Check it out about 4:30 into this video:
Based on what exactly? Their whopping three un-/barely drafted players riding the pine? To put it in perspective Texas, the real DBU, has that same number if you only count guys with the last name Brown. And Chykie and Tarell are both playing in the Super Bowl this weekend.
Silly Aggies. You can change conference but you can’t stop being yourselves. I guess the next Aggie video will probably claim they should be called “The U.”
Video of player introductions of the 2012 Texas seniors before the game against TCU. Nice getting to hear from each of the players’ parents.
Watch Longhorn Network highlights of the Longhorns’ 33-7 win over Iowa State on Saturday:
A statement from Mack Brown on the death of Texas head coach and legend Darrell Royal:
Mack Brown and Darrell Royal in the Texas locker room after a game.
“Today is a very sad day. I lost a wonderful friend, a mentor, a confidant and my hero. College football lost maybe its best ever and the world lost a great man. I can hardly put in words how much Coach Royal means to me and all that he has done for me and my family. I wouldn’t even be at Texas without Coach. His council and friendship meant a lot to me before I came to Texas, but it’s been my guiding light for my 15 years here.
“Coach gave so much more to the State of Texas and college football than he took away. He forgot more football than most of us will ever know, including me. His impact on the game, the coaches and players, the community and the millions of lives he touched, is insurmountable. He will be missed in so many ways.
“I lost my Dad when I was 54, and Coach filled a real void in my life and treated me like family. Sally and I gained a lot coming to Texas and being a part of this tremendous program but no more than our relationship with Coach and Edith. They were our closest of friends. Our heart pours out to Edith and the family and our thoughts and prayers are with her and the family. We will always be there to lend any and all support that we can as she and Coach always did for us.”
The University of Texas has confirmed that legendary Longhorns head coach Darrell Royal has passed away at the age of 88. Royal is Texas’ all-time winningest coach and led the Horns to three national championships (1963, 1969, and 1970) and won 11 Southwest Conference championships.
I was lucky enough to meet Coach Royal on several occasions while at UT through the Terry Foundation. He was one of three people who interviewed me for the scholarship and being able to talk with him about football and growing up a coach’s son was an incredible moment.
It’s a sad day for Texas fans. RIP Coach.
In addition to the beatdown on the scoreboard, Texas left the Red River Rivalry this weekend badly battered and bruised. The official injury report is out and its not pretty:
Junior DE Jackson Jeffcoat sustained a right pectoral muscle rupture in the Oklahoma game, will undergo surgery and is out for the season, Texas’ Head Athletic Trainer for Football Kenny Boyd said on Sunday. It is not the same pectoral muscle Jeffcoat injured in 2011. He had surgery to repair his left pectoral muscle last January and has fully recovered from that injury.
Sophomore QB David Ash sustained a left wrist injury versus the Sooners. His injury occurred during a direct helmet blow to his wrist that resulted in swelling, but initial x-rays show no fracture. He will continue to be evaluated during the week but has not been ruled out for the Baylor game.
Junior DT Brandon Moore (neck sprain) and junior OT Donald Hawkins (left ankle) will be evaluated during the week to determine their availability for the Baylor game, Boyd added. Hawkins sprained his ankle in the first half of the Oklahoma game, and the medical staff did not clear him to return.
Could this weekend have gone any worse? Ugh.
What little respect I had for Bob Stoops goes right out the window at about the 0:45 mark of this University of Oklahoma rap video:
I particularly liked the fingerless gloves and letterman’s jacket with the sleeves cut off. Classy. There’s also an extra rare non-awful YouTube comment that I needed to share: “Just in case anyone was wondering just? how white OU is.” Haha. It’s also funny how scared and embarrassed the girl that they’re trying to convince to go to OU looks the entire video.
I’m so glad Texas hasn’t yet had one of these videos pop up anywhere.
Awesome news for the relatively distant future as the Longhorns and Buckeyes have agreed to play a home and home series in 2022 and 2023. Here’s the details from MBTF:
Two of the most storied programs in college football history will meet again as The University of Texas and The Ohio State University have agreed to a future home and home series. The Buckeyes are slated to travel to Austin on Sept. 17, 2022 while the Longhorns will head to Columbus on Sept. 16, 2023. Texas and Ohio State last met at the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl in 2009.
The two schools with a combined 243 years of college football history and 1,693 all-time victories didn’t meet on the football field until 2005, but the Longhorns and Buckeyes have played three times since. No. 2 Texas knocked off No. 4 Ohio State, 25-22, in Columbus en route to the 2005 BCS National Championship. The No. 1 Buckeyes returned the favor, claiming a 24-7 win over the No. 2 Longhorns in Austin on its way to a BCS National Championship game berth in 2006. No. 3 Texas met No. 10 Ohio State in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl following the 2008 season. The Longhorns came from behind to win that one, 24-21, on a Colt McCoy to Quan Cosby 26-yard TD strike with 16 seconds remaining.
It’s a long way off but nice to see the Longhorns continuing to strengthen their out of conference scheduling. There’s at least one really nice opponent on the schedule per year including series with Cal, Notre Dame, and USC.
Texas wide receiver Marquise Goodwin had a huge game running and catching the football on Saturday against Ole Miss, but his busy week started with a visit to the White House with his fellow Olympians om Thursday. Even better Marquise had the good sense to video his interaction with President Obama and get the commander-in-chief to flash the hook ’em horns as well. Check it out:
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