40 Acres Sports

The Texas basketball team got some good news this week when it was determined transfer guard [tag]Jai Lucas[/tag] would be eligibel as soon as finals for the fall semester are completed. That means he’ll be able to play December 15th against Texas-Pan Am and get one prep game before the huge December 19th matchup against [tag]North Carolina[/tag] at Jerry World.

Link: Hoops guard Lucas eligible on Dec. 15

Texas ex [tag]LaMarcus Aldridge[/tag] has agreed in principle to a five year, $65 million extension with the Portland Trail Blazers. This should keep Aldridge and teammate Brandon Roy together through 2014-2015 season.

Link: Aldridge to get $65M extension

Kevin Durant was only at Texas for one season but he’s still one of my all-time favorite Longhorns. He’s also a rarity in a one-and-done player who is completely in love with his alma mater. He’s a true Longhorn and this article from The Oklahoman is a fantastic read.

Link: Thunder Insider – Kevin Durant true to his school

ESPN’s Pat Forde takes his weekly dash around college football and this week of course there’s a lot of talk on the Red River Rivalry. Good read.

Link: Big D — Dallas, Domers and defense

Texas coach Rick Barnes has brought in some of the best players in the entire nation over the last decade and The Sporting News noticed. He has been named recruiter of the decade for bringing guys like TJ Ford, Kevin Durant, and Avery Bradley to Austin.

Link: Barnes is decade’s No. 1 recruiter

Very interesting article on how star guard Avery Bradley ended up as a Longhorn. Crazy to hear how he went from good to elite in such a short time, and how a few years in Arlington watching TJ Ford tear it up at Texas helped him end up in Austin.

Link: Bradley’s path to Texas carved out of chance

He’s not perfect and he hasn’t been a great NFL player (so far), but I’ll never understand why some people root so hard against [tag]Vince Young[/tag]. This week, the young man stepped in and took Steve McNair’s sons to a father-son function at their school:

As a kid, Titans quarterback Vince Young looked up to Steve McNair. On Wednesday, McNair’s two young sons looked to Young as their father figure.

As part of “Dear Dads Breakfast” at St. Paul Christian Academy, Young surprised the children when he showed up at their house early Wednesday and took them to the Pancake Pantry.

Read the full story.

After a very rough Hall of Fame Game outing against the Buffalo Bills, Tennessee Titans quarterback [tag]Vince Young[/tag] rebounded with an impressive performance in his second preseason game Saturday night. The Titans’ starting QB Kerry Collins threw for only 37 yards and 2 picks while Young used his arm and his feet on the way to an efficient 131 yards and 1 touchdown.

Link: Vince Young highlights vs Bucs