40 Acres Sports

Texas rallies as Aggies melt under pressure. How are they #9 with their mediocre Big 12 record?

The Longhorns beat the Aggies in College Station today…6-4. The heroes of the game were the Aggie battery in the top of the 9th. Between the wild pitches and throwing errors (and, okay, 1 hit by Nick Peoples), the Horns scored 2 runs in the top of the 9th to break a 4-4 tie and win the opening game of the series.

Kyle Russell started things off nicely this evening. He hit the first pitch he saw way over the rf fence for his his 27th home run of the year. The Horns gave up 2 in the bottom of the 1st and 2 more in the 3rd to make things somewhat interesting. Hold on. I suppose “nerve-racking” may be the more appropriate term, there. But, they fought back. They scored a single run in the 6th and 2 in the 7th to tie the game up. All while holding the Aggies scoreless after the 3rd.

I was very happy to see the Horns fight their way past their struggles early in the game. We haven’t seen this team do much of that this year. For the most part, they haven’t had to do much of that this year. As I mull over how tonight’s game played out, I can’t help but be excited about the 2007 squad’s post-season prospects.

For more of the nitty-gritty (and a wee bit of a rant about FSN) check out the game report on my page.

By the way, the series moves back to Austin for the final two games. If you’re in Austin and don’t already have tickets, I feel for ya!

The San Antonio Express-News has some quick notes on the how the NFL Draft went for teams from the Big 12. Texas had seven players selected including and coming in with the second most was the Nebraska Cornhuskers. And of course Texas A&M had zero, which puts them in some fine company:

The Aggies were one of only eight schools in BCS-affiliated conferences to draw a blank in the draft. Others were Indiana, Northwestern, Kentucky, Vanderbilt, North Carolina, Duke and Kansas. A&M hasn’t had an offensive player picked in the first round since 1994.

At least for Northwestern, Vandy, UNC, and Duke they can claim they’re academic powerhouses.

Four months later, Aggies post 10 win season by counting spring scrimmage as a 2006 victory. (It’s been fixed now.)

Rick Barnes took one last shot at Texas A&M at the basketball banquet. “Pooooor Aggie!”

Take heart, A&M fans, there’s still women’s basketball. And you’ve still got Fran!

Kentucky has a press conference scheduled, reportedly to announce Billy Gillispie as their new coach.

Man are those guys ever going to figure out this crap is why the entire country mocks them incessantly? They held a miniature yell practice trying to convince coach Billy Gillispie to stay at Texas A&M and not move on to a better job. Only about 70 students and other morons fans showed up (the 150 number quoted in the story is BS) and Coach Gillispie was not even in the state. The rally lasted ten minutes and embarrassed all who were in attendance.

So sad, but I guess they’ll claim it worked since Gillispie will reportedly be returning to the Aggies. It couldn’t possibly be the money, it has to be that two dozen weirdos showed up outside his office and yelled things to an empty building.

Billy Gillispie to Arkansas? A lot of smoke here, at least one source says it’s done deal.

Texas A&M‘s basketball program has reached unseen heights this season and as a #3 seed in the NCAA Tournament is showing up in a lot of expert’s Final Four picks. But right before the tournament games begin former Aggie Antoine Wright reveals some shady academic practices going on at the university.

On a special episode of HBO’s Costas Now last night focusing on college athletes and academics, Wright revealed that athletes at Texas A&M athletes are steered into agricultural majors and states that he got more of an education in high school. In some ag classes there would be a “quarterback, [Wright], a running back and a farmer.” Even more damning, he states that athletes were provided with cheat sheets including copies of old exams.

Video of Wright on Costas Now is below:

When the Big 12 announced their Academic All-Big 12 Men’s Basketball Team a couple of week’s ago two Aggie starters, Dominique Kirk and Acie Law, made the second team. Their major? Ag leadership & development. Big man Antanas Kavaliauskas should be able to go home to Lithuania and raise some awesome goats as an agricultural development major.

The football team is probably worse. Reggie McNeal? Agricultural development major. Red Bryant, Kerry Franks, and Courtney Lewis? Ag leadership & development. Our good friend Kellen Heard? He’s an agricultural and life sciences major.

For the sake of the 98% of these kids who won’t make it to the pros, I sure hope they can raise a mean chicken.

Update: Texas A&M athletic director Bill Byrne’s response to Wright’s allegations? Don’t worry, we’re adding more easy majors that athletes will be able to choose from.