40 Acres Sports

Daniel Gibson played last night for first time since March 3rd. Since when did he have nickname of “Boobie”?

Texas’ NCAA Tourney run may have ended Sunday with a loss to USC, but the Horns are running away with their first round game in SI.com’s What If Tourney. It’s the third year they’re running the tournament that tries to decide who would win the national championship if high school players had never been allowed to enter the NBA early and everyone had to spend four years in college.

The Longhorns add [tag]LaMarcus Aldridge[/tag], P.J. Tucker, [tag]Daniel Gibson[/tag], and C.J. Miles back to the team. Those four guys along with [tag]Kevin Durant[/tag] and D.J. Augustin would make for an incredibly good and incredibly athletic team:

Kevin Durant is nearly impossible to stop. Add Aldridge, Tucker, and Gibson and you can subtract the word nearly from that last statement. Aldridge, who averaged 15 points and nine rebounds last season has shown great strides in his rookie year, including a 30-point performance against the Bobcats this month. Who knows how good he’d be as a junior in college?

Keep D.J. Augustin at point guard, and move Gibson, who goes from playing with LeBron to Durant, to his natural two-guard spot. Along with A.J. Abrams and Jazz guard C.J. Miles off the bench, Texas’ athleticism and depth are mind-blowing. If anything, the additions add some experience to a team whose top eight scorers are freshmen or sophomores.

Having Aldridge back in the middle of the Texas defense would have made a huge difference for this team. He’s easily the guy I’d most want back. He can run the floor well with all these young guys, play tough defense, and give the Horns a scoring threat down low. Of course having Gibson playing the two would be pretty nice as well. He’d have gotten a ton of open looks with Aldridge and Durant, and size at the guards was a real problem for Texas at both ends of the court this season.

A starting five of Augustin, Gibson, Durant, Tucker, and Aldridge sure would’ve been fun to watch. The three guys who left early probably aren’t regretting it one bit (especially when they look at their bank accounts), but it’s hard to believe at least one of them didn’t decide to stick around for a chance to play with Durant. Any one of those guys could have made a real impact on this year’s young group of stars.

Cedric Benson will be the Bears’ starter next year, they’ve traded Thomas Jones to the Jets.

It was a very good weekend to be a former Texas Longhorn offensive lineman. Former first team All-Americans [tag]Leonard Davis[/tag] and [tag]Derrick Dockery[/tag] both signed megadeals last week as NFL free agents.

Davis officially agreed to a seven-year, $49.6 million contract with the Dallas Cowboys yesterday. $18.75 million of Davis’ contract is guaranteed. It’s the richest deal for an offensive lineman this offseason. “Big” was the number two overall pick out of Texas by the Arizona Cardinals and was a solid but unspectacular player. For the Cowboys Davis will either play right guard or move outside to play right tackle if the team can’t resign Marc Columbo. He should be a big upgrade over the hurt/mediocre Marco Rivera.

Dockery’s deal is almost as rich. He signed with the Buffalo Bills for seven years and $49 million. $18.5 million of the deal is guaranteed and he’ll earn $23 million in the first three seasons. Dockery was a third round pick in 2003 and spent all four years in Washington as a starter at guard for the Redskins.

Great to have two former Longhorns getting big pay days, hopefully they can both improve on their play and earn those big checks rolling in. Both players are also going to teams I’m much more interested in watching on Sundays. I have to watch the Cowboys on TV every weekend and can’t catch many Titans games, so it’s great to see a Longhorn join the Cowboys.

Probably a pretty useful recruiting tool for any 2008 or 2009 offensive line recruits. Come to Texas, get fifty million dollars.

[tag]Vince Young[/tag] had an incredible rookie season in the NFL and Titans and Longhorns fans weren’t the only ones to notice. NFL free agents suddenly see Tennessee as an attractive destination again, and VY is a big reason for that:

The Titans see Vince Young as a free agent magnet. As Young mingled with players from around the league at the Pro Bowl, some of them whispered in his ear: “Pssst. Hey rook, tell the Titans to call my agent. I’d love to play with you. I like what you guys have going on there in Tennessee.” Young was flattered, though it’s unclear if he passed the word from some of the unrestricted free agents he wouldn’t name.

No signings the first day for the Titans and the biggest news could be a couple of subtractions. Pacman Jones’ future with the team is definitely in doubt and running back Travis Henry is likely to be released in a cost-cutting move. The team needs to address the defensive end, cornerback and wide receiver positions if possible this offseason.

Ramonce Taylor can’t juke the questions from NFL scouts. The balancing excuse sounds like more BS to me.

Former Longhorn Bill Bradley leaves Baylor staff to be Chargers’ secondary coach.

DeLoss Dodds and Roosevelt Leaks were inducted into the Texas Sports Hall of Fame.

Well, since [tag]Cat Osterman[/tag]’s career is over at the University of Texas, I guess it is time for her to start promoting her professional career. Cat has launched her own website at CatOsterman.com, which includes all of her stats and records, as well as upcoming events she will be attending.

Overall the site is pretty cool and it seems like she has a lot of stuff going on in her post UT career. Here is my favorite clip from her Bio:

A left-hander, Cat stands 6-2, with hands so large she can grip a softball entirely with her fingers rather than having to cradle it in her palm.

It almost sounds like she is the Shaq of women’s softball, though her large hands don’t affect her pitching like Shaq’s hands affect his free-throws.

(via)

Vince will be the first rookie QB to play in the Pro Bowl, and it sounds like he’s enjoying the opportunity.