Tuesday, March 10, 2009
It’s ten o’clock. Do you know where your children are?
If they can throw a half-decent spiral and are old enough to drive, chances are they may be near a University of Texas football recruiter.
A perennial powerhouse on the recruiting trail, the Longhorns have found themselves ranked in Rivals.com’s top five recruiting classes four times since 2002. Texas’ class of 2009 includes three five-star athletes and 11 four-star recruits — good for a fifth-overall ranking.
With National Signing Day in the rearview, the Longhorns already have 19 verbal commitments for the class of 2010. Astonishing stuff. There are two perspectives here. One is that the Longhorns do such a bang-up job of recruiting that they can complete 85 to 90 percent of their 2010 class while this year’s top recruit remains undecided — the Bryce Brown Circus is expected to continue until Thursday when the Wichita East running back finally announces his college choice.
The other, of course, is the question of whether one can really produce a fair and accurate assessment of athletes before they even play their senior seasons. The only thing I could picture myself signing as a 16-year-old cart pusher at Hy-Vee would be a check or my parents’ signatures on a permission slip.
ALI OF THE OCTAGON
Quinton “Rampage” Jackson (30-7) effectively set up a Light Heavyweight Championship showdown with titleholder Rashad Evans (13-0-1) after Jackson earned a unanimous-decision victory over Keith Jardine (14-5-1) at UFC 96 Saturday.
After screaming, “I want my belt back!” Jackson engaged in a golden bout of trash-talking with Evans. At one point, Evans dropped the f-bomb a few times, prompting Jackson to say, “Don’t say that Rashad. Don’t saaay that.” Stop by the Full Monty blog where we are streaming this video.
The heavyweight title unification fight between champion Brock Lesnar and interim champ Frank Mir, originally slated for May 23, was reset for July 11 because of an injury to Mir. Evans’ title defense was set for that date but now swaps spots. Jackson must now decide whether to take on his third fight in three months. If not, the title shot goes to undefeated Lyoto Machida (14-0).
Considering his face-off with Evans on Saturday, it’s tough seeing either Jackson or the UFC backing off this fight, as the two already gift-wrapped a promotional video for buildup.
MARCH MADNESS REQUIRED READING
Looking for something to read other than the fine print on your office pool? Easy: John Feinstein’s “A Season on the Brink.” Feinstein had the balls and energy to accompany Bobby Knight in his profanity-laced, coaching prime with the 1985-86 Indiana Hoosiers. The result: One of the best sports books of all time.
— — Edited by Melissa Johnson
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