Happy Holiday of Consumption!

Abject gluttony and a campaign of subjugation of Native Americans is always cause for celebration! That's dynamic duo is what makes Thanksgiving my favorite holiday. Throw in Texas - Texas A&M, good times with family, and a little Jewish guilt for all the people who don't have as much to be thankful for, and you have the makings of a perfect day of festivities. Therefore, I offer to you and all the readers a safe, happy, and joyous Thanksgiving.

But of course, we here at SLAE do tend to be sports-centric and, frankly, it ain't going to be a happy Thanksgiving if things don't go well starting at 7:00 pm tonight. So let's look at this game from a couple of different angles.

A&M's strength (to the extent it is "strong") is its offense. Jerrod is a legitimate athlete and a passable quarterback (get it, "passable"?). The Fightin' Sherminators have two quality running backs in Cyrus Gray and the male incarnation of "Christine." Unfortunately for the Farmers, defense is the strength of this Texas team, and I don't think the A&M offense can operate as efficiently as Kansas's did last week. Really, it was Reesing's quality decision-making that lead to an abnormal number of yards given up by the Horns' defense, and I don't see Johnson being that smart with the football. In the spirit of the fascist Aggies, I could go all "Radio" here and make a racist comment about stupid black QB's, but I'm going to resist. Really. I am.

The Aggies defense is hot garbage that has been sitting in a Houston garage for a month. In July. Which is to say it stinks. From what I read, their only quality is in pass-rushing end Von Miller. Unfortunately, our OL was flaccid like after 5 whiskies (not that I know what that's like) last week. I think we have to expect Colt to get hit some, and that could lead to the only thing that will keep A&M in the game: turnovers. If the Aggy D can get the ball back and create some short fields, anything can happen. Unfortunately, I think this does happen and A&M will get some points out of it.

In the end, though, I don't see Colt letting this team lose this game. Rivalry or not, I am not willing to imagine a Thanksgiving that involves a loss to A&M, the end of out National championship run, and my father-in-law bitching about losing his bets and the games being fixed. I refuse to think of this end. Therefore, we will focus on the positives.

In true holiday fashion, I will end this post by saying I am thankful for my family (including my gestating child), good friends both old and new, and for not being unemployed this Scroogish holiday season.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Return of the Evil Empire

Well, we've had about a week to digest the return of the New York Yankees to the summit of Mount MLB. To this writer, the Yankees winning the World Series is akin to the zombies killing the teenage skinny dippers in a horror flick (and right before the nude scene, no less), or the passage of Pelosi/Obama-care. Not unexpected, but disappointing and anti-climactic. Combine the Yankees win with the end of baseball season, and your faithful author has been in a bit of a sports funk (and Texas's beatdown of the University of Central Florida didn't quite fit the adernaline bill).

But the Yankees' win also got me to do something George Steinbrenner no longer can -- think. (And yes, I am going straight to Hell for that particular comment). Is the reascenscion of the Yankees good for baseball? Or is it a sign of exactly what Houston Astros fans have long lamented -- that the big market clubs can buy a championship while Uncle Drayton has to content himself with sippin' on moonshine and throwin' rocks in the pond?

Like the good Jew that I am, I have mixed feelings on the subject. Statistically speaking, there is not a lot of evidence to support the theory that the big market clubs have a dynamic advantage. Something like 20 different teams have made the playoffs in the last 10 years, coming from a range of markets. This would suggest that wise-spending, talent-oriented teams from "small" markets can still succeed. But that tingling in your gut is not the unpleasant rise of last night's dinner, its the realization that -- at the heart of the matter -- probably 25 out of 30 teams don't have a realistic chance of winning at the start of any given year.

So what's more accurate, the numbers or the intuition. My sense is, like so much, the answer lies somewhere in between. Small market teams with owners who don't worry about turning a profit (which, realistically, is not what owning a sports team is really about), can win. They could spend far more than they do, and have a significantly improved chance of prevailing. But the economic realities (i.e. there is so much money in play) suggest that owners are going to be guided by the finances before (and above) winning.

All this is a roundabout way of saying that something needs to be done about baseball salaries for the good of the game. While I am usually the first to stand at the the front of the capitalist, laissez faire line, in this instance I think that the collective good might be best for each individual club. Think of the increased revenue if even half the after-thought teams had diligent followings past the All-Star Break. Baseball has no seasonal competition for much of the year, and yet is in great danger of becoming gerrymandered into a sport of the northeastern coordinator (and St. Louis). In this case, could a rising tide raise all boats?

Or maybe I should just stop drinking for the night.

Oh, and go Dodgers!

Success; But Are We Satisfied?

Texas thoroughly demolished a team that, as my emails during the game can attest, worried me as a real thorn in the run to the Roses. The defensive performance was one of the best I have seen out of a Texas squad, and, for me, solidifies Muschamp as a certified coaching stud. All that had been lacking on that side of the ball was the ability to make game changing turnovers, and that notion was thrown out the window with a vengeance last night.

So I wake up this morning, sit down at the computer, and the pregnant Mrs. Neurotic Fan asks if I am going to pen a masterpiece for SLAE. To that, I respond that I don't feel inspired. And that says something, I think, about this victory and this team. A thorough working over of Okie Lite would normally inspire all sorts of hyperbole in this Texas observer. But this particular Cowboy pounding (and boy does that sound wrong) was like something delivered by a $3 hooker working above the local saloon. Efficient, straightforward, direct and without airs. The proper end was achieved, but in no way does it feel as though work is done.

I tend to believe that the attitude of the fanbase is generally a good reflection of the attitude of the Horns. One of Mack's shortcomings (or perhaps it is an unintended consequence of his style) is a decision to acknowledge and address the perceptions and expectations that surround this program. Whether consciously or unconsciouslly, Mack's attempts to identify and diffuse the pressures of being Texas football can have effect of infusing Texas teams with the general tenor of the fans (and vice versa).

If I'm correct, I think this year's Horns are in a good position. I know I come out of this game unsatisfied. Not with the performance, which was excellent in many respects, but with the state of the season. There is very little about this year that leaves me with a sense of complacency, and that is essential in a game in which every week can make or break the season. In 2005, complacency set in after the OU game. That team was so good offensively that there was a sense we were playing at 75% for most of the season and were still able to win. However, the 75% almost bit that team in the ass in College Station that year, and only VY's dominance and the Greatest Moment Ever allowed the team to reach their ultimate goal.

This year, there doesn't seem room for slacking. Yes, the defense has been dominant; but that has been a by-product of intense effort on a weekly basis, and lots of work by Muschamp -- not sheer dominance by athletic gods. The offense's shortcomings have been well-documented, and will require weekly preparation, adjustment, focus, and, in some cases, muddling-through. Together, the need for constant work from this team on a week to week basis will make them better and should help us avoid the potential pratfalls that remain on our schedule.

This is a strange position for Texas and a strange position for me. Is this what optimism feels like???