Ketch's 10 Thoughts From The Weekend ("F*** Texas and all of its money.")

Sure. Actors had to say stuff.

Bull Durham, which I like a lot, is completely made up. Almost all movies are. That is not a knock on a movie, that someone created it.

We just disagree.
Of course, Bull Durham is made up. The thing we're discussing is Hooisers. The suggestion was that it was a better film, partly, because it is a true story. That's not quite true,
 
Always such a great read but especially when it’s hard to get news in one place. On the road to see the Omaha beach at Normandy and just really appreciate your take on Texas sports. Not sure about the comedian list. Have to think on it. Not a fan of Barr but the rest make sense. Kudos Ketch!
Not a fan of Barr, either, but she's kind of like the Ty Cobb of her genre. No one actually likes her, but she's still one of the greats.
 
Not that it’s simple, and it’s also still evolving. But many people still don’t have a grip on the economic/financials of college athletics. Even some of the basics. I guess the shift from “amateur” to “professional” still has many confused, despite the Olympics and pro sports as examples. Might be worth a piece on the “new economics” of college sports, and the end of artificial controls over amateur athletes’ rights.
God point. I'll give it some thought.
 
NIL is not the same thing as scholarships.
We were in the car coming home and I was on the phone and did not see the graphic. Based on the short excerpt I saw it seemed as if Ketch was saying that Texas was adding scholarships for all sports some of which are capped, I believe. If they were adding scholarships, particularly in nonrevenue sports it had to be because of UT's ability to handle the added cost of those scholarships. Essentially creating a parallel to NI Lin a way. If you understand.

After getting home and reading the article on the laptop I believe the essential complaint by other schools regarding Texas was "how in the hell can they afford that and how in the hell can we compete with that". Essentially openly stating that the financial advantage Texas has gives them an unfair competitive advantage. One coach even said that if they want the same track athlete (I think it was in track) that we want we cannot compete with them for that athlete.

Ketchum Headline was after all Blank Texas and all it's money... wasn't it.
 
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Look I’ll admit I never watched men’s soccer but it just always felt like Texas should not only have men’s soccer but be dominant in it.

In fairness I have no idea what role Title IX plays.

Yeah. I’m the same. With as much home grown talent as we have in Texas we could start a Women’s Gymnastics, Men’s Soccer and maybe even Men’s Hockey team and immediately be competitive.
 
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A thought on Miller... Everyone seems to be looking for a coach with skins on the wall or a big "splash" hire. That's all based on past success, which means it's based largely on recruiting, roster management, culture building and coaching in a pre-NIL world. What worked then, or even this year, won't necessarily carry over into the brave new world we are entering.

I'll also add that Texas has pretty much been a poster child for the concept that producing lottery picks doesn't necessarily equate to a lot of team success. We need to find a way to recruit a solid roster, balance 1-year guys with some program depth, and get our guys playing in a system that gets quality looks on offense and quality stops on defense.

I don't know if Miller is "the guy" who'll nail the magic formula for long term success in the NIL era, but CDC seems to like him and that carries a lot of weight with me.
 
We were in the car coming home and I was on the phone and did not see the graphic. Based on the short excerpt I saw it seemed as if Ketch was saying that Texas was adding scholarships for all sports some of which are capped, I believe. If they were adding scholarships, particularly in nonrevenue sports it had to be because of UT's ability to handle the added cost of those scholarships. Essentially creating a parallel to NI Lin a way. If you understand.

After getting home and reading the article on the laptop I believe the essential complaint by other schools regarding Texas was "how in the hell can they afford that and how in the hell can we compete with that". Essentially openly stating that the financial advantage Texas has gives them an unfair competitive advantage. One coach even said that if they want the same track athlete (I think it was in track) that we want we cannot compete with them for that athlete.

Ketchum Headline was after all Blank Texas and all it's money... wasn't it.
It's UT's money that allows them to add scholarships.
 
A thought on Miller... Everyone seems to be looking for a coach with skins on the wall or a big "splash" hire. That's all based on past success, which means it's based largely on recruiting, roster management, culture building and coaching in a pre-NIL world. What worked then, or even this year, won't necessarily carry over into the brave new world we are entering.

I'll also add that Texas has pretty much been a poster child for the concept that producing lottery picks doesn't necessarily equate to a lot of team success. We need to find a way to recruit a solid roster, balance 1-year guys with some program depth, and get our guys playing in a system that gets quality looks on offense and quality stops on defense.

I don't know if Miller is "the guy" who'll nail the magic formula for long term success in the NIL era, but CDC seems to like him and that carries a lot of weight with me.
I think one of my concerns with Miller is that he is wildly unproven in this new era of roster building and NIL.

He literally has minimal success in the modern era of the sport.
 
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I have a lot of thoughts on everything that has been reported in the last 48 hours.

Mostly I'm upset that UT can apparently lap the entire rest of the country when it comes to handing out scholarships to non-revenue generating sports, but at the same time, we can't afford to be more than a lower-middle class basketball program in terms of a head coaching hire and available NIL funds for top-level recruits in basketball. In the same weekend, you have reported that we are spending an extra $9 million a year in non-revenue scholarships, but we can't afford spend $7 million a year in NIL on a top 5 basketball roster. Frankly, that sucks and it is a shitty way to allocate resources in my opinion.

This news about the basketball team not having the financial resources to bring in a Bill Self-level hire or the NIL funds to support a head coach building a championship roster, combined with the periodic planted stories that the university is in dire need of more NIL funds for football or we won't be able to sustain success... It all begs this question...

Is Chris Del Conte a mediocre below-average athletic director specifically when it comes to fundraising? Maybe he is the best in the business when it comes to coaching hires and game day experiences and having the right answer for every tough question that the fans ask and having the best-looking burnt orange sport coat wardrobe, but it is really starting to look like he sucks at fundraising for NIL and specifically fundraising for men's basketball.
 
I have a lot of thoughts on everything that has been reported in the last 48 hours.

Mostly I'm upset that UT can apparently lap the entire rest of the country when it comes to handing out scholarships to non-revenue generating sports, but at the same time, we can't afford to be more than a lower-middle class basketball program in terms of a head coaching hire and available NIL funds for top-level recruits in basketball. In the same weekend, you have reported that we are spending an extra $9 million a year in non-revenue scholarships, but we can't afford spend $7 million a year in NIL on a top 5 basketball roster. Frankly, that sucks and it is a shitty way to allocate resources in my opinion.

This news about the basketball team not having the financial resources to bring in a Bill Self-level hire or the NIL funds to support a head coach building a championship roster, combined with the periodic planted stories that the university is in dire need of more NIL funds for football or we won't be able to sustain success... It all begs this question...

Is Chris Del Conte a mediocre below-average athletic director specifically when it comes to fundraising? Maybe he is the best in the business when it comes to coaching hires and game day experiences and having the right answer for every tough question that the fans ask, but it is really starting to look like he sucks at fundraising for NIL and specifically fundraising for men's basketball.
Del Conte is a world-class fundraiser.

He hasn't been anywhere close to that in helping with NIL, in part because there's always a sense of unwillingness to share the money he is collecting in fundraising for his own purposes.
 
Del Conte is a world-class fundraiser.

He hasn't been anywhere close to that in helping with NIL, in part because there's always a sense of unwillingness to share the money he is collecting in fundraising for his own purposes.

Ok... so, he sucks at it, in other words. Or at best, his focus in fundraising is severely misguided.

You're saying the athletics department is his mansion in Spanish Oaks, and the men's basketball program is the 2015 Ford Explorer that he drives to the office every day from December through March because he is house poor and can't afford a decent ride.
 
Ok... so, he sucks at it, in other words. Or at best, his focus in fundraising is severely misguided.

You're saying the athletics department is his mansion in Spanish Oaks, and the men's basketball program is the 2015 Ford Explorer that he drives to the office every day from December through March because he is house poor and can't afford a decent ride.
Hey, just be glad Sark is now making more than 5 million a year. It's only because of his big raise that the basketball coach can now earn what the football coach used to earn. ;)
 
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No mention of Gable Steveson losing to Wyatt Hendrickson for the D1 Heavyweight National Title in the Scattorshooting section makes me sad

- Wyatt Hendrickson, is a second lieutenant in the Air Force, transferred to Ok State this year after a 31-2 record and 3rd place finish last year

- Gable hasn't lost since 2019 when he lost to the same guy twice during his freshman season. His record is now 103-3 as his collegiate career comes to an end.

- Gable's been on an 85-match college win streak since his freshman year with 2 losses to a senior his freshman year. He left college 2 years ago to go to the Olympics and he won Gold.
2x National Champion, would have been a 3x had covid not ended that season just after the Conference Championships. 4x Big 10 Champ. 2020 Olympic Gold Champion and this would have been his hypothetical 4th National Title.

S/O Lieutenant Wyatt Hendrickson for being only the second human to beat Gable in Folkstyle wrestling in at least 6 years
That was amazing to watch. Lots of energy in the crowd too.
 
Does Brooks truly look like a world-beater or do the rest of the guys look so far away from world-beating that he looks like a damn Ritz cracker to a starving man in the desert?
Don’t disparage my Ritz crackers. A can of vienna sausages is the appropriate metaphor here.
 
Great start to week, @Ketchum

The scholarship news is exciting for UT athletics. They brought the rowing team out for the Directors Cup celebration at DKR last fall and I was surprised at how many girls were on that team so I'm not surprised when i see those numbers.

Wyatt Hendrickson's win was as big as anything this weekend.

Do we think a top WR will be available in the portal after spring? Seems unlikely.

Miller is a solid hire. He needs to get busy in the portal. I think it opened today for basketball right? Thought I heard Coach Cal mention that.

Saw Whitney Cummings at Mothership. She was hilarious. Nikki is great too. Her and Tony were the stars of the Brady Roast.

Hoosiers was based on a True story about Milan and Bobby Plump (Chitwood). I've been to a diner in Indianapolis called Plumps Last Shop that his son still owns and operates or did back then anyway.
 
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There are 68 women on the rowing team, according to texaslonghorns.com. And seven coaches. Count me as one of those who had no idea that there were that many people on a rowing team. Must be several different types of events, distances, crews, etc., to make that much specialization.

And for those who asked, the cross country scholarships are included in the track & field numbers. This was part of the footnote when this was first published a month or so ago.
 
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Del Conte is a world-class fundraiser.

He hasn't been anywhere close to that in helping with NIL, in part because there's always a sense of unwillingness to share the money he is collecting in fundraising for his own purposes.
This is just terrible....

Its so frustrating that we're at where we're at with NIL (football being all I care about)
 
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Are we calling Hooisers a true story?

Hickory isn't even a real town.
Hoosiers is not true, BUT is based on the story of Milan winning the Indiana state title in 1954. Just like Fright Night Lights was not a true story, but was based on Odessa Permian football in 1988.
 
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No mention of Gable Steveson losing to Wyatt Hendrickson for the D1 Heavyweight National Title in the Scattorshooting section makes me sad

- Wyatt Hendrickson, is a second lieutenant in the Air Force, transferred to Ok State this year after a 31-2 record and 3rd place finish last year

- Gable hasn't lost since 2019 when he lost to the same guy twice during his freshman season. His record is now 103-3 as his collegiate career comes to an end.

- Gable's been on an 85-match college win streak since his freshman year with 2 losses to a senior his freshman year. He left college 2 years ago to go to the Olympics and he won Gold.
2x National Champion, would have been a 3x had covid not ended that season just after the Conference Championships. 4x Big 10 Champ. 2020 Olympic Gold Champion and this would have been his hypothetical 4th National Title.

S/O Lieutenant Wyatt Hendrickson for being only the second human to beat Gable in Folkstyle wrestling in at least 6 years
I just didn't care. :(
 
Great start to week, @Ketchum

The scholarship news is exciting for UT athletics. They brought the rowing team out for the Directors Cup celebration at DKR last fall and I was surprised at how many girls were on that team so I'm not surprised when i see those numbers.

Wyatt Hendrickson's win was as big as anything this weekend.

Do we think a top WR will be available in the portal after spring? Seems unlikely.

Miller is a solid hire. He needs to get busy in the portal. I think it opened today for basketball right? Thought I heard Coach Cal mention that.

Saw Whitney Cummings at Mothership. She was hilarious. Nikki is great too. Her and Tony were the stars of the Brady Roast.

Hoosiers was based on a True story about Milan and Bobby Plump (Chitwood). I've been to a diner in Indianapolis called Plumps Last Shop that his son still owns and operates or did back then anyway.
Yes, but Bobby Plump's life story wasn't Jimmy Chitwood. All of the drama was for the movie.

I think they've been making calls at WR IMO. A DUDE will become available IMO> Just a hunch.

Good post!
 
Hoosiers is not true, BUT is based on the story of Milan winning the Indiana state title in 1954. Just like Fright Night Lights was not a true story, but was based on Odessa Permian football in 1988.

Correct.
 
why is there such a disparity between men and women scholarships?
The legalities of Title IX actually stipulate that athletic scholarships need to reflect the makeup of the student body. With the student body of Texas ~60% female and football taking up 85 men's scholarships, there needs to be a fairly unequal distribution of the remaining scholarships toward women's sports.
 

No. 4 – The implications of Nick Brooks ...

I want to apologize for this next section because sometimes the negative energy takes over my brain and I just can't help it.

With all of the buzz surrounding true freshman Nic Brooks since he arrived in January, I find myself having the following reactions.

a. I have some doubts about all of the rhetoric, but it seems clear he is headed towards a path of being someone that the program will eventually be able to lean on, which is a hell of an important potential win in recruiting when you consider that players with his recruiting profile historically develop into drafted NFL players about 20%-ish of the time at best.

b. No one had Brooks as a super blue chip prospect in the industry. Only Rivals and ESPN had him as a national top 200 player. On3 had him as a 3-star.

c. What the hell does this say about every other young offensive lineman at his position that he's generated more buzz than all of them combined?

Andre Cojoe going into his third year? Jaydon Chatman going into his third year? Malik Agbo going into his fourth year? Hell, even Brandon Baker going into his second year?

Outside of possibly Baker, the praise of Brooks flashes praise on the fact that all of the non-true freshman offensive tackles in the program not named Trevor Goosby and Baker look like lost causes at this point when we're talking about playing at the levels needed for this program to win a national title. I don't want to say the P-word too loudly, but anyone that Brooks passes in the pecking order over the course of the next few weeks will have to see the writing on the wall.

Does Brooks truly look like a world-beater or do the rest of the guys look so far away from world-beating that he looks like a damn Ritz cracker to a starving man in the desert?

We'll find out soon enough.
Brooks' story is starting to sound a bit like the rise of Cam Williams. Humongous, physical tackle prospect who was rated a low 4-star/3-star as a recruit, who quickly gets his weight under control and ends up being one of the top OL in college football and a high draft pick.

Attrition is just a by-product of the way Texas is handling offensive line recruiting and development (which in my mind is the correct way). Bring in a large number of guys who have the desired traits and mentality for their targeted positions and let the cream rise to the top. Ultimately, a few guys are gonna fall by the wayside.
 
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Brooks' story is starting to sound a bit like the rise of Cam Williams. Humongous, physical tackle prospect who was rated a low 4-star/3-star as a recruit, who quickly gets his weight under control and ends up being one of the top OL in college football and a high draft pick.

Attrition is just a by-product of the way Texas is handling offensive line recruiting and development (which in my mind is the correct way). Bring in a large number of guys who have the desired traits and mentality for their targeted positions and let the cream rise to the top. Ultimately, a few guys are gonna fall by the wayside.
I think the concern is that it's more than a few guys.
 
I think the concern is that it's more than a few guys.
I get what you're saying, but the reality is that only 3 or 4 guys will get significant playing time at OT during the season. I don't believe that all of the guys who fall behind Brooks will end up in the (P word).
 
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