With seemingly only the detail of passing 18 hours of classes this semester keeping him from making a transfer from USC to Texas official this summer, it's probably as good a time as any to examine as much pure data and information as possible about a player that could emerge as the key to the 2014 season for the Texas Longhorns.
The basics on Max Wittek read like this … he's been a two-year primary back-up quarterback for the Trojans, first in 2012 as the understudy to senior Matt Barkley and then against last season for sophomore Cody Kessler. In those two seasons as the back-up, Wittek received two starts in 2012 when Barkley went down with a season-ending injury and the rest of his action (14 total games played in two seasons) has come exclusively in mop-up duty. Overall, Wittek has completed 50 of 95 passes (52.6-percent) for 600 yards, three touchdowns and six interceptions
However, I'm not sure any of the data above truly explains what held Wittek back at USC or what kind of player the Longhorns might be getting in a few weeks if everything goes according to plan. So many obvious questions exist. For example, what happened in those two starts of his against the Irish and Yellow Jackets? Why didn't he beat out Kessler? What are his perceived weaknesses as a player?
In an effort to gain as background information as possible about Wittek's USC journey, I thought I would spend some time digging around this weekend. (Note: I had no idea this would turn into War and Peace when I started, but I digress).
No. 2 - A look at Wittek's recruitment
A member of the 2011 recruiting class, the former Santa Ana (California) Mater Dei prep star was ranked as the No. 3 pro-style quarterback prospect and the No. 76 overall prospect by Rivals.com.
Junior Highlights at Mater Dei
Following his junior season at Mater Dei, the world was pretty much Wittek's oyster, as he received offers from the likes of Florida, Florida State, Notre Dame and all of the West Coast before the end of his junior season. With Ed Orgeron serving as his primary recruiter, USC made Wittek its No. 1 quarterback target and within a month of receiving an offer from Lane Kiffin, Wittek was a USC commitment.
"I talked with my dad and my mom about it," Wittek told USCFootball.com on April 25, 2010. "It felt like the right fit. I always look for things on my checklist that I want in a school and in my mind it always came back to USC."
In September of 2010, Rivals.com recruiting analyst Adam Gorney scouted Wittek in person and reported the following:
Performance: Wittek completed 11-of-25 passes for 176 yards with a 45-yard touchdown pass against much of Centennial's second-string defense and he also threw two interceptions.
Strengths: Wittek has a strong, live arm and can deliver passes to open receivers. He also has a good feel in the pocket and has a good command of the offense. To his credit, Wittek tried to do as much as he could with limited skill players around him.
Weaknesses: More than a few people on the sidelines Friday night noticed that Wittek locks in on receivers and then always throws that way. He has the velocity on the ball to get it there but sometimes it's obvious where the ball is going early in the play.
Grade: C
Less than a month later, Gorney checked in on Wittek once again :
Performance: Wittek was at least 14 of 25 passing for 255 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. He also ran for about 66 yards including a 14-yard score.
Strengths: There is a lot to like about Wittek, namely an impressively strong arm that fires the ball to receivers best on short and intermediate routes. His running and ability to escape might go overlooked but Wittek can not only move around the pocket but evade rushers and move the ball downfield. At USC, Wittek will have many capable receivers around him and he'll be able to deliver the ball. He was markedly better the second time we've seen him this season after struggling against Corona Centennial.
Weaknesses: Wittek's arm is impressive and he can throw the ball deep but sometimes his passes hang in the air a little too long. He also takes some dangerous shots down the field into tight coverage. Some of those bombs hit - like the outstanding 60-yarder to Blackwell - but many others get tipped away with a chance of being picked off.
Grade: A-
At the end of his senior season, Wittek joined a host of nationally elite prospects in Florida for the Under Armour Bowl and emerged from the week in Orlando with an even bigger national reputation. Here's a look at what was written by Rivals.com analysts following one of the early practices at the event:
"After some struggles early, Wittek seemed to settle down and get in the groove. Of the three quarterbacks on the White roster, he appears to have the most refined delivery. Wittek possesses a strong arm, and typically gets pretty good zip on the ball. He also has a quick release. On this afternoon, he actually was more precise with his mid-range and long-range throws than his shorter ones."
Three days later, he earned UA Player of the Game honors after completing 14 of 24 passes for 150 yards and a pair of touchdowns, including a 49-yard strike to Malcolm Mitchell with 1:47 remaining in the game that gave his team a 22-21 lead. Afterwards, Rivals.com had this to say about Wittek:
Wittek is a consistent signal-caller who can make a number of different throws. He is very controlled in his throwing motion and puts the ball in a good spot for his receivers.
Five days later, he enrolled into USC in time to participate in spring drills with the Trojans.
No. 3 - The Next 678 Days
To give you an idea of what the quarterback situation in which Wittek found himself looked like, here's a look at USC's quarterback recruiting from 2008-2011:
2008: None
2009: Matt Barkley
2010: Jesse Scroggins
2011: Max Wittek and Cody Kessler
By the time he arrived in Los Angeles for his first set of spring workouts in 2011, Matt Barkley had clearly established himself for the starting quarterback position, which meant that behind the scenes there was a battle between Scroggins, Wittek and Kessler for reps and positioning for the time when Barkley would depart the program.
Video of Wittek's first practice at USC (1:53 left in the video)
After the first week of workouts, USCFootball.com sized up the jostling by the quarterbacks like this :
Jesse Scroggins is in a big-time three-way battle that hasn't had enough time to play out for the backup spot. But this could be the week that Scroggins, or one of his two true freshman competitors, Max Wittek or Cody Kessler, takes the first step. Scroggins looks like he has a bit of an edge on his feet. Confidence to make the right call, and the right throw, will be the decider here, Scroggins understands. But against an aggressive defense trying to make up for last fall, it won't be easy. Study the playbook, Barkley tells the three contenders.
In discussing the spring battle a few days later, Lane Kiffin provided a very early report card :
"Cody (Kessler) is the leader in completions," Kiffin said, "with Jesse [Scroggins] in the middle and Max (Wittek) at the bottom. That's what the numbers come up with."
More video of Wittek's initial spring workouts with the Trojans
Following the spring game, USCFootball described Scroggins' hold on the back-up Job like this:
"Had a tough day Saturday throwing the ball, completing 6 of 15, with one interception on a deep ball into double coverage he shouldn't have thrown. Good for just 68 yards. Not what he wanted in order to take the next step as the leader in the backup battle over the two true freshmen. Not sure he created separation here so we can probably expect the competition to extend through August. Still the leader but he's not in the clubhouse yet. Has all the tools to do so but looked a bit unsettled in front of the crowd and under the gun."
A few months later, Wittek began to make a move in jostling between quarterbacks when he had his best practice as a Trojan with an injured Jesse Scroggins on the sideline, thus opening up a few more reps for the younger quarterbacks on the roster.
"I just come out here and take advantage of as many reps as I get - however many that is," said Wittek. "I felt like I had a very good day. I'm very comfortable with the offense now and I have that understanding where I can take my game to the next level.
"I'm getting to the point where I don't have to think so much and I'm not wide eyed. I'm playing more comfortable and feel better about my game."
Although Wittek had his moments in August in his first fall camp, he had fallen slightly behind fellow true freshman Cody Kessler going into the season.
Push him hard to explain how he emerged in the head-to-head with fellow early-entry freshman Max Wittek and he'll say "the scrimmages were the biggest thing. Coach Kiffin said, 'Show it, don't talk it.' " Then he quickly adds: "We all had great games."
The difference then? "Hopefully it was my work ethic," he says.
Ultimately, both players redshirted during the 2011 season, as Barkley threw every pass from a quarterback on the USC roster that season, leaving the battle between Wittek and Kessler to be waged in the spring. Once the battle between the two started again in earnest in the spring of 2012, an 18-month period ensued in which neither quarterback was able to completely separate from the other. In this early scrimmage report from USCFootball.com, the lack of separation was fairly evident:
It didn't start all that well for Wittek, whose first 11-on-11 full scrimmage pass attempt was batted up in the air by defensive end Wes Horton and picked off by linebacker Will Andrew. But after that, Wittek, who went first, settled in and threw the ball well.
"I felt very comfortable out there with my decision-making," said Wittek, who knows he's come a long way since last spring here.
As has Kessler, who could hardly believe the difference running an offense he knows now versus the one he and Wittek, as early entry quarterbacks last spring, were trying to master. "Now you can focus on the offense . . . " in all its intricacies and adjustments, Kessler said. "I felt good out there, really good."
Even after Wittek had what was called his best practice as a Trojan just days before the USC spring game, USC coach Lane Kiffin was unwilling to name a standout between the two:
"Both of them played really well . . . And neither has pulled ahead of the other," Kiffin said following the scrimmage.
Max Wittek in action during the spring of 2012
If the hope was for either Wittek or Kessler to take a step forward in the spring game, it didn't happen, as Kessler completed 3 of 6 passes for 68 yards, while Wittek completed 3 of 7 passes for 27 yards. Despite the quiet numbers, Wittek clearly made an impression on those who watched him over the course of the spring, as USCFootball.com reporter Dan Weber wrote in his post-spring analysis:
Wittek does indeed (have a cannon for an arm). Getting it under control is the key. Tremendously improved spring. But does have such a strong arm, ramping it down with touch is the key for him. Made lots of progress there this spring.
Once the two players reengaged in the competition in August, USCFootball.com reported that the theme of no separation continued throughout camp.
Neither Kessler nor Wittek has exactly separated himself. Through nearly one week of fall camp, they've split the reps and posted similar numbers during Friday's scrimmage as well. Kessler completed 4 of 8 passes for 35 yards, along with an interception. Wittek went 6 for 10 for 77 yards.
"I think both guys are doing well," Kiffin said earlier in the week. "Max has gotten bigger and stronger in the offseason and Cody has really improved on a big area of concern, which was lengthening his stride and getting away from the line of scrimmage. So it's good to see and you can tell they've both improved."
Max Wittek in action during 2012 fall workouts
Finally, at the end of August camp and in the days leading into the 2012 season-opener against Hawaii, Kiffin finally made a call that would directly impact the rest of the events that season.
After talking to the three principals, here's the one differentiating factor, it would seem, for a decision that "had to be made," Kiffin seemed to say, because USC "had to have somebody" listed as backup. And somebody to get more snaps in practice although expect both to get plenty.
Kessler was technically the backup last fall but he didn't really get many more snaps than Wittek, if any. And it didn't carry over to this fall, obviously. Which is what Kiffin said. This decision will not affect next spring's quarterback competition or next fall's starting battle.
It is what it is. A decision for now. And in essence, it seems to be saying that inserting Wittek in a game at a moment's notice, in case of a Barkley injury, would allow USC to continue with the game-plan as is. With the deep routes and forcing teams to defend Robert Woods and Marqise Lee sideline-to-sideline and the two tight ends down the seams.
Kiffin didn't really differentiate, repeating "how very confident we are in both of them coming into the game . . . both made plays (in the fall) . . . either could do it."
Wittek thought it had to do with his "confidence" about getting into the film room and getting the routes down and the line calls and receiver calls, which would only catch him up to Kessler, who had all of that down his first preseason a year ago.
But at 6-feet-4 and "243/244 pounds," he said the last time he weighed in, Wittek has a gun and can make all the throws. Nothing will change when he comes in. His ball security and scrambling may not quite match Kessler's. Nor even his command of the huddle although as in most things, he's improved to where they're really close now. But the game would change.
No.4a - The 2012 Notre Dame game
Through the first 11 games of the season, Wittek's status as the No. 1 quarterback on the depth chart didn't translate into heavy playing time, as he saw action in three games, completing 8 of 9 passes for 95 yards and a touchdown.
That all changed on November 17 when Barkley was knocked out of action against the crosstown UCLA Bruins with a broken collarbone, which suddenly left Wittek in a position of starting the season-finale against No. 1 Notre Dame in the Coliseum.
If Wittek felt any pressure of taking control of a 7-4 team heading into a match-up with one of the nation's top defenses, he surely didn't express that emotion in dealing with the media. In fact, Wittek ended up making national headlines during the week when he predicted that the Trojans would beat the Irish in his first start:
In a profile of Wittek leading up to the game , USCFootball.com captured the young quarterback in all of his precociousness:
He bounced from a radio interview that he finished off by saying his Trojans were "going to win this ball game" against Notre Dame to a bank of cameras and 30 reporters waiting to pounce. But this was no longer the quiet kid who you really didn't know what he was thinking. Not any more.
"Absolutely," was the first word out of his mouth to the question "was he ready to play?"
And later on, another "Absolutely" when asked if he was ready and willing and able to do "whatever my team needs me to do," the 6-foot-4, 245-pound "prototype pro-style . . . Carson-Palmer-like" quarterback with "a big arm," Lane Kiffin called him.
Well, all right then. But Wittek's day didn't end there.
Sure, echoing his coach, Notre Dame has the best defense in the country but he still noted how "every defense has its soft spots and we're looking to take advantage of those."
And then he took a look at something else Notre Dame doesn't have: "any film on me . . . they don't know me," and that has to help.
Max Wittek practices as USC's No. 1 QB for the first time
Ultimately, over-the-moon-confidence or not, Wittek wasn't completely prepared for such a moment on the largest of national stages, as the Irish swarmed him throughout the night into a performance easily forgotten.
After going 0 for 3 in the first quarter, Wittek and the SC offense warmed up in the opening stages of the second quarter, as a string of Wittek passes to Marqise Lee and Robert Woods concluded with an 11-yard scoring strike from Wittek to Woods, which cut the Notre Dame lead to 10-7.
With a game-plan designed to limit the amount of pressure/responsibility for Wittek, he didn't make his first critical mistake of the game until the second quarter when he was intercepted by Cierre Wood on a deep ball one play after the USC defense had forced a three and out with the Trojans trailing 13-10.
2012 USC/Notre dame highlights
Down 16-10 at halftime, Wittek was a mere 7 of 12 for 64 yards, a touchdown and an interception, but things only took a turn for the worse from that moment on, as the first USC drive of the third quarter ended when Wittek was intercepted by Manti Te'o and the fourth came to an stalling end when Wittek took a seven-yard sack on third and seven. The offense was in such a tough position that the Trojans didn't even attempt a pass on the third drive of the third quarter and by the time the two teams switched sides for the final 15 minutes, Wittek had gone through a third quarter that saw him complete 2 of 4 passes for 14 yards and an interception.
Although Wittek helped keep the Trojans in the game for four quarters, his final numbers told a fairly accurate story: 13 of 23 for 186 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions.
"I thought Max did really well under the circumstances," Kiffin said following the game. "Playing the No. 1 team in the country. I thought he did a good job handling himself . . . that is Max's personality [throwing the ball deep] . . . We saw that this week in practice, aggressively throwing the ball down the field, I think we saw that today. He didn't play nervous. He did a good job for a guy as a freshman to start in this game, to only have two turnovers -- usually guys have four or five."
4b - The Georgia Tech game
While having a week's notice to prepare himself against one of the nation's top defenses wasn't ideal, Wittek's second start in replacement of Barkley appeared to be a little more manageable on paper, as the Trojans faced Georgia Tech in the Sun Bowl with more than five weeks to prepare for the game.
Although the Trojans held out hope that Barkley would return for the bowl game, Wittek treated the entire month like it was his show, per USCFootball.com:
Wittek was on the same page there. After flying in from a trip to his old Connecticut home for Christmas, starting out at 6 a.m. to beat the weather from New York's LaGuardia Airport, he stepped back into the preparation just like for Notre Dame.
"Exactly," he said. But with one change. He got through that prep week "having Matt there," and showing him what it takes to prepare for the No. 1 team in the nation. "He's definitely backed off a little this time," Wittek said. This is no longer his first rodeo.
"He sees I'm a grownup, ready to take over," Wittek said.
So he thinks he will? "It looks like it," Wittek said. "But you never know. It's Matt's team."
Finally, less than a week before the game, Barkley was declared out and Wittek was officially named the starter against the Yellow Jackets. Unlike his opening start against Notre Dame, Wittek didn't put himself in the prediction business, which was a good thing because the bowl game in El Paso was not the coming-out-party for which he had to be hoping.
Like five weeks prior, the USC coaching staff did everything it could to keep the pressure off of Wittek by trying to lean on the running game, but the cautious approach helped Wittek get off to a brutally slow start, completing 3 of 5 passes for 9 yards in a scoreless first quarter.
The next 15 minutes was the equivalent of an unprotected walk along the El Paso border, as Wittek continued to struggle to find a rhythm, eventually throwing an interception and falling to 4 of 9 for 26 yards before responding back with a scoring drive that featured his best stuff all night, completing 3 of 4 passes for 32 yards and a touchdown.
His first half numbers weren't anything to remember (7 of 13 for 58 yards), but his team was locked into a 7-7 game and with a strong final 30 minutes in this bowl game, ala David Ash in the 2012 Alamo Bowl, Wittek could have potentially put himself into a lead position for the stating job going into the spring.
In what can only be described as a third quarter disaster, Wittek completed 3 of 10 passes for 10 yards and the USC offense was equally awful in producing a mere 10 yards of total offense in the quarter. Although the Trojans were only down a touchdown to the Yellow Jackets heading into the fourth quarter, it felt like they were one play away from being completely out of it.
That backbreaker occurred midway through the quarter when Wittek drove the offense down to the Georgia Tech four-yard line, only to throw an interception in the end zone on third and three. By the time the Trojans offense touched the ball again, there was 1:31 left on the clock and the 14-point deficit might as well have been 100.
To put a cherry on top of this wretched sundae, Wittek threw another interception in the final 65 seconds of the game.
The final damage: 14 of 37 for 107 yards, a touchdown and three interceptions.
No. 5 - The End of the Road
As if two straight subpar performances to end the season wasn't enough to overcome in his quest to win the starting job once-and-for-all from Kessler, a knee sprain kept Wittek out of action for the first half of the spring, which provided his competition for the job all the snaps with the first-team offense that he could handle.
With Wittek playing catch up, Kessler seemingly took control of the starting position, a point that was somewhat punctuated in the spring game when he completed 15 of 22 passes for 242 yards and three touchdowns.
Most important, Kessler didn't turn the ball over a single time, while Wittek threw two of the team's interceptions, points not lost on USCFootball.com in analyzing the results of the spring game.
There were no fumbles and no Kessler interceptions. That's a big step up from a team that turned the ball over 34 times last fall, more than all but three teams in the nation.
Kessler's ability not to have to get rid of it right away, his confidence in the pocket and his ability to take off and avoid a sack if necessary at the last second, was something that didn't happen last fall. Only way to avoid a sack many times was to flip it to the first read -- or force it. Not so much now.
2013 USC Spring Game Highlights
Despite the vibe that Kessler was clearly ahead, the competition remained officially undecided for quite a while, as it turned into one of the last sideshows in the Kiffin era. Texas fans will appreciate the "or" reference in this USCFootball.com spring game review of the position coming out of spring workouts.
Certainly having three quarterbacks ready to play -- or at least two -- will be an improvement. Blocking the run and protecting the quarterback, whoever it might be, will as well. Although it's hard to see how Cody Kessler's performance' hasn't turned the "OR" after his name into more of a question mark about the other two. Max Wittek and freshman Max Browne, despite their obvious gifts, definitely seem behind Kessler in playmaking, huddle presence, accuracy, timing, scrambling and just as a team leader. Looks like official list may have one too many "ORs."
Once drills began in August, Kiffin continued the game of charades, despite the fact that Kessler was taking the majority of the first-team reps and everyone seemed to assume that he had emerged as the leader at the position. In a fantastic quarterback evaluation article on USCFootball.com , the review of the quarterbacks broke down like this:
The leader: Cody Kessler. Kessler had a miserable fifth practice but before that he was nearly flawless. Despite what's said about his arm in comparison to Wittek, Kessler has enough of an arm to get the job done. He can make every throw that he needs to and he usually makes the right one. That's good enough to start and Kessler's proved that so far. The QBR confirms that Cody Kessler is the heavy favorite to win the starting job after the first five practices.
Playing catch up: Max Wittek. Wittek has all the physical tools that you want out of a quarterback, his problem this fall has been decision making. Too often Wittek will try to force a pass in between defenders or throw a ball over the top that doesn't have much of a chance. If he doesn't change his habits and look for his check down receivers, Wittek will lose his job.
Quarterback drills from fall camp
A few days later, UFCFootbll.com updated its review of the quarterback battle :
Kessler's in control: It was another solid day for Kessler. He went 18 of 29 and didn't throw an interception. He now only has four interceptions in seven practices. He spent most of his time with the first team offense which has been a continued theme for a few days now. According to our numbers, Cody Kessler is the favorite to take the job. After his QBR rating of 113.81 today, Kessler is now at a 104.89 overall, another improvement to his overall score.
Wittek won't quit: Wittek spent most of the days behind a second string offensive line that was further depleted since Aundrey Walker and Kevin Graf were both out Friday. Wittek went 12 of 21 and threw a pick, but the QBR still shows that the race for the starting job is within reach. His QBR is now at 90.64 which is only behind Kessler by about 14 points.
Although, Kiffin still wasn't ready to name a starter midway through August, the battle between Wittek and Kessler remained extremely competitive as the team headed towards the conclusion of camp.
Max Wittek talks 2013 quarterback competition
In a key scrimmage that might have been the final undoing for Wittek, the third-year quarterback received all of his reps with the first-team offense, but wasn't able to take advantage of the situation:
Official stats from the scrimmage had Kessler going 20-of-28 for 231 yards while Wittek was 2-of-7 for just 15 yards.
We had Wittek getting all of his reps with the first team offense and against the first team defense. Kessler had more than half of his reps with the second string offense and against the second string defense.
Max Wittek was sacked three times and Cody Kessler was sacked twice. For our QBR calculations, that gives Wittek three and Kessler two "extra" incompletions.
According to USCFootball.com , fall camp ended with Wittek throwing 19 touchdowns and 12 interceptions over the month of August, while Kessler responded with 22 touchdowns and 10 interceptions, while also holding a slight overall edge on QBR. The numbers competition remained closely contested enough that Kiffin listed an "OR" between the two players on the depth chart, indicating that he would not have a final decision made going into the season-opener against Hawaii.
The non-decision status at the position remained after Kessler completed 10 of 19 passes for 95 yards and a touchdown (along with an interception) in a 30-13 win over the Warriors. Also seeing action in the win over the Warriors was Wittek, who completed 5 of 10 passes for 77 yards. Here's what USCFootball.co had to say about it all after the game:
What we saw from the sideline was mostly unacceptable here, as Kiffin himself agreed, lumping himself in with the quarterbacks. So is an endless quarterback competition. Every day there's no decision is a day pretty much saying neither of these guys can cut it. Not a great endorsement. In fact, just the opposite.
Lane said he "definitely" wanted one by now and he was "surprised" the way Kessler played here. But should he be? This was one more opportunity for the No. 1 guy, whoever that is, to get reps with and develop a real chemistry with the guys who are going to be on the field with him. And yet he didn't. Each played just half the plays. Another missed chance to get them on the same page.
Getting his first start at enter for a new-look line was Marcus Martin.
And now they have three practices before opening the Pac-12 season. And how does that matter after spring, summer and August not producing a winner even though Kiffin said Kessler, the Hawai'i starter, had "a phenomenal week" of practice?
And then came the game. The test is supposed to be when the game slows down for you. The problem for USC right now, on offense, is that its game is slowing down for opponents.
The lack of a definitive answer to the quarterback battle from Kiffin finally became a full-on problem the next week in a 10-7 loss to Washington State in the Pac-12 opener for both teams. Kessler completed 8 of 13 passes for 41 yards and interception, while Wittek completed only 3 of 8 passes for 13 yards in limited action. Against a Mike Leach defense, the Trojans mustered only 193 yards of total offense and the question marks finally emerged as an unavoidable problem, as boos came down from the home crowd in the stands throughout the loss … a loss where the longest completed pass of the day for the Trojans was … wait for it … eight yards. Gulp.
USCFootball had all of the gory details in its post-game coverage:
"I've never seen stats as bad as we did today -- the longest pass was eight yards," Kiffin said. But of the negative reaction, he's "getting used to it," Kiffin said. It's last year all over again, basically as teams take away the two wide receivers and tell USC to beat them with what else they have.
And as Kiffin has made clear in losing six of his last eight games, they've got no answer right now other than "You can't have that many negative plays."
And then: "That's very discouraging . . . And obviously that falls on me -- so we're going to fix it."
But how?
Kiffin said he didn't know exactly.
A few days later, Kessler was named the outright starter after having completed 18 of 32 passes for 136 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions in the first two games of the season. While the season was about to completely shred at the seams for the Trojans in the coming weeks, the quarterback competition essentially ended for Wittek in the Coliseum against Washington State, as Kiffin doubled-down on Kessler, who responded with a 15 of 17 passing performance the next week in a win over Boston College.
For the rest of the season, Wittek's in-game contributions remained extremely limited, as the numbers below will display:
Vs. Boston College: 2 of 2 for 27 yards and zero touchdowns
Vs. Utah State: DNP
At Arizona State: DNP
Vs. Arizona: DNP
At Notre Dame: DNP
Vs. Utah: DNP
At Oregon State: DNP
At California: 3 for 4 for 73 yards and zero touchdowns
Vs. Stanford: DNP
At Colorado: 1 of 2 for 22 yards and zero touchdowns
Vs. UCLA: DNP
Vs. Fresno State: DNP
Wittek's final numbers in six games of action in 2013: 14 of 26 for 212 yards and an interception.
Five weeks after the season concluded, Wittek announced his decision to transfer .
"My journey has been a little bit different," Wittek told the Los Angeles Times. "It didn't work out with the traditional picture-perfect ending, but I definitely look back with a lot of positive feelings."
No. 6 - Another revealing weekend for the Texas baseball team …
Man, I hate to do it, but it might be time to break out the trusty Heath Ledger quote from A Knight's Tale for the Texas baseball team. After losing another Big 12 series at home that carried major Big 12 regular season implications with it, I'm not sure that I have any choice.
Two weeks ago, the Longhorns were a team on the rise and in complete control of their destiny, a destiny that many were starting to believe would eventually feature a Big 12 title and a top eight national seed for the post-season.
That was two weeks ago. Now? Now this is just a team that is two games over .500 in conference play with six road games left to play. Now this is a team that might need to scrap and claw just to ensure that a .500 record in conference play is actually achieved.
Yes, the Texas baseball team has been weighed, it has been measured and it has been found wanting.
As has been the case when things have turned south for this team this season, the lack of thunder in the Longhorn line-up is proving to be its undoing. After TCU swept UT last weekend in Austin by a combined 8-1 score, the need for runs was imprinted into the minds of everyone that entered the Disch over the weekend.
The results were slightly better this weekend, but not much, as Texas lost two of three to the Oklahoma State Cowboys and in the process scored a total of six runs in three games. In 27 innings of baseball, the Longhorns cranked out a total of three extra-base hits, none of which came in the first two games of the series.
There just aren't enough plus-bats in the line-up when this team takes on plus-arms. The result is that you have a team that's pretty damn good, but isn't nearly complete enough to truly ascend to greatness. It should be noted for the record that being pretty damn good isn't anything to be ashamed of, it's just not quite the bar that gets used around these parts.
Everyone wants a little more.
No. 7 - Eternal Randomness of the Spotty Sports Mind …
… I don't know that the NBA needs to suspend Donald Sterling for being Donald Sterling, but it should unofficially discipline him by not allowing him to have any more black or Hispanic girlfriends or mistresses from here on out while he's the owner of the Clippers. My guess is that taking that away from him would hurt more than any amount of games the league could send him away for. It's pretty much impossible to cheer for the Clippers at this point and the league's worst nightmare at this point has to be the idea of new commish Adam Silver having to possibly one day hand him a championship. Can you imagine? The truth of the matter is that Sterling has been a horrible human being for a long time and this just happens to be the issue the collective nation is taking issues in. Seriously, Sterling makes euthanasia sound like a good thing.
… Tweet of the Weekend: (Via @mikefreemanNFL) NFL team official: "What does Mark Cuban have to say about his fellow owner? Oh nothing? That's what I thought."
… Nice work, Golden State fans.
… If I'm LeBron James, I'm never playing for a team in the West when I can hang out in the East and cakewalk my way to the Conference Finals each year at a minimum.
… Somehow … someway … the Oklahoma City Thunder need to win two more games against Memphis and then they need to get the hell out of Dodge with the knowledge that the Grizzlies took its pound of flesh, but not the Thunder's souls. At some point in these next few games, the real Kevin Durant has to step forward, right?
… I completely underestimated the Dallas Mavericks in this series against the Spurs. Shame on me. It's almost as if I let the fact that San Antonio had beaten the Mavericks 1,205 straight times cloud the truth that is San Antonio's record this season against the cream of the crop in their conference. Monday night is everything in this series.
… If you needed reminding of just how great Jon "Bones" Jones is at his craft, Saturday's destruction of Glover Teixeira likely served as that reminder because the UFC light heavyweight champion absolutely manhandled the challenger for the belt. Jones simply carved up Teixeira over the course of 25 minutes, eventually taking the fight inside on one of the light heavyweights with whom you're not supposed to go inside. Instead, Jones bludgeoned Teixeira with elbows, kicks and punches. Next up? Settling the Gustafsson talk once and for all.
… I guess we don't have to listen to any more of Phil Davis' mess for a while. Lulz.
… Ladies and gentlemen, take a look at what Danny Castillo did to Charlie Brenneman… wowzers!!!!!
No. 8 - Game of Thrones Recap: Season Four, Episode Four
The show kind of lulled me back into a sense of complacency. I guess that's what happens when The Hound lets a few folks live. It feels like the show has lost its edge…
Yeah right.
**************SPOILER ALERT!!!! SPOILER ALERT!!!! SPOILER ALERT!!!!**************
I'M SERIOUS.
I REPEAT, I'M SERIOUS
**************SPOILER ALERT!!!! SPOILER ALERT!!!!**************
a. Danny is figuring out this Game of Thrones stuff. She just dominated another city without so much as losing a single member of her army. That was a pretty G-move on her part.
b. There's some Michael Corleone in that girl.
c. When the stuff goes down, I want Bron on my side.
d. "Sansa's not a killer. Not yet, anyways." Hmmmm….
e. That was the best scene Littlefinger has ever been involved in. That might have turned him into a star.
f. Lady Tyrell with the candlestick in the kitchen FTMFW!
g. Was Cersei drinking wine out of a vase?
h. I would have pretty much done anything Margery asked me to do. My goodness, the poor king never had a chance.
i. Jon Snow is all Stark.
j. Now we know what the Lord of Flies scene might have looked like if girls had been around.
k. Oh hell, I'm not sure I even want to know who or what the Ice Devil is. Whoa.
**************END OF SPOILER ALERT!!!! END OF SPOILER ALERT!!!!**************
No. 9 - Pop goes the culture because the culture goes pop …
… Hottie of the Weekend (possibly NSFW): Miranda Kerr FTMFW!!!
… Import of the Weekend: Down Under Thunder
… WTF: The new Ronald McDonald wears cargo pants.
… Well, ok then.: Chrissy Teigen Says 'F**k You All' to Instagram Users Who Criticized Her Weight
… Miley Link of the Weekend: Still under the weather.
… Star Wars Update: No Expanded Universe
… Say it isn't so: George Clooney engaged?
No. 10 - The List: Arcade Fire (Listen Via Spotify)
It's real simple … after a little Bach, Pantera and Velvet Underground over the course of the last month with this part of the column, the challenge was to return to this century with something current and relevant.
Enter Arcade Fire, one of the best new millennium bands on the planet. Although they originate from Montreal as a band, there are some definite Texas roots as lead singer Win Butler grew up in The Woodlands.
Therefore, it made for an easy selection. Let's get on with the list.
Last five songs out: No Cars Go
10. My Body is a Cage
A personal favorite from the group's collection, I had to sneak it in somewhere.
9. Ocean of Noise
There are times when Win Butler channels his inner Chris Isaak and it can make for a beautiful, mysterious thing.
8. Intervention
One of three songs from Neon Bible that make the list.
7. Half Light II
I'm not sure that it will make everyone's top 10, but it's one of my favorites.
6. Neighborhood No. 3 (Power's Out)
One of four songs from Funeral that crack the top six.
5. Wake Up
Viewed by music critics as one of the best songs of the last decade.
4. Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)
The best song off of the group's The Suburbs album.
3. Rebellion (Lies)
Per Wikipedia: In 2009, NME ranked the song as the 9th best of the 2000s and in October 2011 they named it as 2nd in their list of the 150 greatest songs from the past 15 years.
2. Reflektor
You can make a case that this song should slide into the No. 1 slot, but out of respect to the group's established classics, I'll leave this 2013 track in the No. 2 slot.
1. Neighborhood No.1 (Tunnels)
The song that kick-started the band's run of decade-long greatness and the anchor of one of the best rock albums (Funeral) of the last 25 years.
Archives List
Blues/Jazz: Listen via Spotify )
Classical: Listen via Spotify)
Country: Listen via Spotify )
Electronic: Listen Via Spotify
Funk: Listen Via Spotify (Part II ? After Hours))
Metal: Listen Via Spotify
Pop: Listen via Spotify )
Punk: Listen via Spotify)
Random: My Number 1's on Spotify
Rap: Listen via Spotify),
R&B: Listen via Spotify)
Reggae: Listen via Spotify)
Rock: Listen via Spotify )
and Listen via Spotify )
This post was edited on 4/27 11:04 PM by Ketchum
