"Prelude to A National Championship"
Top 10 Texas Longhorn games since 1995

Number 5:
#6 Texas 38, #13 Michigan 37
January 1, 2005 Rose Bowl (Pasadena, Calif.)

It was one of the great games played on one of the grandest stages in college football. Two of the game’s most storied programs met for the first time as No. 6 Texas outdueled No. 13 Michigan, 38-37, for the Rose Bowl Championship. The combination of Doak Walker Award-winning RB Cedric Benson and QB Vince Young proved to be too much for the Wolverines to contain. Texas finished with 264 yards rushing, including a UT quarterback record 192 yards from Young, who recorded four rushing TDs for the second time in the season. Young broke a 14-14 halftime tie by hitting the right sideline for a 60-yard TD run just over two minutes into the third quarter. Michigan answered 30 seconds later with a 50-yard TD pass from QB Chad Henne to the Biletnikoff Award winner, WR Braylon Edwards, his third TD catch of the game. The Wolverines added 10 consecutive points and took a 31-21 lead into the fourth quarter. However, the Longhorns were determined that their first appearance in the Rose Bowl would not be a loss. During a spectacular 10-yard TD run, Young appeared to have his legs wrapped by a Michigan defender in the pocket, but spun away and found the right corner of the end zone. Sandwiched between two field goals by UM’s Garrett Rivas, Young added a 23-yard TD run down the left sideline with just under five minutes left. With Texas trailing, 37-35, and 2:58 showing on the clock, the stage was set for a legendary finish. Starting at the Longhorn 34, Young rushed on five of UT’s next seven plays, collecting 34 yards. Benson added three rushes, the last of which placed the ball just inside the Texas 20 with two seconds left. Following a series of timeouts, PK Dusty Mangum sent the Longhorns and their faithful into a frenzy as his 37-yard FG attempt found its way through the uprights as time expired.

WE'RE BACK THIS YEAR FOR OUR SECOND WIN IN A ROW!

"Prelude to A National Championship"
Top 10 Texas Longhorn games since 1995

Number 6:
#16 Texas 17, #14 Virginia 16
October 21, 1995 Memorial Stadium (Austin, Texas)

In a pivotal game that ignited a six-game winning streak, a run to the final Southwest Conference Championship and a berth in the Nokia Sugar Bowl, Phil Dawson became the first Longhorns place-kicker to win a game on the final play when he connected on a 50-yard field goal into a stiff 20 mph headwind to lift No. 16 Texas past No. 14 Virginia, 17-16. It marked the first time in history that the Longhorns claimed a victory in a home game on the final play and only the second time on record that UT won a game as time expired. The Longhorns’ final series, a 14-play, 47-yard drive, was loaded with dramatic plays. With less than one minute left, UT was faced with a fourth-and-one at its own 43-yard-line. Wane McGarity kept the drive alive by diving over left tackle and barely getting the first down. After three incomplete passes, Texas was faced with a fourth-and-10 with 30 seconds left. James Brown patiently waited, stepped up in the pocket and found Mike Adams on the sideline for 12 yards and the first down. Brown stopped the clock by spiking the ball. With 10 seconds left, on a designed play, Brown then gained 11 yards on a keeper to set up Dawson’s dramatic kick.

"Prelude to A National Championship"
Top 10 Texas Longhorn games since 1995

Number 7: . #18 Texas 24, #3 Nebraska 20
October 23, 1999
DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium (Austin, Texas)

With a record crowd of 84,082 on hand at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium and the ESPN GameDay set on location, No. 18 Texas upset No. 3 Nebraska 24-20, marking the third consecutive victory for the Longhorns against the Huskers. UT overcame a 13-3 halftime deficit to out score Nebraska 21-7 in the final 30 minutes and deliver the Huskers what would be their only loss of the season. The game-winning play came with the Longhorns trailing 20-17 midway through the fourth quarter. Two plays after Major Applewhite connected with Ryan Nunez on a 39-yard strike, UT capped its victory-clinching drive with a 17-yard touchdown pass from Applewhite to Mike Jones with 5:51 remaining in the game.

"Prelude to A National Championship"
Top 10 Texas Longhorn games since 1995

Number 8: Texas 20, #7 Nebraska 16
October 31, 1998 Memorial Stadium/Tom Osborne Field (Lincoln, Neb.)

Texas faced a daunting task in playing their third Top 10 opponent of the season and facing Nebraska’s national-leading 47-game home winning streak. However, on the back of their future Heisman Trophy winning running back, the arm of their redshirt freshman quarterback and the heels of their top defensive effort of the year, the Longhorns took a major step toward respectability in a stunning 20-16 upset of No. 7 Nebraska in Lincoln. The game served as a significant mark in Ricky Williams run for the Heisman Trophy as he rushed 37 times for 150 yards against Nebraska’s vaunted “Black Shirt” defense, which entered the game ranked 17th nationally (106.5 ypg) against the run. Major Applewhite completed 14-of-26 passes for 269 yards and two TDs.

Here is the weekend review (holiday edition):

Weekend Ball: The Palermos. My first Italian Christmas Eve was awesome. We had fun eating, drinking, and being merry.

Weekend Goat: The Atlanta Falcons, it’s over.

Quote you never thought you'd hear: “You like it?”. The Sapps’ mother responding to my complements over Amanda’s pumpkin chocolate chip bread (which was delicious). The way she said it, with Amanda standing right next to her, was priceless

Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down Segment:

THUMBS UP: Jennifer, for celebrating her birthday…again…at Fuji Hana.

THUMBS DOWN: Karin Kalin for refusing to try sushi
THUMBS UP: Karin Kalin for buying us sponges

THUMBS UP: Mom and Dad for a fun day at the museum and a delicious meal at Nan

THUMBS UP: Ray Palermo for making a delicious “recipe”
THUMBS UP: The Brazilian kids for drinking the “recipe” and obviously feeling the effects
THUMBS UP: Nick, for pulling over the sweater vest.

THUMBS UP: The waitress at Waffle House for calling out Howard’s Yankee ass.
THUMBS UP: Grandma for eating raw fish

THUMBS DOWN: To Evan for stalling and not finding the movie theater in time

THUMBS UP: To me for being 6-1 in the bowl pool thus far

"Prelude to A National Championship"
Top 10 Texas Longhorn games since 1995

Number 9:
Texas 45, Oklahoma 12
October 8, 2005
Cotton Bowl, Dallas, TX

After losing for 5 years in a row to Oklahoma, Texas came into this game the heavy favorite. But, this is a rivalry game, and one of those you wait to count as a win until the “W” is posted. Well, the Longhorns came out fast a furious and destroyed Oklahoma from the beginning. It was so nice to sit back and enjoy a stomping of Oklahoma after so many years of disappointment. This also came on a day when Georgia whipped Tennessee. These two games happen the same day every year and always on or around my birthday. For the first time since I attended both schools, both teams won on the same day. This was also a major hurdle in Texas’ road to the Rose Bowl this year.

"Prelude to A National Championship"
Top 10 Texas Longhorn games since 1995

Prior to the SEC and Big 12 Championship games I ran a series on this blog counting down the top 5 plays of Georgia and Texas during the 2005 regular seasons. This excited both teams so much that they both stomped on their opponents and won their respective conference titles. In the name of superstition I felt I need to continue the trend for Texas as they prepare to face University of Sucky California in the Rose Bowl. For this one I decided to count down the top 10 games/memories of Texas since I began school there in the fall of 1995. This should provide a nice trip down memory lane for all you Longhorn fans out there.

Number 10:
Texas 51, Texas A&M 15
Friday, November 29, 1996- Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium (Austin, Texas)
In one of the most lopsided games in the storied history of the rivalry, Texas pounded Texas A&M 51-15 to claim the first-ever Big 12 South Division Championship and earn a trip to the inaugural Big 12 Championship game. James Brown turned in one of his finest personal performances as a Longhorn with 336 passing yards and four TDs as Texas won its fifth consecutive game. Ricky Williams added 145 rushing yards and a TD as the Longhorns rolled up 594 yards of offense.

Happy Hanukkah to all MOTs

12 days, 7 hours, 54 minutes, 30 sec

Loyalty:

So obviously today many Red Sox fans are shaking their heads thinking "How could Johnny Damon leave?" If you've ever been to Boston you understand how big the Sox are, and if you've been there within the past few years you realize how big Johnny Damon was. "WWJDD"-What would Johnny Damon do? -Leave, go to the evil empire of the New York Yankees. But, who wouldn't? This was about money, pure and simple. People can't understand what happened in sports, why can't a player stay loyal to one team like the old days?

Take a step back away from the sports world and I believe you'll find this is really a work-employee change across the entire spectrum of corporate America, and sports is just the part in the spotlight. How many people my age Grandparents stayed with the same company their entire careers? Parents? Now, how many of you plan on staying with the same company your entire careers? Not many-- most have already switched a few times. It is not just the employees losing loyalty either, the large companies no longer work to keep their employees. Pensions are all but dead. Heck, I even received a slight payout a couple of years ago so my company could kill pensions. And now the best way to get a big pay raise is to switch jobs to another company.

All this is actually good for corporate America though, as people build on their experiences and differences from being with many corporations, they gain a greater knowledge than they would from being with the same culture and company for 20 years. So, for the economy, productivity, etc. it is a good thing.

That being said, it is sad we can't latch on to a sports hero on our team and cheer for them for more than a few years. And nobody can attest to this more than the Boston Red Sox fans. So, they may have gotten the World Series, but with Steinbrenner's big wallet, they are still cursed.

Here is the weekend review:

Weekend Ball: Jorge. He threw a fun party with a lot of interesting and new people. We were able to finally meet his parents and see his casa.

Weekend Goat: The Atlanta Falcons, yet again disappointing against a strong opponent. The Falcons have yet to beat any of the top tier teams and it is apparent they themselves are not a top tier team. There is still hope, yet that is fading fast. Now the last two are must wins and we'll need a little help to get in the playoffs. Vick still has not become the quarterback everyone was hoping for. In the first quarter he missed some open wide receivers which could have extended the drives and got us some points. Instead we squandered good field position and a chance to have da Bears on their heels. In situations like that the great quarterbacks step up and complete the pass; Vick just isn't great....yet.

Quote you never thought you'd hear: This one needs some elaboration. Jennifer C. and I were at Target on Sunday and were looking for something to drink. We went to the area where they sell beverages and snacks. They had a deal for popcorn and a fountain beverage for only $0.01 more than a fountain beverage on its own. I told Jennifer to go ahead and get the popcorn even though she claimed she did not need it because she was going to the movies later. Upon sitting down and enjoying our drinks (I got a pretzel as well), I noticed Jennifer had put a sizable dent in the amount of popcorn in the bag. I voiced this to which she replied: "If you put it in front of me, I'm going to f****** eat it!". This was said in an extremely loud voice and horrified the 82 year old woman to our right and the mother with her small children walking behind us. We then had to self kick ourselves out of Target after laughing hysterically.

Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down Segment:

THUMBS UP: Julie, for making a delicious lasagne and hosting us all.
THUMBS DOWN: Michelle for not making pinwheels

THUMBS UP: Mom and Dad for taking me out to lunch and an enjoyable experience at the PGA store. Also, for buying me a tank of gas(This serves as good precedent to anyone getting in my car)

THUMBS DOWN: Todd Grandominico for leaving Jorge's party at 9:30 PM.
THUMBS DOWN: Todd Grandominico for waiting until after Howie's return to start a blog fearing Howie's exciting life in Australia would render his blog meaningless and ineffective at entertaining

THUMBS UP: John, for looking out for my interests by inviting a college co-ed for me to Jorge's party. Even though she couldn't make it, I appreciate the effort (Yes, mom she is Jewish)
THUMBS UP: Jose and Marianne. Awesome people with a lot of good stories and interesting conversation. There really are cool people from South America!

THUMBS UP: Jennifer, for getting so drunk Saturday that she...
THUMBS DOWN: Peed on herself

THUMBS UP: Carina, Dave, and Vanessa for getting engaged (Vanessa and Dave are to each other, Carina is to some guy in Houston...Hook em Horns!)

THUMBS UP: To me and Jennifer for being in the last group to leave Jorge's party
THUMBS UP: To Karen Denise for being the last person to leave Jorge's party (or did she leave?)

THUMBS UP: To Kit for being a damn good Summo-Boober despite going against heavier competition

THUMBS UP: To Finkelstein for making me a multitude of musical cds

THUMBS UP: To Jennifer for taking on the Customer Service Rep at Kohl's and telling her off.

THUMBS DOWN: Texas Longhorn basketball team for getting whipped at home
THUMBS UP: Georgia basketball, The Atlanta Hawks, and The Atlanta Thrashers for their good play this past week.

THUMBS UP: George W. Bush (okay everyone exhale) for implementing the ability for the government to tap phones of suspected domestic links to terror making international calls. I'll elaborate on this on a future post.

THUMBS UP: Howard Kalin for making it home safely. Of course after travelling half way around the world the most dangerous part of his trip was not bungy jumping, hang gliding, or flying for 25 hours, it was being in a car on I75. Driving home a car in front of us decided to get over a lane, but unfortunately did not see the 18 wheeler that was already there. Needless to say the truck smashed the hell out of the car whose pieces went flying in our direction. Being the skillful driver than I am, I swerved out of the way of each flying car part that approached us saving our lives and damage to my new $1000 front bumper. I was like Jeff Gordon flying around a pile up on the track at Talledega. So, I guess, in a way, this becomes a THUMBS UP for me as well.

Here is the weekend review:

Weekend Ball: Carson (pictured) and Cecile Oliver. It was good to see them again. Unfortunately I don't get to see them enough. They are great kids, which is a real surprise given their parents.

Weekend Goat: Texas Longhorns basketball team. They lost bad to Duke in a 1 vs. 2 match-up. That's okay, as long as Texas wins the next 1 vs. 2 game.

Quote you never thought you'd hear: "Sit and Spin". I won't elaborate.

Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down Segment:

THUMBS UP: Carson Oliver for making Dante's an "all you can eat cherries" restaurant
THUMBS DOWN: David Oliver for eating all the regular food forcing Carson to make Dante's an "all you can eat cherries" restaurant
THUMBS DOWN: Eric for insulting a two year old and making her cry

THUMBS UP: Dave and Allan for throwing a great holiday party with some excellent food.
THUMBS UP: Joanna for finally making it out after months of being "AWOL"
THUMBS UP: Jennifer Caron for making it out on Saturday
THUMBS DOWN: Jennifer Caran for once again leaving her phone off an missing dinner

THUMBS DOWN: Reggie "Bullshit he won the Heisman" Bush
THUMBS UP: Heisman voters for not voting for Vince Young making it more likely he'll stay at Texas one more year.

THUMBS UP: Atlanta Hawks for beating the world champion San Antonio Spurs. If I knew all I had to do was mock them on my blog to get them to win I would have done it a long time ago.

THUMBS UP: Brian for getting a Rose Bowl ticket
THUMBS DOWN: Brian for not giving me his Rose Bowl ticket.

THUMBS UP: Grandma for making French toast, a waffle, bacon, and cake into a lunch

THUMBS UP: Howard Kalin, for letting me use his car while mine was getting repaired (Howard--by the way I used your car while mine was getting repaired)

I had a spirited conversation with a group of guys at the gym yesterday about the Atlanta Hawks. Let me repeat that-- a spirited discussion about the Atlanta Hawks.

Here is the weekend review:

Weekend Ball: Vince Young and DJ Shockley. These two remarkable quarterbacks led their teams to sweet conference championships on Saturday (See previous post for more details)

Weekend Goat: Entire Atlanta Falcons team – Keith Brooking = Weekend goat. Poor performance in an important game. Now the Falcons are in grave danger of missing the playoffs a year after making it to the NFC Championship game.

Quote you never thought you'd hear: On Thursday, actor and Texas fan Matthew McConaughey gave the Horns their final marching orders.
"Win this one Saturday," McConaughey said. "That's your goal. Then go win your dream." --Goal down. Dream to go.

Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down Segment:

THUMBS UP: Julie for successfully completing the LSAT.
THUMBS UP: Julie, for doing what any good southerner would do after accomplishing a goal –Drinking booze.
THUMBS UP: Julie, for not “tossing her cookies”. (FYI to all interested parties)

THUMBS DOWN: Kirk Herbstreit for picking LSU then bashing the city of Atlanta on College Gameday
THUMBS UP: Kirk Herbstreit, for saying on College Gameday Final “On behalf of myself and Lee I apologize to the entire Georgia family for not having faith in the Bulldogs.”

THUMBS UP: Limas Sweed, for making Texas’ Vince Young look good on some remarkable catches
THUMBS UP: Sean Bailey, for starting the SEC Championship game with two touchdown catches.

THUMBS UP: Todd Grandominico, for drawing 55 people out to watch the Georgia stomping of LSU at Jocks and Jills
THUMBS UP: Karen Denice for showing her face
THUMBS UP: Me. For successfully calling for and receiving both the Texas blocked field goal and the Georgia blocked punt
THUMBS UP: John, he is a cool guy—and he finally found it in his heart to cheer for UGA even though GT is not going to the Peach Bowl.

THUMBS UP: Mack, Brian, and Brooke for making it to the Big 12 Championship game. Representing the burnt orange!
THUMBS DOWN: Mack, for letting the thought creep in his mind he’d spend the national championship game in Minnesota

THUMBS UP: Jennifer Caron for making it out on Saturday
THUMBS DOWN: Jennifer Caran for making Don cry

THUMBS UP: Mr.and Mrs. Clause. Even though I’m Jewish it was still fun eating sushi with them

THUMBS UP: To Howard Kalin for updating his blog with pictures
THUMBS UP: To Jorge for finally inviting people to his house 

1 DAY = 2 CHAMPIONSHIPS

In what can only be described as a glorious day both Georgia and Texas won their respective conferences--The SEC and The BIG12!! And both did it in dominating fashion, Texas winning 70-3 and Georgia beating number 3 LSU 34-14!

Since I graduated school in 1999 spending both 2 years at Georgia and Texas never could I have imagined such a remarkable day! Since the late 90s Georgia has had to battle to regain the dominance of the SEC we enjoyed in the early 80s, struggling to get out of the shadows of Tennessee and Florida. Finally, with 2 SEC Championships in 4 years we have done that! And to think it all came together the same day as Texas finally gets over the hump of Oklahoma and wins Mack Brown's first Big 12 title and the first since I was in school there in 1996. UNBELIEVABLE! And these weren't just two normal championship games, both teams proved their dominance over the conference in games that were decided half way through the third quarter.

Going into the day, I was confident both teams would win, with Texas looking dominant. LSU had been overhyped because they just had one loss, but they'd struggled in many of their wins and did not look good last week against Arkansas. Georgia was coming in almost completely healthy, which hadn't happened since Boise State (remember that one? Questions coming in would we beat Boise State? Georgia won 48-13). And we showed what Georgia is all about when all the pieces are together. DJ is the real deal!

Texas had come off a performance where it had been blasted in the media because the offensive slump, only scoring 40 points. Yes, you read that right, being blasted because of scoring 40 points. Well, the offense showed up big and midway through the third had already scored 70 points! We easily could have gotten to 100 if we kept in even our second string guys! Let Reggie Bush win the Heisman, we'll take the national championship!

Both teams did what I thought-win, but both did it in much bigger fashion than I could have dreamed.

Now, to all you haters and whiny bitches out there who like to say I need to "pick a team". Well, take your pick, THEY ARE BOTH CHAMPIONS!

Of course there are still two big games to be played, Georgia in the Sugar Bowl, and Texas in the big one--The Rose Bowl. I have no doubt we will be celebrating two big victories and one national championship! Hook and Sic 'EM!

ROSE BOWL!

ROSE BOWL!

ROSE BOWL!

ROSE BOWL! 

"Prelude to A Championship"
Top 5 plays of UGA and Texas' regular seasons

Georgia #1: Following Bryan McClendon's 19-yard game-winning touchdown catch from D.J. Shockley with 3:18 left in the 4th, Jennings' interception capped the Bulldogs fifth win in a row over Georgia Tech.

Texas #1: Vince Young threw a 24-yard go-ahead touchdown to Limas Sweed with 2:37 left and No. 2 Texas defeated No. 4 Ohio State 25-22. Young's floating TD pass over a defender capped a 72-yard drive.

Tomorrow Julie Thomason will be taking the LSAT and start on her journey in becoming a lawyer. I wish her the best of luck in this endeavor and hope she is able to provide me excellent, free, and free legal advice in the future. In honor of her taking the LSAT here is the following joke...

One day, there was this lawyer who had just bought a new car, and he was eager to show it off to his colleagues, when all of a sudden an eighteen wheeler came out of nowhere and took of the driver's side door with him standing right there.

"NOOO!" he screamed, because he knew that no matter how good a mechanic tried to fix it, it never would be the same. Finally, a cop came by, and the lawyer ran up to him yelling, "MY JAGUAR DOOR WAS JUST RUINED BY SOME FOOLISH DRIVER!!!" he exclaimed."You're a lawyer aren't you?" asked the policeman. "Yes, I am, but what does this have to do with my car?!?!" the lawyer asked."HA! You lawyers are always so materialistic. All you care about is your possessions. I bet you didn't even notice that your left arm is missing did you?" the cop said. The lawyer looked down at his side and exclaimed, "MY ROLEX!"

"Prelude to A Championship"
Top 5 plays of UGA and Texas' regular seasons

Georgia #2: The Bulldogs defense was able to ruin the Gamecocks' two-point (6:52 remaining) conversion attempt as well as end South Carolina's last drive on a fourth-and-long situation.

Texas #2: Defensive tackle Rod Wright -- who predicted that the Longhorns would "dominate" -- scored on a long fumble return in the 2nd half against Oklahoma. Texas beat the Oklahoma Sooners 45-12.