FOOTBALL!
Namely, OU football.
I'll spitball on most of these games, but others are just too itchy to call...
Sat, Aug 30 UT Chattanooga @ Norman 6:00 PPV
Typical OU starter. Teensey little team that just graduated to Division I? Check. Home game? Check. Pay per view for the die hards? Check. (I for one will listen to Big Bob Barry announce the whole shebang.) Blowout potential high? Check. PREDICTION: OU victory by 21. (And a bit of a Confidential: It'll be the birthday of both Dad and Mickie's Uncle Jay. Happy Birthday, Boys!)
Sat, Sep 6 Cincinnati @ Norman 2:30 ABC
Gulp. The Bearcats are scrappy. This should be a good game - OU plays amazing on their own turf. I have a feeling they'll keep that particular ball rolling and eke out a victory, but again, it'll be a good game (read: I'll be shouting at the TV often). PREDICTION: Seven point game either way. With it being in Norman, I'm leaning towards a Sooner victory, but... yeah.
Sat, Sep 13 at Washington 6:45 ESPN
Oh, shit. I'd say that the Sooners don't do well in the Pacific Northwest, but it's more the officiating that SUCKS. :-P The team itself is scrappy, talented... and according to my research, on probation. Hrm. PREDICTION: OU by 3. Oregon is too close, both geographically and emotionally, for a defeat here.
Sat, Sep 27 TCU @ Norman
Yeah, here's where I might start defecating building materials. TCU has handed Bob Stoops one of his very few-and-far-between home losses. But I think if Stoops' Troops have stayed healthy at this point (and not dropped any big plays in the first three games), they should be okay. PREDICTION: OU by 10.
Sat, Oct 4 at Baylor - Baylor, TX.
In the past, I've referred to Baylor's team as the Bye Week Bears. No longer. Baylor has shown the potential to not suck. In a season or two, when the recruitment team convinces some decent players that the team doesn't totally blow, they may be the Upset Ursines. Not this year, though. PREDICTION: OU by 12 (they eked out a win last year, as you may remember - I don't think I cussed so much, so loudly, for so long...)
Sat, Oct 11 Texas Dallas, TX 11:00 ABC
Texas is "rebuilding" after "graduating some key players". Translation: their best players jumped ship, their fresh talent is still wet behind the years, and so they SUCK. Lest you think I'm just being a 'typical Sooner fan' (no such thing, my friend), go check out the pundits: none of them have Texas inked as a Big XII South contender (more on that later). PREDICTION: OU by 14, at least. Any more and I'll be a happy camper. *works on evil giggle*
Sat, Oct 18 Kansas @ Norman
See, I like Kansas. Their fans rock, in defeat and in victory. Mark Mangino is a former OU supporting coach. And I love a good underdog story. So I was tickled pink when the scrappy lil' Jayhawks did as well as they did last year. And I think they'll do respectably well this year. But alas, they're playing in Norman, and Kansas' losses last year came on the road to hostile crowds. Therefore, my PREDICTION: OU by 12 (and a hard-earned 12 at that!)
Sat, Oct 25 at Kansas State Manhattan, KS
Kansas State fans, on the other hand... I have a tl;dr story about my Younger Aunt pwning some very rude fans at a Big XII Championship game played nearly eight years ago. Remind me to tell you later. Anyway, the team as of late: meh. (Heeeeere, kitty kitty kitty...) PREDICTION: OU by 7 (Hostile crowd, in several senses of the word...)
Sat, Nov 1 Nebraska @ Norman
Hey youse guys, remember when Red Versus Red was a Very Big Game? Unfortunately, Nebraska is still "rebuilding" (but not in the way Texas is - the Huskers have run across some bad juju in coaching and administration which is in no way the player's fault). So it won't be the rabble-rouser of old. Not this year, anyway. But perhaps someday, my daughter will know the temporary yet red-hot hatred of the Corn Boys that comes with the football season. PREDICTION: OU by 18 (home game - ouch for Nebraska.)
Sat, Nov 8 at Texas A&M College Station, TX
I have it on good authority (a long-standing season ticket holder) that A&M's fans are, as individuals, good people. Gracious in defeat as well as victory, would help you change a tire in the parking lot no matter your colors, things like that. Must be the military influence. And their band is amazing. As a mob, however... I'd rather stand in a room full of bored school-agers. And that's what OU is going to feel like they're doing at College Station. LOUD, Y'ALL. PREDICTION: Seeing as A&M aren't on the radar, I'll say the home field advantage will go kaput and OU will win by 15. I'll try to enjoy the halftime show, if Brent Musberger can STFU for a few minutes...
Sat, Nov 22 Texas Tech @ Norman
REVENGE! Oh yeah... and it's in Norman. So they'll get done with the Raiders, dust their hands off, and be all "now we're even, bitches." And Mike Leach and his boys will be all "...yeah, okay, can you hand me my spleen?" And a wound will be healed, and life will go on.
Only... TT is on the short list of many a stuffed shirt to take the Big XII South division. I doubt it, since I have a certain team pegged as the Upset Story of the Decade (see below) and the Raiders are coming to OUR HOUSE... *ahem* So although I'm not saying a Repeat Upset isn't going to happen, I wouldn't count on it. Yet. PREDICTION: OU by at least 14 (The Sooner Faithful, still licking their wounds, are gonna make some noise...)
Sat, Nov 29 at Oklahoma State Stillwater, OK
I have OK State pegged as the Upset Team of The Big Twelve. They'll beat A&M at home, then lose a close one at Missouri. Then, after handling Baylor at home easily, they'll go on (and this is when you ask what I've been smoking) to beat Texas. In Austin. Mmm-hmm. G'head and put money on it if you hang like that.
And then after handing Iowa State their own behinds (home game for the Pokes - blood makes the grass grow, don'tcha know), they'll upset Texas Tech in Texas Tech's house. Yeah. Wanna toke of this? Don't ask me how - I guess Mike "I'm A Man I'm Forty" Gundy reminded his team that there's four quarters in a game that you need to play make me wanna puke.
Alas, the Cowboys will lose in Colorado, and that combined with their losses out of the conference (like Washington State) will lower morale within the team, which is where it counts. Sorry, seat fillers of T. Boone Pickens Stadium. PREDICTION: OU by 7, and it won't be pretty. If you're in Oklahoma on November 29, hold your breath and listen, and you'll be able to hear me loudly accusing somebody of being a genital licker.
Sat, Dec 6 (Big 12 Title) @ Kansas City
Probably between OU and either Missouri (ooo, rematch!) or Colorado (ooo, redemption time!). Probably OU will be the victor in a very teeth-grinding game.
BOWL PREDICTION: Not gonna say. Nope. Lest you forget, I'm a Sooner fan, and have a firm belief in jinxes. BCS game? Perhaps. First bowl win in five tries? Maybe. But suffice to say that if Sports Illustrated puts Sam Bradford on the cover anywhere between now and my birthday (January 22), I'mma go gorilla-shit crazy.
Which reminds me: Look for Sam Bradford to place in the Heisman Trophy voting. He's a sophomore, and the voters have a tendency to be stingy with lower classmen, but I'm thinking Sam will make some senior class pretty-boy pig tosser very nervous.
Hey, I've worked on this post for almost an hour. Even if your give-a-damn is microscopic, give it a look, willya? Who knows, you might find yourself entertained.
I'll spitball on most of these games, but others are just too itchy to call...
Sat, Aug 30 UT Chattanooga @ Norman 6:00 PPV
Typical OU starter. Teensey little team that just graduated to Division I? Check. Home game? Check. Pay per view for the die hards? Check. (I for one will listen to Big Bob Barry announce the whole shebang.) Blowout potential high? Check. PREDICTION: OU victory by 21. (And a bit of a Confidential: It'll be the birthday of both Dad and Mickie's Uncle Jay. Happy Birthday, Boys!)
Sat, Sep 6 Cincinnati @ Norman 2:30 ABC
Gulp. The Bearcats are scrappy. This should be a good game - OU plays amazing on their own turf. I have a feeling they'll keep that particular ball rolling and eke out a victory, but again, it'll be a good game (read: I'll be shouting at the TV often). PREDICTION: Seven point game either way. With it being in Norman, I'm leaning towards a Sooner victory, but... yeah.
Sat, Sep 13 at Washington 6:45 ESPN
Oh, shit. I'd say that the Sooners don't do well in the Pacific Northwest, but it's more the officiating that SUCKS. :-P The team itself is scrappy, talented... and according to my research, on probation. Hrm. PREDICTION: OU by 3. Oregon is too close, both geographically and emotionally, for a defeat here.
Sat, Sep 27 TCU @ Norman
Yeah, here's where I might start defecating building materials. TCU has handed Bob Stoops one of his very few-and-far-between home losses. But I think if Stoops' Troops have stayed healthy at this point (and not dropped any big plays in the first three games), they should be okay. PREDICTION: OU by 10.
Sat, Oct 4 at Baylor - Baylor, TX.
In the past, I've referred to Baylor's team as the Bye Week Bears. No longer. Baylor has shown the potential to not suck. In a season or two, when the recruitment team convinces some decent players that the team doesn't totally blow, they may be the Upset Ursines. Not this year, though. PREDICTION: OU by 12 (they eked out a win last year, as you may remember - I don't think I cussed so much, so loudly, for so long...)
Sat, Oct 11 Texas Dallas, TX 11:00 ABC
Texas is "rebuilding" after "graduating some key players". Translation: their best players jumped ship, their fresh talent is still wet behind the years, and so they SUCK. Lest you think I'm just being a 'typical Sooner fan' (no such thing, my friend), go check out the pundits: none of them have Texas inked as a Big XII South contender (more on that later). PREDICTION: OU by 14, at least. Any more and I'll be a happy camper. *works on evil giggle*
Sat, Oct 18 Kansas @ Norman
See, I like Kansas. Their fans rock, in defeat and in victory. Mark Mangino is a former OU supporting coach. And I love a good underdog story. So I was tickled pink when the scrappy lil' Jayhawks did as well as they did last year. And I think they'll do respectably well this year. But alas, they're playing in Norman, and Kansas' losses last year came on the road to hostile crowds. Therefore, my PREDICTION: OU by 12 (and a hard-earned 12 at that!)
Sat, Oct 25 at Kansas State Manhattan, KS
Kansas State fans, on the other hand... I have a tl;dr story about my Younger Aunt pwning some very rude fans at a Big XII Championship game played nearly eight years ago. Remind me to tell you later. Anyway, the team as of late: meh. (Heeeeere, kitty kitty kitty...) PREDICTION: OU by 7 (Hostile crowd, in several senses of the word...)
Sat, Nov 1 Nebraska @ Norman
Hey youse guys, remember when Red Versus Red was a Very Big Game? Unfortunately, Nebraska is still "rebuilding" (but not in the way Texas is - the Huskers have run across some bad juju in coaching and administration which is in no way the player's fault). So it won't be the rabble-rouser of old. Not this year, anyway. But perhaps someday, my daughter will know the temporary yet red-hot hatred of the Corn Boys that comes with the football season. PREDICTION: OU by 18 (home game - ouch for Nebraska.)
Sat, Nov 8 at Texas A&M College Station, TX
I have it on good authority (a long-standing season ticket holder) that A&M's fans are, as individuals, good people. Gracious in defeat as well as victory, would help you change a tire in the parking lot no matter your colors, things like that. Must be the military influence. And their band is amazing. As a mob, however... I'd rather stand in a room full of bored school-agers. And that's what OU is going to feel like they're doing at College Station. LOUD, Y'ALL. PREDICTION: Seeing as A&M aren't on the radar, I'll say the home field advantage will go kaput and OU will win by 15. I'll try to enjoy the halftime show, if Brent Musberger can STFU for a few minutes...
Sat, Nov 22 Texas Tech @ Norman
REVENGE! Oh yeah... and it's in Norman. So they'll get done with the Raiders, dust their hands off, and be all "now we're even, bitches." And Mike Leach and his boys will be all "...yeah, okay, can you hand me my spleen?" And a wound will be healed, and life will go on.
Only... TT is on the short list of many a stuffed shirt to take the Big XII South division. I doubt it, since I have a certain team pegged as the Upset Story of the Decade (see below) and the Raiders are coming to OUR HOUSE... *ahem* So although I'm not saying a Repeat Upset isn't going to happen, I wouldn't count on it. Yet. PREDICTION: OU by at least 14 (The Sooner Faithful, still licking their wounds, are gonna make some noise...)
Sat, Nov 29 at Oklahoma State Stillwater, OK
I have OK State pegged as the Upset Team of The Big Twelve. They'll beat A&M at home, then lose a close one at Missouri. Then, after handling Baylor at home easily, they'll go on (and this is when you ask what I've been smoking) to beat Texas. In Austin. Mmm-hmm. G'head and put money on it if you hang like that.
And then after handing Iowa State their own behinds (home game for the Pokes - blood makes the grass grow, don'tcha know), they'll upset Texas Tech in Texas Tech's house. Yeah. Wanna toke of this? Don't ask me how - I guess Mike "I'm A Man I'm Forty" Gundy reminded his team that there's four quarters in a game that you need to play make me wanna puke.
Alas, the Cowboys will lose in Colorado, and that combined with their losses out of the conference (like Washington State) will lower morale within the team, which is where it counts. Sorry, seat fillers of T. Boone Pickens Stadium. PREDICTION: OU by 7, and it won't be pretty. If you're in Oklahoma on November 29, hold your breath and listen, and you'll be able to hear me loudly accusing somebody of being a genital licker.
Sat, Dec 6 (Big 12 Title) @ Kansas City
Probably between OU and either Missouri (ooo, rematch!) or Colorado (ooo, redemption time!). Probably OU will be the victor in a very teeth-grinding game.
BOWL PREDICTION: Not gonna say. Nope. Lest you forget, I'm a Sooner fan, and have a firm belief in jinxes. BCS game? Perhaps. First bowl win in five tries? Maybe. But suffice to say that if Sports Illustrated puts Sam Bradford on the cover anywhere between now and my birthday (January 22), I'mma go gorilla-shit crazy.
Which reminds me: Look for Sam Bradford to place in the Heisman Trophy voting. He's a sophomore, and the voters have a tendency to be stingy with lower classmen, but I'm thinking Sam will make some senior class pretty-boy pig tosser very nervous.
Hey, I've worked on this post for almost an hour. Even if your give-a-damn is microscopic, give it a look, willya? Who knows, you might find yourself entertained.