What was he Thinking?
Greetings from the Redneck Riviera. Yours truly penning this week’s edition near Gulf Shores, AL with a week’s worth of rest, relaxation and hopefully no sharks in the area. So far, so good in latter as we just settled in. You’ll not the picture on the home page.
For this week, I figured with us being in the dead of summer and with the nauseating Big 12 media love fest behind us – a blessing that league went first among the other Power 4 leagues – this would be an entry musings.
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So let’s start with Red Oak 2025 wide receiver Taz Williams committing to Baylor.
I mentioned in the thread how SMU dodged a bullet and felt that’s all I needed to say. But when you make that kind of declaration, further reflection dictates a justification.
As you know I call Aledo football. This 2025 season will be my 19th season. I did the Bearcats Class 5A Division I Region I semifinal against Red Oak last November at Choctaw Stadium in Arlington.
This game was billed a great test as Aledo had two Division I defensive backs in Jaden Allen (Arkansas) and Chris Johnson (Arizona State). They were facing this dynamic receiving duo between Williams, who was blowing up at the time, and teammate and emerging Brayden Robinson. Both teams came into the game at 12-0. Aledo was No. 1. I believe Red Oak was No. 5.
The box score will show from that game Williams: 7-109 1TD. Indeed, good production.
Unfortunately, Aledo scored the first eight times it touched the ball and 59-35 wasn’t even that close.
Some of those numbers Williams collected were late when the game had been decided. After the fact, if you will.
While he was playing with a backup QB, my problem with Williams is that going against that Bearcat secondary he wasn’t tough enough; he didn’t fight for the ball and I didn’t see the leadership a player of that caliber needs to show when his team is up against it.
Granted, Aledo’s reputation precedes itself and that can sometimes put doubt in an opponent before the game starts.
However, I’ve seen other D1 players rise to the occasion when it matters against the Bearcats. This just didn’t happen with Williams.
But something should make you go hmmm when a player who received a ton of offers early, narrows a finalist list to Michigan, Penn State, Texas A&M and SMU and then chooses Baylor, a program whose coach is under the hot seat. If Baylor chose to unload a generous NIL package for Williams, good for them and good for Williams.
However, this is different than SMU 2025 running back commit Dramekco Green who had a finalist list that wasn’t as ambitious as Williams and chose SMU.
While my window for Williams was limited, I also believe it’s valid because you want to see how players like this respond in games of that magnitude. That’s how you measure them the best.
Williams is talented. He is a worthy Division I player. I just don’t believe this is a decision where SMU should feel like this is a great recruiting miss.
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Now, on to Big 12 media days. As you know I am a huge fan of the 1987 Movie Broadcast News. I can quote it. While that movie is now 37 years old, it nailed some of the characteristics of the media perfectly.
Much has changed in news coverage since then. A healthy portion of the media’s traits haven’t.
Few should be surprised that when the Big 12 held its media days in Las Vegas – in a city and state where the conference has no team located – the stories started to circulate how the Big 12 had begun early discussions with the ACC’s wayward residents, Florida State and Clemson.
Well, why is that? For starters Big 12 media members are all around the leadership of the conference and the schools. There is access everywhere. Never mind these types could have interviewed them in May or June to find out the latest.
But why are these talking points “suddenly” a thing? Well, I’m going to tell you when it comes to the media talking to them and then each other about anything issue related, you get the following from the movie.
There’s a part where network producer Jane Craig (Holly Hunter) is talking to dimwitted new anchor Tom Grunig (the late William Hurt) about the media’s inability to self-regulate. They are the ones perpetuating talking points that may have not validity.
Craig: Another thing I can’t stand I when White House reporters bullsh!t with each other after a briefing and then one of them has a theory and the other quotes it in history as “White House sources say….’
I can promise that really does happen. And I’m pretty confident that there’s some of that when it comes to this talking point. It’s one of those stories that when the story – true or not – is repeated enough, it somehow evolves into the truth.
Of course, Clemson just took a big hit in court last week. It’s also been reported by respected outlets that the Big 10 and the SEC have no interest in expanding at this time.
That leaves the Big 12 with an aggressive commissioner in Brett Yormark who knows he needs to be aggressive because deep down he realizes his conference is fourth in the pecking order of major conference. He has no major market, except for Houston. Phoenix and Denver are solid but they don’t move the college athletics needle. He also knows he just lost Dallas and isn’t getting that back.
If it were to get to a point where Florida State and Clemson leave, the money they would pay to leave would be enormous. If it is to the Big 12, the money promised by the Big 12 that has no network – just remember that – would have to be guaranteed by a third party that over time would want its money back.
Yormark’s PR war is ongoing. He has to do it. He must go after the ACC. He also knows he has the most to lose if we are going to move into a world where the Big 10 and SEC separate.
But just a word of caution that when we get into the bizarre July media days season, the shelf life of these stories typically reach their end days or a week after that conference’s session concludes.
Journalism 101 always teaches a reporter that there is a reason why a source is disclosing something delicate. The source has an agenda and wants to advance it. Then it’s a question of whether it will stick.
You are always free to choose to read what you want and believe what you want. But keep in mind that the more message boards you read and the more twitter accounts you read – blue check marks or not – the truth of what’s really going on is dead.
The story of SMU, Cal and Stanford moving to the ACC came from the most revered national writers not named CBS’ Dennis Dodds. And enough of you have been around Billy long enough to know that he’s not posting anything unless it’s authentic, he’s confirmed it, he’s tripled checked it and going with it.
Billy and others had connections. They were trusted. They handled the story responsibly. And they nailed it. I’d stick with them before you find yourself looking elsewhere much less believing elsewhere.
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One of the benefits of visiting Gulf Shores is going through the Battleship USS Alabama museum.
This history buff had the opportunity to take the self-guided tour. I’m sure several of you have done it as well. I did this about five years ago when the family was on the beach. I headed to history.
It was just a fascinating self-guided tour. Every part of the ship was available. Everything was cramped. There were a couple of rooms designated for movies about the ship.
What I still find fascinating about the USS Alabama is that as many times it was involved in combat or just missions, it never took a hit from enemy fire and it never lost a sailor in combat. There was an internal accident that killed five. When you get to see the guns up close, it’s pretty impressive and equally humbling. If you’ve never been and you travel through Mobile, AL at some point, I’d recommend it.
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The football and basketball seasons can consume my time. I don’t really have the opportunity to read books until the summer.
However, the only kind I will read is history. I should have been a history major at SMU but anyway…
For Father’s Day, I usually ask for a book of a president or historic period that has captured my interest. Of course, the gold standard for history books is historian David McCullough. I’ve read 1776, Adams, Truman, The Johnstown Flood and The Path between the Season (the story of the Panama Canal).
But over the last several years I ventured out and read novels on other presidents. That included James Monroe, Andrew Jackson, U.S. Grant and William McKinley.
This year I picked our nation’s 11th president James K. Polk. That’s appropriate since he was in office when Texas became a state (of course, the process started under Polk’s predecessor John Tyler). Plus, I found it interesting that he only wanted to be president for one term.
Historian Robert Merry wrote the book on McKinley. Merry is exceptional in his own right. When I found he wrote this one on Polk, A Country of Vast Designs I was in.
I won’t get political on this – that’s not the point of this – but you learn about what he had to deal with annexing Oregon, the controversial war with Mexico to ensure Texas was secure, the strained relationships with his generals and envoy, creating a new Independent Treasury that was replaced by the Federal Reserve by Woodrow Wilson in 1913. Polk was basically a man who gave his life for the presidency. Working himself to death, Polk died three months after he left office in 1849.
If you are a history enthusiast, I’d recommend this 479-page journey.
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Finally, a note about how I came up with name of this column, What was he Thinking?
Well, it comes from a random skit from Saturday Night Live during the late 1980s and early 1990s with Dana Carvey, the late Phil Hartman, Jon Lovitz and company.
The skit was called “What were you thinking?” Hartman played the host and interviewed two guests Walter Mondale played by Carvey and Shelly Long played by the late Jan Hooks. These were two people who made horrendous career decisions.
For Mondale, he said in his 1984 presidential campaign that he was going to raise taxes. Well, Mondale lost to Ronald Reagan in the worst landslide in history.
Hartman says, “So you went on this platform about raising taxes. Traditionally, candidates who do that don’t fare well in elections. In fact, you suffered the worst defeat in history. So I guess the question we’re asking is…what were you thinking?
During the time, Mondale/Carvey is responding, “I know. I know. I know.” Then when posed with the question, he answers, “I don’t know.’’
For Long, she had just left the popular NBC sitcom Cheers and tried to parlay her career into movies. Well, Cheers enjoyed even better success when Kirstie Alley replaced Long. Long went on to star is some box office bombs.
Hartman says something of, “You thought you could be this A-list actor. And the show you left went to have even better ratings after you left. So I guess the question we’re asking is, “What were you thinking?’’
There you have it.
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The perfect time to clean house for some of these items. Of course, next week there will more to look forward to as ACC media days will begin July 22 in Charlotte. Of course, SMU goes first. Plus, SMU starts fall camp July 24.
Until then, I’m going to put my toes in the water.
Let’s make it a great week. Pony Up!
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