My Friday trip to Lubbock for the UT-Tech game began with an equal number of “hook em” and “guns up” cheers on our flight in from Dallas.  Driving in from the Airport and you can tell its not your normal football weekend, with traffic backed up in every direction.

 Students always camp outside of Jones AT&T stadium before home games, but they don’t usually set up tents on the Monday before a game.  They would have been out there earlier but Tech officials didn’t want them setting up for Texas when they still had to play Kansas.  

Lubbock is used to hosting big games, whenever UT comes here its a happening, not to mention that they get OU and A&M here every other year, but this is different.  This is way more than just bragging rights.  Tech can jump into the national title picture with a win over Texas.  If the Horns survive their 4th straight top 11 ranked opponent, they will be a favorite to get to the national title game in Miami, even with four three regular season games to go plus the a potential Big XII Championship game.

My goal is to survive the sidelines and live to see another game.

The bi-annual road trip to Lubbock is one of adventure and a travel through some familiar territory. You never know what to expect from the game and you always expect the unexpected and go in with blind faith that the Horns will come through the storm. I always enjoyed this trip because it meant a trip to my Grandmothers house and a chance to visit some family friends and go back to my roots so to speak. It was also the opportunity to visit my brother’s gravesite and reflect on his life and how much I truly miss him. This year I will also visit my Grandmother’s gravesite for the first time since her death. I’m not sure how it will be, I remember the last time we traveled through Loraine Texas, Brandon, John and I got a home cooked meal, then it was off to see Texas play the Red Raiders. We do have a few Red Raider graduates in the family, but I’m sure that Grannie always pulled for Texas.

There have been disappointments in this game, great victories and the occasional excape by the closest of margins. The game itself is truly unpedicatable, especially the night games. I know that Texas fans are nervous but confident at the same time. I really love this game and the stories that go with it.

This year will be no different. The only difference being that long before the kick off, I will stand at the grave site of my brother and grandmother who are buried right next to each other and everything will be brought into perspective. The game will last 4-8 hours (hey, it’s possible) but the memories along the way represent a lifetime and this time, instead of feeling the incredible comforting touch of my grannie, it will be the comfort of her presence. I am fortunate that my Mother is just like her and I KNOW she’s a die hard Texas fan, so what a weekend it will be.

Have a safe trip to Lubbock and gather some of your own memories along the way. GO HORNS!

I’ll tell you what happens: you win 33 straight games and hold the longest active win streak in the state of Texas.

Liberty Hill and its misdirection offense is one that not only confuses defenders; it confuses TV station photographers. I was there for their game against Wimberley, and I’ve shot a few Panther games, but everyone runs those fakes so well that I spin from side to side with my camera like a washing machine agitatior, trying to find the guy with the ball. Everyone fully executes the fakes. Everyone finishes the play. And by the time you have your wits about you, the guy you were supposed to cover is in the end zone.

Impressive.

They looked impressive against the Texans, who by the way, aren’t too far removed from their 3A state title in 2005. It was Wimberley’s first 8-3A loss, so they’re still in playoff contention with just a couple weeks to go. As for Liberty Hill, they’re getting dangerously close to the area where if they do lose, they’re out… and that’s when they seem to do their best work.

Shout out to Brooks Blakemore, the Wimberley receiver who caught a late first half touchdown. He made an appearance in my story about Charles Austin, the Olympic High Jumper who has a training facility in San Marcos. Blakemore said he was learning how to work on his game to get ready for football season. He made the KXAN airwaves again.

The fabulous wealth of sports knowledge known as our intern, Jesse, brought up to me a couple weeks ago the idea of starting a “Brian Orakpo for Heisman” campaign after the Oklahoma game.

I think Jesse has a point. Orakpo may not be the traditional Heisman candidate, but isn’t that truly a “change we can all believe in?”

He’s epitomized Mack Brown’s offseason goal of wanting a more aggressive defense. Orakpo has seven and a half sacks, three forced fumbles, 10 tackles for losses and is hurrying quarterbacks around the Big 12. His matchup with Phil Loadholt against Oklahoma was brilliantly executed.

Not only has this been mentioned in the Austin media, but someone had a sign on ESPN’s “College Gameday.” This thing is catching on.

When asked about the idea, Orakpo, with a huge smile said, “That’s quarterback and running back talk. I’m just trying to make plays.”

But on his bio page on the texassports.com website, it states Orakpo’s dream is to “win the Heisman Trophy as a defensive end.”

The only other defensive lineman in the nation who is producing as much as Orakpo across the board is Aaron Maybin from Penn State. Maybe Alex Carrington from Arkansas State, but the Sun Belt’s struggle for credibility with the national media is another blog topic.

Show me a defensive end who leads his team in the way Orakpo does is a whole other question. Orakpo holds court both on the defensive line and on the podium at postgame press conferences. He answers media questions thoughtfully with patience and a sense of humor, and when he speaks, everyone in the room listens. And, he does a really good job of hosting “Kicking it with the Horns” on the UT website.

Players say he encourages them to do better. Orakpo and his teammates come up with catch phrases, jokes and goals to motivate themselves each week to try to improve. 

A leader’s job isn’t to lead; it’s to serve. There’s no question Colt McCoy serves and leads his team and is putting up incredible numbers. But Orakpo is uniquely important to his team, and is making a statement at an unsung position. That’s worth something.

Think about it.

 The weather is getting cooler… High School football is in district play… The baseball playoffs are in full swing… College football is getting really good… The leaves are starting to turn… and it’s Texas-OU week. This is the most wonderful time of the year.

Yeah, yeah, we know this is only one game out of 12, but that’s what coaches are for. I am in the looking ahead and looking back business, and this week is the bomb. Both Texas and OU are undefeated. Both are in the top 5 in the nation. Both teams are good, and they’re getting together in Dallas in undoubtedly the biggest game in the country this weekend.

Here are some of my favorite thoughts from this week’s press conference:

 1. Mack Brown says the famous half-burnt orange, half-crimson setup at the Cotton Bowl isn’t that enthralling. “The half that’s rowdy is the half that’s usually playing well,” Brown said.

Good point, and Brown also noted that he remembered when he came to Texas in 1999 that this game didn’t have the luster it once had. Since he and Bob Stoops have been at the helms of their respective teams, this game has been huge.

Texas and Oklahoma have met three times as undefeateds since– 2001 (OU 14, UT 3), 2002 (OU 35, UT 24) and 2004 (OU 12 UT 0). When Texas beat OU 45-12 in 2005, OU had a loss to TCU going in.

2. Players don’t say too much, but you get the feeling that this week is special. Roy Miller discussed how players were walking around practice Sunday with this extra sense of purpose, “Like they were on a mission.”

And everyone has a story. Miller grew up with OU Defensive Lineman Tommie Harris, and he said they were already going back and forth about whose school was better. Sergio Kindle grew up five minutes from the Cotton Bowl and told the team this game was extra important because he is from Dallas. Cedric Dockery said he’s been around this game for 11 years and remembers going to the fair as a child, then watching his brother later, and now playing.

As for me, this will be my third game in the series, and it is truly one of the greatest things I get to do all year. I will never forget my first impression in 2006 (easy to remember when it wasn’t that long ago). As I was going to collect my credential for my station in Sherman, Texas, the Longhorn band was playing the Texas Cadence and marching in time in the tunnel. As they were marking time, the OU captains walked the six spare inches between the band, me, and the wall. Paul Thompson, Rufus Alexander and Adrian Peterson had a swagger that was unmatchable. The whole time they were getting yelled at by the band, in classic rivalry style. The energy in that small enclosed space was so high, the five media members in the tunnel with them all looked at each other with eyes as large as saucers. And it just got better from there. This, my friends, is why I’m in the business.

 3. These two teams are good. It’s no secret why Oklahoma is the No. 1 team in the nation right now. Their offense scores as much as the Longhorns’ offense. They’ve got an offensive line that is protecting Bradford like nobody else in the country. Their defense is one of the best in the country– averaging three sacks a game. Texas’ offense is sixth in the country in scoring, and their scoring defense is fourth– certainly deserving of a high overall ranking.

This could go on, so I’m going to stretch this out all week. Just know this is good. There’s a lot of hype this week, but I say, embrace hype. Get excited. Get mad. Whatever you need to do to enjoy this spectacle of sport is recommended, because games like these don’t happen every day.