College Confidential

OU quarterback Steve Davis: The last shall be first

He was a pudgy quarterback on the Oklahoma Sooners freshman team, and my dorm roommate and I thought it laughable that this Steve Davis we watched play no-frill freshman games on the practice field would one day be the starting quarterback at OU.

In 1972, he was one of eight -- eight! -- quarterbacks listed on the Oklahoma roster, which numbered around 130. The year 1972 was the first year freshmen had been made eligible for NCAA play, part of the transition to 30-scholarship limits. But in 1972, the 45-per-year limits had Oklahoma's roster so bloated that it took a good five minutes for the Sooners to clear the tunnel leading to Owen Field before a home game.

Steve Davis was an absolute revelation as a college football player. In 1973, deftly operating OU's 3-year-old, precocious Wishbone offense, the eighth quarterback on OU's roster as a sophomore in 1972 led OU to an 11-0-1 record playing seven teams ranked in the Top 20. He would help lead OU to national titles in 1974 and '75 (and the '73 team might have been the best of that bunch) and finish with a phenomenal 32-1-1 record as a starting quarterback.

He was, quite simply, a terrific Wishbone quarterback, an affirmation that dreams and transformations do happen.

Steve Davis, age 60, died Sunday in a crash of a private jet in South Bend, Ind.

Perhaps Steve Davis' public parting gift to Sooner Nation came during the OU-Texas game in October.

Louisville gets nod as NCAA favorite; oddsmaker likes Florida over Kansas in South despite seeds #NCAA

Louisville is the top overall seed in the 2013 NCAA Tournament, based on the findings of basketball selection committee members, but ranks as only a slight favorite over other teams – including No. 3 seed Florida, the favorite in the South Regional – based on odds released today by Bovada Sports Book (www.Bovada.lv).

Although the four top seeds in the various regionals rank among the website’s five teams with the best chance to win the tournament, Louisville (19/4) is given only slightly better odds than fellow No. 1 seeds Indiana (5/1), Gonzaga (10/1) or Kansas (10/1). Florida (7/1) actually received more favorable odds than Kansas, the Big 12 champion, to win the South Regional that will be decided March 29-31 at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington.

With no Texas teams in this year’s event, schools from neighboring states given the best odds to cut down the nets in Atlanta on April 8 include New Mexico (25/1), Oklahoma State (75/1), Oklahoma (250/1), New Mexico State (500/1) and Northwestern (La.) State (500/1).

Below is a look at the odds for all 68 teams in the tournament field, released today:

 

Odds to win the 2013 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship 

Louisville #1                              19/4

Indiana #1                                 5/1

Florida #3                                 7/1

Gonzaga #1                              10/1

Kansas #1                                 10/1

Duke #2                                   12/1

Miami, Fla. #2                           14/1

Ohio State #2                            16/1

Michigan State #3                      18/1

Georgetown #2                          20/1

Syracuse #4                              22/1

New Mexico #3                          25/1

St. Louis #4                              25/1

Michigan #4                              25/1

Wisconsin #5                            25/1

Pittsburgh #8                            33/1

VCU #5                                     40/1

UNLV #5                                   60/1

Arizona #6                                 60/1

NC State #8                              60/1

North Carolina #8                       60/1

Marquette #3                             66/1

Memphis #6                              75/1

Butler #6                                   75/1

UCLA #6                                   75/1

Minnesota #11                           75/1

Oklahoma State #5                    75/1

Kansas State #4                        75/1

Missouri #9                               75/1

San Diego State #7                   100/1

Creighton #7                             100/1

Notre Dame #7                          100/1

California #12                            150/1

Illinois #7                                  200/1

Colorado State #8                     200/1

Wichita State #9                        200/1

Villanova #9                              200/1

Temple #9                                 200/1

Iowa State #10                          200/1

Colorado #10                            200/1

Ole Miss #12                            200/1

Oklahoma #10                           250/1

Cincinnati #10                            250/1

Oregon #12                               300/1

St. Mary's #11                           300/1

Bucknell #11                             300/1

Belmont #11                              300/1

Middle Tennessee #11               500/1

Akron #12                                 500/1

Boise State #13                         500/1

LaSalle #13                               500/1

New Mexico State #13               500/1

South Dakota State #13             500/1

Montana #13                             500/1

Davidson #14                            500/1

Valparaiso #14                          500/1

Harvard #14                              500/1

Northwestern State #14              500/1

Iona #15                                    500/1

Pacific #15                                500/1

Florida Gulf Coast #15               500/1

Albany #15                                500/1

Western Kentucky #16               500/1

Southern #16                             500/1

James Madison #16                  1000/1

LIU Brooklyn #16                       1000/1

NC A&T #16                              1000/1

Liberty #16                                1000/1

 

Odds to win the 2013 NCAA Midwest Region  

Louisville #1                              11/10

Duke #2                                    15/4

Michigan State #3                      11/2

St. Louis #4                              15/2

Oklahoma State #5                    20/1

Creighton #7                             20/1

Missouri #9                               20/1

Memphis #6                              25/1

Cincinnati #10                            50/1

Saint Mary's #11                        50/1

Oregon #12                              66/1

Colorado State #8                     75/1

New Mexico State #13               75/1

Valparaiso #14                          100/1

Albany #15                                100/1

NC A&T #16                              200/1

Liberty #16                                200/1

 

Odds to win the 2013 NCAA West Region       

Gonzaga #1                              5/2

Ohio State #2                            11/4

New Mexico #3                          5/1

Wisconsin #5                            8/1

Pittsburgh #8                            8/1

Arizona #6                                 12/1

Kansas Sate #4                         16/1

Notre Dame #7                          33/1

Iowa State #10                          35/1

Ole Miss #12                             40/1

Belmont #11                              50/1

Boise State #13                         66/1

Wichita State #9                        66/1

LaSalle #13                               100/1

Harvard #14                              100/1

Iona #15                                    100/1

Southern #16                             100/1

 

Odds to win the 2013 NCAA South Region      

Florida #3                                 3/2

Kansas #1                                 7/2

Georgetown #2                          5/1

Michigan #4                              7/1

VCU #5                                     14/1

North Carolina #8                       16/1

Minnesota #11                           18/1

San Diego State #7                   25/1

UCLA #6                                   30/1

Villanova #9                              40/1

Oklahoma #10                           40/1

Akron #12                                 75/1

South Dakota State #13             75/1

Northwestern State #14              100/1

Florida Gulf Coast #15               100/1

Western Kentucky #16               100/1

 

Odds to win the 2013 NCAA East Region         

Indiana #1                                 5/4

Miami Florida #2                        7/2

Syracuse #4                              5/1

Marquette #3                             12/1

UNLV #5                                   15/1

Butler #6                                   20/1

NC State #8                              20/1

Illinois #7                                  25/1

California #12                            40/1

Davidson #14                            40/1

Colorado #10                            40/1

Temple #9                                 50/1

Bucknell #11                            50/1

Montana #13                             75/1

Pacific #15                                100/1

LIU Brooklyn #16                       200/1

James Madison #16                  200/1

 

 _ Jimmy Burch

 

 

Texas-Houston matchup in CBI set for Wednesday on AXS TV (Mark Cuban's network) #Longhorns

Texas will play at Houston in Wednesday’s opening-round matchup in the 2013 College Basketball Invitational (CBI), allowing the Longhorns to reach a postseason tournament for the 15^th consecutive season under coach Rick Barnes.

Texas (16-17) and Houston (19-12) will meet Wednesday night in Hofheinz Pavilion (8 p.m., AXS TV). The CBI features a 16-team field, with every game played on college campuses. Wednesday’s winner between the former Southwest Conference rivals will advance to a quarterfinal contest on Monday, March 25. The tournament semifinals are set for Wednesday, March 27.

In a unique twist, the CBI title is decided in a best-of-three championship series that will be played April 1-5. This is the Longhorns’ first appearance in the CBI after reaching the NCAA Tournament in each of Barnes’ first 14 seasons at the school.

 AXS TV, a network started by Dallas Mavericks' owner Mark Cuban, will broadcast most of the CBI tournament games, including each game of the championship series.

_ Jimmy Burch

UTA accepts postseason BKB invitation, will play home game Wednesday vs. Oral Roberts #UTA

UTA has accepted a postseason berth to the College Insider.com Postseason Tournament, school officials announced today, and will open with a home game Wednesday night against Oral Roberts (7:30 p.m., College Park Center).

UTA (19-13) missed out on an NCAA Tournament berth by losing to New Mexico State, 64-55, in Saturday night’s finals of the WAC Tournament in Las Vegas. The bid to the CIT to face Oral Roberts (18-14) marks the team’s second consecutive postseason appearance, following a berth in the 2012 NIT, and fourth in school history. It will be the team’s third postseason berth under coach Scott Cross.

Cross took the team to the 2008 NCAA Tournament, the school’s lone berth in that event. UTA also competed in the 1981 NIT.

Wednesday’s game will mark the first postseason contest at College Park Center, a 7,000-seat on-campus arena opened on Feb. 1, 2012.

In a statement, UTA athletics director Jim Baker said: “We’re extremely excited to continue our season … To be in the postseason for the second year in a row shows the tremendous progress coach Cross, his staff and the players are making in building our program into something special at UT Arlington.”

Ticket sales for the contest will begin at 10 a.m. Monday, with prices ranging from $3 for students (general admission), with reserved seats priced at $6 or $10 depending on the section. Group ticket discounts are available for parties of 10 or more. For ticket information, visit www.utatickets.com or call 817-272-9595.

_ Jimmy Burch

 

Texas' men's college BKB teams expected to endure first NCAA Tournament shutout in 36 years

Without question, Texas is a football-first state. But the state still has had its share of memorable college basketball moments in its history, although today’s Selection Sunday proceedings are not likely to be included on any historic lists.

Barring an absolute stunner of an at-large bid during this afternoon’s CBS selection show that reveals the 68-team field, there will be no men’s college basketball team from Texas included in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1977.

That looms as an ill-timed Texas Shutout in a year when the NCAA Tournament will make regional stops in Austin (Friday-Sunday) and Arlington (March 29-31). But it’s reality and it’s been 36 years since the state’s college basketball fans found themselves without a Texas team to cheer in the annual Big Dance.
For the uninitiated, 1977 was an era when Jimmy Carter lived and worked in the White House, disco tunes and leisure suits were part of pop culture and Arkansas edged eight Texas-based schools for the Southwest Conference title. The NCAA Tournament field, in those days, included only 32 teams and the phrase “March Madness” had yet to surface.

But fans can expect the NCAA’s first Texas-free tournament bracket in 36 years to be released this afternoon (5 p.m., KTVT/Ch. 11).

The best hope for avoiding a shutout would be an at-large berth for Baylor (18-14), an Elite Eight team in 2010 and 2012 that lost to Oklahoma State, 74-72, in its opening game at the Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City, Mo.

However, all signs point to the Bears winding up in the NIT, along with Stephen F. Austin (27-4), the Southland Conference regular-season champ that fell to Northwestern (La.) State, 68-66, in Saturday’s conference championship game.

In terms of chronology, UTA (19-13) wound up being the last Texas team playing for a guaranteed NCAA berth in Saturday night’s championship game at the WAC Tournament in Las Vegas. But the Mavericks fell to New Mexico State, 64-55, and project as participants in the CBI Tournament.

_ Jimmy Burch

UTA to play for berth in NCAA tournament tonight in WAC championship game #UTA, #NCAATournament

UTA will play for a berth in the NCAA Tournament tonight in Las Vegas (10 p.m., ESPNU) when the Mavericks meet New Mexico State in the finals of the WAC men’s basketball tournament.

UTA, the No. 4 seed heading into the conference tournament, earned its second victory in as many nights Friday by knocking off UTSA, 69-53, behind the double-digit scoring efforts of Karol Gruszecki (19), Jamel Outler (13) and Kevin Butler (10). The Mavericks (19-12) will meet New Mexico State, the No. 3 seed, in tonight’s winner-take-all game in Orleans Arena to determine the WAC representative in the NCAA field.

Each school benefitted from a first-round loss by the WAC’s top two seeds. Top-seeded Louisiana Tech fell to UTSA, 73-67, in its opening game before the Mavs ousted the Roadrunners (10-22) with Friday night’s second-round victory. New Mexico State managed to avoid Denver, the No. 2 seed, because the Pioneers feel to Texas State, the No. 7 seed, by a 72-68 margin in that opening matchup.

A victory tonight by UTA would mean the second NCAA tournament berth in school history and the first since 2008, when the Mavs reached the tournament by winning the Southland conference tournament.
The two teams split their regular-season meetings, with UTA winning 68-47 in Arlington and New Mexico State prevailing, 69-66, in Las Cruces, N.M.

_ Jimmy Burch

Below is a look at Saturday night’s box score from the victory over UTSA:

 

                               Box Score (Final)
                          Western Athletic Conference
                         UTSA vs UT Arlington (3/15/13)

VISITORS: UTSA (10-22)
                          TOT-FG  3-PT         REBOUNDS
## Player                 FG FGA FG FGA FT FTA OF DE TOT PF  TP  A TO BLK S MIN
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
12 Hill, Jeromie....... f  5 10   3  5   4  7   2  4  6   4  17  2  4  0  2  33
32 Sims, Jordan........ f  4  9   4  9   0  0   0  1  1   1  12  1  0  0  0  37
03 Wilkins, Larry...... c  1  2   0  0   1  2   2  2  4   1   3  0  3  0  0  22
11 Hale III, Michael... g  2 10   1  6   1  2   1  3  4   2   6  4  1  0  1  39
22 Burrage, Kannon..... g  3 12   1  5   2  3   3  3  6   1   9  0  1  0  0  37
02 Thomas, Hyjii.......    0  3   0  3   0  0   0  0  0   0   0  1  2  0  0  13
20 McGregor, Edrico....    3  4   0  0   0  1   5  4  9   1   6  0  1  2  0  18
42 Wood, Tyler.........    0  1   0  1   0  0   0  0  0   0   0  0  0  0  0   1
TM TEAM................                            1  1
   Totals..............   18 51   9 29   8 15  13 18 31  10  53  8 12  2  3 200

             1st Half       2nd Half     Game Totals
TOTAL FG%:  7-25  .280    11-26  .423    18-51  .353
3-Pt. FG%:  3-14  .214     6-15  .400     9-29  .310
F Throw %:  3-6   .500     5-9   .556     8-15  .533
Deadball rebounds: 1

HOME TEAM: UT Arlington (19-12)
                          TOT-FG  3-PT         REBOUNDS
## Player                 FG FGA FG FGA FT FTA OF DE TOT PF  TP  A TO BLK S MIN
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
24 Butler, Kevin....... f  4  8   1  4   1  2   0  7  7   1  10  1  2  0  2  30
33 Gruszecki, Karol.... f  7 16   5 10   0  0   1  4  5   2  19  1  0  0  0  29
55 Reves, Jordan....... f  3  6   0  0   0  0   2  4  6   3   6  1  2  1  0  18
12 White-Miller, Shaqui g  0  1   0  0   0  0   0  1  1   1   0  7  2  0  0  26
25 Catlett, Cameron.... g  3  3   0  0   1  1   3  1  4   1   7  5  1  0  1  27
02 Davis, Luke.........    0  0   0  0   0  0   0  0  0   0   0  0  0  0  0   1
03 Outler, Jamel.......    4  8   3  6   2  2   0  2  2   1  13  0  0  0  0  15
04 Charles, Drew.......    1  4   0  1   2  2   0  4  4   3   4  2  1  0  1  21
15 McElvain, Kyle......    0  0   0  0   0  0   0  0  0   0   0  0  0  0  0   1
21 Gainey, Greg........    1  1   0  0   0  0   0  0  0   1   2  0  0  0  2   9
35 Edwards, Brandon....    3  5   0  0   0  0   1  3  4   3   6  0  0  0  1  17
42 Rodger, Deon........    1  1   0  0   0  2   0  0  0   1   2  0  0  0  1   6
TM TEAM................                         2     2
   Totals..............   27 53   9 21   6  9   9 26 35  17  69 17  8  1  8 200

             1st Half       2nd Half     Game Totals
TOTAL FG%: 12-27  .444    15-26  .577    27-53  .509
3-Pt. FG%:  5-11  .455     4-10  .400     9-21  .429
F Throw %:  4-6   .667     2-3   .667     6-9   .667
Deadball rebounds: 2

Date: 3/15/13       Site: Orleans Arena (Las Vegas, NV)  Attendance: 949
Officials: Larry Spaulding; Shawn Lehigh; Rick Batsell;
Technical fouls: UTSA-None. UT Arlington-None.
Score by Periods      1  2   Total
UTSA................ 20 33  - 53
UT Arlington........ 33 36  - 69

________________________________________

                          Newspaper Box Score (Final)
                         UTSA vs UT Arlington (3/15/13)

At Orleans Arena (Las
UT ARLINGTON 69, UTSA 53
UTSA (10-22)
Hill, Jeromie 5-10 4-7 17; Sims, Jordan 4-9 0-0 12; Burrage, Kannon 3-12 2-3
9; Hale III, Michael 2-10 1-2 6; McGregor, Edrico 3-4 0-1 6; Wilkins, Larry
1-2 1-2 3; Wood, Tyler 0-1 0-0 0; Thomas, Hyjii 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 18-51 8-15
53.
UT ARLINGTON (19-12)
Gruszecki, Karol 7-16 0-0 19; Outler, Jamel 4-8 2-2 13; Butler, Kevin 4-8
1-2 10; Catlett, Cameron 3-3 1-1 7; Edwards, Brandon 3-5 0-0 6; Reves,
Jordan 3-6 0-0 6; Charles, Drew 1-4 2-2 4; Gainey, Greg 1-1 0-0 2; Rodger,
Deon 1-1 0-2 2; White-Miller, Shaqui 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 27-53 6-9 69.
UTSA................ 20 33  - 53
UT Arlington........ 33 36  - 69
3-point goals-UTSA 9-29 (Sims, Jordan 4-9; Hill, Jeromie 3-5;
Burrage, Kannon 1-5; Hale III, Michael 1-6; Wood, Tyler 0-1; Thomas, Hyjii
0-3), UT Arlington 9-21 (Gruszecki, Karol 5-10; Outler, Jamel 3-6; Butler,
Kevin 1-4; Charles, Drew 0-1). Fouled out--UTSA-None, UT
Arlington-None. Rebounds-UTSA 31 (McGregor, Edrico 9), UT Arlington
35 (Butler, Kevin 7). Assists-UTSA 8 (Hale III, Michael 4), UT
Arlington 17 (White-Miller, Shaqui 7). Total fouls-UTSA 10, UT
Arlington 17. A-949

 

BCS officials set March 27 deadline for bowls to bid for college FB playoffs; Cotton wil be in mix

The group overseeing the new college football playoff system has established March 27 as the deadline for bowls interested in submitting proposals to host national semifinals and other bowls to be played on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day as part of the reconfigured postseason.

Officials at the AT&T Cotton Bowl in Arlington, considered a leading candidate to host college football’s 2015 national championship game, have expressed plans to bid on being a regular participant in the semifinal matchups.

The Rose and Sugar bowls will host the first national semifinal contests under the playoff format in January, 2015, with the Orange Bowl and a yet-to-be-named bowl slated to host semifinals in 2016, the second year of the playoff system. Two other bowls will host semifinal contests in 2017, creating a six-bowl rotation for semifinal games that could bring a high-profile contest to Cowboys Stadium every third year if the Arlington venue is included in the mix of semifinal locations.

Bowl sites selected to participate in the playoff structure will host non-playoff bowls in years when their venue is not hosting a semifinal contest. National championship games will be bid out on an individual basis, with Cowboys Stadium in the mix to host the initial contest of the playoff era in January, 2015.

Bill Hancock, executive director of the BCS and the future playoff system, said the idea of rotating semifinal contests between stadiums with capacities of at least 65,000 will give “as many fans as possible the opportunity to enjoy the new playoff and the other bowls in person … Because of the criteria, we don’t expect every bowl to proceed with a bid. But we want to extend an offer to all that are part of the college football bowl tradition.”

_ Jimmy Burch

 

UTA, Baylor, UTEP given best odds among Texas schools to win confernece BKB tournaments #Baylor, #UTA, #UTEP

It is Championship Week in college basketball, which means mulligans across the board for men’s teams in pursuit of NCAA Tournament berths.

Heading into tonight’s start of a heavy dose of conference tournaments, only one college team from Texas earned a regular-season title _ Stephen F. Austin, in the Southland Conference _ and projects as a favorite to win its league tournament as well. So we’ll eliminate the Lumberjacks (26-3) from this discussion. And we’ll ask this question:

Of all the college teams from Texas scrambling for a back-door route into the NCAA field, which ones have the best chance of capitalizing on the opportunity?

Based on odds released today by Bovada Sports Book (www.Bovada.lv), the teams to watch are UTEP (6/1) in the Conference USA Tournament, Baylor (10/1) in the Big 12 Tournament and UTA (12/1) in the WAC Tournament.

No other Texas schools were given better odds than 33/1 to squeeze into the NCAA Tournament field. And those odds went to Texas (Big 12) and Houston (CUSA).

Texas A&M received 300/1 odds in the SEC Tournament, while both TCU and Texas Tech were assigned 500/1 odds to run the table in the Big 12. Both the Red Raiders (10-19) and Horned Frogs (11-20) begin play tonight in the Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City, Mo. Tech meets West Virginia (13-18) at 6 p.m. and TCU plays Texas (15-16) at 8:30 p.m.

Both SMU (66/1) and Rice (750/1) qualify for longshot status in the CUSA event. The same is true in the WAC Tournament for UTSA (100/1) and Texas State (250/1).

Below is a look at Bovada’s odds for teams to prevail in multiple conference tournaments, including some that have no Texas teams in the mix:

Odds to Win the Big 12 Post Season Tournament     
Kansas                            5/7
Oklahoma State            9/2
Kansas State                5/1
Iowa State                     8/1
Baylor                           10/1
Oklahoma                            12/1
Texas                               33/1
West Virginia                      75/1
Texas Tech                   500/1
TCU                              500/1

Odds to Win the SEC Post Season Tournament         
Florida                             2/5
Missouri                               11/2
Kentucky                              7/1
Ole Miss                       10/1
Tennessee                           10/1
Alabama                               30/1
Arkansas                              50/1
LSU                              200/1
Georgia                            200/1
Vanderbilt                     200/1
Texas A&M                   300/1
South Carolina                   750/1
Mississippi State           750/1
Auburn                          750/1

Odds to Win the WAC Post Season Tournament       
Denver                             2/3
Louisiana Tech              3/1
New Mexico State         5/1
Utah State                     8/1
UT Arlington                  12/1
Idaho                                33/1
Seattle                             100/1
UTSA                            100/1
Texas State                   250/1
San Jose State             250/1

Odds to Win the Conference USA Post Season Tournament 
Memphis                              10/13
Southern Miss               2/1
UTEP                            6/1
Tulsa                                18/1
East Carolina                      20/1
Houston                               33/1
UAB                             40/1
Tulane                           40/1
Marshall                                40/1
Southern Methodist       66/1
Rice                              750/1

Odds to Win the ACC Post Season Tournament        
Duke                            10/11
Miami Florida                     3/1
North Carolina                    11/2
North Carolina State       9/1
Virginia                         9/1
Maryland                              33/1
Florida State                 66/1
Georgia Tech                75/1
Clemson                       75/1
Boston College                 150/1
Virginia Tech                 250/1
Wake Forest                       300/1
 
Odds to Win the Atlantic 10 Post Season Tournament
Virginia Commonwealth  9/5
Saint Louis                          2/1
Temple                             13/2
La Salle                                7/1
Butler                                9/1
Saint Joseph's              25/1
Richmond                            25/1
Dayton                             25/1
Massachusetts                  30/1
Xavier                           30/1
George Washington       75/1
Charlotte                              150/1
 
Odds to Win the Big Ten Post Season Tournament   
Indiana                             3/2
Ohio State                    3/1
Michigan State              4/1
Michigan                              5/1
Wisconsin                            7/1
Minnesota                            28/1
Iowa                                  30/1
Illinois                               66/1
Purdue                          75/1
Nebraska                             500/1
Northwestern                 500/1
Penn State                    750/1
 
 
Odds to Win the Big West Post Season Tournament 
Pacific                         5/2
Long Beach State          11/4
Cal Irvine                       17/4
Cal Poly SLO                9/2
UC Davis                     10/1
Hawaii                          12/1
UCSB                          15/1
CS Fullerton                 15/1
 
 
Odds to Win the PAC 12 Post Season Tournament    
Arizona                            19/10
UCLA                            4/1
Oregon                             5/1
California                             5/1
Colorado                              7/1
Stanford                       10/1
Washington                         18/1
Arizona State                33/1
Washington State          33/1
USC                             50/1
Utah                                  100/1
Oregon State                100/1
 
 
Odds to Win the Big East Post Season Tournament  
Louisville                              7/5
Georgetown                        17/4
Pittsburgh                            19/4
Syracuse                              5/1
Marquette                            10/1
Notre Dame                  18/1
Connecticut                         22/1
Villanova                       25/1
Cincinnati                             28/1
Providence                          60/1
St. John's                     75/1
Rutgers                            250/1
Seton Hall                     350/1
South Florida                     250/1
DePaul                         750/1
 
Odds to Win the Mountain West Post Season Tournament    
UNLV                            7/4
New Mexico                        11/4
Colorado State              3/1
San Diego State            5/1
Boise State                   8/1
Air Force                       30/1
Fresno State                 50/1
Wyoming                             50/1
Nevada                            75/1
 

_ Jimmy Burch

 

Barry Switzer's fur coat part of Oklahoma Sooners' Harlem Shake?

 Something big is brewing in Norman, Okla., judging by Oklahoma Sooners tweets:

Oklahoma Sooners quarterback @TrevorKnight: Just did an OU football harlem shake featuring the team, coaches Barry Switzer, The Boz, Heisman winner Steve Owens and more!

ESPN.com's Jake Trotter:  Sources say Switzers fur coat was part of the OU harlem shake. Stay tuned...

Sooners all-Big 12 offensive lineman @GabeIkard: Coach Stoops closed off Jenkins so we could do a Harlem Shake video. 

And @OU_Football has a twitter pic of Switzer, Steve Owens, Brian Bosworth and Billy Sims in costume.

Sooners offensive lineman Nila Kasitati, from Euless Trinity, may be the first to make the leap from leading the  haka to the Harlem Shake.

-- Vince Langford

 

Texas golfer Pressel qualifies for LPGA event; FW golfer Mocio grabs alternate spot #Longhorns, #TAMU

Texas golfer Madison Pressel qualified today to join her older sister, LPGA Tour standout Morgan Pressel, in the field for the North Texas LPGA Shootout, April 25-28 at Las Colinas Country Club.

Pressel fired an even-par 71 at the Las Colinas layout to join North Carolina’s Casey Grice, a College Station native, as co-medalists at the North Texas Collegiate Shootout. They claimed the two spots reserved for college participants in the $1.3 million LPGA event in Irving.

Texas A&M golfer Chelsea Mocio, a Fort Worth Arlington Heights graduate, posted a 73 and is one of two alternates for the college exemptions. As alternates, Mocio and A&M teammate Katerina Ruzickova (74) earned spots in an April 22 qualifier at Las Colinas with touring pros to try and earn a last-minute spot in the field.

Pressel, a senior, said it will be “incredible” to make her LPGA debut in the same event as her sister, a two-time tour winner and past major champion (2007 Kraft Nabisco Championship) who already has committed to compete in Irving.

“It’s very exciting,” Pressel said. “I’ve never been able to play with her in a tournament setting. It’ll be weird preparing for a tournament on the same golf course with her.”

Grice, a junior who played at A&M Consolidated High School, said she is “definitely very excited” for the opportunity to make her LPGA debut in her home state.

Mocio, a junior, said she made “a couple of mental mistakes” during back-nine holes in Tuesday’s round that prevented her from joining the co-medalists at the top of the leaderboard but said she is excited she will have a second chance to try and play her way into the field at the April 22 qualifier in Irving. 

Below is a look at the results of all 18 competitor's in today's event: 

Shootout results

A look at Tuesday’s scores from the 18 participants in the North Texas Collegiate LPGA Shootout in Irving:

Casey Grice, North Carolina, 71; Madison Pressel, Texas, 71; Chelsea Mocio, Texas A&M, 73; Katerina Ruzickova, Texas A&M, 74; Mary Michael Maggio, Texas A&M, 76; Kelsey Vines, Oklahoma State, 76; Alexandria Bonetti, TCU, 77; April McCoy, TCU, 78; Flower Castillo, Incarnate Word, 78; Hally Leadbetter, Arkansas, 79; Natalie Reeves, Texas A&M, 79; Jennifer Park, SMU, 80; Jenny Haglund, SMU, 81; Sanna Nuutinen, TCU, 82; Melanie White, SMU, 82; Sarah Beth Davis, Texas A&M, 83; Alexandra Ann Rossi, Texas A&M, 83; Taylor Slagle, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 84.

 _ Jimmy Burch