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sunset87

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Posts posted by sunset87

  1. 17 hours ago, C-Man said:

    Yes, I had full-blown COVID in March 2020.

    I've read that people that have had COVID tend to have a strong reaction to the vaccine, even the first one.  Some have said they felt as sick as when they contracted COVID but it just didn't last as long. 

    I had COVID in mid-December so I am waiting until the end of March to think about getting vaccinated. Hopefully there will be more information about some of this stuff by then.  I am seriously considering just getting one shot, depending on how I react to the first one.

  2. 28 minutes ago, Reynolds Woodcock said:

     

    Ian Boyd's succinct thoughts on Bijan cc: @Burt Macklin

     

      Hide contents

    Inside the gameplan: The challenge of featuring Bijan Robinson

    It’s obvious to everyone around Texas football what the strategy will be for winning games in 2021, year one of the Steve Sarkisian era. You only need to have watched a few of the late season games to have a clear sense of who on this roster a new staff would be looking to emphasize in order to win games.
     


    As a card-carrying member of the “running backs don’t matter that much” club, I’m willing to acknowledge some exceptions, like Bijan Robinson. There are running backs who can make a substantial difference to an offense, usually as force multipliers for a functioning run game system but occasionally also as erasers who make things work which otherwise wouldn’t. Patrick Mahomes, up until he faced the Tampa Bay pass-rush in front of 2-man under with athletic linebackers in coverage, made the Chiefs’ offense work even amidst O-line issues. Bijan Robinson can make a run game work even when the system isn’t functioning on a high level.

     

     


    This is only a three-yard gain on first and 10 but there’s a world of difference between second and seven or second and 15. Bijan has a rare blend of agility, speed, and power at 220 pounds (to say nothing of his hands) which makes him exceptionally difficult to tackle. Hypothetically, a player like Bijan operating in space in a spread concept is a dominant weapon.

    Therein lies the rub. The spread offense is a double-edged sword. If you space your opponent out and dare them to allocate numbers in one area of the field vs another, you run the risk they’ll make the obvious choice to take space and opportunities away from a player like Bijan Robinson. Texas’ mission as an offense this offseason is to develop a unit which complements Bijan and guarantees he can’t be taken out of games.

    Spread run game philosophy

    In 2011, Sarkisian’s third year in Seattle, UW played in the Alamo Bowl at the end of the year against the RG3 Baylor Bears. The Huskies had something nasty prepared for Baylor’s defense, they’d already set school records for touchdown passes and were able to light up the Bears for 56 points. Unfortunately Briles hit harder and the Bears scored 67 while handing Sark the L and a taste of the future of football.

    I’m guessing this was a formative experience for today’s Sark because the following year saw Washington begin to employ RPOs as a consistent, foundational piece of their offensive strategy. In 2013 they really started to get it right and went 9-4, opening the season by blowing out Boise State 38-6.

    Here they are running “the touchdown play” against Boise early in the rout:

     

     


    And here’s the more recent glance route RPO executed with a young John Ross lined up in the boundary slot:

     

     


    Interestingly enough, John Ross was the one who really powered the Huskies to the playoffs in 2015. He was around because Sarkisian (who left after 2013) was already in the business of stockpiling < 200 pound receivers who could run 4.4 or faster.

    This game began with a lot of passing, mostly on RPOs, and quarterback Keith Price finished 23-of-31 on the day for 324 yards at 10.5 ypa with two touchdowns to a sole interception. The passing early on opened up the run game for running back Bishop Sankey, who had 25 carries for 161 yards at 6.4 ypc with two scores. Here’s how their numbers looked on the season in comparison to some of the recent Tom Herman Texas squads.

     

     

     
    Herman:Sark QB:RB balance.jpg


    Herman’s offenses ran more plays, were less efficient with the run and the pass, and asked a good deal more of the quarterback than Sarkisian’s 2013 Husky team (or subsequent Sark squads). Beyond the much heavier load in the passing game Ehlinger took on in comparison to Keith Price, there’s also the unlisted run game production where Ehlinger was taking a beating and Price (and especially other Sark quarterbacks) were much less involved.

    The underlying philosophy is different. Sarkisian was typically throwing the ball to set up the run. Tom Herman viewed tempo, RPOs, and quarterback runs as means to control the ball in the box. Whereas Herman might say, “we’ll line up faster and then see how they do stopping the run,” Sarkisian leaned more into the true spread philosophy of applying stress down the field or on the perimeter to shake defenders out of the box and allow the run game to get going.

    Herman was never as comfortable with RPOs, disliking giving defenses choices and taking initiative away from his offense. The Longhorns ended up running a fair number of them but typically only for the most trusted wideouts, and many receivers never earned the trust to receive regular targets. Texas was very conspicuously missing the boundary RPO arrow in the quiver in losses against Baylor and Iowa State defenses in 2019 when Collin Johnson was out with injury.

    Clearly Sarkisian’s approach has been more efficient not only for the running backs but the quarterback as well. Good spacing generated by the threat of the forward pass is simply more effective than tempo or quarterback-option for setting up the run game.

    Ensuring space or blockers for the running back

    Unlike Herman, Sarkisian centers the run game around the running back. Sam Ehlinger led Texas in carries each of the last two seasons and was the leader or tied with the leader in rushing touchdowns each of the last three seasons. Herman’s reasoning here was sound, if you feature the quarterback as the runner you’re guaranteed a numbers advantage at the point of attack. Bill Snyder’s run was built on the same principle. It’s a hard knock life for your passer though as the accumulated hits and damage can limit his effectiveness when throwing the ball.

    If your goal on offense is for the run game to be centered around the running back then your offensive structure needs to be able to guarantee space OR blockers so the back isn’t just running into a wall.

    The RPO game doesn’t necessarily guarantee space for the running back, but it should ultimately arrive there if the offense executes them properly. Sarkisian has always put a premium on having explosive athletes like John Ross, Nelson Agholor, or DeVonta Smith to receive the ball on pass options and force defenses to yield space in the box.

    Most every defensive coach likes to talk a tough game about stopping the run but when the offense is averaging 10 yards per pass and routinely flipping the ball to 4.4 sprinters in space, coaches will start to back down a little on their guiding principle. Or else they play man coverage in order to ensure they can keep numbers in the box on your running back, then the stakes of the game just go up and the offense can run dropback or play-action passes and potentially turn those 10-yard RPO gains into 40+ yard scoring plays.

    Finding feature weapons in the wide receiver corps and getting the quarterback up to speed in the RPO, play-action, and man-beating game is the essential task of the offseason for Sarkisian. In the same fashion NBA teams aim to surround LeBron James, Luka Doncic, or James Harden with three-point shooters to guarantee them space to attack the rim, Texas will seek to get speed and pass-options going to keep defenses from loading the box against Bijan Robinson.

    Then there are the moments where you can’t guarantee space, such as third and two or second and goal. Defenses will virtually always aim to outnumber the run and deny space in those instances, which is partly why Texas so frequently used the unbalanced “touchdown play” with tempo in order to try and pick up gains before the defense could fully get set.

    Sarkisian has never totally lost touch with his under center, pro-style roots and maintained some short-yardage packages within the Alabama offense for these situations.

     

     


    The playside tight end here is 6-foot-4, 298-pound converted offensive lineman Kendall Randolph. He blocks down while the guard leads to kick out the edge. Then the Tide have 6-foot-3, 240-pound converted linebacker Joshua McMillon serve as the fullback and lead through the hole. Texas fans may recall the spread pass-happy Colt McCoy Longhorns also maintained short-yardage packages featuring extra offensive linemen and guys like Roy Miller and Lamarr Houston at fullback. There’s a reason Cody Johnson is tied for fifth in all-time career rushing touchdowns as a Longhorn with Steve Worster and Jamaal Charles (Sam Ehlinger is tied for eighth with Jim Bertelsen). Greg Davis and Mack Brown were eager to protect Colt McCoy from unnecessary dirty work to keep him healthy... and it almost worked.

    If you can’t guarantee the defense won’t stick extra, unblocked defenders around the box (the magic numbers are six if you don’t have a tight end, seven if you do, and eight if you have two tight ends) with the threat of RPOs and play-action then you need to put extra blockers on the field. Texas is in good shape to have a high-functioning 12 personnel or perhaps even 13 personnel package featuring Cade Brewer, Jared Wiley, Brayden Liebrock, and maybe Ja’Tavion Sanders. They’d also benefit from choosing a sixth offensive lineman or maybe a hard-nosed defender to get into the action as well as a fullback or short-yardage tight end. None of Texas’ tight ends are brilliant blockers, with Brewer probably the most solid, so while those packages could probably do damage at tempo, Texas would need a power set as well.

    Bijan Robinson is a known quality for 2021, there’s no serious doubt over whether he can be one of the most dominant football players in the conference. This factor in the Longhorn season is as obvious to their opponents as it is to the new coaching staff, so can Texas build a supporting cast to help Bijan run wild anyways?

     

    Fuck that longcat...

    Danny Devito No GIF by reactionseditor

    • Haha 1
  3. 1 hour ago, closetojumping said:

    That Roach write-up about the HS coaches takes regarding Herman and his staff is fucking gold. Either he fashioned the story out of thin air, which I doubt, or he talked to some of the dumbest, least informed dipshits available at the gathering. 

    Regarding Herman coming up as an assistant and being captain gregarious, huh? He was a known asshole but considered innovative and aggressive, so he got away with it. His personality never drew high marks. Then, his behavior at UH, for anyone paying attention, only cemented what kind of loser this guy was turning out to be.

    Regarding HS coaches frowning on Herman dumping his assistants, what in the fuck was to be expected? These are the same HS coaches that advised kids to sit and wait until the dust settled at Texas with Herman, and who never advocated positives to the $9.95ers while the assistants were on the staff.

    In short, only a fucking idiot would find it even vaguely fruitful to offer a defense, of any sort, for Herman's staff. Adding to that, defending Drew Fucking Meh is a high point of oblivious stupidity from Roach. It's bizarre and hard to fathom. That fucking clown was a pure net negative, and that's what he's been, wherever he's been, and why he's at some directional school right now, probably hanging on by a fucking string. 

    Yeah, high school coaches as a whole are a pretty flaky bunch.  You talk to 50 of them and you can find any story you want to fit your narrative, or at least to give your readers some bullshit juicy tidbit.

     It sounds like for the most part they thought Herman was an asshat. As far as the rest of it regarding their opinions, fan fiction.

  4. 20 hours ago, The Ace of Aces said:

    I have a feeling he does well at USC. I think he was criminally mishandled by Herman. 

    I agree with this.  He will be remembered here for his fuck ups, but he is a very solid RB.  If he stays healthy and gets enough carries to  get in a rhythm, I think he will be very good for USC. 

  5. On 1/4/2021 at 1:06 PM, MirrOlure said:

    Day 4 for us, and we’re doing pretty well, considering.

    Reset: Wife and I are healthy and active 53 and 54 year olds, we were exposed right after Christmas and tested positive on 1/1 with mild but persistent symptoms.

    My main complaints have been that my “thermostat” is out of whack...no fever, but always feel cold. Body aches come and go, as does this fuzzy-headed feeling similar to waking up in the morning after a night of too much tequila. Tylenol helps. Taste and smell still with me but seem to be fading.

    Wife has a few more symptoms...a touch more congestion and almost full loss of taste and smell....but is generally up and about too.

    I was symptomatic starting December 15th, which started with a cough. I am about the same age as you.  I had fever for the first two days, got up to 102.3 and after that body aches, congestion, fatigue and lost taste and smell but for only a couple of days. 

    The worst part is how long it seems to drag on and, the main reason I quoted, the freaking brain fog.  That stuff lasted a good 15 to 16 days after my initial symptoms.  It's a shitty feeling that you just can't shake. I am pretty much fully recovered now, but I have heard some people have brain fog for months.  That would drive me insane.

  6. 4 hours ago, slorch said:

    North Shore is 4505.  It is NOT part of HISD.  They also have another 5A school in Galena Park ISD.  That does make it a bit different from Allen in that respect.

    TWHS is 4330

    Alief Elsik has 4277 and isn't a factor.

    Hell Pasadena Dobie has 4209 and never does jack-shit.

    There’s lots of high enrollment high schools in both the DFW and Houston areas. However, typically the same schools are the ones winning and competing for titles every year.

    Sure coaching is big part of it, but it’s also pretty obvious that the better players in those areas end up at those schools one way or another.
     

    The Odessa Permian and Midland Lee type schools can’t compete with those schools anymore. Just too big of a talent gap and depth issue, which wasn’t the case years ago. Along with the much larger emphasis that has gone into football in the big metro areas, especially DFW.

  7. 3 hours ago, StruggleBus said:

    What precautions did your wife's employer take to help prevent infection? This site is littered with lawyers looking to take on a losing case. 

    Seriously though, good luck and get better

    Hah! Yeah she is one of the managers and they have been jumping through hoops to keep the place safe. But she works in the media and they have to have certain people there to accomplish the basics. They have protocols but some of the types that have to be there are not the brightest...

  8. 14 minutes ago, TexMexBuddha said:

     

    Nasty's and Draught Haus were the only places that let us in as high school juniors on the regular. Cheap Shiner and Everclear margarita pitchers. Hung out there with UT LAX on occasion.

    Ahh yes, the Nasty's Everclear margs served in the aromatic dishwater scented glasses.  Affectionately called fish-o-ritas by my crew. They dipped the glasses in that slop juice bucket for every bit of 5 seconds, which obviously disinfected and deodorized them for the next derelict/customer/me.    Once you got past the first rita you never noticed the smell again.

    • Haha 1
  9. 13 hours ago, billfromlaketravis said:

    You can’t truck gas so it creates a myriad of takeaway issues. If I were a politician in West Texas I’d be deeply pissed off about flaring. Good luck catching a nice night time desert breeze with 10 wells flaring down the road. And oh yeah the light pollution. 
     

    A lot of my lessors are moving to Lubbock. I can’t blame them. Much less drilling activity, better hospitals, better restaurants, Tech home games (in normal conditions), and close enough (in West Texas terms) to go check on things. 

    Lol, it’s not that bad or big of a deal. I live in Midland, the least of our worries are flares out in the countryside. There’s not that many. We have bigger problems, like a terrible drought and bad roads.

    Moving to Lubbock? Hadn’t heard that one. Not sure that’s much of an improvement unless you’re a Tech fan. I mean it’s Lubbock, not Austin or San Antonio, etc...

  10. Flaring is a big issue, especially in the Permian. In most cases it’s not as simple as building a pipeline to sales. Quite a few gathering systems in active areas are at capacity and can’t take anymore gas. So there is no market. 

    Most leases we see now have provisions to pay royalties whether or not you flare gas. The big companies will pay the royalties even though they are flaring because the oil is valuable enough to cover it. Not sure how much the decline in oil prices has effected this practice.

    I have seen some companies renting/selling gas powered generators to take flared gas and use it to electrify the pumping systems and equipment on the producing pads.

     I think the problem is getting a lot of attention, getting better and will be greatly reduced fairly soon.

  11. A question for the docs. I have had Bell’s Palsy 3 times, the last case was about 5 years ago and the last two cases were mild. I got both of the Shingrix vaccines this past year, and had pretty strong reactions to both. Felt like the flu for a couple of days.

    Is that because my immune system’s response was very aggressive since it had already fought Bell’s Palsy (both are herpes zoster viruses) several times?

    I’ve never had any reaction to the flu shot. Just curious if I should expect a really strong reaction to a COVID vaccine, which I will get. Or if my previous experiences don’t mean anything about how I will react to a COVID vax.

  12. 2 hours ago, immamac said:

     

    This is an incredible talk. 

    Well I'm in oil and gas, so anytime someone (not really talking about you here) tries to tell me or talk about how the world or even the US is going to transition into alternatives in some relatively short time frame, I try and point them to this video.

    Also, I really like his description of the tech sector's carbon footprint.  Since I'm in the evil, dirty O&G biz as opposed to the darling tech sector, the irony is not lost on me.

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    • Like 1
  13. 10 hours ago, Bookman said:

    I'm an oil and gas attorney.

    Why would you give them a look under the skirt?

    Unless they own 100% of the mineral rights (not likely in West Texas), can't they just permit other mineral owners under that tract?

  14. Sam certainly isn't perfect but he's a good college QB, will he make it in the NFL, who knows.  But to think we have any QB on the roster who's better than him at this point, is laughable.

    It's the same old shit, if your team is winning the QB usually gets too much credit and if they are struggling or losing he gets too much blame.

    Sam is far from the biggest problem on this team.

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