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closetojumping

Burnt Ends
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Posts posted by closetojumping

  1. On 10/13/2025 at 3:03 PM, Red Five said:

    I drank for about 18 consecutive hours, finishing with martinis with the milfs at the Anatole bar at about 1 a.m. Top 5 Texas/OU experience for me, going back to 1988. 

    I was at a table with my wife drinking Manhattans until the end of the ATM/Florida game at that bar in the Anatole. Ships passing in the night, sir. 

    • Hook 'Em 1
  2. 5 minutes ago, kilroydos said:

    He did hit 1300 in '23, but it's not working this year.  I don't know how much of it is his fault. 

    I don't think Ikard's plan is for the whole slate of offensive position coaches to go, but they've got to get on the same page.  Bedenbaugh doesn't want to coach his line to set the same way for every play (to accommodate the RPO), but that's what he's having to do right now.  That means no push in the run game, no blocking support by TEs that can't do it, and no space for the WRs to get clear because of the aforementioned.

    The plan to abandon the run for this year is that he doesn't think you can re-install a package in the middle of the year that fixes the set issues, so you abandon the RPO and just use short passes in place of the run to backs who can catch a little.  You hope it pulls people up off of the deeper zones and then you get Mateer a little time with a slower rush and more space downfield.  You also hope it stops OLs from getting rolled up on, which has been the source of half of the OL injuries this year.

    It would require a LOT of humility from the staff and you probably still need to get rid of JJF for not finding a single TE who can block worth a damn and Murray for not being able to identify, land, and develop a RB with any vision. 

    If you could swing the scythe, who would you keep on the offensive coaching staff? 

    My view is this:

    -Joe Jon Finley was a bum at ATM and he's been a bum at OU. I don't know what he's doing with his charges, honestly. It almost seems like guys get worse as the season moves forward. We saw that with certain groups under Mack Brown, everywhere under Strong, and in a lot of places with Herman. No one hires a perfect staff, so there's nits to pick across any staff in the country, but JJF stands out as one of the worst position coaches I could name anywhere right now. Some of that is due to familiarity, but not all of it. 

    -Jones could well be a victim of circumstance, but we're nearing a point where it doesn't matter. Injuries decimating the WR room? Two years in a row? That's a shame. Also a shame? There aren't any actual dudes in the room in the first place and the statistics bear that out. This is from a program that seemed like it produced a top 3 round WR pick every year for two decades. 

    -Murray is saved only by Finley in terms of being the worst assistant on any staff I can think of right now. He can at least recruit, I guess, but he does nothing with those recruits once they get to campus. It also seems like he actively finds a player in the RB room to dislike and beat up on each year. The RB room is where highly ranked 4 stars and 5 stars go to die. Sawchuk, Tatum, Barnes, Ott - they are all within the last 2 years of being complete busts or mediocrities. Maybe some got hurt? Who cares? The excuses might be legitimate, but they aren't improving the situation. 

    -Bedenbaugh is enigmatic, at this point. He was once considered one of the best in the business and had guys going in the 1st round it seemed like every year. He fell asleep in recruiting and ignored the portal for a few years and now the product on the field is absolute dogshit. This is another spot where the group seems to be devolving as the seasons wear on, particularly the past two years. Again, injuries can be part of the problem, but cry me a river. Every program in the country deals with building OL injury issues as the season continues because this is a brutal, violent sport, especially in the trenches. 

    I have zero faith in Arbuckle to make solid hires simply because he hasn't been around long enough to know what he's doing in that regard. I'd been hiring talent for 6 years when I was 29 and shit was still somewhat of a mystery to me. Unless he's a savant, how the fuck is he going to know who to poach or promote? Venables is part of why you're in this offensive mess. One thing about Nagy is that he is connected throughout CFB and the NFL when it comes to coaching personnel. Maybe he's a legitimate asset on this front if OU does decide to clean house offensively. 

    Also, Schmidt is outdated and from a different era. I don't see OU looking bigger, faster, or meaner than any other P4 team they're playing. They outplayed Michigan and Auburn, but they didn't have a size or speed advantage to my naked eye. Against Texas? They looked smaller and slower across the board. Are you guys seeing something differently? 

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  3. 14 minutes ago, SydneyCarton said:

     

    What CTJ doesn't say here, but which should be obvious, is that he's now planning several calls into Pauly Finebaum where Lewis Livinstone is going to gas about how he and his nephew Parker have been cooking meth in a trailer in Vidor every summer since he was 10, which by coincidence, was also the first year Parker stole a car and crashed it into a tree just to feel something. 

    In the forthcoming weeks we're going to hear some very interesting members of the Stroh family hitting the airwaves, who I will remind all of you are Aggies, talking about how the ginger folk are some of the most efficient and successful fentanyl mules China has ever employed. 

    See, this is putting in work now. We need to workshop this and see where we can take it.

    • Haha 1
  4. On 10/15/2025 at 3:51 PM, A-Tex Devil said:

    Going next month (UT-GA weekend) and staying at Circa, I think.  We are all almost or just past 50, so this is a sportsbook (Circa is just spectacular for this), poker, craps, trip and maybe catch a concert if one is in town (2 years ago we caught Built to Spill and The Hold Steady randomly playing the same gig, which was awesome as I love THS and BtS is one of my buddy's all time favorites).  But overall, we look and play the part of dork dads on vacation.

    I rarely spend any time at good restaurants on these trips (and it's been two years), because degenerate, but want to find a spot this time for one excellent meal. What's a favorite steakhouse where we can come out of the sports books or off the tables and walk into with our untucked short sleeve Poncho, Vuori chinos, baseball cap, and ON Clouds (you know, the West Austin dad uniform) without looking like complete slobs.  I figure we'll need to go to the strip unless someone can convince me on V&A or Andiamo because they are downtown.

     

     

    Dude, the steakhouse at Circa is just fine. The bartenders are also slutty and hot. I forget the restaurant name, but should be easy to find. I went with my wife for a change of pace from the strip a while back. Not our thing, but it would fit your thinking.  

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  5. 5 hours ago, satyanash said:

    The main exports of the Texas Empire are currently syrup, timber, gabagool, and lots of meth.

    Empires have been built on less. 

    Outside of OU, what is the actual footprint a result of? Who played someone in New England and south Georgia?

  6. 49 minutes ago, Red Five said:

    FWIW, IT says Rickey Stewart is dealing with a family emergency and will rejoin the team when that is over.

    This almost never works out well. The small running back out of San Antonio did this, the DE out of the Golden Triangle, those two immediately come to mind. See ya, bud. 

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  7. OU reporters are saying that OT Simmons is a go for Saturday against South Carolina. Dude couldn't walk on his own this past Saturday, but he's going to be out there at full speed this coming weekend. Either he's a complete pussy or this is a Jerry Schmidt special. 

    Also, OU has never scored more than 2 offensive touchdowns against an SEC opponent since joining the conference. There's a shot that that holds true into the winter break. 

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    • Like 1
  8. 1 minute ago, Sgt Hulk said:

    Baxter is kirk Johnson. Jordan Whittington 2.0 

     

    hopefully he sticks around long enough that his last year is healthy and he absolutely balls out like Whittington did.  But he’s gotten up limping every time he’s touched a football   In a texas uniform. 

    This comes across as hyperbole but might actually be factually correct. I've grown tired of hoping the guy can come back and play. Then again, I felt that way about Jordan Shipley and Jordan Whittington, too.

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  9. Here's an article about Jayden Gibson leaving the team, as of today. If you'll recall, the sooners have been decrying his absence with the WR corps since he went down last August. They rushed him back in the spring and he got hurt again, but, by golly, he was going to be fine for the 2025 season, per Venables in May, and that was going to make a big difference! I've been mocking the notion of his return throughout this thread. 

    Spoiler

    NORMAN — Oklahoma and wide receiver Jayden Gibson have parted ways.

    Oklahoma coach Brent Venables said Wednesday, when asked during the SEC coaches teleconference, that Gibson is "no longer with the team." The Sooners' fourth-year head coach did not provide any further details on the reasoning Gibson's departure from the team.

    As of late Wednesday morning, Gibson was still listed on Oklahoma's official online roster.

    Gibson has been sidelined since August 2024, when he tore the patellar tendon in his knee. He missed the entire 2024 season and was set to return this year, but he sustained a setback with his knee before the start of spring practices while running routes on air.

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    The last update Venables provided on Gibson's status was in late May at SEC Spring Meetings in Destin, Florida, when he said the 6-foot-5, 186-pound receiver was "on schedule" to return toward the beginning of this season.

    Midway through the regular season, Gibson has not appeared in any games for the 14th-ranked Sooners, and he has not been spotted on the sideline in street clothes. He was with the team at the start of fall camp, when he was seen on the field doing light stretching but not participating in practice as he continued to work his way back from injury.

    When Gibson was last healthy during the 2023 season, the Apopka, Florida, native caught 14 passes for 375 yards and five touchdowns during a bit of a breakout sophomore campaign. He averaged 26.7 yards per reception and established himself as one of Oklahoma's top downfield threats in the passing game. His average depth of target was 23.3 yards downfield, according to Pro Football Focus, and he made four contested catches on six contested throws during the 2023 season.

    He was expected to see an increased role in Oklahoma's offense last season before sustaining a ruptured patellar tendon in fall camp. Gibson was one of five Sooners wide receivers to miss significant time — or in his case, the entirety of the season — during that program's frustrating 2024 campaign.

    Oklahoma's wide receiver corps this season has been led by Arkansas transfer Isaiah Sategna, former Purdue transfer Deion Burks and Southern Illinois transfer Keontez Lewis, while the Sooners recently welcomed back Arkansas-Pine Bluff transfer Javonnie Gibson, who returned from a broken leg he sustained during spring practices.

     

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  10. Gerry this morning:

    Wednesday Recruiting: Dre Quinn update and more 

    The Texas staff continues to chip away at remaining targets the month of October, while being on the road an unable to host any prospects for weekend visits until November. 

    This morning, OTF brings the latest on a trio of prospects. 

    Dre Quinn ...
    It's Ohio State vs. Texas with Tennessee in the mix for the Buford High 4-star+ EDGE. The 6-foot-3.5, 228-pounder and Texas staff members talk daily. The plan is for Quinn and family to visit for the Arkansas game November 22. Quinn had a very positive visit to Ohio State for the Minnesota game, and is likely to go back one more time for an OV in the coming weeks. 

    New OT offer Micah Smith ...
    Kyle Flood and Micah Smith continue to try and iron out official visit details. Texas is working on the November 22 weekend, but Vero Beach High could very well still be playing in the playoffs. Texas knows they can't just be zeroed in on the singular weekend. While the 6-foot-5.5, 325-pounder remains committed to UCLA, Ohio State has become the team to beat after the October 4 official visit. 

    Texas and Corey Wells ...
    The 6-foot-5, 300-pound Texas commit with an 82-inch wingspan continues to have positive conversations with Kenny Baker and staff. Auburn isn't giving up, and Ole Miss remains in the mix too as expected, but both have questions to answer. Will Auburn make a coaching change? Will Lane Kiffin take the Florida job? Texas has stability. Texas staff members are also in contact contact with Wells' mom. 

    One more note ...
    Texas and current Florida 4-star+ DL pledge Kendall Guervil (Fort Myers, Fla./High) continue to have positive conversations. A November 22 weekend visit for the Arkansas game is certainly possible. 

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    • Rage+1 1
  11. 1 hour ago, Huckleberry said:

    Mateer's mistakes were almost all mental. Only Littleton's pick was an off target throw to an open receiver and on that one his throwing form was terrible because of pressure from Moore on his right. 

    The only one I think the hand might have actually impacted was the backward pass that Taafe almost recovered but was out of bounds. That was terrible. But even that one may have just been not wanting to lead his receiver into the crashing defender (Roberson).

    He had trouble with accuracy beyond 15 yards. I don't know whether that was his thumb or not, although it seems logical, but I do know that whatever it was, it was physical. 

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  12. Cui gives a shit? It's got a fucking bow on it. 

    Burton already said the guy was irrelevant. The portal and top 5 recruiting will do that to plenty of guys in ways the past did not. Thank goodness. Most of the guys y'all listed could all leave and the impact to the program would likely be positive. 

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  13. 15 hours ago, Dbeasy said:

    I’m talking about ctj lambasting everyone for suggesting he might play. 

    “Lambasting”. If I ever actually lambasted you, you’d know it. 

    Congrats on calling the sooners getting the guy back, never mind that he had no business playing and it showed. Enjoy the flowers. 

    • Haha 3
  14. On 10/6/2025 at 9:56 AM, Stringer said:

     

     

     

     

    Any of you guys want another bite at the apple or nah?

     

    How did this condescending follow up age for you? Do any introspection, or nah?

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  15. 12 minutes ago, trythisathome said:

    I pray to all gods that our AD isn't micromanaging our head coach. 

    No need for prayer, even. Just realize you’re responding to a mad man. A desperate fool at the end of his pitiful rope. 

    • Haha 1
  16. 33 minutes ago, Mitch Cumsteen said:

    Agree completely with your analysis, but...

    I mean, we did embarrass the fuck out of them last year 49-17 so maybe they have a little more motivation for revenge.

    I guess. I have heard UF guys from last year forward, players, SBB, Doering and Rutledge, other talking heads discussing them, and the Texas game never comes up. Not once. It’s like it didn’t happen because they were wracked with injuries. 

    I’m kind of torn about revenge as a motivator and what it can unlock in sports. Against a rival is one thing, but against a random conference foe? I just remember Galveston Ball beating us 51-3, and 34-0 my first two years on varsity. My senior year, they came to see us finally and our coach picked that as the Homecoming game for revenge. “Payback’s a motherfucker!!” we screamed as we ran through the paper banner onto the field. Walking off the field losing 69-14, I’m just not sure the revenge angle made all that much of a difference when they were better coached and far more talented. 

    17 minutes ago, Thetexashammer said:

    I'm gonna assume you're playing devil's advocate. I mean, we have a decided schematic advantage, that being that our players are a lot better than their players.

    They’re still a talented team. They have a QB who has flashed dynamism on the field, albeit last year before adding a shoulder injury and 25 pounds of bad weight. 

    I hope everyone here is right, to be sure. 

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  17. As bad as AD Mitchell's fumble into the end zone was, he poured gasoline on the fire by getting called for a hold on a what would have been a lead-taking score late in the game. Whoops. Hope it doesn't impact his playing time. 

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