Claremore Daily Progress

Breaking News

Sports

November 22, 2012

Aggies make way for Frogs

ASSOCIATED PRESS Associated Press

AUSTIN — Since 1895, the Texas Longhorns have played 75 games on Thanksgiving. Of those, 64 were against Texas A&M in a game that turned into a holiday tradition.



In case anyone forgot, tradition got blown to bits last year when the Aggies left the Big 12 for the Southeastern Conference and the Longhorns said “so long” to their oldest rivals. No. 18 Texas (8-2, 5-2) wanted to keep playing on Thanksgiving and the Big 12 this year served up TCU (6-4, 3-4), an old rival that has become a new one again.



Texas and TCU used to face each other every year in the now-defunct Southwest Conference, and having the Horned Frogs back on the schedule rekindles memories of the salty old days of name calling and sarcasm between programs.



“They are like a bunch of cockroaches,” former Texas coach Darrell Royal said in 1961 after unranked TCU spoiled the Longhorns’ national title hopes with a 6-0 victory. “It isn’t what he eats or totes off, but what he falls into and messes up.”



There’s no national title game on the line Thursday night, but the Horned Frogs could still mess things up for a Texas team that still has a shot at a Big 12 title and BCS bowl if it can win its last two games.



While there are several tie-breaker scenarios that would still have to fall Texas’ way, it’s a surprising position for the Longhorns, who were written off at midseason after consecutive losses to West Virginia and Oklahoma. Texas has won four in a row and its much-maligned defense appears to be getting better every week



“We’ve worked hard to get back here and build something we could be proud of,” Texas guard Mason Walters said.



Coach Mack Brown said he talked to his team about all the different scenarios and bowl projections.



“Let’s just try to beat TCU,” Brown told them. “And the more you win, the better it gets.”



TCU’s season has just been flat-out hard. The Horned Frogs started 4-0 before starting quarterback Casey Pachall was arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated, got suspended and then left school for treatment at an inpatient rehabilitation facility. After playing in BCS games after the 2009 and 2010 seasons, the Horned Frogs had to overcome that adversity as well as the tougher scheduled in the Big 12.



“With everything’s that happened to us, for this team to have fought back ...to be bowl eligible is truly an accomplishment,” coach Gary Patterson said.

Text Only
Sports
  • Gasso trusts that Ricketts will find her timing again

    Oklahoma pitcher Keilani Ricketts was not at her best on Sunday. The defending USA Softball Player of the Year didn’t give up a run in her two and two-thirds innings of work, but she was far from the dominant pitcher who tossed a no-hitter last week.

    May 20, 2013

  • Sooners claim regular season finale with win over K-State

    Oklahoma managed to end the regular season on a positive note Sunday. Kolbey Carpenter went 2 for 4 and drove in three runs to help power the Sooners to a 7-3 victory over Kansas State at Tointon Stadium.

    May 20, 2013

  • Chamberlain's curtain call only the beginning

    The chant reaching near-deafening levels, Lauren Chamberlain finally realized what she was supposed to do.

    Moments after blasting a three-run home run that broke open what had been a close regional final, the sophomore tepidly stepped up out of the dugout and waved to the home crowd, enjoying the first curtain call of her career.

    May 20, 2013

  • OU's dominant victory a shining example of how tough Sooners are in softball

    On the first day Oklahoma softball coach Patty Gasso thought it was better to go with Michelle Gascoigne over Keilani Ricketts against Arkansas’ bats, the Sooners beat the Razorbacks by five runs.

    A day later Gasso had the same thought. OU prevailed by 13 runs.

    May 20, 2013

  • Cowboys fall short in Big 12 regular season finale

    Oklahoma State University played catch up the entire game of Saturday’s series finale with West Virginia at Allie P. Reynolds, and never could quite get over the hump.
    The Cowboys would respond after each Mountaineer score but it wouldn’t be enough as they lost the finale 5-4 on Senior Day.

    May 20, 2013

  • Referees stop Lake Eufaula Classic with South on top

     It was an outcome unlike any in the 29 years of the Lake Eufaula Classic, and a bruise different than any player has ever departed with.

    Officials, following the second serious skirmish of the game, walked off the field and the game was called, the South leading the North 12-10 at Paul Bell Stadium.

    May 20, 2013

  • Grand Junction Bound: Connors State advances to JUCO World Series

    All season long, Connors State coach Perry Keith has said his team was winning a lot of ball games ugly.

    On Saturday, the game between the Cowboys and No. 1 Delgado (La.) was anything but as Connors beat the Dolphins 3-1 to capture the South Central district championship and a berth in next week’s NJCAA College World Series.

    May 20, 2013

  • Young Americans waste no time qualifying for Indy 500

    Bump Day at Indianapolis followed the script.
    No surprises, no drama and no drivers getting bumped.
    On a day devoid of tension and rumors, all nine drivers who made attempts on the second and final day of Indianapolis 500 qualifications made it into the 33-car field, led by two young Americans - Josef Newgarden and Graham Rahal - who easily had the two fastest cars on the track.

    May 20, 2013

  • NCAA WOMEN'S BB: Texas Tech hires OSU assistant Candi Whitaker

    Texas Tech has hired Oklahoma State assistant Candi Whitaker to coach its women's basketball team.
    The school announced Monday that the former Lady Raiders player would return to her alma mater as coach. The move comes about a week after Kristy Curry left for Alabama.

    May 20, 2013

  • Pacers, Heat start bracing to square off again

    A year ago when Miami and Indiana faced off in the postseason, there were blood-drawing hits, flagrant fouls, technical fouls, choke signs being directed toward LeBron James and more than a few sharp-tongued comments.
    Here they possibly go again, at least on the comment front.
    The Eastern Conference finals between the Heat and Pacers won't begin until Wednesday night, but there's already signs that the animosity present throughout last season's Miami-Indiana second-round series will likely return this time around.

    May 20, 2013