The BYU Cougars arrived in Austin on Saturday and appeared to have done their homework. At least that is what you would have thought in the first half.
Ahh, a tale of two halves – again. It’s a common theme in Longhorn football and has been for quite some time now.
Against Rice, the first half offensive plan had shades of (yawn) Greg Davis in it; the second half looked more like sandlot football (aka Boise State). We all know which half was most effective and certainly most entertaining. With that in mind, I thought that the Longhorns coaching staff would watch some video, learn some lessons, and enter the game against BYU with the most effective of the two options right out of the gate. I was sadly mistaken.
My story is probably pretty similar to many others. On September 11, 2001, I awoke to a beautiful, sunny day in Austin, Texas. I had my breakfast and my coffee, just like I would typically do any other day. I drove to the office, just like I had many times before. I listened to the radio on the drive in to the office.
It was just another typical day, right? As we all know, this day would be far from typical. Each passing moment seemed to present a new horror, beamed directly into our homes and our consciousness by the power of digital media.
On Wednesday, September 12, 2001, I awoke to the same sunshine, the same coffee, the same drive to work – but a world that had been forever changed. All those typical things weren’t so typical anymore. It was, as Don Henley once noted, “the end of the innocence”.
Looking back from a perspective 10 years removed, we will never take the pain away from 9/11/01. But we must also remember 9/12/01 and hold our heads high. It was the dawn after the dark. After the shock and anguish of the day before, it was the day that we got up off the mat, the day we were strongly reminded of the values that are at the core of this great country. It was a day that we pulled together – one nation, indivisible.
There is a lot of debate these days on illegal immigration. I think it is fair to say that it is a divisive topic at the very least.
I find this a very intriguing topic because I myself am a legal immigrant to this country. I went through all of the standard procedures to be able to reside and work in this country legally and have the privilege to pay taxes just like all the rest of you hard-working citizens.
But then I found out that there are over 13 million illegal aliens and U.S.-born children in the United States, even though there are laws prohibiting it. There are laws prohibiting an employer from hiring an illegal immigrant. Do we need more hard-core immigration laws like they have instituted in Arizona, laws which some believe border (no pun intended) on racial profiling? Do we need to just build a big wall around the country? Or are all the solutions we need already in place?
It is the time of year for much rejoicing. College football started in Austin this past Labor Day weekend against the Rice Owls. Yes, these are the Owls that are known more for their marching band (the Marching Owl Band, or MOB) than they are for their stellar football program.
With that said, there were a lot of unknowns for the University of Texas coming into this game. Most of the practices have been closed to the media and public. The Longhorns now have two new offensive coordinators (Bryan Harsin and Major Applewhite) and a new defensive coordinator (Manny Diaz). Gone are Greg Davis – he of the oppressively stagnant offensive game plans – and Will Muschamp – long departed for the Florida Gators. Either the coaches didn’t want to show the world all the good stuff they have in store for us this season, or they didn’t want to show us how bad this team is this year.
After last season, either option would be a possibility.
The time has finally come. It’s September 1, 2011 – the day that Rhubarb goes video. Ruminations on video may be Rudimentary at first, but I am sure that they will eventually be … Remarkable? Robust? Radical? Just plain Revolutionary?
First things first. I like to simplify my world. As much as possible at least. With that in mind, I am going to officially remove two syllables from my writing world. The Rhubarb Ruminations – in the spirit of simplicity – will now become the Rhubarb Report. I mean, how many people really have any idea what Ruminations really are? Sure, it sounds clever but let’s bring it back to basics. If a Report is good enough for Stephen Colbert, then I suspect it’s probably good enough for me. Just keep the hard “T” at the end. But it will always have that true Rhubarb flavor – you know, a little tart, with a hard “T”
So after 21 episodes of Rumination, let’s get this Report started.
When you mention the name “Ayrton Senna”, you will probably elicit a broad range of responses. You may get a blank stare. Who is Ayrton Senna anyways? To some F1 fans, he was a villain. He was certainly involved in more than his share of end-of-season-championship-deciding accidents. To others, he was an F1 legend. And if you are from Brazil, he was a national hero on par with Pele.
Athletes at the top of their sport tend to elicit these polarizing responses. In that regard, Senna was no different than a Michael Jordan or Roger Staubach, and his skill as one of the greatest racing drivers to grace the planet cannot be overlooked. This man was the real deal when he was behind the wheel.
He was also the real deal when he wasn’t behind the wheel. The film documentary “Senna” shows us all sides of the late Ayrton Senna – and does so with grace, beauty and passion.
As my birthday came barreling towards me this year, I found myself pondering the concept of time. Oh, how it flies by. I can always remember being told how time would pass slowly in my younger years, and pick up speed each and every year as I got older. Truer words were never spoken.
It seems like every year that passes reminds me to focus on the value of time itself. I guess it becomes more readily apparent when you realize that you are starting to get closer to the end of the adventure than the beginning. That’s not meant to sound morbid, but just a conscious acceptance of mortality as I know it.
I can look in the rear view mirror and be bewildered by the range and breadth of experiences I see there. Wow. Is all of that a part of me now? You never really know where you are going until you stop and take a look around you.
Oh if we could just cause time to stand still. Just for a moment.
Up to 60% of runners will sustain an injury within any given year. Poor running mechanics, in conjunction with poor, ineffective and outdated training methods, can pose a significant injury risk. "RunSmart" was written to address these issues in the running community.
"Running Injuries: Etiology And Recovery- Based Treatment" (co-author Bridget Clark, PT) appears in the third edition and fourth editions of "Clinical Orthopaedic Rehabilitation: A Team Approach" by Charles Giangarra, MD and Robert C. Manske, PT.
Allan Besselink, PT, DPT, Ph.D., Dip.MDT has a unique voice in the world of sports, education, and health care. Read more about Allan here.
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