Houston 54 UTEP 24

54

24

The Houston Cougars avenged last year's 58-41 upset at the hands of the UTEP Miners. The Coogs defeated the Miners 54-24 with the out come never really in doubt.

For the second consecutive game, the Cougar faithful sold out a game. For many outsiders that may not seem a big deal but given Cougar attendance history it is a big deal.

The Miners used the opening drive to take their only lead of the game 7-0.

From there on it was the Houston Cougar ground show. Yes, that's right, the Cougars ground the Miners into the turf with a rushing attack. In addition to the usual 300 plus passing yards, the Cougars added 308 yards running the ball. Bryce "Brick" Beall lead the way with 195 yards and 3 TDs rushing. JUCO transfer Michael Hayes added 77 yards on 17 carries and matched Beall's 3 TDs.

For the first time in 31 games, Cougar quarterback and Heisman hopeful Case Keenum failed to pass for a touchdown. Keenum also failed to reach the 300 yard mark in passing yards. More important remains the status of Keenum's health. Keenum left the game in the 3rd quarter after trying to make a play after he threw an interception.

At the end of the game, all that matters is a Cougar victory. Pass records, Heisman trophies, streaks and attendance records don't mean anything if the Coogs lose when the clock reads 00:00.

Houston Chronicle Recap
Houston vs. UTEP Stats
El Paso Times Recap

Case Keenum Injury Watch
UH Mum on Keenum Status

Game Day Pictures
Houston Chronicle Pictures
Stephen Pinchback Game Day Photos
My Game Day Photos

Houston Cougars vs. UTEP - Game Day 2010

vs.
9:15 p.m.
Sept. 10, 2010
John O'quinn Field at Robertson Stadium

University of Houston

2009 Result
#12 Houston 41
UTEP 58

ESPN.com Recap

2010 Preview Houston vs. UTEP

Official Houston Cougar Game 2 Release

Houston Chronicle Steve Campbell's Cougar-Miner Preview

2009 Houston vs. UTEP Lowlights

Unkle Monkee vs. the NFL Spread Week 1

Here goes the first week. I don't think I was able to do weekly numbers last year. The times and years that I've tried I haven't been very good. So first of all, this is for my pleasure and not gambling purposed. If you decide to use my selections, God help you and reread the last sentence. If you go ahead, I bare no liability or responsibility for you mistakes.

My grounds for the game:

1. I use FoxSports.com's odds. Mainly because it was only odds I could get at work where I used to write this column. They've since blocked my access but I kept the tradition going.
2. Which brings up other rules. Since they list four books odds, I go with majority wins for my spread.
3. No choice is made if there is no line.
4. If for whatever reason all four books are different, I have to look for fifth source.

Without further ado, my selections with brief commentary for this week. Picks are in bold

Minnesota at New Orleans (-5). Three of the four have Saints (-5) and one has (-5.5). The opening line I saw early in the week was Saints (-4.5). At home to open the season and a rousing Super Bowl reception should have the players and fans amped. Saints

Miami (-3) at Buffalo. Bookies and bettors not showing the Dolphins much respect. I actually find the spread to low. I think the Dolphins win handily.

Indy (-2) at Houston. The spread ranges from -1.5 to -2.5 on this game. Two books had the -2 spread. I know this game intimately as I've spent many seasons on my season ticket seat angry after watching the Colts beat the Texans. I'd almost say it's a sucker bet with the Texans taking it to the wire last few meetings only to blow it. They could keep it close and upset the spread and still lose. Given recent history my logic wants me to say Colts but I'm going with Texans

Cincinnati at New England (-4). No enough love for a Bengals team that won the Black and Blue division. Bengals might lose but they beat the spread.

Atlanta (-2.5) at Pittsburgh - The Steelers offense is in disarray with Big Ben's suspension and Byron Leftwich's possibly missing with injury. Going to take the road favorite Falcons

Oakland at Tennessee (-6.5). That's about right with Chris Johnson having a field day. Titans

Detroit at Chicago (-6). I had a tie with my FoxSport odds with a two with -6 and two with -6.5 Bears. I used oddsmaker.com for the tiebreaker. Bears

Denver at Jacksonville (-2.5) - Ineptitude of Jack Del Rio vs. the clown Josh McDaniels. I'm going to side with Del Rio here. Jaguars

Carolina at NY Giants (-7). This is kind of a gut call. I think the Giants are a bit in disarray. Panther

Cleveland at Tampa Bay (-3) - More ineptitude on both sides of the ball. For some reason I like Eric Mangini's ineptitude slightly more. Browns

Green Bay (-3) at Philadelphia. I think Green Bay makes enough stops of Kevin Kolb's debut and it's a bigger margin. Packers

Arizona (-4) at St. Louis. Sounds about right. Cards are night and day with Kurt Warner gone. Cardinals

San Francisco (-3) at Seattle - I think -3 is a bit low. 49ers

Dallas (-3.5) at Washington. Not to sure about the Cowboys offense until they show something in the real season. Redskins

Baltimore at NY Jets (-3.5). This is going to be a very interesting game for the opener. Ravens pull off the upset.

San Diego (-4.5) at Kansas City. Bad news for KC's defense. Chargers

Apology

I'd like to offer up an apology to someone who asked to remain anonymous. I fully respect the reasons why he/she wanted anonymity.

I used some strong language in a post a while back. I didn't read the email in response to the post until recently. I totally understand why I was called out and replied to about the language I used.

I don't apologize for my editorial or opinion but I do apologize for the offending language. I didn't so much offend the person who replied to my post but I did reach an unintended audience and my response was very inappropriate when viewed through the eyes of that audience....that was never my intention.

In life there are people we view with unquestionable and unconditional admiration and love. So when someone speaks or writes in a bad way about that person, the admirer is upset and disturbed that someone could say such things. There are very few lines I won't cross. However given the email that was sent to me and the person that held this emailer in high esteem, I feel I did cross a line I never should have crossed. For that I'm truly sorry.

I wish I could do or say more but the person requested anonymity and I respect that but at the same time I hope this person accepts my sincerest apology. I think this episode makes me a better person by reminding that I write for an audience and sometimes that audience doesn't need to see my worst side.

The Touchy Feely All-Star Game

Major League Baseball probably has the worst criteria for selecting All-Stars.

First, let managers, players and bench coaches make the selections. Either take the vote away from the fans or weigh the fan voting to keep ballot stuffing to a minimum. Weigh the fan voting to 25-30%. Let the remainder go to people that watch baseball on a daily basis. It's a manager and coach's job to know the opponent. Let them have a bigger say in the All-Star line ups than the fans that vote for either a local favorite or a name will nothing else to go by. Taking the decision on reserves away from each All-Star manager also avoids appearance of favoritism by selecting a player on his team.

The worst rule, by far, stipulates that each team must have a player on the squad. The local Houston Astros serve as a prime example. It's a terrible club playing terrible ball from top to bottom. No one on the Astros deserves an All-Star spot. However due the little league rule, Michael Bourn will carry the banner. Without looking at stats, cause I really don't care right now, it's a safe bet that someone more deserving was left off. I want to see the best players and not a player from every team.

Finally, do away with the winning league hosts the World Series. The rule doesn't add any intrigue. Instead it robs the team with the best record from hosting if their All-Star team loses the game.

USA Comes Up Short in World Cup

First and foremost, Congrats to Team USA in the 2010 World Cup. They managed to win their group which was no small feat since it included England, Algeria and Slovenia. The USA drew against England and Slovenia and had to fight to get the draw against Slovenia. They had to beat Algeria to advance to the final 16. In dramatic fashion, the USA pulled it off in added time on a Landon Donovan goal.

In the knock out round, the USA gave up the quick goal again. Ghana scored very early in the game on an inexcusable turnover to dig an early goal deficit. A Ghana foul on Clint Dempsey in the penalty area earned penalty kick. Donovan converted the kick to tie up the game 1-1. It went into extra time, where Ghana scored on defensive melt down to make it 2-1. This time the United States made no comeback. They fell short and a magical Cup show ended.

And I'm all right with it. They overcame adversity and probably earned a ton of respect from world wide. The United States competes hard and is no fluke. The run up to the Confederation Cup saw them defeat top ranked Spain and had Brazil fighting from behind. No small accomplishments in this game. Powers Italy and France went home earlier than the US. Both nations were finalists in the last Cup.

What does the future hold? Probably continued success. The USA are no longer the backwater push overs they were in the 1980s and even in the hosted 1994 games. The US has now advance out of the group stage three times in last five cups. The program needs to keep building and not lay stinkers like they did in 1998 and 2006. They need to develop a solid defensive back third. To many mistakes on the defense lead to many early goals. They also need to continue to develop players like Donovan and Dempsey. Both will be four years older in the next Cup and are not guarantees to make the squad next time. The next generation needs be groomed and set up for qualifications, Gold Cup and whatever competitions the future hold.

In the end, thanks Team USA to a good run as well as igniting the passions of the country.

World Cup, Astros Moves

World Cup
The World Cup is winding down to the knock out rounds. I can't really say it's been the most exciting World Cup. In opening games, teams played tentative and appeared happy with a draw.

The second games provided a little more entertainment as teams started to think about points and goal differentials for advancement. Today is the first day of third games. FIFA mandates that the last games are played concurrently to avoid game day shenanigans.

South Africa earned the distinction of first host country not to advance. It's a shame to say the least. They acted as great hosts and there hasn't been much negative said about the venues. The worst thing that can be said is the sound of vuvuzelas making the stadia sound like beehives. I have no problem with it but some "traditionalists" have complained about it. Deal with it. If the fans didn't like it they wouldn't keep bringing them into games. It appears the foreign travelers to South Africa are enjoying making the noise as much as the natives.

The traditional European powers have played less than impressive. France ends the tournament in disarray. England hasn't managed to win in playing two lackluster games against the United States and Algeria. Spain lost a mild upset to Switzerland. Germany lost a stunner to Serbia after an opening 4-0 rout of Australia. Portugal managed a 0-0 tie versus Ivory Coast but embarrassed North Korea 7-0. France goes home with no wins and one scored goal. England is on the bubble to advance. Right now the name of the game is just to get the next round and start anew.

Team USA faces Algeria and with a win USA goes through. Conceding early goes has been USA's flaw. Algeria pressed impressively against England. USA needs to assert themselves early and not play from behind. The defense must play strong in the back third. Landon Donovan needs to impose his will on the game. They cannot come out flat and worry about getting help. They just need to go in and handle business.

Astros Call Ups
The Astros made five roster moves calling up three players and designating two players for assignment.

Astros 2008 top pick Jason Castro, 3rd baseman Chris Johnson and outfielder Jason Bourgeois join the Big Show from AAA Round Rock. Catcher Kevin Cash and outfielder Corey Sullivan received the designation for assignment tag.

Ed Wade probably convinced owner Drayton McLane that the season is in the tank. McLane is a stubborn blind old man. I think the scores of empty seats helped convince McLane to approve the moves. McLane always believes the Astros are one or two players away from contention. I believe he also thinks fans love the team so much they will show up on game day no matter what. Fortunately Astros fans are smarter than Cubs fans. Cubs fans show up no matter what and for years gave ownership no incentive to improve the team. Astros fans won't show up to watch a lousy team. McLane build up a lot of goodwill over the years with winning teams. His mismanagement of the team has driven it into the ground. Fans finally see McLane for the snake oil salesman that he is.

If McLane has finally given Wade full run of the team then that is a major step in the right direction. The call ups aren't meant to salvage a season but to give the players major league experience in a lost season. Castro needs the experience calling games from behind the plate and the sooner the better. Pedro Feliz has been a disaster at 3rd. Johnson is expected to split time with Feliz. I think if Johnson outplays Feliz, not a difficult task, then Feliz will be given his outright release.

Of the call ups, I think Bourgeois is the most interesting and might be a signal to a future move. Or not. With an outfield of Carlos Lee, Michael Bourn and Hunter Pence, Bourgeois will languish on the bench. I think the Astros will look to move Lee's bat in return for a prospect or two and try to get as much of his salary off payroll. They probably won't be able to trade Lee without agreeing to absorb part of his salary. Pitcher Roy Oswalt and first basemen Lance Berkman may also end up in other uniforms before the trade deadline.