Blast From the Past

If you've ever looked over my shoulder while I was piddling on my laptop or work computer (There is cultural discrepancy regarding this word, as midwestern folks will tell you that 'to piddle' means to urinate, while my father, a born and bred Floridian, uses the word 'piddle' when describing a period of time in which one dawdles. Don't worry, I didn't urinate on my computers, as I use the word piddle in the same way as my father, and if you have the time, please read Richard Tionary's thoughts on the word 'piddle,' by clicking here), you've probably noticed that I save nearly all of my documents and pictures to the desktop. A la Michelle Brock in Tommy Boy, I don't put things into files on my computer because I have to open them.

If you're thinking that this must make my desktop an extreme cluster, then you'd be right. That being said, I've been trying lately to organize documents into files, because it has become quite overwhelming.

Occasionally though, I forget which file I save certain things, as was the case a few days ago as I was frantically searching for where the heck I saved my latest paper for class, which, turns out, I had in fact saved to the desktop. But, I was rewarded, because as I was searching, I stumbled across an artifact of priceless value...

I used to frequent an Oklahoma State athletics message board (back when OSU sports were my only passion in life - man, those were the days). Anywho, this particular message board, in addition to being a message board, also had articles about the current affairs of Okie St athletics which were written by random followers of the message board. I always thought the articles were pretty shoddy, and though I didn't have any journalism experience, I felt I could do a better job. Opportunity knocked one spring afternoon when the message board put out a plea for a new writer because the guy that had been writing for the message board died in a freak bowel laceration accident (okay, I'm just kidding, the dude didn't die, nor did he have a bowel laceration incident. Basically, the only true part of that last sentence was that a new writer was needed for the message board), so I answered. (Oh, and by the way, this dude actually did have a laceration of the bowel incident, but he didn't die - physically anyways; I'm certain his pride couldn't be living after a situation like that...). I decided to write an article breaking down the Cowboy Basketball Team, because it was the week leading up to the Big XII Tournament.

Anyway, because it's been a busy last couple weeks, and I haven't had the time necessary to dedicate to my next post (spoiler alert! Will my mighty mustache be making a marvelous return?!), we at 'a blog' thought that our loyal readers would enjoy checking out my first published work. (sure, it was merely published on a crappy, now-defunct OSU message board - and my buddy, Caleb, is probably the only person that will enjoy this - but it's something, so enjoy!)

Published to www.o-state.com on March 5, 2007

Yikes.

By: Chris Aderhold

This Cowboy basketball season may be the most painful era of my OSU fandom.

A fellow OSU Grad buddy of mine is getting married on Saturday, March 31 at 7:00pm. Yes, that just happens to be smack dab in the middle of the Final Four. The Groom informed me of the date of the wedding while OSU was sitting at 15-1 and ranked 9^th in the country. I distinctly remember talking to a few of my friends just those two short months ago, and we were sincerely concerned that we would have to skip his wedding for the road trip to Atlanta - host of this year's Final Four. He even asked me to be in his wedding. I told him I would be, but I reminded him that I have been a fan of OSU basketball much longer than I have been friends with him.

Crazy how much can change in two months.

I even had the arrogance to tell some friends of mine in Wisconsin that OSU was going to win the National Championship this year. I thought I knew the secret why OSU would win it all:

“Well”, I explained, “OSU must be the only team in the country that has two players motivated by the fact that they should have won the National Championship with another team.”

JamesOn Curry should have been a University of North Carolina freshman two years ago when the Tar Heels won the National Championship. And the Florida Gators won the Championship last year, which is the team Mario Boggan was a part of his freshman year.

I wonder if Curry and Boggan ever talk about those missed opportunities.

In any event, here we sit, two short months later. OSU is heading into the Big XII Tournament with a 6-10 Conference mark. There is no magic formula to get the Pokes to the NCAA Tournament. They have to go 4-0 in the next 4 games. At least it isn't difficult for the casual fan to follow. Win 4 and the Pokes are in. I know many fans that aren't even giving the Pokes a chance anymore. Heck, I consider myself to be pretty dang optimistic, and even I am wavering. Being down by 29 to Nebraska on Monday night will do that to ya.

Before you totally give up hope though, sit back and imagine for a second OSU being the first team in the history of the Conference to win 4 games in route to the Championship. That would be something, huh? And since OSU will be the first team to do the 4-0 sweep, the 4-0 sweep would have to be named after the Pokes. That’s just the rule with sports. If you do something that has never been done, you get your name on it (i.e. The Tiger Slam; The Shawn Kemp; Lou Gehrig's Disease, etc., etc.). I submit that the Cowboys 4-0 sweep be called the “Poke Sweep”. I am definitely open for suggestions though.

I know what you are thinking. You are thinking; “how the heck are Sean and the ‘boys going to win 4 in 4 days, when they have not even won 4 in the past 4 weeks?”

Well friends, I have everything figured out. So sit back, and enjoy. And if any of you Cowboy fans are friends with Coach Sutton, make sure he gets a copy of this before Thursday.

So without further adieu, here is a breakdown of the Cowboys, and what it is going to take from each player for OSU to have a chance at the Poke Sweep.

Kenny Cooper – So much potential it makes me want to do a little dance. The guy played really well against Baylor, and that little jump hook he did a few times took my breath away. I’m excited to have him around a couple more years. I pick him as the smartest player on the team. Why? One situation comes to mind: When OSU was playing A&M in College Station in January, OSU got dominated for 40 minutes, but there was one silver lining. With several minutes left, and the Pokes losing by 20 points or so, Cooper fouled out. His foul put an A&M player on the foul line. As Cooper was walking to the bench the crowd was chanting along with his every step:

“LEFT! RIGHT! LEFT! RIGHT!”

All the way to the bench they chanted. Then, how it is supposed to work, is the fouled-out player takes a seat and the whole crowd cheers. Well my friends, Cooper was not born yesterday, and he knew exactly what was coming. He waited until the guy at the line started shooting the free throw before he sat down. So he sits down and the crowd goes wild and the foul shooter probably wet himself, because come on, who is prepared to shoot a free throw at home with a raucous crowd? The guy missed the free throw and I believe my quote was, “Brilliant Kenny, Brilliant!”

Byron Eaton – Some friends of mine have a beautiful black and tan Coon Hound. Maggie is her name. Sometimes, we will make her sit and stay, and then we will get one of her dog treats and set it on the floor across the room from her. She is so excited for that treat that saliva will literally drip from the corners of her mouth. My question is this: How is Jai Lucas not sitting at home watching the OSU point guard situation with saliva running down his neck? Eaton has definitely played better and more consistently this season compared to last, but with no depth at point guard, I will be quite perplexed if Lucas actually ends up going elsewhere. As for the Big XII tourney, Eaton needs to continue to drive and do that sweet little pull-up jumper he’s been doing pretty well lately. Also, a little better defense would go a long, long way.

Mario Boggan – Is it just me, or does it seem like anytime something goes wrong for the Pokes, Mario can be seen griping at his teammates. No wonder the Pokes have seemed down lately. Attitude Reflects Leadership. Like it or not, Boggan is a leader. This is his last chance for a little glory. I thought after sitting out against Baylor, Boggan would explode against Nebraska on Monday night. We can only hope he is saving everything for this weekend. 20 and 10 per game is not too much to ask.

JamesOn Curry – Any chance this guy can score 40 a couple more times? It’s wonderful to finally see Curry with so much confidence. Drive it a little more from time to time, and I think Curry would be considered hands down the second best guard in the conference, behind Acie Law IV of course.

Terrell Harris – Who doesn’t love this guy (when he’s consistent)? Harris is another guy that I am pumped about being around for two more years. My friend Caleb has the secret recipe for this guy: He needs to make a few easy jumpers or lay-ups early on in games, and his confidence will soar. And trust me, Caleb knows a thing or two about confidence. He was once chosen to do the “Halftime Trifecta Contest” done at every OSU home game. You know the one I am talking about? The fan has to make a lay-up, a free throw, and a 3-pointer in 24 seconds. Well, Caleb made that first lay-up in one try, and because of the confidence gained from that lay-up; it resulted in a clean sweep of the Trifecta and a prize in the form of a $100 gift card to McDonalds. He took us to McDonalds after the game to treat us to some food and he told us we could each spend $3. When he wasn’t looking I ordered $8 worth of food. Oh man, how I miss college.

David Monds – I never thought I would say this, but Monds makes me miss Jason Miller.

Tyler Hatch – My vote for Big XII Newcomer of the Year. Okay, not really, but I’m extremely thankful for this guy. His hair is even growing on me, and the fact that he’s knocked down a few treys in the past few games puts a smile on my face.

Obi Muonelo – I spent literally 45 minutes trying to think of an original and witty Star Wars reference for Mr. Muonelo. I came up with nothing, which is probably for the best. However, I think Obi proved against Nebraska that he will be good to go for the Big XII Tourney. It is pretty nice having another scoring threat running the floor.

Any output that exceeds the nightly Tyler Hatch numbers is a huge contribution in my eyes. Anything more than that will be gravy. Remember, do or do not, there is no try.

Marcus Dove – Which nonexistent offensive player would you rather have: Dove; at the level defensively he was at last year against Adam Morrison (because let’s face it, we haven’t seen that “Melvin Sanders Defensive Specialist – Dove” in a while), but is lost on offense; OR Doug Gottlieb, who was the greatest assists man in OSU history, but couldn’t hit Earth if he fell out of a plane? My vote goes to Gottlieb, but since we have Dove, I guess I would be content watching him have one more crack at Acie Law IV in the quarterfinals. Do a good enough job on Law IV, and they may even relegate Law to the V. Plus the “IV” on his jersey looks like an “N” anyways, and I always get confused watching A&M play... Who’s this LAWN guy?

So, there it is. Seems easy enough, eh? One week from today, will Cowboy fans worldwide be celebrating the first ever 4-0 sweep of the Big XII tournament, or will we be looking ahead to baseball and spring football? I'm not going to hold my breath, but crazier things have happened:

The Red Sox did the impossible, by winning 4 in a row against the Yankees a couple years ago en route to the American League Championship.

Sylvester Stallone made another Rocky movie.

France sold the United States 530,000 acres at roughly 3 cents per.

And Boise State beat the University of Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl with the statue of liberty play. THE FREAKIN' STATUE OF LIBERTY PLAY! I am still in amazement.

Oh yes my friends, crazier things have happened indeed.

GO POKES!

___________________

Whew! Who knew I was so long winded? You're probably wondering, "Well, did they pull off the Poke Sweep?"

That's a negative. The Pokes battled valiantly, but fell 69-64 to a solid Texas team - led by tournament MVP, Kevin Durant (How good was KD? He was given the MVP award even though Texas lost in the Championship game to Kansas) - in the semi-finals. A few buddies and I were able to finagle tickets to every Oklahoma State game, as the tourney was being played in Oklahoma City, and man oh man, was that a blast! They did beat Texas A&M in the quarterfinals, which was awesome, and as I had hoped, Marcus Dove was able to shut down "LAWN," which played a huge role in the outcome.

Well friends, as you know, we at 'a blog' don't dabble in sports often, so we hope that you enjoyed this journey down Athletics Memory Ln.

Thanks for tuning in.

-Peace be da journey.