I have a deadline rapidly approaching to finish a chapter in a book about the football program at the University of Texas. The book is edited by PB @ BON, the author of Burnt Orange Nation, the network's UT blog. I am not a diehard partisan of the football program, but PB was nice enough to ask me to write a historical chapter in last year's and this year's edition. My chapter is about Rooster Andrews, a former walk-on kicker on the football squad and two-year lettermen on the baseball team. He's one of those guys with a larger-than-life personality that knew everybody. He was actually roomates with Bobby Layne at UT, hence my procurement of that photo the other day (Rooster is the laughably short guy below Layne; he stood about 4'11").
Anyway, I need to focus on that for awhile here so I thought it might be fun to share who some of our other favorite athletes are, past and/or present. I'll start and remember, it's more fun for all of us if you participate:
MLB: Chris Sabo, Greg Maddox.
Laugh all you want about Sabo, I'm used to it. But did you know he had 40+ 2bs and 40+ SBs as a rookie in 1988, when he won Rookie of the Year? Or that he hit .563 with 2 HRs, 5 RBIs and an OPS (On Base % + Slugging %) of 1.600+ in the 1991 World Series sweep of the Oakland A's. Didn't think so. You couldn't get passed the Rec Specs could you?
NBA: Chris Paul, Larry Bird
Love Larry Legend. What a baller. As for Paul? Great kid, great competitor. I think the Hornets will win the West, and I've thought so for quite some time. Others: Goran Ivaniesevic (Tennis); Ulf Samuelson, Kevin Stevens, Theo Fleury (Hockey); Drew Brees, Vince Young, Marshawn Lynch, Carl Pickens, Brian Dawkings (NFL). Your turn.