Heading into the final days of 2009, it looked like my Texas Longhorns were going to assert themselves as the greatest program in all of college sports. The football team was 13-0 and just over two weeks away from playing Alabama in the national championship game. Coming off of big wins over North Carolina and Michigan State, the basketball team was also 13-0 and looked poised to have the best season in school history. The women’s volleyball team was set to take on Penn State for the national championship. The swimming and diving team was ranked number one in the country. Even the baseball team was ranked number one in the preseason rankings. Five teams ranked in the top 3 nationally…talk about your powerhouse.
This utopia all came crashing down on one gloomy night--December 19. Watching the longhorn volleyball game, it looked like it was time to light the tower up with a number one (what the university does when any Texas team wins a national championship) after the team won the first two sets and only needed to win one of the following three to take home a championship. But then star Destiny Hooker (one of the classier names you will ever hear) and the lady horns choked hard, losing the next three sets and the national championship. I thought to myself, its volleyball it is not a big deal, right? Wrong, it was the beginning of a very rough time for Texas sports. About two weeks after the volleyball’s team collapse, the college football national championship was upon us. Much like the end of 2009 for Texas athletics, the start of the national championship game was promising as our defense held Bama to a three and out and our offensive took over on their side of the field. But then it all came tumbling down when star Colt McCoy went down, along with our hopes of winning the national championship. (Don’t get me started on that game because if Colt is healthy Texas wins easily, no doubt in my mind). It is true, everything is bigger in Texas and so were my tears that night. After another disappointing loss, it was time to turn our attention to the basketball team; they still looked prepared to make a national title run. A few days after the football game, the basketball team earned its first number one ranking in school history, but you guessed it, they fell apart. Sorry, falling apart is a gross understatement, but then again there aren’t even words to describe what the Horns did. After starting out 17-0, the team finished the season losing 9 of their final 16 games and got booted out of the top 25. Yes, it’s true, the Longhorns went from number 1 to unranked in a little over a month, a feat that’s almost impressive. Of course it would only be fitting if the Longhorns lost in the first round of the tournament, which of course they managed to do. Playing a weak Wake Forest team, the Longhorns still managed to lose, even despite the fact they were up 8 points with 2 minutes left in overtime. One final hope to salvage our dignity remains: the baseball team. Starting off the season by losing the opening series to a far inferior New Mexico team is not a great way to start a championship run. In a nutshell, 2010 has been beyond horrible for the Texas Longhorns.
Fortunately for Longhorn fans everywhere, I think our luck is beginning to change. The swimming and diving team won the national championship, which I understand isn’t a huge deal, but at this point we need the small victories. Also, after a slow start, the baseball team is starting to kick it into gear and is ranked number 6 nationally with a 21-7 record. And then two nights ago, something amazing happened: Christian Westerman committed to Texas. Many believe that the 2011 offensive lineman is the best player in the nation and will be the best lineman ever to come through Texas. Westerman is the 19th addition to an already stellar 2011 recruiting class that is almost full a whole 10 months before national signing day. With Garret Gilbert at the helm of our football team and the help of our incoming recruiting classes, the future is very bright in Austin, Texas. Let’s all hope that we see this in the near future:
-The Southern Gentleman
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