I have joined forces with my good buddy AJ. Read the blog that is updated almost everyday:
http://benandaaron.blogspot.com
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Monday, February 23, 2009
The State of Sooner basketball
Blake Griffin was knocked out for the count. Texas jumped on the Sooners in the second half and ran off to a 12 point lead. Everybody thought the game was over. In Austin, rivalry, OU had no energy. But then... OU had new life. Willie Warren stepped up and became a monster, scoring 27. OU's role players became the corner stones to the comeback. The score was soon tied and remained that way until there were 4 minutes left in the game.
The Sooners ended up loosing the game after A.J. Abrams went off for 16 straight points... but the Sooners never gave up. They really showed some guts after losing the best player in the country. We learned something Saturday night. OU is a legitimate title contender. Yes they are a great team with BG23, but they can hold their own without him. That is what a championship team should be.
We will learn more tonight at Big Monday, when the number 3 ranked Sooners face Kansas at the Lloyd Noble Center. Can the Sooners remain strong without the big man? Can freshman Willie Warren step up and be the leader this team needs? The regular season big 12 title is on the line.
Stay tuned.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
The Best Sports Movie Scenes
I'm reposting this with VIDEO.
I love sports. I love movies. So naturally, I thoroughly enjoy sports movies. For a long time I have thought to myself: “What are the best scenes in my favorite sports movies?” This is like trying to pick a bad golf shot in one of my rounds…. practically impossible because there are soooo many. So I came up with a few short stipulations:
1) It must be from a movie that I liked, therefore a movie I’ve seen.
2) It must bring out an emotion in me, whether it makes me laugh out loud, get chills, or tear up.
And that’s it. A note before the list, I hate Sylvester Stallone, therefore Rocky movies will not appear on my list. So with that, I present my top 10 favorite sports movie scenes.
10. “Feel the rhythm! Feel the rhyme! Get on up, its bobsled time! COOL RUNNINGS!”
Just cracking the list at number 10 is the feel good movie out of Jamaica. If you need a smile on your face then this is the movie to do it. The scene that does it for me, which you will see is a recurring theme in this list, is the final scene. When the bobsled turns over and you fear the worst, the Jamaicans lift you up with their courageous trip to the finish line. Bringing me a smile and chills, lands Cool Runnings on the list.
9. “He's on his final hole. He's about 455 yards away, he's gonna hit about a 2 iron I think.”
Caddyshack. Enough said. Performances by all were fantastic. For me though, Bill Murray makes the movie. I could have picked any of his scenes or quotes, but the Cinderella story scene just makes me cry from laughing so hard.
8. “On this team we fight for that inch”
Al Pacino’s Any Given Sunday speech sends chills down my spine every time. Whether I am listening to the background music on my ipod or the speech in my car before I go play intramural football, it doesn’t matter. It is just so badass. I love it. The last football game is great too, but the speech makes it. Some people think it’s a cheesy speech, I think its gold.
7. “Sweep the leg”
As a scrawny un-athletic Jewish kid growing up, underdog stories always hit home. Karate Kid is the definition of an underdog story. Good vs. Evil, good wins… chills maybe even tears. Welcome to the list Mr. Miyagi.
6. “It's no joke, pal. People die in fairy tales all the time.”
The words of Max Baer, defending champion, and talking to his challenger, Jim Braddock in Cinderella Man. Another underdog story that is just a truly awesome fight scene, that is long, bloody, and emotional. If you haven’t seen this movie, see it just for the fight scenes. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great movie, but the fights are really really good.
5. “Nice par, David.”
I love playing golf, I’m not any good, but I love it. Tin Cup is a real fun movie. The reason I love the final scene on the 18th hole of the U.S. Open is because its so painful to watch. Even though you know what is coming while watching the scene for the 30th time, its still so hard to watch. Yet in the end, it is so gratifying. From looking away from the screen to getting chills as Kevin Costner raises his fist into the air, its just a near perfect ending to a great movie.
4. “Who's the wild man now?!”
Rudy. One word is all you need to tell many sports enthusiasts. The final scene is awesome and supported well by the amazing score. You know, the music that you could run a Forrest Gump marathon too. Nothing more really needs to be said about this scene.
3. “You make sure they remember, *forever*, the night they played the Titans!”
Remember the Titans is one of my favorite movies. Ya it has the whole race thing, which really makes the plot gel into a good movie. But the football scenes are really good. My favorite is the scene in which the game is being thrown by the refs. Coach Yoast goes and talks to the head ref and then calls a timeout. The shortest greatest pep talk/speech ever. Better than Rudy, better than Any Given Sunday, better than the Hoosiers speech, it’s concise and AWESOME. Chills, chills, chills, and a big smile on your face and is followed by a superb slow motion football sequence. This could have made the top of my list. I only held it back because its recent and maybe hasn’t had the time to really soak in and hit home like the last two.
2. “I'll make it.”
Jimmy Chitwood didn’t have very many lines in 1986’s Hoosiers, but the movie would not be great without him. The town hall meeting scene is classic, but the final timeout in the championship game and the last shot… nothing but chills. The only question is how coach Norman Dale could possibly want to use Jimmy as a decoy when he was shooting 13 of 17 (estimation) with 28 of Hickory’s 40 points? But that’s what made the scene so great. The rest of team is thinking the exact same thing, and Gene Hackman is befuddled, until he looks up at Jimmy and he says those three words. Incredible. Some movies keep you on the edge of your seat, so you wonder whether or not the team is going to win. With Hoosiers, there is no doubt. Jimmy Chitwood is going to make it, you want him to make it, and you get chills anyway. Yet, it still didn’t make numero uno.
1. “There goes Roy Hobbs, the best there ever was in this game.”
Roy Hobbs’ last at bat in The Natural is maybe one of the most famous sports scenes in cinema history, and it deserves to be. The breaking of his favorite bat. The blood soaking through his jersey. The catcher noticing the blood and signaling for an inside pitch. Then the towering shot. The music. It’s a perfect scene. I’m not a big baseball guy, but it deserves to be at the top.
Just missed the cut:
Field of Dreams: Playing ball with dad
Jerry Maguire: Concussion scene
The Sandlot: All of the scenes when they are trying to get the ball back
Happy Gilmore: Bob Barker fight scene
Hope you enjoyed the list, its just a matter of opinion so feel free to chime in with your comments.
Stay Classy,
Ben
I love sports. I love movies. So naturally, I thoroughly enjoy sports movies. For a long time I have thought to myself: “What are the best scenes in my favorite sports movies?” This is like trying to pick a bad golf shot in one of my rounds…. practically impossible because there are soooo many. So I came up with a few short stipulations:
1) It must be from a movie that I liked, therefore a movie I’ve seen.
2) It must bring out an emotion in me, whether it makes me laugh out loud, get chills, or tear up.
And that’s it. A note before the list, I hate Sylvester Stallone, therefore Rocky movies will not appear on my list. So with that, I present my top 10 favorite sports movie scenes.
10. “Feel the rhythm! Feel the rhyme! Get on up, its bobsled time! COOL RUNNINGS!”
Just cracking the list at number 10 is the feel good movie out of Jamaica. If you need a smile on your face then this is the movie to do it. The scene that does it for me, which you will see is a recurring theme in this list, is the final scene. When the bobsled turns over and you fear the worst, the Jamaicans lift you up with their courageous trip to the finish line. Bringing me a smile and chills, lands Cool Runnings on the list.
9. “He's on his final hole. He's about 455 yards away, he's gonna hit about a 2 iron I think.”
Caddyshack. Enough said. Performances by all were fantastic. For me though, Bill Murray makes the movie. I could have picked any of his scenes or quotes, but the Cinderella story scene just makes me cry from laughing so hard.
8. “On this team we fight for that inch”
Al Pacino’s Any Given Sunday speech sends chills down my spine every time. Whether I am listening to the background music on my ipod or the speech in my car before I go play intramural football, it doesn’t matter. It is just so badass. I love it. The last football game is great too, but the speech makes it. Some people think it’s a cheesy speech, I think its gold.
7. “Sweep the leg”
As a scrawny un-athletic Jewish kid growing up, underdog stories always hit home. Karate Kid is the definition of an underdog story. Good vs. Evil, good wins… chills maybe even tears. Welcome to the list Mr. Miyagi.
6. “It's no joke, pal. People die in fairy tales all the time.”
The words of Max Baer, defending champion, and talking to his challenger, Jim Braddock in Cinderella Man. Another underdog story that is just a truly awesome fight scene, that is long, bloody, and emotional. If you haven’t seen this movie, see it just for the fight scenes. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great movie, but the fights are really really good.
5. “Nice par, David.”
I love playing golf, I’m not any good, but I love it. Tin Cup is a real fun movie. The reason I love the final scene on the 18th hole of the U.S. Open is because its so painful to watch. Even though you know what is coming while watching the scene for the 30th time, its still so hard to watch. Yet in the end, it is so gratifying. From looking away from the screen to getting chills as Kevin Costner raises his fist into the air, its just a near perfect ending to a great movie.
4. “Who's the wild man now?!”
Rudy. One word is all you need to tell many sports enthusiasts. The final scene is awesome and supported well by the amazing score. You know, the music that you could run a Forrest Gump marathon too. Nothing more really needs to be said about this scene.
3. “You make sure they remember, *forever*, the night they played the Titans!”
Remember the Titans is one of my favorite movies. Ya it has the whole race thing, which really makes the plot gel into a good movie. But the football scenes are really good. My favorite is the scene in which the game is being thrown by the refs. Coach Yoast goes and talks to the head ref and then calls a timeout. The shortest greatest pep talk/speech ever. Better than Rudy, better than Any Given Sunday, better than the Hoosiers speech, it’s concise and AWESOME. Chills, chills, chills, and a big smile on your face and is followed by a superb slow motion football sequence. This could have made the top of my list. I only held it back because its recent and maybe hasn’t had the time to really soak in and hit home like the last two.
2. “I'll make it.”
Jimmy Chitwood didn’t have very many lines in 1986’s Hoosiers, but the movie would not be great without him. The town hall meeting scene is classic, but the final timeout in the championship game and the last shot… nothing but chills. The only question is how coach Norman Dale could possibly want to use Jimmy as a decoy when he was shooting 13 of 17 (estimation) with 28 of Hickory’s 40 points? But that’s what made the scene so great. The rest of team is thinking the exact same thing, and Gene Hackman is befuddled, until he looks up at Jimmy and he says those three words. Incredible. Some movies keep you on the edge of your seat, so you wonder whether or not the team is going to win. With Hoosiers, there is no doubt. Jimmy Chitwood is going to make it, you want him to make it, and you get chills anyway. Yet, it still didn’t make numero uno.
1. “There goes Roy Hobbs, the best there ever was in this game.”
Roy Hobbs’ last at bat in The Natural is maybe one of the most famous sports scenes in cinema history, and it deserves to be. The breaking of his favorite bat. The blood soaking through his jersey. The catcher noticing the blood and signaling for an inside pitch. Then the towering shot. The music. It’s a perfect scene. I’m not a big baseball guy, but it deserves to be at the top.
Just missed the cut:
Field of Dreams: Playing ball with dad
Jerry Maguire: Concussion scene
The Sandlot: All of the scenes when they are trying to get the ball back
Happy Gilmore: Bob Barker fight scene
Hope you enjoyed the list, its just a matter of opinion so feel free to chime in with your comments.
Stay Classy,
Ben
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Big game after Big game
Oklahoma sports are now rolling. I attended the preseason NIT in Norman to watch OU basketball and Davidson's Stephen Curry. 
First off, Curry is ridiculous. Quick release, impossible to guard, quick feet. Needs to work on his defense, but as far as pure scorer, he is the best in college basketball, and perhaps the best in years. Our own All-American, Blake Griffin, is maybe the most athletic player in the country. He can leap out of the gym and has extended his range. His defense is fantastic. Willie Warren has potential to be all Big-12. He is that good. Had 20 points in about 15 minutes against an elite 8 team from last year (Davidson). This team, this OU team, has a chance to be great. If they can gel, they can be an elite 8 team if not a final four team. They are that good, and its only November.
Now, onto the big game still to come. Just picture Marv Albert hyping this game: "OKLAHOMA. TEXAS TECH. BRADFORD vs. HARRELL. ITS SATURDAY NIGHT COLLEGE FOOTBALL ON ABC!!!!"
This is the definition of BCS implication game. If Tech wins, they clinch the South and likely a birth in the National Championship game. If OU wins, they must still beat OSU, but likely gains a berth to the Big 12 championship and likely the National Championship. Texas is on the outside looking in. They need OU to win their last two games, and by some miracle, still hold their lead in the BCS rankings.
The game is in Norman, 59-2. Thats the record of Stoops teams in Norman. OU has the better defense. I know Tech has a better defense that year's previous, but OU's defense is still better. OU has a better running game and the passing attacks are relatively equal. Give Tech special teams and your breakdown would give you an OU edge in position battles at least at a 2-1 ratio. OU at home and the better team. If they play well, they win the game.
Radio show at 4:30 Saturday afternoon.
Stay classy,
Ben
First off, Curry is ridiculous. Quick release, impossible to guard, quick feet. Needs to work on his defense, but as far as pure scorer, he is the best in college basketball, and perhaps the best in years. Our own All-American, Blake Griffin, is maybe the most athletic player in the country. He can leap out of the gym and has extended his range. His defense is fantastic. Willie Warren has potential to be all Big-12. He is that good. Had 20 points in about 15 minutes against an elite 8 team from last year (Davidson). This team, this OU team, has a chance to be great. If they can gel, they can be an elite 8 team if not a final four team. They are that good, and its only November.Now, onto the big game still to come. Just picture Marv Albert hyping this game: "OKLAHOMA. TEXAS TECH. BRADFORD vs. HARRELL. ITS SATURDAY NIGHT COLLEGE FOOTBALL ON ABC!!!!"
This is the definition of BCS implication game. If Tech wins, they clinch the South and likely a birth in the National Championship game. If OU wins, they must still beat OSU, but likely gains a berth to the Big 12 championship and likely the National Championship. Texas is on the outside looking in. They need OU to win their last two games, and by some miracle, still hold their lead in the BCS rankings.
The game is in Norman, 59-2. Thats the record of Stoops teams in Norman. OU has the better defense. I know Tech has a better defense that year's previous, but OU's defense is still better. OU has a better running game and the passing attacks are relatively equal. Give Tech special teams and your breakdown would give you an OU edge in position battles at least at a 2-1 ratio. OU at home and the better team. If they play well, they win the game.
Radio show at 4:30 Saturday afternoon.
Stay classy,
Ben
Saturday, November 8, 2008
BCS
With the Sooners wiggling their way back into the BCS picture... I thought I would come out and predict the standings that will come out tomorrow.
How I would rank the teams based on who is playing best right now:
1. Tech
2. Florida
3. Texas
4. Oklahoma
5. Bama
6. Utah
7. USC
8. Penn State
9. Boise State
10. Ohio State
How the BCS will look:
1. Bama
2. Tech
3. Florida
4. Texas
5. Oklahoma
6. USC
7. Utah
8. Boise State
9. Penn State
10. Ohio State
Oklahoma needs to pass Texas in the computers and keep their hold on the polls. If they win out, they should be headed to Kansas City.
How I would rank the teams based on who is playing best right now:
1. Tech
2. Florida
3. Texas
4. Oklahoma
5. Bama
6. Utah
7. USC
8. Penn State
9. Boise State
10. Ohio State
How the BCS will look:
1. Bama
2. Tech
3. Florida
4. Texas
5. Oklahoma
6. USC
7. Utah
8. Boise State
9. Penn State
10. Ohio State
Oklahoma needs to pass Texas in the computers and keep their hold on the polls. If they win out, they should be headed to Kansas City.
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