Hey Guys...

[Lukus Alderman]

Hey guys...First of all, this is not an April Fools joke.  I know it’s been over 2 years since I’ve been on here.  It’s been a long time.  But I have missed you all and wanted to drop by and say hello and just run down my thoughts on Texas.  

 

For those of you who know and remember me, maybe you’re wondering where I’ve been and why I haven’t posted a word or logged on in 2+ years.  Some of you may not care, and that’s fine too.  Simply put, I needed to get things together in my life, put priorities in order and become the man I should be.  I love my family more than anything and I put everything aside for them.  I am a better man for it and I would do it again without even thinking about it.  Some people, maybe most, may think and believe it’s going overboard, but you weren’t walking in my shoes and every situation is different.

 

I admit I did miss you guys and hornsports.  My brother was there for me.  Guys on here like joeywa, Armadillo Slim, and UTDave have been vary gracious and big time helps not just in the past couple of years, but since the time we first met.  You guys don’t know how fortunate you are to have people like joeywa as members.  There seriously aren’t many people better.  But I’m glad to hear that Aaron and Co. have continued progress here, especially in the tough times that the last few years have brought in the academic department at UT.  I mean...what is this 1997 again or what???

 

Starting with football, nobody in America, aside from Red McCombs (kidding, just a little), would have predicted three straight years of 7 losses with Charlie Strong at the helm.  I know I don’t need to beat the bush on that one as I’m sure it’s a tired conversation, but man was our football program bad under that staff!  Even though there were some in the mainstream sports media who didn’t agree with letting go of Strong after 3 years, you can’t lose to Kansas and finish with no winning seasons.  You just can’t do it.  

 

So now we get to move on to coach Herman.  I do remember Thanksgiving night when all of America was reporting that Herman to LSU was done.  I was very frustrated.  Even though nobody can say this guy is absolutely going to take us to Championship level, I believed he was the right guy at the right time.  I didn’t know much about him, but I did know that he’s had experience at Texas and Ohio State at Championship levels and knows what is demanded of him as the overseer of the University of Texas football program.

 

One thing I will give credit to Charlie Strong for is leaving behind a roster that has some good pieces. Although the recruiting was awful in Strong’s last year, he leaves behind some guys that could be elite if developed well by Herman.  Yes, there are plenty of question marks in major positions such as quarterback (what else is new?) and TE (again, what else is new?).  But if Herman can maximize the talent that he has available, I think we’ll be ok.

 

Basketball….what in the world did we witness this year?  I’ve heard many people chalk up the poor record of this year to the fact that we just didn’t have a point guard, but does a lack of a point guard really hurt a team so much that it puts you at 11-21 or whatever we were?  I mean, this team had Allen and Jones.  We weren’t without talent.  The games I actually got to see, though, we looked like a group of guys playing street ball for most of the time.  Almost like there were no set plays.  Listen, I know that Shaka Smart can coach him some basketball, but…  I just….  Man, I don’t know.  Let’s hope Matt Coleman is the answer and things turn around.  I still believe Shaka can do it.

 

Finally, my favorite...Baseball!  It was rough losing Augie.  Maybe it was his time to go and I’m really glad that when he did it seemed to be on good terms.  But now we’ve got a new coach who seems to be trying to implement a new identity.  I will admit that I haven’t watched one game yet...still no access to the Longhorn network here in TN.  But I have listened to about 80% of the games and kept up with box scores, etc.  To me, this team is a good team with a good coach that has a chance to improve greatly as the season progresses.

 

It seems to me that we are seeing some growing pains here and there with a new offensive strategy.  I still enjoy the pitching, especially the starting pitchers, and it is fun to watch how our bullpen is slowly being pieced together.  I hate it that the Kyle Johnston project didn’t work out, but I think he will eventually find himself in a place where he can be successful (maybe back as a starter).  The starting pitching is still as strong as ever.  Love seeing so many options.

 

By the way, did we get robbed or did we get robbed today?  Sounded to me, at least from Craig Way’s point of view, the catcher never put the tag down.  Oh well...some calls go our way and some don’t...today it seemed like we didn’t get much going our way.  But it is nice to see coach Pierce being so fiery as well as making a gutsy call that worked out when he brought in Cantu.  Here’s to hoping he is fixing his swing and can work his way back into the lineup.  You can never have too many catchers.

 

Overall, I think our sports are heading in the right direction.  I love the new coaching staffs for each respective sport.  

 

Herman seems to be doing well with this recruiting class from what I can tell and I do trust that he will figure the QB position out.  The guy worked some wonders over the past few years.  

 

Shaka really didn’t do well last season.  I mean, it was bad.  But if he’s able to keep Jones and maybe even Allen, we’ll do well next season barring an injury at PG.  

 

And Pierce, although he has made some moves that even he retrospectively has said weren’t the right ones, has also made some good ones.  I’ve seen improvement over the year and our bullpen is starting to right the ship.  Even with the 11 losses on the season, I don’t think we’ve really been out of any game in the 9th inning.  That’s a good sign.  

 

I know this isn’t a very busy time, but I’m glad I was able to drop by and shoot the Longhorn breeze.  

 

[Sirhornsalot]

Hey Lukas, its great to have you back. 

 

I don't see how Shaka gets out of this mess. He just lost two major talents from a dismal season. I don't see it happening.

 

With Herman, I don't think we'll ever worry about going into the RRR unprepared. I can't wait to see it come together. Its been a long time of disappointment.

[joeywa]

Oh my goodness! They finally fixed the internet in Tennessee.

 

Glad to have ya back Lukas. We left the light one for ya, had to change the bulb about 27 times and you found your way back.

 

Hope you stick around for a bit.

[Daniel Seahorn]

Welcome back, Lukas!

 

I wasn't around when you were writing for HornSports, but we all appreciate you coming back and being part of the HS community again!

[joeywa]

RE: getting robbed, take a look at the pinned game thread. I've got a couple of still shots there that show that it was clearly a missed call.

[Bear19]

Hope you stick around Lukas.

[MikeV73]

Good to hear from you Lukas. You were a prominent poster when I joined Hornsports a few years ago and I enjoyed your input. Hope you are back to stay!

[Lukus Alderman]

Thanks for the nice replies, guys!

 

Yeah, I'm thinking I must've jinxed the baseball team. Sounded like we just couldn't put a full 9 innings together on Sunday.

[echeese]

Thanks for the nice replies, guys!

 

Yeah, I'm thinking I must've jinxed the baseball team. Sounded like we just couldn't put a full 9 innings together on Sunday.

 

 

BAck one day. . . . jinxing the team. . . 

 

SMDH. . . . .

 

LOL

 

Welcome back young man. . . .you've been missed. . .