That’s what I call them. They guys (and girls) that cover the Dallas Cowboys only looking for the soap opera angle. Last week it was Tony and T.O. - “did they talk?” “didn’t they talk?” “did they kiss and make up?”

I got so sick of it I had to shut down the radio. The biggest purp (may not be a good word today) of Soap Opera Radio serves as co-host of the Michael Irvin Show. He only wants controversy, even with guest Nate Newton by calling a grown man “Big Juicy.” You better watch yourself with that one Kevin.

Anyway, this week, Adam and Tommy Jones get into it at Joule and now all Hell breaks loose. And rightfully so.

Jerry hired police officers to detail Pac Man and Mr. Jones (Tommy) felt he did what he needed to do. When I was Pac Man’s age I liked to hang out late and party too. But he’s in a different situation that the rest of us. His very livelihood is at stake, and apparently he just doesn’t realize that yet. By the sound of one caller on the Ticket yesterday, Mr. Jones (Adam) has been hanging in some places that you would think are off limits.

While last week’s Cowboy coverage was hot mess, Jerry has to realize that this week’s coverage is fully warranted (another bad word). Channel 8 lead off the first 6-8 minutes of the 5 o’clock news with the Pac Man story. Fans were told that there wouldn’t be a peep out of Pac Man this year. I don’t think early morning parties is what they had in mind.

So go ahead gossip girls, I’m not mad at ya’ll this week. Maybe next week we can get back to on the field action. But it’s kind of hard with the team Mr. Jones (Jerry) has put together.

As I was driving in to the State Fair Classic on Saturday, I was already thinking about this post.  I was fully prepared to suggest that Al Wash (who promotes the contest) move the game to a two o’clock start.  There were two things that I was going to use as my reasons for a move.

First was the reaction that many people gave me when I told them of my weekend plans.  At the barbershop I had a conversation where I told a gentleman I was taking my family to the PV/Grambling game.  “Are you taking a knife or a gun?” he asked.  Another friend told me to wear my track shoes so that I could take off running when the fights broke out.

Now I would not suggest to anyone that that type of attitude is totally unwarranted.  I was at a PV-Grambling game in the late 80’s or early ’90’s (at least I know Grambling was there) where the football players all hit the deck because there was shooting (supposedly) inside the Cotton Bowl.  And I also remember the crowds rushing through the stadium’s tight corridors because of fights.  So yes, I understand where they were coming from.

The second thing that lead to my thoughts of a time switch was watching the NFL Network’s coverage of the Circle City Classic.  That game featured Tuskegee and Alabama A&M and kicked of at 3:00 P.M. Central in Indianapolis’ brand new Lucas Oil Stadium.

The game drew 47,273 fans. As I watched I also wondered why couldn’t the 2009 State Fair Classic be televised on the NFL Network.  Was the nighttime kickoff holding the game back from being seen in millions of homes across the nation?

But once I got inside Fair Park and was settled, I realized that the State Fair Classic belongs under the lights.  There was a big game feel, and the new and the improved Cotton Bowl provided an outstanding college football setting.  Believe it or not, this truly is big time College Football.

You don’t believe me?  Well check this out.  The State Fair Classic drew 54,315 fans on Saturday night.  That’s a higher attendance figure than each of these games involving BCS schools:

1 Oklahoma at Baylor

#5 Texas at Colorado

#7 Texas Tech @ Kansas St.

#8 BYU at Utah State

Pittsburg at #10 S. Florida

and slightly less than #6 Penn State @ Purdue

Prairie View played in front of 50,000 plus fans the previous week in the Angel City Classic at the L.A. Coliseum.  The Black Football Classic is big time football whether America knows it or not.  And Dallas needs to realize what they have in the State Fair Classic before it’s too late.

A study conducted by Dr. Patrick Rishe of Sportsimacts and Webster University found that the State Fair Classic generated $6 million for the city, with $3.6 million remaining local.  The State Fair Classic and Red River Rivalry (est. $34 million impact up from $30 because of new capacity) generate nearly as much revenue for Dallas as the Holiday Bowl and Poinsettia Bowl generate for San Diego.

My son’s birthday party always falls on the same weekend as P.V./Grambling, so going to the game has become a pseudo tradition.  We’ve attended the game with my in-laws and my mom in 4 of my sons 7 years.

We decided to sit in the new end zone section opposite the Jumbotron.  The first four rows or so on the second level had bucket seats that are much better than the old ones.  The Cotton Bowl looks better, it sits MUCH better, and it was just a better overall experience. OU/Texas fans are in for a treat.

Our night concluded with a run through the midway.  The kids had an excellent time and my wife and I delighted in State Fair treats.  At no point did I feel unsafe and I asked my wife if she ever felt unsafe and her answer was no.  For the last 10 years the Dallas Police Department has done an excellent job with crowd control and overall presence at the State Fair Classic.  The same goes for their traffic plan after the game.

We did talk about the fact that there are probably some black folks that just aren’t used to being around that many black folks at one time.  And many of us are conditioned by the media and one another to think that if this many African-Americans are in one place it can’t be a good thing.

Well I don’t claim that and I don’t believe that.  Next year DART’s Green line will take away the traffic concerns and then we can try to pack out the Cotton Bowl with 70,000 fans.

On a final note, my prediction of P.V. claiming victory was way off and Grambling even took the halftime Battle of the Bands.

This week’s OU-Texas game should be one for the ages.

Dallas has created the 2nd best college football venue in Texas (sorry Kyle Field).

I’ll have more on the game later in the week.

On a sunny and mild afternoon – a day that would have been great for football – the city of Dallas and Mayor Tom Leppert unveiled a new and improved version of the historic Cotton Bowl. I walked away impressed by the wider concourses, expanded media area, club-level seating and toilets that actually flushed (yes, I checked).

But any mention of the Cotton Bowl since has been met with one word: Cowboys.It’s as if residents expected Dallas to throw in the towel when America’s Team chose to make its move further west.

But the days for debating what could have and should have been with the Cowboys are long gone. The fact is, Arlington is getting itself a world-class stadium, but it’s hard for Dallas to miss something it hasn’t had since 1971.

The $57 million approved by Dallas voters for the Cotton Bowl was necessary to protect the birds that were already in hand, even though the one in the bush was nice. The newly renovated stadium is being touted by leaders as the ninth-largest football stadium, by capacity, in the country. Dallas is notorious for making these types of claims, often to cover up for lasting insecurities. But bigger isn’t always better. And in sports, it’s great teams and great games that make for great venues.

The Cotton Bowl’s greatness, as always, rests squarely on the shoulders of the young men who will run up and down the gridiron this fall. The bulk of that load will be carried by participants in the Red River Rivalry and the State Fair Classic.

In the ’80s, the Texas-Oklahoma game was merely nice to have, but Bob Stoops and Mack Brown have since restored the contest to its past glory. The annual Red River Rivalry is still woven into the fabric of the city.

The Prairie View-Grambling game has always been undervalued, and Dallas needs to make sure school officials don’t feel neglected. With Prairie View having fielded its best team in decades, folks may have reason to stay at State Fair Classic past the Battle of The Bands over the next few years.

These two games are set to remain at the Cotton Bowl until 2015, but the time is now to lay the groundwork for the future – extending signature games and attracting more college football to Fair Park. Even if these four schools decide to bolt for Jerry World, the city will have made its money back from the estimated $30 million that the Red River Rivalry alone brings to the region each year.

(Still, I wouldn’t want to have to debate how we move forward with a spiffed up stadium devoid of its marquee matchups.)

Here is what I would like to see happen in the short term to help secure the success of Fair Park’s crown jewel in the long term.

First, keep the focus on the fair. Launching a new December/January Bowl has probably crossed the minds of local officials, but the package Fair Park offers during October is unrivaled. The weather is as good as it gets in this region.And where else can you listen to your favorite artist, experience the thrill of the Midway, eat chicken-fried bacon and witness an exciting football game all for the price of one admission?

Second, officials need to capitalize on black-college football. When it was announced that Texas Southern and Arkansas-Pine Bluff would play at the Cotton Bowl around Thanksgiving, I could almost see the question marks popping up over Dallasites’ heads. Because the city has long hosted a football game between historically black universities, many have missed the fact that these contests are now popping up all over the country.

The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, the Louisiana Superdome, Houston’s Reliant Stadium and Indianapolis’ Lucas Oil Stadium all host black-college football classics. Hosting two of these contests is a bigger deal for the Cotton Bowl than many recognize.

It won’t be easy, but those four October Saturdays must be filled with compelling matchups that people will pay to see. Dallas is halfway there, and we’ll see how Texas A&M-Commerce and its sizable local alumni base will support the Harvey Martin Classic.

The Cotton Bowl has never looked better – and I, for one, am glad that big-time college football will continue to take place in Fair Park well into the next decade.

The loss of the namesake game to the new Cowboys stadium in 2010 is unfortunate. But if Oklahoma and Texas leave, turn off the lights – ’cause the party truly will be over.

Shawn Williams is a community advocate and writer who publishes the Dallas South blog. His e-mail address is shawn@dallassouthblog.com.

The Angel City Classic is owned and produced by Black Educational Events LLC which is based in Irving, Texas.  The mission statement for the event is to enhance awareness of the cultural and educational opportunities offered at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), particularly among youth in western geographies.  As evidenced in the video below, the event is about more than just football and the Battle of the Bands.

Prairie View will be in Dallas to take on Grambling State in the State Fair Classic October 4th at the Cotton Bowl.

The Red Cross and Texas Southern Alumni have helped out with toilentries and supplies while Russell Athletics pitched in with some shoes.  But Roquemore reports that the rest of us have a chance to contribute as well.

TSU coach Johnnie Cole says that the team would appreciate donations to help cover costs associated with meals for this weekends contest with Texas College in the Rose City Classic in Tyler.  He estimates the costs to be $7 per person.

Donations can be dropped off at the Raddison Hotel, 1241 W. Mockinbird Lane, in the lobby until Saturday Morning.  Dallas South let’s help out the Tigers in their time of need. Texas Southern will return to Dallas to play Arkansas-Pine Bluff at the Cotton Bowl on November 29th.

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A few weeks ago and before the passport situation, I had a chance to participate on a conference call hosted by Yobachi Boswell and the Afrosphere Action Coalition. The call featured Joey Cheeks speaking about Team Darfur and their efforts to bring more awareness to the Darfur conflict/genocide. You listen to 18 minutes of audio from the call below.

Darfur Call With Joey Cheek & Team Darfur, Pt 1


What did Channel 8, or Brett Shipp, or Dale Hansen have to say about the findings?  Not a thing.  Back in May, Shipp launched another sweeps week attack on former South Oak Cliff and current NBA player Darrell Arthur. Could Mr. Shipp’s unfounded story have caused Mr. Arthur to slide in the June BA draft?  It’s hard to say.

I spoke with Coach James Mays, II last night about the findings.  He was thankful for the support he has received from the community during the ordeal.  Because of the type of man he is, Coach Mays had nothing negative to say about WFAA or Shipp.  But during our conversation I think I said enough for he and I both.

I guess Coach Mays and SOC are safe at least until November’s television sweeps week.

Note: DISD forfeited South Oak Cliff’s state titles from the 2005-06 season. The Golden Bears were state champions of Class 4A last season, their 4th title in a row.

I haven’t watched as much baseball as in years past, but I happened to be watching when Texas Rangers “closer” C.J. Wilson made two Busch League moves.  The latest came Tuesday night when Wilson showed blatant disrespect for Rangers manager Ron Washington in the team’s 8-6 win over the New York Yankees.

But let’s go back to Sunday July 13, in a game between the Rangers and the Chicago White Sox.  Wilson entered that game in a non-save situation with the Rangers leading 12-8.  Jim Thome smacked one of Wilson’s so called meatball pitch over the fence making the score 12-11 and causing White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen to start taunting Wilson from the dugout.  Wilson then “closed” the game and threw his arms up in a “how you like me now?” fashion.

As a fan I was upset that a guy who almost blew a 4 run lead would show that type of emotion after a performance like that.  Wipe your brow, point to God, anything, but don’t act like you retired the side in order.

Now fast forward to Tuesday night, when Wilson started warming in the 7th inning with the score 5-2.  A three-run triple by Chris Davis gave the Rangers a 6 run lead before Wilson entered in the top of the 8th.  Wilson proceeded to walk two batters, hit A-Rod, and eventually gave up a grand slam to .226 hitting Richie Sexon.  C.J. glared at manager Ron Washington as he made his way out to remove him from the game.  Then something weird happened.

Washington grabbed Wilson’s arm and made him come back to the mound.  I saw Wilson come back and hand the ball to his manager and assumed he was so mad that he forgot to give Washington the ball.  It was still odd for Washington to put his hands on a player in that fashion, but I would later find out what stirred the baseball man to that course of action.

Wilson actually threw/tossed the ball at Washington as evidenced in the picture to the left.  The television cameras didn’t really pick up the incident and the Josh Lewin and Tom Grieve didn’t really say much about it on the broadcast.   It makes sense: if Wilson was going to pout like a child, Washington was right in treating him like one and making him hand the ball over like a big boy.

Wilson has gotten a pass all year for his lackluster performance as a closer.  His save numbers are decent, but his ERA is a sky high 6.02.  And even when looking at his save ratio it doesn’t account for the non-save games he entered that became save situations because of his poor pitching.

Because he’s a cool dude, plays guitar, and talks to the media he hasn’t caught a lot of heat for his play.  But to date, Wilson has accomplished nothing in the majors and didn’t even win the closing job it was given to him.  You might have to look the other way if Mariano Rivera tossed the ball at his 2nd year manager, but not C.J. Wilson.

Marlon Byrd noticed Wilson’s actions.  “I didn’t like it one bit,” Byrd told the Dallas Morning News.  “…when the manger comes out to get you, you hand him the ball and show him the respect he deserves.”  After pulling this team out of the toilet -and getting no credit for it- I think Washington has earned more that a stunt like Wilson’s.

We all get upset and we all take it a bit too far sometimes.  But in the game of baseball, it’s always the little things that matter most.  An overblown celebration or tossing the ball at a manager may seem like a little, but they are often signs of a player that’s not right.  C.J. Wilson is not right, and he needs to think about his actions as of late.

Go back with me to the beginning of the baseball season. Now what would you have guessed the Rangers record to be after 90 games with these names on the roster:

Catching - Max Ramierez (Started season at Frisco) and Jarrod Saltalamacchia (OK City)

Third Base - German Duran(OK City) and Ramon Vasquez (Bench Player)

First Base - Chris Davis (Frisco)

Outfield - Brandon Boggs (OK City)

Pitchers - Scott Feldman (Frisco), Luis Mendoza (Frisco), Eric Hurley (OK City), Frank Francisco (OK City), Warner Madrigal (Frisco)

I would have guessed 35-40 wins at best, landing them solidly in last place. I don’t know of one - not one- expert prognosticator, sports predictor or pundit who expected the Texas Rangers to have a record of 46-43 as the team prepares to play their 90th game tonight. Especially after a horrific 7-16 start that included an embarrassing 19-6 loss in Detroit to the Tigers.

Many around town, in the papers, on the radio, and in the stands, were calling for the firing of Rangers’ manager Ron Washington. I have to admit after the Tigers debacle I was ready to add my voice to the chorus. It wasn’t just the team’s record, it was the manor in which the team was losing that made things seems so desperate.

The self-proclaimed baseball man was brought to Texas on the premise that his teams would be built on solid defense and good pitching. There wasn’t much of either in the first month, and the team’s batting average with runners in scoring position was abhorrent to put it bluntly. They hit about a buck fifty with ducks on the pond, squandering at bat after at bat in those situations (is it a coincidence that the club has performed better in this area since Hank Blalock left the lineup)?

Things got so bad Jon Daniels threw gasoline on the flames of a Dallas Observer Blog rumor by saying that Washington’s status as manager would be revisted at the All-Star Break. Bad form Jon.

Washington has made diamonds out of poo poo in his 2nd season as Rangers’ manager. He has 4 All-Stars at the top of the lineup, one of whom (Milton Bradley) is here only because of his recommendation. Other than that it’s guys who have no major league skins on the walls.

The team he now manages has 9 rookies, and that doesn’t include Saltalamacchia or Feldman (or the still baseball young Josh Hamilton). In the four games coming up against the Angels, the team could pitch 4 first time starters.

I hear everyone getting credit for the Rangers turnaround, including team president Nolan Ryan, Daniels, and a loose clubhouse provided by team leaders. Last week I even heard how the “Rudy Jaramillo approach” at the plate is finally paying off. The whose what? The same hitting coach whose hitters didn’t take four balls in a game, less known in a single at bat.

Just guessing here but how about the Ron Washington i.e. Oakland A’s approach? One of the first things Washington talked about when he got to Arlington was working counts and being patient at the plate. That message wasn’t well received by Mark Texiera or a few others in the Ranger clubhouse at the time.

It would be nice to hear some support from management, and a little more from his team as they discuss the Rangers’ recent success. Sure the subtraction of Mark Texiera and Buck Showalter helped team chemistry -as C.J. Wilson let us know on the Ticket last week. But the addition of Ron Washington cannot be dismissed as mere coincidence. I think people get the sense that these guys are out there freestyling, and I just don’t believe that to be the case.

Rather than firing Ron Washington as the team reportedly considered doing over the All-Star break, talks of a contract extension would be more appropriate. I’m sure that a wait and see approach will be taken, but any other manager getting so much out of so little would already be mentioned as a manager of the year candidate. Hang in their Ron, you are making in happen.