Monday, December 11, 2006

I FINISHED "THE ROCK"

I woke up the morning of August 7th, 2006, went to the weight room, lifted some weights, then ran three miles.

They were the first three miles of an eventual 466.2 miles I ran in preparation for the Whiterock Marathon in Dallas, TX on December 10th, 2006.

I crossed the finish line at approximately 11:28 AM that morning. Exhausted, disoriented and physically traumatized, I hardly remember having the "Finisher" medal placed over my head or walking past the multitudes of people to pick up my bag I had checked previously that morning.

Nearly four hours before that moment, I was standing at the Start line with about 3,500 other people. I didn't know what to expect during the race or how my body would respond. What I did know was that for 18 weeks I ate all the right food, got all the right sleep, took all the right supplements and thought all the right thoughts to prepare myself for the most grueling and physically challenging experience of my life. The marathon.

It's truly amazing to run a marathon. Thousands of people surround you that have the same goal in mind: finish the race. Finish the marathon.

Preparation is most likely different, but all in all, the runners have a great deal in common. It's kind of a bonding moment really. You get to talking with those around you about past experiences or how you're feeling and by the end, feel a strange attraction to those who've become so familiar to you over the course of the race. The marathon.

I remember a man with a green shirt on. It said "STAFF" on the back. I ran behind him for many miles, lost him somewhere in the middle but found him towards the end. Seeing that shirt brought me an odd sort of comfort that pulled me towards the finish line. The end of the marathon.

While I was running I tried to put myself back in my training. In other words I tried to imagine myself all alone on the country roads north of Abilene. During the marathon.

I spent many and will probably spend many more hours running alone, with nothing in my ears, just my thoughts to keep me company. All those hours were an amazing physical and emotional release. The marathon.

I ran as the sun broke through the lush, green horizon. I ran through miles and miles of open fields where cows gazed at me like they had never seen a human on their road before. Kind of a "what in the world is that guy up to" look. But I was noticed and gone before they had time to get spooked and run away. So they just sat and watched me run off into the distance. Towards the marathon.

I ran through town, I ran around a track, I ran on a treadmill, I ran in my neighborhood, I ran and ran and ran. All the running with one thing in mind: finish the marathon in 3.5 hours. Finish the marathon.

My Thanksgiving holiday was ruined because I could only eat a portion of the smorgasbord which was set out before me. For the marathon.

I ran in the heat. I ran when it turned cold. I ran in the rain. I ran when it hurt. I ran fast. I ran slow. I ran. For the marathon.

I will never forget my first marathon. I finished in 3:28:08. 328th out of 3,507 full marathoners that day.

A sense of accomplishment follows you through the finish line. One that is unique to a full marathon. I can't wait to have that feeling again. So beginning in August I will train again. Eating right. Sleeping good. Thinking. Running. Sweating. Hurting. Longing. For the marathon.

McCOY FACES UNFAIR EXPECTATION

written: 8/28/06

Starting University of Texas quarterback Colt McCoy will make a lot of mistakes this year.

One of the greatest prep school athletes in Texas history, McCoy steps into an unbelievably unstable situation. His job? Put on Vince Young's shoes and lead Texas to a second straight national title. Don't do that and face a firestorm of media scrutiny and fair-weather-fans turned against you.

But wait just one second. Those expectations are unfair and may be a little premature. Young's shoes are the biggest shoes ever to stomp all over college football. He's the only player in history to pass for 3,000 yards and rush for 1,000 in the same season. Only two players have ever reached the 2,000/1,000 mark. Also, only two teams have won back-to-back national titles in the last 27 years: Nebraska and USC.

If given the fair and proper chance, McCoy will be a great quarterback. He will bring the Longhorns conference championships and maybe even a national title. He will rewrite the record books and become a beloved figure in Texas lore.

But we have to give him a chance. It's highly common, almost assured, that a first year quarterback will make lots of mistakes and be questioned as the starter.

Notre Dame QB Brady Quinn is the Heisman Trophy front-runner. The "Golden Boy" of college football, he's already set all kinds of passing records for the Fighting Irish. But Quinn struggled his first year as a full-time college quarterback. He only completed 54.1% of his passes, threw 17 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. Last year, Quinn's touchdown-to-interception ratio was 32-to-7. Just a tad better.

Young's freshman year was much worse: 58.7% completion rate, 6 TDs and 7 INTs. And Young had the luxury of a veteran quarterback, Chance Mock, to share snaps with him.

Chris Leak, another Heisman favorite and quarterback at Florida was sacked 22 times his first year under center and tossed 11 interceptions compared with just 16 touchdowns.

Florida State's sophomore QB Drew Weatherford set an ACC freshman record with 3,208 passing yards last year. But he threw 18 interceptions and the same number of touchdowns.

Native Texan Drew Tate, QB at Iowa, struggled his first year: 20 TD, 14 INT. Last year Tate catapulted to the top of the QB position nationwide with a 22/7 TD-INT ratio. Two more touchdowns, half the picks.

Nothing can substitute experience. Young quarterbacks will make mistakes.

Michigan started a true freshman at QB in 2004, Chad Henne. He threw 25 touchdowns and 12 picks. After one season of experience, Henne came back with a 23/8 ratio last year.

The ACC rookie of the year a few years ago was Georgia Tech QB Reggie Ball. His ratio that year? 10/11. He threw more picks than touchdowns.

When Colt McCoy throws an interception or gets sacked when he should have run or runs when he should have thrown it away or does something you don't think he should have done. Take it easy. The mistakes will come. It's how he responds to the mistakes that will make him great.

I will guarantee that McCoy can handle adversity. I've watched him play in big games and seen him perform in pressure situations.

Expect the mistakes, let him grow into a great college quarterback and McCoy will put Tuscola on the national map. He just needs the chance.

Proud to Be a Mavs Fan (written June 21st, 2006)

Today I am proud to be a Dallas Mavericks fan.

Sound crazy? Given the fact the Mavs just completed one of the most devasting meltdowns in playoff history would make it seem crazy.

Yes, Dallas let one slip away. Six and a half minutes cost the Mavericks the title and brought on the same old criticisms of "not being tough enough." But it's not what Dallas didn't do, it's what Dwyane Wade did.

That player is something special. In 10 years we may be looking back at this series as the start of an incredible run by an incredible athlete. I foresee many championships for that young man. He transcended the 0-2 hole, Dirk Nowitzki's star status and the Mavs' home court advantage to put on a show of epic magnitude.

Saying that, let me say this: any Mavs fan not proud today was not a fan in the early 90's. They don't remember winning 11 games in the 1992-1993 season or just 13 the next year (we won 14 playoff games this year). They don't remember being voted the worst sports franchise of the decade. They don't remember staying up late, even for west coast games, to watch Terry Davis, Donald Hodge, Lorenzo Williams, Popeye Jones, Hot Rod Williams, Robert Pack and the great Oliver Miller lose game after game, night after night, season after season.

Dallas Mavericks "fans" embarrassed today weren't around when the only team we could beat was the Minnesota Timberwolves. They weren't there the night Jim Jackson missed a wide open lay-up at the buzzer that would have defeated the mighty Chicago Bulls in 1996. They don't have a shoe box full of $5 nose-bleed tickets that were good enough for floor seats because no one was ever at the games.

Mavs fans who don't recognize the team's success this year weren't jubilant when Richie Adubato was named head coach, or when we drafted Leon Smith with our #1 pick or the time we beat the Rockets in double-overtime in Houston the year they won it all.

If this is as close to a title as the Mavericks ever get, I will be proud of what we accomplished this year and in the 2006 playoffs.

Call me crazy, but today? I am proud of the Dallas Mavericks. I am proud of my team.