Texas at Oklahoma State

Longhorns vs. Cowboys: The road to the championship starts now

If No. 12 Texas is to compete for the 2012 Big 12 Championship, Stillwater, Oklahoma is where it starts against an unranked, but dangerous, 2-1 Oklahoma State football team.

As has been the case all season, Oklahoma State is an upgrade versus the other teams Texas has played and the undefeated Longhorns are traveling for the second straight game. Not that Stillwater is a particularly scary place for Texas considering Oklahoma State hasn't beaten Texas there since 1997. Frankly, Texas should be happy to get the Cowboys in Stillwater since over the last two years, Oklahoma State has owned Texas in Austin.

We're being charitable when we call the Cowboys an Oklahoma team. 66 players calling themselves Oklahoma State Cowboys hail from Texas high schools. These guys playing against one another also know each other. They've played together since middle school, and they share more than that: Both teams open conference play this weekend, both teams got last week off, both teams are starting young guys on offense and both teams really hate the other Oklahoma.

Oklahoma State plays great at home and the Longhorns have a lot to prove. You won't hear this often this season, but Texas brings more experience to the game particularly on a defense that's been embarrassed and wants to prove what they can do against a freshmen quarterback.

Oklahoma State's stats are gaudy

The Cowboys average 62 points per game, over 300 yards rushing and 378 yards passing. They've scored 25 touchdowns already. But those stats mean nothing; they are a lie and OSU should be embarrassed by them. This is the team that played Savannah State to start the season. Savannah State is a second division football team, an FCS (Football Championship Subdivision) school, not a first division FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) school. Oklahoma State had no business playing Savannah State: They beat them 84-0. You did not read that wrong: 84-0. The stats shouldn't even count.

Texas lines up well against OSU. The Cowboys are starting a freshman quarterback, even if we still aren't sure which one. Starting quarterback Wes Lunt, a freshman, was injured in the last game; he was replaced by another freshmen, J.W. Walsh. OSU's star quarterback last season, Brandon Weeden plays for the Cleveland Browns now. His favorite receiver Justin Blackmon also plays in the NFL, leaving the Cowboys with very little experience on offense.

Oklahoma State can score points (especially when they play bad teams), but they have not seen a defense like Texas yet. The closest they've come was against Arizona, a game Oklahoma State lost.

With that lack of experience on offense, and given the Longhorns' current offensive confidence, this game could get away from Okie State if they're not careful.

Texas is ready to roll

After an impressive offensive performance against Ole Miss, David Ash managed to get himself named to the Maxwell Award watch list. I don't know who at the Maxwell Awards has been watching, but hell, I'm sure Ash's folks are thrilled, and I'm betting Ash is feeling good about it and I hope he wants to prove he's worthy. He needs to. "It's really important for David to be consistent, explained Texas Head coach Mack Brown. "That's all we need — manage the game. We've got good players. Get the ball where it needs to be."

Oklahoma State will stuff the line of scrimmage full of bodies in order to stop Joe Bergeron (who looks like he will be able to play after injuring a shoulder) and Malcolm Brown. That means Ash gets to throw the ball a little — let's hope he continues throwing it to the right color jerseys, he's been money in avoiding turnovers.

The Longhorn defense has something to prove. They've been exposed by offensive teams not nearly as good as Oklahoma State, and they need to make serious corrections. "Our defense was not very happy leaving Oxford," said Brown. "We've got to do a better job of getting off the field on the third downs, but we also have to do a better job on the big plays. We've taken all of those out, looked at all the big plays we should have done differently."

They've had two weeks to remember how to tackle and cover receivers, Texas has too much talent to let big plays happen like they have this season. This game will tell us whether the defense is really good on the field or just "good on paper."

What to watch for:

Can Texas deal with success? The Horns of 2010 and 2011 were an inconsisent bunch, big wins followed by big losses. Can this team build on success? It's a question Mack Brown is asking, "One of the question marks with this year's team, they've made progress each week: Can they continue to build on that progress and get better even with people bragging on them? Around here it's usually really high or really low, you don't get anything in the middle."
Defense. Will Texas defense slow down the high-powered OSU offense and avoid the big plays that have plagued them in three games now.
Dominate the line of scrimmage. If Texas can run the ball on offense with success, and if the defense can continue harrassing the quarterback, Texas will win big.

Texas needs to continue building confidence. "That's why I'm so excited about this weekend," said Brown, "to see if that's for real. Can we line up and be physical each week? Will David [Ash] progress? Will we make some big plays and make some tackles, do a better job tackling?"

They have to. Next week the Longhorns take on West Virginia, a team chosen to win the Big 12, and a team that will come to Austin ready to prove it belongs in the big leagues.

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Texas Longhorns at Oklahoma State Cowboys

Time: 6:50 p.m. at Boone Pickens Stadium, Stillwater, Oklahoma

Television: FOX

Radio: KVET-FM 98.1 / KVET-AM 1300

Honored:Savannah State celebrates homecoming this weekend, we should root for them!

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High Score

Austin named the nation's pickleball capital in industry report

Photo by Henry Selis Photo

Other Racquet Social Club is back after city woes.

It's no secret that Austinites love pickleball. A new study proves just how much by ranking Austin the No. 1 city for pickleball in the whole country. Dallas and Houston also made the top 10 at Nos. 3 and 8, respectively.

The report was published by TeachMe.To, an online marketplace for learning sports (and sometimes music) from private instructors. It used data from its own platform, USA Pickleball, Places2Play, local pickleball associations, and more. It also referred to the Sports and Fitness Industry Association (SFIA), which named pickleball the fastest-growing sport in America, with a growth rate of 223.5 percent over three years.

Similarly, TeachMe.To ranked Austin as the fastest-growing city for pickleball, and citing this as the main reason for the overall title of "the nation's pickleball capital."

It name-checked the Austin Metro Pickleball Association (AMPA) — with approximately 3,000-3,500 members — and the Austin Pickleball League (APL), estimating that overall, "15,000-20,000 people play pickleball at least occasionally in the greater Austin area." About half of those players — about 8,000-10,000 people — play at least twice a month.

The report did not include gender data on Austin, specifically, but it did note that not only are two-thirds of pickleball players female; women's involvement in the sport is also growing 50 percent faster than men's.

New courts everywhere
This probably isn't a surprise to people who have noticed the number of courts opened around Austin in recent years. By 2024, TeachMe.To's data shows 32 dedicated courts in Austin, and thanks to with a utility rate of 92 percent it doesn't look like that'll be slowing down.

In the summer of 2023, the online booking platform Swimply noticed how many pickleball courts there were in Austin compared to such great demand, and added courts to its service. In fall 2023 and summer 2024, at least two important developments expanded that availability: Other Racquet Social Club opened as a friendly, country club-like neighborhood option, and national chain The Picklr announced it's bringing five locations to Austin and Round Rock.

Perhaps because Austin is such a food-obsessed city, there seems to be some growing opportunity for food and beverage hospitality around pickleball, too. Other Racquet recently started hosting the Bill's Dips food truck, a spinoff of the popular downtown restaurant Bill's Oyster; and a pair of bars with pickleball courts, Drifters Social Coffee & Cocktails and The Pickle Pub, also opened in South Austin this year, with strong online ratings already.

The trend has even reached into real estate (see this cute house with its own pickleball court) and inspired athletes to introduce similar sports to the local market, as in the case of the padel club Paddle39. TeachMe.To's report also mentioned tech companies adding pickleball to their campuses.

Aside from growth, the study also considered lesson activity (including information about teacher availability and diversity of clinic offerings), infrastructure, community vitality, the tournament scene.

Austin had the highest concentration of all the cities of players under 40 (65 percent), as well as the highest share of national lesson bookings. At 16.90 percent, that means about one in six of the pickleball lessons contracted through this platform were in Austin. Lesson demand, the report says, is growing 125 percent year-over-year.

Elsewhere in Texas
Dallas was No. 3 thanks in part to its "central location" according to the report.

"The city's 45 dedicated courts and 85 [percent] public accessibility rate have fostered one of the most active competitive scenes in the country, with 8,500 registered league players," it says. "The combination of strong tournament presence, extensive infrastructure, and a 112% growth in lesson bookings solidifies Dallas as a powerhouse in the national pickleball landscape."

Houston made No. 8 with an emphasis on integrating pickleball with other sports.

"The city's 22 dedicated courts have seen a 92% increase in lesson bookings, driven by innovative programming that includes the nation's first corporate league system," it says. "Houston's success in integrating pickleball into existing sports infrastructure while maintaining 72% year-round utilization demonstrates a sustainable model for rapid growth."

Overall predictions
After laying out data about the top cities in pickleball, the report made some predictions. As the Austin newcomer mentioned above believes, the report also thinks padel is the next big thing. It also guesses more cities will act like Houston by focusing on hybrid facilities.

It also expects to see an expanded professional circuit and mainstream coverage, more technology used on the court, a rise in the prevalence of young players, and more opportunities in corporate wellness and real estate. "Dedicated pickleball facilities will become as common as swimming pools in luxury developments," it says. Texans will be the judge of that one.

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Texas at Oklahoma State

Longhorns vs. Cowboys: The road to the championship starts now

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Austin named the nation's pickleball capital in industry report

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