Category: College Football (Page 2 of 12)

I’m thinking Derek Carr should be the highest paid player in NFL history.

The Saints quarterback averaged 22.1 yards per completion yesterday in a deliciously mind-blowing beatdown of the Cowboys at AT&T Stadium. Per completion!!! Unheard of. Even in last year’s blowout playoff loss to the Packers, Jordan Love averaged 17 yards per completion. New Orleans scored six touchdowns on their first six possessions, which Mike McCarthy downplayed afterward by shrugging his shoulders and saying, “It happens,” and this game was over by halftime. Dallas gave up a franchise record 35 first half points and allowed Alvin Kamara to score four touchdowns, tying another franchise record for a Cowboys opponent.

The Dallas running game was non-existent; Elliot had six carries for 16 yards and Dak had the day’s longest run from scrimmage, gaining eight yards on a scramble.  Dak threw two interceptions and fumbled once. Dallas went 0-3 in the red zone. The offensive ineptitude prompted Kristi Scales to write, “You know it’s bad when the best Dak and Zeke play of the day was combining on a tackle of a Saints cornerback returning an interception.”

The Dallas defense was even worse. The Saints ran for 190 yards and faced a total of just three third downs in their first five drives of the day. Micah Parsons says they got outplayed. That might be the most disturbing thing a Cowboys player admitted last night.

I’ve learned over the years that the best time to make bets with Cowboys fans is right after the first win of the year. I made four different lunch bets yesterday morning with four big-talking Cowboys fans who jumped to take the over on my 8-9 prediction. I don’t know how they’re feeling today. It’s been quiet.

If you saw the way Kamara ran through the Cowboys yesterday, then you know Derrick Henry is licking his chops in Baltimore today.

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For the first time in 16 years, the Texas Longhorns are ranked number one in the country. The last time the ‘Horns held the top spot was for three weeks during the Colt McCoy era, ending with the MIchael Crabtree game, the high point of the history of Texas Tech Red Raiders football. The only concern now is that no football team ever wants to peak too early. Like against UTSA in week three.

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We held our seventh Christian Practices retreat over the weekend at The Way Retreat Center here in Midland. Fifteen of us spent intentional time together engaging our God in Word and Prayer, using some ancient Christian practices and experimenting with some newer exercises. The weather was perfect, the food was amazing, the chapel was a beautiful and inspirational setting for worship, and the spiritual conversations were transforming. The idea behind these retreats is to equip our church at GCR with more and varied ways to be present with God for his transforming work. We don’t want to just get into the Word, we want the Word of God to get into us, to become a part of us. So we pray the Scriptures, we dwell in the Word, we read imaginatively, we ponder ancient written prayers, and we share our stories. We listen to each other’s hearts, knowing that God’s Spirit is communicating with our spirits in the process. This retreat was another wonderfully intergenerational affair–older people and younger people, long time GCR members and some who just got here. It’s one of my favorite things we do at GCR. The last one of the year is set for November 15-16 at The Way. If you haven’t done one of these yet, I’d invite you to register now.

As you can see, we have digressed a bit in taking the team picture at the end. Not our best work. Almost half the folks are hidden in the shot. Jim Tuttle rightly expressed his disappointment in the younger people who didn’t step up to help out.

Peace,

Allan

At GCR this Sunday we’re starting a sermon series about moving into God’s new everything. It’s intended to work well with this being January and the beginning of a new year and all that implies. But we don’t want to just move into new diets and exercise routines, new reading plans and bedtimes, new spending habits and screen-time management. We want to move into the Lord’s new everything!

Things may not be great for you right now. Or for your family. Or your workplace. Or a relationship. Or the country in which you live. Things might be bad. Are you leaning into your trust of the Lord or are you utilizing your own wisdom and moving away from him? God is at work right now to move you into a place of his blessing. But are you moveable?

We’re going to use a prayer to center us as a congregation during these five weeks. We’re planning to pray this prayer together every Sunday as part of submitting to our God and to his plans for us. I invite you to make this prayer your own as we transition into 2024.

Lord, please make me moveable.
Move me to the place where I am able to receive your blessings.
Draw me closer to you; push me closer to your people.
Bring me to your Word; bring me to your worship.
I want to be with you in the place where you are.
Father, give me the strength and the resolve to move to you and to the place of your blessings.
In Christ.
Amen.

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After Michigan’s runaway win in last night’s college football championship game, the results are final in our annual GCR staff bowl challenge. First place receives a free meal, a free dessert, and gets to pick the restaurant at our monthly staff lunch next week. Second place and last place get a free meal, too.

Tim Neale finished in first place, Kim O’Connor jumped over seven of us last night to finish in second, and Ryan Rampton finished dead last. I am vowing today to never again pick Texas to win anything important, unless it’s a volleyball match. Jadyn is today explaining to J.E. how football playoffs work. Jim is cursing SMU because those 40 points would have kept him in second place. Brenda is thankful that she can now devote her full attention to Red Raiders basketball. And Ryan is trying to claim he finished in last place on purpose.

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I know the Cowboys have gone 12-5 three years in a row. This is being celebrated as some kind of all-time franchise mark and the reason for Cowboys fans to be really excited about Mike McCarthy and this team. Okay. Fine. Whatever.

Let me back us out to 30,000 feet and remind you of the big picture and how far the Cowboys have fallen as a franchise and how low the bar is now for its fans.

McCarthy’s twelve wins are because of the expanded schedule. Jimmy Johnson’s last three teams went 11-5, 13-3, and 12-4. That 1991 team finished the regular season on a five game winning streak; give them one more game and they probably hit 12-5. Most importantly, they won two Super Bowls in that run.

As for Tom Landry’s teams, we need to remember that he coached more than half his 29-years with just a 14-game schedule. If you judge his record by winning percentage, the Cowboys were better than 12-5 in six straight seasons from 1968-73 when they went 12-2, 11-2-1, 11-3, and 10-4 three times. They managed another seven year stretch from 1975-81 in which their worst season was  10-4 in 1975 and their second worst mark was 11-5 in 1979. The other five seasons were 11-3 and 12-4 four times.

Most importantly, the Cowboys won a Super Bowl during each of those runs and played in five of them. They went to nine NFC Championship games in those 13 years.

Those are the things Cowboys fans used to celebrate.

This Sunday, when Dallas hosts the Packers in a first-round playoff contest, it’ll be the 28th anniversary of the Cowboys’ most recent NFC title game. I guess if you’re still a Cowboys fan, 12-5 three years in a row is a pretty big deal.

Peace,

Allan