Tuesday, 29. September 2009
Best Defensive Backs in Mack Brown era
Best Running Backs of the Mack Brown era
Best Receivers of the Mack Brown era
10
Matt Nordgren
Matt did not really pile up any stats at all in his time here at Texas. That has a lot to do with the fact that he was firmly entrenched as the backup to Vince young. Also, Mack Brown was much less likely in those days to let the backups run any part of the offense other than running up the middle. Matt will always be remembered for the basketball dribble he did with the football in a game against I believe it was Baylor. He fumbled as he was running free, ball bounced on the ground and right back up to him.
9
Richard Walton
Walton had close to 1600 yards in his time at Texas. A lot of that came before Mack Brown took over. Richard’s senior year was supposed to be the year that he took over for James Brown and showed what he could do. Unfortunately for him, he was injured really early in the year. Major Applewhite came in to replace him, and we all know the rest from there.
8
John Chiles
Chiles will probably be remembered for being something other than a quarterback when it is all said and done. He plays some receiver now. He plays some quarterback in the wildcat formation, which can still be considered to add to his qb legacy, but mainly he is a receiver at this point. He always had potential as a quarterback at Texas, but he was stuck behind Colt McCoy, the most prolific passer in Longhorn history.
7
Garrett Gilbert
Gilbert was a record setting quarterback at Lake Travis High School. He led them to two consecutive state championships his last two years there. He was either the number one or two rated quarterback in the nation depending on who you listened to. He is turning out to be just what he was hyped to be if you look at his first few games and practices with the team. Gilbert appears to be the heir apparent to McCoy. He seems to have a good grasp on the quarterback position and has looked promising in his limited time. He appears this high mostly on potential.
6
Chance Mock
Chance threw for over 1500 yards and 17 td’s with only 2 interceptions. He was actually a pretty good looking quarterback when given the chance. The only problem he had was that he was at UT the same time as possibly the greatest college quarterback to ever play the game, Vince Young. Chance did nothing wrong when he was the starter. He threw a lot of touchdowns and he threw very few interceptions. He did not have the mobility of Vince. He did replace Vince a few times, even after losing his starting position, when Young was having a tough time of it. Chance was touted as an athletic, running quarterback out of The Woodlands high school. I can recall him claiming that going to Texas was a business decision, because he grew up rooting for A&M. It was probably the right decision for him in retrospect, even if he did not get to be a full time starter for long.
5
Jevan Snead
Jevan is a rifle armed quarterback out of Stephenville High School. He is predicted to be drafted in the first few picks of the upcoming NFL draft. The only problem is that he only stayed at Texas for one year. He was backing up Colt McCoy, and it appeared that Colt would be taking the snaps for the remainder of his career at Texas. They were both freshmen at the time, so Jevan decided to transfer to Ole Miss. The move was probably good for both parties. Snead did throw for over 300 yards and a few td’s in his limited rols his true freshman year in Austin, flashing the cannon of an arm that has NFL general managers salivating at the thought of drafting him.
4
Major Applewhite
Major was a little undersized. He was not highly recruited. He was not supposed to be able to play at a school like Texas. John Mackovic brought him in, and Mack Brown was glad tat he had him. Applewhite was the co-offensive player of the year in the Big 12 in 1999. He held the career passing yards record at Texas until broken by Colt McCoy last year. Major had a lot of memorable big wins. He finished up 22-8 as a starter. He also had a few flops in some big games. Kansas State and Arkansas immediately spring to mind. Applewhite did the best he could with what he had. It was good enough to get him to #4 on this list.
3
Chris Simms – Simms threw for 7,097 career yards, 58 touchdowns and had a 26-6 career record as a starter. His senior year, when he finally was past the whole qb controversy with Applewhite that hung around his neck for a few years, he put up one of the best seasons ever by a Texas quarterback. He thre for over 3,000 yards and 26 touchdowns. He had big wins that year over Kansas State and Nebraska, falling just short against Texas Tech in a game that would have most likely propelled Texas into the National Championship pictures. Simms is still not given the credit he deserves as a quarterback, because so many believe Applewhite should have started overhim, but Chris was the better quarterback.
2
Colt McCoy – 10,877 passing yards 94 td’s, 1284 rushing yards 18 td’s…Those numbers will usually get you number one on any list of best college quarterbacks, but it only gets Colt to number two on this one. He still has an outside shot to move to number one on the list if he can win a championship and pull in a Heisman this year, but anything short of that and he stays number two. Colt was a three star recruit out of high school. He was the backup plan to Robert Perriloux, who is no where to be found these days. Colt has succeeded more than anyone could have expected him to coming out of such a small high school. McCoy had his bumps in the road his first few years, but the last year and a hald he has been spectacular at times and only very, very good all the other times.
1
Vince Young
6040 passing yards 44 touchdowns 3127 rushing yards 6.8 avg 37 td’s rushing…
Thos are the numbers that get you to number one on this list. That’s without even coming back for his senior year. Had he came back, he would have probably gone down as the undisputed greatest college quarterback of all time. He had nothing left to prove though, after willing Texas to a comeback win against USC in the National Championship game. He should have won the Heisman over an overhyped Reggie Bush. Young started out as purely a runner at the quarterback position, but he turned into a polished passer as the years went by. By his junior year he was picking apart defenses with his arm, then running only when needed. It was good enough to get him over 3,000 yards passing and 1,000 yards rushing in the same season. There is only one Vince Young. There will not be another for a long, long time.
Honorable Mention
Greg Cicero
Adam Hall
Sherrod Harris
Posted in Uncategorized by houstonlibrarian -
Saturday, 26. September 2009
10
Dakarai Pearson
Pearson was a highly touted quarterback/athlete recruit out of Dayton. He nearly took Dayton from obscurity to a state championship game, if only he had not ran into LaMarque and their black hole defense. Pearson switched to safety at Texas. He was never an elite player, but he was solid and a multiple year starter for some good Longhorn defenses.
9
Rod Babers
“Kool Aid” Babers was everyone’s favorite Horn. Out of Lamar high school in Houston, always had a smile on his face. He did stone hand a few interceptions over the years. He was a very good cover corner though. How can anyone forget the interception against Colorado in the Big 12 championship game on the punt fake that was inexplicably called by the Buffalos. That moment alone would get him in the honorable mention list, but Babers was much more than that in his years for the Horns.
8
Tarell Brown
Brown was overshadowed while at Texas. He was a super running back at North Mesquite in high school, but I think everyone expected he would switch to defensive back. He was a solid corner for Texas, he just was surrounded by two Thorpe winners in that secondary. He broke his arm in the second half of the Championship game against USC tackling Dwayne Jarrett. He made a recovery well enough to be drafted in the 5th round by the Niners. He has been in the league for three years now.
7
Aaron Williams
Aaron is only a sophomore, but he has distanced himself from the pack on the current Texas team as far as corners go. He is surrounded by a lot of talent, but he is the best. Williams quickly worked his way into the rotation, even coming up with a touchdown against Arkansas as a freshman. Now, as a sophomore, he is a huge contributor. If he stays all four years, I expect he will leave here being remembered in the same way that some of the guys farther up the least are remembered.
6
Earl Thomas
Earl is a redshirt sophomore from West Orange Stark. He was a running back/defensive back on those Mustang teams where he teamed with Deon Beasley. Thomas redshirted a year to make the transition to full time safety. He was the starter last year and things started a little choppy for Earl. Some fans were clamoring for him to be removed from the lineup, but you could see the talent there. He is so quick. Not only is he the best safety on the team, he would also be the best corner on the team. He is going to have a big payday awaiting him in the NFL whenever he decides to make that leap. I just hope he sticks around a few more years. He is one of the few safeties to come along that can really change a game.
5
Cedric Griffin
Cedric was a highly recruited cornerback out of San Antonio. He was never really a standout performer in the same way that others that were surrounding him in the defensive backfield were. Griffin was solid. He was maligned early in his career for his lack of effort in the OU game, here he whiffed on a tackle that really stood out. Griffin bounced back though and was a very good, if unspectacular, corner for texas for four years. He is now firmly entrenched in the defensive backfield with the Minnesota Vikings.
4
Aaron Ross
Aaron has to be given credit for his ability to weather a lot of trials and tribulations to finally be able to play football for the University of Texas. Aaron was a great prospect out of Tyler John Tyler in east Texas. He was held out/denied entry into the program for the first two years after high school because of clearinghouse issues. He kept hanging in there though and eventually made it in. Lucky for Texas fans that he did, because he was the best defensive back in the nation his senior year. He had a huge game against OU, including a fumble return for a touchdown. He won the Thorpe award in 2006, his senior season. He was selected in the first round of the NFL draft by the New York Giants where he still plays today.
3
Michael Griffin
Griffin was a running back in high school, but like others he was expected to make the switch to defensive back at Texas. Make the switch he did. He was naturally talented, and he didn’t take long to really find his groove at safety. He was in an all star cast, so he may have been overshadowed early, but he was a man amongst boys by his senior year. He was drafted in the middle of the first round by the Tennessee Titans and has been a startter nearly from day one. He made his first Pwo Bowl last year as a safety for the AFC. I suspect he will make plenty more before it’s all said and done.
2
Quentin Jammer
Jammer was a great athlete coming out of Angleton high school. He played at Angleton with Ahmard Hall, who would later end up at Texas as a fullback after a stint in the Marines. Jammer really stood out for the Horns. He wasn’t surrounded by all the talent that the Horns would have later on in the defensive backfield. Jammer was big, strong, muscular and manhandled the receivers more times than not. Jammer was one of three finalists for the Thorpe award in 20001. He did not win, as the competition was stiff, but he was the first Longhorn ever named as a finalist for the award.(it was first given out in 1986) Jammer was drafted very early in the first round by the Chargers where he remains today in the starting lineup.
1
Michael Huff
Huff was a very little known recruit from Irving. This makes his rise to fame all the more improbable. He was more known as a sprinter in high school. I can vividly recall Aggie fans making fun of him when Mack decided to give him an offer. Huff took a while to get his legs under him as a safety, but when he did he was an elite player in college. He seems to be finding his legs at the pto level too now finally. He was selected high in the first round by the Oakland Raiders. He has three intereceptions early in the year this year. Huff won the Thorpe award as the best defensive back in the land after his senior year in 2005. He also left as a champion when the Horns beat the Trojans in the Rose Bowl.
Honorable Mention
Brandon Foster – Solid player his senior year.
Chykie Brown – Hasn’t reached potential yet
Ryan Palmer – Fast, came on late in career
Curtis Brown – Hasn’t fulfilled potential yet.
Greg Brown – Had great interception td against Aggies
Phillip Geiggar – Came on at the end of his career
Ahmad Brooks – Undersized, but solid contributor
Marcus Griffin – Not as talented as Michael, but a hard worker.
Posted in Uncategorized by houstonlibrarian -
Thursday, 24. September 2009
#8
Ivan Williams
Ivan was one of the top ranked running backs in the state coming out of Cleveland high school. If you watch his recruiting video, you could see why he would be. He never quite got untracked while at Texas. He did have a few good games, including one against Nebraska in his junior season in which he had over 100 yards in receptions, that helped Texas get some wins. He seemed ready to breakout his senior season, but an injury slowed him and he never really got it going. Ivan finished up his career with 613 yards rushing and 6 td’s on 122 carries. His sophomore campaign was his best, as he finished second on the team with 519 yards.
#7
Ahmard Hall
Hall came to Texas as a walk on straight out of the Marines. He played his high school ball at Angleton, but he was not highly heralded. Hall would wind up playing a key role for the Horns as a fullback. He rarely ever had his number called while with the Horns, but he was a dynamite blocker and special teams player. His talent has really come out while playing in the NFL with the Titants. Hall is fast, big and productive. His best work at Texas may have come on special teams, as he was the leading tackler on special teams in his junior season.
#6
Chris Ogbonnaya
Chris was all over the place while in Austin. He started out as a running back at Strake Jesuit. He was moved to a receiver position when he got to Texas. He was then converted back to running back during his freshman season. Chris never put up the great numbers, but he was a solid dependable back. Some say he was the best running back on the team his senior season. That season he had a couple of huge plays. One was a 65 yard td reception against Colorado that broke the game open. The other more memorable play came against Oklahoma. Texas had trouble running the ball, but Chris took an option pitch, made a few moves, and took the ball 62 yards deep into Sooner territory to help ice the game. He finished his career with only 597 yards rushing, with 373 of that coming in his senior season, but it was good enough to get him drafted into the NFL by the St Louis Rams.
#5
Selvin Young
Selvin was the top rated running back in Texas his senior year in high school playing for Jersey Village. He never really was able to get healthy enough at Texas to show why he was given that spot. He made some nice special teams plays his freshman season, including a long punt return for a td against Tulane. Just when he was ready to breakout his junior season he suffered an injured ankle that caused him to miss the rest of the season. Young was able to get the ball enough to finish up with over 1700 yards rushing in his career at Texas. His best season came in his last in Austin when he ran for nearly 600 yards on 137 carries and crossed the goalline 7 times.
#4
Hodges Mitchell
Mitchell is an underrated running back in Texas Longhorns history. He had back to back 1,000 yard rushing seasons after Ricky Williams graduated. Hodges would have most likely been drafted if not for an unfortunate injury in his final game of his career at the Holiday Bowl against Oregon. Hodges had 256 carries for 1343 yards and 9 td’s rushing in his junior season. Not enough to make people forget about Ricky Williams, but a pretty impressive season by most standards. Mitchell was also adept at catching passes out of the backfield, ending his career with 71 catches for 743 yards and 4 td’s. It’s just a shame he got hurt, because I would have liked to have seen what he could do in the NFL.
#3
Jamaal Charles
Jamaal was the best running back in the state coming out of Port Arthur Memorial high school. He put up unbelievable numbers there his last two years after serving as James Johnson’s backup during his 10th grade year. Charles had two especially memorable games in high school. One was a 4 td second half performance against Aldine to lead PAM to a playoff victory. The other was a 400+ yard performance against Westfield, one of the best defenses in the state. Charles was also a nationally ranked hurdler in high school and would run some track for Texas. A lot of Horns fans are tough on Jamaal because of his fumbles in key games, particularly one against Oklahoma that did not help matters. Jamaal was a very gifted running back though. His speed is unlike anything we have seen from any of the other backs on this list. Once Jamaal hit the corner it was katy bar the door. His junior season was his most impressive work as he finally got the amount of carries he needed to show what he could do. He finished up with 1619 yards that season and 18 touchdowns, which led to his declaring for the NFL draft. He now plays for the Chiefs in the NFL.
#2
Cedric Benson
Cedric won three stats championships in high school at Midland Lee. He was one of the most prolific running backs in the history of Texas high school football, yet still people wanted to find weaknesses in his game. Some said he was too slow, other said he didn’t have the moves required to be an elite running back. Benson ended up being the second best running back, by far, in the Mack Brown era. Cedric started out fast and never really slowed down other than a collision with Mike Williams in the Big 12 Championship game his freshman year. Cedric finished with over 5500 yards in his career and 64 touchdowns. His finest season was his senior season where he ran for 1834 yards and 19 td’s. He was a workhorse, and the Horns would be lucky to find another back of his caliber.
#1
Ricky Williams
Ricky was a John Mackovic recruit, but Mack Brown gets credit for convincing him to stay for his senior season. Ricky is one of the top 10 backs in the history of college football. He held the all time rushing yardage record for a short time until Ron Dayne broke it. Ricky won the Heisman his senior season, rushing for 2100 yards and 27 touchdowns. Especially memorable was a game in Lincoln, against Nebraska where he ran for well over 100 yards on the day. He led the team to a 20-16 victory to stop Nebraska’ incredibly long home winning streak. Williams was a fullback his first two years under Mackovic’s system, but finally move to the tailback position his junior season. He nearly ran for 2,000 yards that season as well. He probably would have if he had been given the ball as many times as he should have been, as he was the lone bright spot for that 4-7 Texas team. The Horns won 9 ball games in Ricky’s senior season, and Ricky staying was a pivotal point in the program’s return to the elite in college football
Posted in Uncategorized by houstonlibrarian -
Tuesday, 22. September 2009
Listing the top 10 Texas Longhorn receivers in the Mack Brown era.
#1
Roy Williams
47 straight games with a catch. 36 career td receptions. 241 catches for 3866 yards
Roy Williams was one of the top ranked receivers coming out of high school. He went to powerhouse Texas high school Odessa Permian. Williams single-handedly kept his high school track team in the state championship hunt by finishing with points in the 100 meters, high jump and long jump in his senior year. Williams was at times unstoppable for Texas. His senior year left a little to be desired as he no longer had Chris Simms delivering the ball to him. Vince Young was not very polished at that time and ran a lot more than he threw which hurt Roy’s numbers. He still finished atop the record books in most all receiving categories.
#2
Quan Cosby
Quan took a circular route getting to Texas. Out of Mart High school, he won a state championship playing both ways. He was drafted by the California Angels and was immediately their fastest prospect in the organization. Quan gradually progressed into the NFL caliber receiver that he became in his senior season at Texas. In 2008, Quan had 92 catches for 1123 yards and 10 touchdowns. Those are stellar numbers regardless of when or where they were posted. Quan probably had the best hands of anyone on this list. If he got his hands on it, it wasn’t going to get away from him. He made many a diving, acrobatic catch in his four years at Texas.
#3
Jordan Shipley
Shipley also had a long road to get to where he is today. Jordan was a nationally ranked receiver out of Burnet high school where he teamed with Aggie Stephen McGee to become one of the most prolific tandems in Texas high school history. Jordan was injured in two of his first few years at Texas. He never really was able to get 100% until last year. Shipley put it all together and continues to add to it this year. He had 89 catches for 1060 yards and 11 td’s last year. He is on pace to equal or possibly surpass thaose numbers this year.
#4
Kwame Cavil
Kwame Cavil came to Texas under John Mackovic as a linebacker from Waco originally. Mackovic quickly shifted him over to receiver and the dividends paid off pretty quickly. Cavil and Major Applewhite were a heck of a team back in the late 90’s. Not sure why Cavil never caught on with an NFL team. He lacked the high end speed of most receivers, but he was a big target and he never dropped a ball. Cavil ended up with 174 catches for 2279 yards, including 10 touchdowns. He capped off his career his junior season with 100 catches for 1188 yards and 6 td’s. The 100 catches still stands as a school record.
#5
David Thomas
David Thomas was a highly recruited tight end out of Wolfforth Frenship high school. He immediately got playing time and stayed a huge part of the offense throughout his career. He was an extremely important player in the championship game in 2005 against USC. Thomas was money on third downs. He had sure hands and pretty good speed. He finished up with 98 catches for 1367 yards and 15 td’s, which are all at or near the top of the list for tight ends in Longhorn history.
#6
Wane McGarity
Wane was another guy that started out his career with a bunch of injuries. He came in from San Antonio Clark high school as a highly touted running back. He played at running back for the first part of his career. He hurt a knee, which did not seem to rob him of any of his speed. He came back faster than ever and made the switch to receiver. He was a huge part of the Texas upset of Nebraska in the Big 12 Championship game in 1996. What Texas fan would forget the 60+ yards td pass from James Brown and Musburger’s call of “Wane McGarity! Gives! Texas! a CHANCE!” Wane was one of my faorite Horns and he carved out a prety decent career as a punt returner in the NFL and CFL. Wane had a superb senior season which saw him catch 58 passes for over 1,000 yards and 9 td’s.
#7
BJ Johnson
BJ was the number one rated receiver the same year that Roy Williams came out. You know that he was good in high school. He probably never lived up to the expectations that Texas fans had for him, but that was more to do with the unrealistic expectations. Johnson was a solid receiver for four years that took part in many a big Texas win. He was especially prevalent in the big wins over A&M during the era. Johnson finished his career with 152 catches for 2389 yards and 16 td’s. Those are all very respectable number, just not what the Longhorn fans were expecting from the #1 receiver in the nation.
#8
Limas Sweed
Limas was in a run first offense at Brenham high school. He actually played tight end in high school. He was allegedly a little on the slow side, but he turned into quite a deep threat for the Longhorns. This could be due to his size. He was about 6′3″ and ran a lot of go routes. He was not the guy that was going to go across the middle, but he could get deep. Sweed is best remembered for his HUGE catch against the Ohio State Buckeyes that ended up being the deciding points in the Texas win. If he never caught another ball, Texas fans would have been perfectly ok with that. He caught a lot more balls though. He ended up with 124 catches for 1915 yards and 20 td’s in his career.
#9
Nate Jones
Nate was a highly sought after recruit coming out of Texas high school in Texarkana. He played a little defensive back and receiver in high school, and it was unsure which he would play at Texas. He ended up playing receiver and not really getting a whole lot of time his first three seasons. He stepped up to the table and played some good ball his senior year. He had dependable hands and was a good route runner. His senior year he had 70 catches for 795 yards and 5 td’s. So while he never did anything earth shattering, he put in his time and became a solid college receiver.
#10
Sloan Thomas
Sloan was in the same class as Roy Williams and BJ Johnson. All three were rated in the top ten of all receivers in the nation that year. Sloan was out of Klein high school. He played receiver and was also a good safety at Klein. He, like BJ, never really showed the elite talent that would have him ranked so highly. Thomas was another solid contributor though for four seasons. He was very consistent. His final career numbers had him with 88 catches for 1362 yards and 12 td’s.
Posted in Uncategorized by houstonlibrarian -
Monday, 21. September 2009
Boys and girls…
We have gone over the greatest Houston Oilers Ever…
We have gone over the greatest Houston Rockets ever…
It must be time for the Astros.
Let’s start with the pitchers.
#15
Danny Darwin AKA Dr Death AKA The Bonham Bullet
Darwin spent six combined seasons with the Asros. He was a starter at times as well as a reliever. He pitched well enough in 1990 towin the NL ERA crown, which is nothing to sneeze at. He is a hometown boy, whih probably gets him enough extra credit to find his way onto the list here. Every team could use a Danny Darwin in their rotation or in the bullpen.
#14
Darryl Kile
Kile was a homegrown talent who spent seven years with the Stros. He finished with a 71-65 record for Houston while compiling a 3.79 ERA over those seven years. Kile went to two all star games and finished in the top ten in Cy Young voting one time while with the Astros. He also threw a no hitter in the Dome, which cemented his legacy.
#13
Roger Clemens
Had Clemens spent more time in Houston he may very well have ended up much higher up this list. The fact that he only spent three seasons with the Astros yet still ends up on here is evidence of just how much he dominated in those three short years. Clemens won one Cy Young and should have won two in his time with the Astros. Clemens had a 1.87 ERA in 2005 compared to Cris Carpenter’s 2.83 in essentially the same number of starts and almost as many innings. It was a sham that Clemens did not win. Clemens made two all star games and finished up 38-18 with a 2.40 ERA for the three seasons in Houston.
#12
Joe Sambito
Sambito is one of those Astros that everyone remembers fondly. He was with Houston for eight seasons. He made one all star team in that time and also finished up in the top ten in Cy Young in 1980 when he went 8-4 with 17 saves and a 2.19 ERA. Sambito finished his time with Houston with a 2.42 ERA, a 33-32 record as well as 72 saves.
#11
Shane Reynolds
Shane was a University of Texas product. He was never really dominating, but he was consistent and gave you a lot of starts over the years. Reynolds did make one all star team and also finished in the top ten in Cy Young voting once. His career Astros record was 103-86 with a 3.95 ERA. He was the number one starter for several years.
#10
Don Wilson
Wilson tossed two no hitters which is what a lot of Astros fans remember. He also struck out 18 batters in a game once. Wilson pitched nine years with Houston compiling a 104-92 record and going to one All Star game. His career ERA was 3.15, which is one of the tops in team history for a starter with so many years of service.
#9
Ken Forsch
Forsch pitched for a lot of years in Houston. He pitched a no hitter in 1979. He went to one all star game in that time. He had a 78-81 record and also recorded 50 saves. His 3.18 ERA shows his consistency.
#8
.jpg)
Joe Niekro
Ol knucksy. Niekro is most remembered for his knuckleball. He and his brother both made a living on it. Older brother Phil rode it all the way to the Hall of Fame. Joe was successful as well with the Astros. Niekro pitched for 11 ears in Houston. He went 144-116 in that time with a 3.22 ERA. He twice finished in the top 10 in Cy Young voting and made one all star game in that time. He was a very consistent pitcher for a lot of Astros teams over the years.
#7
Billy Wagner
Wagner may have been higher on this list had he not ended his time in Houston prematurely. wagner was a dominant closer at time. Other times Houston fans swore he needed to develop an alternative pitch to his blistering fastball. That 100 mph fastball usually was enough though. Wagner put in nine years of service in Houston. In that time he went 26-29, collecting 225 saves and a 2.53 ERA. He pitched well enough to represent the NL three times in the midsummer classic.
#6
Dave Smith
Smitty….Well remembered for his fluffy hair busting out of the sides of his cap. Dave Smith was an Astro through and through. He spent eleven seasons in Houston. He was the closer on the 1986 team that nearly made the World Series. Smith went to two all star games with Houston. Back in the time before saves were so easy to get, Smith piled up 199 of them. He also pitched enough to go 53-47 in the win loss column, all while sporting a 2.53 ERA.
#5
Mike Scott
Scott was a dominant force for a few years there in the NL. If he could have sustained that for even three more years, we might be talking Hall of Fame for Mike Scott. Scott won the Cy Young aawrd going away in 1986, then almost won it again in 1990. The Scott from 1986 was won of the best pitchers ever. He put up a 2.28 ERA that year and struck out over 300 batters with his famed split finger pitch. The splitter worked so well that a lot of managers tried to claim he was using a fingernail file to scuff the ball. Roger Craig, San Francisco Giants manager at the time, was one of the most vehement about the whole thing. Scott finished 110-81 with Houston and had a 3.30 ERA. He went to three all star games while with the Stros.
#4
JR Richard
JR was a dominant force for the Astros in the 70’s. It’s a shame that health issues caused him to retire at age 30. He had already finished in the top 10 in Cy Young voting three times by then. He struck out over 300 batters in consecutive seasons. Richard had a 1.90 ERA in 17 starts in his final season with Houston. JR finished up his career with a 107-71 record and a 3.15 ERA.
#3
Nolan Ryan
Nolan was a hometown Houstonian, actually from Alvin, TX, but close enough. Ryan was a favorite of Houston Astros fans. He tossed one no hitter while in Houston. He broke Walter Johnson’s strikeout record while with the Astros. He went to two all star games and finished in the top 10 in Cy Young voting three different times in his nine years in Houston. He won an ERA title twice, once while also somehow going 8-16 in that year taking away any chance he had of winning the Cy Young, although he did finish 5th. Nolan ended up in the Hall of Fame, probably mostly from his work in California, but I will always remember him in the rainbow uniforms of the Astros.
#2
Larry Dierker
Dierker was an Astro from age 18 on up til present day save for one year with St Louis at the end of his career. He has been in the broadcast booth. He has been the manager, he has been a starting pitcher, he is back in the broadcast booth for some minor league teams of the Astros now. He is the posterchild for the Houston Astros organization. Dierker was a fine pitcher in his day. He played 13 years with Houston, going 137-117 with a 3.28 ERA. He went to two all star games in his time with Houston. He also managed to toss a no hitter.
#1
Roy Oswalt
This choice may be a bit controversial to some, but look at the stats. Roy won probably the biggest game in Astros history to this point when he beat the Cardinals in the NL Championship series a few years back. This was after Lidge blew the previous game in the ninth. Roy pitched a gem that day. Roy has been to three all star games. Oswalt has a 137-70 career record, which is good for third active amongst all pitcher in winning percentage. Oswalt has finished in the top 10 in Cy Young voting a remarkable five times thus far in his career. He won an ERA title in 2006. He has a career ERA of 3.23, which really can’t be measured against the other pitchers here. Oswalt has not been pitching in the Astrodome, and he has been pitching during the steroid era. That ERA is 5th among active pitchers with at least 1,000 innings pitched. Oswalt has been a dominant starter for the majority of his career with the Astros.
Honorable Mention
Wade Miller
Bob Knepper
Pete Harnisch
Mike Hampton
Brad Lidge
Mike Cuellar
Ken Johnson
Dave Roberts
Posted in Uncategorized by houstonlibrarian -
Friday, 18. September 2009
See the greatest Houston Oilers HERE
See the greatest Houston Astros Pitchers HERE
After going over the greatest Houston Oilers ever. I thought it might be nice to take a stab at the greatest Houston Rockets ever. I am going to include San Diego Rockets here as well.
So let’s count em down.
#12
Robert Reid
Bobby Joe Reid. The man with the high and tight shorts. He still wears the same style shorts today if you ever see him around Houston. He was a true Rocket though. He was with the team for ten years. He averaged 11 points 5 boards and a steal in that time. He was never an all star level performer by any measn, but he could play some solid defense and was a great role player for the Rockets team that made it to the 1986 Championship series against Boston. His longevity with the team is what really gets him on here though. When you think of Bobby Joe, you think of the Houston Rockets.
#11
Mike Newlin
Newlin was another long time Rocket. He was one of the best free throw shooters in the history of the NBA. Newlin finished his career shooting 87% from the FT line, good for 20th best career percentage. He is all over the Rockets’ all time leaders stats page. He may not be at the top. He may not have been an all star, but he was a consummate Rocket.
#10
Steve Francis
This one may be a controversial selection. Francis was only with the Rockets for five seasons, but he made three all star games in those seasons. He averaged about 19 points and 6 board in his time with the Rockets. He brought some excitement to the team. He brought a popular player to the team. He was close to winning a coupld of dunk competitions during the all stra break. He played with a lot of heart. He may not have made those around him better, but he was sure fun to watch in the Rockets red.
#9
Otis Thorpe
OT was a fan favorite. He was with the Rockets long enough to win one championship. He also brought Clyde the Glide over when we traded Thorpe to the Blazers, so he has that going for him. Thorpe could not shoot free throws very well, so it’s funny that this is the only picture I could find. He was well known for his one arm, quarterback-like outlet passes. He was known for being the point man on fast breaks. He was known for being a huge, muscular guy that no one would want to mess with. He made one all star team and went for around 15 and 10 in his six and a half seasons with the Rockets. You can’t ask for much more than that.
#8
Yao Ming
Yao’s only fault is that he is not Hakeem Olajuwon. Ming has averaged 19 and 9 and 2 blocks for his entire seven year career with Houston. He has made seven all star teams over those seven years. He is one of the best centers in the league and has been for the last several years. He gets injured too much and he may be a bit soft, but really the reason he is much maligned is because Houston fans were used to Hakeem, one of the top three centers of all time.
#7
Tracy McGrady
He belongs on the list if for no other reason than the dunk over Shawn Bradley in the playoff series a few years back. Of course, T-Mac has also been maligned throughout his career. He has never won a playoff series. The Rockets finally won one last year, but McGrady was hurt for the whole series, so he cannot claim that one. McGrady was the best offensive player in the league with Orlando before Houston got him. He was still the best offensive player in the league for the first two years that Houston had him. Injuries have takent their toll, but McGrady was the entire offense for a few years there. Amazingly, he is 4th all time in career assists per game for the Rockets with nearly six per game. He has averaged 22/5/6 for the five years he has been in Houston, making three all star games. He belongs on this list.
#6
Clyde Drexler
Clyde the Glide was a hometown Houston boy. He went to Houston Sterling high school. He went to UH for the Phi Slamma Jamma days. It was destined for him to come back to Houston. When the Rockets were struggling to get back to the championship series in 1995, they made the move to bring over Drexler from Portland. He was a huge part of the run to the second consecutive title. Drexler only hung around three and a half years, but he helped win a championship and finished his Rockets career with averages of 19/6/6. Thos are all star numbers. He went to two all star games while with Houston. He was a competitor, a winner and a hometown boy, so he goes high on the list. His hilarious announcing style helps out his cause a bit too.
#5
Elvin Hayes
Another hometown boy that went to the University of Houston. Elvin started out with the San Diego Rockets, so he only played one season in Houston. All of the seasons count though, if only because I give him a free pass. He did after all have the great 80’s commercials for Yellow Cab that was located on Hays Street. He would end the commercial by flipping a basketball over his shoulder and into a hoop behind him about 25 feet away. You couple that with the fact that he made four all star appearances in a Rockets uniform and averaged 27 and 16.5 during those four years with the Rockets….you have yourself a great Rocket.
#4
Rudy Tomjanovich
A lot of people remember Rudy T from the championships he won and his “never underestimate the heart of a champion” phrase. Others may even remember him from being punched in the face by Kermit Washington, which led to many facial surgeries and a shortened career. These will probably be his legacy to many around the country. To Rockets fans, they also remember the great power forward that Tomjanovich was during his playing days. He played 11 seasons and went for 17/8 in his career. He made five all star games in those 11 seasons. The numbers would have been better had he not been injured by the punch. He was putting up 21 and 6 and was only 29 years old at the time. He may have been a Hall of Famer had it not been for the punch.
#3
Calvin Murphy
What can you say about Calvin? The best announcer the Rockets ever had. The best ladies man the team ever had. He had about a dozen kids with as many women. The guy had everything you need to be a fan favorite. He was undersized. He was one of the best shooters in the history of the NBa. Had their been a 3 point line back when he played, he would have scored many more points. He ended his career with the th best FT% ever. He finished 1st or 2nd in the league in FT% in 9 of his 13 seasons with the Rockets. He made an all star game. He made the Hall of Fame. He loves the Rockets and we love him.
#2
Moses Malone
Moses….shame they let this guy go. They got a lot in return when he signed with Philly. But they ended up taking Rodney McCray with the #3 pick that they got and that was a missed pick. Moses was arguably the best player in the league in the late 70’s and early 80’s. He led the Rockets to a championship series against the Celtics in 1981. They lost that one, but it was a great run. Moses played six seasons with the Rockets averaging 25/15/1.5. Those are HOF numbers any which way you want to slice it. It was not his fault that the Rockets were not a better team back then. Malone made the all star team five times in his stint with Houston. He is of course in the HOF now, even though he is remembered probably more as a Sixer than a Rocket by some. He was a two time MVP while with the Rockets.
#1
Hakeem Olajuwon
Hakeem, or Akeem as he was known earlier in his career, was the best player the Rockets ever had. He was one of the best players of all time. He was arguably the best center ever. When he was at his best, he was unstoppable. When he was at his worst, he was still the best center in the league. He played 17 seasons with Houston. He went to 12 all star games. He won two championships, the first one was nearly ll by himself. The second best player on the team was Otis Thorpe. He averaged 22/11/3 for his career. He had seasons where he averaged over 27 points per game. He had seasons where he averaged 14 rebounds per game. He had seasons where he averaged over 4.5 blocks per game. He had seasons where he averaged over 2 steals per game. It is going to take a once in a lifetime type player to even come close to unseating Olajuwon from his perch here as the greatest Rocket ever.
Honorable Mention:
Ralph Sampson
Not enough time on the team, and injuries took their toll
Cuttino Mobley
Real close to taking someone’e spot in my eyes, but he just wasn’t here long enough for his contributions to overtake Bobby Joe.
Charles Barkley
Again, was not here long enough, although he performed at a high level.
Allen Leavell
Leavell was a longtime Rocket and his name is all over the career leaders lists. He just wasn’t good enough to unseat any of the guys on the list.
Posted in Uncategorized by houstonlibrarian -
Wednesday, 16. September 2009
Go here to see the best Oilers kickers ever
Go here to see the best Houston Astros pitchers ever
Go here to see the best Houston Rockets of all time
14. Kenny Burrough
Ol number double zero on the outside for the late 70’s Oilers. He could streak down the sidelines like nobody’s business. My dad call him Kenny “Butterfingers” Burroughs so much that I thought it was his actual nickname. I can’t say whether he had butterfingers or not as I was too young to watch many of these games back that long ago. He did make two pro bowls in his career and was able to rack up over 1,000 yards receiving in 1975. He must have had some talent in there somewhere. Double zero has to be here.
13. Billy “White Shoes” Johnson
Dude did have the white shoes on. You gotta give him that. He was the best punt returner the Oilers ever had. We thought we might have had something with Gerald the Ice Cube McNeil, but that didn;t work out. We thought when Mel Gray came along we were in there with a new top returner, but no sir. Carl Roaches is the only one that can compete. Billy Johnson had a better nickname though, so he is still elevated in the minds of Oiler fans.
12. Ernest Givins
Givins was from ….Louisville, as Tom Jackson constantly reminded us. He was drafted in the 2nd round of the 1986 draft. Givins was the perfect fit for a run-n-shoot offense. He finished his career with over 8,000 yards on 571 catches in his career. All of that coming with Houston, except for one forgotten year with Jacksonville late in his career. Ernest was Houston Oiler blue through and through. He invented the Electric Slide dance for his touchdown celebration, which is probably his most lasting legacy. He did make the pro bowl twice, but the Electric Slide is the thing that Oiler fans remember.
11. Haywood Jeffires
Haywood was another run-n-shoot champion for the Oilers. Jeffires, yes that’s how you spell it, went to three pro bowls and was voted first team all pro once. He was an outside receiver in the Oilers scheme. He was the first player that I ever saw that went without the thigh pads and knees pads. It is common now, but back then Haywood was the only one I remember seeing doing that. Haywood had 100 catches for 1181 yards and seven td’s in 1991.
10. Gregg Bingham
Linebacker from Purdue, Bingham was the epitomy of a dependable player. He finished up his career with the most tackles in franchise history. He was consistent from year to year. He played 12 years with the Oilers, amassing spectacular stats with so many tackles, yet he never once made a Pro Bowl. Looking at the picture, how can you not root for Bingham?
9. Charlie Hennigan
Charlie Hennigan was an AFL star for Houston. Hennigan was a five time pro bowler in the AFL. In his second season, he had 1746 yards receiving, a professional record that stood for 34 years. Three years later he caught over 100 passes, the first ever professional football player to do so.
8. Ray Childress
Childress is going to have a clobberthon and clobber big city prices. That’s reason number one he is one of the greatest Oilers in history. Dude has been clobbering the big city prices out at Lawrence Marshall since I was in diapers. He also happened to be one helluva defensive lineman. He stuck Christian Okoye and laid him out. He never backed down from anyone. He was strong as an ox. He was a five time pro bowler, and had he been on a championship team or two, he might be a Hall of Famer.
7. Elvin Bethea
Bethea was the first Oiler HOF player. Talk about playing on some bad teams, this was your guy. He did get a piece of the pie with the late 70’s Earl Campbell-led Oilers that challenged the Steelers for the AFC. Bethea was an eight time pro bowler. He came along before sacks were counted, which is too bad for him. He was a terror for opposing quarterbacks.
6. Robert Brazile
Robert was on some good Oilers teams, and he was one some bad ones. He was 6′4″ 240 and could run like a deer. Brazile was a part of seven pro bowl in his career. He made his first in 1976 when the Oilers finished 5-9 and made his last in 1982 when they finished 1-8. It’s safe to say he didn’t just slide by on the merits of a great team. He earned his trips to the Pro Bowl. He is not in the Hall of Fame though, which is a reflection on his team and not himself. If he was on those Steelers teams of the 70’s he would be in no doubt. He is on the all 70’s decade team, yet not in the HOF. It’s hard to find the logic. His porkchop sideburns belong in the Hall of Fame too.
5. Ken Houston
This is a tough one as Ken Houston was in Washington for half his career. He is a HOF player though as a defensive back. He went to the pro bowl 12 times in his career, five of those coming with the Oilers. So, we can take some credit for him. He was born in Lufkin, TX and went to college at Prairive View, so that makes him a hometown boy as well.
4. Mike Munchak
Munchak was an All-American coming out of Penn State. He was selected in the first round of the 1982 NFL draft by the Oilers. He played all 12 years of his career in Houston. Currently, Munchak is offensive line coach for the Tennessee Titans. Munchak lived up to the hype as he was selected to the Pro Bowl nine times in his career. He is a member of the Hall of Fame.
3. Warren Moon
Moon came in from the Edminton Eskimos. He endured a couple of poor seasons at the start of his NFL career. He heard the boos. He turned it around though when they put some talent around him. He was able to lead the run-n-shoot offense to some unreal numbers. He went to six Pro Bowls while an Oiler. Moon threw for 4600+ yards two years in a row in the early 90’s. He has the 9th and 10th highest passing seasons in the history of the NFL. Some called him the black Clark Gable. This guy was the man back in the day.
2. Earl Campbell
Earl was a Heisman trophy winner out of the University of Texas. The Oilers were able to dupe the Tampa Bay Bucaneers into giving up their number one overall pick so that the Oilers could draft him. For five years, he was possibly the best running back in the history of the game. His bruising running style wore him down though, so his longevity was not up to the standard of some other running backs. He was named to the pro bowl five times and was named MVP of the league his first two years in the NFL. He was a bad dude. He also dipped Skoal and was a Skoal man.
1. Bruce Matthews
Bruce was selected in the first round the very next year after Munchak. Matthews played a whole lot longer though. He finally retired in 2001. Matthews went to the Pro Bowl 14 times. He finally hung it up at age 40, making the Pro Bowl in his final year. Coming out of USC as an All-American, he was able to play each position on the line for the Oilers and played them all at a high level. He is now helping coach the Houston Texans.
Posted in Uncategorized by houstonlibrarian -