Beckham’s future still up in the air
Nearly a month after leaving the Los Angeles Galaxy, David Beckham is considering “a number of serious proposals” but is in no rush to find a new team, his management company announced. He has been linked to several clubs in what would be the final chapter of the illustrious career of the 37-year-old midfielder and former England captain. He has said it’s unlikely he’ll return to the English Premier League. “(Hicks’ absence) didn’t hurt us at one spot. I thought it hurt us at three or four spots because it affected some of the inexperienced guys that were around him.”
Hicks’ loss came just before Texas faced a murderers’ row of highoctane offenses — Oklahoma State, West Virginia, Oklahoma and Baylor. In that span, the Horns yielded ghastly averages of 49.3 points and 580 yards per game.
To their credit, over the final five Big 12 games, the Longhorns led the league in points allowed (21.6), yards allowed (328.4) and passing yards allowed (153.4). Of course, those numbers came against less-potent offenses.
“I’m proud of the guys being resilient,” Diaz said. “But I’m tired of being resilient now. It’s time to be something else.” the arrival of great coach, Chip Kelly, and the omnipresence of Nike and Ducks benefactor Phil Knight — elevated the program to the elite level.
“We’re actually closer to Nike than Oregon is — in miles,” OSU associate athletic director Steve Fenk said. “We aren’t the Ducks, but they’ve forced us to be successful, and we’ve fed off their success. Everybody would like to have what Oregon has. Even USC doesn’t have what Oregon has, but it’s a little bit of an unfair comparison.”
Yet, the Ducks remain a big measuring stick and have won five straight in the Civil War.
“Oregon is flashier than we are, and not only because of their uniforms,” said safety Ryan Murphy, who chose OSU over UCLA, Fresno State, Cal and San Jose State. “Up and down I-5, you see Ducks billboards. In the malls, there are bigger Ducks sections than Beavers. We probably feel about them like A&M does Texas. What’s the saying? If you’re A&M, you root for two teams — A&M and whomever Texas is playing against.”