***Wednesday July 23rd***

I'm posting this from back in Waco. After I fed my stories to Dan for the 6 and 10pm shows yesterday (Wednesday) in Kansas City, we went ahead and hit the road. And while all of my dear friends out in blogdom mean the world to me, I thought my final post from Big 12 Media Days could wait a few hours - so I decided not to pull over on the Kansas turnpike to seek out a wireless hot spot.

Before I catch you up on day three's happenings, I wanted to give you another food update - after all, that's REALLY what we care about.

For dinner on Tuesday night, Kyle and I took the short cab ride from our hotel to the world famous Arthur Bryant's BBQ at 18th and Brooklyn. Now, folks - I have as much Texas pride as the next guy (I have a COME AND TAKE FLAG in my house to prove it) but that BBQ was just as good than any I've ever had here in the lone star state.

I told the chef/chop artist that it was my first time in Kansas City. So after yelling his new-found scoop to the rest of the cooks in the back, he handed me a rib to sample while standing in line and offered his suggestion of the pulled pork sandwich with fries. I took his advice (remember, he was holding a meat cleaver the size of UT's football media guide) and soon learned that calling it a "sandwich" is a stretch. The only reason the bread is even on the plate is to sop up the juice rolling off the pound pile of moist meat staring at you. And don't even get me started on the sauce!! Overall, an outstanding dining experience.

And while it might not get as much fan fare or have its own website like Arthur Bryant's, I thoroughly enjoyed my lunch on Wednesday at T.J.'s Mini-Mart and Drive Thru at the corner of 12th and Wyandotte (downtown). Yes, it's a hot dog stand. But don't sell my man T.J. short - he doesn't just do weenies. My bratwurst on a bun was stellar.

Believe it or not, I did do more than eat my way through the Midwest. Oklahoma, Baylor, Iowa State, and Texas concluded the three-day Media session on Wednesday.

I'm sorry Keith Cavey (weekend weather anchor and OU alum) but Bob Stoops does not like people. Okay, he might like you if you can run a 4.5 or pass protect, but MAN is that guy a jerk to talk to if you have a camera or mic in your hand! Good thing he has 97 career victories and a national championship, because Bobby is not going to be WINNING any personality contests anytime soon.

He had high praise for senior wide receiver and Killeen high product Joaquin Yglecias. With Malcolm Kelly gone to the NFL, Stoops said Yglecias could emerge into the Sooners' new deep threat. Also, OU is switching to a no-huddle offense. Nice show of confidence in QB Sam Bradford. He is just a sophomore but obviously the staff feels that he is capable of engineering a hurry-up offense.

Iowa State will be the only conference game Baylor will be favored in this season (October 11th in Waco). Gene Chizik sounds like he will have more talent on the field this season, and his team won two of its final three games a year ago. But with only three senior starters on offense, it looks like the 'Clones are at least a year away from playing their way out of the bottom of the Big 12. They have some sweet new uniforms though. Think USC or the Redskins.

Colt McCoy laughed off his so-called Sophomore slump last year. He won 10 out of 13 games and threw for 22 touchdowns. His offensive line is much more experienced this season, but five of his top eight receivers from last year are gone. That could mean Mart's Quan Cosby could be in for a stellar senior season.

I asked Mack Brown and Colt about the running backs. Neither would give an advantage to any of the three. Vondrell McGee, Chris Ogbonnaya, and Fozzy Whittaker should all share carries. When asked if they could fill Jamaal Charles' shoes, both Brown and McCoy didn't hesitate in saying "yes". They pointed to the three players' lack of carries while playing behind Charles, for us not being fully aware of their abilities.

Colt McCoy is really excited to have former UT quarterback Major Applewhite on the staff as running backs coach. Even though he is not coaching his position, Colt raved about how much he's already learned from Applewhite. When to run, when not to run, etc. Also, McCoy thinks that Applewhite will improve the Horns' running game, which as we all know - will open up the passing attack.

Baylor may have been picked to finish last in the Big 12 South pre-season poll each of the last 11 seasons, but if there was a media days sound bite draft - the Bears would go number one! Jason Smith, Thomas White, and Vincent Rhodes were awesome with the media. And as it took us only a couple sentences into his introductory press conference to learn, head coach Art Briles is a microphone's best friend.

I thought the Bears did a great job in conveying an enthusiastic and winning message, despite not having a winning season since 1994. None of the players or Coach Briles wanted to say much about the past (coaches or seasons) - they emphasized Briles' contagious demeanor and his desire to turn things around in a hurry.

I hope I've provided you with a little bit of extra insight from Big 12 Media Days. I listened to 12 head coaches and 36 players talk about their upcoming seasons, so if there's something you want to know - I probably heard the answer. And as you can imagine, between twelve teams over three days, I recorded my fair share of bloopers. Tomorrow (Friday) night, I will run some of the funniest sound bites from Kansas City.

Also, be sure to check out our Big 12 previews on the air, starting next weekend. We will spotlight one conference team every night (at 6 and 10pm) from Friday August 1st until Tuesday August 12th.

I'm all Media Day-ed out. Thanks for checking out the blog. I'm off to unpack...

***Tuesday July 22nd***

As I mentioned in a previous post, this is my first time in Kansas City - and it's a fine town. We are staying downtown, so Kyle and I had a chance to scope out the area this afternoon while searching (and sweating, too) for some spots to shoot stand-ups. We did dinner in the Power & Light District last night, and I was very impressed. Tonight, I'm hoping to hit up one of the Kansas City BBQ spots that came so highly recommended. But I wanted to let you know how Day 2 of Media Days went first...

Kansas took the podium first. Quarterback Todd Reesing (Austin, TX native) told us that he had never been in the state of Kansas prior to his recruiting trip. Now, he's the starting QB on a team that went to a BCS game last season. No school in the lone star state can say that.

Mark Mangino was great. He told stories about when he first took the job at KU, nobody cared about Jayhawk football. When the bus would be making its way into the stadium on game day - people were jogging on the sidewalks, not caring (or even knowing) that a Big 12 conference football game was kicking off in a few hours. So, needless to say, the Man-genius and his Jayhawks are not going to complain about the sky-high expectations that come after a 12-win season a year ago.

When Colorado came next, I learned that George Hypolite (285 lb. defensive tackle) has already graduated with a double major in ethnic studies and women's studies. Wow! I took Dr. Dawson's Women In World History course my sophomore year, and I think the letter of my grade is in my first name. No, it wasn't an "A".

Dan Hawkins, as always, was entertaining. He does not want his outburst (IT'S THE BIG TWELVE!!) from two years ago to be compared with Mike Gundy's (I'M A MAN. I'M 40!!). Hawkins says he was not ranting, that's just how he is. Plus, he loves to remind us that there was no video for his.

Kansas State's players and head coach Ron Prince disagreed with the sentiment that KSU has more pressure than usual to win this year. The Wildcats have started 45 different players over the last two seasons and don't have much to show for it. And when you look at the Big 12 North, Missouri turned things around and played for a Big 12 title last year. Kansas came out of nowhere and won the Orange Bowl. Nebraska just hired young, successful head coach and is primed to get out of its funk. This is Ron Prince's third year at K-State. I think he should hope it's the charm.

Finally, when Oklahoma State arrived - I could talk to a team from the Big 12 South and one that Baylor will actually be playing this season. QB Zac Robinson seems to enjoy flying under the radar of the other Big 12 quarterbacks (Daniel, Harrell, McCoy, etc.). But hearing his teammates talk about him, you can tell he is not your typical college QB.

Defensive backs Ricky Price and Andre Sexton both said good things about University High's Perrish Cox. Sexton, however, mentioned that Cox's biggest weakness right now is his tackling ability. So he hopes that Perrish can deliver one of those "de-cleaters" early on this season, and gain some confidence.

To nobody's surprise, Mike Gundy is not big on talking about his YouTube classic from last season. We did find out that his birthday is August 12th. So in less than a month, he will still be a man. Just not a man who is 40.

Media Days go out with a bang tomorrow. Iowa State!!! Oh yah, Oklahoma, Texas, and Baylor too.

***Monday July 21***

Nebraska, Texas Tech, Missouri, and Texas A&M met the media on day one here in Kansas City. Surprisingly, Mike Leach did NOT bring quarterback Graham Harrell or wide receiver Michael Crabtree. I guess he figured that being Dave Campbell's cover boys was good enough for the two super stars?

Actually, Leach told us that his reason for not bringing his All-America candidates was simple. Harrell and Crabtree can each have great years, but if the other guys on the team don't play up to their potential - Tech cannot accomplish the goals it set for itself. So, he brought defensive backs Jamar Wall and Daniel Charbonnet to Kansas City to talk about said goals. And Leach said if you want to talk to Harrell or Crabtree, you have to fly to Lubbock and play with them "in their natural habitat."

The new coaches got plenty of attention today - Bo Pelini from Nebraska and Texas A&M's Mike Sherman, so you have to figure Art Briles will garner the same attention on Wednesday.

Pelini is solid. I've had a few opportunities to talk to him in the past, covering LSU for three years in Monroe, LA. He carries himself a bit different now as a head coach, though. He likes to wear his emotion on his sleeve. In fact, he talked about the family atmosphere he was trying to bring to Lincoln and how he "has his players backs."

It was unfortunate to hear Coach Pelini say that former Killeen High offensive lineman David Grant is still trying to become academically eligible, and is not with the Huskers right now.

New Nebraska QB Joe Ganz is a great sound bite and an even better story. Offensive lineman Matt Slauson compared Ganz to Rudy.

The A&M players talked about how the swagger never left College Station, so there is no need to get it back. Devin Gregg, Jordan Pugh, and Travis Schneider all talked about how "professional" Mike Sherman is.

I asked Sherman if the fact that most of his offensive players were recruited into a spread-option offense would pose a problem. He said that it might, but it's his and his coaches' responsibility to make sure the offensive personnel adapts positively to the new pro-style playbook.

The Missouri contingent carries itself like champions. Yah, I know they didn't win ANYTHING last year (except the Border War and the Cotton Bowl), but the Tigers are the unanimous pick to win the North. And I think they will.

Chase Daniel was fantastic. He took plenty of questions about losing to Oklahoma twice last season and coming back to play Texas this season, after the Horns didn't really recruit him out of Southlake Carroll (TX) high school - and he fired off answers like a pro. One answer he didn't give though - his goals for this season. He said that those are internal, and he doesn't see the point in telling us. But I bet they have something to do with winning a championship.

On Tuesday, Oklahoma State is here along with the only three schools Baylor does NOT play in the Big 12 (KU, Kansas State, and Colorado).

More to come! See you tomorrow.

***Sunday July 20th***

Four states, three Big 12 towns, two capital cities, and 654 miles later...I've arrived at the Kansas City Marriott.

As fun as it would be to keep the details of my 11-plus hour trip in a Chevy HHR to myself - that would be selfish. There is no "I" in team. I'm here for the people. All three of you that are reading this thing.

So here we go...

11:28am - After a quick stop at Common Grounds, my wingman/navigator/XM radio DJ Kyle Lewis (producer, Inside Baylor Sports) and I are on I-35.

2:13pm - We've managed to something Cedric Benson never seemed able to accomplish at UT. We have gotten past the Oklahoma line.

3:25pm - Stuck in traffic in Purcell, Oklahoma.

3:53pm - Still stuck in traffic in Purcell, Oklahoma.

4:02pm - Mac Davis was lying. Happiness is actually Purcell, Oklahoma (not Lubbock, TX) in your rear-view mirror. No, not really - I'm just hungry. Go Dragons.

7:16pm - We're in Kansas.

7:42pm - "I Kissed A Girl" by Katy Perry is on the XM Radio for the 74th time since leaving Waco.

7:58pm - Apparently Erin Andrews just appeared on the ESPYS, not looking terrible in a black dress. Or so say the four text messages (from four different people) we just received.

10:00pm - Mile **600** of the trip. Kyle takes a picture and asks me to take a curtain call and tip my cap. Because along with Bonds, Aaron, Ruth, Mays, Sosa, Griffey Jr. - 600 makes us a LOCK for 1st ballot Hall of Fame entry.

10:51pm - "Missouri" loves company.

Media Day activities get underway at 12:45pm tomorrow (Monday). Nebraska, Texas Tech, Missouri, and Texas A&M will meet the media on Day 1.

I'll have reports from K.C. during the 6 and 10pm newscasts. Also, be sure to check out KWTX.com for the "web exclusive" stuff that we don't put on the air.

That's all for tonight. We'll talk tomorrow. Have a great Monday!

***Saturday July 19th***

So, did you hear that every single football team in the Big 12 conference had it's best off-season yet and all that of the players on the team are more motivated than ever for this year?! Well, it's true. Don't believe me? Just wait until this week.

The Big 12 will hold it's annual football media days Monday through Wednesday in Kansas City, the site of December's Big 12 championship game.

I'm driving up to K.C. tomorrow to cover the event. It's a 10-hour trip, so if you have my cell phone number - please call me...I'll need some entertainment. The Gigli soundtrack gets old after about six hours.

This week is the one time a year, that all Big 12 head coaches and the players they bring (usually three per team) are made available to the media. So, if you have anything you're just itching to find out about a team or an individual player, go ahead and post those questions below. If you do, I'll try to mix them in during the press conferences up in KC and either post the answers on the blog or in the video player on the sports page.

Since this is my first trip to Kansas City, midwesterners Eli Ross (KWTX news reporter) and Kyle Cornish (Baylor assistant media relations director originally from lovely Topeka, KS) have provided a few Kay Cee must-sees for me (Gates BBQ, Jack Stack BBQ, etc.) but maybe you happen to have some other suggestions.

I'll check back when I arrive in Kansas City. Until then, enjoy the rest of your weekend!