FUZZY GEOGRAPHY
Clueless media once again shows their ass about Texas sports
Mar 22, 2021, 3:17 pm
FUZZY GEOGRAPHY
CBS, the "Tiffany Network," spent hundreds of millions of dollars to broadcast this year's March Madness games.
And then they hired Timmy in the third grade to draw their graphics for the big event. And it looks like Timmy is getting an "F" in geography.
Recently, I was watching one of the first-round games — I forget which one, I was all day in front of the TV — when the announcers started talking about Texas having seven teams in the tournament. Seven teams ties the all-time record for most teams from one state with California in 2002, and Texas in 2010 and 2018.
The Texas qualifiers this year are: University of Texas, in Austin; University of Houston and Texas Southern University, in Houston; Baylor University, in Waco; Texas Tech University, in Lubbock; Abilene Christian University, in Abilene; and North Texas University, in Denton.
Under the banner of "Lone Star State Success – NCAA Tournament Teams from Texas This Season," CBS showed a map where all the colleges are located in Texas.
Whoa? Even in my basketball bleary state, that map ain't close.
Literally ain't close. CBS had Austin practically on the Texas-Oklahoma border, Baylor south of UT, and UH and Texas Southern some distance apart (they're practically next-door neighbors.)
Politicians are always proposing school redistricting, but this is crazy.
If there's one college, you don't want to misplace, it's the University of Texas. Fun fact: every year UT tops the Forbes list for selling the most "merch," and no other school comes close. Let Notre Dame, Alabama, Tennessee, and others fight it out for No. 2. Don't mess with Texas, as in UT, indeed.
I contacted CBS to ask what gives with that map — you guys have UT hundreds of miles north of Austin – but they didn't respond. (Maybe CBS was busy finding a geography tutor for Timmy.)
Twitter is like the goalie who wins the Vezina Trophy in the National Hockey League: nothing gets past Twitter. I freeze-framed CBS' map of Texas' seven colleges in March Madness and posted it.
Thousands of Twitter users responded. Many simply posted one word: Yikes! Doh! Sheesh! Embarrassing! Lazy!
But, being how this is Texas, where everybody's a comedian, Twitter let fly:
Maybe the smartest comment, opening up old wounds that need to be opened: "I think they mean seven men's teams. Once again the women's teams are erased."
Jimmy and J.J.: a perfect concert match
Usually Jimmy Buffett is hitting the road this time of year, but if COVID is keeping him grounded, he'll bring some of his greatest hits concerts to fans online. Buffett is calling this his "Nothin' But Time Virtual Tour 2021," rewinding concerts from yesteryear on Saturday nights at 7pm. You can watch on Margaritaville.tv or listen on Radio Margaritaville on Sirius/XM.
To learn more about Jimmy's concert schedule and how JJ Watt ties into this, continue on CultureMap.
Houston Astros slugger Yordan Alvarez is going on the 10-day injured list with inflammation in his right hand.
The issue had caused the three-time All-Star to miss the last two games of the Astros’ weekend series with the Chicago White Sox. The move, announced before the Astros' Monday night game at Milwaukee, is retroactive to Saturday.
Houston recalled catcher César Salazar from Triple-A Sugar Land in a corresponding move.
Alvarez, 27, has batted .210 with a .306 on-base percentage, three homers and 18 RBIs in 29 games this season. That follows a 2024 season in which he batted. 308 with a .392 on-base percentage, 35 homers and 86 RBIs in 147 games while earning a third straight All-Star Game selection and finishing ninth in the AL Most Valuable Player voting.
He has posted an OPS of at least .959 each of the past three seasons and ranked fourth in the AL in that category last year.
Salazar, 26, was hitting .197 with a .305 on-base percentage, two homers and seven RBIs in 21 games for Sugar Land. He hit .320 with a .387 on-base percentage, no homers and eight RBIs in 12 games with Houston last year.