Given the bird after a turbulent landing at the Big 12 Media Days

Originally Published: Jul 26, 2010 4:25 PM CDT

If the arrival at the DFW Westin is a precursor to my stint here covering the Big 12 Football Media Days, it will be a turbulent three days.

A grown man should admit to the following. But my wife and friends tell me I am not a grown man, at least not mentally.
 
I enjoyed a two-hour and 56 minute drive from my father’s house to the hotel stayed with my aging dad after our Sunday night “Blitz” rather than drive home to Edmond making the drive to Dallas one hour longer than it was.

After a trip juiced compliments of XM radio and Jimmy Buffet’s Radio Margaretville, the excitement began while on the phone with a college buddy. Instead of pulling into the parking space like an adult, my conversation diverted my attention enough that I parked like a drunken sailor on leave.

Long story short, with too many bags in tow and the cell in hand and ear, I proceeded to trip over the curb that snuck up on as it cuddled next to my right front tire. I began to tumble onto the concrete...one of those tumbles that seems to last forever but one you know will ultimately end in disaster.

When staying erect became physically impossible, I dropped all twenty items I was attempting to take in to make it a one-trip check-in. I landed on my left hip, scraped my left leg and left shoulder so much that blood immediately surfaced, snapped my neck and ended up looking skyward in hopes no one was around as a witness.

Sure enough, three seconds later, a media member who was just getting out of his car screamed, “Are you okay?” I quickly said yes and hoped to no avail that he would not recognize me.

After being on the ground about ten seconds and pondering the next move, a bird swooped down knocking off my Duke Blue Devils hat. It must have enjoyed the laugh because it immediately did a 180 and headed back my way. This time it swooped down and literally pecked the top of my noggin.’ No kidding.

After sauntering into the check-in area I asked the girl at the front desk about the bird. She smiled and said, “Sorry about that but it’s our state bird -a mocking bird- and we can’t do anything about it.”

Bottom line, I have landed literally and am headed to hear what two solid coaches and friends have to say: Nebraska’s Bo Pelini and Baylor’s Art Briles.

I want to know if Bo really is excited to be joining the Big 10 or if he’d prefer Nebraska stay in the Big 12 and enjoy playing old rivals and fraternizing with Bob Stoops. And I want to know if Nebraska is as good as a lot of people are saying I’m biased being a closet Husker fan because I think it might just be that they play in the putrid North and don’t have the QB to really be of championship ilk.

And quarterback is the obvious question with Art. Is the supremely gifted Robert Griffin healthy from a severe season-ending knee injury or will he play at 90 percent. Baylor will never win if its difference-maker plays at 90 percent. But if this cat is healthy, I want to know if Art truly believes Baylor can make a run at third in the south. Third in the toughest division in college football ain’t too shabby for the Baylor Bears.

There are several questions for Mack Brown and Bob Stoops.

We’ll dive into those later. But for now, it’s time to put ice on the neck, clean the blood off the body pray that the witness to my memorable arrival had a heart attack and can’t tell the story of the dumb Okie who couldn’t get out of his car and was enthusiastically greeted by the Texas state bird not the first time that has happened in the Lone Star State.