----- Forwarded by David M Gagliardi/TTG/HouInd on 10/24/01 08:35 AM -----

                    "Gagliardi,
                    Michael"             To:     "'dgagliardi@reliantenergy.com'" <dgagliardi@reliantenergy.com>,
                    <mgagliardi@un        "'david.ricks@spotplus.com'" <david.ricks@spotplus.com>,
                    ocal.com>             "'tony.a.rogers@fritolay.com'" <tony.a.rogers@fritolay.com>
                                         cc:
                    10/24/01 07:11       Subject:     FW: True Orange E-Mail/Fax #103
                    AM








> -----Original Message-----
> From:         TruOrange@aol.com [SMTP:TruOrange@aol.com]
> Sent:         Tuesday, October 23, 2001 9:16 PM
> To:           TruOrange@aol.com
> Subject:           True Orange E-Mail/Fax #103
>
> True Orange E-Mail/Fax Service
> Volume 9, E-Mail/Fax #104, Tuesday, October 23, 2001
> Jerry Scarbrough's True Orange, P. O. Box 26530, Austin, Texas 78755 -
> Phone
> 512-795-8536
>
> Buckman Picks Horns over Heels; Browns Says UT Has "4-Game Season"
>
> Brad Buckman, a 6-9, 235-pound power forward from Austin Westlake who is
a
>
> national top 50 recruit, picked Texas over North Carolina Tuesday, saying
> the
> Longhorn basketball program is on the upswing and he wants to be a part
of
> it.
> He had said earlier that the lure of the ACC, where basketball reigns
> supreme, was very strong, but he told me today, "I've always wanted to go
> to
> Texas. This is where my heart is." His father, Brent, played on two
> national
> championship golf teams at UT and his mother, Tammy, also is a Texas
> graduate.
> But he said he also used his head in picking the Horns over the Tar
Heels.
>
> "After looking at it closely," he said, " I think Texas basketball is
> really
> on the upswing. They've signed two McDonald's All Americans (freshman
> point
> guard T. J. Ford of Fort Bend Willowridge and sophomore forward Brian
> Boddicker of Duncanville) in the last two years."
> They could make it three in three years because Buckman's stock soared
> this
> summer when he played in several top AAU tournaments and more than held
> his
> own against some of the nation's heralded big guys.
> Dave Telep, a national recruiting analyst, said he probably is one of the

> nation's top 25 recruits. "The reality is that while there are 25 guys
> with
> larger names, there probably aren't 25 better players in the class,"
Telep
>
> said. "He is athletic, can handle it some, he blocks shots, he shoots to
> medium-range and he scores in the post."
> Clifton McNeely, his coach at Westlake, also says he also works very hard
> to
> get better. "He's a very gifted player with a lot of talent to start
> with,"
> McNeely said, "but the best thing about him is his strong heart and work
> ethic. I don't think you could find anyone who works harder than he
does."
> McNeely also said he thinks Buckman "is the best player in Texas." There
> are
> some guards in the Dallas area who ranked higher nationally, but Buckman
> is a
> national top 50 recruit who is the kind of blue-collar inside player UT
> coach
> Rick Barnes loves to coach.
> Buckman averaged 20 points, 11 rebounds and 5 blocks for Westlake as a
> junior
> and was recruited by other top basketball programs across the country,
> including Missouri, UCLA, Kentucky and others.
> He is the first recruit to commit to Texas for the early signing period
in
>
> November. Barnes and his assistants are recruiting several other players,

> most of them in other states, and hope to sign a  sharp shooting guard
and
> a
> wing.
> * * * *
> Coach Mack Brown said Tuesday he and his assistant coaches have told the
> Longhorn players they "start a four-game season this Saturday at
> Missouri."
> He said the Longhorns, at 6-1 and with a No. 6 ranking in the BCS, have a

> chance to rise if they keep winning because a lot of the teams above them

> play each other or play other unbeaten teams. Oklahoma is No. 1 in the
BCS
>
> rankings and Nebraska is No. 2. They play Saturday in Lincoln, so one of
> them
> is destined to drop. UCLA is No. 3 in the BCS, but has to play at
> undefeated
> Washington State later this season, and Miami and Virginia Tech are  No.
4
>
> and 5, but they play in the final regular-season game for both teams.
> For those of you who still want to think about a national title this
> season,
> it is a long, long shot. First, OU would have to lose to Nebraska and
> either
> Texas Tech or Texas A&M, and then Texas would have to beat Nebraska in
the
>
> Big 12 title game. Then all but one of the major unbeaten teams would
have
> to
> lose a game so it wound up like last year when OU was the only unbeaten
> team
> and played once-beaten Florida State for the national title.
> It could happen, but don't bet on it. I think the Horns have a great
> chance
> to finish 10-1, but I doubt that all but one of the unbeaten teams will
> lose.
> INJURY NOTE: It looks like LB Lee Jackson and DE O. J. McClintock, both
> fourth-year seniors, will redshirt and return next year. Both have been
> out
> with injuries all season and Brown said Tuesday there are no plans to
play
>
> them. He said Jackson is still having troubles with his toe and his leg.
> He
> said McClintock "could have played Saturday, but we're not going to play
> him
> unless we need him."
> RECRUITING NOTES: The Longhorns are still recruiting WR Robert Timmons of

> Flower Mound Marcus who committed to Florida Monday, and LB Michael
> Williams
> of Lindale, who ways he is a "soft commitment" to Oklahoma, but who has
> scheduled an official visit to Texas the Dec. 14 weekend.
> * * * *
> My next e-mail/fax will be whenever events warrant.
> * * * *
> The True Orange E-Mail/Fax Service includes  at  least  99 fax/e-mails  a

> year and costs $99 ($79 by E-Mail). The True Orange Newsletter includes
> 26
> newsletters and is published weekly during football season and twice
> monthly
> during most of the other months. It costs $45. Save by subscribing to
both
>
> for $130 (or $110 if you take the faxes via E-Mail  or $99 if you take
> both
> services via E-Mail). Send check  to address at the top of page. I also
> update my 900 number - 1-900-288-8839 - daily with recruiting news. My
> E-Mail address is: truorange@aol.com.