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I’ve searched high and low to find any of the media outlets talking about what Oregon Coach Mike Bellotti said during a press conference yesterday. I heard the sound bites on ESPN 920 here in Las Vegas last night. I’m amazed that no other media outlets are writing about his comments. I did find a few people on cougar board talking about Bellotti’s comments on BYU being part of the Pac 10 here and here.

Here’s what I remember from the sound bites I heard on the radio (the second one I haven’t found anywhere else):

The media person asked Mike Bellotti if he thought that BYU could compete with the upper half of the Pac 10.

After a short pause, Mike Bellotti said, “No.”

He then went on to say that he thought that BYU had a number of players that could be stars if they were in the Pac 10, but that collectively as a team BYU wouldn’t be able to compete in the Pac 10. Mike Bellotti also referenced BYU’s loss to a bad Arizona team and their loss to California in last years Las Vegas Bowl.

I could not believe that he really said this. The only thing that makes sense is that if Mike Bellotti says that BYU could compete in the Pac 10 he’d be admitting that BYU was a better team than Oregon. However, Mike is stupid for making a comment like this. There are plenty of good ways to answer the question. Saying, “No” is not one of them.

The second sound bite from Mike Bellotti is even more amazing.

A reporter asked Mike Bellotti if he had gotten any film from other schools in the Mountain West Conference.

Mike kind of stuttered as he asked what teams were in the Mountain West Conference?

The reporter said, “New Mexico, …”

Mike responded that he’d talked to Andy Ludwig and got tapes from them.

That’s ridiculous. What kind of coach doesn’t know where he got tapes from? Even if Mike Bellotti doesn’t know which teams are in the MWC, he sure as heck should know what kind of film he has available from an opposing team and the background of those games.

The funny thing is that I don’t know if Mike meant to say these stupid things or if he just doesn’t know how to hold his tongue?

**All of the above quotes are from the best of my memory. They aren’t exact, but are my best memory of what was said. If someone has the exact quote I’d love to post them.

It’s now official that Cox Digital Cable is going to have the Mtn and CSTV in their lineup. This is great for cable owning BYU fans in Las Vegas and San Diego. It’s even better news for satellite subscribers.

“It provides a broader coverage of the league, plus the satellite companies now know the programming is valuable,” said MWC Associate Commissioner Javan Hedlund. “They will need to pick it at some time. It’s all about competition.”

Any pressure that can be exerted against the satellite providers is good news in my book. Although, people in Las Vegas and San Diego shouldn’t be too excited. Seeing these two channels is going to come at a price for those using Cox. Here’s the details from TheMWC.com announcement:

The networks will be available on Cox Digital Cable’s Sports and Information tier, a highly penetrated package of more than a dozen digital networks consisting primarily of a mixture of national, regional, and specialty sports-themed channels. CSTV, the leader in college sports, will be shown on channel 319 in San Diego and channel 333 in Las Vegas. The mtn., the first network dedicated solely to an intercollegiate athletic conference, will be shown on channel 320 in San Diego and channel 334 in Las Vegas.

That sounds like a digital sports package on top of the Cox digital cable package. I’m thinking USDTV needs to get the Mtn and then that will be the best option for people wanting cable in Las Vegas.

At least we can rejoice that tonight the Las Vegas Bowl is being shown on ESPN.

I read a bunch of the news about BYU players doing the Haka at the Fremont Street pep rally. The stories I read seemed to blow it out of proportion. It sounded like there was a fight going on similar to something Miami football players might do. Watching the video of what happened, I don’t think it was that bad. It was 2 people puffing there chests at each other. Don’t get me wrong, it was stupid and could have become something much worse, but I think most of the BYU football players held their composure quite well. I don’t think this kind of puffing of chests is new to sports. Take a look at the video of BYU doing the Haka and tell me what you think? The video is on the right side of that webpage. Sorry that I can’t embed it right on my site.

I personally think the Haka should stay as long as there is a real polynesian (and probably Maori) member of the team. Here’s some commentary on keeping the Haka at BYU and some commentary on getting rid of the Haka at BYU.

Also, for your viewing pleasure. Here’s the BYU doing the pre-game Haka before beating Utah:

and here’s the post game Haka BYU performed:

Yes, the camera quality isn’t the best and the shaking is a bit too much, but it’s the best I could find online. I’ll be at the game today with video camera in hand. Hopefully I can catch the pre-game haka for all to enjoy!!