J.R.'s Family Bar-B-Q

We are back from sunny Miami and still proud of our Oklahoma Sooner Football Team who came up short to the Florida Gators in Thursday night's National Championship College Football game. The Sooners who were in the red zone, inside their opponent's 20 yard line, 80 times this season and scored 76 times of those times but squandered a couple of scoring opportunities in a first half against the powerful Gators in a half that ended in a 7-7 tie. The Gators are too good to allow them to get off the hook which resulted in a 24-14 Florida win. Congrats to the Gators for outplaying OU in the second half, specifically the 4th quarter to win their 2nd National Title in 3 years. 

I was in a very small group of people that included some of the OU coaches who sat around and discussed the game until 7 a.m. Friday morning which was one of the most unique nights this football fan has ever had the privilege of experiencing. No fans, no family, just 4-5 coaches and maybe 3 or 4 friends in our group. A class group of men who made no excuses, gave their opponent credit for the win, and are already looking forward to the '09 season and in continuing recruiting what looks to be another excellent high school class. 

The BCS people who came out of the ACC shut down the sideline passes so yours truly sat in a suite with the Mrs. with such OU alums as Adrian Peterson, Keith Jackson, Greg Pruitt, and NASCAR's Jimmy Johnson, whose wife is an OU alum, to watch the game. The ACC officiating crew, which did not "beat" OU by any stretch, was inept and over their heads managing the game and had several stoppages of play simply because they were either confused or were not communicating well. 

I don't know if UF QB Tim Tebow is a Deity or the "greatest college football player of the modern era"  but there is no discounting his toughness and leadership abilities. 

Here are some random thoughts for you 'rasslin fans who could care less about football.       

Black Friday in Stamford at WWE world HQ was a challenging day for many as several people were laid off due to budget cuts backs and a challenging economy with the hope of making the WWE more cost efficient in an overriding effort to reduce $20M in operating expenses. Any one who has followed the economic state in America and watches the news on TV even periodically should not be surprised at these unfortunate developments. I have no idea who all internally got released but I am sure that there are some that I worked with in the corporate side since the mid 90's. I was surprised and particularly saddened by the release of Tim "The Friendly Tap" White, former referee turned talent/live event producer who was one of the nicest guys in the business. Tim will be just fine but I will certainly miss him. 

While no one wants to see any one lose their job, I can say that often times getting leaner lends itself to becoming more productive and increases communication within a corporate environment. I'm a proponent that in some areas of any company that the "too many cooks can spoil the soup" theory is still applicable. 

Bottom line and speaking from experience, having to give people the news that they are being let go is never a positive experience and is the toughest part of being an administrator. I can also tell you that after being on the  other side of the coin, the one getting the pink slip, that it isn't the end of the world if you choose for it not to be and can be perceived as a blessing in disguise if the one being let go picks themselves up and moves forward in a positive manner. A "poor me" attitude won't buy any groceries. 

Historically, in corporations the size of the WWE, these drastic changes are often times an on going process for a few weeks until all the cuts have all been made and the restructuring, for lack of a better term, has been put in place. Hopefully, no one else is going to be let go but I expect that there will be several, positive internal changes made over the next few weeks.

The King and I are getting back together. Well at least for a day, January 16, as we will be all over Houston doing several media appearances in support of WWE Hall of Fame tickets going on sale on January 17. Once I get the final itinerary, I will let you know in case you want to listen or watch our day in Houston on various radio and TV outlets plus I think one of the media appearances is open to the public. More to come. 

The next round of THQ voice overs is slated to start within the next week or so. It will be anxious to see who makes the roster for the next Smackdown vs. Raw video game. There has been some internal changes within THQ and it will be interesting to see if it affects the lines we read in announcer mode for the next game. 

The WWE is apparently producing a new DVD about the "Greatest Tag Teams in Wrestling" and it would be interesting to hear any one's suggestions or feedback on this matter. I am consulting on it along with several others and I find it intriguing as to who some feel were greater teams than others. Much of it depends on the generation that one really became a devotee of the business. For example, I always like the work of a team such as Demolition but to say that Demolition was a "better team" than Ray Stevens and Pat Patterson isn't even debatable in my humble opinion. In any event, this DVD will feature many, many outstanding teams but I am not sure if is a ranked list of duos or if it is going to be produced in another way such as by rank, say 1-100 or something to that degree. 

Nice to see the WWE live event in Winnipeg have over 11,000 fans turn out in 20 degrees below zero weather Friday night for the return of the WWE headlined by hometown product Chris Jericho facing John Cena.

Speaking of Cena, I hear his FU finishing maneuver is being renamed "The Throwback" which works for me and is certainly easier for me to communicate to my 5 year old granddaughter who's a Cena fan of sorts. It will be interesting to see how much knee jerk reaction this name change creates in the illustrious media. Knowing today's trends and the vocal minority of some fans who have enough product knowledge to be dangerous, too much. 

Smackdown broadcaster Eve wrested at her first, WWE live event match this weekend. I think Eve might  have a good shot at becoming solid wrestler as she is a tough minded, legit athlete who I noticed was wearing a Gracie MMA T shirt not that long ago. I know, she could have bought the shirt but I get the sense that she enjoys MMA and has a level of familiarity of it. 

I read two reviews of "The Wrestler" in the DFW Airport last night with one being fair and overall positive and the other ripping it as it was easy to see the wrestling bias the reviewer had. I still haven't seen it but plan on taking the Mrs. when it open in OKC. I noticed that Mickey Rourke's hair extensions reminded me of Dog the Bounty Hunter or certain Diva's over the years but that's another story. 

Caught Friday night Smackdown this morning on DVR and I really enjoyed the Undertaker vs. Benjamin match on TV.  The Show-HHH match was really solid too especially considering that the audience had seen HHH 3 times which is challenging to any athlete and something I don't feel any wrestler looks forward to. 

I hope that the WWE Tag Title issue between Carlito and Primo vs. Kendrick and Jackson continues to evolve so that the Tag Titles can regain some cache. 

Ted DiBiase, the Million Dollar Man version, sent me a nice email of condolence over my Sooners loss Thursday night. Ted has been a great friend for years and years and never had the "body builder physique" but evolved into one of the best in ring talents of all time. There was no one Ted DiBiase couldn't have a great match with. Some of his work with the late Dick Murdoch in Mid South Wrestling is the stuff of legend and would be great viewing for a fan or a wannabe wrestler. Also, Ted's book which is still available is a great, quick and easy book to read and one that I recommend you check out.  

Stone Cold and I were busy texting during the OU game and I expect to be talking to Steve soon to give him a complete download of the week and to hear his review of the game. Steve is an honest man so if you don't want his true feelings one shouldn't ask. That's the way it should be as the wrestling biz in general has too many "yes men" and "fence straddlers" in it. For the record, when I first got in the business in the mid 70's, the "yes men" and "ass kissers" were even more prevalent which was a by product of wrestlers having no job security IE no contracts and the fickle nature of the promoters who owned the wrestling territories.

The annual Cauliflower Alley Club (CAC) function is coming up April 13-14-15 in Vegas. I attended last year with Stone Cold when Bret Hart was honored. I do not know Steve or Bret's plans for 2009 but I want to go back if my WWE TV taping schedule will allow it. I don't have my schedule after WM25 so I am not sure yet if I can attend. Nonetheless if you are a true fan and want to experience one of the great wrestling experiences of a life time then I strongly suggest that you make plans on attending. It is a guaranteed great time. 

The WWE set me up to be a guest on the Bubba the Love Sponge Show this past week and I lost a case of J.R.'s BBQ Sauce to Bubba and his producer Brent Hatley as they took Florida to beat my Sooners. No worries, they will simply receive the greatest case of sauces they ever had and it will taste lovely on grilled Gator. Nonetheless I was surprised when Hulk Hogan called in. It was good to hear from him after all the hell that he has gone through, that woman scorned thing, divorce, etc, and we talked about the well worn story of a possible Hulk vs. Stone Cold match at WM25. I still don't think it will even happen but I do think two things, 1. it would overshadow virtually every thing on the card if it were built over an extended period of time and 2. there would need to be a conclusive winner. Now, with all that said, no matter the fan interest,  the match still isn't going to occur in my view. I will add a 3. "Never say Never" just to keep the seemingly endless conversation alive. I really enjoyed talking to Bubba and Brent and they have one helluva radio show that kills in the ratings. I hope to be back on there again soon so I can take my trip to the verbal woodshed as a result of the BCS game. 

Looking forward to driving up Tuesday morning from KC to Omaha for the Smackdown TV taping in Omaha on Tuesday night. I'm sure I will hear my share of catcalls re: the OU loss as many fans know that I am a Sooner Fanatic but I can handle it and to the victor goes the spoils. Nebraska football fans are among the best any where and my friend and their head coach Bo Pelini has the 'Huskers on their way back to the Promised Land. I am not a fair weather fan and believe that commitments in life are still important. Fans can raise all the hell they want and I assure you all will be well. However beware of the sign police unless of course you are sporting the politically correct "JR's BBQ Rules" or "The World's Angriest Announcer" signs for your SD broadcast team. 

Be well, thanks for stopping by, and order more JR's BBQ products and our Beef Jerky.  

Boomer Sooner!

J.R.