This is JAZZ Town Baby!!!

Last week I had the opportunity to live one of my life long dreams. Meeting the JAZZ! I was able to go around to all the players, get autographs, and pictures with them. Talk about the time of my life!! For me, it really couldn't have gotten any better. Although, I was hoping AK 47 would have been there because I wanted to speak Russian with him, supposedly he had the flu.

Here's a funny story about something that happened. So I was carrying 2 basketballs in my hand that players were signing, 2 posters, and a camera for pictures. When I got to Paul Millsap's table I placed the balls on the table to be signed, and the one in my right hand kind of fell out and knocked over his water bottle that he was drinking from right onto his phone that was sitting on the table. WOOPS!!! ha ha... You could tell he was kind of bugged by that. Instead of signing it with his right hand, he signed it left handed while he was drying his phone off. So I'm not sure if Paul Millsap is too happy with me.

Here are some pics to depict my epic moment:

Good times never seemed so good!

So at the beginning of the month some college buddies from BYU-Idaho and I took a trip down to sunny southern California to see one of our heroes Neil Leslie Diamond. It was at the Hollywood Bowl in L.A. Here are some pics to depict our awesomely amazing time!

Welcome to the JUNGLE!!

Jim Rome.... Host of the jungle. His radio show is ruthless. This isn't your everday sports radio talk show. Typically people call into a show, share an opinion and it gets discussed on the radio waves. If you want to become a "clone" (a caller into Jim Rome's show), you must have your call rehearsed to a perfection. If it is not a legit call and you have no background or credibility, you will most likely get hung up on. He doesn't take foolishness and doesn't mess around when it comes to being accurate with sports.

Just like any other sports radio host, he has prominent sports figures on his show as interviews. Yesterday, one of our most respected head coaches was on his show. To me, this was big. Why you may ask? How often do you have national BYU coverage? As of late it doesn't seem like BYU has received that much national coverage, let alone as a personal interview on the Jim Rome show.

Let's get to the point.... Bronco simply had one of the best interviews I have ever heard. Usually Rome spends only a few minutes with his guests. He was so intrigued with Bronco and the BYU program that he kept him on a lot longer than anyone else.

Listen to the sound clip and you'll see how poised Bronco is and how great of an interview this is.

Bronco interview in the Jungle

2008 Heisman Watch

What a great way to start out the 2008 NCAA football season than to have one of our own in the Heisman watch already! Every year at the tail end of the college football year the NCAA picks 1 player who they believe exemplifies the qualities of a great team player, has shown success on the field whether it be passing, rushing, solid defensive skills, etc. This year our own Max Hall is currently in the Heisman watch.

Although this prestigious award can be given to anyone in the NCAA who has portrayed these various qualities, it is most often given to an offensive player. Last year Tim Tebow was the recipient of the award for his accomplishment of rushing AND passing for over 20 touchdowns which had never been done before.






Even though we are only 3 games into the football season, Max Hall has already done the following:

-thrown for 12 touchdowns
-over 1,000 yards
-77.8 completion percentage
-186.82 quarterback rating

If these numbers continue to grow at the rate they are, Max Hall could be in serious contention for this amazing award at the end of the season.

ESPN.com updates this Heisman watch every week. Let's hope that Max continues to produce at the rate he has. Here is the link to see other candidates and what others are saying about Money Max. ESPN Heisman Watch

A twist to the BYU/Utah rivalry

Mr. Jack Johnson

I always tell people that if I'm stranded on a desert island and if there was only 1 music album i could have, what would it be. For me, it is hands down "In Between Dreams" by Jack Johnson.

He is coming in concert this Monday and I've been anticipating this for months now. Some of the reasons I like his music so much are mainly because it fits my personality. His music is super laid back and chill. That's how I am. There is no yelling, no vulgarity, no profanity. It's just like sitting in a sandy beach sippin a lemonade.

Pretty much in a nut shell.... Jack Johnson = good, chill, unforgettable times!

Funny Videos

So I pretty much just love random, funny, hilarious, out of the blue youtube videos. They are pretty much priceless, most of them at least. Here are some that I just recently came across that I seriously could not get enough of.



I will post more as I find them. These are great though!

2008 BYU Cougars!

This year is going to be a special year for BYU Football. The last 2 years have been pretty amazing for BYU. This year, however, many national analysts are picking the cougs to go to the BCS (Bowl Championship Series). This is a big deal because only the top teams in the nation are invited to these bowl games. I can feel that BYU is going to be back on the map with the other powerhouse football teams where they belong. There are only 37 more days until opening kick-off against Northern Iowa. Summer is my favorite time of year, but for 1 reason I hate it. That reason alone is that baseball gets so boring to me after the first few weeks. Who actually sits down in the summer and watches an entire baseball game? I'd rather be outside getting fried in the sun! 37 days until utter joyness and bliss!

Here is a video clip of what BYU football is all about!

4th and 18 anyone? Wasn't that great? Nice defense Utah!! I don't really like to rub things in people's faces, but that is one thing that Kyle Whittingham should be ashamed of. I'm glad he's not our coach! Bronco is the man for our squadron. Always and forever live BYU football!

Rise and shout till the day I die!

Tribute to a legend!

This is a tribute to a music legend named Neil Leslie Diamond. He is one of the best singer/songwriters of this or any other generation. On Saturday night, I went to a concert at Taylorsville Park of a Neil impersonator. He looked/sounded exactly like our legend friend. What a good time! Neil has sold over 120 million records worldwide throughout his illustrious music career. Many hits such as: Sweet Caroline, America, Cracklin' Rosie, Holly Holy, Hello, Solitary Man, and the list goes on.

He has appeared in films such as: The Jazz Singer, and Saving Silverman. Hopefully soon he will be casted in some other great films. Every 4th of July I create a special music mix. Last year's consisted of about 10-12 songs, this years mix has made its way up to 32 songs. Neil has a few appearances on this great list of All-American ballads.

Let us all remember everything that Mr. Diamond has done throughout his unforgettable tenure as a music prodigy.

Here's to you Neil!

OMNITURE

So I started working for Omniture on April 7th, 2008. It's an awesome company to work for and is #1 in the Web Analytics industry. People are always asking me what Omniture does and I've tried to explain in a myriad of different ways exactly how. Omniture excels in online business optimization. Basically what that means is helping customers get the best bang for their buck with their website.

Omniture has multiple products that they sell to many websites that help them improve their website layout/interface so that it makes it easier for people like us when we use them. It makes it so we aren't confused with what the company is trying to get across to us on their website. I used to work for a company in Rexburg called JUST SPORTS who was in the process of creating a website. I don't think I've seen a website that should have belonged in the dregs of society more than that company. How do I spell it? Pretty much DESPICABLE! Omniture does a great job retaining customers because the products are so amazing. We have clients such as Ford, Microsoft, eBay, HP, Toyota, MLB, Cadillac, Disney and a ton of others! Those are some big named clients.

I even have my own name plate..

I get to chill in my cubicle and knock out my work while listening to ESPN radio. Could it get any better?



A few years ago, Omniture went public with their company. Their ticker symbol is OMTR.. Take a look.

Hoodrat Stuff!!!

I just couldn't resist. I had to put this video on here. Probably one of the funniest I've seen. 7 year old kids these days, who would have thought they can turn out like this? My goal in life is to be a hoodrat and do hoodrat stuff with my friends. If I can accomplish that, I have made it. I will be living the dream.

Death @ the Pump!

Petroleum....gasoline....fuel.... What been going on with the SUDDEN increase in gas prices? Soon we will all be riding out bikes everywhere. This is something that every American hopes can be answered sooner rather than later. Me being one of them. Who do we blame for this increase in ridiculousness? Bush? OPEC? Economy? War? There are many factors that go into it. As a concerned American I just hope that this trend will start to not only even out, but decline. We deserve it, right? I mean, don't get me wrong, I would love to ride my bike everywhere if it meant being no where on time and it would get me into great shape as well.

Something that congress has thought about doing is to tax the oil companies. This is interesting... According to political figure Ben Stein, this is not a good idea. He states the following, "If you start taxing the oil companies, what you are really doing is taxes the pension funds and the individuals who have stock in the oil companies and cutting down on their ability to retire. What you are really doing is saying to the 50% or so of the stock owners of oil companies who are retirees, look, you are not going to get your dividends anymore, you are not going to get your capital gains anymore, and for no if you were. It will not increase oil production. When I saw Obama say we're going to to get more oil production we're going to put a windfall profits tax on the oil companies, I thought, this guy is dumber than Jimmy Carter. I mean, what is he talking about?"

I guess we just need to play the dreadful waiting game and see what happens to these prices. We can only hope the take a nose dive to the ground.

Ode to Griffey

While thinking about what I could post today, I came across a great cartoon picture. Many may not know who Ken Griffey Jr. is but over the years his legacy in baseball has become that of a true hall of fame player. While we could talk steroid scandals all day, Mr. Griffey is one player that has stayed true to himself his whole career and steered clear of human growth hormones (HGH). Last night he hit his 600th career home run. This is a very elite club shared only by 6 other players in MLB history: Babe Ruth, Sammy Sosa, Barry Bonds, Hank Aaron, Willey Mayes, and Mark McGuire. Griffey is now the 7th.

He could have possibly become the best player in baseball history had he not been barred by injury in his career. Here's to you Kenny! Congrats with the marvelous achievement.

MALIBU!

This youtube clip is priceless. This American Gladiators warrior, Malibu, is a true hero. He gets kicked off of the stand and still lives to see another day. I think that in life, if we can take his example of courage and implement it into our lives, we too can be healed by Mother Nature. Whenever we get kicked to the ground by anything in our lives we just need to get right back up and face what is going to be ahead of us. Be it a kick to the face like Malibu experienced or punch in the stomach we need to counter react with the appropriate heroic moves. I hope that this example of heroism will always be in our minds in those special times of need.

NBA Finals!

To start out this new phenomenon of blogging, what better way to start out than with something I love and admire? Sports of course. Last night was the unveiling of the 2008 NBA Finals between the troubled L.A. Lakers and the historic Boston Celtics. This years NBA Playoffs have been very interesting. Despite my UTAH JAZZ not being able to advance through the playoffs as much as I'd liked, they showed me many things.

Kobe Bryant. Many people have their own opinions about him. There are some things that have to be straightened out.
1. Kobe is an amazing player, not quite Michael Jordan, but definitely of emerging greatness.
2. Free throw shooter. Against the Jazz in this year playoffs, Kobe shot 96 free throws. In the next round against the Spurs, he shot 11. Disparity? Thanks David Stern.
3. Rapist? Hmm.. probably. That girl was payed off to drop the court case.
4. At the end of the day, Kobe Bryant is a household name and a great player. I just don't care for the Lakers.

I would love to see the series go to 7 games. If David Stern (Commissioner of the NBA) wanted a Celtics/Lakers finals, then he had better make it a good one. I would even be happy if Bird and Magic came back to play for this series.