Despite my affection for my alma mater, I root for UT in athletics, not Rice. I’m not one to read Owl Message Boards. However, a Rice friend who does read them sent me this tantalizing comment signed “moondog.” It appeared on the “Owl War Room” forum. [I am publishing this with some hesitancy. I cannot vouch for the post’s accuracy, only that it appeared on OwlSportsWatch.com. There is no date on the PDF file I received.] Been hearing that there’s been an ongoing investigation of some very unsavory activities on the 40 Acres. To give you a taste of what’s about to hit, we’ve heard over the last few months that players have been interviewed and surveyed by lawyer types all season and it’s been a distraction. Questions about illegal inducements, escorts, harassment of coeds, etc, have been pointed to players in some shape or form by legal eagles, and the effect on the team is obvious. All I can say is that if this was written by a Rice grad, standards have slipped since I was in school. What makes this post so intriguing is that it purports to answer the million-dollar question, which is what the hell happened to the Longhorns this year? Some readers no doubt will take the position that it was irresponsible of me to post this. They may have a point. Nevertheless, I am not going to sit here and ignore these allegations, as vague as they may be. UT’s collapse was the biggest story of the year in this town, maybe in this state. Here is the first indication that perhaps the problem went deeper than the lack of a running game.