The University of Texas Longhorns open the regular season this Friday night, hosting Loyola Marymount. This year's will be a new-look Longhorn team with a lot of talented newcomers on the squad who'll need to make an immediate impact. National polls rank the team anywhere from 18th to 39th, and probably third in the Big 12 behind Oklahoma State and Texas A&M. They may have the talent to do better than that, and a relatively easy nonconference schedule may be just what they need to jell as a team. The Horns looked good in their two exhibition games this week, dominating an understrength TCU squad, 3-0, and playing fourth-ranked Florida State pretty evenly in a 2-1 loss in Tallahassee. How good they can become, we'll start to see Friday, Aug. 19, 7pm at Mike A. Myers Stadium, off Manor Road and Red River. (It's School Supplies Drive night: free admission for donating five school-supply items at the gate.) See my season preview, "Horns Seasons Gets Under Way."

Gunners fans: set your DVRs. The European season is in full swing now with the big boys swinging into action in the Champions League final qualifying round. In the marquee matchup, Arsenal took a slim 1-0 lead over Udinese in the first game; the return leg is Wednesday, Aug. 24, 1:30pm on FSC... ESPN2 is showing one or two English Premier League games a week, every Saturday morning plus most Monday afternoons. This Saturday, Aug. 20, it's Arsenal vs. Liverpool, live at 6:30am.