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No, they had Heinrich/Akana out there for a couple of sets, with Halter and Barnes as DSes. But there's no question Halter looked the best, and her teammates seemed to respond to her the best, too. Which isn't completely surprising. Barnes played beach for Corpus Christi and finished up her degree in the spring. She didn't get to Austin until the summer. Still, I thought there would be more competition for the spot today than there was. Halter was simply overwhelmingly better. I also though Singletary and Bergmark would be a closer competition than it was. Bergmark was clearly the better middle today. It hurt Singletary to be on the Orange team with Crownover for several sets. Swindle is just a next level setter compared to Crownover, especially setting the middle, whether on quicks or the slide. Nonetheless, Bergmark looked like the polished 5th year senior she is. Wenaas shocked me at how much better she looked compared to the spring (and frankly at Minnesota for most of her career, too). She had an array of shots in her arsenal, and showed one of the bigger Wow! moments attacking from the pipe on the Orange team, then following it up with a great tip shot to the sideline from the back row to end set 3. Kahahawai looks like she has a much heavier arm this year. But Byrd looked outstanding. I hope they find a way to get her on the floor regularly this year. She looks like a future monster at pin. I can hardly wait for the scrimmage on Friday!

Well, we’ll see. She doesn’t exactly have that wow factor as an OH either at Minnesota or in the spring, but we’ve been admittedly spoiled for many many years. I can’t remenber the last time we didn’t have two potentially dominant OHes starting. I’m not making any predictions. Just expressing some concerns based on what I’ve seen from her. I have complete confidence Elliott has a plan and it’s all going to work out one way or another. I’m just curious how that ends up unfolding. I’m unconvinced it’s going to be Wenaas playing 6 rotations, which would lead me to wonder what else would it be? But maybe that’s exactly what it ends up being, and that ends up being best for the team. I confess no clairvoyance on the matter.

Absolutely. Like I said, she’s my favorite. If Texas makes the Final Four I feel like she’s going to be a leading national player of the year candidate.

I don’t think so. But she has been with the team in Austin according to Instagram. I think it’s more about being enrolled for fall semester and practices starting than anything else. But it is frustrating. I think she’s going to make that libero battle with Halter very interesting, and I love love love Halter. I just want the best player to win out whoever it is. It’s so nice to have so much confidence in our back row production. I’m just curious how we manage Skinner and Wenaas (or Kahahawai if she somehow wins the role) for those 6 rotation slots. I honestly don’t have any idea. I assume Skinner will be in there 6 rotations the way Eggleston was and Mikayla White was before that. She’s the one who has the juice to hit all the approaches from the back row. But Wenaas was brought in primarily for her passing as an outside. Her termination percentage at Minnesota was woeful. I don’t see how anything remotely approaching that works at Texas, but I’m sure it will all work itself out. I’m excited to see what all transpires!

I think it’s more a matter of the Big 12 coaches ranking UH too low. But I’m with Js1. 2-6 are tough to discern in the preseason. I would have picked UH 3rd, personally. TCU has their coach in his 2nd year. I was very impressed with how much TCU improved over the course of the year, and how well they overcame several big hits on the injury front. They have several good transfers coming in. They have the new faculty they opened up last year. I think Jason Williams might make some noise in year 2. I’m also interested to see how former staff members Tonya Johnson and Salima Rockwell do in year two. Eckerman is in her second season coaching Kent State. And then Jaimie Morrison, former volunteer assistant, helms A&M in his inaugural season. Lots of fun story lines for me to follow, starting with our Lady Longhorns. O’Neal had an impressive showing at the VNL summer series. I feel like she’s going to be the heart and soul of this team. I would have picked her for preseason conference player of the year, but I do understand it’s primarily a 6 rotation pin award.

Nebraska volleyball just inks a $5 million NIL deal from a local shopping area. $500,000 per year for 10 years. https://omaha.com/sports/huskers/volleyball/nebraska-volleyballs-nil-coffers-grow-after-1890-initiative-inks-5-million-deal/article_e4b0106c-b14d-54db-b6a1-d95f32145ef7.html#tracking-source=home-top-story I guess they’re trying to position themselves as the OU softball of the sport. I think it’s fair to say Texas is second in terms of an NIL warchest. The coming gala all proceeds are going to Texas One Fund’s volleyball NIL account. I also notice Texas One Fund is the sponsor for the home match against Stanford that same weekend. That will be the big recruiting weekend where we see who we’re seriously interested to finish out the 2025 class and who is still considering Texas. But I’m honestly a bit shocked Nebraska has that much cheddar pouring into their program from one source. And it’s not like they lack for funding mechanisms outside of that. They sold out their football stadium for a volleyball match this year in a few hours. I’m not saying this is going to make them unbeatable in the future. They’ve been winning practically every recruiting battle anyway and still can’t beat Wisconsin, can’t win the Big 10, and haven’t won a national championship since 2017. But talent acquisition matters, especially if you lap the field the way it seems like they’re going to do in terms of NIL money. I can’t say I’m scared, because Texas has immense resources, but we’re never going to be as single minded as they are, either. Volleyball is all they’ve got at this point.

Maybe. But the US isn't the same place it was in 1941, and China of 2023 is not Japan of the 1940s. China has their own set of issues. Primarily, they're an autocratic society with all the advantages and disadvantages of being one. But to make the equivalency between them and Japan from World War II is specious.

Hence why Kruschev (also Ukrainian) gave them Crimea.

I’d rather have the South Korean version for any number of reasons. Honestly, I’m surprised Erdongan agreed to send them. Also, not surprised they haven’t arrived. They should send those S-400s they have in storage. That would make me laugh.

Footage of Russians surrendering (6 or 7) during close quarters trench warfare on the heights south of Bakhmut in the KIlischiivka direction. I have to say it's not as satisfying to me as watching them get blown up, but being able to take this area back makes holding Bakhmut much more difficult for the Russians because their lines of support come under artillery fire. Also, the differences in kit between what we see of the Ukrainians and the Russians is stark to me. And this is the 3rd assault battalion that wasn't given Western kit for the most part (aside from artillery), to my knowledge.

Anyone who is unconvinced Russia is going to sabotage that nuclear plant and cause a meltdown hasn’t been paying attention. It’s coming. Sure as the sun rises in the east.

Here's Michael Clarke partially validating my post from yesterday regarding an update on the conflict. A couple of things I'd add to the video. One, the forces in Kreminna that Clarke refers to as a buildup still don't have any overall assault training. Until the Russians show they can actually take ground and hold it, I don't care how many troops they build up. The only time they've done that since their initial success was in the meat grinder of Bakhmut, and that was Wagner. Two, in Bakhmut there is progress being made in the north and south, although Clarke only mentions taking the high ground in the south. Ukraine is also in the process of taking the high ground in the north, too. That's not enough by itself, but it sure makes the continued occupation of the rubble of Bakhmut very deadly for the troops there. Lots of Russian milbloggers complaining about the lack of a strategic reason to keep Bakhmut, just like many Westerners whined about Ukraine holding it. It's a fucking death trap. Three, he lumps together what are really two offensives into one in the southern portion. One is in the direction of Tokmak. The other is in the direction of Mariupol. I haven't seen much sign of progress towards Mariupol, although Ukraine seems to be making penetration over a wide area. Not very deep, though. In the direction of Tokmak, the fighting is in Robotyne. The Ukrainian defense spokesperson just today relayed there's some really good news on the southern front but she can't relay anything about it, yet. My hope is that there's some kind of breakthrough in Robotyne. But we'll see. Four, the crossing to the left bank of the Dnipro still appears active. The last I saw there are about 70 Ukrainian infantry hanging on there. I don't see anyway a large force can regularly be supplied. But simply posing a threat to Russian forces with a beach head is significant. When Russian troops try to attack, they come under withering Ukrainian artillery fire. A couple of Russian BTRs were recently destroyed. Counter battery is apparently making short work of the Russian artillery in range trying to repel the Ukrainian force. I would not want to be one of those infantry that are basically there to draw Russia's ire. But they do serve a purpose by remaining, even as targets. ] Anyway, it's a short 2:30 minute video. I always like Michael Clarke, so it was a fun listen for me.

Here's a 30 second video shot from a drone of a brief trench warfare encounter. Really tense stuff (Bakhmut area):

I don’t understand your comment. Do you care to elaborate?

We’ll see how far it goes. Both sides have a lot of weapons at their disposal. I’m all in favor for as much of a decoupling from China as we can manage, but I have no confidence the American people are ready for the pain that will involve. People have been sounding the alarm on this stuff for over 20 years, to no real avail. But make no mistake. China sees it as their destiny to replace the US at the top of the world’s pyramid. They see us as lazy, decadent, soft, and tired of the responsibility of being a world superpower. They’re ready to step in and remake the economic order to their advantage. They’ve done a great job of establishing an industrial base to do just that, but the problem with using weapons is that once you do, the other side starts coming up with counters. My hope is that Chiba overextended their hand and helps the west overcome their addiction to Chinese market incentives. Here’s a decent WaPo article on how we got here. Not exhaustive by any means. Many books have been written on the subject. But a decent quick overview. https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/energy/2023/07/03/why-the-fight-for-critical-minerals-is-heating-up/5e9959b6-19b2-11ee-be41-a036f4b098ec_story.html

Ukrainians making notable progress on three fronts. By notable, I don't necessarily mean a breakthrough is imminent. Just that it's enough to cause concern for the Russians. Around Bakhmut Ukrainian forces are close to taking control of "The Ledge" an area just north of Bakhmut. Forces there keep making incremental gains along both the north and south of Bakhmut, as well as some advances farther north of the area in what appears to be an effort to encircle the entire area. Along the axis to Tokmak battles are raging in Robotyne (also called the Orekhov axis because that's the main town along the original front line the recent Ukrainian counteroffensive originated from). This is a very defined part of the first line of defense for Russia along the southern front. Break through here and it puts severe pressure on Russia along their entire first line of defense, since it opens up the lines of defense to flanking and attacks from the rear to both the east and west. Currently Ukrainians are fighting for control of the village itself. Meanwhile, the Tokmak fortress is one of the most heavily defended locations in all of the southern area of occupation, as well as one of the most critical to hold for Russian forces. The third area that's notable - not necessarily for long term success, but for opening up another critical axis of attack - is on the left bank of the Dnipro river across from Kherson. Ukraine managed to get a force across using barges and boats. I had read they had 3 tanks in the area, but I don't know if they're still operational or not. Lots of Russian artillery and even an Iskander missile launched on Ukrainian positions. I don't understand completely what the long term goal here is. It's going to be extremely difficult for Ukraine to supply positions on the left bank even now. But if the Russians are completely unable to dislodge Ukrainian forces there - and so far that appears to be the case after almost a week - it makes them vulnerable in the entire area all the way down to the Black Sea. The Russians simply don't have the defenses in terms of men, material, or the kind of hard fortifications that exist further east. Hence the desperation to push the Ukrainians back across the river, to no avail so far. My apologies for not citing sources, and for insulting the intelligence of people who are following all of this as closely or closer than I am, but I figured this might be helpful for folks who find it confusing to follow what's going on exactly. There's another Ukrainian line of attack from the Velyka Novosiika area aiming to eventually make it down to Mariupol. That one is wider than deep. I don't know of any significant gains in the area lately, which doesn't mean there aren't any. Also, Russian troops are trying to assault Ukrainian positions in the north east of the front by Kreminna. From what I've gathered they've had extremely limited success. Mostly it's considered an attempt to relieve pressure on Bakhmut by forcing Ukraine to send more support for defenses in the region. Again, apologies for a lack of citations. Mostly I just wanted to give a bit of an overview for people who are clicking the thread for updates.

Intense fire fight. 3rd assault brigade, so Bakhmut direction. I didn't see a grenade, but according to the comments the Russian POW had a grenade and at the 2:53 mark he FAFO. No subtitles. No embedding because of its graphic nature. https://twitter.com/NOELreports/status/1675815854494154753?s=20

Russian tank driver charitably clearing their own mines:

Article about assault brigades in the Bakhmut area. It's interesting to follow the assaults in the south with all their western kit and then compare them to Bakhmut area with their Soviet era kit. Regardless, the obstacles faced on both sides are similar, although the south faces a lot more opposition from the air from what I can tell. Also, the south has better access to armor. Not actually meaning to state this factually. Just what it looks like anecdotally and from what the soldiers say. But regardless of where the attacks are, assault teams consistently want more tanks. ‘It’s a lottery’: How Ukraine’s assault brigade counterattacks near Bakhmut (kyivindependent.com)

There was a lot of Darwinism at work there. The person doing the hammering with the shell. The person in the background watching. The person doing the filming. And then someone had to grab the phone out of the remains of those three and then upload it for views. What a time to be alive. Unlike those guys.

Air Force and Army just need to watch how the Navy does it. The Gerald Ford has been a piece of cake. Seamless development and deployment schedule. Seamless, I say.

Wagner is German, as in Richard Wagner, the famous composer. Not Russian. Not saying anything about Russian’s lack of a ‘w’ sound, but it’s not really the culprit in this case.

Is this news? I thought this was a known issue? I must have read this several dozen times when they were being donated. I did read the article. Sounds like they were desperate for firepower, and so used them despite their terrible fit for the role. BTW, the article was written a couple of weeks ago. One thing about those vaunted 6 Finnish engineering vehicles on the Leopard 2 chassis. The reason the Finnish donated them is because they didn't work during testing. The Finns said it was because of the rocky soil in Finland, but it may have been they just don't work period. The truth is the Ukrainians aren't ideally kitted out to fight this counter offensive, but they're doing it anyway. And, they're having successes. My biggest concern above all others is Zaluzhnyi talking about the lack of artillery shells in that recent Washington Post article. They're not getting F-16s anytime soon. Who knows when they'll get cluster munitions or ATAMCS. But for goodness sakes scrape together everything possible to get them artillery shells. Artillery shells and mobile air defense. Oh, and thank you thank you thank you to the Brits for supplying the Storm Shadows. Holy shit what a difference those have made.

Here's an incredibly tense 43 minute video of two days on the southern front, all from the sergeant's GoPro. He edits out the actual attacks, but the footage he does show of his communications with his people, and the stress of the environment they're in, is compelling. At the end he claims there were no killed in action during the two days, which seems unbelievable. There were a lot of raw soldiers based on the conversations, but they all seemed extremely well kitted, and at least had some training. I know the southern assault groups were all volunteers, but many of them had not seen combat before. The troops around Bakhmut are composed of many of the veterans of the conflict, but they don't have western gear for the most part, other than artillery and mortars. Anyway, it's obviously a time investment. The biggest takeaways for me were the interrogation of the injured Russian at the beginning, the style of communication from the sergeant to the troops, his narration about midway through, and then the complete abandonment of positions by the Russians. Oh, not all the Russians abandoned their positions. Some of them will be there until their bodies are disposed of.