Well, Saturday is the big day -- my beloved (if pathetic) Houston Texans have the first pick in the 2006 NFL draft. They've told local boy Vince Young not to wait on a call from them. They have dissed my preferred choice, D'Brickashaw Ferguson, by not even talking to his people -- despite the desperate need for help on the offensive line. That leaves twon names that they have mentioned -- DE Mario Williams and RB Reggie Bush. Smart money is on Bush.

But I wonder if this story changes things.

Reggie Bush's parents failed to pay $54,000 in rent for the year they lived in a house owned by an investor in a sports marketing agency that sought to represent Bush, the owner of the house said late last night in an interview at The San Diego Union-Tribune.

Yeah, that's right -- Reggie the Golden Boy is now the subject of an NCAA investigation, hours before the name of the top pick is going to be called out. Does this concern the Texans, especially given that owner Bob McNair has gone out of his way to cultivate a squeaky clean image for his team? Will McNair, Kubiak, Casserly and Reeves not merely break the hearts of Texans fans by drafting someone other than the Young man who grew up here, but do so with a player who appears to be dirty and whose team was out-classed by Vince and the Longhorns in the Rose Bowl? Does the appearance of impropriety change the equation?

We'll wait and see.

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And while we are at it, let's take this opportunity to begin our all-weekend Linkfest and Open Trackback celebration.

Link back here with your posts that you believe should go high hin the draft -- your blogs "franchise players" if you will. I won't limit the number of posts you link back with, but do ask you to exercise prudent judgement.

But remember the Rhymes With Right Rules.

No Porn. No Ads. No Problem.

OTHER OPEN TRACKBACKERS -- Voteswagon, TMH Bacon Bits, Stuck on Stupid, Adam's Blog, Third World Country, Liberal Wrong Wing, Blue Star Chronicles, Conservative Cat, Tor's Rants, Uncooperative Blogger, 123Beta, Church and State, Cigar Intelligence Agency