Oxnard was just too juicy for HBO to pass up.

The cable network announced Wednesday the latest edition of "Hard Knocks" will originate this summer from the Dallas Cowboys training camp in Oxnard.

This is the fourth year of "Hard Knocks," the behind-the-scenes show HBO does from NFL training camps. Last year featured the Kansas City Chiefs, but this year's episodes figure to blow those away.

I mean, who could resist a cast like this? It stars Tony Romo (and maybe therefore Jessica Simpson), Terrell Owens, and — if he gets reinstated in time — Adam "Pacman" Jones.

Team owner Jerry Jones weighs in as the J.R. Ewing-style patriarch while coach Wade Phillips is featured as his bumbling sidekick.

And all of this right here in Ventura County's own backyard! Well, unless Romo and Simpson make a quick side trip to Mexico. There could also be footage of Pacman Jones visiting a strip club, as is his wont, and of Owens holding his breath until someone pays attention to him.

The reality series will air Wednesdays, starting Aug. 6 and concludes Sept. 3. That'll put it head to head with the Beijing Olympics, but HBO Sports president Ross Greenburg doesn't think the Cowboys will have a problem finding an audience.

"It's fair to say this thing should go through the roof," Greenburg said at a news conference Wednesday.

However, Greenburg also said however outrageous the above mentioned characters may be, "Hard Knocks" primarily focuses on football.

"I swear to you it's not going to be the Pacman Jones or the T.O. or the Tony Romo story. It just won't," Greenburg told The Associated Press. "They will be part of a team and part of the story, but they won't be the center of it all. I just know that for a fact. The drama develops on its own. Unless the drama surrounds Tony and T.O. and others, it's just not going to happen.

" There's nothing like following that rookie trying to make the team. They're still wearing that star and they're trying to become a teammate of T.O. and Tony Romo, which is probably their dream. That's great television also."

It's interesting that HBO is continuing to produce "Hard Knocks," since it decided to cancel "Inside the NFL" after a three-decade run.

"Hard Knocks" is produced by NFL Films, which will have a 24-person crew living at the Oxnard training camp. It'll shoot more than 700 hours of video over the course of the series. Camera and sound crews will have unlimited access to the players' and coaches' meeting rooms, training rooms, dorms and practice fields.

Four players a day will wear wireless microphones during practice with as many as 12 wearing them during preseason games. The Cowboys will have exhibitions at San Diego and Denver during the training camp period.

"It's the most challenging, high-profile project of the year for NFL Films," NFL Films president Steve Sabol said in a statement. "There is no shooting script, no structure, no format. The storylines change weekly. For NFL Films, it is a six-week-long audible. We're privileged to be able to work with HBO and the Cowboys, the most glamorous franchise in pro sports."

Having every move caught on tape could be unnerving for some players, or at least distracting.

"People always talk about the Cowboys anyway, so it won't be any different," Romo told the Dallas Morning News.

The Cowboys moved their training camp to San Antonio in 2007, but came back to Oxnard this year because of a scheduling conflict at the Alamodome.

Owens is accustomed to seeking center stage at training camps. Forced by injury to ride a stationary bike so often one year in Oxnard, he one day came out wearing a Tour de France jersey. He told AP "Hard Knocks" will present a new stage for him.

"If the cameras are going to be there, I've got to be ready," he said.

— Jim Carlisle is a staff writer for The Star. E-mail address: jcarlisle@VenturaCountyStar.com.