A Hometown Headlines newsletter                 

Break a leg takes on new meaning; Big XII in for a wild ride this week?

(5/31) It’s almost over. The NBA season trundles into June this week when Boston plays Los Angeles in the finals. It’ll be the 12th time the two have met in the finals and the Celtics hold a big 9-2 edge. In fact, Boston won the first eight times the two played until the Lakers finally broke through.

The Los Angeles Angels’ Kendry Morales socked a 10th-inning game-ending grand slam home run against the Seattle Mariners and then broke his leg when he jumped on home plate in the wild celebration that followed. He may be out for the season.

These were advertised by SportingNewsToday as little known facts about famous athletes. (1) Lance Armstrong’s heart is one-third larger than the average person; (2) Boxer Rocky Marciano died without a will; (3) Quarterback Troy Aikman owns a minority share of the San Diego Padres; (4) Ben Hogan had two holes-in-one during his pro career; and (5) Nick Faldo received his knighthood for service in golf.

Auburn got a verbal commitment from the second-rated quarterback in the nation when Kiehl Frazier from Springdale, Ark. agreed to play for the Tigers. Frazier is rated only behind Georgia pledge Christian LeMay in the top 100 prep players.

Nebraska athletics director Tom Osborne admits there may be some high drama this week at the annual Big XII meetings. Conference commissioner Dan Beebe said the league needs to discuss where its headed and who’s on the plane when it takes off. Beebe was obviously referring to Nebraska and Missouri who have been rumored to be flirting with the Big 10.

FoxSports.com took a look at freshmen who could have a huge impact this year in college football. Among the website’s top 10 were defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd of Florida, wide receiver Da’rick Rogers of Tennessee, cornerback Demarcus Milliner of Alabama, running back Michael Dyer of Auburn and defensive end Ronald Powell of Florida.

Among FoxSports.com’s five surprise college teams to watch are Temple, Texas A&M, Arkansas, West Virginia and Stanford. I don’t know about you but other than Temple, I wouldn’t be surprised at any of these having a good year.

Michael Jordan’s oldest son, Jeffrey, will transfer from Illinois to Central Florida where he hopes to be in the same lineup with his younger brother, Marcus.

This is Norman Arey and the big news would have been if Michael Jordan would play for Central Florida.

Texas as an independent in football is possible but it'd be tough in other sports

(5/28) If the college football experts are right, the ACC may be headed for a year of close scrutiny. Football writer Matt Hayes of SportingNewsToday picks three non-conference upsets this fall and all three involve ACC teams. Hayes liked Miami over Ohio State, Virginia Tech over Boise State and Rutgers over North Carolina.

Texas athletics director DeLoss Dodd says there have been discussions of the Longhorns going to an independent status in football if things get too crazy in the upcoming football expansion but he warns it won’t be easy. He notes that it would probably work well in football but going without a conference is tough in other sports, particularly in basketball. That’s exactly why Notre Dame belongs to the Big East in every sport other than football.

Duke University political science professor Michael Gillespie says his school made the decision to invest in football, including improving facilities, fielding a better product, etc. Gillespie said the Blue Devils realized if it weren’t better in football by the time basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski retired, they would be in trouble because they had maxed out their basketball revenue. Talk about pressure.

Think you’d like to be the Atlanta Hawks’ general manager? I don’t think so. What Rick Sund has to do is (1) do something about a roster which simply isn’t built to get past the second round in the NBA playoffs; (2) decide whether to keep Joe Johnson, who is the closest thing the Hawks have as a super star and (3) hire a new coach. Other than that, no problem.

And for what it’s worth, I think the fact that "Mr. Georgia Basketball" Marcus Thornton chose to stay in state and go to Georgia is huge. Thornton could prove to be Georgia’s first in-roads in the city of Atlanta. There is already talk among some of the state’s top players about following Thornton to play for the Bulldogs.

And finally, here’s what FanGraphs.com says about the Atlanta Braves’ Jason Heyward. It claims he’s better than Ken Griffey Jr., Hank Aaron and Willie Mays as a 20-year-old and is having a season to compare to that of Mel Ott, Alex Rodriguez, Ted Williams, Al Kaline, Frank Robinson and Mickey Mantle at the same age. Wow! Maybe Atlanta could trade him for LaBron James.

This is Norman Arey and I think there’s a good chance we’ll see Georgia basketball significantly improved

The SEC West and the ACC Coastal look to be the toughest divisions in college football

(5/27) There are now 99 days until a new decade of college football literally kicks off and SportingNewsToday.com started its countdown of the nation’s top 100 teams yesterday.

In case you wanted to know, The Aggies of New Mexico State were No. 100.

Here’s some things to note about the publication’s top 100: Only one BCS team - Washington State - didn’t make the Top 100; The SEC West and the ACC Coastal Division each placed four teams among the top 25; The Big XII led all conferences with three teams in the top 10.

TSNT’s top five were Alabama, Ohio State, Boise State, Miami and Florida. Georgia Tech was rated No. 18 and Georgia No. 27.

And one last note - the lowest ranked teams in each BCS conference were ACC (Maryland), SEC (Vanderbilt), Big East (Syracuse), Big XII (Kansas State) and Pac-10 (Washington State).

Boise State president Dr. Robert Kustra has a point when he questions whether every game counts in the BCS scenario. The Broncos have gone undefeated in the regular season in four of the past six seasons and weren’t even seriously considered for the mythical national title game. In fact, of those four undefeated seasons, Boise State was allowed to play in a major bowl in only two of them.

Michigan self-imposed several penalties on itself for NCAA infraction in football, hoping to appease the sports’ governing body before it meets in late summer. With the admitting of wrong-doing, it would seem to put even more pressure of head football coach Rich Rodriguez to win now!

David and Travis Wear, the 6-foot-10 twins who shocked North Carolina by not returning for their sophomore year to play basketball for the Tar Heels next season, have officially signed with UCLA.

No less an authority that Jack Nicklaus, who owns the most major titles in pro golf with 18, says unless Tiger Woods gets his game untracked quickly, it may not be in the cards for the 34-year-old golfer to catch or pass Jack for the majors lead.

And speaking of Tiger, the New York Post and the Chicago Sun-Times report that Woods’ wife, Elin, is stepping up talks of divorce. The latest report is that she is asking for $750 million and sole custody of the couple’s two children.

And for those with money envy, read ‘em and weep. The highest paid coach in all of pro sports according to Forbes Magazine is the Lakers’ Phil Jackson at $10.3 million. Others close to the top include the Patriots’ Bill Belichick ($7.5 million), and three tied at $7 million, including the Redskins’ Mike Shanahan, the Bobcats’ Larry Brown and the Seahawks’ Pete Carroll.

This is Norman Arey taking my penny rolls to the bank.


Fan of the week likely doesn't reside in Philadelphia. Florida atop SEC All-Sports list

(5/26) If the ACC is to gain any upward movement as a conference, it’s got to start winning its key non-conference games says SportingNewsToday. And there’s boatload of out-of-league games coming up this fall - Miami at Ohio State, FSU at Oklahoma, Clemson at Auburn, Miami at Pitt, Virginia Tech vs. Boise State, Georgia Tech at Kansas and North Carolina vs. LSU. Notice that not a single one of those games is an ACC home game.

Florida finished on top of the SEC All-Sports Standings for 2009-10 while Georgia was second and Tennessee third. Alabama, which won the national title in football was no better than eighth in their own conference, which proves there are other sports than football.

Bad taste? Distasteful? No, no this was way beyond that. A Philadelphia Phillies fan has admitted he intentionally vomited on a man and his 11-year-old daughter at a baseball game after the vomitee’s companion was ejected from the stadium for bad behavior. Wonder what his friend did? And, oh, by the way, the man who was on the wrong end of the vomit was a local police chief.

Mildly good news for North Carolina basketball fans. The departure of twin 6-foot-10 front court players David and Travis Wear may be a little bit easier to swallow now that former Alabama 6-foot-9 forward Justin Knox announced he’ll transfer to the Tar Heels.

Washington quarterback Jake Locker, who may be the No. 1 choice in the NFL next year, announced he would forgo playing minor league baseball this summer in order to concentrate on football. Trouble is, he forgot to tell the California Angels, which took him in the baseball draft.

Rivals.com says there are certain teams in the country that could turn their seasons around this year. The site predicts luck could be changing for Kentucky, Michigan State, UConn, Oklahoma and Maryland.

In its storied history, Notre Dame has had seven Heisman Trophy winners and one of them says don’t look for the Irish to join a conference. Paul Hornung said Notre Dame would never give up its independence. "Why should they?" he asked. "They’re on top of the world." No word on what Hornung might have been smoking.

And finally, Washington Nationals’ pitcher Stephen Strasburg gave up one earned run while pitching for the Nats’ AAA Syracuse minor league team after going 20-plus innings without allowing a run. His ERA ballooned from 0.00 to 0.39.

This is Norman Arey asking if you don’t love those Philadelphia sports fans?

Is college football ready for 16-team leagues? Could Auburn be the 2004 national champ?

(5/25) Is there a national title in football in the cards for Auburn?. If the NCAA punishes Southern Cal and strips away its 2004 title, would the championship go to the Tiger team that finished 13-0 that season?

The ACC may have the best batch of returning quarterbacks in the country says CollegeFootballNews.com. The internet site says Georgia Tech’s Josh Nesbitt and Virginia Tech’s Tyrod Taylor are the best runners and Florida State’s Christian Ponder and N.C. State’s Russell Wilson are among the best playmakers.

I think it’s great that the Atlanta Falcons’ owner Arthur Blank wants an outdoor stadium. I’ve never understood the need for a covered football field in the Deep South. Football is an outdoor sport and I’m sure God intended it to be played outside. If it snows, so what? If it rains, so be it. This ain’t Detroit or Buffalo. It’s Atlanta.

If you believe what’s being written and talked about in college football this off-season, it may be that Bo Pellini and Nebraska have laid the ground work for a legitimate run at the national title this fall. Many college football observers say the Cornhuskers are in the same position as was Alabama last year.

The talk about college football conference expansion has included many scenarios, including a 16-team conference. That’s been tried before, you know. In 1995, the Western Athletic Conference formed a 16-team league. It lasted only two years before the league split into the Mountain West and the WAC. So is college football ready for it this time around?

One thing for Georgia football fans to remember. New quarterback Aaron Murray didn’t just fall off the football turnip truck yesterday. If you remember, Murray was ranked behind only Southern Cal’s Matt Barclay and Texas’ Garrett Gilbert on Rivals.Com’s list of the top quarterbacks in the country. And by the way, freshman recruit quarterback Hutson Mason of Lassiter High reports to Athens a week from yesterday.

Winning just isn’t enough anymore. The Cleveland Cavaliers fired Mike Brown over the weekend. Brown had the highest winning percentage (66.3 percent) of any coach in the Cavs’ history. Could Brown be a candidate for the Atlanta Hawks' open job?

This is Norman Arey and I’m an Aaron Murray believer.

BCS to Congress: Mind your own business. SEC seems to have lofty plans.

(5/24) OK. Here’s the latest rumors concerning college football conference expansion. CBS met with SEC Commissioner Mike Slive to discuss expansion. Slive reportedly told the network that the SEC is eyeing Texas, Texas A&M, Clemson and Florida State to expand his league’s membership to 16. And here’s the kicker. If the two Texas schools won’t jump, the conference would go after Miami and Georgia Tech.

And here’s another interesting note about expansion. Brigham Young would be a natural to join either an expanded Pac-10 or the Big XII but because of religious reasons, BYU doesn’t play or practice on Sunday. The Mormon school would be unwilling to change that, which would make it undesirable for expansion.

The Rimington Trophy is given annually to the best center in college football’s Division I. Both Georgia’s Ben Jones and Georgia Tech’s Sean Bedford have been nominated for the watch list for 2010.

Name of the Week: Rakeem Christmas, whose two names don’t seem to go together. Christmas is a highly sought 6-foot-9 college basketball recruit out of Philadelphia.

BCS executive director Bill Hancock had this suggestion for Congress, which seems intent on poking its nose into college football. "While I appreciate your interest," Hancock said, "I believe that decisions about college football should be made by university presidents, athletic directors, coaches and conference commissioners rather than by members of Congress."

Don’t look for the Pac-10 to be a threat to unseat the ACC or Big East as the nation’s top basketball conference. The league’s 10 teams didn’t manage to sign a single player ranked in the country’s Top 20.

Perhaps never has one school dominated college basketball recruiting as has Kentucky over the past two seasons. This year’s class is said to rival last year’s No. 1 congregation of talent. Who are these guys? The Wildcats signed three of the nation’s top five including five-star players 6-foot-9 Enes Kanter, 6-9 Terence Jones, and 6-3 Brandon Knight.

Doron Lamb, a 6–foot-4 back court player and 6-5 Stacy Poole are also on board along with Eloy Vargas, a junior college player out of Miami.

And finally, Stanford University may have an edge in recruiting. Dr. Condoleezza Rice, former U.S. Secretary of State, is a professor at the California school and spoke to a group of football recruits. Is that an edge or is it a disadvantage?

This is Norman Arey and I agree with Bill Hancock.

Is Chipper bowing out with his skipper? There's nothing wrong with the Georgia Dome

(5/21) The college basketball signing period ended Wednesday and it looks as if Ohio State finished with the top class. Others in the top five include Kentucky, North Carolina, Memphis and Syracuse.

Forbes Magazine says the New York Yankees are the most valuable brand in sports in the world. The Yankees beat out British soccer team Manchester United for the honor. The Bombers are worth $1.6 billion.

Disgraced American cyclist Floyd Landis admitted he used performance-enhancing drugs during his Tour de France racing. Landis won the 2006 race but was later stripped of his title. He had always denied it until this week. And by the way, he says teammate and seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong is also guilty of the same thing.

There’s a good chance that the farewell tour for Atlanta Braves’ manager Bobby Cox may also be a goodbye tour for Chipper Jones. Jones, 38, admitted that he was having a lot of trouble with his legs and his hip is bothering him. "I’ve been doing this for a long time," he said, "and at some point you get tired of doing it." Jones has a contract for two more years but he says that wouldn’t stop him from quitting.

The state of Georgia’s ‘Mr. Basketball’ Marcus Thornton signed a financial aid letter with Georgia and will play for the Bulldogs next season. Although Thornton is the top-ranked player in the state, he’s listed as No. 121 by Rivals.Com. Thornton originally signed with Clemson, but was released when Oliver Purnell went to DePaul. He was also considering Georgia Tech, Texas and Alabama before signing with Georgia.

Let’s see if I’ve got all the rumors straight. Arizona Cardinal quarterback Kurt Warner may be coming back out of retirement for one more year. . . Minnesota Viking quarterback Brett Favre is rumored to be coming back. . . The Atlanta Falcons want their next stadium to be open-air, not a dome. . . Lakers’ coach Phil Jackson, who has won more NBA titles than any other coach in history, may be asked to take a pay cut after this season -- you know, bad economy and all.

And by the way, if the Falcons’ wish is granted and an outdoor stadium is built, what happens to the SEC football championship game now played in the Georgia Dome and the 2013 men’s Final Four and several other signature events scheduled for the indoor arena?

Sports Illustrated magazine’s mock NBA draft has Georgia Tech’s Derrick Favors going to the New York Nets with the No. 3 overall pick and Gani Lawal to Oklahoma City with the 21st pick.

This is Norman Arey saying there’s nothing wrong with the Georgia Dome.

The top offensive coordinator in the country may practice at Auburn

(5/20) Sporting News Today’s Matt Hayes chose his top 10 offensive coordinators in college football. Leading the list was Auburn’s Gus Malzahn. The other southern coaches who made the cut were Mark Whipple of Miami and Alabama’s Jim McElwain.

Don’t look for the Atlanta Hawks to make a big splash when they hire their new coach to replace the fired Mike Woodson. There are currently six head jobs open in the NBA and two more are rumored to be coming. There just ain’t that many top-notch coaches available.

Providence College basketball coach Keno Davis put his money where his mouth is. Davis booted the Friars’ leading scorer and rebounder, Jamine ‘Greedy’ Peterson, off the team for rules violations. Peterson was a double-double regular with 20 points and 10 rebounds per outing.

I don’t think there’s any doubt that the most powerful man in college sports these days is Big 10 Commissioner Jim Delaney. A University of North Carolina graduate and a lawyer by training, Delaney seems to be sitting in the seat to dictate college sports in this country with his proposed conference expansion.

FoxSports ran a list of the top five quarterback battles upcoming this college football season. The top five included Auburn, Penn State, Brigham Young, Oregon and Michigan. Of those five, I’d say that Rich Rodriguez in Ann Arbor is the most anxious.

Alabama backup quarterback Star Jackson has notified the Crimson Tide that he intends to transfer. Jackson, a highly touted player out of high school, had dropped to No. 3 on the depth chart. One of the schools that Jackson is considering is Georgia State, which has scheduled the Tide for its last game of the season.

There were a total of nine Division I-A quarterbacks who weren’t drafted in the 2010 NFL draft but have now signed free agent papers. Those include Ole Miss’ Jevan Snead who went with Tampa Bay, former LSU and Jacksonville State’s Ryan Perrilloux, who is now in Minnesota; Wake Forest’s Riley Skinner who signed with the New York Giants; and Penn State’s Darryl Clark, who is now a Redskin.

And, finally, just some food for thought, but when’s the last time that you can remember that the University of Georgia didn’t finish in the top 10 in football recruiting? In fact, not only were the Bulldogs not mentioned in FoxSports’ Top 10, they didn’t even figure in the Top 20.

This is Norman Arey and why wasn’t Georgia’s Mike Bobo mentioned as a top offensive coordinator.


Georgia Tech needs to stay right where it is and say no thanks to the SEC

(5/19) You’ve got to give Bosie State credit for not shying away from the big boys. The Broncos open their 2010 football season by playing Virginia Tech. Then, in 2011, Boise travels to Oxford to take on Ole Miss.

The Big East looks to be wide open when the 2010 college football season kicks off. In fact, things are more scrambled than usual as three of the member teams have new coaches. Skip Holtz has taken over South Florida, Butch Jones is running things in Cincinnati and Charlie Strong is at Louisville.

The ACC didn’t hit the television home run the SEC did but the conference did very well. ESPN barely eked out Fox Sports for the football and basketball rights for the ACC. This past year, the ACC realized $72 million annually to split among its dozen members. The new deal will give the league $155 million per year.

Maybe you can explain this because I sure can’t. Lane Kiffin made $2 million last year as head football coach at Tennessee - his first college head coaching job. The Vols finished 7-6 and then Southern Cal hired the itinerant coach and is paying him $4 million. For what, a 7-6 season?

Here’s something to keep your eye on this upcoming college football season. University of Houston quarterback Case Keenum threw for 5,671 yards on 492 completions last year. That number of completions is more than 107 teams even attempted during the season.

Boise State has until July 1 to decide whether it plans on leaving the Western Athletic Conference and move to the Mountain West Conference. The Broncos thought they had until Sept. 1 but the deadline was moved.

If what I’m reading and hearing is true, it would make good sense for Notre Dame to join the Big 10. Reportedly the Fighting Irish receive $15 million annually from NBC on its own television contract. That deal is dwarfed by what the Big 10 pays its member, which includes Purdue and Indiana in Notre Dame’s own state. Could it be that the Irish simply don’t want to compete year-in and year-out with the Ohio States, Michigans, Wisconsins and Iowas of the league? I mean where’s Navy and Army in that scenario?

And finally, is Georgia Tech really a legitimate candidate to re-join the SEC in the upcoming college football league wars? I’m not sure but think about this. Georgia Tech has been gone from the SEC for 47 years. I know, doesn’t seem that long ago, does it? The Yellow Jackets have invested 27 basically pretty good years in the ACC. It’ll be a tough choice if it comes to that.

This is Norman Arey and I say Tech needs to stay put. The old days are just that -- old days.

What's wrong with LeBron? Best I can tell, absolutely nothing

(5/18) I never thought I waste space or time writing about the NBA and I’m not today. I want to discuss the weird happenings concerning the man they call King.

The strangest thing happened to LeBron James on his way to being crowned ‘The Best There’s Ever Been’ in basketball - pro or college.

The six-year pro suddenly found a set of clay feet to go with his laurel wreath.

You would have thought that James single-handedly lost to Boston in the NBA playoffs. You might believe that he barely showed up, hardly scored, did no rebounding and couldn’t find an assist in his bag of many tricks.

James was asked by reporters whether he thought his legacy would be intact now that he wasn’t able to carry his team to the world championship. "Legacy?" asked James. "I’m just 25 years old."

Here’s a guy who jumped from Miss Jenkins’ 12th grade English class in Akron, Ohio, to the biggest basketball stage in the world. He didn’t need a stopover in the NBA’s feeder system (college). He just started going head-to-head with Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett and Dwayne Wade at the age of 18.

The fact that he labors in Cleveland not withstanding, LeBron took his place in the NBA pecking hierarchy right up there with the best. His nickname is ‘King James’ and he quickly became a one-name star. Just like Kobe and Michael, LeBron only needs one name.

So those wily Celtics, whose median age surpasses LeBron’s actual age, out dueled the Cavaliers. An upset? Hardly. The real problem was that LeBron didn’t have the luxury of being surrounded by all-star talent. He had a used-up Shaq O’Neill. He had a backcourt of Mo Williams and Anthony Parker, hardly Hall of Fame material. Antawn Jamison is a steady small forward but not all-star quality.

Boston countered with a lineup of Ray Allen, former UConn star, ex-Kansas legend Paul Pierce, the aforementioned Garnett, ex-Kentucky star Rajon Rondo, along with Rasheed Wallace, Big Baby Glen Davis et. al.

Come on folks. That’s like Custer taking on the Indians by himself.

LeBron averaged 29.1 points, 9.3 rebounds, 7.6 assists, shot better than 50 percent from the field and better than 73 percent from the foul line.

So now LeBron is a free agent. The sports headlines aren’t about the on-going NBA playoffs but about where the 6-foot-8, 250-pounder may play next season.

Chicago, Miami and New York seem to be leading the sweepstakes. And no, not a mention of Atlanta.

Whomever lands the prize must be prepared to give the guy some help. Then you’ve got yourself an NBA title.

This is Norman Arey wondering why Atlanta isn’t in the running.

The Florida State brass admits having discussed ditching the ACC for the SEC

(5/17) The rich just seem to get richer. Nike and the University of Alabama just signed a seven-year deal which is reportedly worth $30 million. But that’s not the highest-paying contract in college football. The University of Michigan and Adidas reportedly signed an eight-year deal that topped $66 million.

Now here’s the bottom line of all the proposed college conference expansion. If the Big 10 were to expand, each member of the league could double what it takes home now and they could do it in the next five years. The Big 10 members make roughly $21 million per year now.

The state of Georgia had 15 former high school players selected in the NFL draft behind only Florida (34), Texas (26) and California (25).

The Pittsburgh Steelers may be in a heap of trouble with quarterback Ben Roethlisberger sitting out a six-game suspension this season. Right now, the starter would be Byron Leftwich, and you remember his travails as an Atlanta Falcon.

And speaking of quarterbacks, does anybody but me find it strange that no one has picked up JaMarcus Russell, who was set free by the Oakland Raiders last week?

Latest rumor is that Tommy Tuberville is interested in bringing Zach Mettenberger to Lubbock to play for Texas Tech. Mettenberger is the quarterback, of course, who was kicked out of Georgia.

Where there’s smoke, there’s fire. Florida State athletics director Randy Spetman admitted the Seminole brass has had discussions about the possibility of moving from the ACC to the SEC when conference expansion happens.

The top SEC football hires in the 2000s, according to CollegeFootballNews.com are Urban Meyer at Florida, Nick Saban at Alabama, Les Miles at LSU, Mark Richt at Georgia and Rich Brooks at Kentucky. The bottom five include Mark Price at Alabama, Lane Kiffin at Tennessee, Ron Zook at Florida, Ed Orgeron at Ole Miss and Mike Shula at Alabama. Hey, Alabama made the list three times.

And finally, I fail to see why the fact that Notre Dame and Miami are discussing renewing their football rivalry is big news. It would have been huge news in 1988 or so, but today, so what? Neither team has distinguished itself for a long, long time and the players  today weren’t even born the last time they played.

This is Norman Arey and I think it’s disturbing Florida State is discussing leaving the ACC.


Atlanta the nation's second worst sport town? Tebow already a millionaire?

(5/14) Wasting no time, Corporate America is hot on the trail of Denver Bronco quarterback Tim Tebow. The former Florida Gator has signed deals with EA Sports and Nike but has reportedly turned down at least two seven-figure per year contracts because they might interfere with his football preparation.

Short Shots: It was only a matter of time. Maryland is now being mentioned as a possible Big 10 expansion team should the league go to 16 members. . . Miami has given football coach Randy Shannon a new four-year contract. Shannon is 21-17 in his three years guiding the Hurricanes. . . Georgia backup quarterback Logan Gray has decided to stay in Athens rather than transfer. . . Southern Miss at South Carolina will kick off ESPN’s Thursday night coverage on Sept. 2 this fall. USC plays at Hawaii in a later game that same night.

Kentucky led the nation in average college basketball attendance last season with 24,111 showing up for each game. Syracuse was second averaging 22,152. Louisville, North Carolina and Tennessee completed the top five.

A medical test shows that golfer Tiger Woods has an inflamed joint. And yes, it was a joint in his neck.

Here’s an amazing statistic. Three of the Final Four teams in the men’s NCAA basketball tournament finished the year in the top 10 percent in the academic progress report rankings. The three were West Virginia, Butler and Michigan State. The missing one? Duke, that academic bastion didn’t make the final cut.

All I can figure is the guy loves the spotlight. Kentucky basketball coach John Calipari was in the front row during the Cleveland Cavaliers game against Boston earlier this week. Nothing unusual about that other than the fact that rumors persist that Calipari will be coaching the Cavs next year to appease LeBron James, who likes Calipari.

Just so you’ll know, not everyone is in favor of leaving the Big XII conference. T. Boone Pickens, Oklahoma State’s main benefactor who has given hundreds of millions of dollars to his alma mater, says he thinks the Cowboys should stay put.

And finally, Forbes Magazine listed Atlanta No. 2 on its list of "Most Miserable Sports Towns." The magazine came up with the list by taking the number of post-season appearances by a town’s teams compared to how many championships were won. Seattle was first on the list while Phoenix, Buffalo and San Diego finished out the top five.

This is Norman Arey and I wouldn’t have given Randy Shannon a new four-year deal.

There may be some hot seats in college football coaching but there's not one in Athens

(5/13) There was a discussion on sports talk radio out of Atlanta this week basically questioning if Georgia head football coach Mark Richt is on the hot seat. I guess it was a slow day in sports. Richt being on the hot seat is akin to President Barack Obama being known as a financial conservative -- it’s simply not true and nobody with any power thinks that.

Richt has won 90 games in nine years with the Bulldogs. He’s won the SEC twice. He takes his team to a bowl every year. He’s never had a losing record in the SEC. So is he on the hot seat? Only if you need fodder to fill radio time in mid-May. But if you’ve got to have a hot seat, look to Les Miles in Baton Rouge.

A total of 29 college underclass withdrew their names for consideration in the NBA draft while a whopping total of 53 decided to forgo their college careers for the pro league.

Evidently Georgia Tech has identified the quarterback it wants for the future when Josh Nesbitt is gone. According to the AJC, the Yellow Jackets are hard after a quarterback in Durham, N.C., named Vad Lee. Cool name. His real name is Lavaedeay Lee but the players says it had no real meaning. "It was just my mom putting some letters together and coming up with Lavaedeay," he said.

No matter what happens, reigning NBA MVP LeBron James scored only 15 points and made but three field goals in Cleveland’s 32-point loss to Boston in the critical fifth game of the playoffs. The Celtics now lead 3-2 and head to Boston needing only one win to oust James, Shaq, et.al. This isn’t news but I point it out just so you’ll understand that a bad game can happen to anybody, even Kobe and Tim Duncan or Dwight Howard. The difference is its news when it happens in other cities but business as usual when it happens to the Atlanta Hawks.

And by the way, watch for King James to be in a New York Knicks’ uniform next season unless the Cavs’ bring in some heavy duty help and hire a new coach.

The NFL, despite the fact that next year may include a work stoppage and strike, has seen 18 of its teams raise ticket prices for next season. Stinking economy? What stinking economy? The Atlanta Falcons raised prices on 26,000 tickets while lowering prices on 6,800.

And here’s something refreshing. New England quarterback Tom Brady says his Patriot team didn’t do as well as it could have because they didn’t listen to coach Brian Belichick as they should have. What? You mean it was the players' fault? Amazing.

This is Norman Arey enjoying not being on the hot seat - at least I don’t think I am.

The way Tiger's been swinging the past few months, why does he need a new swing coach?

(5/12) Kansas City radio station WHB-AM reported that the Big 10 Conference has made expansion offers to four teams - Notre Dame, Rutgers, Missouri and Nebraska. The conference reportedly wants an answer quickly and would announce its plan in July.

At last the Atlanta Hawks have been put out of their misery, losing four straight to Orlando in the NBA playoffs. Here’s what I think should happen in the off-season, although I’m not sure it will. The Hawks need to jettison Joe Johnson and coach Mike Woodson, and possible front court player Marvin Williams, trade up in the draft for a point guard and shooting guard, and go after an inside presence. Other than that, they can stand pat.

And, if Joe Johnson does go, where might he land? The Dallas Morning News suggested that Johnson would be a good addition to the Dallas Mavericks’ roster.

Remember Pat White, the quarterback extradonaire at West Virginia two years ago? Well, his brother Coley looked like a million dollars during the Mountaineers’ spring game and if the cards fall right, could start for coach Bill Stewart next fall.

Short Shots: Supposedly Reese’s candy will be the new title sponsor for the Orange Bowl. . . Oregon State reserve quarterback Peter Lalich, who transferred to the Beavers after having two alcohol-related run-ins while at Virginia, was arrested for DUI while boating. Some guys just don’t learn. . . Kentucky basketball coach John Calipari wants to start a junior varsity program for the Wildcats.

New Tennessee football coach Derek Dooley confirmed this week that Matt Simms is the Vols’ No. 1 quarterback heading into the fall. Dooley also said that Tyler Bray looked good and would continue to fight for the job.

And this from avid reader Joey Mac: ‘Blame all the cash flow problems in college sports, including the need for huge expansion of conferences, on Title IX. Has anybody ever taken a serious look at the impact of Title IX on overall costs and recent downstream implications, not to mention loss of many men’s programs to assure comparable numbers of athletic opportunities.’ Tell it all, Joey.

And finally, it should be noted that Tiger Woods swing coach, Hank Haney, has resigned. Funny. I thought Tiger had been swinging with the best of them lately.

This is Norman Arey and yes, I know what kind of swing coach it really was. That was a little joke. Golf humor. Get it?

Could Alabama score 100 points in football? ACC needs to get a plan in place today

(5/11) Buffalo Bills’ offensive tackle Ed Wang may have been the most valuable player selected in the NFL draft. Wang is the first player of direct Chinese descent ever to play in the pro league and gives the pros a chance to break into the lucrative Chinese market. The 6-foot-5, 300-pound Wang’s jersey is already on back order. Wang played his college ball at Virginia Tech.

The Mobile Press-Register ran a story suggesting that national defending champ Alabama could score 100 points on Georgia State, a first-year program in Division I-AA when the two meet at season’s end. The story asked whether Tide coach Nick Saban should start kneeling on the ball in the third quarter with the score 70-0 or let his backups to his backups play? Scary for GSU’s Bill Curry.

Chicago Tribune sports writer Teddy Greenstein writes that the Big 10 may expand its membership by five teams. His pick of the five included Missouri, Connecticut, Rutgers, Syracuse and Nebraska. Funny thing but all the predictions I’ve read never mention Maryland, yet the Terps would hand any conference the Washington, D.C., television market.

Despite the fact that top prep quarterback Christian LeMay gave a verbal declare to Georgia last week, the Matthews, N.C., native says he’s leaving the door slightly ajar. He said he doesn’t want to sit for three years behind the Bulldogs’ Aaron Murray. LeMay was also considering Auburn, Clemson, Texas A&M and Notre Dame.

I doubt if any real news comes out but the ACC is having its annual meeting in Amelia Island, Fla., and you can bet conference expansion is going to take center stage. The league is in a very tenuous position with several of its teams at risk (Miami, Florida State) of being gobbled up by the SEC.

With Tiger Woods pulling out of The Players Championship over the weekend with a pain in his neck, are we seeing the demise of the world’s greatest golfer before our very eyes. The neck pain could be a bulging disc, says Tiger. And don’t forget the knee operation and the Achilles pain and the tingling in his right hand and the . . . well, you see why he may never reach that magical 19th major title.

And finally, one mock NBA draft was a mixed bag for former Georgia Tech players. The one I saw had Derrick Favors being chosen third by the Sacramento Kings but junior Gani Lawal not going in the first round.

This is Norman Arey and if the ACC asked me, I’d say get an expansion plan in place - today.

It can be really tough out there when Satan's out to get you

(5/10) The University of Alabama is talking to three cities - Jacksonville, Dallas and Atlanta - about playing neutral site games there in the next few years. The Crimson Tide schedule opened up when Georgia Tech requested its scheduled home-and-home with Alabama be pushed back. Now The Tide has openings in 2013-2014.

Six new college football teams are readying to take the field for the first time this year and 10 more are set to begin next year. One of the six that will field its first team this season is Georgia State.

The meeting last week between the Big XII and the Pac-10 saw the two conferences trying to find ways to work together as the Big 10 explores expansion. The two were seeking ways to share television contracts and to work out big conference meetings - say, for instance, Texas vs. Southern Cal on a regular basis.

Just wondering, whatever happened to the supposed comebacks of golfers John Daly and David Duval? . . . Will we see Mike Woodson return as the coach of the Atlanta Hawks or Joe Johnson return as a high-paid super star? . . . Will Kentucky be able to return to the top of the college basketball world now that it’s official that the Wildcats lost five players to the early entry period of the NBA? . . . Will the Atlanta Braves be able to pull out of their early season nose dive to make it interesting later in the baseball year or will it be a long, hot summer? . . . Can North Carolina return to the nation’s elite in college basketball with the unexpected loss of one-half of its front court after 6-foot-10 twins David and Travis Wear announced they were transferring?

And by the way, Butler University sensation Gordon Hayward announced that he was staying in the NBA draft and won’t return. Thereby the Bulldogs won’t return to their heady position of an elite team next season.

I couldn’t resist this early list of Heisman Trophy hopefuls for next college football season. According to FoxSports.com, they include Pitt running back Dion Lewis, Ohio State quarterback Terrelle Pryor, Virginia Tech running back Ryan Williams, Boise State quarterback Kellen Moore and Oregon State runner Jacquizz Rodgers. Last year’s winner, Alabama running back Mark Ingram, was listed but not in the top five.

And finally, here’s a new defense that I’ve not heard before. Oklahoma State basketball player Matt Pilgrim has been accused of rape by an OSU co-ed. Pilgrim basically said that Satan was out to get him.

This is Norman Arey staying out of the way of Satan.

Who'll win in a hotly contested run for Sportsman of the Year- Tiki or Tiger?

(5/7) According to SportingNewsToday.com, there are six high-profile college football teams that got nothing settled about their quarterback position during spring training. The six who will head into the fall with quarterback question marks include LSU, Southern Cal, Nebraska, Michigan, Penn State and Brigham Young.

OK. Who’s the most disgusting? Tiger Woods or Tiki Barber? Barber, the former New York Giants’ excellent running back, has left his wife, pregnant with twins and mother of two others, for a 23-year-old intern. It’s not news but I had always thought Barber was bright for getting out of the NFL at the peak of his career to pursue broadcasting. I’m disappointed. He’s just stupid.

The most exciting defensive player in all of college football? The Sporting News says it’s Alabama linebacker Dont’a Hightower and that’s with the player missing almost half the season last year with an injury.

Just thought you’d enjoy knowing that on this day in 1954, British runner Roger Banister broke the 4-minute mile.

If you don’t think that a lockout is a possibility for the 2011 National Football League season, consider that the pro football conglomerate is exploring buying up 25 percent of the fledgling United Football League so it could develop a feeder system for replacement players.

You’ve got to pay attention when a sponsor as big as FedEx drops its title sponsorship of a bowl as important as the Orange Bowl. It’ll be interesting to see how the bowl reacts. Is the ACC champion really all that attractive to television? I mean, look at the bowl’s last four match-ups - 2007 Louisville vs. Wake Forest, 2008 Kansas vs. Virginia Tech, 2009 Cincinnati vs. Virginia Tech and last year Georgia Tech vs. Iowa.

Sports and politics don’t mix and so far, the controversial law passed by Arizona politicians to basically start profiling for illegal immigrants hasn’t cost the state yet. But both the Major League Baseball All-Star game, which is scheduled in Phoenix for 2011 and college football’s Fiesta Bowl may be feeling a little nervous.

North Carolina basketball has been staggered by the news that David and Travis Wear, the highly recruited 6-foot-10 freshman twins, will transfer out of Chapel Hill. The Wears had looked at UCLA and Arizona before committing to the Tar Heels.

This is Norman Arey and I won’t vote for Tiki Barber or Tiger as Sportsmen of the Year.

Are you still welcome in Valdosta? There are some out there who aren't

(5/6) You no doubt remember Plaxico Burris, the idiot who shot himself in the leg while carrying an illegal weapon in New York? Well, he’s in jail for doing that and he still can’t behave. The former New York Giant receiver lost his privilege to go outdoors after he lied to a prison guard. He told the guard he had permission to call his attorney on his personal cell phone when he didn’t have. Wait a minute? He has his own cell phone? He was going outside? What kind of prison is this?

As Paul Harvey would have said, "Now we know the rest of the story." Former Georgia quarterback Zach Mettenberger entered a guilty plea to two counts of misdemeanor sexual battery and was sentenced to 12 months of probation and fined $2,000. Here’s the kicker. He’s been banned from Valdosta, the site of the bar where the misdemeanors took place, for a year. Now that’s more embarrassing than being kicked out of Georgia.

I’m not sure if this is good or bad but Florida State returns 10 starters on offense . . . And by the way, rumor is that Metterberger is looking to visit Louisville in the next few weeks... As far as the moron who ran on the field during a Phillies game and was hit by a taser gun by a security person, the AJC’s Jeff Schultz suggests tasing all Philadelphia fans.

If you enjoyed Duke’s 61-59 win over Butler in the NCAA tourney finals, you’re going to get a chance to see them play again. The Blue Devils will meet the Bulldogs in East Rutherford, N.J., next December.

SI.Com’s Andy Staples’ early 2010 college football ranking have Alabama, Boise State and Ohio State listed as the top three. In the 25 teams ranked, the ACC placed five and the SEC three. Georgia Tech was No. 15. Georgia wasn’t mentioned.

If massive college football conference realignment indeed takes place, the teams who look to lose the most are Cincinnati, Louisville, South Florida and West Virginia. The question is, where will they go if the Big East implodes?

I wondered aloud why Gonzaga’s Mark Few hasn’t moved on to bigger and greener pastures. My own ignorance didn’t allow me to know that Few was approached by Oregon this year and has had a half dozen or more opportunities to move to a bigger schools but chose to remain in Spokane.

And finally, Tom Dienhart of Rivals.Com picked his All-Spring College Football team and Georgia Tech’s Anthony Allen was named on the first team. Allen will replace Jonathan Dwyer who graduated to the NFL after last season. Dienhart suggests that Allen will top 1,000 rushing yards this season. Florida State’s Christian Ponder was the choice at quarterback.

This is Norman Arey and I’m still welcome in Valdosta.

Norman's nine burning questions in the world of sports

(5/5) Will Tim Tebow play quarterback for Denver next season? Not as an everyday player but surely he will get on the field in a set of specialty plays designed for his talents.

Is there resentment about Tebow within the Bronco ranks? Of course. Here’s this college rah-rah guy headed into a locker room of grown men with a mission to be a leader. How would you feel? They trade away a franchise quarterback (Jay Cutler) and a 100-catch-a-year guy (Brandon Marshall) and draft a project for the most important spot on the field?

Did the Atlanta Falcons improve themselves enough with the draft to make the playoffs? Maybe but the jury will be out until at least next October. Well, to be honest, no.

Will there be a quarterback controversy at Georgia Tech this fall? Not unless Josh Nesbitt breaks both legs.

Can you pronounce Detroit Lion’s draftee Ndamukong Suh’s name? Yes.

Is Oakland Raider owner Al Davis dead? No, he just looks that way.

How many University of Miami players were selected in the first round this year? Even though Miami holds the record by having a player selected in the first round for 14 consecutive years, no one made it this year. Second round, either.

(Bonus question) So who was the first Hurricane player drafted? Actually, he was a four-year basketball player named Jimmy Graham who played tight end for the ‘Canes one season.

Are you sick of hearing about Ben Roethesberger? Who?

This is Norman Arey and I was asked if I’m trying to be a smart aleck. If you think so, you’re very astute.

Part II: College football conference expansion is on the way

(5/4) Monday, we looked at the possibility of college football conference expansion through the Big Ten's eyes. Today, let’s see where the Southeastern Conference might be headed.

Again, this whole thing is money driven. The SEC’s payout to each of its 12 teams is $17 million annually, slightly behind the Big Ten's $21 million.

Just as with the Big Ten, in order to be invited to sit with the royalty that is the SEC, you’ve got to be able to bring something valuable to the table. The SEC’s last expansion didn’t do that. Neither Arkansas nor South Carolina added much in the way of value, although it made geographic sense.

Now, staring down the barrel of taking a back seat to the Big Ten, the SEC is thinking large. Large, as in visiting with Texas and Texas A&M. The payout the SEC could offer right out of the box is more than $5-$7 million per year than what the schools take home now. By capturing the entire Texas television viewer ship, the move would add plenty to the SEC’s already bulging coffers.

We also must assume that the SEC isn’t going to subtract any members, so Ole Miss and Mississippi State, the weak links, can breath easier. For comparison’s sake, the Rebels have the 65th largest athletic department in the country and the Bulldogs are 67th with revenues around $30 million. By comparison, Vanderbilt banked $45 million and Florida led everybody with $106 million.

So, if the SEC chooses to add two teams, I’m guessing the two Texas schools.

The second scenario is to go after Florida State and Miami. With Florida already in the fold, the SEC would own the TV rights for the entire state and deliver a mighty blow to the rival ACC.

Another scenario, as pointed out by The Chicago Tribune and others, would see the SEC go for Virginia and Virginia Tech. Again, they capture the Washington, D.C. market

Now, expanding to 16 teams, the SEC could steal Texas, Texas A&M, Oklahoma and Nebraska. One suggestion would see Auburn and Mississippi State move to the SEC east while the western half of the league would feature Texas, Alabama, Oklahoma, LSU and Nebraska. Gad Zooks!

As you can see the possibilities are endless. The SEC seems to be sitting in the position of power in all of this. It’s in a position to put two other conferences out of business and deliver a knock out blow to the ACC.

Something’s gonna happen, so stay tuned over the next few months.

This is Norman Arey and I’d love to see Texas have to play an SEC schedule every year.

Part I: It's undeniable--college football conference expansion is coming soon

(5/3) Because I believe that the eventuality of college football conference realignment is the most important thing that will happen in the sport since the advent of the forward pass, I want to spend the next two days sharing two very different scenarios as to how this may transpire. I’m no expert, but here’s what I’ve come up with from a half-dozen sources.

First let’s look at this thing from the Big 10 point of view before we discuss the SEC possibilities tomorrow.

It’s all about money. Come on, what did you expect. The Big 10 has an annual payout of roughly $21 million to each of its eleven teams. That tops everyone else. So, in order to become a member of the Big 10, you must be able to bring something to the table to pay your own way. Basically we’re talking about television markets, here.

How many teams can do that?

It’s also common knowledge that Notre Dame is the lynch pin for all of this. If the Big 10 were able to persuade the Irish to come aboard, there would be no talk of expanding to 14 or 16 teams. But Notre Dame has said, point blank, that’s it’s priority is to stay independent in football. Period.

It’s second priority is to protect the Big East, of which it is a member in every sport other than football. The Irish think highly of themselves and if the Big East were raided, the conference would either disband or be forced to add schools like Central Florida, Southern Miss and Memphis. Thus Notre Dame would be into a place not worthy of the haughty Irish’s intellect and academic prowess.

The next most attractive move for the Big 10 is to do just what the Irish hope doesn’t happen raid the Big East and take Rutgers, Syracuse and possibly Pitt. Again, think TV market. They capture the New York viewers and those of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.

If the league goes to 16 teams, Missouri and Nebraska may be the added targets. There was even talk at one time about the Big 10 chasing Texas and Texas A&M. Don’t think that’s going to happen because of the geographic undesirability of it.

No matter what happens, the Big East and the Big XII seem the most vulnerable. Each could be completely out of business within three years.

In the meantime, SEC commissioner Mike Slive said his league isn’t going to sit around and wait and see what happens. He’s say they’re going to do their due diligence and be proactive concerning expansion.

We’ll spend tomorrow talking about that scenario.

This is Norman Arey and I hope Notre Dame gets left out in the cold.

If you don't believe Alabama will rule the SEC, answer this: Who's going to beat the Tide?

(4/30) Sporting News Today college football writers Dave Curtis and Matt Hayes were asked which team enjoys the greatest home field advantage. Curtis chose Oklahoma, Colorado and Texas Tech. Hayes says Virginia Tech, Oregon and Florida.

And speaking of Oregon, the Ducks’athletics director Pat Kilkenny says his school could have made a much bigger splash than it did by hiring Creighton University’s Dana Altman. Kilkenny said they had five national championship coaches show interest in the job and at least three would have taken it. I’m not saying he’s fabricating but. . . And speaking of coaching hired, The Citadel has hired Chuck Driesell, son of Lefty Driesell, as its head basketball coach.

Talk about buzzard luck: the National League’s Colorado Rockies have not one, not two, but three starting pitchers on the 15-day disabled list.

Alabama basketball coach Anthony Grant has signed Kendall Durant to play round ball for the Crimson Tide. Kendall is the first cousin of former Texas All-American and NBA scoring champion Kevin Durant.

As far as Crimson Tide football goes, you SEC-watchers aren’t going to like this but I see Alabama basically making its way through its league schedule with little opposition. Seriously, who’s going to beat them? Florida is the lone possibility. The SEC is going to be down again this year despite the emergence of the Western Division.

Here’s what new NCAA president Mark Emmert will be faced with as he takes over the governing body of college sports. Basically, college sports is held-bent to destroy itself with escalating costs that they can’t possibly sustain. On top of that, his top teams are looking at forming four super conferences which would strip away most of the NCAA’s glamor boys and render the governing body powerless. In fact, the 64-team super conferences might just put the NCAA out of business. Why would a man of Emmert’s intelligence take the job?

I’m not saying anything untoward will happen but it’s worth watching over the weekend as Tiger Woods plays in his first regular PGA event since he appeared in the Masters earlier in the month. He’s playing in Charlotte and it’s not a controlled atmosphere as was Augusta.

This is Norman Arey and I say nobody’s going to beat Alabama this fall in league play.