Norman says Appalachian State football coach a popular man with the Big 10

(5/9) Mark Teixeira is a great player, a good guy and is going to be a very rich one shortly. Teixeira, who played his collegiate baseball at Georgia Tech, is looking at free agency at the end of this year. Jon Heyman of SI. Com suggests the Atlanta Braves’ infielder’s contract may begin with the number "2" as in 200 million for a multiyear deal.

Question. Will the insane gasoline prices affect NASCAR?

Appalachian State football coach Jerry Moore learned his spread offense by watching Urban Meyer when he was at Utah and then refined it by visiting with Rich Rodriguez when he was at West Virginia. Now that Rodriguez is coaching at Michigan, Moore says he’s been invited to speak and visit with almost every team in the Big 10.

UNC-Ashville’s Kenny George, the 7-foot-7, 360-pound center, wears a size 28 shoe.

Notre Dame football coach Charlie Weis took a couple of shots at Michigan and its new coaching staff during a speech to Irish boosters. In closing, he said, "To hell with Michigan." The Irish play the Wolverines the second game of the season.

The Final Four teams had a total of 14 underclassmen declare for the NBA draft -- four each from Memphis and UCLA and three from North Carolina and Kansas.

Joe Hamilton, the former Georgia Tech quarterback and recently hired football staffer, resigned after being charged with DUI, possession of marijuana and hit-and-run. It saved athletics director Dan Radakovich from having to make an unpopular decision.

The NCAA has accused Alabama State University of 668 rules violations, most of them in football. What? They forgot to wear their helmets?

Does Kentucky basketball coach Billy Gillispie know something that we don’t know? Last week, the Wildcats’ coach got a verbal commitment from eight-grader Michael Avery in California. This week, he got a commitment from nine-grader Vincent Zollo of Ohio. Ladies and gentlemen, that’s crazy.

The long list of things Norman is tired of hearing about in sports

(5/8) I’m allowed to have a personal opinion within the context of these commentaries and my two new favorite sports figures are golfer Brandt Snedeker and NASCAR budding superstar Kyle Busch. Snedeker is young, always pleasant, unflappable, Southern and a pleasure to watch. Busch is young, will bring in a whole new age group to the racing circuit and his on-going feud with Dale Earnhardt, Jr. can do nothing but help the left-turn folks.

Things I’m tired of hearing:

>Reggie Bush and whether he’ll be deposed or not for accepting illegal gifts while at Southern Cal.

>Rich Rodriguez, West Virginia and Michigan.

>How good Georgia is going to be this year.

>Florida quarterback Tim Tebow performing one of his seemingly endless humanitarian good deeds.

>No movement by the BCS to a playoff system.

>Athletes running afoul of the law.

>Former LSU quarterback Ryan Perrilloux.

>The big contracts being signed by college football coaches.

>Bobby Bowden vs. Joe Paterno and who’ll outlast the other.

>Nick Saban just on general principle.

More things I’m tired of hearing:

>The Atlanta Falcons’ seemingly inability to put the Michael Vick era behind.

>Come to think of it, Michael Vick, period.

>That the Atlanta Hawks are back. Hey, they lost by an average of 25 points per game in the NBA playoffs on the road in Boston.

>Isiah Thomas and the New York Knicks.

>Who’s leaving early from the college basketball ranks for the NBA.

>Mark Richt and his seemingly endless good deeds.

>Tech football players jumping ship because of Paul Johnson.

And more things:

>Congress’ involvement with Major League Baseball.

>Presidential candidates courting the NASCAR vote. Hey Hillary, it didn’t work.

>Athletes involving themselves with presidential politics. Fox sportscaster Troy Aikman gave $2,300 to John McCain.

>Politics being involved with the Olympics.

>Charlie Weis and Notre Dame, not necessarily in that order.

> Anything to do with boxer Mike Tyson.

>Any story dealing with Evander Holyfield’s retirement.

>Michael Vick - ah, I already said that.

NCAA report card: 200 colleges penalized because of low academic standards

(5/7) Say it ain’t so, Joe. The AJC reports that Joe Hamilton, the former Georgia Tech quarterback hired last month as a football assistant, has been arrested on charges of DUI, possession of marijuana and hit and run on Tuesday. Hamilton had at stint in the NFL and the Arena Football League before joining the Yellow Jacket staff. The South Carolina native led Tech to a share of the ACC title in 1998. A shame. Hamilton always seemed to have his head on straight.

Lou Holtz was one of the inductees announced last week for the College Football Hall of Fame. Holtz wasn’t quite as well-traveled as the NBA’s Larry Brown but he comes close. Holtz coached at William & Mary, N.C. State, Arkansas, Minnesota, Notre Dame and South Carolina with a side trip to the NFL with the New York Jets. His overall college record was 249-132-7.

Here & There: Wayne Gretzky and John Elway have bought between 1 and 2 percent of the Professional Bull Riding circuit. . . Dennis Rodman has been signed into a rehab unit although I’m not sure from what he’s rehabilitating. There’s a long list of choices. . . There are 69 college basketball players who are early entrants into the NBA draft. Somebody needs to do something about this age limit thing. . . Bob Huggins has signed an 11-year contract extension as head basketball coach at West Virginia. I’ve never heard of an 11-year extension before.

The hot rumor on the NASCAR circuit is that team owner Rick Hendrick could give Casey Mears the boot and give the No. 5 car to Tony Stewart. With Stewart, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon on the same team, the question would be is there enough ego room and enough cars to go around? . . . Kyle Busch has joined forces with Pedigree Dog Chow and will try to raise $100,000 for the 4 million dogs in shelters and for adoption programs.

The NCAA announced it had handed out penalties to more than 200 colleges for lack of academic performance. In basketball, Tennessee was the most notable. In football, both Kansas and Hawaii received penalties which include loss of scholarships and reduced practice time. The NCAA promises it will be less lenient next season.

Word on the campus is that Ryan Perrilloux, the LSU quarterback who was kicked out of school, will re-surface at Alabama’s Jacksonville State. Jax State kicked its starting quarterback, Cedric Johnson, off the team for violation of team rules. Perfect match.

And finally, of the 19 players who were suspended from the Florida State football team in December, less than a dozen are on the team as a result of graduation, transfer and academic ineligibility. Six are projected starters.

SEC chief's playoff plan might be too successful with fans?

(5/6) OK, let’s all get this straight. SEC commissioner Mike Slive’s plan for a plus-one playoff system, which essentially involved four teams playing two games to decide a national champion, was defeated because it might be too successful? Seriously, that was the thinking. Every conference except the SEC and the ACC voted against the proposal because they felt it might be so welcomed that fans wouldn’t be appeased with just four teams and might want to go to eight or even 16. Gosh, imagine that. The Division I-AA envisioned that right out of the box.

All-star pitcher Roger Clemens admitted to making some mistakes in his personal life after it was reported that he had affairs with several women during his career. Clemens’ admission is much like the Titanic reporting it had a leak.

Just what the Falcons needed -- another player in trouble with the law. Linebacker Michael Boley was arrested over the weekend for battery at a time when the Atlanta club is stressing good behavior after the Michael Vick fiasco of the past year.

Former Kentucky head basketball coach Tubby Smith was back in Lexington over the weekend for the first time since his departure last year to coach at the University of Minnesota.. Smith was presented an honorary Doctorate Degree in Humanities by the university. He also attended the Kentucky Derby.

Talk about a challenge: New Indiana basketball coach Tom Creen, after defections and dismissals, is down to three returning scholarship players and eight players in all as he looks to regain the Hoosiers’ place among the nation’s elite programs.

The Orlando Sentinel reports that during spring break, Florida quarterback Tim Tebow helped out at a medical clinic set up by his minister father in an impoverished village in the Philippines. "Dr. Tebow" helped circumcise needy children.

And now, ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce NASCAR’s newest villain. Jeff Gordon will have to step back for Kyle Busch, after his run-in with Dale Earnhart Jr., has inspired Junior fans to start an Internet crusade to Rise Up Against Kyle Busch. It’s just one of them racin’ things.

Sports notes: It's never too early to talk SEC football (or basketball)

(5/5) Some SEC Football stuff: Seven of the dozen Southeastern Conference schools drew at least 28,000 for their spring football games and the SEC averaged 31,100. . . Florida will be going for its 21st consecutive winning season in football, a league record. . . Georgia returns 19 of 26 starters to a team which finished 11-2 and ranked No. 2 in the final football polls. . . Name of the week is LSU defensive tackle Ricky Jean-Francois. . . It’s a little frightening to realize that Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer is entering his 17th year, making him the dean of SEC coaches. The Vols also have four new offensive coaches. . . South Carolina place kicker Ryan Succop was named the Gamecock Offensive Player of the Spring. . . Texas quarterback transfer Jevan Sneed is expected to start for Ole Miss.

Bruce Pearl has booted both Duke Crews and Ramar Smith off the Tennessee basketball team and out of school. Also, Pearl’s divorce from his wife of 25 years was finalized last week.

I thought it was about time when LSU bid adieu to troubled quarterback Ryan Perrilloux. The projected starter had been given a handful of chances and couldn’t stay out of trouble.

Sportswriter Dan Shanoff proposes the SEC secede from the BCS, since it is the strongest football conference, and set up its own playoff system in football. Invite anyone who cares to join, if not whole leagues, than individual teams. And don’t let the obstructionists to a true playoff -- the Big 10 and Pac-10 -- to participate. I love the idea.

Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski has nine former assistant coaches who are now head basketball coaches.

Some of the week’s stupidities: Chicago Bears’ running back Cedric Benson was arrested for boating while intoxicated and had to be taken down with pepper spray. . . Kansas City Royals’ pitcher John Bale broke his hand punching a door at the team’s hotel. . .Kentucky basketball coach Billy Gillispie extended a scholarship offer to an eighth-grader last week. Michael Avery gave his verbal commitment and will arrive on the Lexington campus in time to play on the 2012-13 Wildcat team.

Syracuse’s Greg Robinson has compiled a 7-28 overall, 2-19 in Big East conference play in his three years at the helm of the Orange.

The Hawks embarrassed themselves again, losing to the Celtics by 34 in the seventh and final game of the NBA playoffs scoring a shaky 26 points in the entire first half. Which begs the question, should there be a mercy rule in pro basketball?

Says Norman: We need more bowl games!

(5/2) The long-awaited news that there will be two more bowl games this season is now confirmed. The Congressional Bowl will be played in Washington, D.C., and will pit the ninth best team in the ACC against Navy - if either qualifies. The St. Petersburg Bowl (in Florida, not Russia) will be between the seventh best team in the eight-team Big East against a Conference USA team.

How does it come about that we have 119 Division I teams and 68 spots open since there are now 34 bowls.

Do a group of folks in Washington and St. Petersburg sit down at a table and someone says, "Hey, I’ve got it. Let’s have a bowl game!" and everyone votes yes? It’s completely insane. Can 68 teams qualify by winning at least six games? The best thing that can happen is that some bowls simply can’t fill in their slots and they’ll drop out.

The big BCS meeting in Florida which featured 11 conference commissioners and Notre Dame, was a non-event, as expected. It is now clear to anyone with a half-brain that there isn’t going to be a college football playoff of any kind in our lifetime and maybe never. Period. Let’s talk about something else.

Gosh, it’s just the first week in May and there’s already noise coming from the peanut gallery that Atlanta Braves manager Bobby Cox needs to go. Didn’t take long this year. Ridiculous.

Davidson College finally got its due for its NCAA tourney run. Frank Ben-Eze out of Arlington, Va., signed with the Wildcats this week. Ben-Eze, a 6-foot-10, 230-pound center, was ranked as the 12th best remaining unsigned player.

Georgia, not to be outdone by Georgia Tech’s scheduling of behemoths Gardner-Webb and Jacksonville State, has agreed to take on Tennessee Tech in 2009. . . And speaking of the Yellow Jackets, Paul Johnson could be Coach of the Year if he wins more than he loses, or even breaks even. I count seven games right out of the box in which they should be underdogs -- at Boston College, Virginia Tech, Clemson, North Carolina and Georgia and two home games against Miami and Florida State. Are we that sure of the wishbone?

Tech lineman latest to seek other options rather than play Johnson's offense

(5/1) Shocking that Hansbrough is transferring to Notre Dame. No, not North Carolina Player of the Year Tyler Hansbrough but brother Ben, who will be a junior. The younger Hansbrough, a 6-3 guard, started 28 games for Mississippi State, averaging 10.8 points. He must sit out a year.

Georgia Tech’s offensive lineman Trey Dunmon announced he’s transferring out of the Jackets program, saying new coach Paul Johnson’s option offense isn’t best suited to his talents. Dunmon plans to go to Georgia Southern. Four have transferred since Johnson took over.

Perhaps I haven’t been paying attention, but I was unaware that Falcon owner Arthur Blank is pursuing bringing a Major League Soccer franchise to Atlanta.

Prices for this year’s Major League Baseball All-Star Game to be played in Yankee Stadium are going from $150-$725. Last year in San Francisco, tickets sold from $75 - $285. Must be the nostalgia of seeing a game in a stadium that’s disappearing after this season.

Blue chip point guard Tyshawn Taylor from Jersey City has given his verbal commitment to play basketball at Kansas. His final two choice were the Jayhawks and Georgia Tech.

The Buffalo Bills will receive $78 million to play eight games in the next five years in Toronto - three exhibition games and five regular season contests.

Nomadic basketball coach Larry Brown was hired by the Charlotte Bobcats. The job is Brown’s ninth in pro basketball and 11th overall counting his foray into the college ranks at UCLA and Kansas. He’s one of five NBA coaches to have 1,000 wins and the only one to have a collegiate title and pro title.

WRAL.com points out that Clemson’s Tommy Bowden has never had a losing season, but neither has he won an ACC title or had a Top 10 finish.

The University of Miami’s fall from grace among college football powers was further emphasized when the Hurricanes drew only 11,000 for their spring game.

And finally, and this seems like a good way to end it, more than 500 men lined up at Miller Stadium before a Milwaukee Brewers' game for a free prostate cancer screening test. Each got two free tickets for his trouble.