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Without a permanent head coach between them on the field, I pick Gators over Cincinnati

(Dec. 31) This is Norman Arey with part III of Norman’s Bowl No-Nos where I pick the losers in 10 college bowl games.

Friday, Jan. 1 - OUTBACK BOWL - AUBURN vs. NORTHWESTERN - The Wildcats are a better team than many think and won eight this season. Auburn started out great but faded the second half of the season. ‘Cats win ninth. NO-NO. Northwestern falls hard, 28-19.

CAPITAL ONE BOWL - LSU vs. PENN STATE - All Hail the Mighty Big 10. NO-NO, just kidding. A third place SEC team is much better than a third place Big 10er, The Bengals unleash frustration of season as Nittany Lions take the loss, 22-16.

GATOR BOWL - FSU vs. WEST VIRGINIA - This game shouldn’t even be in Jacksonville but the Gator wanted to showcase Bobby Bowden for the final time. I think the icon goes out in style. NO-NO. Mounties’ Noel Devine runs all over ‘Noles defense, 35-28.

ROSE BOWL - OHIO STATE vs. OREGON - Buckeye QB Terrell Pryor has said he feels OSU has something to prove. I agree and they do. NO-NO. Ducks will dazzle ‘em with their uniforms and then take care of business with Jeremiah Misoli, Bucks tumble again, 31-27.

SUGAR BOWL - CINCINNATI vs. FLORIDA - Promises to be interesting game between teams who won’t have a permanent coach between them on the field. Gators don’t want to be here. Lose. NO-NO. Same old story. Tim Tebow won’t let ‘em lose, Bearcats whipped, 38-12.

Saturday, Jan 2 - COTTON BOWL - OKLAHOMA STATE vs. OLE MISS - Neither of these lived up to their pre-season hype. Cowboys are the better team. NO-NO. ‘Boys come out of Big 12, which is Texas and everybody else. Jevan Snead leads Rebs over OSU, 28-24.

PAPAJOHN’S BOWL - CONNECTICUT vs. SOUTH CAROLINA - UConn’s Randy Edsall wants folks to know Huskies are ready for the big stage and stops the Gamecocks. NO-NO. Steve Spurrier is wild to win his eighth game of the season, UConn is trumped, 31-28.

ALAMO BOWL - TEXAS TECH vs. MICHIGAN STATE - This one wouldn’t be on the radar screen except for the Red Raiders’ Mike Leach’s escapades. So let’s stick to football. Spartans win despite the distractions. . NO-NO. Raiders win one for the Leacher, 38-31.

OTHER LOSERS - INTERNATIONAL BOWL - N. ILLINOIS to SOUTH FLORIDA; LIBERTY BOWL - E. CAROLINA to ARKANSAS

I’ll be back with my final four bowl picks Monday

 

Some of the stuff that's going on in sports really makes you wonder

(12/30) Do you believe what’s been going on these last few weeks of the decade? Forget the felon being voted a courage award, the incredible quitting coach who came back, Kansas firing Mark Mangino for alleged player abuse, don’t even go into Jim Leavitt at South Florida and Tim Tebow crying in front of millions.

Texas Tech will play Michigan State on Jan. 2 in the Alamo Bowl without a head coach. Mike Leach, the offensive innovative genius, has been suspended after being accused of isolating a player in a dark closet for not practicing after a concussion. Being eager to do all the damage possible, Leach picked on Adam James, the son of former SMU running back and ESPN analyst Craig James.

Leach was supposed to write a letter of apology and when he refused, he was suspended. Leach also accused Craig James of acting like a "little league dad" and calling all the time.

On top of that, James was scheduled to do the Alamo Bowl for ESPN but that’s been canceled.

And speaking of Urban Meyer (he was the incredible quitting coach), the Gator Nation is up in arms about Florida assistant Steve Adazzio’s ability to keep the Gators on top while Meyer recuperates over the next few months. Adazzio will handle the final push for Florida’s recruiting and presumably have a hand in hiring a new defensive coordinator to replace Charlie Strong.

It looks like one coach-in-waiting may get his chance sooner than later. Rich Brooks has hinted that he may have coached his last game at Kentucky, and if so, Joker Phillips would take over as head coach.

Forbes magazine says Texas is the most valuable college football team with a value of $119 million, easily topping Notre Dame’s $108 million. Others listed in the Forbes list includes Penn State, Nebraska, Alabama, Florida, LSU, Ohio State, Georgia and Oklahoma.

Yet more fodder to prove Southeastern Conference football supremacy, besides winning the last three mythical national titles, SEC teams have complied a 19-7 mark in all bowl games in that time. That’s considerably ahead of the even dozen that the Pac-10, Big East and Big XII have. The ACC has 10 and the Big 10 has six. It should also be pointed out that 10 SEC teams are bowling this year.

The Mountain West Conference is making the BCS sweat. The league has started off this bowl season with a 3-0 mark, winning once against Fresno State and twice over two Pac-10 teams - Cal and Oregon State.

Coming Thursday: part III of Norman’s No-Nos bowl predictions

‘Kourage' and Michael Vick? Not hardly; there must be something in the Gainesville water

(12/29) I want to share my thoughts on one of the most unbelievable events that ever has taken place. Not just in sports but ever, anywhere, anytime.

Michael Vick was voted the Ed Block Courage Award by his teammates on the Philadelphia Eagles. It’s an award whose recipient exemplifies "commitment to the principles of sportsmanship and courage." This award is given in the name of a man who waged a war against child abuse. Ed Block knew courage. He served under General Patton in World War II and won a purple heart. His foundation has helped over 1 million children in the past 30 years.

But this, this may be the low point in National Football League history.

I long to identify the brain trust that gave this award. Did they realize that Michael Vick would be hard pressed even to spell courage without a ‘K?’

Courage my backside. I swear I’m not making this up. It really happened right here in the United States of America. And it took the collective minds of perhaps as many as 50 adult humans to vote this atrocity. Presumably they were sober and without restraints at the time.

Let me say that Michael Vick isn’t a person you would single out to your children as someone who should be admired. I mean, the guy hasn’t even been out of federal prison a year yet. He served almost two football seasons in the slammer for extreme cruelty to animals.

"Look Johnny, there’s the Ed Block Courage Award Winner. I hope you can grow up to be like him." Good God deliver us.

Sportsmanship? Courage? How sporting was it and how much courage did it take to murder helpless animals?

If there were an award for cruelty, then I’d vote for Michael Vick. Sounds like one of those awards they came up with in Germany around 1940.

And in Gainesville, it’s the case of the incredible quitting-and-then-coming-back coaches. In 2007, Gator basketball coach Billy Donovan quit, and within 72 hours, came back.

Over the weekend, football coach Urban Meyer quit, then decided he wouldn’t quit in the space of 24 hours.

Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops said it best. "The stresses are always going to be there. You either win them all or there’s problems. But that’s the nature of what we do."

This is Norman Arey and they may fire me but I’ll never quit.

Kiffin can out-talk Beamer but his Vols can't outplay the Hokies

-First-round bowl picks> Click

(12/28)  This is Norman Arey with my second installment of Norman’s No-Nos Bowl Edition where I pick the losers in all 34 bowl games.

Monday, Dec. 28 - ADVOCARE INDEPENDENCE BOWL - GEORGIA vs. TEXAS A&M - If the Bulldogs want to play, they’ll win. The Aggies put up 39 against Texas and are happy to be in Shreveport and boot the Dawgs. NO-NO. A&M doesn’t have the ammunition, lose 28-20.

Tuesday, Dec. 29 - EAGLE BANK BOWL - UCLA vs. TEMPLE - You’ve got to be kidding - The Bruins are playing the Owls? What a mismatch. But Wait. Owls aren’t the doormat they used to be and handle UCLA. NO-NO. Bruins are bad, but not that bad. Owls winged, 20-17.

CHAMPS SPORTS BOWL - MIAMI vs. WISCONSIN - This could be a good one. ‘Canes have been on a roller coaster this year and are sky high. Wisconsin is playing for Big 10 Pride (whatever that is.) Badgers triumph. NO-NO. Wisconsin can’t match the speed, lose 24-19.

Wednesday, Dec. 30 -HOLIDAY BOWL - ARIZONA vs. NEBRASKA - Wildcats showed they may be back. Cornhuskers were impressive in the Texas loss in the Big XII title game. Go with the Mike Stoops-coached team. NO-NO. ‘Cats can’t control the line of scrimmage, tamed 23-17.

Thursday, Dec. 31 - SUN BOWL - OKLAHOMA vs. STANFORD - Sooners have something to prove. The Cardinal coach Jim Harbaugh talks a good game and his team plays it that way. NO-NO. Boomer Sooner explodes as Cardinal is sent home with a whipping, 33-14.

TEXAS BOWL - MISSOURI vs. NAVY - The Show-Me Guys won eight, but there wasn’t a great win among them. The Middies are ultra-successful with the Triple-Option. Navy shows ‘em. NO-NO. Midshipmen are in over their head, go down 35-32.

CHICK-FIL-A BOWL - TENNESSEE vs. VIRGINIA TECH - The Hokies have been a disappointment this season. The Vols have exceeded expectations. UT’s Lane Kiffin can out-talk Tech’s Frank Beamer and that counts for something. NO-NO. Vols are subdued by Beamer-ball, 27-18.

Other Losers - Idaho to Bowling Green in the Humanitarian Bowl, Air Force to Houston in the Armed Forces Bowl, Minnesota to Iowa State in the Insight Bowl.

This is Norman Arey and I’ll be back with the third installment of my bowl losers on Dec. 31.

Surprise college coach and player-of-the-year awards go to Patterson, Suh

(12/24) According to Sporting News Today, five NFL coaches are in serious danger of losing their jobs. SNT says the five are Eric Mangini at Cleveland, Wade Phillips at Dallas, Chicago’s Lovie Smith, Gary Kubiak at Texas and Carolina’s John Fox. I assume the reason Washington’s Jim Zorn isn’t listed is because he’s the most obvious. Nice not to see Atlanta listed here

The Duke basketball team has quietly gone about its business and become a real force. Anybody notice that the Blue Devils beat No. 15 Gonzaga by a stunning 76-41 score this week?

Philadelphia is home to three football champions this season as Penn won the Ivy title, Temple was co-champion of the MAC and Villanova won the Division I-A championship.

Not sure why Lassiter High quarterback Hutson Mason would choose Georgia to ply his trade. The talented quarterback comes in behind junior Logan Gray and redshirt freshmen Zach Mettenberger and Aaron Murray. He turned down Mississippi State and Clemson to go with the Bulldogs.

The New York Times writes that field goal kicking in the NFL is in a slump, just one year removed from the highest accuracy percentage in history. Last year, pro kickers made 84.5 percent of their tries. This year the percentage is hovering around 80 percent - the lowest in six seasons.

Third-ranked TCU coach Gary Patterson was chosen AP college football Coach of the Year in a close vote. Patterson received 21 votes to edge former Cincinnati and now Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly. Nick Saban of Alabama was third with 14. Patterson’s record at the Fort Worth school is 85-27 in nine years and this year was the Horned Frogs first undefeated season since 1939.

Nebraska defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh was named the AP College football Player of the Year. Suh became the first defensive player ever to win the award, which had always gone to either a quarterback or a running back.

After opening their season with an impressive 8-0 start, the Gators of Florida have now lost three straight. Florida had wins over Florida State and Michigan State during its run but lost to Syracuse, Richmond and South Alabama. Thankfully the Gators get a week off to regroup.

Meanwhile the hottest basketball team in the country right now is Texas. The Longhorns own an 11-0 mark with wins over Southern Cal, Pitt, North Carolina and Michigan State.

This is Norman Arey wishing you a Merry Christmas.

Is it true that the ACC basketball coaching is no match for the ACC talent?

(12/23) Tennessee has signed Matt Simms to a football grant. Simms, the youngest son of former NFL star Phil Simms, comes to Knoxville from El Camino JC. The quarterback was at Louisville before transferring to the California college.

Kentucky became the first NCAA Division I men’s basketball team to reach 2,000 victories when it decimated Drexel this week. The Wildcats’ 2,000 wins leads North Carolina’s 1,992 wins and Kansas’ 1,980.

NBA studio announcer and former superstar player Charles Barkley will host a Saturday Night Live episode on Jan. 9. He’ll team with Alicia Keys on the show. Who knows. It might turn out to be a humorous episode of SNL for a change.

Sports cynic Jamie Mays of the North Carolina says this about Georgia Tech’s overtime loss to Florida State to open the ACC season for both teams: "We may never see the likes of this titanic struggle again. The mix of abundant athletic talent and incompetent coaching has never been more frustrating for fans and players alike. Tech could hardly score! Give the Tech lineup to Roy Williams and it averages 90 plus a game and wins 30 games. Give the FSU team to Seth Greenburg and it competes for the ACC title. The main reason that the ACC is no longer the finest basketball league in America is directly attributable to the influx of mediocre coaches." I’m afraid I have to agree.

With the Atlanta Braves trading Javier Vazquez to the Yankees for Melky Cabrera, it’s a head-scratcher to me. Consider this pitching lineup for New York: CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, Andy Pettitte and Vazquez. Murderer’s Row from the Pitching Mound.

Heee’s Back. Just three weeks after splitting with Turner Sports, Chip Caray has been hired to do play-by-play for the Braves’ games on SportSouth and Fox Sports South. Frankly I just don’t see the problem with Caray. So many folks slam his work. I just don’t think it’s that bad.

Our obligatory Tiger Woods’ item is that he reportedly sneaking out at night and hitting golf balls alone at a nearby golf course. Also that his image has been removed from all advertising for the upcoming Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill.

This is Norman Arey and I think Tiger will come back to the tour to play The Masters. Think about it. Augusta National has the best security in the country and doesn’t put with any shenanigans

The best and worst college football conferences of the decade

(12/22) Remember when Georgia Tech signed No. 1-rated Derrick Favors along with a handful of other prep stars and folks figured the Yellow Jackets were back in the world of college basketball? How, then, can they lose to a very pedestrian Florida State club to open their ACC season? Paul Hewitt must begin feeling some pressure after overseeing an underachieving team for several seasons now.

SI.Com’s Stewart Mandel rates the SEC as the college football conference of the decade. He says with Mike Slive taking over, the league has brought in a slew of talented coaches (Nick Saban, Lew Miles, Mark Richt, Urban Meyer). The conference has won four BCS title games and Alabama is about to play for a fifth. The SEC is 10-3 in BCS bowl games and placed 21 teams in the final AP poll during the decade.

Mandel picked the ACC as the worst conference of the decade. With the downfall of previous titans Miami and Florida State, and the fact that the league’s BCS bowl record was 0-8 until Virginia Tech finally won one last year gave the ACC its dubious achievement. Four times in 10 years, the league’s champion failed to finish in the AP Top 10.

The worst coaching hire went to Nebraska for taking on Bill Callahan; the worst program, according to Mandel, was at Duke University; and the Player of the Decade was Florida quarterback Tim Tebow. And the biggest upset - Appalachian State 34, Michigan 32.

I guess I’d be remiss if I didn’t give you the latest coming out on the Tiger Woods affair(s). Reports are that wife Elin not only wants a divorce but also complete custody of their two children.

NASCAR’s Jimmie Johnson was named Athlete of the Year by the AP. Tennis star Roger Federer came in second while sprinter Usain Bolt was third. Johnson earned the honor by winning his fourth straight NASCAR championship.

Are college bowl games really a reward for the participating teams? Think about this. Of the 34 bowls played between now and the first week in January, eight teams are playing with 6-6 records. For what are they being rewarded, mediocrity?

And finally, Tyler Hansbrough, the four-time All-America at North Carolina who was drafted 13th by the Indiana Pacers is drawing mixed reviews. Hansbrough is scoring almost nine points a game and 4.5 rebounds in averaging 17 minutes of play per game.

This is Norman Arey and I don’t think the ACC is the worst conference of the decade - I’d vote for the Big 10.

The Saints are human after all; there might yet be hope for Georgia basketball.

(12/21) So the New Orleans Saints are human after all and won’t make it through to the Super Bowl undefeated. Folks, if you didn’t see the Saints’ loss to the Dallas Cowboys coming Saturday night, you just weren’t paying attention. The Cowboys were sick of hearing about their December Swoon and the Saints were ripe for the picking. Now let’s see if the Indianapolis Colts can make it through unscathed.

When North Carolina lost by a 103-90 score to No. 2 Texas over the weekend, it was only the second time a team has scored more than 100 against the Tar Heels since Roy Williams became head coach. The truly amazing statistic to come out of the game is that Carolina, one of the tallest if not the tallest teams in the nation, was out-rebounded by a 56-36 count.

Good news for Tennessee football fans - maybe. All-America defensive back Eric Berry will wait to announce his decision on whether he’ll come back for his senior season until after the Vols' bowl game on Dec. 31.

Despite ESPN pro football analyst Todd McShay’s prediction that Washington quarterback Jake Locker might go No. 1 overall in the NFL draft, Locker announced he’ll return for his senior year in Seattle. The reason is because Locker didn’t receive such a high grade from the NFL advisory committee, making the quarterback think he might utilize one more year of college.

New Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly was introduced to the Irish student body during halftime of the Notre Dame-UCLA basketball game. Kelly told them there were just 259 days until the football season opened. He asked if it was true that the students do pushups after every Irish score. When he was assured that was true, he told them they had better get in shape in time for the season.

Of the 14 head football coaching jobs that opened up in major college football, three are still unfilled - Buffalo, San Jose State and UNLV. . . And speaking of new coaches, Jimbo Fisher and Florida State made it official over the weekend when Fisher signed a five-year contract with the Seminoles paying him $1.8 million per year, not counting incentives.

SI.Com’s college football writer Stewart Mandel offered a suggestion for adding a 12th team to the Big 10's lineup and it’s one I hadn’t heard before. He suggested that Nebraska might make a nice centerpiece for the Big 10 West.

And finally, a strange sight for the season. In Georgia’s amazing upset of Illinois in men’s basketball over the weekend, there were more Illini fans in the Gwinnett County stadium than those dressed in red. Where do Illinois fans come from in Atlanta?

This is Norman Arey and I still say North Carolina is the team to beat come February.

Bowl No-Nos, round one: I see Boston College, North Carolina, Kentucky all losing

(12/18) This is Norman Arey with my Norman’s No-Nos Bowl Edition where I pick the losers in all 34 bowls. I’ll do it in four installments. During the regular season, I was 133-74 (64.2%).

Dec. 19 - NEW MEXICO BOWL - Fresno State vs. Wyoming - Looks like a mismatch on paper as the Cowboys split their 12 games. Now they have a chance to get it right and they do against the Bulldogs of Pat Hill. NO-NO. It is a mismatch. Cowboys fall off horse, 35-14.

majicJack BOWL - Central Florida vs. Rutgers - Two 8-4 teams who played well at the end of their seasons. UCF is coached by former Georgia Tech coach George O’Leary and will play hard and win. NO-NO. Knights want to be invited to join the Big 10, O’Learys lose, 28-21.

Dec. 22 - MAACO BOWL - Oregon State vs. Brigham Young - This could turn out to be one of the better matches as both teams have impressive wins this season. BYU has the offense and takes it easily. NO-NO. Cougars go down to Pac-10 Beavers, 36-30.

Dec. 23 - POINSETTIA BOWL - Cal vs. Utah - When is Utah going to get in a big time conference? When is Cal going to realize its potential? Both have something to prove. Utah makes its point. NO-NO. I think Utes fall to the Bears in a close one, 24-21.

Dec. 26 - MEINEKE CAR CARE BOWL - North Carolina vs. Pitt - This is a comedown for both teams, who entered the season with high expectations. Tar Heels lose games they shouldn’t. Pitt won some it shouldn’t have. ’Heels victorious - NO-NO. Panthers prowl, 31-27.

EMERALD BOWL - Boston College vs. Southern Cal - Talk about a comedown. Trojans aren’t used to playing in this zip code. BC was better than many thought it would be. Eagles further tarnish USC’s image. NO-NO. BC flattened by Trojan express, 42-28.

Dec. 27 - MUSIC CITY BOWL - Clemson vs. Kentucky - First inclination is to think the Wildcats are overmatched, but remember this is their fourth straight bowl trip and Rich Brooks is being appreciated.. Bluegrassers claw Tigers. NO-NO. Kentucky runs into a team better than this bowl, loses 31-10.

Others Losers:

-R +L Carriers Bowl - Southern Miss to Middle Tennessee.

-Hawaii Bowl - SMU to Nevada.

-Little Caesar’s Bowl - Marshall to Ohio.

Part 2 of Norman’s Bowl No-Nos will be posted on Monday, Dec. 28.


No matter that it might be a little early: here are the top 10 college football teams for 2010

(12/17) OK. Hold on to your football hats. Internet site NationalChamps.net, obviously intent on beating everyone else to the punch, is out with its pre-season Top 25 rankings for 2010! The top 10, in order, are Alabama, Boise State, Oregon, Florida, Ohio State, TCU, Texas, Georgia Tech, Iowa and Miami. I wonder if they could give us a quick preview of 2011?

Virginia Tech defensive coordinator Bud Foster is easily the most popular assistant being courted by other schools. Not only was Foster offered a job at Georgia, but was also contacted by Florida and Florida State.

East Carolina fans are breathing easier now that Skip Holtz is no longer a candidate to go to Cincinnati to take Brian Kelly’s place. The Bearcats tried to hired Holtz three years ago before Kelly came but he turned them down. The school hired Butch Jones of Central Michigan.

How about this? Georgia State sold more than 1,000 season tickets in one day for its inaugural football season next September.

At a faculty council meeting at the University of Texas, a vote by the professors concluded that Longhorn football coach Mack Brown’s new salary of $5 million a year, up from $3 million, was inappropriate and unseemly. Can you say, "Green with envy?"

Alabama placed an amazing six players on the AP All-America first team while Georgia Tech defensive end Derrick Morgan was named on the top team along with Georgia punter Drew Butler.

CBS has put out a gag order for all of its golf announcers about commenting on Tiger Woods’ problems. I wish everyone else, including radio and newspapers, would follow suit.

More good news for Georgia Tech football fans but maybe not for fellow ACC members. Coach Paul Johnson says he going "to take a good, hard look at our defense" when the season ends after the Orange Bowl. A case could be made that the Yellow Jackets might have gone undefeated if they were able to play just a little bit of defense.

Despite a great start this season and a good season last year, the Atlanta Hawks haven’t offered head coach Mike Woodson a contract extension. You know what? I don’t care.

And finally, proving that patience is running thin, two colleges have already fired their basketball coaches this season and we’re not out of the 2009 yet. Fordham fired former Georgia Tech assistant Dereck Whittenburg after five games and Penn fired Glen Miller after seven.

This is Norman Arey hoping I make it through the holidays still employed.


Georgia serious about this hire; say it ain't so, Tiger -- not performance-enhancing drugs

(12/16) There are 11 undefeated Division I college basketball teams left after one month of the season led by No. 1 Kansas, No. 2 Texas and No. 3 Kentucky. And by the way, UCLA leads all schools in consecutive winning seasons with 54 while Syracuse is second at 39 and Kentucky at 38. Orange coach Jim Boeheim has never had a losing season.

The fact that Virginia Tech defensive coordinator Bud Foster decided to stay in Blacksburg was not surprise but the fact that Georgia went after him to replace the fired Willie Martinez was pleasantly surprising. It shows that Bulldog coach Mark Richt is serious about his hire. Foster is one of the best anywhere.

A little surprising that University of Washington quarterback Jake Locker has decided to come back for his senior season next year. Locker was projected to be the first quarterback picked in the draft.

Oh boy, here we go again. South Florida football coach Jim Leavitt has been accused of hitting one of his players in the face during halftime of the Bulls game against Louisville. The way things are right now, I’m not sure he’ll survive the accusation. Check with Kansas and Mark Mangino.

Three of the past four hires at major colleges have involved African-American coaches. Buffalo’s Turner Gill was hired at Kansas, Florida assistant Charlie Strong is the new head man at Louisville and Richmond’s Mike London has gone to Charlottesville to head up Virginia’s program.

Darrin Horn, who came to South Carolina from Western Kentucky to head up the Gamecock basketball program, has been given a two-year contract extension and a $300,000 bump in pay. Horn managed a 21-10 mark last season.

As if Tiger Woods didn’t already have enough problems, the FBI is investing Canadian doctor Anthony Galea for allegedly distributing performance enhancing drugs. And yes, Tiger was one of his patients. I just wonder which performance he was trying to enhance.

Sports Illustrated, which I’ve always considered more credible than most sports publications, has Boise State quarterback Kellen Moore on its first team college All-America team with running back Mark Ingram from Alabama and Stanford’s Toby Gerhart to round out the starting backfield.

This is Norman Arey and I’ll be back Friday with the first of Norman’s Bowl No-Nos.

Tebow says if he can't play quarterback in the NFL, he'll try his best at another position

(12/15) I guess it was inevitable but when Brian Kelly returned to his Cincinnati home after his journey to South Bend to be introduced as the new Notre Dame football coach, his house had been egged and a profane sign was in his front yard. Don’t you love fans?

There’s going to be some kind of movement in the college basketball standings this week as No. 1 Kansas plays Michigan and No. 2 Texas takes on No. 11 North Carolina in the Dallas Cowboys’ new stadium. Courtside tickets for the Tar Heels vs. Longhorns are going for $500.

South Carolina made it official by extending Steve Spurrier’s football contract one year and the future Hall of Famer has a four-year contract with the Gamecocks. Spurrier is 35-27 with USC, 177-67-2 in the college career and is one of four SEC coaches with more than 100 league wins, joining John Vaught, Bear Bryant and Vince Dooley.

Central Michigan’s Butch Jones, East Carolina’s Skip Holtz and Cincinnati assistant Jeff Quinn appear to be the finalists for the vacant Cincinnati job left by Brian Kelly. I’d like to see Holtz get it if he wants it but I wonder if Cincinnati is that big a step up from East Carolina?

Interesting note that Heisman Trophy winners haven’t fared well in bowl games this decade. Only Southern Cal’s Carson Palmer in 2002 and fellow Trojan Matt Leinart were able to win their bowl outings the following month.

Just so you’ll know, Florida quarterback Tim Tebow, during an interview on the Dan Patrick Show, said he wants to play quarterback in the NFL and he hopes that whomever drafts him will give him that opportunity. But if he fails at that position, he said he’d move to another position and give his all at that.

Bad, bad mistake for North Carolina basketball coach Roy Williams to have a fan ejected for yelling, "Hey Deon, don’t miss it," when Tar Heel Deon Thompson stepped to the free throw line in a blowout win over Presbyterian College. Can you image the Duke "Cameron Crazies" huddling as we speak to come up with something clever when Carolina visits?

NFL Team of the Decade? The Sporting News has dubbed the Indianapolis Colts with that honor. The Colts have won 114 games from 2000 to the present, breaking the old mark of 113 set by the San Francisco 49ers from 1990-99.

And finally, with one more loss in their last three games, the Atlanta Falcons will add to their horrible record of never having had back-to-back winning seasons in their 44-year history.

Is Kelly really the right man for Notre Dame? What's going on with Louisville basketball?

(12/14) Avid reader Joey Mac wonders what kind of man Notre Dame has hired as football coach. Joey points out that Brian Kelly’s final gesture to his Cincinnati team was to thank them for making it possible for him to land his dream job. JM calls Kelly an Irish Bobby Petrino! The parting wasn’t at all amicable as multiple players walked out of the meeting when Kelly announced he was leaving.

Examining the Fighting Irish schedule for next year, Kelly’s job is set up for success. The Domers play Western Michigan, Navy, Tulsa, Army, BC, Stanford and Utah and they should be favored in those at least. Of course, the soothsayers said Charlie Weis had a favorable schedule this past year.

Jimbo Fisher has hired Arizona defensive coordinator Mark Stoops to do the same job for Florida State. Stoops is the younger brother of Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops and Arizona coach Mike Stoops.

On the college basketball front, things may not be copasetic in Louisville. The Cardinals dropped a 91-83 game to Western Carolina in Louisville over the weekend. Maybe Rick Pitino’s Tiger-like dalliance is having more effect on the program than many thought.

According to the New York Times, the top five all-time winning streaks in college sports:

-137 - Miami men’s tennis

-98 - Penn State women’s volleyball

-92 - North Carolina women’s soccer

-89 - Stanford women’s tennis

-88 - UCLA men’s basketball

The all-time winning streak for football was Oklahoma’s 47-game skein under coach Bud Wilkinson.

The rumor is that the Big 10 is actively seeking a 12th member (isn’t this rumor an annual thing?) and if Notre Dame turns them down again, they’re taking a hard look at Rutgers, Pitt and Syracuse. If I had to bet, I’d say Rutgers is No. 1 and Syracuse No. 2. Of course the more interesting question is what the league would call itself. The Dirty Dozen? Big Ten +2? Baker’s Dozen less one?

And finally, I guess we have to have some sort of report on Tiger Woods and wife Elin’s problems. Reports say that Elin has purchased a $2.2 million home on an island in her native Sweden and the home is accessible only by boat. That should give them privacy, all right.

This is Norman Arey and I think they should move to Italy - the Italians don’t care.

Texas gets stupider (is that a word?); Congress needs to create a playoff insurance plan

(12/11) Idiocy and rampant irresponsibility are loose in Austin, Texas. The Longhorn brass approved a raise for head football coach Mack Brown, bumping him up from $3 million a year to $5 million! Are you kidding me? Why? Was he in danger of accepting another job? Brown has had success but that much success?

And you have to believe that coach-in-waiting Will Muschamp must see the writing on the wall. Brown ain’t going anywhere for a long time. Why would he?

You may disagree, but I think this past college football season has been the least exciting since, well, I don’t know when. The top five remained in the top five the whole year and where was the mystery?

Remember when quarterback Willy Korn committed to Clemson three years ago? Korn was supposed to be the second coming of Tim Tebow. Korn, who was the backup quarterback this season, announced he’s transferring and will have two years of eligibility remaining.

Sporting News Today made a good point in an article which pointed out that the six major college job openings (or soon to be openings) aren’t really set up for success. The six included Florida State, Notre Dame, Cincinnati (if Brian Kelly leaves), Virginia, Louisville and Kansas.

The betting lines are out for the BCS games. Oregon is a 31/2 point favorite over Ohio State in the Rose Bowl; Florida is a 10-point pick over Cincinnati in the Sugar; TCU is favored by seven over Boise State; Georgia Tech is a four-point favorite against Iowa; and Alabama is a five-point pick over Texas in the mythical college title game.

And for what it’s worth, and that isn’t much, a subcommittee in Congress passed a bill requiring college football to come up with a playoff system. As I say, not worth much.

In case you haven’t been paying attention, John Wall, Kentucky’s basketball guard, is already the top star in the country and he’s just a freshman. . . Also, if you care, the first Iranian to play major college basketball is playing for Rice University in Houston.

Brett Favre’s nephew, Dylan, plays quarterback, defensive back and punts for his high school team in Mississippi and already has one Division I offer- - from Southern Miss where his famous uncle played his college ball.

And finally, if your keeping tabs, the number is now an even dozen as far as Tiger Woods’ "transgressions" go but the word is he’s hoping to break par.

This is Norman Arey and I wish Congress would come up with a playoff insurance plan.

What! Are you telling me that Alabama has no class?

(12/10) It would be foolish to think that the recent scandal involving Tiger Woods hasn’t been costly for the perhaps the world’s most recognizable athlete. Bloomberg News Service is reporting that all ads featuring Tiger have been pulled from national TV and cable networks, and that his ranking among celebrity endorsers has dropped from sixth to 24th. And can you imagine the stir he will create if and when he returns to his job?

As a sidebar to the Tiger story, Dan Wetzel of Yahoo!Sports points out that chief rival Phil Mickelson can no longer be criticized for not being more like Tiger.

SHORT SHOTS: How big is football at the University of Alabama? The school’s administration has cancelld classes on Jan. 6-8 in anticipation of the Crimson Tide playing in the mythical national championship game on Jan. 7 against Texas. . . Bad boy golfer John Daly has lost 115 pounds and now tips the Toledos at 185. . . Latest word is that Cincinnati’s Brian Kelly interviewed with Notre Dame officials about their head coaching job before his Bearcats played Pitt last week. . . And it’s final - Florida defensive coordinator Charlie Strong is the new head coach at Louisville.

The fact that Georgia would like to hire Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart isn’t news but why would the former Bulldog defensive back want to leave Tuscaloosa to come to Athens? His team probably is going to win a national title and will be favored to repeat the feat next year. Why come to Athens when the Georgia program is in flux?

If, in fact, it’s true that Florida Gov. Charlie Crist actually talked to the Jacksonville Jaguars’ brass about drafting Gator quarterback Tim Tebow, I hope the Jags ignored the call. Tebow needs to get out of Florida, go somewhere that the expectation level might meet his needs-to-be-tutored talents and develop into an NFL player.

And another thing on Alabama’s announcement that it won’t have classes for three days for the Crimson Tide’s mythical title game against Texas. That merely reiterates what I have always suspected - Alabama has no class. Sorry, couldn’t resist.

In Sporting News Today’s Top 10 NFL draft picks, no quarterback was listed. Clemson’s C.J. Spiller was No. 1, Alabama’s Rolando McClain was sixth, Florida’s Joe Haden seventh and Brandon Spikes ninth and Tennessee Eric Berry 10th.

And finally, to prove my point for the 1,000th time, the college bowl system is all about money. The Fiesta Bowl knew what it was doing when it pitted Boise State against TCU. Each school has asked for an addition to their allotment of 17,500 tickets.

This is Norman Arey and I’d love to play a round with John Daly - Tiger could come along, too.

Washington's Jake Locker to be drafted before the Gators' Tim Tebow?

(12/8) In somewhat of a surprise, Sporting News Today rates Washington’s Jake Locker as the favorite college quarterback to go highest in the NFL draft. The others, in order, are Oklahoma’s Sam Bradford, Notre Dame’s Jimmy Clausen, Texas’ Colt McCoy and Florida’s Tim Tebow.

Admitting up front that I don’t follow Major League Baseball that closely, I would still be shocked if the Atlanta Braves don’t make an attempt to keep free agent Adam LaRoche.

As expected, Cincinnati football coach Brian Kelly confirmed that he has been contacted by Notre Dame and will listen to what the Irish have to say. Stanford’s Jim Harbaugh also is being mentioned as a candidate and insiders say the Notre Dame brass is impressed with Connecticut’s Randy Edsall. Meanwhile, Kansas is interested in Ole Miss’ Houston Nutt for its opening along with Buffalo’s Turner Gill. The Nutt rumor is a little surprising.

Also surprising that Virginia named Mike London, the former coach at Richmond, to replace fired Al Groh in Charlottesville. The ACC also wins the diversity challenge with two head coaches who are black as London joins Miami’s Randy Shannon. London is just the 10th black coach of the 120 Division I-A programs.

I feel it would be a horrendous mistake for the NCAA to expand its basketball field from the current 65 teams in the NCAA tournament to a field of 96 as is being discussed. What that would amount to is simply pollution, adding nothing to one of the top sporting events in the world. A much better idea is to expand to a field of 68 and have four play-in games.

I think it’s a wait-and-see proposition for open-wheel racer Danica Patrick to plan on spending some of her Sundays driving on the NASCAR circuit. Of course, if she comes out and finished high in the standing, then it was a well conceived gamble.

And finally, a suggestion for a sports-related Christmas gift. Longtime Lewis Grizzard friend Frank Hyland, an excellent writer himself, has written the best book I’ve read on Grizzard called "The Sportin’ Life of Lewis Grizzard." Not only is it insightful into who the former humorist really was, it also gives a glimpse of how newspapers used to function. Hyland’s account is absolutely true to what happened from the time Grizzard arrived in Atlanta until his death in 1994. The book can be purchased on BarnesandNoble.com, Amazon.com or Authorhouse.com.

This is Norman Arey and I’d draft Tim Tebow before any other those other slackers.

The BCS simply doesn't get it and it's for sure that Alabama's Saban doesn't, either

(12/8) The BCS just doesn’t get it. You don’t pit undefeated Boise State out of the Western Athletic Conference against undefeated TCU out of the Mountain West against each other. What the heck are you thinking?

This one brilliant idea has managed to suck what little mystery there remains in the vaunted college playoffs. It sure isn’t an obviously over-matched Texas against a juggernaut Alabama team. Yawn!

Remember when Boise State upset mighty Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl several years ago? How about Orrin Hatch’s Utah team beating the stuffing out of Alabama in the Sugar Bowl just a season ago? Now that was fun.

But nobody wants to see two non-BCS conference teams play each other. What does that prove? Football fans wanted to see, say, TCU take on Florida and Boise State try its hand against Iowa or Georgia Tech.

Instead we’re served a menu of one meaningless bowl game after another until our patience is exhausted and we simply turn off the tube and read a book.

Remember, that’s the top reason given for not having a true college football playoff. The integrity of the bowl must be protected! What kind of integrity is it that we have when Missouri is matched against Navy is something called the Texas Bowl, or how about Iowa State vs. Minnesota in the Insight Bowl? Integrity, indeed. That’s just a waste of resources and time.

OK. I’ve had my vent and I feel all better which brings me to my second point.

I watched Alabama coach Nick Saban do an interview about his Crimson Tide team taking on Texas and the coach immediately attacked the media for suggesting that this was a David-Goliath type match up with the Tide being Goliath and Texas playing the part of David.

Saban was all worried that the dreaded and hated media would put it in his players’ minds that they were far superior to their brethren from Austin.

Saban and Texas’ Mack Brown are paid million of dollars to run their respective corporations. It’s a multimillion-dollar enterprise all the way across the board. The winner of this game takes home something like $18 million.

Does Saban think that other CEOs don’t face some kind of pressure from their stockholders? When Wall Street is giving out $100 million bonuses, you think there’s not some kind of strings attached to their ventures?

If you’re going to take the kind of compensation package that Saban takes, accept the responsibilities that go along with the job. Part of the deal is to put your company in the right frame of mind when it is asked to handle the biggest deal of the year.

This is Norman Arey and I say BCS stands for Below College Standards

College football came close to chaos but in the end, sanity was restored

(12/7) We were one second away from utter chaos on the college football front -- one second from absolute mayhem.

But with Nebraska already storming the field to celebrate its unthinkable 12-10 upset of No. 3 Texas, the officials notified both teams that there was one second remaining on the clock. Just enough for the Longhorns to kick a field goal and restore sanity and save mankind as we know it.

So putting aside all the emotions and hyperbole, we have No. 2 Alabama, with a surprisingly easy win over top-ranked Florida, playing the ‘Horns for the mythical national title in January. Just like that -- back to normalcy.

It was a wild but unimaginative end to college football’s regular season. There are still five undefeated teams out there but only the Crimson Tide and Longhorns will be given an opportunity to "go to the next level" as they say.

On this final regular season day, one thing that was almost overlooked was Arizona’s win over Southern Cal, handing Pete Carroll’s bunch its fourth loss of the season. That’s right, I said fourth. That hasn’t happened since Joe Paterno was a rookie.

There looked like there might be even more drama when Pitt went up by 21 points over undefeated and No. 5-ranked Cincinnati but the Bearcats were just foolin’ around and came back to edge the hard-luck Panthers, 45-44.

On the local front, Georgia Tech used a maddening offensive plan to derail Clemson in the ACC title game. The Yellow Jackets would gain one, lose two, gain nine and then go for it on fourth and two. It worked well enough for a 39-34 win, but it kind of wore out those long-suffering Tech fans by the fourth quarter.

Now the Jackets play in the Orange Bowl for the first time since Kim King was the young, left-handed quarterback.

While Tech is headed for South Beach and the glitz of Miami, the Bulldog nation will pack its bags for lovely, downtown Shreveport or somewhere equally as glamorous. Not a good year in Athens and the team is three coaches lighter because of it.

But no matter how you cut it, the best game of the day was Kentucky’s 68-66 win over North Carolina in basketball. The Wildcats may have the best back court ever to play the game in John Wall and Eric Bledsoe. Those two coupled with a front court that features Patrick Patterson will be hard to beat. The Tar Heels have the raw talent, just not the experience. This will be a much better team by the time March rolls around.

This is Norman Arey and I have to admit, I was pulling for Nebraska.

Gators and Crimson Tide finally square off in the game of the millennium

(12/4) This is Norman Arey with my Norman’s No-Nos, where I pick the losers in this weekend’s college games. Last week I was 11-4, 125-70 for the season (64.2 percent).

WEST VIRGINIA at RUTGERS - Bill Stewart has been on a slippery slope since he took over the Mounties. Rutgers has been up and down. The Scarlet Knights are too much at home and close out their season with a victory. NO-NO. Noel Devine and the rest of the speedy teammates run past the Knights, Rutgers downed 35-21.

ARIZONA at SOUTHERN CAL - Mike Stoops is having the better year of the Stoops brothers and the Wildcats are primed to take down the former Kings of the PAC-10. NO-NO. Pete Carroll doesn’t like the view from the middle of the pack. Trojans have too much pride to lose in Los Angeles, Arizona knocked unconscious, 42-18.

CINCINNATI at PITT - Is this the last game for Brian Kelly with the Bearcats before he takes the Notre Dame job? Pitt has almost reached the precipice of the mountain before only to fall back. They clamor over the peak this time. NO-NO. Bearcats are on a mission for respect, Panthers disappointed again, 33-24.

C-USA CHAMPIONSHIP - HOUSTON at EAST CAROLINA - All anyone can see in this game is Cougar quarterback Case Keenum rolling up a ton of passing yardage. The Pirates have one of the best coaches in the business in Skip Holtz, stops the passing juggernaut. NO-NO. Pirates find themselves with no boat, sink 44-31.

BIG XII CHAMPIONSHIP - TEXAS-NEBRASKA - The Longhorns are heavy favorite with quarterback Colt McCoy and receiver Jordan Shipley doing the heavy lifting. Nebraska can play with the Texans on certain nights and springs the upset. NO-NO. This ain’t one of those nights, Cornhuskers shucked, 41-17.

SEC CHAMPIONSHIP - ALABAMA-FLORIDA - The focus of this entire season has been to get these two on the same field. Alabama has defense and a running game with Mark Ingram. Florida has defense and Tim Tebow. Crimson Tide prevails with brute strength. NO-NO. Tebow can will the Gators to victory, and he does as Red Elephants settle for the Sugar Bowl, 30-27.

ACC CHAMPIONSHIP - GEORGIA TECH-CLEMSON - How many times can Yellow Jacket fans take disappointment? Clemson hasn’t really been relevant since Danny Ford was a youngster. Engineers are in the eye of the Tiger and lose yet again. NO-NO. Paul Johnson is taking no chances or prisoners, Clemson fails when it counts the most, lose 39-27.

Other losers: ILLINOIS to FRESNO STATE, NEW MEXICO STATE to BOISE STATE, WASHINGTON to CAL, SOUTH FLORIDA to UCONN and HAWAII to WISCONSIN.

Florida State officials should be ashamed; is Favre the greatest of them all?

(12/3) Let me lay it out as I understand it. Charlie Weis was fired at Notre Dame, Bobby Bowden retired (read softly forced out, here) at Florida State, Ralph Friedgen will return as head coach at Maryland, and Steve Spurrier was given a contract extension at South Carolina. My reaction, in order, is good, I’ll miss him, good and good.

Let me have one quick say about Bobby Bowden’s "retirement" at Florida State. Just a few years before Bowden took over the reigns in Tallahassee, Florida State was a girl’s school. He built the Seminoles into the greatest power college football has seen. It’s my firm opinion that he should be allowed to leave whenever he chooses and I abhor what the FSU officials did to the legend.

Georgia Tech’s Paul Johnson was named ACC Coach of the Year for the second straight time. I’m not trying to be a kill joy but who else could the conference have chosen?

Here’s something to put a chill on ACC basketball fans who aren’t North Carolina fans. At one time during the first half of the Tar Heels' game with Michigan State, coach Roy Williams had four freshmen on the floor at the same time. That’s scary.

My WRGA radio co-host Dan Houston made an excellent point in a comment about the Minnesota Vikings’ quarterback Brett Favre. Houston said I believe what he is doing is without precedent. I’ve looked at other quarterbacks of his caliber (Montana, Elway, Marino, Aikman, Bradshaw, Staubach and Young). I’ve compared seasons late in their careers and nobody comes close to what Favre is doing and none of them played at 40.

Georgia Tech’s Paul Johnson is going to have a Merry Christmas, no matter what. According to an article in USA Today, the Yellow Jacket coach has already earned $75,000 for going to a bowl and $10,000 for having Tech ranked in the Top 25. He can earn an additional $125,000 for going to a BCS bowl, $200,000 for winning the ACC title, $50,000 for a bowl win, $15,000 for a Top 25 ranking in the final poll or $40,000 for a Top 10 ranking after the season.

Joke Alert! What’s the difference between a golf ball and a car? Tiger Woods can drive a golf ball more than 300 yards.

And finally, my take on the Tiger Woods’ mess is that it has been poorly managed by his handlers. I’m not sure what they should have done but what’s going on isn’t working to Woods’ benefit. I believe he needs to step up and face the music.

This is Norman Arey and I’m going to check with my bosses to see what kind of bonus they have in mind for me.

Be realistic now: Who's really available to take the trip back in time to South Bend?

(12/2) The Four Horsemen of Notre Dame, immortalized by sportswriter Grantland Rice, were Harry Stuhldreher, Don Miller, Jim Crowley and Elmer Layden. The quartet played for Irish coach Knute Rockne in 1924. Rice’s reference was borrowed from chapter six of the Book of Revelations re: The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

Supposedly the four horsemen represented Pestilence, War, Famine and Death.

Obviously when Rice wrote his famous line about "Outlined against the blue-gray sky, the Four Horsemen Rode Again," it was a different time and a different era for Notre Dame and the rest of the world. You get the feeling that the Notre Dame folks don’t realize that time has passed and they can’t continue living 85 years in the past.

The only vestige left of what Notre Dame used to be is Rice’s time-tested passage.

All of this is the long way of getting around to saying this.

This wonderful academic institution, located in South Bend, Ind., still has the beautiful picturesque campus, their own TV network (NBC), world-recognized academic prowess and a wonderful football history. But that’s all it is today- a gridiron history.

When the Catholic school fired head football coach Charlie Weis Monday, the Irish went on their fifth coaching search since 1997.

The problem is, the expectations in South Bend far outstrip the reality and it will find that out as it makes calls to some of the top coaches in the country. The Irish brass will find that the job once thought of as the plum in all of college football is now far down the list of top destinations for good coaches.

The players today don’t know about the Four Horsemen. In fact, they don’t even know about Lou Holtz, who successfully coached there from 1986-96.

What they do know is Southern Cal, Florida, Oklahoma, Alabama, Georgia, Ohio State and Texas.

So the two big questions facing any coach who might consider taking over this career-ender-type-of-assignment are (1) How are you going to recruit, and (2) how can you possibly meet the ridiculous expectations of the alumni base?

The answer is, with great difficulty.

In honesty, the Notre Dame gig would be a step down for the Urban Meyers, Mack Browns and Pete Carrolls of the football world.

That’s not to say the Irish can’t find a qualified candidate. It means that they may have to roll the dice a little bit and take someone without the finished pedigree of the three mentioned above.

Obviously Brian Kelly has done a wonderful job at Cincinnati but his resume reads Grand Valley State, Central Michigan and Cincinnati - not exactly pre-requisite coaching stints to take over in South Bend. I’ve heard mention of North Carolina’s Butch Davis, TCU’s Gary Patterson and even Georgia Tech’s Paul Johnson.

None of them are named Urban or Pete or even Lou.

But then again, it may be the best The Irish can do as their search stretches across the blue-gray sky of this December.

This is Norman Arey and I say Win One For The Gipper.

 

Want to see Alabama and Florida play twice? It's possible but highly improbable

(12/1)  So Atlanta will get its first look (after three years) at the football Michael Vick this week when the former Falcon quarterback accompanies his present team, the Philadelphia Eagles, to play in the Georgia Dome. On the reaction he expects, Vick said, "I’m going to get a great reaction from the crowd. It’s going to be a standing ovation. It’s still my city."

Not to beat a dead horse, or dog in this instance, I would hope that he gets a resounding boo. Why anyone would cheer the dog torturer and murderer is beyond my understanding.

Did you realize that basically nothing has changed in the BCS standings since they were first released in October? As it stands today, if Texas beats Nebraska, the Longhorns will play the winner of the Alabama-Florida game in the mythical title matchup.

BUT, here’s the real skinny on the possibility of a rematch between Alabama and Florida in the mythical title game. Texas would have to lose to Nebraska and Pitt would have to beat Cincinnati and even then it wouldn’t be for sure. Stay tuned.

Just a thought but the Notre Dame job isn’t the plum it used to be. The players that are being recruited this year weren’t born the last time the Fighting Irish won a national championship.

Hey, Mormons, don’t talk like that. The BYU-Utah game is known as the religious war between two Mormon-dominated schools but Cougar quarterback Max Hall was very un-Mormonlike in his post-game comments after BYU whipped the Utes. Said Hall, "I don’t like Utah. In fact I hate them. I hate their program, their fans. I hate everything. It felt really good to send those guys home. I think the whole university and their fans and their organization is classless."

Come on Max, tell us how you really feel.

Glad to see Serena Williams was fined $82,500 for her profanity-laced tirade during the U.S. Open when she was called for a foot-fault. It’s the highest fine in tennis history and it couldn’t happen to a more deserving person.

The news that the Notre Dame players will vote on whether they want to go to a bowl this season with a 6-6 record is laughable. No matter what the players want to do, athletics director Jack Swarbrick will have the final say. I personally hope they play. I’d love to see them lose their seventh.

And finally, look for another team in Georgia to run Paul Johnson’s spread offense. The Yellow Jackets’ special teams coordinator, Jeff Monken, has been hired as the new football coach at Georgia Southern to replace the fired Chris Hatcher.

This is Norman Arey and Max Hall is my newest hero.