The New Year's Edition: Georgia over Hawaii? No-No

(1/1) This is Norman Arey with your Norman’s No-Nos where I pick the losers in six college bowl games. There will be the final No-Nos on Wednesday.

Outback Bowl - Tennessee vs. Wisconsin: The Vols won nine games and the Orange folks still aren’t happy. Eric Ainge has been very good at times. Badgers had higher hopes as well, but lacked a sound quarterback. On Wisconsin. NO-NO. Badgers in a hole, lose 31-29.

Cotton Bowl - Missouri vs. Arkansas: A wonderful showcase games for two great players - Mizzou quarterback Chase Daniel and Razorback running back Darren McFadden. Hogs run wild in this one. NO-NO. Tigers are frustrated national title wanna-bes. Arkansas falls, 35-27.

CapitalOne Bowl - Michigan vs. Florida: Lloyd Carr wants to go out with a bang. Gators sport Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow. Wolverines gather themselves for their coach. NO-NO. New Michigan boss Rich Rodriguez has his work ahead of him. Michigan downed, 38-24.

Gator Bowl - Virginia vs. Texas Tech: Cavaliers led the nation in close game wins. Texas Tech was one of the national leaders in blowouts, scoring more than 30 on 10 occasions. Wahoos aren’t impressed, take a win. NO-NO. Cavs should have been impressed, tumble 42-28.

Rose Bowl - USC vs. Illinois: On paper, it looks like the bowl season mismatch. Pete Carroll seemingly can do no wrong. Illini’s Ron Zook is one of the season’s feel-good stories. Illinois springs the big upset. NO-NO. They shouldn’t even have been here. No Roses for Illini, 45-20.

Sugar Bowl - Georgia vs. Hawaii: Does even sound right does it? Georgia. Hawaii. To me the most intriguing of all the games. The Bulldogs will be, by far, the best team the Warriors have played. Georgia will own the ground game and take a double-digit win. NO-NO. I’ve just got a feeling that the Dawg secondary isn’t ready for the likes of the aerial show Colt Brennan will offer up. Georgia goes down, 41-38.

No-No's Lock of the Week: Tigers win Peach Bowl

>Keep track of this season's bowl games at CBS Sports. Click Bowls

(12/31) This is Norman Arey with your Norman’s No-Nos where I pick the losers in six college bowl games. There will be more No-Nos Tuesday and Wednesday.

ARMED FORCES BOWL - California vs. Air Force: Cal had high hopes at season’s start and is now here. Air Force won nine but it plays in the not-really-football-conference. The Falcons shine during their time in the sun. NO-NO. Bears are just too much, flyers lose, 35-27.

SUN BOWL - South Florida vs. Oregon: South Florida peaked four games into its season. Oregon was still peaking when quarterback Dennis Dixon was lost for the year at season’s end. Oregon is still viable and takes the Floridians. NO-NO. Ducks drowned by Bulls, 27-17.

HUMANITARIAN BOWL - Fresno State vs. Georgia Tech: I really like Fresno’s head coach, Pat Hill. I like Tech’s running back, Tashard Choice. Jackets feel they have something to prove after getting their coach fired and finally whip some Bulldogs. NO-NO. A Bulldog is a Bulldog. Tech down again, 28-17.

MUSIC CITY BOWL - FSU vs. Kentucky: If the Seminoles can field a full team, it might be a contest. Kentucky fell off the big boy football truck in second half of the season. Some Seminoles may play both ways, fell the Wildcats. NO-NO. FSU is reeling, loses badly, 35-10.

INSIGHT BOWL - Indiana vs. Oklahoma State: This is an after thought bowl and I have no insight. Indiana just plays basketball, right? Don’t the Cowboys have that coach who yells at media members on national TV? NO-NO? Who knows? Who cares? Hoosiers lose, 14-13.

PEACH BOWL - Clemson vs. Auburn: I like this match-up. These two should play every year. This also is a lock. The Tigers will win. Which one? Tommy Tuberville looks guilty of something. Tommy Bowden looks bewildered. Auburn wins. NO-NO. Those Tigers lose, 31-28.

>Coming Tuesday: Norman's picks for the Jan. 1 bowls

>Coming Wednesday: Norman's picks for the final bowls of the season

Sutton's shot at 800; questions for Bowden(s), Joe Pa

(12/28) Who knew? Mark Richt has declared casinos off limits to the Bulldog players in New Orleans. Despite the fact that more than a few are 21 or older and can legally gamble, Richt says No-No. "We’ve always had a no-casino policy," he said.

Eddie Sutton, who coached basketball at a handful of schools, is coming out of retirement to handle the head job at San Francisco. Sutton, who last coached Oklahoma State, has 798 wins and says the lure of winning 800 was the reason for his decision.

All that and he’s smart, too. National Scholar-Athlete and Draddy Trophy finalist QB Dennis Dixon of Oregon has received one of the eight NCAA Awards for academic and on-field excellence.

Arkansas and Texas A&M are close to signing an eight-year contract to play each other in football in the Dallas Cowboys' new stadium. The contract would pay each team $5 million for their appearance each year...

Before the cranes move in to tear down Miami’s Orange Bowl, there will be a pre-wrecking auction. Anyone for a used urinal? . . . Imagine this: The Big 12 Conference has reprimanded Texas Tech coach Bobby Knight for comments made about officiating in a loss to New Mexico.

The academic fraud issue at Florida State, which will see the Seminoles play their bowl game 36 players down, isn’t going to go away. Bobby Bowden and school president T.K. Wetherall have got to answer some questions. And in a very related story, five Penn State players will miss their team’s bowl game because of off-the-field problems. Could it be that Joe Paterno and Bowden, 81 and 78 years old respectively, simply can’t relate to kids anymore?

And finally, if you can believe any of the coaching rumors, Terry Bowden is reportedly now in the lead for the head job at West Virginia and Hawaii’s June Jones says he’s not interested in the SMU job. I have a hard time believing either.

Threats against Rodriguez kin? In West, my God, Virginia

(12/27) Ah, a Christmastime story. Reports out of West Virginia say that Rich Rodriguez has gone from local hometown success story to the role of traitor. His brother’s children have received death threats because Rodriguez left to take the Michigan job. The letters to the editor rage against him. His mailbox has been destroyed. There are thousands of anti-Rod T-shirts on sale and mocking posters have been nailed to his gate at the end of his driveway. What irks Rodriguez the most is a suggestion that he threw the Dec. 1 game against Pitt to avoid a berth in the national title game since Pitt was a 28-point underdog.

Pro tennis has needed an international tennis czar kind of like what the PGA has done by creating the position of commissioner. To underline the point, two Italian tennis players -- Potito Starace and Daniele Bracciali -- have been fined by the Association of Tennis Professionals and suspended for betting. Starace is accused of making five bets for a total of $130 two years ago. Bracciali made 50 bets of $7 each from 2004-05. The two were making friendly wagers on other players at tournaments. That’s ridiculous. The ATP is acting more like the PTA. Bring on a commissioner.

The final tally is in and its staggering. This college football season saw 13 teams ranked in the top five lose to unranked teams a total of 13 times. You couldn’t have asked for a more entertaining season.

Two really interesting coaching rumors surfaced over the holidays. West Virginia went after Jimbo Fisher even after Fisher signed a contract just 10 days ago to be FSU’s head coach-in-waiting. And SMU, which fired its head coach on Oct. 28, supposedly is pulling out all the stops to get Hawaii coach June Jones to come to Dallas. Wow!

And finally, how close do you think the Sugar Bowl is going to be? Remember that Hawaii gave up 44 points to Louisiana Tech and 35 to San Jose State. It might be ugly with Georgia, we would suspect, having a much stronger offense than either of those two.

Will the Tide roll to a winning 2007 season? No-No

(12/26) This is Norman Arey with your Norman’s No-Nos where I pick the losers in the college bowl games. Last week I was 5-1 -- 146-65 for the year. 69.2 percent. Here’s the second round of picks through Dec. 30.

HOLIDAY BOWL - Arizona State vs. Texas: Sun Devils have been an elite team all year. Texas started off better than it finished. Still, Colt McCoy is the real thing and Longhorns take the win. NO-NO. Sun Devil defense answers the challenge. ‘Horns hooked, 28-24.

CHAMPS SPORTS BOWL - Boston College vs. Michigan State: A mismatch on paper. BC was once ranked No. 2 in the land. Spartans aren’t No. 2 in the Big 10. MSU is ready for Ryan. NO-NO. BC quarterback Matt Ryan makes the difference, Spartans go down, 27-19.

EMERALD BOWL - Maryland vs. Oregon State: Beaver coach Mike Riley led his team to two wins over ranked teams. Maryland barely got here, finishing 6-6. State is playing great late, takes the Terps. NO-NO. Can’t see Riley beating Ralph Friedgen. Beavers buffeted, 21-20.

MEINEKE CAR CARE BOWL - UConn vs. Wake Forest: Two of the top coaches in one place. Randy Edsall had his share of job offers but decided to stay. Ditto for Wake’s Jim Grobe. Edsall wins this one. NO-NO. Wake is bringing 20,000 fans. Huskies dismissed, 28-17.

LIBERTY BOWL - Central Florida vs. Mississippi State: George O’Leary gets UCF to its second bowl in three years. Sylvester Croom has taken one of the worst teams in the SEC to a surprising season. Bulldogs bite the Knights. NO-NO. ‘Dogs beaten, 29-28.

ALAMO BOWL - Penn State vs. Texas A&M: Nittany Lions probably owe coach Joe Paterno a good showing. Texas A&M is still in shock at the sudden leaving of Dennis Franchione. Aggies show their resilience. NO-NO. A&M is crunched, 35-21.

INDEPENDENCE BOWL - Alabama vs. Colorado: The Crimson Tide has been a disappointment at 6-6. Buffaloes have been a surprise at 6-6 and suffered only one bad loss. Roll Tide is easy win. NO-NO. Buffs are buff, Tide falls 18-17.

Other losers:

>Central Michigan to Purdue in the Motor City Bowl

>and Houston to TCU in the Texas Bowl.

A tale of two Bowdens: Tommy wants to coach at

W. Virginia; some of Bobby's wins on the line at FSU?

(12/21) Just how important is college football to the state of West Virginia? The search committee to replace West Virginia football coach Rich Rodriguez is made up of school president Mike Garrison, Athletics Director Ed Pastilong and Gov. Joe Manchin III. Not only that, FSU coach Bobby Bowden called Manchin Thursday to recommend his son, Terry, for the job. The Mountaineers seemed ready to announce that longtime assistant coach Doc Holliday would be its coach but hesitated as they were inundated by fan support for Bowden.

And speaking of the elder Bowden, The New York Times reports that after an internal investigation into academic fraud at Florida State, the Seminoles may have to vacate some wins. If so, Bowden would lose those victories and his lead as the all-time coach with the most wins and Penn State’s Joe Paterno would take the top spot.

They ought to give the guy a chance. Georgia Tech has lost three verbal football recruits -- a quarterback and two receivers -- because of what the players perceive will be the Yellow Jacket offense next season with new coach Paul Johnson.

A total of nine college teams are preparing for bowl games after coaching changes which should translate into some interesting games. . . Last night in the Navy-Utah game, the Midshipmen offensive line averaged 260 pounds while the Utes averaged 310 pounds up front.

Will the mess that is the Atlanta Falcons ever clear up? Just to recap what poor owner Arthur Blank has been through since Dec. 10: Quarterback Michael Vick was sentenced to 23 months in federal prison. That night, the Falcons lost by 20 points on national television. The next day, coach Bobby Petrino slunk out of town to take the head coaching job at Arkansas. The following Sunday, Atlanta lost its fifth straight, this one by 34 points. The next day, former NFL coach Bill Cowher said no thanks to Atlanta and Wednesday Bill Parcells backed out of a deal to come to work for Blank. Just ain’t right.

And finally, want to know what quarterbacks were picked ahead of New England’s Tom Brady in the 2000 draft? Chad Pennington by the Jets, Giovanni Carmazzi by the 49ers, Chris Redman by the Ravens, Tee Martin by the Steelers, Marc Bulger by the Saints and Spergon Wynn by the Browns. Funny how things work out.

Too soon for college bowl games? No-no!

This is Norman Arey with your Norman’s No-Nos where I pick the losers in the upcoming bowl games (round one). For the season, I was 141-64, a 31.2 losing percentage. Not bad.

SAN DIEGO POINSETTIA BOWL -- Navy vs. Utah: The Middies may be a little adrift playing their first game for the nation’s only Polynesian head coach. Utah may be a little better than its 8-4 record but an inexplicable pounding at the hands of UNLV stands out. Navy’s defense carries the day. NO-NO. Midshipmen can’t handle Utah for four quarters, Navy sinks, 28-21.

NEW ORLEANS BOWL -- Memphis vs. Florida Atlantic: Both teams sport 7-5 records. Both can score. Both have awful special teams. Tigers have a slightly better offense and should prevail. NO-NO. The Fighting Owls have one intangible - coach Howard Schnellenberger,who knows a thing or two about bowl preparation. Memphis sings the blues, loses 35-31.

PAPAJOHNS.COM BOWL -- Southern Miss vs. Cincinnati: Longtime coach Jeff Bower was fired and the Golden Eagles are reeling. The Bearcats have Wake Forest retread Ben Mauk calling the signals. But the Misses win one for their old coach. NO-NO. Emotions are high but Cincy is for real. Eagles grounded, 31-10.

NEW MEXICO BOWL -- Nevada vs. New Mexico: Nevada is schizophrenic - losing to Northwestern but carrying Boise State to four overtimes before losing. The Wolf Pack scores lots. The Lobos won eight games but are missing top running back Rodney Ferguson, who was the offense for the Lobos. Nevada takes a close one. NO-NO. ‘Pack goes down, 30-27.

PIONEER LAS VEGAS BOWL -- UCLA vs. BYU: Bruins don’t have a coach. BYU has one named Bronco Mendenhall. UCLA lost four its last five games including one to Notre Dame. BYU is Mountain West Champions. Makes no difference. Bruins have too much class to give this one up. NO-NO. You can’t lose with a coach named Bronco. UCLA whomped, 35-17.

SHERATON HAWAII BOWL -- Boise State vs. East Carolina: The Boises are still living off of their upset of Oklahoma in last year’s Fiesta Bowl. East Carolina is capable with a coach named Holtz. No, not that one, this one is Skip Holtz, son of the big guy. Pirates have come a long way and take the win. NO-NO. Pirates don’t have the speed, lose 21-10.

More coaching (Saban?) rumors; Georgia third in final poll?

(12/19) Holy Moley! Could it be true? The rumor out there in college football land is that Alabama coach Nick Saban’s agent has been in contact with West Virginia, presumably concerning its head football coach opening?

The Texas High School Baseball Association had scheduled Roger Clemens to speak at its annual meeting. Now the association has called an executive meeting to discuss whether Clemens is still welcome. The problem is, of course, the appearance of the All-Star pitcher’s name on the Mitchell Report. The kicker is that Clemens was to speak on what he did on a daily basis to stay in shape.

The NFL fined the Atlanta Falcons’ DeAngelo Hall, Chris Houston, Roddy White, Joe Horn and Alge Crumpler for showing public support for Michael Vick before and during the Falcons embarrassing loss to Tampa Bay. What were these players thinking? If they want to show support, do it on their own time by visiting Vick in prison. He has, after all, pleaded guilty to a felony.

According to SI.Com’s Stewart Mandel, only a last minute veto by the BCS’ governing body kept No. 3 Oklahoma from playing No. 4 Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl. Instead we get Missouri vs. Tech and Oklahoma vs. West Virginia. The BCS just can’t get it right. . . The Internet site also rated the top upsets in college football during ‘07. They were, in order, Appalachian State over Michigan; Stanford over Southern Cal; Pitt over West Virginia; Colorado over Oklahoma; and Louisiana-Monroe over Alabama.

Some more grist for the rumor mill: Former Miami coach Larry Coker seems to be in the lead for the head job at SMU while Rick Neuheisel, who was the runnerup for the job at Georgia Tech, has had a second interview for the job at UCLA. . . There’s no question in my mind that if Georgia wins its bowl game against Hawaii, the Bulldogs should end up no worst than No. 3 in the country and a certainty for the top three in the 2008 pre-season polls.

And finally, my favorite basketball announcer, Dick Vitale, has had surgery on his vocal chords to treat ulcers and is out of action until February.

Michigan goes 2-and-0 in coach swiping from W. Virginia

(12/18) I’m not sure anyone in Morgantown would agree with me but I like the hire Michigan made when it stole West Virginia head football coach Rich Rodriguez. It’ll be fun to watch the innovative Rodriguez run up and down the field against the heavy-footed, plodding offenses that the Big 10 has featured over the years. I’m not sure how this affected the relations between the two school since the Wolverines also pilfered the Mountaineers' head basketball coach, John Beilein, only eight months ago. At least the school colors are very similar.

The early talk is that native West Virginian Terry Bowden is very interested in the vacant job and the WVU folks are interested in him. Seems like a good fit to me.

I liked Bill Cowher when he coached the Pittsburgh Steelers,but I’m even more impressed with the coach now. Cowher is obviously bright as he told the Falcons "no thanks" when they inquired about his interest in becoming the next head coach. Who would want to walk into the mess that is Arthur Blank’s misfortune to own?

The latest AP men’s college basketball poll is out and the top 15 teams held their places with North Carolina remaining at No. 1 followed by Memphis, Kansas, Texas and Georgetown. . . And speaking of basketball, the NBA is drooling over Memphis’ 6-3 freshman guard Derrick Rose. In fact, Rose may have moved ahead of Kansas State’s 6-10 freshman Michael Beasley in the eyes of the pros. Evidently Kansas State and Memphis can’t pay them enough to stay.

I hope you enjoyed this as much as I did. New Mexico, coached by former Iowa head coach and former Bobby Knight pupil Steve Alford, whipped up on Knight’s Texas Tech team by 17 points over the weekend. No report on whether the two shook hands afterwards.

Wonder if Virginia Tech defensive coordinator Bud Foster is giving South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier a cut? Foster talked to Spurrier in 1999 about becoming the defensive boss at Florida but decided to stay in Blacksburg after the Hokies came up with a big raise. Foster just turned Spurrier down again this week after being offered another huge pay hike to stay.

And finally my favorite football announcer ever, Keith Jackson, isn’t a fan of the BCS. "I always said we shouldn’t have messed with the bowls," he said. "We could have determined the title without messing up everything in the world -- just pick four teams after the bowls and play a tournament." Amen.

Football coaches: Duke gets serious, Arkansas gets ... ?

(12/17) Duke finally stood up and made a commitment to its football program when it hired Tennessee offensive coordinator David Cutcliffe. It was to the point in Durham that the Blue Devil brass had to do something or get out of the business. Now with a bona fide real football coach on board, the question is how basketball czar Mike Krzyzewski will react to having someone on equal footing in his fiefdom.

And one last word to those good folks in Fayetteville, Ark., who are so proud of their new coach. Bobby Petrino has had five employers in the last seven years and has held 12 jobs since 1986 - 16 moves since 1983. In other words, kind of the Larry Brown of football.

Former Duke basketball star Shelden Williams was car-jacked at gunpoint over the weekend just hours before his Atlanta Hawk team played Charlotte. Williams was unhurt and police later caught his assailants, and recovered his auto and property. No word on whether they were Carolina fans or not.

In the trivia factoid department: Did you know that there are three college head coaches who never played college ball? Charlie Weis of Notre Dame, Paul Johnson of Georgia Tech and Mark Mangino of Kansas. Also, rumors that Mangino was a sumo wrestler are apparently not true. Dennis Franchione never played but he’s unemployed at the moment.

Just wondering, but does Barry Bonds feel a little better after the Mitchell Report -- you know, misery loves company and all that.

Is it necessary to point out to all the college presidents of Division I college football teams that the Division I-AA just finished its playoff on Dec. 14? Nobody missed class, there was no end of the world because of it and you have every right to wonder if the smaller schools can do it, why can’t the big boys? It’s absurd.

And finally, if you want to know what’s wrong with Georgia Tech basketball, the answer is nothing. Can you say unrealistic expectations. What exactly happened in the off-season that led Yellow Jacket fans to believe the team would be a legitimate contender in the ACC?

The skinny on why high school playoff seats are expanding

(12/14) When Warrick Dunn says you’re incompetent, you can bet he’s not speaking with any malice or meanness. Dunn, one of the classiest individuals in the NFL who puts his money where his mouth is with charitable projects, said former coach Bobby Petrino would often call plays in games that the team hadn’t practiced..

And I had to laugh about a story in the AJC which says Falcon GM Rich McKay expects lots of candidates to apply for the open head coaching job in Atlanta. I think Georgia Tech had more interested candidates than the Falcons will have.

The news that the College Football Hall of Fame was going to move to Atlanta from South Bend, Ind., may be more rumor than news. Hall of Fame President Steve Hatchell says he is not seeking a new venue for the complex.

The Atlantic Coast Conference will move its ACC title game from Jacksonville to Tampa for the next two years and then to Charlotte for the following two. Dwindling attendance at the Gator Bowl caused the move as the game drew 72,700 the first year, 62,800 the second and 53,200 this year. The ACC covers a lot of ground - other cities in the scope of the conference include Baltimore, Boston, Washington, Miami, Orlando and, of course, Atlanta. Unfortunately for the conference, the SEC owns Atlanta.

The Georgia High School Association believes that the expanding waistlines of fans dictates that seats at high school playoffs must accommodate a 24-inch fanny instead of the 18-inch seats in some stadiums.

The New York Times’ Pete Thammel offers this list of top Heisman Trophy candidates for 2008: Tim Tebow, Florida; Pat White, West Virginia; Felix Jones, Arkansas; Armanti Edwards, Appalachian State; Chris Wells, Ohio State; Percy Harvin, Florida; Sam Bradford, Oklahoma; Graham Harrell, Texas Tech; Knowshon Moreno, Georgia; and Chase Daniel, Missouri.

And finally, I’ll be happy when next week arrives. The bowl season begins on Thursday and runs right through Jan. 7 and that means Norman’s No-Nos will appear Thursday morning.

The SEC: Rehab league for failed NFL coaches?

(12/13) I don’t want to waste a lot of words and time addressing the Bobby Petrino issue. Petrino up and left the Atlanta Falcons at the midnight hour with three games to go in this season and was at his new job the next morning before the roosters crowed in Arkansas.

It is my considered opinion--after reading everything I could get my hands on about the situation and doing amazing amounts of research--Petrino is not a Razorback but a weasel.

And just a word on former Home Depot co-founder and now Falcons owner Arthur Blank. I’ve heard all the snide comments I care to hear about Blank being a much better judge of dry wall than he is of choosing leadership for his football team. The folks saying that also were saying what a great choice Petrino was to coach the team. Blank has made mistakes. He’ll tell you that. I’m not absolutely sure that GM Rich McKay isn’t another one. But at least Blank isn’t sitting on his duff drawing big paychecks from the NFL as the previous Falcons’ owners did. He’s out there shaking the bushes and trying to do the right things. If you can’t say anything nice about him, then stick it in your dry wall. .

The Southeastern Conference’s latest reputation is that of a rehab center for failed NFL coaches. The AJC points out the following: South Carolina’s Steve Spurrier (12-20 with Redskins); Alabama’s Nick Saban (15-17 with Dolphins); Kentucky’s Rich Brooks (13-19 with Rams) and now Petrino (3-10 with Falcons).

Better late than never. Joe Namath will graduate from the University of Alabama this weekend, earning his Bachelor's of Arts degree more than four decades after he left the school. The former New York Jets quarterback left the Tide with 15 hours to go and made it up online.

And finally, the FBI has involved itself in football helmets and head injuries in the amateur side of the sport. I’m glad that someone’s interested in a serious problem but could they help their CIA brothers get some solid info on Iran’s proclivity for manufacturing nuclear weapons before concerning themselves with other issues? Maybe turn over the helmet conspiracy to the AMA?

Norman's take on Petrino's exit

If it’s possible to feel badly for a pro team owner, I feel awfully sorry for Atlanta Falcon owner Arthur Blank. First, he was betrayed by Michael Vick and now stabbed in the back by Bobby Petrino. Petrino’s startling resignation to leave immediately and take over the head job at Arkansas was more than shocking. Really, can you believe anybody anymore? Do handshakes and words mean nothing? Good riddance to both of them.

Is June job hunting? Did Tubby know it was time to go?

(12/12) Turns out that Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow of Florida is a big country music fan. Tebow told SI.Com his favorites are Kenny Chesney and George Strait, and his favorite song is "Don’t Blink" by Chesney. (Listen to 'Don't Blink' on YouTube)

Word is that Hawaii coach June Jones is interested in the vacant UCLA head football job. I say give it to him and see what happens -- see if Jones’ gimmicky passing attack can work at the highest college level. We know how it worked in the NFL. . .

Is the grass really greener on the other side? Billy Gillespie, the new basketball coach at Kentucky, has a 4-3 record and Wildcats aren’t used to having three losses this early in the season. Gillespie’s former team, Texas A&M, is 8-1 with its only loss coming to Arizona. Tubby Smith, who saw the hand-writing on the wall and took the Minnesota job, is 6-1.

Here & There: The college basketball poll features nine unbeaten teams in the top 25 including all of the top five. . . The early season college basketball power ratings for conferences has the ACC at No. 1 followed by the Big 12, the Big East, the Big 10 and the Missouri Valley Conference. You’ll notice that the SEC isn’t mentioned.

How good is LSU defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey? He won the Bronco Nagurski Award, the Outland Trophy, the Lombardi Award, the Ronnie Lott Trophy and was the SEC Defensive Player of the Year. He’s also going to be a top three draft choice in the NFL.

I’ve read two different on-line commentaries which suggest that if former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick does return to pro football, probably in 2010, it would be as a running back or a receiver.

And finally Wake Forest is positioning itself to become a bowl favorite. The Demon Deacon fans have purchased more than 15,000 tickets for their game against Connecticut in the Meineke Car Care Bowl.

Vick's sentence 'seems about right'

(12/11) OK, let’s get this over with and move on: Former Falcon quarterback Michael Vick was sentenced to 23 months in federal prison. If you think the sentence was stiff, think again. Vick’s punishment isn’t just for heading up a dog-fighting ring and all the atrocities associated with it but also for lying to the feds and then, stupidly, violating his probation by smoking marijuana. The 23 months seems about right. Five years would probably have been too much, 12 months not enough. What he got can be reduced by about three months with good behavior. So he’ll be out in the late summer of 2009. Just in time for some egghead owner to sign him to another NFL contract.

Here & There: I believe that the Heisman Trophy won by Florida quarterback Tim Tebow won’t be his only one. . . Georgia Tech lost top quarterback recruit Sean Renfree out of Scottsdale, Ariz., after hiring new coach Paul Johnson out of Navy. Renfree is a passer and doesn’t believe his skill set matches what he anticipates to be the Yellow Jackets’ future offensive plans. . . And with 16 new coaches coming into the NCAA Division I ranks, how many more defections will there be? . . .Makes no sense for Vanderbilt football coach Bobby Johnson to interview for the Duke job unless the motivation is money. Going from one perennial cellar-dweller in the SEC to a perennial cellar-dweller in the ACC doesn’t seem like career progress. In fact, Vandy is probably a better job than the one in Durham.

Florida State made it official yesterday, naming offensive coordinator Jimbo Fisher Head-Coach-In-Waiting. He’s the designee to take over when 78-year-old Bobby Bowden decides to call it quits. Bowden has won more than any other coach in college football, carrying 373 wins into the 2008 season. The reason for making it official for Fisher is because several schools have come calling about their head job openings. Bowden’s record from 1987-2000 was 152-19-1. His record since is 58-31. Fisher, who made $400,000 last season, reportedly will make $1 million now. And by the way, Bowden’s 373 wins give him 50 more than Alabama’s Bear Bryant.

And putting it all in perspective, Jimbo Fisher says he could coach in Tallahassee for 37 years, win 10 a year, and still not catch Bowden.

Say Amen: What links Florida's 3 Heisman-winning QBs?

(12/10) Every once in a blue moon, the stars align and things go as they should. This year’s Heisman Trophy voting was one of those things. The voters finally got it right. Tim Tebow, the magnificent University of Florida quarterback, became the first sophomore to win the coveted award. And you know that every preacher in Florida will have his son out throwing in the backyard right after church. There have been three Gator quarterbacks who won the Heisman - Steve Spurrier in 1966, Danny Wuerffel in 1996 and Tebow - all sons of clergymen.

And speaking of firsts, when Navy elevated assistant coach Ken Niumatalolo to its head coach to replace Paul Johnson who left to take over the program at Georgia Tech, he became the NCAA’s first Polynesian head coach. Great question for sports trivia buffs.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that Georgia Tech interviewed eight candidates before choosing Navy’s Paul Johnson. The eight were offensive coordinator Joker Phillips of Kentucky, UConn head coach Randy Edsall, Florida’s defensive coach Charlie Strong, Georgia Southern head coach Chris Hatcher, Tech defensive coordinator Jon Tenuta, former Colorado and Washington head coach Rick Neuheisel, former Auburn head coach Terry Bowden and Johnson.

The performance of the year in college football took place last week when Appalachian State quarterback Armanti Edwards hit on 14 of 16 passes for 182 yards the three touchdowns while rushing 31 times for 313 yards and four more scores as the Mountaineers beat Richmond to make it to the finals of Division I-AA. The Boone, N.C., school will be going for an unprecedented third straight title.

The most stunning news coming out of all the hirings and firings on the college front is Rutgers’ Greg Schiano turning down the Michigan job. Ann Arbor is the place to step into the national title picture. The school has tradition, facilities and money but Schiano turned it down to stay in New Brunswick. Amazing!

Which leads to this question. Who has made the biggest botch of trying to hire a head coach - Michigan or Arkansas? The Razorbacks have tried Auburn’s Tommy Tuberville, Clemson’s Tommy Bowden, North Carolina's Butch Davis and Wake Forest’s Jim Grobe. All this has led Arkansas receiver Anthony Lucas to say that he’s embarrassed by what’s going on and can’t understand why the Razorbacks can’t hire a coach.

A real reality show: Who Wants to Coach the Razorbacks?

(12/7) A quick aside: Last week, I hit eight of 10 Norman’s No-Nos where I pick the losers in top college

games. I have an overall record of 141-64 for the season - almost 70 percent. I’ll resume the No-Nos in time for bowl season.

Navy head coach Paul Johnson has been a busy guy, interviewing at Duke, SMU, and Georgia Tech. I’ll tell you right now, I think the best job of those three is Southern Methodist in Dallas. Brand new stadium, more money than God, the only way to go is up. The only drawback is the Mustangs don’t play in a BCS conference while the other two do.

So it’s a done deal (well almost, but you know how that goes) that Jimbo Fisher will succeed Bobby Bowden at Florida State whenever Bowden decides to step down. Supposedly, the contract has a hefty buyout clause if either party should waver. My question is two-fold: (1) What if Bowden decides to coach for five more years or seven or whatever? (2) Why is everyone so enamored with Fisher? He has no track record since he’s never been a head coach. If this past year is an example of his handiwork, bring back Jeff Bowden. I don’t get it.

Two more hot rumors: Several sports Internet sources claimed that Jim Grobe of Wake Forest would be introduced today as the new Arkansas head coach. Now the news is that Grobe is going to be stay in Winston-Salem. I’m beginning to feel sorry for the Razorbacks. They tried to get Butch Davis at UNC and Tommy Tuberville at Auburn, and are still looking. At the same time, there were stories that Michigan hasn’t given up on LSU coach Les Miles and is making another run. Ain’t this fun?

Early odds for the state’s two teams going to bowls show Georgia is favored over Colt Brennan and Hawaii by almost 10 points and Georgia Tech is a four-point favorite over Pat Hill’s Fresno State club. . . And concerning the Georgia-Hawaii game, the Warriors returned 4,000 of their 17,500 ticket allotment which Georgia was more than happy to take.

And finally, hiring a head coach at Georgia Tech isn’t as easy as it may sound. The Georgia Tech Athletic Association has, according to some projections, a debt of $90 million because of its stadium expansion, incurred while George O’Leary and Dave Braine were still there. Since Tech must pay fired coach Chan Gailey something like $4 million, who wants a job with that hanging over it? Just a thought.

Falcons close to clinching ... second pick in NFL draft

(12/6) What great news,huh? The Atlanta Falcons are so bad that the Birds have cleverly positioned themselves to possibly earn the No. 2 overall pick in next spring’s NFL draft. In plain English, that means that Atlanta could be the second worst team in all of pro football.

Who’s the top college football coach after this wacky season? Lots of candidates -- Randy Edsall at UConn, hate to admit it but Al Groh at Virginia, Dennis Erikson at Arizona State, Bronco Mendenhall at BYU (gotta love his name), Mark Mangino at Kansas, Gary Pinkel at Missouri and Sylvester Croom at Mississippi State. My vote goes to Mark Richt at Georgia. That’s not a homer vote. The Bulldogs were in a position to play for the mythical college championship in what was supposed to be a rebuilding year. Also consider the Dawgs had only one player named on the All-SEC first team (Knowshon Moreno).

Not to beat a dead horse but I just can’t stand it. It’s a crime that Ohio State is ranked No. 1 and is playing in the mythical title game. The Buckeyes were rewarded for basically nothing. They played only two ranked teams during the year and lost to one of those (Illinois). Check out their schedule - Youngstown State, Akron and Kent State. (I swear I’m not making that up).

If you are having a problem keeping up with all the college football coaching changes, there have been a total of 15 at this time and only four of the jobs have been filled. This has got to be like Christmas to coaches like Navy’s Paul Johnson, Auburn assistant Will Muschamp and Tennessee assistant David Cutcliffe.

One aside about Johnson interviewing with Georgia Tech. If Yellow Jacket athletics director Dan Radakovich is serious about wanting to insert some pizzazz and excitement in the football front office, Johnson probably isn’t his man. Johnson’s coaching credentials speak well of his abilities but he’s as dry as Casper Milktoast and has the personality of, well, Chan Gailey.

The American Association of Retired Persons has announced that tennis legend Martina Navratilova will be the ambassadress for Health and Fitness for one of the world’s largest lobbying organizations.

And finally, USA Today ran a Cost-Per-Win chart for Division I head coaches. The most expensive was Tim Brewster at Minnesota, who was paid $1 million and had one victory. The best deal was Gregg Brandon at Bowling Green who makes $183,000 and had eight wins - worth $22,989 per win. And yes, Alabama’s Nick Saban was the second worst, with six wins on a base salary of $3.5 million, or a cost of $583.867 per success.

'Help Wanted' signs still up at Arkansas, Georgia Tech, Houston, Washington State, Southern Mississippi ...

Georgia coach Mark Richt is imploring Bulldog fans to get behind their team, travel to New Orleans and spend, spend, spend. Since when does a coach need to beg for fan support when the team is going to a BCS bowl -- the Sugar Bowl, no less?

For what it’s worth, former Georgia Tech and now Central Florida head coach George O’Leary has been named Conference-USA Coach of the Year. Now there’s something he can truthfully put on his resume.

Arkansas had offered Clemson’s Tommy Bowden a contract worth $2 million-plus to become the Razorbacks coach but the Tiger said no. The Razorbacks have now been through three coaching prospects.

They went after Tommy Tuberville at Auburn and North Carolina’s Butch Davis earlier. Clemson offered Bowden a two-year extension and $400,000 raise, bringing his salary to $1.6 million. The Tigers sweetened that deal when it looked like he was leaving. Hey, Razorbacks, how about Chan Gailey?

Florida coach Urban Meyer told the Miami Herald he is mystified why sophomore receiver Jarred Fayson, freshman running back Bo Williams and sophomore defensive end Trent Pupello are transferring. Backup quarterback Bryan Waggener also is leaving but that’s understandable.

With a coaching vacancy at Washington State, why not call former Atlanta Falcon coach Jim Mora? Mora said, while still the Falcons’ coach, he’d be interested in the University of Washington job. So why not a Cougar rather than a Husky?

Here and There:

>SMU has raised more than $10 million to use to attract a big-name coach for the Mustang football team. . . >Tyrone Nix, the defensive coordinator at South Carolina, is in the running for the job at Southern Mississippi. Nix is a Southern Miss grad. . .

>The University of Houston has contacted Alabama offensive coordinator Major Applewhite about its head coaching job. ..

And finally, why has Georgia Tech not hired a new coach? Despite the fact that Tech is no longer a top tier job, surely someone wants it? I’ve got two suggestions: former Southern Miss coach Jeff Bower or Alabama assistant coach and long-time Tech assistant Lance Thompson. Thompson probably is the top recruiter in the nation.

BCS bowl match-ups get PG rating: pretty gloomy

(12/4) We’ve had an opportunity to digest the many failures of the BCS. Now let’s take a look at the match-ups this system has wrought. Let’s rate each game from 1 to 10 (lowest to highest).

Ohio State vs. LSU - Name one player on the Buckeye team. A bunch of no-names who played one of the cushier schedules in all of America and are still wondering how they ended up here. The Tigers have a wounded quarterback, two losses and a banged-up Glenn Dorsey. Tigers should be the BCS’ biggest fans and Les Miles should be in Ann Arbor. RATING 3

SUGAR BOWL - Georgia vs. Hawaii: The Bulldogs didn’t win the SEC, didn’t win their division, lost to South Carolina and Tennessee, and are suspect on defense. The Rainbow Warriors dropped the Rainbow part of their nickname, won the WAC title and have Colt Brennan. One idea to spice up the game: Georgia fans, while Hawaii is doing their Haka war dance and chant, could come out on the field and bark and throw sour grapes. RATING 4 (with the grapes); 3 (without).

FIESTA BOWL - Oklahoma vs. West Virginia: The Fiesta certainly was the most entertaining last year with Boise State nipping Oklahoma. Why would the Sooners want to come back to this city with such excruciatingly embarrassing memories? Why would Phoenix want them? Hey, Pat White and Steve Slaton can be entertaining but only if they propose to their girlfriends after the game. I’ll watch it. RATING 4

ORANGE BOWL - Virginia Tech vs. Kansas: Two teams who hate each other. Well, two teams who have no idea where the other team’s from. This is a natural if you like unnatural things. What’s a Hokie anyway? What’s a Jayhawk? Can you find Blacksburg without a map? How about Lawrence? What’s Kansas without Dorothy? Would you really want to be in the Orange Bowl late at night? RATING 1

ROSE BOWL - Illinois vs. Southern Cal: The Rose Bowl folks probably still think Frankie Valli has the hottest group in America. These folks are stuck in a time warp. Want to mess up the Rose Bowl folks? Screw up the marching order of their stupid parade. Talk about a mismatch. As enamored as I am about the great job Ron Zook did at Illinois, the Illini don’t belong on the same field with the Trojans. Pete Carroll can name the score. RATING R

And let’s throw in Georgia Tech vs. Fresno State in the blue-fielded Humanitarian Bowl in Boise. Tech has no coach, no quarterback and didn’t finish anywhere within sight of their league title. Fresno State has Pat Hill, a wonderful coach who’s motto is "We’ll play anybody, anytime, any place." He’s proving it but surely Pat, not this team at this place. And how Humanitarian is this for poor Tech? RATING .08. That’s the legal limit for intoxication, right?

College football's craziest season ends with snoozer bowl

(12/3) So the absolute craziest college football season ever came right down to the final minute before the contestants were set up to play for that most mythical title ever -- the college football championship.

There really isn’t one.

This whole BCS playoff thing reminds me of the presidential race. After all this time, this is the best slate of candidates we can come up with? What the hay.

LSU vs. Ohio State? What can that possibly prove?

LSU lost twice. And I don’t want to hear about both losses being triple-overtime losses. They lost. They lost to Arkansas and Kentucky, not exactly the Broadway Bruisers of college football. The Bayou Bengals will be the first team with two losses ever to play in the championship game.

Ohio State lost only once--to Ron Zook’s Illinois team. They beat mighty Michigan in the last game of the season but Appalachian State did the same thing in the first game of the season.

I’ll bet I could go through heroic machinations and come up with a scenario where Illinois should be playing Florida in the BCS title game. I just don’t have the energy or inclination to do it. It would certainly be more interesting than the game we have. You know, The Zookster against Urban Meyer, the man he was fired for in Gainesville. And we’d get a chance to see what should be the Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback in the Gators’ Tim Tebow.

One aside to Urban: Zook is playing in the Rose Bowl. Eat your heart out, Florida.

An even better idea would be for LSU to play Southern Cal. They’re probably the two best teams playing right now and remember all the rude things LSU’s Les Miles said about the Trojans' schedule earlier in the year?

And did you Georgia fans really think that the Bulldogs were the second-best team in the nation? I mean really. Better than USC or LSU or even Arizona State and Oklahoma and Kansas and Missouri? Seriously, it’s stretching it even to put the Bulldogs in the Top Five.

So is there anyone happier in the 50 states than Colt Brennan? I wouldn’t say the Georgia secondary exactly instills fear in the hearts of the Warriors.

Seriously, I feel it would be right to just call this whole thing off. Let’s just don’t have a mythical college title game. Let the winners of the Orange, Sugar, Fiesta and Rose crow about being No. 1 until next Fall.

Oh, that’s right. That’s what they used to do before some idiot came up with this BCS idea.

Championship Week's biggest losers: Vols or Cajuns?

(11/30) This is Norman Arey with your Norman’s No-Nos, where I pick losers in the top college football games. Last week, I was 11-4, 133-62 for the year. That’s 68.2 percent, well below my 78 percent last season.

First, the conference championships:

SEC: LSU vs. Tennessee - LSU’s vaunted defense hasn’t been very vaunted lately. Vols’ Eric Ainge may be the second best quarterback in the SEC right now and UT is one of the hottest teams in the country. Big Orange offensive guru David Cutcliffe has a few surprises in store for the Tigers. NO-NO. No surprise can negate LSU’s talent. Cotton is falling out of the sky! Rocky Tops toppled, 38-21.

ACC: Virginia Tech vs. Boston College - Does anybody really care? Surely no one in Jacksonville. Not a tasty menu for the ACC to present. OK. We all know about Frank Beamer’s special teams and we all know about BC’s Matt Ryan. So what’s left? Not much so the Hokies tie up Ryan for the win. NO-NO. Ryan’s too fine, VPI falls, 28-17.

BIG 12: Oklahoma vs. Missouri - Oklahoma has proven it can beat some of the best and lose to some of the worst. Missouri has had an amazing year but may have spent itself against Kansas last week. The Show-Mes have enough left for one last fling. NO-NO. Sooners play as if there’s no tomorrow, which there isn’t. Tigers are caged, lose 35-31.

Conference USA: Central Florida vs. Tulsa - George O’Leary’s UCF team was up two years ago, down last year. Up again this year. The former Georgia Tech coach isn’t one to allow more downs than ups. Tulsa misses Steve Kragthrope and you can be sure the Louisville coach misses it. The Oil Men rise to smite the Knights. NO-NO. Tulsa goes down hard, 29-10.

Others losers:

>UCLA to Southern Cal as the Bruins say goodbye to coach Karl Dorrell

>Oregon to Oregon State as the Ducks simply don’t have a quarterback left standing.

>Pittsburgh to West Virginia as the Mountaineers flex their muscles - they’re not going back after coming all this way.

>Arizona to Arizona State - Dennis Erikson pulls the Sun Devils out of the swan dive that has ruined their season.

>Washington to Hawaii - Ty Willingham’s defense will be embarrassed by Colt Brennan.

>and San Diego State to BYU as the Cougars desperately hope for one of the BCS at-large berths.