Player Gift Package: 08-09 Bowls

Each player of the bowl bound schools will receive a gift package. Here is a list of what they get.

EagleBank Bowl
Players from both schools will receive a Sony 8" portable DVD player with carry case, a 50" x 60" custom woven afghan w/ logo, an autographed football, and a wool hat w/ embroidered logo.

New Mexico Bowl
This year’s player gift package includes an Oakley backpack, an Oakley watch, an RCA video recorder/camera, an Oakley beanie, a personalized commemorative football, a New Mexico Bowl pen by Quill, a New Era Cap, and a one-year subscription to ESPN the magazine.

St. Petersburg Bowl
Players from each school will receive a Flip (digital video device), an Ogio bag, Sony headphones, a commemorative football, a beach towel, and a bucket hat.

Las Vegas Bowl
Players from each school will receive a Wii System, an Oakley Holeshot 3hd watch, and a Pioneer Las Vegas Bowl hat

Poinsettia Bowl
Players will receive a Tommy Hilfiger watch, an 8 gig iPOD touch, a Best Buy certificate, and a hooded sweatshirt from Sports Tek

Hawaii Bowl
Players from both schools will receive a Hawaii Bowl custom backpack, a KICKER IKick500 ipod/iphone, a custom Hawaii Bowl tie, Oakley sunglasses, a Kahala Aloha shirt, a Wearever beach chair, a beach towel, a team t-shirt, an SHB calendar, a Hawaii Bowl hat, a Hawaii Bowl visor, and Luggage Spotter bag tags.

Motor City Bowl
Players from each school will receive a leather, rolling logoed athletic travel bag, a computer/backpack style bag, a Motor City Bowl commemorative watch, and an autographed Motor City Bowl souvenir football.

Meineke Car Care Bowl
Players from each school will receive a Flip (digital video recorder), a personalized commemorative football, a Fossil watch and sunglasses kit, a laptop backpack, and a racing-themed baseball hat.

Champs Sports Bowl
Players receive a $400 Best Buy shopping spree while they are in Florida, a commemorative watch, and a goody bag.

Emerald Bowl
Players from each school will receive Sony noise-canceling headphones, a rolling Armor Gear duffel bag, a Fossil watch, an Emerald Bowl cap.

Independence Bowl
Players from each school will receive a Trek Mountain Bike, a New Era baseball cap, a Timely Co. watch, and a souvenir football.

Alamo Bowl
Players from each school will receive an 80 gig Sony PS3, a basketball PS3 video game, a Fossil watch, and a mini-helmet.

Holiday Bowl
Players from both schools will receive a Tourneau watch, a hooded sweatshirt from Sports Tek, an Insignia 19” HD TV/DVD Player, and a Best Buy gift certificate

Texas Bowl
Each player gets a $350 Best Buy gift card, a Swisstek watch, an Under Armour HeatGear Long-Sleeve Tee, an Under Armour twister pant, an Under Armour tech cap, a Toppers backpack, and a commemorative belt buckle.

Armed Forces Bowl
The game always tries to give at least one major high-tech item. This year it is a flip video recorder. In addition, players will receive an official bowl watch, a commemorative football, a rolling suitcase, a mini- helmet with a bowl logo on each side, an ESPN t-shirt, and a luggage tag with bowl logo.

Sun Bowl
Players from both schools will receive a Sony DVD Handycam, a Timely Watch Co. Silvertone watch, an Armor Gear Dolly Llama Travel Bag, a Majestic Therma Fleece Pullover, a Brut hair dryer, a VP Sports Stone cap, and an official Brut Sun Bowl souvenir coin.

Music City Bowl
Each player will receive a Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl Fossil wrist watch, a Sony Electronics package that includes a pair of noise canceling headphones and MP3 player, an Adidas fleece jacket, and an Armor Gear backpack.

Insight Bowl
Players from each school will receive a Vizio 26" LCD HD Television, a Bulova Insight Bowl watch, a snack pack, and a game hat.

Chick-fil-A Bowl
Players on both teams will receive a $300 Best Buy gift card, a travel bag, a commemorative watch, and a Chick-fil-A football and gift card.

Outback Bowl
Players from both teams will receive a custom ring from Jostens, a Fossil watch, and a Pure Digital Flip Mini Camcorder.

Capital One Bowl
Players receive a $400 Best Buy shopping spree while they are in Florida, a commemorative watch, and a goody bag.

Gator Bowl
Players in this year’s game will receive a Bulova watch, luggage, Oakley Thumps, and a commemorative hat.

Rose Bowl
Players from each team will receive a Sony DVD Camcorder, a commemorative Fossil watch, a commemorative OGIO Backpack, a commemorative New Era 59Fifty fitted hat, a commemorative plaque, a commemorative autographed football, and a one-year subscription to ESPN The Magazine.

Orange Bowl
Players from each team will receive a Sony Electronics Gifting Suite, which permits them to select Sony electronics up to a $300 value, Tourneau watch, an Ogio Back Pack/Duffle, a New Era fitted cap, customized Crocs, a Blockbuster Video Rental Subscription, and customized luggage tags.

Fiesta Bowl
Players from each team will receive a MyVu Personal Media Viewer, an Apple iPod Nano, a Kenneth Cole Tostitos Fiesta Bowl watch, a snack pack, and a game hat.

Source: CollegeFootballNews.com

BCS championship game to be available live in 3-D

College football live in 3-D is coming soon.

Burbank, Calif.-based 3ality Digital said Tuesday it had won the contract to shoot the Jan. 8 BCS National Championship game in 3-D.

The game between Florida and Oklahoma will be broadcast live in 3-D to 80 to 100 movie theaters in about 30 U.S. cities, said 3ality Chairman David Modell. Tickets are expected to cost $18 to $22, said Cinedigm Digital Cinema Corp., which is working with 3ality to deliver the broadcasts to theaters. To find the nearest participating theater, go to Cinedigm Digital Cinema.

A startup named RealD is supplying the 3-D projector technology and polarized lenses for audience members.

"We will take what we learned from the NFL shoot and apply it to this so this broadcast gets better," said Modell, 47, former president of the Baltimore Ravens.

This month's test 3-D broadcast of an NFL game between the Oakland Raiders and the San Diego Chargers went black twice before the half as the satellite signal went down. And some camera moves had people in the audience crossing their eyes and removing their polarized lenses.

But audiences -- test runs were done in Boston, New York and Los Angeles -- generally approved of the technology, which adds depth to the field and gives a sense of being there in person. Shots of cheerleaders were a big hit.

"There's been lots of post-morteming," Modell said. "Mostly it's been warm handshakes, hugs and backslaps for having done a good job."

Modell said the format will be roughly the same as it was during the test screening, which had eight 3-D camera crews beside their 2-D counterparts, and a separate set of commentators.

Source: Sportsline.com

Berkley's Fury

Former Auburn and NBA star Charles Barkley ripped the school he attended on Monday, saying the only reason the Tigers did not hire Buffalo's Turner Gill as the school's new football coach is because Gill is black.

Auburn on Saturday hired Iowa State's Gene Chizik, who had a 5-19 record in two seasons with the Cyclones. Chizik was the defensive coordinator at Auburn in 2004, when the Tigers finished 13-0 and ranked No. 2 in the country.

Chizik replaces former Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville, who won 85 games in 10 seasons but was forced to resign earlier this month.

"I think race was the No. 1 factor," said Barkley, who played basketball for three seasons at Auburn during the early 1980s. "You can say it's not about race, but you can't compare the two resumes and say [Chizik] deserved the job. Out of all the coaches they interviewed, Chizik probably had the worst resume."


Gill, a former Nebraska quarterback, took over one of the country's worst programs at Buffalo three years ago. He guided the Bulls to an 8-5 record and their first MAC championship this season, upsetting previously unbeaten Ball State 42-24 in the Dec. 5 conference championship game.

The Bulls won 10 games in their first seven seasons at the Division I-A level. Gill guided Buffalo to 13 victories during the past two seasons combined.

"I'm just very disappointed," Barkley said. "I just thought Turner Gill would be the perfect choice for two reasons: He's a terrific coach and we needed to make a splash. I thought we had to do something spectacular to bring attention to the program. Clearly, if we'd hired a black coach, it would have created a buzz."

Barkley, who works as an NBA analyst for Turner Network Television, said he spoke with Gill before Gill interviewed with Auburn officials last week.

"We talked about the whole race thing in Alabama," Barkley said. "I told him it's there and it's going to be anywhere you go. I told him you can't not take the job because of racism. He was worried about being nothing more than a token interview. He was concerned about having a white wife. It's just very disappointing to me."

If you are looking for a defensive mind coach, why not go hard after Florida defensive coordinator Charlie Strong? It never happens at Auburn because Strong is black and his wife is white. A former dean at an SEC school said that Strong's marital status would be a difficult sell at any Southern university.

Source: ESPN.com

Final Coach's Poll Observation

Take a look at the following intriguing observation.

Frank Beamer ranked his own team No. 23, four spots below where the rest of the coaches had it.

Two of the coaches who ranked Texas No. 1 were Iowa State's Gene Chizik, a former UT assistant coach and North Texas' Todd Dodge, a former UT QB.

Urban Meyer voted Florida No. 1 and Oklahoma No. 2, and had Texas No. 4 behind Alabama. He also ranked the team that beat his UF club, Ole Miss, at No. 12.

Former Clemson coach Tommy Bowden ranked his dad's FSU team No. 21. His old man, Bobby, didn't even rank the Noles.

Mack Brown had the team that knocked off his UT team, Texas Tech, at No. 8.

Dan Hawkins had OU No. 1 and Boise State No. 9.

Pat Hill had Boise State No. 6 and Utah No. 7.

Hal Mumme had Texas Tech, coached by his protege, Mike Leach, at No. 3, one slot ahead of Texas.

Rick Neuheisel had USC No. 3 ahead of No. 4 Oklahoma.

Bo Pelini ranked his Nebraska squad No. 22. Mike Price ranked Bama No. 4, one spot ahead of USC.

Greg Schiano ranked Penn State, a program where he once coached, fourth, ahead of No. 5 Texas.

Steve Spurrier ranked OU, the team coached by his protege, Bob Stoops, higher (No. 1) than he ranked his old employer, UF (No. 2).

Ron Zook had Oklahoma No. 1, ahead of his old team, UF (No. 2).

Source: USA Today

Preseaon Poll Ranking 2008

As the 2008 football season came to end, it is the time to evaluate which preseason poll was most accurate (or questionable thereof).

In my evaluation, you will be penalized if your top 25 teams would end up with losing records. Ranked Clemson in top 10? Oops! Ranked Michigan in top 25? Uh-oh!


Best Preseason Polls


3rd Prize - NationalChamps.net (score: -32)

• The good: Florida, Oklahoma and Texas all ranked top 10
• The bad: 15th through 18th, Auburn, Arizona State, Tennessee and Illinois
• The ugly: No real ugly picks

2nd Prize - Athlon (score: -29)

• The good: Florida in 1st, Oklahoma in 3rd
• The bad: 17th through 19th, Arizona State, Illinois and Tennessee
• The ugly: Auburn in 10th

1st Prize - Phil Steele (score: -28)

• The good: Florida in 1st, Oklahoma in 3rd, Arizona State and Illinois not ranked top 25
• The bad: Auburn in 12th, Notre Dame in 19th
• The ugly: Clemson in 5th

Worst Preseason Polls


3nd Prize - Sports Illustrated (score: -40)

• The good: Ranked Florida and Oklahoma in top 5, Alabama in top 25
• The bad: Clemson in 11th, Tennessee in 12th, Arizona State in 16th and Illinois in th19
• The ugly: Auburn in 9th

2rd Prize - Rivals.com (score: -41)

• The good: Florida in 1st, Oklahoma in 3rd
• The bad: Arizona State in 16th, Illinois in 18th and Tennessee in 19th
• The ugly: Auburn in 7th, Clemson in 9th

1st Prize - Sporting News (score: -44)

• The good: Oklahoma in 4th, ranked Alabama in top 25
• The bad: Auburn in 16th, Arizona State in 17th, and Tennessee in 22th
• The ugly: Clemson in 7th, Illinois in 10th and Michigan in 18th

Preseaon Ranking Source: Wikipedia

Final BCS Standings (December 7, 2008)

Final BCS Standings (December 7, 2008)


1. Oklahoma 12-1
2. Florida 12-1
3. Texas 11-1
4. Alabama 12-1
5. USC 11-1
6. Utah 12-0
7. Texas Tech 11-1
8. Penn State 11-1
9. Boise State 12-0
10. Ohio State 10-2
11. TCU 10-2
12. Cincinnati 11-2
13. Oklahoma State 9-3
14. Georgia Tech 9-3
15. Georgia 9-3
16. BYU 10-2
17. Oregon 9-3
18. Michigan State 9-3
19. Virginia Tech 9-4
20. Pitt 9-3
21. Missouri 9-4
22. Ball State 12-1
23. Northwestern 9-3
24. Boston College 9-4
25. Mississippi 8-4

BCS Championship is Set

No.2 Florida Gators at No,1 Oklahoma Sooners

Dolphin Stadium, Miami, FL
8:00 PM ET FOX

The Gators (12-1) have averaged 49.4 points during their nine-game winning streak, and nobody has come within single digits of them since their 31-30 loss to Ole Miss on Sept. 27. The Sooners (12-1) have scored 61 or more points in their past five games, and their closest call during their seven-game winning streak was 14 points.

Source: ESPN.com

No.1 Alabama 20, No.4 Florida 31 "Tastes Orange"

No.1 Alabama 20, No.4 Florida 31

Tim Tebow passed for 216 yards and three TDs and added 56 yards on the ground to lead Florida over top-ranked Alabama for the SEC title and likely a spot in next month's BCS national title game.

Down 20-17 entering the fourth quarter, Florida scored twice for its second SEC title in the last three seasons. Florida is now 7-2 all-time in SEC title games.

Florida coach Urban Meyer said, "I've had some great players, and I've got some great players on this team. But I've never had one like this. Tim's got something special inside him. I'm not talking about throwing. I'm not talking about running. I'm talking about making everyone around him better. That fourth quarter was vintage Tim Tebow."


Tim Tebow had an 0-5 record when his team trailed in the second half, and the Gators went to the final period down 20-17. But Tebow removed that blemish from his record, throwing the last of his three touchdowns passes with less than 3 minutes remaining to clinch it.

Alabama had given up 28 points total in its last four games before allowing 31 to Florida.


The Gators had to play without Harvin, who didn't even suit up after spraining his right ankle the previous week in a win over Florida State. He walked on the field stiff-legged -- clearly, it wasn't even a close call whether or not he would play -- and watched the game from the sideline wearing his No. 1 jersey.

During the regular season, Harvin was the team's top receiver with 35 catches for 595 yards and seven touchdowns. He also was second on the team in rushing with 543 yards, scoring nine TDs on the ground.

But Florida still had Tebow. That was the difference.



Source: ESPN.com

Weis to stay, Tuberville Out

No mercy in SEC.

Charlie Weis comes up with the worst year in the long and storied history of Notre Dame football, bounces back with a mediocre year and an offense that can’t get a first down against USC until late in the third quarter, and he’s granted immunity on the island.

Tommy Tuberville put together a program that’s just four years removed from being on the wrong end of the mother of all BCS national title debates, had won five bowl games in six years before this season, and had beaten arch-rival Alabama six years in a row, an eternity in this series, and he’s fired after losing to a Tide team that’s No. 1 in America and a game away from playing for the national title.

Welcome to the SEC. Coach at your own risk.

Phil Fulmer had Tennessee in the SEC championship game last year. Last week he was carried off the field while Lane Kiffin was busy seeing how he looked in Dreamsicle orange.

Sylvester Croom took the SEC’s most impossible coaching situation, next to the Vanderbilt gig, and made Mississippi State more than just competitive with a solid 8-5 2007 and the first bowl appearance since 2000. His team struggled this year with no offense and an injured defense, and he “resigned.”

Next year at this time we’ll know if Notre Dame was right or wrong by letting Weis get one more year with the guys he put in place and helped develop over the last two years. If he was in the SEC, he wouldn’t have gotten that same shot.

Source: CollegeFootballNews.com

Harris Poll Head-scratcher

First of all, let’s give a round of applause to the Harris Interactive Poll voters, who made a valiant effort all season to out-moron the coaches. However, some have questioned the validity of the Harris Interactive poll, which has had a spotty run in its four years as being part of the BCS.

There was a bizarre exchange between Berry Tramel of The Oklahoman, and Harris Poll voter Pat Quinn, the former OSU sports information director, two weeks ago in the Oklahoma State press box. Tramel, who described the conversation on the Web site, asked Quinn how he would rank Oklahoma and Texas if the Sooners beat Oklahoma State.

Tramel: How would you vote Oklahoma and Texas if the Sooners won Saturday night?

Quinn: Oh, I don’t know. Doesn’t really matter.

Tramel: Really?

Quinn: I think Alabama and Penn State will probably play for the national championship.

Tramel: You do? (Brain explodes)

Quinn: They’re the only undefeated teams, aren’t they?

Tramel: Uh, actually, Penn State has a loss.

Quinn: Oh, well, those Big Ten teams have a lot of votes.

Unbelievable! We all found that all that talk about an unbeaten Penn State possibly being left out of the BCS national title game turned out to be premature when Penn State lost to Iowa on November 7. Iowa reserve kicker Daniel Murray kicked the game-winning field with one second remaining.

How could Pat Quinn miss the game as a poll voter?

By the way, reading the “others receiving votes” part of the Harris poll is a nonstop source of comedy for the entire season. Enjoy!

Source: The Oklahoman

BCS Standings (November 30, 2008)

BCS Standings (November 30, 2008)

1. Alabama 12-0
2. Oklahoma 11-1
3. Texas 11-1
4. Florida 11-1
5. USC 10-1
6. Utah 12-0
7. Texas Tech 11-1
8. Penn State 11-1
9. Boise State 12-0
10. Ohio State 10-2
11. TCU 10-2
12. Ball State 12-0
13. Cincinnati 10-2
14. Oklahoma State 9-3
15. Georgia Tech 9-3
16. Georgia 9-3
17. Boston College 9-3
18. BYU 10-2
19. Oregon 9-3
20. Missouri 9-3
21. Michigan State 9-3
22. Northwestern 9-3
23. Pitt 8-3
24. Florida State 8-4
25. Virginia Tech 8-4

Texas is officially out for the Big 12 championship.

Rusty Tomahark

Florida-Florida State rivalry should be more meaningful and intense. Hey FSU, we need you come back. Go Noles! (I can't believe I'd say this...)

No.4 Florida 45, No.20 Florida State 15

No.4 Florida 45, No.20 Florida State 15

Tim Tebow threw three touchdown passes, ran for 80 yards and another score, and the Gators thumped No. 23 Florida State 45-15 in sloppy conditions Saturday. It was the most points Florida has ever scored at Doak Campbell Stadium.

"It was a good tail-whipping," FSU coach Bobby Bowden said. "I didn't think they would beat us like that here. The last time we had a beating like that was last year against them."

Florida (11-1) extended its winning streak to eight games, continued its dominance in the intrastate rivalry and set up a 1-2 showdown with Alabama in next week's Southeastern Conference title game.

The Gators have won five in a row against Bowden's team, and this one was nearly as big a laugher as last season's 45-12 victory in Gainesville. Florida outgained FSU 502-242 in winning in Tallahassee for the third straight time.

Florida scored on five of its first seven possessions, held the Seminoles (8-4) without a touchdown for the first 2 and half quarters and again proved that the gap between the two programs is as wide as ever.



Source: ESPN.com

Fresno State 10, No.9 Boise State 61

Fresno State 10, No.9 Boise State 61

Fresno State was supposed to be this year's BCS buster. 3 months later, even 12-0 Broncos is having a difficulty in becoming a BCS buster.

The Broncos celebrate a third undefeated regular season since 2004. Ian Johnson ran for 128 yards and scored two touchdowns as scouts from three BCS bowls watched. The senior tied the WAC record of 57 rushing touchdowns set by Marshall Faulk at San Diego State from 1991-93.

Representatives of the Orange and Fiesta Bowls perhaps were pondering whether to choose Boise State, ranked ninth in the BCS standings, over two-loss Ohio State for a final at-large spot to be announced Dec. 7.

Source: ESPN.com

Fake Field Goal - Botched

Colorado at Nebraska on November 28, 2008.

Nebraska attempts a fake field goal by throwing a pass over the holder's shoulder, it was intercepted by Colorado and run back for a TD.

Weis' buyout smaller than believed

The Chicago Tribune reported the common perception of Weis' buyout is not accurate. Multiple sources have told the Tribune the buyout, far smaller than believed, will not affect whether Notre Dame decides to fire Weis after Saturday's game at USC. One prominent alumnus called the amount "loose change."

One source familiar with the contracts of Division I football coaches said the typical buyout would be Weis' base salary times the number of years remaining on his deal.

Weis' base salary from July 2006-June 2007 was $598,000, according to the Ft. Wayne (Ind.) Journal Gazette. The newspaper cited figures from Notre Dame's federal 990 tax form, which requires the school to list its five highest-paid employees.

Weis' contract likely calls for annual increases to his base salary. If that average rises to $650,000, the seven-year buyout would be about $4.5 million.

It has been reported Weis' annual compensation package is worth between $3 million-$4 million, which includes money from speaking appearances, media contracts and apparel deals. Some industry sources dispute that figure, saying Weis' total package is closer to $2 million-$2.5 million.

Whatever the case, a consensus is building among sources with ties to Notre Dame that Weis is in danger of being fired after four seasons.

Source: The Chicago Tribune

Flutie's Miracle in Miami

Doug Flutie played for Boston College from 1981 to 1984. Boston College was the only Division I-A school to recruit him. Flutie won the Heisman Trophy and the Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award in his senior year (1984).

On November 23, 1984, Doug Flutie's "Hail Mary" finds Gerard Phelan to give BC a huge 47-45 win over Miami.

The subsequent rise in applications for admission to Boston College, gave rise to the admissions phenomenon known as the "Flutie effect." This idea essentially states that a winning sports team can increase the recognition value of a university enough to make it a more elite school.

Twenty years later in November 2008, Dough Flutie was honored by Boston College with a statue of his “Hail Mary” pass.



Source: Wikipedia

Florida State safety Rolle wins Rhodes scholarship

Florida State safety Myron Rolle won a Rhodes scholarship less than three hours before the Seminoles kicked off in College Park against Maryland.

Rolle was one of seven finalists who interviewed in Birmingham, Ala., on Saturday. He then boarded a charter plane and flew to Baltimore to join his teammates.

Rolle is the third Florida State student, and only football player, to win the award in the last four years.

Rolle, an aspiring neurosurgeon, will now decide between the NFL and an all-expense paid scholarship for two or three years of study at Oxford University in England.

He finished the interview in Birmingham, Ala., around 6 p.m. EST before boarding a private plane to catch up with his teammates for the game that started around 7:45.

Rolle arrived in the second quarter but did not immediately get into the game.

Rolle is one of Florida State's best defensive players, but coach Bobby Bowden was quick to allow the student-athlete to miss the start of the game.

"It's a no-brainer," Bowden said earlier in the week. "I know academics comes first."

Bowden, 79, had never coached a Rhodes scholar during a career spanning six decades.

Source: ESPN.com

Irish fans show support with barrage of snowballs

Notre Dame football players were pelted by snowballs from fans sitting in the student section during their loss to Syracuse on Saturday.

"To throw snowballs at their own team, I didn't think that was a smart thing to do. I guess [they thought] it was funny," defensive tackle Pat Kuntz said after Syracuse upset the Irish 24-23.

South Bend was hit with about 10 inches of snow Friday. While the field had been cleared before the game, there was still snow along the fringes and in some areas of the stands.

Fans at first threw snow in the air, but then quickly switched to tossing snowballs toward the Notre Dame sideline. Defensive lineman Ian Williams got hit in the helmet, defensive end Ethan Johnson was struck on the left cheek and a St. Joseph County police officer on the sideline looking into the crowd got hit in the chest. An NBC camera man also was a frequent target and several snowballs reached the field, although none landed near where play was occurring.

Mediocre team, poor coach and ... miserable fans.

On the plus side, they are still bowl eligible, and go somewhere during the post season, maybe American Standard Toilet Bowl.

Source: ESPN.com

Syracuse 24, Notre Dame 23 The "Throwback" of Notre Dame

Cameron Dantley, son of one of Notre Dame's basketball greats, threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Donte Davis with 42 seconds left to lead Syracuse to a 24-23 victory Saturday against the stunned and disheartened Irish.

For the first time in school history, Notre Dame fell to an eight-loss team.

The Irish have now lost five games this year after dropping nine in 2007. The 14 combined losses are the most ever by Notre Dame in a two-season span. The Irish lost 13 games in 2003-04, 1960-61 and 1959-60.

For the Irish, losing to a 19½-point underdog ranks among the worst losses in school history and leaves Weis with a 28-20 record in four seasons. Weis's 58.3 winning percentage is the same that Bob Davie was fired with after five seasons and Willingham after three. Weis has seven years left after this season on a 10-year contract.



Source: ESPN.com

Notre Dame, Meyer seem like perfect fit

If you are a Gator fan, you even don't want to think about this. According to FLORIDA TODAY, Meyer once refered to his Big Three coaching jobs, the only three his wife Shelley has no veto power to block him from taking a job at. They are Notre Dame, Ohio State and Michigan.

Of those three, Meyer's self-proclaimed "dream job" was Notre Dame, where he was once an assistant under Lou Holtz, spending five years with the Golden Domers. Meyer also spent the first two years of his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Ohio State, where he earned his master's degree. He is an Ohio boy who grew up revering Woody Hayes.

So why didn't Meyer take the Fighting Irish job in 2004? Because the timing wasn't right. His authorized biography explains, "Florida's biggest advantage would turn out to be Urban's and Shelley's desire for a strong family life, because he could recruit closer to home."

At Notre Dame, you recruit nationally, which means flying around the country, away from home a lot more. At a state school like Florida, you can recruit a kid, or several kids, during the day, and still be home for dinner, or at one of your kid's practices, that night. With a young family, that mattered a lot. But even with that in play, turning down Notre Dame was very difficult, as Meyer notes in this passage in his biography:

"I wanted to go to Notre Dame," Meyer admitted, "but my family wanted to talk about going to Florida."

Shelley knew how tough the decision was for her husband because "he left his heart at Notre Dame when we left there last time -- he really, really, really loved Notre Dame."

That's "really" loved three times, if you're scoring at home.

So, again, the main reason Meyer chose Florida over Notre Dame in 2004 was because he had a young family.

The family isn't that young anymore.

Oldest daughter Nicole is 18, getting ready to leave the nest and head to Georgia Tech on a volleyball scholarship. Next oldest is Gigi, 15, a high school sophomore. Then there's Nathan, who turns 10 Monday. Soon, he'll only have one child at home, which makes it much easier for him to balance his professional and personal life -- i.e. the rigors of coaching the Fighting Irish.

All of this is relevant because Charlie Weis continues to struggle at Notre Dame. You just know that if Notre Dame could trade Weis for Meyer, they'd do it in a heartbeat.

Man, Gator fans got to cheer for the Irish so that Charlie Weis can stay there longer.

Source: FLORIDA TODAY

ALL OR NOTHING - A University of Buffalo Story -

ALL OR NOTHING

In 1958, the University of Buffalo football team won eight of nine regular-season games and was awarded the Lambert Cup as the best small-school program in the eastern United States. Team co-captains Nick Bottini and Lou Reale received the trophy during a Sunday night broadcast of "The Ed Sullivan Show" and dined that evening in Manhattan's famous Toots Shor's Restaurant.

Days later, the Bulls were invited to face Florida State in the 13th annual Tangerine Bowl in Orlando, Fla. -- still the school's only bowl bid in 102 years of football.


In anticipation of their trip south, players were measured for new sport coats at The Kleinhans Company in downtown Buffalo. But before fabric for the coats ever was cut, the university learned that the team's two African-American players, starting halfback Willie Evans and reserve defensive end Mike Wilson, were not welcome in Orlando.

The Orlando High School Athletic Association, the Tangerine Bowl Stadium's leaseholder, prohibited blacks and whites from playing together. Despite the protestations of the Orlando Elks Lodge, the bowl game's sponsor, the Bulls would be allowed to participate only if Wilson and Evans did not play.

The university and coach Dick Offenhamer left it to the team to decide whether to accept the bid. The players gathered in a basement room of Clark Gymnasium on the Buffalo campus to take a vote. Bottini and Reale held small paper ballots in their hands, but before they could pass them out, the players spontaneously and unanimously rejected the bid. "We weren't the same team without Willie and Mike," guard Phil Bamford remembers. "Whether they were benchwarmers or stars, we wouldn't have been the same team."

KEEPING THE WISDOM ALIVE

Willie taught in Buffalo area schools for more than 30 years. He coached football, and tennis and swimming, and ran a city parks program for most of that time as well. "Little Evans" became the mentor.


These days, he's an adviser for the university's alumni association, and coach Turner Gill recently asked him to speak to the 2008 Buffalo football team, a squad that is in a position to receive the university's second bowl bid.

You tell them what the men home from the war told you once upon a time. Keep striving. Don't quit. Anything is possible.

You tell them that if they work together they can achieve something special, something that endures.

You tell them about the Bulls of '58. Eric Neel is a senior writer for ESPN.com and ESPN the Magazine.

You tell them about the Bulls of '58.



Source: ESPN.com

Easy as 1 2 3 ! The Florida Speedsters

Too Much Speed..... #1 Percy Harvin, #2 Jeffrey Demps, and #3 Chris Rainey. Oh, don't forget #25 Brandon James.

It's easy as 1 2 3 ! Enjoy this fantastic video. Go gators!

Which is uglier, 2007 Notre Dame or 2008 Michigan?

Hard to figure out? Here is a comparison:

2008 University of Michigan Football

• W-L Records: 3-8 through Nov. 15
• Best Win: 27-25 Home win against No.9 Wisconsin (September 27)
• Worst loss: 13-10 Home loss against Toledo (October 11)
• Quality loss: 25-23 home loss against Utah (August 30)
• Head Coach: Rich Rodriguez (first year)
• Notes: With a 21-14 loss to Northwestern on Saturday, Michigan fell to 3-8, the school's most losses (8) and most home losses (5) in a single-season in 129 years of Michigan football.

2007 University of Notre Dame Football

• W-L Records: 2-9 through Nov. 17 (3-9 for the season)
• Best Win: 20-6 at No.25 UCLA (October 6)
• Worst loss: 38-0 at Michigan (who lost to Div 1-AA Appalachian State) (September 15)
• Quality loss: 26-44 home loss against Navy (3OT) (November 3)
• Head Coach: Charlie Weis (third year)
• Notes: For the first time in school history, Notre Dame opened the season with five losses. Their nine-loss season was also a school record in 121 years of Notre Dame football.

Final Verdict:
Close call, but Michigan is a bit uglier. Michigan paid 2.5 million dollars to West Virginia for Rich Rodriguez settlement. Why in the world would Michigan want a coach that left his former team in the manner that he did?

The Weis Watch is officially on

Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick said Wednesday that he will not evaluate Charlie Weis until after the season, and that anyone who suggests a coaching change could occur should know that it is "not under consideration at this time."

Nonetheless, the Weis Watch is officially on around the country, including the greater South Bend metropolitan area. Notre Dame's third loss in four games could not be explained away as another awkward but necessary step in the maturation process. No, this Boston massacre only fueled the fire of critics who believe Weis is more problem than solution.

There are seven years left on Weis' contract, with a reported salary of $3 million to $4 million annually. A person familiar with Weis' buyout said Tuesday that the buyout money would be so substantial ($21 million to $28 million) that firing Weis is unrealistic to even consider.


Just seven games into his collegiate head coaching career in 2005, Charlie Weis — sporting a pedestrian 5–2 record — landed a lucrative contract extension from the University of Notre Dame that would carry him through the 2015 season.

Tyrone Willingham started out 8–0 in 2002 and Notre Dame never offered him a contract extension. In fact, after just three seasons, Willingham was fired and replaced by Weis.

Notre Dame went 3-9 in 2007 and 5-4 this season under Charlie Weis.

Charlie Weis's job security is sound, at least for now, but it is not because of his quality as a head coach, but because of the fatal blunder made by Kevin White, the previous athletic director at Notre Dame.

Source: ESPN.com

No Big Ten Team in the National Title Game

A sigh of relief, we no longer have to worry about having another inferior Big Ten team in the BCS national title game.

It's not a good news for the legendary coach, but certainly a great news for the rest of the college football world.

No.3 Penn State 23, Iowa 24

No.3 Penn State 23, Iowa 24 (November 8, 2008)

The Nittany Lions perfect season and hopes for giving coach Joe Paterno another national title were dashed by Iowa's backup kicker.

Daniel Murray, who hadn't made a field goal since the season opener, hit a 31-yarder with a second left and the Hawkeyes rallied to stun the third-ranked Nittany Lions 24-23.

All that talk about an unbeaten Penn State possibly being left out of the BCS national title game turned out to be premature. A third championship for the 81-year-old Paterno, who's had four unbeaten teams not win titles, is a long shot now.



Source: ESPN.com

Racist Message gets player booted off Longhorns

Texas backup center Buck Burnette left the Longhorns on Wednesday for what was announced as an unspecified violation of team rules. Burnette, a sophomore, played in seven games this season.

It was later revealed that Buck Burnette posted the following racial slur on his Facebook page about Barack Obama being elected president:

"all the hunters gather up, we have a #$%&er in the whitehouse"

Burnette was dismissed from the team Wednesday after coach Mack Brown became aware of what Buck Burnette had posted.


According to those who saw the Facebook page, Burnette updated his Facebook status shortly after Obama was elected president Tuesday night and wrote that hunters should now gather because of who would be in the White House. One of the people who claimed to have seen Burnette’s original post said it also included a racial slur. Others saw what Burnette wrote and posted comments on other sites, encouraging their friends to shut down his page.

Burnette’s page has since been deleted from Facebook.

However, screen grabs show that he had updated his status to an apology. The screen grab also showed that he had 255 unread emails.

Burnette wrote: “Clearly I was in the wrong for what I did and I apologize for being a sore loser.”

He offered another apology. It said:

“Clearly I have made a mistake and apologized for it and will pay for it. I received it as a text message from an acquaintance and immaturely put it up on Facebook in the light of the election. I'm not racist and apologize for offending you. I grew up on a ranch in a small town where that was a real thing and I need to grow up. I sincerely am sorry for being ignorant in thinking that it would be OK to write that publicly and apologize to you in particular. I have to be more mature than to put the reputation of my team at stake and to spread that kind of hate which I don't even believe in. Once again, I sincerely apologize.”


Nicely done, but it doesn't really help the whole situation. Indeed, the only apology we can read is that he is sorry that he posted it. Nowhere it says that he doesn't agree with the "text" he received.

The excuse of “I grew up on a ranch...” Does that mean that all ranchers are racists?

By the way, Obama actually visited the University of Texas football team while campaigning in Austin.

Great decision by Mack Brown and The University of Texas.

Source: Austin American-Stateman

Obama to support for Chicago's 2016 Olympics bid

On the 255th day of his presidency (Friday, Oct. 2, 2009), Obama will be in Copenhagen, Denmark, telling the members of the International Olympic Committee why the 2016 Summer Olympics must be in Chicago.

Experts agree that Obama's support for Chicago's 2016 Olympics bid will be critical and that his presence in Copenhagen could easily win the Olympics for Chicago. Former British prime minister Tony Blair's charismatic presentations were said to have led the IOC to pass over Paris, which seemed to have the leading bid after New York City's attempt to get the Games collapsed, and give the 2012 Olympics to London.


Chicago's competition for the 2016 Games includes Madrid, Spain; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; and Tokyo. Obama, who appeared at a downtown Chicago rally in support of the bid in June shortly after he won the Democratic nomination, could have an even greater impact on the IOC than Blair did, according to Olympics experts.

"He will be the rock star of the Copenhagen meeting," observes Allen Sanderson, a professor of sports economics at the University of Chicago. "We saw the crowd he drew in Berlin, and he will remain in the glow of an historic election triumph when he asks for IOC votes."

In late July, some 200,000 people attended an Obama speech in front of Berlin's Victory Column, designed in part to demonstrate his desire to improve America's image in Europe and the rest of the world.


Japanese Olympic officials already have expressed their concern that Obama could turn the tide in favor of Chicago when the IOC votes in October.

"Mr. Obama is popular and good at speeches, so things could get tough for Japan," said Tomiaki Fukuda, a senior Japanese Olympic Committee board member.

An Olympics in Obama’s home city of Chicago in the late summer of 2016 would be a grand finale for an Obama presidency that would be about to wind down if he were re-elected to a second term.

Source: ESPN.com

Number of black coaches lowest in 15 years

A study shows the number of African-American coaches in major college football is the lowest in 15 years.

With the recent dismissals of Ty Willingham at Washington and Ron Prince at Kansas State, the number of black head coaches in the 119-school NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision was reduced to four, while fifty-five percent of all student athletes are minorities.

In 1997, there were eight black head coaches, the most in history. Since 1996, 12 black coaches have been hired for 199 jobs. The only black head coaches currently set to finish the season are Miami's Randy Shannon, Mississippi State's Sylvester Croom, Buffalo's Turner Gill and Houston's Kevin Sumlin.

David Czesniuk of the Center for the Study of Sports in Society at Northeastern University said he was struck by who controlled the money.

"What stood out to me, is that in the biggest component of dollars in college football is the BCS, and every single commissioner of a BCS conference is a white male," Czesniuk said.

The election of Barack Obama -- a big sports fan -- will have an influence.

"His presidency will get people's attention, whether or not he gets involved. People will wonder: How can we have an African-American president and the lowest number of coaches in 15 years?"

Source: ESPN.com

Should There be a Playoff in College Football?

Here is the poll result at ESPN.com

Should there be a playoff in college football?

Source: ESPN.com

Obama wants Playoff

Barack Obama says he'd start an eight-team playoff for college football's national championship.

Obama talked to ESPN's Chris Berman via satellite during halftime of the Monday Night Football game between Pittsburgh and Washington.

When asked what would be the one thing he'd change about sports, Obama said he'd like to see a college football playoff.

"You know, I am fed up with these computer rankings, and this and that and the other. Get eight teams. The top eight teams right at the end. You've got a playoff. Decide on a national champion."

That's what all college football fans have been waiting for. Hope you make this happen, Barack.



Source: ESPN.com

Fulmer Steps Down

Phillip Fulmer confirmed in a 5 p.m. press conference on November 3, 2008 at Neyland Stadium that he will step down as the University of Tennessee’s head football coach. Fulmer is scheduled to receive a buyout of between $5.47 million and $6 million.

After several minutes detailing his history with Tennessee, beginning as a player in 1969, Fulmer said, “I accept the university’s decision that this will be my last as Tennessee’s head football coach.”

The Vols are 3-6 and 1-5 in the SEC this season, just the ninth time since 1896 that Tennessee has lost six games in a season. The Vols have only lost seven games in a season once, in 1977.

“This 2008 season has not gone as well as anyone would like," Fulmer said. "That includes me, our coaches, our players, our administration and our great fans. Many fans have been supportive. Some have been angry. All of us are disappointed.”



Since opening the season with a 27-24 overtime loss to UCLA on national television, criticism and pressure continued to mount on UT’s coaching staff. Losses to SEC rivals Florida, Georgia and Alabama by a combined margin of 85-29 only caused it to grow.

And as happened to his predecessor, Johnny Majors, a 27-6 loss to South Carolina on the road perhaps proved the final straw.

Fulmer is scheduled to receive a buyout of between $5.47 million and $6 million, depending on the interpretation of his buyout clause. That sum is payable over 48 months.

Source: Knoxville News Sentinel

No.1 Texas 33, No.7 Texas Tech 39 "The Raider Miracle"

No.1 Texas 33, No.7 Texas Tech 39 (November 1, 2008)

Texas Tech needed to go 28 yards in eight seconds to upset No. 1 Texas. Moments after dreaming it, Michael Crabtree made it a reality, delivering a victory and memory that won't fade.

It was as risky a pass as Graham Harrell has ever thrown. Also the most important.

With the final seconds ticking off and Texas Tech trailing by a point, the Texas Tech quarterback saw Michael Crabtree in double coverage and let if fly. The All-American wide receiver snagged it on the sideline, shook off a defender and ducked into the end zone with one second left.



Source: ESPN.com