The Texas A&M Aggies and the Georgia Bulldogs do battle in Shreveport with the latter favored by a TD and the Total set at 66.5.

In the Aggies’ last 11 games, they have taken the Over eight times and in their last 13 when underdogs of 8-points or less, they have gone Over nine times.

In Georgia’s last eight games when favored by 8-points or less, it has taken the Over five times, the Under twice and Pushed once.

Here are the AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl Betting Odds

The 4-point underdog Texas Longhorns made some notable roster announcements for the BCS championship game.

First off, ESPN reports that Tre’ Newton will start at RB for the Longhorns in the national title game — the redshirt freshman leads the team in rushing with 513 yards.

Second, Texas has re-instated freshman KR D.J. Monroe, making him eligible for the national title game.

According to a separate ESPN report, Monroe was arrested for driving while intoxicated but had “charges dismissed after he accepted a charge of obstruction of a passageway.”

The Longhorns suspended the freshman for their final three regular season games after he was arrested.

Monroe had 14 kick returns for 501 yards and 2 TDs this season.

We hope our readers have had a wonderful holiday season — we certainly have.

But the break ends now, because it’s time for Idaho Vandals sports to kick back into high gear — on Tuesday, the men’s hoops team takes on Lewis-Clark State and on Wednesday, it’s Idaho’s second-ever bowl game — the Roady’s Humanitarian Bowl against Bowling Green.

On the hardwood, the Vandals need to rebound from a three-game stretch of ugly and prepare for the beginning of Western Athletic Conference play. Playing LCSC would seem to be a gimme, but Merlin Verlin’s bunch nearly lost to another NAIA squad, Eastern Oregon, so there is nothing guaranteed about the neutral-court showdown.

On the Smurf Turf of Bronco Stadium, coach Robb Akey and his can-do Idaho squad can complete a miracle comeback season with a victory over Bowling Green — but to do it, the Vandals will have to dig deep defensively and get some stops against the pass, or else all-world receiver Freddie Barnes will run the Silver and Gold right out of Boise.

It’s a double dose of Vandal excitement and we’ll have all the action for you live, right here on Vandal Nation. Thanks for joining us!

InsideHoops.com reports,

The Boston Celtics announced today that guard Lester Hudson has been reassigned to the Maine Red Claws of the NBA Development League. This is Hudson’s second assignment to the Red Claws this season.

Hudson, a 6’3” guard, appeared in three games for the Red Claws earlier in the season and averaged 16.3 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.7 assists in 34.0 minutes per game.

Lester Hudson, nicknamed “Done Ruthless” by fans at The Mid-Majority, is in his rookie year in the NBA. In his senior year at Tennessee-Martin, Hudson scored 27.5 PPG and led his team to a 22-10 record, including their first-ever OVC Championship and an appearance in the NIT Postseason Tournament.

Hudson was the 58th overall pick in the NBA draft. He played some impressive minutes early in the season, but has not been given playing time in recent games leading up to his move to D-league.

Hudson’s stats for the Celtics:

No doubt, mid-major fans and those of us here at inDsports will be tracking his progress for the Red Claws and looking forward to his return to the NBA soon.

Bill Bowerman was a legendary track and field coach at the University of Oregon.  He coached 24 NCAA individual champions, four NCAA championship teams, 64 All-Americans and the 1972 U.S. Olympic track and field team.  But what he’s most famous for wasn’t accomplished on the track.  It was accomplished in his garage.

Bowerman was an innovator.  He was always trying to protect his team members from injuries and make them faster.  He encouraged them to wear the lightest clothing possible.  He filmed top athletes and looped the tape so that he and his team could study the athletes’ techniques over and over.  He photographed close finishes and developed the pictures in a dark room he created at the field.  He helped develop the rubberized asphalt material used for track fields, because it was safer than grass, particularly when it rained.

But more than all these things, Bowerman was interested in improvements that could be made in an athlete’s running shoes.  Poorly designed shoes accounted for shin splints, foot sores, leg cramps and aching backs.  In the 1950s, he developed a shoe with a heel wedge, better support and lighter sole, but he couldn’t find a company to make it.  So, he began making shoes in his garage.  When he came up with a new design, he would try it out on his team members.  He experimented with different materials in order to lighten the shoe.  By his own calculations, every ounce of weight removed from the shoe was equal to removing 200 pounds of weight from a runner during a one-mile race.

In 1962, Bowerman started Blue Ribbon Sports with Phil Knight, one of his athletes.  Originally, they imported high-tech, low-cost shoes from Japan, but Bowerman quickly became dissatisfied with their design.  He continued to improve shoe designs in his garage.  Then, one morning in 1971, as his wife cooked waffles for breakfast, Bowerman had a mental breakthrough.  He could pour a combination of latex, leather and glue on the waffle iron, let it cool and create a running shoe much lighter than any other on the market.  Even better, the waffle pattern on the sole would allow for better traction.  It took some work (and forgiveness from his wife, no doubt), but he soon had the prototype worked up.  He showed it to Knight, and within a few years, the “waffle shoe” from their upstart company (now named “Nike”) revolutionized the athletic shoe industry.  A few well-placed marketing dollars later, and Nike is now the largest sports and fitness company in the world.

You might think you aren’t creative – that you can’t innovate like a Bill Bowerman or a Thomas Edison or a Bill Gates – but you can!  Innovation begins with a passion for what you do.  Creativity is important, but passion is essential.  Passion keeps you engaged after frustrating failures and costly setbacks.  Passion keeps you thinking over possibilities even after you’ve set the work down.  Passion keeps the door open for creativity to enter in at the most unexpected moments (like when your wife is making waffles).

You ARE creative!  You are made in the image of a Creator God, and He has put His creative spark in you.  All you have to do is find something you love and concentrate on it long enough for that creativity to emerge.

Quincy Pondexter has come along way in his four years under Coach Lorenzo Romar. Pondexter, the lone senior of the Husky basketball team, averaged 10.7 PPG in his freshman season. He now has doubled that and currently averages 21.9 PPG. Fans originally questioned his skill but they now watch in awe as Quincy Pondexter dominates the court at Hec Edmunson Pavilion.

The 19th ranked Huskies took on the University of San Francisco Dons in Seattle. After a slow start, the Dawgs scored 51 points in the second half to secure their 9th win of the season. The victory was their 1,600th of all time, which ranks 16th all time behind Pac-10 rival Oregon St. (ranked 15).

Pondexter had his eighth 20-point game of the new season. Coach Romar says, “we’re getting used to it.” He is 12th in the nation in scoring and is now a well known threat.

“Pondexter’s a great player. He’s just a hard matchup,” said San Francisco assistant coach Jeff Linder, who was taking questions because coach Rex Walters had to catch a flight.

Pondexter is one of the more dominant players in the Pac-10 Conference and is a likely candidate for Pac-10 Player of the Year. Pac-10 opponents should prepare for the Huskies. Along with Pondexter, skilled guard Isaiah Thomas, last year’s Pac-10 Freshman of the Year, is the Huskies second leading scorer with 18.8 PPG. Dominant forward Matthew Bryan-Ammaning is a scoring threat and a powerful forward. Scrappy guard Venoy Overton is always ready to steal the ball and get a fast-break. The whole team can score with can frighten any opponent.

The Huskies have had two tough losses, both coming against currently ranked teams. They lost to Texas Tech in double-overtime and lost to Georgetown in the John Wooden Classic in Anaheim, CA.

The Dawgs take on Oregon State (6-5) and Oregon (7-4) in Seattle to start games in the conference next week. Then they travel to the Grand Canyon State (hometown) to take on Arizona State (10-3) and then travel south to Tucson to play Arizona (6-5). I’m looking forward to see Quincy Pondexter and the Huskies play in person against Arizona State on Friday, January 8.

Until then, GO DAWGS!

*From original Blogspot Blog. Original Date 12-27-2009

The University of Florida recently unveiled a new major – Flip-Fliopping 101 with Professor Billy Donovan and Student-teacher Urban Meyer.

Yesterday, UF football coach Urban Meyer says he will take an indefinite leave of absence rather than resign. Meyer will coach the team in the Sugar Bowl against Cincinnati on January 1. In the offseason and the next year, offensive coordinator Steve Addazio will coach the Gators until Meyer is fit to return.

Gators men’s basketball coach Billy Donovan had a similar incident. In 2007, Donovan accepted the head coaching position with the Orlando Magic. He decided, 5 days later, that he would like to coach the Florida Gators than a professional basketball team.

I am tired with people in sports who cannot make a straight decision and stick to it a la Brett Favre. But, I never really liked the University of Florida.

Here is my progress on my bowl predictions-stay tuned for further updates:

Not a great start-I am at 4-5 with the Music City bowl in progress-maybe I’ll have a better week this week

Take care!

I hope everyone had a great Christmas.  Remember to follow us on Twitter: ben_clayandclay and tom_clayandclay.  Also, if you have any questions about the blog, email us at contact.clayandclay@gmail.com.

Now on to this week’s preview of college basketball.

Last Week

Last week I correctly predicted both of the games I previewed.  Texas handled a tough Michigan State team, and West Virginia won once again to keep their record perfect.  There was some shakeup in my Top 25, but overall it was fairly accurate.

In other news from last week, Kentucky became the first college basketball program in history to reach 2,000 wins.

My Top 25

Here is my Top 25 for this week:

1. Texas- The Longhorns showed once again that they are the real deal.  Texas defeated Michigan State, and have now beat two Top 10 teams this year.  They have proved themselves as a force to be reckoned with.

2. Kansas- Yes, Kansas is still undefeated and they are a very powerful team.  But until they play someone in the Top 25, they won’t be #1 in my book.

3. Kentucky- John Wall is electric, and their weaknesses are getting lesser as the season goes on.  The Wildcats are a Final Four contender for sure.

4.- Syracuse-  The Orange have been fantastic this year.  Wins against several ranked teams and an undefeated record put Syracuse in the Top 5 in almost any poll.

5. West Virginia- The Mountaineers are a surprise this season.  They remained undefeated with a win over Ole Miss this week, which gave me the nudge to put them in the Top 5 this week.

6- Duke

7- Purdue

8- Villanova

9- UConn

10- Michigan State

11- UNC

12- Kansas State

13. Georgetown

14- Tennessee

15- Mississippi

16- Dayton

17- New Mexico

18- Clemson

19- Texas A&M

20- Temple

21- UAB

22- Wisconsin

23- Gonzaga

24- Florida State

25- Georgia Tech

Big Matchups

West Virginia vs. Purdue (January 1 2:30 pm)

This looks to be a matchup between two undefeated, Top 10 teams.  Both teams can earn some national respect.  Whomever wins this game will most definitely be in the Top 5 next week in all polls.  Devin Ebanks is an electric player, and I look for him to have a great game.  I’m picking the Mountaineers to win this contest.

Louisville vs. Kentucky (January 2 3:00pm)

This has been a much-hyped game.  Rick Pitino will face his old team, and this is a big rivalry in the state of Kentucky.  However, I don’t think this one will even be close.  I think the Wildcats will blow out the Cardinals.  I’m talking double-digits.

Clemson vs. Duke (January 3 7:45 pm)

This is the biggest ACC opener.  The game features two Top 25 teams who have the strength to win the ACC, in my opinion.  I’m picking Duke to win this game, and I expect a great game from Blue Devils PG Jon Scheyer, who is red hot at the moment.

Have a Happy New Year!

Posted by Ben

From USCripsit.com

The Connecticut Huskies defeated the Iona Gaels today, 93-74 at the XL Center in Hartford, Connecticut.  It was UConn’s final “tune up” before beginning the Big East schedule against Cincinnati on Wednesday.

 Connecticut was led by Stanley Robinson’s 29 points.  Jerome Dyson pitched in with 17, and Kemba Walker added 14.  Jamal Coombs-McDaniel saw extended action, playing 22 minutes and contributing 13 points.  Gavin Edwards was the fifth Husky in double figures with 10 points, and added 9 rebounds.

 Iona had 4 players in double digits, paced by Scott Machado’s 14 points.  Rashon Dwight and Rashard McGill each scored 12 points, well above their averages, and Jonathan Huffman added 10.

For once, Connecticut got off to a decent start, leading by 8 points after 4 minutes had been played.  A 6-0 Iona run cut the lead to 14-12, but Connecticut responded with a 7-0 run of their own to push the lead back to 9.  Iona would close to 23-20 at about the 9:30 mark, but UConn responded with another 7-0 to push the lead to 10, and Iona would not get within 8 points for the rest of the game.  UConn pushed the lead to 45-31 at halftime.

UConn scored the first bucket of the second half, and the closest Iona would get was 54-44 with 16 minutes remaining in the game.  Neither team would mount a sustained run after that, and UConn briefly built the lead to 21, before winning by 19.

UConn heads into Big East play with a 9-2 record, with losses to Duke and Kentucky.  Iona is now 8-5 heading into their MAAC opener against Niagara on January 2^nd.

My take on the game:

I was encouraged by some of what I saw today, particularly on the offensive end. 

Stanley Robinson was brilliant at times, hitting 1-2 from beyond the arc, and 13-18 overall.  He had at least 3 spectacular turnaround bank shots. 

Jamal Coombs-McDaniel had what I thought was his best game of the season, scoring 13 in 22 minutes of action, including both of his 3-pointers.

For the most part, Dyson and Walker played under control.  Dyson was very effective getting into the lane, either scoring, dishing, or getting fouled.

Overall, the Huskies had a much better day at the free throw line,  at least while the outcome was still in doubt.  They only finished at 23-35, though, for 65.7%.  Gavin Edwards uncharacteristically was 0-2 at the line, and seems to be in a slump.  Dyson was only 8-13.  Alex Oriakhi, on the other hand, was 6-8 for the bulk of his 8 points.

Ater Majok doesn’t contribute much to the offensive statistics, but did pull down 6 boards and 3 blocks in only 16 minutes.  He appears to be where Hasheem Thabeet was on offense as a freshman, but not quite Thabeet defensively.

The Huskies limited their turnovers in the first half, a much better performance than usual.

The Huskies really seemed to be hustling today, even in the second half with a big lead.

On the negative side, the defense was atrocious at times.  Iona was able to drive and dish, leading to a lot of layups and fouls.  Robinson was guilty of failing to switch at least a couple of times, but the team in general seemed to play a lot of Matador defense.  Calhoun called at least 2-3 timeouts in the second half to address defensive lapses.

While Robinson contributed some very pretty turnaround shots, but I suspect he’s going to have a lot of difficulty getting those shots off in the Big East or in the post season.   It would be great if he could make those shots consistently, but consistency has never been his strongpoint.

Gavin Edwards stats looked pretty good at the end of the game, but most of his work happened after the game was decided.  He had a quieter game than usual.

By Greg Brzozowski, WSOE Sports

When I heard Urban Meyer was stepping down from the University of Florida as the head coach due to health reasons, I already had the perfect coach in mind for the Gators to hire. His name… Tim Tebow!

Yes, I believe that the soon-to-be former quarterback for Florida should forego the NFL Draft and become the new head coach at his alma mater. It works out perfectly for the 2007 Heisman Trophy winner. Earlier this season, Meyer said that he sees Tebow coaching one day in the future, most likely at Florida, and all be it he has no prior coaching experience, it’s a near perfect time for him to inherit the position now. If there’s one job that Tebow would be perfect for, it’s this Gators position now for these reasons.

Meyer leaves the same year Tebow is graduating after spending four years under his coach’s personal guidance, where he ran his offense, knew his schemes, and definitely racked his coach’s brain about everything he knew about football. He knows the life of a college football player at the most publicized level through his own experience and would know how to relate with his players still on his team and what recruiting methods work through the discussions he had with those same players and coaches. We all know he’s a great and inspiring speaker and that the school loves him, considering they engraved his speech after the Ole Miss loss last year into their fricken stadium. He wins on every level he’s ever played at and knows the ins and outs of every SEC team, player, and coach. I think Florida at least needs to offer him the job. Forget bringing in a guy from another school that would change their system, which has proven great results for the school. You bring in Tebow and draw him away from the NFL with this argument: in the pros, he might not even play quarterback because scouts question his ability to run a pro styled offense, with many visualizing him as a fullback, linebacker, or wildcat QB (much like a Michael Vick or Pat White), meaning he would have to change his game completely.

But if he stayed at Florida, he would have the opportunity to be the youngest coach ever in the history of college football, make a decent salary comparable to what he’d make as an average NFL player (after all the revenue he made for UF in four years, they would owe him), and get to do what he loves (being in football and being a leader). If he were to catch fire, become a top-notch coach, and have a long and amazing career, he would smash Joe Paterno’s record for all time wins and go down as one of College Football’s greatest players and coaches ever. Not to mention from a fan’s perspective, it would be the closest thing to a player coach as we’ve seen in a long time and the most interesting thing to maybe ever happen in sports. I know I would tune in for every Gators game if Tebow were coaching. Just imagine, the Georgia Dome, for the SEC Championship, a jubilant 23 year old coach drenched in Gatorade shakes an embarrassed Nick Saben’s hand after winning his first conference championship and heading to another BCS Championship game, this time, manning the sidelines. I don’t know about you, but I would give anything to see that happen.

Unfortunately, I know this will not happen. Tebow will be in a pro city next season in an uncertain role and Florida will find a somewhat suitable replacement for Meyer. But if there is one thing that Tim Tebow has done in his time in college, it’s make fans believe that he can do anything and everything. Maybe we’ll get to see him try.

Contact Information:
Greg Brzozowski
WSOE Sports
gbrzozowski@elon.edu

Photo edited by "AD" and "Google Image Search"

After looking at the different sites and information, I have concluded some articles and we start the Megaman Edition of Pictureka!

First is something everyone at The MMN is trying to guess, after the 22th birthday of Megaman and party at Capcom, plus the revealing of the second boss Commando Man, everyone is trying to figure out what or how the other six bosses look like. It is a hard task to accomplish, but one has to do it; a hint to all, check the video on the Megaman 8 bonuses.

Second sends many people with pitch forks and torches to Nintendo’s comment base as Gamespot releases the Q1 of Nintendo release schedule, and I agree with everyone else, it’s so shameful I cannot speak much on what’s interesting beyond Pokemon and another title. What happen to the games that were worth mentioning, did they got lost or abandon in another place; its like if you try to make a game right now, it may not get the money one invested.

Third is a discussion and live broadcast video of the Megaman Birthday event at LA, and we get to see a live preview of two Megaman 10 stages. Yet, I’m impress at one thing at the event; one of the producers working on the project isn’t able to pass both of the stages, not even in “EASY MODE”, this is why he has been called now “Fail-man” and “SUPER EASY MODE” is suggested to be made *as the broadcasters joke about it*

Forth set out at Gamespot, as the NPD releases the big titles right now that are selling like pancakes. On top of the chart is non-other than Modern Warfare 2  (for now, until another COD or MW comes out), followed by some Wii games including the Wii Fit (2007) two Xbox 360 games and two PS3 games. Interesting that some games and technologies are able to take on the test of time and customers.

Fifth is as discouraging and plain mess up, also coming from Gamespot news. It seems that the all time favorite toy, Zhu Zhu Pets are getting a makeover turning them into a video game to entertain people; and guess who is doing the handy work for this project, and no it’s not THQ, Disney, Southpeak, or other companies; it’s Activision. it seems that after they join with Blizzard, they started to treat everyone and every franchise they own like trash and dare to test new products to mass produce them until every kid on the block has one, even those who don’t want one. We may soon see another BIG VIDEO GAME CRASH if these companies don’t start to think over their strategy and stop producing quick buck games.

Sixth is some footage and artwork from the game Tatsunoko VS Capcom; this time Roll is in front stage with other characters that right now I need to learn their names, but they are packing a punch with specials and visuals. Just wonder how will they balance the character board with one missing license character “The Genie”; thinking the have a back-up for the genie.

Seventh has people wondering if their own Megaman ice cream will be available at the store or through the ice cream vans, as Capcom makes a surprise at delivering Megaman Ice Cream to the streets of LA in the waiting spot. Interesting idea for them to do and The MMN is praising their work; makes me wonder if Megaman Ice Cream would be distributed.

Eighth is a promotional trailer to the new Haruhi movie, The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya. Rumor tells this is to repair the damage from Endless Eight or the Second Season; the movie is schedule to be release on  February in Japan, and let’s just hope this doesn’t bomb.

Ninth is a suggested idea on how to combat global warming effectively, an idea that a bioengineer has is to cover the Stratosphere with Sulfur Dioxide as a way to reduce the rays of the sun and lower the temperature in places like the Polar Regions. Good idea on helping out as they give actual evidence with volcanoes; but other people contradict this as they believe that when combining Sulfuric Dioxide into the clouds can cause Acid Rain.

Tenth will put views of the NCAA out of commission; Fox was planning to air the games this coming year, but their contract with Time Warners expires next year and negotiations aren’t going swell as they expected. In simple manner, expect to not have NCAA air over Fox channel. 

Eleventh takes us to the movies, we have seen at least once the movie “The Karate Kid” and like what we saw on the screen (flying kicks!). Well, now a new renovated “Karate Kid” movie, but this one takes its roots in China (where martial arts sprouted); an interesting attemp to redo a classic film but in a different region. May keep this on the radar.

http://www.themmnetwork.com/2009/12/17/identifying-mega-man-10/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8wLxlNfqKA

http://www.gamespot.com/news/6242938.html?om_act=convert&om_clk=morenews&tag=morenews;title;9

http://www.themmnetwork.com/2009/12/16/mega-man%e2%80%99s-birthday-live-stream-%e2%80%93-chat-live-with-us/

http://www.gamespot.com/news/6243523.html?om_act=convert&om_clk=morenews&tag=morenews;title;1

http://www.gamespot.com/news/6243436.html?om_act=convert&om_clk=morenews&tag=morenews;title;6

http://www.themmnetwork.com/2009/12/15/new-tatsunoko-vs-capcom-footage-roll-production-art/

http://www.themmnetwork.com/2009/12/14/ice-cream-man-mega-man/

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2009-12-17/haruhi-suzumiya-film-promo-video-streamed

http://blogs.howstuffworks.com/2009/12/23/invention-stratoshield-reduces-global-temperatures/

http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/blog/dr_saturday/post/Fox-Time-Warner-beef-could-black-out-BCS-for-mi?urn=ncaaf,210502

http://movies.yahoo.com/feature/movie-talk-karate-kid.html

Man, I hate when spell-checker doesn’t give me the correct lettering of a word I’m looking for, such a struggle of wording.

~NYORO~

Edit (Update 12/27/09): Wasn’t sure on an article that I misplace (forgot to write information for last link). Eleventh thought has been written.

In the opening game of the Big East season, the West Virginia Mountaineers defeated Jeremy Hazell, 90-84.

That statement, while tongue-in-cheek, is not far from the truth.  Seton Hall attempted 82 shots during the game, making 31 of them.  Hazell himself took 33 shots, making 14.  While it’s true that he hit two clutch 3-pointers at the end of regulation, capping Seton Hall’s improbable comeback from 10 points down in the last minute, he was 2-14 prior to that, and 0-3 in overtime.    Despite scoring 41 points, he was arguably as much of the problem as the solution.

I was following the game online on cbssports.com, and it seemed like the entire game consisted of “Jeremy Hazell missed 3-point shot”.  It’s not as if Hazell is a great 3-point shooter either; his career percentage is 34.4%, including 31.6% this year – actually that number drops down to 30% after today’s game.  He is a career 52% shooter from inside the arc, and a 75% free throw shooter – it seems that he might be better off it he took more 2-point shots and went to the line more often.  At one point during the game he was 7-7 on layups but something like 2-14 from beyond the arc.

There were other reasons why Seton Hall lost this game – the Pirates shot 15-29 from the free throw line during regulation; arguably, one more made free throw and they would have won the game.  Herb Pope in particular was brutal at the free throw line, hitting only 1-10. It turns out that this is not exactly an unexpected shooting performance from Pope; he is less than a 50% career free throw shooter.  He was at 44% coming into the game, and is now at 39% — for those of you UConn fans, that’s known as “Josh Boone territory”.  But the missed threes seemed to take Seton Hall out of the flow of the game.

I went back and reviewed the play-by-play from the Seton Hall loss to Temple.  Seton Hall held a 13 point lead in the second half, before losing to the Owls.  From the time that Seton Hall gained the 13 point lead, Hazell missed all 5 treys and one 2-pointer, as well as missing 2-3 free throws when fouled shooting a 3-pointer.  He was 1-11 for the game from beyond the arc.  Either he’s a mediocre 3-point shooter in general, or he doesn’t shoot it well in big games.  Either way, Coach Bobby Gonzalez needs to rein him in a bit.

Seton Hall actually reminds me a lot of UConn – substitute Jerome Dyson for Jeremy Hazell, and you have a streaky shooter who tries to do too much, including taking ill-advised 3’s, when he might be better suited taking the ball to the hole.  That’s a bit of a stretch; Dyson shoots a LOT less than Hazell, and does a good job distributing the ball, whereas Hazell has nearly doubled his assist average to 1.7 apg this season – none yesterday.  Add in poor team free throw shooting, tough but offensively challenged centers (John Garcia versus Alex Oriakhi), and you get the picture.  UConn-Seton Hall on January 6^th ought to be a brutal game to watch…

It seems to me that with all of the talent that Seton Hall has accumulated – with Herb Pope, Keon Lawrence and Jeff Robinson joining some reasonably talented holdovers – that they would be better served with a more balanced attack.  I believe that this team has a lot of upside, but that upside is limited if Jeremy Hazell monopolizes the ball.

Yes, one of the greatest coaches in college football is calling it quits, for now. Urban Meyer will retire officially after the Gators Sugar Bowl game against the Cincinnati Bearcats due to health concerns. It will be a major game for the Gators because it will be the final time they see Tim Tebow under center and Urban Meyer and the sidelines.

This decision came about due to two incidents that came about that required medical attention due to chest pain. No one knows exactly what is wrong with Meyer. There have been some reports of him suffering dehydration after the Alabama game in December. Other people have heard that Meyer has a muscle-heart-valve defect and had a heart attack during the season. That was said to be inaccurate too. All we know now is that Meyer has decided his health concerns are more important that coaching right now which is the right decision.

What people do know is Meyer has suffered from constant headaches due to an arachnoid cyst that becomes inflamed by stress, rage and excitement. No wonder why he kept experiencing them this season. He entered the season with talks of perfection, had to deal with the majority of his players having the flu, and a battle with Lane Kiffin. Throughout the season he had to deal with the Brandon Spikes eye-gouging incident, his fine for criticizing officials, close games and an offensive slump that plagued the team all season long. That would give any coach headaches and Meyer handled it better than most.

He has discussed his health issues with his family, school president Bernie Machen and athletic director Jeremy Foley before deciding that it was in his best interest to step down from coaching. Meyer knows how important coaching is to him, but realizes he needs to take a step in another direction right now. “I have given my heart and soul to coaching college football and mentoring young men for the last 24-plus years and I have dedicated most of my waking moments the last five years to the Gator football program,” Meyer said. “I have ignored my health for years, but recent developments have forced me to reevaluate my priorities of faith and family.” Clearly, you can tell how much Meyer loves football, but he has had great success, and no matter what, your health is the most important thing. I applaud Meyer for taking this step and looking out for his family.

Meyer will leave as college’s most winnest coach. His .841 win percentage is top’s in the league above other great’s such as Pete Carroll of USC at .835,  Bob Stoops of Oklahoma (.800) and Mark Richt of Georgia (.767). His record of 95-18 is an extreme accomplishment and something that should be praised. Something tells me that he will improve on it though. You ask, how can that happen with him retiring?

At 45, Meyer will straighten out his health and come back to what he loves doing and what he is best at, coaching football. He has years ahead of him and will return better and stronger than ever and when he does, the college football world better be ready.

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=4772952

Urban Meyer, Florida’s head coach for the last five years is out. Saturday after a meeting with his team, University of Florida officials and doctors. He cited health reasons for his sudden resignation, according to ESPN.COM

By Craig Filazzola, WSOE Sports Director

The standings didn’t change too much after one day, but here are how they look.

1. Matt – 5-4, 5-4, 15 pts
2. David – 4-5, 6-3, 14 pts
3. Russell – 4-5, 5-4, 13 pts
4. Craig – 4-5, 3-6, 11 pts
- Greg – 4-5, 3-6, 11 pts
- Tom – 3-6, 5-4, 11 pts
7. Jake – 2-7, 4-5, 8 pts

2 points = winner
1 points = over/under

Picks for the next four games:

Contact Information:
Craig Filazzola
WSOE Sports Director
cfilazzola@elon.edu

By Craig Filazzola, WSOE Sports Director

The standings didn’t change too much after one day, but here are how they look.

1. Matt – 5-4, 5-4, 15 pts
2. David – 4-5, 6-3, 14 pts
3. Russell – 4-5, 5-4, 13 pts
4. Craig – 4-5, 3-6, 11 pts
- Greg – 4-5, 3-6, 11 pts
- Tom – 3-6, 5-4, 11 pts
7. Jake – 2-7, 4-5, 8 pts

2 points = winner
1 points = over/under

Picks for the next four games:

Contact Information:
Craig Filazzola
WSOE Sports Director
cfilazzola@elon.edu

By Craig Filazzola, WSOE Sports Director

The standings didn’t change too much after one day, but here are how they look.

1. Matt – 5-4, 5-4, 15 pts
2. David – 4-5, 6-3, 14 pts
3. Russell – 4-5, 5-4, 13 pts
4. Craig – 4-5, 3-6, 11 pts
- Greg – 4-5, 3-6, 11 pts
- Tom – 3-6, 5-4, 11 pts
7. Jake – 2-7, 4-5, 8 pts

2 points = winner
1 points = over/under

Picks for the next four games:

Contact Information:
Craig Filazzola
WSOE Sports Director
cfilazzola@elon.edu

By Craig Filazzola, WSOE Sports Director

The standings didn’t change too much after one day, but here are how they look.

1. Matt – 5-4, 5-4, 15 pts
2. David – 4-5, 6-3, 14 pts
3. Russell – 4-5, 5-4, 13 pts
4. Craig – 4-5, 3-6, 11 pts
- Greg – 4-5, 3-6, 11 pts
- Tom – 3-6, 5-4, 11 pts
7. Jake – 2-7, 4-5, 8 pts

2 points = winner
1 points = over/under

Picks for the next four games:

Contact Information:
Craig Filazzola
WSOE Sports Director
cfilazzola@elon.edu

Urban Legend

“I’m so glad we had this time together, to have a laugh and sing some songs, seems we just get started and before you know it , comes the time we have to say so long….. “ Carol Burnett sang this song for years at the end of her television show and now Gator Nation you can bid adieu to the Urban Legend. Urban Meyer, a coach who actually earns his money, is stepping down from one of the premier jobs in college football. Citing health reasons, heck I cannot blame him, a chest pain now, possible sudden cardiac death later just for a job. Urban will coach again, where I do not know, but with all the pressure, we place on college coaches it would not surprise me to see younger coaches step down and enjoy life a little more.

As a coach, I understand that coaching is like a narcotic, once you get the itch and are fully engrained it is impossible to give it up…..Unless forced to give it up. Now as a High School Basketball coach, I can only imagine the stress that goes along with coaching a top three program in college football. Coaching is actually the fun part, the fans, the press the all the stuff that goes along with coaching is what drives up the stress level and drags one down.

Now who takes on this juggernaut, well I mean who would not want to take on this job? I think the AD goes back to West and pulls a name that might surprise a few but will not serve as real shocker to anyone, Chris Peterson @ Boise State, TCU head Coach Gary Patterson  or hit the Big East Rutgers Coach Greg Schiano, North Carolina Coach, Butch Davis or (Drum Roll Please!!) Brian Kelly @ Notre Dame. Call me crazy, but I guarantee that if Florida calls he will drop ND like a hooker with syphilis.

Crazy, nah…Brian Kelly wants to win and win now, Urban Meyer had the same decision several years ago, either go to ND your dream job or go to Florida and compete for a National Title….ND Fan I would be nervous as a long tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs.

By the way, has anyone seen Jon Gruden lately?

USC ended the dissapointing season on a good note as they beat the eagles in the emrald bowl.

BC 13

USC 24

In honor of college bowl games, I wanted to write about the talk surrounding the Big Ten’s desire to add a team. In the interest of full disclosure, I am a Badger fan, so I tend to follow anything that could potentially help or hurt the conference.

I agree that the Big Ten could use a championship, and without one (more often than not) there tends to be a question as to whether the rankings are legit when key teams don’t face each other. Northwestern had a spoiler roll this year for Iowa, who’s to say they wouldn’t have beat Ohio State as well (sorry OSU fans, but you lost to Purdue, a loss to Northwestern isn’t unthinkable).

On the other hand, I think I am of the super small minority that would rather see the Big Ten contract to allow for all of the teams to play each other, and just lengthening the season so that more teams played after Thanksgiving. There is nothing wrong with a 10 team conference, just ask the Pac-10. The only downfall would be it wouldn’t extend the Big Ten’s TV market.

Looking at the Big Ten teams reminds me of a Sesame Street song… one of these thing is not like the others, one of these things just doesn’t belong. Sorry Northwestern, but compared to the rest of the conference you just don’t fit in as well.

This has nothing to do with how NU looked this year, and the team has had some successful seasons (including this one and being Big Ten Champions or Co-Champions 8 times since 1896). But look at academics and fan following

• Academics – NU is a great school, no denying it, but NU is a private school… the only private school in the conference. Being a private school, NU is also the only school with under 25,000 for undergrad enrollment, with less than 10,000.
• Fan Following – here is where I see the main issue. The stadium seats the least in the Big Ten, understandable when it is the smallest school; however, in a winning season after beating Iowa tickets should not have to be sold on Groupon at almost half price to help sell seats and the stadium shouldn’t be more than half full of the other team’s fans.

I know my vision for the Big Ten will not happen, and instead the Big Ten will be another 12 team conference. No matter what team were to join the Big Ten, there is potential to shake up other conferences, so stay tuned to some conference controversy that rivals the ACC/Big East battle of 2003.

*From original Blogspot Blog. Original Date: 12-26-2009

Urban Meyer, the coach who lead the University of Florida to two national football titles, is stepping down due to health concerns. Meyer checked into a hospital after the Southeastern Conference championship game in Atlanta which Florida lost to Alabama.

Meyer first began his career as a head coach at Bowling Green in 2001. After going 17-6 in two years, he left to coach at the University of Utah. It was there where he had the opportunity to coach the future 1st overall NFL Draft pick, Alex Smith. He was named Mountain West Conference Coach of the Year in his first year with a 10-2 record. He then received acknowledgement for his own type of offense with produces quarterbacks that are not fit for the NFL. (ex: Tim Tebow) His offense is said to be an offshoot of Bill Walsh’s West Coast Offense. In 2004, the Utah Utes beat Pittsburgh in the BCS Fiesta Bowl at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, AZ, which gave Utah its first perfect season (12-0) since 1930.

In 2005, he signed a 7-year contract with the University of Florida. He signed several contract extensions which would not be necessary due to his resignation. His history with Florida is one you all should know. Meyer lead his team to 2 National Championship games, winning both of them. He has a 5-1 Bowl Game Record*. (*Florida play Cincinnatti in the Sugar Bowl on January 1, 2010.) He produced a Heisman award winner in Tim Tebow during his time in Gainesville.

His legacy as a winning coach will be remembered, but he does not have a legacy of creating professional-quality quarterbacks like Pete Carrol at USC. Alex Smith (Utah) has not had a successful career with the San Francisco 49ers and Chris Leak (UF) had a short career in the NFL, being on the Chicago Bears’ 2006 post-Super Bowl team.

Meyer is the winningest coach with the highest winning percentage (84.1%) of any coach with a minimum of five years at a Football Bowl Subdivision program. I believe that Urban Meyer is a high quality coach that any college football team would want if they wish to have a successful football program. If he decides to return to coach, any school will benefit from him.