Top 50: Kobe or not Kobe? That is the first question ...

Top 50: Kobe or not Kobe? That is the first question ...

Who would you rather have, Kobe Bryant or LeBron James?
What about between LeBron and Chris Paul? And so it goes.
Here, then, is who we'd rather have -- our top 50 NBA players:

1. Kobe Bryant, L.A. Lakers: It's a tough call taking Bryant ahead of LeBron, but Kobe gets the nod because he's more skilled than James and because he has had more professional success.

2. LeBron James, Cleveland: James remains the future of the league, but he still needs work on his 3-point and free throw shooting. Yes, we're nit-picking, but that's what you do with the greats.

3. Chris Paul, New Orleans: Paul had every right to garner MVP votes last year. You could make the case that Paul is every bit as important to his team as anyone on this list.

4. Tim Duncan, San Antonio: Duncan is barely holding on to this spot. He's on the downside of his career, his team seems to be at a crossroads and he can't play the minutes he used to. We'll still take him on our team anytime.

5. Deron Williams, Utah: No doubt, many will think this is too high for Williams. As great as Paul is, we're still not giving him the long-term nod over Williams. Not yet anyway.

6. Amare Stoudemire, Phoenix: If new coach Terry Porter can get Stoudemire to buy in on the defensive end, Stoudemire is likely to end up in the MVP discussion.

7. Yao Ming, Houston: All indications are that Yao will bounce back fine from the stress fracture in his left foot. If he does, he goes right back to being one of the most dominant big men in the NBA.

8. Kevin Garnett, Boston: With an NBA title, his résumé is complete. The real question is how long K.G. can play at this level. Garnett is only 32, but it's an old 32 -- with 13 seasons under his belt and more than 70 playoff games.

9. Dwight Howard, Orlando: He might be the NBA's most dynamic specimen, but there are concerns about whether he'll ever have the skill level to be a consistent offensive player in the low post.

10. Chris Bosh, Toronto: All signs are pointing to a big year for Bosh. He was terrific in Olympic play and seemed to play a leadership role on that team. Will he be able to help Jermaine O'Neal get his career back on track?

11. Paul Pierce, Boston: Pierce might not be the best player on the Celtics, but he's the toughest. Pierce makes a lot of big plays -- and shots -- for Boston, and he seems to come through late in the game most of the time.

12. Dwyane Wade, Miami: Wade sure looked healthy during the Olympics, but the issue is whether the knee and shoulder can hold up for an entire season.

13. Steve Nash, Phoenix: He's not as good as he was two or three years ago, but he's still better than most point guards. Nash has never been great defensively, and he has gotten worse lately. Nash has another year or two of open window.

14. Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas: Nowitzki is still in full recovery mode after consecutive first-round playoff eliminations. He was exposed in the postseason two seasons ago against the Warriors, and he still hasn't made it back to where he was.

15. Carmelo Anthony, Denver: You get the sense Anthony is at a turning point in his career. Let's hope he feels the same way. With Allen Iverson fading, it's Anthony's time. Can he go from star to superstar?

16. Tracy McGrady, Houston: When he's good, he's good. When he's not good, it's usually because he's hurt. Injuries, ailments, aches and pains are the story with McGrady, and everybody knows it. If he can play 70-plus, it's all good.

17. Andrew Bynum, L.A. Lakers: We go back to the initial question: Who would you rather have? Bynum was starting to show some scary potential last year before his injury. Offensively, he's well ahead of Dwight Howard.

18. Gilbert Arenas, Washington: If the old Gilbert shows up after his surgeries (how many have there been now?), then move him up to No. 10 on this list. But this many procedures at this age isn't a good thing.

19. Baron Davis, L.A. Clippers: Both Don Nelson and Chris Mullin referred to Davis as a "top 15" player on Thursday. When Davis is clicking, he's very close. We'll put him in the top 20.

20. Manu Ginobili, San Antonio: There are other shooting guards who get more attention than Ginobili. Iverson and Michael Redd would be two, for example, but they have nothing on Ginobili.

21. Shaquille O'Neal, Phoenix: In the 52 regular-season games that O'Neal plays this year for the Suns, he'll be a top-five center. Seems like you can't read a sentence about O'Neal anymore that doesn't begin: "When he's healthy, O'Neal can ..." Of course, that's the issue: When is he healthy?

22. Tony Parker, San Antonio: Parker is a top-level point guard, but he's not quite in the class of the ones above him. Those other guys carry more of a load. In other words, Parker represents the top of Tier 2 when it comes to PGs.

23. Joe Johnson, Atlanta: Johnson is one of the purest shooters in the NBA, and he's capable of playing three positions. With Mike Bibby at the point, he'll get most of his minutes at shooting guard this season.

24. Brandon Roy, Portland: Few players can give you all the things Roy can. He can score for you, run your offense if need be and pick up some rebounds along the way. And there's a nasty streak under the surface.

25. Carlos Boozer, Utah: Boozer is one of the league's most consistent power forwards, but he lacks that something special to get to the next level. Twenty and 10 every night is nothing to scoff at. But everyone higher on this list does more.

26. Pau Gasol, L.A. Lakers: Gasol is pretty darn good, but you keep wanting him to be a little bit better. He was never quite dominant in Memphis and, of course, he's less so with the Lakers.

27. Greg Oden, Portland: We have yet to see Greg Oden play in an NBA game. Still, if the scouting reports are correct and he can in fact rebound, defend and block shots, then that makes him one of the game's best centers.

28. Elton Brand, Philadelphia: Only one playoff appearance in nine years. If Philly doesn't make the postseason this year, then the "Brand Curse" is official.

29. LaMarcus Aldridge, Portland: Even without Oden by his side, Aldridge has been effective for the Blazers. If you match up against Aldridge with a center, he'll face you up on the perimeter. If you match up against Aldridge with a smaller player, he'll go down to the block.

30. David West, New Orleans: One of the strongest low-post players in the league, West complements that part of his game with a reliable 16- to 18-foot jumper.

31. Chauncey Billups, Detroit: Billups seems to have lost a step and a bit of his hunger. But would you bet against him making a potential game-winning 3 at the buzzer? Didn't think so.

32. Caron Butler, Washington: This guy is good. His reputation took a hit when he was with the Lakers because he didn't necessarily take to playing alongside Bryant.

33. Rasheed Wallace, Detroit: You might not like the scowl, but Wallace is among the most unselfish players in the league. He's a solid individual defender, above average team defender, and on top of it, his teammates love him.

34. Monta Ellis, Golden State: Fingers crossed, Ellis comes back the same player he was before his ankle injury. If not, take him off the list.

35. Josh Howard, Dallas: It's not the admitted marijuana use, it's not the dissing of the national anthem. It's more that all these "distractions" are probably going to chip away at his effectiveness as a player.

36. Lamar Odom, L.A. Lakers: Odom's as skilled as they come, big-man wise, and he helps the Lakers in different ways. If you're calling him a natural small forward, then he's one of the best rebounders in the league at his position.

37. Richard Hamilton, Detroit: Hamilton is in the upper half of shooting guards when it comes to offense, and he's in the upper half of shooting guards when it comes to defense. That puts him here.

38. Josh Smith, Atlanta: There are few players in the NBA with his athletic ability. Now that he has his contract, it's time for him to get to work and take more responsibility for the Hawks' fortunes.

39. Al Jefferson, Minnesota: Yes, he should be higher on this list, but he was held back because his team was so lousy. Jefferson scores and rebounds, but he also isn't much of a passer and turns the ball over too much.

40. Michael Redd, Milwaukee: Redd is one of the best shooters in the league, with one of the quickest releases. Let's face it, he's a scorer. Until he's in on some Bucks' success, though, he'll never put himself in the class of two guards above him.

41. Andre Iguodala, Philadelphia: He earns this ranking only if he begins to solidify himself as one of the league's better perimeter defenders.

42. Allen Iverson, Denver: Nobody in the league plays harder on a more consistent basis. But facts are facts, and he's getting up there (33). Not to mention those are hard miles he has put on that body, with the amount of punishment he has taken over the years.

43. Shawn Marion, Miami: Marion was higher on this list when he played alongside Steve Nash. Marion is a nice player but not nearly as good when he isn't getting spoon-fed easy stuff.

44. Hedo Turkoglu, Orlando: Turkoglu finally had that breakthrough year in 2007-08, winning the NBA's Most Improved Player award. If he has another good season, with more defensive focus upon him, then he will have arrived.

45. Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City: He has the potential to make significant strides up this list. But Durant got a little loose with his game during his rookie season, and it remains to be seen whether he can become more efficient.

46. Antawn Jamison, Washington: If you want Jamison to be your second- or third-best player, he won't disappoint. Jamison will score and rebound for you on a consistent basis, and he'll never -- ever -- be a problem in the locker room.

47. Stephen Jackson, Golden State: Jackson isn't the prettiest player in the game, but he helps you win. When he's on his game, Jackson can be a factor at both ends of the floor. Hard as it is to believe, he will have even more offensive freedom with Davis gone and Ellis out.

48. Mike Miller, Minnesota: Need one guy to knock down a deep 3-pointer? Miller has to be in the discussion. You just don't know he's good because he has been in Memphis.

49. Kevin Martin, Sacramento: Martin has an uncanny ability to score and get to the line. But he hasn't shown enough of a willingness to pass and do some of the other things.

50. Ron Artest, Houston: He's a top 15 talent, with little history of success. Interestingly, his on-court issue -- dominating the ball -- will likely be more of a problem than anything that happens off the court.

Excuses, excuses: USC blows title hopes against another inferior opponent

Excuses, excuses: USC blows title hopes against another inferior opponent

Conference games are tougher.
Orange hurts their eyes.
No one said anything about tackling a munchkin.
The dog ate their homework.
Excuses, excuses.

The heartening thing is in USC's world, this was no monster upset. Oregon State was only a 25-point underdog Thursday night to the Trojans. Stanford, now that was an upset. And part of a disturbing trend. The No. 1 Trojans just ruined their national championship chase with another inexplicable gag job against an inferior opponent.
What, USC had to play the rest of its schedule after the Ohio State game? Apparently. The reminder came when Oregon State's 5-foot-7 Jacquizz Rodgers started running through arm tackles. That is, when Trojans defenders got arms on him at all.
They called him Mr. Touchdown at Lamar (Texas) Consolidated High School when he scored a state-record 136 career touchdowns. They called him back for a bow when the Beavers beat a top-five USC for the second time in three years.
Makes you really wonder what Beanie Wells would have done had he been healthy against USC. No one wants to rehash that, anyway. We'll likely get enough of it in a Rose Bowl that would give a bad name to sequels. Ohio State-USC 2.
Maybe it's a Thursday thing. Since 2006, there have been 15 upsets of ranked teams on Thursdays. The visiting team has been the victim in 14 of those games. Twelve of the 15 winners have been unranked. These non-descript Beavers are the latest.
It's time to re-evaluate USC in the latter part of the decade. In the past three seasons Pete Carroll has lost to Oregon State twice, UCLA and Stanford. The cumulative records of those teams at game time in those meetings?
Once again, USC looked disinterested and unprepared against an average (at best) team.
Signs, Pete, that your team is not ready to play:
• It scores two touchdowns in 58½ minutes against the nation's 92nd ranked defense.
• It lets Joe McKnight handle the ball (two fumbles).
• Joe Paterno fails to pass along the game plan. The Beavers went from losing by 31
at Penn State on Sept. 6 to beating USC for the second time in three years.
The pollsters should be merciless. They should do to USC what they did to Ohio State 11 days ago. Bury them. This lets almost everyone back in the race and there a lot of first-place votes to hand out. No. 2 Oklahoma, No. 3 Georgia, No. 4 Florida or No. 5 LSU most likely will be the new No. 1. The way things are going, though, that's a curse.
Missouri (off), Texas (vs. Rice), Alabama (at Georgia) and Wisconsin (at Michigan) also have a chance.
Oregon State's performance also lends more credibility to a Penn State team we've been wondering about. It puts No. 11 Brigham Young a notch or two closer to BCS title game contention.
Wait a minute, is that No. 14 Ohio State hanging around. Are the Buckeyes back in it?
Why not?

The Next Step For Stephen Curry

The Next Step For Steph
Great Article from Si.com on Steph Curry



Davidson's Stephen Curry was the breakout star of the Big Dance, but even after hobnobbing with LeBron, he's still adjusting to his sudden celebrity -- and to his new position Story Highlights
Since the NCAA tourney, Stephen Curry has been stradling two different worlds
He got his shot from his dad, NBA player Dell Curry, who coaches his AAU team
After losing to Kansas, the Davidson players came up with a plan of improvement

After gunning down Georgetown last March, Stephen Curry returned to his low-key perch at The Soda Shop.
By Grant Wahl

DANICA AND ANNIKA may sound like a Saturday Night Live duo on the order of Hans and Franz, but during a midsummer night in Los Angeles they induced schoolboy panic in Davidson guard Stephen Curry, the baby-faced breakout star of March Madness. When Danica Patrick and Annika Sorenstam, glammed-up for the ESPY Awards, stepped into his hotel elevator on their way to the show, they instantly recognized their fellow nominee and said hello. Betraying little of the cold-blooded shooter who lit up Gonzaga, Georgetown, Wisconsin and Kansas for 128 points during the NCAA tournament, Curry melted like, well, a starstruck college kid.
"Here are two great-looking ladies I'd seen on TV," says Curry, a five-handicap golfer who'd admired Sorenstam for years. "But I started stuttering because I was all nervous. My dad was laughing at me."
Welcome to the new life of Wardell Stephen Curry II -- or simply Steph, if you'd like -- who still can't grasp that now he's one of them. After deciding against turning pro so he could prove his bona fides as a point guard, the 6'3", 182-pound Curry returns for his junior season with his size-14 feet planted in two worlds. In one he plays for Davidson, a small Southern Conference school in a North Carolina town so old-fashioned that students gather at The Soda Shop on Main Street. In the other he visits New York City to appear on Late Night with Conan O'Brien. In one he snaps surreptitious fan-boy photos of Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning eating breakfast at a buffet in L.A. In the other he's fast friends with his new supporter, LeBron James, who made a special trip to Detroit's Ford Field to see Curry play in the tournament.
"I love basketball, and I'm a fan first," says James, who also hung out with Curry at James's skills camp in July. "Anytime you get an opportunity to see somebody who's very talented, you want to reach out to them. I'm looking forward to seeing him more this year and welcoming him to the league next year."
Nobody would have expected that endorsement three years ago, when Curry was a 6-foot, 160-pound senior at Charlotte Christian School who didn't receive any scholarship offers from major-conference schools. (The snubs included one by Virginia Tech, where Curry's father, Dell, set the career scoring record before embarking on a 16-year NBA career.) But the big boys' loss was Davidson's gain. Under coach Bob McKillop, Curry set an NCAA freshman record for three-pointers (122), and as a sophomore he was the nation's fourth-leading scorer (25.9 points per game). But that was only a prelude to the storybook run last March, when the 10th-seeded Wildcats knocked off the champions of the West Coast, Big East and Big Ten conferences and came within a missed buzzer-beater of toppling Kansas, the eventual national champ, and reaching the Final Four.
Curry's mother, Sonya, can't forget her own shock after Davidson's comeback from a 17-point deficit against Georgetown. As her son turned to look at her in the stands and shrugged, "It hit me: He was truly that good," says Sonya, who became a favorite of CBS cameramen. "We'd heard so much about how he needed to be bigger. But then he made those shots and looked at me, and I thought, What in the world is going on?"
"Daddy," Curry's 13-year-old sister, Sydell, told Dell, a former NBA Sixth Man of the Year, "Stephen made you famous again."
ONLY THREE of the six ceiling fans are functioning on a boiling July afternoon in the upper gym of Roanoke College. The youngsters at this small basketball camp in Salem, Va., are getting a special treat: Their celebrity counselor, Steph Curry, is playing in a five-on-five scrimmage. Working at quarter-speed on a small-fry defender who's wearing a T-shirt bearing his autograph, Curry throws a pass that sails over a teammate's head. "C'mon, man!" jokes a fellow counselor. "He's 4-foot-2 with a two-inch vertical!"
Everyone laughs. Over the summer Curry attended high-profile camps hosted by NBA A-listers -- James, Chris Paul, Paul Pierce, Steve Nash -- but here in a sweltering gym in the glitz-free Shenandoah Valley he's in his element. "I used to come to this camp when I was in fourth through sixth grade, but this is the first year I've worked it," says Curry, who spent two weeks at the camp run by Page Moir, the respected coach of Division III Roanoke. "It's cool to be at the other end of the experience."
Curry's unassuming nature is of a piece with the Davidson Way. A college of 1,700 students 23 miles north of Charlotte, Davidson is the kind of place where almost nobody locks their doors, and (shock of shocks) the basketball players take all of their classes with the rest of the undergrads. "If you had a roster of every student, I probably would know a little something about each one of them," Curry says. "After a game we'll go to the student union and just walk around. Everyone will be talking about the game, and it's not random people you've never seen on campus. You know their names. That's a special thing."
Rarely has such a high-profile player operated out of such a low-profile locale. One day in July, Curry and two teammates attended a 15th birthday party at the home of Jackie Pitzer, a Davidson mail-room worker, and stayed to play pickup hoops in the driveway for three hours. When freshmen arrived for Orientation Week in August, that was Curry -- a likely first-team preseason All-America -- helping them move into their dorms. "I didn't know about him being a Wooden Award finalist [last season] until I'd read it two days after he'd found out," says teammate Bryant Barr. "I'm like, 'Steph, I'm your roommate.'"
The sources of that humility, by all accounts, are Curry's folks. "There's no entitlement whatsoever in the family," says McKillop, a coach's coach who spent 19 years at Davidson before breaking through with his first NCAA tournament wins last season. "If we had parents like Dell and Sonya in every household in America, we'd be in paradise."
Although Dell was busy during the NBA season for much of Stephen's childhood, he'd spend summers helping coach the AAU teams of Stephen and his younger brother, Seth, now a freshman guard at Liberty. It was Dell, a famously accurate shooter, who overhauled Stephen's release on the family's backyard court in Charlotte during the summer before his junior year of high school. "He was shooting from the waist," recalls Dell, a 6'4" guard who hit 40.2% of his threes as a pro. "I'm like, Son, if you want to play in college, you have to move your shot up. For two weeks I wouldn't let him shoot outside the paint, and he probably was ready to quit. But by the end of the summer his form looked great."
Yet the family's day-to-day disciplinarian was Sonya, who became the headmaster at the Christian Montessori School at Lake Norman, a private elementary school in Huntersville, N.C., that was founded by the Currys in 1995. "She laid down the law, and you didn't want to cross her," says Stephen, who had his brother as a classmate, his aunt India Adams as a teacher and his grandmother Candy Adams as the school cook. Nor did Sonya stop keeping close tabs on Stephen when he graduated after sixth grade. In one classic family story, she called his middle-school coach to tell him Stephen couldn't play in the next game because he hadn't done the dishes.
Sonya brings the same intensity to cheering at Stephen's games. ("She's the most vocal person out of anybody: parents, fans, students, anyone," he says.) And look out if you ask her about his being snubbed by Virginia Tech, where she met Dell and starred for the volleyball team. "It's disappointing because it would be nice to see our children play in the gym where we played and Dell's banner is hanging," Sonya says. "But we knew Bob McKillop could bring out in Stephen the things God had put in him and would challenge him but still nurture him on and off the court to be a good, godly man. A lot of Division I schools were supposed to have a great ability to assess talent, but they missed his. We prayed about it. We said, 'Father, close the doors you don't want him to go into,' and Tech's door was closed. Then -- bam! -- He said Davidson!"
The Currys, who still have a Virginia Tech pinwheel in the front yard of their house in Charlotte, used to attend Hokies basketball games regularly. But since Tech balked on offering Stephen a full scholarship, they haven't been once.
CURRY AND DAVIDSON are aware they'll have plenty of challenges this season as they try to top last year's Elite Eight run and 23--0 record against SoCon opponents. But they don't shy away from talk of a return to Detroit, the site of the 2009 Final Four. A week after the loss to Kansas, the 11 returning players composed a five-page manifesto -- titled Let's Get Better -- in which they spelled out their off-season plans to improve their skills, diets and academics. "Right then you knew: Wow, we've got something special," says McKillop. "We talk all the time about our quest to be a shining star, not a shooting star. Gonzaga is the one clear example for us: They have been consistent for a decade."
Curry, too, faces a major adjustment as he shifts from shooting guard to point guard following the graduation of NCAA assist leader Jason Richards. At Nash's camp Curry probed the two-time MVP's brain about how he reads ball screens, and he drew raves at LeBron's camp -- not least from NBA scouts -- for the way he ran the point and continued drilling outside shots. (In one scrimmage Curry hit a three-pointer to beat a team that included James and Paul.) The goal was to show he's capable of being an NBA playmaker, even if he'd prefer to be known as a hybrid. "I like combo guard better, just because I'm not strictly a point guard," Curry says. "I think I'll play a lot of quality minutes at the point, just in a shooting guard's way."
If you ask LeBron, though, he thinks Curry can do just fine as a two guard in the pros. "He never stops moving on the offensive end. That's the key," James says. "In our league there's a lot of standing around, but guys like Rip Hamilton who can keep moving it's hard to guard them. [Curry] can shoot the lights out, and his basketball IQ is really high." But what about Curry's wiry frame? Can it stand up to the rigors of the NBA? "If you can play, you can play," says James. "It's as simple as that."
Then again, isn't that the lesson we've already learned from Wardell Stephen Curry II? That blanket assumptions and first impressions aren't everything? McKillop likes to tell the story of Curry's freshman debut, when the coach kept him in the game against Eastern Michigan despite his 13 turnovers. "I was a double double machine back then," cracks Curry. "But that was probably the best thing Coach did for me, to stick with me and give me more confidence."

The next day Curry torched Michigan for 32 points. He hasn't stopped scoring since.

Greatest Performances by a Backup

Greatest Performances by a Backup

As if Boston fans didn't have enough to worry about, what with the Red Sox about to head back to the postseason and the Celtics prepping to defend their NBA title. But now Tom Brady is injured, and New England turns its lonely eyes to one Matt Cassel (no relation to Celts PG Sam Cassell). Perhaps Cassel can turn in a performance for the ages, and join the greatest performances by a backup in sports history...

1. Lou Gehrig: In 1925, Yankees first baseman Wally Pipp went down with a headache, and Gehrig filled in that day...then went on to play in every game for the next 14 years.

2. Tom Brady: During the 2001 season, after Patriots starter Drew Bledsoe was injured with internal bleeding, Brady stepped in, finished the season 11-3, and led the Pats to a Superbowl victory.

3. Robert Horry: Since the 1999-2000 NBA season, the most games Robert Horry has started in a season is 26, but he still always seems to come up big in crunch time.

4. Frank Reich: Most people forget that when the Bills came back from a 35-3 deficit to beat the Oilers, it was Reich, not Jim Kelly, who led the way.

5. Magic Johnson: OK, so Magic was really a starter (at point guard), but with the 1980 NBA Finals on the line, he filled in for an injured Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and posted 42 points, 15 boards and 7 steals and led the Lakers to the NBA title.

NFL TOP 100 EARLY DRAFT PICKS

Rivals.com Top 100 Early Draft Picks


1. Michael Oher, OT, Ole Miss
Oher has a rare blend of size, athleticism and girth. He entered the 2008 NFL draft, then pulled out a few days later even though he was considered a first-round pick. New coach Houston Nutt is glad he stayed. This time around, Oher – now a senior – could be the first player taken in the draft. He is No. 1 on the Rivals.com list of the top 100 pro prospects and could be the second consecutive offensive tackle chosen No. 1 overall; the Miami Dolphins took Michigan's Jake Long with the No. 1 pick earlier this year.
2. Andre Smith *, OT, Alabama
A massive tackle with great feet, in the mold of former first-round pick Shawn Andrews.
3. Matthew Stafford *, QB, Georgia
The most natural pocket passer in the nation. He has a skill set similar to Carson Palmer's.
4. DeMarcus Granger *, DT, Oklahoma
An explosive three-technique tackle who makes a living in the opponent's backfield.
5. Michael Johnson, DE, Georgia Tech
Displays a rare first step for his size. He can be an absolute terror off the edge with his combination of length and body control.
6. Eugene Monroe, OT, Virginia
A nimble tackle who re-directs well. He needs to add bulk and power to his lower half.
7. Michael Crabtree *, WR, Texas Tech
The total package – size, speed, burst and hands – and is the best receiver prospect since Calvin Johnson.
8. Jeremy Maclin *, WR, Missouri
Excellent size and speed, with the ability to break tackles. He is dangerous with the ball in his hands.
9. Vontae Davis *, CB, Illinois
A rare athlete with fluid hips and burst out of his breaks. He's instinctive in man coverage.
10. Rey Maualuga, LB, USC
He's a more physically dominant version of Seahawks MLB Lofa Tatupu, another former USC standout.
11. Brian Orakpo, DE, Texas
Showcases an explosive first step off the edge, with the ability to dip and turn the corner consistently.
12. Knowshon Moreno *, RB, Georgia
He is the most "natural" running back in the nation, with a combination of vision, quickness and balance. He has a good burst and a second gear.
13. Chris Wells *, RB, Ohio State
A powerful back with a thick frame and quick feet. He can make a defender miss and churn out yards after contact.
14. James Laurinaitis, LB, Ohio State
A fluid, athletic linebacker with a nose for the ball in both the pass and run game.
15. William Moore, FS, Missouri
A physically well-built safety with the athleticism and body control to do it all.
16. Jonathan Luigs, C, Arkansas
The best center prospect we have seen in the past five years.
17. Malcolm Jenkins, CB, Ohio State
An instinctive corner with good range and ball skills in zone coverage, but he lacks a second gear.
18. Ricky Jean-Francois *, DT, LSU
Was the quickest and most disruptive LSU defensive lineman in the national championship game last season and, yes, that includes Glenn Dorsey.
19. LeSean McCoy *, RB, Pittsburgh
He has struggled running though tackles this year. He's not quite as instinctive as Knowshon Moreno but has excellent body control for his size and possesses a nice combination of quickness and strength.
20. Jermaine Cunningham *, DE, Florida
A compact, powerful end with speed, power and change-of-direction skill on the edge.
21. Xavier Fulton, OT, Illinois
May have the best feet of any offensive lineman in the country. He needs to continue to add strength and girth to his overall frame.
22. Herman Johnson, G, LSU
He's an amazing physical specimen at 6 feet 8 and 360 pounds who can move and re-direct in space. He's fluid and agile for a man his size.
23. Percy Harvin *, WR, Florida
An explosive athlete in space who can make a play any time he has the ball.
24. Taylor Mays *, FS, USC
A physically imposing safety who can run and cover or play at the line of scrimmage.
25. Duke Robinson, G, Oklahoma
A massive guard with an intriguing blend of raw power and athleticism.
26. Darrius Heyward-Bey *, WR, Maryland
A tall, lean receiver with great speed and the burst to get down the field. He's a big-time jump-ball threat.
27. Mark Sanchez *, QB, USC
Has a big-time arm and is accurate down the field. He makes quick decisions but needs to work on his touch underneath.
28. Myron Rolle *, SS, Florida State
Smart, instinctive safety with a strong build. He has the range to play the center-field role.
29. Jermaine Gresham *, TE, Oklahoma
A big, physical athlete with great burst and speed down the seam. He can separate at all levels in man coverage.
30. Aaron Curry, LB, Wake Forest
A gifted run-and-hit linebacker. He has sideline-to-sideline range but needs to improve his awareness.
31. Tim Tebow *, QB, Florida
A dual run/pass threat who has all the intangibles. He can buy time in the pocket but needs to learn to read defenses more consistently in the passing game.
32. Geno Atkins *, DT, Georgia
Another explosive SEC three-technique defensive tackle. He will get a lot more attention from opposing linemen with the season-ending injury to Bulldogs DT Jeff Owens.
33. Maurice Evans *, DE, Penn State
Explosive athlete with a quick first step and powerful punch. He does a nice job beating blocks both inside and out.
34. James Davis, RB, Clemson
A one-cut back who has good vision and gets north to south quickly. He also is comfortable in the passing game.
35. Derek Pegues, FS, Mississippi State
He is built and runs like a corner, but is a ballhawk as a safety.
36. Rico McCoy *, LB, Tennessee
Undersized but has the most impressive fluidity and range of any linebacker in the draft. He should really rise up draft boards.
37. Mike Mickens, CB, Cincinnati
Long, rangy corner with good ball skills. He plays a bit high and struggles losing speed in his transition.
38. Nic Harris, SS, Oklahoma
Built like a linebacker and is strong attacking the line of scrimmage. He is fluid in zone coverage and has a nose for the ball.
39. Ciron Black *, OT, LSU
Displays a compact stance and moves well laterally. He can re-direct and has the quickness to reach the corner.
40. Brandon Pettigrew, TE, Oklahoma State
A physically imposing tight end with good power in the blocking game. He has impressive body control, and goes up and gets the ball as well as any receiver in the country.
41. Terrance Taylor, DT, Michigan
A two-gap plugger who can clog running lanes inside. He has good quickness off the snap and can push the pocket.
42. Josh Freeman *, QB, Kansas State
A physically impressive quarterback with rare arm strength and feel in the pocket. He's in the JaMarcus Russell/Daunte Culpepper mold.
43. Pat White, WR, West Virginia
He's one of the best playmakers in college football. He will be asked to make the transition from quarterback to wide receiver in the pros.
44. Alphonso Smith, CB, Wake Forest
Has all the tools you look for in an NFL corner except size (he's 5-9). He is as fluid as any corner in college football.
45. C.J. Spiller *, RB, Clemson
Lightning in a bottle. He has the quickness to make a man miss and the burst to separate, and he does a great job making cuts at full speed.
46. Max Unger, C, Oregon
He's a former left tackle with good feet and lateral mobility for a center. He plays a bit high but is an ideal fit for a zone-blocking scheme.
47. Greg Hardy *, DE, Ole Miss
His long limbs and speed make him difficult to block. He has the quickness to beat tackles outside or inside off the snap.
48. Brandon Spikes *, LB, Florida
A powerful linebacker who showcases good instincts inside, and does a nice job stacking and shedding versus the run.
49. George Selvie *, DE, South Florida
An ultra-productive end who exhibits good quickness and technique. Has a good motor and closes on the ball quickly.
50. Ziggy Hood, DT, Missouri
Plays with good leverage and power inside. He makes as many plays as any defensive tackle in the nation.
51. Alex Boone, OT, Ohio State
Has slimmed down and looks more fluid out on the edge. Has a powerful upper body. When he locks on, it's over.
52. B.J. Raji, DT, Boston College
A powerful defensive tackle who can push the pocket and get off blocks. Powerful and tough to move inside.
53. Louis Murphy, WR, Florida
Showcases great deep speed and is a constant vertical threat. Is a raw route runner and lacks consistent hands.
54. Courtney Greene, FS, Rutgers
A long, rangy safety with a nose for the ball. Has good first-step quickness, and covers a lot of ground in the deep half.
55. Brian Cushing, LB, USC
A versatile athlete who can play a variety of positions but is at his best rushing the passer.
56. Alex Mack, C, California
Displays good toughness and power inside. He plays with a natural bend and has the technique and quickness to start from Day One.
57. Jamon Meredith, OT, South Carolina
A smooth tackle who can handle speed off the edge. He is coordinated re-directing but needs to improve his technique.
58. Antoine Caldwell, C, Alabama
Has a great combination of power and athleticism. He is natural in space and gets a good push as an in-line run blocker.
59. Sam Young *, OT, Notre Dame
A tall, long athlete with the feet and coordination to protect a quarterback's blind side. He needs to develop more of a mean streak.
60. Cullen Harper, QB, Clemson
He displays a quick release and good athleticism. He is accurate with the ball and has a strong arm, but needs to make quicker decisions.
61. Vince Oghobaase *, DT, Duke
At 6 feet 6 and 303 pounds, Oghobaase plays with great bend and flexibility for his size. He coils up well at the snap and has an explosive first step.
62. Greg Middleton *, DE, Indiana
An explosive athlete. Has the body control to beat blocks.
63. Trevor Canfield, G, Cincinnati
A throwback guard who loves to finish blocks and plays with good hand placement and technique in the running game. He's a better athlete than most think.
64. Dannell Ellerbe, LB, Georgia
A sideline-to-sideline athlete who has a nose for the ball and makes plays all over the field.
65. Ricky Sapp *, DE, Clemson
An undersized pass-rushing specialist who uses his burst to reach the corner. He needs to add more of a pass-rush repertoire and power to his game.
66. Fili Moala, DT, USC
Has a great first step for his size, but doesn't play with the power his frame would indicate.
67. Brian Robiskie, WR, Ohio State
The most technically sound wide receiver in the county. While he lacks any kind of burst, he looks like an ideal possession guy at the next level.
68. Sen'Derrick Marks *, DT, Auburn
A big-bodied tackle who can eat up space on the inside, and shows the power to push the pocket and anchor versus the double-team.
69. Mitch Petrus, G, Arkansas
Ideal for a zone-blocking scheme. He displays great feet and body control, and can really get out to the second level.
70. Marcus Freeman, LB, Ohio State
A bit of an afterthought on Ohio State's star-studded defense, but he does everything well and will be an NFL starter.
71. Victor Harris, CB, Virginia Tech
A physical, in-your-face corner who can close quickly on the ball. He plays a bit high and lacks great make-up speed.
72. Darry Beckwith, LB, LSU
Has a big, strong frame and is powerful attacking downhill. He has the athleticism to run sideline-to-sideline.
73. Javon Ringer, RB, Michigan State
Short, compact back with good balance, burst and change-of-direction skills.
74. Chase Coffman, TE, Missouri
A strider who is sudden out of his breaks and does well going up and attacking the ball.
75. Anthony Parker, G, Tennessee
He's thickly built, with a compact frame. Has smooth lateral mobility and a strong punch, showcases good body control and never over-extends.
76. Derrick Williams, WR, Penn State
A better athlete than football player. He could really blossom in the NFL with the right coaching staff.
77. Darius Butler, CB, Connecticut
Possesses great recovery speed and quickness out of breaks. He is rail thin but shows the toughness scouts love.
78. Keiland Williams *, RB, LSU
Dynamic with the ball in his hands, but lacks the girth and instincts to be successful between the tackles.
79. Michael Hamlin, SS, Clemson
A big, rangy safety with good wheels once he gets going. He can cover a lot of ground but struggles re-directing.
80. Hunter Cantwell, QB, Louisville
Displays a great skill set with all the tools you'd want in an NFL quarterback. He just needs more playing experience.
81. Jason Smith, OT, Baylor
Former tight end has good athleticism and body control on the edge. He needs to continue to add girth and work on his technique.
82. Tyson Jackson, DE, LSU
Possesses great size, length and suddenness off the edge. He needs to play with more power and more of a mean streak.
83. Travis Beckum, TE, Wisconsin
A one-dimensional player who is a mismatch nightmare for any defense in the passing game. But he couldn't block the chair you're sitting in.
84. Augustus Parrish, OT, Kent State
Smaller-school prospect with the quickness, size and body control of an NFL left tackle.
85. Aaron Kelly, WR, Clemson
Smooth route runner who uses his body well to shield defenders from the ball. He's a No. 2 receiver at the next level.
86. Pannel Egboh, DE, Stanford
Possesses great size (6-6/280) length and body control. But he is too much of a finesse player at this stage.
87. Brandon Gibson, WR, Washington State
Well-built receiver with good balance and burst as route runner. He shows the ability to get consistent separation on all levels.
88. Matt Shaughnessy, DE, Wisconsin
Good athlete off the edge. He plays with a great motor, but needs to add more power to his upper body and punch.
89. Domonique Johnson, CB, Jackson State
Explosive, quick-twitch corner with good size (6-2/200) who has dominated his competition. Johnson, a Texan who began his career at Missouri, has a nose for the ball.
90. Keegan Herring, RB, Arizona State
Undersized back with a great first step and home-run speed. He has a tendency to bounce too many plays outside.
91. Keenan Lewis, CB, Oregon State
Tall, physical corner with good body control and balance. He does a nice job in press coverage.
92. Ryan Purvis, TE, Boston College
Won't wow you as an athlete but knows how to get open. He catches the ball in traffic and loves to block.
93. Bruce Johnson, CB, Miami
An undersized, explosive corner with great recovery speed. He loves to play physical at the line, but struggles with instincts in zone.
94. Arian Foster, RB, Tennessee
Possesses great size and quickness through the tackles, but tries to run like a scatback too often and doesn't lower his head and drive for tough yards.
95. Kevin Barnes, CB, Maryland
A long, lean track star who is developing into an instinctive corner. He has improved significantly since his sophomore season.
96. Nathan Brown, QB, Central Arkansas
Small-school quarterback showcases a strong arm and accuracy from the pocket. He makes quick decisions under pressure.
97. Juaquin Iglesias, WR, Oklahoma
Has good quickness and decent deep speed. He reminds some of former LSU wide receiver Early Doucet.
98. Tyrone McKenzie, LB, South Florida
Showcases great burst and closing speed toward the ball. He plays with reckless abandon and flies around the field.
99. Kenny Britt, WR, Rutgers
A well-built receiver who does a nice job getting out of his breaks and separating at all levels. He's physical after the catch.
100. Terrence Cody *, DT, Alabama
Displays amazing athleticism for a man who weighs 370 pounds. He could really soar up draft boards with a strong season.

Some big-school transitions aren't gaining traction

Coaching transitions are never easy.

Players are unfamiliar with new faces on the sideline, and coaches are unsure of their new players' strengths and weaknesses.
Ask Arkansas and West Virginia. Or Texas A&M and Michigan.

Here's a closer look at those teams and others that have struggled with new coaches:

• Arkansas: Bobby Petrino left the NFL for this? The Razorbacks had to come from behind to beat FCS opponent Western Illinois and Louisiana-Monroe in their first two games, and then were routed 49-14 by Alabama on Saturday.
It's going to get worse at Arkansas before it gets better. The Razorbacks play three straight games against nationally ranked teams: at No. 7 Texas on Saturday, at home against No. 4 Florida on Oct. 4 and at No. 15 Auburn on Oct. 11.

• Florida State: The transition from Bobby Bowden to Jimbo Fisher still isn't complete, but FSU fans have to wonder exactly where their team is headed after Saturday night's 12-3 loss to Wake Forest at Doak Campbell Stadium.
After scoring 115 points in routs of FCS opponents Western Carolina and Chattanooga, FSU's offense looked exactly like it did a year ago -- or worse -- against the Demon Deacons: FSU had seven turnovers, including five interceptions.

• Michigan: The Wolverines had to know it wouldn't be easy in coach Rich Rodriguez's first season. Rodriguez installed a spread offense and didn't have a quarterback to run it.
Three games into the season, the Wolverines are the only Big Ten squad with a losing record. Michigan lost at home to Utah 25-23 in the opener and then had six turnovers in a 35-17 loss at Notre Dame. At least the Wolverines know things will eventually get better, especially if Rodriguez keeps signing skill players like Sam McGuffie.

• Texas A&M: Former Green Bay Packers coach Mike Sherman lost to Arkansas State 18-14 in his Texas A&M debut Aug. 30. Then the Aggies were routed 41-23 by Miami at Kyle Field on Saturday.
Who knew the Aggies would already be missing Dennis Franchione?
Texas A&M has started the season with an 0-2 home record for the first time in 36 years. The Aggies still play No. 10 Texas Tech and No. 2 Oklahoma at Kyle Field; A losing home record seems very possible.

• West Virginia: Bill Stewart led the Mountaineers to a 48-28 rout of Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl as the team's interim coach. Stewart is still seeking his first big victory as full-time coach.
The Mountaineers look too one-dimensional on offense, relying on the running of quarterback Pat White and tailback Noel Devine. White hasn't improved his passing, which is something Stewart promised he would do.

ALL BUSINESS
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- To put it bluntly, Saturday's game was boring. It was a 60-minute grind defined by durable defense, field position and trench combat. Sure, it had intensity, but no flash, no pizzazz.
Mark Dantonio loved every minute of it. He didn't see a dull game. He saw tremendous intensity, solid fundamentals, power vs. power. He saw the way he wants Michigan State to play.
He saw himself.
As Dantonio often points out, Michigan State is still in the foundation phase after seven mostly underachieving seasons under Bobby Williams and John L. Smith. But teams usually turn a corner when they start to reflect their head coach, and if Saturday's 23-7 win against Notre Dame is any indication, Michigan State seems to be getting there.
"When you come out and play with emotion, play physical, that's because Coach Dantonio's the one getting us fired up," middle linebacker Adam Decker said. "Him and his staff are the ones preaching being physical all week and all camp and all offseason. It's ingrained into us, and when we come out on a big stage like this, it's what we go back to."

The Road is Paved
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- It's premature to say that the hard part is over for No. 4-ranked Florida.
But if you look down the Gators' schedule, they won't leave the state of Florida the rest of the regular season to play a game in which they're not favored.
Here's something else to like about this Florida club if you're handicapping the Eastern Division race: The Gators beat Tennessee 30-6 with very little offense Saturday, but their defense and special teams were in championship form.
"That just gives us a little bit more of an edge," Florida quarterback Tim Tebow said.
The Gators (3-0, 1-0 SEC) may also have an edge in the schedule. They get Ole Miss at home and then travel to Arkansas on Oct. 4 before LSU comes to Gainesville on Oct. 11. Florida then gets a week off before facing Kentucky at home on Oct. 25, which precedes the big showdown with Georgia on Nov. 1 in Jacksonville.

Don't Look Now
EUGENE, Ore. -- If Boise State wanted to be mentioned in the same breath as the program-defining 2006 team, the Broncos took steps in that direction with Saturday's 37-32 win over No. 17 Oregon.
It was the Broncos' first win over a BCS opponent in a true road game and the biggest win for the program since capping that 2006 season with an overtime win over Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl. It's the biggest regular-season win since the Broncos defeated a ranked and undefeated Fresno State team in 2001, the first year the Broncos joined the WAC.
"This is big," Boise State coach Chris Petersen said. "I know Oregon had some quarterback issues and stuff that helped us, but even with that you can see how explosive they are. So it was great for our guys to be able to hang on and get this done."
In 2006, Boise State went undefeated and had a dramatic come-from-behind win against Oklahoma. It had some thinking that the Broncos should have gotten a shot at the national championship. Although the Broncos are a long way from the end of the season, they are the only undefeated team remaining in the WAC and one of only six undefeated teams remaining in the non-BCS.


Three Weekend Observations
Pryor 1. It used to be that coaches would stick with a senior quarterback no matter what. Not anymore. Virginia Tech ditched Sean Glennon for Tyrod Taylor, and the sophomore has delivered back-to-back victories over Georgia Tech and North Carolina. Ohio State seems to be blaming quarterback Todd Boeckman for last week's ugly 35-3 loss at USC. Buckeyes freshman phenom Terrelle Pryor took nearly all the snaps against Troy on Saturday and figures to do so the rest of the season.
2. Central Michigan's Butch Jones and Toledo's Tom Amstutz on Saturday did what MAC coaches are supposed to do: Playing superior opponents, both MAC teams were in position for upsets and their coaches played to win, rather than lose. The Chippewas converted a two-point conversion pass to pull ahead of Purdue 25-24 with 1:18 to go. Boilermakers tailback Kory Sheets ran for a 46-yard touchdown only 18 seconds later. Sensing his Rockets were out of fuel, Amstutz went for two points and failed in a 55-54 loss to Fresno State in double overtime.
Green 3. Alabama's Julio Jones and Georgia's A.J. Green are as good as any freshman receivers who have played in the SEC in two decades. Green caught eight passes for 159 yards with one touchdown in a 27-10 win at Arizona State. Jones caught a 25-yard touchdown pass in a 49-14 win at Arkansas. Each gives their team a much-needed deep threat.

Final Thoughts and HELMET STICKERS
RECE DAVIS
It's way too early to begin talking about it and it probably won't play out this way, but here's something intriguing to think about: If USC and Oklahoma plow through their schedules unbeaten, are pollsters ever going to move them from their current 1-2 slots? And if not, does that mean a 13-0 team from the acknowledged best conference in the country will be left out of the title game?
Helmet Stickers Go To:
• QB Kellen Moore, Boise State
24-36, 386 yards, 3 TDs vs. Oregon
• FS Ryan Hamilton, Vanderbilt
3 Int, TD, fumble rec, TD-saving tackle vs. Mississippi

LOU HOLTZ
I think Florida has the playmakers, but on offense I'm not real impressed by them because they don't establish anything. Defense and special teams are very good and with Urban Meyer they always have a chance. But I wouldn't look at them and say, "Boy, that's really a team I'd be scared to play."
Helmet Stickers Go To:
• QB David Johnson, Tulsa
24-39, 469 yards, 6 TDs vs. New Mexico
• DE Vince Browne, Northwestern
3 sacks, forced fumble, blocked FG vs. Ohio

LOU HOLTZ
I think Florida has the playmakers, but on offense I'm not real impressed by them because they don't establish anything. Defense and special teams are very good and with Urban Meyer they always have a chance. But I wouldn't look at them and say, "Boy, that's really a team I'd be scared to play."
Helmet Stickers Go To:
• QB David Johnson, Tulsa
24-39, 469 yards, 6 TDs vs. New Mexico
• DE Vince Browne, Northwestern
3 sacks, forced fumble, blocked FG vs. Ohio

Five Rules That Need Changing

Five Rules That Need Changing

Ed Hochuli may have a blown the call at the end of the Broncos/Chargers game, but really, did anyone understand what was happening? Even though I watch football all weekend every fall weekend, the whole tuck rule/fumble/interception thing remains a mystery to me. But it's not just football -- here are five sports rules that need to be changed.

1. The Tuck Rule: This rule is supposed to make fumbles by NFL quarterbacks easier to rule as a fumble or a interception, but I don't get it. Did Cutler fumble? Wasn't he trying to pass the ball? No clue...

2. Illegal Defense: This NBA rules has been massaged the last few years to allow zone defenses, but I say ditch the whole thing. If you want to put all five defenders in the lane and let the other team shoot open jumpers from the outside, go for it.

3. The Designated Hitter: What can I say, I'm an NFL guy. If you wear an MLB uniform, you should be forced to hit.

4. The College Football Clock Rule: This summer, the NCAA tweaked their rules in order to shorten games, and in the process they've managed to make clock management a mostly ineffective skill, at least until there are under two minutes left in a game.

5. Restrictor Plates: I'm not a huge NASCAR fan, but forcing the cars to go slower than they're capable of going just doesn't make sense to me.

USC vs. SEC: Time to settle this once and for all

USC vs. SEC: Time to settle this once and for all




The big game is a huge letdown, unless you're a Southern California fan - or enjoy public floggings. A futbol game breaks out in the SEC. Buffalo and Temple play a thriller, really. And scratch one potential BCS buster off the list.
Week 3 of the college football season left a coach on crutches, the Pac-10 (minus USC) humbled and the road to the national title game pretty well mapped out.
No need to go over the gory details of the Trojans' 35-3 pounding of Ohio State, but suffice to say it will take an immense upset to keep USC out of the national title game.
Sure, USC lost two conferences games each of the last two seasons, including that perplexing one to Stanford. And, yes, 2007 showed the college football world there are no sure things.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, whatever. Three weeks into the season, the race for the national championship already has a clear favorite, and only a handful of other contenders need to be taken seriously.
Mark it down: USC will be in Miami for the BCS national title game.
This USC team might be the best of coach Pete Carroll's amazing run. Mark Sanchez is the Trojans' most talented quarterback since Carson Palmer. They're about five deep at running back and wide receiver. The defense might have the two best linebackers in the country in Rey Maualuga and Brian Cushing.
And who's going to beat USC? Check out the Pac-10 results from Saturday. Seven Pac-10 teams lost.
So the rest of the season comes down to determining an opponent for USC in the national title game. Forget any Big East or Atlantic Coast Conference teams. The Big Ten? Sorry, Wisconsin.
Either the Big 12 champion or SEC champion will play USC for the national championship on Jan. 8 - and here's hoping it's an SEC team.
No offense to the Big 12 folks, but this USC-SEC thing has been simmering for a while. In 2003, USC and LSU never got a crack at each other. In 2004, Auburn got passed over and USC was left to pummel Oklahoma. There was talk of a USC-Georgia Rose Bowl last season, but it didn't happen.
Despite all USC has done during its six-plus seasons as college football's 1,000-pound gorilla, SEC fans still look with skepticism at the Trojans because they've never played the SEC champions.
It's time to get this settled.
BCS Busters
Still going:-BYU 59, UCLA 0. This was supposed to be a major hurdle for the Cougars on what they hope will be the road to getting into the BCS from the Mountain West Conference.
-East Carolina 28, Tulane 24. Pirates coach Skip Holtz warned anybody who would listen that getting his team focused after two emotional victories would be a challenge.
Gone:
Wisconsin 13, Fresno State 10. Memo to Bulldogs coach Pat Hill: While playing anyone, anywhere at any time is commendable, and makes for a catchy slogan, it's not necessarily the way to get into the BCS. Just ask Hawaii, which spent most of last season playing no one at home and got rewarded with a big check from the Sugar Bowl.
Knock it Down
Of course, Temple doesn't know how to defend the last-second desperation pass into the end zone. How often have the Owls had to protect a late lead?
Buffalo's Drew Wily heaved the pass and Naaman Roosevelt went above a group of Temple defenders, all seemingly stuck to the ground, for a 35-yard touchdown pass that gave the Bulls a 30-28 victory on the last play of the game.
It was the play of the day, but it's also worth noting these once-laughable programs are making progress as members of the Mid-American Conference under coaches who could be in line for more lucrative jobs soon.
Buffalo is 2-1 under coach Turner Gill, who got a look from Nebraska, his old school, after going 5-7 with the Bulls last year. Temple's Al Golden was among UCLA's coaching candidates after winning four games last season.
Heisman Worthy
Jeremy Maclin, Missouri. His quarterback, Chase Daniel, was a Heisman Trophy finalist last season, but no player in the country is more spectacular to watch than Maclin. The do-it-all receiver had six catches for 172 yards and three touchdowns in the Tigers' 69-17 victory over Nevada.
Return to Mediocrity
At 2-0, there's little doubt Notre Dame will zoom past the three victories it had last season. The Fighting Irish's 35-17 victory was as much about Michigan's generosity - six turnovers! - as Notre Dame's improvement, but this is no time to bash the Golden Domers and coach Charlie Weis, who will be hobbling around with a knee injury for a while after getting undercut on the sideline by a Michigan player.
Up next for Notre Dame is a road trip to improving Michigan State.
No Offense
Auburn and Mississippi State made SEC history Saturday night in Starkville, Miss., and here's hoping no one ever has to go through an experience like that again.
The Tigers beat the Bulldogs by a soccer-like 3-2 score. It was the first 3-2 game in SEC history, according to the league.
Lookahead
It's the first of several huge weekends in the SEC with LSU going to Auburn and Florida playing at Tennessee.
The two Tigers of the SEC West have created quite a rivalry in recent seasons. They've split the last four meetings with a combined victory margin of 14 points.
Points could be tough to come by on the Plains for both teams. Auburn's spread offense is still sputtering, see above; LSU's hasn't worked out its passing game.

The Bottom 10 inspirational thoughts of the week 3

The Bottom 10 inspirational thoughts of the week:
I am a man of constant sorrow
I've seen trouble all my day.
I bid farewell to old Kentucky
The place where I was born and raised.
(The place where he was born and raised)
For six long years I've been in trouble
No pleasures here on earth I found
For in this world I'm bound to ramble
I have no friends to help me now.

-- "I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow," The Soggy Bottom BoysWhile Joel and Ethan Coen's Soggy Bottom Boys sang farewell to old Kentucky, the Bottom 10 sings hello to Arizona, New York and Washington.
Instead of "Raising Arizona" with wins to set up key Week 4 matchups, an 0-2 weekend from the Wildcats and Sun Devils has the Bottom 10 razing Arizona football programs to the highly coveted No. 5 spot. The boys from Arizona aren't the only Pac-10 combo in the latest rankings. The Wildcats and Sun Devils will enjoy the company of a duo from the Northwest. Apple State companions Washington and Washington State found the road to the Bottom 10.
In addition to "Raising Arizona," the Coens gave us "No Country for Old Men." In Bottom 10 country, there is definitely room for Orange men. In the Bottom 10's interpretation of the Soggy Bottom Boys' lyrics, "six long years" has to refer to the Bottom 10's new No. 1 team, Syracuse. The Orange haven't had a winning season since 2001 -- and that doesn't look to change this season. The Cuse ranks No. 114 in total offense and No. 115 in total defense.
The Bottom 10 is in constant sorrow about having to say so long to UL-U-Pick 'em, Kent State and Arkansas. Louisiana-Monroe won to break up our favorite combo. Kent State also won and the Hogs looked good this week -- they didn't play. Army also slid out of the Bottom 10 during its bye week.
We'll let the big-screen stylings of the Coen brothers and the taglines from their films guide us through the Week 3 Bottom 10 for 2008.
This week's Bottom 10 trailer is a pillow fight of the week between Idaho and Utah State.
So, with apologies to Steve Harvey, here's the Bottom 10:
ESPN.com's Bottom 10
RANK TEAM RECORD COMMENT
1. Syracuse 0-3 "No Country For Old Men": Or Orange ones. "There are no clean getaways" is the movie tagline. That's certainly proving to be true in the Greg Robinson era.
2. San Diego State 0-3 "The Big Lebowski": The tagline is "They figured he was a lazy, time-wasting slacker. They were right." OK, The Dudes from SDSU definitely aren't slackers, but waiting for a win could be a waste of time.
3. Road Apples 0-6 "O Brother, Where Art Thou?": On the other side of the state. "They have a plan, but not a clue" is the tagline. The 2008 road is littered with the evidence of losses by Apple State siblings Washington State and Washington.
4. FIU 0-2 "The Hudsucker Proxy": The Panthers' season feels like "A comedy of invention" -- especially for an offense that ranks No. 119. As Norville would say, FIU's offense is, "You know, for kids."
5. State of Arizona
0-2 "Raising Arizona": Razing Arizona works better after a pair of Saturday upsets shocked the Wildcats and Sun Devils. Maybe the ideas about the Cats being back and Sun Devils being national players were "a comedy beyond belief."
6. Utah State 0-3 "Barton Fink": "Between heaven and hell there's always Hollywood!" Or Logan! Stopping teams has been hell on the Aggies, who rank No. 119 in scoring defense.
7. North Texas 0-3 "Intolerable Cruelty": "A romantic comedy with bite." Is the honeymoon over in Denton? The Mean Green are 2-13 since Todd Dodge arrived.
8. UAB 0-3 "Paris, je t'aime": "Stories of Love. From the City of Love." If the Bottom 10 sent a script to the Coen brothers, we would substitute Birmingham for Paris. The Bottom 10 loves the Blazers.
9. Virginia 1-2 "Burn After Reading": Doesn't seem right that the "intelligence is relative" tagline could work with an academic institution like Virginia. But the Bottom 10 deals only with events on the field.
10. Idaho 1-2 "Blood Simple": It's simple. The Bottom 10 has the Vandals in its blood. "Breaking up is hard," so the Bottom 10 is pleased to be reunited with Idaho after a week's separation.

Waiting list: Auburn's offense, Army (0-2), Memphis (0-3), Michigan's offense, Mississippi State's offense, Northern Illinois (0-2), Ohio (0-3), Ohio State's games against big-time nonconference foes, Rutgers (0-2) and UTEP (0-2) .

College Football's Bottom 10 Inspirational Thoughts of Week 2

The Bottom 10 inspirational thoughts of the week:2


What I want, you've got
And it might be hard to handle
But like the flame that burns the candle
The candle feeds the flame
What I've got's full stock of thoughts and dreams that scatter
You pull them all together
And how, I can't explain
But you make my dreams come true

-- "You Make My Dreams," Daryl Hall and John Oates
John Oates returned to North Penn High School in Lansdale, Pa., on Monday for an acoustic performance at his alma mater.
"I flitted between worlds," Oates said in a phone interview with The Philadelphia Inquirer before the show. "I was a musician and an athlete. I ran with the bad crowd and the good crowd. It was before the social revolution, the last years of that kind of innocent period."
Several members of the Week 2 Bottom 10 have run with the good and bad crowds. Before joining the Bottom 10, there was a time when Arkansas, Syracuse and Washington State recorded hits in the Top 25.
Other teams seem destined to keep cranking out the Bottom 10 hits. While FIU jumped to No. 1 after a 42-0 loss at Iowa, San Diego State went from No. 1 to No. 4 after almost beating Notre Dame. Wins by Idaho and SMU earned the Vandals and Ponies an exit. Army and Kent State moved in to take their place.
If athletics doesn't work out for the Bottom 10's band, there's always, well, band. (The Wyoming band always has been a Bottom 10 favorite. Of course, who could resist those uniforms?) That transition worked out for Oates.
For those who dare to dream big, Oates said: "I'm living proof that you can go to North Penn High School and go somewhere after that. You have to have passion, first of all, and follow your passion."
Our passion is following the Bottom 10. And our passion led us to Arkansas this week. Sure, the Razorbacks are 2-0, but two come-from-behind wins over Western Illinois and Louisiana-Monroe have the Hogs in the highly coveted No. 5 spot.
Pillow fight of the week: San Diego State at San Jose State.
Time to sit back and let the musical stylings of Hall and Oates guide us through the Week 2 Bottom 10 for 2008.
ESPN.com's Bottom 10
RANK TEAM RECORD COMMENT
1. FIU 0-2 "Everytime You Go Away": You come back. The Panthers teased us with 11 straight losses in '07 before winning their finale. Maybe this is the year for perfection.
2. Washington State 0-2 "Time Will Tell": Are the Cougars really this bad? Well, after two games, they are No. 118 in scoring defense and No. 117 in total offense.
3. Syracuse 0-2 "Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get": With a home loss to Akron, the Orange fall to 7-30 under Greg Robinson.
4. San Diego State 0-2 "Say It Ain't So": Sure, the Aztecs lost to FCS Cal Poly in Week 1, but we had to drop them after their close call in South Bend.
5. Arkansas 2-0 "I Can't Go For That (No Can Do)": Two close wins over FCS Western Illinois and Louisiana-Monroe don't impress us. Plus, no other big-time school had an embarrassing loss.
6. Utah State 0-2 "Some Things Are Better Left Unsaid": The Aggies and the Bottom 10 just go together. OK, we'll say it. Their kiss is on our list.
7. UL-U-Pick 'em 0-3 "You Make My Dreams": A Bottom 10 without Louisiana-Monroe and Louisiana-Lafayette joined together is a nightmare.
8. North Texas 0-2 "Maneater": With a nickname like the Mean Green, you would think UNT would be the predator instead of the prey.
9. Army 0-2 "Heartbreak Time": The Bottom 10 hates including the Black Knights of the Hudson. But a home loss to FCS New Hampshire was too much to overlook.
10. Kent State 0-2 "Something About You": Maybe it's extending the nation's longest losing streak to nine games? Yup, that's it.

Waiting list: Celebration flag on Washington, Maryland (1-1), San Jose State (1-1), Toledo (0-1), UAB (0-2), UTEP (0-2) and Virginia (1-1).

Why Ohio State Loses Big Games

Why Ohio State loses big games

Ohio State suffered through its third mega-game loss in its last three tries on Saturday as USC handled the visiting Buckeyes 35-3. Ohio State continually produces boatloads of NFL talent, routinely wins the Big Ten and has one of the best programs in the nation. Yet losses in the national championship game to Florida and LSU, plus Saturday's performance against USC, have caused the college football world to view the Buckeyes as either vastly overrated or big-time chokers.
I decided to examine all three of these losses to see if there was a common thread that helps explain Ohio State's inability to come through on the biggest of stages. There appear to be four factors that pop up among the three games.

1. Running the football. Clearly, the competition in the national title games and vs. USC is superior to a regular-season schedule, but even taking that into account, Ohio State's inability to run the ball effectively has hurt it in all three cases. Here are the numbers for each season heading into the big game, and then how OSU performed. (The 2008 stats will obviously be skewed since OSU played Youngstown State and Ohio prior to USC.)

2006 rushing yards per game: 181
vs. Florida: 47
2007 rushing yards per game: 201
vs. LSU: 145
2008 rushing yards per game: 207
vs. USC: 71

2. Stopping the run. Again, the battle in the trenches went to the opposition in all three matchups. Ohio State was unable to shut down the ground attacks as it did against other opponents.

2006 rushing yards allowed per game: 94
vs. Florida: 156
2007 rushing yards allowed per game: 77
vs. LSU: 152
2008 rushing yards allowed per game: 67
vs. USC: 164

3. Turnovers. Always a big factor in championship-level games, and predictably, Ohio State has not been able to protect the ball, coming up with a -6 turnover ratio in the three games.

2006 turnover ratio: +11
vs. Florida: -2
2007 turnover ratio: -1
vs. LSU: -2
2008 turnover ratio: +4
vs. USC: -2

4. Second-quarter meltdowns. Ohio State actually scored first in all three games, so pregame jitters do not seem to play a part. It has been the second quarter when things have gotten out of hand. Against Florida, the Buckeyes gave up 21 straight points at one point during the first half and were outscored 20-7 in the second quarter. Against LSU, the Buckeyes endured a 31-point run against them and lost the second quarter 21-0. On Saturday night, USC outscored Ohio State 14-0 in the second quarter and scored the game's final 32 points. The poor second quarters have left OSU trailing by at least 14 points at the half each time.
Why the second-quarter problems? It's hard to point to one specific area, although an inability to run the ball certainly contributes. The bottom line is that Ohio State has not been able to put together a momentum-turning drive or play when these games start to slip away early. That could be coaching schemes, adjustments or a mentality of not being able to step up when things start to go south. Once the deficit gets big enough, the Buckeyes are put in an unfamiliar situation and have not played catch-up with any effectiveness.
Ohio State clearly belongs among college football's elite and will win double-digit games for the fourth year in a row. But if the Buckeyes want to take the final step, they will have to play better along the offensive and defensive lines, take care of the ball and not tighten up when facing adversity the next time they are playing a national power.

Greg Oden Learning the Ropes in Transition Program

'Rookie' Oden learns ropes in transition program

CBSSports.com wire reports

RYE BROOK, N.Y. -- He was drafted more than 14 months ago, and even then he looked too old to be a first-year player, so it's easy to forget that Greg Oden is technically a rookie.
Sidelined all season after knee surgery, the top pick in the 2007 draft never got to compete with No. 2 selection Kevin Durant for the Rookie of the Year award. So he's eligible to win it this year, and that's one of his goals.
"I hope so," Oden said Thursday. "I'm working for it."
The Portland center definitely feels like a newcomer this week, joining a number of first-year players in the league's rookie transition program, a four-day event where players are counseled on issues they will face on and off the court.
Players are given three years to complete the program, in case they are unavailable in the summer before they enter the NBA. Oden couldn't come last year because it started just days after he had microfracture surgery on his right knee.
He finally began taking part in 5-on-5 drills last week, playing twice with his Trail Blazers teammates, and seemed pleased with his progress.
"When I first came back to Portland, I came back about three weeks ago, and I was a little bit nervous getting in there and starting working out with the guys," Oden said. "I was nervous about how I was going to play, but the more I got to playing, it's just about going out there and playing the game I love, so it's not really anything to be nervous about."
For now, he doesn't think the Blazers will let him do too much more.
"I don't think they're going to do that until the season starts," he said. "They're trying to make sure nothing happens, so keeping me on a tight rope right now."
Oden has already experienced plenty in the NBA, traveling with the Blazers on three long road trips last season. He said he's learned much more in the transition program, such as the services provided by the players association and some financial lessons.
"I really don't know everything that went on, so I got to see some things," Oden said. "I know a couple of things that go on, but to really hear about it and all the situations while being here is good for me."
Oden and the rest of the participants saw a quick lesson in NBA discipline Wednesday when former Kansas stars Mario Chalmers and Darrell Arthur were sent home on the first day of the program for violating unspecified league rules.
Mike Bantom, the NBA's senior vice president of player development, said young players are going to make mistakes, which is why there is such a focus on finances. Even a first-round pick like Oden is only guaranteed a two-year contract at the start of his career, so players are cautioned not to blow it all too quickly.
"Be accountable for your own finances, don't rely on an agent or any one person to manage your money, because ultimately it's going to be your responsibility," Bantom said. "It's going to be your issue and you can't say, 'Well, I left it up to him."'
Players also got a lecture Thursday from former Cavaliers and Hornets coach Paul Silas, who while reminding them of the challenges rookies face pointed out that he didn't even start Baron Davis, then a No. 3 overall pick, in Charlotte because he didn't think the point guard came into the league with a good enough shot.
Oden, growing out his beard and looking far older than his 20 years, is already aware there are no guarantees. Still, he won't have to worry about playing time once he's fully recovered.
"It took a couple of days, but it felt good," he said of facing live competition again. "The second day it felt a lot better, but I'm still not quite back yet."

Questions for Potential O.J. Jurors

Questions for potential O.J. jurors


Jury selection began yesterday for O.J. Simpson's Las Vegas trial on robbery and kidnapping charges. The Juice, you might recall, says he was simply trying to retrieve some memorabilia that had been stolen from him. (By gunpoint, allegedly.) The prosecutors feel differently.
As a veteran of jury selection myself -- have I ever mentioned my six-month stint as a juror on the Tyco case? incessantly? -- perhaps I can shed some insight on the process. Here are some of the most likely questions asked by O.J.'s lawyers during voir dire. (FYI, "voir dire" is from the French for "Can you help us get this guy off?")

10. Even if a defendant's obviously guilty, would you be willing to pin it on some half-baked conspiracy theory?

9. Why do you think the police are forever framing innocent athletes?

8. Haven't you ever felt like jumping in a white Bronco and just getting away from it all?

7. Are you the real killer?

6. Aside from Johnny Rodgers and Billy Cannon, can you name any other former Heisman winners to get in legal trouble?

5. Is that you, Kato?

4. Don't you agree that the best place to find a double-murderer is the golf course?

3. Wouldn't you agree that just because you sold something doesn't mean it's not still yours?

2. Hey, the Vice President shot a guy in the face and nobody said boo, am I right?

1. Why on earth would Det. Nordberg commit a crime?

Clueless in Columbus

Clueless in Columbus

LOS ANGELES – Here was Jim Tressel, sitting in front of a microphone after his program again melted into a big-game puddle of scarlet and grey. Here was Ohio State’s leader after another national humiliation, 35-3, this time at the hands of Southern California.
Here was the sweater vest, who keeps calling for the same old failed game plan even when he’s far from the comforts of the cornfields of the Midwest. He’s an example of coaching insanity – expecting the same bad plays to produce different results.
Here was Jim Tressel and all he could do was smile and shrug.
“The guys fought hard,” he offered Saturday night. “I don’t know that we did the best we could do, but we fought hard.”
So apparently that’s it now for Ohio State. They fought hard. Let’s just focus on the moral victory – the lament of every blown-out, schedule-padding cupcake in college football. We were overmatched and outcoached, sure, but we fought hard.
Only this is Ohio State. The Buckeyes keep getting their ass kicked when they dare to venture out of Big Ten/MAC land and Tressel doesn’t look or sound the least bit concerned.
Outrage? Frustration? Embarrassment? How about apologies to the Buckeye fans who no doubt feel plenty of all three? Or maybe one for poor quarterback Todd Boeckman, who thanks to a most uninspired offensive game plan had USC defenders taking turns teeing up to try to rupture his spleen?
“They did everything we saw on film, nothing changed,” said USC linebacker Rey Maualuga, who had five tackles and a pick six.
It isn’t just that Ohio State keeps producing no-show efforts in these supposed referendum games. It’s that the Buckeyes passion postgame is as feeble as it is in the game. If they are just being polite and internalizing, then the Bucks will one day need a lot of therapy.
“Taking a lot of heat from whom?” Tressel retorted when asked about the perception of the program nationally. “I guess I’m only concerned with Ohio State fans.”
If he thinks they are satisfied with this, he must be blinded by his latest contract extension.
This was paint-by-numbers football, the Buckeyes exposed as frauds early in the year this time, not at the end. This year, not even the absurd BCS can save them. Not that they admitted that.
“It’s only September,” Tressel said.
“We kept fighting, I’m happy with the effort,” said linebacker Jim Laurinaitis, perhaps oblivious to the 35 consecutive points USC scored, a number that could’ve been greater had Trojans coach Pete Carroll wanted to run it up.
Getting rolled by a powerhouse Trojan team, at home in a rowdy L.A. Coliseum on a perfect California night is one thing. Taking a whipping and hardly caring is another.
The Buckeyes have gotten fat and happy in the Midwest and it isn’t just a lack of speed or talent that keeps getting them destroyed nationally. It’s a lack of urgency.
“We’ve got Troy next week,” Laurinaitis said. “We just need to work on getting better.”
Troy? Really, Troy?
“What’s important for us is we roll up our sleeves and go back to work,” said Tressel, whose sweater never has sleeves.
Back in the Midwest, Ohio State’s version of football works wonders. It generally has better talent than opponents and consistently grinds out victory after victory.
It’s everywhere else, against everyone else, that Ohio State can hardly run or throw, tackle or scheme. And there is no way it’s changing unless Tressel begins to admit it.
“We’ve had success but you kind of have to measure success with who you play,” admitted wide receiver Brian Hartline, perhaps the only Buckeye with any emotion postgame.
“We do a great job playing against Big Ten teams but a lot of times, you have to get ready for out of conference. Obviously we haven’t done that very well in the near past.”
What’s the difference?
“I don’t know,” he shrugged. “I really don’t know. I don’t personally see a lot of difference, but there’s got to be something.”
Try everything. This looked like the same shell-shocked program of BCS beatings past. After Florida destroyed them in January 2007, the Bucks showed up again in the title game and promised something different. It was the same, destruction at the hands of LSU.
This year they returned so many starters and so many stars, all of whom promised redemption. USC smacked them around with ease.
Hartline claimed he and his fellow receivers were open, but the offensive line didn’t provide time for quarterbacks Boeckman or Terrelle Pryor to throw. USC had five sacks.
“The ball couldn’t get in the air,” Hartline said.
Meanwhile, the USC line opened holes for C.J. Gable and Joe McKnight to pad their YouTube highlights.
When Ohio State is getting dominated (again) in the trenches, what exactly does this program stand for anymore?
Don’t ask Tressel. Apparently it’s all about fighting hard. Besides, all things considered, he seemed relatively pleased.
After all, they get Troy next week.

Athletes Who Should Wear Their Nicknames

Athletes Who Should Wear Their Nicknames


The fearsome marketing wing of the NFL rose up this weekend and brought the smack down on the receiver formerly known as Chad Johnson. If you missed it, Johnson legally changed his name to become Chad Ocho Cinco, a jarring collision of English, Spanish and poor grammar, no matter which language you prefer. Naturally, Ocho Cinco wanted to wear a jersey with "Ocho Cinco" on the back, but the League refused, saying Mr. Cinco had a "financial obligation" to Reebok, which probably doesn’t want to be left with a few thousand irrelevant "JOHNSON 85" jerseys sitting around their warehouse.
It's all light and fun, until you consider that Señor Ocho Cinco may no longer even be good enough (he had a whopping 1 catch on Sunday) to warrant a (self-imposed) nickname on his jersey. Here are my top five players who should have been allowed to wear their nickname on their jerseys ...

1. MAGIC -- These days he goes by Mr. Johnson, but a Laker jersey with MAGIC across the back would be a huge seller.

2. TO -- After watching him on Hard Knocks all fall, I fell like we’re seeing a different Terrell Owens than the one who fractured teams and had to have his stomach pumped. Maybe he should celebrate by rocking a nickname on his shirt.

3. HUSTLE -- Pete Rose was commonly known as Charlie Hustle -- imagine the popularity of a jersey with HUSTLE across the back, particularly in hip-hop videos.

4. REFRIGERATOR -- William Perry came along about two decades early.

5. THREE FINGER -- Mordecai Brown was better known as "Three Finger" Brown, one of the coolest and strangest nicknames ever.

Ohio State does have a chance at USC

Ohio State does have a chance at USC



Contrary to what you might have heard, Ohio State has not gone ahead and forfeited Saturday's game at USC. In spite of their recent drop in the AP poll, in spite of an ever-swelling Vegas spread (11 points as of this writing) and in spite of an ESPN survey that indicated 75 percent of you think they might as well not bother, the Buckeyes are still planning to board their flight to Los Angeles.
Therefore, I will still answer your questions about the game.
Why is everyone making such a big deal over Ohio State's mediocre win over Ohio? Teams get caught looking ahead to a big game all the time.
What "big deal" are you referring to?
Ohio State, Notre Dame and Michigan all had close games against supposedly inferior competition last weekend. Michigan lost to Utah the week before, and ND's opponent [San Diego State] lost to an FCS team, so I can see why the Irish and Michigan are unranked. But based on the play we've seen on the field so far, shouldn't Ohio State be at the bottom of the top 25 at best?
Oh -- that.
If you subscribe to the theory that, once the season starts, poll rankings should be determined solely by on-field performance, than yes, I suppose the Buckeyes would not be all that high on the list. But you'd also have to place East Carolina at No. 1. With all due respect to the Pirates, do you really think they're better than USC or Georgia? And by the same token, do you really think there are 24 teams out there better than the Buckeyes? I'm all about rewarding on-field performance -- but I'm an advocate of common sense, too.
The OSU-Ohio U. game did not trouble me nearly as much as it seemed to do to the rest of the country, mostly because, like Ryan said, I've seen the same thing happen a thousand times before. The scrappy mid-major, for whom the game is their de facto BCS championship, comes out playing with their hair on fire. The complacent hosts come out playing like they'd rather be home watching USC tape. At halftime, when the Bobcats led 7-6 and my editor was already in full-on freak-out mode, I told him, relax, Ohio State will end up winning 26-7. If not for that botched snap into the end zone, that's exactly what the score would have been.
But the reality is, OSU is playing under a microscope this season unlike that of any other team in the country. With the backlash that's arisen from their recent BCS debacles, the Buckeyes' many critics are already on the lookout for any little chink in the armor. For it to come the week before the USC game? Dear almighty -- better start ringing the alarms.
The one obvious concern for Ohio State right now is the guy who spent Saturday cheering from the sideline. Simply put: No Beanie, no victory this weekend. And I'm sure his absence played a role in last week's result. Take away Knowshon Moreno from Georgia or Sam Bradford from Oklahoma and their victories last weekend would not have been nearly as lopsided, either.
How much do you think Ohio State changed their game plan and/or kept one hand or more tied behind their backs against their first two opponents in anticipation of the game with USC? If so, do you think it will throw off Pete Carroll and his staff?
Not in the slightest. While it's always possible the Buckeyes -- like any team -- has a trick play or two in its back pocket, there's not much secret as to what they like to do. They're going to hand off to Beanie. They're going to throw several deep balls off the play-action. And their defense is going to put pressure on Mark Sanchez. That's what they do. Carroll need only watch tape from last season to figure that out.
Could we see the Buckeyes rely more on the shotgun and spread formations to help neutralize USC's pass rush? Quite possibly. Could we see some secret Terrelle Pryor package? Not likely. (Jim Tressel isn't one to throw a freshman quarterback into the heat.) Either way, Carroll has assuredly dusted off tape from the Troy Smith era to cover every angle. Tressel's teams have never been about "trickeration" -- he's more of an "execution" guy. "Everyone knows that [the Trojans] are a great team," he said, "but the key to the game for us will be us. We'll see which team is better."
Here's the bottom line, guys and gals: USC is the favorite, and rightfully so, but the teams are not that far apart talent-wise, if at all. One reason it may appear that way is because of the Trojans' plethora of flashy skill players, but this game will be determined first and foremost in the trenches.
Clearly, USC's young offensive line was not properly tested against Virginia. Sanchez said he had so much time in the pocket, "it was like we were grilling steaks back there." If Ohio State can get to Sanchez, he won't be as likely to pick apart this secondary. He may even throw a couple of picks. Tressel's teams often win these kinds of games off a couple of turnovers and/or big special teams plays.
On the flip side, we've all seen how the Buckeyes' O-line failed to handle the speedy defensive fronts of Florida and LSU the past couple of years. USC is every bit as fast, if not faster. If the same thing happens this time -- that 11-point spread will end up looking kind.

Are there other games this weekend?

The Entire Chuck Liddell vs Rashad Evans UFC Fight

The Entire Liddell v's Evans Fight. Liddell gets the shit knocked out of him. Great Video!

OHIO STATE Facing a CALIFORNIA Nightmare

Ohio State facing California nightmare
Buckeyes, fellow Big Ten 'power' Badgers have huge concernsBy John Walters
NBCSports.com
Travel Alert: We here at the NBC Sports Meteorological Center feel compelled to issue a bellwether advisory for Big Ten schools traveling to California next weekend. While much of the east and gulf coasts were threatened by hurricanes last Saturday (as was Gainesville, at least for three quarters), the Golden State will produce pockets of high-pressure defenses and avalanches of scoring next weekend.
Ohio State and Wisconsin, we mean you. You are the top two teams in the Big Ten -- or at least were thought to be so prior to the season; Penn State appears to be better, but we will suspend judgement until they engage a worthy opponent outside the Nittany Lions’ den. But you two are a combined 4-0 without having left campus or having played anyone from a BCS conference.
Buckle up, Buckeyes and Badgers, as your nascent undefeated seasons are about to experience a significant degree of turbulence. This coming Saturday Ohio State, fresh off a 26-14 defeat of Ohio (a team that many observers feel is at least the 7th- or 8th-best in the Mid-American Conference, so there), visits Southern California in prime time. Two and a half hours later and roughly 220 miles north, Wisconsin will kick it off at Fresno State, a school that has not hosted a top 10 opponent in seven years (a 44-24 upset win over No. 10 Oregon State in 2001).
California, here you come. Are you both ready? We should mention that, while it is very early, out-of-state visitors are a combined 0-3 in California this season and two of them—Tennessee, which played at UCLA, and Oregon State, which played at Stanford—entered as favorites. Your upcoming foes, USC and Fresno State, respectively, have already trekked cross-country and stamped “Done Before New Year’s” labels on their hosts. The Trojans ravaged Virginia, 52-7, while the Bulldogs clamped down on Rutgers, 24-7.
Ohio State-USC looked to be, from an August forecast, the game of the season. The Buckeyes, the first runners-up in the last two BCS championship games, returned nine starters from a defense that finished first in the nation a year ago. The best of them, middle linebacker James Laurinaitis, is either the best defensive player in the country or the best one who does not know the lyrics to “Fight On!” Ohio State returned just as many players on offense, including magnificent tailback Chris “Beanie” Wells, while adding everyone’s most mouth-watering recruit, dual-threat quarterback Terrelle Pryor.
So what happened on Saturday in Columbus? How did a supposedly Top 5 team find itself trailing 14-12 in the 4th quarter against a bottom-half MAC opponent? The Buckeyes pulled out Saturday’s stinker thanks to a pair of special teams plays—one of them a 69-yard punt return with 5:57 remaining by Ray Small—and by intercepting the Bobcats four times (Ohio QB Boo Jackson is no Bo Jackson).
“That was pathetic. It was a pathetic performance,” said Buckeye wideout Brian Hartline, displaying a refreshing candor that other storied Midwestern programs might do well to emulate. “OU should’ve won the game.”
Ohio State was without its Heisman candidate, Beanie Wells, who injured his ankle on a non-contact injury during the 43-0 season-opening win versus Youngstown State. But Wells absence does not negate the fact that the Buckeyes gained just 18 more total yards than the Bobcats did in the Horseshoe. And, as they prepare to face a USC defense that may just be the best of the decade, never mind the season, head coach Jim Tressel should be very concerned.
“'It kind of looked like (what it) might look like between your opener and your big 'national stage game,” said Tressel, explaining his team’s flat performance.
That may be true, but so is this axiom about September performances: The truly special teams get after it. Penn State, for example, which may in fact be the best team in the Big Ten, outscored Coastal Carolina and Oregon State 111-27. Right now Joe Paterno’s team would appear to pose a much stiffer challenge to the Trojans.
The cold, hard fact is that the most compelling game in college football takes place each week and is not televised. That “game” is any USC scrimmage between the first-team defense and the first-team offense. Ohio State may be far more focused when they emerge from the tunnel at the Coliseum on Saturday evening, but the win against Ohio planted seeds of self-doubt into the minds of every Buckeye player. They may not admit such, but it did.
Also, while Beanie Wells may be fully healthy by next Saturday, USC linebackers Rey Maualuga, Brian Cushing and Clay Matthews take on the nation’s deepest stable of tailbacks each week in practice. The USC defense is fast and tenacious—not unlike Florida’s defense in ’06 and LSU’s last season.
One final note on this matchup: No team is looser than USC during its Friday walk-through at a stadium. During the Trojans’ walk-through in Charlottesville on August 29, the Cavalier players emerged from the tunnel, marched up the sideline, and engaged in a good old-fashioned staredown with USC.
52-7, Trojans.
You can bet that Coach Tressel will ensure that none of his players say or do anything this week to rile up the Trojans.
Heading northbound on I-5, we come to The Valley. Fresno State, home of Pat Hill and the Bulldogs. Last September Wisconsin visited UNLV and only won by a touchdown against a Runnin’ Rebel team that would win two games all season. Such an effort will not suffice this time around. The Badgers may be 17-0 at Camp Randall Stadium under Bielema, but they have also lost three of their past four games on the road. And they enter this game with a quarterback, Allan Evridge, whose last road start came in November of 2005 at Nebraska when he was a freshman quarterback at Kansas State. Evridge was 0-3 in his road starts as a Wildcat.
This game, though, will come down to who runs the ball better. Wisconsin tailback P.J. Hill has carried the ball 44 times in two games, averaging 133.5 yards a contest. But that was versus Akron and Marshall. Fresno State sophomore Ryan Mathews had 163 yards and three touchdowns at Rutgers.
On the season’s opening weekend a very good Michigan State team traveled to California and lost to Cal, 38-31. This coming Saturday two more Big Ten schools, each of them with designs on a BCS bowl if not more, head west. It may be worth noting that the Donner party—the original ill-fated California-bound pilgrims—originated in Big Ten country, Springfield, Ill.
And it may be best for the Big Ten, no matter how entertaining it is for the rest of us, if in the future the conference restricts its California visits to the first week in January.