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Cats lay claim to role of favorite

admin — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 12:51:29 +0000

NEW ORLEANS — Finally, genuine NCAA Tournament electricity came to the Crescent City.

Vols now have sweet opportunity

admin — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 12:47:01 +0000

The NCAA Midwest Regional bracket may have opened up with the elimination of No. 1 seed Kansas, but UT wasn’t willing to look ahead just yet.
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New attitude brings big gains for Giles

admin — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 12:45:28 +0000

The tailback who South Carolina coaches and fans believe will change the direction of the Gamecocks’ running game was at Williams-Brice Stadium on Saturday for the first spring scrimmage. So was the tailback who arrived with similar expectations last year.

And with incoming freshman Marcus Lattimore looking on, Jarvis Giles showed he plans to be more of a factor in his second SEC season.

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All eyes on the QBs

admin — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 12:44:27 +0000

COLUMBIA — Stephen Garcia didn’t have to look over his shoulder last year. The job as South Carolina quarterback was all his. Now, though, it’s as if the coaching staff is putting a mirror in front of him, just so Garcia knows where freshman Connor Shaw is in relation to his heels.
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Midwest Regional: Tennessee ends Ohio’s Cinderella run

admin — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 12:43:25 +0000

Tennessee shattered one glass slipper and slipped into another Saturday afternoon in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament.
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Drew drives a stake through MSU’s heart

admin — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 12:42:34 +0000

Layup with 8.2 seconds left lifts Tar Heels to win
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LSU football: Defense ‘crisp’ in spring scrimmage

admin — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 12:40:58 +0000

Coach Les Miles bothered by offensive penalties
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Cats played like championship team in win over Wake Forest

admin — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 12:40:25 +0000

By LARRY VAUGHT
NEW ORLEANS — Kentucky hasn’t won the national championship yet, but the Wildcats certainly are playing like a championship team.
The Wildcats broke away from a 19-19 tie with Wake Forest here Saturday night with one of their most impressive performances of the season to win 90-60 and advance to the NCAA Sweet [...]
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Georgia football: Mobility at quarterback has Richt excited

admin — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 12:39:48 +0000

Moving pocket, key runs on the agenda
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Florida football: ‘Independent’ CB Josh Shaw ready to make instant impact for Gators

admin — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 12:38:58 +0000

GAINESVILLE – Josh Shaw has no connection to the state of Florida, not even a distant relative.

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ALABAMA FOOTBALL: Four key areas to watch in spring

admin — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 12:37:28 +0000

TUSCALOOSA — There aren’t as many questions facing Alabama’s football program as there were a year ago in spring practice. But finding the answers is just as crucial if the Crimson Tide plan to add more hardware to their trophy case this fall.
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AU FOOTBALL: Ten players to keep an eye on this spring

admin — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 12:36:35 +0000

Jobs aren’t necessarily won during spring football, but a strong first impression certainly doesn’t hurt.
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Alabama football: Stadium construction ahead of schedule

admin — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 12:35:21 +0000

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The quiet of spring break on the University of Alabama campus was broken only by the sound of a few swinging cranes and the movement of construction workers Friday afternoon.
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Like it or not, Kentucky playing like new tournament favorite

admin — Sun, 21 Mar 2010 12:33:59 +0000

NEW ORLEANS—There was Kansas on the television, dying the slowest death since Arnold Schwarzenegger in “The Terminator,” and Kentucky coach John Calipari immediately recognized that was the last thing his Wildcats needed to see before their own second-round NCAA Tournament game.

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NCAA Tournament Is What It Is – Just Perfect

admin — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 13:19:59 +0000

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Anybody out there still think the NCAA Tournament field should be expanded to 96?

Hello? Anybody?

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Donovan Is The Answer To St. John’s Coaching Needs

admin — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 13:17:02 +0000

St. John’s athletic director Chris Monasch said the magic words Friday when he spoke about the future of the basketball program at the Big East school in the wake of the Norm Roberts firing. Monasch said the university was ready to make a commitment to hire someone who would be one of the top-25 paid coaches in the country.

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Battle Of The Blurs

admin — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 13:11:45 +0000

NEW ORLEANS — Wake Forest forward Al-Farouq Aminu couldn’t fathom a faster player than his teammate, point guard Ishmael Smith.

“I think ‘Ish’ might be the fastest person I’ve ever seen in real life,” he said on Friday.

Kentucky point guard John Wall, certainly no cartoon figure although his exploits this season tested the bounds of credulity, might give Aminu a new perspective on speed when the teams play in the NCAA Tournament second round Saturday night.

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Ex-Vanderbilt star impresses NFL scouts

admin — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 13:08:28 +0000

Cornerback Myron Lewis made another good impression at Vanderbilt Pro Day on Friday, and according to one pro scout may be a better prospect than his former teammate D.J Moore.
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Vanderbilt hit the wall in March

admin — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 13:07:42 +0000

With three losses in its last four games, Vanderbilt went into March like a lion but went out like the proverbial lamb.
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Rebels’ Terrico White burns Tigers

admin — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 13:05:40 +0000

Even before Friday’s second-round NIT game between Ole Miss and Memphis, Rebels sophomore guard Terrico White looked around a loud and fairly packed Tad Smith Coliseum. “The crowd is crazy,” he said. “That’s pretty good.”
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Vols take aim at yet another conference champion

admin — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 13:03:53 +0000

Tennessee has defeated SEC champion Kentucky, Big 12 kingpin Kansas, Atlantic Sun winner East Tennessee State University and Mountain West Conference victor San Diego State. The Vols (26-8) play yet another league champion, Ohio (22-14) in the Dunkin’ Donuts Center today with a trip to the Sweet 16 regional in St. Louis on the line.
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Georgia football: Love looks to make up for lost time

admin — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 13:01:29 +0000

Healthy at last, he’s ready to play
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Gators cornerback Jeremy Brown glad to be back on practice field

admin — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 13:00:19 +0000

GAINESVILLE – Coach Urban Meyer isn’t the only Gator making a return to the field this spring after battling health issues.

Redshirt sophomore cornerback Jeremy Brown is back on the practice field after missing all of last season with a back injury.

“[There were] long nights, couldn’t sleep. It was excruciating pain,” Brown said. “I almost thought I was done. There were times when we were talking about that, but I’m 100 percent now.”

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Auburn basketball: Tubby Smith says he is happy at Minnesota

admin — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 12:59:19 +0000

Says Auburn rumor ‘just talk’
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SEC West Headlines – 3/19/10

John — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 16:03:21 +0000

1. Former Alabama cornerback Kareem Jackson’s NFL draft stock is soaring.

2. Minnesota athletic director Joel Maturi said yesterday that he can’t afford to give Tubby Smith a raise above his current $1.75 million per year salary. Are you listening, Jay Jacobs?

3. Maturi said he’s “heard the rumors” that AU might be interested in Smith, “but I haven’t gotten the call.” Minnesota plays Xavier today… and Maturi isn’t happy about the timing of rumors connecting Smith to both Auburn and Oregon.

4. LSU’s Stefoin Francois is following in Harry Coleman’s footsteps and moving from safety to linebacker.

5. New right tackle Alex Hurst says the Tigers’ offensive line is “starting to pick it up.”

6. North Carolina’s Roy Williams says Rick Stansbury is “a big-time quality coach.”

7. Williams said his team is happy to still be playing. (Even if it means playing in Starkville at noon ET tomorrow?)

8. No introductions will be necessary when Ole Miss and Memphis hook up this evening in the NIT.

9. Tad Smith Coliseum hasn’t been “home sweet home” for Andy Kennedy’s club this season.

10. The Rebels have a deeper bench than the Tigers.

11. Speaking of Memphis, it’s looking like their appeal of NCAA sanctions will be denied. So if John Calipari wants a Final Four to appear officially on his resume, he’s going to need to reach one with Kentucky.

12. Even after his horrible season last year, one group still ranks Jevan Snead as the #7 quarterback prospect in their year’s draft.

SEC East Headlines – 3/19/10

John — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 15:29:35 +0000

With four SEC East schools in action yesterday, there will be a lot more East Division headlines than West Division headlines.

That said, here goes…

1. Double-overtime meant double the pain for Florida, which lost to BYU 99-92 in yesterday’s first round.

2. Senior Dan Werner said, “We left it all out there, and that’s all you can ask.”

3. Ultimately the Gators didn’t have the depth they needed to advance.

4. Billy Donovan said his team had its chances.

5. Urban Meyer seems to love freshman receiver Solomon Patton.

6. Speaking of Meyer, this writer says he can’t get upset when reporters ask about his health… he was the one who scared “his players and UF fans.” She’s right, too.

7. Tim Tebow hasn’t decided whether to attend the NFL draft or not. (Don’t do it, Tim. You don’t want to be Aaron Rodger-ed.)

8. Josh Davis — returning from offseason surgeries to both shoulders — will be the key to Georgia’s O-line success.

9. New secondary coach Scott Lakatos is embracing the southern lifestyle. (I’m tempted to ask if he’s moved into a double-wide, but as a southerner, I’d find that offensive. D’oh.)

10. Here’s a practice report from yesterday’s work in Athens.

11. Richard Samuel has changed positions again… this time going from outside linebacker to inside.

12. Defensive line coach Rodney Garner is having to make a lot of adjustments as the system and coaches around him have changed.

13. Thanks to some really stupid/careless Georgia fans who trashed their own campus last year, UGA is putting in some tough tailgating rules for everyone.

14. The Junkyard Blawg says Mark Richt disagreed with him on a point he didn’t make. (Which, given my dealings with the Junkyard Blawg, I find pretty ironic.)

15. Mark Fox says that Travis Leslie has told him he’ll be back at Georgia next year.

16. Kentucky’s 100-71 win over ETSU was such a yawner that fans were seen sleeping in the stands.

17. UK used a barrage of three-pointers to sink the Buccaneers.

18. Eric Bledsoe drained 9-of-11 shots and if he keeps shooting like that, the Cats have just added “a dangerous new dimension.”

19. DeMarcus Cousins got a marriage proposal from a fan during yesterday’s game.

20. It had been a long time coming, but Patrick Patterson’s first NCAA tournament game was worth the wait.

21. South Carolina’s running back corps is ready to welcome in hotshot tailback prospect Marcus Lattimore.

22. Carolina’s offense has been all no-huddle through three spring practices.

23. USC’s is looking for deeper kickoffs — and possibly a new kicker — in 2010.

24. Bruce Pearl was proud of his team’s effort in a gritty, ugly 62-59 win over San Diego State yesterday.

25. The Vols got an unexpected boost from backup point guard Melvin Goins who sank four of five treys… including the game-winner.

26. UT’s players were glad to give Pearl a nice present on his 50th birthday.

27. It was yet another scrappy win for Tennessee.

28. Derek Dooley said his quarterbacks have a “long way to go” but yesterday was a good first day of practice.

29. A day after saying former tight end/receiver Brandon Warren hadn’t approached him about returning, Dooley said the he “forgot” that he had indeed had a conversation with Warren.

30. Dooley also said that running back Bryce Brown isn’t necessarily done at Tennessee just yet…

31. But it doesn’t sound likely that he’ll return.

32. Jeffery Taylor said that Vanderbilt’s 66-65 last-second loss to Murray State was “just heartbreaking.”

33. To make matters worse, the SEC’s best foul-shooting squad hit just 17 of 29 free throw attempts yesterday.

34. Murray State’s buzzer-beating shot was “a miracle play” according to coach Billy Kennedy.

35. President Barack Obama might have lost some votes in Nashville by picking Murray State, but he did help his bracket.

Auburn Going After Tubby?

John — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 14:57:03 +0000

Last week, Auburn athletic director Jay Jacobs warned Tiger fans that his search for a new basketball coach would probably take weeks, not days.

Early, early this morning Dennis Dodd of CBSSports.com announced that AU is “close to hiring” Tubby Smith.

Maybe this is just smoke. Auburn’s search for a football coach in 2008 was all over the map. And Gene Chizik’s name came out of nowhere late.

Or, perhaps Jacobs found Smith to be more interested than he might have thought… thus pushing up his timeline.

Either way, if Auburn is wooing Smith, then Auburn is prepared to spend for a winner. Good for Auburn.

Charles Goldberg of The Birmingham News reports that “people familiar with the search process say the university is willing to significantly increase what it has paid former coaches in order to attract someone with a proven track record to replace Jeff Lebo.”

It’s rumored that Auburn might be willing to spend as much as $2 million per year for the right coach. (Jeff Lebo — who was the lowest-paid coach in the conference at $750,000 last year — must love hearing that.)

Last week we wrote that Auburn should do just that — find someone with a proven track record, and not just someone who’d put together one hot tournament run. How they went about that would depend upon their willingness to pay.

If they’re talking Tubby cash, then they’re not going to have to go to a smaller school to grab someone. Maybe.

Auburn is still Auburn. Even with a new arena set to open next year, the Tiger gig is not a plum job. At least not now. It has been a coach’s graveyard since Sonny Smith’s days. Fan support is lacking.

Some coaches — even if offered lots of cool cash — might not take the job. That’s what makes Smith an interesting target/rumor. Smith has coached at Georgia and Kentucky. After departing Lexington he landed in Minnesota. While the Gophers have more tradition than the Tigers, it’s possible that Smith would simply like to work his way back down south, back to a league he’s familiar with.

Smith would be a tremendous upgrade for Auburn. He is respected by fellow coaches and, most importantly, by the media. The Tigers would get some nice plugs from the ESPN talking heads if they land him.

The move would signal a new dedication to the basketball program. And it would trump Alabama’s hire of up-and-comer Anthony Grant last year. Don’t think AU wouldn’t like to have a bigger “name” coach than Bama.

The mere mention of Smith’s name in connection with the Auburn job is a win for the Tiger program. And if these rumors turn out to be true… all the better.

At the very least, AU fans have reason to believe this morning that their school is searching for a proven winner and that it’s willing to pay for one.

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Richt Takes On The Junkyard Blawg

John — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 14:02:31 +0000

You normally don’t hear of Mark Richt disagreeing publicly with media folks. And if he was going to get upset over something someone wrote, I’d have put my money on Mark Bradley or Jeff Schultz being the author.

But it was actually their fellow AJC writer Bill King and his “Junkyard Blawg” that Richt referenced after practice yesterday.

Mr. King had written that Georgia’s thinking “seems kinda fuzzy” when it comes to using quarterback Logan Gray to return punts.

After his Q&A session with reporters yesterday, Richt brought up that post to the rest of the media.

“I usually don’t ever read a blog, but I read the blog about Logan Gray catching punts.” Richt said he wanted to “try to educate whoever cares that when Logan is back there — I tried to explain it the other day — it’s at a time when our opponent is punting it in. It’s a pooch kick. Our defense — our punt return team — is in punt safe to keep them from faking the punt because they’re across the 50-yard line.

“All Logan is doing is making a decision whether it should be a fair catch or let the ball hit. The fine gentleman who writes the blog, I don’t think he understood that very much, but I just thought maybe if everybody got educated on that a little bit better, they’d understand why Logan would do that. He was 100 percent last year on making those decisions and never bobbled the ball. I think that’s not a hard thing for him to do and we’re not expecting him to return the punt because those punts don’t get returned. There’s no return set up.”

Well. That was interesting for a couple of reasons.

1. Richt feels the need to explain to fans what he’s actually doing with Gray. That’s a good thing. Making sure fans know what’s going on is a good thing.

2. That he chose to single out the blog and admit that he reads it. While the rebuke won’t help Mr. King’s reputation with those folks who expect perfection from the media, it does show that he’s well read. “Read the blog Mark Richt reads!”

On a sidenote, I’d suggest that Richt not get sideways with The Junkyard Blawg. Mr. King always makes a point to defend Richt against the coach’s detractors… even when they’re not really detractors.

Ole Miss-Memphis A Hot Ticket In Oxford

John — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 13:34:06 +0000

A crowd of about 3,000 people chose to attend Ole Miss’ first-round NIT game with Troy on Wednesday. That won’t be the case when the Rebels host Memphis at 6:30pm ET in today’s second round.

All general admission tickets are already sold out.

The game is expected to be an up-tempo affair with a couple of Rebels (Terrico White and Reggie Buckner) facing off against their hometown team. It will be fast. It will be heated.

It will also be the first meeting between the teams since 2006. And Memphis and Oxford are little more than an hour apart, in case you’re wondering.

If you want to catch what should be a dang entertaining game, you can view it on ESPN2.

Wait. Did I just suggest you watch an NIT game instead of the NCAA tournament? Sorry. My bad.

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About Those Seeds…

John — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 13:25:06 +0000

Remember all the talk about seeding for much of the week? Tennessee fans filled the ol’ inbox wondering why their school had been dropped to a six seed. “How is Vanderbilt a #4 while we’re a #6?”

What’s everybody saying about seeding now?

The #4 seed Commodores were bounced by #13 Murray State. It was the second time in its last two tourney appearances that Vandy has lost to a #13 in the first round.

Meanwhile, #6 seed Tennessee survived a scare from #11 San Diego State but gets #14 seed Ohio in the second round. No #3 Georgetown, a below-.500 MAC club instead. Beat Ohio and Tennessee would likely face #2 seed Ohio State. Had they gotten that #4 seed, they’d be looking at a Sweet Sixteen date with #1 seed Kansas.

Which seed looks better now? Think Vandy wouldn’t have preferred a matchup with San Diego State? Think UT would want to face Murray State?

And that’s why I don’t believe any fanbase should cry too much (though most do) when they’re favorite team lands a seed one or two slots lower than expected. The tourney has a funny way of working things out on its own. Seven upsets yesterday prove that.

With UT Win, SEC Goes 2-2 On Day 1

John — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 12:49:50 +0000

With Tennessee’s 62-59 win over San Diego State last night, the Southeastern Conference wrapped up the day at 2-2. It wasn’t the kind of performance the league was looking for, but it could have been worse.

As we showed you all week leading up to the tournament, many national analysts believed Kentucky would be the only SEC club standing at the end of yesterday’s action. They were almost right.

Florida fell to Brigham Young to get things started. Next Vanderbilt was upset on a buzzer-beater by Murray State of the OVC. After an expected UK win, Tennessee had to hold off #11 seed San Diego State which had a chance to tie on a last-second three-pointer.

Had the Aztecs pulled the shocker — and that was THE vogue pick for a first-round upset — the SEC would have really had some egg on its face.

As it stands, the league actually has a pretty good shot at having two teams reach the Sweet Sixteen.

Kentucky will face Wake Forest at 8:15pm ET on Saturday. Wake (a #9 seed) came from behind to slip past Texas in overtime last night. Having played in a power conference and been on the NCAA stage many times before, it’s doubtful that the Demon Deacons will be intimidated by the name on UK’s jerseys. Still, it would be a major, major upset for the Wildcats to lose.

Tennessee will play at 3:35pm ET against Ohio. The #14 seed Bobcats whipped up on Georgetown yesterday. If Ohio can repeat their 13-of-23 shooting performance from three-point range they might just take down Tennessee, too. But if you look at their full body of work, Ohio is a much more desirable opponent for the Vols than the Hoyas would have been. Ohio was just 20-14 coming into the tourney and had to win the MAC tournament to get a bid.

If the SEC can land two teams in the Sweet Sixteen it would constitute a respectable performance for a league that just had four teams invited.

But if the SEC wants to impress folks around the country, it needs Kentucky and Tennessee to not only reach the next round… but the one after that. If two league schools can reach the Elite Eight THEN the SEC might start to regain some national respect.

After Day One, at least that remains a possibility.

(It was a first day that some are calling the best ever thanks to seven upsets by seed out of the 16 games played.)

UK Rolls; SEC Goes To 1-2

John — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 01:42:54 +0000

It took a while but the SEC finally has a win in the 2010 NCAA tournament. Kentucky rolled to a 100-71 win over East Tennessee State in the East Regional tonight.

The Wildcats shot 51% from the field and hit 15-of-33 from three-point range. Eric Bledsoe put on a shooting exhibition. The freshman gunner connected on 9-of-11 overall and 8-of-9 from behind the arc.

Patrick Patterson added 22 and John Wall chipped in 17 for UK.

The win was the first for the SEC today… following losses by Florida and Vanderbilt. If Tennessee can avoid an upset by San Diego State tonight, the league could possibly wind up with a pair of teams in the Sweet Sixteen.

Kentucky was expected to reach that level anyway, but now the Volunteers’ path has been made easier. Ohio upset #3 Georgetown this evening. So what started off as a bad day, might actually lead to a decent showing in the Sweet Sixteen. If Tennessee can avoid that upset.

RB Brown No Longer On UT’s Team

John — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 22:56:51 +0000

Yesterday, Tennessee’s Derek Dooley said that running back Bryce Brown had not approached him about possibly transferring. He indicated that he had spoken with Brown many times, but that that subject had never come up.

That was yesterday.

Brown — the star signee from Lane Kiffin’s one signing class — was a no show for the first day of practice today. “As of now he’s not a part of the team,” Dooley said.

Rumors have swirled in recent days that the former top running back prospect in the nation might be interested in transferring to Kansas State. Brown is from Kansas and his brother recently transferred there from Miami.

Brown was expected to be Tennessee’s top tailback this fall, replacing the graduated Montario Hardesty. Not now it appears.

Murray State Buzzer-Beater Sinks Vandy; SEC 0-2

John — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 20:57:40 +0000

A buzzer-beating shot — literally — from Murray State’s Danero Thomas has knocked Vanderbilt out of the NCAA tournament in the first round. Again.

The #4 seed Commodores were bounced 66-65 by the #13 seed Racers. Two years ago, it was another #13 seed (Siena) that evicted Vandy in the tourney’s first round.

The loss is a stunning way for one of Vanderbilt’s best-ever seasons to end. VU hung with Kentucky in the SEC East race for much of the season, but today’s loss was Vandy’s third in its last four games.

Freshman John Jenkins led the Commodores with 13 points. AJ Ogilvy finished with 12 points and 8 rebounds.

The loss is a gut-punch for the SEC. The league was hoping to gain some respect today, but already two of the conference’s schools are heading home.

The baton will now be passed to Kentucky and Tennessee who play later tonight.

The fact that Vandy — a team that went 12-4 in SEC play — has already been ousted doesn’t say much for the overall strength of the conference. So far the Mountain West Conference and the Ohio Valley Conference have looked stronger in the day’s head-to-head matchups. So if you have UK or UT going a long way in your office pool, you might want to find a rabbit’s foot to rub.

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Long Gone Gators; BYU Tops Florida In 2 OT

admin — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 19:12:26 +0000

If Florida was going to upset off #7 seed BYU, stopping one-man gang Jimmer Fredette would be key. Even though the Gators forced the Cougars into double-overtime, Fredette poured in 37 points and BYU got the win, 99-92.

Backup guard Michael Lloyd Jr. also surprised the Gators with 26 points of his own.

The Gators came back from a 12-point deficit with less than 10 minutes to play in regulation. But their shots to win the game at the end of regulation and at the end of the first overtime wouldn’t fall.

While UF was the underdog, it’s still not the start to the NCAA tournament that the SEC wanted/needed. The league is out for respect and close losses won’t help on that front.

The SEC will get another shot at the Mountain West tonight when Tennessee faces San Diego State. For now the tally is MWC 1, SEC 0.

All Four SEC Teams In NCAA Tourney Action Today

John — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 16:14:37 +0000

If many bracket gurus are correct, this could be a bad day for the SEC. Florida, Vanderbilt and Tennessee have all been mentioned numerous times as being vulnerable in today’s first round action.

But today could be the day the SEC starts to regain some national respect. A four-for-four would be a nice showing for a league that quite frankly hasn’t been up to its usual basketball standards the past two years.

By this time tomorrow, we’ll know if the SEC is on the rebound… or tumbling further.

10 Florida vs 7 BYU
12:20pm ET
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
West Region

13 Murray State vs 4 Vanderbilt
2:30pm ET
San Jose, California
West Region

16 East Tennessee State vs 1 Kentucky
7:15pm ET
New Orleans, Louisiana
East Region

11 San Diego State vs 6 Tennessee
9:45pm ET,
Providence, Rhode Island
Midwest Region

SEC East Headlines – 3/18/10

John — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 15:40:25 +0000

1. This writer has had some success picking tourney winners… and he’s tabbing Kentucky this time around.

2. DeMarcus Cousins admits that his mental approach has been a bigger issue than his basketball skills.

3. Every game is big now for the Cats.

4. UK still has two areas of concern.

5. Patrick Patterson has been hiding out for fear of a freak non-basketball injury costing him a shot at the NCAA tournament.

6. Kentucky’s players know that some of them won’t be back around for another NCAA shot next year.

7. John Calipari is a finalist for national coach of the year honors.

8. Calipari’s tournament theme is “Land the plane.”

9. The NFL draft stock is rising for former Wildcats Corey Peters and Alfonso Smith.

10. Florida tips off the NCAA tourney against BYU shortly after noon ET today.

11. Dan Werner’s career has come full circle.

12. To advance, the Gators have to shut down BYU guard Jimmer Fredette.

13. UF’s players want to make some noise in the tourney.

14. It’s going to take time for Florida’s new defensive assistants to get on the same page.

15. Quarterback John Brantley said Urban Meyer was “his same old self” at practice yesterday.

16. Tim Tebow drew some rave reviews at Florida’s Pro Day.

17. Georgia’s offensive players are having to adjust to going against a 3-4 defense in practice.

18. Tiny back Carlton Thomas (5-7) is trying to earn some carries in Athens.

19. Quarterback Aaron Murray is trying to learn from Zach Mettenberger’s mistake.

20. Derek Dooley is focused on his team, not the media and the fans.

21. Dooley is only worried about Tennessee’s roster issues in the short term.

22. All scrimmages and practices will be closed in Knoxville this year.

23. Here are five questions facing UT football.

24. The Vols’ quarterback battle is on.

25. An injured toe cut Eric Berry’s Pro Day short.

26. Tennessee is playing the disrespect card leading up to tonight’s game with San Diego State.

27. Wayne Chism is the last man standing from UT’s “fab five” signing class in 2006.

28. Bruce Pearl wants Tennessee to finally make a long tourney run.

29. If Vanderbilt is to advance past Murray State today, the Commodores will need AJ Ogilvy to be at his best.

30. The Racers have been off for 12 days… does that help them or hurt them?

31. Vandy will have to overcome some tournament inexperience.

32. Bobby Johnson likes his football team’s energy and attitude as spring practice starts in Nashville.

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The SEC Isn’t Talking About The Lane Violation Non-Call

John — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 15:19:58 +0000

Mississippi State fans waiting for a league response to the un-called lane violation in Sunday’s SEC title game probably shouldn’t hold their breath.

SEC spokesman Craig Pinkerton told Kyle Veazey of The Jackson Clarion-Ledger that the league will not comment on any communication “it may or may not have” with a coach about a specific call.

Rick Stansbury also won’t say whether he’s heard from the league regarding the no-call (or regarding his comments about the no-call).

As I’ve said on many occasions, I’m not a conspiracy theorist. I don’t think the officials intentionally ignored the lane violation(s) because the violators were wearing Kentucky blue. I simply think they blew the call.

And that’s exactly what the league should say. “We missed it.” “We normally don’t eye the three-point arc part of the rule too closely.” “In that situation, even our officials watched the ball and took their eyes off of Eric Bledsoe’s feet.” Anything is better than silence.

Keeping quiet and hoping the issue will go away on its own is no way to deal with such a controversial non-call. It only makes the conspiracy theorists dig in with more tenacity.

It also leaves one of the SEC’s 12 member institutions feeling like it got the shaft.

That’s not good. Or right.

So here’s hoping the league simply says, “We blew it.” But as I alluded to earlier… I wouldn’t be holding my breath.

SEC West Headlines 3/18/10

John — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 15:07:21 +0000

1. When you watch the NCAA tournament you’ll see a lot of players from Alabama… who got away from the Tide and Tigers.

2. Former Auburn tailback Ben Tate won’t be changing his lifestyle until the NFL cash starts pouring in.

3. Have you seen Auburn football’s flashy new website?

4. Bobby Petrino is looking forward to seeing his four running backs compete during spring practice. (Arkansas will do some running from the “pistol” formation this year, too.)

5. Ryan Mallett says he feels great. Despite his healing left foot.

6. Les Miles is hoping Stevan Ridley and Richard Murphy can carry the load at running back for LSU.

7. With Ole Miss students on Spring Break, there wasn’t much enthusiasm surrounding last night’s NIT win over Troy.

8. Terrico White’s 27-point night was a pleasant surprise. “Certainly he has the ability to do that, and we’d like to see it every night,” Andy Kennedy said. “Maybe he’s just not ready to do it every night.”

9. The Rebels looked “looser” last night than they did in the SEC tournament.

10. Dexter McCluster is ready to improve on the 40 time he ran at the NFL combine.

11. Mississippi State fans — many of whom believe MSU gets no respect — love the fact that Rick Stansbury is complaining about the missed lane violation call.

12. As expected, tickets for State’s NIT contest with North Carolina are going fast. “Those teams don’t come to Starkville, that’s just the way it is.”

13. In case you missed it, here’s the crotch punch that Dee Bost took in Tuesday’s Jackson State game.

UT Might Have Another Coach With Attitude

John — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 14:12:43 +0000

Derek Dooley didn’t insult any rival coaches. He didn’t take on the SEC commissioner. And he didn’t commit any secondary violations during his press conference marking the open of spring practice.

But he did display a bit of attitude, not unlike Lane Kiffin. Only his disdain seemed to be directed at the Knoxville media.

The Knoxville News Sentinel has posted video of the coach’s remarks and you can judge his demeanor for yourself.

From watching the video, Dooley did seem to be a little short when asked — for the first time — about his policy that requires former Vols to call ahead before dropping in on practice.

His voice rose pretty quickly. He became somewhat animated. All of which begs two questions:

1) Was there press in Ruston, Louisiana to cover Louisiana Tech?

2) How upset will he become when he’s asked about — you know — actual games, plays and coaching decisions?

While it’s been expected that Dooley would run a Nick Saban-like ship in Knoxville, some Tennessee media members were surprised that the new coach took on an adversarial role on Day One.

Judging by the comments beneath The Sentinel’s story, most Volunteer fans had no problem with Dooley’s attitude or his “you’ll get what we want you to get” media plan.

Perhaps they don’t realize that Dooley’s decision to close the doors to his program will leave them with less information about their favorite team.

Then again, this time last year many of those same fans were 100% in love with Kiffin’s attitude and demeanor, too.

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Tebow Looks Good At Pro Day

John — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 13:47:29 +0000

Tim Tebow did his part at Florida’s Pro Day yesterday. He showed off his new throwing motion for the first time and completed passes “all over Florida Field.”

Robbie Andreu of The Gainesville Sun says Tebow “seemed to make a favorable impression” on the NFL scouts in attendance.

But not everyone is buying the QB’s new-and-improved mechanics. “It’s not battle-tested,” said ESPN analyst Todd McShay. “It’s not under fire with defenders all around him, but he certainly showed that he’s taking a step in the right direction.

“He’s not a first-round pick, period. First- and second-round draft picks, you have to hit in today’s NFL consistently with starters, guys who start early. … But even if you love Tim Tebow and think the highest of him possible as an NFL evaluator, it’s still going to be two or three years outside of a couple of plays in a sub package, a Wildcat, short-yardage-type role (before he will be ready to start).”

While McShay doesn’t view Tebow as a first-round guy, the NFL has apparently invited him to attend this year’s draft in New York. Typically only first-round players are invited.

For Tebow, if he’s not taken in Round One, it could be an embarrassing couple of days. Everyone remembers the green room shots of Aaron Rodgers waiting… and waiting… and waiting to be drafted back in 2005.

No Florida fan would want to see Tebow go through that.

But I bet a lot of fans from 11 other SEC schools would.

Meyer Back At UF; Didn’t Run Special Teams Drill

John — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 13:31:11 +0000

Did ESPN’s Ivan Maisel see a “new” Urban Meyer in Gainesville yesterday?

Back on the practice field for the first time since his retirement/non-retirement/leave/mini-vacation, Meyer actually allowed new special teams coordinator DJ Durkin to run a special teams drill.

The old Meyer would have been running that special teams drill… instead of standing by, watching someone else run it. But don’t rush the “he’s changed his methods” stories just yet.

“I didn’t know what to expect,” Meyer said. “Usually I’m more involved in the kicking game, little more involved in the offense. And I will be more involved. I think springtime I’m usually like this. Let these guys coach, and everybody do their job and see what we got. We got four new coaches.”

Meyer bragged about Durkin and the rest of his staff.

But anyone expecting UF’s coach to delegate more of his work to his assistants should probably nix those thoughts. It sounds like Meyer will be the “old” Meyer when the Gators 2010 season rolls around.

Asked if he is back for good, Meyer simply said, “Yeah.”

Mallett’s Scooter Drawing Laughs

John — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 13:10:46 +0000

An LSU fan has started an internet sensation add music to and then posting video of Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett tooling around the UA campus on a device designed to protect his surgically-repaired left foot.

Mallett is well aware of the video, too. He’s been emailed about it several time.

“You’ve got to take it with a grain of salt. There’s going to be people from other teams putting it on the internet. A million people have sent it to me in my email. I just laugh every time. It doesn’t get to me or anything.”

As you can see in the video, the contraption Mallett is having to use is a bit odd looking.

Mallett is off his feet and out of full football action for the next couple of months while his broken foot heals. Mallett is still able to throw.

He expects to be back to full speed by July. Until then, he’ll just be ridin’ dirty.

Ole Miss Moving On In NIT

John — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 12:49:03 +0000

Ole Miss fans were treated to a Terrico White show last night in Oxford. Or should I say the 3,000 that went to UM’s game were treated to a Terrico White show?

White poured in 27 points to lead the Rebels past Troy 84-65 in a more-than-half-empty Tad Smith Coliseum. Ole Miss will now host Memphis at 6:30pm ET tomorrow.

Eniel Polynice also returned to action for Mississippi. Polynice had not played since coming off a one-game suspension for “conduct detrimental to the team.”

SEC West Headlines – 3/17/10

John — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 16:34:14 +0000

Before we get to the headlines today, let me answer an email I got yesterday. “Why do you always put more East stories up than West stories?”

Currently, there are four East teams alive in the NCAA tournament. So obviously there are more stories being written about East Division teams.

And with that…

1. Charles Barkley says he’ll help Auburn athletic director Jay Jacobs with his coach search. But he added, “I don’t pull any strings at Auburn. … If I ran the program Mike Anderson would have the coach last time.”

2. Former Arkansas safety Matt Harris is still dealing with the fact that he missed his last college football game because of a suspension.

3. Mitch Petrus — who took part in yesterday’s Pro Day in Fayetteville — says that Bobby Petrino’s all-business demeanor has helped him prepare for the NFL.

4. LSU held its Pro Day yesterday, too.

5. Ole Miss AD Pete Boone doesn’t believe Andy Kennedy is losing momentum in Oxford. (It’s not a good sign that he’s even having to answer such questions.)

6. Despite having a better season this year than last, UM still saw attendance drop at Rebel basketball games.

7. Troy is “very excited” to be getting a shot at Ole Miss in the NIT tonight.

8. Arizona State was upset last night, which means if the Rebels keep winning the road to Madison Square Garden will go through Oxford.

9. This writer believes Mississippi State is the best team in the NIT field.

10. The Bulldogs were sluggish early in last night’s win over Jackson State. “Considering it was our fourth game in five days, I was proud of the way our guys came out and played.”

11. Dee Bost scored 15 of this 18 points after taking a cheap shot to the groin.

12. Rick Stansbury says the MSU’s next opponent — North Carolina — is still NORTH CAROLINA. “Seven McDonald’s All-Americans. There won’t be no more talented team than what they have.”

SEC East Headlines – 3/17/10

John — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 16:01:02 +0000

1. Mark Richt says Zach Mettenberger needs to regain the trust of his teammates, coaches and fans.

2. Fellow QB competitor Aaron Murray is experimenting with a glove on his throwing hand this spring.

3. Here are some notes from yesterday’s practice in Athens yesterday.

4. UGA held their Pro Day yesterday, too.

5. ETSU has overcome a lot for the right to face #1 seed Kentucky in the NCAA tournament.

6. The President has picked UK into his Final Four… along with Kansas, Kansas State and Villanova.

7. It doesn’t appear that Kentucky fans will take command of New Orleans this week they way they did Nashville last week. (Probably because many fans are saving their cash for a potential trip to Indianapolis in a couple of weeks.)

8. Carolina’s quarterbacks have been working on drills to help them avoid sacks this fall.

9. This writer says Stephen Garcia is becoming more of a leader in Columbia.

10. USC’s coaches will be keeping an eye on these five offensive players this spring.

11. Here’s an early look at what the Cocks’ 2010-11 basketball lineup might look like.

12. Some West Coast Vols are familiar with the players on San Diego State’s team.

13. Vol guard Scotty Hopson is working on his footwork trying to correct a flaw in his shooting motion.

14. This writer thinks Tennessee will bounce back in the NCAA tourney.

15. Vanderbilt could cause problems in the NCAA tournament for teams unfamiliar with their offensive system.

16. John Jenkins knows the Murray State player whose mother was killed in a car accident on Monday.

17. While many experts are picking the Racers to upset the ‘Dores, Murray State coach Billy Kennedy says, “They’re the biggest and most physical team we’ve faced.”

18. As Vandy opens spring practice, Bobby Johnson wants his team to use last year’s terrible record as motivation.

19. You can get live updates from Florida’s Pro Day right here.

20. Needless to say, Tim Tebow will be the focus of the media.

21. Urban Meyer did indeed show up for Pro Day… and Day One of Florida’s spring practice.

SC’s Arrested QB Back At Practice

John — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 15:20:56 +0000

Zach Mettenberger isn’t the only SEC quarterback dealing with a recent arrest. South Carolina backup Aramis Hillary was back at practice yesterday, reinstated to the Gamecock squad.

Hillary was arrested last week on charges of underage drinking and drunkeness. Interestingly, even on something so seemingly small, Hillary has requested a trial by jury.

As for his return to the practice field, Steve Spurrier said, “He got cleared through the athletic director.”

Richt Waiting To Punish Arrested QB

John — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 15:08:34 +0000

It’s been 10 days since sophomore Georgia quarterback Zach Mettenberger was arrested for underage consumption/possession of alcohol, disorderly conduct, obstruction, and two counts of possession of false identification.

Still, no punishment has been announced by Mark Richt.

“I’m disappointed, first off,” Richt said yesterday. “I did spend some time talking to him. There’s a little bit more information that I want to gather before I make a final decision. I would certainly think by the end of the week I’ll have a final decision on what we’re going to do.”

Richt also said the Mettenberger — who was in a 3-man competition for the Bulldogs’ starting job — “knows that he’s dug himself a hole and he wants to climb out. He knows that what has happened this last week is not going to define who he is and define his career. What he does from this point forward will define that.”

Georgia policy dictates that any alcohol-related arrest requires an automatic suspension of 10 percent of the season, which (rounding down) equals one game in football. Richt, however, could make the suspension longer.

The coach pointed out that Mettenberger’s reps in practice have not been cut due to his arrest. While that may be so, it’s hard to imagine his chances for winning the starting job — as the team’s most important leader — haven’t been negatively impacted by his arrest.

Florida Begins Spring Practice, But Will Meyer Be There?

John — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 14:56:17 +0000

Florida kicks off spring practice today and most folks assume Urban Meyer will be on-hand. But not everyone.

Mike Bianchi of The Orlando Sentinel reveals that there is still “a shroud of mystery regarding (Meyer’s) role.”

One Florida official texted Mr. Bianchi to say that the coach’s “formal plans haven’t been announced.”

With the Gators holding their Pro Day today, too, the writer believes Meyer might just sit out the media circus and return in a day or two.

“I would be surprised if UF’s head coach isn’t at practice today,” he writes. “But with Urban Meyer you just never know.”

Pro Day has been delayed until about 11am ET (now) due to rain in Gainesville. So we all must wait to find out if Meyer is back in the saddle or not.

More Confusion Over Lane Violation Rules

John — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 14:41:49 +0000

When Monday morning rolled around, I never dreamed that I would type the words “lane violation” so often this week. But the end of the Kentucky/Mississippi State game on Sunday has folks on both sides of the battle shouting to the heavens.

First came the emails from MSU fans regarding John Wall stepping over the three-point arc on Eric Bledsoe’s “I’m gonna miss this on purpose” free throw attempt.

Then came more MSU emails pointing out that Darnell Dodson was also over the line. And Eric Bledsoe had jumped the gun and stepped over the free throw line, too.

Yesterday, after posting our follow-up to the story — because Rick Stansbury was talking about it — UK fans got in on the action. I received four different emails from folks saying that it was a good “no call” because State’s players on the lane itself all jumped into the paint before the ball hit the rim.

And that’s why I think it’s time for some more clarification. Here’s the deal on lane violations:

1. Players lined up outside the three-point arc (and the extended lanes) cannot cross inside the three-point area (or the extended lanes) until after a free throw attempt has hit the rim. Both Wall and Dodson appear to have done just that. MSU’s Dee Bost might also have jumped the gun on this area. In Stansbury’s view, the whistle should have been blown when Wall crossed the line, so it would not have mattered what Bost did after that point.

If this violation had been called against either UK player, Mississippi State would have been given the basketball with a two-point lead and 4.9 seconds remaining on the clock.

2. The shooter can not step across the foul line until his attempt hits the rim. Bledsoe did. In this case, however, he fired up a lollipop of a shot in order to force a big rebound. He stood his ground for a second before moving forward. I’m guessing the official watched his feet, saw that he didn’t come immediately across the line, and then eyed the ball… thus missing Bledsoe’s violation. Still, this WAS a violation of the rule.

3. Players along the lanes (be they Kentucky or MSU players) can’t go into the paint until the shot has been released from the shooter’s hands. On replay, it looks like the players for both teams waited until after Bledsoe released his shot before they jumped into the paint. So there was no violation. Meaning that this was NOT a good “no call.”

Here’s the video one… more… time.

Hopefully that puts an end to this discussion until the SEC comments on the play… or fines Stansbury for doing so.

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