Maryland 58 – Alabama 57

1. Alabama’s season ends when Trevor Lacey’s shot at the buzzer missed.  Crimson Tide finish 23-13.

2. Lacey: “I think if I shot it again, I’d probably lean into him and try to draw the foul.”

3. Reason for the miss - the ghost of Jarnell Stokes?

4. Kevin Scarbinsky on Alabama basketball: “Better than it used to be. Not as good as it needs to be.”

Fans and media love to overhype things.  We enjoy making grand declarations.  We want definitive answers.  So anytime we can attach the words “once and for all” to something, we do so.

John Calipari has a chance to prove “once and for all” that he’s a great coach tomorrow in New Orleans.  If his Kentucky team defeats Rick Pitino’s Louisville squad — and then wins again on Monday — he’ll be given a key to the Mt. Olympus of college basketball coaches.

If he loses?  Then we’ll know “once and for all” he’s not worth the hype and praise he so often receives.

Folks across the SEC and that nation have been beating that drum all week:


“A loss here not only would be a loss with the best team with a national championship in sight, but a loss to Pitino, of all coaches, at Louisville, of all teams.  It wouldn’t erase what Calipari has accomplished in three years, but it would leave those accomplishments receding quickly.”

– Eric Crawford, The Louisville Courier-Journal


“Bottom line: (Calipari) can’t lose this weekend.  Not Saturday or Monday.  Especially not Saturday.  Not to Rick Pitino.  Calipari has his own aura, but it’s in need of an upgrade that only a national championship can provide…

For all the games he’s won at different program, Calipari doesn’t have any national titles.  It’s time to correct that oversight.  It’s time to win the only game he’s never won.  The one that matters most.  The last one.”

– Kevin Scarbinsky, The Birmingham News


Personally, I like both of those writers’ work.  And I obviously understand where they’re coming from.  As noted above, we as a people love “all the marbles” type games.

But win or lose, Calipari’s career won’t end on Saturday or Monday.  He’ll coach another season.  And then another.  And then another.

We want the race to be run yesterday.  But to quote “Ben Hur,” the race goes on.

Take for example the 2009 Indianapolis Colts.  As they were preparing to face the New Orleans Saints in the Super Bowl, the national ESPN-driven theme of the week went something like this: “If Peyton Manning wins his second Super Bowl he’ll be the best quarterback ever.” 

But what if he’d gone back to the big game five more times and lost them all to finish with a 2-5 Super Bowl mark?  Think folks would still be saying “best ever?”

Ask Tom Brady.  He was 3-0 in Super Bowls and now, having lost two — one in the final minute and one on a failed Hail Mary pass — he’s written off as just another good quarterback. 

But what if Brady reaches five more Super Bowls and wins them all to finish with an 8-2 Super Bowl record? 

Granted, it’s doubtful Manning or Brady — as great as the are — will either one reach five more Super Bowls, but you get the point.

Calipari is in the same boat with Manning, Brady and every other player and coach in the country in this day and age — his last game is the ultimate decider.  Win and he’s legitimized (until he falls short again).  Lose and he’s a joke (unless he goes right back to the Final Four next year and wins a national title).

I get the size and scope of tomorrow’s game from the standpoint of fans in the Commonwealth.  It’s huge.  We’ve said that since Monday.  Another game this is not.  It’s massive. 

But it’s not the final exam for Calipari that we in the media and on the messageboards and on talk radio want to make it out to be.  Until he hangs up his thousand-dollar suits and his coaching whistle for good, he’ll still be writing his legacy.

That means next March many of the same folks talking about his legacy now, will be doing the same thing all over again.

There’s a vacuum when it comes to true news on the status of Auburn tailback Mike Dyer.  Last week, a pair of Arkansas State players welcomed him to Jonesboro via social media.  Then Gene Chizik announced that Dyer’s status on the Plains was unchanged suggesting that he was still not currently part of the team — due to indefinite suspension — but was not dismissed from the team, either.

There have been plenty of rumors since, but no hard facts. 

Kevin Scarbinsky of The Birmingham News believes Auburn’s decision to nix Dyer from its bowl media guide and some end o’ the year highlight videos give you a good clue that he may be done with the Tigers.

Chris Bahn of ArkansasSports360.com states that there’s been no new information out of the Arkansas State camp.

For now — after talking to several people around the Auburn program — it sounds to us at MrSEC.com like more people expect Dyer to be elsewhere in 2012.  And that likely means with Gus Malzahn in Jonesboro.

But even those close to the situation are being tight-lipped.  So until Chizik announces a change, we really can’t do much more than speculate.  Even if everyone seems to be drawing the same conclusions.

If you’re looking for a flaw with unbeaten Alabama, occasional slow starts might be the area to investigate.  Here’s why:


* Alabama led Penn State 7-3 until there were 10 minutes to play in the first half.  Final score: 27-11

* Alabama was tied with Arkansas 7-7 until there were five minutes to play in the first half.  Final score: 38-14

* Alabama was tied with Florida 10-10 at the end of the first quarter.  Final score: 38-10.

* Alabama led Vanderbilt 7-0 until the final seconds of the first half.  Final score: 34-0.

* Alabama was tied with Mississippi 7-7 at the end of the first quarter.  Final score: 52-7.

* Alabama was tied with Tennessee 6-6 at the end of the first half.  Final score: 37-6.


Kevin Scarbinsky of The Birmingham News asked Nick Saban yesterday if he had concerns about his team’s slow starts.  Apparently not:


“I guess the expectation is, if you’re Muhammad Ali, you’re gonna knock everybody out in the first round.  I don’t think he did that in every one of his fights.  Sometimes he sparred.”


Scarbinsky said that Saban “downplayed the slow starts and accentuated the strong finishes that have defined his team.”  He also came about as close to bragging on his squad as you’ll ever hear.

If the SEC were to expand and add Texas A&M and another member from the Big 12 (Oklahoma or Missouri, for argument’s sake), the big question would be: How will the league divvy up its 14 schools?

The simplest plan — and a plan that we believe would be A-1 on top of Mike Slive’s list of options — is one that Kevin Scarbinsky of The Birmingham News writes of today.

Auburn would move to the SEC East. 

That’s not far-fetched, folks.  There was debate when the SEC split into divisions 19 years ago over the placement of Auburn and Vanderbilt.  Grab a map and you’ll see that Auburn is actually a good bit east of Nashville.

Also — as Scarbinsky points out here – the Tigers have a deeper history with teams in the SEC East than with many of the teams in the SEC West.

Here are the five league schools Auburn has faced most often in football:


1.  Georgia — 114 games (the oldest rivalry in the Deep South)
2.  Mississippi State — 84 games
3.  Florida — 82 games
4.  Alabama — 75 games
5.  Tennessee — 51 games


The Tigers have played Georgia, Florida and Tennessee more than they’ve played Ole Miss, LSU and, obvisously, Arkansas.  For that reason, moving Auburn east would be quicker and less painful than just about any other scenario. 

The Iron Bowl game would become the permanent non-divisional game for both Auburn and Alabama.  And, yes, that could mean two AU-UA games each year if both schools won their divisions.  (Sidenote — If the SEC wanted to preserve the ancient Alabama-Tennessee rivalry, it might consider going back to having two permanent non-divisional rivals for each school.)

Either way, if the SEC adds just two teams and both come from west of the Mississippi River, we at MrSEC.com would fully expect the league’s divisions to shakeout as follows:

As we’ve said time and again, however, we believe we’re still a long way from the SEC announcing any new editions to its roster of schools.

1.  Kevin Scarbinsky does a nice job of explaining how overzealous fans can love their programs to death.  A good read if you’re wondering about the hubbub regarding T-Town Menswear.

2.  Alabama needs to restock its backfield.

3.  Tide hoopsters Ja’Mychal Green and Tony Mitchell are trying to make Team USA for the World University Games.

4.  At Auburn, folks are asking how important returning starters are anyway.

5.  It looks like Arkansas will face Michigan in basketball this season.

6.  This fall, the expectations are high for Razorback players and coaches.

7.  Ole Miss fans can set their preseason football calendar.

8.  Could it be that MSU’s Renardo Sidney is more interested in himself than his team?

1. 10 questions for Kentucky sports.

2. John Calipari likes his team.

3. Q and A with SEC commissioner Mike Slive.

4. Extending the definition of a scholarship would cost an estimated $2,000 to $5,000 per player.

5. Kevin Scarbinsky on Trevor Lacey: “Alabama didn’t just sign the best player in the state. Alabama signed the best player in the state away from the other SEC school in the state. Alabama signed the best player in the state away from two of the premier programs in the nation.”

6. Mississippi State AD Scott Stricklin doesn’t sound crazy about changing the format of the SEC basketball tournament. More on the possible changes here.

7. The LSU basketball team wins again in Italy.

8. It’s time for the Tigers to honor former coach Dale Brown.

9. A lot of SEC coaches were stalking the sidelines at an Alabama high school spring game.

10. A late bonus for the Ole Miss defensive backfield.

Extras

11. College coaches are sounding the alarms about street agents.

12. Former Florida Gator Joakim Noah has become a mentally tough pro player.

13. Ways to radically reinvigorate the game of golf.

14. Drake wins a college football game in Africa.

Last week, we tossed praise in the direction of Florida football coach Will Muschamp for his decision to dismiss arguably the best player on his team — cornerback Janoris Jenkins — after his second marijuana-related arrest in recent weeks.  We stopped short, however, of hanging a “Mission Accomplished” banner.

It sounds like Kevin Scarbinsky of The Birmingham News is ready to go ahead and run one up the flagpole.


Muschamp didn’t wait for the legal system to run its course, even though Jenkins’ attorney has said his client will plead not guilty to the latest misdemeanor charge.

The coach didn’t close the curtain and leave the public in the dark by saying he would handle the situation internally, the way he did when Jenkins was first arrested on the new coach’s watch in January.

Muschamp didn’t decide that Jenkins should remain with the team for his own good because he needs the structure and the discipline that football provides.

Nor did he opt for the most obvious show of alleged force by suspending Jenkins for the first two games of next season against overmatched Florida Atlantic and UAB.

No.  Jenkins took a third strike, and he’s out.  Does anyone believe that (Urban) Meyer would’ve made the same call?


Uh, no.  Jenkins would still be on UF’s team had Meyer not departed and Muschamp not arrived.  But this one instance doesn’t mean the culture in Gainesville has forever changed.

Keep in mind, Muschamp is currently trying to set a tone and send a message to his players.  What better way to do that than to sacrifice a star player during his first honeymoon season? 

Also, Muschamp had the eyes of the nation upon him.  From this site to ESPN.com and beyond, writers were declaring that — following four recent Gator arrests — Muschamp would have to start backing up his talk of “the Florida Way” or else be viewed as just another coach who talks tough, but walks timidly.  In some ways, Muschamp had to act strongly in Jenkins’ case.

And finally, it’s much easier for coaches to dismiss the last guy’s recruits.  Let’s see how quick Muschamp is to pull the trigger when the arrested player is someone he recruited.  Someone whose house he went into.  Someone whose family he made promises to.  It’s just not as easy to jettison a player (and family) that you’ve come to know.

On the other hand, should Muschamp not boot the next person to cross the line in Gainesville, it doesn’t mean he’s suddenly gone soft on crime.  Each case is different.  Which is why we’re willing to salute Muschamp’s decision in the Jenkins’ case while still reserving judgement on the coach’s long-term impact on UF’s culture.

“Looks like it’s Muschamp’s way or the highway,” Scarbinsky writes. 

Yes.  For now it looks like it’s Muschamp’s way or the highway.  But as is the case with any coach, the body of evidence is what counts, not a lone piece.

Late last week, Huntsville, Alabama radio host Scott Moore went on a couple of radio stations to announce that he has heard tapes of Cecil Newton talking about the “bids” that had been made for his son.  Auburn was implicated.  Tennessee was implicated.  Cam Newton was said to be in the room during one conversation.

Of course, only Moore has heard the tapes.  Former Mississippi State quarterback John Bond and fellow MSU booster Bill Bell made the tapes but they haven’t released them.  Moore said on Friday that the tapes are “valuable.” 

The long string of teasing from Bond and the Moore media push prompted us to write:


It’s Time For Bond And Moore To Put Up Or Shut Up On The Newton Saga


Yesterday, Kevin Scarbinsky of The Birmingham News wrote nearly the exact same story on his blog:


It’s Past Time For John Bond And Bill Bell To Put Up Or Shut Up On Cam And Cecil Newton


Maybe Moore, Bond and Bell are paying attention because the word is spreading now that Moore will play the audio recordings on his new radio show in two weeks.  Now, what kind of guy would try to build up an audience for the release of potentially groundbreaking news?  Somebody trying to build up ratings in order to get his fledgling show into syndication (which Moore has admitted is a goal of his).  It’s called a stunt.  And this has all the makings of being just that.

Many Alabama fans are dancing in the streets — or at least on the messageboards — at the thought of the Newtons and Auburn and Tennessee going down.

But they need to be warned: Moore’s teases and delays and story changes  — one day he thinks Cam is implicated, the next he says Cam can be heard in the room… one day he says Tennessee offered $150,000, the next he says the Vols offered $200,000 — don’t give him a lot of credibility.  Ditto the fact that he’s launching a new show.

Bond and Bell don’t have a lot of credibility either right now.  Moore said they turned some of their tapes over to the NCAA.  Why not all of them?  And if the two are trying to get cash for their story, then they’re no more credible than someone selling an “I had an affair with…” story to The Star. 

Anyone expecting to tune into Moore’s show and find the smoking gun of evidence in the Newton case is likely to be very disappointed.  We’re not saying it’s not possible that new evidence exists.  And if the tapes are earth-shattering, then it’s about time they were released.  But taking everything into account, we wouldn’t trust this bunch as far as we could throw them.

Tapes in two weeks?  We won’t hold our breath.

Never say never. 

When it comes to NCAA investigations, the most dangerous thing to do is to convince yourself that nothing will come of a probe into your favorite program.  As long as NCAA snoops are snooping, dirt can still be found.

That said, the fact that assistant coaches like Gus Malzahn and Jeff Grimes elected to stay at Auburn rather than jump ship and head for new jobs tells us that AU’s staff feels pretty certain that they did no wrong (or won’t get caught) in the Cam Newton affair. 

Also, for all the rumors and messageboard rambles linking Newton to Auburn boosters and slush funds via secret FBI recordings, well, no one with any credibility has drawn a line from A to B to C just yet.  All that smoke could be coming from rival fans’ smoke machines, rather than an actual fire on The Plains.

Kevin Scarbinsky of The Birmingham News reports today that his sources say the NCAA is still digging away, but that no bombshells are expected.


“According to people with reason to know, the NCAA is still conducting an active investigation into Auburn’s recruitment of Newton.  There is an enforcement staff official assigned to the case, and that person is turning over every rock to make sure the NCAA doesn’t get blindsided down the road.

Auburn fans won’t like that information.  Some of them won’t believe it.  they’ll be joined in their displeasure or disbelief by fans of other schools who read this nugget: The bomb is not about to drop.

According to those same well-informed sources, the NCAA has yet to discover or uncover new information that would wipe out Auburn’s national championship season.”


The takeaway: Don’t buy into every comment posted by TideRUs, Dawgface or BayouBozo on your nearest messageboard. 

The NCAA might eventually uncover some shady dealings between AU and the Newtons.  Again, never say never.  But “Gotcha Day” hasn’t come yet.  And contrary to the rumor mill, that day really isn’t close at hand, either.