Fighting For Their Coaching Lives

- Saturday begins a stretch of tough, conference games for ATM and Nebraska that could define whether Fran or Callahan have jobs in 2008. Remaining schedules with predicted results.

ATM's schedule - WOW

at Texas Tech - L
at Nebraska - L
vs. #20 Kansas - W
at #6 Oklahoma - L
at #11 Missouri - L
vs. #23 Texas - L

Final Record - 6-6, although I could see a Texas win judging by how inspired they play against Texas and how ATM always finds a way to win 1 game for their coach to save his job. And it's usually the Texas game.

Nebraska's schedule - Not as bad, but still tough considering how shatty NU is.

vs. Oklahoma State - W (Barely)
vs. Texas A&M - W (Just because someone has to win)
at #23 Texas - L
at #20 Kansas - L
vs. Kansas State - L
at Colorado - L

Final Record - 6-6, although could be 5-7 just as easily. I can see them winning just 1 more game, a random home game. But they will lose every away game. Mark it down.




- Sherrington weighs in....



Extended forecast bleak for Fran

Replacing coach now would do more harm than good to 5-1 team

For the first time since Dennis Franchione's private "VIP Connection" went public two weeks ago, no one from Texas A&M came to the coach's defense Thursday.

Not his players.

Not his boss.

Not a soul.

In an emotional statement last week about his job status, Franchione incorrectly characterized his athletic director's support. He won't make that mistake again.

This was the best that Bill Byrne could say about Fran at Thursday's news conference:

"Dennis Franchione is our football coach."

Hardly a ringing endorsement, is it? You could almost hear the dangling " ... for now."

If you still aren't sure about Franchione's prospects, here's all you need to know: Mike McKenzie, Fran's personal assistant, no longer is employed by the university. Asked why McKenzie is taking the fall, Byrne said it was because he actually wrote the e-mails, which were kept secret from A&M's administration.

But wasn't McKenzie just doing what his boss told him to do?

It'll all be in the performance review, Byrne said.

Hey, Fran: Better be trailing a long winning streak when you come to the negotiating table.

Judging from the mood Thursday, all that seems to be saving Franchione's job at the moment is the team's record. The Aggies are 5-1, which ain't bad. Better than Texas, anyway, a preoccupation at A&M.

Even after the debacle in Miami, which looks worse by the week, the Aggies have positioned themselves well. Yes, the most difficult part of the schedule still awaits. Still, it's not unreasonable to think they could win four more games in a weak Big 12.

Pull the plug on Fran's job now, and who suffers most? Byrne admitted Thursday that he's worried about the "distractions" the e-mail controversy has caused A&M players so far.

If he's worried about the effects up to now, imagine if he fired Fran in the middle of the season.

First of all, who takes over? Gary Darnell, the defensive coordinator? He's been on staff a little more than a year. Les Koenning? Offensive coordinator in name only.

Of course, R.C. Slocum is still in town. Gene Stallings is on the board of regents. But even their deep Aggie loyalties wouldn't mitigate the effects of uprooting a coach at midseason.

You also have to consider how the players would react to a coaching change now. Stephen McGee, the quarterback, defiantly backed his coach when the story first broke. He followed that defense by rounding up his teammates in a resounding show of support at Franchione's news conference last week.

The mood Thursday was in stark contrast to those public displays. Instead, Byrne apologized to students, alumni and "the citizens of Texas." He called the Aggies "embarrassed." He even said his "best guess" was that Fran's failure to tell him about the secret correspondence was "an attempt to keep it from us."

Even after their investigation, A&M officials still don't know much. They released 160 pages of e-mails Thursday, and that's not the half of it. The earliest VIP report they have on record is from last November. Franchione started selling the $1,200 newsletters three years ago . Byrne and his minions have no idea how many were sent. McKenzie, a chatty type, sometimes sent as many as four a day. Could be hundreds, thousands out there.

And what else might they contain that could embarrass the school? A&M already has acknowledged NCAA and Big 12 violations from the small sampling on hand.

Bottom line: Franchione hasn't done much to help his cause at A&M, and the "VIP Connection" only piled on his mountain of troubles. Both he and Byrne have said the e-mails started out with good intentions. But that's hard to buy. At best, Franchione attempted to curry favor with influential alums. At worst, he risked jeopardizing his standing with the NCAA, his bosses, his players and Aggies everywhere.

If McKenzie talked Franchione into the goofball idea, he deserved what he got. A former sportswriter, McKenzie has cast a strange figure at A&M: running interference for Franchione, interpreting the coach's thoughts in secret e-mails, sitting in on coaches' meetings, wearing a headset on the sideline.

And if McKenzie was just doing Franchione's bidding? The other shoe has yet to drop.

Until then, all Franchione can do to help his cause is win. And hope there's nothing ugly about the AD in any found e-mails.

QUICK SUMMARY OF NCAA/BIG 12 INFRACTIONS
1. Franchione did not report the income he received through the Web site to A&M officials for the 2005-06 academic year. NCAA rules state athletic staff must account for all income to the university administration. A&M's report said the school will report this violation to the NCAA.

2. The e-mails occasionally contained recruits' names. A&M must report this to the NCAA as a violation.

3. Comments found in an e-mail dated April 13, 2007, violated the Big 12 sportsmanship policy. A&M's report states that the university has already reported this to the league office.




- And Yahoo looks at the consensus choice for head coach by Nebraska fans and players back in 2003, Bo Pelini, who is now kicking ass at LSU as their defensive coordinator. When every other candidate turned Nebraska down, the AD shunned the player's choice who he already had in his own backyard (Pelini), for a "big name", and hired Bill Callahan. This makes me sick to read.


Wanted man

By Jason King, Yahoo! Sports
October 11, 2007

BATON ROUGE, La. – On the morning of the biggest game of his career, college football's top assistant coach is standing on a grass field, watching a bunch of 8-year-olds play soccer.

Across town, many of the 92,000 fans who will attend LSU's showdown against defending national champion Florida are already stirring gumbo and guzzling Miller Lite in the parking lot at Tiger Stadium.

But to Bo Pelini, that game is no more important than the one he's at now – mainly because his son, Patrick, is among the players trying to kick the ball into the net.

"It's fun watching your kids grow up," Pelini says later. "Baseball, t-ball, gymnastics, ballet. I try not to miss anything."

LSU's defensive coordinator pauses for a moment and grins.

"But," Pelini says, "I do think a few people get freaked out when they see me standing on the soccer field the morning of such a big game."

Those people obviously underestimated Pelini, who helped LSU maintain its spot atop the Associated Press poll with a 28-24 win over Florida.

Trailing 17-7 at halftime, the Tigers surrendered just one touchdown after Pelini and his staff tweaked their game plan at intermission. When time expired and LSU's comeback was complete, Pelini was spotted zig-zagging about the field, sweat and spittle flying from his face as he jumped into the arms of 300-pound lineman Glenn Dorsey.

"You guys did it!" shouted Pelini, 40. "You (freakin') did it!"

Yes, four years after being passed up for the head coaching job at Nebraska, things couldn't be going any better for Pelini in Baton Rouge.

The 6-0 Tigers are in the hunt for the national title thanks to a defense that allows a national-low 197 yards per game. Analysts have said the unit is one of the best college football has seen in years, which basically means Pelini is deified wherever he goes in Cajun country.

Still, exciting as the ride might be, fans realize Pelini's time as a Tiger might be short-lived. No assistant in football seems as poised to make the jump to the head coaching ranks as Pelini, who will be on the short lists of schools looking to fill a vacancy this offseason.

"Oh, he'll be a head coach someday," said Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Barrett Ruud, one of Pelini's top protégés. "I'm actually surprised that it hasn't happened already."

*****

Frustrating as his final days at Nebraska might have been, Pelini will probably never forget the chants of "We Want Bo! We Want Bo!" that rang throughout the stadium during his one and only game as a college head coach.

It was only four years ago, you might remember, when Cornhuskers fans were pulling for Pelini to replace Frank Solich, who was fired after a 9-3 season in 2003.

Pelini – despite being on staff for less than a year – was named interim head coach for Nebraska's bowl game. For the next month, the team would be all his.

Not bad for a guy in his first college season after spending the previous eight years in the NFL.

"I think that's when the light bulb went off," said Pelini's wife, Mary Pat. "That's when he realized that college coaching was something he wanted to do for a long, long time."

That sounded good to Nebraska's players, who had come to respect Pelini through the course of the season. Under Pelini’s guidance, the Blackshirts finished second in the nation in takeaways while moving from 55th to 11th in total defense.

Pelini used a fiery persona to inspire the Cornhuskers and win over fans. After Kansas State defeated Nebraska 38-9 in Lincoln, Pelini chased down Wildcats coach Bill Snyder at midfield and lashed out at him for running up the score. Months later, during Nebraska's bowl game, Pelini drew a 15-yard penalty for leaving the sidelines to argue a call.

"Guys were ready to run through a wall for him," said Ruud, a junior on that Nebraska team. "He was such a great motivator. He'd print out cards with different quotes and leave them in our locker to fire us up before games, and when it came to X's and O's, he definitely had the 'it' factor.

"He was the total package."

With Pelini leading the way, Nebraska annihilated Michigan State 17-3 in the Alamo Bowl, prompting fans to chant his name as he left the field. In just a few short months, Pelini's blue-collar approach had won the support of a rabid fan base that didn't even know his name a year earlier.

In the end, it didn't matter.

Pelini said Nebraska athletic director Steve Pederson "stopped talking" to him in the days leading up to the bowl game and, following the victory, Pederson didn't fly back to Lincoln with the team.

Pederson eventually spoke with Pelini about the opening, but Pelini said it was clear he had no chance of landing the job.

"It was just a token interview," Pelini said. " (Pederson) brought me in because he had to bring me in. He told me I was being considered, but I don't think I ever was. He wanted to hire a name guy. He would've hired anybody that had a big name."

That person turned out to be Oakland Raiders head coach Bill Callahan, who has yet to win the support of Nebraska fans. The Cornhuskers went 5-6 during Callahan's first season in 2004 – their first losing campaign since 1961. They're struggling again this year, too, following last week's 41-6 loss at Missouri.

Pelini, though, doesn't take any delight in Nebraska's demise. He's too consumed with his role at LSU to play the what-if game.

"I didn't feel any sense of entitlement to that job," said Pelini, who spent a year as an assistant at Oklahoma before moving on to the LSU job in 2005. "I don't completely agree with how it was handled, but that's not for me to say.

"It's only the right job if it's a mutual thing, if both sides see it as the right fit. That obviously wasn't the case at Nebraska."

But what if the Cornhuskers had offered Pelini the job? At 36 and with only one year of college experience on his resume, was he ready to become a head coach?

"Oh yeah, I was ready," said Pelini, tilting back in his office chair and propping his feet up on his desk. "But I'm even more ready now."

*****

A few weeks ago, as the Tigers were preparing to play South Carolina, Pelini asked linebackers coach Bradley Dale Peveto to step outside.

Seems a disagreement over a scheme had led to a heated exchange in front of LSU's players during a defensive team meeting. The best way to settle it, Pelini figured, was to throw down in the hallway.

"They walked out the doors and all of a sudden we're hearing bodies banging against walls and them screaming at each other," defensive tackle Marlon Favorite said. "We were trying to get out there and stop it, but the assistants were blocking the door."

Favorite begins to cackle.

"After a few minutes they walked back in laughing," he said. "It was all a joke. Football can get intense sometimes. Coach Pelini does a good job of keeping us loose and relaxed."

Ask any player or coach, and they'll tell you Pelini couldn't be a better fit at LSU. Head coach Les Miles said he knew he'd gotten a gem when he plucked Pelini away from Oklahoma following the 2004 season.

Miles was the head coach at Oklahoma State when Pelini was at Nebraska. After watching game tape, Miles thought he'd figured out a way to expose the Cornhuskers' defense.

"But when we played them," Miles said, "they ended up using a totally different scheme. They beat us, and after that I started watching more and more of their film. He was coming up with different plans every week. Each game it evolved."

Miles knew he wanted that kind of strategist on his staff, and he was also impressed by the newspaper articles he read about the way Nebraska's players got behind Pelini and urged the administration – albeit unsuccessfully – to hire him as their head coach.

"Those players wanted him to be there, and that said a lot," Miles said. "At that point I had never met him, but I knew I wanted him on my staff."

Beneficial as Pelini has been for LSU, the program has also helped Pelini improve as a coach.

"There are a lot of different ways to skin a cat," Pelini said. "The more you move around, the more you learn things. This was an opportunity for me, for the first time, to install a system and create a culture that carries over from year to year."

LSU's players are obviously buying in. The Tigers are third in the country in pass defense and fourth in rush defense. Opponents are averaging just 9.3 points per game.

"I don't think we take weeks off," Pelini said. "There aren't a lot of ups and downs, because we set such a high standard for ourselves."

Defensive end Tyson Jackson referred to Pelini as a "defensive guru." His teammates agree.

"When I take the field, I feel like I'm out there with an army and he's our leader," Dorsey said. "He's always wired up, always intense. He's not a big cusser or anything, but he knows how to get you fired up."

Dorsey said some members of LSU's defense view Pelini as a "father figure" and that it's not uncommon for one of them to call Pelini on his cell phone to talk out a personal problem.

Favorite, a recording artist when he's not playing football, said Pelini has taken an interest in his rap music.

The Tigers said they've also noticed the effort Pelini puts forth when it comes to his family. Along with the Saturday morning soccer games, Pelini is a regular in the elementary school cafeteria, where he often eats lunch with his 6-year-old daughter, Kate. Other nights he'll make a special trip home from the office – just to tuck the kids into bed.

"We want to have a family atmosphere around here," Pelini said. "That helps on the field. When someone watches us on film, we want them to say, 'Wow, those guys play with passion. They really enjoy each other.'"

*****

Tucked away in desk drawers and filing cabinets are a handful of notebooks filled with notes Pelini has taken at various coaching stops.

George Seifert, Pete Carroll, Ray Rhodes, Mike Shanahan, Hayden Fry, Mike Solari, John Cooper, Gary Kubiak, Les Miles and Bob Stoops. Pelini has been exposed to some of football's all-time greats.

"When you're around people like that – if you learn to watch and observe with an open mind – you can't do anything but get better," Pelini said.

Pelini's big break came shortly after his playing days ended at Ohio State. He'd spent a year coaching at tradition-rich Cardinal Mooney High School, his alma mater, in Youngstown, Ohio when then-San Francisco 49ers president Carmen Policy responded to a letter he'd sent months earlier.

Just like that, Pelini was on his way to the Bay Area after accepting a job as one of the team's in-house scouts.

"I had just gotten engaged, and I was out there by myself living at the Marriott," said Pelini, who was 25 at the time. "Instead of going back to the hotel to watch TV at night, I started sitting in on some meetings with (defensive coordinator) Ray Rhodes.

"We talked a lot of football and, after a week or two, he recommended me to Coach Seifert for a job as a quality control coach."

That was the fall of 1994, and San Francisco would go on to win the Super Bowl the following January. Rhodes was hired in Philadelphia the following season and was replaced by Carroll, who eventually took Pelini with him to New England in 1997.

It was there, under Carroll, that Pelini said he developed and molded the defensive philosophies he preaches today.

"It was such an unbelievable experience for someone so young," Pelini said. "It was an accelerated deal. They taught me. They showed me. I learned so much. I still remember Mike Shanahan saying, 'One year with the 49ers is an education. Two or three years is like getting a master's degree.'

"The learning never stops. You have to continue to evolve or you're going to get passed."

Pelini was an assistant in Green Bay when Solich hired him at Nebraska in 2003. At the time he said he had no intention of leaving the NFL.

"I didn't leave the pro game because I didn't like it," Pelini said. "I left the pros to get into the college game to see how it would be and how it would compare when it comes to family life.

"There are pluses and minuses to both, but the bottom line is that I like teaching these kids. At this stage of a college football player's life, they have no idea how much more there is to learn."

*****

When he can find the time, Bo Pelini said he likes to curl up with a good book. Sometimes he reads in the living room before he goes to sleep at night, other times it's on a plane – or even in the Tigers' locker room an hour before kickoff.

Tom Clancy, John Grisham and all that “FBI, CIA-type stuff,” Pelini said.

"It relaxes me and gets my mind off the craziness that is college football," Pelini said. "I need it to calm me down."

If anything, the demands on Pelini will be increasing in the coming weeks and months.

For starters, there's a national title for which to contend. One loss, and the Tigers might be out of the picture. And after the season, of course, there will be the issue of Pelini's job status. He's almost certain to have a handful of suitors. Perhaps this time he'll find that "right fit."

"I don't really concern myself with that next step," Pelini said. "It's either going to come or it's not. What I try to do is focus on the task at hand. I was hired to do a job and I'm going to do it the best I can.

"If someone out there recognizes me and contacts me, then maybe I'd look at it. It has to be the right fit for both sides. Right now there probably aren't too many opportunities out there that are better than the one I’m in now."

If opportunities do arise, Mary Pat Pelini said her husband will handle the situation just fine. After all, he's been through this before.

"This isn't the first time people have labeled him as the hot, up-and-coming head coach," Mary Pat said. "They’ve been saying it the last three years, but he's still here. He just keeps proving himself. That's all he can do."




- And another columnist says these next 2 games are the 2 most important games of the Callahan era. I'll extend that, these final 6 games are the most important games of his Nebraska career.

He must win 4 or 5 of them, preferrably 5. He must not get blown out, he must be competitive and either win, or have a chance to win, on the road. Anything less is unacceptable. Regardless, (unless he goes 1-5 or something like that and then he's probably fired this year), he's going into 2008 with a BCS bowl/Big 12 Title as the only way of him keeping a job.



BLAIR KERKHOFF COLLEGES
COLLEGES
Fallout at Nebraska worse than ever
BLAIR KERKHOFF COLLEGES
The fallout is worse than the 70-10 aftermath.

At least Nebraska’s embarrassing loss at Texas Tech in 2004 could be explained by the lethal intersection of a first-year coach/system crashing into a mad bomber in Mike Leach. He had been scarred by a similar licking applied by Nebraska at Lubbock in his first year.

Inexperience and vengeance cannot explain the Huskers’ 41-6 dismantling at Missouri. Sure, the Tigers have taken beatings over the years, but they’ve now won three straight over the Big Red at Faurot. No Mizzou player entering the game could believe the programs were at no worse on equal footing.

No, this week fans wanted answers that weren’t forthcoming except for the declarations of disappointment and vows of improvement, the same fare that followed other head-shaking outcomes.

Coach Bill Callahan opened his weekly news conference with this statement: “It’s important to know that it destroys us to go through what we did last week.”

Worse than the USC debacle? The Ball State survival?

The midway point in the fourth year of the Callahan era approaches crisis stage, and it’s already there in one regard. The Husker Nation seems divided.

Fire everybody bubbles at one extreme, including athletic director Steve Pederson, who handed Callahan a two-year extension last month. Pederson’s line “We won’t surrender the Big 12 to Oklahoma or Texas” to justify firing Frank Solich after a 9-3 season rings hollow at a program that is 14-12 in Big 12 games since the change.

But a coaching revolving door plunges the program into a deeper spiral warns the opposite side. Programs with historically constant turnover such as Kansas, Missouri and Kansas State spent decades chasing their tails while getting pounded by the Nebraska concrete block of stability.

Those who preach patience wonder how a 4-2 overall record, 1-1 in league play and one week removed from the national rankings represent the sky falling. Division and conference championships goals remain. Besides, Nebraska had moved the chains over the previous two years, reaching last season’s Big 12 title game.

Some have dared not to not show up Saturday when Oklahoma State visits, threatening a legacy Nebraskans hold dear — a packed Memorial Stadium.

Others have suggested the booing could grow louder than the Ball State chorus, which could lead to the most unusual scene of Huskers voicing displeasure with their own team while applauding the Cowboys as they come off the field.

These two games — Oklahoma State, then Texas A&M in Lincoln the next week — are as important as any in the Callahan era. The Cowboys and Aggies carry their own fragile psyches but can be as potent on offense as any Big 12 team, which plays into Nebraska’s defensive woes.

A final thought: The Sooners and Cornhuskers could be running in parallel universes several years apart. Legendary coach leaves: Barry Switzer/Tom Osborne. Program turns to trusted assistant Gary Gibbs/Frank Solich to maintain continuity, and despite success — Gibbs won 65 percent despite probation shackles and Solich 75 percent — both are fired after six seasons when they can’t measure up to the high standard.

The Sooners plummeted, enduring the worst four-year spell in its modern history in the Howard Schnellberger/John Blake era.

Nebraska is 3½ years into its worst four-year run in nearly a half-century.

Oklahoma cut the cord and hit a home run with its next hire.

If things don’t improve in Lincoln, many will insist Nebraska turn to its old rival’s playbook.

Weekend TV Preview

- Big weekend. Top 10 matchup in Norman. 2 5-0 teams in Texas Stadium on Sunday. The Jedi vs. the Model Banger. #1 LSU with a potential upset game in Kentucky. Keep all women away.


Last Week - 12-11
YTD - 69-54-3


Thursday

Florida State (-6) at Wake Forest - ESPN - 6:30 pm
Wake has played nothing but tight games all year. Barely lost to Nebraska and Boston College. But also played down to Duke and Army's level. Florida State hasn't looked half bad this year, beating a decent Colorado team on the road (something Oklahoma couldn't do), beating Alabama, and barely losing to Clemson on the road. Give me FSU.
Pick - FSU -6


Friday

Hawaii (-19) at San Jose St. - ESPN - 7:00 pm
SJSU is a bad team. They've been giant killers the past few years, but this year have taken a major step back. Hawaii should roll this team.
Pick - Hawaii -19


Saturday

Georgia Tech at Miami (-2.5) - ESPN - 11:00 am
Miami was embarassed last week at North Carolina. Butch Davis did what I thought he'd do and pull the upset. GT, after starting hot, has floundered in conference, going 1-3. Miami continues GT's woes.
Pick - Miami -2.5

Illinois (-3.5) at Iowa - ESPN2 - 11:00 am
Illinois can run the ball with anyone in the country. Iowa has disappointed for 3 years running now. Still riding the high of beating a top 5 team last week, Illinois keeps the Cinderella thing going.
Pick - Illinois -3.5

Central Florida at South Florida (-12) - ESPNU - 11:00 am
Everyone's on the South Florida bandwagon, but UCF has a damn good team. SFU better watch out on this one. What they did against Texas was enough for me. I'm taking the points.
Pick - UCF +12

Purdue at Michigan (-5.5) - Big 10 Network - 11:00 am
Purdue is about to go on a slide I think. Michigan, as I thought they could, is about to roll through the Big 10 undefeated until they meet Ohio State for the Championship. Little known fact - Michigan has won 13 of their last 15 Big 10 games, with the only 2 losses coming to Ohio State in 2005 and 2006. This team can handle their conference, it just has problems winning against non-conference teams, Ohio State, and bowl opponents.
Pick - Michigan -5.5

Texas (-16) at Iowa State - FSNSW - 11:30 am
Texas meets its old D-Coordinator in Ames. Given the Texas ritual of losing to Oklahoma and then playing really well the rest of the year, I've got to take Texas. As much as I hate taking them as a 2-TD favorite over anyone, especially on the road, I'm going with history.
Pick - Texas -16

Boston College (-13.5) at Notre Dame - NBC - 2:30 pm
This is going to be a very ugly game, that's just the way Notre Dame does it. But they won't score a point unless it's a non-offensive score. Give me BC 23-0.
Pick - BC -13.5

Texas A&M at Texas Tech (-8.5) - ABC - 2:30 pm
One of the few times I'll be going for ATM this year. If there's another team I dislike more than ATM, it has to be Texas Tech. The stepchildren of the South Plains will roll, however. ATM just can't beat these guys, especially out west.
Pick - TT -8.5

LSU (-9.5) at Kentucky - CBS - 2:30 pm
LSU gets its first tough road test of the year in Lexington. Kentucky was exposed against a good team vs. South Carolina. Andre Woodson the Superman was contained easily by SC's defense. LSU has the best defense in nation this year, they'll hammer him bad. That stadium will be rockin with bourbon filled hillbillies, but the Bayou Bengals continue their march.
Pick - LSU -9.5

Wisconsin at Penn State (-6.5) - ESPN - 2:30 pm
Talk about 2 teams I despise for always being overrated and refusing to blow anyone out. Since I'm sick of JoePa on the sidelines, give me the points.
Pick - Wisconsin +6.5

Georgia (-7) at Vandy - ESPN2 - 5:00 pm
Now here's a team I can't figure out. They look good one week, and then look like they couldn't beat Duke the next. The way Vandy got manhandled last week makes me go with Georgia, who will control the entire game with their running game and defense, much like Auburn did last week.
Pick - Georgia -7

Missouri at Oklahoma (-10.5) - FSNSW - 5:30 pm
Easily the game of the day. I can't wait for this one. I want to see Chase Daniel and the spread offense/QB run game against the Okla defense. I could definitely see a huge shootout here. Oklahoma seems to be coming back down to earth and Missouri seems to be getting better and better each week. This is going to be the game of the year in the Big 12. Have to take points.
Pick - Missouri +10.5

Oregon State at Cal (-14) - Versus - 6:00 pm
Cal is quietly sneaking up on that #2 spot. Oregon State has disappointed me this year, I thought they had a chance to do some damage, but they can't find an F'ing QB. Give me Cal to keep rolling at home.
Pick - Cal -14

Louisville at Cincy (-10.5) - ESPNU - 6:00 pm
Louisville has been a huge disappointment and terrible this year. Cincy has the Rutgers/Saints syndrome going for them right now. Everything is going right and they're firing on all cylinders. Every bounce is going their way. Louisville keeps on their downward spiral.
Pick - Cincy -10.5

Auburn at Arkansas (-3) - ESPN - 6:45 pm
Auburn has been mostly down this year, but the last 2 weeks (win at Florida, crushed Vandy) has them looking very strong. I can't stand betting on them, but I never learn my lesson, screw it, I'm taking them. I just don't think Arkansas is good at all.
Pick - Auburn +3

Colorado at Kansas State (-5.5) - ESPN2 - 8:15 pm
Another very interesting game. The 2 teams that turned the Big 12 upside down a few weeks ago. Colorado appears to be the better of the 2 and looked better last week than KSU did. I'm taking the points.
Pick - Colorado +5.5


CROWN GAME


Washington at Arizona State (-12) - FSNSW - 9:15 pm
Finally after a few weeks off, the PAC-10 Crown Game is back. Expect tons of offense, great QB play, typical hot ASU ass in the stands, tons of personal fouls from Dennis Erickson's team, and me to be on my last sip of the new Crown Royal Cask No. 16, which is Crown's newest whiskey. I will have a taste test this weekend. Washington keeps it close in a high scoring game.
Pick - Washington +12


Sunday

Washington at Green Bay (-3) - FOX - 12:00 pm
Washington has surprisingly looked good this year. GB was finally exposed for no running game last week. Washington plays some good defense and will win this game.
Pick - Washington +3

Houston at Jacksonville (-6.5) - CBS - 12:00 pm
Houston still has Andre Johnson out and Ahman Green hurting. I can't take them until those 2 guys are healthy. Jacksonville's defense is just too tough.
Pick - JAX -6.5

New England (-5.5) at Dallas - CBS - 3:00 pm
The game of the year in the regular season. So much hype on this thing. The Jedi vs. the hot woman slayer. The lobatomy patient vs. the spy king. Jerry vs. Robert Kraft. I just can't see Dallas getting a pass rush on Brady, the Dallas O-line holding up against NE's rush, and the Dallas secondary keeping up with NE's pass catchers.
Pick - New England -5.5

New Orleans at Seattle (-6.5) - NBC - 7:00 pm
New Orleans is in a bad way right now. Seattle looked like crap last weekend in Pitt, but is a totally different team at home. I'm going against NO until they prove me wrong.
Pick - Seattle -6.5

The Grandaddy Of Them All

- What a place. You pretty much have everything you need at the Rose Bowl.

- Great backdrop with the San Gabriel Mountains. A very simple, bowl like seating arrangement that makes the stadium seem even bigger and more impressive.

- Pretty unique location as it is in the middle of a neighborhood, next to a golf course, and in a valley between 2 hills/mountains.

- Very simple anemities, only 1 big screen, and 2 very simple scoreboards that give you just the basics. Time, down and distance, time outs left, and score.

- The tailgating scene could be better, was a tad disappointed. The crowd is very high class. Lots of grey haired old money alums tailgating and lots of "members only" tents for food and beer. No beer sold on site. It's a very Highland Park-esque crowd, for sure.

- All in all, it's one of the few stadiums that defines college football history. You can just sense it's importance and you get that feeling sitting in the stands that this is one of the most historic places in the game.

- Couldn't help but get visions of Aikman and the Cowboys crushing Buffalo in '92, with Irvin leaping high to catch that pass, and then stretching out to the goal line, with the mountains in the background. Or of Vince Young and the '06 Rose Bowl game.

- The weather all weekend was unreal. No humidity all weekend. Always sunny. Friday's high was 62, Saturday's was 70, and Sunday's was 74. You go out there and you realize the only reason you can't live out there is because you flat can't afford it or you get severe road rage due to the traffic. I can handle the traffic, so if I could afford it would be my only drawback. The beauty of the land and the weather are 2 things that people can't overrate about Southern California.

- On to the game, I'll keep this short as these 2 teams are nothing special.

- Notre Dame might have the worst offense I've ever seen in person, at any level. Absolutely no running game, no downfield passing game, no offensive capability whatsoever. I mean this, they suck. 150 yards of offense is terrible.

- When Clausen wasn't throwing 5 yard passes, he was blindly chucking the ball up downfield and saying a prayer. Like I said, it could have been the worst offense I've ever seen in person.

- And I love it, after hearing that overrated Jaba the Hut claim in his introductory press conference that his team would have a decided schematic advantage over every team. Now he can't even score an offensive touchdown and barely eclipses 150 total yards. I wish nothing but failure on him and every other overrated ex-New England coach.

- As bad as Notre Dame was, UCLA was far worse as a whole. Turnovers, horrible special teams, and a QB who was worse than Clausen. How does a major university like UCLA have to resort to a walk-on, non-scholarship redshirt freshman at QB? How does this happen? I know for a fact that Nebraska has 4 scholarship QB's on their roster. Ridiculous.

- Although it got loud at times, it was a mostly average sounding crowd. But the loudest the stadium got was when the USC score was announced. Since both teams hate USC, it was quite a scene to watch that reaction.

- When it was all said and done, loved the atmosphere, loved the stadium, loved the uniforms, loved the co-eds, but the game left a lot to be desired. But the experience definitely deserves an A. Everyone must see a game at the Rose Bowl.

- That said, we should have been about 15 miles away at the Coliseum watching that debacle.










- Although we didn't make it into Angels Stadium for Game 3 of Boston-Anaheim, we walked around the stadium and took in the scene.

- Not a bad stadium, was recently renovated so it looks pretty modern. Has a really cool front entrance as seen in the pictures.

- Tons of Boston fans of course. I won't go into this and my disgust of everything Boston and their frat boy fans.

- Absolutely nothing to do around the stadium. In an area of tourist traps, chain restaurants, and tons of entertainment options (Disneyland), the area around Angels Stadium is barren. Just a Hooters and the interstate. Very disappointed we couldn't hang out right by the ballpark after we got priced out of tickets by scalpers ($200 a seat). Oh well.







- Like I said yesterday, I won't turn my back....so I'll continue to follow with the same intensity.



- This is so troubling and is even more reason why the D-Coordinator needs to be run out of Lincoln.

Daniel ridicules NU plan
BY DIRK CHATELAIN
WORLD-HERALD BUREAU

LINCOLN — Talk about adding insult to injury.

According to Tuesday's Columbia (Mo.) Tribune, Missouri quarterback Chase Daniel was none too impressed with Nebraska's defensive strategy Saturday night. Kevin Cosgrove's Blackshirts employed a 3-3-5 scheme, typically rushing just three defenders.

"Cosgrove's a very stubborn guy," said Daniel, who threw for 401 yards in a 41-6 Tiger win. "It's always been that way. . . . That's just how he is, that's how they are. They're a bunch of confident guys in what they do, and they felt they had the best chance doing that, so they stuck with it.

"You can't just play one defense the whole entire game," Daniel said. "That's like high school stuff."

Daniel can say what he wants, Cosgrove said Tuesday after practice.

"I'm going to say just one thing," Cosgrove said. "With what they do, the way they spread the field, there's only so much you can do. If you try to get into a blitz game with them, they'll tear you apart because they spread you out. They go sideline-to-sideline, goal-line-to-goal-line. And you have to be smart in how you defend."

Nebraska allowed 606 yards to Missouri. It was the fourth straight game in which the Blackshirts have yielded at least 400 yards.

Missouri offensive coordinator Dave Christensen said he, like Daniel, was "a little bit surprised that they went just about the entire game getting pressure on us with a three-man rush. Obviously, it didn't work very well."

Defensive end Zach Potter said it would've been difficult to adjust schemes in the middle of the game.

"We practiced the three-man front all week, so we really had to stick to that," he said. "Even though our base defense is the four-man front, just to scrap what we've done all week would be hard."




- And of course, the generic team meeting to rally the troops. Stories of these beat me down. At this point in the season, you are who you are, nothing's changing.



Huskers vent, get fired up in team meeting
By BRIAN CHRISTOPHERSON / Lincoln Journal Star
Wednesday, Oct 10, 2007 - 12:26:04 am CDT
As Matt Slauson understood it, Sunday’s meeting was supposed to last about 10 minutes.

It was figured Coach would talk a bit and players would stare embarrassed-like at the ground while Coach talked.

But this meeting was different. Players kept randomly standing up to say something.

Call it Chicken Soup for the Husker Soul.

Voices raised until 45 minutes had passed.

“It was definitely an emotional meeting,” said Slauson, the junior offensive lineman. “It really got a lot of guys juiced up, jazzed up, ready to roll.”

It started with a question from Husker coach Bill Callahan.

“Coach went in there and asked a couple of guys, ‘Who do we play for?’” cornerback Zackary Bowman said. “Mostly everybody said they play for their teammates, their coaches, their families, and the state of Nebraska.

“It was something that we needed.”

According to Bowman, no captains spoke, but Husker quarterback Sam Keller did.

“He stood up and said that we gave him life and he’s been working his butt off ever since he’s been here … and he wants to improve and get better,” Bowman said.

But the voices went beyond Keller’s.

“Guys who grew up watching Nebraska football and always wanted to play here and stuff,” Bowman said.

Guys like Thomas Rice, a senior defensive end from Lincoln East who came into this year having never seen the field in a college game, made their voices heard.

“Guys just started getting up and getting pumped up, and I started getting pumped up, because it really got me thinking how close our team really is and how much guys really do care,” Slauson said.

For a few moments, in that room, optimism prevailed.

The thing about optimism, though, is that it can’t tackle a running back. It can’t rush a passer. It can’t take away a 41-6 loss to Missouri on Saturday.

You could have 10 team meetings and still not erase that embarrassment.

It was a loss that rattled Huskerland to its core.

You didn’t have to look far for disgruntled talk about the football team. You started to hear weird conversations with foreign sentences like, “You think they’ll win another game this year?” or “Is the home sellout streak in jeapordy?”

On Tuesday, Callahan came to the weekly press conference swinging from his first sentence.

Before a question was asked, he said: “I think it’s important to understand that no one, and I mean no one wants to win more than I do. And I think it’s really important to understand that we as a staff, and as a program, and as a team, hate to lose.

“And it’s important to know that it destroys us emotionally to go through what we did the last week. It hurts us. We’re disappointed, but nonetheless, we’ve got to move on and we got to move on in a hurry.”

At one point, he used the word “urgency.” His team needs to play with urgency.

“I’ve got hope that our players will respond, I really do,” Callahan said. “I have belief and conviction that they’ll do real well, but you know, you got to prove it. Talk is cheap. You have to go out and do it.”

The critics have said plenty, but among the more popular sayings is that this team lacks fire.

“There is a little truth to it,” Slauson said. “Fans always come up and say, ‘You guys just look like you aren’t playing with any passion or heart.’ I think there’s a little confusion right now in our game, and I’m not sure why. I can’t explain it. But if you’re confused about it, you’re not going to play as fast as you can and you’re not going to have as much fun as you should.”

Husker sophomore linebacker Phillip Dillard, one of the brighter spots on the defense this year, said he thinks sometimes guys are too worried about messing up, overthinking instead of acting on instinct.

“Some plays, I might be confused, I’m not going to lie,” Dillard said. “You can see it on film because you’re hesitant. And when you’re hesitant, that’s not good.”

Is the defense too complicated?

“No, it’s not because the D’s too complicated,” he said. “It’s just you’re probably thinking about something that happened in the last play, or they’re in a formation and you’re thinking, ‘Well, they run three things out of this formation’ and the mind starts boggling.”

Husker senior linebacker Bo Ruud calls it “reacting instead of acting.”

Too much of it going on, he agrees.

He said it’s lack of execution, not lack of preparation, that’s got this team down. Ruud would bet there’s not a team in the country that prepares better than Nebraska.

He also thinks that “lack of fire” claim by people is a bunch of rubbish.

“That has nothing to do with us,” he said. “I’ve never done anything different since the day I’ve been here. I’ve never decided to not have fire.”

Whatever is lacking, Slauson knows it must be figured out this week against Oklahoma State.

Though the season is just six games old, he admits it’s already been draining in some respects.

A loss to the Cowboys and things could really get ugly.

“This next game is the biggest game of our lives right now,” he said. “We’ve not been playing Nebraska ball. … This game is going to be the turnaround game.”

Keller said the team needs to try to get back to loving football and enjoying each other this week.

They can’t worry about the outside criticism.

“Our backs are a little bit against the wall,” Keller said. “We had a horrible performance and we have to respond. And you can’t respond by feeling pressure, you can’t respond by feeling sorry for yourself.

“You have to respond by knowing that you’re here for a reason, knowing you’re a good ballplayer, and knowing that we have a good team and we have confidence in each other.”




- Another power down for me, the generic "we will win" prediction. It happens all the time now. No longer does it have the same meaning as Joe Namath or Jimmy before the 1992 NFC Championship. It's so overused nowadays, we just hear it and move on. Who f'ing cares.



Lane guarantees Aggies will beat Tech

A&M defense faces pressure from Red Raiders' prolific offense

By BRIAN DAVIS / The Dallas Morning News

COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Running back Jorvorskie Lane ripped a well-worn page from football's motivational playbook – and Mike Gundy's, too – on Tuesday and guaranteed a Texas A&M victory over Texas Tech this weekend.

When told that A&M hadn't won in Lubbock since 1993, Lane said, "We're going to win in 2007. That's a guarantee. I promise you."

And what would coach Dennis Franchione think about that?

"I'm a man. I can say what I want to say," said Lane, who is 20. Gundy, the coach at Oklahoma State, is 40, as he noted in his infamous Sept. 22 postgame rant.

Lane's confidence is admirable, but A&M's pass defense doesn't need any extra pressure. The Aggies already have their hands full trying to stop the Red Raiders offense. Tech is averaging 52.5 points per game. A&M's pass defense is ranked 75th nationally.

"I never actually flew F-16s in a dogfight in a war, but I'd imagine that's about what it feels like," defensive coordinator Gary Darnell said. "These guys, they're coming fast."

Tech's spread offense is all about creating mismatches. Receivers crisscross the field with abandon, and quarterback Graham Harrell finds dead spots in the zone coverage.

A&M is a zone team through and through. Linebacker Mark Dodge said defenders must keep receivers in front of them and prevent big plays.

"We really have to contain that deep stuff and let them catch the 2-yard hitch," Dodge said. "We have to make sure we break down and not miss any tackles."

Elder loves Tech atmosphere: Offensive lineman Kirk Elder said he loves the negative energy Tech fans create. He also likes "the tortillas, the batteries and the 100 DPS troopers."

All Elder would guarantee was that the Aggies would have "a great week of practice and preparation."

Nothing to say: For the third consecutive week, tight end Martellus Bennett opted to skip the weekly news conference. Unfortunately for the Aggies, Bennett has been quiet on the field recently, too.

Bennett caught only three passes in the last two games. He caught 17 passes in the first four.


- Big 12 Rankings



1) Oklahoma - Starting to come back down to earth. Not sure what the deal is with them. An average Texas team had them on the ropes in the Cotton Bowl. Saturday's game with Missouri could be the game of the year in the Big 12.
2) Missouri - Call me a believer after watching them decimate and embarass Nebraska. Nebraska may not be good this year, but they still have talent and to see what they did to them was impressive. They are running that offense with unreal precision.
3) Colorado - Getting better and better....pencil in November 3 as the Big 12 North title game (at home vs. Missouri).
4) Kansas - Tough win at KSU. They finally beat someone. Tougher teams lie ahead.
5) Texas Tech - Big test this weekend. Should beat ATM, they always do.
6) Texas - Still an average team, my prediction of 4 losses is halfway right so far.
7) Texas A&M - A win in Lubbock shoots them up to #3.
8) Kansas State - Still a dangerous team for anyone in the North.
9) Nebraska - I hate this team, am done with the coaching staff, and have no faith in them performing to their capabilities. A barn burner coming up Saturday vs. Oklahoma State.
10) Oklahoma State - Not sure about this team, too hot and cold.
11) Baylor
12) Iowa State


- National Top 10



Wow, what a few weeks it's been. Here's an updated, strange looking Top 10.

1) LSU - The only remaining unbeaten from the "Elite 4" that everyone was touting earlier this season, Florida, USC, and Oklahoma. Could have a potential upset on its hands vs. Kentucky this Saturday. A chance for Andre Woodson to re-enter Heisman talks.
2) Cal - Some tough games with USC and Arizona State lie ahead.
3) Ohio State - Just keep winning with defense and timely offense (shades of 2002).
4) Boston College - My top sleeper before the year, so this doesn't surprise me.
5) South Florida - Until they lose, they stay in top 5. That coach is going to get money whipped this offseason, so expect him on a different sideline next year.
6) Arizona State - Good offense, lots of athletes, and can win tight games.
7) Oklahoma - Not so sure about them anymore, looking mortal, may lose to Missouri this weekend.
8) USC - Bare minimum USC picked a bad time to appear last Saturday. Can run table and get in, but I highly doubt it happens.
9) Missouri - Could shoot up if they knock off Oklahoma.
10) Oregon - Could run table and get into a BCS game.

On cusp

- South Carolina - An overrated team, but still only 1 loss in the SEC, so must count for something.
- West Virginia - Can't put them in the top 10, especially with some key players hurting.
- Virginia Tech - The most overrated 1 loss team in the nation.
- Wisconsin - Another bad team that somehow only has 1 loss.
- Florida - Showed me something at LSU, but still has 2 losses.
- Cincinnati - An interesting team, pay attention to their game vs. Louisville this weekend.



- Heisman Rankings



1) Matt Ryan - Yes, Matt Ryan. One of the biggest reasons why BC is top 5 and unbeaten.
2) DeSean Jackson - Game MVP of their biggest win to date (vs. Oregon). Big performances against USC and Arizona State could seal it for him as could an unbeaten Cal team making it to the BCS Championship.
3) Mike Hart - Has put team on his back since 0-2 start. Watch out for this team, they could still sneak into the Rose Bowl with a conference championship.
4) Darren McFadden - Stuck on a bad team but still producing.
5) Chase Daniel - Running and throwing with extreme confidence and success.

These days are gone.....

- Just about done with this regime for Nebraska.

- After showing progress, albeit minimal in some years but nonetheless progress, this whole program, from top to bottom, has regressed to the point where I have lost all hope for this current administration. The program is in mass chaos right now.

- Getting blown out to every ranked team you play is not progress. Lacking a signature victory against a ranked opponent is not progress.

- They have yet to win a game in which they were decided underdogs. An upset victory if you will.

- They have now become the same as Iowa, Oregon State, Kansas, Texas Tech, Clemson, etc. Average teams that top out at 10-3 and a medium-level bowl, but more than likely will get you a 7-5, 8-4 season.

- They refuse to change up the defense and to accept the fact that what they're doing isn't working. Check this post-game quote from Chase Daniel and the Offensive Coordinator for Mizzou:

"I was a little bit surprised that they went just about the entire game getting pressure on us with a three-man rush," Missouri offensive coordinator Dave Christensen said. "Obviously, it didn’t work very well. I don’t foresee Oklahoma doing that or at least making a living doing that."

Daniel was less subtle in his reaction to Nebraska’s game plan.

"They’re very stubborn," Daniel said. "Cosgrove’s a very stubborn guy. It’s always been that way. … That’s just how he is, that’s how they are. They’re a bunch of confident guys in what they do, and they felt they had the best chance doing that, so they stuck with it."

"You can’t just play one defense the whole entire game," Daniel added. "That’s like high school stuff that I faced in high school, so it’s nothing new for me."

- They continue to have faith in a defensive coordinator that has historically been average, with Wisconsin and now with Nebraska.

- They have taken every physical, imposing aspect out of their game (offensively and defensively) and now rely on trick plays, short quick passes, read and react defenses, and no running game to win games. Any kind of semblance to the physicality last seen in the early 2000's is completely gone.

- They have an AD who by all accounts is a controlling, dictator-like prick who will refuse to change things up this offseason out of sheer stubborness and refusal to admit he was wrong in hiring this current staff. In fact, they have an AD who rewarded a 24-16 coach with an extension this year. 24-16 is fine at Duke, 24-16 is not fine at Nebraska.

- Remember all of the 30 game winning streaks against teams like Kansas, Kansas State, Iowa State, etc? Those streaks now seem unreal. I mean really, how do you beat a conference team 30 times in a row? It really did happen.

- And now those teams beat Nebraska every other year, and in some years, embarassingly. Mighty Nebraska, the same team that had a 27 year streak of 9 win seasons, countless conference team winning streaks, 30 straight bowl games, etc, is now giving up games to has-beens. Mediocrity has set in and they are in a bad way.

- And people can bring up that other programs like Texas, Oklahoma, USC, Penn State, Michigan have similar eras of mediocrity. I don't want to hear that. That's what made Nebraska so special and dominant and amazing. They avoided eras of being average. They were always players, always had good teams, and never gave up embarassing losses. I don't want to hear that shat, Nebraska has always been the exception to every parity-driven rule/statistic.

- The days of going 60-3 over 5 years, walking into a game already up 14 points b/c of the N on your helmet, knowing you had a physical advantage in every game you played, knowing that no matter how much speed those Florida schools had, you had more, and you also had more bad asses that would hit you in the mouth and pound your asses into the ground, are gone.

- Even when Nebraska had an "off" year, it meant 9-3, 10-2 and a conference champhionship. Gone.

- It makes me wish I would have appreciated the Tom Osborne days more. I can honestly say I took them for granted. I took 10 win season for granted. I took dominance for granted. I took Osborne for granted. And now it's gone, and I dare say we'll never see an era of dominance in college football like that ever again. Not in this age of scholarship limits and parity.

- All in all, this is the most embarassed I've been as a Nebraska fan. 4 years we have been fed horse S, been told that parity, lack of athletes left by the old coaching staff, being patient while players try to grasp the complex systems, etc has been the culprit for the lack of success. It's been 4 years now, results should be shown by now.

- These are college kids, most of whom if not for football wouldn't have the brains to be in college. They are not NFL athletes, who are more mature and being paid to learn complex systems. These kids need simple, yet effective systems, they need coaching on fundamentals such as tackling and blocking, and they need to be given freedom to let their athletic ability take over. They cannot be run like an NFL team, where fundamentals take a back seat. These kids need to continue their growth in the basics, they are not near the finished products that NFL players are. This is the downside of having an ex-NFL coach.

- They don't need to be overthinking on defense, they don't need playbooks like this (yes this is an actual playbook)

They need to get back to the Bo Pelini attacking, simple defenses and the pounding, Big 10 like running of the football, and they need college coaches in there.

- I know I'm pulling a 180 on this. I supported Callahan, thought what he was doing was on the right track, thought he was still wanting to be physical on offense, and thought the defense would correct itself by firing Cosgrove and getting an attacking coordinator in here.

- But I can only take this so long. It is clear that his recruiting hasn't taken over, his system is way too complex, his defensive coordinator sucks, and they are worse off now than they were when he took over. It needs to happen. I like Callahan as a guy, I wish he could win, I don't dislike him, but it's obvious a change needs to be made.

- My prediction will be if no significant progress is made after the 2008 season, he's gone. And I'm talking a BCS bowl and a Big 12 Championship, no less. Anything less and we'll just be fooling ourselves into thinking this thing isn't mediocre. That's the bar. 5 years is enough time to turn a program around, lesser coaches (supposedly) have needed far less time. That is plenty of time to get a good gauge on this thing.

- Until then, I'll continue to watch, continue to buy their games on PPV, continue to try to make 1 road trip a year to watch them. Because I have too much pride in Nebraska I guess, I can't turn my back on them even during these crap times. I'm about the most blindly loyal sports fan there is. I take too much pride in the few teams I love. I don't ditch the wagon during tough times and start looking for the newest flavor of the month just because that's the easy thing to do.

- I stayed with Mavs during the 90's, the Rangers during this shat-filled run they're on, the Cowboys when they were terrible, and now Nebraska. I don't turn my back, too much pride in the hometown and the Motherland.


- That's about all I can muster for today.

- I've got thoughts from the weekend in LA, pics, thoughts about the Cowboys win Monday night, and some Mav's stuff, but this Nebraska thing has just about ruined my football year.

- There's no more getting around it, they're average. And considering the 40 year run of success Nebraska had and the dominance we witnessed, you can understand how hard this is for a fan to admit. What we've been avoiding admitting for 5 years, has finally been conceded. The white flag is up. They're back down with the rest of college football, and it sucks balls. It really does.