Harrell's Heisman Snub a Travesty

Let me preface this piece by stating that I really could care less about the Heisman Trophy because the award does not go to the best player in college football each year; it goes to the best player on the best team. So I really much prefer to watch the games being played on the field rather than the political campaigning that occurs off it. But this particular year actually piqued my interest because of the crazy talent and sick numbers we saw every Saturday.

For Texas Tech quarterback Graham Harrell not to be invited to New York City on Saturday evening for the awards ceremony is an absolute crime and a joke. If you are going to invite last year's winner--and potential Archie Griffin two-timer--Tim Tebow, sophomore gunslinger Sam Bradford and cowboy Colt McCoy--all quarterbacks--it is an absolute no-brainer to invite the guy who made throwing the football look like taking a stroll on the beach. Forty-one touchdown passes and just seven interceptions and not even an invite? Wow. Travesties like this make me embarassed to say that I'm a college football fan. Harrell's touchdown pass to Michael Crabtree to beat then-No. 1 Texas in Lubbock may have been the signature play of the year in college football, yet once again the lords of college football find a way to mess up a great story.

Meanwhile, on the NFL beat, congratulations to Devin Hester for being the best pass-interference drawer ever. And to Bears fans who hate Rex Grossman: Kyle Orton now has thrown six picks in the last three ballgames.

Finally, I absolutely refuse to believe this Terrell Owens story. I mean, you cannot script this juicy of a controversy. First it was San Francisco, then it was Philly. T.O., baby, you were always my guy, but this has now become absolutely ridiculous and absurd. Upset with Tony Romo for supposedly scripting secret plays behind your back? If I had Jason Witten as my tight end, I'd throw to him more than you, too. Shut up and try to get your team back into the playoffs.

Alright I lied. One more finally: Manny Ramirez apparently is threatening retirement because of a lack of suitable free agent offers. Wow, just when we thought Manny Could Not Be As Manny as he was last season. Amazing.

Falling Suns Look to Rise Again

First, in an attempt to prepare for the rigors of half-court NBA playoff basketball, he landed the Diesel. Then, when prolonged philosophical differences between himself and coach Mike D'Antoni led to D'Antonio's fleeing to the Big Apple, he found a more defensive-minded coach in Terry Porter who was intent on toning down the high-powered offense. Now, is Phoenix general manager Steve Kerr having second thoughts about his redeveloped low-octane offense?

The Suns continued their roster makeover on Wednesday, acquiring high-scoring guard Jason Richardson from the Charlotte Bobcats in exchange for Boris Diaw and Raja Bell, easily the team's two best defenders.

While point guard Steve Nash may be unhappy about losing good friend Raja Bell and forcing the Suns to rebuild team chemistry, the trade hints at the rearrival of a more uptempo pace of basketball, something Nash surely was craving as he adjusted to the change in pace implemented by Porter.

What this trade does is make the Suns a little more fun to watch again--but at what cost? How long can Porter coach a team that has been rebuilt into a product that he surely cannot have success molding into an image of his own?

So much for the committment to defense and the failed emulation of the San Antonio Spurs...

How about Carmelo Anthony notching 33 of his 45 points in the third quarter last night. Not 33 points in a game, not 33 in a half--but 33 in a single quarter. Anthony tied George Gervin's NBA record for most points in a single quarter with the feat, and I'm really interested to see how the Nuggets fare the rest of the way with Chauncey Billups at the point. Thus far, I've been impressed with the results and I've never been the biggest Carmelo guy either.

A huge game takes place tonight at Soldier Field in Chicago, as the Bears will host the New Orleans Saints in a battle of 7-6 teams fighting for a playoff spot in the NFC. The game is big for the Saints because they have no chance to win their division and must stay afloat for a wild card berth, but it's big for the Bears because they can't make the playoffs without winning their division and they currently sit a game behind the Minnesota Vikings in the NFC North.

Gators, Crimson Tide Ready to Roll

Florida and Alabama will battle for the SEC Championship on Saturday afternoon at Atlanta's Georgia Dome with the winner earning a trip to the BCS Championship Game. Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban will need his defense--led by safety Rashad Johnson and defensive tackle Terrance Cody--to not allow the Gators to score early and often. For Alabama to have a chance against the high-octane Gators, the Tide must stay within seven points to efficiently utilize its power running game led by Glenn Coffee. If Tim Tebow and the freshman backs get Florida out to an early lead, it will be interesting to see if John Parker Wilson will be forced to make plays in the passing game. But does Florida have a chance to score big points without Percy Harvin? Will he be able to play with his bum ankle? We shall soon find out...

For all of the bad press he received as head coach of the Cincinnati Begals, I think it's time that Dick LeBeau gets a steady stream of praise showered on him for designing a pretty incredible--and still underrated--Pittsburgh Steelers defense. The master of the 3-4 zone blitz scheme, LeBeau manages to get his unit to play not only with intensity every week but with a central focus, as well. The Cowboys-Steelers game on Sunday should be fun to watch. Can Tony Romo get off quick passes against the Steelers' blitz scheme? Is Marion Barber going to be available?

Tuberville, Auburn Part Ways

Tommy Tuberville stepped down as head football coach at Auburn on Wednesday after 10 seasons on the sideline at Jordan-Hare Stadium. The Tigers completed a 5-7 season last week after a blowout 36-0 loss to rival and top-ranked Alabama, a team Tuberville beat seven out of ten tries in his career. Tuberville compiled an 85-40 record with the Tigers, including a perfect 2004 season when they went 13-0 but finished second in the country. I don't think there's any doubt that athletic director Jay Jacobs started nudging Tuberville out the door immediately after the loss to Alabama. Heck, he probably even wanted him to follow his poor spread offense guru out the door in mid-October. This is the same school--depite being under a different president and athletic director--that tried to hire Bobby Petrino away from Louisville in the middle of the night five years ago, only for Tuberville to record an undefeated season the next year. Tuberville hasn't forgotten how to coach. Rather, a new sheriff is in town in the state of Alabama, and he's residing in Tuscaloosa, which made the Auburn administration a little uncomfortable. Another Tommy coaching at Clemson? I would venture to say that he'd be on the short list.

Were Sean Avery's Remarks Really Suspendable?

Am I the only one who doesn't think Sean Avery's comments were punishable via suspension? What's the big deal with using the term "sloppy seconds" anyway? Don't get me wrong, Sean Avery might be my least favorite hockey player in the league, and I love Dion Phaneuf's game on the ice. But didn't Gary Bettman overreact a bit? I mean, give the guy a break. The source of jealousy is Elisha Cuthbert, after all. Is Avery getting punished because of his reputation? More than likely. If he was going to get suspended indefinitely, though, don't you think he should have had to at least commit an infraction on the ice to be sidelined?

So what does the NHL want its players to do? Not talk to the media? I'm sorry but a lot of hockey players are characters and sometimes they'll provide some colorful comments. Can't we just allow these guys to be themselves, especially when the NHL can garner a smidgen of well-deserved attention from them?

I happened to catch PTI today on the four-letter network, and I must admit that it was really disappointing to hear Michael Wilbon cite race as an issue in these successor-in-waiting scenarios being popularized recently in college football. Come on Mike. Seriously? I agree that the lack of African-American head coaches in college football is a serious problem. But an equally big problem is the lack of African-American coaches on the assistant level, as well. So how can there be a realistic number of quality African-American candidates for head jobs when the numbers are scarce on the assistant level? Will Muschamp at Texas is qualified to succeed Mack Brown. Chip Kelly will be a quality successor to Mike Belotti at Oregon. Are these AD's implementing these successors-in-waiting to avoid interviewing minority candidates as Wilbon suggests? I highly doubt it. I am usually skeptical of all things NCAA, but this one's a stretch Mike.

Plaxico's Plight

Look for the New York Giants to use the bullet wound--and not the hamstring injury--as the reason to sit Plax for the rest of the season, as the team most likely will put Plax on the non-football injury list. To be eligible for this list, however, a player must have suffered an injury in a non-football incident; thus the importance of the bullet wound. The main reason, of course, why the Giants will have their doctors look at the wound is so that the Giants can get the money owed to Plax off the books. Now this is all dependent on whether or not the league steps in first. The Giants could also suspend him for conduct detrimental to the team, especially if his lawyer steps in to try to prevent the Giants from citing a medical reason for their benching of Plax. Bottom line is, Plax has played his last game as a Giant, as the team will no longer allow him to be associated with the franchise, especially after Mayor Bloomberg's remarks yesterday. The biggest concern for the Giants, in my opinion, is how the involvement of Antonio Pierce in this shooting will affect the team. To me, Pierce is more valuable to that squad than a guy who has not even been healthy all year on an offense that has been clicking without him.

Tough year for Romeo Crennel. Ken Dorsey? Wow. Not only do you lose Derek Anderson and Brady Quinn, but then Kellen Winslow can't even stay healthy. I'd love to see him get another year, but the odds are heavily against it.

Look for the diuretics issue to be resolved today, as Kevin and Pat Williams are more than likely looking at four-game suspensions, which would absolutely cripple the playoff hopes for the Minnesota Vikings. They came into last week's showdown with the Bears in must-win mode, as the team clearly had the toughest remaining schedule of the contending NFC North teams. With the win, Minnesota looked to have the upper-hand, but these suspensions probably cannot be overcome.

Blame the Big 12, Not the BCS

I apologize for my delayed posting. I accidentally shot myself while in line at Dunkin Donuts this morning. Yeah, see I was wearing these really nice designer gloves, and I had a lot of quarters on me, so I thought it was in my best interest to protect myself.

Oh Plax, how you have ruined one of my (four) fantasy football teams. Here's hoping that you can get your professional and personal life on track.

Ok, now onto the drama that is college football and the BCS. My whole problem is with college football fans placing blame on the BCS right now when all of the finger pointing should be directed at the Big 12 conference. Let's remember, the BCS was designed to designate the top two teams to play for the national championship at the end of the regular season. The Big 12 should never have instituted such a tiebreaker rule that employs a ranking system that is valid only at the end of the regular season (or at the completion of conference championship games).

If you are stubborn, though, and you still want to blame the BCS system, yell at the coaches. If you take a look at the USA Today Coaches' Poll, you will see that Oklahoma was ranked one spot ahead of Texas. I personally find it hard to believe that any self-respecting coach in America would vote OU over Texas considering that the Longhorns beat the Sooners on a neutral field. We talk about playoffs being the answer because teams could settle it on the field. Didn't Texas and Oklahoma do that in Dallas the first Saturday of October? Moronic.