Rotoworld: Oregon RB LaMichael James and Oklahoma State WR Justin Blackmon among top 10 players who are being overhyped for the 2012 draft.
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
The Detroit Red Wings equaled an NHL record with their 20th straight win at home, beating the Philadelphia Flyers 4-3 Sunday night on the strength of Johan Franzen's tiebreaking goal early in the third period.
PBT: Boston's Rajon Rondo continues to be named in trade talks, which is madness. The Celtics guard creates offense and makes everyone around him better, which was evident in Sunday's win over the Bulls.
Arc's five up, five down: After No. 11 Michigan State's 58-48 upset of No. 3 Ohio State, you'd be a fool to discount the Spartans' national title chances now.
Miami coach Al Golden says the worst is behind him, but his headaches figure to continue now that former booster Nevin Shapiro, now in jail, says his involvement with the Hurricanes program will result in stiff penalties.
Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods greeted their Sunday pairing at Pebble Beach with optimism. But the day would end happily only for one.
The United States completed a 5-0 rout of Switzerland in the Davis Cup on Sunday, with 19-year-old Ryan Harrison and John Isner winning closing singles matches.
Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Tessa Worley of France fought off gusting winds to win a second consecutive World Cup giant slalom Sunday in the Andorran Pyrenees. Overall leader Lindsey Vonn was more than a second behind and finished eighth.
Robins: It’s the Year of the Dragon on the Lunar calendar, and this Chinese influence could extend to it also being the year of the Pekingese on the green carpet at the 136th Westminster Dog Show on Tuesday.
SAN ANTONIO - What a fine, fabulous, fantastic, and -- you better believe it -- fortuitous mess we have here.
Deep breath, everyone. I promise, we can find two teams to play for the national title.
At about 10:40 p.m. CST, the last two dominoes in this unthinkable, unrealistic season fell: Pitt upset No. 2 West Virginia in Morgantown, W.V., and Oklahoma took a 28-14 lead on No. 1 Missouri to put the Big 12 championship game out of reach.
And now here we are. Three months after I-AA Appalachian State won at Michigan to begin this crazy ride, and we're no closer to figuring out who will play in the BCS championship game in New Orleans.
This, boys and girls, is the greatest season in college football history. Playoffs, schmayoffs; this is what it's all about.
Tomorrow, in offices and basements and airports all over the country, men and women will sit down at their computers and decide who will play for it all. What does the guy in Boise think, or the gal in New York? Or the former coach retiring in sunny South Florida?
What to do, what to do, what to do.
After witnessing a once-in-a-lifetime season; after 20 top 10 teams lost to unranked teams; after 13 top five teams lost; after -- I can't believe I'm writing this -- both Missouri and West Virginia lost with the finish line one measly game away, it's time to swallow hard and vote for the two best teams in the country.
Not the teams with the best losses. Not the teams who played best on the last weekend of the season. Not the teams who were slotted in spots that would allow them to naturally move up.
The two best teams. Under those parameters, I'll take USC and Oklahoma. No two teams are playing better, no two teams deserve it more.
Go ahead, take your shots at me because USC lost to Stanford (which lost eight games), and because OU blew a 17-point lead to Colorado (which lost six games). Talk all you want, I've got an answer:
• Georgia? Lost at home to six-loss South Carolina, blown out in its only significant true road game of the season at Tennessee.
• Ohio State? Played one good team, lost the game. At home.
• LSU? Lost to two teams who combined to lose nine games. Les, babe, you lost to Kentucky and Arkansas. I say, Kentucky and Arkansas!
• Virginia Tech? Um, any team that loses by 41 doesn't play for it all.
• West Virginia and Missouri? Pfffft.
At this point, all we can do is use the two eyes the good Lord gave us and make a well-educated stab. That means a lot of ifs.
If the USC coaching staff had not suffered a brain freeze in the Stanford game and had played backup quarterback Mark Sanchez in the second half, the Trojans would not have committed four turnovers and given the game away. Then, the loss to Oregon isn't as damaging.
If Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford doesn't sustain a concussion on the first drive of a seven-point loss at Texas Tech, the Sooners are the hottest team in the country. That was the real OU dismantling the No. 1 team in the nation 38-17 in the Big 12 title game.
Deep into the fourth quarter, Missouri's vaunted offense -- which scored at least 31 points in each of the previous 12 games -- had 15 plays in the red zone. And got 15 yards.
No other team among the championship game contenders beat a No. 1. In fact, the best win by any of the other contenders was USC's win over then-No. 7 Arizona State. LSU and Georgia both beat then-No. 9 Florida.
What does it all mean? A lot of bellyaching for the foreseeable future.
But what a wonderful ride it has been.
Miami coach Al Golden says the worst is behind him, but his headaches figure to continue now that former booster Nevin Shapiro, now in jail, says his involvement with the Hurricanes program will result in stiff penalties.
CFT: Jordan Jefferson makes it clear he wasn't happy with LSU's game plan in the Tigers' BCS Championship Game loss to Alabama.
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The Week in Sports Pictures The Giants on top of the football world, getting ready for the London Olympics and more. more photos |
Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Wesseling: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for AFC teams.
The Red Wings have finally started to embrace a record they've been chasing.
