Silva: 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 NFC teams.
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
Ryan Callahan scored for the fifth time in four days and defenseman Ryan McDonagh snapped a second-period tie to lift the New York Rangers to a 3-2 victory over the Washington Capitals on Sunday.
Kobe Bryant hit a baseline jump shot with 4.2 seconds left and the Los Angeles Lakers wrapped up a six-game road trip by holding on to beat the Raptors 94-92 on Sunday, their eighth victory in nine meetings with Toronto
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.
Golf's dream pairing - Woods and Mickelson - is on the course in the final round at Pebble Beach. Jason Sobel has hole-by-hole reports.
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.
Euro Roundup: First-place Manchester City won 1-0 at Aston Villa on Sunday on Joleon Lescott's goal in the 63rd minute, maintaining its two-point lead over Manchester United in the Premier League.
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.
APSince the Heisman Trophy will be handed out and a new national champion (or two) crowned before you know it, please send in your questions promptly using the form below to avoid a delay of game penalty!
Q: I know it was only one game, but is there already reason to panic a little bit for us Irish fans?
-- B.R. from Manchester, N.H.
A: Panic is an awfully strong word after Week 1, B.R. But you know what? It's not looking especially good for Notre Dame following the 20-17 loss at BYU.
The Irish were especially sluggish on offense and clearly missed injured tailback Ryan Grant. It looked like Notre Dame was relying on its old habit of doing just enough offensively and putting the game in the hands of its defense. That style did not play well in last season's 5-7 finish. And it didn't work against BYU, either. Notre Dame came to life with its two-minute offense, but it was too late.
BYU, expected to be a middle-of-the-pack Mountain West team (at best) was penciled in as a win for the Fighting Irish. Now it's a loss. A big loss. Notre Dame already is swimming upstream heading to its game against Michigan. Nobody needs to be reminded that Notre Dame has begun 0-2 only twice since 1978.
More sobering numbers:
Instead, people already are thinking its curtains for Notre Dame's season. Maybe rightly so. It's getting harder and harder to find a silver lining under the Golden Dome. I'm thinking the Irish might squeeze out a 6-5 or 7-4 finish — maybe — if everything goes right.
Q: Do you think this is Lou Holtz's last season at South Carolina? Looks like he's pulling no punches to go out in style.
-- Carl from Dearborn, Mich.
A: You have to believe retirement is being considered by Lou Holtz, Carl. And you know if that's the case, he wants to go out on his terms. That's why this year is so important. Resigning after three consecutive losing seasons wouldn't be the ideal exit strategy for a coaching icon such a Holtz.
You're right. He has pulled no punches. After last season, he fired four assistant coaches, who were on his inaugural South Carolina staff, and a fifth left for Arizona. He stripped the play-calling duties away from his son, Skip, and gave himself that important role on game day. He took steps to "change the culture'' in South Carolina's program, which had regressed into a losing pattern.
Beating Vanderbilt might not be a defining moment. But clubbing the Commodores, 31-6, a team that returns 21 starters, was eye-opening. For South Carolina to make real gains, it must defeat some of the SEC East frontrunners, either Georgia, Florida or Tennessee. If that happens for the Gamecocks, and a nice bowl trip is earned, I wouldn't be shocked if Holtz stepped away. But if South Carolina doesn't make those gains, look for the 67-year-old Holtz to keep plugging away at least another season.
Q: Other than the date switch, what impact will Hurricane Frances have on the Seminoles-Hurricanes game?
-- Jim from Mich.
A: I can't envision much of a large impact, Jim. Both teams are in the same boat. They will each lose an open date, but the Sept. 18 games should be no sweat (Florida State hosts UAB, Miami hosts Louisiana Tech).
The Labor Day evening showcase on ABC-TV has vanished, but similar exposure will exist with the Friday night nationally televised game. Truthfully, the hurricane-prompted game switch could have the biggest impact on high school football in Florida. The Florida High School Activities Association, the state's governing body for prep athletics, is steaming mad about the idea of this game being shifted to a Friday night, not to mention that the ACC never communicated with the agency.
With arguably the biggest game of the season being played, some fans will undoubtedly pass on a high school game to watch the tube. And some of those high schools already have lost games and revenue due to the back-to-back hurricanes (Charley and Frances).
Q: What got into West Virginia against East Carolina? They look like the real deal.
-- Mike Anzur from Billings, Mont.
A: West Virginia should indeed be the real deal in the Big East this season, Mike. And there should be no doubts about Kay-Jay Harris' ability to step in as the team's primary running back. All he did against East Carolina was roll up a school-record (and Big East-record) 337 rushing yards and four touchdowns. If the Mountaineers can defeat Maryland, an 11-0 record is a real possibility.
Q: I see Florida Atlantic upset Hawaii. Was that a fluke or does Howard Schnellenberger really have a chance to turn them into a legitimate I-A team?
-- Lew N. from Savannah, Ga.
A: It's no fluke, Lew. Schnellenberger's Florida Atlantic Owls were a very legitimate Division I-AA team last season, reaching the playoff semifinals and finishing 11-3. Similar to his recruiting strategy two decades ago at Miami, when he kept most of the South Florida talent home, Schnellenberger has done a nice job of attracting Florida players. Not the ones who would automatically choose Florida, Florida State and Miami, mind you, but some of the players who might drift away to a mid-range ACC, Big East, Big Ten or SEC program.
Senior quarterback Jared Allen is terrific. Anthony Crissinger-Hill — a mobile tight end in the mold of a Tony Gonzalez — could be the best skill position player nobody knows about. The Owls are making a two-season transition to Division I-A before joining the Sun Belt Conference in 2006. I expect Florida Atlantic to be perennial contenders for that league's championship, as well as a pesky spoiler for nonconference foes. All things considered, Schnellenberger's job of establishing Florida Atlantic's program certainly rivals the work he did at Miami and Louisville.
Q: Your answered the question about "hot" coaches last time, who are the coaches who should update their resume after this year?
-- Howard Presnall from Galloway, N.J.
A: Ah, the old "hot-seat'' question. Well, Howard, I'd count North Carolina's John Bunting, Stanford's Buddy Teevens, Illinois' Ron Turner and Syracuse's Paul Pasqualoni among the coaches who shouldn't be making long-term plans.
You can put Texas coach Mack Brown in a special "hot-seat'' category. Brown is the only Longhorn coach to win at least nine games in six consecutive seasons, but he's slumping against rival Oklahoma and can't seem to produce the big-bowl trip. Patience is running short.
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.
CollegeFootballTalk headlines |
 | Video: Football from NBC Sports |
 Memphis fulfills BCS dream Tigers officials thrilled to announce that school has been accepted to join the Big East Conference in 2013. |
 | Slideshow |
 | NBCSports.com |
| Slideshow |
 | more photos |
 | Slideshow |
 | NBCSports.com |
| Slideshow |
 | NBCSports.com |
| Slideshow |
 | NBCSports.com |
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.
NBC Sports TV and livestream listings
Silva: 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 NFC teams.