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.
ILLINOIS
Say goodbye to ... Ron Turner
Coaching record: 35-57 in 8 seasons
Reason for leaving: Fired
Turner appeared to have the Illini on the right track, especially after the 2001 season when they won the Big Ten championship and earned a Sugar Bowl berth. But Illinois only won five conference games after that and went 9-25 overall. In that span was a 14-game Big Ten losing streak. Two of Illinois four wins over the past two years came against I-AA opponents, which will get you the kind of attention from fans and alumni you don’t want. Average attendance at the 69,249-seat Memorial Stadium dipped to just over 48,000 last season and, after a third straight losing season, it was time.
Hello ... Ron Zook 
Charles Rex Arbogast / AP fileRon Zook
Coaching record: 23-14 in 3 years at Florida.
2005 prediction: 4-7
Zook took the Gators to three non-BCS bowl games, which would cut it in a lot of places but not Gainesville.
He is familiar with the Big Ten, having been an assistant at Ohio State, and the Illini will be counting on his reputation as a first-rate recruiter. But that will take some time.
He has 14 starters back, but there are only four seniors among that group, making them the least experienced team in the league. That will make for a fast turnaround difficult. Couple that with the fact the Illini were outgained by nearly 133 yards a game in the league and the usual learning curve with a new system and it’s hard to envision a huge improvement over last year.
Long-term outlook: Zook will have to live up to his reputation as one of the best sweet talkers in the business if he is to corral the kind of players he needs to turn this around. While he was never liked in Florida and suffered some embarrassing losses, he did beat rival Georgia twice and took down Florida State in Tallahassee. The guy can coach some.
He undoubtedly learned some valuable lessons there, and in an environment where expectations are much more realistic, no one should be surprised if this program thrives again.
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.
New coaches |
23 Division I-A schools start the 2005 season with a different sideline boss. Click on a school below to learn more. |
College football |
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.