Ice Ice Baby

There are two, and only two, hard-and-fast "Don't Bother Daddy" moments in my house.

The first comes every weekday morning, amidst the organized bedlam that is waking, dressing, and feeding two young children. Between the five-year-old on his way to kindergarten, the two-year-old systematically plotting the overthrow of Western civilization, and the brain-damaged Chocolate Lab begging for a potty break and the leftover microwave pancakes, Daddy gets one small treat - reading the Sports section of the local paper.

In truth, I scan it for news that might be important to my job (headline: "Chris Leak's Circuitry Blows; UF Engineers Called In For Repairs"). I search for columns that reference Sun Sports, bizarre tangents from my buddy Mike Bianchi, results for Trinity Prep athletics, and other items of interest. Fifteen minutes every morning, and that's it. The rest of my homework can be done at the office.

The second "Don't Bother Daddy" moment comes when Sports Illustrated arrives at my house - again, job-related. Generally, I read it cover to cover at one sitting.

So anyway, I opened Sports Illustrated today and started to read their NHL preview, when a strange thought occurred to me. Hockey is back, and I'm actually mildly interested. This bears further investigation.

As an Orlando native, my hockey education was earned in four years as a student (and season ticket holder) at Cornell University, where the environment around home hockey games is the Ivy League equivalent of Duke basketball, right down to sleeping out for tickets. We chanted obscene things about Boston University; we mocked Harvard with all due passion. I figure I saw about two dozen future NHL players on the ice at Lynah Rink over those four years, and many more guys who are probably selling tires somewhere right now, but the point is, I was there. And it was good.

As an adult, my hockey interest has been purely professional. One of my first-ever appearances on "SportsCenter" was marred by an Anglized reference to former Los Angeles King Michael Petit, whose name I butchered on national television as, well, "Michael Petit," instead of "Michelle Pettee." That little glitch earned me an angry and well-deserved phone message from a hockey fan who abused me for being an idiot. From that moment forward, I made it my mission in life to get the names right, if nothing else. And that was pretty much the extent of it.

That is, of course, until the Tampa Bay Lightning won the freaking Stanley Cup. Never mind that Sun Sports has carried the Lightning games since the days of Sunshine Network - this was a professional team in Florida, in a city other than Miami, winning a world championship. I was there for Game Seven. I hosted the Lightning victory parade in June of 2004 on Sun Sports, and saw the fans lined five-deep throughout downtown Tampa, and met the players and heard the speeches. I was hooked. It didn't arouse the personal connection of my classmates battling Union College on choppy ice on a frigid Saturday night in Ithaca, but I was hooked. I even have photos of my children sitting in the Cup, one of which I still use to this day as the wallpaper on my laptop.

Then came the lockout. A season wasted, a sport battered. Sun Sports scrambled to fill empty programming slots, players bolted for Europe, and college baseball started to generate higher ratings on ESPN2 than the NHL ever did. Hockey faded once again, stuffed behind college football and the Chevy Florida Fishing Report. My golf game improved, and my kids went back to school. Life went on.

So I open the magazine, and there it is. Hockey. Smaller pads on the goalies, a nearly meaningless red line, no more ties, and a salary cap, but hockey nonetheless. I started reading.

Wow. Did you know that Scott Niedermayer now plays for Anaheim? That Michael Peca is an Oiler? Jeremy Roenick a King, with Pavol Demitra and Valerie Bure? Paul Kariya plays for Nashville, for Pete's sake. Brian Leetch is in Boston. My man Joe Nieuwendyk - Cornell Joe, whose name must be spelled correctly by all undergrads as a condition of graduation - Cornell Joe plays for the Panthers! Right here in Florida!

Nikolai Khabibulin went to Chicago, and Cory Stillman to Carolina, but the Lightning, thankfully, are largely untouched. New additions Sean Burke and Rob DiMaio will soon be chatting with Paul Kennedy between periods. Hockey is back, and I'm still reading. What does it mean?

For us, of course, it means programming, and lots of it. The NHL's new national television deal with OLN and NBC leaves plenty of room for regional telecasts like ours - 76 Lightning games on Sun Sports this season, ten of those in HD. For the first time in franchise history, every regular season Lightning game will be televised. It was nice talking with you, Paul. See you in June.

For hockey, it means a second chance, and I make that point about Sun Sports' Lightning schedule for a reason. In my view, hockey's drive to become a "national" sport on the lines of an NFL or NBA is, partially, what doomed the game. Hockey does well on a regional basis, but for whatever reason you choose, it has struggled as a nationally televised sport - but they kept trying. Glowing pucks, "NHL2Night," All-Star games pitting American players versus the rest of the world. Try as they might, they couldn't sell it nationally. In the new NHL, you'll see a renewed focus on local coverage, and I think that's a good thing. Hockey fans are among the most passionate and loyal in all of sports. These franchises belong to them. So screw trying to compete with "Survivor" or "Entourage." Forget even trying to compete with the NFL or Major League Baseball. Give the game back to the puckheads, and let it be.

So I'm back in. Sports Illustrated picked Calgary to win the Cup this year, with Tampa Bay listed as the fourth-best team in the league. Philadelphia will be good. Chicago will be dramatically better. Many of your perennial playoff teams will not. Jaromir Jagr plays for the Rangers, and Eric Lindros is now a Maple Leaf. Hockey is back, and I'll be watching.

Game on.

Winning Weekend

How complete was the University of South Florida's win over ninth-ranked Louisville on Saturday night?

Louisville fans were posting messages on USFNation.com, the Bulls' Scout.com affiliate website, congratulating USF on the win. A Penn State fan thanked the Bulls for validating PSU's win over South Florida earlier this season. Fans from West Virginia chimed in. Miami fans posted notes saying how much they were looking forward to playing the Bulls next week. And my favorite - a random Cal Bears fan posted a note with the heading, "Who ARE you guys???"

Who are they, indeed. To recap, from the blog entry in this space a mere 24 hours before this historic win: the Bulls of the University of South Florida, a program whose storied history goes all the way back to, umm, 1997, were the 9th-best rushing team in the nation entering the weekend. USF had the 5th-best passing defense, the 8th-best total defense, and the 17th-best scoring defense in all the land - and all of that was before they held the high-flying Cardinal offense to 104 rushing yards and 14 points on Saturday.

Andre Hall, the best running back in the state, did his part with 83 rushing yards and two touchdowns, but it was the previously unheralded Amarri Jackson who will be dancing through Bobby Petrino's nightmares for the next several weeks.

Jackson, a 6-5 sophomore from Riverview High School in Sarasota, ran for two touchdowns on reverses and passed for another, not to mention a 57 yard catch-and-run on the Bulls' second play of the game that set up Hall's first TD. In three prior games this season, Jackson had totaled 3 receptions for 15 yards. Hello, big time.

The night before the game, we had Josh Newberg, the administrator of USFNation.com, as a guest on Sports Talk Live. Josh and I traded e-mail before and after the show, and he allowed as how his appearance on Sun Sports would be great press for the Bulls. Josh, I think your football team took care of the press. And even though I completely blindsided you by asking you to pick the winner, you're welcome. Hey, making the guests and analysts look smart is part of my job description.

It was USF's first win over a ranked opponent in six tries, it stopped Louisville's nine game winning streak, and it all came in the first ever Big East game for the Bulls. Biggest win in school history? Duh.

Perhaps even more importantly for the University of South Florida, the win over Louisville lifts the program a full notch higher than UCF, Florida International, and Florida Atlantic in the race to be included in conversation with the Big Three of Florida, Florida State, and Miami. We often field e-mails from fans of the Other Four, asking us why we don't bring more coverage of their teams during our Chevy Tailgate Saturday block of programming. Officially, there are three answers we give them, having to do with the following factors:

-Our contractual agreements with Florida and FSU,

-The contractual agreements between those other schools, their respective conferences, and competing networks,

-And the laws of supply and demand with our viewers and advertisers.

Unofficially, my answer has always been, "Just win, baby." Win meaningful games, force yourself into the discussion, and we'll be more than happy to give you the love you deserve. Just win. We don't discriminate, and there's no agenda. It's not about money, or contracts, or broadcast rights. It's about winning. That's my answer, anyway.

Congratulations, Bulls. You just won. Welcome to the show.

* * *

On the same night, UCF ended the longest active losing streak in the country by beating Marshall at home, 23-13. Steven Moffett passed for 260 yards, Matt Prater kicked three field goals, and just like USF in the Big East, the Golden Knights are unbeaten in their new conference, C-USA. The 17-game losing streak, dating back to October 23, 2003 and encompassing the entire 11-game 2004 season, is history. Granted, Marshall passed for 368 yards against UCF (and for that matter, Brian Brohm had 389 yards through the air for Louisville against USF), but the Knights held the Thundering Herd to 11 yards rushing. And a win is a win.

Head coach George O'Leary said afterwards that he was "happy for the kids." He should be happy for himself, too. Unlike many in the media, I don't believe that O'Leary will be feeling much heat anytime soon from UCF brass (are you reading this, Bianchi?), but the streak needed to end. UCF began playing football in 1979 as a Division III program, working its way up to D-I in the late '90s. Throughout its history, the Golden Knights have grown in fits and starts, with glorious peaks (see Culpepper, Daunte) and excruciating lows (see the 2004 note above). O'Leary was hired for the long haul, and the plan was to start from scratch, creating the foundation that, for various reasons, has never really been laid. His hall pass is good for several years, not just two. Win a few more games, scare a big-name opponent, get a stadium built on campus, establish a foothold in the fertile Florida recruiting grounds - in short, do the things that should have been completed by now - and UCF will be fine. Think long term, Knights fans. Your Louisville is coming. It may not be this season, but it's coming.

* * *

Want to know the best part of my job? Finding nuggets like these. I've just laid out two great football stories among Florida college football teams, and I've barely scratched the surface. Webber International University drummed the Hornets of Concordia College on Saturday, a win that is sure to elevate the Warriors in the NAIA Top-25 this week - a ranking that Webber had never attained before now. Bethune-Cookman beat the Spartans of Norfolk State in four overtimes - yes, FOUR overtimes - by a final of 63-61. Amazingly, it was only the second longest game in BCC history. Florida A&M, much maligned over the past two years, squeaked out a 12-7 win over Tennessee State. The Jacksonville Dolphins, who had to postpone two games this season because their opponents were too close to Hurricane Katrina, set a school record with 585 yards of total offense in plastering Butler 55-21. And oh yeah, Florida beat Kentucky, and Miami rolled Colorado.

Football in the Sunshine State. There ain't nothin' like it.

A Numbers Game

Mark Twain is often credited with the statement that "there are three kinds of lies: lies, damn lies, and statistics," but it was actually former British prime minister Benjamin Disraeli who came up with that pearl in the 19th century. Disraeli, it should be noted, was Britain's first and only Jewish prime minister, which is, in itself, a statistic. I love this stuff.

My co-workers at Sun Sports know me to be a statmonger. Every week, while preparing for our Chevy Tailgate Saturday studio shows, I dig through game notes, media guides, and websites looking for the obscure, the bizarre, and the surprising. Anyway, during last week's Sports Talk Live on Sun Sports, the panel argued the question of which Division I football team in Florida was playing the best right now. Interesting question, and completely impossible to answer, but that's what we do on talk shows. Most votes were cast for Florida State, by virtue of two wins over ranked opponents, with some sentiment for Florida, after the slugfest win over top-five Tennessee. Me, I want numbers. Fortunately, the NCAA's statistical database is among the easiest to access and most comprehensive in the business.

For the purposes of this discussion, we are considering the seven Division I programs in the state: FSU, Florida, Miami, South Florida, UCF, Florida International, and Florida Atlantic. You know I love the smaller schools, but if I start comparing Webber International (in the NAIA polls for the first time in school history this week) to Bethune-Cookman (among the top ten in the Sheridan poll for HBC's) to Jacksonville to the Big Seven, well, we'll be here all day. Comparing programs across divisions is a fool's errand. I'll stick to D-I. All stats are prior to the weekend of September 24th.

First stat: total offense. The highest ranked team in the state in that category? South Florida, at number 46, right behind UConn and just ahead of Colorado State. The Bulls' 404.3 total yards per game is well ahead of Florida (60th) and Florida State (78th) in the category. Miami is 85th, UCF 96th. Number one in the country is Texas Tech, with a preposterous 700-plus yards of offense per game.

Of course, the Bulls benefited from having played UCF, which ranks 76th in the nation in total defense, allowing 394 yards per game. Florida International, which is not ranked by the NCAA due to its provisional D-I status (FAU is in the same boat), would fall 116th out of 119 teams in D-I, making the Golden Panthers the most porous unit in the state. Here's the shocker - Florida is ranked second in the nation in total defense behind Connecticut (also a stunner, when you think about it). The Gators have allowed 199 yards per game this season, better than South Florida (8th, 230.6), Florida State (13th, 261.3), and Miami (17th, 274). Coming against Wyoming, Louisiana Tech, and Tennessee - three teams with reputations of offensive firepower - that Gator stat is pretty impressive.

Break it down for me. Pass defense: South Florida is 5th nationally at 117.3 yards per game allowed through the air. Florida is 10th, Florida State tied for 32nd, Miami 34th, UCF 56th. FAU would be a healthy 28th in the nation against the pass if they were allowed in the rankings, while FIU would be a sickly 115th. Developing trend: Florida International's defense needs work.

Rush defense: Florida is 11th in the nation, allowing 61 rush yards per game, best in the state. FSU is 22nd, Miami 28th, South Florida 44th. UCF is 81st, and they have USF's Andre Hall to thank for it. FIU would be 91st and FAU falls at 111th - the Owls rarely saw a football in the air against Minnesota last week, as the Gophers happen to lead the nation in rushing offense at 335 yards per game.

Pass offense: now we know where Texas Tech butters its bread. 584 pass yards per game. In a related story, Cody Hodges' arm just melted. For all the griping about Drew Weatherford versus Xavier Lee, it is Florida State that leads the Sunshine State programs in passing offense at 267.3 yards per game, good for 27th in the nation (behind teams like Michigan State, Vanderbilt, and North Carolina, however). Florida is 49th, with UCF making a strong showing at 54th, with Miami at 78th and South Florida a dismal 106th (finally, a chink in the Bulls' armor). FIU and FAU, if ranked, would be close together in the mid-80's.

Rush offense: Told you about Minnesota already. South Florida leads the state teams with 266.6 rushing yards per game (Andre Hall accounting for 128 of those). Both USF and Hall are 9th in the nation. Miami and Florida are 63rd and 64th - the Gators are tied with Duke in that category at 136.67 rush yards per game, if you can believe it - while Florida State is a stunning 102nd and UCF is a predictable 108th. That Seminole stat - 84 rush yards per game - has got to be the biggest upset of the season so far.

A former D-I coach once told me that the only stat in football that really matters is scoring defense. All-righty then - Florida, Florida State, and South Florida are all in the top twenty nationally, with the Gators allowing only 8 points per game (4th). If they can't score, they can't win. Miami is an uncharacteristic 44th (20 points per game allowed), while UCF allows seven and a half more points per game than that, good for 75th. FAU would fall in the 90's, while FIU would be 113th, but I'm finished piling on the Panthers.

Last one: scoring offense, the number that fans love. There's Texas Tech again, scoring 68 points per game, with Southern Cal close behind at 66.5. The top Florida team? Umm...wait a minute, scrolling...still scrolling...there it is.

Florida State, at 33.3 points per game, is tops in the state, ranked 31st in the nation. Florida is 45th, four points lower, while South Florida is in the top 60. Miami is 79th (21.5 ppg), UCF 103rd (14 ppg), while Florida Atlantic and Florida International would fall in the 100's.

Of course, none of this takes strength of schedule into account, but it's still a fascinating exercise. What have we learned? You may hear some of these storylines on future Chevy Tailgate Saturday shows, and now you know where we get it from. Some are obvious, some not:

1. Despite all the hype surrounding the Urban Meyer spread offense, the Gators are winning with defense, ranked in the top 11 in four of the defensive categories above, including second in the nation in total defense. Game balls to Greg Mattison, Charlie Strong, Chuck Heater, and Doc Holliday.

2. Florida State's defense is as stout as ever - 13th in total defense - but it's the passing game that intrigues me. 27th in the nation with a redshirt freshman QB, better than any other team in the state, and the highest-scoring offense in Florida as well. Now imagine how good they would be if Booker and Washington could lift them beyond 102nd in rushing. Then again, with teams keying on the run in order to force Weatherford to pass, well, all those numbers start to make more sense.

3. South Florida is sneaky good. With the exception of their pass offense (106th in the nation), the Bulls are more than respectable in every category here. Andre Hall is the best running back in the state right now. Don't even bother arguing with me about this. If only the Bulls could straighten out their QB position.

4. Miami's numbers are hardly characteristic of Hurricane teams in the past - a fact that has not escaped many 'Cane fans. The defense is doing its part - top-20 in total defense - but of the four offensive categories outlined above (pass, rush, scoring, total), the Hurricanes' highest ranking is 63rd, with the other three in the 70's and 80's. With three of their next four games against South Florida, Duke, and Temple, it's time for the Miami offense to make some hay.

5. UCF's bright spot? The passing game, behind QB Steven Moffett and WR's Mike Walker and Brandon Marshall. If the Knights are going to build on something, that may as well be it.

6. FAU and FIU are taking their knocks as D-I programs, but we expected that. Together, the Golden Panthers and the Owls have played Kansas State, Texas Tech, Kansas, Oklahoma State, and Minnesota this season. Combined record? 0-5, by a total score of 190-53. Ouch, babe.

So as you watch Rec Warehouse College Kickoff, the postgame shows, or the Football Wrap this weekend, remember - the numbers never lie.

Weekend Update

First order of business: coaches do not watch film.

They say they do, and newspaper columnists refer to it, and television analysts love to talk about "the films," but coaches do NOT watch film. They watch videotape, or digital video. Nobody watches film anymore, and hasn't for probably 25 years. In fact, most video assistants now burn their scouting tapes onto DVD's, which players then toss into the back seats of their Escalades. Repeat: there is no film. Coaches use that phrase on reflex, harkening back to the leather-helmet days of dark, smoky rooms and clackety reel-to-reel eight-millimeters projecting onto a bare wall. Nobody does that anymore. There is no "Sunshine Network," and there is no film. Yet, on Sunday, I saw at least four "film" references in the papers. Work with me, people. Together, we can make a difference.

Next point: I picked Boston College to beat Florida State on Saturday, and I was wrong. Such is life. Still, even the most obstinate Seminole fans will admit that BC owned that game in the first half, and gave Florida State a hell of a run. My pick was not based on any aversion to FSU - rather, I thought Boston College was pretty good, and I still think so.

That being said, I really liked Terry Norvelle's point about the Seminoles during our combined Seminole-Gator Postgame on Saturday night - this is what you will get from Florida State this year. They are nothing if not resilient. Two redshirt freshman quarterbacks, a breathtakingly talented corps of young receivers, and a defense that can be impregnable at times. They have a whiff of destiny about them. On balance, the talent is not quite what it was when FSU was winning 11 of 13 Atlantic Coast Conference titles, but I think I like this team better. They find ways to win. They grind. It may be ugly, but when the scoreboard reads all zeroes, you'll like the result. We can relate to a team like this. And Mickey Andrews deserves every penny he makes.

There is an elephant in Florida State's living room that few in the state or national media are willing to discuss, and it has to do with Xavier Lee, the former Mr. Football in the state of Florida. A former Seminole football player with close ties to the current staff told me that Coach Bowden and his assistants are wary of handing Lee too much responsibility in the FSU offense because they are concerned about his head. By "head," I mean not just his football acumen, but his academic motivation. Lee, the story goes, is not an enthusiastic student, and the FSU coaching staff's worst nightmare is handing him the keys to the offense only to see him flunk out of school a semester later. Not saying it's a fact, only saying that I trust the source.

Further, many Florida State message boards have been lit up lately with arguments about Lee's "bad attitude" versus those who believe he should be on the field on every snap. I bring this up because during that comeback win over Boston College, ESPN sideline reporter Holly Rowe made an excellent observation.

Sometime during the second half, the venerable Ron Franklin threw down to Rowe for a quick hit from the FSU sideline. She noted - accurately - that Lee appeared detached from the FSU game plan, with his helmet on the turf and his mind wandering. He was chatting with other backups, laughing, and generally farting around, and did not seem ready to enter the game, despite the fact that Bobby Bowden had been using both quarterbacks in previous games. She was dead right. I wonder if Lee realizes this.

None of this is news to Seminole fans, but it doesn't get discussed openly. Xavier Lee is a transcendent athlete, so talented that one has to wonder why he's not getting more of a run. When you're down three points on the road, and your opposition is gashing your defense for three quarters, and the earth appears ready to open up and swallow your national championship hopes, you would think that the most dangerous football player on the field would at least be interested in the play calling. But he wasn't, at least, not to my eyes. Just throwing that out there.

I'm not here to pile on Lee. I just hope that he gets it soon. But at 3-0, maybe it doesn't matter, and maybe the FSU coaching staff knows it.

I'm not a huge fan of sideline reporters - and I've performed that role many times for Sun Sports - but I was really impressed with that report from Holly Rowe. She saw it, and reported it. Good for her.

Thirdly: two of the best comments we have ever had during our three-year run on Chevy Tailgate Saturday were heard over this weekend. The first was from Bowden, who said that his players appeared to be in "fairy-land" for much of the game against Boston College. The second was from Urban Meyer, who responded to a question from Steve Babik after the win over Tennessee thusly:

Steve: "Coach, what did you like about your offense tonight?"

Meyer: "Absolutely nothing." Pause. "Well, we won the game."

Right, and right. It was a slugfest in Gainesville. Two elite programs traded shots for sixty minutes, and the team with the strongest chin was left standing. Cut me, Mick. Winning ugly is better than not winning at all. If Florida contends for a national championship this year, it will come on the backs of the defense and special teams, and that should be enough for Gator Nation. Winning ugly is still winning, and that's what Meyer was brought here to do.

Next point: what does Larry Coker have to do? He takes his Miami Hurricanes to Death Valley for the first time and survives, and the internet nation is still opining on the next head coach at UM. Way too much "yeah, we won, but..." You won. Enjoy it. Is the swagger gone? Who cares? Winning is good, and losing is bad.

Final notes: USF is nine miles ahead of UCF in the race for entry into Florida's elite, and the Golden Knights are going to have to deal with it. Bethune-Cookman needs some help the rest of the way to contend for the title of top HBC in the country. And Webber International University showed more heart than any team in the state this weekend, kicking a field goal to send their road game against Campbellsville to overtime, then blocking a PAT attempt in the OT to preserve the win. Break up the Warriors.

See you next week.

Odds-On Favorites

I don't gamble. Much.

Meaning, I don't play cards, I don't go to casinos, and save for picking a square at the occasional Super Bowl party, I have never laid a dime on a sporting event. Honestly. It's not that I'm opposed to gambling, it's just that it does nothing for me. No juice. If someone offered me a free trip to Vegas, I'd probably spend the time playing golf, and then maybe go see Blue Man Group.

I've taken part in fantasy leagues, but only in those sports that I feel I know better than most - the NBA and golf. To me, that's not gambling, because with enough homework, there's no such thing as "chance." Our Sports Talk Live fantasy football league (for entertainment purposes only) is a great way to create some content for our shows, and it compels me to follow the NFL more closely, but it's pretty much a diversion for me. It better be, because I already stink at it - see previous posts.

So, with this unbiased and untrained eye, I happened to catch the betting lines for each of the Big Three's conference games this weekend. Again, without much experience in the matter, I was surprised.

First, I read up on Miami and Clemson. It was David Lamm - or maybe Todd Wright - who pointed out on Sports Talk Live this week that Miami is 3-4 in its last seven games, including ACC losses to North Carolina, Clemson, Virginia Tech, and Florida State in that span. As all good Seminoles know, it took FSU the better part of a decade to reach four losses in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Miami got there in eleven months. But that's history. Tell me about the now.

Okay. After the Florida State game, Miami finds itself ranked third in the nation in total defense, and first in pass efficiency defense. They're also 91st out of 117 Division I teams in total offense, 102nd in rushing offense, and 109th in scoring offense. One game, I know, one game.

Clemson, on the other hand, is the second-best team in the ACC in terms of passing efficiency, and has averaged 344 total yards of offense and 24 points per game. However, their two wins over Texas A&M and Maryland have come by a total of five points. In short, there is absolutely nothing in the stats that shows a clear favorite - other than Kyle Wright making only his second start at quarterback. And yet, Miami is favored by a touchdown.

Personally, I wouldn't touch that game with Kevlar gloves. Miami didn't look great against Florida State, but they did look decent, and they're still Miami. Clemson, off to a nice start this year, was a 6-5 team last season, with a loss to Duke (and an overtime win over UM). If Miami's defense keeps Charlie Whitehurst in check - a taller order than containing a redshirt freshman making his first collegiate start - and Wright plays with the same confidence and poise that he showed in the second half against FSU, that game, to me, is a wash. Seven points? I'll keep my money, thank you.

Speaking of Florida State, the Seminoles go to Boston College for BC's first-ever ACC game, on national television, at home in Chestnut Hill. The Olde Towne will be rocking. Having spent several years of my life in New England, I can tell you that BC's success in football comes as a pleasant surprise to them. Basketball rules among the Northeastern schools, with hockey and football fighting for second. Boston College, already a media darling this year, sees this as a chance to prove that they belong with the big boys. They've rolled up an average of 414 yards of total offense in two games, allowing only ten points in the process (granted, one of those two games was against Army). On the flip side, Florida State's confidence was bolstered with 59 unanswered points after The Citadel shocked them with a 10-3 lead on Saturday. David Lamm thinks I'm dead wrong, but I say Drew Weatherford did indeed benefit from a big game against the Bulldogs (and Charles Davis, the only STL panelist on Monday night who actually played college football, agrees with me). Florida State has run through the gauntlet against Miami, and aired out their kinks against The Citadel. Seeing as how the guys in Vegas have BC as only a one point favorite at home, I'm comfortable with my assessment.

And by the way - this is not only the ACC opener for Boston College, but a potential eye-opener as well. In the last five years, BC is 2-8 against current members of the ACC, including back-to-back losses to Wake Forest and four straight losses to Miami from 2000 through 2003. Welcome to the big time, fellas. You wanted it, you got it.

Here's the kicker, though - Florida favored by six points at home over Tennessee. Something about this caught my attention, as well as the attention of many Gator fans on the message boards. A five-minute perusal of the official game notes from Florida yielded these numbers:

In the last five meetings, the cumulative score is Florida 167, Tennessee 165. Five of the last seven games have been decided by four points or less. Since the SEC's inception in 1933, the two teams have met 28 times in the regular season. Record in those games? 14-14.

There's also a note about the running game - the team that has run for more yards has won 13 of the last 15 meetings - but that's true for almost any college football series. To me, Florida-Tennessee should be dead even, but it's not.

Why? Tennessee head coach Phil Fulmer calls his quarterback situation a "conversation piece," but I don't think you can blow it off so easily. Rick Clausen will start in place of Erik Ainge, who struggled against UAB. That may not mean much to coaches, but it means something to the media, and the fans, and those who like to place a wager now and then. With Chris Leak making his 24th career start on Saturday, the edge seems to go to Florida - and that, in my opinion, is the primary reason why the spread has gone to six points. There's also the matter of Phil Fulmer's five losses to Florida coming off a bye week - he only has six such losses total in his Tennessee coaching career - but I believe that the QB question is driving the line, along with a national affection for head coach Urban Meyer.

What's the point? In my mind, all three of these games could be pick'ems, and probably should be. Toss a coin, and you'll have just as good a chance of being correct as if you spend the next three days buried in drive charts. That, friends, is one reason why I don't gamble on sports - because you just never know.

But on Sunday, we will.

Trade Winds Blowin'

Two hours into my first ever season of fantasy football, I already sucked.

For those who missed it, or are too lazy to read the blog entry (http://whitwatson.sunsportstv.com/2005/08/stl-fantasy-football-draft-resultsouch.html), we have created a Sports Talk Live fantasy football league, pitting your intrepid host against a pool of so-called talent, including former Cy Young winner Frank Viola, ESPN Radio's Todd Wright, Mike Bianchi of the Orlando Sentinel, Chevy Tailgate Saturday analyst Brady Ackerman, and Sun Sports production
staffers Mark Cassoni, Jamie Shapiro, and Mike Wargo. Sole purpose: to embarrass the losers on live television. Ours was an auto-pick league, and through the magic of computer rankings, I ended up with eight backup running backs, no backup QB, no backup TE, only two wide receivers, and Big Ben Roethlisbergowitzenstein as my quarterback. The rush was on for me to revamp my roster.

This, I have done before. As I related earlier on the blog, I traded Tracy McGrady from my NBA fantasy team last year and went on to win the league. When it comes to pulling the trigger, I ain't skeered.

First, I knew I had to make use of my overflow at RB to get a decent starting QB. I asked Jamie Shapiro, the producer of Sports Talk Live, what he wanted for Trent Green, one of the four QB's he had on his roster behind Daunte Culpepper. Jamie proposed Green and Muhsin Muhammad for Jamal Lewis and Brian Westbrook. Steep, I know, but I really needed a quarterback, as well as a wideout. After about ten minutes of consideration - this is a football league, and I'm a basketball guy - I verbally agreed to it.

Lucky for me, we couldn't complete the trade, because FoxSports.com has a nifty feature called "Draft Lock," which prevents owners from making any deals until at least two days after your draft. This might as well be called "The Idiot Clause," because it stops idiots like me from doing stupid deals like that one. With two days to ruminate, I backed off, and instead convinced Jamie to ship me Brett Favre for Westbrook, straight up. Remember, my roster already included Edgerrin James, Jamal Lewis, Stephen Jackson, Cedric Benson, Cadillac Williams, Ronnie Brown, Travis Henry, and Duce Staley. Westbrook was expendable, and I get a QB ranked as high as fourth in the league by some sites. So far, so good.

With Favre safely in the fold, I placed Big Ben on waivers. I realize that all the kid did last year - as a rookie - was navigate the Steelers to a 15-1 record. And yet, not only do I feel just fine about dropping him, no other owner in our league has so much as sniffed him. Now watch him throw for nine million yards and 80 touchdowns.

Next, I pounced on Mark Cassoni, the studio director here at Sun Sports and an avowed hockey guy. He had both Dallas Clark and Jason Witten at tight end, and I had bodies. For reasons still being studied by medical science, he wanted Travis Henry, a capable (but injured) running back who is fighting for playing time in Tennessee behind Chris Brown. I asked for Witten, the current darling of fantasy drafts at TE, and got rebuffed. I asked for Clark next.

Henry for Clark, done. Tight end is filled. My backup is Eric Johnson of the Niners, a player so nondescript that I forgot I had him.

Now came the hard part. If I was going to land another QB - which, given Favre's age, I felt was necessary, never mind that he hasn't missed a game in twelve years - I was going to have to deal with a more experienced owner. Chances of me getting fleeced have just gone up twenty percent. I cautiously approached Todd Wright, the ESPN radio host whose football knowledge is considerably larger than mine. He had several QB's on his roster, and some decent wide receivers as well. Long story short, he wanted Chad Johnson in a bad way, and I felt that wide receivers not named Moss or Owens wouldn't matter very much in our league. So I dealt Cedric Benson and Johnson to Todd in exchange for Tom Brady and Ashley Lelie. I have received a fair amount of grief from fellow owners for dealing Chad Johnson, but I can take it. I didn't come here to paint, people, I came here to deal. Plus, as a man born with the name "Whitney," I have an inexplicable kinship with a man named "Ashley."

So once the NFL season officially kicked off on Thursday night, my roster looked thusly: Favre and Brady at QB (can't go wrong there), Edge, Jamal, Stephen Jackson, Cadillac, Ronnie Brown, and Duce Staley at RB (an embarrassment of riches, if I do say so myself), Lelie, Isaac Bruce, and free agent pickup Antonio Bryant at WR (three members of the 2005 Preseason All-Maybe Team), Clark and Johnson at TE (whatever), Ryan Longwell at kicker (ditto), and the Atlanta Falcons defense (liking it). What did I give up to get this roster? Chad Johnson, Cedric Benson, Travis Henry, and Brian Westbrook. Look at those names, and look at who is still on my squad. With the possible exception of a weak spot at wideout, I think I did pretty well for a rookie owner.

Here's where I suck.

Faced with a Thursday night start to the season, with Brady facing the Raiders, I had to set my lineup early. I chose to start Favre. Naturally, Brady goes 24 of 38 for 306 and two touchdowns against zero interceptions. But he had a really good seat on my bench. Hey, I just logged on to NFL.com and saw that the Raiders had the 3rd-worst passing defense in the league last year! Wouldn't that have been an AWESOME stat to check out BEFORE I set my lineups?

Sunday, we'll see if the Favre choice was wise. Hey, he could go for 450 against the Lions, and we've all seen it. In the meantime, if anyone out there needs a running back, I'm ready to make a deal.

The FSU-Miami Diary

Bloggin' on Labor Day with the Seminoles and Hurricanes:

8:05pm - Just got off the set of our pregame show, which I thought went pretty well. Good information, tight interviews, nobody got hurt. However, could Osceola have thrown us a bone and tossed the freaking spear while we were still on the air? And for those who missed the pregame show, the unequivocal highlight was the 40-year-old film footage of current FSU president T.K. Wetherell running a lateral back for a touchdown against Miami. As Terry Norvelle said on the air, "T.K. has got to be the fastest university president in the country."

8:06 - What just happened with the spear? Did Renegade get lost on the way to the 50? How could I miss a horse?

8:10 - Wow, does Brent Musberger look old. And did I ever tell you that when I first moved from Orlando to Connecticut, I rented Jack Arute's old condo? Well, I did.

8:20 - Missed FG attempt in Miami's first possession. Kyle Wright attempted one pass, and why not - Tyrone Moss looked like he was on the field alone. Somebody tackle that kid, or it will be a long night in Tally.

8:22 - Turnover! Hester fumbles a punt. Huge. Games like this are won and lost on...wait a minute...

8:23 - Our first experience with the new ACC replay system. Great news, it's just as stupefying as the NFL's replay system. Just sucks the life right out of the building. I know, I know, it's important to get the calls right, but come on. I'm looking at a live shot of a referee wearing headsets. This is FSU and Miami, for the love of Christmas.

8:26 - The ref makes his announcement: "Upon further review, it was determined that the Florida State player recovered the football (huge roar as the ref starts to shake his head) while out of bounds. Psyche!"

8:27 - And who cares? Another turnover. Wright's first interception at Miami. I just called the Heisman people and told them to hold off for a while. FSU is on the 30.

8:29 - Then again, Weatherford isn't setting the world on fire, either. This could be a long night.

8:30 - Time out. Weatherford and his center are not on the same page. Did I say potentially ugly game? Yes, I think I did.

8:34 - Touchdown, Florida State. Raise your hand if you predicted that the first touchdown of this game would be scored by fullback James Coleman. Okay, all of you with your hands up? You're lying.

8:40 - Wright almost picked off again. Miami punts. Did I mention that we have a one-hour postgame show still coming tonight? Could we pick up the pace a little, fellas?

8:41 - Mmmmm...Dr. Pepper...

8:44 - Brent gives us his first "Thunder and Lightning" reference regarding Booker and Washington, and in the same breath, touches on the Jeff Bowden hot seat. Don't empty the barrel yet, Brent. Lot of football left.

8:46 - And on that note, who needs a QB when you have Booker and Washington? Thirty yards in two carries, even with Miami stacking the line. B.J. Dean may get a game ball if this keeps up.

8:48 - Complete bios from Brent on David Castillo (wants to go to medical school) and Matt Meinrod (hurt in last year's Miami game, strongest player on the team). I'm telling you, at this pace, The Burgermeister will be singing show tunes in the fourth quarter. You've gotta pace yourself.

8:49 - Field goal, with the token "wide right or wide left" reference. 10-0 FSU.

8:53 - First crappy call of the night. Pass interference against FSU. Love the call from Miami, though. It's about time they tested the FSU secondary.

8:57 - Uh oh, another FG attempt...Peattie is zero for two. Larry Coker looks like he wants to impale himself on something. What is it about this series and field goals?

8:59 - End of the first. Time for dinner. Catch you later in the 2nd.

9:37 - Mmmmm, turkey sub. What did I miss? Kyle Wright just threw the best pump fake I've ever seen, finding Ryan Moore for the first Hurricane TD. At this point, Wright is warming to the job faster than Weatherford. Now if only one of his receivers could catch a ball...

9:57 - Halftime. While surfing the net, I found this note at GatorCountry.com, from someone who calls himself DoctorF: "Let's see. Miami has missed 2 field goals, thrown 2 interceptions, had a ton of penalties, an ejection, Hester has messed up every special teams opportunity, their receivers drop everything, they are playing on the road and they are still only down by 3. They are dominating this game, but lucky to still be in it." Doc, I am flat-out stealing your post, because I happen to agree. The over/under on the first Xavier Lee appearance in the second half of this game has just been set at 5:00 in the third quarter.

10:10 - It just occurred to me that the first half took two hours. I might get to bed by Wednesday.

10:17 - And we're back! WOW, does Brent look old. Great guy to work with, though. When he used to do live hits on ESPNews, he would ask me a few questions before we went on the air and then say things like, "As you and I were talking about, Whit" while we were live. It made us sound like old friends, as if we had a regular racquetball game every Thursday or something. You have to be a TV guy to understand. A pro's pro. I realize, of course, that a lot of college football fans despise him. Whatever, dude.

10:35 - Just spent five minutes speaking with one of my co-workers about the events on the Gulf Coast. I'm spent. The mind is beginning to wander.

10:37 - Fourth and goal for FSU after an inspired stand by the Hurricanes. Out comes the field goal unit. After a flag, the Weed yanks a 26-yarder. Wide left. We have officially entered the Twilight Zone. If Miami wins this game by three or less, you can point to that play, and that drive. FSU had first and goal after a blocked punt and came away with zippo.

10:45 - Memo to Florida State: the Wright kid is starting to feel it. You might want to avoid the dumb penalties in the defensive backfield, because he doesn't need the help.

10:50 - Then again, Tyrone Moss has been cramping up, and that puts a big load on Wright. His wideouts need to step up. FSU has suddenly sprung to life on defense. Miami punts, pinning the Noles inside the five.

10:52 - GREAT call by J. Bowden. Weatherford dumps a screen to Washington for a first down, getting the Seminoles out of their own end zone. The drive goes nowhere. Punt.

10:57 - Not that it matters, because Miami hasn't converted on third down all night. Another punt.

10:59 - We are past my over/under on Lee entering the game, and we just saw a sideline shot of the X-Man looking way pissed. He thought he was going in. Brent has just called for him. The Noles burn another time out, leaving them with one. If Weatherford stalls on this drive, I'm betting the house on Lee.

11:04 - Why do all punters have beer bellies? Another punt. The crowd goes wild, however, because Xavier Lee is warming up on the sideline. I think I'll get to keep my house.

11:11 - He is the X-Man. He is the Walrus. Coo coo ca-choo. Xavier Lee has entered the building. The house stays with me. First call - a reverse, first down. Heeeere we go.

11:13 - Let me be the first to ask - where the hell were all these trick plays two hours ago? Oh yeah, and FSU just called its final time out. Whoopee.

11:15 - Gotta pack up the computer and take it down to the set. Don't let them do anything interesting for the next ten minutes, okay?

11:35 - I lied, twenty minutes. Miami driving. Kyle Wright is all that and a bag of chips. The good news for FSU fans - the defense has shown up. The good news for Miami fans, from this evening forward - you've found your quarterback.

11:36 - In the name of all that is holy, please miss this field goal. I'm not rooting against Miami. I'm rooting for a bedtime on the good side of 2am.

11:37 - He missed it. Oh. My. God. I don't even know where to start with this.

11:41 - Weatherford back in. What, are they saving Lee now?

11:42 - I hate to toot my own horn, because I hear far too many TV guys do it, but: on three different radio shows over the last week, I predicted that this would be an ugly game offensively, that playmakers and special teams would make the difference, and that both Weatherford and Lee would appear. I'm just sayin'. Also, on Rec Warehouse College Kickoff last Friday, I picked Florida State to win - mostly because Terry, Brady, the ESPN guys, my plumber, his accountant, Paris Hilton, the Pope, and every human in the Western Hemisphere who cared was picking Miami. Hey, there's no pictures on a scoreboard, baby.

11:43 - Off to our live postgame show. Then, to bed. See you Friday night.

Stay Classy, Florida

So how did the Gators look this Saturday? I ask because I didn't see all of the game. Then again, I never see all of the game.

I am frequently asked how we "decide what to talk about" on our studio shows, be they football, Sports Talk Live, or the Chevy Florida Fishing Report. Here's a quick lesson:

Hours and sometimes days before we go on the air, the show's producer creates a rundown, a document that resembles an Excel spreadsheet. Each page of the rundown represents a unique item in the show, be it an on-camera read, a piece of videotape for me to narrate (what we call "VO," or voice-over), a sound bite ("SOT," for sound on tape), a full-page graphic, a scoreboard, what have you. The producer gets input from me and several other people in the studio to create that rundown, and once created, it's by no means set in stone - stories get moved, eliminated, and added, sometimes while we're on live television. The software allows several people to access the rundown at the same time from different work stations, and the scripts are written directly into the pages themselves. Once written, those scripts are linked directly to a TelePrompTer, and off we go.

(Why does "TelePrompTer" use so many capital letters? It's a television mystery, but that's how they spell it.)

What do I actually write? More than you think. I am amazed at how many people assume that sports anchors are just script-readers. It doesn't work that way, and it hasn't for a long, long time. Ron Burgundy is a fictional character, folks. If I'm speaking directly into the camera, leading in to a taped feature or delivering a news story, I'm reading my own writing. Same goes for when you see a scoreboard on the air and hear my voice underneath it - all those stats, game notes, and details have come from my keyboard. And therein lies the rub.

For the last two years, Sun Sports has produced up to four one-hour shows every Saturday during college football: College Kickoff, Gator Postgame, Seminole Postgame, and the Football Wrap, all of which we brand as "Chevy Tailgate Saturday." This year, the College Kickoff show has moved to Friday nights, which allows us to sleep in a little bit, but Saturday is still a long day for all of us. While Jamie Shapiro, Pat Kilkenney, Lynne Mixson, Mike Wargo, Mark Cassoni, and the rest of the production staff secure highlight feeds, make sure that the graphics are built correctly, and perform the myriad tasks required to make a show look seamless, I bury myself in the internet. Webber plays Wingate today? Better find out how these two did last year against each other, what Webber's outlook is on offense and defense, and who their star players are - all for a 20-second scoreboard in the second half of the wrap show. Multiply that by the eleven other football-playing schools in Florida, bearing in mind that Florida and FSU need extra attention in order for us to fill a one-hour postgame show for each, and you start to understand the amount of time needed to get myself ready.

The problem is, there are actual football games going on. We have a room set up on the ground floor of our building at Universal Studios where Terry Norvelle, Brady Ackerman, our interns, and the rest of the staff can watch up to ten games simultaneously via satellite - assuming that our games of interest are even on television. Needless to say, South Florida, UCF, Florida International, Florida Atlantic, FAMU, and Bethune-Cookman don't get quite as many games on TV as Florida, Florida State, and Miami - and don't even ask about Webber, Edward Waters, or Jacksonville. So while I'm watching as many games as I can as closely as I can, in order to sound remotely informed, I'm also typing furiously, finishing my scripts for three shows, all of which usually air back-to-back-to-back. It's impossible to catch everything.

We do have help, in the bodies of several enthusiastic interns, who are monitoring specific games in order to edit highlights for our shows. If they see something extraordinary, they are instructed to make a note of it, but even so, a big story can slip through the cracks. For example, during Florida's opener against Wyoming, Chris Leak made 17 consecutive completions at one point, eclipsing a school record set by Steve Spurrier during his Heisman campaign of 1966. I must have been researching Elizabeth City State's all-time record against Bethune-Cookman at that moment, because I missed it (then again, in his postgame press conference, coach Urban Meyer joked that he missed it too, so I don't feel so bad).

Point being, it's tough to just sit and enjoy the games. There are too many deadlines to worry about, and too many blank pages staring at me. By necessity and demand, I have to focus on the Big Three of Florida, Florida State, and Miami, which provides the bulk of our content, but it pains my underdog-loving heart to do it. FIU gave Kansas State a hell of a run on Saturday. Webber lost to Wingate on a last-minute missed field goal. B-CC won its ninth straight season opener under Alvin Wyatt. These are all good stories, but there are only so many hours in a Saturday.

For these reasons, I'm looking forward to Monday night. One live pregame show, one live postgame show, and one game to watch in between - Miami and Florida State. A busy night for our crew once again, but in the grand scheme of things, a simple night. The two winningest programs of the last twenty years going head to head, on national television, with no competition for eyeballs. Winner gets a leg up in the ACC. For one evening, I think I'll actually be able to enjoy a college football game as something resembling a fan.

Next weekend? College Kickoff live on Friday night, two 45-minute postgame shows back to back on Saturday (Florida plays Louisiana Tech at 6pm, while FSU kicks off with the Citadel at 6:45), followed immediately by the Football Wrap. Among the games we'll be covering: FAU's matchup with Oklahoma State, FIU facing Texas Tech, the FAMU-USF tilt, Jacksonville's weather-delayed opener against Georgia State, plus the Willie Gary Classic, pitting Edward Waters against Shaw University. Oh, yeah, and Notre Dame plays Michigan, while Steve Spurrier looks forward to a warm reception as South Carolina goes to Georgia.

I think I need a nap. Stay classy, Florida.

Weathering the Storm

Received two interesting e-mails on Wednesday, in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.

The first was from the offices of Conference USA, whose members include Tulane and Southern Miss, two campuses hit hard by the storm's destruction.

The release read, in part: "Tulane's football and women's soccer teams have relocated to Dallas and Birmingham, Ala., respectively, and taken advantage of the hospitality from other C-USA member schools SMU and UAB. The Southern Miss football team also received a generous offer from Memphis to share facilities until power is restored on the Hattiesburg, Miss., campus and will head to Memphis on Thursday morning."

CUSA commissioner Britton Banowsky noted, "Some of these student-athletes and coaches are just getting their first hot shower in days, and we know they are worried that some of their families are still waiting for such a luxury."

The second e-mail was from the University of Florida. On Saturday, the Gators open their football season at home against Wyoming, a game that is available on pay-per-view. UF announced that it will donate all of the proceeds from that broadcast, totaling approximately $75,000 dollars, to the American Red Cross.

Said Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley: "Floridians endured four
hurricanes last year and understand the amount of work the affected
areas have in front of them. Our thoughts and prayers are with those who have been so severely impacted by this devastating hurricane."

Longing for a shower, and knowing that there's nothing but heavy lifting ahead. Reminds me of last summer here in Orlando.

In my hometown of Winter Park, my block was without power for a total of about two weeks, spread over two different storms - Charley being the biggest bastard of the summer. In our one-story cinder block house - God bless 1950's construction - my wife and I huddled in a doorway as Charley blitzed across the city, causing us to wince at every mysterious thump on the roof. The kids, bless their hearts, slept through the whole damn thing. We emerged the following morning to a scene that can only be described as apocalyptic. A third of an oak tree dumped into our pool. Fully half of Winter Park's prized canopy was gone. Entire blocks hemmed in by branches and limbs. We walked down the middle of previously busy streets, like survivors of war, stunned by the silence - that is, until the generators kicked up, a sound that lasted for another month.

I'll never forget the sight of one of my neighbors, a gentleman whom I had never met, strolling blithely down the sidewalk and informing me that a hundred-year-old oak had split his home in two. We chatted for a moment, and when he turned to leave, the back of his t-shirt was soaked with blood. The tree had cut him just below the back of his neck, and he was too deep in shock to notice.

In the days that followed, I piled debris higher and higher by the street, until the city finally freed up a crew to remove it the following month. I spent a stifling afternoon on my roof with a Sun Sports co-worker who had the only working chainsaw in Orlando, chopping an oak tree into pieces small enough to toss into the yard. My wife took our two children down to Sarasota for a few days to stay with her parents, because their golf course community had buried power lines, and therefore had power. It's not something I remember fondly, but now that I see what's happening in Louisiana, Mississippi, and other areas of the Gulf Coast, I realize that we had it easy. My house has been repaired. The fence is back up, and the streets are clear. New trees have been planted along every street. New Orleans is an eternity away from anything resembling normalcy.

Those of us who live in Florida are in a unique position as we watch the daily reports from the Gulf Coast. If you grew up here, as I did, you may recall that most grocery store chains once printed hurricane tracking charts on their paper bags. "Hurricane days" were the Florida equivalent of "snow days." Those of us who lived in Central Florida viewed hurricanes as a coastal problem - they never came this far inland, you see, and if they did, everybody knew they weakened over land. We grew up with these tenets, and they were absolute. Until Charley, Frances, Jeanne, and Ivan, and now, Katrina.

Watching the news this week has left my wife and I somewhat numb. For one thing, it's almost impossible to wrap our heads around the destruction. For another, we've all been dulled by the events in Florida from last summer. We feel like veteran boxers, punch-drunk. Tired. If you live in Florida, and at any time during the last five days said to yourself anything along the lines of, "better them than us," don't feel guilty. I said it too, stunning myself at my own callousness. It's a natural reaction to getting your ass kicked. It happened here, and now it's happening there. Only what's happening there is nine miles worse than our Summer of Storms.

There was a sports angle to this. The games will go on as scheduled throughout much of the country this weekend, but I ask that you stop for a moment between cheering for the alma mater and poring over your fantasy football roster and observe a moment of contemplation, or prayer, or whatever you choose to call it. If you're so inclined, the American Red Cross could use your help. If you check the Conference USA website (www.conferenceusa.com), they have provided a very helpful list of supplies that are desperately needed in the disaster zone, along with an even more helpful list of what NOT to send. Further, if you were on the fence as to shelling out the money for the Florida-Wyoming pay-per-view, consider where that money will go. If Tulane or Southern Miss is on your schedule this year, give them a little love. Magic and Heat fans, welcome the Hornets with open arms.

It's only a game, folks. The events of the last week have reminded us of that fact. So while you enjoy it, ask yourself what you can do. Kudos to Conference USA, the University of Florida, and everyone else who has already extended a hand.

Lord knows, they'll need it.