Postcards from Arizona 2

SUNDAY, JANUARY 7

Much better day today.

First of all, Arizona is gorgeous. At least, the part I'm seeing, which is Scottsdale and Paradise Valley. Rocky mesas frame the landscape in every direction. The sky is impossibly blue, the air is crisp and clean, and the people here are incredibly friendly. Why wouldn't they be? If you can't be in a good mood around here, you've got issues.

The mood was excellent this morning at the Fox Sports Grill in Scottsdale, where we taped our National Championship Special, which aired back in Florida today at 4:30 and 6:30 on Sun Sports. The "Desert Gators" - Phoenix's Gator Club - got the word out and represented: the Grill was packed to the gills for our taping. Hundreds upon hundreds of fans. There was a line around the building at 9am for our 10am taping. Much thanks to Gary and all the Desert Gators for spreading the word. The atmosphere was electric.

Brady, Terry and I were joined by Charles Davis, Max Starks, and our man Doering. Charles, I should mention, might be the nicest man in America. Max might be the biggest (with his hair fully grown out, he looks like a lion wearing a sweatshirt). And Doering - well, around here, Doering is Elvis. The Gator fans won't leave him alone, and to his credit, he signs everything, poses for every photo, and generally enjoys himself. All things considered, it was a terrific show.

The golf question was solved. Played 16 holes at Silverado, a public course here in Scottsdale, with running shoes and rented clubs. Before darkness chased us off - it gets dark fast out here, and COLD - enjoyed meeting three locals who were very interested to hear about what we were doing for the game. Played like doo-doo, which may have something to do with the yard-sale-caliber sticks I was using. But hey, mountain views on every hole. Life is good.

Tomorrow is game day. Media busses leave from the Camelback Inn at 11am and 1pm local time - kickoff at 6pm local. The TV world revolves around East Coast time. We do a live pregame show outside the stadium from 4:30 to 5:30 local (6:30 back in Florida), then I head inside for the game. Very much looking forward to it.

I'm sticking with my prediction, by the way. With the fan representation going about 70-30 in favor of Ohio State around here, gotta go against the grain.