BC could have new coach by tomorrow
Boston College athletic director Gene DeFilippo should be finished with the interview process by the end of the weekend, with an announcement of a new football coach for BC early this week, perhaps as soon as tomorrow.
DeFilippo has focused on a core group of BC insiders currently involved with the Eagle football program. He took care of those interviews on Thursday and Friday when he talked to offensive coordinator Steve Logan, offensive coordinator Frank Spaziani, assistant head coach Jack Bicknell Jr., and assistant athletic director of football operations Barry Gallup, all of whom had expressed an interest in the job after DeFilippo fired Jeff Jagodzinski on Wednesday.
Of that group, Spaziani is the clear leader and Bicknell is second.
With the internal interviews completed, DeFilippo then focused on a core group of outside candidates, making calls and setting up interviews. According to sources familiar with the process, DeFilippo talked to Richmond coach Mike London, Florida offensive coordinator Steve Addazio, and East Carolina coach Skip Holtz, who should be interviewed sometime today.
Of that group, Addazio and Holtz are regarded as the front runners, although London also had impressive credentials, including a BC connection from his stint on Tom O'Brien's staff 10 years ago. Addazio is known as a great recruiter, with an aggressive style and New England connections, coming off a team which just won the national championship.
Holtz has a New England background -- with a coaching stop at UConn in his resume -- and has turned East Carolina into a highly competitive program.
The decision DeFilippo must now make is whether to stick with a solid BC connection, which Spaziani and Bicknell would provide, or move outside the program with either Addazio or Holtz, which would probably also create even more shuffling of the staff.
It is unlikely that Spaziani will stay on staff if he is passed over for the head job for a second time.
The other question is a matter of money. Firing Jagodzinski cost BC something in financial terms with a contract settlement -- specultation is that it could range from $750,000 to more than $1 million for the remaining three years of Jagodzinski's contract.
If Holtz is hired, BC most likely would have to pay a buyout as part of the deal. In addition, the new coach would receive a minimum 5-year contract, with a total compensation package of $1 million per year the most likely starting point.
No matter what DeFilippo does, the process should be over in the next 48 hours.
(c)2009 NY Times Co
Rice's Terrific Texas Bowl Tandem
It was, in a sense, a reverse.
During the third quarter of the Texas Bowl, Rice quarterback Chase Clement sent a lateral, short and sweet, at Jarett Dillard's chest. The All-Everything receiver took the pass as the Western Michigan defense began to swarm, ready to cement a loss of yards. But Dillard, more often known for class than cleverness, wheeled and flicked the ball back to Clement, wide-eyed and wide-open, who popped into the endzone to give Rice a 30-0 lead.
Clement and Dillard, just as you'd expect. On their own wavelength, at a different speed, combining for their NCAA-record 51st touchdown conversion. But this flea-flicker saw their roles switched, for it was Dillard as the gunslinger and Clement as the crafty catcher.
Is there anything these two can't do?
Actually, hold that thought - is there anything this team can't do?
Three years ago, Rice football was lower than a Flo Rida groupie, sitting pretty at 1-10 under then-coach Rick Warren Ken Hatfield. The next year Todd Graham returned Rice to the postseason for the first time since the 1954 Cotton Bowl, but an injured Clement, ruing a snapped collarbone, watched Troy tear up the Owls in the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl. David Bailiff then rode in from Texas State, a complete unknown - an ESPN host tempted his analysts to "guess who the Rice coach is" only to watch them all fail - and a 3-9 season seemed to relegate us back to college football purgatory.
As the 2008 campaign dawned, expectations were tempered, outlooks were middling, and our confidence was shakier than my great-aunt Ida. It's not as if you could blame us, or even the team. Rice football has had such a culture of ineptitude that moving beyond counting victories on one hand was considered miraculous. Injuries had seemed to decimate us more than others, and outside of behemoth James Casey the Owls looked like Lara Flynn Boyles against the likes of Texas and Florida State.
And if that weren't enough, Hurricane Ike made sure to wash out a few days of much-needed rest for a team looking for some footing. It seemed everything was against them. No one's had it this hard since, well, the Rice men's basketball team.
But as you, me, and, yes, even some ESPN analysts saw this season, Rice slipped on their glass cleats, picked apart their competition, and burned more records than Godzilla in a Virgin Music store.
All those previous disturbances, all those infuriating obstacles, were nothing but building blocks, binds that tied the team and their talents into one.
For a team that's overcome so much, I'm almost ashamed that I thought the Texas Bowl would be close.
Everything was clicking. Clement picked apart the stringy Western Michigan defense, putting a remarkable 30 of his 44 passes safely into the hands of his teammates. Dillard and Casey were guiding the scariest tandem since Bonny and Clyde, while Toren Dixon - who finished with eight catches, 58 yards, and one all-important fourth-down conversion - continued to show why Dillard's looming departure may not hurt as much as we thought. And running back C.J. Ugokwe, whose broad shoulders carried a ground game all year, bludgeoned his way to 54 yards on 17 carries, showing that our running game may finally be in safe hands.
Meanwhile, the defense, long the ugly stepchild to our beautiful offense, was spectacular to the point of redundancy. Time and again, Rice kicked sand in the Broncos' eyes whenever they tried to climb from their hole, forcing five four-and-outs and snagging a pair of interceptions along the way. And while their bid at the first shutout in 13 years failed late in the fourth quarter, Western Michigan required seven red-zone plays and a questionable penalty just to score their first points.
Heck, even though the Broncos' marching band had a better touchdown jig, the Marching Owl Band, always with a penchant for embarrassment, held itself to a higher standard than it can typically say.
Rice was dominating in every sense of the word. With a spectacular venue, an energized fan-base, and a coach who's staying put, Rice football may have never been higher than when those final Texas Bowl seconds ticked into oblivion.
Now, back to the question on Clement and Dillard. After the Texas Bowl triumph - complete with Clement's ten-gallon MVP trophy - these two can't come back for one more round, one more game, or one more shot at the Longhorns. Their time at Rice has come to a bittersweet end, and where they land in the NFL is up to better football minds than my own.
These two came into Rice unheralded, undersized, and nearly unheard of. Now, they leave as the most remarkable duo the program has ever seen.
I'd say that that's quite the reversal, wouldn't you?
blogcritics.org
West Virginia's Stewart eyes 2-0 bowl record
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -- West Virginia had just dropped its second straight game, a heartbreaking overtime defeat at Colorado, and coach Bill Stewart's critics were howling as he gathered the team.
"We were 1-2 and everybody was wanting to run us out of town," Stewart recalled Friday. "I never got upset one bit because we're family, you know? ... Our young men were so resilient that night in Boulder. We all grabbed hands with tears in our eyes and hurting in such a tough way.
"We bonded as a football team - and we went on a pretty good run."
The Mountaineers won their next five games, before a 2-2 finish revived Stewart's detractors. The late-season struggles dropped West Virginia (8-4) into Saturday's Meineke Bowl against North Carolina (8-4), and the questions remain about whether the longtime assistant was the right choice to replace Rich Rodriguez in Morgantown.
The affable Stewart sat at a pizza joint in downtown Charlotte Friday, telling old coaching stories, heaping praise on senior quarterback Pat White a day before his final game, and insisting that he's working tirelessly to make it work with the Mountaineers.
"Just keep pounding the rock, doing what you know is right, not what you think is right," Stewart said.
Stewart acknowledged that as he prepared for West Virginia's bowl game a year ago, he wasn't thinking about being the permanent replacement for Michigan-bound Rodriguez.
"I wasn't going to be the head coach," Stewart said.
But then the Mountaineers upset Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl. West Virginia removed the interim tag the next day, even though the 56-year-old Stewart's head coaching experience consisted of going 8-25 in three seasons at VMI.
Less than a year later, Stewart will coach the Mountaineers in their seventh straight bowl appearance in what will mark the end of an era. The dynamic White, the NCAA's all-time leader in rushing for quarterbacks with 4,425 yards, will try to finish 4-0 in bowls.
"I just want to enjoy my last game with my teammates," White said. "I'm not worried about four bowl wins or whatever. It's just my last game as a Mountaineer and I want to enjoy it."
There are no questions about qualifications on the North Carolina sideline. Butch Davis and his thick, impressive resume from college and the NFL engineered one of the nation's biggest turnarounds. After going 4-8 in his first season in 2007, North Carolina started 7-2 before a rash of injuries led to losses in two of its last three games to end any BCS bowl hopes.
"When you take a look at the teams that have played for the national championship in the last couple of seasons - the LSUs, the Oklahomas, the Southern Cals, the Floridas, they weren't programs that were built overnight. It didn't happen in 18 months," Davis said. "It's year after year, solid recruiting classes, so that what happened to us this year doesn't happen in future years.
"Being 7-2, being on track, playing good, and you lose 10 or 12 kids that are injured for the whole season. Now, all of a sudden, that's where depth comes in."
Quarterback T.J. Yates is back after missing five games with a broken ankle, and may get his last chance to throw to Atlantic Coast Conference receiving leader Hakeem Nicks.
The junior, who has caught 60 passes for a school-record 1,005 yards and nine touchdowns this season, is contemplating turning pro. Davis said he's talked to some NFL teams and will discuss it with Nicks a few days after the bowl.
"He'll definitely play a big role in my decision," Nicks said of Davis. "As of right now, I'm still a Tar Heel. I just want to go out there and play this game first."
North Carolina is in a bowl game for the first time since a loss to Boston College here in 2004. For the Tar Heels to win their first postseason game since 2001, they'll have to prevent a dominating game from White, who has accounted for 100 touchdowns in his career - 53 passing and 47 rushing
"It's been very difficult this last month watching him practice. The last home game was pretty tough," Stewart said. "This is, without a doubt, in my opinion, the greatest winner to ever come through West Virginia University. Is he the greatest player? I don't know. I'll leave that up to the critics. But I know he's the greatest winner."
Stewart hopes to be a winner at West Virginia, too. The New Martinsville, W.Va., native has a chance Saturday to go to 2-0 in bowls, following up last season's improbable win that helped him get his dream job.
"That was a great year, that was a great bowl win," Stewart said. "But this is now."
Copyright (c) 2008 The Associated Press
USC: WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?
Southern Cal has this reputation of being at the very top of college football. But the Trojans have not won a national title since 2004 and won't win one this year, either.
This year's SC team is quite formidable and more talented than Penn State, but let's take a closer look at what the Trojans have done this season. (The caveat here is that I'm not saying what Penn State has accomplished in 2008 is necessarily any better, and certainly the Lions' resume since 2004 is not as good as Southern Cal's.)
Very impressive win: The 35-3 pasting of Ohio State was total domination. But it occurred at home and it was when Ohio State was without RB Beanie Wells. Would playing at a neutral site with Wells on the field have produced a Buckeye win? Not likely. But I think it would have resulted in a much closer game.
Fairly impressive wins: The 52-7 season-opening rout at Virginia was a beauty. Sure, Virginia ended up being a losing team, but at the time, the Cavs had plenty of potential. ... The 44-10 romp over Oregon at home.
Not bad: The 17-3 win at home vs. Cal, although 17 points isn't exactly a tremendous output by the SC offense.
Some credit due: The 28-7 win over UCLA at UCLA's Rose Bowl, because it's a rivalry game. But the Bruins had only four wins all year ... The 17-10 win at Arizona.
So-what wins: Arizona State, Washington State, Washington, Stanford and Notre Dame.
What's notable is that except for the Cal victory on Nov. 8, USC hasn't really beaten anyone of any consequence since early October. You can blame it on the schedule and the weak PAC-10, but that's just the way it is.
Of course, a win over Penn State would be at the top of this list. And Lion fans would then learn what's the big deal about Southern Cal.
HAPPY HAPPY
Happy 82nd birthday today, JoePa.
Copyright (c)2007 TheMorningCall.com Nittany Lines
Heisman Trophy goes to leader of high-octane Oklahoma offense
Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford arrived in Norman three years ago with modest hype and low expectations. The Sooners' coaches acknowledged that they had recruited him for depth behind Rhett Bomar, who had been the country's top quarterback prospect.
But Bradford's rise from obscurity to national pre-eminence was sealed Saturday when he won the Heisman Trophy, which is given annually to the country's outstanding college football player.
His victory did not come without a dash of drama. Bradford edged Texas quarterback Colt McCoy in the voting, 1,726 to 1,604, in the closest finish since Eric Crouch beat Rex Grossman by 62 points in 2001.
In a sign of how top-heavy the balloting was, McCoy's second-place total was high enough to have won four of the past eight Heismans.
The third-place finisher, Florida quarterback Tim Tebow, received more first-place votes than Bradford (309-300), becoming the first third-place finisher to do so since 1956. Last season, Tebow became the first sophomore to win the Heisman.
In leading No. 2 Oklahoma (12-1) to the Bowl Championship Series title game against Tebow and the Gators, Bradford orchestrated the highest-scoring season in college football's modern era. The Sooners scored 702 points, the first modern team to break the 700 mark. They finished with a flourish, scoring more than 60 points in each of their final five games.
Bradford led the nation with 48 touchdown passes and threw only six interceptions. He finished with an average of 14.78 yards a completion.
Bradford is the fifth Sooner to win the Heisman, joining Billy Vessels (1952), Steve Owens (1969), Billy Sims (1978) and Jason White (2003). Only Southern California, Ohio State and Notre Dame have had more Heisman winners; each university has had seven.
Bradford will also hold a place in Heisman history in that he became the first American Indian to win the trophy since Jim Plunkett of Stanford in 1970. Bradford is one-sixteenth Cherokee and has become a role model in Oklahoma, a state with a rich American Indian heritage.
"I feel like that's another blessing God gave me," Bradford said. "He's given me a great platform within the Cherokee Nation."
Bradford's victory set up a thick subplot in the title game Jan. 8. He will square off with Tebow, who led the No. 1 Gators to their second national title game in the past three seasons.
Copyright (c) 2008 the International Herald Tribune
All signs point to Sarkisian as new UW football coach
Steve Sarkisian is the USC Trojans' offensive coordinator, assistant head coach, quarterbacks coach and - from all indications - the next head coach of the Washington Huskies.
ESPN broke the news Thursday night that Sarkisian had been selected to succeed Tyrone Willingham once the UW season ends Saturday at California.
Locally, several sources said or implied that the report is correct. However, there was no official public confirmation.
"I have been consistent with you the whole time, telling you that when we have an announcement to make, we're going to make that announcement," UW athletic director Scott Woodward said. "And we do not have an announcement."
Sarkisian went a little further while talking to reporters in Los Angeles.
"I have interviewed with Washington," he said. "They've interviewed a lot of people. I'm one of a number of candidates, which I'm honored to be. Nothing is finalized in any way, shape or form. There's been some communication. Nothing has been put in writing. ... I have not been offered the job. The interview went well, learning about each other."
However, all indications were that Sarkisian is the guy, and that the official announcement will come soon after the two schools end the regular season this weekend, perhaps as early as Sunday.
Sarkisian is 34 years old - born March 8, 1974. He has a wife, Stephanie, and three young children. He grew up in West Torrance, Calif., and went on to attend Brigham Young University, where he quarterbacked from 1995 to 1996 under Norm Chow. He played the next three seasons with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League before getting into coaching.
He got his coaching start at El Camino (Calif.) Junior College, before moving to USC for three seasons. He became quarterbacks coach for the Oakland Raiders during the 2004 season before returning to USC in 2005 as quarterbacks coach. Pete Carroll elevated him to offensive coordinator and gave him the play-calling duties in 2006.
"They'd be lucky to get him," Carroll said last month, when Sarkisian's name was first mentioned in connection with the Washington job. "Whenever you have a chance to hire a guy that brings a major aspect of the team like the offense, that's huge, because you know what you're getting."
This season, USC is averaging 32.6 points per game, which ranks second in the Pacific-10 Conference and 34th among the 119 teams in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision. The Trojans rank third in the league and 29th nationally in total offense, averaging 434.9 yards per game (237.7 passing, 197.2 rushing).
At USC, he has worked with USC quarterbacks Carson Palmer, Matt Leinart, both Heisman Trophy winners, and John David Booty. In his season as Raiders quarterbacks coach, Oakland passers threw for more than 4,000 yards and the team ranked eighth in the NFL in passing.
Two seasons ago, Sarkisian turned down an opportunity to become head coach of the Raiders, saying that he wanted to become a college head coach.
When the Washington job came open last month, he called it "one of the premier jobs not only in the Pac-10, but in the country."
Reports that the job was his climaxed a day when he seemed to move to the top of the remaining names on Washington's rapidly dwindling list of potential candidates.
Thursday morning brought the announcement that Fresno State's Pat Hill had withdrawn from consideration, and the afternoon brought similar reports regarding Texas Tech coach Mike Leach.
It was unclear if they dropped out because they had been told that the job was Sarkisian's or if the job was offered only after Leach dropped out.
"I wouldn't accept it before our game Saturday," Sarkisian told Los Angeles reporters on Thursday. "The focus is on the game Saturday. Pete (Carroll) understands the situation and is on the same page."
The Trojans end their regular season Saturday against rival UCLA.
On the same day, the Huskies will play at California in what will be Willingham's final game as head coach.
The Huskies have lost 13 straight games - the longest streak in the Bowl Subdivision. They are 0-11 this season and 11-36 in four seasons under Willingham. They haven't had a winning season or been to a bowl game since 2002.
THE SARKISIAN FILE
The Sarkisian file
Who: Steve Sarkisian, 34 (born March 8, 1974)
What: 27th head football coach of Washington Huskies
When: Announcement to come, possibly as soon as Sunday
About Sarkisian: He is finishing his fourth season as assistant head coach of the USC Trojans. He has also coached QBs each season, adding offensive coordinator to his duties in 2007.
Coached QBs for Oakland Raiders in 2004.
Offensive assistant at USC (2001-03).
Played quarterback at El Camino Junior College (1993-94) and Brigham Young University (1995-96).
Started in college athletics as a shortstop for USC Trojans (1992).
Family: Wife Stephanie, two daughters and a son.
bellinghamherald.com
Roads in the Big 12 South
Three teams tied for the Big 12 South Division Championship in 2008. Shiny, new trophies now reside in Norman, Austin and Lubbock. Lubbock? Yes Lubbock, where Texas Tech claims just as much of the crown as Oklahoma and Texas. All are 7-1.
You remember Texas Tech. After 10 games and back-to-back wins over Oklahoma State and Texas, the Red Raiders were 10-0 and ranked No. 2 in the nation. The college football world was all awash with Tech's high-powered offense and obviously improved defense, and for good reason.
Then OU happened. Tech ran into a buzz saw on Owen Field and lost by 44 points. Mike Leach's program went from belle of the ball to the alternate at an eight-year-old's birthday party. Talk of Tech vanished faster than Michael Crabtree's short jaunt into the end zone, and the reasons for that aren't pretty.
Yet call up Big12Sports.com and there Tech remains, tied atop the Big 12 South and part of this triangle that has everybody's diastolic number well north of 100. PR campaigns aside, Tech is and must be part of the discussion. Tech is just as tied as Oklahoma and Texas.
Ties in sports were made to be broken, NFL games and at least one past MLB All-Star game notwithstanding. When available, the best way to break ties is through head to head match-ups although a quick look through the NCAA basketball bracket will reveal teams in the tourney that were beaten by teams that were left out. Still, head-to-head works pretty well until three teams tie, and each of the teams can claim a victory over one of the other three, but not both.
So here we sit, trying to find a South team to go to Kansas City for the Big 12 title game, and staring squarely into the eyes of the Bowl Championship Series (BCS). Let's talk about the BCS as a tie-breaker.
You can hate the BCS if you choose and Lord knows a lot of people do. But the fact remains that the BCS is the system we use to determine the participants for the national championship game and the most lucrative bowls.
When each college football season commences, the six BCS conferences have two clearly defined goals: 1) Get two teams into BCS games and, 2) Get one of the teams into the national championship game.
And that is why the Big 12 Conference implemented a tie-breaker plank that includes the BCS. Some want to argue that it doesn't belong, but like most arguments against the BCS or even a playoff, it is impossible to look at the circumstances in any one particular year, and think that a remedy for this season would necessarily work in subsequent years. Here's why.
Let's say that OU, UT and TTU all were tied just as they are now, but that instead of OU and UT holding down the Nos. 2 and 3 spots in the BCS they held down Nos. 2 and 4, respectively, with USC sitting at No. 3.
Now, if you're the Big 12 and you're in that scenario, which tie-breaker makes the most sense? Do you want to dislodge Oklahoma and forfeit a potential spot in the national title game? Of course not.
But ignoring precedent we're now getting a plethora of other tie-breaking suggestions, including one that recommends a point differential. For Heaven's sake, in the attempt to perfect a system let's not forfeit sportsmanship.
Remember the fallout from Oklahoma's 77-0 win a few years ago. What if that score had been 90-0 in the interest of breaking a tie? Think for a moment about the ugliness of a road team, already up by four or five touchdowns, punching in another as time expires.
And what about teams that win with defense rather than a high-powered offense. Is 60-20 more valuable than 35-0? I guess a point differential could be capped ala the NFL, but in college ball would that really solve anything?
Question the BCS all you want, but as long as the BCS is here, you can't question tie-breakers that are pointed in that direction.
Now, what you can question is posturing, politicking, etc. As a PR professional, I am all for advocacy and putting a best foot forward, and to be sure, OU did those things. But when one team goes to a rival's stadium to face a rival that is unbeaten at home and ranked No. 11/12 nationally, and wins by 20 points, then falls in the human polls, the human element has taken a turn that raises a lot of questions.
Tell you what, get on Google and find me the instances in which a ranked team has beaten another ranked team under those same circumstances and then dropped in the polls. It's not unprecedented but it is rare on rare.
Bottom line is this ... three teams tied for the Big 12 South championship. Three. That tie is being broken in a manner that best maximizes a system, whether it's flawed or not, that determines college football's highest honor.
Here's to hoping that the process can play out with professionalism and the high road still intact.
(c) 2008 CBS Interactive. All rights reserved
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