Hello everyone, my name’s Patrick and I’m a draft freak.

I’ve heard the first step to overcoming addiction is admitting that you have a problem so here I am. I love the NFL draft. I love the meaningless 40 times, shuttle runs, bench press numbers and critiques of throwing motions all of which are a scientific way to analyze something that has proved to be nothing if unscientific.

That being said, I am a huge fan of the mock draft if, for no other reason, than to see how badly my Philadelphia Eagles will disappoint me by selecting yet another offensive or defensive linemen when they are other glaring inadequacies but I digress. I should add that last year’s decision to trade out of the first round (with divisional rival Dallas) and then take Houston QB Kevin Kolb with the team’s first pick of the draft in the second round was enough to make me pause for a moment, in stunned silence, before yelling at the television.

That said, I was parousing Scout Inc.’s Todd McShay’s (a guy who bears an uncanny resemblance to Destin Beach Safety Patrol Chief Joe D’Agostino) mock draft and was disappointed that he had my team taking Miami defensive end Calais Campbell. I mean why wouldn’t the Eagles take a defensive end from the U when Jerome McDougle worked out so well with the 15th pick in 2003.

That said, looking over this first round mock, there are a couple prospects I’d be very leery about drafting. For the record, one of them is NOT Indiana’s James Hardy, who McShay has going to San Fransisco with the 29th pick the team received from the Indianapolis Colts. Hardy’s size and speed at the wide receiver position makes him a unique talent though he needs a little work on his route running and needs to become more physical against press coverage.

Darren McFadden, Arkansas. I would be very, very careful about drafting Run DMC because he reminds me of another great college running back who has been something of a dud in the NFL: Reggie Bush. To be successful in the NFL, McFadden will have to quickly learn something that Bush has yet to learn in his first two seasons, you can’t outrun everybody in the NFL. McFadden’s east-to-west style of running would be a concern for me, though he is a terrific pass catcher out of the backfield. What makes Adrian Peterson such a great college and NFL running back is that he is great in space but can also run between the tackles and be an every down back. I’ve yet to see both of those qualities in McFadden.

Early Doucet, LSU. McShay has the LSU senior going to Jacksonville late in the first round and I can’t stress enough how awful this pick would be for Jacksonville who has other holes to fill and have wasted first round picks on receivers in recent years (the underwhelming Reggie Williams and combine hero Matt Jones, who is looking to play himself out of the league). By his own admission, McShay says Doucet will be a good number 2 receiver. I don’t know about you but I’m not paying millions of dollars in guaranteed money to a number 2 receiver unless his name is Wes Welker. Doucet is undersized but fast, could be a good return guy as he tries to find his bearings as an NFL receiver.

Monday, Dec. 31 - Insight Bowl

Indiana vs. Oklahoma State 

For the first time in my life, I have a horse in the proverbial bowl season race. For the first time since 1993, my Indiana Hoosiers are going bowling. I think, nationally, college football fans know very little about this Indiana team (and probably won’t this season given that the game is only being televised on the dreaded NFL Network) but Indiana has one of the most exciting offenses in America. Sophomore quarterback Kellen Lewis is one of the nation’s most complete offensive players, ahead of Dennis Dixon, Matt Grothe and Kansas’ Todd Reesing, Pat White and Andre Woodson in total offense and ranks ahead of John David Booty, Matt Ryan and Matthew Stafford in passing efficiency. On the outside, the Hoosiers have 6′7″ James Hardy, one of the nation’s most exciting receivers playing in what is sure to be his last game in an Indiana uniform and Marcus Thigpen, an electrifying returner/receiver/running back. The Hoosiers will look to Lewis, Hardy and Thigpen to exploit an atrociously bad Oklahoma State pass defense that finished 116th of 119 teams in all of college football against the pass. Unfortunately for the Hoosiers, Oklahoma State (and their screaming moron of a coach, Mike Gundy) has a sensational receiver in Adarius Bowman, who is averaging just under 100 yards a game in receiving. Indiana must use defensive end, Greg Middleton, who leads the nation with 14 solo sacks to pressure quarterback Zac Robinson into incompletions and turnovers and corner Tracey Porter must defend his reputation as one of the Big Ten’s best cover corners (Porter finished second in the Big Ten with 6 interceptions) and stick to Bowman like glue all day long. I’m going with my heart and the Hoosiers‘ pass attack in a shootout.

Tuesday, Jan. 1 - Chick Fil-A Bowl 

Clemson vs. Auburn 

It’s a matchup between two coaches that nearly went to Arkansas when Clemson and Auburn square off in Atlanta. Both Tommy Tuberville and Tommy Bowden were reportedly interviewed for the Arkansas head coaching job before pulling their names for consideration and staying where they were. Auburn comes into this one with another great defense and a slumping, boring offense led by senior quarterback Brandon Cox. Clemson is a little more well-rounded with a great offense, passing and rushing and one of the ACC’s top defenses.  Clemson’s three losses came on the road to Georgia Tech, at home to a Virginia Tech team that would go on to win the conference and a nail-biter to BC thanks to Matt Ryan’s heroics. To win this game, which is being played less than 2 hours from the Auburn campus, the Tigers must find a way to generate some type of offense. Auburn didn’t have a rusher in the SEC’s top 10 rushers and Cox finished the year averaging 155 yards a game passing and that isn’t going to cut it against a Clemson defense that finished in the top 15 in the country against the pass and 20th in the country against the run, not to mention the weapons they have on the other side of the ball in quarterback Cullen Harper and running backs James Davis and C.J. Spiller. Losing offensive coordinator Al Borges this week isn’t going to help Auburn put points on the board despite their defense. Clemson’s defense will force the Auburn offense to go three and out for much of the game and Clemson’s rushing attack will wear down the Auburn defensive front. I’m going with Tommy Bowden and Clemson.

Jan. 1 - Outback Bowl

Wisconsin vs. Tennessee 

One of three bowls that pits the SEC and the Big Ten, the Outback Bowl returns Tennessee to the scene of a pounding last year at the hands of the Nittany Lions. The key for Tennessee will be moving the ball up and down the field and being able to execute David Cutcliffe’s offense against a Wisconsin defense that finished 4th in the conference in total defense. Defensively, the Vols have struggled in spectacular fashion against the run, giving up more than 162 yards a game. That statistic is particularly troubling given who’s lining up in the backfield for the Badgers: The Wisconsin Winnebago, P.J. Hill.  I’d look for Wisconsin to pound the ball and leave few chances for the ball-hawking Tennessee secondary chances to make plays off banged-up quarterback Tyler Donovan. This is a difficult game to pick because both teams have struggled at various points during the year but I will take Wisconsin and P.J. Hill in a close contest.

Tuesday, Jan. 1 - AT&T Cotton Bowl 

Missouri vs. Arkansas 

Playing in this game must be a tough pill to swallow for Gary Pinkel, Chase Daniel and Missouri. The loss to Oklahoma in the Big 12 Championship Game propelled the Tigers out of the BCS picture, to the benefit of the Kansas Jayhawks, a one-loss team that the Tigers had handled the week before. Still, the Tigers need to remain focus and not focus on their BCS snub as they prepare to square off against a dangerous Arkansas team. The trouble with Arkansas is that beyond Darren McFadden and Felix Jones, they don’t have much of an offense. Stuffing the run will be huge for Missouri, something they’ve done well this year limiting opponents to 118 yards per game on the ground. On offense, Missouri will look to do what they’ve done all year: Let Chase Daniel run around make plays and find Jeremy Maclin, Chase Coffman and Martin Rucker for big plays. It helps that Missouri has running back Tony Temple in the lineup but Temple played in the Big 12 Championship and was a nonfactor. Look for Missouri to exploit mismatches in the secondary, particularly on Coffman and Rucker. Given how bad Arkansas’ secondary has been all year, I’d look for Chase Daniel to have a big day and Missouri to win big.

Tim Tebow won the Heisman

Shouldn’t have come to a surprise as anyone. Ever since Dennis Dixon went down against Arizona towards the end of the season (torpedoing the Ducks’ season, his Heisman chances and the Oregon offense), Tebow was my pick to win the award. I agree with ESPN’s Ed Cunningham that this is an award that should be voted on after the bowl season but no one, up until this point, has had been as consistently great as Tebow has. Period. Say what you want about the Gators’ three losses (which this season didn’t put a BCS bowl that far out of reach), Tebow was the reason that team won nine games this season. I thought Darren McFadden was completely undeserving of the award given his mid-season slump and then spectacular last two games. More deserving of a chance to New York than McFadden and Mizzou QB Chase Daniel was Central Florida’s Kevin Smith who, after the Knights Liberty Bowl game against Mississippi State, could put together the greatest season by any college running back ever. Despite his 2,400 yards, Smith was never mentioned in connection with the Heisman, which I think is criminal. But congrats to Tebow who becomes the third Gator to win the Heisman and the first since Destin’s Danny Wuerffel took home the prize in 1996.

The Patriots won’t lose this year

The first half of yesterday’s Steelers/Patriots game was an entertained as I’ve been watching the NFL since.. well, since the Patriots/Colts or the Patriots/Ravens last Monday night. Make no mistake, this team is beatable but none of the teams they play for the rest of the year have the means to exploit their weaknesses. The Steelers, Ravens and Colts have all found ways to take the Pats to the wire but the team always finds a way to create one or two turnovers and win late. Yesterday’s game was no exception. Struggling to stop the Steelers offense (whose strategy was conservative to say the least), the Patriots pulled out the throwback pass and broke the Steelers back. The team never recovered from that touchdown in the third quarter and the league’s only unbeaten team cruised to an easy victory. There are a couple areas of concern if you’re a Patriot fan. One is dropped passes. What I’ve seen when watching the Patriots the last two weeks is tight end Benjamin Watson, the wildly, grossly overrated Wes Welker and Randy Moss all routinely drop catchable balls, particularly in the red zone. Against a better team, that could be an issue. Two, the Patriots defense is especially weak at the corners. The linebacking corps of the Patriots is pretty good in coverage and isn’t giving up a lot underneath but Ellis Hobbs and James Sanders are hardly players without exploitable weaknesses. If yesterday’s game proved nothing it’s that you can’t be afraid to take shots downfield against this Patriot defense and the Steelers were. The last game of the season, one that many of us will never seen because it’s on NFL Network, could be a good one. The Giants have a great pass rush with Michael Strahan and Osi Umenyiora coming off the edge but they are weak at corner and even weaker at safety and not giving Tom Brady time to sit in the pocket and throw has been huge for success against this Patriot offense. The Giants have big play wide receivers with Plaxico Burress but I wonder about Eli Manning’s ability to hold up under pressure and the mental toughness of the Giants as a whole.

Larry Bird and Jamaal Tinsley should both be on the next flight out of Indianapolis

For those of you who haven’t heard, Pacers point guard Jamaal Tinsley has been involved in yet another off-the-court incident involving a late night, a nightclub and guns. This time, it appears that the Pacers point guard had his Rolls Royce sprayed with assault rifle fire after an argument at an Indianapolis nightclub at three in the morning. Tinsley was not hurt but the Pacers equipment manager was shot in both elbows. Again, the Pacers are reprimanding Tinsley for being out so late and using bad judgment and putting himself in harm’s way but how many times will the team stand behind this knucklehead while he continue to embarrass himself, his team, his league and the community? It’s time to cut him loose. Now onto Larry Legend. When will he and team president Donnie Walsh be held accountable for what this team has become? Upon Bird’s arrival he has made questionable, borderline awful personnel moves and took a perennial playoff team, brought in guys with questionable character and turned it into the 2007 version of the Portland Jailblazers. In a city that has a team like the Indianapolis Colts, the community will not continue to support a team that conducts themselves as poorly off and on the court as this one does and it’s time that Larry be shown the door for bringing in, and standing behind, guys like Marquis Daniels, Stephen Jackson and Jamaal Tinsley.

So far, I am batting two-for-two on my picks today. Central Florida and Central Michigan both won pretty big but my loyalty to Boston College may cost me as Sean Glennon just threw a touchdown pass to put the Hokies on top with about seven minutes left in the game. We will see if Matt Ryan can break Hokie hearts two times in a single season.

Tennessee just scored quickly while sporting what I can only describe as dreamsicle-colored uniforms.

UPDATE - 3:34 Lightning will not strike twice for Boston College as Matt Ryan throws a heartbreaking interception deep in Virginia Tech territory with two minutes left. The Eagles got the ball back with 30 seconds left but Xavier Adibi picked off a batted ball and took it to the house for six. The Bottom Line on Championship Saturday, 2-1.

UPDATE - 6:41 Well I could be wrong but LSU looks like they have survived a pre-game full of rumors that their coach is leaving to win the SEC Championship. I wonder where, in the spectrum of hated athletes at Tennessee, Erik Ainge falls after basically losing the ballgame for the Vols tonight. Twice, Ainge failed to read the defenders before throwing the ball and twice the Tigers defense made him pay. For me, this loss goes back to what I believed early this season about Tennessee – they have absolutely zero big play possibilities on that offense, opting instead to nickel and dime their way down the field and tonight two of those plays really cost them the conference championship. Ainge just has to see Daryl Beckwith underneath on that last interception. That turnover is inexcusable. The Bottom Line on Championship Saturday, 3-1.

UPDATE - 7:45 If you like two teams just blowing each other up, I hope you are watching the Big 12 Championship right now. Missouri and Oklahoma have been trading blows for most of the first quarter and the winner of this game could turn out to be the team with the most starters still conscious. I like the way Oklahoma is playing on defense. Nothing that Missouri has tried on offense so far has been even remotely successful. We could be in for a good one. Oh and for the record, Missouri wide receiver Jeremy Maclin is as fast as any player I have seen this year. He is so explosive. If Mizzou wins this game, it will be on the legs of Jeremy Maclin.

UPDATE - 8:16 Oklahoma just came up huge on third and goal from the 2 and forced another Missouri field goal. Mizzou has gotten some questionable pass interference calls on third down on two scoring drive so far and this game really reinforces my belief that I could never be a head coach. When a referee throws a flag for defense pass interference well after the play (as was the case on both of those pass interference calls), I would likely strike said referee with the nearest blunt object. Apparently, this is not acceptable in the coaching profession, something about assault with a deadly weapon makes some athletic departments squeamish.

UPDATE - 8:22 Is it just me or does Missouri quarterback Chase Daniel look like Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger after a horrible beekeeping accident?

UPDATE - 9:44 Pitt has West Virginia on the ropes but the officials appear to be keeping West Virginia in the game. Two bad holding calls and a no-call on obvious pass interference call has Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt fuming. Pitt has outplayed West Virginia the game and it would be a shame to see them robbed of the upset because of poor officiating but so far that appears to be the case. Elsewhere, Oklahoma scored a big touchdown to take the lead again against Missouri.

UPDATE - 9:51 All Pitt needs is a first down to pull off an enormous upset after Pat White soars the ball over the head of his receiver on 4th and long. The officials continue to be atrocious after flagging a Pitt corner for unnecessary celebration for doing absolutely nothing. ESPN announcer Mike Patrick accurately said the officials were sucking the joy out of the game. Oklahoma goes up 14 after an interception by Oklahoma linebacker Curtis Lofton lead to a Sam Bradford touchdown pass. Chase Daniel is really beginning to show his frustration. I think the BCS may need to find two new teams for its championship when the night is over.

UPDATE - 9:56 See ya, West Virginia. Pitt has done it and the Mountaineers are out of the national championship after dropping to the Panthers, a 28-point underdog, at home.

UPDATE - 10:45 Adios, Mizzou. What Oklahoma proved tonight was that Missouri was a complete fraud as the number 1 team in the country and  that Chase Daniel never belonged in the Heisman conversation with McFadden and Tebow (I would argue that McFadden does not belong in that conversation either). Oklahoma hit him early and often and Daniel folded like a cheap card table. I will give Daniel a pass on the game-changing interception, he did throw behind tight end Martin Rucker but it is hard to blame a quarterback for an interception off a deflected pass. So where does that leave us now? Presumably, Ohio State is in but who is number 2? Is it Georgia? Is it the famous undefeated-in-regulation Tigers of Louisiana State? Is it the recently resurgent Trojans? I have no idea. My hunch is that we will see Georgia in there, given that they are number four in the BCS standings at this moment but with this system, it is anyone’s guess. I will agree with Kirk Herbstreit when he said that its a shame that Mizzou will not get into a BCS bowl and Kansas will given that the Jayhawks never had to play Oklahoma. I hope that Kansas and Hawaii get put in the same bowl so I can completely avoid having to watch both teams altogether. If all of the great games today are proof of anything, it is that nothing — and I mean nothing NFL execs — beats college football.

It was the Colts’ offense, not their defense, that was the team’s weak point yesterday.

Having lived in Indiana for some length of time, I know that criticizing Peyton Manning is somewhat blasphemous but someone has to. Make no mistake, it was Manning and the Colts offense’s inability to convert points in the red zone in the first quarter of the mega-game against New England that led to their ultimate demise. Word to the wise for future Patriot opponents: If you get within scoring distance three times in the first quarter, put the ball in the end zone.

And then there’s Manning inability to perform under pressure — again. The fumble-turned-interception that put the nail in the Colts’ coffin was evidence of my belief that the eldest Manning quarterback is one of the league’s worst performers under pressure and almost always shrinks when it counts and when the game is on the line. The last quarterback in the world I want to see trotting onto the field with two minutes to go and my team down four is Peyton Manning because in his career, which has been great, he has never delivered in those moments. For the record, you may be wondering who the first quarterback I would want to see in the huddle on that final drive? That would be the quarterback who stood on the opposite sideline Sunday, Tom Brady. Manning has never had a marquee, Elway-Montana or even Brady-like moment that you point to and go, “Wow, that was really clutch.” He’s a fairweather quarterback and simply, a fairweather leader. Remember when Mike Vanderjagt, who is an absolute dope, criticized Manning and Dungy for lacking fire? I didn’t think then and still don’t think that was an invalid criticism, in spite of the ridiculous source of said criticism. Did you see Manning bouncing his helmet-clad skull into those of his lineman yesterday in the huddle? I rest my case.

All of that being said, I will be happy to never heard the phrase “Super Bowl 41 1/2″ uttered again ever and the importance of the outcome of this game is wildly overstated by the media and fans but I think the players and coaches have put the final score in its proper perspective. Tom Brady said the game “didn’t matter,” appropriately noting that it was in January when the winners and losers of a game is of any significant import. If the Colts won the game and got homefield advantage, it wouldn’t exclude them from potentially losing to the Patriots in the playoffs and vice versa for the Pats. It was an entertaining game that showed us, if nothing else, that the Patriots offense is as diverse as advertised and the Colts defense has come an incredibly long way in a year and may, in the future, be one of the league’s best.

The league’s best two running backs are Joseph Addai and Adrian Peterson

And I’m not just basing that on yesterday’s performance, where Adrian Peterson ran for a jaw-dropping 296 yards on his way to slicing, dicing and downright humiliating the Chargers defense, I’m basing that on facts. Peterson is a shoe-in to win Offensive Rookie of the Year and had it not been for Tom Brady’s soon-to-be-record-breaking-season, he would be a realistic candidate for MVP. Never have I seen a player’s college game translate so literally into an NFL career but Peterson is running and playing exactly the way he did at Oklahoma. Of course, Peterson has a penchant for big debuts, if you’ll remember his rookie year at Oklahoma where he was a Heisman finalist. If he can stay healthy, Peterson may be one for the ages.

And then there’s Addai, who is one of the most consistent and steady running backs in the league. I’m not sure there is a player who sees the field better and makes sharper cuts than the second year man out of LSU. He catches balls out of the back field and he’s a threat to break it everytime he gets his hands on the ball. While his greatness may be lost in an offense that includes Peyton Manning, Reggie Wayne, Marvin Harrison and Dallas Clark, don’t get it twisted, getting Addai 20-30 touches a game is integral to this offense being effective.

Ohio State is really good.. no, seriously…

I’ve been down this road before with Jim Tressel’s Buckeyes and I’m hesitant to believe in this team after last year’s stomping at Florida, a stomping that I boldly predicted in our paper wouldn’t happen. In the words of the epic 80s hair metal band Great White I’m “once bitten, twice shy.” But this team is apparently for real after routing a pretty good Wisconsin team this weekend. I’m not convinced that this effective but underwhelming team has the metal to take it into the Big House and pull out a win against archrival Michigan but they’re really good. Quarterback Todd Boeckman is the second-coming of Craig Krenzel and Brian Robiskie and Brian Hartline are becoming two viable big-time scoring threats and Beanie Wells is one of the most punishing and quick running backs in the country. After seeing them pound Wisconsin in convincing fashion, I think I’m ready to believe.

Oregon is the second best team in America

One of the nation’s three remaining unbeaten teams solidified their place in the National Championship this weekend — for now. After beating USC soundly last weekend, the Ducks got ready and beat a previously unbeaten —and head-scratching fourth-ranked — Arizona State team. Dennis Dixon is the Heisman trophy frontrunner, Jonathan Stewart is one heck of a running back and their defense isn’t too bad either. Sorry LSU but you can’t be ranked higher than an unbeaten team who plays in a conference that is equally as tough as your own. I would love to see an Oregon/Ohio State national championship game. James Laurinaitis, Marcus Freeman and Malcolm Jenkins against Dennis Dixon, Jonathan Stewart and the explosive Oregon offense. That’s a game I would love to watch.

Darren McFadden isn’t out of the Heisman race just yet

Just when pre-season Heisman shoe-in Darren McFadden had become a distant memory, the Razorback junior goes out and rushes for 323 yards. For my money, I still think Knowshon Moreno is the best running back in the SEC but McFadden is almost a lock to be taken in the top 5 in next year’s NFL draft and for good reason — he’s simply filthy.

The Hoosiers are bowl eligibile

Finally. Six wins. It’s tough not to get emotional when I think about my alma mater finally going to a bowl game after all these years but it seems a fitting accomplishment for this team, this year. Make no mistake, this is a tribute to Coach Hep, who lost his battle with brain cancer this summer and made a fanbase and a team of underachievers believe that we could go where we hadn’t gone in more than a decade. While their win Saturday doesn’t guarantee a trip to Tampa or Orlando or San Antonio or Tempe, it gets the Hoosiers one step closer to Hep’s dream of playing 13.

Finally saw The Bourne Ultimatum over the weekend and loved it. It was everything that The Bourne Supremacy should have been but wasn’t. Matt Damon proves, once again, that he’s one of the greatest actors of our generation and turns in another powerhouse performance. The supporting performances are great, Joan Allen manages not to ruin this film like she did in Supremacy, Julia Stiles is actually really terrific and you really can’t say enough about David Strathairn, the guy is liquid on screen. The action sequences were top-knotch and even had me smirking like a geek with their awesome-ness (a smirk which drew several wayward glances and eye-rolls from my girlfriend who enjoyed it but clearly not as much as I did). Behind Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Ultimatum was my favorite movie of the summer.

I also saw Ron Howard’s The Paper with Michael Keaton, Glenn Close and Robert Duvall and really enjoyed it. I think it was very true to life at a newspaper and the actors were really convincing newspeople. I don’t think this film is as true to form as a picture like Shattered Glass but was every bit as enjoyable. The flick is perfect for a rainy day. Definitely worth a spot on your Netflix queue.

Currently blasting the speakers on my MacBook and in my car is Kanye West’s new single Stronger which features an amazing slowed-down sample of Daft Punk’s “Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger.” The song is fantastic and really embodies everything that I unashamedly love about Kanye West. The guy is inventive and not at all afraid to take risks. Can’t wait to pick up Graduation when it comes out on Sept. 11.

Worth mentioning was the trailer for Peter Berg’s The Kingdom that I saw before The Bourne Ultimatum, which I am more excited about then I can even describe. Jamie Foxx, Hillary Swank, Jason Bateman and the imcomparable Chris Cooper in what looks like it could be one of the best films of the year.

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No, seriously…

British teen OD’s on espresso.

Some moron paid more than $1,500 for an oil smudge on a garage floor in Virginia. It doesn’t even look like Jesus. Frankly, it looks like a goat.

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ESPN’s Mark Schlabach lists college football’s biggest secrets in ‘07.

Lawrence Taylor tells Michael Strahan to hang it up.

Saints linebacker Scott Fujita sets the record straight on his water park foot injury.

Pair of pieces from ESPN’s Pat Forde on Kentucky quarterback Andre Woodson and on Darren McFadden going pro after this season.

DC United player pissed about ESPN’s Beckham-centric MLS coverage.

Jon Gruden is still sifting through his pack of quarterbacks.

Not really news but I find it interesting that every week there is a letter from a reader in the Buffalo News about how awful Sabres management is. Every week, never fails.

Hoosiers hope to improve their pass rush. It really can’t get any worse.

The AJC’s Terence Moore wants Michael Vick’s staunchest supporters to wake up and smell the roses.

A nice piece in the Houston Chronicle on Texas A&M quarterback Stephen McGee.

Packers first-round pick Justin Harrell sees limited time in preseason opener. This might have been the worst first-round pick in last year’s draft.

In case you live in a cave: MADDEN COMES OUT TOMORROW!

Drew Henson fighting for his football life in Vikings camp.

Titans players defend their ownership of pit bulls.

The AJC’s Tony Barnhart on why the SEC is smiling and the things college football fans have learned a week into practice.

Oklahoma quarterback race still not decided.

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Three consumer groups have spoken out against the Whole Foods/Wild Oats merger.

Google to launch iTunes competitor, gBox.

Who owns what in today’s online media landscape.

Microsoft is hoping the release of the Halo 3 this winter can help the system rebound from hardware failures and slumping sales.

Christopher Nolan debuts some ‘Dark Knight’ footage at Chicago comic con. I can’t wait for this but it seems that the producers have gone 0-for-2 in my mind in the casting of Rachel Dawes’ character. First they casted Katie Holmes, who was the worst thing about Batman Begins and now they’ve gone out and gotten Maggie Gyllenhaal who is my least favorite actress on the planet. I have never seen a single film that she’s been in that I enjoyed. I hope she can change my mind.

Cinematical lists seven movie stars who are about to fall off the A-list.

Stereogum has the real cover of Kanye’s new record, Graduation.

Facebook makes the cover of Newsweek.

Newsweek’s 25 hottest universities.

As if you needed another reason to buy Kanye’s new record, 50 cent says that if West’s Graduation outsells his record, which comes out the same day, he’s going to stop making music. (Your lips to God’s ears, sir.)

Top Chef’s Sam Talbot on the now-infamous Rocco episode.

The single biggest question for me surrounding the reigning SEC West division champions is what effect will all the off-season drama (See: former offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn leaving for Tulsa, Mitch Mustain and Damian Williams transferring to Southern Cal and a fan using FOIA to get head coach Houston Nutt’s cell-phone records) will have on this squad. Will they adopt an “us against the world” mentality and play with a chip on their shoulder or will all the drama of the off-season serve as a distraction, heap more pressure on the team and ultimately make Nutt a lameduck coach in what would be his last year in Fayetteville? We’ll see.

With his job on the line Houston Nutt has the benefit of having two of the best running backs in the SEC and in all of college football lining up in the backfield with Heisman front-runner Darren McFadden and Felix Jones. The Razorback offense should continue to benefit from the continued use of the Wildcat package in which McFadden lines up at quarterback with Jones at tailback. The more time that Casey Dick spends on the sideline the better. No position on this entire Razorback offense is more suspect than quarterback. With Mustain soaking up the sun in SoCal, junior Casey Dick has been named the starter, for better or worse. Dick will have to improve on a 2006 campaign where he posted a completion percentage of 49.2 and threw for 99.1 yards per game with nine touchdowns and six interceptions. If Dick struggles early, don’t be surprised if Dick gets the hook for junior Nathan Emert, who took some big steps during the spring. If you think the Razorback coaching staff has loads of confidence in Dick, consider this quote from offensive coordinator David Lee.

“Casey had an interesting spring at quarterback,” Lee said. “I thought he started off red hot and then really struggled for the middle part of spring practice and then came back and had a good spring game.”

“At the same time, the other quarterback (Nathan Emert) was really consistent, knew where to go and definitely pushed Casey for the first-team quarterback job with a great spring.”

The Razorbacks need something resembling a passing game to keep opposing defenses from lining up every down with 8 in the box to stuff the run. The teams wide receiver corps is a little thin with only 6′6″ senior Marcus Monk returning. Between converted quarterback Robert Johnson, London Crawford, Reggie Fish, Rod Coleman or Chris Baker, someone is going to have to step up and prove they can be a solid no. 2 receiver. The offensive line returns two starts including potential All-Americn center Jonathan Luigs. The performance of the line, especially its ability to effectively run block will be key to the success of the unit as a whole.

The Razorback defense is weak from front to back. Losing end Jamaal Anderson and tackle Keith Jackson and potentially losing tackle Marcus Harrison to injury could leave the Razorbacks with huge holes to fill on their defensive line. At linebacker, the Razorbacks will need Weston Dacus to do his best to fill the shoes left by Will linebacker Sam Olajubutu. In the defensive backfield, the Razorbacks are weak at the corners with what could be two of the SEC’s most underrated safeties behind them, in safety-turned-linebacker-turned-safety Matt Hewitt and free safety Michael Grant, who returns from a grisly knee injury in 2006. Freshmen could be expected to contribute in the defensive backfield, which could mean mistakes and some big plays. Expect this defense to finish in the bottom half of the conference in total defense.

Coming off their division championship, the Razorbacks face a hairy schedule in 2007 that seriously hinders their chances of making it back to Atlanta. They travel to Tuscaloosa, Knoxville and finish the season in Baton Rouge in the Battle for the Boot. Home tilts against Auburn and Kentucky could prove tricky but this team will live and die with how it plays on the road in hostile environments.

Bottom Line prediction: 8-4. I can’t imagine a universe in which Arkansas goes into Tennessee and LSU and comes out with a win. I’m also expecting the Razorbacks to drop two of three against Alabama, Auburn and South Carolina.

As I sifted through my news reader, the two stories that struck me the most were topics that I’d blogged about before. One was The Foul, the other was Arkansas football.

For some reason, I remain fixed on the saga that is the Razorback program because I think it’s a perfect example of what can go wrong in modern recruiting. What Houston Nutt is learning is just how dangerous it is to sell your soul and your program for a recruit.

Nutt and former Arkansas AD saw the potential of having an Arkansas kid lead the transformation of the program into a perennial powerhouse and were blinded to the potential consequences. So they hired Gus Malzahn and signed Mustain’s teammates. It was a package deal. And now the Springdale crew is probably going to be Nutt’s undoing as the head football coach at Arkansas with Damian Williams transferring to USC, Malzahn in Tulsa and Mustain still enrolled but almost certainly on the way out. Nutt’s future is imperiled despite the fact that he’s playing with one of the most talented players in all of college football.

Two stories today on CBS Sportsline focus on the downward spiral of Arkansas football, one focuses on who, exactly, is to blame for the dysfunction. The other is about Darren McFadden counting down the days until he bolts Fayetteville for the NFL.

More on The Foul

I didn’t anticipate writing another blog about this subject… ever. But alas, Tyler Hansbrough spoke for the first time since the incident occured and so here I am. After reading an AP story in the Washington Post and watching snippets of Hansbrough’s interview on The Worldwide Leader, one thing becomes strikingly clear to me… if Tyler Hansbrough meant what he said, he’s a far better person than I am. 

The AP is quoting the ACC’s best player as saying:

“‘I was upset when it happened,” Hansbrough said in his first public comments on the subject. “I don’t think he did it intentionally. I don’t really like talking about it because I really don’t know how to handle the situation, but I’m fine right now. I feel fine. I was kind of shocked my nose was broken. … I just thought it was a really bad nosebleed.’”

This is either one helluva classy move or Hansbrough is still concussed from punched in the head. I like Hansbrough’s comments but I don’t believe for a second  that if Duke and UNC meet in the ACC Tournament that Hansbrough isn’t going to hang 30 and 13 on the Dukies. I was honestly a little taken aback by this. Good for you, Tyler.

Kudos to SI.com college football writer, Stewart Mandel for doing a very extensive job of cataloging the soap opera that has been Arkansas football this off-season. It’s as comprehensive an article as I’ve seen on the matter.

 Here’s a link.

It’s never too early to talk college pigskin.

In reading Fox Sports’ Rich Cirminello’s Top 20 Heisman contenders this morning, it got me thinking about college football again and about who will be handed the Heisman in 2007.

While I think it’d be difficult to argue, though some may try, that the Heisman front-runner going into this season is anyone besides Arkansas running back Darren McFadden, where everyone else falls on that list of the nation’s elite is certainly up for debate.

Knowing that spring practice hasn’t even started for most teams and injuries and suspensions (SEE: Rhett Bomar) are sure to occur, there are a couple of Cirminello’s rankings that I took exception with.

1. Tim Tebow - #16 - I think this ranking is absolutely crazy. The media loves this kid and his story and playing in one of the nation’s most visible programs, the true sophomore from St. Augustine won’t be hurting for exposure anytime soon. Luckily for Tebow, he’s got one thing other quarterbacks don’t: Percy Harvin, one of the nation’s most electrifying play-makers. It’s put up or shut up time for Tebow. He’s going to have to start making plays with his arm and this season could be his breakout season and if it is, expect to see him as a finalist in New York City.
2. P.J. Hill - #13 - The running back from Wisconsin had a breakout year last year and proved he could be a difference maker. But I can’t help but wonder how effective Hill will be without John Stocco, which sounds  crazy. The Ron Dayne run-a-like is not going to sneak up on anybody and without a proven signal caller, teams will be able to load the box and bring the safeties up to stop the run. Hill shouldn’t be ranked higher than Oregon’s Johnathan Stewart, VA Tech’s Brandon Ore or Georgia Tech’s Tashard Choice, all of whom had nice years last year as well.
3. Ian Johnson - #10 - I know everyone loved the Boise State story from last year but to suggest that Ian Johnson is the 10th best player in the country is nuts. And consider this: Weber State, Washington, Wyoming, Southern Miss, Bowling Green. Those are the Broncos non-conference opponents this year. Johnson will have to be a statistical monster to even get a look from Heisman voters. And playing in the weak WAC doesn’t help his case either.

Barring injury or getting paid for not working at a car dealership, the Heisman finalists will be Darren McFadden, John David Booty, Brian Brohm and either Colt McCoy or Brennan.