Betting
Despite his grouchy personality, Alabama coach Nick Saban represents some of what’s right about college football while so much is going wrong.
If a news conference is called today to announce the firing of Norv Turner as coach of the San Diego Chargers, it would be a shame. He has earned the right to stand on the sideline and look lost for the season’s final five games.
This one was for the critics who claim Philip Rivers folds under pressure when everything is on the line. This was a clutch comeback, captained by Rivers and capped by one of the biggest touchdown drives he has led all season.
In August, when the days were longer and the weather warmer, Matt Barkley looked the part of a can’t-miss quarterback prospect. Southern California was ranked No. 1, and its season seemed perfectly scripted.
Preseason polls are out, preview magazines are published, and power ratings are set. Almost all of them indicate Indiana, led by 7-foot sophomore Cody Zeller, is about to emerge as the dominant team of this college basketball season.
Early in the morning, Brian Urlacher rumbled down the sideline and returned an interception for a touchdown to put the Chicago Bears in the win column. It was over, and never mind that it was only the first quarter.