Stoops makes the cut; Saban, not so much

If you’re Bob Stoops, you play on a Sunday in a PGA tour event in front of a national television audience, that’s what you do.

Paired with current PGA Tour pro and former OU golfer Hunter Haas, the Oklahoma head coach is tied for ninth after three rounds of the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. While the Stoops/Haas tandem sits 10 shots out of the lead held by pro Padraig Harrington/European businessman J.P McManus, Stoops’ pairing did manage to post the lowest combined score of the day — a 12-under 60 at Pebble Beach.

It was the first time Stoops had played the storied course at Pebble Beach and, if he was anything like myself, spent the first 14 or so holes in utter awe of the sheer magnificence of the course carved mere feet from the Pacific.

The head coach of the 2011 BcS champions wasn’t as fortunate cut-wise, however. Nick Saban, partnered with former Tide golfer Bud Cauley, finished tied for 70th at 12-under. The cut line to play the final round at Pebble Beach today was 18-under.

A member of Saban’s foursome, somebody you may have heard of, fared a little better; coming off a loss in the Super Bowl last weekend, New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick salved those wounds somewhat , by teaming with Ricky Barnes to make the cut at 22-under.

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo, paired with some hack named Tiger Woods, made the cut as well. The Romo/Woods pairing is two shots behind Stoops at 19-under.

Gamecock's Spurrier gets sizable pay raise with extension

USC’s Board of Trustees gave final approval Friday to Spurrier’s two-year contract extension as well as a $425,000 raise. Spurrier is now signed through the 2015 season and will make $3.3 million in 2012.

“We certainly appreciate our University Trustees, President and Athletics Director for their commitment to our coaching staff that keeps us very competitive in SEC coaching salaries,” said Spurrier. “We have an excellent group of coaches here that can really coach, recruit and represent the University of South Carolina in a first class manner.”

As intimated in his statement, Spurrier wasn’t the only Gamecock football coach to be taken care of by the board. The four assistants still on his coaching staff from the 2011 season were all on the receiving end of raises, and all of the Ol’ Ball Coach’s assistants were given two-year contracts.

Shifting some of the financial love over to his assistants came at Spurrier’s request.

“”A key element of having a nationally-prominent program that competes for championships is having a top-notch coaching staff, and I think we have that in place at South Carolina,” athletic director Eric Hyman said in a statement. ”We are fully aware of what is taking place in the marketplace and have made some contract adjustments accordingly. Specifically with football, we are extremely pleased that our program has been very competitive and are supportive of Coach Spurrier’s request to give his assistants multi-year contracts.”

Saban lobbied for WVU invite to SEC

In an interview with the Charleston Daily Mail discussing his state’s flagship school’s move to another conference, Sen. Joe Manchin revealed that none other than Alabama head coach and Fairmont, WV, native Nick Saban was helping with the push to get the Mountaineers into the SEC.

“I thought we could have been in the SEC,” Manchin said. “I talked to my dear friend Nick Saban about that, and, like me, he said, ‘I would like West Virginia in the SEC,’ and we were working toward that.”

Saban’s recruiting efforts weren’t enough as Manchin said the invitation instead went to a second Big 12 school.

“They chose Missouri instead, and then you never heard a thing else about it,” Manchin said.

Manchin’s relationship with Saban dates back to the days that the three-time BcS champion coach was an assistant under Frank Cignetti Sr. at WVU in the late-70s. Even the power of persuasion Saban possesses, however, wasn’t enough to get his home-state school into the most powerful football conference in the country.

Vols Charlie Baggett received $425,000 to leave UT

When he resigned from his position as Tennessee's wide receivers coach in December, Charlie Baggett agreed to a settlement that will pay him as if he'd been fired.

In 24 monthly payments, which began Dec. 31, 2011, Baggett will receive a sum of $425,000, according to a settlement agreement obtained Friday by the News Sentinel. The $425,000 matches what Baggett would have earned if he remained on Derek Dooley's staff for the 2012 season.

Under the terms of his original contract, Baggett was not to be owed anything if he instigated the agreement's termination.

In a December interview with the News Sentinel, UT athletic director Dave Hart would not specify whether Baggett had resigned or had been fired.

A 34-year coaching veteran, Baggett was the first of six assistant coaches to leave Dooley's staff since the end of the Vols' disappointing 5-7 season. At the time, a source told the News Sentinel that the 59-year-old Baggett had elected to retire.

UT, in his settlement agreement, urges Baggett to use his "reasonable best efforts to mitigate" the university's obligation to pay him by "making reasonable and diligent efforts" to land a similar position. Those positions include: assistant, associate or head men's football coach at a Division I college or university; professional football assistant or head coach; or media commentator with a national, regional or local network.

Baggett, who joined Dooley's staff in 2010 after one year with the St. Louis Rams, has yet to land a position that fits this description.

SEC tops list of invitees to NFL scouting combine

The official list of invitees for the NFL scouting combine, to be held Feb. 22-28 in Indianapolis, was released Tuesday. Invitations were sent to 327 players; there were 327 invitees last year, too, when 254 players were drafted.

A selection committee, made up of representatives from the two main scouting services as well as members from various NFL player personnel departments, decides who gets the invitations. The committee’s goal is to invite every player who will be drafted in the ensuing NFL draft.

Obviously, the committee misses more than a few each year. For the most part, though, the invitees are the ones who end up hearing their names called during April’s draft. This year’s draft again will be a three-day affair, with the first round on April 26, the second and third rounds on April 27 and the fourth through seventh rounds on April 28.

The biggest position group at the combine will be defensive linemen and defensive backs (59 invitees each), followed by offensive linemen (55), wide receivers (47), linebackers (33), running backs (30), quarterbacks (19), tight ends (14) and specialists (11).

The SEC will be the most-represented conference, with 53 players (the same number as last year). The Big Ten and Pac-12 each have 45, followed by the ACC with 44, the Big 12 with 34 and the Big East with 20.

National champion Alabama has the most invitees, with nine. Georgia, LSU and Miami each have eight; Boise State, Iowa, Oklahoma, Oregon, Penn State and USC each have seven; and Arizona State, California, Clemson, Florida State, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Oklahoma State, South Carolina, Stanford and Texas A&M each have six.

On the other hand, some big-name programs had a low number of invitees, among them Auburn (three), Florida (three), Michigan (three), Tennessee (two, the same number as Kentucky and Vanderbilt), Texas (four) and UCLA (one).

Sixth year approved for starting LSU lineman

An injury during training camp cost LSU their most experienced offensive lineman during its run to the BcS title game, but a decision by the NCAA will give the Tigers that experience back in 2012.

In a press release, LSU announced that “offensive guard Josh Dworaczyk has been granted an extension to his five-year clock and will get a sixth year.” The school and the player were informed of the decision earlier in the day Wednesday.

“I’m excited to be able to get another year so that I can finish my career on the field,” Dworaczyk said in a statement. “I felt like I had some unfinished business so being able to get this additional year is a blessing.

“Watching from the sidelines last year wasn’t always easy because I was so used to being a contributor on the field. Getting another year means that I get to wear the Purple and Gold again and for that I’m very thankful.”

Dworaczyk started all 13 games during the 2009 and 2010 seasons, and has played in 38 games since coming to Baton Rouge in 2007. He redshirted his true freshman season due to injury.

Lawmakers unanimously shoot down legislating Clemson-USC rivalry

On Tuesday, it was reported that a South Carolina legislator had presented a proposal that would ensure the Clemson-South Carolina rivalry continues regardless of conference expansion. A day later, that attempt at legislation went down to a resounding defeat.

According to The State newspaper, the proposal put forth by Republican state representative Nathan Ballentine was voted down 7-0 by a House subcommittee. The decision seemed to align with that of USC’s stance on the issue: athletic schedules need to be decided by athletic directors and coaches.

“These matters should be handled by the universities and trustees,” subcommittee chairman Lester Branham told the paper.

Because Clemson’s conference, the ACC, has decided to go to a nine-game conference schedule when Pittsburgh and Syracuse join no later than 2014, there is some concern that out-of-conference games like Clemson-South Carolina could follow Texas-Texas A&M and Pittsburgh-West Virginia on the path to extinction. The Palmetto State showdown is the second-longest consecutively played game at the Div. 1-A (FBS) level and, while both schools “cannot conceive of a realistic scenario that would prohibit… continuing our football series,” Ballentine said he’ll be ready to see that it continues.

“I still think there’s the possibility in the future that the game could be in jeopardy,” Ballentine said. “If that happens, I stand ready to help if the situation changes.”

by J. Taylor

Auburn CB coach steps down into administrative position

Auburn cornerbacks coach Phillip Lolley is leaving his position and going back into an administrative role in the program, the school announced on Tuesday.

Lolley was in his third year as cornerbacks coach under coach Gene Chizik. To some who chant “War Eagle!”, it may have been three years too many.

“We appreciate Coach Lolley and the contributions he has made to the Auburn football program in his various roles over the years,” Chizik said in a statement. “We look forward to him continuing to help with the program’s success in his new capacity.”

Lolley has been with Auburn for 13 years. He worked in strength and condition from 1999-2000 and was the secondary coach from 2000-03. From 2004-08, Lolley was AU’s Director of NFL Relations. Upon Chizik’s arrival in 2009, Lolley returned to the field as a coach.

Auburn’s most significant coaching turnover the past few months came at the coordinator spot, with OC Gus Malzahn leaving to become the head coach at Arkansas State, and DC Ted Roof ”leaving” for Central Florida and then Penn State.

Lolley’s shift now leaves one open spot on Chizik’s staff.

by Ben K.

Michigan sells out allotment of tickets for opener vs. Tide

Michigan announced Tuesday morning that it had sold all of the nearly 25,000 tickets they had been given as part of the Cowboys Classic at Dallas Cowboys Stadium Sept. 1. The demand was so high, in fact, that it never got to the point of a public sale, with all 25K of the ducats scooped up by Victors Club members.

Tickets on the Michigan side, ranging in price from $125 to $285, were made available beginning Jan. 30.

“We have received unprecedented interest in tickets for the Cowboys Classic game with Alabama,” said UM chief marketing officer Hunter Lochmann in a statement. “The demand is on par or greater than our athletic department has ever seen.”

Alabama’s allotment of 25,000 tickets is expected to go on sale later this month.

As for the remaining 30,000 tickets — Cowboys Stadium has a capacity of 80,000 — Brett Daniels of the Cowboys ticket office told CFT in an email that “[t]here will also be a pre-sale to Cowboys season ticket holders in the near future. Because of demand, we do not expect to have a public on sale of tickets to the general public.”

Cowboys Stadium also has the capability of accommodating up to 30,000 standing room-only ticketholders. The availability of those tickets, Michigan’s release notes, will not be known until late April.

The Cowboys Classic will feature two storied football programs who have met just three times previously, the last coming in January of 2000 in the Orange Bowl. This time around, both teams should be highly ranked, with the defending national champion Tide likely coming in no lower than No. 3 in the major preseason polls and the Wolverines expected to be somewhere inside the Top Ten.

Gators DC Dan Quinn reportedly turned down Bucs

In recent days, there has been speculation bubbling just below the surface that defensive coordinator Dan Quinn was possibly leaving Florida for a job with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Gainesville Sun, however, reported Monday that Quinn has turned down the opportunity with the Bucs and will instead remain with the Gators.

The Sun reports that Quinn had interviewed with Greg Schiano for the coordinator job in Tampa.

In Quinn’s first season at UF last year, the Gators finished eight in total defense and 20th in scoring defense.

Top quarterback Jameis Winston chooses Florida St

One of the nation’s top high school quarterbacks is bound for Florida State.

Hueytown’s Jameis Winston signed to play for the Seminoles on Friday at an indoor sports complex in Birmingham before teammates, family, friends and a handful of Florida State fans.

“I’m ready to get this started,” Winston said.

ESPN and Rivals.com both rate Winston as the nation’s top quarterback and among the 15 best overall prospects. The 6-foot-4, 200-pound dual threat quarterback was MVP of the UnderArmour All-American Game after going 8-of-9 passing for 178 yards and two touchdowns.

He committed to the Seminoles in August but was at an all-star game on signing day and waited to make it official. Winston’s decision is a big boost for a Florida State class that ESPNU had already rated No. 2 nationally behind Alabama, which also heavily pursued Winston.

He said that getting admitted to Stanford was an honor that made him think, but “it’s been decided for a while” that he would go to Florida State.

Winston is also an outfielder and pitcher who could be a high draft pick in pro baseball. Baseball America rates him as the No. 64 prospect in the upcoming draft.

“I want to be in the top round,” Winston said. He wouldn’t say whether he would still go to Florida State if he were drafted that high.

Being able to play both sports in college was a deciding factor for him. “If I wasn’t going to be able to play baseball, I wasn’t going to go to that school,” Winston said.

Winston passed for 2,424 yards, ran for 1,065 and accounted for 44 touchdowns as a senior. He was second behind Alabama signee T.J. Yeldon in the voting for Alabama’s Mr. Football.

Vols hire Derrick Ansley to coach CBs

Tennessee coach Derek Dooley has hired Derrick Ansley to coach the Volunteers' cornerbacks.

Ansley spent the past two season as a defensive assistant at Alabama, where he worked with newly hired Tennessee defensive coordinator Sal Sunseri. Ansley spent the last two months working as an assistant to Central Florida coach George O'Leary.

At Alabama, Ansley worked with first-team All-American safety Mark Barron and second-team cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick.

Ansley also spent five seasons as an assistant at Huntingdon College in Montgomery, Ala., and is a 2005 graduate of Troy, where he started 40 consecutive games as a defensive back.

Tennessee announced the hiring on Friday.

Ex-S. Miss assistant completes South Carolina coaching staff

South Carolina announced today that USM cornerbacks coach Grady Brown would be joining the Gamecocks’ staff as secondary coach and assistant special teams coordinator. “We’re pleased to announce the hiring of Grady Brown, a sharp, young defensive secondary coach who has had much success the last three years at Southern Miss,” Steve Spurrier said in a statement. “He will also assist Joe Robinson with the special teams. He and Joe were together at LSU and know each other well. He will fit in extremely well here and be an excellent addition to our staff.”

Brown spent the past two seasons on USM”s staff under current North Carolina coach Larry Fedora and was retained when Johnson was hired. Southern Miss finished last season No. 7 nationally in pass efficiency defense and set a NCAA record for interceptions returned for touchdowns with eight. In total, the Golden Eagle defense finished the 2011 season as a Top-30 defense on their way to a Conference USA title and Hawaii Bowl win.

Brown was previously in strength and conditioning at LSU before taking over the CB’s at USM.

UGA dismisses three freshmen players

In a press release, Georgia confirmed that wide receiver Sanford Seay and defensive backs Nick Marshall and Chris Sanders have been dismissed from the team for violation of team rules. All three players were freshmen in 2011.

“It’s a privilege to play college football and to be a part of this team and University,” said head coach Mark Richt in statement. “Along with that privilege comes certain responsibilities. Mistakes were made and part of our job is helping them learn from mistakes. Going forward, we are committed to assisting them find opportunities where they can continue their education.”

Harvey-Clemons officially a Georgia Bulldog

Harvey-Clemons becomes the 19th member of the Bulldogs’ Class of 2012.

Since his announcement Wednesday, Harvey-Clemons had maintained that he was and will be a Bulldog, but for whatever reason there was a significant delay in sending his signed LOI to the school. Speculation was that his grandfather, and perhaps other family members, wanted the recruit to sign with the Gators. Harvey-Clemons’ grandpa is the recruit’s legal guardian, and his signature is required on the LOI as well.

Regardless of how it actually went down, UGA has officially landed one of the most talented defensive players in this class; Harvey-Clemons was rated by Rivals.com as the No. 31 player at any position in the country.

Tennessee fills final coaching need

Tennessee coach Derek Dooley has reportedly filled all his coaching needs one day after his program signed a Top 25 class.

Wes Rucker of GoVols247 and Austin Ward of The Knoxville News Sentinel report that Dooley has filled his final coaching spot after a tumultuous couple of months with lots of coaching turnover. Ward tweets that the Vols’ new co-defensive backs coach will be Derrick Ansley, formerly of Central Florida and Alabama. Ansley played at Troy. An announcement has not been made by Tennessee.

If the reports turn out to be true, it would be a very quick turnaround for Ansley, who just joined UCF’s staff in December as the team’s defensive backs coach after spending two seasons as a grad assistant at Alabama. Ansley would be joining Terry Joseph in the Vols’ secondary.

Alabama stocks up on defense, offensive playmakers

National champion Alabama restocked the nation’s top defense, scooped up a few highly recruited offensive playmakers and generally had what’s becoming a typical signing day for Nick Saban & Co. In other words, replacing departed stars with blue-chippers across the board on a program that has won two of the last three national championships. The Crimson Tide landed the consensus No. 1 class on Wednesday, punctuating the efforts by picking up defensive tackles Korren Kirven and Dalvin Tomlinson.

“I think we filled some needs with this class,” Saban said. “We started out with sort of a goal of explosive players on offense, running back, receiver, those kinds of guys. We felt good about the guys that we were able to attract from that standpoint.

“We’re obviously losing a lot of very, very good defensive players. Even though we have some good defensive players here, we felt that it was really important to have a really good year on the defensive side of the ball.”

Judging by the recruiting services, the Tide certainly did that. ESPN, Rivals.com and 247sports.com all pegged Alabama as the No. 1 class—the third year out of the past four that at least one has. Scout.com rated Texas ahead of the Tide.

“It’s the No. 1 class in the country probably across the board,” said JC Shurburtt, national recruiting director for 247sports. “It’s just a lot of talent heading to Tuscaloosa again.”

Fowler ditches ‘Noles verbal for Gators signature

Proving once again that a verbal commitment made a dozen or more months before signing day is non-binding and means next to nothing, long-time Florida State commit Dante Fowler Jr. became the first National Signing Day five-star flip when he signed a Letter of Intent with in-state rival Florida.

The defensive end — UF will list him as an outside linebacker — had given a verbal to the Seminoles back in Dec. of 2010, but has been a shaky commit ever since, saying as late as four days ago that “I don’t know where I’m going.” Now he does know where he’s headed, and the Gators’ top-five class has gotten that much stronger.

ESPN.com’s ACC blogger Heather Dinich wrote that “Fowler said he felt he could contribute more and get on the field faster as a hybrid defensive end/outside linebacker in Florida’s system, and he liked the fact that coach Will Muschamp is a defensive-minded coach.”

247Sports had the St. Petersburg, Fla., product rated as the No. 15 player in the country, and was No. 28 according to Rivals.