Lane Kiffin Was Robbed

Stanford's David Shaw, Pac12 Coach of the Year? You gotta be kidding.

Anybody who follows Pac12 football knows who's the REAL coach of the year--USC's Lane Kiffin. Oregon's Chip Kelly is actually more deserving than Shaw, who fell into a can't-miss situation. The Stanford coach not only inherited a ready-made championship team from Jim Harbaugh but was blessed with an easy schedule for the first seven weeks. But Kelly, acerbic and snippy, aleniates award voters.

So does Kiffin, but with a different set of negatives. He's smug, snooty and whiny. But he also did the best coaching job in the Pac12 this year.

Remember, when the season started, prognosticators forecast a so-so year for the Trojans due to a laundry list of problems. First of all, they predicted, sanctions that removed the team from championship consideration and bowl games would eat away at players' motivation. Also, experts warned, the offense line was weak, the unreliable defense consistently collapsed in the fourth quarter and Kiffin had to rely on too many inexperienced players. What's more, the early suspension of his best RB, Marc Tyler, would damage the running game.

But Kiffin, while antagonizing people right and left, cannily overcame these obstacles. SC did start slowly, with shaky wins over Minnesota, Utah and Syracuse and a loss in Tempe to Arizona State, partly due to rookies suffering road jitters. But then, QB Matt Barkley, with a boost from WR Robert Woods, morphed into one of the top five QBs in the country. Freshman receiver Marqise Lee came from nowhere, blossomed into a star and paired with Woods to form a tandem that terrorized the conference. RB Curtis McNeal became one of the Pac12's better backs and defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin, Lane's dad, polished the rough edges of that unit.

By midseason SC turned powerhouse, losing by a hair to Stanford, whipping Notre Dame in South Bend and then accomplishing the impossible--beating Oregon in Oregon. Right now, SC is not only the best team in the Pac12 but in AP's Top 10. At the end of its season, SC was playing as well as any team in the country. According to bookies, the Trojans would be favored in a game against any team--except LSU and Alabama. At the start of this season, few thought the team would reach this level.

Who's responsible for all this? Lane Kiffin of course. He may be a jerk at times but--and apologies to all SC haters--he really is the Pac12 Coach of the Year.

Black Friday For Rick Neuheisel--Now Ex-Coach

Dan Guerrero couldn't wait.

UCLA's athletic director usually won't fire any coach during the season but dutifully waits until the end of the season blah..blah....Forget all that. He decided to sack football coach Rick Neuheisel today. Apparently the stench of UCLA's 50-0 trashing by USC Saturday night was so strong that he had to get rid of the coach before the Oregon game. Neuheisel was on borrowed time anyway. He should have been canned last Oct. 20--and apparently almost was--after the team quit on him in Tuscon and was steamrolled by Arizona.

Neuheisel will coach Friday's game in Oregon and, win or lose, he's finally out--an exit many hard-core fans have been longing for all season. A going-away victory would be a nice present but, considering that UCLA is a 30-point underdog, winning isn't a realistic option. If UCLA winds up in a bowl game, coordinator Mike Johnson will serve as temporary coach.

What prompted Guerrero to speed up Neuheisel's exit was probably the fact that so many coaches were fired in the last 24 hours that he didn't want to be last in line approaching hot prospects. Vacancies at schools like Kansas, Arizona State and Illinois have to be filled. And somebody has to fill JoePa's shoes at Penn State.

The hottest prospect out there is probably Boise State's Chris Petersen. Guerrero covets him, but so does everybody else. And Cincinatti's Butch Jones will have athletic directors camped outside his house. The next week or two will be very interesting.

Neuheisel Out--Just About--At UCLA. Next Coach?

According to two sources close to the UCLA athletic department, football coach Rick Neuheisel has already been fired--unofficially that is. One of the sources advised that the best way to look at it right now is to say Neuhiesel is 99% out the door. It's just a matter of AD Dan Guerrero making an official announcement sometime after Friday's Pac12 championship game against Oregon in Autzen Stadium.

That 1% chance Neuheisel may stay is based on the possibility--extremely remote possibility--that UCLA wins the game and represents the Pac12 in the Rose Bowl. A win would save his job, temporarily at least, since that would extend the season and Guerrero has always said he would wait until after the season to evaluate the coaching situation

On the one hand, reports an insider, Neuheisel, Mr. Never-Say-Die, is still trying to convince Guerrero to let him stay. But one the other hand, you know Neuheisel, a smart, USC-trained lawyer, is already packing and job-hunting. He'll never say it but he knows it would take a miracle for the Bruins, an underdog by several touchdowns, to win in Autzen Stadium.

Face it. Oregon is just too good, ridiculously outclassing the Bruins. One of the gripes against Neuheisel is that his UCLA teams have a horrible road record. You think that trend is going to be reversed in a championship game against those Oregon greyhounds?

Preparing for Oregon won't be easy. With the coach's head on the chopping block, there's a dark cloud hanging over practice, floating doom-and-gloom messages to both players and coaches. No question, the Bruins are like lambs headed for the slaughterhouse.

Who's the next coach?

It's clear who's not a candidate. Forget Miami's Al Golden and former Texas Tech coach Mike Leach. They were never serious possibilities anyway. According to a source close to the athletic department, there have been prelimary, undercover negotiations with Boise State's Chris Petersen, who's concerned about possible upcoming sanctions against Boise. Some, though, say he's at Boise forever. But whenever there's a big-time coaching job vacant his name is thrown into the mix.

Another name mentioned: Houston's Kevin Sumlin. But there's no Case Keenum clone in Westwood. And can you imagine that zippy spread offense working at UCLA with QB Kevin Prince? Also possible: Butch Jones, who replaced Brian Kelly at Cincinatti in 2009. With Cincy 8-3 and about to play Connecticut for a piece of the Big East title, Jones is a hot commodity. Reportedly, he's also on the short list for North Carolina and Illinois, which just fired Ron Zook after a blah 6-6 season that started 6-0.

Dodger Fans, Stop Whining

I've had it with the whining.

Dodgers fans are way off base, on a non-stop whining binge about Milwaukee's Ryan Braun winning the MVP over their beloved Matt Kemp. No doubt, this whining will continue all throughout the winter. Unfortunately Braun, who lives in Malibu, can't escape it.

What Dodgers fans are so angry about is that Kemp had superior numbers but still lost. Kemp bested Braun in home runs, RBIs, stolen bases and on-base percentage. Braun, however, came out on top in just one major stat category--slugging percentage.  What's more, whine LA fans, Kemp is a better defensive player. He's a Gold Glove center fielder while Braun is just an average left fielder.

So how did he win?

Simple, by being top dog in a category that's not supposed to figure in the voting decision but figures heavily anyway. Braun was the best player on a winning (96 victories) playoff team while Kemp's Dodgers won only 82 games--barely over .500--and missed the playoffs.

When casting their votes, members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America are supposed to ignore team standings. It's a well known fact that a statement on the ballot cautions them to do just that. It's also a well-known fact that the voters totally disregard that caution. It's tradition.

Here's how the thinking goes. To the writers,  the valuable in "most valuable" means valuable to a post-season team. A player who puts up big numbers in a tense playoff run is supposedly a bigger asset than one who stars on a team that goes nowhere. Players on non-playoff teams have won the MVP award, but they're the exceptions.

Since the Dodgers were out of the playoff hunt pretty early, Kemp was working in a relatively relaxed atmosphere and could focus on building up his stats. Braun, though, didn't have that luxury and consequently deserves more credit. He also gets extra points for being a force on a winning team. This is the standard thinking anyway.

Dodger fans look at the situation differently. They gripe that Kemp had it rough, that he was a diamond in a lineup filled with coal and it's tougher to shine under those circumstances. Braun, they charge, had it comparitively easy. He was a surrounded by gems. In fact he got a considerable boost from batting ahead of one, Prince Fielder, who was in the thick of the MVP race. No doubt that Prince's "protection" pumped up Braun's numbers.

But, Dodger fans, here's a major point. Kemp's and Braun's numbers were basically in the same range. For Kemp to make up for the Dodgers being out of the playoff hunt most of the season, he would have needed monster numbers--numbers that would have dwarfed Braun's. But Kemp did post those overwhelming stats.

Consequently he lost. He couldn't buck tradition. What happened, Dodger fans, was that local media, unfortunately and unfairly, built up your hopes, constantly insisting he might win. But, realistically, Kemp never had a chance.

So, Dodger fans, deal with it and stop whining.

Penn State Fans--The Fans Nobody Wants

State College, Pa., home of the Penn State campus, is a typical college town, full of the kind of people you'd find in Small Town, USA. Though apparently nice, pleasant folks, nobody seems to want them around.

There's an ugly dark cloud hanging over them. That chilling child sex-abuse scandal, which cost football coach Joe Paterno his job, has stained State College--permanently. Others have been fired and as the investigation continues and the probe deepens, more people will undoubtedly get the boot. In fact, a thorough house cleaning is inevitable. Clearly, just about everyone in that town is tainted.

What's worse, so many of these State College folks openly support Paterno, who's largely seen by the rest of the world as a cowardly enabler who could have put a stop to the abuse years ago but selfishly didn't want to rock the Penn State boat.  So, the thinking goes, if these people back Paterno, something must be wrong with them. Though outsiders don't want them around, they might not have a choice.

Penn State has a solid, Top-20 team that just might wind up in a top-tier bowl, maybe even the Rose Bowl. Wherever the team winds up, a sizable State College crowd is sure to follow. Officials of several bowls have said they won't mind having Penn State but no one really believes them.

The fear, of course, is that a Penn State presence may keep some fans away, that it may also negatively effect TV ratings and sponsorship. Pre-bowl game hype is supposed to be positive. But with Penn State on the bill, how is that possible?

Many are miffed that Penn State is still playing. A huge faction called for the team to cancel its entire schedule, starting with the Nebraska game two weeks ago. Ignoring these pleas, Penn State instead forged ahead, losing to Nebraska but beating Ohio State last Saturday and is now just two wins away from representing the Big Ten in the Rose Bowl. A Rose Bowl official insisted they'd welcome Penn State to Pasadena.

Sure they would.

 

Recipe For USC Upset Over Oregon

USC can beat Oregon. Sounds far-fetched, but it can happen.

It all starts with the offensive line, which is led by Matt Kalil, one of the top ten linemen in the country. Stellar run-blocking for Curtis McNeal and Marc Tyler can not only lead to points but can also eat up the clock and keep that fearsome Oregon offense off the field.

The second key is QB Matt Barkley, who has 29 TD passes and only six interceptions. That's impressive, but if SC is to pull off an upset, he must play even better. That might not be easy since WR Robert Woods is banged up.  But here's a secret. Though Woods gets all the attention, the other receiver, Marquise Lee, is actually superior.

The third key is Monte Kiffin's defense which, in the last month, has blossomed into a ferocious force. In the last five games--Stanford being the exception--the SC defense has not given up more than 17 points. The steadily improving run defense has crept into the national top ten.

For SC to win, it needs considerable help from Oregon. This means the Ducks must have an off game, contributing at least four turnovers to the Trojans' cause.

Several things are working against SC. First of all, the Oregon defense, once considered the team's weak link, has turned into one of the best in the conference. Also, whipping Oregon at Autzen Stadium is nearly impossible. Just as impossible is slowing down that race-horse offense. Only LSU, with that Rock-of-Gibraltar defense, has held the Ducks' offense below 34 points. By the way, SC is averaging 34 points per game. So, to win, SC must top its scoring average while keeping Oregon in the five-touchdown range. Not an easy task.

Beating Oregon is definitely a long shot, but certainly possible. If the Trojans can play a close, competitive game, like they did against Stanford, that will be a victory in itself.

The Bone-headed Tebow Misadventure

Warning to the Denver Broncos. It's time for a reality check. You're making a big mistake.

Don't let this improbable love affair with QB Tim Tebow go any farther. It's insanity. It's undermining the team. Sure, there are inescapable positives: first and most important, he's 4-1 as a starter, boosting the Broncos to 5-5, reversing their 1-4 start under Kyle Orton. No question, Tebow is the master of engineering last-second, come-from-behind victories, like last night's triumph over the New York Jets, 17-13.

But he's not Superman--just a clumsy QB who's been cleverly placed in a position to succeed. Bronco coach John Fox and his assistants have, ignoring common sense, installed the ancient collegiate option system, junking the pass-happy format used by all NFL teams. Since its similiar to what he ran as a college QB in Florida, Tebow is comfortable with the option, which stresses running and minimizes the pass. This suits Tebow, who's a punishing runner but a terrible passer, just fine.

The option isn't all that's in his favor. Bronco-friendly circumstances have figured prominately in his four wins. For instance, beating the Jets wasn't that difficult, considering they have no running game, allowing Denver to focus on the shoddy passing of slumping QB Mark Sanchez. In most possessions in all these wins, Tebow has been awful. But, to his credit, he's come through in clutch situations, turning potential losses into wins. That, coupled with the fact that he's extremely likable and a stout-hearted Christian, has made him a fan favorite--particularly with the Christian Right.

But Tebow is just a quick fix. It started with management promoting him over Orton when, at 1-5, the Broncos had nothing to lose. Rather quickly the NFL, which lives by the pass, will devise a plan to silence the run-oriented option and knock Tebow off his pedestal.  The QB's downfall may even happen in Denver's next game, against San Diego.

Then what? The old-fashioned Denver offense is just a step or two from extinction. When sanity finally sets in, the option will be junked, and so will Tebow. As the losses pile up while the Broncos struggle to adjust to the standard pass offense, this Tebow adventure will seem, in retrospect, pretty foolish.

UCLA Basketball, What Went Wrong?

UCLA, a pre-season Top 20 team favored to win the Pac12 title, is off to a shocking 0-2 start, losing embarrisingly at home to two rinky-dink teams that they should have disposed of by half-time. These double-digit defeats rank with the worst two-game loss stretch in the post-Wooden era..

A big reason for these losses is the selfish, childish behavior of 6-8 junior forward Reeves Nelson, UCLA's leading scorer and rebounder last season. He played, though not very well, in the 69-58 loss to Loyola Marymount but, due to a suspension for acting like a spoiled brat, missed the Tuesday night thrashing by Middle Tennessee State, 86-66.

According to sources with access to the team, Nelson has an acrimonious relationship with some of the players and coach Ben Howland. Rather than being the team leader, he's the leading distraction, creating an atmosphere of tension that's undermining the coach's efforts. He's a jerk, but a talented jerk and easily the team's best player.

Even with Nelson not behaving badly, UCLA would probably be struggling. In those two games, the offense was stagnant, highlighted by horrible shooting, especially from long range. The team is particularly deficient at point guard, with Lazeric Jones, who isn't quick enough and both shoots and passes poorly.

The defense, coach Howland's specialty, needs serious polishing. Against Middle Tennessee, it was exceptionally leaky, allowing the Blue Raiders to shoot 71.4%. In both games, time after time,  opponents were blowing by sluggish defenders for easy layups, unchallenged by any backups. Center Josh Smith wasn't much help. A potential beast if he ever slims down, he clearly spent his off season binging on fast food.
To make things worse, the perimeter defense was non existent, with both teams steadily bombing the Bruins, hitting a combined 20 out of 26 three-point attempts.

It turns out that the loss of two of last season's stars, Tyler Honeycutt and Malcolm Lee, left really gaping holes. So far the Ware twins, expected to help fill those gaps, haven't done much. They're neither athletic enough nor superior shooters. And it looks like guard Jerime Anderson, just off suspension, doesn't have what it takes to be a Pac12 star.

A continuing problem is that Howland is trying to fit players into a system unsuited to their skills. He covets the man-to-man defense, one that his players simply aren't athletic enough to efficiently execute. The zone defense, not his favorite, is a better fit for this crew. But reality is finally setting in. In the wake of those disastrous losses, he's now saying he may sprinkle in some zone schemes.

Though badly in need of fan support, the Bruins have had little so far. While Pauley Pavilion is being renovated, the team is stuck in the Sports Arena, located in a seedy downtown area where many UCLA fans fear to tread. So crowds have been tiny, just when the team needs all the cheers it can get.

It's way too early to give up on the Bruins. After two unpleasant days, Howland lifted Nelson's suspension, quelling rumors that he might either transfer or be kicked off the team. If the volitale forward stops being a knucklehead, plays up to his potential and embraces the leadership role, the Bruins just might spiral out of this funk.

On Monday in Maui, they play a Division II school, Chaminade. This should be an easy win. But if they lose or limp to a victory, there's clearly big trouble ahead.

In State College, Pa. JoePa Is Still The Man

No way Carl, a 52-year-old ex-big city cop, could miss the Penn State-Nebraska game last Saturday. Positively had to be there in person in the stadium packed with more than 107,000 people in State College, Pa.

But he's not a Penn State fan. Born in Lincoln, Nebraska, he's a crazed Nebraska fan, such a crazed fan in fact that he swears, as an infant, his first words were "cornhusker."
    
He stayed a few days with an old friend, a local bigwig, who lives with his large family in a big house not far from the Penn State campus. A pretty sharp judge of people, Carl had some insightful observations about the folk in this quiet, isolated college town, rocked recently by a child sex-abuse scandal that dethroned the Penn State god, football coach Joe Paterno:

"It's like 1950. There's a world outside and they don't know it exists. I've been here before and thought these people were a little backward, but in light of what happened this week, it's jumps out at you that their heads are in the wrong place.

"I went to a bunch of parties, from Thursday until I left on Sunday. I met a lot of people, a big cross-section in all ages and colors and classes. They were all for Joe Paterno, felt sorry for him, couldn't understand why he was fired. They sympathized with those students who rioted after Joe was fired. There must be people who think diffferently but I didn't see them--and I was looking for some.

"To people in that town Joe was bigger than life, bigger than the President, bigger than anybody. It's like they can't bring themselves to think he'd do anything bad. Joe is innocent. That's what they were saying.

"These aren't dumb people. But it's like they've been brainwashed. You've got to be there in person and talk to them to see how they think. I didn't talk much. I just listened, trying to get a feel for how they think.

"And they were really into the game. That was the main topic of conversation, even more than Paterno. You'd think they'd feel shame, embarrassment--feel sad for those abused kids. If they felt that I didn't sense it. The game really mattered to them. They live and die with Penn State football. Even in the middle of that horrible scandal, they were so into the game. They were crushed when Penn State lost--crushed."

Carl, who had a hefty bet on his Cornhuskers, was happy they won. But, overall, he wasn't happy about the weekend. "I was supposed to stay until midweek, but I was able to get a flight out on Sunday and I took it," he said. "Nice people--pleasant and hospitable. But there was something really creepy about them. I had to get the hell out of there.".

Penn State vs. Nebraska--No Game Like it

Penn State vs. Nebraska, today in State College, Pa. The strangest game in the history of college football? No doubt about it.

There never was and probably never will be a game like this one--played on the campus of a university with this kind of an open wound. Penn State is in chaos because of a child sex-abuse scandal that's been unfolding all week. Legendary football coach Joe Paterno was fired, triggering an ugly student riot. The school's president was forced to resign. The FBI was called in to investigate. There are rumors that, in terms of the scandal, what's just been revealed is the tip of the iceberg. For certain more heads will roll. Next season, there will likely be an entirely new coaching staff.

Many called for this game to be cancelled, for the rest of the Penn State season to be called off. Many, in protest, will not watch the game. But more, loving a train wreck, will watch.

Imagine what the Penn State players are feeling, with their beloved coach ousted in shame and a deer-in-the-headlights assistant suddenly in charge. How can they properly prepare for Nebraska (7-2), the most ferocious team in the Big Ten, under these circumstances? Penn State, 12th-ranked and sporting a flashy 8-1 record, is a very good team, with a two-game lead in the Big Ten Leaders division, headed for a major bowl. But, for this game, the players definitely won't be at their best.

You can bet their heads are spinning. What to do? Play hard and pulverize Nebraska and many will accuse them of being callous and insensitive. With a victory they'll also be accused of siding with Paterno, aiming to win one for JoePa. Losing will probably be better. They won't be maligned as selfish brutes who care nothing about abused kids. But what football player wants to lose?

You can't help but feel sorry for the Penn State players--somewhat unprepared, emotionally torn, unfairly trapped in a hellish situation. They should be thinking about going to a bowl, but they probably can't wait for this season to be over. Some most likely will transfer to another school, where they can concentrate on playing football.

But there's a silver lining. The players have bragging rights. They can always say they played in a historic game--easily the strangest in college football history.