5-at-10: SEC items of interest, UTC hoops, plan to help the NCAA and sports turkeys

Here's hoping this finds each of you happy, warm and thankful.

From the "Talks too much (except when we are stuffing our face with Thanksgiving Day grub)" studios, tell everyone at your gathering you are thankful for them. (Well other than that certain Aunt who brings the awful carrot salad and always asks you first how it was. It's bad. It's carrot salad.)

SEC items of interest

1. Iron Bowl, iron wills

As TFP SEC ace David Paschall tells us here , Alabama's running game will be on center stage against an Auburn defense that has been gashed in crucial spots all year. This one - at night in Tuscaloosa - has the feel of a title fight with a clear favorite against a decided underdog with a wicked left hook. Yes, the Tigers offense - especially if receiver Duke Williams is effective and involved - gives Auburn a puncher's chance. But the Tide's consistent body blows - and an overwhelming knockout defense - means this one could be over early.

2. Egg Bowl, scrambled please

This one will be a passion-filled fight, as Paschall detailed here. We know this: Nothing will be left off the chart. Ole Miss has a chance to end a title, a statement win that would make the injury-ravaged last four weeks a lot less painful. For the Bulldogs, though, the stakes are far-greater than a state title, and in truth, it would be interesting to see how the outcome of this

3. UT's postseason shot

Here's TFP ace Downtown Patrick Brown's account of the Vols offensive frustrations. UT should drub Vandy, which is arguably the worst SEC team in the last decade. So there's that. But the postseason implications - and yes, this group getting to a bowl game for the first time since 2010 is a big deal whether its Nashville, Memphis Shreveport or Birmingham - are special for a senior class that has suffered through a lot during their time on the Hill.

4. Spurrier being Spurrier

It's hard to believe that it was 10 years ago when South Carolina hired Steve Spurrier. Yes, 10 years. Seriously. Here's a great recount of how the Gamecocks made it happen. Now, South Carolina has one last chance to rewrite a final, happy chapter to the nation's biggest college football disappointment. But how off-kilter is that narrative, considering South Carolina (6-5) had double-digit fourth-quarter leads in three of those losses and was a Hail Mary away from forcing overtime at Auburn? Now, add the fact that Clemson is subpar at quarterback, and this feels like a prime spot for Spurrier to be Spurrier, on the road as an underdog. And if he does pull the upset, here's saying he has an AWE-some zinger in the postage news conference. Something like, "Well, maybe next year we'll play Clemson a little earlier and then play Furman or somebody to determine the real state champion."

5. Old-fashioned hatred

Georgia-Georgia Tech has been so one-sided that the rivalry has suffered some in the eyes of Georgia fans. For Tech backers, though, this one is HUGE. And in truth, if the Bulldogs are not serious, they will get seriously embarrassed by a Jackets offense that has been impressive in its simplicity and its tact. Tech runs and runs and runs until it has an edge with its senior wide receivers on the perimeter and then Tech takes deep shots down the field. Yes, it sounds as difficult as addition, but it's been as effective as aspirin this season.

6. Will Missouri punch its ticket

The Missouri Tigers have the same SEC record as Alabama the last two years. They are a win over Arkansas on Friday away from making their second consecutive trip to the SEC title game. Yet, the league's Rodney Dangerfield is still an underdog - at home - against an Arkansas team that until 13 days ago had not won an SEC game since President Obama's first term. Man, Gary Pinkel does some fine work.

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photo Daniel Wagner, left, and Rosemary Burnett cheer the UTC Lady Mocs during their game with Tennessee Wednesday at McKenzie Arena.

Lady Mocs deliver

Wow. Tip of the visor to Jim Foster's Mocs women's basketball team.

Here's the TFP game story of UTC's 67-63 win over the No. 4-ranked UT Lady Vols.

That's two in a row for UTC over the Lady Vols at McKenzie.

Congrats all around.

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Sideway holiday rant

Amid all the talk of paying college players and the NCAA overlords being akin to modern-day plantation owners, we think the biggest problem in college athletics is the fact that the first word in student-athlete is being ignored at an all-time rate.

That should be the outrage from the groups trying to argue about the exploitation of college athletes and the athletes themselves. Forget the stipends and the whole "Don't have enough to buy a pizza" rants.

College sports should embrace the fact that several athletes go to college because of sports. And in an interest to equip these young people, we, as fans of college sports and supporters of college athletics, should know and foster that fact.

Follow along.

If you go to college to be an engineer, then great, the college advisors and professionals help you in whatever they can to be an engineer. If you are not equipped with the skills to do the engineering, they will guide you in a different direction.

Why can't football or basketball or whatever sport be the same? If you have a certain baseline skill set and the NFL or professional sports is deemed a possibility by the trained experts at each college, then why can't football be a major? If you have the skills to be a pro, the football major will be in the business school. If you are planning on being a coach, it would be part of the school of education. The other fields - trainer, agent, et al. - would fall under the umbrellas of those specifics areas of study.

From there, make sure these athletes are students, and with more and more job opportunities around the games we watch and follow, this makes even more sense.

Thoughts?

And we have had this idea for a while, but it became a bubbling rant after reading Tim Keown's excellent story about Dallas tackle Tyron Smith getting overrun by his friends and family financially http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/page/hotread141125/dallas-cowboys-tyron-smith-gets-control-battling-family-money. Part of the professional training for NFL players or NBA players would be managing your money and social-science classes on how to say no to family.

Happy Thanksgiving.

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This and that

- LeBron James and the Cavs dropped a hammer on Washington. LeBron went for 29-10-8. Cleveland is 7-7, and amid all the hand-wringing, can we please note that in Year 1 of the Heatles in Miami, the Heat were 8-7 as they got acclimated before going on a 22-2 run.

- If you need more positive reflections about James and the Cavs, know that Cleveland is 6-1 when LeBron scores 25 or more. We can all agree that when he sets his mind to getting 25, LeBron will get 25, right? Ergo, well, Happy Thanksgiving.

- For your Thanksgiving day reading pleasure, may we offer an excellent Weeds column and a Stephen Hargis feature in Susan Crownover's struggle to get well.

- Today offers the best Thanksgiving football slate we can ever recall. Which game are you most excited for? We'll say Dallas-Philly, but also looking forward to LSU-Texas A&M

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Today's question

Hope you have a great day.

Who is on the Rushmore for biggest sports turkeys of 2014?

Go (and remember the mailbag if you get the chance).

Happy Thanksgiving.

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