Lights, Cam, Action
Wow, that escalated in a hurry. Reports from the New York Times and ESPN about Cam Newton’s recruitment have triggered an overnight internet frenzy.
The story is here and it has some pretty bad insinuations, especially about Newton and an alleged handler that offered the star quarterback’s signature to Mississippi State for $180,000.
The next few days should be interesting, and like all hot-button issues in the fan-natical SEC, the lines are clearly starting to emerge. Auburn fans are looking for any and all reason to think this does not affect the Tigers or the dream season they are having with Newton at quarterback. The rest of the league – and maybe even some keenly interested teams out West such as Boise State, TCU and Utah – are quickly embracing phrases such as “Where there’s smoke, there’s fire.”
There will be more on this as it develops, but one thing seems pretty clear this morning: Just months after the Reggie Bush fiasco at USC cost him his Heisman Trophy, this controversy certainly seems to hurt Newton’s chances at college football’s top individual award.
AP: Payment sought in Newton recruitment
It’s a technical point
Great game last night between Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech – Hokies won 28-21.
Georgia Tech scored with less than four minutes to play to tie the game at 21. Va. Tech, which has rebounded nicely in a crazy ACC after losing its season opener to Boise State and then in Week No. 2 to James Madison, returned the kickoff for a touchdown. Ga. Tech drives down – with its backup quarterback leading the way – inside the Hokies’ 20. An interception in the end zone ends the game. High drama, well-played.
Thanks for the effort.
As a side note: Great tweet from our UT beat writer Wes Rucker (follow him HERE ) about that game last night: “I hate tweets mentioning how important VaTech’s win was for Boise. I really hate that all those tweets are accurate.”
Spot on my man, spot on.
AP: Sloppy Hokies hang on against Jackets, win 28-21
Tweeting from the bleachers
It’s high school football playoff time in Tennessee and you can color me excited. I will be at the Red Bank-Page game tonight and am going to try to tweet throughout the game on our twitter page but it can get nuts keeping stats and messin’ with all this new-fangled InterWeb stuff.
Alas. Anyhoo, which games are you most interested in and which games do you think could be a big upset? Let me know and look for some of the best responses in this afternoon’s 2:00 Drill.
National Weather Service graphics show possible conditions Monday and Tuesday.
The Raiders and the Irish look for redemption
Speaking of high school sports, there is a wave of redemption rolling over the two area teams still alive in the TSSAA girls’ soccer state playoffs.
Baylor (16-0-2) will take its shot against St. Agnes tonight in the Division II-AA state title match. St. Agnes beat the Lady Red Raiders for the state crown last year. The teams will play at GPS at 7 p.m.
Gene Henley: Baylor rolls into state soccer final
Notre Dame – riding a red-hot defense and some timely offense – also gets a state-championship match rematch. The Irish (11-7-3) will face defending Class A/AA champion Christian Academy of Knoxville (17-4-3), which has won the last two titles and three of the last four. The A/AA championship will be Saturday at GPS at noon.
Kelley Smiddie: Notre Dame earns rematch with CAK
Where there’s a will there’s a Bray
Tyler Bray will make his first start at quarterback for the University of Tennessee on Saturday at Memphis.
Here’s the good, bad and ugly of the situation:
The good: It’s not like he can do any worse. I mean let’s remember the Vols are 2-6. Plus, Memphis just suspended its starting free safety and that has to help. Plus, the Tigers start a 215-pound defensive end.
The bad: The offensive line has not magically gained some much needed experience since last week. Plus, James Stone may make his first career start at center.
The ugly: Seriously, the game’s at Memphis? And why in the name of goodness is this an 8 p.m. Eastern kickoff? That said, here’s a tip for Comcast subscribers in our area – the game is on CBS College Sports, which is 735 on the cable dial. That’s the channel, but that doesn’t mean you have that channel.