CBSSports.co Nebraska coach Bo Pelini has hinted hes picked a starting quarterback, but he isnt saying who got the nod.

Pelini said after Saturdays practice that the coaching staff has a plan for the position. But everyone else will have to wait and see whos on the field when the No. 8 Cornhuskers open next week against Western Kentucky.

Incumbent starter Zac Lee has been competing against redshirt freshman Taylor Martinez and sophomore Cody Green for the job.

Asked if all three could take snaps in the opener, Pelini said, “We could play 10 guys. I dont have a crystal ball.”

Posted on August 29th, 2010 by admin
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CBSSports. Another Georgia football player has gotten into trouble, and this time its one of the teams top running backs.

Tailback Washaun Ealey, who led the Bulldogs in rushing a year ago and expected to share carries this season with Caleb King, was suspended for at least one game after being arrested early Friday.

Ealey was charged with hit and run and driving on a suspended license. Coach Mark Richt said the sophomore definitely wont play when the No. 23 Bulldogs open the season Sept. 4 against Louisiana-Lafayette and left open the possibility of adding more games to the suspension.

“Im not happy with it. Its foolish. He knew better,” Richt said. “But no one thinks its going to happen to him. He knew his license was suspended and we knew his license was suspended. As a matter of fact, we spend a lot of hours checking on every single player to make sure their licenses are up to date and if theyre not, making them aware of that.”

University police chief Jimmy Williamson said Ealey was driving his roommates Chevrolet Impala when he hit a parked truck in a school parking deck at 3:19 a.m. on Friday. Williamson said alcohol was not involved.

Ealey was released from the Clarke County Jail after posting bond of $4,800.

“He probably thought this short little trip wouldnt be a big deal, but it turned out to be a real big deal,” Richt said. “You cant roll the dice. Sooner or later, youre going to lose.”

Ealey is the eighth Georgia player to be arrested this year.

“It definitely tarnishes our image, but I dont think we have any bad seeds on this team,” tight end Aron White said. “Weve got guys who have made silly mistakes for the most part and did things they knew better. I dont think we have any guys who are bad to the core or do things intentionally to hurt people.

University employees told Ealey to stay at the scene until police arrived, but he left. No one was reported hurt. Ealey emerged in the second half of the 2009 season to lead the Bulldogs with 717 yards rushing. He scored three touchdowns.

Now, King will likely get the bulk of the carries against Louisiana-Lafayette, with Carlton Thomas moving up to the second string.

“Its something we dont need, but things happen,” Thomas said. “This situation was wrong time, wrong place. Its something weve got to build off as a team. It will probably motivate us to work even harder to beat this image were putting ourselves in. Its all water under the bridge if you win games.”

Georgias image has certainly taken a beating during this offseason.

Sophomore tailback Dontavius Jackson announced plans to transfer from Georgia after he was charged last month with driving under the influence, leaving the scene of an accident and other offenses. Richt suspended Jackson for a minimum of six games before he left school.

Receiver Tavarres King was charged with underaged possession of alcohol and was suspended one game by Richt last month.

Quarterback Zach Mettenberger was dismissed from the team in April before pleading guilty to two counts of misdemeanor sexual battery in May. He was arrested March 7 in Lowndes County and charged with underage consumption and possession of alcohol, possessing fake identification and disorderly conduct-obstruction.

Mettenberger faced a one-game suspension from Richt for the alcohol-related charges before the sexual battery charges led to his dismissal.

Two other players were kicked off the team: linebacker Montez Robinson, who was charged with simple battery/family violence; and backup punter Trent Dittmer, who was charged with public intoxication.

Also, offensive lineman Josh Parrish, who is not on scholarship, was charged with underage possession of alcohol and possession of false identification. Backup cornerback Jordan Love was charged with obstruction for not providing his full name to police.

Richt said the length of Ealeys suspension will be determined by how he handles his punishment. He didnt practice with the team Friday, spending his time doing extra running.

“Ive got some internal things for him to handle and if he handles them the way he should and behaves between now and the next one, hell have a pretty good chance of playing,” Richt said. “But hes got to show me that hes ready to go back and not only play, but practice with the team.”

Richt is confident the Bulldogs will overcome all their off-the-field problems.

“This team is very resilient and very tough mentally,” the coach said. “I guarantee the guys that are out there that show up will play their tails off. Theres a whole bunch of them that are doing everything right and are preparing for a tremendous opportunity.”

Posted on August 28th, 2010 by admin
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CBSSports.com Washington State safety LeAndre Daniels playing career is over because of a broken neck.

The school said Friday that follow-up tests on the sophomore revealed a C1 neck fracture. Daniels, injured during a preseason practice this month, started two games in 2009 before a broken leg ended his season.

Coach Paul Wulff says “my heart goes out to LeAndre.” The coach said Daniels will stay on campus to finish his degree.

The school added that the injury is stable and that Daniels does not have neurological damage. He will be fitted with a special hard collar, and next week a procedure will fit him for a halo collar that he will wear for up to 10 weeks. He may still need surgery.

Posted on August 28th, 2010 by admin
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CBSSports.com wi The investigation of North Carolinas football program has expanded into possible academic misconduct involving players and a woman who also has worked as a tutor for coach Butch Davis son, school officials said Thursday night.

Athletic director Dick Baddour declined to identify the players or say how many may be involved, and he refused to specify what the possible violations may have been, saying only that they involved “a student tutor and student-athletes on the football team.

Coach Butch Davis and UNC chancellor Holden Thorp look on at the conference. (AP) “We are looking into improprieties that existed outside the classroom,” Baddour said. “Thats about as close to that as I can get.”

The announcement came nine days before the No. 18 Tar Heels opener against No. 21 LSU in Atlanta, and roughly two months after the NCAA be defens received improper benefits from agents. Defensive line coach John Blakes longtime friendship with California-based agent Gary Wichard also has drawn the NCAAs interest.

Joint interviews conducted by NCAA and school investigators during that probe led them to a player who “raised an issue that we felt like deserved further consideration on our part.

“It led us down a road that brought us to what were talking about,” Baddour said.

While the investigation is centered on the football program, Baddour said that “we will certainly use the opportunity to take a complete look at everything that were doing in the academic support program.”

Davis declined to identify the tutor in question except to say she was one of the five his family had hired since their 2007 arrival in Chapel Hill to serve as an academic coach and advisor for his teenage son.

“This is someone that obviously worked with our son,” Davis said. “To be honest with you, I think were really surprised and possibly disappointed, but theres been no revelation as to exactly the extent or what has actually transpired.”

Baddour declined to provide additional details about the tutor, except to say that “the person was in [the universitys] employ. When we found out about the issues, the tutor was not in our employ.”

Baddour said the university has assembled a team to investigate the academic questions. While there is no timetable to resolve that aspect of the probe, “it is likely that the review would extend beyond the start of the season,” he said.

More on UNC Story Brinson: Heels take steps in face of investigation

If that happens, he said the school will decide if those players will play against LSU, and Baddour said that decision could come as late as gameday.

“The investigation now has two prongs, so I want to caution you against making assumptions if student-athletes dont play,” Baddour said.

Davis did acknowledge that starting on Monday, he moved some players around the depth chart as part of a contingency plan in case they arent permitted to play. He did not specify which players have risen or fallen.

“Before the start of training camp, because there was speculation on some of these issues, we made a statement … that there would come a point in time in preparation for this first game where we would have to prepare with the players that we assumed that we would be able to compete and play with,” Davis said. “Thats w who began the news conference by saying “to everyone who loves this uni vowed that administrators are taking the probe seriously but expressed hope that its scope ultimately would be limited.

“We will find out what happened. We will do everything we can to keep it from happening again,” he said. “And we will not let these mistakes define our university and what we stand for.”

Posted on August 27th, 2010 by admin
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By Will Brinson
Special to CBSSports.com
Aug. 27, 2010

Thursday nights UNC press conference featured a worse-for-the-wear Butch Davis, a somewhat exasperated Dick Baddour and a frustrated-looking Holden Thorp, all discussing the “widening” of the investigation into the football program at Chapel Hill.

Their outwardly expressed emotions are understandable: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has long had a sterling academic reputation, and the latest probe by the NCAA is unsettling to say the least.

Kendric Burney might not play for the Tar Heels in the future. (US Presswire) “Academic achievement and fairness are at the heart of the University of North Carolina and the Department of Athletics,” said Thorp. “We are treating this issue with the seriousness that you would expect from this university. We will straighten this out.”

Thorps prese as does the reported movement of the majority of defensive starters to Carolinas scout team during recent practices.

As Baddour said, theyre “somewhere near the middle or the beginning of it.”

But one thing is crystal clear: Carolina is dealing with a problematic case of “academic issues” within the football team that could/will/has threatened several of the players ability to remain on the team.

In fact, we earlier reported that two cornerbacks, Charles Brown and Kendric Burney, had already been kicked off the team, and two sources close to the athletic department firmly believe they will not be a part of the team in the future.

A spokesman from North Carolina has since denied the report that Brown and Burney were kicked off the team and Burney has even tweeted that hes excited for practice tomorrow.

Baddour made it seem, though, that Carolina has made up their mind on some issues.

“Many of those decisions [as to what players are available] have not been made,” Baddour said. “Theyre two prongs [to the investigation] and theyre ongoing and were working as hard as we can with the NCAA to bring those things into resolution.”

More on UNC Story UNC widens NCAA investigation

Baddour and Thorps comments, coupled with the intensely delicate nature of the situation facin even the university had previously mad of an evolving timeline.

Thats how these things works, though: even the “self-reporting” nature of the “academic issues” is bizarre.

Baddour acknowledged that the university “learned about [the issues] thro an interview process that he also acknowledged to be “joint” with the NCAA.

If NCAA officials were also present when Chapel Hill officials learned of the academic issues, the term “self-reporting” just seems odd.

Its clear though that Carolina has made some decisions and they do believe certain members of the team a otherwise they wouldnt have decided to bring all of this information to light vis-a-vis a press conference and follow-up Q&A session with the media.

But the depth of the investigation could mean that Carolina is forced to continually evolve that timeline over the next nine d something Baddour mentioned when he pointed out that “the review will likely extend beyond the start of the season.”

Posted on August 27th, 2010 by admin
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CBSSports.com South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier says the team wont protest potential penalties it may get from the NCAA if it finds players violated rules.

Gamecocks tight end Weslye Saunders has spoken with NCAA investigators about his attendance at a party in South Beach this past May. He is also among several players told by Spurrier to end their stays at a local hotel and find other living arrangements.

Spurrier said Wednesday he had no information about what the NCAA might do. But historically, Spurrier said players who are found to have received extra benefits sit out a game or two before they can play again.

“If that happens, well accept it and move on,” Spurrier said. “But it may not happen. We dont know.”

Saunders was suspended by Spurrier on Monday for violating team rules and has not returned to practice. Spurrier said the suspension was not connected to the NCAA probe or Saunders stay at the hotel.

The NCAA has spoken with players at Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and Tennessee about improper contact with agents.

South Carolina opens the season a week from Thursday against Southern Mississippi at Williams-Brice Stadium after a summer camp filled with off-the-field distractions.

Saunders has been at the center of most of those, yet had seemingly pushed through it to have a solid camp and even drew Spurriers praise for his commitment and physical fitness. Saunders, a 6-foot-6, 270-pound senior, led all Gamecock receivers in last Saturdays scrimmage with four catches for 63 yards.

Saunders is not the only player to miss practice time. Defensive backs Akeem Auguste and C.C. Whitlock missed Tuesdays practice and defensive lineman Ladi Ajiboye was late because of what assistant coach Ellis Johnson said were issues about their hotel stays.

“I cant comment much on it,” Johnson said. “Theyre cooperating with the process that were going through right now.”

All three were back working out on Satu remained unsure if Auguste, the starting free safety, Whitlock, a reserve cornerback, would be available for Southern Miss.

“Thats in the hands of the administration and the NCAA and well play with what weve got,” Ward said.

Saunders likelihood of playing grows less with each practice missed. He was the Gamecocks third-leading receiver last season with 32 catches and is considered a likely early round pick in next springs NFL draft.

If he cant go, the Gamecocks would be left with little used backups Justice Cunningham and Mike Triglia. Fullback Patrick DiMarco had also practiced at tight end, but hes been limited because of a cracked bone in his left forearm.

Posted on August 26th, 2010 by admin
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CBSSports.com wir A northwest Arkansas radio station has hired former Razorbacks running back Michael Smith to replace a reporter who was fired after she wore a Florida Gators hat to a Razorbacks football news conference.

KAKS general manager Dan Storrs confirmed Wednesday that his station had hired Smith, who rushed for 2,018 yards for Arkansas between 2006-09.

Storrs says Smith did some work for the station at the Razorbacks spring game this year, and would now be reporting from practice.

Reporter Renee Gork was fired amid a brouhaha that began when she wore a Florida hat to an Aug. 14 news conference with Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino.

Storrs has maintained the hat was not the main reason for her dismissal.

Posted on August 26th, 2010 by admin
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CBSSpor Bobby Bowden did not want to retire.

“Fired might be a little too strong,” the former Florida State coach said Tuesday in an interview with the Associated Press. “Pushed out aint bad. I was pushed out, no doubt about it. I didnt want but one after Florida State went 7-6 last season, the third time in the last five seasons the Seminoles barely broke .500.

The coach doesnt act bitter, but he wants to make sure the record is straight.

“I didnt want them to spread the story that I voluntarily, happily resigned,” said Bowden, who was in New York to begin a promotional tour for his new book, .

The affable Alabama native rolled up 389 victories (though 12 were vacated by the NCAA), second behind Joe Paterno in major college football in a 44-year head coaching career. In 34 seasons at Florida State, Bowden won two national titles and engineered one of the most successful runs in the history of college football.

But Florida State went 38-28 in his last five seasons and the board of trustees and then-university president T.K. Wetherell thought after last season it was time for a change.

Bowden said Wetherell presented him with two alternatives.

“Number one, you can stay as ambassador coach. I dont think Ive ever heard of an ambassador coach in my life. I said, Well, what is an ambassador coach?

“He said, Well, you can remain the head coach but you cant coach out on the field. Now how can I be the head coach of this team if I cant go out on the field? So I said, Well thats out.

“So I said, Whats the next alternative? The next alternative, we aint going to renew your contract,” Bowden said with a big laugh. “Does that sound like I resigned?”

When Bowden was an assistant coach at Florida State in the 1960s, he coached Wetherell and got to know his family.

“He and I were pretty close,” Bowden said. “I thought I was safe.”

Bowden said his relationship with Wetherell has likely been irreparably damaged.

“I doubt if Ill have a relationship with T.K. anymore,” he said.

Wetherell acknowledged that ultimately it was his decision to remove Bowden and let Jimbo Fisher, who had already been designated Bowdens successor, take over in 2010.

“Of course I made the decision, who else could have?” Wetherell told the AP.

Wetherell added it was one of the most difficult things he had to do in his seven years as Florida State president. He stepped down after last school year.

While Bowden was not allowed to end his career on his own terms, he insists he doesnt miss coaching.

Sure, hed like to see the players and his assistants. But not having to worry about wins and losses, players grades or receiving those late night phone calls about a one of his kids getting in trouble, he said hes happier without that.

Bowden has been keeping busy, traveling mostly around the South and speaking to churches about his Christian faith. His speaking engagements have also taken him to Brazil and Billings, Mont., for the first time.

He also took a vacation with his wife, Ann, to Israel.

In Tallahassee, Fla., however, hes keeping a low-profile. Hes spending much of his time at a house he owns in Panama City, Fla.

“I love Florida State,” he said. “Ill be pulling for them. Ill be pulling for Jimbo. I didnt want to sit there and be looking over his shoulder.

“People have to make the transition from me to him.”

Posted on August 25th, 2010 by admin
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CBSSports.com An Oregon State offensive lineman has been dismissed from the team after police say they found him naked and intoxicated in a strangers home and had to use stun guns to take him into custody.

Corvallis police say they received the call about a naked intruder early Sunday.

Responding officers ordered 19-year-old Tyler Patrick Thomas of Kalispell, Mont., to get on the ground, Lt. Tim Brewer said.

Thomas refused and instead dropped into a three-point stance like a football player and lunged at the officers, Brewer said. At that point, he said, two officers fired their stun guns.

Brewer said Thomas “absolutely was intoxicated” at the time.

Thomas was arrested on suspicion of criminal trespass, criminal mischief and resisting arrest. He was booked into the Benton County jail and later released.

A home phone listing for Thomas couldnt be found.

Oregon State head coach Mike Riley dismissed Thomas from the team Monday, OSU athletics spokesman Steve Fenk said. Thomas redshirted during the Beavers 2009 season.

Posted on August 25th, 2010 by admin
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CBSSports.com Weslye Saunders future at South Carolina is unclear after the tight end was suspended by coach Steve Spurrier on Monday.

Spurrier said Saunders would and not for any potential findings from this summers continuing NCAA inquiry centered around the 6-foot-6 senior. He was not at practice Monday night.

Saunders was questioned by NCAA investigators looking into possible rules violations at a party in Miami in May. Spurrier has said Saunders told the coach hed done nothing wrong.

Saunders also was among several players Spurrier told to leave a local hotel and find other living arrangements.

“I said suspended for violation of team rules. Team rules have nothing to do with the NCAA,” Spurrier said.

Saunders has not spoken publicly this summer. Spurrier said on his radio call-in show last week that he expected the NCAA to have a ruling about the tight ends eligibility before the Gamecocks open the season against Southern Miss on Sept. 2.

The NCAA has investigated Alabama, North Carolina and Georgia along with South Carolina concerning the South Beach gathering.

Saunders was a highly touted prospect from Durham, N.C., who picked the Gamecocks and Spurriers pass-happy offense over Clemson, Florida State and North Carolina among others. He showed signs last fall of becoming a main target for South Carolina, catching 32 passes for 353 yards and three touchdowns.

Saunders entered the summer as the backup to 6-foot-1 senior Patrick DiMarco. However, Spurrier has praised Saunders conditioning and practice habits for much of preseason camp. He had four catches for 63 yards in last Saturdays scrimmage, including a 10-yard TD pass from Stephen Garcia.

Saunders was among 31 players on the watch list for the Mackey Award, given the to the countrys top tight end, and could be a high-round pick in next springs NFL Draft.

But the suspension puts Saunders spot in the lineup in doubt and takes away one of the few experienced pass catchers for fourth-year passer Garcia. South Carolinas three expected starting wide recei are sophomores. The other tight ends on South Carolinas roster had a combined 16 receptions last season.

Spurrier wouldnt say when or if Saunders would be reinstated.

“His status will be determined at a later date,” Spurrier said. “Now how else can I say that?”

Without Saunders, the Gamecocks will use reserves Justice Cunningham and Mike Triglia during workouts. DiMarco has been slowed during camp with a cracked bone in his left forearm.

Posted on August 24th, 2010 by admin
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