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As a longtime fan of ACC basketball, I'm all in favor of these early season conference challenges in which the ACC is able to show of to the rest of the nation.

But surely I'm not the only one who's grown a bit tired of this so-called ACC-Big Ten "Challenge." Can we at least get rid of the word "challenge"? The ACC has never lost this matchup and, with a 4-1 lead heading into tonight's games, it looks like the conference will notch yet another win. Yawn. How about "ACC-Big Ten Annual Drubbing"?

So it's time to look for higher - or at least different - mountains to climb. While an ACC-SEC challenge would be great from a fan's perspective, it's doubtful that two leagues with overlapping recruiting areas would find it fruitful. That's the same story with the ACC-Big East Challenge, which is a shame because that's got some ready-made animosity built in. Call it the ACC-Big East Brawl to Settle it All, and give players six fouls, like they did back in the day in the Big East.

So what's left? Probably the Big 12, maybe even the Pac-10. Clearly, travel is not a problem for teams these days.

And to make it fun, let's put something else on the line. Have the winning league gets an extra bid to the NCAA tournament, while the losing league gets one less. Have the tournament selection committee draw up the field, then take out, say, the bottom Big 12 team in the brackets and replace it with the ACC team that didn't quite make it originally.

What do you think? Has the ACC-Big 10 Challenge gone stale? What would be an adequate replacement?

First let me say that I don't think any team in the country could have beaten Illinios last night - particulary in Urbana, or Champaign, I can never remember which place actually has the arena. Champaign, I think.

But I digress. I do think that several other teams could have given the Illini a better game than Wake Forest did. And giving up 91 points is hardly making me feel like the Deacs have made significant strides defensively since last year.

We know after that loss that Wake will no longer be the top team in the country. But should we still consider them the top team in the ACC? If not, who assumes that mantle.

And if you think it's way to early to be speculating on this sort of topic, well then, my friend, you clearly don't belong on the Internet.

It's hard to go anywhere these days without seeing a football coach fired. When I was in Cincinnati last January, they were introducing the new guy that day at UC. Visited Bloomington on Wednesday, and if I were so inclined, could have attended the Gerry DiNardo-is-fired press conference at Indiana.

No such events took place in Chapel Hill this year, which may be a surprise to some and great news to others.

But, down in Greenville, they canned John Thompson before his second season was up and quickly moved to hire Skip Holtz. He's the guy Lou Holtz was grooming to be his successor at South Carolina before demoting his son instead. What do ECU fans -- and others -- think about the Holtz hire? Is this guy still on his way up, a guy who can carry the Pirates to greatness, or at least goodness? Or not so much? Should ECU have waited to see who else would become available during the firing season?

So apparently it's not just Dee Brown and Co. that has schools reluctant to schedule Illinois. According to this article the University of Oregon has some serious concerns about playing the Fighting Illini while they're still called, well, the Fighting Illini. The Illini for the uneducated, is a Native American tribe.

Even more interesting to me was that Wisconsin refuses to schedule schools with a Native American mascot, unless that school is a traditional rival or a conference member. That little clause, by the way, exempts Illinois.

Which brings up an interesting hypothetical. What would happen if the Badgers were scheduled to play in a bowl game, maybe even a BCS bowl game, against Florida State? I'm guessing they'd add another clause that says "or if there's a lot of money on the line." Because let's be honest, if they really wanted to make a statement about how really, really offended they are by Native American mascots, they'd just forfeit every game they have to play against Illinois.

What do you think? Is this whole mascot thing political correctness run amok? Or is it time schools stopped paying lip service to tolerance and started making real statements about the use of Native American mascots?

Coaches can be fans, too. And there are some pretty good stories out there. Like how Fran McCaffery saw the Phillies win the 1980 World Series. Or how Skip Prosser witnessed the wildest ending in NFL playoff history. Details coming soon in print.
How about you? Have you gone to great lengths to attend a game? If so, let us hear about them. Right here. Right now.

Hard to disagree with Tom Glavine that the revelations coming out about steroid use in baseball are hardly revelations at all. It's been an issue for many years, even if baseball was always noticeably quiet about it and even if progress has been ridiculously slow: MLB didn't even ban steroids until '02 and start testing for it until this year. THG didn't get banned until last March and human growth hormone still isn't banned.

My question for Glavine and the players' union -- he's one of its leaders -- is will they finally give in and allow serious testing? Or do they need John McCain to introduce legislation in Congress and a public browbeating to untaint the game?

How much sentiment is there among fans to put an asterisk on Bonds' 73 home runs if he used steroids -- and not flaxseed oil, as he claims -- to help produce the record number of dingers? Who else gets an asterisk, if so? Personally, I don't believe in such indicators, for Maris, Bonds or any record-holder. We've gone from deadball eras to lower mounds to bandbox ballparks, from 154-game schedules to 162, etc. Conditions change. Getting the game off steroids should be the next big change.

Picking high school football playoff games is one of the most difficult forms of prognostiation. Unlike the NFL or even the college game, you almost never have the benefit of sizing up the opposition in advance.

What can I tell you about Dudley's opponent, Boiling Springs Crest? Not much, except the Chargers were awesome last year, when they destroyed Eastern Randolph in the state title game.

But that was last year, and we all know how much fortunes can change from season to season in high schoool football.

So I leave it up to you, dear readers, to give us guidance. Give me your picks on our three local teams. How will Dudley fare against Crest in the 3-AA title game? What about Western Alamance vs. Charlotte Catholic in the 2-AA championship? And Thomasville vs. Wallace-Rose Hill in the 1-AA final?

Give us your picks. But do us a favor and provide a little bit of analysis as well. No "We're going to win because we're awesome!" arguements. Please.

They tease us with tournaments in Maui and challenges against the best the Big Ten has to offer (Illinois and, well, Illinois), then they leave us in the lurch for most of December. ACC basketball is basically on hiatus for a while aside from two intraconference affairs this Sunday. Apparently, final exams are the lame excuse for this down time. That's fine for the student-athletes. But what about us, the viewers ... and sports writers?

The occasional game against a Liberty, a Toledo, a Loyola of Chicago or a Temple -- nice scare for the Deacs, eh? -- isn't going to hold our attention. So here are some alternative forms of entertainment while you wait for Tobacco Road's winter ritual to begin:

There's no question Shelden Williams has become a force this season - as evidenced by last night's 23 points, 14 rebounds and 7 blocks - but in truth, the Landlord hasn't exactly faced any fiesty tenants in the paint so far this season. The one fair physical matchup he's had thus far was Michigan State's Paul Davis, and in that game, Williams shot just 4-11 from the field and had five turnovers. He'll have to do better than that when he goes up against the likes of Sean May, Eric Williams, Luke Schenscher, etc. The Blue Devils need him to remain a reliable option down low ...

...Kudos to UIC coach Jimmy Collins for figuring out a way to criticize the referees without getting fined. "Playing here is intimidating for anybody,'' Collins said after the game. "I think the officials are intimidated in here." Collins then cracked a smile, letting us all know he was just kidding - sort of ... In a totally unrelated matter, the Flames were whistled for 22 fouls, while the Blue Devils were called for 16 ...

... It's been a Chicago lovefest in recent weeks for Sean Dockery, pride of Julian High. First, he got to go home and play in front of friends and family in the United Center. Then, he had a reunion with several old pals when UIC came to town. Dockery had known Flames center, Elliott Poole since they played on a 12-and-under AAU team together. Unfortunately for Poole, that means he'll have to endure some playful trash talk from Dockery the next time they meet - particulary after Poole had a dunk attempt blocked by 6-3 DeMarcus Nelson.

"I think I'll bring that up,'' Dockery said with a sly smile.

UNCG basketball coach Fran McCaffery's latest find from the Philly area, freshman Kyle Hines, is a crowd-pleaser. And he doesn't do it with thunderous dunks. He does it on the other end. Hines is second in the nation in blocked shots, with a 4.2 average going into tonight's game against Guilford College at Fleming Gym. Only Deng Gai of Fairfield is swatting more shots per game.

In upending Southern Miss 79-78 on Dec. 3, Ricky Hickman scored 29 for the Spartans; Ronnie Burrell poured in 27. Impressive. But what McCaffery remembers was a critical Hines block.

"It was one of those things, the timing of it," McCaffery said. "You're watching the game, and they're going to score -- no, they're not. He's blocked it."

Ragsdale's Toney Baker may be the most acclaimed high school football player from our area in a long time. From a records standpoint, maybe the most acclaimed of all time. He should have the nation's second-highest reported total of career rushing yards when Coach Tommy Norwood submits his figures to the National Federation of High School Associations.

Anyway, check out our Sports front page on Friday. We're breaking our traditional news-and-feature presentation mold a little bit by offering a full-color poster page as a tribute to Baker's career. Let us know what you think. ...

The issue regarding college football polls isn't dying down. ESPN, one of the sponsors of college football's controversial coaches' poll, plans to ask the American Football Coaches Association to make currently anonymous ballots public in future seasons.

As editor John Robinson has pointed out, the News & Record will consider its position, certainly before the 2005 football season. I'm in some agreement with my former Daily Tar Heel colleague Mike Persinger that the basketball polls really don't matter; they're just for conversation. But that'll be up to new sports editor Joe Sirera and the rest of the team to resolve. And we'd value your thoughts about that, too.

A key question, whether it's writers or coaches (or sports information directors), and whether the poll means big BCS money or simply water-cooler chatter, is who sees all of the teams play. And who can properly evaluate that "this team is ninth-best, and this one, they're only 17th-best"? The answer: Not many.

North Carolina basketball coach Roy Williams was watching a high school recruit's basketball game earlier this week when he ran into a coaching friend who was also checking out a recruit in the same game. The friend was Virginia Tech's Frank Beamer, a football coach once wooed by UNC.

"His player wasn't as good at basketball as my player was, without question," Williams said Thursday. "But I'm guessing the player I was watching wasn't as good at football as the one he was watching."

Beamer and Williams first met at a speaking engagement in Hilton Head, where they shared laughs over golf and a shrimp dinner. Billy Hite, a classmate of Williams' at UNC, is on Beamer's coaching staff.

Sunday, Williams will coach his first game in Blacksburg. Beamer warned him that Hokie fans are fired up about their first-ever ACC game. The fifth-ranked Heels take a seven-game winning streak to Tech, which has already suffered a loss to VMI.

There's been a lot of second-guessing of Panthers coach John Fox's play-calling on the radio airwaves the last couple of days. If their overtime loss had knocked the Panthers out of playoff contention, I could understand all the grousing about pitching the ball to Nick Goings on first down, then running out the clock conservatively in the final 1:37 of regulation Saturday night in Atlanta.

The thing is, missed opportunity or not, the Panthers are in almost as good of shape now as they were before playing the Falcons. What happened to NFL parity? Why can't the NFC produce six playoff-worthy teams? The Panthers are still tied for the last playoff spot, at 6-8, and have tiebreaker edges over both St. Louis and New Orleans.

So, would Fox and offensive coordinator Dan Henning open things up in the same situation against Tampa or the Saints these next two weeks when the Panthers NEED to win -- that is, assuming other teams in the playoff race actually win from here on out -- or will they play for overtime?

"I would do the same thing again 10 times," Fox said Monday.

For those few of you who might have actually noticed I've been gone, I've been on vacation in the Chicagoland area, spending Christmas with the in-laws. I spent most of the time in a relative sports cocoon, but I have a few observations to share.

1) Chicago is unfreakingbelievably cold. When I wrote my Dec. 4 article about Sean Dockery escaping the mean streets of South Chicago, I should have included a section on how he survived the weather as well.

2) Look, I think Reggie White was probably the greatest defensive lineman who ever played the game, but why the uproar about not granting him a waiver into the Hall of Fame? If the NFL didn't grant a waiver to former Chiefs great Derrick Thomas after he died in a car accident, then it must do the same for White, in order to maintain credibility and consistency. I know Roberto Clemente was given such a waiver, but I've got to believe the manner of his death - in a plane crash, on a relief trip for Central American earthquake victims - had something to do with it. I just don't see the harm in having White come up for a vote five years after his retirement, like every other NFL HOF candidate.

3) I know only you recruiting geeks will care about this right now, but Duke's landing of Texas high school DL Vince Oghobaase last week is a pretty big deal. Oghobaase was rated by some as one of the five best defensive tackle prospects in the country. He chose Duke over offers from Miami, Oklahoma and Texas A&M. Folks, that just doesn't happen too often for the Blue Devils. Giddy Duke football fans - yes, there are a few out there - are calling this the Johnny Dawkins commitment for Ted Roof. That might be a bit extreme - I don't see 3 national titles in Duke's football future - but Oghobaase's decision certainly sends a signal that Roof knows what he's doing, and that the Blue Devils' push to become competitive in the ACC isn't just a pipe dream.

4) Don't you hate it when reality screws up fantasy? Specifically, don't you hate it when the real world of the NFL and the end of the regular season destroys your fantasy football team's chances? Not if you're me. My fantasy team - co-owned with Jeff Carlton - got a nice boost this week when our opponent's QB - one Donovan McNabb - took a siesta for the rest of the Rams game after one measly drive. Fortunately, our team is loaded with guys like Trent Green - who doesn't need to rest because his team has no shot at the playoffs, and Torry Holt - who can't rest, because his team needs every win it can get to make the playoffs.

Our team, by the way, the Van Buren Boys, is now tied for first in our league after a 0-3 start to the season. It's really sad how much this means to me, by the way.

Duke guards have a pretty decent track record when it comes to getting into the coaching profession. Tommy Amaker, Quinn Snyder (big win last night, still can't figure Mizzou out), Johnny Dawkins, Chris Collins, Wojo - it's a pretty extensive list.

Just don't expect to add J.J. Redick to it. I've always said you can tell a lot about a man based on how he plays his PlayStation 2, and Redick revealed this tidbit on Thursday.

After three weeks without his PS2 - how he survived, I'll never know - he hooked it up on Wednesday night and returned to playing his NCAA college football game in dynasty mode (that lets you keep using the same school, year after year, to build up a dynasty). His Oregon Ducks won handily, something like 52-14.

But ... and here's the key fact ... Oregon wasn't the first team he'd played with. Turns out that Redick had been at another school before, one he'd created. Why did he leave?

"I got put on probation,'' Redick said. "I kept losing scholarships every year. I wasn't disciplining my players."

Maybe I'm reading too much into this, but if, 20 years from now, Coach Redick is involved in some tutors taking tests for players scandal, you got the first warning here.

... In totally unrelated news, I had one of those Ticker Shock moments last night. I'm watching the Holiday Bowl, getting angry at Cal for justifying Texas' berth in the Rose Bowl, when a score comes across the screen that simply must be wrong ... St. Johns 36, N.C. State 12 ...

What? And it was in the SECOND HALF!!! Surely someone in Bristol was having a little fun. Right? Right?

Sadly for the Wolfies, no. They really did lose to a bad St. John's team by 18. They really did shoot 20 percent for the game. They really did have 19 turnovers and 2 assists.

Which raises the question, is State really any good? For now, I'm inclined to believe this was one of those once in a blue moon god-awful performanes that just happens. But if State throws up another dud soon, questions will arise. Remember, the Wolfpack hasn't exactly played a stiff schedule so far.

.... Finally, a moment of silence for Jerry Orbach please, who died yesterday at age 69. You may not recognize the name, but if you happened to stumble upon one of the 25 Law & Order episodes shown on 10 channels daily, you'd know him as the wisecracking sardonic detective who's been on the show forever. You wouldn't believe how hard the sports department took the news yesterday. We'll miss you Lenny Briscoe.

A little Orbach trivia. Did you know that he was the voice of Lumiere, the talking candlestick, in Beauty and the Beast? And he was the father, the guy who dared to "Put Baby in a Corner" in Dirty Dancing. Just two more reasons why Internet Movie Database, imdb.com, is an essential part of life.