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Running up the score or fair game? At what point are you willfully disrespecting your opponent? Join the debate in today's show. (10:24)

That's what Dave Telep the national recruiting analyst for Scout.com is reporting. Elliot Williams, a smooth shooting guard out of Memphis who is supposed to make an official announcement tomorrow, will be the big catch in its recruiting Class of 2008. It also provides reassurance to some Duke fans who were wondering if Mike Krzyzewski had jumped the shark in recruiting after losing out on Patrick Patterson last spring and failing to even land a visit from Greg Monroe, the top power forward in the 2008 class who recently committed to Georgetown.

Getting Williams still doesn't solve Duke's issues in the paint, but it does give them yet another athletic, versatile player on the wing. Some feel he's the most explosive guard the Blue Devils have landed since Jason Williams.

Active NCAA Losing Streaks

Checking in for our reasonably regular look at A&T’s company in frequent defeat throughout all four divisions and all 629 teams of NCAA football …
We find The Biggest Loser is still St. Anselm College of Manchester, N.H., a Division II institution with 27 consecutive defeats. The Hawks lost 52-6 at home to the Falcons of Bentley College this past week and play at American International on Saturday.
A&T is among three teams with 25 straight trips to the loss column. Division III Lewis & Clark College of Portland, Ore., which hasn’t won since 2004, absorbed a 39-0 defeat to the Lutes of Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Wash., on Oct. 27. The Pioneers spared themselves the possibility of further defeat back in ’04 by cancelling the final five contests due to insufficient participation numbers. They host Willamette in their final home game on Saturday.
Oklahoma Panhandle State University (Division II) is coming off a 34-8 loss at Texas College in Tyler, Texas, but there is hope for these Aggies. Their next opponent, Southern Nazarene University of Bethany, Okla., is an NAIA school. It is known as the Crimson Storm, one of the better nicknames we’ve heard in a while.
Hiram College of Ohio has 24 straight defeats to its name. The D-III Terriers have been competitive, relatively speaking. Four of their defeats, the most recent of which was a 31-14 verdict to the Earlham College Quakers of Richmond, Ind., have been by fewer than 20 points this season. They host the Battling Bishops of Ohio Wesleyan this week.

Is the Red Sox bandwagon losing momentum, now that they've won two championships and are no longer considered the angst-ridden team? (11:47)

This week was actually relatively sedate. Relatively. Once again though, I was left to search high and low for a team worthy of filling those last few spots in the Top 25.

Here's one little transitive property explanation of my dilemma. UConn lost Virginia, which lost to N.C. State, which lost to Central Florida, which lost by about 50 points to South Florida which lost to ... UConn. You see my point?

But enough whining. Filling out a Top 25 poll is part of my job. Actually, I'm not getting paid any extra to do it, so I reserve my right to keep on whining.

The usual reminder: The format is my ranking/my ranking the previous week and then the national AP poll ranking in parentheses.

1/1 Ohio State (1) - I'm starting to think that Penn State wasn't that much of a test, yet with each week I also become more convinced that the Buckeyes are a legit national title contender. Does that make any sense? Or course not.

2/2 LSU (2) - Once again the Tigers were one play away from defeat. But once again, LSU came through. Still, I wonder if - If LSU is really the nation's best team, why do they court disaster so often?

3/3 Oregon (3) - The Ducks are looking great, so every week I wonder a little bit more how they lost at home to Cal.

4/6 West Virginia (6) - The same thing goes for the Mountaineers. You could make a strong case for an Oregon-West Virginia title game. Tell me again how they lost to South Florida?

5/8 Kansas (5) - Mark Mangino has the Jayhawks at 9-0. Mark Mangini has the New York Jets at 1-8. Can we arrange a transfer of the nickname "Mangenious"?

6/7 Oklahoma (4) - Just biding time in Norman until the Big 12 title game. Unless the Sooners get tripped up by OK State on the way. I doubt it. But hey, stranger things have happened in 2007.

7/9 Missouri (7) - Am I the only one that's wondering why Chase Daniels, who's putting up enormous numbers as the QB for a top 10 Missouri team, isn't getting more serious Heisman consideration?

8/10 Georgia (10) - Yeah the Bulldogs struggled with Troy. But they didn't get upset. These days, that's saying something.

9/5 Arizona State (9) - The Sun Devils weren't shown to be frauds in losing at Oregon. But they weren't shown to be national title contenders either.

10/4 Boston College (8) - So BC performs its annual ritual of losing a game it really should have won. Only this time, Eagles fans can't blame this one on Tom O'Brien.

11/15 Virginia Tech (11) - At some point while the Hokies were manhandling Georgia Tech, it hit me. Tech probably will never have a consistent offense this season and it probably won't matter. Win with special teams, defense and a big-play or two on offense. The old Beamer Ball formula.

12/16 Southern Cal (12) - I've got nothing to say about the Trojans. It's amazing how a couple of losses can hurt a team's national relevance.

13/13 Michigan (13) - Once again, the Wolverines beat the Spartans, who once again can't hold a lead in a late game. At last, some consistency in the 2007 season.

14/14 Florida (17) - Next.

15/17 Texas (15) - Did you see Mack Brown blow a gasket on the sideline when the Longhorns were down by about 21 or so? I personally thought the players would crack up, but they must have responded. There's probably also a Mike Gundy joke here after the Cowboys choked a huge lead away, but I just can't seem to find it.

16/22 UConn (16) - I still can't believe the Huskies are for real, but the results can't be overlooked. Believe me, I tried.

17/19 Clemson (20) - The Tigers are in the driver's seat in the ACC Atlantic Division. Maybe, just maybe, this time they won't blow it. Nahhhh.

18/18 Auburn (18) - Next.

19/11 Alabama (21) - You really have to feel for Nick Saban after his team came so close to knocking off LSU. Okay, maybe you don't.

20/20 Tennessee (22) - Next. Notice how I'm running out of things to say about SEC teams? After nine weeks of chaos, I guess I'm just spent.

21/21 Hawaii (14) - Next up is 6-3 Fresno State. Maybe the Warriors can finally prove something to me. Maybe.

22/NR Boise State (19) - I'm counting the weeks until Hawaii and Boise State meet. There's only room for one of these WAC teams in the poll.

23/NR Virginia (23) - At this point, I'm starting to feel like even if the Cavaliers played LSU they'd probably still win by one point.

24/NR Illinois (NR) - Maybe I have a soft spot for the Zooker. Really though, I brought back Illinois into the poll because everybody and his brother has three losses and at least two of the Illini's were to legit teams - Michigan and Missouri.

25/NR Arkansas (NR) - I wouldn't have any reservations about ranking Arkansas except their non-conference schedule may actually be worse than Hawaii's.

OK, we've learned to expect anything and everything from the NCHSAA football playoff pairings, so I probably shouldn't have spit up my Cheerios when I saw that Charlotte Independce -- the national power, the school that won more than 100 straight games -- was visiting Page in the first round of the 4-AA playoffs this week.

Still, what a bizarre twist of fate.

Page figured to be the second best team in the Metro 4-A -- at best -- when the 2007 season started. But the Pirates stunned Grimsley and went 5-0 in the conference. After a slow start, they finished 7-4 overall. That didn't earn them a very high overall seed in the playoffs, which is why they're playing a team of Independence's caliber. They're the lowest-seeded conference winner at No. 7 in the West. Grimsley is seeded No. 8.

Kirby Stadium promises to be a fun place to be Friday, as Page will try to recapture some of its old playoff magic against this millenium's biggest in-state power. This is Independence's first road playoff game since 2000.

The Patriots have won state titles the past seven years and had a 109-game winning streak interrupted this September, when they lost to Elder High of Cincinnati, Ohio. They then won eight more games before losing their first in-state game. That came Friday against Matthews Butler, which won the Southwestern 4-A Conference with a 21-20 decision.

Independence coach Tom Knotts had a strange reason for not being on the sideline for that game. He reportedly assaulted an Indendepence fan/JV parent through a chain-link fence Thursday night after the Patriots saw their 70-game JV winning streak snapped. It's possible Knotts will remain suspended this week, which would add another odd twist to the Independence-Page game and -- who knows? -- maybe give the Pirates some sort of edge if Knotts is not calling the plays.

A few more high school football observations ...

After a week of relative stability in the AP poll, Jim and Jeff turn their attention to the chaos and clutter of the ACC Standings. (10:17)

The Charlotte Observer is reporting today that Independence football coach Tom Knotts will not face charges of simple assault against the relative of a Patriots JV player stemming from a postgame altercation last Thursday night.

But it is unclear at this time whether his suspension with pay from the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school system will be lifted in time for the architect of the seven-time state champions to be on the sideline Friday night at Page when Independence visits for a first-round 4-AA playoff game.

Stay tuned.

Jim and Jeff gush about Elon quarterback Scott Riddle, who has the Phoenix on the cusp of a playoff berth. (8:47)

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools announced this evening that Independence football coach Tommy Knotts will not coach Friday night's playoff game at Page. He'll resume his teaching and coaching duties Monday, the school system announced after completing its investigation Thursday.

Of course, he'd like to be preparing the Patriots for a second-round game at Matthews Butler next week. But there's always a chance Page (7-4) will send Independence (9-2) home with a loss, especially if Knotts' presence and play-calling are greatly missed. He began serving a suspension for a JV postgame altercation with a parent last Friday, and Indy fell to Butler 21-20 without him.

One thing I still can't believe is that a parent would heckle the coach who has won seven straight state titles in North Carolina's largest classification for bad play-calling. Then again, this guy who got into it with Knotts was from Philadelphia -- where they'll boo anyone, Santa Claus included -- and apparently didn't know the coach "from a can of paint," as his father told the Charlotte Observer.

Jim and Jeff look ahead to the high school football playoffs, including the wonderful draw for Page and their gutsy pick to win the 2-AA state title. (11:26)

I feel like such a putz. I held out against the cool crowd, all those people who had Ohio State No. 1 while I stuck with LSU. Then, eventually I succumbed to peer pressure - if everybody else is voting for the Buckeyes, why shouldn't I? - and moved THE Ohio State up to the top spot. Naturally, they got knocked off on Saturday by the Illinois Fighting Zookers. I feel like the kid in high school who just said no to alcohol then finally decided to crack open a beer five seconds before the cops showed up. Or something like that.

On to my ballot. Remember the format. My vote/my vote last week (the national AP poll)

1/2 LSU (1) - These guys are just erratic enough and Les Miles is just crazy enough to actually lose at Ole Miss on Saturday. Is that really the mark of a No. 1 team? It is this year.

2/3 Oregon (2) - The Ducks have a very manageable road to the BCS title game - at Arizona, at UCLA and Oregon State. In 2007, that means Oregon's primed for a loss.

3/5 Kansas (4) - I really, really thought the Jayhawks were going down at Oklahoma State. That's why I don't gamble on sports. Well, that and the fact that it's illegal.

4/6 Oklahoma (3) - As good as the Sooners have looked at times, they've also been very shaky on the road. This week's game at Texas Tech is hardly a gimme.

5/7 Missouri (6) - Speaking of the Sooners, if that Mizzou-Oklahoma game was played in Columbia and not Norman, the Tigers might be the No. 1 team in the nation.

6/4 West Virginia (5) - I know I'd been touting the Mountaineers the last few weeks. But then I got a chance to see them play Louisville on Thursday. National title contenders don't let an average team like the Cardinals hang around like that.

7/10 Georgia (8) - I'm not a genius - not a word, you hear me!? - but I will say that early this season when I watched the Bulldogs play South Carolina (back when the Gamecocks were nationally relevant) I remember thinking "This Knowshon Moreno kid is pretty good. They ought to give him the ball more often."

8/1 Ohio State (7) - Thank you Buckeyes, for gracefully bowing out of the national title hunt and sparing us a repeat of last year's championship game.

9/9 Arizona State (9) - Nothing pithy to add here.

10/11 Virginia Tech (10) - I was all set to make a crack about the Hokies losing by one to Virginia for the Coastal Division title, but then the Cavaliers ruined that ongoing joke. Thanks a lot, Al Groh.

11/12 Southern Cal (11) - Pete Carroll admits he made a mistake playing a hurt John David Booty against Stanford. What is this man doing? Admitting mistakes? Opening practice to the media? Will someone let him know that college football coaches don't act this way?

12/14 Florida (14) - When I wrote earlier this year that Tim Tebow fed the 5,000, it was meant to be a joke. Now? I'm not so sure.

13/17 Clemson (15) - All right, I've decided. I've been one of the many assuming that the Tigers will find some way to blow their opportunity to play in the ACC title game. But after the way Clemson's been playing lately, I'm reversing course and saying that the Tigers are bound for Jacksonville. Which means they'll probably lose to BC.

14/15 Texas (12) - Nothing to say here. Not even a Mack Brown joke.

15/20 Tennessee (19) - So what's the etiquette here? Can you win your division and still fire your coach? Because I still get the feeling that Vols fans would rather not have Phil Fulmer stay around another year.

16/21 Hawaii (13) - All right, all right. The win over Fresno State was nice. But I still won't be surprised if the Warriors lose at Nevada

17/8 Boston College (18) - Old bitter BC fan line - "We had the talent, but Tom O'Brien could never win the big games." New bitter BC fan line - "Tom O'Brien didn't leave us with enough talent."

18/23 Virginia (16) - Now we see the brilliance of UVA AD Craig Littlepage. Sign your coach to such a massive contract extension - as Littlepage did with Al Groh in 2005 - that it removes the temptation to get rid of the coach. The idiot who lost to Wyoming 23-3 is now the genius who destroyed Miami, 48-0.

19/24 Illinois (20) - Congrats to the Zookers. I really thought they were in a downward spiral, but the Juice broke loose in Columbus. You know what? Let's get Juice Williams a new nickname. I'm having O.J. flashbacks.

20/22 Boise State (17) - Boise's starting to roll. I think they'll be favored when the play at Hawaii.

21/13 Michigan (23) - Despite it all, the Wolverines can still go the Rose Bowl if they beat Ohio State. Seems about right this season.

22/NR Penn State (NR) - This is where my poll got really sketchy. I wasn't thrilled to put the Nitttany Lions back in, but ...

23/NR Wisconson (24) - ...It just seemed weird to have the Badgers in the poll and not have the team that drubbed them 38-7 in ahead of them.

24/NR Kentucky (22) - Yet another team I'm not crazy about ranking. I miss the good old days of the Top 20.

25/NR Cincinnati (21) - I just ranked a team that lost to Pittsburgh. Yep, seems about right.

The Greensboro Sports Commission brought us Monte Towe at today's Little Four luncheon and, speaking about a hundred yards from where N.C. State took down UCLA like Nixon in '74, the Wolfpack assistant coach was still visibly excited about the whole experience.

Towe's talk preceded the official unveiling of pairings for the 32nd Little Four Invitational, which will return to the coliseum Special Events Center from Dec. 26-28, about the time Disney on Ice is bringing its interpretation of "Finding Nemo" to the main arena. Something for the both the kids and basketball fans for the holidays, apparently ...

Anyway, here are the first-round pairings (with seeds to the left):

First-round matchups Girls No. 4 Page vs. No. 5 Southwest Guilford, 2:30 No. 3 Northwest Guilford vs. No. 6 Northeast Guilford, 4 No. 2 Dudley vs. No. 7 Smith, 6 No. 1 Grimsley vs. No. 8 Greensboro Day, 8 Boys No. 4 Northeast Guilford vs. No. 5 Page, 3:30 No. 3 Grimsley vs. No. 6 Smith, 5 No. 1 Greensboro Day vs. No. 8 Northwest Guilford, 7 No. 2 Dudley vs. No. 7 Southwest Guilford, 8:30

First comment: Kudos to Andy Durham for pointing out over at greensborosports.com that we now have two former ACC star players coaching in the Little Four: Ex-Tar Heel Curtis Hunter at Northeast Guilford and Duke alum Gene Banks now at Smith. Too bad they weren't paired against each other in the first round so we get the guaranteed rivalry matchup.

Before I criticize the seedings, I should mention in the full interest of disclosure that I was asked and did submit my own seedings to the tournament committee.

Really, you can't go wrong with Grimsley as the No. 1 girls team. The Whirlies have four players signing D-I scholarships this week and were last year's 4-A runners-up. Little surprised Page didn't end up seeded higher after winning last year's Little Four and with Boston College commit Jasmine Gill back.

But I think the real criticism in these things comes down to: We're all seeding a tournament based more on programs' reputations than what they really have back talent-wise. There should be a little more info-sharing before seedings are done to eliminate the guessing-game nature of the process, which might be unfair to an Northwest Guilford boys team that probably deserves better than a first-round matchup against Greensboro Day.

Northwest boys coach Mike Everett suggested today that this might be true in the case of the Vikings -- OK, really, he couched it a bit more strongly. But, he makes a good point: Northwest seems to almost be an automatic 8-seed in this tournament each year no matter what. By the coach's estimate, Northwest has won 7 of 8 against Grimsley since he's been at the school. The Whirlies are seeded third. They do have four starters back this year, for what it's worth (and I can't confirm Everett's math off the top of my head).

Greensboro Day beat out Dudley in the boys' final last year, and with Bruce Woodall and Jay Lewis leading the way, it's hard to argue the Bengals as top seeds even if, as coach Freddy Johnson points out, it's a pretty wide-open field.

Shameless plug: Look for our basketball season preview in the News & Record the day after Thanksgiving, Nov. 23. Now back to football ...

UNCG's Kyle Hines, who led the Spartans to an 83-74 win at Georgia Tech in the season-opener last week, is doing a regular blog for the NCAA's Web site. You can check it out here.
It's fair to say Hines does my job better than I would do his.

The Notre Dame-Duke game promises to be one of the worst nationally televised games in history. Yet, like a train wreck, we can't look away. (9:38)

A preview of the second round of high school football playoffs, which begins tonight, is discussed. (9:53)

OK, now that I have your attention, I'll pull back from that statement at least slightly when referring to the weak-kneed ill-conceived Washington Redskins defense of Gregg Williams, who came from Buffalo as a well respected, pressure-D guru. Just not sure why. ...

Oh, wait, we interrupt this blog entry to bring you a -- can it be? -- sack of Tony Romo on a third-and-12 play deep in the Cowboys' end with 3:26 left in the fourth quarter.

While the Skins have given themselves a shot because of this stop, fact remains this is about the first possession of the second half that didn't end with a Romo-to-wide-open-Terrell Owens touchdown.

Anyone watching the Redskins as a fan, or just with morbid curiousity, in recent weeks has grown used to seeing Washington squander halftime leads and killing itself with late-arriving blitzes. The Eagles killed the Skins with a screen to Brian Westbrook that went for 56 yards and a TD last week where nobody spied the safety-valve back.

The Giants' Eli Manning earlier picked apart the Skins' soft cover-2 with short dropbacks and quick releases. Romo has simply done the same against a defense that has ZERO toughness without safety Sean Taylor and that's doing a terrible job with zone coverage responsibilities, basically just letting Owens run free. "Oh, never mind him. He's not very good." It's almost as though the Skins' blitz packages are designed to only arrive 2 seconds after Romo's released the ball, converting yet another 3rd-and-long. Well, sometimes London Fletcher simply drops a gift interception. But that's a different gripe.

This brings me to a bigger point, one that might interest NASCAR fans of Team Gibbs if not the remaining Redskins fans in this state: Are Gibbs' teams just soft? And is this team personality a reflection on Gibbs as he heads into the twilight of his coaching career?

I'd say yes to both, reluctantly. To let the Patriots off the hook for running up the score on them a few weeks back was unforgivable and likely violated the NFL "code": You don't let yourself be humiliated without at least punching somebody in the mouth for showing the lack of respect to run up the score on you. I would've suggested doing bodily harm to Tom Brady -- assuming somebody could get to him, which is a lot to assume. You can be sure the Steelers would break Brady in half if in that situation, unless they could actually deliver a body blow to Bellicheck himself on the sideline. The Redskins took the beating and pretty much said: "Thank you, sir, can have I another?"

Jim Young and I visited that subject on a recent Radio Free Sports podcast. I expect the issue of the Skins' softness to return as this season winds down with Washington again a longshot for the playoffs. I believe Gibbs has earned too much respect to be fired or forced out. But it might be time for him to pose these questions to himself: Does this team have a too-soft, too-nice personality? And is it time for me to step aside?

Then again, Jason Campbell has shown some promise at QB and Clinton Portis, when healthy, has given the Redskins' a running threat. So maybe Gibbs just needs a new defensive coordinator. Again.

I'm sure Panthers fans, down to 88-year-old Vinny Testaverde at quarterback, could care less. But I just had to vent.

Look, I don't really need to explain to you any more how insane this college football season has been. I've pretty much beaten you over the head with it each week as I've kvetched about how hard it has been to come up with a Top 25. You don't need another dose of it, right?

Still ...

This thought occurred to me late last night as I was taking in the carnage of another Saturday: if Virginia Tech had successfully recovered an onside kick by Boston College, the Hokies would be in the midst of the national title hunt.

That kick, muffed by wideout Josh Hyman, gave the Eagles the chance they needed to score the winning TD a few weeks ago in Blacksburg. If Hyman comes up with the kick, Virginia Tech is 10-1 heading into this week's game against Virginia. The Hokies are already back up to No. 8 nationally with two losses. They'd probably be around No. 5 if they still had just one loss.

Yes, Virginia Tech, the team that struggled all game against East Carolina, got drubbed by LSU and needed a fumble on the goal line to escape against UNC is one onside kick recovery from possibly playing for the national title.

Okay, that's enough dead-horse assault for this week. On to the rankings. As usual, my ranking/my ranking last week (the national ranking).

1/1 LSU (1) - The Tigers are looking mighty vulnerable. If Georgia makes the SEC title game, I could see the Bulldogs taking the Bengals down. Or I could see LSU making six fourth-down conversions to pull the game out. It's 50/50 right now.

2/3 Kansas (2) - Word has it that some KU students are walking around campus with shirts that say "Our coach can eat your coach." Awesome.

3/5 Missouri (3) - If you'll remember, back in the preseason I said "Circle your calendars for the KU/Missouri game on Thanksgiving Day. That'll have national title implications." What? That blog entry was deleted? Darn.

4/6 West Virginia (4) - It's a good thing the BCS computers don't bother with point spread any more. Otherwise, all those late turnovers by the Mountaineers that keep making closer than they need to be would be a real problem.

5/8 Ohio State (5) - Like Jason Vorhees, we just can't seem to kill off the Buckeyes from the national title chase can we? Now they're in the clubhouse, hoping for a few more weeks of what we've seen every week this season - upsets, upsets, upsets.

6/7 Georgia (6) - So let's say the KU/Mizzou winner loses to Oklahoma, West Virginia loses to UConn or Pitt, Tennessee loses to Kentucky (putting Georgia in the SEC title game) and then Georgia knocks off LSU. Ladies and gentleman, your BCS title game - Georgia vs. Ohio State!!!

7/9 Arizona State (7) - Of course, the Sun Devils could make a claim for a title game spot if they can knock of Southern Cal this week and Arizona the next week. Dennis Erickson coaching in another national title game. Proof that karma doesn't exist?

8/10 Virginia Tech (8) - Not completely reversing my earlier graph about the Hokies, but they seem to have found an offense to go with that great defense. I don't see them losing to Virginia or BC in the ACC title game.

9/11 Southern Cal (11) - Finally, I differ from the national poll. Whew.

10/12 Florida (12) - Tim Tebow ... honestly, I'm at a loss for words.

11/4 Oklahoma (10) - Let's face it, these guys were great at home but pretty ordinary on the road.

12/2 Oregon (9) - I feel bad about dropping the Ducks this low, and maybe I shouldn't allow anticipated future results to factor in, but these guys without Dennis Dixon? Yikes.

13/14 Texas (13) - We now return you to the exact same poll as the rest of the AP voters. Yawn.

14/17 Boston College (15) - Your welcome BC. You knew that as soon as I put my faith in Clemson, that meant they were heading for another disappointing loss.

15/15 Tennessee (19) - Vandy's missed field goal that would have beaten the Vols may instead extend their streak of bowl futility and provide further proof that there is no justice in this world.

16/16 Hawaii (14) - The Warriors are starting to win me over. Winning at Nevada without Colt Brennan. Not bad ... not bad.

17/18 Virginia (16) - What happened between that opening 23-3 loss to Wyoming and now? Did the Cavs have a team-wide lobotomy?

18/19 Illinois (18) - Now that Chief Illiniwek has been retired, can we discard the name Fighting Illini and go with "The Zookers" instead?

19/13 Clemson (21) - Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Fool me for eight straight years ...

20/20 Boise State (17) - So it appears that if Boise State knocks of Hawaii the Broncos might end up end in a BCS Bowl game. Don't think they'll deserve it either.

21/23 Wisconson (22) - So these are the Badgers we were expecting to see at the beginning of the season. Thanks for showing up fellas.

22/NR Texas Tech (NR) - Mea culpa here. I got caught up in the moment after the Red Raiders defeat of Oklahoma and didn't consider that I ranked them over another 4-loss team that's more deserving - Auburn. Ah well, guns up everyone!

23/NR UConn (20) - West Virginia should roll over these guys ... right? Right?

24/NR South Florida (NR) - From unranked to No. 2 to unranked back to being ranked. Bulls, meet the 2007 season.

25/NR Brigham Young (23) - Glad to see my peers agreed that the Cougars deserved to crack the Top 25. They're unbeaten in a conference - the Mountain West - that I would argue is superior to the WAC - home of Hawaii and Boise State.

Because there was just no way I could work this into my game story but there was just no way I could leave it unreported either.

In the fourth quarter, with N.C. State already trailing 37-0, Wolfpack lineman Kalani Heppe was called for a personal foul.

Actually, according to referee Ron Cherry, Heppe was called for a personal foul for "Giving him the business."

I'm not kidding.

Amazingly, there is precedent for such a call. It was made by a referee during a Jets-Bills game back in the 80's when Jets D-lineman Marty Lyons roughed up Jim Kelly after Kelly was on the ground. And, like everything these days, that moment was captured on YouTube.

Here we are, with just a handful of regular season games left to be played and Missouri, a team that began the season unranked, is now No. 1.

Yep, somehow it just seems right this season.

One that has remained a constant - the format for this blog entry. My ranking/my ranking last week and the (national ranking).

1/4 Missouri (1) - I know Tim Tebow is all that and a bag of chips, but Chase Daniels is putting up some Tecmo Super Bowl numbers for the top team in the land. Am I saying he's Randall Cunningham/Super Tecmo good? Let's not go crazy here.

2/3 West Virginia (2) - If Mountaineers fans are known for burning couches after big wins what will my boss, Joe Sirera (West Virginia alum) do if his team wins the national title? Hopefully he takes out our printer.

3/5 Ohio State (3) - The Buckeyes are lurking in the shadows, needing just one loss from either West Virginia or Missouri to get back to the title game. Cue the cello and the theme from Jaws.

4/6 Georgia (4) - If you were to have, say, a playoff (I know, I know, it's crazy) this would be one of the two teams I'd pick to make it to the title game ...

5/9 Southern Cal (8) - ... this would be the other one. The Trojans lost both games this season when their QB, John David Booty, was hurt. He's healthy now and USC is looking dominant again.

6/1 LSU (5) - They don't call him "Two Loss" Les Miles for nothing, do they? So the whole Miles to Michigan thing won't be a big deal now with the national title no longer an issue. But will Michigan still be interested?

7/8 Virginia Tech (6) - Hey, the Hokies are in the ACC title game! Just like we all thought they'd be! See? Not everything is in chaos.

8/11 Oklahoma (9) - We know Oklahoma is unreal at home and very ordinary on the road? How will the Sooners be in neutral San Antonio? ... what? You expect an answer from me?

9/2 Kansas (7) - I realize knocking Kansas down to No. 9 after just one loss is a bit harsh. But this team managed to avoid playing any true powers until its final regular-season game, against Missouri. We all kmnow how that turned out.

10/10 Florida (10) - When you think about how good Florida is and then you realize the Gators have three conference losses, don't you have to accept that the SEC is the best conference in the nation? Okay, maybe I shouldn't open that can of worms.

11/14 Boston College (12) - Congrats to the Eagles for winning the Atlantic Division. Over/Under on number of Eagles fans in Jacksonville for the big game - 7.5 thousand.

12/15 Tennessee (14) - So Phil Fulmer, aka the Great Pumpkin, has the support of about 190 former players. And he has the Vols in the SEC title game. I say it's about 50/50 he gets fired.

13/7 Arizona State (13) - It was a nice run Sun Devils. I'm just sorry Dennis Erickson won't be coaching in the national title game this year. Darn it.

14/16 Hawaii (11) - Nice win over Boise State. Just knock off Washington and you'll get your BCS bowl berth, Warriors. Just don't start any title game talk, please.

15/18 Illinois (15) - The Illini still have a shot at the fourth BCS at-large spot, but that would ruin a juicy potential matchup with Florida in the Capital One Bowl.

16/19 Clemson (16) - I'm thinking maybe Clemson and Tennessee can just exchange coaches. They wouldn't even have to change wardrobes. Not that it would make their unhappy fans any happier.

17/13 Texas (17) - A season filled with wins over the teams the Longhorns were supposed to beat and losses in all the big games. Ahh, that sounds like the Mack Brown I used to know.

18/12 Oregon (18) - Based on how horrid Oregon has looked since Dennis Dixon got hurt, I'd be tempted to give him the Heisman trophy. Clearly, no player mattered more to his team.

19/21 Wisconsin (19) - If you're keeping score, my 15-19 matches the national poll exactly. I know, I'm a little scared too.

20/17 Virginia (22) - Another writer this weekend made an argument for Jameel Sewell as the QB on the All-ACC third team. Not sure if that means Sewell's underrated or that the talent pool at QB in the conference is a tad shallow.

21/23 South Florida (25) - The Bulls wind up exactly where I'd ranked them in the preseason. See? Everything went according to plan.

22/NR Auburn (23) - I had a brain lock last week when I ranked Texas Tech instead of these guys. Sorry War Eagle.

23/NR Arkansas (NR) - I know the guy has a bit of baggage - okay, a ton - but don't you think Houston Nutt and his incredibly creative running attack would be perfect in Nebraska?

24/25 Brigham Young (21) - This Bronco Mendenhall is a pretty good coach. Plus, he has a really cool name.

25/NR Cincinnati (20) - Where was this Ben Mauk when he was at Wake Forest?

I'm sure you know the news by now - that Duke football coach Ted Roof is out after 4 + seasons and a 6-43 record at Duke. We'll have more later and in tomorrow's paper. First, a couple of highlights from AD Joe Alleva's press conference.

1) Alleva said he wants to hire a coach with head coaching experience, preferrably at the I-A or FBS level.
2) To do that, Alleva said, Duke is prepared to pay its next coach significantly more than it paid Roof.
3) Duke's academic standards, however, will not be changed, according to Alleva.
4) Alleva talked a bit about future planned improvements for Wallace Wade, including a building at what is now the open end of the stadium and a scoreboard on the closed end.

Ted Roof will speak a press conference at 4:30. More then.

Even before Bill Callahan was fired at Nebraska, speculation abounded that Wake Forest's Jim Grobe would replace him. If you can win an ACC title at Wake, you can win a national title at Nebraska. Makes sense.
Here's the problem: There's no legitimate reason -- as of 5 p.m. Monday -- to believe there is mutual interest. Grobe and most of his staff were recruiting -- for Wake -- on Monday. Part of their job was to reassure the 14 players committed to the program that the boss isn't going anywhere.
Two committed prospects were still expected to visit campus on Monday as scheduled. Nothing had been postponed or canceled.
Grobe, who is in the first year of a 10-year contract, has financial security and little to no external pressure in his current position. The only expectation that greeted him when he arrived was legitimacy, and the Demon Deacons have clearly surpassed that standard. ACC champions in 2006, they're on their way to a bowl game for the second straight year, an unprecedented feat in the program's history.
Go 8-4 at Wake Forest and you're a legend. Do that too many times in Lincoln and you're unemployed. Just ask Frank Solich, whose record can be found here.

If you're a Duke fan, you've got to hope that K never has to go head-to-head with Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan for a top recruit. Why? Because Bo knows what the kids like.

Don't believe me? Check this out.

And if you think I'm desperately searching for a way to bring this up to Ryan in the post-game press conference, well, you're absolutely right.

One day before North Carolina travels to play Ohio State in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge, the status of Tar Heels point guard Ty Lawson is still unclear.
UNC coach Roy Williams listed Lawson, who "limited" on the Tuesday practice plan.
“That's wishful thinking, I think, on my part,” Williams said. “But I don't know if it's false.”
Williams won’t know anything, really, until he sees how Lawson responds to a small amount of practice time today.
"If he did some things today, then I could see him playing tomorrow night," Williams said.
If Lawson is unable to go, then junior guard Bobby Frasor will step into the starting position at point guard.
"I’m not saying 'Woe is me'" Williams said. “Bobby Frasor did lead us to 23 wins two years ago."
And the combination of Frasor and senior point guard Quentin Thomas filled in ably against Brigham Young after Lawson left the game.
"When you lose (a player) two minutes into a game, it’s hard to change," Williams said. "So I was really pleased with the way Bobby and Quentin came in and did a nice job for us and the way the team responded."

Jim Young and Jeff Carlton talk about Jim Grobe and Nebraska and come up with a sleeper candidate for the Duke job (10:39)

OK, it's good to see Northwestern coach Bill Carmody is at least as confused as I was by his team's pairing with Virginia in the Big Ten-ACC Challenge this year, which again demonstrated that the Big Ten is hardwoodly challenged when it comes to matching up with the ACC in November.

As he pointed out in this Roanoke Times story Wednesday, the Big Ten doesn't do a preseason poll, "but, if they did have one, we'd have to be near the bottom," Carmody said.

We admire his honesty. The Wildcats are quite horrid. So playing a UVa team that was the No. 2 seed in last year's ACC tournament and was picked to finish fifth this year seems an unfair matchup. Oh, yeah, UVa hit 16 3-pointers and won by 42 points.

Maybe Rob or Jim can explain to me the league and TV ramifications that brought us this game and an overmatched N.C. State team against Michigan State, which despite finishing 8-8 in its league last year, has to be considered one of the top 2 or 3 teams in the Big Ten. N.C. State finished 7th in the ACC last year, I think, though the Pack was picked a little higher this year if I'm not mistaken. So I'll give a pass on that one. Surely, the Ohio State-UNC pairing was established with the expectation that Greg Oden and Mike Conley would be back in Columbus this year. Another pass.

At least Duke-Wisconsin, Maryland-Illinois and Penn State-Virginia Tech made sense. Well, at least on paper they did. Yeesh, Badgers.

Jim Young and Jeff Carlton take local media bias to a whole new level when they make high school football playoff predictions. (10:53)

You'll have to forgive Northeast Guilford AD John Primm if he is visibly confused when you bring up the subject of high school realignment for 2009-13. The NCHSAA released its preliminary proposal for new conferences when the next four-year realignment kicks in, and while the association does a fairly admirable job of matching schools in nearest proximity at their classification level, Northeast has gotten a weird assignment twice in the past eight years. Weird seems to be the right word, anyway.

Based on the proposed conferences released Thursday, Northeast would join a six-team 3-A league with far-flung road trips to such places as North Forsyth, Ledford and Southwestern Randolph. Even the one fellow Guilford school, Southern, is about a 35-minute drive for the Rams. And that'll be the shortest trip for Northeast's sports teams.

Primm has put his own push-pins in the map and notes that Eastern Guilford and Northern Guilford are within 15 minutes of McLeansville, and the three Rockingham County schools that would join those two in a re-worked Triad 3-A network of eight schools are all within 35 minutes. Western Alamance is right down the road to the east.

Did anyone notice gas prices are over $3 now?

"I have very mixed emotions," Primm said Friday. "We are the epicenter of one conference that we're not in. And they've connected us to the periphery of this other conference."

His emotions are mixed because -- and not that Primm would say this himself at the risk of offending other schools -- Dudley and Western Alamance no longer would be conference rivals, which, by and large could mean more league titles in football for Northeast. In fact, the new league could be beneficial from a competitive standpoint in several sports.

As former N&R preps editor Charlie Atkinson notes, realignment generally sticks to this preliminary plan rather closely. But Northeast was an exception in 2001 and will likely be counterproposing a different plan for itself again when the NCHSAA opens the floor to alternate plans. In that initial '01 proposal, the NCHSAA managed to stick Northeast in a group with East Chapel Hill, Bartlett Yancey, Southern Durham and Oxford Webb. To avoid those nightmare road trips, Primm proposed the Rams join Dudley, Carver, Parkland, Glenn -- a difficult league, but closer to home -- and that was accepted.

Here are a few of my other observations, most of which appeared in today's News & Record:

* Guilford County will go from four 4-A schools to 10. Who knew the county was loaded with so many hugely-attended high schools? ... Dudley will move back up to the class of largest schools for the first time since 1997, and Southeast will be back after a four-year stint in 3-A. Growth at Ragsdale, Southwest and Western Guilford will push those schools to the 4-A level for the first time. The Hornets have changed classfications in each realignment since 1993.

* The five Greensboro city schools would be together in one conference along with Southeast Guilford and Southern Alamance. That's a lot of convenient, short drives. Well, except to the outskirts of Saxapahaw.

* High Point Central, Northwest Guilford and East Forsyth would join a conference with 4-A newcomers Ragsdale, Southwest, Glenn and Parkland. ... I think we could call this the PTI 4-A Conference because the airport seems to be at the epicenter of the proposed league.

* Randolph County will open two new 2-A high schools -- Providence Grove and Wheatmore -- that would cause four of its five existing county high schools to drop from 3-A size to 2-A. Asheboro would be the only school to remain at 3-A. Eastern Randolph would join Cummings in a conference, making for some interesting football matchups.

* Reidsville would find itself in a potentially tougher 2-A football conference with Andrews and Carver.

* Thomasville's run of athletics success in 1-A would come to an end if the Bulldogs return to 2-A for the first time since 1997.

The NCHSAA will hold regional meetings in January to let schools react to this proposal. After that, the association could come up with alternate proposals, then hear appeals and approve a final realignment plan in May

Looks like some good tit-for-tat eligibility finger-pointing in Charlotte this week, as both 7-time 4-AA state champion Independence and West Charlotte have had starting players removed from the teams before tonight's state semifinal game because of residency questions. Here's the story in today's Charlotte Observer. Discuss.