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For nearly six decades between 1951 and 2011, only four men occupied the head football coach's office at Ohio State.
During those 60 years, Earle Bruce had the shortest tenure – nine years – and he won more than 75 percent of his games. Woody Hayes set the standard with a school-record 28 seasons, three consensus national championships and 13 Big Ten titles as well as a winning percentage of .761.
John Cooper was the head man for 13 seasons beginning in 1988 and despite all the criticism he endured, Coop still won at a 71.5-percent clip. His successor was Jim Tressel, who won seven Big Ten championships in 10 seasons, the 2002 national title and an .828 winning percentage.
What else do Bruce, Hayes, Coop and Tress all have in common? None of them left Ohio State on his own terms.
Once upon a time, before university officials decided continuity was a good thing, Ohio State was known as "The Graveyard of Coaches," a particularly derisive nickname among the college football hierarchy. But it was a moniker well-deserved. During the 23-year period between 1929 and 1951 when Hayes was hired, the university had burned through six coaches including a future College Football Hall of Famer (Francis A. Schmidt), a future Pro Football Hall of Famer (Paul Brown) and a former local hero (three-time OSU All-American Wes Fesler).
Of the six coaches during that period, only Brown and his successor Carroll Widdoes left Ohio State of their own accord – Brown to join the U.S. Navy and serve in World War II, Widdoes because he didn't like the pressure that came with being a head coach. Evidently that sentiment extended only to Ohio State since Widdoes later went to Ohio University and spent nine seasons as head coach there.
To be perfectly honest, Ohio State was a graveyard for coaches long before 1929. The Buckeyes had 12 different head coaches – including one that served two separate stints – between 1895 and 1913. Five of those coaches were with the team only one season, and the team had a different coach every season from 1909 to 1913.
After last weekend's showing at Miami (Fla.), those in the Buckeye Nation convinced Luke Fickell is not yet ready for any head coaching assignment – let alone piloting one of college football's elite programs – are more than ready to resurrect "The Graveyard of Coaches."
The ready-made successor, of course, is Urban Meyer, the owner of an impressive résumé that includes being a native Ohioan, serving two seasons on Bruce's coaching staff at OSU, earning a master's degree in sports administration from Ohio State, sporting an .819 career winning percentage and winning two national championships in a three-year span at Florida.
There is something of a monkey wrench in Meyer suddenly appearing on the OSU sideline in 2012, however. The timing might not be right for him to take the job.
Meyer retired (his word, not mine) from Florida after last season, citing health problems and a desire to spend more time with his family. We all know that spending more time with one's family is often a hollow reason cited for walking away. Anyone remember Michael Jordan saying he wanted to spend more time with his family and then spending the following summer riding a bus through the Deep South while attempting to play minor-league baseball?
In Meyer's case, though, spending more time with his family is a plausible reason for walking away from football. He has three children, including daughters who play volleyball at Georgia Tech and Florida Gulf Coast, respectively. Yes, Meyer has taken an analyst's job at ESPN this year, but he can easily jet to wherever the Worldwide Leader assigns him and be back home in plenty of time to watch his daughters play volleyball.
Even if Meyer reneged on the spending-more-time-with-family thing, his health is apparently no joke. He is still only 47, but has experienced several health problems all related to stress.
Meyer stepped away from his duties at Florida for a couple of months following the 2009 season after which his health seemed to improve. But when he quickly returned to the sideline for last season, the stress returned and his health rapidly deteriorated again. Frequent chest pains, severe headaches brought on by a brain cyst – each malady diagnosed as stress-related – conspired to send Meyer into a forced retirement.
The question now is if Meyer will ever return to coaching, and if he does, will he or can he return to being the relentless recruiter and tireless offensive brainiac that placed him at the top of his profession? If the answer is yes, then any team out there will consider itself lucky to get him. If the answer is no, however, what then?
What white knight would Ohio State fans have come charging to the rescue should Fickell not be renewed for 2012 and Meyer not make himself available? (And please don't say Bob Stoops or Jon Gruden. Stoops is not leaving Oklahoma and Gruden will coach again in the NFL or not at all.)
Nick Saban of Alabama? He has 4 million reasons every year not to leave Tuscaloosa.
Gary Pinkel of Missouri? He'll be 60 next April and his career win percentage in 20-plus seasons at Toledo and Mizzou is a hardly eye-popping .634.
Mark Dantonio of Michigan State? Past heart problems, a career .589 winning percentage and close ties to Tressel. That's three strikes and you're out.
Les Miles of LSU? The Board of Trustees is not going there. Besides, the last time Ohio State hired an alum from That School Up North to be its head football coach was 1906.
Mike Stoops of Arizona? Just because he is Bob's little brother doesn't mean he is Bob's clone. Mike's 1-2 start with the Wildcats this season puts his career record at 41-47.
Mark Stoops, defensive coordinator at Florida State? See above. Plus he's never been a head coach.
Bo Pelini of Nebraska? Temperament seems to be an issue as do his interviewing skills. You have to at least wonder why he has made nine different stops in a 20-year coaching career.
My point is be careful what you wish for. Secretly hoping Fickell will fail just to pave the way for Meyer could be an exercise in futility because if he's not ready to come back or simply doesn't want the job, the other options just don't seem all that inviting.
** Ohio State is 3-1 all-time against Colorado. The teams last met in 1986 when the Buckeyes took a 13-10 victory at Ohio Stadium. OSU's other victories in the series came in 1985, a 36-13 verdict in Boulder, and a 27-10 triumph at the 1977 Orange Bowl. That marked the final bowl victory of Woody Hayes' coaching career. Colorado scored its only win of the series with a 20-14 decision in Columbus in 1971.
** The game came about as the result of Colorado opening the season at Hawaii. Schools that travel to Hawaii are permitted a 13th regular-season game to help offset the expense of such a trip. Ohio State was looking for a home game to fill out its schedule, so the game came into being late last fall when the schedule-makers at ESPN noticed the open Sept. 24 weekend for both teams and suggested they play one another. CU agreed on the contingent that the game would be televised nationally.
** The game pits a couple of first-year head coaches who are alums and longtime assistant coaches at their respective schools. Luke Fickell was a four-year starter at Ohio State from 1993-96 who spent nine years on Jim Tressel's staff from 2002-10. Joe Embree was an All-Big Eight tight end and served for 10 seasons under three different Colorado head coaches – Bill McCartney (1993-94), Rick Neuheisel (1995-98) and Gary Barnett (1999-2002).
** The Buckeyes are 55-26-2 all-time against current members of the Pac-12. In addition their record against the Buffaloes, they are 9-13-1 vs. USC, 8-0 vs. Oregon and Washington State, 8-3 vs. Washington, 5-1 vs. California, 4-4-1 vs. UCLA, 3-1 vs. Arizona, 2-0 vs. Arizona State and Oregon State, 1-0 vs. Utah and 2-3 vs. Stanford.
** The Buffaloes are 35-63-3 all-time against current members of the Big Ten. In addition to its record against Ohio State, CU is 18-49-2 vs. Nebraska, 4-1-1 vs. Wisconsin, 3-1 vs. Indiana, 3-0 vs. Minnesota, 2-0 vs. Iowa, 1-1 vs. Illinois, Northwestern and Penn State, 1-3 vs. Michigan and 0-3 vs. Michigan State. Colorado and Purdue have never played one another in football.
** OSU fell out of the Associated Press' top 25 this week for the first time since Nov. 20, 2004. It ended the nation's longest active streak in the AP rankings at 103 straight weeks.
** The Buffaloes have not enjoyed a winning season since going 7-6 in 2005. Since then, they are a combined 22-42
** Colorado is working on a school-record streak of 18 consecutive road losses (not counting neutral sites). The Buffaloes haven't won a true road contest since a 31-26 triumph at Texas Tech in October 2007.
** OSU and Colorado enter the game on opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of penalties. The Buckeyes have been flagged only nine times for 67 yards in three games while the Buffaloes have been whistled 29 times for 270 yards.
** Ohio State's last two opponents have each topped 300 yards of total offense marking the first time in seven years that has occurred against the Buckeyes. Toledo totaled 338 yards while Miami (Fla.) went for 363, marking the first back-to-back 300-yard games the OSU defense has allowed since a three-game streak in 2004 against Michigan State (407), Purdue (384) and Michigan (399).
** Colorado quarterback Tyler Hansen will be seeking to end a streak of futility his predecessors have had against Ohio State. In their four previous meetings with the Buckeyes, CU quarterbacks have combined to throw for only 239 yards on 18-for-50 passing with two touchdowns against eight interceptions.
** Colorado is one of only nine Division I-A team with just one turnover so far in 2011, and the Buffaloes have gone back-to-back games without turning the ball over for only the sixth time in their history. No CU team has ever gone three straight games without a turnover.
** Colorado hosted Cal for its Sept. 10 home opener, but the game did not count in the Pac-12 standings. The game completed a previous home-and-home series between the two schools that was agreed upon before the Buffaloes joined the conference this year. As strange as that might sound, it isn't the first time CU has played an opponent from its own league when it didn't count in the conference standings. The Buffaloes played Northern Colorado in 1923 when both teams were members of the Rocky Mountain Faculty Athletic Conference, but it didn't count as a league game because Northern Colorado designated only two games on its schedule that season as conference encounters.
** Ohio State president Dr. E. Gordon Gee was president of the University of Colorado from 1985 to 1990. Gee left Boulder to become OSU president in 1990 and stayed through 1997 when he moved on to Brown (1998-2000) and later Vanderbilt (2001-07). Gee returned to Columbus in October 2007.
** The game will be televised by ABC/ESPN2 using the reverse mirror. (In case you have forgotten how the reverse mirror works, the game should be televised by your local ABC affiliate. If the game is not on that channel, look for it on ESPN2.) Veteran play-by-play man Mike Patrick will have the call along with former SMU running back Craig James providing color analysis. Kickoff is set for shortly after 3:30 p.m. Eastern.
** Next week, Ohio State kicks off the Big Ten season by hosting Michigan State. It will be an interdivisional contest since the Buckeyes are in the new Leaders Division while the Spartans are in the Legends. The game is set for a kickoff shortly after 3:30 p.m. Eastern and will be telecast again by ABC using ESPN on the reverse mirror.
** On Sept. 21, 1996, fourth-ranked Florida outgunned No. 2 Tennessee by a 35-29 final in Knoxville. The Gators raced out to a 35-6 halftime lead behind four TD passes by Danny Weurffel, but the Volunteers came back to make it close on three second-half scoring throws by Peyton Manning, who set a school record with 492 passing yards. The game was played in front of 107,608 fans at Neyland Stadium, then the largest on-campus crowd in college football history.
** Also on Sept. 21, 1996, linebacker Pat Tillman led the Arizona State defense to a 19-0 victory over top-ranked Nebraska, the first shutout of a No. 1 team since 1978.
** On Sept. 22, 1956, Notre Dame lost for the first time ever in September when unranked SMU scored a 19-13 upset in Dallas over the third-ranked Fighting Irish.
** On Sept. 22, 1990, Illinois tailback Howard Griffith set an NCAA record when he rushed for eight touchdowns during his team's 56-21 romp over Southern Illinois in Champaign. Griffith tallied three of his TDs on consecutive carries and tied an NCAA record with four touchdowns in the third quarter. It was the most points ever scored in a college football game by a non-kicker.
** On Sept. 23, 1961, Rice stunned No. 5 LSU by a 16-3 score in front of a record home crowd of 73,000 in Houston. The Owls got a pair of touchdowns from quarterback Billy Cox and held the vaunted LSU offense, which featured future College Football Hall of Fame running back Jerry Stovall, to only a field goal.
** On Sept. 23, 1972, Purdue quarterback Gary Danielson ran for a career-high 213 yards but it wasn't enough as 15th-ranked Washington erased a 21-0 halftime deficit and beat the Boilermakers, 22-21, in West Lafayette.
** On Sept. 24, 1983, seventh-ranked Iowa smothered No. 3 Ohio State during a 20-14 triumph in Iowa City. OSU quarterback Mike Tomczak entered the game as the nation's leader in passing efficiency, but completed only 13 of 34 passes for 121 yards and a touchdown. The victory snapped a 16-game losing streak for Iowa in the series. The Hawkeyes hadn't beaten the Buckeyes since 1962.
** On Sept. 24, 1988, Wyoming engineered erased a seven-point deficit in the final 90 seconds to score a 48-45 victory over Air Force. The Cowboys trailed by a 45-38 score when fullback Steve Bena scored on a 9-yard run with 1:30 showing on the clock. Wyoming kicked the PAT to tie the score, and then with just 45 seconds left, Air Force QB Dee Dowis lost a fumble at his own 42-yard line. That set the stage for freshman kicker Sean Fleming's 27-yard field goal as time expired to give Wyoming the win.
** On Sept. 24, 2000, Penn State defensive back Adam Taliaferro was seriously injured near the end of his team's 45-6 loss at Ohio State. Taliaferro was paralyzed from the neck down but thanks to quick action by doctors and trainers at Ohio Stadium, as well as the staff at the Ohio State Medical Center and Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, Taliaferro – after about eight months of intense rehabilitation – was able to regain full function of his arms and legs. He later graduated from Penn State before earned a law degree from Rutgers, and he is currently a practicing attorney in New Jersey specializing in corporate litigation.
** On Sept. 25, 1948, Michigan took a 13-7 win over Michigan State in East Lansing, giving U-M head coach Bennie Oosterbaan his first victory in his first game as head coach. Michigan went on to finish the 1948 season with a perfect 9-0 record, marking the first time in college football history a head coach had achieved an undefeated season in his first year on the job. The feat has since been duplicated four times, most recently by Larry Coker of Miami (Fla.) in 2001.
** On Sept. 25, 1959, Georgia Tech linebacker Gerald Burch intercepted SMU quarterback Don Meredith with 1:32 remaining in the game to clinch a 16-12 victory for the Yellow Jackets over the No. 6 Mustangs.
** On Sept. 25, 1971, Michigan State head coach Duffy Daugherty notched career win No. 100 when the Spartans took a 31-14 victory over Oregon State in East Lansing. Future College Football Hall of Fame safety Brad Van Pelt returned two interceptions for touchdowns to fuel MSU's win.
** On Sept. 26, 1953, a pair of legendary coaches – Frank Leahy of Notre Dame and Bud Wilkinson of Oklahoma – patrolled the sidelines as the top-ranked Fighting Irish went to Norman and scored a 28-21 victory over the No. 6 Sooners. The loss was Oklahoma's first in 15 home games and would the Sooners' last defeat until 1957 when they would achieve an NCAA-record 47 consecutive victories.
** On Sept. 26, 1992, Hawaii kicker Jason Elam hit three field goals, including a 56-yarder, to help the Warriors to a 36-32 win in Honolulu over BYU.
** On Sept. 27, 1986, second-ranked Miami (Fla.) rolled to a 28-16 win over defending national champion and top-ranked Oklahoma. Three future College Hall of Famers were on the Orange Bowl sidelines that day – Miami safety Bennie Blades, Oklahoma tight end Keith Jackson and Oklahoma head coach Barry Switzer – but the afternoon belonged to eventual Heisman Trophy winner Vinny Testaverde. The Miami QB threw for 261 yards and four touchdowns against the Sooners.
** When Auburn lost a 34-28 decision at Clemson on Saturday, it snapped the nation's longest winning streak at 17 games. Stanford now has the longest Division I-A win streak at 11.
** On the flip side of that coin, San Jose State has the longest current I-A losing streak at 13. There is a silver lining for the Spartans, however. They are double-digit favorites at home tomorrow against New Mexico State, which has lost 19 of its last 22 overall.
** Former Minnesota halfback Bruce Smith was honored by his old school Saturday prior to the Golden Gophers' win over Miami (Ohio). Smith, who died of cancer in 1967, was honored as the school marked the 70th anniversary of his 1941 Heisman Trophy season. Smith is Minnesota's only Heisman winner, and he received the stiff-arm trophy two days after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Smith, who was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1972, served as a U.S. Navy fighter pilot in World War II.
** Even with crazy old Mike Leach long gone, Texas Tech is still throwing the ball all over the field. QB Seth Doege completed 40 of 44 passes for 401 yards and five TDs last weekend during a 59-13 romp over New Mexico. Doege's completion percentage of 90.9 percent established a new single-game Division I-A record for anyone with at least 40 completions.
** Tech piled up 624 total yards in that game, but even that paled in comparison to what Missouri did against Western Illinois on Saturday. The Tigers went for 744 yards during their 69-0 wipeout of the I-AA Leathernecks – 428 on the ground, 316 through the air. The yardage total set a single-game school record, breaking the previous mark of 665 yards set against Kansas in 1949.
** Georgia Tech did even better than Missouri, piling up a school-record 768 yards during a 66-24 win over Kansas. That broke the old mark of 706 set in 1948 against The Citadel. Most of the Yellow Jackets' yardage came on the ground – 604 of it to be exact. That also broke the school's single-game mark of 558 set against VMI in 1975.
** Speaking of the Yellow Jackets, they have been almost unbelievably efficient so far, scoring a touchdown on their first play from scrimmage in each of their first three games. Against Kansas, they bettered even themselves – they scored on their first play from scrimmage in each half.
** Baylor has a bona fide Heisman Trophy candidate in quarterback Robert Griffin III. He completed 20 of 22 passes for 265 yards and three TDs during the Bears' 48-0 shutout of I-AA Stephen F. Austin. In two games, Griffin is 41 of 49 (83.7 percent) for 624 yards, eight TDs and no interceptions. Yes, you read that correctly – he has the same number of touchdown passes as incompletions.
** Did you catch Oklahoma State's entertaining 59-33 win over Tulsa? Me either. Because of lightning and storms in the Tulsa area at kickoff time, the game did not begin until after midnight Sunday and finished at 3:35 a.m. Afterward, Okie State head coach Mike Gundy offered this salient observation: "I'm not sure why we had TV timeouts at 3 o'clock in the morning."
** Congratulations are in order for several teams off to hot starts. San Diego State is 3-0 for the first time since 1981, Ohio University is 3-0 for the first time since 1976 and Florida International is 3-0 for the first time in program history.
** Here is the earliest bowl invitation on record: Navy has agreed to play in the 2016 Armed Forces Bowl. The invitation is predicated, of course, on the Midshipmen being bowl-eligible that year. Any Navy freshmen eligible to participate in that bowl are currently playing for their eighth-grade middle school team.
While commiserating over picking Ohio State to lose last week, we lost sight of the fact that we had another excellent week. We were 9-1 straight up, which pushes the season total to a stellar 28-4 so far. Better still, we're way above the money line against the spread after last week's 8-2 finish. That makes us 15-5 over the past two weeks and 19-10-1 ATS for the young season. It also means we're playing with house money now.
Here are the games we like this week:
Missouri at No. 1 Oklahoma: The Sooners enter this game looking for redemption since the Tigers handed them a 36-27 upset loss last season. For all intents and purposes, that loss knocked OU out of the national title picture, so the team has a little something extra to play for this week. None more than QB Landry Jones, who failed to complete a fourth-quarter pass against Mizzou last year. Of course, Oklahoma will have to try to slow down the Tigers who piled up more than 700 yards of offense last week during a 69-0 win over I-AA Western Illinois. Of course, the Sooners represent just a tad of an upgrade in competition from the Leathernecks … Oklahoma 28, Missouri 14. (8 p.m. ET, FX)
No. 2 LSU at No. 16 West Virginia: The Bayou Bengals invade Morgantown trying to keep their national title aspirations alive, but it won't be as easy as some might think. The Mountaineers have a potent offense while LSU is still trying to find its offensive identity. Defensively, the Tigers should have the edge. After all, they faced a Mississippi State team last week that had averaged 46.5 points and 588.0 yards in its first two games and held the Bulldogs to 193 total yards in a 19-6 win. Something obviously has to give – West Virginia has won 16 of its last 17 at home while LSU has a regular-season winning streak of 35 in a row against nonconference opponents … LSU 27, West Virginia 14. (8 p.m. ET, ABC)
No. 14 Arkansas at No. 3 Alabama: Despite the loss of quarterback Ryan Mallett to the NFL, the Razorbacks are 3-0 with their potent offense pretty much intact as they invade Bryant-Denny Stadium this weekend. Unfortunately, the problem with most Bobby Petrino teams, the defense is not quite up the level of the offense. Last week during a 38-28 victory over Troy, the Hogs surrendered 457 total yards. That simply will not get it done against the Tide … Alabama 32, Arkansas 17. (3:30 p.m. ET, CBS)
Tulsa at No. 4 Boise State: We'll make this one short and sweet. Broncos QB Kellen Moore is a legitimate Heisman Trophy candidate as his 40-2 record as a starter attests. So far this year, he has completed 60 of 76 attempts (78.9 percent) for 716 yards and eight touchdowns, and Moore gets to pad those stats against a Golden Hurricane defense that ranks among the worst in the country against the pass. Add that to the fact Boise has won 60 straight at home against unranked opponents and you get this … Boise State 45, Tulsa 14. (8 p.m. ET, CBS Sports Network)
South Dakota at No. 6 Wisconsin: It's not completely clear how good the Badgers really are after three victories over lesser opponents, and the jury is likely to remain sequestered as they take on the Division I-AA Coyotes this week. South Dakota already has a victory over a I-A opponent this year, but that was against Minnesota and the Golden Gophers are no Wisconsin. Look for the Badgers to roll again this week and then gauge how really good they are next week when Nebraska invades Camp Randall … Wisconsin 38, South Dakota 10. (3:30 p.m. ET, BTN)
No. 9 Nebraska at Wyoming: Speaking of Nebraska, the Cornhuskers are already champing at the bit to get their inaugural Big Ten season started. First of all, though, they have to travel to play in the rarefied air of Laramie. NU head coach Bo Pelini has made his reputation on being a defensive guru, but his Black Shirts remain a work in progress. They have given up more than 400 yards of offense in each of the past two games, something that definitely needs fixed before traveling to Wisconsin next week. It might need fixing before going to Wyoming since the Cowboys rank No. 16 in the nation in total offense, averaging 492.3 yards of total offense per game. This might be an entertaining game to watch … Nebraska 38, Wyoming 20. (7:30 p.m. ET, Versus)
Vanderbilt at No. 12 South Carolina: Surprise, surprise. Steve Spurrier has a Heisman Trophy candidate and he's not a quarterback. Sophomore running back Marcus Lattimore burst on the scene last year and seems to have a limitless upside. Last week, Lattimore ran for 246 yards and three touchdowns as the Gamecocks squeezed out a 24-21 victory over Navy. Expect more of the same against the Commodores, who are a surprising 3-0 because of an opportunistic defense that has already snagged 10 interceptions and returned three of them for touchdowns … South Carolina 24, Vanderbilt 17. (7 p.m. ET, ESPN2)
Rice at No. 17 Baylor: This intrastate battle will feature a pair of pretty good quarterbacks – one you probably know and one you probably don't. Baylor is led by Robert Griffin III, who is steadily rising up everyone's Heisman charts after having completely 41 of his first 49 pass attempts this season for eight TDs and no interceptions. Meanwhile, the Owls will counter with Taylor McHargue, who threw for a career-high 230 yards against Purdue two weeks ago in a 24-22 win over the Boilermakers. Unfortunately for McHargue, his team's defense gives up yardage by the bunches and that will make the difference … Baylor 45, Rice 20. (7 p.m. ET, FSN)
San Diego State at No. 22 Michigan: The Wolverines could have a short stay back in the top 25 if the Aztecs have anything to say about it. SDSU rolls into Ann Arbor with a bunch of players still angry about the way former head coach Brady Hoke bolted after last season to take the Michigan job. And it's not as if the Aztecs aren't any good. Hoke built a pretty good program that is 3-0 and coming off a 42-24 pounding of Washington State last week. A couple of things are conspiring against the upset, though. First, the Aztecs have to fly three time zones east and play at what would normally be 9 a.m. for them. And they have seen nothing like Wolverines QB Denard Robinson, whom Hoke has finally allowed to have free reign over the U-M offense … Michigan 35, San Diego State 28. (12 noon ET, BTN)
Colorado at Ohio State: Perhaps last week's 24-6 loss to Miami (Fla.) served its purpose by radically exposing the Buckeyes' weaknesses and giving the coaching staff a close-up look at where the various leaks are located. Ready or not, freshman Braxton Miller will get the start at quarterback and his athleticism will help. But the Buckeyes will have to throw the ball – at least a little – to be successful, and that makes picking this game a little more of a crapshoot … Ohio State 20, Colorado 16. (3:30 p.m. ET, ABC/ESPN2)
Here are the spreads for the above games: Missouri (+21½) at Oklahoma; LSU (-5½) at West Virginia; Arkansas at Alabama (-11); Tulsa at Boise State (-28); South Dakota at Wisconsin (NL); Nebraska at Wyoming (+23½); Vanderbilt (+16) at South Carolina; Rice at Baylor (-20); San Diego State (+10½) at Michigan; Colorado (+16½) at Ohio State.
Enjoy the games and we'll see you next week.


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Dozens of animals housed in cages or boxes with waste accumulating. Stacks of newspapers and magazines that date back several years. Boxes of books blocking hallways.
Wads of plastic grocery bags, many filled with trash, by walls of crushed cardboard beer cases and empty cans that reach to the ceiling.
These are just a few of the items that firefighters from around the East Valley have encountered in the homes of hoarders, a term recently made more familiar through reality television shows such as "Hoarders" and "Buried Alive." It's an obsessive-compulsive mental disorder people live with as they accumulate and surround themselves with an overwhelming amount of stuff.Looking at my piles of genealogy documents and other boxes of stored records from businesses, I can utterly relate to all this.
The second event is the announcement of a new form for the Ordinance Cards used by members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints while doing proxy ordinances for deceased relatives in the Temples. How could these two events be related? It is not such a stretch as it might seem.
In my volunteering at the Mesa, Arizona Temple, I often see hundreds of Ordinance Cards a week. Now, to understand, in small part, the issue, I have to go back a few years. Beginning in 2007, FamilySearch began to make the New.FamilySearch.org website available to members primarily for the purpose of preparing Ordinance Cards for the members' use in the Temple. This action replaced the earlier program called Temple Ready. The cards produced by the old, now completely abandoned, Temple Ready program are only slightly different than the ones produced by the New FamilySearch program. The detail is that the newer cards have a Person Identifier Number, a unique number for each individual in the New FamilySearch database. The Mesa, Arizona area started using New FamilySearch exclusively to prepare cards in early 2008. Temple Ready was discontinued and no further Temple Ready cards have been prepared now locally for about four years.
Elsewhere in the Church these older Temple Ready cards were still being used until about 2010 or so, but now, Temple Ready has been replaced everywhere in the Church. So what is the problem? I still see Temple Ready cards in use regularly at the Mesa, Arizona Temple. I have seen people with brief cases full of cards. In talking to members of the Church, I frequently hear about drawers full of cards. It appears that the hoarding instinct is alive and well in those doing genealogy. It just manifests itself in a slightly different way. The irony of the announcement concerning the new card form, a minor change in the format, is that it may well be that the Temple Ready cards will continue to surface for the rest of my lifetime.
This may seem like a minor problem, but it is symptomatic of a deeper problem with genealogists, that is, name hoarders. To those afflicted with this disorder, it is necessary to have tens of thousands of names in a database, regardless of whether or not the information is accurate or even plausible. I have written about this issue from time to time, but it keeps coming back to me every time I see someone with a huge stack of hundreds (sometimes thousands) of Ordinance Cards. I am also reminded of the problem when I listen to someone tell me how they have over 100,000 names in their genealogy file as if having the names was the ultimate goal of genealogy. I am not talking about mammoth files per se, but about the acquisition of names for names' sake. I view this as the same insecurity that motivates the hoarders with their houses of used fast food containers.
The purpose of Ordinance Cards is to assist in the performance of the ordinances in the Temples. Once the ordinances are completed, the cards serve no other function since the record of the ordinances is kept automatically by the New FamilySearch program. In any event, whether the completed cards are kept or not is of little consequence. It is the issue of hoarding printed cards where the ordinance work has not been done that is the problem.
Now, I am a collector. I have been collecting things since I was a small child. I have collections of stamps, coins, books, records, sea shells, and quite a few other things. How is a collector different than a hoarder? There is a very fine line, but I think the difference is partly in the identity of the items collected. Hoarders cannot differentiate between useful, valuable items and junk. Collectors are looking for specific unique items with some intrinsic value. Here lies the difference between name hoarders and genealogists. Genealogists value each name, not just as a name, but as a gateway to individual's lives. Accumulating names has no real value and for the most part, the names accumulated by hoarders are equivalent to the used fast food cartons and crushed cans of the house hoarders.
I recognize that there is no way to address this problem with the hoarders themselves. But perhaps, if you or someone you know has this tendency, you might, through love and kindness, help them to overcome this challenging problem.


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STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — Jay Paterno leaned over his dying father, gave him a kiss, and whispered in his ear.
"Dad, you won," he said. "You did all you could do. You've done enough. We all love you. We won. You can go home now."
Joe Paterno died Sunday of lung cancer at age 85.
At a memorial service Thursday that drew some 12,000 people to the Penn State basketball arena, Jay Paterno reflected on what he called the "magnificent daylight" of his legendary father's life. It was primarily a glowing tribute to Paterno and his accomplishments during 46 years as Penn State's football coach — but also an opportunity to defend his legacy against criticism that he failed to do more when told about an alleged child sexual assault involving one of his former assistants.
Nike founder and CEO Phil Knight won a thunderous standing ovation when he defended Paterno's handling of the 2002 allegations against former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky. Paterno, he hinted, had been made a scapegoat.
"If there is a villain in this tragedy, it lies in that investigation and not in Joe Paterno's response," Knight said. Paterno's widow, Sue, was among those rising to their feet.
Capping three days of mourning on campus, the 2�-hour ceremony was filled with lavish praise for the man called "JoePa." Paterno racked up more wins — 409 — than any other major-college football coach, led his team to two national championships, and preached "success with honor" while insisting his athletes focus on academics. The Paternos donated millions to Penn State.
The family on Friday offered their thanks for the outpouring of support through an ad on the back page of the campus student-run newspaper, The Daily Collegian. The family plans to run similar ads in other papers as well.
"Thank you," read the ad which featured the picture of the smiling Paterno used throughout services and tributes this week. "You have touched our hearts and lifted our spirits. The Paterno Family."
Though the campus and surrounding community have been torn with anger over the Sandusky scandal and Paterno's summary dismissal by the board of trustees two months before his death, Jay Paterno said his father didn't hold a grudge.
"Despite all that had happened to him, he never wavered in his belief, in his dream, of Penn State. He told me he wanted to use his remaining time on earth to see Penn State continue to thrive. He never spoke ill and never wanted anyone to feel badly for him," Paterno said.
Players from each decade of Paterno's career as the Nittany Lions' coach spoke in loving terms about their mentor, saying he rode them hard, but always had their best interests at heart and encouraged them to complete their educations and become productive members of their communities.
Among the speakers were Michael Robinson, who played for Paterno from 2002 to 2005 and flew in from Hawaii, where he was practicing for his first Pro Bowl; star quarterback Todd Blackledge from the 1980s; and Jimmy Cefalo, a star in the 1970s. Like Robinson, Blackledge and Cefalo went on to play in the NFL.
Former NFL player Charles V. Pittman, speaking for players from the 1960s, called Paterno a lifelong influence and inspiration.
Pittman said Paterno challenged his young players, once bringing Pittman to tears in his sophomore year. He said he realized later that the coach was molding him into the man he would become.
"What I now know is that Joe wasn't trying to build perfection. That doesn't exist and he knew it. He was, bit by bit, building a habit of excellence," said Pittman, now a media executive on the board of The Associated Press.
Paterno was fired Nov. 9 after he was criticized for not going to police in 2002 when he was told that Sandusky had been seen sexually assaulting a boy in the showers. Sandusky was arrested in November and is awaiting trial on charges that he molested 10 boys over a 15-year span.
As the scandal erupted, Pennsylvania's state police commissioner said Paterno may have met his legal duty but not his moral one. Penn State president Graham Spanier was also fired in the fallout.
Knight, appearing about midway through the memorial, became the first speaker to explicitly address the scandal. He said the coach "gave full disclosure to his superiors, information that went up the chains to the head of the campus police and the president of the school. The matter was in the hands of a world-class university, and by a president with an outstanding national reputation."
Lanny J. Davis, an attorney for the board, responded after the service by saying: "All the reasons for the board's difficult and anguished decision — made unanimously, including former football players and everyone who still loves Coach Paterno and his memory — reached a decision which was heartfelt. All 32."
"The facts speak for themselves" and include the grand jury testimony, he said.
Chris Marrone, another former player who eulogized Paterno, said Knight was his "new hero" for expressing the "pent-up frustration" of Paterno's supporters.
"I think the response that he got is indicative of how folks feel," Marrone said.
Only one member of the university administration — the dean of the college of liberal arts — and no one from the board of trustees spoke at the memorial, which was arranged primarily by the Paterno family.
People said it felt good to remember and celebrate the good times.
Tennessee Titans coach Mike Munchak, who played for Paterno, said he attended the service "because I'm a part of his legacy."
"It was not only about football," Munchak said. "It was about life and how he affected all of us as men."
Paterno's son: 'Dad, you won. You can go home now'
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — Jay Paterno leaned over his dying father, gave him a kiss, and whispered in his ear.


text: Bone Cancer Panel (ATCC® TCP-1009™) Organism: Homo sapiens, human / General Information Documentation Print Email Share Share this product Facebook Twitter Google+ Permits and Restrictions View Permits Organism Homo sapiens, human Components HOS, ATCC CRL-1543 A-673, ATCC CRL-1598 SK-PN-DW, ATCC CRL-2139 U-2 OS, ATCC HTB-96 Saos-2, ATCC HTB-85 Applications Biological understanding of top genetic alterations across tumor typesValidation and characterization of potential cancer driver genes Functional profiling and molecular profiling of subtype-specific cancer cell linesTesting small molecules or biologics for cancer drug development Type Strain no Biosafety Level 1 Biosafety classification is based on U.S. Public Health Service Guidelines, it is the responsibility of the customer to ensure that their facilities comply with biosafety regulations for their own country. Comments A panel of 5 bone cancer cell lines with varying degrees of genetic complexity. Four lines contain genomic mutations in one or more of the following genes according to the Sanger COSMIC database: CDKN2A, BRAF, TP53, RB1, and PTEN. One cell line without coding mutations serves as a control. Product Format frozen Storage Conditions LN vapor (less than -130°C) only Permits These permits may be required for shipping this product: Customers located in the state of Hawaii will need to contact the Hawaii Department of Agriculture to determine if an Import Permit is required. A copy of the permit or documentation that a permit is not required must be sent to ATCC in advance of shipment. Basic Documentation Product Sheet Certificate of Analysis SDS Other Documentation Cancer cell line mutation data


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The first episode of the second season of Put This On is out (as funded on Kickstarter). The episode takes place in NYC and features a segment on Lo Heads, a subculture of Polo Ralph Lauren enthusiasts.
With roots in 1980s street gangs, these Polo Ralph Lauren enthusiasts have made "aspirational apparel" a lifestyle. They once had to boost their Polo from stores and fight to keep it on the streets. Today, their culture is worldwide, promulgated by hip-hop. Their hero is Ralph Lauren — a working class New Yorker who understood that the fantastical power of style can be transformative. Dallas Penn from The Internets Celebrities, a dedicated Lo Head (and former member of the Decepts crew) with a collection of over 1000 pieces of Polo apparel takes us on a tour of this remarkable fashion subculture.


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In last week's blog post, we discussed why clients might leave an advisory firm (and how I tend to take it personally). This week, I'd like to continue by delving into the personality issues that can arise when a client and an advisor are not well matched.
Over the years, I have participated in several personality tests from various companies. Most use a four-quadrant matrix to classify an individual's personality type. Before we begin, it should be noted that the results of these questionnaires are only an indication of a person's tendencies. In other words, people tend to exhibit traits from more than one quadrant. That said, I must admit, these tests pegged me well. I recall my first personality test about 25 years ago and how I was stunned by its accuracy.
Personality types may be divided into two primary camps, those with outgoing personalities and those who are more introverted. The former, those who tend to be more talkative, may also be controlling or highly spontaneous. Conversely, the introverted individual may be analytical. Each personality type requires a different approach. I suggest that at the beginning of your first meeting with a prospective client that you ask a few open-ended questions to see if they are the talkative type or more reserved. This should be your first observation. If they like to control or emote, loosen the reins a bit. Just be careful they don't dominate the conversation to the extent that you never get to the subject at hand. Also, if they are controlling, remember that it often stems from an insecurity and their need to control their environment. In short, they may be afraid to "let go."
Another consideration is your own personality. However, no matter what your personality type, if you are flexible, you should be able to relate to a wide variety of personalities. This ability to relate is very important. Here are a few things to keep in mind when working with different personality types.
A Controlling Personality
These people need to feel important. Most people have this need, but with a controlling personality, the need is much more acute. Sincere compliments (rather than mere flattery) and quick, direct answers are most effective. In other words, stay on point, but allow them to feel important.
A Spontaneous Personality
These people are outgoing, friendly individuals who are uniquely equipped to handle lengthy conversations. Gently validate their points but keep them on track. As mentioned, they may tend to ramble.
An Analytical Personality
These individuals have two very dominant needs: to be right and to trust in your processes. For instance, if they feel your investment process is rooted in vagaries and superficial methodologies, they will not hire you. Even if they do hire you, you will likely incur problems down the road. They need to know that you are analytical because they tend to measure you by the standards they set for themselves. The ability to trust may also be an issue with these individuals.
There are obviously more personality types and tips to discuss, but for now, I hope these will prove helpful.
Have a great week and thanks for reading!


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On Hiatus
SLASH (SOUL LINKED AEGIS SUPPORTING HEGEMEMONY), is a mysterious power that prevents a person from being harmed or killed, an enhancement for combat and is used to enforce authority among the weak. It can determine one's social superiority to one who possesses it. Not all may have it. Alizeti ekilore, a rich innocent girl from Trifang mansion, suddenly discovered she has it since she survived a strong explosion that killed all her family. Now that she had survived and obtained such power, Alizeti decided to pursue the murderer of her family using her SLASH. Clash, a veteran slasher(SLASH user), will help Alizeti use and strengthen her SLASH in order to find the culprits. Will they succeed in getting justice for Alizeti's family if the killers are the government's strongest Slashers? Will Alizeti and Clash be able to fully understand and utilize their SLASH to counteract their pursuers? In a society where SLASH enhancement and slashers are made, Alizeti and Clash will experience the inevitable. latest chapters here>> http://www.mangamagazine.net/manga-and-comics/SLASH/detail-page/75


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ENGS 131: Science of Solid State Materials
This course provides a background in solid state physics and gives students information about modern directions in research and application of solid state science. The course serves as a foundation for more advanced and specialized courses in the engineering of solid state devices and the properties of materials. The main subjects considered are: crystal structure, elastic waves-phonones, Fermi-Dirac and Bose-Einstein statistics, lattice heat capacity and thermal conductivity, electrons in crystals, electron gas heat capacity and thermal conductivity, metals, semiconductors, superconductors, dielectric and magnetic properties, and optical properties. Amorphous solids, recombination, photoconductivity, photoluminescence, injection currents, semiconductor lasers, high temperature superconductors, and elements of semiconductor and superconductor microelectronics are considered as examples.


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Greatio is a HTML Template, best suited for such business categories like Portfolio for Interior, Furniture and Architecture agencies. It comes with some JQuery scripts which makes it better view. Also 7 color theme available (Red, Violet, Green, Blue, Orange, White and Wood).
- Valid xHTML
- Crossbrowser Compatible
- Working Contact Form new
- Cufon Font Replacement
- 7 Different Styles (added 4 more color variations) new
- Jquery Effects
- 4 different homepage sliders (Horizontal Accordion, Nivo-Slider, BxSlider, 3D Slider) (added 3 more homepage sliders) new
- Dropdown Menu
- All PSD Files Included 35 Sliced and Layered PSD Files
- Login & Register Popups
- Portfolio Pages with LightBox (added support of flash, video and iframes) new
- +9 More New Pages new
- jQuery Script to Automatically Preload images from CSS new
== INITIAL RELEASE 1.0 == * Theme Released.
== RELEASE 1.0.1 == * Added 4 more new color variations (violet, green, blue, orange) * 3 more new homepage sliders (Nivo-Slider, BxSlider, 3D Slider) * 2 new layout pages (with sidebar, without sidebar) * typography page with elements, 2 more new Gallery page layouts (now with support of flash, video and iframe content), working contact form (easy customizable)
== RELEASE 1.0.2 == * orrection in nivo-slider.css and jquery.cookie.js files. * Compressed PSD files
== RELEASE 1.0.3 == * updated PrettyPhoto plugin to the latest version * fixed Contacts page


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As a new handgun shooter I would love to be the lucky winner of this giveaway - but even if I don't win, I enjoy reading all your posts in my Facebook feed keeping me up to date on the news.
Originally Posted by lukem
UPDATE: Check out the new additions and all the details here.
Not an April Fool's Joke. I am very excited to announced the Concealed Carry Giveaway! This is your chance to win:
Ruger LC9LG-412 Laser Sight for the Ruger LC9 by Crimson Traceholster


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List of screen icons
Turn vibration on or off
Turn silent mode on or off
Use internet browser
Setting an alarm on my mobile phone
An MMS is a message which can contain pictures and other media files and can be sent to other mobile phones. You can send and receive MMS as soon as you've inserted your SIM. If this isn't the case, you can set up your mobile phone for MMS manually.
Find "Access Point Names"
Slide two fingers downwards starting from the top the screen.
Tap the settings icon.
Tap More.
Tap Mobile networks.
Tap Access Point Names.
Create new data connection
Tap the new data connection icon.
Tap Name.
Key in Singtel MMS and tap OK.
Enter APN
Tap APN.
If you're on a pay monthly rate plan, key in e-ideas and tap OK.
If you're on a pay as you go rate plan, key in hicard and tap OK.
Enter username
Tap Username.
Key in 65ideas and tap OK.
Enter password
Tap Password.
Enter MMS centre
Tap MMSC.
Key in http://mms.singtel.com:10021/mmsc and tap OK.
Enter IP address
Tap MMS proxy.
Key in 22.214.171.124 and tap OK.
Enter port number
Tap MMS port.
Key in 8080 and tap OK.
Enter country code
Tap MCC.
Key in 525 and tap OK.
Enter network code
Tap MNC.
Key in 01 and tap OK.
Select authentication type
Tap Authentication type.
Tap PAP.
Select APN type
Tap APN type.
Key in mms and tap OK.
Save data connection
Tap the menu icon.
Tap Save.
Return to the home screen
Tap the Home key to return to the home screen.
Tap anywhere to dismiss
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Estimate claims Apple bested Samsung by 3M to remain top smartphone vendor
Directly contradicting an earlier report that estimated Samsung shipped 44.5 million smartphones in the first quarter of calendar 2012, IHS iSuppli reported on Friday that Samsung shipped just 32 million smartphones during the quarter. The massive 12.5 million unit difference between the two estimates from Strategy Analytics and iSuppli puts Samsung either well above or below Apple for the quarter.
Unlike Samsung, Apple publicly discloses its quarterly iPhone sales. The company revealed on Tuesday that it sold 35.1 million iPhones last quarter, representing 88 percent unit growth over the same three-month span in 2011.
Apple initially took the smartphone crown from Samsung in the holiday quarter of 2011, in which the company was bolstered by the launch of the iPhone 4S. Whether Apple retained the lead in smartphone shipments in the March quarter, however, remains uncertain.
On Thursday, Samsung confirmed its earlier estimates for the March quarter, and posted profits of 5.85 trillion won, or $5.2 billion. The bulk of the company's profits came from its mobile division.
One point that both Strategy Analytics and iSuppli can agree on is Samsung passed Nokia to become the top overall mobile phone vendor in the March quarter. Strategy Analytics' higher estimate pegs Samsung's mobile phone shipments as 93.5 million, while iSuppli has the company slightly lower, with shipments of 92 million.
"Samsungâs surpassing of Nokia for cellphone market leadership represents not only a changing of the guard among handset brands but also a fundamental shift in the structure of the wireless market," said Ian Fogg, senior principal analyst, mobile for IHS.
"Cellphone market growth is now being generated exclusively by the smartphone segment, and not by the feature phones, entry-level cellphones and ultra-low-cost handsets (ULCH) that had fueled the industryâs expansion over the previous decade. Samsung has successfully ridden the wave of smartphone adoption to attain market leadership. Meanwhile, Nokia is in the midst of transitioning its smartphone strategy, resulting in declining shipments for the company."
AppleInsider has affiliate partnerships and may earn commission on products purchased through affiliate links. These partnerships do not influence our editorial content.


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Raegan Robinson's Lucky Charms
Raegan Robinson of Lucky NOLA creates wall hangings, plates and jewelry out of unlikely materials.
Artist Raegan Robinson roots through a box of sundry items that includes letter stamps, a pinecone, weeds and other plants, mysterious car parts and a small saucer stained with a rust-colored hue from Hurricane Katrina's floods.
"A lot of these different things do have meaning to me, but anything that makes an impression is fair game," she says. "Foolish things like this?" she says, holding up a scrap of yellow mesh. "This is my special, special thing – it's from a lemon bag, but I love the texture. I thought I lost it once, and I almost had a breakdown."
Robinson uses these disparate objects to individually create small ceramic wall hangings, plates and jewelry for her line Lucky NOLA, which is sold on Etsy (www.Etsy.com/Shop/LuckyNola) and some local stores and art markets. She impresses these objects into the clay, creating pieces that have a similar character to New Orleans: a mélange of overlapping shapes, patterns and textures with a distinct patina.
The New Orleans native studied art at University of New Orleans, Dillard and Delgado – her time at that school, Robinson says, was most influential in her art training. Her early gallery shows and school projects featured large ceramic sculpture, but after graduating and losing constant access to a kiln, she wanted to scale back. Then her Mid-City studio was destroyed in Katrina's floods. Then she had a baby.
"I had a newborn at the time, so I thought, 'What could I make that I could store in a smaller spot?' And also – I didn't want her not to be able to handle things. I wanted something sturdy, and I wanted to start making things she would enjoy," Robinson, who is now in the process of finally moving back to her Mid-City studio space, says. "All of these things that I make now started from the idea of wanting to make things for her – something tactile, where you can feel the impressions and different things – but something that if you grew with it, you would never have to put it away."
She started making ceramic bunnies incorporating the original illustrations from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and, as many New Orleans artisans do, fleur de lis. "There was no way around it," she says with a laugh. "I thought, if I was going to make a fleur de lis that I liked, what would I do?"
She begins each piece by cutting out a shape in clay, not caring too much about any cracks or imperfections. "A thing I like about this city is we hold onto things that are pretty old, so I like my clay to look aged," she says. She pulls from her mixed bag of objects and makes impressions on the piece. Some of the works have a decidedly New Orleans theme, with impressions from wrought iron gate pieces and local imagery such as pelicans or magnolias, but many times the images and textures are linked in a subtle way.
"You develop your own vocabulary with things, so you just naturally end up grabbing things," Robinson says.
After baking in the kiln, cracks and other subtleties are illuminated – impressions from one plant give the back of a plate the look of a photo negative.
She says the plates she makes are food-safe, and all her pieces are free of lead and cadmium and are safe to handle – something that's important to Robinson, since the special textures of her pieces lend themselves to being touched.
"That's the point: I wanted things to have impressions and to have something you feel kind of bonded to," she says. "Even if it's just something you put on your wall, I find that many people just come and they touch."