College Sports Blog

Stories in today's Post

September 01, 2010 , ι By TIM BONTEMPS

In the third part of the Post's college football preview series, my colleague Lenn Robbins takes a look at the Syracuse football program in year two under head coach Doug Marrone.Also, Zach... Read on

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Stories in today's Post

August 31, 2010 , ι By TIM BONTEMPS

In the second part of the Post's seven-day preview of the upcoming college football season, my colleague Lenn Robbins takes a look at the long, hard road ahead of the new regime at USC – the... Read on

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Lavin, Rice quickly putting local hoops back on the map

August 31, 2010 , ι By TIM BONTEMPS

The knock against former St. John's coach Norm Roberts during his six-year tenure was that he was unable to bring home a big-time recruit, as local players from Lance Stephenson to Sylvan Landsberg... Read on

The knock against former St. John's coach Norm Roberts during his six-year tenure was that he was unable to bring home a big-time recruit, as local players from Lance Stephenson to Sylvan Landsberg chose to leave town and attend other schools instead of follow in the footsteps of Chris Mullin and Mark Jackson (and Ron Artest?).
	 
Before he's even coached a single game for the Red Storm, Roberts' successor, Steve Lavin, has already landed two of them, signing arguably the top player in Los Angeles, Dwayne Polee, Jr. earlier this summer and then
	 landing Maurice Harkless, the No. 11 small forward in the nation, today.
	 
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While former Rutgers coach Fred Hill was able to get some high-profile players (namely Mike Rosario and Dane Miller), he had no head coaching experience when he took over, and struggled to coach them. While we still don't know whether Mike Rice will be able to coach at a higher level than Robert Morris, where he had great success, Rice has continued to bring in talented players.
	 The latest is Kadeem Jack, a top 50 prospect last year who is going to prep school at South Kent Prep in Connecticut (where, ironically, Harkless is going).
	 
St. John's was picked to win the Big East this season by Rick Pitino in an early summer straw poll by the league. And while that is probably an overly optimistic sentiment, the Red Storm and Scarlet Knights look like they are headed in the right direction.
	 
tbontemps@nypost.com

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Clarett signs with UFL team

August 30, 2010 , ι By TIM BONTEMPS

After serving three-and-a-half years in prison, Maurice Clarett is a professional football player again.The former Ohio State star, who served time following a conviction for having a hidden gun and... Read on

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Ohio State bettor's pick to win BCS title

August 27, 2010 , ι By TIM BONTEMPS

Nick Saban and defending national champion Alabama may be No. 1 in both the opening Associated Press and USA Today polls, but they aren't the betting line favorite to host the crystal football at the... Read on

Nick Saban and defending national champion Alabama may be No. 1 in both the opening Associated Press and USA Today polls, but they aren't the betting line favorite to host the crystal football at the end of the season.
	 
Instead, that honor goes to Ohio State, which is listed as the 9-2 favorite to win the BCS national title by the Las Vegas Hilton. Alabama comes in second at 5-1, followed by Oklahoma (6-1), Florida (7-1) and Boise State.
	 
Here are some other teams:
	 
Nebraska – 12-1
	 
Texas – 15-1
	 
TCU – 15-1
	 
Notre Dame – 20-1
	 
Oregon – 20-1
	 
	 
Iowa – 25-1
	 
Virginia Tech – 25-1
	 
	 
Miami – 30-1
	 
Pittsburgh – 60-1
	 
West Virginia – 75-1
	 
Cincinnati – 100-1
	 
South Florida – 500-1
	 
Rutgers – 500-1
	 
tbontemps@nypost.com

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Pitino votes for St. John's to win Big East

August 26, 2010 , ι By TIM BONTEMPS

When St. John's fired Norm Roberts at the end of last season, many fans hoped that Rick Pitino would succeed him. And while there was little chance of that happening after the former Knicks coach's... Read on

When St. John's fired Norm Roberts at the end of last season, many fans hoped that Rick Pitino would succeed him. And while there was little chance of that happening after the former Knicks coach's incident with Karen Sypher came to light, he is high on the Red Storm in 2010-11.
	 
In a poll among Big East coaches earlier this summer, the Louisville head coach voted St. John's to finish first in the conference. When ESPN.com asked him why he voted that way, he said in a text message, "Nine seniors. Everyone but Pitt and Villanova lost key players."
	 
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Pitino was the only one to vote the Red Storm on top, as the vast majority of the conference's head coaches (13 of 16) voted either Villanova or Pittsburgh as the top team this season. St. John's was picked as low as 13th by one of the coaches, and finished between sixth and ninth in the voting, which helped determine which teams would be matched up for home-and-home series. St. John's was placed in Tier 3 with Pitino's Cardinals, Notre Dame and Connecticut.
	 
St. John's will play Georgetown, Notre Dame and Cincinnati twice this season.
	 
tbontemps@nypost.com

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Notre Dame, NBC discuss changing commercial breaks

August 25, 2010 , ι By TIM BONTEMPS

When you have your own television network, you get control over things that most other teams do not.So is the case for Notre Dame, who is in discussions with NBC about altering the network's... Read on

When you have your own television network, you get control over things that most other teams do not.
	 
So is the case for Notre Dame, who is in discussions with NBC about altering the network's commercial breaks during games to better suit new coach Brian Kelly's high-powered – and fast-paced – spread offense.
	 
"We've talked to NBC about the way we like to play the game versus maybe how it was played in the past," Kelly told the Associated Press Tuesday. "There is certainly a need for us to address it and I think we're working with NBC to make certain that they get what they need from an advertising standpoint. But, also as the network that carries Notre Dame, that we're able to do things we need to do as well."
	 
The talks have led NBC to change from four longer commercial breaks during each quarter, like there are during NFL games, to five shorter breaks. NBC's contract with Notre Dame is reportedly worth $15 million annually.
	 
According to USA Today, Kelly's offense with the Cincinnati Bearcats had the lowest average time of possession in a game over the past four years among Football Bowl Subdivision schools, holding the ball for 25:46 every game. The Bearcats average scoring drive lasted 2:19.
	 
tbontemps@nypost.com

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NCAA report says 14 of 120 FBS athletic departments are profitable

August 24, 2010 , ι By TIM BONTEMPS

So much for the theory that high-level college football leads to dollars in the university's pockets.According to a NCAA report, only 14 of the 120 Football Bowl Subdivision athletic departments made... Read on

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Clarett attempting to make Omaha UFL team

August 24, 2010 , ι By TIM BONTEMPS

Four years after pleading guilty to aggravated robbery and carrying a concealed weapon, Maurice Clarett is hoping to return to the gridiron. Clarett, who rushed for 1,237 yards as driving force... Read on

Four years after pleading guilty to aggravated robbery and carrying a concealed weapon, Maurice Clarett is hoping to return to the gridiron.
	 

	 
Clarett, who rushed for 1,237 yards as driving force behind Ohio State’s 2002 national championship, has filed a motion in Columbus court to attempt to travel to Omaha to try out for the United Football League franchise there, the Nighthawks. Omaha will be an expansion team this fall in the UFL’s second season.
	 

	 
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“The people in Nebraska had a couple of questions about Maurice,” his attorney, Michael Hoague, told the AP. “First, was his head on straight? And it’s really on straight. Second, is he in shape? And the answer to that is he’s in great shape.”
	 

	 
Ted Sundquist, the player personnel director for the Nighthawks, was the Denver Broncos’ general manager back in 2005 when he took Clarett in the third round of the NFL Draft.
	 

	 
“In his position, it’s like he’s in shark-infested waters and the rescue boat is coming to get him,” Hoague said “He’s nervous. But he’s optimistic.”
	 
tbontemps@nypost.com

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Pitt tops Big East teams in opening AP poll

August 23, 2010 , ι By TIM BONTEMPS

Like it was in last week's opening USA Today coaches' poll, Pittsburgh is the top-ranked team in the Big East to open the season in the opening AP poll, which was released over the weekend.The... Read on

Like it was in last week's opening USA Today coaches' poll, Pittsburgh is the top-ranked team in the Big East to open the season in the opening AP poll, which was released over the weekend.
	 
The Panthers enter the season ranked 15th, with 516 votes. The only other team from the Big East to make the poll was West Virginia, which was 25th with 184 votes. Cincinnati was the first team out of the poll with 108 votes, while Connecticut was 31st with 32 votes.
	 
Defending national champion Alabama was the top-ranked team in the poll, earning 54 of 60 first-place votes. Ohio State earned three first-place votes and was ranked second, followed by Boise State, Florida and Texas. TCU, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Iowa and Virginia Tech rounded out the top 10.
	 
Penn State was ranked 19th, while Notre Dame was 32nd with 31 votes, and Boston College received a lone vote.
	 
tbontemps@nypost.com