I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

I can't figure this Stevan Ridley thing out.  They say it's because of an academic issue.  Les Miles indicated that it has something to do with a test.  Why I don't understand this thing is that an academic issue is usually an institutional issue, not an NCAA issue. 

We'll see this week if Ridley can play in the Cotton Bowl or not.  Then the question is: will this suspension carry over at all till next season?  And how will this affect Ridley's decision on whether or not to come back next season for his senior season?

I think I might be backtracking on my early prediction of LSU winning the West next season.  Did you see what Mississippi State did in their bowl game, 52-14 over Michigan?  I know Michigan isn't any good, but State has everyone back next season, QB,RB,WR, and most of their defensive and offensive lines.  The Bulldogs should be tough next season.

Also, next season should be the the year of the quarterback in the SEC.  LSU and Miss. St. both have their starting QBs back, and Arkansas might, also, depending on what Ryan Mallet does.  In the East, Tennessee, Florida, South Carolina, and Georgia all have their starting QBs back.  Nobody cares about Kentucky or Vanderbilt.

Speaking of quarterbacks.  How that position has changed!  I suspect that Drew Brees might be one of the last little guys you ever see play that position.  When you watch and see what a big, agile guy like Cam Newton did this season in the college game at the quarterback position, and then you see someone like Josh Freeman for Tampa Bay in the NFL, you have to wonder about the future of that position.  It looks like it's going towards the big dude who can run and has a strong arm.

Does TCU's win in the Rose Bowl speed up the time table for a playoff?  I would hope so, but I don't expect it to.  The conferences still want to control the dollars, not the NCAA.

How would you like to be a Tennessee fan this year?  Not once, but twice the scoreboard clock read triple zeroes with UT ahead, and twice they lost the game.  Who said lighting doesn't strike twice in the same place?

That UNC-Tennessee finish should cause the college rule makers to look at adopting the NFL rule of a ten-second clock runoff for offensive penalties in the final minute of play in each half.

It finally looks like Brett Favre's career is really over.  It lasted three years too long.

Do you realize a missed 29 yard field goal in the third week of the season will probably cost the New Orleans Saints the Super Bowl?  Winning three on the road will be very tough for the Saints.  If they had defeated the Falcons in week three, they would have the #1 seed just like last season. 

Look for the Saints to win the first playoff game and lose the second one.