Pac-10 Report: High Ranking Is Nice, but Where are the Bowl-Eligible Teams?

Filed under: Arizona, Arizona State, California, Oregon, Oregon State, Stanford, UCLA, USC, Washington, Washington State, Pac 10

A season that started with high hopes in the Pac-10 ends up with a slew of mixed messages.

The conference, heading into its final weekend as a 10-team football conference, looks like it's sending two teams into the BCS bowl lineup and possibly one -- Oregon -- into the national championship game.

The Sagarin ratings say that the Pac-10 is the toughest conference in the country, with six teams ranking in the top 30.

But there is an unmistakable flip side. Heading into the final weekend of the season, only three teams -- Oregon, Stanford and Arizona -- are bowl eligible. Only two others -- Washington and Oregon State -- have a shot at the postseason with one more victory.

As they have all season, some of the conference coaches vented about the Pac-10's nine-game conference schedule and the lack of opportunity that Pac-10 teams have to schedule for more success in the non-conference portions of their schedules.

 

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Tony Parker Reportedly Loses Divorce Lawyer Over Brent Barry Connection

Filed under: Spurs

Tony Parker reportedly has to find a new divorce lawyer after the one he originally hired has recused himself due to a conflict of interest. That conflict of interest? Apparently, he also represents Brent Barry.

Richard Orsinger, Esq. filed Parker's divorce petition in Texas in November. But at the time he was hired, Orsinger wasn't aware that his other client, Barry, had a connection to Parker's divorce from Eva Longoria. It's been widely reported that a sexting relationship between Parker and Erin Barry, Brent's wife, was the beginning of the end of Parker and Longoria's marriage.

Brent and Erin Barry are also getting divorced, and Orsinger reportedly found it a conflict of interest to represent the men in each divorce.

According to the report, the divorce will proceed, as Parker is searching for a new lawyer. Longoria filed for divorce in Los Angeles.

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College Football TV Schedule: Week 14

Filed under: Auburn, Oregon

College football's regular season is coming to a screeching halt, but the TV schedule for Week 14 isn't barren. There are some marquee matchups, including some rivalries and conference championships.

The big ones are obviously atop the BCS Standings.

BCS No. 1 Auburn will square off against South Carolina in the SEC Championship. It is the last hurdle for Auburn to get to the national championship game for for Cam Newton to win the Heisman Trophy. The game will be a rematch of Auburn's 35-27 win back in September, but that game was at Auburn. This one is on a neutral field. As for on the tube, you'll find it on CBS at 4 p.m. Eastern.

BCS No. 2 Oregon only has to beat a 5-6 Oregon State team to advance to the BCS championship. Of course, it is the Civil War and a road game for the Ducks, so anything can happen. LaMichael James will try to take the Heisman from Newton while helping his team advance to the big one. That game will be aired on ABC just a half hour prior to the SEC title game.

As for the rest, you'll find the list below. Surprisingly a good amount of watchable games despite the number of games from which to choose.

All times p.m. and Eastern

 

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BCS Standings Week 14 - November 28, 2010

Will there be any movement in the BCS rankings for week 14? The latest BCS rankings will be revealed Sunday evening during ESPN's BCS Countdown show, which is scheduled to start at 8:15 PM ET.

Last week's BCS rankings had Oregon on top, followed by Auburn, TCU and Boise State. Boise State (10-1), LSU (10-2) and Oklahoma State (10-2) lost, will that be enough to drop them out of the top 10?

Check back here for the latest on the BCS rankings. An update will be posted when the rankings are released Sunday evening.

The updated BCS standings are as follows:

BCS Standings (Nov. 28, 2010)

Rank	School	Record	Avg
1	Auburn	12-0	.9779
2	Oregon	11-0	.9777
3	TCU	12-0	.9167
4	Stanford	11-1	.8413
5	Wisconsin	11-1	.8185
6	Ohio State	11-1	.7632
7	Arkansas	10-2	.7189
8	Michigan State	11-1	.6980
9	Oklahoma	10-2	.6780
10	LSU	10-2	.6067

See Complete BCS Standings

 

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Robert Karlsson Wins in Dubai After Ian Poulter's Gaffe

Filed under: European Tour

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) -- Sweden's Robert Karlsson won the Dubai World Championship Sunday, defeating third-round leader Ian Poulter in a playoff after a bizarre marking blunder by the Englishman on the final hole.

Karlsson calmly rolled in a birdie putt on the second playoff hole after Poulter was given a one-stroke penalty for dropping his ball on his marker on the green, causing it to flip over and move from its original position.

"The coin was one way and the next minute facing the other way," Poulter said. "It's pitched right on the front and flipped over. If it pitches in the middle, the coin doesn't move and it's fine."

Poulter spotted his error and reported it to the match referee, whose ruling left him with a long putt for par instead of a birdie. The putt came up a foot short, taking all the pressure off Karlsson. He then had two shots to clinch the victory in the season-ending $7.5 million tournament.

The 41-year-old Karlsson needed just one shot to secure his second European Tour victory this year and his 11th tour victory of his career. The former European No. 1 said it was one of his biggest victories his career, earning him $1.25 million.

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More: Dubai World Championship Leaderboard

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Derek Anderson Victim of Media's Blindside Sack

by Milton Kent

Filed under: 49ers, Arizona Cardinals, NFL Media Watch, Sports Business and Media

The official stats from Monday night's Arizona-San Francisco debacle in the desert say that Cardinals quarterback Derek Anderson got sacked once, but they are off by one.

The footage of Anderson blowing up at a reporter asking why he and lineman Deuce Lutui had the temerity to laugh on the bench trailing by 18 in the fourth quarter has been repeated and dissected as much as the Zapruder film, but the result is always the same: Anderson comes off as a jerk.

The truth is, Anderson had every right to be angry at the latest example of television and the media showing things without context, then placing the subject under a heat lamp to explain away actions that are likely entirely proper.

Anderson had the bad luck of sharing what appeared to be a private moment with Lutui on a Monday night telecast, when ESPN rolls out a phalanx of cameras to document a dog of a game. If this game had been on a Sunday afternoon, there probably wouldn't have been a camera on the two players.

But there was a camera, and it caught two players, in the throes of a beatdown, sharing a laugh. Perhaps the chuckle was, as has been suggested in some places, about the hopelessness of the situation. Maybe the two men spotted an attractive cheerleader and traded chuckles. Perhaps they saw a player pulling his pants down. Who knows? More importantly, who cares?

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More: Reporter on Derek Anderson Tirade: 'I Tried to Be Diplomatic'

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2-on-1: Kings, Sharks, Ducks ... Who's the Best in California?

Filed under: Ducks, Kings, Stars

Every week two of our hockey writers debate over one topic: it's the 2-on-1. This week, Susan Slusser and Chris Botta discuss which California team rules.

Chris Botta: The battle for best NHL team in California comes down to two teams for now, but at least the Anaheim Ducks have a recent Stanley Cup for their efforts. Before I ask about the Ducks, there's this: which team is better -- the Los Angeles Kings or the San Jose Sharks?

Susan Slusser: Well, CB, I see the Sharks more often -- and because of that, I'm going to say the Kings. San Jose hasn't seemed to find its stride at all, with inconsistent play on the offensive side and a real need for one more top-notch defensive player. Sharks coach Todd McLellan and some of the key Sharks players have questioned the team's 60-minute effort level too many times already this season, and San Jose is having a tough time winning on the road.

CB: You made a great point right off the bat, Susan. The teams we see the most, we tend to pick on the most. I guess that's human nature. My choice, and it doesn't seem to be the hip one lately in our business, is to go with the Sharks. I know they have flaws -- their failure to finish in the playoffs being the biggest one -- but the Kings are trying to just get to where the Sharks have already been. What is it you like about the Kings?

SS: It was obvious last season that the Kings were going to be the team to watch this season, but the way they jumped out ... wow. They play terrific defense, they have very solid goaltending and they're getting scoring from more than just Anze Kopitar. Is it time for the first reference to Ilya Kovulchuk and how lucky L.A. was not to get him?

 

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