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Since trading their 2007 first round pick — and the rights to draft Brady Quinn — to the Cleveland Browns, Dallas Cowboys fans have been salivating over the possibility of picking up Arkansas running back sensation Darren McFadden. Cleveland has a much better season than anyone expected but, still, many fans have hoped Jerry Jones would package the Cowboys’ two #1s this year — and throw in a player if needed — to trade up and get McFadden.
Rick Gosselin reports, though, that Jones has other ideas.
“The [Arkansas] games are played on Saturday,” Jones said during a break at the annual NFL spring meeting. “So I can get all of the pigs I want at a lot less cost by running up there Saturday than by screwing up my plan here trying to put a Razorback on the Cowboys. I’m not sitting here having cravings for the red.”
Mixed into that quote were two key words – my plan.
The first two steps of the plan have already been implemented. Jones re-signed Pro Bowl left tackle Flozell Adams to protect Romo’s blind side. Jones also made offensive coordinator Jason Garrett one of the NFL’s highest-paid assistants so that he can continue molding Romo into a Super Bowl quarterback.
Jones has no doubts that’s Romo’s destiny. “The perception of Tony – his competitiveness, his splash, the whole picture of him as a quarterback – fits what is ideal from my perspective as the quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys,” Jones said. “I like it all.”
Jones would like Romo’s persona even more with an offensive cast like the one Tom Brady enjoyed in New England last season. The Cowboys already have their Randy Moss in Terrell Owens. What the Cowboys need is a Wes Welker – that second attractive downfield option.
If the Cowboys traded away their two first-round picks for McFadden, they would lose all leverage in acquiring that second elite receiver. If McFadden became a Cowboy, Jones would be giving Romo a part-time running back. McFadden would split the carries with Pro Bowl halfback Marion Barber.
By keeping his two first-rounders, Jones probably would still land an elite running back with the 22nd overall pick, either Jonathan Stewart of Oregon or Felix Jones of Arkansas. With the 28th overall pick, the Cowboys might have a choice of wide receivers Malcolm Kelly of Oklahoma or DeSean Jackson of Cal.
But the Cowboys may have even better options. “There might be great value for our team with some of that collateral we have with those [first-round] picks,” Jones said. “What if someone wants to give us a hell of a player that really fit and improved our offense? That’s the kind of universe I can conjure up. We could set up here and get a premium receiver on the other side of Terrell and have a tandem.”
How would Chad Johnson look on the other side of Owens? Or Anquan Boldin? Or Roy Williams? All are Pro Bowl wide receivers. Johnson is 30, Boldin 27 and Williams 26. All might be available when the Cowboys go on the clock at 28.
A first-round draft pick straight up for a Williams or a Boldin might look far more attractive to the Bengals or Lions when they’re on the clock than it does today.
“If there’s a premier player out there, you have to ask what does he do to make Romo – and in the process, our offense – better?” Jones said. “The No. 1 thing I’m looking for is what can I do to make Romo better.”
I’m not keen on Chad Johnson. Aside from his antics, he’d be a rent-a-player at his age and the team just doesn’t need another 30-something wide receiver. First rounders ought be around for a few years at a high level. But a Williams or a Boldin? I’d do that deal in a heartbeat.
The former Louisville Cardinal coach didn’t last even a year in the NFL. From AP-
ATLANTA - Bobby Petrino resigned as Atlanta Falcons coach on Tuesday, having lasted only 13 games with the NFL team. A person within the league told The Associated Press that Petrino quit to return to the college ranks at Arkansas.
He left Louisville in January to become Atlanta’s coach for a five-year, $24 million contract, largely because the Falcons felt he could help star quarterback Michael Vick reach his full potential.
A few months later, Vick came under investigation for a grisly dogfighting operation that eventually led him to plead guilty to federal charges. He was sentenced Monday to 23 months in prison without ever taking a snap for Petrino.
A source familiar with Patrino’s decision, speaking on condition of anonymity because the school had not made an official announcement, said he was going to Arkansas. The Razorbacks have been looking for a coach for two weeks to replace Houston Nutt, who resigned after a tumultuous season and took the Mississippi job.
The school had no immediate comment on its coaching search.
The Falcons declined further comment beyond a terse, two-paragraph statement released Tuesday night. Owner Arthur Blank and general manager Rich McKay were scheduled to hold a news conference Wednesday.
There was no immediate word who would take over as head coach for the final three games, though defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer and offensive coordinator Hue Jackson would be the most logical candidates.
Petrino walked right smack into the Michael Vick mess. That and the considerable differences in coaching pros, probably influenced Petrino to want to go back to the college ranks.
If Petrino does go to Arkansas, this saga sounds like Lou Holtz II. A college coach who couldn’t make it through one NFL year and then decides to return to the college ranks. Where did Holtz go his year coaching the New York Jets? Arkansas.
Houston Nutt has been hired by the University of Mississippi, literally hours after quitting at Arkansas.
Houston Nutt wasn’t out of a job for long: He was hired as Southeastern Conference rival Mississippi’s football coach just hours after resigning at Arkansas.
Nutt agreed to a contract late Monday night, and replaces Ed Orgeron, who was fired Saturday after the Rebels lost to rival Mississippi State to finish 3-9 and winless in the SEC.
The school announced the hiring through a three-paragraph e-mail Tuesday sent out by Athletic Director Pete Boone. The school said a news conference will be held at 1 p.m. ET on campus Wednesday in Oxford. No contract details were made available.
Ole Miss was searching for a proven winner after years of mediocrity. Nutt neatly fits the description.
He is 111-70 in 15 years as a head coach at Arkansas, Boise State and Murray State. And he’s been a winner in the SEC. The Little Rock, Ark., native rebuilt the Arkansas program, going 75-48 since his hiring in 1997 to replace Danny Ford. He was 42-38 in conference with one of his biggest wins coming last week when the Razorbacks beat then-No. 1 LSU 50-48 triple-overtime win.
While Arkansas is likely headed to the Cotton Bowl, Nutt will be going to the homes of recruits attempting to hold together the promising class Orgeron was assembling.
Nutt, 50, said Monday he left Arkansas to help mend a split among fans after off-the-field problems were compounded by a difficult season. The Razorbacks started the year ranked and were expected to contend for the SEC West title against the Tigers.
A source told ESPN.com’s Ivan Maisel that Nutt turned down a two-year extension from Arkansas worth $2.4 million annually after the Razorbacks upset No. 1 ranked LSU last week.
Arkansas lost its first three SEC games and dropped out of the poll in September, fueling fan discontent over last year’s transfer of quarterback Mitch Mustain and the loss of offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn, who left for Tulsa.
A call to Nutt’s agent, Jimmy Sexton, was not immediately returned.
Nutt takes over a program that has foundered since a 10-win season in 2003 under David Cutcliffe. The Rebels won a share of the SEC West that season with Eli Manning at quarterback.
Since then Ole Miss has had four or fewer wins in four seasons. Boone fired Cutcliffe in 2004 for a lack of effort in recruiting. He had hoped Orgeron, who helped build two national title teams at USC as Pete Carroll’s recruiting coordinator, would bring the kind of energy needed to compete in the nation’s best football conference.
Orgeron finished 10-25 and was routinely the target of fan discontent.
Boone and Chancellor Robert Khayat endorsed Orgeron midway through the season, but decided to go in a new direction after the Rebels lost five of six to end the year.
The Rebels have been looking for a coach who can produce championships since Johnny Vaught retired in 1970. Vaught won three national titles and six SEC championships between 1947-63.
Nutt’s a solid coach and proven recruiter. The SEC is a mighty tough conference to run through, though, for an aspiring champion.
About a year ago, I explained why Monday Night Football on ESPN Sucks. After watching the network’s college football coverage the last two weeks, though, I think we can strike the “Monday Night” from that: They suck all the time now.
The last two Saturday nights, the Alabama Crimson Tide has been on ESPN. Since I don’t live in Alabama any more, that used to be a good thing, since it meant I got to see the games. Unfortunately, that’s not necessarily true anymore, since ESPN is apparently now run by the people who bring us the Olympics and decided long ago that people aren’t actually interested in the sporting events being covered but, rather, other stuff.
Last week, Alabama played Arkansas in a roller coaster game. Alabama went up by three touchdowns, let Arkansas back into the game, went up by three touchdowns again, and then collapsed to give Arkansas a big lead. Alabama fought back, though, to a thrilling victory with just 8 seconds left on the clock.
A pretty exciting game, right?
Apparently, though, ESPN didn’t think people tuned in late on a Saturday night to watch a college football game would find that stimulating enough. So, they brought in some gal from the women’s soccer team, which were in the middle of a big tournament overseas. And they yapped with her, via telephone no less, for several minutes right during the most critical part of the first half game action. No play-by-play of the game. Often, no cameras on the game, either, since fans would obviously rather see close-ups of the idiot game announcers and a picture of the head of the woman’s soccer player who wasn’t even in the damn booth.
And it got better.
We got to hear about Todd Blackledge’s adventures eating barbecue in Tuscaloosa. With actual footage of him looking at the menu and ordering food. While the game was on!!!
And, to top it off, they brought the annoying woman soccer player back in the second half to interrupt yet more game action.
Last night, Alabama and Georgia played in another close, exciting game that went into overtime.
Again, however, the cameras were on the announcers almost as much as on the game action. Again, we got treated to watching Blackledge eating grilled meat, this time at the pre-game tailgating parties. And some old announcer guy who’s so frail he can’t actually travel one state over to watch a football game was on the telephone for like half an hour yapping about his career while we were missing live football action.
The producers are also too inept to manage game breaks and commercials. Several times, we missed kickoffs, major plays, and other game action because they switched over to show ads or update us on other games and didn’t get back in time. And, each time, they pretended that it hadn’t happened, blithely carrying on as if we hadn’t missed anything.
I’ve been watching football on television for more than thirty years now. I’ve watched local games sponsored by local insurance companies that were better. I’ve literally never seen coverage as bad as what ESPN has put on the last two weeks. It’s absolutely frustrating.
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 Nick Saban got his first significant win as coach of the Alabama Crimson Tide. It didn’t come easy though. He watched his team march to a quick 21-0 lead and then force a turnover. Just as it looked like the Tide was going to go up by four touchdowns, they coughed the ball up and gave up an easy 7. They followed this up with another interception another easy score.
After seeming to get their act together and going up 31-10, they gave up four unanswered touchdowns.
The final outcome was still in doubt until, with 8 seconds left on the clock, quarterback John Parker Wilson found receiver Matt Caddell in the endzone to regain the lead.
Other reports:
Wilson hits Caddell in final seconds to keep Saban’s Tide unbeaten, Ian R. Rapoport, Birmingham News
University of Alabama coach Nick Saban is already beginning to wipe clean the memories of the previous four years. Former coach Mike Shula went 49 games without a fourth-quarter comeback. In Saban’s short tenure, that devastating statistic is gone after three games.
With 8 seconds left Saturday night, quarterback John Parker Wilson found senior Matt Caddell in the back of the end zone for a 4-yard score to cap a 73-yard drive and give Alabama a 41-38 win over No. 16 Arkansas.
“Exciting, huh?” Saban said.
Even after allowing the Razorbacks 28 unanswered points, and even after taking the ball with 73 yards to go and 2 minutes 13 seconds left, Alabama was still able to march down for a win.
Four years without a fourth-quarter comeback? Old news.
“Been a loooong time,” said Wilson, who finished 24-of-45 passing for 327 yards with four touchdowns. “It’s good to fight like that. To be up, to be down, to come back and win, it says a lot about our football team. We spent all spring, all summer, all fall talking about the fourth quarter, and we pulled it out.”
On that final drive, Wilson was 7-of-10 for 73 yards, and he was helped by two Razorback pass-interference penalties. It ended with Caddell leaping over Arkansas defender Jamar Love in the end zone, sending the Alabama players toward that end of the field to create a dog-pile around Caddell and sending the 92,318 fans at Bryant-Denny Stadium into delirium.
As for Saban, he calmly held up one finger, signaling an extra point. Leigh Tiffin - last year’s goat for his three missed field goals and a missed extra point - knocked it through. Tiffin also made a 42-yard field goal with 4:20 left to keep his team alive.
[...]
Heisman Trophy hopeful and Arkansas running back Darren McFadden gained 195 yards on 33 carries with two touchdowns, while sidekick Felix Jones had 106 rushing yards. The duo left the defense ragged, but happy. “I feel pretty good,” safety Rashad Johnson said. “We came out with a win.”
The Tide controlled the game from the outset, scoring first and building a quick 21-0 lead. In the process, receiver DJ Hall became the program’s all-time leading receiver by breaking a record of 2,070 yards held by Hall of Famer Ozzie Newsome. Hall had 172 yards on six catches with two touchdowns for the game.
Alabama made one final stop before halftime, leaving the Razorbacks to settle for a field goal. The half ended 21-10 Alabama.
Coming out of the locker room, Alabama caught a break when Arkansas receiver London Crawford fumbled after a 22-yard reception. Ezekial Knight recovered it and that turned into a Tiffin field goal to make it 24-10. No game has been complete without a big play from the punt-return game and Javier Arenas. This time, Arenas fielded a 34-yard punt on his own 40, stepped out of a tackle, then raced to his right down the sideline. The result was a 58-yard return to the 2. Wilson rolled left and found tight end Nick Walker for a 2-yard touchdown to make it 31-10.
Then it came crashing down.
The Hogs marched it right down the field in five plays, as Jones and McFadden combined for 59 yards, and quarterback Casey Dick found Andrew Davie for a 2-yard score.
That made it 31-17 late in third, then a fumbled quarterback-center exchange and an interception by Wilson were costly. Suddenly, with 12:05 remaining, the game was tied at 31. When Dick found Peyton Hills on a 7-yard touchdown, Arkansas led 38-31.
“The fumbled snap, that’s a basic fundamental,” Saban said. “The interception was not a good throw. Those are the kinds of things we need to learn from and grow from and eliminate.”
No matter. On its first try to tie the game, Alabama found itself with fourth-and-6 from the 25. Saban opted for a field goal. “It was the right thing to do,” he said. “I asked the defense, `Can you stop them?’ They said they could.”
All the defense had to do was stop Arkansas - without McFadden, who had a slight concussion - one more time to give the offense the ball back. “We do that in practice,” Johnson said. “It’s called, `Get the ball back.’”
The result was the game-winning drive.
Tide blows big lead, but thrives, survives with late TD drive, Paul Gattis, Huntsville Times
“I’m proud of the way our players competed in the game,” Saban said. “We always talk about playing 60 minutes and to score with 8 seconds left, it’s an easy way to reinforce a point.”
[...]
It was Alabama’s first last-minute touchdown for a win since the 1996 win over Auburn.
Tide comes back to upset Arkansas 41-38, Christopher Walsh, Tuscaloosa News
It went from there’s no way the University of Alabama football team was going to lose, to there was no way it was going to win, to how on earth did the Crimson Tide pull that off?
Although Coach Nick Saban didn’t want Saturday night to be about absolution or an attempt to get even for last year’s double-overtime loss to Arkansas, that’s exactly what happened despite his best efforts.
After blowing a 21-point lead, when the offense self-destructed and the defense apparently could no longer slow down the Razorbacks’ running game, the Tide had one final chance with 2 minutes, 13 seconds remaining and 73 yards to go. Amazingly, it came through, with senior wide receiver Matt Caddell making three of his nine receptions to help set up his clutch 4-yard touchdown catch in the back of the end zone for an unbelievable 41-38 victory.
“Exciting night, huh?” Saban said after his first SEC home game at the Capstone. “I’m certainly proud of the way our players played. You always talk about playing 60 minutes.”
In many ways, it was a typical Alabama-Arkansas game, hard-hitting with injuries and helmets flying off people’s heads, not to mention last-minute dramatics. Only this time the Razorbacks felt the heartache, while the Tide improved to 3-0 overall, 2-0 in the SEC to likely secure at least an inside track to a Jan. 1 bowl game.
“I knew if I could get up there … ” Caddell said of his leaping catch that sent both the Bryant-Denny Stadium faithful and the Alabama sideline into pandemonium.
“Amazing,” said sophomore Javier Arenas, who had a 58-yard punt return, after the locker room. “I can’t describe it.”
Caddell TD caps wild finish as Bama upsets Arkansas , AP/ESPN
Welcome to the Nick Saban era, Bama fans.
[...]
After twice blowing 21-point leads, Alabama marched down the field from its own 27 over the final 2:13, mostly on the Wilson-to-Caddell connection. Wilson hit Caddell across the middle for a 19-yard completion and two 9-yarders to move the ball across midfield. Kevin Woods and Matterral Richardson were both whistled for pass interference, Richardson on a third-and-9 play, to set Alabama up with a first down at the 13. After Wilson hit Keith Brown for a 9-yarder, he found a leaping Caddell in the left side of the end zone two plays later, sending the crowd into a frenzy and prompting a celebratory pileup on the receiver.
“I knew if I got it up there and gave him a chance, he’d make a play,” said Wilson, who was 7-for-8 for 56 yards on the final drive. “I got the ball outside and gave Matt a chance to make the play, and he did.”
Alabama didn’t manage a come-from-behind win in the fourth quarter during Mike Shula’s four-year tenure.
The Tide’s decision to settle for Leigh Tiffin’s 42-yard field goal to make it 38-34 paid off when Arkansas was stopped on its next possession. McFadden sat out the series with a a slight concussion, coach Houston Nutt said.
“I did have confidence that we could stop them,” Saban said. “I asked the players on the sidelines, ‘Can we stop them?’ They said they could, so I believed them. And they did. “It was the right thing to do.”
[...]
“I felt like our team did not play in the second half like we needed to play,” Saban said. “We melted down a little bit, which to me is you drop your guard psychologically.”
The Atlanta Falcons have taken the best defensive lineman still on the board: Arkansas DE Jamaal Anderson.
Rick Gosselin’s Final Ranking: 11th overall
Mel Kiper Final Ranking: 13th overall
Scout.com Profile:
 Scout.com Player Evaluation: Possessing size, growth potential and a lot of natural skill, Anderson is a terrific prospect with a large amount of upside. Can be used as a pass-rushing right end, but also has the abilities to grow into a two-gap lineman. Must physically mature and improve his playing strength, yet will quickly make an impact at the next level if he focuses on the task at hand.
STRENGTHS
- Pass Rushing Skills
- Size
- Techniques and Moves
AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT
- Disengaging Skills
- Strength
 Biography: Became a full-time starter last season and earned All-Conference honors after numbers of 65/19.5/13.5. Started five games as a sophomore and posted 47/10.5/4.
Pos: Athletic defensive end with tremendous upside. Keeps his pads low to the ground playing with terrific leverage and is rarely off his feet. Plays with terrific balance and body control, and easily beats immobile blockers. Fast off the edge, immediately alters his angle of attack or quickly redirects to the action. Shows skills in pursuit and solid playing speed. Attacks opponents with his hands working to get off blocks and displays an array of moves to protect himself. Quickly gets off the snap with a nice first step and makes a lot of plays behind the line of scrimmage.
Neg: Lacks overall playing strength and is slow shedding blocks once engaged at the point.
The Miami Dolphins are on the board.
UPDATE Scouts.inc:
Chances are Anderson wasn’t the Falcons’ first choice, as they need to get a safety that can make an impact this year. They were also reportedly hoping to get one of the top two offensive tackles if they didn’t take a safety. But with Landry, Thomas and Brown off the board, Atlanta did well to get decent value and fill their need at defensive end here. Anderson certainly needs to get more consistent and he doesn’t have elite athletic ability.
However, he is a relentless pass rusher who has good closing speed and can deliver the big hits when he gets to the quarterback, which should soften the blow of losing Patrick Kerney. Atlanta’s run defense should benefit from getting Anderson. Anderson has the size to hold his ground against the run and the upper body strength to shed blocks quickly once he learns how to use his hands a little better.
Mitch Mustain, last year’s freshman sensation quarterback, has been granted his release from the Arkansas Razorbacks after some strange twists and turns.
Mustain has received permission to transfer, coach Houston Nutt said Tuesday. The announcement came a year to the day after Mustain made public his final decision to sign with the Razorbacks.
Nutt said Tuesday that Mustain had asked for and been granted his release. Nutt appeared to be holding out hope that the freshman would decide to stay at Arkansas. “I don’t know for sure where we are right now,” Nutt told reporters at a news conference in Fayetteville. “Naturally, I don’t want him to go. I want him to stay here.” But Nutt acknowledged he doesn’t remember many instances of players changing their minds after being released.
Gus Malzahn, who coached Mustain at Springdale High School in Arkansas, was the Razorbacks’ offensive coordinator this season. But Malzahn left Arkansas this week to become assistant head coach and co-offensive coordinator at Tulsa.
[...]
Mustain went 8-0 as a starter in 2006, helping Arkansas to a 10-4 season and a No. 15 national ranking. But Mustain was benched in a November win over South Carolina, and he hardly played again until splitting time with starter Casey Dick in Arkansas’ Capital One Bowl loss to Wisconsin.
[...]
Mustain was the Parade magazine prep player of the year in 2005. He said in August of that year he would attend Arkansas, but he opened his recruitment again after his high school season ended. On Jan. 16, 2006, Mustain told a newspaper he would play for the Razorbacks.
A recent book about Springdale’s 2005 season shed more light on Mustain’s recruitment. According to the book, while he was considering which school to go to, Mustain questioned the sophistication of Arkansas’ offense. He also made an off-the-cuff comment after Nutt took credit for a play call following an Arkansas win. The quarterback said Arkansas “would have a better chance of getting me” if Nutt were fired.
Arkansas hired Malzahn after the 2005 season, and Mustain eventually signed with the Razorbacks. Williams and Cleveland also signed after they appeared headed elsewhere.
All three played as freshmen, but Arkansas relied on its running game — tailback Darren McFadden was the Heisman Trophy runner-up. The spread, no-huddle offense Malzahn used at Springdale was never a factor.
The Razorbacks won 10 straight games at one point — but the warm feelings from that stretch have been overshadowed lately. Arkansas lost three straight to end the season, and as the Razorbacks prepared for their bowl, Nutt was still being asked about the controversy surrounding his team.
Quite bizarre, frankly.
Ben Cook of Lindy’s Sports writes about a far-fetched scenario in the Alabama head coaching search:
Everything came out in the open last week when the UAB Blazers of Conference USA were ready to hire LSU offensive coordinator Jimbo Fisher as their head coach. All that remained was ironing out the details. It was to be for $600,000 a year, most of which was going to be covered by some influential UAB supporters. But then the Board of Trustees of the University of Alabama system (which includes the University of Alabama, UAB and UAH) stepped in and said that UAB could not hire Fisher. They claimed it was because of financial considerations, but that excuse doesn’t hold water since the bulk of Fisher’s salary was going to be covered by boosters.
Apparently, the Board of Trustees realized UAB was about to hire the most coveted assistant coach in the country. They realized It also could mean that UAB might wind up with a better coach than Alabama, and the idea panicked the Board of Trustees. They decided that couldn’t happen, so they stepped in and overstepped the boundaries of a Board. They took the hiring of UAB’s coach right out of UAB’s hands. Not only did they not allow UAB to hire Fisher, they then imposed their own handpicked candidate on UAB. They strongly suggested Neil Callaway, Georgia’s offensive coordinator, was the acceptable choice for UAB.
The Board will deny the Callaway link, but after the Fisher debacle there is no other explanation for UAB turning to Callaway, a former Alabama player with no head coaching experience that no other school on the planet was looking to hire. Fisher had no head coaching experience either, but he has been coveted by schools before and will be again; Callaway has not. Fisher is thought to be the next Bob Stoops waiting to happen; Callaway is not.There is one other possible explanation. The Alabama job is still open and there are plenty in Tuscaloosa who believe Nick Saban is going to leave the Miami Dolphins after Miami’s season ends. If Saban were to actually take the UA job, perhaps he would bring his old offensive coordinator from LSU with him, and that would be Jimbo Fisher. Then, in four of five years when Saban got the inevitable itch to move on, it would be an easy move to elevate Fisher to the head coaching job at Alabama, which could be what the UA Board of Trustees wants all along.That way they could achieve two goals–they could get one of the hottest coaches in the country at Alabama and simultaneously knock the pins out from under the UAB football program, making sure it continued to struggle along until perhaps just giving up the ghost and dropping football. That would delight the University of Alabama Board of Trustees.
It’s rather bizarre, to be sure, but Alabama football is a pretty strange phenomenon.
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