Ohio University Bobcats stun Georgetown in NCAA tournament – Washington Post

Seattle Post Intelligencer Ohio University Bobcats stun Georgetown in NCAA tournament Washington Post PROVIDENCE, RI — Georgetown became the highest seed to fall on the opening day of the NCAA tournament on Thursday, undone by a barrage of three-point shots, turnovers and, most notably, a pair of guards who played the game of their lives … Box score USA Today Monroe says game wasn't his last at Georgetown SI.com Ohio stuns Georgetown in tournament opener San Luis Obispo Tribune Washington Examiner

Brown no longer a part of Vols’ team

There had been some rumblings this offseason that sophomore running back Bryce Brown might be pondering a transfer from Tennessee, possibly to Kansas State to join his brother.

Whether or not that happens remains to be seen, but he’s no longer a part of Tennessee’s team, and there’s no reason to believe at this point that he will return.

“Bryce Brown came to me today and indicated he’s dealing with a lot of personal and family problems right now,” Tennessee coach Derek Dooley said Thursday after the Vols’ first practice of the spring. “As of right now, he’s not a part of the team. It doesn’t mean we’ve kicked him off by any means. We want Bryce here, but my focus really is on the 85 guys who are here and who have great spirit about the direction of the program.

“(He has) concerns that I believe stem from — and he told me stem from — No.1, some of the reasons why he came here, and No. 2, his experience over the first six months he has been here.”

Brown was one of the top-rated running back prospects in the country last year when he signed with the Vols under then-coach Lane Kiffin. Brown arrived with huge expectations and played behind Montario Hardesty as a freshman. He showed flashes, but also battled injuries.

But with Dooley taking over, he made it clear that it was going to be an open competition this spring at running back, and the thought among many in the program was that Tauren Poole might be the best of the bunch.

Sophomore David Oku and redshirt freshman Toney Williams will also be part of the Vols’ running back equation.

Dooley admitted that he was surprised when Brown approached him Thursday morning.

“He went through the entire offseason, but I also think this wasn’t just something from the last three weeks,” Dooley said. “This is something that was probably six months, but I’m not here to recruit (players on the team). I’m here to coach.”

Troy DT leaves school for other opportunities

The Dothan (Ala.) Eagle is reporting that Troy defensive tackle Eugene Kinlaw has decided to forgo his senior season and pursue professional opportunities.

Kinlaw will try to continue his football career in Canada or by entering the NFL’s supplemental fraft in June.

Troy coach Larry Blakeney said Kinlaw, the only returning starter on the defensive line, was facing hardship issues which forced him to turn pro.

“There’s lots of different reasons why people [pursue professional opportunities],” Blakeney told the paper. “This boy’s not in trouble. I love the kid. He hasn’t done a thing bad.”

Kinlaw signed with Troy in 2007, but failed to meet the academic requirements and went to Hutchinson (Kan.) Community College. He emerged as the National Junior College Defensive Player of the Year after the 2008 season and had 32 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss and three sacks in his only season with the Trojans.

Chat with CMU coach Dan Enos, Part II

In Part II of my Q&A with Central Michigan coach Dan Enos, the first-year head coach talks about expectations and his team’s resolve to prove that they are more than a one-man show.

When you come into a program that’s had a lot of success, but loses a guy like Dan LeFevour, who had his own billboard at Ford Field, is it one of those situations where you’ve got a fanbase, boosters, stuff like that who understand that this is going to be a process? Or is it one of those situations where you feel like it’s, well, we won the conference three of the last four years, we better do it again?

DE: It’s a little bit of both. This has been a tradition-rich program for many years and I think there’s a lot of reasons for that. I think the administration here gets it. I think it’s an outstanding school with a great reputation in the Midwest. And I think it’s in a perfect place for us to recruit where we’re located. So, I think there are a lot of reasons why it’s been successful here. We feel very confident that we can continue to win at the level that they had been winning and we’d like to take it even further. But I will say that, yes, I think people around here are accustomed to winning and they do expect us to win at a high level. That’s the precedent and that’s the bar that’s been set.

Sometimes teams get better when a star player leaves because they know that they have to rally around his departure. Do you see anything like that happening with your team?

DE: I think they’re rallying around the fact that people are going to be gunning for us. When you get on top like this program has, winning three of the last four MAC championships, you now become the hunted. It’s been unbelievable and I’ve talked to our coaches, we’ve worked them extremely hard this offseason and there’s no complacency in them. They want to continue to get better. They’re soaking up every thing that we’re throwing at them and they’re very eager to prove that this is an outstanding football program. There’s not one coach or one player or anything that is above this program. This program has been successful because it’s been a team effort and I know our players understand that and our coaching staff understands that as well.

How was it winning the guys over especially after they lost coach Jones right after winning the conference title? We’re you able to smooth things over a bit?

DE: I don’t know if I’ve won them over. They don’t tell me that. I know this: I’m just myself. I was told a long time ago in this profession by people I very much respect and care about that you should always be yourself and lead within your own leadership style. So, I’ve been myself and our coaching staff has been themselves and all I can say is that we’ve had outstanding effort and attitude from our players. I don’t know if I’ve smoothed things over, but they’ve bought in to what we’re doing and they’re a hungry group of guys that just want to continue to win. They want to be coaches and I can’t say enough about how they’ve responded.

How hard is it to separate this team from Dan LeFevour? Dan has been the identity for so long. How do you assure these guys that they can win without him?

DE: I don’t think we’ll have to say that. I think our football team understands that they didn’t win 12 games last year because of Dan. Dan was a huge part of it. He was very productive and he provided outstanding leadership, but there were a lot of other people involved. Football is the consummate team game and one guy cannot win or lose a game by himself. It’s coaches and players that get it done. I don’t have to say anything to our players. I can tell by their mindset and the way they’re working that they’re very eager to get going this next fall. I think they have a chip on their shoulder and they’re eager to show that this wasn’t a one-man team. This was a lot of guys and there’s a lot of really good football players in this program. They take a lot of pride in being successful and winning games. Our guys expect to win. That’s the great thing about coming into a program that’s been successful. We don’t have to change the culture that way. They expect to win.

Robert Morris Does Everything but Win – New York Times

TSN Robert Morris Does Everything but Win New York Times The Robert Morris players and coaches spent part of their media session on Wednesday complaining about how the NCAA handled their tournament travel.

Fredette’s 37 Points Lift Brigham Young – New York Times

Seattle Post Intelligencer Fredette's 37 Points Lift Brigham Young New York Times OKLAHOMA CITY — Florida Coach Billy Donovan wiped a bead of sweat from his brow as Thursday's game entered a second overtime. As hard as his Gators had worked to wipe out a large deficit, they also could not put away Brigham Young when … Fredette, BYU outlast Florida 99-92 in double OT Washington Post No.

Old Dominion Provides Tournament’s First Upset – New York Times

Washington Post Old Dominion Provides Tournament's First Upset New York Times NEW ORLEANS — There was plenty of precedent for Old Dominion entering the NCAA tournament as a No. 11 seed

Links: MTSU RB eager to be back on the field

Middle Tennessee running back Phillip Tanner is back after missing the last six months with a knee injury.

The Colorado Springs Gazette breaks down the five developments from Air Force’s spring practice.

Rice coach David Bailiff is pleased with his team’s latest scrimmage.

The Boise State offensive line is highlighted by depth and experience.

East Carolina coach Ruffin McNeill and defensive coordinator Brian Mitchell are trying to keep ECU’s defense at a high level.

Running back Channing Trotter is excited about UNLV’s new offensive scheme, but the team still has questions at quarterback.

Michigan to host first night football game

For years, night football at Michigan Stadium has been brought up, only to be shot down.

Michigan’s brass has been generally opposed to night football, so games remained early-afternoon affairs. It didn’t help that the tradition-bound Big Ten has scheduled fewer night games than the other major conferences.

But Michigan now has a head football coach (Rich Rodriguez) open to night football and ramping up the in-game atmosphere. And, more importantly, UM has a new athletic director in David Brandon who doesn’t mind shaking things up.

As a result, night football finally will come to the Big House.

Michigan announced Thursday that it will host Notre Dame under the lights on Sept. 10, 2011, marking the first night football game at Michigan Stadium. The game will kick off at 8 p.m. ET and be televised nationally by ESPN or ESPN2.

My guess is most Michigan fans will welcome this news. Getting the Michigan-Notre Dame rivalry under the lights should create an unbelievable atmosphere, the one Rodriguez wants to create, at the renovated Big House.

“Our players have always enjoyed playing night games and I think it’s something that our fans will truly enjoy and embrace,” Rodriguez said in a statement. “I expect the atmosphere will be electric for this match-up at the Big House.”

Michigan owns a 22-11 record in prime-time games (kickoff after 5 p.m. local time), having won 11 of its last 14 appearances. U-M is 19-5 on the road and 3-6 in bowl games. The Wolverines are 0-3 in night games against Notre Dame, playing three times under the lights at Notre Dame Stadium (1982, 1988, 1990).

It’s amazing to see how a new athletics director can change long-held views on scheduling issues. Brandon clearly understands the value night football can bring to a school, and it’s a huge advantage for the home team.

Michigan-Notre Dame is almost always a huge deal, but playing under the lights enhances things.

Michigan to host first night football game

For years, night football at Michigan Stadium has been brought up, only to be shot down.

Michigan’s brass has been generally opposed to night football, so games remained early-afternoon affairs. It didn’t help that the tradition-bound Big Ten has scheduled fewer night games than the other major conferences.

But Michigan now has a head football coach (Rich Rodriguez) open to night football and ramping up the in-game atmosphere. And, more importantly, U-M has a new athletics director in David Brandon who doesn’t mind shaking things up.

As a result, night football finally will come to the Big House.

Michigan announced Thursday that it will host Notre Dame under the lights on Sept. 10, 2011, marking the first night football game at Michigan Stadium. The game will kick off at 8 p.m. ET and be televised nationally by ESPN or ESPN2.

My guess is most Michigan fans will welcome this news. Getting the Michigan-Notre Dame rivalry under the lights should create an unbelievable atmosphere, the one Rodriguez wants to create, at the renovated Big House.

“Our players have always enjoyed playing night games and I think it’s something that our fans will truly enjoy and embrace,” Rodriguez said in a statement. “I expect the atmosphere will be electric for this match-up at the Big House.”

Michigan owns a 22-11 record in prime-time games (kickoff after 5 p.m. local time), having won 11 of its last 14 appearances. U-M is 19-5 on the road and 3-6 in bowl games. The Wolverines are 0-3 in night games against Notre Dame, playing three times under the lights at Notre Dame Stadium (1982, 1988, 1990.

It’s amazing to see how a new athletics director can change long-held views on scheduling issues. Brandon clearly understands the value night football can bring to a school, and it’s a huge advantage for the home team.

Michigan and Notre Dame is almost always a huge deal, but playing under the lights enhances things.

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