With the departure of Rich Rodriguez from West Virginia to Michigan, it's very easy to compare how Rodriguez handled his departure compared to how the cowardly Petrino handled his change of scenery.  Let's take a look...

Addressing his players.

Rodriguez was a man.  He faced his team, looked them in the eye this past Sunday and informed them of his decision.  Petrino left a letter in each player's locker letting them know he was leaving town. 

Player reaction.

While it may be unfair to compare between college kids and pros, you don't hear words like coward or disloyal coming from West Virginia players.  You don't hear anger in the tones of voices of the Mountaineers.  Falcon players were irate, and when Warrick Dunn calls out the coach, you know something is wrong.  One of the Mountaineers said that he was a man about it. 

Being straight up

Rodriguez was grilled by the media regarding the reports.  Instead of going Nick Saban and saying he won't be the head coach at Michigan, he simply refused to talk about it.  Despite the constant prodding during that press conference, Rodriguez simply refused to comment.  Petrino, reportedly told his owner in the recent days prior to going Bob Irsay on the Falcons said he was in it for the long haul.  He looked his boss in the face, and lied. 

I think Michigan made an excellent choice.  They are bringing in a guy who will put in a type of offense you don't see in the Big 10, and you've seen Big 10 teams struggle with the spread offense.  Simply look at last year's BCS title game and Michigan's first two games.  Ohio State simply couldn't handle the spread, and Oregon simply beat on Michigan like a rented mule, not to mention the App State upset.  Once Rodriguez gets his guys in there, they could very well have the speed to simply dominate the Big 10, and bring that conference into the 21st century.

I live in the Fort Myers, Florida area, spring training home of the Boston Red Sox. 

Ever since I've been here, I've been amazed at the fact that chowd fans camp out overnight for...SPRING TRAINING TICKETS.  Are you kidding me?  This isn't camping out for a hot concert ticket like Beyonce...you know what you get with her, but to watch a game where the stars may play 3 innings, and I bet that you won't know the roster by the time the game is winding down. 

This year is no exception.  The first fan, Brian Griffiths, according to a story in the Bonita Daily News (www.bonitanews.com), started camping out Thursday.  Tickets went on sale today.  That's two days parking your can outside a ticket window for games that don't count.  What am I missing here?  I don't get it.  Is it passion, or do you chowd fans not have a life?  Mr. Griffiths wasn't the only one.  Reportedly, there are dozens of you pathetic no life Chowd fans just waiting for the chance to see one Manny Ramirez at bat, Jonathan Papelbon pitch one inning, or Jacoby Ellsbury make a play in center field. 

One fan was quoted as saying this is no different than those who waited all night for Harry Potter books.  He's right...they're just as pathetic. 

A firiend of mine told me this week that this is as exciting as the baseball season.  I have to agree.  Rumors flying around like snowflakes in a blizzard, and things you don't see coming hit you like a ton of bricks.

For example, did anyone know that the Tigers would land BOTH Cabrera and Dontrelle from the Marlins?  WOW.  It's no surprise that they traded both of them, but to the same team.  I give a lot of credit to the Tigers front office for pulling this coup off.  For their sake, I hope the Dontrelle of a couple of years ago is the Dontrelle they get, not the Dontrelle of last year.  As a Mets fan, I'm glad to see Dontrelle out of the NL East.  He's a Mets killer...

Now for the big prize in Johan Santana.  It appears that this is now a one-team race with the self imposed Hank deadline come and gone, but those deadlines don't mean anything...just ask Pay-Rod.  What I don't understand is why Boston is going so hard after Santana.  The package rumored including Jacoby Ellsbury, Clay Bucholz, Jon Lester, Coco Crisp and others for a luxury more than a need.  The rotation is still very solid.  Beckett may be the best in the game right now, Schilling is very crafty, Dice-K and the two young arms I mentioned earlier provide a very good rotation.  Both NY teams need Santana far worse than the Sox do.  The Mets need to make a harder push for Johan, although they may not have all the chips the Twins want.  The Yankees need him badly as well.  Assuming the pinstripes hold steady, and the rocket stays on the launchpad, include Wang, Pettite, Hughes, Joba (assuming he starts) and Kennedy?  Maybe I'm missing something, but I'm not all that impressed, although the back end has potential, and I think Pettite is very overrated.  Just another aging overpaid ballplayer in the Yankee rotation.

The Mets also lack any depth in the rotation.  As of now, the boys from Shea are looking at Pedro, El Duque, Maine, Perez and either Pelfrey or Humber.  Two you can't count on for a full season for health reasons, Perez has issues finding the strike zone, and the 5th spot would be going to a pretty young guy.  As it sits now, this rotation won't win any pennants, and didn't win an NL East crown this year.  Omar Minaya must find a way to get a front line starter, whether it's Santana, Bedard or Haren.

Boston showed how pitching wins...and having a stud at the front of the rotation is a huge advantage.  The Mets need to make this move.

I want lots of input on this.  I'm giving my favorite hosts and hosts who frankly don't deserve any airtime what so ever.  Here goes...

1.  Jim Rome.  Van Smack, Pimp in the Box, call him whatever, but he's the best in the business.  His takes are solid, and expects callers to know their stuff.  The humor provided by the clones and Rome is hilarious.  Clone on clone crime just cracks me up.  He also has solid guests as well, usually 3-4 per day, and had one of the members of five for fighting on today talking about a project for the troops...completely off the sports map, but a great interview.

2.  Colin Cowherd.  I enjoy the Herd a lot.  There isn't a sports talk show host who knows his college football like Colin.  He does his homework, and it shows.  His show is a sports show, but definitely football focused.  He gives you a peek into his personal life, which makes him feel like he's just another one of the guys.  He also takes far more callers than any other ESPN radio show...and I like that a lot.  Interaction with the callers is solid. 

3.  Eric Kuselias (pardon my spelling).  I enjoy his takes, certainly doesn't have the humor of the Herd or Rome, but I like his opinions, and does a great job filling in on ESPN, especially when either of the Mikes is out (which is very often). 

Some I don't like...

1.  Dan Patrick.  His ego is enormous, and it shows.  He tries way too hard to be funny and fails miserably and when him and Olbermann had the one hour big show, it was some of the worst radio ever.  While I get the feeling he felt like they were just as good as when they were together on SportsCenter many years ago, talk radio is far different than being an anchor.  As an anchor, I like Patrick, as a talk show host, he leaves a lot to be desired.  He did ESPN a huge favor by quitting.

2.  Mike and Mike.  This may draw a lot of ire from anyone who loves these guys, but I'm not overly impressed.  I think they're OK as a team when they're on the air, which isn't as often as it should be, but these guys are way overexposed.  I don't find them all that funny, the picking on the metrosexual Greenie and the fat man Golic is a bit of an old schtick.  I do love the stone cold locks...great segment.

I'd love to hear some feedback...what are some other great hosts, or hosts that simply suck?

What a fine mess this wild and wacky college football season has given us.  Two teams, who frankly may not be the best teams in college football will meet in New Orleans for the holy grail of college football...the crystal trophy and the right to be called champion. 

To all Missorui fans:  You should be furious.  I'm not a Missouri fan, but I'm mad for you guys.  You beat Illinois and Kansas on neutral fields, and lost to a very good Oklahoma football team, and your reward...the cotton bowl?  While the team you defeated to get to the Big 12 title game gets the pleasure of spending the new year on South Beach?  Where's the justice there?  I'd love to hear someone explain the logic of Kansas over Missouri in the Orange Bowl, when Kansas played only one ranked team, and were dominated.  Kansas played a joke of a schedule, and avoided both Oklahoma and Texas in Big 12 play.  Va Tech will expose the fraud that is Kansas football in the Orange Bowl. 

I'm also highly disapponted in Mark Richt.  I like Richt.  I like what he stands for.  On this issue, he's off base.  He said, " They said we we're out because we didn't win the conference championship, which I thought was wrong because the rules don't say that."  What Richt must fail to realize is that you cannot be the best team in the country if you're not the best team in your conference.  Nebraska pulled this feat off in 2001 when my beloved Buffaloes put down the beating of a lifetime in Bounder 62-36, yet despite being embarrassed that day in Boulder, they were rewarded with a trip to Pasadena to get beat up by Miami.  Keep in mind that Colorado won the Big 12 that year, yet Nebraska ended up with the shot at the national title.  That year, both Oregon and Colorado were crying foul, and plenty of reason to do so. 

Also, Tennessee has a reason to gripe.  They beat Georgia this year, they won the SEC East, and they get left out of the BCS party, but a trip to Tampa on New Years Day to beat up on a so-so Wisconsin team isn't such a bad consolation prize.  Why Georgia over Tennessee?  Georgia better not overlook Hawaii...a few years back a little known school from West Virginia faced Georgia...and took care of business.

The great thing about the BCS is simple.  It gives nerds like me something interesting to listen to during the day on sports talk radio and blog about.  The bad thing is that we really don't know if the best team is #1, and until some playoff or plus one system is put in place, we won't know the answer, but the money is flowing in every so nicely...and while that is happening, changes aren't likely to come.

Do we have the best two teams?  Based on how the system works, yes, based on what my eyes have seen...no.  I don't think Ohio State is the best team in the country.  I don't think they're better than USC, LSU, or Oklahoma just to name 3 schools.  I'm not sure they're better than Missouri. 

Tigers and Vols fans...you deserved better.