Even though the season is young, the Lady Vols of the University of Tennessee are on a roll. Their latest victims came today with an 88-67 win over DePaul. The win came while fans got to watch three freshmen tie or beat their career best.

When the season originally began, I, like many others, doubted that the young Lady Vols would be able to hang around this year. After the departure of all the seniors from last years national championship team, it looked as if head coach Pat Summitt would have her hands full. But, this is why the University of Tennessee has her here. She is the best at bringing the best out of these young ladies.

As the season grows, so do the players. It is almost like watching a child grow up. Pat has the team clicking like a well oiled machine. This is an incrediable feat when you take into account that Coach Summitt has 1 senior and no juniors on this young team.

Mississippi State head football coach, Sylvester Croom resigns. Coach Croom came to Mississippi State in 2004. When he arrived the Mississippi State football program was in a shambles. Mississippi State was on NCAA probation for recruiting violations and had not had a winning season in three years. It did take Coach Croom three more years of diligent work to finally produce a winning season. Last year the Bulldogs finished the season with a 7 and 5 overall record. This made the Bullldogs bowl eligible for the first time in seven seasons. Accepting a bid to face the University of Central Florida in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl, the Bulldogs came away with the win. It has by no means been an easy road for Croom who leaves Mississippi State with an overall record of 21 and 38. Croom can be credited with revitalizing a failing athletic program while pushing his players to excel academically. This is not the first, nor will it be the last college head coach to be replaced as the 2008 season ends for many schools.

As Phillip Fulmer jogs out on the field at Neyland Stadium on Saturday, it will be one of the most emotional trots that he has ever had. Fulmer holds a lot of history for the University of Tennessee . The biggest might be that he is the 20th head coach to hold the reins on this once SEC powerhouse. In 1980, Fulmer started a run that would span 3 decades. He took an assistant coaches position under Johnny Majors who was the head coach at UT. Johnny took over in 1977 and ran the team until the end of the 1992 season. Phillip Fulmer will hold onto the same amount of time with the exception that he has the 13 previous years with the Vols as an assistant.

It is said that when Phil bleeds, his blood is orange. On Saturday, when Phil cries, I believe that his tears will also be orange. The one thing that no one can take from this man, this myth, this legend, is his love for the University of Tennessee football program, it’s athletic department as a whole, it’s student body, it’s faculty, and the school as a whole. The day that the “agreement” was reach, Phillip Fulmer was an emotional wreck. However, win or lose, this Saturday will hold more emotion for the much loved, much appreciated football deity that we all have grown to know as Phillip Fulmer.

This weekend the players, the alumni, and the fans will stand many times to give a resounding ovation to the man that has led them through many battles on this field. This Saturday does not belong to the University of Tennessee, to the city of Knoxville, or to the state of Tennessee. No, this day belongs to Phillip Fulmer.

My business partner, Danny Thornton , and I have decided to do something a little different. Since each of us have a sports blog at Today.com and are the co-founders to Athletic Alley, we have decided to cover the Thursday NFL games in three parts. The first part will be on SportsFanatic written by Danny Thornton , the second will be on Rich Talks Sports authored by Rich Dansereau , while the third and final will be presented on Athletic Alley . The third will be a shared view article. If you have not had the chance to read the other post, you can catch them right here.

Thursday NFL Review: Part 1

Thursday NFL Review: Part 3

Now, let’s get to the next review.

Seattle Seahawks @ Dallas Cowboys

Where would tradition be if the Dallas Cowboys would not be part of Turkey day? In the middle game of the 3 game Thanksgiving feast, The Seattle Seahawks travel east to Irving, Texas for a showdown of NFC teams. This year has not been kind to the Seahawks and last Sunday was no different as they lost a close one to the Washington Redskins. Dallas on the other hand is coming off a romp of San Francisco that saw Terrell Owens explode. The question is going to be, can he have 2 monster games back to back.

When you break down the Seahawks, there really is not much good things that one can say about this team. They can get close, but they just can not seem to finish. With the Cowboys, they are streaky at best. Romo is back after a finger injury and the real question is going to be, will he relax to much with this Seahawk defense.

As for my view, I think that the game will hold very little interest. I see it being over as quick as it started. Maybe if Brad Johnson was the QB for Dallas, then it might actually be a game.

 At this point and time, I am not really surprised that there are only 2 of the free agents that have been taken off the market in Major League Baseball. For those that do not know, the two are RP Jeremy Affeldt and SP Ryan Dempster. Affeldt was acquired by the San Francisco Giants who gave him a 2 year 8 million dollar contract. As for Dempster, he will appear in a Chicago Cubs uniform. He, on the other hand, came with a healthy price tag. Ryan has a 4 year deal at 52 million dollars.

It really will be interesting in who the next free agent is.

When I look at college football, I can see just how mixed up and messed up it’s system is. Ignoring anything concerning the BCS and any type of playoff system, let’s take a look at the polls. When I refer to a system being screwed up, here is the first example that I point out. Below is all 4 of the polls that matter; the BCS Standing, the AP Top 25, the USA Today Poll, and then last but not least, the ESPNU Allstate Standings (this is a fan based poll). Out of all 4 polls, the only thing that is consistent is who currently number 1 is. All other standings are all whacked out.

So, the question bodes: Which poll do you believe?

BCS Standings
1. Alabama 11-0
2. Texas 10-1
3. Oklahoma 10-1
4. Florida 10-1
5. USC 9-1
6. Utah 12-0
7. Texas Tech 10-1
8. Penn State 11-1
9. Boise State 11-0
10. Ohio State 10-2
11. Georgia 9-2
12. Oklahoma State 9-2
13. Missouri 9-2
14. TCU 10-2
15. Ball State 11-0
16. Cincinnati 9-2
17. Oregon State 8-3
18. BYU 10-2
19. Michigan State 9-3
20. Florida State 8-3
21. Boston College 8-3
22. Georgia Tech 8-3
23. Oregon 8-3
24. Northwestern 9-3
25. Pitt 7-3

AP Top 25
1. Alabama (63) 11-0 1,622
2. Florida (2) 10-1 1,512
3. Oklahoma 10-1 1,486
4. Texas 10-1 1,482
5. USC 9-1 1,352
6. Penn State 11-1 1,238
7. Texas Tech 10-1 1,212
8. Utah 12-0 1,206
9. Boise State 11-0 1,064
10. Ohio State 10-2 1,043
11. Oklahoma State 9-2 997
12. Missouri 9-2 917
13. Georgia 9-2 874
14. TCU 10-2 750
15. Ball State 11-0 731
16. Cincinnati 9-2 640
17. Oregon State 8-3 604
18. Georgia Tech 8-3 339
19. Oregon 8-3 320
20. Boston College 8-3 309
20. Brigham Young 10-2 309
22. Michigan State 9-3 274
23. Florida State 8-3 214
24. Northwestern 9-3 145
25. Mississippi 7-4 127

USA Today Poll
1. Alabama (56) 11-0 1,518
2. Oklahoma (4) 10-1 1,412
3. Florida (1) 10-1 1,401
4. Texas 10-1 1,370
5. USC 9-1 1,288
6. Penn State 11-1 1,157
7. Utah 12-0 1,153
8. Texas Tech 10-1 1,073
9. Boise State 11-0 1,033
10. Ohio State 10-2 994
11. Missouri 9-2 896
12. Oklahoma State 9-2 858
13. Georgia 9-2 842
14. TCU 10-2 695
15. Ball State 11-0 673
16. Cincinnati 9-2 572
17. Oregon State 8-3 544
18. Oregon 8-3 397
19. Brigham Young 10-2 321
20. Northwestern 9-3 310
21. Michigan State 9-3 296
22. Boston College 8-3 290
23. Georgia Tech 8-3 241
24. Florida State 8-3 204
25. West Virginia 7-3 83

ESPNU Allstate Standings (Fan poll)
1. Alabama 11-0
2. Florida 10-1
3. Texas 10-1
4. Texas Tech 10-1
5. USC 9-1
6. Oklahoma 10-1
7. Penn State 11-1
8. Utah 12-0
9. Boise State 11-0
10. Ohio State 10-2
11. Oklahoma State 9-2
12. Missouri 9-2
13. Georgia 9-2
14. TCU 10-2
15. Ball State 11-0
16. Cincinnati 9-2
17. Oregon State 8-3
18. Georgia Tech 8-3
19. Oregon 8-3
20. Boston College 8-3
21. Brigham Young 10-2
22. Michigan State 9-3
23. Florida State 8-3
24. Mississippi 7-4
25. Northwestern 9-3

It bugs me that a team has to find something to complain about when they lose. The most recent would be the Arizona Cardinals losing to the New York Giants on Sunday in the afternoon game. What I can not understand is they are complaining about not having to face Brandon Jacobs. Now, I do not know about you, but I am not a fan of getting ran over by a 264 pound freight train. But, that is basically what they wanting from my point of view.

Saturday, on the long flight to Arizona, Brandon’s knee seemed to digress and get worse. However, the training staff, coaches, and Brandon himself were optimistically that he would still play. But 90 minutes before game time, that all changed. Brandon was inactivated for the game and was banished to the sidelines for the day. Now, in my book, that would have been a godsend and I would be very happy.

It seems that the Cardinals did not like the fact that he was not downgraded from “probable” to “questionable” on Saturday. League rules do not state that you have to do it, however, if you have a player that is listed as probable and does not play, then you have to submit a letter to the NFL explaining why he did not play. Even though I agree with the NFL as to an explanation is needed, I do not think that the Cardinals have to send an informal letter to the NFL concerning the Giants listing Jacobs as “Probable”. What it sounds like to me is that they are crying over spilled milk.

With the Sunday Night Football game starting as I write this, I would like to take a quick minute to write down some thoughts on this game.

Indianapolis Colts @ San Diego Chargers

The games prior to the start of this game has had some significant impacts to what the meaning of winning this game has. For the Chargers, they can benefit with a win now that the Denver Broncos have been dismantled today. With the Chargers currently in second place, a win tonight could place then just 1 game out with 5 more left to go. As for the Colts, they are playing for their wild card berth. Short of a total collapse, the Tennessee Titans will win the AFC South. A win tonight is a must if the Colts want to keep pace for a chance at a berth into the playoffs.

As for my pick, the Colts will win in San Diego tonight.

Anyone that happened to catch the interview that aired on Thursday Night will understand where this is coming from. Deion Sanders had sat down with Terrell Owens for an interview and TO dropped off the deep in. The 2 biggest things that I noticed was the fact that Owens thinks that Dallas can not win without him and the second issue is that the new system is the reason that he is having a bad year.

My first and foremost question is this: Out of the 907 catches that Terrell has made, how many of them were in a Superbowl Championship win? The answer to that is 0. Even though he has been a 6 time All-Pro selection and a 6 time Pro-Bowl Selection, he has yet to play for a team that has won the Superbowl in his tenureship. So, that beckons this; Apparently teams CAN’T win a Superbowl with you, Terrell.

Now, for the second portion of the interview that I am just utterly disgusted with. Terrell states that the reason for the bad season that he is having is the system. Just a week ago, he blamed it on the “butt ugly” play of the back-up quarterbacks. I guess anything to distract away from all the dropped passes that Owens so convienently decides to ignore.

Bottom line is this. TO is a great player. But, he will never be a great team player.

The Georgia Tech Yellowjackets were more prepared to win last nights battle in Atlanta, Georgia than the University of Miami Hurricanes were. I am sure that the trip south of I75 was not a pleasant one for Hurricanes. It was probably hard to sit down as they were sporting a butt whipping. The Jackets stung the Hurricanes numerous times on their way to a 41-23 victory.

There are a ton of implications that come out of this win for both teams. The biggest issue is now this division is so jammed up at the number 1 spot, it will take a genius to sort it all out.