STORYLINE & RULES » dBeefy is also bullish about Englands

In one manner of thinking, the BCS and the College Football Playoff transformed college football from a regional to a national sport. The outcome of the Michigan-Wisconsin game Saturday has an impact on the Stanford-Washington winner and every other school in the hunt for one of four playoff berths. But with so many of its heroes, college football remains regional. Witness the deaths this week of former Nebraska offensive line coach Milt Tenopir, 76, and Iowa quarterback Randy Duncan, 79.Tenopir was the foreman of the assembly line that cranked out one All-American after another during head coach Tom Osbornes glory years. Duncan led the Hawkeyes to the 1958 Big Ten championship and the Rose Bowl, and finished second in the Heisman vote to Army back Pete Dawkins. Green Bay selected Duncan with the first pick of the 1959 NFL draft. He spurned the Packers for three years in the CFL, after which he went to law school. But he was forever a Hawkeye hero.If you want to know how current and former Huskers players felt about Tenopir, read Dirk Chatelains story in the Omaha World-Herald about the coachs last days. Prepare to be choked up.1. It has been 14 years since weve had three games that matched AP top-10 opponents, and the list of those games illustrates how much the power structure has changed since 2002. No. 1 Miami defeated No. 9 Florida State, the Hurricanes 28th consecutive victory in a string that reached 34; No. 2 Oklahoma defeated No. 3 Texas 35-24, the third of five straight Sooner victories in that rivalry, and remember how Mack Brown couldnt win the big one? He put that canard to rest in 2005; and No. 6 Georgia, under second-year coach Mark Richt, beat No. 10 Tennessee 18-13 in a game that served as a springboard for the Bulldogs to end their longest SEC championship drought (20 years) in school history.2. Likewise, two of this weeks three top-10 matchups could have a lasting impact on this season. If No. 3 Louisville wins at No. 5 Clemson, the Cardinals will have beaten their top two competitors in the ACC Atlantic (they embarrassed Florida State 63-20 two weeks ago). Given Oregons struggles, the game between No. 7 Stanford and No. 10 Washington will anoint the front-runner in the Pac-12 North. But since No. 8 Wisconsin and No. 4 Michigan are in different divisions of the Big Ten, the outcome of their game will take a back seat to the teams head-to-head matchup against whichever divisional foe challenges them.3. One last note about the demise of LSU head coach Les Miles, fired because the Tigers couldnt keep up with the Alabama dynasty coached by his predecessor, Nick Saban. Contrast Miles unwillingness to change the Tigers offense to the evolution that the Crimson Tide has undergone during the Saban Decade. Saban has gotten smaller and quicker on defense. He has said that Terrence Cody, the 6-foot-4, 345-pound two-time All-American defensive tackle, wouldnt fit in the current Tide defense. And after beginning in Tuscaloosa with a pro-style offense, Saban and coordinator Lane Kiffin have spread the field with running-passing freshman Jalen Hurts in charge.4. As the Big 12 dithers over whether to expand, and it looks increasingly as if the league couldnt get eight votes to decide that today is Thursday, Houston is making a compelling case for an invitation. Members of a conference want a new member to carry its own weight in the marketplace. And Houston is doing that in its home TV market. Since Texas A&M bolted to the SEC, so has the Houston TV market. SEC games made up six of the top 10 football telecasts last season in Houston. But this season, the Cougars game against Oklahoma on Sept. 3 had a 12.8 rating in Houston, and the Thursday night game against Cincinnati on Sept. 15 had a 6.78. Those are big numbers.5. The top talents among the 156 semifinalists for the Campbell Trophy, the Academic Heisman awarded by the National Football Foundation, include at least three compelling stories: BYU sixth-year, oft-injured quarterback Taysom Hill, Duke corner DeVon Edwards, who just tore his left ACL and MCL on Saturday, and Syracuse tight end Cameron MacPherson, the grandson of College Football Hall of Fame coach Dick MacPherson. The NFF will name on Nov. 1 the 12 to 14 finalists, each of whom will receive an $18,000 postgraduate scholarship. The Campbell Trophy winner, named at the Hall of Fame dinner on Dec. 6, receives an additional $7,000 grant.6. Penn State is still suffering the effects of the NCAA scholarship penalties. You can judge that by the scoreboard, where the Nittany Lions are 0-2 against Power 5 opponents, including a 49-10 loss at Michigan on Saturday as one-sided as it appears. Or you can judge that by the comments of Penn State head coach James Franklin at his weekly media conference on Tuesday. Their (\[defensive] front is big, strong and physical, and we did not handle that well, Franklin said. Defensively, I think were playing hard; however, we need to be more physical up front. To paraphrase Franklin, Penn State isnt as talented as Michigan. And undefeated Minnesota (3-0) comes to State College on Saturday.7. Georgia Tech (3-1, 0-1) already has won as many games this season as it did last, but the 26-7 loss at Clemson last Thursday night, when Tech gained only 124 yards, illustrated how head coach Paul Johnson hasnt solved his offensive woes. Johnsons option attack at its best chews up yardage and clock in big chunks, which is to say, the statistic that most reveals Georgia Techs struggles is time of possession. The Yellow Jackets rank 61st in the FBS, averaging 29:38 per game. Thats four-plus minutes fewer than in 2014, the year that Georgia Tech won the ACC Coastal. The Yellow Jackets finished third in the FBS that season, averaging 34:09 per game. Alvin Kamara Saints Jersey . Capitals head coach Adam Oates said Ovechkin was injured in the first period against the Vancouver Canucks on Monday and clarified it was not a head injury. Ryan Ramczyk Jersey . And when it opened, every player was at his stall. Thats a sure sign that a team is in a slump and is searching for answers. "Its embarrassing to be at home and play the way we did," said defenceman Josh Gorges. http://www.shoptheofficialsaints.com/Elite-Alvin-Kamara-Saints-Jersey/ . Hey!" The lower tier of the School End of Queens Park Rangers Loftus Road was packed solid with a very festive-sounding Chelsea choral section in this particular part of South Africa Road London, W12. Drew Brees Saints Jersey . Peter Gammons, an analyst for Major League Baseballs network and website, drew the ire of hockey fans on Sunday when he criticized the two NHL teams on Twitter for their physical game the night before. Morten Andersen Jersey . Burke is expected to miss two to three months after breaking a finger in the teams third preseason game. Tinsley, a 10-year veteran, spent the last two seasons in Utah, where the point guard averaged 3.Sir Ian Botham is urging Englands selectors to bat all-rounder Ben Stokes up the order in the ODI Series against South Africa. Stokes starred with the bat in Englands 2-1 Test series victory and the former England skipper thinks the 24-year-old can have a similar impact in the five-match series, starting in Bloemfontein on Wednesday. Beefys bets Find out what Sir Ian Botham is backing in his Sky Bet tips here. The Sky Sports commentator expects Alex Hales and Jason Roy to open with Joe Root at three and Stokes or skipper Eoin Morgan at four or five.He told Sky Sports: Id be looking at moving Stokes up the order. He was in terrific form in the Test series and could be the stand-out player in this One Day series.England need to bat him as high as possible - four or five at least - weve seen the impact he can have with the bat. Charles Colvile takes a look back at Stokes career so far after the Englishman hit the fastest double Test century for his country in January England won their last ODI series 3-1 against Pakistan in the UAE in November with some exciting cricket and Botham is expecting the same approach against the Proteas.ddddddddddddBeefy is also bullish about Englands chances and is tipping them to win the series 5-0 at odds of 20/1 with Sky Bet.The former England all-rounder said: Theres no reason why they cant win the series. They are young, exciting and brimming with confidence after that Test series win.South Africa are favourites but they have a few injury concerns and I think England can capitalise on that. The weather is my only concern but theres no reason why they cant win the series in style. Botham has tipped up Stokes to be Englands top scorer at 15/2 and Adil Rashid to shine with the ball on his return to the international side.Rashid was the top wicket-taker in the Big Bash for Adelaide Strikers and hell be looking forward to carrying that form into the series against South Africa, added Botham.Watch Englands five-match ODI series and two-match T20I series against South Africa live on Sky Sports, starting with the first ODI from 11am, Wednesday, Sky Sports 2. Or watch without a contract on NOW TV Also See: SA v Eng rewind England suffer Roy setback Live cricket on Sky Get Sky Sports ' ' '