NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The owners of the rights to "Rocky Top," the song that's played throughout football season in Tennessee, have settled a copyright lawsuit against the television network A&E.
The Tennessean reported that U.S. District Court Judge Aleta Trauger approved the settlement Monday and dismissed the lawsuit. The lawsuit filed in June accused the network of inserting the iconic tune in a 12-second video clip for a true crime television documentary after the owners said A&E could not do it.
Court filing did not reveal the details of the settlement and attorneys for both sides declined to discuss the settlement.
Felice and Boudleoux (BOO'-deh-loh) Bryant penned the song in 1967 and the couple's children own the rights to it, under the corporate name House of Bryant.
No word whether the song's owners plan on going after Peyton Manning for being such a choker during his days in Knoxville and for the punitive damages that he's giving them.
Our old pal Assassin Avenue has been on sabbatical north of the border. He did have time to research the Trojan's new head coach on HHR's behalf and sent us along the following screen shot.
What a long strange trip it's been. Some of you are celebrating the fact that your team had a good season. Others (including myself) are left to rehash a more "challenging" season. We’ve suffered through a lot of bad football this year, but the last week did a lot to kind of redeem the season. Some great games with wild endings. Cincinnati and Pitt battling back and forth for a Sugar Bowl bid. An offensive lineman making the winning score for Fresno State. And Texas advancing to the national championship by winning the first ever 60 minute and 1 second-long football game. I’ll have my end-of-the-year wrap-up and Cynic’s Awards coming soon, but I wanted to give just a few final comments on the week that was.
1. Random thought: With the firings of Charlie Weis and Mark Mangino, what does that do to the collective Body Mass Index of the coaching profession?
Note to self: Hit the treadmill immediately after posting.
2. That wailing and gnashing of teeth you hear in the middle of the country is coming from Missouri fans disgusted with the Big 12 bowl selection process, which allows affiliated bowls to choose a bowl-eligible team rather than taking the available team with the best record. In this case, 8-4 Missouri got passed up by the Insight Bowl in favor of 6-6 Iowa State. Nine years ago, Cyclones fans flocked to Tucson by the thousands, and Insight Bowl officials are obviously hoping for a repeat performance. But for Mizzou, the Insight’s move dropped them all the way down to the Texas Bowl against Navy. While Houston has its pluses, and it can’t hurt for recruiting in Texas, a trip to the Big 12’s last place bowl tie-in instead of sunny Arizona isn’t the post-season reward the Tigers were expecting.
This is the best news in Ames since Gene Chizik left for Auburn.
3. Stat of the Week: In last week’s Big 12 Championship Game, Ndamukong Suh had more yardage in sacks and tackles for loss than Husker QBs had passing.
Suh’s shown he can find the end zone. Maybe the Huskers should’ve started him at quarterback.
4. For anyone who didn’t see the ending of last week’s Fresno State/Illinois game, you owe it to yourself to check out one of the wildest endings to a game this—or any other—season.
5. I’ve cast my Heisman ballot and I don’t really have much of a problem with the final five who made the cut. But am I the only one a little surprised that no wide receivers are getting any love this year? It’s not like Golden Tate and Mardy Gilyard were chopped liver.
Mmmmm. Wideout.
6. A Facebook page for fans of Tim Tebow crying has gained over 64,000 fans in four days.
I’m guessing these guys aren’t fans.
7. Last week, Oklahoma State University president Burns Hargis announced that he was pulling OSU out of an NIH-funded research study of a new anthrax vaccine. The tests would have been conducted on baboons, which would then be euthanized. What does this have to do with football? Just this—Madeleine Pickens, the wife of OSU sugar daddy T. Boone Pickens, is a big animal rights activist who recently pulled a $5 million donation to the OSU veterinary program. While Hargis denies any connection, I think we can connect the dots on this one. So let this be a lesson to your athletic department—while it might be nice having someone write you checks with a whole bunch of zeroes, that kind of money always comes with strings attached.
In a related story, a University of Oregon graduate student mysteriously went missing last week after submitting a paper on human rights abuses and the use of child labor by multinational clothing conglomerates.
8. If Army upsets Navy on Saturday, the Black Knights will play Temple in the Eagle Bank Bowl. You read that right. Army. Temple. Bowl game.
Camo uniforms = bowl bid. Mark it down.
9. But which is more surprising—that Army and Temple could make a bowl, period? Or that USC and Oklahoma would end up in the Emerald Bowl and Sun Bowl, respectively?
I have friends who went to Oklahoma. Christmas shopping? Done.
10. The NCAA is reportedly investigating Tennessee for recruiting violations involving using hookers, um, I mean Tiger’s exes, um, I mean “student hostesses” to lure potential recruits. Wait, a college using the promise of cheap sex with hot co-eds as an incentive to come to campus? Man, when I enrolled in college, all I got was a map of the campus and a free t-shirt.
Note to self #2: Be reincarnated as a Vols recruit.
For the majority of you, your favorite teams will be playing in a bowl game, so stick around for more the next few weeks. For the rest of you, well, there’s always basketball season.
Well, we're coming into the home stretch. Some teams have their six wins. Some will be home in time for Thanksgiving. The bitching about the bowl system is going full force. Ohio State has punched their ticket for their annual BCS bowl loss. Coaching rumors are swirling. Somehow, inexplicably, Lou Holtz and Mark May still have jobs. (Seriously, do these guys have incriminating photos of the ESPN brass or something? I can't explain it.) At any rate, here's a look back at the week in college football weirdness.
The Great Filling Station Holdup
By now I’m sure you’ve probably heard that three Tennessee football players were arrested for armed robbery last Thursday. There are a lot of angles to go here, so I just ask this: what is the most f’ed up part of this whole situation?
The robbery took place less than a day after UT head coach Lane Kiffin had been extolling his program’s arrest free record.
The victim says he doesn’t want the players to miss any playing time because he’s a Vols fan and, besides, “It's Tennessee. That's the way it is sometimes."
Championship or Bust! That was probably a slogan for many schools going into this season. But with last week's upset loss to Missouri, Kansas State finds itself in that position very literally. With a win over Nebraska this weekend, the Wildcats will win the North Division championship and put themselves in the Big 12 title game against Texas and a possible (albeit unlikely) shot at the Fiesta Bowl. If they lose, however, they’ll be home for the holidays. Yes, K-State has six wins, but two came against FCS (aka I-AA) teams, of which they can only count one. So they still need another win just to get bowl eligible. Not sure exactly what kind of bowl game and division title bonuses Bill Snyder has in his contract, but I think it’s safe to say he’s got a lot of money riding on this one.
Fiesta Bowl payout=$17.5 million. Other Big 12 Bowl options=$750K to $3 million 6-6 record=$0 No pressure, Bill.
Bulls, Bears and Broncos
You can now buy stock in the Boise State Athletic Department, with the money raised going to fund improvements to the Broncos’ athletics facilities. The bigger question is will Dan Hawkins use the golden parachute buyout he’s about to get from Colorado to become the majority shareholder and get his old job back via hostile takeover?
Who says you can’t go home again?
What Happens in Juarez . . .
When the season started, I’m pretty sure the Sun Bowl wasn’t real high on the list of goals for Oklahoma and USC. But with their seasons in a tailspin, that is what some bowl projections are now predicting.
Each week, HHR's Southern Gents, Rusty and Rev. Shaw Moore, will steal a page from NASCAR.com and go Head2Head and argue the winners of one of the week's upcoming marquee games.
Rev Pick the Vols.
Florida has won four straight against Tennessee, including a 59-20 romp over the Vols last year in Knoxville. For those of us who’ve watched SEC football for most our lives, I think we can all agree that the world was a better place when this was an actual hot-blooded rivalry. So allow me to send a big “THANK YOU” to Vols coach Lane Kiffin for doing the unthinkable: calling out Urban Meyer and the Gators. As I write, I’m sure the Gator faithful are loading up on the brown water in preparation for Saturday’s big game.
Though Kiffin has next to no standing in the SEC, I like the fact that he’s trash talking Florida. Clearly, the Tennessee fan base is depressed – except for a freak appearance in the SEC title game, the last four or five years of the Phil Fulmer regime were enough to make ole’ Smoky howl in disgust. Vols fans need something to cheer about, or at least a leader to rally around.
On the other hand, it’s entirely possible that Kiffin’s remarks weren’t as innocent as that. From Athens to Baton Rouge, the hatred for the Gators is near universal – so give Kiffin a little credit for saying what everyone else in the league thinks, but would never dare say.
Clearly Florida is the superior team heading in to Saturday’s matchup, led by Mr. Universe, Tim Tebow. That doesn’t mean that the Vols don’t have a chance. I might be one of the (very) few who believes this, but I think the Vols are going to give the Gators a pretty good fight on Saturday.
Tennessee’s obvious strength is their defense. The Vols sport their own Mr. Universe, of sorts, in All-American safety Eric Berry – he’s one of the premier defensive talents in the country, and he won’t hesitate to blow up any ball carrier if given the chance. Though the Vols lost last week vs. UCLA, you can’t fault the D – they yielded only 186 total yards and four field goals to the Bruins. Plus, with former NFL defensive savant Monte Kiffin calling the shots, I think Florida’s gimmick spread offense could be in for a challenge it hasn’t seen for quite some time.
The offense, well … that’s another story. QB Jonathan Crompton was highly regarded coming out of high school, but he has fallen far short of his billing so far in college. He was simply atrocious against UCLA last week (13/26, 93 yards, 3 Int’s), almost single-handedly tanking the game for UT. He’ll get his shot to do better this week – Crompton is sure to see seven- and eight-man fronts from Florida, who I expect will load up to stop the run (UT backs Montario Hardesty and Bryce Brown combined for 40 carries last week). Quick, intermediate routes should be there for Crompton; but after last week’s performance, it’s anybody’s guess whether he’ll be completing those passes to UT receivers or to Florida defenders.
All that aside, it was just a year ago that Ole Miss marched into the Swamp and upset Florida. I think it can happen again here. Tennessee has to get better production out of their offense this week and not turn the ball over so carelessly. Tennessee rang up 63 points in week one against Western Kentucky; obviously they’ll face a much, much more talented foe this week, but you know there is some talent on that side of the ball. I expect the UT defense to play as well as any unit the Gators will face this year, and if they can force some turnovers of their own – look out! Lane Kiffin better start learning the words to Rocky Top, because I’m calling the upset special: 28-26 in favor of the Vols.
Rusty Takes Tebow.
Ole Rusty knew the Rev, or All-In as he's known in other circles, was a gambler, but this is just insanity. Thinking that UT has a snowball's chance at beating Florida, especially in the Swamp, makes as much sense as a screen door on a submarine. Why, you may ask? I've got 1 word for you, TEBOW!!!! This kid is good. He's like Jesus, Buddha, Muhammed, and Obama all wrapped up in one package. He throws TD's, he runs for TD's, he teaches Sunday School, he wins Heisman's, I think he even does your taxes.
In addition to Tebow on offense, the defending national champion Gators brought back all 11 starters on defense. On the offensive side of the ball, one of the few big losses was star wideout Percy Harvin, who's now playing ball on Sundays. His loss does hurt, but with so many other weapons, including Tebow (I really cannot mention him enough) and a stout defense, Florida should easily be able to handle Tennessee. At the running back position, Florida's got a cadre of talent and they all get to run behind of the best offensive lines in the NCAA.
It's quickly easy to see why Florida's got the #1 offense in the country. In Florida's first two games against Charleston Southern and Troy, they chalked up an amazing 118 points, while the defense only gave up 9. They are fast, big, and able to run up the score, quickly.
Now, as if going down to the swamp to play the Gator behemoth isn't enough of a challenge, Tennessee decided they'd get into a war of words and hurl some verbal footballs down to Gainesville, too. Now, if you've gotta go climb a tree, does it make sense to stir up the hornet's nest hanging from the branch, first?
So, make no mistake about it, Urban Meyer will have his boys more than ready, and the Swamp will be jumping come Saturday. Tennessee's got a new coach, a questionable quarterback, and has to go on the road to one of the toughest places to play against the #1 team in the country with JesuBamahammeda at the helm. Sorry, Rev . . . the Gators win this one, and win it big.
The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) is attacking former Redskins bust and current Democrat Congressman Heath Shuler over a Tennessee Valley Authority report that Shuler and staff were allegedly currying favor for a company he partially owns in land dealings, in which "Wealthy and influential people seeking private lakeshore access to the Tennessee Valley Authority's 11,000 miles of shoreline on the Tennessee River system appeared to receive preferential treatment."
However, "A report issued Monday by the TVA Office of Inspector General was critical of a boat access exchange between the Tennessee Valley Authority and the Cove at Blackberry Ridge, which is partially owned by Rep. Heath Shuler. It found "no evidence, however, that either Shuler or his representatives used Shuler’s position as a United States Congressman to pressure TVA to grant Blackberry water access."
"Congressman Shuler’s position as a member of Congress sitting on a committee with oversight responsibilities for TVA raised the specter of preferential treatment when he applied for his permit from TVA on a project with millions of his own personal money on the line,” the reports said.
"The inspector general said it didn't help that Shuler's representatives kept "dropping Shuler's name with TVA employees."
Of course, no Shuler political news would be complete without the obligatory pigskin reference:
Ken Spain, NRCC Communications Director: "It may have been easy for him to flee the bright lights in the locker room after a bad game in the NFL, but as a public official it’s his responsibility to come clean with North Carolina families."
Cockeyed former Tennessee Vol/Redskin/Raider/Saint quarterback Heath Shuler, among the House's most moderate-to-conservative Democrats, called out House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Leader Harry Reid for what he calls their "failed" bipartisanship on the pending stimulus package.
"In order for us to get the confidence of America, it has to be done in a bipartisan way. We have to have everyone — Democrats and Republicans standing on the stage with the administration — saying, 'We got something done that was efficient, stimulative and timely.' I truly feel that's where maybe House leadership and Senate leadership have really failed."
Thrush speculates that this is an effort by Shuler to inoculate himself from the liberal, left-wing of the party to position himself for the 2010 NC US Senate race.
"Pistol" – that’s what they called Pete Maravich years ago when he was lighting up opponents in the SEC. After last night’s performance by Kentucky junior Jodie Meeks at Tennessee, it would appear he might be a worthy successor to that nickname.
Meeks scored 54 points on the Vols last night, sinking 10 3-pointers and hitting all 14 of his free throws along the way. It is the single greatest scoring game by a Kentucky player – ever.
That’s saying something, considering all that is Kentucky: you know, the all-time winningest program in NCAA history, seven national championships, and on and on and on …. Meeks’ performance put him one better than Dan Issel’s 53 against Ole Miss in 1970, and Dan Issel is widely considered the best player to ever have played at UK. Of course, Issel also had games of 51, 47, 44 and 42 during the 1970 season. I write that not to diminish Meeks’ performance – to the contrary, I think it illustrates just how good of a player Meeks passed last night.
Perhaps as important is to note that Meeks hot streak wasn’t some isolated freak occurrence – Meeks has been on fire all year long. He rang up 39 points in the season opener against VMI, laid 37 on Kansas State, went off for 46 against Appalachian State, and scored 28 on Louisville, including seven points in the final 50 seconds to tie the game. All this after basically not playing last year because of injury.
By their own lofty standards, the past couple of seasons have been down years for UK. They’re currently not ranked, and if you asked most college basketball fans, I think the consensus before last night would have been that the Wildcats aren’t serious players on the national scene. But with a weak SEC schedule ahead of them and not one, but two great scorers (don’t forget about man-child Patrick Patterson, who’s averaging close to a double-double), the perception about this team will likely begin to shift. Come March, the Cats will likely be positioned to make some noise in the tournament.
Description: It's time we all rally around Lane Kiffin in the only way we possibly can before the next season begins. By pointing out that his wife is hotter than your coach's wife.
Clearly this will ultimately translate to SEC Championships on the field.
In related news, former Howard Stern lackey KC Armstrong was named Vols coach.
My apologies for the lateness of this week’s entry. Much like Phil Fulmer and Ron Prince, I’m a short-timer in my current job. (Unlike them, I’m pulling a Nick Saban and heading for greener pastures of my own accord.) But as a result, I’m suddenly being inundated with requests for “work” and “information,” which has greatly cut into my writing time. As such, this will be an abbreviated version of The Guide this week. But, like most coaches on a short leash, I promise that next week will be better.
1. Rocky Bottom
I wrote about Phil Fulmer losing his job last week and, while I hate to pick on a guy while he’s down, I wouldn’t be doing my job of writing about bad football if I didn’t at least note the Volunteers’ 13-7 loss to Wyoming last weekend. As one local newspaper columnist put it, “UT Stands for Utter Travesty.” Others said it was the worst UT loss in more than 30 years, if not longer. Let me put this as gently as I can. They lost at home. On Homecoming. To Wyoming. You know, dead last in scoring offense and 112th in total offense Wyoming? You know, held to seven points or less five times this season Wyoming? As much fun as we all made of Michigan’s loss to Appalachian State last year, this one is way worse. Appalachian State, while a small I-AA team, was at least a good team. I can’t say remotely the same about Wyoming. Or Tennessee.
Mainstream sportswriters have lots of critical comments (some deserved) about sports bloggers. But the most common is that, as opposed to traditional news outlets, bloggers “aren’t accountable, their information doesn’t have to be factual, they can just put it out there and criticize and never have to be questioned about it.” Well, if that’s the case, the Kansas City Star’s Jason Whitlock would make one hell of a blogger.
As the Wiz of Odds first noted, earlier this week, Notre Dame head coach Charlie Weis announced that he would be taking over playcalling duties from offensive coordinator Mike Haywood. Whitlock went ballistic, calling Weis “a bully and a coward” and accusing the rotund coach of “throw[ing] his offensive coordinator under the bus.”
Just one small problem with Whitlock’s theory: Haywood won’t be calling the plays because he’s not with the team this week following a death in the family.
Look, I’m not by any means a Charlie Weis or Notre Dame fan. Personally, I think they’re perfect for each other—smug, egomaniacal, overpaid and an overinflated sense of worth. But then I could say the same about certain sportswriters.
Whitlock at work on another hard-hitting piece of investigative journalism.
4. Rooting for the Good Guys
In honor of Veteran’s Day this week, I thought I should mention that the service academies are quietly putting together some pretty good teams. Navy, even without Paul Johnson at the helm, are 6-3 and have a realistic shot at a nine-win season (remaining games vs. Notre Dame, @ Northern Illinois and vs. Army). Air Force is flying high (pun intended) at 8-2 and, in a normal year in which Utah, TCU and BYU were not all top-20 teams, would be competing for the MWC title. And Army, well, they’re 3-7. But they’re still more man than you or I. So to all of our cadets, service men and women and veterans, a big thank you for all that you do.
No matter who gets the Commander in Chief’s Trophy, the U.S. of A. is the big winner.
U.S. Rep. Heath Shuler is not yet sworn into his second term, but some Democrats hope he sets his sights two years from now on a run for the Senate.
That election would pit Democratic nominee Shuler, a star quarterback at Swain County High School and the University of Tennessee, against U.S. Sen. Richard Burr, who played defensive back at Wake Forest.
You know you’ve officially entered some kind of weird parallel universe when, on the same day of Nebraska/Oklahoma and Florida/Georgia, you actually hear the phrase, "College Gameday, live from Lubbock, Texas."
Lee Corso with firearms. Be very afraid.
Fortunately, that game actually lived up to the hype, shaking up the top of the football landscape with some last second Michael Crabtree heroics. I wish I could say the same for the rest of the football world.
1. Don’t Go Away Mad, Just Go Away
How bad do people have to think you are that they’re willing to pay $6 million to make you go away? That’s the case with Phil Fulmer, who will be cashing a nice fat severance check from the Vols boosters as payment for not coming around anymore. Is Tennessee making the right move? Too soon to tell, although you have to wonder when your former offensive coordinator says, "No thanks, I’d rather stay at Duke." All I know is that I’m in the wrong line of work—the last time I left a job, the most I got out of it were some "liberated" office supplies and a 401K that’s now worth less than when I started.
Don’t Come Around Here No More.
And on that note . . .
2. If Your AD Says He Has Good News, Run.
It used to be that the worst thing you could receive as the head coach was the dreaded "vote of confidence" from your athletic director. It was the kiss of death. But now there’s a new harbinger of doom—the contract extension. Just in the last couple of days, Phil Fulmer at Tennessee and Ron Prince at Kansas State were forced out—just months after signing new long-term deals. Sure, those multi-million dollar buyout clauses cushion the blow, but I’m sure it’s still not they way they want to go out. So if you ever get an offer to coach D-1 football, sign your initial contract and then hide from your AD for the next few years.
If you’ve gotta go, make sure to pack your golden parachute.
3. The Red Dawn of the Maize and Blue
Michigan will not be bowl eligible for a bowl game this season, ending a streak of 33 straight bowling years. But not to worry—if my radical right-winger friends are right and Obama’s election is just Phase One of the creeping Communist conspiracy to take over America, the Wolverines will rise again.
4. Who Needs a Diploma When You’ve Got BCS Bowl Losses?
After last week’s blowout loss to Oklahoma, Nebraska head coach Bo Pelini admitted that he sometimes has problems controlling his emotions on the sideline.
Gee, ya think?
6. Movember’s Poster Child
In honor of Movember, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the month’s patron saint—Dave Wannstedt—and his epic quadruple overtime victory over Notre Dame last Sunday. The Pitt Panthers overcame three interceptions of their own and three TD passes by ND QB Jimmy Clausen to force overtime. From there, it became a kicking battle, with each team trading field goals until ND missed a 38 yarder in the 4th overtime, giving Pitt the chance for the game-winning field goal.
Pitt is now bowl eligible for the first time since 2004, thus demonstrating the power of the Mo.
Geno: "I think she should just come out and say she's not playing us because she hates my guts. And I think people would buy that. Then everyone [who seeks a reason] would be happy. She should just say that [Geno is] a dope, a smart-ass and then everyone could say that they agree with her."
