Memphis is the first No. 1 team outside of the major conferences since St. Joe’s back in 2004. To get that top billing, the Tigers had to wait for the North Carolina Tar Heels to lose – which they finally did two weeks ago to Maryland (+18).

The Heels weren’t the only victims that week. The UCLA Bruins (-12) lost to USC, while Texas A&M (-9) was stunned by Baylor in five overtimes. Bad things do happen to good teams sometimes. It has taken the Aggies some time to jell under Mark Turgeon, but he says their big 59-56 win at Oklahoma State (+1.5) was a unifying moment in his first year at College Station.

UNC happened to run into one of the best defenses in the nation, shooting 38 percent against the stingy Terps; UCLA just seemed to fall apart at the end against the Trojans. Mistakes were made, and even the best make them.

The goal of the NHL is to eventually land a lucrative US television contract- hell, it doesn’t even have to be lucrative at this point, any US T.V. will do. How about the Cartoon Network?

So why not help the cause at a grass-roots level? In virtually all the new southern US NHL cities, youth hockey has exploded. Kids love the game. They get it. Unlike their parents who may not have had as much exposure to the game, the kids don’t need to have the puck high-lited by a blue circle on television in order to know what’s happening with the play.
By this measure then, if youth hockey is expanding in the South why wouldn’t NCAA get on board and help further the cause of the sport?

Given the immense popularity of college sports in the US, coupled with the fact that many of these fans follow the college stars when they hit the big leagues, wouldn’t it be prudent to get some southern NCAA hockey going?

The NCAA’s annual convention wrapped up last week without a decision on whether to overhaul the current Bowl Championship Series and have the college football champions decided in a playoff. The matter will continue to not be decided on in the boardroom.

It’s understandable if the NCAA doesn’t want to tinker with a system that, however ungainly, generates an incredibly lucrative bowl season. That lucre won’t be flowing as freely if the national champions lose credibility. Many fans – especially those from Georgia – don’t think highly about the LSU Tigers getting into the BCS Championship Game with two losses.

No matter what system college puts in place, there will be those on the outside looking in who believe they were snubbed. But the NCAA is probably not thinking about the teams. They’re thinking about how to protect the reputation of college football. A playoff system and a shorter regular season would be a good start.

Bobby Knight’s legacy of chair throwing is going the way of short shorts and set shots. The NCAA has decided to enforce its rules on bench decorum a little more strictly. That decision rubbed some of the game’s more colorful coaches the wrong way – none more than Wagner College’s Mike Deane. He  straps himself in with a seat belt to avoid leaving the coaching box and earning a technical foul.

It’s worked so far. Deane has just one technical this year, in a road game where he didn’t bring his restraining device. Every point counts; the Seahawks (12-4 and on top of the Northeast Conference) have won twice by a single point and beat Loyola Marymount in overtime. These are critical wins in a conference where six teams have a better efficiency rating than No. 243 Wagner.

The seat belt might not be the most elegant anger management solution, but at least Deane hasn’t installed air bags.

March Madness is still a couple of months away but it’s never too early to take out that bracket and to consider the possible matchups going into the upcoming NCAA Tournament. Are you ready? Selection Sunday takes place March 15th.

Every year the NCAA Selection Committee gathers around some dusty old boardroom table in an effort to pick 65 of the best men’s college basketball teams. And every year they inevitably face the public and media scrutiny for at least a few of their selections, omissions and seedings. Once the final selections have been made…that’s when the real fun begins.

Filling out your bracket

Bracketology is the process of predicting the field of the NCAA Basketball Tournament. It isn’t an exact science or anything…it’s all about predicting how the NCAA Selection Committee will drum up its roster of 65 teams so that you can fill out your bracket. (Apparently, Joe Lunardi of ESPN was the firs to use “bracketology”. )

But before you can predict which teams will make the cut, you need to get your hands on a fresh clean bracket. You won’t want to use last year’s raggedy old thing…that one’s all busted up, remember?

Here’s what’s on tap for the top five teams on the college polls this week.

North Carolina (15-0 SU, 11-2 ATS): A cupcake game against NC-Asheville, then an only slightly tougher opponent in N.C. State (3-8 ATS).

Memphis (13-0 SU, 6-5-2 ATS): Just about every game in Conference USA is a cupcake for the Tigers. They get East Carolina on Wednesday and Marshall on Saturday.

Kansas (14-0 SU, 9-3 ATS): The Jayhawks should be tested a little on Saturday as they visit Nebraska. The Cornhuskers are 10-0 at home and crushed Arizona State back in December.

Washington State (13-0 SU, 8-4 ATS): Hell Week for Wazzu: at USC on Thursday, at UCLA on Sunday. The Bruins are 7-0 SU and 4-2 ATS since losing to Texas.

UCLA (14-1 SU, 8-4-2 ATS): The Bruins warm up for the Cougars by welcoming Washington. The Huskies are on a 4-1 SU and ATS run as they recover from a slow start.

It’s never too early to look ahead to what 2008 holds for college sports. Think of it like the Distant Early Warning system; those blips on the radar could be weather balloons. Or it could be Red Dawn. These 10 picks are your heads-up for the New Year.

Basketball: New Mexico and Drake. These two teams, from the two best conferences outside the six recognized majors, are a combined 22-3 SU and 18-2 ATS. New Mexico is No. 21 on the efficiency charts; Drake is No. 22. And both clubs were passed over during the preseason predictions.

Football: Florida Atlantic (Rusty Smith), USC (Mark Sanchez), Clemson (Cullen Harper) and Cincinnati (Dustin Grutza) all have quarterbacks who are on the verge of making the big leap in 2008.

Baseball: Arizona State, Michigan, Baylor and Miami. College baseball betting is virgin ground for many bettors; these four top-shelf programs are all on the rise and could dominate a quiet marketplace.