ABC26 Sports

I am trying to figure out how Utah is going to pull the upset of Alabama in the AllState Sugar Bowl. And, then I run across this stat: Rushing TD's Bama 32, Opponents 4.

For much of 2008, Alabama had the edge at the line of scrimmage and that has propelled the Tide to a 12-1 ranking and a #4 national ranking.

Here's more: Bama nose tackle Terrence Cody checks in at 365 pounds. Utah's pair of starting defensive tackles weigh 245 and 260 pounds.

Alabama running back Glen Coffee averages 6.1 yards per carry.

Undefeated Utah has had an incredible season. The 12-0 Utes routed BYU in the their final regular season game. They can also claim a 31-28 win over Sun Bowl champ Oregon State. But, Friday Night, the Utes will get a big taste of SEC football, and that size and speed of the interior players for Alabama will be the difference.

Bama wins, and if they get off to a quick start, maybe big.

So much of bowl games is about the team that is motivated. Utah fit that mold in the Sugar Bowl, much to the chagrin of Alabama.

The Utes finished off an unbeaten season with a 31-17 win over Alabama.

Utah took control of the game with 21 points in the first quarter. Quarterback Brian Johnson was outstanding. From the opening series he carved up the Alabama secondary with quick passes.

Bama got back in the game by pressuring Johnson with more blitzes. Javier Arenas also returned a punt 73 yards for a second quarter Bama touchdown.

The difference in this game was this: Utah was able to get out front early, forcing a change in the Bama game plan. Alabama is not a passing team. The Tide is a running team that relies on play action passing from quarterback John Parker Wilson.

Wilson played poorly. He missed a wide open Nakita Stover by 5 yards on what would have been a touchdown pass in the first quarter.

After watching the game, I can say that Utah was better than I thought and Alabama was not as good. Tide head coach Nick Saban and his staff "maxed out" this Alabama team with 12 wins this season.

A source at UNO said today that elimination of athletics at the school is only a "doomsday" scenario.

ABC 26 Sports obtained a memo sent to LSU systems president Dr John Lombardi from UNO chancellor Tim Ryan. In it Ryan says, "we will look at significant reductions in the University budget. Those will include program reductions, elimination of degree programs, and cutting other areas of the University such as intercollegiate athletics."

That last sentence has nonetheless created quite a stir. Today, UNO athletic director Jim Miller said there is "belt tightening statewide. This is not a time to panic."

A source in the LSU system said any "drastic cuts" would be only a draconian measure as officials statewide ready for budgets cuts expected at the start of the fiscal year July 1st.

Miller will meet with his coaches tomorrow morning to explain the school's position.

Bottom line: only a budget cut of about 30 percent across the board will likely trigger any draconian cuts, including the elimination of athletics at the University of New Orleans.

Considering the importance of the game, January 6th, 2009 at Los Angeles may have been David West's best game as a Hornet.

On his way to tying his career high, West did not hesitate. He shot the ball decisively, and when he is making his jump shot, he is as tough a power forward in the Western Conference.

The 116-105 win against the Lakers was a statement game. The Hornets were already routed twice at home by the Lakers at New Orleans Arena this season.

Chris Paul was outstanding. He controlled the game with his drives, finishes, and kick outs to West, who in turn gave Pau Gasol a hoops lesson.

A key to this game. Lamar Odom left the game early with a knee injury. His length on defense, has in the past bothered West. But, tonight D-West was money as the Hornets get their biggest win of the season.

Ed Daniels
12:30 am Wed 1 7 09

Congrats are in order for the Saints and much of their fan base. They have identified the problem, and eliminated him.

The Saints have fired defensive coordinator Gary Gibbs. Finally, the minions can rejoice and sleep easy. Problem solved!

Really? It was obvious late in the 2006 season that the Saints had issues defensively. In the NFC championship game, the Bears, at one point, ran the ball on 10 consecutive plays to score a touchdown. So, what did the Saints do the following April? Draft wide receiver Robert Meachem in the first round. Three of the first four picks in the 2007 draft were offensive players.

Last April, the Saints finally got busy on defense drafting nose tackle Sedrick Ellis and cornerback Tracy Porter with the first two selections. Both may be very good players, but injuries and inexperience limited their production in 2008.

Face it: the Saints don't have a defensive playmaker on the field. Their two big money guys, Charles Grant and Will Smith underperformed in 2008. Did Gary Gibbs give those guys $46 million in guaranteed money? Why wasn't outgoing line coach Ed Orgeron blamed for the failures of the Saints defensive line?

This offseason, Saints fans pointed to Green Bay and Houston firing their defensive coordinators as proof that the Saints needed make such a move. But, Green Bay and Houston have playmakers. The Packers have end Aaron Kampmann, cornerback Rod Woodson, and linebacker AJ Hawk. Houston has end Mario Williams, tackle Amobi Okoye, and cornerback Dunta Robinson.

The Saints have no such players.

When linebacker Jonathan Vilma is your best player on defense, you aren't good enough. Vilma had a fine year, is a solid veteran, and a good tackler. But he is not a difference maker.

I keep hearing that Gibbs' defense was too simple. That the Saints needed to blitz more. Really? Leave the Saints corners in man coverage?

Last year , secondary coach Tom Hayes walked the plank. This year, Gary Gibbs. Sean Payton and Mickey Loomis are running out of scapegoats.

But, in the short term , the Saints fan base rejoices. Gibbs gone, problem solved.

The trade deadline approaches. In 5 weeks and 2 days (February 19th) the Hornets have to decide if they roll the dice and make a big deal, or sit still and hope that the Hornets team that beat the Lakers in Los Angeles is the team that shows up in the playoffs.

That is a big maybe. And, if the Hornets do make a big deal, center Tyson Chandler would likely be in it. Who else could the Hornets trade? Peja Stojakovic earns $10.9 million this season, with the price escalating for 2 more years. Chris Paul? Forget it. David West? Unlikely, considering that West is the only low post scoring the Hornets have. Not only is West an outstanding player, but: his contract numbers go down over the final three years of his deal. In other words, the Hornets are getting David West in his prime for a very good price. That leaves only Tyson Chandler as the real trade bait that could allow the Hornets to somehow pick up another outstanding player.

Trading Chandler would be a huge risk. Centers are very hard to find. And, would you trade the only true rebounder on a team that ranks 28th in rebounding out of 30 teams? Chandler averages 8.0 rebounds per game, David West 7.5. If Chandler goes, who guards Tim Duncan, Yao Ming, or Andrew Bynum in the playoffs?

Hornets General Manager Jeff Bower is a low key guy, but he's not afraid to make deals. The Hornets spent big in free agency on Peja, picked up Tyson Chandler in a trade from Chicago, and made a deal for Bonzi Wells from Houston last year at the deadline.

Bower isn't afraid to make deals, but if he deals Chandler he is taking a giant risk.

Sometimes the best deals are the ones you don't make.

Maybe they can turn it on in late April and continue it through early June. But, in the meantime the Hornets have too many games where they appear uninterested.

The Celtics were in the exact same situation tonight at home against the Toronto Raptors. Boston trailed in the third quarter, before the fired up Celtics rallied for a 115-109 victory.

The Hornets do two things that, for me, don't add up to playoff success. That is they don't rebound the ball well, and they are spotty defensively. Center Tyson Chandler is their best rebounder, but even with Chandler, New Orleans started the night 28th in rebounding in a 30 team league. Don't let the Hornets 52-45 edge tonight on the boards fool you. New York had two many second chance points.

Defensively, the Hornets have too many lapses. The Knicks had cart blanche in the lane against a passive New Orleans defense.

With a little more than five weeks to go before the deadline, GM Jeff Bower and head coach Byron Scott have this decision to make: Do we, a team that doesn't rebound well, trade one of our quality pieces (Tyson Chandler ) to shake up our team and attempt to get better.

Guard Jannero Pargo, playing now in Russia is an option, but if he were to get his release from FIBA, Pargo would be a free agent. The Hornets would be adding salary to a team that is already over the salary cap.

Ed Daniels
11:32 pm
Monday night
January 12

The LSU Tigers open the new Alex Box stadium Friday night February 20th against Villanova. LSU coach Paul Mainieri said the Tigers hope to practice at the new stadium in 10 days to 2 weeks. Here's the projected starting lineup for the Tigers on opening night:

Center field Leon Landry
Shortstop D.J. LeMahieu
Left field Blake Dean
Catcher Micah Gibbs
First Base Sean Ochinko
Right field Jared Mitchell
Second base Ryan Schimpf
Third base Derek Helenihi
DH undecided but spot could be filled by
true freshman Mikie Mahtook
Starting pitcher Louis Coleman

Coleman will go to the bullpen for the rest of the season, but Mainieri said he will get the opening night start because as a senior he has earned it. Plus, Mainieri said he wants an experienced pitcher to pitch the first game at the new Box.

Ed Daniels
5:09 pm

The Saints have landed their man. New defensive coordinator Gregg Williams has been hired to "fix" a unit that has played poorly the last two seasons.

If he doesn't, head coach Sean Payton and general manager Mickey Loomis will be on the clock.

Last off season, the team fired personnel chief Rick Mueller. This month, defensive coordinator Gary Gibbs got the boot. If WIlliams can't master a defensive turnaround, Payton and Loomis should be next in line.

There's two schools on Williams. One: he's an outstanding coach with an attacking scheme that will spell immediate improvement. Williams has a ton of experience. And, he didn't come cheaply. In Washington, he was signed to a three year , $8 million dollar deal to coordinate the Skins defense.

School two is this: With better players at Jacksonville than the Saints in '08, the Jaguars were actually ranked one spot lower than the Saints in pass defense. The Saints were 23rd, the Jaguars 24th. In 2006, the Redskins finished 31st in the NFL in defense. Greg Blache then took over the Washington defense. Said Blache of the transition, "We will have fewer packages because this is about the players. This is not about building the perfect castle, of whatever."

Williams inherits a defensive roster with lots of money tied up , up front (Charles Grant, Sedrick Ellis, and Will Smith) that has been unable to get consistent pressure up front. The Saints linebackers are as a group, adequate. The secondary is poor.

The Saints don't appear to be big players this year in free agency, they have only four draft picks (1, two 4's, and 7) . And, the head coach loves to throw the football, which keeps the defense on the field longer.

Let's hope Gregg Williams has the answers. If he does, the Saints can make the playoffs. If he doesn't , then it is time to hold the head coach and general manager accountable.

Ed Daniels

Over the course of 30 years, I have been to more than my share of press conferences introducing new coaches. Some impress you more than others: the group I met Friday at LSU: defensive coordinator John Chavis, d-line coach Brick Haley, and secondary coach Ron Cooper are an impressive group.

Chavis has a ton of experience: 14 years at an SEC heavyweight (Tennessee) . He knows the league inside and out. And, Chavis says one thing he won't be is a stand around coach. He will find out what his players can and cannot do. Too much confusion was standard operating procedure in the 2008 LSU defense. Chavis was hired to fix that.

Ron Cooper is a former college head coach. I think he will be a very solid recruiter, as will defensive line coach Brick Haley. Haley comes the Bears, so he has NFL experience, always a good thing. Both Haley and Cooper talked about discipline. They appear to be good fits.

LSU opened the checkbook for all three. As poor as LSU's quarterback play was for most of the season, the most shocking aspect of '08 was the collapse of a once proud LSU defense.

I think Les Miles is on the way to a fix.

Ed Daniels
Baton Rouge, LA

Let me just say right off the top. I am impressed with Gregg Williams. He seems like a very smart, prepared coach.

But, to think that his presence alone will turn around the Saints defense is shear folly.

The reason the Saints haven't been able to stop the opposition consistently since the 2006 playoffs is simple: they don't have good enough players.

I asked Williams if he has the players in the secondary to play an attacking style of defense? He told me he has yet to look at enough tape to make any true evaluations.

Was Williams a good hire? Probably. Is he a coach with credentials? Absolutely.

But, the true solution is better athletes on defense. I'll put the coronation of Gregg Williams as the answer to all the Saints problems on defense, on hold, for awhile.

Ed Daniels
3:30 pm 1/20/09

Suddenly LSU basketball is back. The Tigers won over South Carolina by 17, at Ole Miss by 32 points, and tonight by 24 against Mississippi State.

This was an impressive win by LSU. The Tigers beat a State team that had won five in a row, and was 3-0 in the SEC West.

In his first season, Trent Johnson has his Tigers playing tough defense. But, Johnson also has something that John Brady did not a year ago. Tasmin Mitchell was out, and LSU greatly felt his loss.

The Tigers schedule thus far has been soft. But that changes in the next week. Saturday night, LSU hosts nationally ranked Xavier. And , on Wednesday the 28th , the Tigers are at Tennessee.

Ed Daniels

It did not look good at the half. The Hornets were down 47-40 to Philadelphia. The Hornets inside game was non existent. Hilton Armstrong and Sean Marks played poorly. They couldn't even finish easy chances.

Again, Chris Paul came to the rescue. Paul's 27 point, 15 assists, 7 steals, 10 rebounds game was one of his alltime best. And that is saying something. Paul was superb. It was like Paul's 5th triple double of the season. It was incredible stuff.

Peja also shot the ball as well as he has all season long. When he does that, the Hornets are tough to beat. Peja has made 17 three's in the last 4 games.

Ryan Bowen also contributed 7 1/2 solid minutes off the bench. For the 27-14 Hornets without David West and Tyson Chandler , it was a very good win.

Ed Daniels

Tulane head football coach Bob Toledo would like to sign a junior college player, or two. But, he knows at Tulane that is not possible, at least in football.

Toledo said, "it is virtually impossible to get a junior college player, we don't accept some of their units. And, a kid is not going to come here and lose a year of credits. He would rather go somewhere else."

Toledo said he is quote "not a big junior college guy" , but a few exceptions might help the Tulane football program.

Think about it. At LSU, the Tigers had a need at wide receiver and signed Demetrius Byrd. Byrd was a big producer in 2007.

Next Wednesday, on signing day, watch and see how many jucos are signed by Conference USA schools. I keep hearing from Tulane fans, "we should be able to compete in this league." It sounds good, but the coach at Tulane knows that jucos give his opposition an edge.

Ed Daniels

I attended the press conference for new St Aug head coach David Johnson today at the school.

The 37 year old Johnson is an impressive individual. A graduate of John F Kennedy high school class of 1989, Johnson spent the last four years at Millsaps College in Jackson. He was wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator.

Johnson was at St Aug for fall practice in 2005. Before the Hurricane he was on the staff of head coach Tyrone Payne.

Johnson has several obstacles to overcome to get St Aug back to the top of the Catholic League. One, he has increased competition in Gentilly with the arrival of the new Holy Cross school.

He has a smaller pool of schools and students to choose from. The feeder schools that fed St Aug were greatly impacted by Katrina. School officials said today that the enrollment for grades 10 thru 12 is 387. Pre Katrina it was 610.

School policy is also an issue. St Aug's policy is this: an F grade in any subject at the end of the quarter eliminates a student from any extracurricular activity.

Principal father John Raphael said the school's "moral obligation" is to educate. No argument here, but such a policy could make life tougher for the school's football coach.

David Johnson said he will retain three of the current assistants, including defensive coordinator Delphrine Lee, and wide receivers coach Brandon Smith.

Ed Daniels
St Augustine HS
Friday January 30