Making the morning rounds.
? Reno 911. Nevada! You're coming off the biggest win, new school records for wins and final poll ranking and an invitation to a new conference. What are you going to do next?
"We're going to drop out of Division I due to extreme budget cuts!"
It hasn't come to that yet, but the Wolf Pack's D-I status may be in serious jeopardy after the athletic department announced a $1.5 million cut in state-appropriate funds as part of a $59 million reduction across the university for 2012-13. The cut puts the Pack "right on the line of a few things," according to athletic director Cary Groth, including available funds for scholarships: Nevada currently pays out $4.6 million a year to all athletes, not far above the $4 million minimum the NCAA requires of Division I programs. "We're already pretty bare-boned as is," Groth said. "It's hard to know where that money is going to come from." [Reno Journal Gazette]
? One day at a time. Quarterback Stephen Garcia's latest suspension from South Carolina will last through the rest of the spring semester, according to coach Steve Spurrier, at which point the school will begin considering the status of the SEC's reigning wild child for the fall. Garcia's been through this routine before, in 2008, when he was suspended from the university altogether following his third alcohol-related arrest in a little over a year, forcing him to meet a list of stringent standards over the summer before being allowed to return.
If he gets that much rope again after suspension No. 5, it will only be by the grace —�or perhaps desperation —�of the OBC. "If he's back, he's back," Spurrier said Wednesday. "If he's not back, really it's the same thing as maybe a guy getting hurt, a guy going pro, whatever. Players come and go, as we all know. This incident should never have happened, but it did. This is where we are." [Charleston Post & Courier]
? And I was so looking forward to Kiffin defending himself in open court. USC announced a joint settlement Wednesday with the Tennessee Titans, which initially sued the university last summer over coach Lane Kiffin's stealthy (and successful) attempt to hire away Titans assistant Kennedy Pola just days before the start of training camp. The terms of the settlement are private, but described by both sides as "amicable." [Associated Press]
? Golden tongue. Asked to compare the relative lack of bodies lately at Miami games to the unflagging fan base at certain other universities in the state, new Hurricane coach Al Golden unsheathes an acid wit in this week's edition of Sports Illustrated: "I know this — we have a better chance of filling our stadium than Gainesville has of putting an international city right outside its city limits." And that, young 'Canes, is how you USE YOUR WEAPON!!! Now: To actually do enough on the field to make the Gators remember that when they rotate back onto the schedule in two years. [South Florida Sun-Sentinel]
? You've let the entire marching band down. Surprising no one, Southern University officially fired athletic director David LaFleur Wednesday on the heels of his weekend arrest for allegedly soliciting an undercover police officer for sex in downtown Houston. LaFleur, a former LSU and NFL tight end, was reportedly in town to network the Final Four crowd in search of a new men's basketball coach; his job will now be filled on an interim basis by Southern's women's basketball coach, Sandy Pugh. [Associated Press]
Quickly… The Big Ten schedule somehow prevents Michigan and Wisconsin from playing for the next four years. (Although Nebraska certainly isn't complaining.) … A judge sends the case of four Auburn players accused of armed robbery on to a grand jury. … ESPN unveils a page for fans to find out if their cable network is carrying the Longhorn Network, or request it to. … Manti Te'o is likely out for Notre Dame's spring game. … The battle rages to become Alabama's new left tackle. … Tennessee might want to consider working on its minus-four-minute situations. … Former Oklahoma transfer Jameel Owens is leaving Tulsa. … Michigan's new scoreboard is going to be bigger than a blue whale. … Jay Paterno gets hypothetical on 7-on-7 tournaments. … And Michael Floyd is still having fun at teammates' expense.
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Matt Hinton is on Twitter: Follow him @DrSaturday.
Hilary Swank Whitney Port Minka Kelly Carol Grow Erika Christensen
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