College Football Open Thread: Wherein Oregon State Gets A New Logo
Andrew Weber-US Presswire
Quick alert: Saturday Blitz will have a daily open thread, in which we share tidbits across the web as the day progresses. Check in here for some of the quirkier stories of the day, as we update the thread constantly, and feel free to comment. Each morning, we’ll give you five links to start off your day.
Oregon State’s New Logo Leaked?
Kyle Kensing: 5:09 p.m.
Thanks to Beaver Byte, we get a look at what might be the new Oregon State logo:
The Beaver OSU sported until the late 1990s was a happy-go-lucky fella with a Faber College style Rush Week cap. The cap was ditched in the more aggressive Bucky we’ve come to know since 1997.
Arizona’s Rich Rodriguez Gets A Raise
Carlos Sandoval: 3:05 p.m
According to FOX Sports, the Wildcats’ head coach received a nice raise and a one-year contract extension:
"Rich Rodriguez is a little richer.After leading Arizona to an 8-5 season in his first year in Tucson, Rodriguez this week received a one-year contract extension and a raise of $225,000, according to the Arizona Republic."
It’s likely a raise well-deserved, because Arizona saw dramatic improvement under Rodriguez’s tutelage. They finished the season with an 8-5 record while also producing one of the Pac-12’s most potent offenses. Prior to Matt Scott’s concussion vs. USC, they were also the leading passing offense in the country. Additionally, Ka’Deem Carey was one of the nation’s top rushers and received All-America honors across the board.
While the Wildcats are losing a lot of talent, we’re sure they’ll be just fine under RichRod.
Paterno Family Releases Report, No Surprises
Carlos Sandoval: 3:00 p.m.
The Paterno released its report that directly counters and criticizes the Freeh report, and there were no surprises.
In essence, the report dismisses the Freeh report because it is “uniformly biased” against Joe Paterno, and it suggests that there was nothing done by Paterno that wasn’t a “gray area.” Additionally, the report lambastes the NCAA for taking such quick action in response to the Freeh report, despite the report — as the Paterno report claims — being built solely off of shoddy and flighty evidence.
If you want to read the whole thing, go here, but there really isn’t anything that is new that you haven’t heard from various Penn State fans. As I previously stated, the only thing this will accomplish is the rallying of the Paterno die-hards to further confirm any and all beliefs they had regarding skepticism of the Freeh report.
And thus, don’t expect anything to change from here on out. It was clear that this report was going to serve the interests of the Paterno family to save face, a far-too-obvious move. If the report had confirmed Paterno’s involvement in the Jerry Sandusky scandal, then the entire project would have been thrown out the window many, many months ago.
Such is the demon of reputation though, and it’s clear the Paterno family will go the extra mile to repair Joe’s.
Morning Links
Carlos Sandoval: 6:30 a.m.
Kennedy Polamalu Out As USC’s Running Backs Coach/Offensive Coordinator – Reign of Troy.
The crew at Reign of Troy discusses the departure of long-time running backs coach and offensive coordinator Kennedy Polamalu, making it the fourth coach that USC will not be returning for 2013. Players also voice their concern over Twitter.
An Update On The Utah Offensive Coordinator Gig – Hoyo’s Revenge.
MAC discusses some updates on Utah’s search for a new offensive coordinator, and names from Dennis Erickson — yes, that Dennis Erickson — to Billy Gonzales have emerged. Nothing is solid yet, and there’s conflicting reports.
The University of Miami (FL) Loses Its Running Backs Coach – Canes Warning.
Miami running backs coach Terry Richardson became the third Al Golden assistant to depart the program this offseason, and will take a gig with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Richardson was also the Florida recruiting coordinator for the Hurricanes.
Alabama OL coach Jeff Stoutland Leaves For Philadelphia Eagles – Bama Hammer.
Alabama lost its OL coach Jeff Stoutland, a major force in putting together one of the greatest offensive lines in program history, according to editor Tony Breland. The irony here is that Stoutland will join Eagles’ head coach Chip Kelly, the former Oregon head coach and the absolute antithesis to Nick Saban.
A Way Too Early Look At The Big 12 Title Contenders In 2013 – Stormin’ in Norman.
FanSided’s Oklahoma site looks at the possible contenders for the 2013 season way, way, way too early. Spoiler: Texas is listed as a “dark horse.”