Take a look at the best players and games and the predictions for the second half of the season.

This was recently written in Cal Berkeley's student newspaper, the Daily Californian:

"The Bears should not only beat the Trojans in five weeks--they should crush them"

The only argument used was that USC had trouble with Arizona State and Cal did not. Well I wonder if the Daily Californian knows anything about how team play and matchups can vary every single week. Even though USC crushed teams in the beginning, and has had recent trouble, it does not mean their play has suffered. They are figuring themselves out. Future stars have emerged in the process.

Cal would have to agree a team's play will change throughout the season as mistakes are made and lessons are learned (hint- Tennessee) (double hint- near loss to UW).

Second year Coach Charlie Weis seems to be more than content at Notre Dame. "Everyone knows I'm staying here until they fire me or I die... I'm here for life," Weis candidly admitted after a recent practice.

Speculation is that NFL teams are showing a growing interest in Weis, a former New England Offensive Coordinator who helped the Patriots win 3 Superbowl rings.

Brady Quinn delivered in the waning minutes to secure a last minute rally to defeat UCLA, 20-17. Quinn did the very thing Matt Leinart and USC did to him the year prior, marching down the length of the field for the comeback win.

With the NBA season less than 2 weeks away, Brian Cook and Aaron McKie are the latest Lakers to show up on the injury list. It seems like almost the entire team will be limping through the starting gates this season.

Kobe Bryant has not started preseason play because of an offseason knee surgery while Chris Mihm is still out because of nagging ankle problems. Kwame Brown is sidelined at the moment with a sprained right shoulder.

Even Coach Phil Jackson is recovering right now after hip replacement surgery.

You probably haven't heard of Colt Brennan. Why? Because he's in a small conference (WAC), on a team that is 2,200 miles from the mainland, and the rest of college football nation.



Brennan, of the University of Hawaii Warriors, has accumulated 2,271 yards and 23 TDs after only 6 games. In the Warrior's last game against Fresno State, Brennan threw for 409 yards and 5 touchdowns (and he only played for 3 Quarters!).

Should Brennan win the Heisman? Probably not. But he should definitely get some mention with the rest of the mainland players.

Wondering who should win the Heisman?

Troy Smith?

Adrian Peterson?

Nope. The answer is Garrett Wolfe from rarely mentioned Northern Illinois.

Some Stats:

1,343 Yards rushing (avg. 224 yds/game)

15 TD

285 total yards against #1 Ohio State (171 rush, 114 pass)

Last season Steve Aponavicius was sitting in the stands, decorated in face paint and cheering on the Boston College Eagles. This year, to everyone's surprise including himself, Aponavicius was decorated in pads and a helmet as the Eagle's starting kicker.

In his first football game (at any level), Aponavicius was close to perfect. He had two field goals (from 36 and 20) and two extra points. He only stuggled at kick-offs, where he failed to kick into the endzone on multiple occasions.

Just as the Lakers overshadow the Clippers in Los Angeles, or as the Cubs outshine the superior White Sox in Chicago, the recently triumphant Mets are being eclipsed by a larger than life New York Yankee team that just lost to Detriot in the AL Divisional Series.

The hoopla currently emanating from the Yankee front office is speculation that George Steinbrenner is about to tell Yankee Manager Joe Torre his services are no longer needed.

The Yankees have been living it up as a perrenial favorite. They won 3 World Series in a row from 1998-2000. And their name will continue to be on the lips of New Yorkers from now until the beginning of next season.

The only hope for the Mets is that if they do win the World Series this year, they get a little blurb under the daily Yankee headlines.

You work for a company for many years assuming that eventually you can settle down with a comfortable pension plan that will allow you to relax in your golden retirement years. This is not so for many older generation NFL players.

"We are talking about former AFL stars that helped shape that league and then go on to be successful in the NFL as well."

Former all-pro defensive lineman and current sports analyst Howie long recently mentioned,"When I went to the Hall of Fame in 2000 and was inducted, it was a travesty the kind of carnage I saw out of these guys who were in their 50s and 60s, who had defined and in many ways laid the foundation for the NFL being what it is today."

Back in the day (the 70's and before), even the league's biggest stars were not making excessive amounts of money. Many even had to take on an additional job in the off season to supplement their NFL income.

So how much are some former NFL players receiving each month? In Questionnaires sent out to former players, as many as 325 former players admitted to receiving less than 150 dollars a month from the NFL.

Matt Leinart came out firing with two early touchdowns on consecutive drives against the Kansas City Chiefs. Leinart completed 22 of 35 passes overall for 253 yards. His only major mistake, a late interception, happened to be the one that cost the Cardinals the contest.

Not bad for a rookie starting his first game. Not to mention the fact that Leinart's protection on the O-line was far less than potent. There was also one less star receiver to throw to for most of the game; Larry Fitzgerald left early with a hamstring injury.

After 3 years of almost unblemished success at USC, Matt Leinart is now seeing for the first time what losing feels like. His team is 1-4 and faces the undefeated Chicago Bears next Monday night. But Leinart and Arizona are hopeful for next week. In a preseason game earlier this year, Arizona defeated Chicago with the guidance of a poised Matt Leinart.

The last 2 weeks has seen a less than commanding USC team. Last week against Washington State, 'SC needed an interception in the waning moments to finish off Wazzou and this week Washington almost pulled off their biggest upset in years.

Arkansas, who managed to upset Auburn this week, inadvertently helped USC replace some of the luster that was lacking in their recent close calls. Earlier in the year SC dominated Arkansas 50-14.

With the win, USC (or Southern Cal as much of the nation refers to them) has won 29 straight at home and 50 of their last 52 overall games, their only losses coming at the hands of Texas in last year's championship game and Cal way back in 2003.