John Clay's Sidelines

SEC links for Tuesday:

• Washaun Ealey is no longer a Georgia Bulldog, reports Seth Emerson of the Columbus Ledger-Enqurier.
• Ealey’s departure not as big as it might have been once, writes Mark Bradley of the AJC.
• Florida sets a high bar for SEC success, writes Antonya English of the Tampa Tribune.
• Charges reduced against Florida basketball players, reports Rachel George of the Orlando Sentinel.
• Phil Fulmer could get by as athletic director, writes John Adams of the Knoxville News-Sentinel.
• Mr. SEC looks at commitment lists for SEC football.
• Justice Department shouldn’t make a federal case out of the BCS, writes Kevin Scarbinsky of the Birmingham News.

Continue reading ‘SEC: Ealey departs Georgia; Florida sets the bar high’

Scott Stricklin

SEC links for Monday:

• Scott Stricklin, former UK associate athletics director, has negotiated a minefield in his first year as AD at Mississippi State, writes Brandon Marcello of the Clarion-Ledger.
• Pete Boone belies his dull image as Ole Miss athletic director, writes Kyle Veazey of the Clarion-Ledger.
• The resilient Florida basketball team played like champions in Nashville, writes Pat Dooley of the Gainesville Sun.
• Ex-Alabama offensive lineman on national title teams has turned life around after drug abuse, reports Tim Gayle of the Montgomery Advertiser.
• Georgia outfielder hospitalized after outfield collision, reports Seth Emerson of the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer.
• Florida baseball sweeps Miami in matchup of college baseball powers, writes Edward Aschoff of the Gainesville Sun.
• New college baseball bats have some schools making adjustments, reports Jim Kleinpeter of the Times-Picayune.
• Auburn assistant coach Jeff Grimes excited about task of rebuilding offensive line, reports Charles Bennett of the Anniston Star.
• Travis Sawchik of the Charleston Post and Courier does a one-on-one interview with ex-South Carolina basketball coach Eddie Fogler.
• John Pelphrey says he believes in what he is doing at Arkansas, writes Robbie Neiswanger of the Arkansas News.

(AP photo)

Big Blue Links for Sunday:

• American Thinker’s Cindy Simpson, a Kentuckian, compares basketball officials to Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan.

• Michael Gilchrist produced a double-double in US team’s opener at World Championships in Germany.

• USA U-17 team routs Lithuania in second round, reports Jason Hickman of maxpreps.com.

• My column on ex-UK associate AD Scott Stricklin, who is now the AD at Mississippi State.

• Ex-UK women’s coach Debbie Yow, now AD at N.C. State, loves coaching coaches, writes Edward Robinson of the Charlotte Observer.

• Wall Street Journal picks up on the Dermontti Dawson bankruptcy filing.

• Williamson Daily News on Jeff Sheppard’s Hoops Not Drugs camp in Eastern Kentucky.

• DeMarcus Cousins answers fan questions in Sacramento:

(Hat tip to Bluegrass State Basketball.)

Continue reading ‘BBL: Supreme Court and Kentucky basketball?’

SEC links for Wednesday:

Best story of the day may be David Hooker’s piece in the Knoxville News-Sentinel on Aaron Douglas, the returning offensive line starter at Tennessee who decided to pack up and leave Knoxville. Douglas said he dealt with depression problems, saying, “”It was really tough there for four, five, six weeks,” he said. “I had no desire to really do anything. It’s hard to explain. It’s just like your self-esteem bubble has been popped. I tried to handle it the best I could.”

By the end of spring drills, new Vols coach Derek Dooley lost Douglas, running back Bryce Brown and quarterback Nick Stephens. No wonder some think Tennessee will struggle to get six wins this fall.

BTW, the Tennessee-Oregon game on Sept. 11 will kickoff at 7 p.m. on ESPN2.

Also in the News-Sentinel, John Adams likes the idea of Phil Fulmer and Al Gore as commencement speakers.

Kyle Veazey of the Clarion-Ledger has a Q&A with new Mississippi State athletics director Scott Stricklin. As has been pointed out, Scott was associate athletics director for media relations at UK, but his dealings with sweethearts like me and other members of the local media did not deter him from earning the top job in Starkville.

Stricklin on his job:

“I think we’ve got to start dreaming. Twenty-five years ago we had 30,000 seats in our football stadium. This year, we averaged almost 55,000 people, 25 years later. I think we need to start coming up with a vision right now of what 75,000 football seats might look like at Davis Wade Stadium. We’re not going to get there overnight. It’s going to be a process. But once you have a long term plan, then you can start phasing it in. I think in short term, we’re going to need to add some seats there based on where the demand is right now.”

Continue reading ‘SEC links: Ex-Tennessee player admits depression’

Scott Stricklin

SEC links for Friday:

Kyle Veazey of the Clarion-Ledger reports that ex-UK associate AD Scott Stricklin will be named AD at Mississippi State: “Mississippi State will introduce Scott Stricklin as its new athletic director at a 2 p.m. press conference today, The Clarion-Ledger learned late Thursday. Stricklin, a senior associate AD at State and a Jackson native, replaces Greg Byrne, who started his new job as Arizona’s athletic director earlier this week.”

Brad Locke of the NE Mississippi Daily Journal on Stricklin: “Keenum solicited the help of Parker Executive Search in Atlanta, and details of the process were kept well-guarded. Stricklin, who turns 40 on Saturday, was widely thought from the get-go to be a leading candidate and had strong support within the athletic department.”

Rick Cleveland of the Clarion-Ledger on Mississippi State’s baseball problems: “State, depending on primarily freshman pitchers, could just as easily have won two of the three games with Ole Miss. Against Jackson State, they ran into a red-hot team, using its two best pitchers in a weekday game. These things happen in baseball.”

David Climer of the Tennessean writes that on flood relief, Vandy hit it out of the park: “As the region recovers from the Flood of 2010, credit Vanderbilt’s baseball program for pitching in. The Commodores are offering free tickets to their game with powerful Louisville on Tuesday night. Instead of paying for a ticket, fans are asked to donate money for flood relief.

Continue reading ‘SEC links: MSU to name ex-UK staffer Stricklin as AD’

Mickie DeMoss

SEC links for Wednesday:

Dan Fleser of the Knoxville News-Sentinel reports that Mickie DeMoss may be returning to Tennessee: “Tennessee’s search for a new women’s basketball assistant coach is featuring a very popular and successful former Lady Vols coach. Mickie DeMoss appears to have emerged as a leading candidate for the opening created by Stephanie Glance becoming the coach at Illinois State last month. A decision could be finalized as early as later this week.”

Kyle Veazey reports that ex-UK staffer Scott Stricklin is still in the hunt for Mississippi State AD post: “Here are the names I continue to hear from sources close to the search and have not scratched off my list: Scott Stricklin, State’s senior associate AD for external affairs; Joe Dean Jr., the AD at Birmingham-Southern; and Whit Hughes, deputy director of the Mississippi Development Authority. All are State grads. Lee Fowler, the N.C. State athletic director, has been mentioned by some in conjunction with the search, too, but there’s no confirmation of his involvement.”

Tim Tucker of the AJC on ex-Georgia quarterback Zach Mettenberger looking at Louisville: “Former Georgia quarterback Zach Mettenberger hopes to play football at another college. And Louisville is one place he’ll look, according to a website that covers the Cardinals. After pleading guilty to misdemeanor sexual battery charges in Valdosta on Monday, Mettenberger said in a written statement that he hopes for a “second chance” at college football.”

Josh Hoke of the Myrtle Beach Sun News reports that South Carolina is high on Carlton Geathers: “Most recruiting analysts believe Carlton Geathers is a project. Perhaps it is that challenge that has endeared him to his future coach. The 6-foot-11 Carvers Bay center signed with South Carolina last month. Gamecocks basketball coach Darrin Horn raved about Geathers’ potential before speaking to members of the school’s booster club on Tuesday.”

Continue reading ‘SEC links: Mickie DeMoss may be returning to Tennessee’