Sprints Says Goodbye to Florida Baseball and the Candidate Who Dissed Saban // 06.22.10

Florida out at College World Series after two games
The 8-5 loss was in some ways not as close as it seemed (Florida scored three runs in the ninth) and was in some ways closer (the game-ending double play came with the bases loaded in the ninth). So we'll call it about right. Once again, the pitching was less-than-stellar; four of the five pitchers allowed at least one earned run, and the fifth (Greg Larson) was only called on to get the final out in the eighth. But the offense can't escape blame; before the late rally, it was a two-hitter through the sixth and a four-hitter through the seventh.

South Carolina faces No. 1 seed Arizona State this afternoon in an elimination game as the last hope for the SEC.

The Alabama gubernatorial primary battle appears to finally be over
And it looks like questioning Nick Saban is, indeed, a recipe for losing an election in the Tide's home state. If only it had been Mike Shula ...

Roll Bama Roll worried about CB
Dre Kirkpatrick's surgery has been considered minor, but outsidethesidelines is skeptical.

While Saban never confirmed that it was an operation on his left shoulder -- which would be his second in the span of about fourteen months -- no one doubts that is what it was, and two operations in that short of a span ought to be a concern. Hopefully it is something minor, but it should be well understood that the shoulder is a very complex anatomical structure that can result in a myriad of health issues, and that if this really were something minor, two surgeries would have likely never been required in the first place.

Not that Alabama has to replace a lot of defensive starters or anything. Wait a minute ...

It would have been exciting in a purely hypothetical sense, of course
Bob Stoops sounds real committed to the Big XII, I tell you.

Are you happy with how things turned out?

I have to be, since that's how it turned out, right? We'll see moving forward. ...

It seemed like you'd warmed up to the idea of moving West?

I thought it was exciting, when that all came about. We play Texas in the Cotton Bowl. But playing those other teams in Texas is a strong presence, us in Texas. Helps us recruiting. And that, along with travel, logistically is what was working. And then you add what the Pac-10 brings, which is long tradition and history, great schools, great academic schools. I just thought all of it was a win-win in my eyes. We've moved this way. I'm not at all complaining. I think this has been great for us over the last 11 years. We've been in seven Big 12 championship games and four national championship (games) is pretty special. So I'm not at all complaining where it's at. But if that was going to happen, the possibility of that was exciting.

The Big XII: Where's it's exciting to leave, but it is what it is when you stay. I think I might be less confident now that I was at the end of last week that the Big XII will see the next decade. Which should have been impossible.

Big Ten Awards Show 2010 on the Big Ten Network
No, I'm not making this up. And I'm really rooting for "Texas vs. Penn State NCAA Championship -- Women's Volleyball" to take Game of the Year. Anything else would be a travesty. (HT: The Only Colors)