Clemson’s Dwayne Allen mentions money in postgame remark, Internet unnecessarily readies ‘Clemson cheats!” pitchforks

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Anytime a big time college athlete says the word “money” it piques attention, raises eyebrows, and draws ears a little bit closer. This is the case with some comments made last night by Clemson’s Dwayne Allen, an outstanding junior tight end who may leave school for the NFL Draft.

After last night’s loss to West Virginia in the Orange Bowl (a game summed up perfectly with one picture here), Allen was asked if the “empty feeling” he had after playing poorly in the loss would be a reason for him to come back. This is how he responded, which has led more than a few folks to jump to totally unnecessary conclusions:

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The NCAA’s Immoral Combination of One-Year Scholarships and Transfer Restrictions

NCAA President Mark Emmert endorses multi-year scholarships. But his member schools are putting up a fight. (Photo: Manuel Balce Ceneta, AP)

I’ve written before about problems with the NCAA’s treatment of student-athletes.

If you weren’t already convinced that college sports is in dire need of reform, consider these three recent news stories. Each raises its own questions about the rights of student-athletes.

Taken together, they expose the absurdity and unfairness of the NCAA’s policies.

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College Football Bowl Game TV Schedule and Point Spreads

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College football bowl games start this Saturday, and I couldn’t be more excited.

Even with all the controversy (I don’t like BCS system either) I still love the experience of hanging out with family and watching teams duke it out for bragging rights. It’s also a great look into how potential high draft picks perform in high pressure/high stakes games.

Are there bowl games that are going to be more entertaining than others? Of course, but I really recommend you to try to watch as many of them as possible.

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College Football TV Schedule and Point Spreads for Week 14 – Conference Championship Game Week

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The second to last of college football is upon us. It’s a short list of games, but there are big bowl game stakes at hand. A loss this late could ruin a team’s whole season or propel it into a dream destination like the BCS.

So settle down, relax, and get ready for another great weekend of college football.

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College Football TV Schedule and Point Spreads for Thanksgiving Weekend – Saturday, November 26th

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Week 13 of the college football season is upon us, and we’re at the home stretch. The turkey and stuffing and his been eaten, bowl games are just around the corner, and the final full week of regular season games still what should be very entertaining games for our viewing pleasure.

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College Football TV Schedule and Point Spreads for Week 10

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Week 10 of college football is upon us, bringing yet another exciting week of Saturday action. Last week we saw Nebraska dominate Michigan State, Missouri upset Texas A&M in overtime, Oklahoma beat up on Kansas State, and Stanford beat USC in this season’s best game of the season.

This week we have some more great top 25 action, with the best of the best being, of course, the LSU-Alabama showdown on Saturday night. So settle down, relax, and get ready for another great weekend of college football.

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USC at Notre Dame Preview and Prediction

NCAA Football: Notre Dame at Southern California

The USC Trojans (5-1) travel to South Bend to play the Notre Dame Fighting Irish (4-2) for the much-prized Jeweled Shillelagh.

This marks the 83rd time these two teams have played each other, and it’s always one of the most important games of the season, regardless of how each team is playing beforehand.

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This Week’s College Football TV Schedule and Point Spreads: Michigan State-Wisconsin, LSU-Auburn, USC-Notre Dame, more

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Week 8 of college football is here will hopefully deliver another exciting week. Last week we saw South Carolina barely etch out a win over Mississippi State, LSU continue their dominance, Illinois lose to Ohio State, and Oklahoma State beat Texas.

So settle down, relax, and get ready for another great weekend of college football. As always, here are some of the marquee games to pay attention to this week and then the entire college football TV schedule for Week 8, plus a link below to another fantasy college football freeroll tournament from our friends at Daily Joust.

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Tom Crean, Indiana self-report secondary violation related to recruitment of Gary Harris; a few brief thoughts

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Tonight, news broke that Tom Crean and my beloved Indiana basketball program have self-reported a secondary violation to the NCAA. The violation involves the recruitment of Gary Harris, one of the top recruits in the class of 2012, and involved Coach Crean having contact with Harris a day after he was allowed to. For complete details, read this article by ESPN’s Pat Forde (via Inside The Hall), or peruse the official report send to the NCAA.

I posted some thoughts over at the Peegs.com message board and decided I might as well post them here as well for those of you who are interested.

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3 Important Issues the Ongoing Discussion About Paying Student-Athletes is Distracting Us From Dealing With

What are you doing this weekend? You're reading this book.

Taylor Branch’s cover story in this month’s The Atlantic, “The Shame of College Sports,” added some zest to the already spicy debate about how to compensate student athletes, particularly those in revenue sports.

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Bill Russell sues the NCAA

Bloomberg is reporting that Bill Russell, the second greatest player in NBA history, is suing the NCAA for violating federal antitrust law by preventing college athletes for earning money from the use of their likenesses.

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Purdue v Notre Dame Preview and Prediction

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The old “battle for the Shillelagh Trophy” will ensue this Saturday when the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame (2-2) travel to West Lafayette to take on the rival Purdue Boilermakers (3-1).

Notre Dames’ 15-12 win against Pittsburgh last Sunday was anything but pretty, but it was a must-win game on the road if the Irish have any hope of playing in a major bowl game.

Purdue is coming off a whopping 59-0 victory over Southeast Missouri State, but the Boilermakers will be facing a much bigger test this Saturday.

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This Week’s College Football Point Spreads and TV Schedule for Week 4 – Saturday, September 24th

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Week 4 of college football in 2011 is upon us.

Last week we saw LSU narrowly beat Mississippi State, the Fighting Irish notched their first win of the season, and we got to enjoy a showdown between Oklahoma and Florida State. There are even more ranked teams playing ranked teams this week, so expect many more good games for your viewing pleasure as you settle in on Saturday.

Here are some of the marquee games to pay attention to this week (with additional spreads and picks here), then the entire college football TV schedule for week 4.

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Be sure to read The Atlantic’s cover story about the NCAA

If you haven’t read Taylor Branch’s 7-page take down of the NCAA in The Atlantic, do so now.

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The Bottoms Line College Basketball Podcast Episode 2

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In episode #2 of The Bottoms Line College Hoops Talk Podcast, I am joined by Rob Dauster and Troy Machir of Ballin’ Is a Habit.

We three hoopsheads discuss the latest in college hoops, including: UCONN’s use of a loophole to get phenom recruit Andre Drummond into school and what the NCAA should do about it; expansion talk; some breakout sophomores; and a survey of this year’s impact mid-majors.

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