Alabama Football: How Nick Saban, Tide Can Still Make the BCS Title Game

Alabama, the team that was considered the best in all of college football for the majority of the regular season, has now lost a game. The newbie of the SEC, Texas A&M, found a way to knock off the Crimson Tide in a competitive matchup that ended with a score of 29-24.

It is the first loss for head coach Nick Saban in a little over a year.

There will be no undefeated season for this club, but this is a program that always has its mind on national championships. And while it may be hard to understand at this point, it would be foolish to count this team out of the national championship conversation even with one loss.

Here is why Alabama still has a good chance to make the big game and make everybody happy again in Tuscaloosa.

Throw Out Notre Dame

There are now three undefeated teams left in Notre Dame, Oregon and Kansas State. While many don't agree that a one-loss program should jump an undefeated team, that's life in the BCS and could happen regardless of what Notre Dame does.

The Irish do have four wins over ranked opponents, but every one of those teams has looked shaky throughout the year, really hurting the team in the polls. Notre Dame has also struggled to beat subpar opponents such as Purdue, BYU and Pittsburgh. There is a reason the Leprechauns haven't made much progress in the BCS rankings and were the lowest of the previous four undefeated teams at the top of the rankings. 

Even if the Irish do finish the season undefeated, it is hard to see this team finishing in the Top Two of the BCS. We also can't overlook a USC club that plays Notre Dame at the end of the season, as the Trojans have a realistic shot to pull off a victory, eliminating this team from the conversation altogether.

If you add an SEC championship to Alabama's resume, Nick Saban and company will easily jump this program with the Irish not having a conference championship game to participate in.

Hope for a Kansas State Loss

We can't use the same argument for a weak schedule with Kansas State, as the Wildcats have beaten some good competition in the Big 12. They should also remain the favorites the rest of the way with teams such as TCU, Baylor and Texas on the remaining schedule.

Still, hoping for a loss wouldn't hurt, and the Longhorns should give Kansas State a run for its money at the end of the year.

However, there are a few things working in Alabama's favor once again.

The BCS rankings absolutely loved this Crimson Tide team before the loss, giving it an overall average of 0.9957. Kansas State only had an average of 0.9318, which is quite a distance between the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the country. Is one Alabama loss enough for Kansas State to stay ahead in the rankings if the Tide win out the rest of the way?

Kansas State is also a team that doesn't have a conference championship game to play, which, once again, works in the favor of Alabama in this situation.

Tigers not finger-pointing with Alabama up next

COLUMBIA, MO. (AP)
(Eds: Updates.)By R.B. FALLSTROMAP Sports Writer
Missouri's defense pretty much held up its end of the bargain last week. If there's been any griping about the lack of production on the other side of the ball heading into the perceived mismatch against top-ranked Alabama, the Tigers have kept it to themselves.

Outspoken defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson said no one's getting frustrated, and no one's pointing fingers.

''Nothing too dramatic. Ain't no wedges getting built,'' Richardson said. ''It ain't, `Are we fighting, we just enemies for the rest of our lives?' No, it's nothing like that at all.''

After Missouri limited Vanderbilt to 295 yards, end Brad Madison said the defense hasn't done its job if the opponent ends up with more points.

''We've got to stop the run,'' Madison said. ''Alabama's going to pound the ball on us.''

In the face of adversity, cornerback Kip Edwards remained very optimistic.

''We can still go 9-3. I don't see what the fuss is about,'' Edwards said. ''We can still win the East. You never know.''

Missouri (3-3, 0-3 SEC) dropped to .500 and its long-anticipated debut season in the SEC has produced mostly groans, especially after a 19-15 upset at home by lightly regarded Vanderbilt last week. The Crimson Tide (5-0, 2-0) are three-touchdown favorites to send another Faurot Field sellout crowd home disappointed on Saturday.

The Tigers' no-huddle, spread offense is averaging just 25 points, the school's lowest since 2004. They're averaging less than 16 points the last three games, getting held to just 10 in the first SEC road game at South Carolina.

Even the opener, a 62-10 romp over Southeastern Louisiana, is a bit deceptive because there were two punt returns for touchdown by Marcus Murphy, plus an interception return and fumble return for scores.

Missouri is just 88th in the nation in time of possession at 28 minutes and 21 seconds, putting the burden on a defense that's sagged at the end of the half and end of the game.

It's rare during the Gary Pinkel years for the defense to carry such responsibility. But that's just the way it is right now, and all segments are far from perfect.

''It's just us playing for each other,'' Edwards said. ''That's really what it all boils down to. You can't just blame the offense, you can't just blame the defense, you can't just blame the special teams. You have to blame us as a whole. We haven't played four quarters of football yet.''

Production has slid due injuries at quarterback and on the line for an offense that's not so high-powered, ranked just 95th in the nation. Quarterback James Franklin will be sidelined several weeks with a sprained left knee, and the banged-up line includes the first freshman to start under Pinkel, a redshirt freshman, a former walk-on and a sixth-year senior tackle, Elvis Fisher, playing hurt.

''They've had some problems and issues this year with some very good players being injured,'' Alabama coach Nick Saban said. ''Regardless of those circumstances and situations, I think they have some very good players who are filling in and are very capable.''

Backup quarterback Corbin Berkstresser was just 9 for 30 for 189 yards and a touchdown last week in relief of Franklin.

''He's not the first quarterback who's ever had a tough day,'' Pinkel said. ''One thing we're not going to do, we don't make any drastic changes. That would be kind of the worst thing to do.''

Opponents are averaging 22.8 points and 326.7 yards against Missouri, which ranks near the middle of the SEC in both categories. The defense has been vulnerable when overworked, allowing 110 points in the second and fourth quarters and just 27 in the first and third quarters.

This week the competition figures to be a lot stiffer. Offensive expectations can't be high considering Alabama is allowing just seven points per game and the defense will be facing a unit that's perfect 22 for 22 inside the 20, 16 of them touchdowns.

''We've got to have better continuity,'' Pinkel said. ''I think maybe kids might press a little bit. I think that might happen. I think that's natural because they want to do well.''

The bottom line: Right now, low-scoring games are probably Missouri's only chance at success.

''We've just got to work through it,'' Pinkel said. ''I don't have anything magical here.''

Lakers fire Mike Brown

"I have great respect for the Buss family and the Lakers' storied tradition and I thank them for the opportunity they afforded me," Brown said in a statement. "I have a deep appreciation for the coaches and players that I worked with this past year and I wish the organization nothing but success as they move forward."

Assistant coach Bernie Bickerstaff will take over as interim coach for Friday night's home game against the Warriors.

"Today we relieved Mike Brown of his head coaching duties with the Los Angeles Lakers. Mike is a good man. Very hard working, maybe one of the hardest-working coaches that I've ever been around," general manager Mitch Kupchak said. "The bottom line is that the team is not winning at the pace that we expected this team to win and we didn't see improvement. We wish Mike well and we're sorry it ended this way. So, we've decided to move in another direction and make a change."
A source with knowledge of the Lakers' thinking said the firing was done "more to stop what was happening than to pursue anybody else."

Phil Jackson and Mike D'Antoni are the leading candidates to replace Brown, according to a source with knowledge of the situation.

"It's neck and neck," the source said.

A meeting with Jackson could happen by the end of the weekend.

Jackson retired as coach of the Lakers after the 2010-11 season. In his final news conference, he noted that he didn't have much of a relationship with Lakers vice president Jim Buss.

"People took that the wrong way," the source said. "There's no ill will between Jim and Phil."

The Lakers are expected to reach out to both men as early as Saturday morning, as well as several other candidates, which could include former Jazz coach Jerry Sloan, former Blazers coach Nate McMillan and ex-Clippers coach Mike Dunleavy.

The Lakers are expected to move quickly through this process as Bickerstaff only has committed to working a few games.

"I have no control over anything," Bickerstaff said. "Whatever Mitch asks me to do, that's what I'll do."

He did say he was "shocked" by Brown's firing.

"You know the history with Mike Brown and myself, in terms of the genesis of history there as an intern, as an assistant with me in Washington. So, I'm very fond of him and it's a tough situation," he said.

Despite not having a timetable, Kupchak wants a new coach "the sooner, the better."

"Clearly, great coaches or good coaches in this league that have jobs would not be let out of their contracts with their team," Kupchak said. "So that's not really a realistic possibility. I think there is a remote possibility that you look at assistants in the league and of course teams at that point would not stand in the way of a coach advancing his career. I think it's more likely that we would look to coaches that aren't presently employed."

Brown was among three finalists to interview for the job when Jackson, who has won 11 titles, retired. Rick Adelman and former assistant coach Brian Shaw were the others. Adelman is in Minnesota, while Shaw is an assistant in Indiana. The Lakers would need to request permission from Indiana to speak with Shaw, who would be a popular choice with their players. According to sources, they have not done so.

"It's not going to be a long process; that's for damn sure," a source told ESPNLosAngeles.com's Dave McMenamin. "But they're going to do their due diligence."

While a local television station reported that Jackson was spotted at the Lakers practice facility on Thursday, one source called that "coincidental" and noted that Jackson is the longtime boyfriend of Lakers vice president Jeanie Buss.

Well, That Was Fast
The Lakers fired Mike Brown just five games into their 82-game regular season after a 1-4 start. Just how fast of a firing was it based on percentage of the season played compared to other sports? Here's a look:

• NFL coach getting fired before the end of the 1st game (with 1:28 left, to be precise)
• MLB manager getting fired in the 8th inning of the 10th game
• College football coach getting fired before the end of the 3rd quarter in the 1st game (assuming a 12-game season)
• College basketball coach getting fired before the 2nd game ends (assuming a 30-game schedule)
• Premier League manager getting fired in the 1st half of the 3rd game (38-game schedule)

-- ESPN Stats & Information

Earlier Friday, sources had told ESPN.com's Marc Stein that the team was using its upcoming six-game homestand to evaluate Brown, but after numerous discussions over the past 48 hours, Lakers management came to a unanimous decision that the team clearly wasn't heading in the right direction and it was best to fire him now.

The decision is in keeping with the Lakers "win now" mentality after acquiring Steve Nash and Dwight Howard in blockbuster trades this summer. Relieving Brown of his duties now also comes at a substantial cost, as he was in just the second year of a four-year, $18 million deal. The final year of that contract was only partially guaranteed.

"We're not looking five or 10 years down the road. This team was built to contend this year," Kupchak said. "There's no guarantee that this team can win a championship, but we feel they can be deeply in the hunt. We also are aware that players are under contract for another year or two, players are getting older, so our feeling is we could contend at this level for a couple years. So that's our focus right now."

The Lakers have had a healthy Nash in the lineup for only 1½ of their five games so far thanks to a leg injury, while Howard has acknowledged that he's still recovering from the back surgery that brought a premature end to his 2011-12 campaign and knocked him out of the London Olympics. Kobe Bryant also has been playing through a foot ailment.

Bryant called Friday a "tough day."

"I've seen coaches as well as friends come and go. No matter how many years I've been playing, it's still hard to deal with," he wrote on his Facebook page. "I had a good relationship with Mike and I will continue to have one. I wish him and his family nothing but the best. I spoke with him today and thanked him for all of his hard work and sacrifice.

"As a team, we must focus our energy on tonight's game. We must block out the weight of today's news and simply do our jobs to the best of our ability. I'm not sure what direction we are heading in next. All I can do is focus on the here and now. Mamba out."

The Lakers are off to the worst start in the Western Conference despite carrying the league's largest payroll at just more than $100 million, which would trigger an estimated luxury-tax bill at season's end of nearly $30 million.

The team also has been trying to institute a form of the Princeton offense, a system that relies on reads and ball sharing in order to take some of the offensive load off Bryant. But the talented Lakers went 0-8 during the preseason for the first time in franchise history before stumbling into the regular season with an 0-3 start. After finally winning last Sunday, the Lakers looked listless again in a loss at Utah on Wednesday.

Not only did the new offense not appear to suit his players' talents, the Lakers also played spotty defense, Brown's specialty.

Lakers forward Pau Gasol said the team was still behind Brown.

"I don't think we lost faith at any moment," he said. "I think we believed in what we were trying to do. We also understood it was going to take a little bit of time to do things the way they should have been done as far as our game. It wasn't happening as fast as we all wanted it to and there were different things that didn't play in our favor."

Now the team must move on.

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"It's a pretty direct message to all of us," Gasol said. "There's no messing around. It's time for us to step it up."

Fellow starter Metta World Peace took Brown's firing in stride.

"You got to feel positive for Mike Brown," he said. "He came from doing video work. ... You can look at it as a positive for everybody. Just move on with life. It's not cruel. Business is just business. It's not cruel. It's just business. It's still fun. We're still playing basketball. We're still coming to the game and we're going to play hard. It's all positive.

"He's not the first coach to get fired in sports, athletics. He's not the first employee to get fired."

Lakers legend Magic Johnson reacted to Brown's firing on Twitter.

"Feel bad for Coach Mike Brown, who's a great guy, but don't think he was the right guy for the job in the first place," he tweeted.

As for possible replacements, Johnson tweeted: "I'd love to see Phil Jackson or Brian Shaw. Wish Pat Riley was available."

Petraeus’ ‘other woman’ reportedly a married mother of two, under FBI investigation

The woman with whom former CIA Director David Petraeus had an affair has been identified as Paula Broadwell, the co-author of a recent biography about the retired four-star general.

Broadwell is currently under FBI investigation for improperly trying to access Petraeus’ emails and possibly gaining access to classified information, NBC News reported Friday, the same day Petraeus resigned from his post as director of the top U.S. intelligence agency. He cited the extramarital affair as his reason for stepping down.

Holly Petraeus, the general’s wife, is employed in the Obama administration’s Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Her work involves advocating on behalf of military veterans and their families.

Woman Linked to Petraeus Is a West Point Graduate and Lifelong High Achiever

WASHINGTON — Paula Broadwell, whose affair with the nation’s C.I.A. director led to his resignation on Friday, was the valedictorian of her high school class and homecoming queen, a fitness champion at West Point with a graduate degree from Harvard, and a model for a machine gun manufacturer.

It may have been those qualities — and a string of achievements that began in her native North Dakota, where she was state student council president, an all-state basketball player and orchestra concertmistress — that drew the attention of David H. Petraeus, the nation’s top spy and a four-star general, as the two spent hours together for a biography of Mr. Petraeus that Ms. Broadwell co-wrote.

Ms. Broadwell’s name burst into public view on Friday evening after Mr. Petraeus resigned abruptly amid an F.B.I. investigation that uncovered evidence of their relationship.

But Ms. Broadwell was hardly shy about her interactions with Mr. Petraeus as she promoted her book, “All In: The Education of General David Petraeus,” in media appearances earlier this year. She had unusual access, she noted in promotional appearances, taping many of her interviews for her book while running six-minute miles with Mr. Petraeus in the thin mountain air of the Afghan capital.

Ms. Broadwell said in an interview in February that Mr. Petraeus was enjoying his new civilian life at the C.I.A., where he became director in September 2011. “It was a huge growth period for him, because he realized he didn’t have to hide behind the shield of all those medals and stripes on his arm,” she said. Ms. Broadwell was 39 at the time.

Her biography on the Penguin Speakers Bureau Web site says that she is a research associate at Harvard’s Center for Public Leadership and a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of War Studies at King’s College London. She received a master’s in public administration from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government.

A self-described “soccer mom” and an ironman triathlete, Ms. Broadwell became a fixture on the Washington media scene after the publication of her book about Mr. Petraeus, who is 60. In a Twitter message this summer, she bragged about appearing on a panel at the Aspen Institute, a policy group for deep thinkers.

“Heading 2 @AspenInstitute 4 the Security Forum tomorrow! Panel (media & terrorism) followed by a 1v1 run with Lance Armstrong,” she wrote. “Fired up!”

On her Twitter account, she often commented on the qualities of leadership. “Reason and calm judgment, the qualities specially belonging to a leader. Tacitus,” she wrote. In another message, she said: “A leader is a man who has the ability to get other people to do what they don’t want to do and like it. Truman.”

She also used her Twitter account to denounce speculation in the Drudge Report that Mr. Petraeus would be picked as a running mate by Mitt Romney, the Republican candidate for president.

Married with two children, she was described in a biography on the Web site of Inspired Women Magazine as a high achiever since high school.

The biography says that Ms. Broadwell received a degree in political geography and systems engineering from West Point, where she was ranked No. 1 over all in fitness in her class. She benefited from a different ranking scale for women, she told a reporter this year. But “I was still in the top 5 percent if I’d been ranked as a male,” she said.

The official Web site for Ms. Broadwell’s book was taken down Friday, but comments from her echoed across the Internet.

“I was driven when I was younger,” she was quoted as saying on the Web site, noting her induction into her high school’s hall of fame. “Driven at West Point where it was much more competitive in that women were competing with men on many levels, and I was driven in the military and at Harvard, both competitive environments.”

“But now,” she is quoted as saying, “as a working mother of two, I realize it is more difficult to compete in certain areas. I think it is important for working moms to recognize that family is the most important.”

On “The Daily Show,” Jon Stewart summed up Ms. Broadwell’s book by saying: “I would say the real controversy here is, is he awesome or incredibly awesome?”A short time later, Ms. Broadwell challenged Mr. Stewart to a push-up contest, which she won handily. Mr. Stewart had to pay $1,000 to a veterans’ support group for each push-up she did beyond his total. Ms. Broadwell said that he wrote a check for $20,000 on the spot.

On Friday evening, her house in the Dilworth neighborhood of Charlotte, N.C., was dark when a reporter rang the doorbell. Two cars were in the home’s carport and an American flag was flying out front.