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Score one for the Bayou Bengals. It has been announced that LSU will play Mississippi State in a rare early season SEC league match to kick off the 2007 season. LSU coach Les 'The Hat' Miles can be seen to the right celebrating with one of the moves from Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' video. To the surprise of nobody the game will be televised on ESPN Thursday August 30.

ESPN notes that this "continues a tradition" - started last year. Oy.

The Bulldogs were woeful in a 15-0 shutout loss to South Carolina in last year's opener. The game's MVP was Gamecock punter Ryan Succop which says about all you need to know for how that game went. Both starting quarterbacks were knocked out of action early leaving hapless backups to carry already pedestrian offenses through the remaining game action. The game's real drama was in the supposed confiscation of MSU's famous cowbells. Of little surprise many fans snuck the devices into the stadium making a mockery of the policy.

Although without the services of departed quarterback JaMarcus Russell, LSU is a strong favorite to win in a romp here. At least we can save the date, so to speak. I'm just going to pretend there aren't well over six more months until college football. Because if I knew that to be true I'd cry in misery. And I'm not in the mood for misery.

Anyhoo ... the reasoning escapes me at the moment, but those kickoff classic type games were eliminated a year or two ago, robbing college football fans of some great early season shows. Off the top of my head I remember Penn State's Curtis Enis torching the USC defense a while back, I remember the wild Cal/Kansas State shootout that the Bears lost but signaled something positive for the Jeff Tedford era. I remember Reggie Bush scoring three touchdowns against Virginia Tech in a game that catapulted him onto the national stage.

It'd be nice to have that type of game back. Y'know, compelling national matchups and all? Early season battle of titans. This is nice but it's just another SEC league game played out three weeks premature.

Until the fun games return it's LSU/Mississippi State starting the season off with more of a whimper than a bang. But I'll take it, it's football. Just around the corner. Riiiiiight.

Really?

I just don't believe it. No sir no sir no sir, just no way. Not them.

In the latest of college football's tempests in a teapot, the world is afire about an alleged obscure recruiting violation committed by USC in securing the commitment of Louisiana boy Joe McKnight.

That's great and all, but the violation apparently never happened.

Carroll believes LSU fans created the controversy because McKnight chose the Trojans over his home-state school. "They went crazy about it,'' he said.

Crazy? Not LSU fans. They don't overreact to perceived sleights. No sir. LSU fans are classy.

No longer welcomed in Louisiana, never gonna be able to play in a national championship, will be compared to Reggie Bush every Saturday instead of making a name for himself. Yeah he's a smart one! Hope you choke big time!

McKnight's no longer welcomed in Louisiana simply because he chose USC?! (!) You stay classy, Tiger Fan!

For its part, USC is on the offensive. Unless Pete Carroll's pulling a Gary Hart it's probably safe to say this is a non-story.

Pete Carroll is emphatic that nothing illegal took place in the recruitment of Joe McKnight, including any conversations with Reggie Bush.

"It didn't happen,'' Carroll said. "So we won't get penalized. You can look at the phone records. I'm not worried about it one bit. That conversation with Bush never existed. Reggie and everyone else will tell you it didn't happen.''

Carroll said he is eager to obtain an audiotape of McKnight's press conference to see if his words were misinterpreted and said he thinks the recruit's words might have been twisted.

"(Bush and McKnight) never talked and never had a conference call or speakerphone conversation,'' Carroll said.

If you're still unconvinced after reading this, there's little comfort in this final note: the rule in question is an inane and seemingly counterproductive NCAA regulation.

Former players are considered boosters per the NCAA. What better person to lean on and ask questions about three to five years experience at one's potential college of choice than a former player? What does it say for the NCAA when it creates rules that restrict access to human resources who can give insight into a complicated and far-reaching decision like the choice of a college?

Best to bite the bullet here and see what comes of the original Bush investigation because there's just no meat in this violation. Sorry, Tiger fan. But at least your fevered reputation is intact.

Joe McKnight is considered the nation's top recruit according to several publications. He's also a Louisiana boy who reminds people of Reggie Bush. McKnight should commit to homestate LSU, right? That's how the bees and honey thinking goes.

Except that bee liked the honey out in California and just announced his commitment to USC this morning.

Ass evidenced by the posts on the TigerBait.com LSU message board below, LSU fans are not happy. Let's call him the heartbreaker.

In Part One I named five college football recruits who will make an "impact" in 2007 and beyond. What follows are the top five impact recruits.

Please keep in mind the word impact can mean a lot of things to a lot of people. My rubric is slanted towards guys who people will be talking about early in their careers and not necessarily the best players, period.

• Jahvid Best, Tailback (California) - The "sleeper" out of my ten, if you want to call him that. Best is a little on the light/small side (5'-10"/183 pounds) but the man can scoot (a California high school best 10.39 in the 100-yard dash). There are only a handful of people every year who are that fast and are legitimate football players. Think Ted Ginn, Reggie Bush, those types of zoom zoomers. Best may be the next. Video here and here. Strange video here.

• Joe McKnight, Athlete (USC or LSU or Ole Miss) - McKnight is considered by many to be the best recruit in this year's class. People compare him to Reggie Bush because of his versatility (15 yards/carry, 30 yards/reception) but he's a little slower (10.75 compared to 10.41 in the 100 meter dash). That said McKnight can do it and should start out as a running back. Video here, here, here.
  

• Noel Devine, Running Back (West Virginia) - Many would consider Devine the nation's top recruit but his off-field elusiveness and questionable academics have muted expectations a tad. That said, outside of Reggie Bush there hasn't been a more breathtaking player to come out of the high school ranks. It's useless to give words to his abilities, just watch tape and see for yourself. He just committed to West Virginia and if he miraculously qualifies will be all over SportsCenter every Saturday night for the next three years. Boatloads of videos (~45) here. Noel Devine is a YouTube phenomena and has been since his sophomore year of high school.
  

• Everson Griffen, Defensive End (USC) - If we can return from space and into the relatively elevated stratosphere for a moment, we must talk about the amazing Everson Griffen. Aside from Devine, no other player's tape stands out more this year than Griffen's. He puts on a show running through defensive lineman and past defensive backs as a ball carries and simply blows past offensive tackles and chases down running backs way downfield as a rush end. He reportedly clocked a sub 4.5 second 40-yard-dash at a camp this year at nearly 270 pounds. Griffen is a true physical freak and there's a chance to play at the Leo end spot opposite Lawrence Jackson for the Trojans this year.

• Jimmy Clausen, Quarterback (Notre Dame) - And finally we arrive at the great Jimmy Clausen. Jimmy has been eyeballed since the middle school days as an elite quarterback prospect and so far has lived up to the billing. He'll go to the Mecca of college football, Notre Dame with expectations far beyond those of another ballyhooed prep slinger, Ron Powlus (ironically, his quarterback coach this year). Clausen is the most polished high school quarterback in ages and has a quirky personality and awesomely bad hairdo. Pair that with the hype and the fact that he's at Notre Dame and the guy is college football's biggest lightning rod ... perhaps ever. And that's before ever having taken a snap. People will most definitely be talking about this guy and so he headlines this list of the top 10 impact recruits of 2007. Video here. A few more videos here.

Alright, there it is, my list of the top 10 impact recruits. Who else should have been on this list? Who would you have omitted. Fire away (within reason).

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Previous:

Impact National Recruits Part I

As reported pretty much everywhere today, audio was released of Alabama coach Nick Saban using a derogatory slur.

During a meeting with Florida reporters, Saban relayed a story about a phone call from a friend on the LSU board of trustees who had an unusual encounter with a cajun-accented LSU fan (full audio here).

"He was walking down the street yesterday before the Sugar Bowl," Saban said on the taped comments. "He calls me. There was a guy working in the ditch, one of those coonass guys that talk funny.

"I can't talk like them, but he can. Most people in Louisiana can."

Continuing to tell the story, Saban then quoted the worker's vulgar comment about Saban going to Alabama.

Saban has since apologized, asking that it be understood he was merely relaying the friend's story and that he himself finds the term offensive.

Expect this to get a lot of play the rest of his career. And a beatdown from one Ed Orgeron. And maybe The Waterboy as well as I think they're both offended.

"Mama says alligators are ornery cause they got all them teeth and no toothbrush. Mama says Nick Saban's the devil."

But we all know he's not really the devil, it's just his medulla oblongata.

When will the whining stop? Since Auburn's win Saturday over LSU, all we've heard from the LSU fans is whining. The pass interference call on Tiger defensive back Zach Gilbert was close, very close. Did it warrant being reversed? I've watched it at least 20 times and I have to say the call was right. Eric Brock did tip the ball, making it uncatchable.

Could the call have gone either way? Absolutely. It was that close. That's football. I can also point to at least four other plays in the game where Auburn didn't get the call. Does that mean Auburn should have won by two touchdowns? Not anymore than it means LSU should have won the game. Who's to say that the Purple Tigers would have scored? They hadn't sniffed the goal line all day.

I listened with fascination Wednesday as caller-after-caller on Tim Brando's nationally syndicated radio show called to cry about the game. Even Brando, a Shreveport homer, got into the act, coming to his fellow Louisianans defense. I will give Brando credit, he stopped short of saying that it would have made a difference in the game. In fact, he doubts LSU would have scored even if the penalty had stood.

LSU people can't seem to understand why that call is being overshadowed by what happened in the Oklahoma-Oregon game. There is a tremendous difference in the two. First, the call in Auburn was correct. Video has proved it. In the game out West, the call was wrong and because it was wrong it costs Oklahoma the game. That's a big difference. Because of the call, Oregon was allowed to continue on offense and win the game.

If the LSU team can't put this loss behind them soon, they'll be staring at another loss. They are an extremely talented team - one of the best in the country. But if they continue to live in the past, they could find themselves eating Chick-Fil-A's in Atlanta over the holidays. Come to think of it, that has a nice smell... I mean ring.

Link: Football Saturday In The South

On Monday, LSU football coach Les Miles asked the SEC to review tape of Saturday's game at Auburn . In question was a controversial pass interference call in the fourth quarter that was minutes later waived off by game officials.

The league office responded quickly Monday afternoon. "Basically, the call of removing the flag would be correct because the ball was uncatchable after the defender tipped it," SEC media relations director Charles Bloom said Monday.

Auburn defensive back Zach Gilbert was flagged for interfering with receiver Early Doucet deep in Auburn territory in the 7-3 LSU loss. The flag was waved off because officials deemed that Eric Brock's tip of the ball made it uncatchable.

LSU fans have vented their frustration all weekend on LSU and conference message boards. Maybe now they can finally look in the mirror and blame themselves.

Too much hype? No way. Saturday was old school. You could see Shug smiling from the clouds. Saturday was A.P.I. football. This was the game that your grandfather played. Throw out Steve Spurrier, the Fun-N-Gun and the Pro-Set offense. Saturday was the kind of football that the SEC was built on. First downs were like touchdowns. And only real men were allowed on the field.

7-3. 10 points. On a late summer day, we saw the two best teams in the Southeastern Conference leave it all on the field. With apologies to Florida and Georgia, the class of the SEC played Saturday at Pat Dye Field.

There have been many classics played in Auburn; this one was among the best. From Tiger Walk to Spirit (the eagle) taking an extra lap around the stadium during pregame, the 41st renewal of Auburn-LSU will be remembered for its uniqueness and importance.

Word spread around the stadium early that Notre Dame was losing badly to Michigan. The number two national ranking was up for grabs. On the field it didn't seem to matter. You got the feeling that these players were playing for only one thing; and that was to beat each other. Forget the SEC and the national championship, they were out there with one purpose, to bloody each other and hit one another in the gut. And what a treat it was to be a spectator.

There were so many story lines. Where do you start? How about Brandon Cox? In a scene out of a Rocky movie, the junior from Trussville, shrugged off a deep leg bruise to will his team to victory. LSU was determined to shut down Auburn 's running game. And Cox was determined to make them pay.

And how about Kenny Irons? Forget the Heisman talk. The numbers won't be there. More importantly though, his heart was. He clawed and fought his way through a physical LSU defensive line that was all too happy to punish him. Irons 70 yards of rushing was huge at times, just enough to keep the clock moving when it needed moving the most. His longest rushing carry? 12 yards. And it felt like 70 yards.

How about Jerraud Powers? The red-shirt freshman from Decatur was planning on keeping his uniform clean Saturday afternoon. In pregame, back-up cornerback Pat Lee developed a fever and was out before kickoff. Then Jonathan Wilhite was taken out of the game with a hamstring injury. That left Powers to go in and defend against LSU quarterback JeMarcus Russell and its group of blue chip wide receivers.

Surely the LSU offense would go after Powers? And they did. The result: zero. How successful has Tommy Tuberville's recruiting program been? Unbelievable.

Who is this Will Herring kid? We all knew he was a player. But where did he learn to hit like that? Herring was the minister of defense on the field. His jarring hits drew collective sighs from the nearly 88,000 in attendance. Is anyone still worried that he can't play the linebacker position?

Let's not forget Kody Bliss. Not since Lewis Colbert have we seen such a clutch punter. With field position at stake time-after-time, Bliss delivered. He averaged 48.2 yards on six kicks and had one go for 62 yards. Bliss played as big a roll as anyone in Auburn 's victory.

And what about John Vaughn? God love him. There really was Voodoo in the air. Thank goodness that chapter in his life is over. Now he can go back to being an All-SEC kicker.

Kudos to Will Muschamp. What a pleasure it was to watch his enthusiasm on the sidelines. That was worth the admission price alone. He is the real deal. Mark my word: Muschamp will become one of the great coaches in college football.

And finally, let's give some love to LSU. If Auburn does move to number two this week, then LSU should be 2A. Like last year's game, what a shame that someone had to lose. Les Miles and his bunch have quite a program brewing in Bayou country. Don't be surprised to see LSU playing in one of the BCS games during the Holidays.

"One for the ages" is an over-used term. But on Saturday afternoon that's exactly what we got. Thank goodness we don't have to see them again until next year. Are you ready for Buffalo ?

The lead up to this week's top 10 showdown between Auburn and LSU has the familiarity of an Iron Bowl. There's no question that Saturday's game is the marquee match-up in the nation. The hype has been enormous. After all, it's the only match-up of top 10 ten team's on the schedule.

But ultimately it will be decided by the play of the two quarterbacks. While both have vastly different styles, they do share similar collegiate experiences. Brandon Cox and JeMarcus Russell came to college with the highest of pedigrees.

Both were Mr. Football in the state of Alabama; an award given to the top high school player in the state. Cox and Russell have also shared struggles along the way. For Cox, it was a false start, that ultimately led to overcoming illness and some bad publicity (all of which was false) before his career truly got going in 2004 as a back-up to Jason Campbell.

Russell had to battle the expectation game. Being one of the top rated quarterbacks in the country coming out of high school in 2003, the Mobile native was expected by many to start as a red-shirt freshman. While he did split time as a starter, he never got a firm grasp on the position.

Last year, most of the credit for LSU's success went to the defense. Russell struggled against Tennessee, got injured in the Florida game and then watched back-up Matt Flynn have a stellar performance in the Peach Bowl. Many wondered if Russell would be able to hold on to the job this year.

Despite their struggles, both have come full circle. Cox is the undisputed leader of the team and is perhaps the most accurate quarterback in Auburn history. When Mississippi State forced him to throw last week, he responded. That could be the case again Saturday afternoon.

Cox worked hard in the summer during voluntary workouts. He spent a lot of time with the Tigers inexperienced receiving corp. That has already paid dividends this season.

For Russell, Saturday's a chance to win in front of the home crowd and silence the critics once and for all. Many say he still hasn't won the "big one." While that's very much debatable, there's no question that a win Saturday will put that talk to rest.

One things for sure: Neither Auburn or LSU would be ranked where they are today without Brandon Cox and JeMarcus Russell.