Monitoring the Newton situation – Everything seems to suggest that Cam Newton probably did something illicit. The question is of course, did anyone actually pay and if so can it be proven. Despite all the issues, nothing will come of it unless it can be proven. Also, at this point, Auburn is so far along that it makes no sense to sit Newton now. Play him and if everything is stripped, the AP half of the national title remains just as it does for the 2004 USC team that played an ineligible Reggie Bush. As for the academic cheating side of this, that means nothing as far as eligibility goes. Newton left Florida and went to a junior college (something many that aren't athletes also do when they struggle at school whatever the circumstances), he was never convicted of anything whether he did it or not and he most certainly has been cleared and it eligible at Auburn academically.
Coaches fired – We are at the time of the year when the axe starts to fall on coaches and rumors start up. With jobs at Minnesota and Colorado already open (the North Texas job is largely irrelevant) and more likely to open after the season (Washington St. is nearly certain among BCS conference schools while Arizona St., Cal, Georgia, North Carolina and West Virginia appear to be possibilities while there is the possibility that Joe Paterno will finally retire at Penn St.), there are distractions about, especially for those at strong non-BCS programs. In particular, San Diego St.'s Brady Hoke appears to be a candidate at Minnesota and could also be on the list at Colorado while Houston's Kevin Sumlin is thought to be on the Minnesota wish list. How these coaches' players react and the effort put in by them and the ones at schools where the coach has already been fired will go a long way towards determining what will happen for the remainder of this season, especially with Colorado having a game with Nebraska left and San Diego St. still in control of its destiny in the Mountain West (yes it's a long shot, but an upset this week at TCU and one more next week against Utah at home would do it).
Convoluted Tie-breakers – In the Big Ten, nobody has no idea what is going to happen. The tie-breaker for three teams involves the BCS standings and that will satisfy nobody. Of course, in the last season of the Big Ten as currently constructed, this was almost necessary after the controversies of the past in this league (in particular the 2002 Ohio St.-Iowa tie after both went 8-0. The other crazy looking possible tie is in the Big 12 South where Oklahoma St. leads, but Texas A&M and Oklahoma could both win out to forge a three way tie that nobody know who would win.
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