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n Les Miles might beat Jim Tressel and Ohio State in the BCS national championship game, and he might have weaseled LSU into giving him a better contract, but he wasn't totally dealing with the truth when he said he didn't even speak to Michigan about the coaching vacancy there. Kirk Herbstreit didn't just make up the story that Miles was going to accept the job - he got that information directly from someone on the Michigan search committee.
n Miles is lucky the BCS voters and computers didn't take LSU out of the championship game for uttering the most ludicrous statement of the year. To explain away his two overtime losses this season, Miles said, "We deserve to be in the game because nobody beat us in regulation time." That reminds me of former Browns assistant coach Steve Crosby, who walked out of Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh and said, "I don't care what it says on the scoreboard ... we won that game."
n Miles is actually lucky he didn't have at least four losses this past season, based on curious playcalling he got away with.
n The Detroit Tigers left Nashville with Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis, while the Indians, at least for time being, are counting on the recovered David Dellucci to act like a new, exciting addition to the ballclub. The Tribe is also acting as if their biggest need was a utility infielder. This from a team that went more than four months with Mike Rouse as their utility man last year.
n Privately, it's not possible the Indians' brass thinks the team can match last year's 96 wins by standing pat, is it? The Tigers have vaulted ahead of the Yankees, on paper, and Las Vegas should make them and the Red Sox co-favorites to win it all, with the Indians behind the Yankees and Angels.
n That is what makes last year's inability to close out the Red Sox in Game 5 of the ALCS even more frustrating: The window of opportunity doesn't come along every year, as the White Sox and Tigers learned after their recent pennant-winning seasons. Everything seemed to fall into place for the Tribe, beginning with the AL capturing the home-field advantage in the World Series, aided by Victor Martinez's All-Star game home run. After beating New York in Yankee Stadium, the Indians had a 3-1 lead over Boston with eventual Cy Young Award winner C.C. Sabathia on the hill at Jacobs Field, and the average-at-best Colorado Rockies waiting in the wings.
n It is hard to recreate those sets of circumstances, as the Cavaliers are finding out after their ride to the NBA Finals last year.
n Speaking of the Cavaliers, recent rumors about Jason Kidd wanting to play with LeBron James were unfounded. The odds are much better that Kidd and James will become teammates in Brooklyn - where the New Jersey Nets will move in the near future - than in Cleveland. Of course, Kidd will be at least 37 by the time that happens.
n Based on what we've seen since James sprained his finger, is it possible he is an even better player than we imagined? The Cavaliers struggle to put points on the board when he takes a breather. They are totally dysfunctional without him in uniform.
n You can get a better idea what kind of coach Mike Brown is under the current circumstances than you can when everyone is healthy, and James can control the game on the floor.
n We all would have been happy if we knew the Browns would win seven games this year. Now they have reached that plateau, however, with four games left in the season, anything short of a playoff appearance will be a disappointment.
n All week long, I have been hearing the Browns had a victory taken away from them in Arizona when Kellen Winslow Jr. was forced out of bounds on the final play of the game. Those same fans have short memories. The Browns held on to beat the New York Jets last year when it was even more obvious that the Jets receiver was forced out of bounds. A rule is a rule no matter who benefits from it.
n The more times we see games end on plays like the Winslow forceout, and the Phil Dawson field goal in Baltimore, the more I'm convinced the NFL should adopt the replay system I have been calling for over the past several years.
Forget the referee going to the monitor on the sideline. All he looks for is overwhelming evidence to change the call made on the field. What that usually means is the wrong call still stands up. If the back judge called a forceout on the Winslow play, a touchdown would have been called and there wouldn't have been enough evidence to change it. So basically, the replay isn't used properly in cases like that.
What I suggest is a group of officials, retired or otherwise, sit around a studio in New York or Los Angeles. They can play cards, eat pizza or play games on their computers until they are told to look at one of the TV monitors. At that point, without knowing the game situation of the score or time left, or more importantly, what call was made on the field, they can make the call based on what they see.
That takes the onus off the referee, who doesn't have to overrule a member of his crew, and the decision won't delay the game nearly as much as it does now. It's a simple solution. And it makes sense. So don't count on it any time in the near future.
How come ...
n Anderson Varejao thought he made a good deal, when the Cavaliers offered him more money a couple of weeks ago?
n After you see the way Dontrelle Willis wears his new Tigers hat, C.C. Sabathia's hat will look like it is on straight?
n Mike Brown is a better coach when LeBron James is on the floor in uniform rather than on the bench in street clothes?
n Santa's helpers are subordinate Clauses?
