Autumn isn't quite in the air yet, but the college football season is upon us already. This time of year is my second favorite regarding the sports world, a very close second, behind March/April (March Madness, The Masters, NFL draft, start of baseball, etc.). Anyways, I'd like to try a college football pool this year. Nothing is on the line except the chance to beat me and get your name -- the top 5 entries -- in the paper. If it's successful and we get a lot of participation, perhaps next year we'll expand it in some fashion.

My apologies in advance for a lengthy post.
Barry Bonds is the home run king, and like it or not, it's now a fact.
But should the San Francisco Giants slugger have an asterisk next to the mark? Is it tainted?
I've heard all sorts of arguments from both sides:
- He's never failed a drug test. Well, they didn't have them back when he broke the record. But just because it wasn't in the rule book then, it was (and still is) illegal to use them without a prescription. Murder isn't in the baseball rule book, but that doesn't mean Roger Clemens can impale Mike Piazza with the end of a bat.

I was going to respond to a couple of blog posts, but felt better served by creating a separate one since it's kinda lengthy.

While I appreciate the comments directed at the sports department, I'd like to clarify and correct a couple of misconceptions.

After the top two picks in Thursday's NBA draft, much will be predicated on what the Hawks do at No. 3. Do they keep the pick and take Al Horford, do they trade the pick as part of a blockbuster Kevin Garnett package or do they reach for Mike Conley to fill a desperate need at point guard?
Maybe it's just me, but the draft and all the offseason trade rumors are so much more intriguing than the finals. Here's my mock draft (without trades) for the first round:

First Round
1. Portland - Greg Oden, C
2. Seattle - Kevin Durant, F
3. Atlanta - Al Horford, F
4. Memphis - Mike Conley, G

See last night's Game 3 of the NBA finals?
Judging by the ratings, you didn't. And if so, how soon before you turned it off?

This year's NFL draft seems like one of the more unpredictable ones in recent years, and not because of the team that's picking first.
The Raiders — still one of the mavericks of the league under Al Davis — seem to have locked on to JaMarcus Russell at the No. 1 spot. After that, it's a crapshoot, and whatever Detroit does at No. 2 will set the tone for the remainder of the first round.
Does the Fire-Matt-Millen-now chant grow louder if they take yet another wide receiver by selecting Calvin Johnson? Do they go for need and take Clemson defensive end Gaines Adams? Or do they trade down (the smart choice) and get a player they might want anyway along with an extra pick or two?

Day one of the Family Circle Cup in Charleston is in the books, a chilly one that had many of the writers complaining, and one where not a whole heck of a lot happened.
But Monday is generally a lower-key day in the clay-court event with most of the star players not hitting the court until Tuesday or Wednesday. I'm looking forward to Venus Williams' matchup with Samantha Stosur tomorrow, while top-seeded Nicole Vaidisova -- who is very tall in person (she's listed as 6 feet) by the way and seems mature beyond her 17 years -- will highlight the action along with Serena Williams and Tatiana Golovin.

This honestly had to be one of the most anticlimactic NCAA basketball tournaments in recent memory.
A lackluster championship, an even worse Final Four, very few upsets and buzzer-beating shots -- this year's tournament was missing it all. The only memorable games were Winthrop upsetting Notre Dame (which could hardly be labeled an upset since EVERYONE picked Winthrop to win that game) and Ohio State's incredible comeback against Xavier. There were some very close games, yes, but no real defining moments that set them apart.

Once the SEC tournament began (not even waiting for the NCAAs), it was pretty apparent the Gators were going to repeat. That mini slump they went through near the end of the season was probably done out of sheer boredom and not wanting everyone in the country to have brackets ending in identical fashion.

Here are 3/4 of The Gazette sports staff's predictions for the NCAA tournament:

Sports editor Dave Hale
Elite 8: Florida, Winthrop (this year's George Mason), Kansas, UCLA, North Carolina, Georgetown, Ohio State, Texas A&M
Final Four: Florida, UCLA, North Carolina, Ohio State (I really went out on a limb here)
Championship: Ohio State over Florida

Sports writer Zach Van Hart
Elite 8: Florida, Wisconsin, Kansas, UCLA, Texas, Georgetown, Ohio State, Texas A&M
Final Four: Florida, Kansas, Georgetown, Texas A&M
Championship: Florida over Georgetown

Sports writer Buddy Hughes
Elite 8: Florida, Oregon, Kansas, UCLA, Texas, Georgetown, Ohio State, Texas A&M

No real major surprises in the NCAA men's tournament field, although the snub of Syracuse was fairly shocking. I'm not sure how you can justify squeezing the Orange while including a Stanford team that really has no business making the field.

Syracuse
Record: 22-10
Conference record: 10-6 (lost in Big East quarterfinals)
Last 10: 7-3
RPI: 52
Key non-conference wins: Pennsylvania, Holy Cross
Bad losses: St. John's

Stanford
Record: 18-12
Conference record: 10-8 (lost in Pac-10 quarterfinals)
Last 10: 4-6
RPI: 67
Key non-conference wins: Texas Tech, Virginia
Bad losses: by 34 to Air Force, by 16 to Santa Clara