USC defensive end Nick Perry to enter NFL draft - LA Times,
USC is hoping that quarterback Matt Barkley and safety T.J. McDonald, both juniors, will return next season after Matt Kalil and Nick Perry decide to leave for the NFL...

Notre Dame's Rudy Used Sports Drink Company To Scam $11 Million - Deadspin
Daniel "Rudy" Ruettiger, the former Notre Dame walk-on whose life became the basis of one of the greatest sports films of all time, has been sued by the SEC for his involvement in a "pump-and-dump" stock scheme for his sports drink company, Rudy Nutrition...

Lane Kiffin backs Matt Kalil's decision to turn pro - LA Times
USC tackle Matt Kalil, who told The Times on Thursday that he would forgo a final season and enter the NFL draft, has the support of Trojans Coach Lane Kiffin...

Fairly Quick Decision - LA Daily News
When USC offensive tackle Matt Kalil announced he was going pro he said, ``I love this university. That's why it took a while to decide.'' The decision actually didn't seem to take so long. Underclassmen have until mid-January, so he could have waited...

USC's Matt Kalil forgoing senior season to enter NFL draft - LA Times
Kalil, an All-American left tackle, is projected by some to be the first lineman taken in the April draft. "It's time to move on," he says...

Report says Kalil to enter NFL draft - OC Register
USC and former Servite High offensive tackle Matt Kalil has decided to forgo his senior season and enter the NFL draft, according to ESPN...

ASU's hiring of Todd Graham elicits skepticism - Arizona Republic [Bickley]
Todd Graham has won a lot of games and burned a lot of bridges, making him an intriguing hire for ASU football.

Pitt's Coach Told His Players He Quit Via A Forwarded Text Message - Deadspin
Todd Graham came on as Pitt's football coach last January, and he almost lasted an entire year with the Panthers. He announced today that he's leaving, after a 6-6 season in Pittsburgh, for sunny Arizona State University...

Mike Leach's Business Partner Is A Publisher Of Guides To Houston Strip Clubs - Deadspin
Deposed Texas Tech boss Mike Leach just took over at Wazzu, and the local press is already hounding our favorite offensive innovator/pirate...

Rating Pac-12 coaches' job security - ESPN
We are about to type that Oregon State coach Mike Riley is on the hot seat. It feels strange, but it is true. And that tells you a lot about being a college coach in an automatic qualifying conference. Life is good, until it isn't. You make millions, but the put-up or get-out window has been reduced from five to three-to-four years. You win, win, win, win, lose, lose, and you're on the hot seat. Way it goes. So where do the Pac-12 coaches stand as we head into the bowl season?

Imagining the perfect coach - ESPN
ESPN.com senior national columnist Gene Wojciechowski asks a question many athletic directors -- and fans -- have been asking themselves over the past few weeks: What is a perfect coach? Woj tries to come up with some ideas, and what he found is that many coaches have important elements of a perfect coach. Here are five observations from the Pac-12: The perfect coach is as good-natured as Oregon State's Mike Riley...

Mora Calls UCLA a 'Sleeping Giant' - The Wiz of Odds
UCLA introduced Jim Mora as its new coach on Tuesday. Mora, 50, agreed to a five-year deal worth a guaranteed $12 million plus incentives and bonuses. "This is proud institution, it's an outstanding academic institution. I say that it's a sleeping giant in college football," said Mora, who hasn't coached since 2009. Mora, a defensive specialist, is about to get a crash course in offenses, from Oregon's spread to USC's pro-style attack. Then there's Washington State and new coach Mike Leach, who simply doesn't care what defense you line up in...

No problem for Florida - Football Rumor Mill
No problem for Florida getting past Charlie Weis
http://t.co/Q14G5FcM

Norm Chow among candidates - Football Rumor Mill
Norm Chow among candidates for Hawaii job
http://t.co/QigiqoKr

NCAA’s cash cow corrupts - Omaha World Herald
http://t.co/J16bPzis

Shirley case concludes - Seattle Times
The legal issues for UW defensive end Josh Shirley relating to an incident at UCLA in the summer of 2010 were recently resolved. Shirley, who originally signed with UCLA, was arrested in late June, 2010 along with then-Bruin teammates Paul Richardson and Shaquille Richardson on suspicion of theft...

Les Miles a candidate - Football Rumor Mill
Les Miles a candidate for Dolphins job
http://t.co/jX4g7RTQ

Jim Mora arrives to try to make UCLA relevant - USA Today
Mora has no college experience but says he is excited about hitting the recruiting trail...

Arizona State assistants - Football Rumor Mill
Arizona State assistants headed to UCLA?
http://t.co/YQud7Rm5

Rumor at Alabama - Football Rumor Mill
Rumor at Alabama is that Nick Saban is targeting an NFL type as OC.

P.S.R. Heisman Watch: 2012 Watch List - Pre Snap Read
...1. QB Matt Barkley, U.S.C.
2011 totals 308 of 446 for 3,528 yards, 39 TD, 7 INT
Like his Pac-12 neighbor at Stanford, Barkley will enter 2012 as the leading Heisman contender — that’s if he returns to U.S.C. instead of throwing his hat in the ring for the N.F.L. Draft. I have a feeling Barkley returns; with his return comes the return of U.S.C.’s swagger, as the Trojans should enter next fall as the top-ranked team in the Pac-12. Barkley needs to duplicate Andrew Luck’s 2011 season while hoping no Griffin-like meteor swoops into the mix midway through the year and takes home the hardware. If this past fall is any indication, Barkley should again rewrite the U.S.C. record books as a senior...

USC's Matt Barkley, Matt Kalil, T.J. McDonald deal with 'mayhem' - LA Times
USC quarterback Matt Barkley, tackle Matt Kalil and safety T.J. McDonald are weighing whether to enter the NFL draft, putting them in the eye of a social media-fueled storm of speculation and opinion...

There Is Only One Pete Carroll, U.C.L.A. - Pre Snap Read
U.C.L.A. just saw the second part of the “Matrix” trilogy, loves Linkin Park’s new album and can’t believe they cancelled “Dawson’s Creek.” The Bruins are living in the past, and not the recent past: U.C.L.A.’s mindset is trapped in 2003, when everyone — not just the Bruins — was looking for the next Pete Carroll...

UCLA interim coach contacted by Akron - Football Rumor Mill
Mike Johnson’s future remains somewhat uncertain, though his high-profile seat-warming may help his prospects. [The UCLA interim coach] has been contacted about the head coaching position at the University of Akron, according to a source familiar with the situation. Johnson was UCLA’s offensive coordinator this season and was pegged to lead UCLA’s preparation for the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl after the school fired Rick Neuheisel two weeks ago. Johnson, who played quarterback at Akron in 1988 and ’89, did not directly comment on the Akron job Sunday after leading his first practice as interim coach...

Arizona State interested in Whittingham - Football Rumor Mill
The Republic confirmed a Fox Sports Arizona report Saturday that ASU has interest in Utah coach Kyle Whittingham for its vacant coaching position. In his seventh full season with the Utes, Whittingham is 65-25. Whittingham reportedly received a recent $525,000 pay bump, raising his annual salary to $1.7 million per year...

Pac-12 recruiting update - ESPN
ESPN.com's latest recruiting rankings are out, and the Pac-12 continues to lag behind. USC is ranked 17th, Stanford is 19th, Arizona State is 24th and Oregon is 25th. The conference has commitments from just 11 from the ESPNU 150, and four of those are headed to USC...

Recruiting Scramble - LA Daily News
Lane Kiffin wants to bring in 5-6 players to enroll in January. The hard part is finding players that are eligible to enroll during the mid-year break. The Trojans are looking at offensive tackles Kyle Long and Menelik Watson of Saddleback College in Mission Viejo...

Video: Thoughts on UCLA hiring Mora - ESPN
What is the response to UCLA's hiring of Jim Mora? Pac-12 blogger Ted Miller goes over the good and the bad.

LARRY SCOTT: LANE KIFFIN, CHINA, CHINA, LANE KIFFIN - EDSBS
Larry Scott wants China to love the Pac-12, and for the Pac-12 to love China back, but first we're going to need some serious ground rules for engagement here. Assume you've already hurt their feelings, first of all, and that you need to apologize. But I haven't even talked to them yet, you say. Exactly. You should have talked to them before you were going to talk to them. China is your easily hurt older female relative whose first weapon is hurt and guilt, and like you, she's been doing it better than anyone and since the dawn of time itself...

Kalil, Lotulelei win Morris Trophy - ESPN
USC offensive tackle Matt Kalil and Utah defensive tackle Star Lotulelei have been named winners of the 32nd annual Morris Trophy.

Utah, Whittingham have new deal in works - Salt Lake Tribune
Even as Utah coach Kyle Whittingham continues to be mentioned in the coaching rumor mill as a possible candidate for openings at Arizona State and Penn State, the Utah Utes are preparing to make him a slightly richer man...

Te'o says he'll return for senior year - Southbend Tribune
Linebacker Manti Te'o announced Sunday night that he will return to Notre Dame for his senior year.

Pete Carroll couldn't think outside the box to recruit Tim Tebow - LA Times
Pete Carroll, then USC's coach, felt good about his chances of landing Tim Tebow after the quarterback visited in 2004. But that changed when Carroll visited Tebow's home . . . because of the mailbox...