The Wiz of Odds

Is the Pac-10 Looking to Add Colorado and Utah?

Pacific 10 commissioner Larry Scott is "very seriously" looking at expansion in the next 12 months, and as the Wiz wrote back in 2006, the two universities at the top the league's list are likely to be Colorado and Utah.

"Realistically, if we are going to consider this in the foreseeable future, it really is in the next 12 months,'' Scott said during a conference call Tuesday to discuss the hiring of Kevin Weiberg as deputy commish.

The reason for the urgency is that the Pac-10's existing TV deals expire in 2012. Scott would like to get expansion completed before finalizing new TV arrangements, which could include the creation of a Pac-10 network.

Adding two teams would allow the Pac-10 to split into two divisions and add a championship game in football.

Reporters Notebooks

Megan Pearl, Maneater: The president of the Missouri Students Association has proposed getting a live tiger as a football mascot. One student comments: "If we got a tiger we could let it roam campus. It would make getting to class a little more interesting."

Mike DeArmond, Kansas City Star: George Pinkel, the father of Missouri coach Gary Pinkel, died at the age of 83. Although his dad was never one to show emotion, the son recalled the hours after he played his first game at Kent State, where he was a tight end. "There were a bunch of people over at our house," Pinkel said. "He came back in the bedroom, and he wrapped his arms around me, and he just started sobbing. Thanking me and saying how proud he was of me."

Los Angeles Times: Michael Barrett, the man who spied on Erin Andrews through her hotel room door and posted nude videos of her on the Internet, may face time in federal prison and more than $300,000 in restitution.

Bruce Cadwallader, Columbus Dispatch: Former Ohio State running back Maurice Clarett has requested an early release from prison after serving nearly half of his 7.5-year sentence for aggravated-robbery and gun convictions.

John Consoli, Media Week: ABC affiliates are boiling mad that corporate sibling ESPN is being handed live sports events they were initially supposed to carry.

T. Rees Shapiro, Washington Post: Former Virginia Tech quarterback Sean Glennon, who know works for a mortgage company, remains a target for bitter fans. "People call me say they hate me and then hang up," he said. One emailer wrote that he would start writing Glennon's cellphone number "on bathroom walls."

Pacific 10 Network on the Way?

The Pacific 10 Conference, which has taken a backseat to other Bowl Championship Series conferences in TV revenue, took a step Monday that could lead to the creation of a Pac-10 network.

Kevin Weiberg, left, was announced as the league's deputy commissioner, effective April 12. The 53-year-old Weiberg left his job as Big 12 commissioner in 2007 to join the Big Ten Network, where he worked for 18 months.

"I left it feeling pretty good about the potential such a network carries," Weiberg told the Seattle Times. "It's a wonderful way for universities to extend their brand, and it's great exposure for sports that don't receive much of it.

"Having said that, there are challenges. It's not easy to get [a network] distributed. I do think it's something that needs to be considered as the Pac-10 considers its range of possibilities for the future."

Reporters Notebooks

John Millea, Minneapolis Star-Tribune: Comments made by Seantrel Henderson suggest the nation's No. 1 prep recruit is back on the market. Henderson, who gave a commitment to USC but didn't sign a letter of intent, was asked if NCAA sanctions could change his mind about going to USC. "Yeah, I think it would. But at the same time, I would have to, you know, talk to the coaches to see exactly what's going on and exactly what's going to happen and then base my decision upon what's going to be going on. Because that's the school I would like to go to, but then at the same time I just can't walk into anything that's going to, like, make my future, you know, not as good as it could be."

Ben Maller: Another wise individual agrees with the Wiz, that national signing day is for scam artists. Maller writes: "Many star high school football players end up as butchers, UPS drivers, construction workers, bread delivery guys etc. Just because you can play ball in 12th grade doesn't mean you can get it done at the next level."

Darren Everson, Wall Street Journal: Stanford's Jim Harbaugh had code for connecting to recruits on his Twitter page.

Paul Finebaum, Mobile Press-Register: Signing day losers: Tommy Tuberville and Mark Richt. Winners: Gene Chizik, Nick Saban, Urban Meyer and Derek Dooley.

Mike Boylan, Fresno Collegian: Is it time for Fresno State to get rid of Pat Hill?

Jeff Metcalfe, Arizona Republic: Arizona State is loading up on creampuffs. The Sun Devils' first two opponents this fall are Portland State and Northern Arizona, Division I-AA teams.

Steven M. Sipple, Lincoln Journal Star: Nebraska defensive coordinator Carl Pelini was contacted by Derek Dooley about joining the Tennessee staff. Pelini decided to stick with his brother, head coach Bo Pelini.

USC's Signature Class Missing Henderson's Autograph

For the third year in a row, the player regarded as the top recruit in the country is delaying his signing.

Seantrel Henderson, the manchild tackle from Cretin-Derham Hall High in St. Paul, announced Wednesday that he planned to attend USC. But he has yet to sign his letter of intent.

Henderson will wait until USC appears before an NCAA infractions committee from Feb. 19-21. The school is under investigation for possible rules violations involving the football and basketball programs.

Henderson, who has yet to qualify academically, has until April 1 to sign his letter of intent. After that, he can sign a scholarship agreement, which doesn't bind him to the school.

Rich Rod Defends Signing of Dorsey

Desperate times for a desperate man.

Rich Rodriguez, who has won all of eight games in two seasons as Michigan coach, announced the signing Wednesday of Demar Dorsey, a defensive back with some unwelcome baggage.

Dorsey, from Lauderdale Lakes, Fla., was charged with two felonies a month apart in Broward County in 2008. He was arrested July 21, 2008 and charged with robbery with a deadly weapon. He was 16 at the time but was charged as an adult. Bond was set at $50,000. Dorsey went to trial that November and was acquitted, according to the Detroit Free Press.

The second charge of burglary of an unoccupied dwelling came on Aug. 22, 2008. Bond was set at $3,500. Prosecutors dismissed the charge that December but online records did not indicate why, according to the newspaper.