The Wiz of Odds

Reporters Notebooks

Tim May and Ken Gordon, Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State is investigating whether several of its players traded signed memorabilia for tattoos and perhaps other favors from the owner of a Columbus tattoo parlor, actions that could put their eligibility for the Sugar Bowl and beyond in jeopardy. Update: Five players, including Pryor, will be suspended for the first five games of the 2011 season for accepting illegal benefits. but all five will be eligible for the Sugar Bowl.

Eleven Warriors: The two minutes that brought down the Ohio State-Arkansas line in Las Vegas sportsbooks.

Matthew T. Hall, San Diego Union-Tribune: Crews worked overnight to try and pump water out of Qualcomm Stadium, site of Thursday night's Poinsettia Bowl.

Brad Rock, Deseret News: After a beatdown loss to Boise State, it's time for Utah to get in the Pac-10.

David Jones, Harrisburg Patriot-News: Temple may have made a big mistake in hiring Steve Addazio as coach.

Tommy Deas, Tuscaloosa News: Alabama officials say there is nothing outlandish about the university paying thousands of dollars to upgrade facilities at an Orlando high school where the Crimson Tide will be practicing for the Capital One Bowl. The school is home to Hasean Clinton-Dix, a safety who has given Alabama a commitment, and Dee Hart, an all-purpose back who has been reported to be wavering on his commitment to Michigan.

Jordan Blum and Randy Rosetta, Baton Rouge Advocate: The NCAA is requesting additional information from Louisiana State regarding self-reported recruiting and benefits violations involving its program. Plus, starting tailback Stevan Ridley has been ruled ineligible for the Cotton Bowl. The Tigers are appealing the NCAA's decision.

Bill Kline, Allentown Morning Call: Joe Paterno needs to call it quits after the 2011 season.

Tim Cowlishaw, Dallas Morning News: Here are the biggest locks of the bowl season.

Jon Solomon, Birmingham News: Auburn is cashing in on a new apparel agreement with Under Armour that the university values at $27.45 million in cash and products over seven years.

Reporters Notebooks

Sports by Brooks: Auburn booster Milton McGregor, who will stand trial April 4 on charges that he attempted to buy the influence of state politicians, was given clearance by a judge to travel to Glendale, Ariz., to attend the Tigers' Bowl Championship Series title game against Oregon. McGregor is facing 285 years in prison and $4.5 million in fines.

Andrew Gribble, Knoxville News Sentinel: Thirty-six Tennessee athletes were treated as "VIPs" from May to July at a Cumberland Avenue bar that was brought to light after a summer brawl involving numerous football players, according to the athletic department's self-report of a secondary violation to the NCAA. Twenty-six of the athletes are football players. The players were not required to pay cover charges at Bar Knoxville on Thursday nights when other patrons were required to pay $5-$10, depending on their age. PDF file of correspondence between Tennessee and NCAA. Plus, coach Derek Dooley committed a secondary violation with a post on four-star high school tight end Nick O'Leary's Facebook wall.

Brent Schrotenboer, San Diego Union-Tribune: Officials expect a crowd of over 50,000 for Thursday's Poinsettia Bowl, smashing the previous record of 39,120 set in 2007.

Mike Brown, Tulsa World: Tulsa has sold only 800 of its allotment of 10,000 tickets to the Hawaii Bowl.

John Branch, New York Times: The missed field goal by Kyle Brotzman in Boise State's loss to Nevada cost the Western Athletic Conference $8 million, according to commissioner Karl Benson.

Stefan Stevenson, Dallas Morning News: Gripping story of Texas Christian assistant Eddie Williamson suffering a heart attack in the first quarter of the Horned Frogs' Nov. 13 game against San Diego State. "I wasn't afraid to die, but I didn't want to."

Chadd Cripe, Idaho Statesman: Players from Boise State and Utah were involved in an altercation during a welcome reception Sunday evening. The fracas started outside the massage room, where the bowl provided professional massages for players. The bowl staff broke up the scuffle. A bartender sprayed water on the players.

Jeff Rosenfield, St. Petersburg Patch: A poolside dance contest between Louisville and Southern Mississippi players nearly ended in a brawl.

Bowl Game Confidential

Trying to make sense of 35 bowl games in 24 days is a task too big for mere mortals, so we asked Mike Hlas, the award-winning Cedar Rapids Gazette columnist and force behind The Hlog, to review each of the games. Here is his first installment of Bowl Game Confidential.

New Mexico Bowl: Brigham Young 52, Texas El Paso 24: Announced attendance: 32,424. BYU improved to 7-6, while UTEP fell to 6-7. ... "I'm a big supporter and donor of UTEP athletics, but we have a bad habit of being embarrassed on national TV," Miners fan Lou Moreno told the El Paso Times. ... UTEP hasn't won a bowl since 1967.

Fun Stat: UTEP had minus-12 yards rushing.

Tweet: @owengood: New Mexico Bowl announces six-year tie-in pact matching up the WAC No. 4 team versus NFC West No. 1.

Humanitarian Bowl: Northern Illinois 40, Fresno State 17. Announced attendance: 25,449. The Fresno Bee estimated Fresno State sold 250 of its 3,000 allotted tickets. It gave 2,000 to charity. ... Interim NIU head coach Tom Matukewicz got the Gatorade bath. He said,  "It's cold, but it felt awesome." ... He added, "I feel sorry for Fresno State because they hit the perfect storm because I'm telling you, we would run through windows." ... Matukewicz goes back to being NIU's linebackers coach.

Reporters Notebooks

Bernie Becker, New York Times: A resolution to honor Auburn's Cam Newton for winning the Heisman was approved, 378-15, in the U.S. House of Representatives, with another 18 merely voting present. In 2009, the House approved a similar resolution honoring Sam Bradford, 394-0, with no lawmakers voting present. Rep. Dan Lipinski (D-Ill.) said he voted against the resolution because of questions that erupted over Newton's eligibility. "Cam Newton has a tremendous opportunity for a great NFL career and I wish him the best, but he should not have been honored by the House today under this cloud."

Brett McMurphy, FanHouse: Drug policies differ wildly among Bowl Championship Series teams. Clemson, Mississippi, Purdue and UCLA do not require a member of their teams to miss any playing time after two positive drug tests. Baylor, Cincinnati, Georgia, Kentucky, Miami and Virginia Tech suspend their players at least one game for a first positive drug test.

Ben Cohen, Wall Street Journal: Travel doesn't appear to be a factor in postseason play. In 163 bowl games over the past five years, the team that was forced to travel farther is 83-80.

David Haugh, Chicago Tribune: Integrity is the wrong word to be used in Notre Dame's handling of the Elizabeth Seeberg case.

Jack Bogaczyk, Charleston Daily Mail: West Virginia is having trouble selling its allotment of 12,500 tickets to the Champs Sports Bowl. The team has sold only 4,403.

Alissa Skelton, Lincoln Journal Star: Nebraska has about 3,900 unsold tickets to the Dec. 30 Holiday Bowl against Washington. The team is on the hook for 11,000 and is offering incentives to sell the rest, including asking fans to purchase a $60 ticket to be donated to sailors and Marines who are stationed in San Diego.

Mark Purdy, San Jose Mercury News: Stanford has sold less than half of its 17,500-ticket allotment to the Orange Bowl.

Reporters Notebooks

Adam H. Beasley, Miami Herald: Florida International has sold only a few hundred tickets to the Little Caesars Bowl.

Daniel Lyght and Matt James, Fresno Bee: It's estimated that Fresno State sold about 250 tickets of its 3,000 allotment for the Humanitarian Bowl. The school gave 2,000 to charity.

Paul Doyle, Hartford Courant: Connecticut is likely to lose a lot of money on its trip to the Fiesta Bowl. As of Friday, the Huskies had sold only 4,500 tickets. The school is on the hook for 17,500.

Darren Rovell, CNBC: Want tickets for under face value? A company called ScoreBig gets its inventory from teams and — much like Priceline — allows you submit a price for a ticket. Plus, why it's time for schools to say no to ticket arrangements with bowl games.

Mike Hlas, Cedar Rapids Gazette: Why the attendance figure for the Insight Bowl could be inflated. Phoenix-area residents who buy tickets to the Bowl Championship Series title game also have to purchase tickets to the Fiesta and Insight bowls, which floods the market with cheap tickets for those games. Iowa, which is on the hook for 11,000 tickets for the Insight, expects to sell only 6,000.

Jeff Barker, Baltimore Sun: Ralph Friedgen has still not agreed to step down as Maryland coach.

Matt Jones, Northwest Arkansas Times: Big problem for the Sugar Bowl. Approximately 1,680 duplicate tickets have been printed for the game. Ticket barcodes will be scanned before entry to the Sugar Bowl, meaning that if a duplicate ticket is scanned before the original, the original ticket will not be honored.

The Lone Highlight From the New Mexico Bowl

It's never a good idea to stand behind the head coach, pick your nose and then examine the goods on national TV.