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NEW YORK —The only things standing in the way of a major college football
playoff are 12 university presidents. Ed Reed Black Jersey . They figure to be more
of a speed bump than a road block. The BCS commissioners will present their
four-team playoff proposal to the presidential oversight committee Tuesday in
Washington. The committee is headed by Virginia Techs Charles W. Steger and
includes one university leader from each of the 11 major football conferences,
as well as independent Notre Dame. Whether approval will come quickly or the
presidents will take some time to mull over the proposal, maybe toss it back for
tweaks, is unknown. The commissioners have been careful not to get too far out
in front of the presidents when publicly talking about a playoff. But it is safe
to say the men who have spent hours upon hours hashing this out over the last
six months believe their bosses will approve of their work. “Im confident as we
brief (the presidents) over the next week or so, give them an understanding of
the evolution of the ideas—whats been put off to the side, why its been put
off to the side, how we were able to manage the things that seemed to be
irreconcilable for a long time—that they will give our advice appropriate
weight,” Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany said after last weeks meetings in
Chicago. “Could there be a present with a bow on it and everything wrapped up
(Tuesday)?” Delany said. “It could happen, if youre real optimistic. But I would
think well probably need to spend some more time together, and probably resolve
some outstanding issues.” The Big Ten presidents and their cohorts in the Pac-12
havent been as quick to embrace the idea of a playoff. A model called the
plus-one, which is basically the BCS but with participants for the No. 1 vs. No.
2 championship game determined after the bowls are played instead of before, was
deemed preferable to a playoff by those leagues. Nebraska Chancellor Harvey
Perlman, who is a member of the oversight committee, has said he still prefers
the status quo to a playoff and that he will need convincing to sign off on the
commissioners plan. But he also usually qualifies his comments on changes to the
college football post-season the way he did to The Washington Post last week:
“Clearly, that all the commissioners reached a consensus of some sort is a big
step,” he told the newspaper. “I think the presidents would be reluctant to
overrule the people that actually work in the area unless there was good reason
to do so.” The plan to be presented would go into effect during the 2014 season.
Under the proposal, national semifinals would be played on New Years Eve or New
Years Day. The sites for those games will rotate among the four current BCS
games—Rose, Sugar, Orange and Fiesta—and possibly another bowl or two. The
national championship game would be played about 10 days later at another
neutral site. The title game site would be bid on the way the NFL handles where
the Super Bowl is played. Any city that can pay the multimillion dollar tab and
accommodate a huge event could potentially host college footballs championship
game, including those that dont currently host bowl games. The plan also calls
for college footballs final four to be determined by a selection committee,
though who will be on that committee and how big it will be is to be determined.
The commissioners are also working on parameters and guidelines to give the
proposed selection committee that they hope will eliminate some of the
subjectivity that hampers the current system. The commissioners want strength of
schedule emphasized and to give conference champions some preference. They are
also working on power rankings, similar to the RPI used by the NCAA basketball
tournament selection committee. The commissioners will have about four hours
Tuesday to make their case. While they would like to have this wrapped up sooner
rather than later, there is really no hard deadline. The new format needs to be
finalized by the time television contract negotiations begin in the fall. The
current deal ends after the 2013 season. Current TV partner ESPN will have an
exclusive first crack at making a deal, but there is no drop-dead date for that
window to open. So even though there is no finish line, the end of this playoff
process seems to be approaching. Torrey Smith Ravens Jersey . —NHL
commissioner Gary Bettman says formal negotiations on a new collective
bargaining agreement with the players association havent started. Torrey Smith Womens Jersey . The five
Christmas games Sunday attracted large audiences, with the Bulls-Lakers matchup
drawing the third-highest preliminary rating for a regular-season game on ABC.
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. Cacau struggled in his Bundesliga club Stuttgart and was mostly coming off the
bench during the season. He was in the Germany squad at the World Cup in South
Africa two years ago. Torrey Smith Limited Jersey .J. Kennington is
ready jump into his comfort zone. Terrell Suggs Black Jersey . Ruiz came off
the bench to hit a tying homer in the seventh inning, Jimmy Rollins added a
three-run shot and the Philadelphia Phillies busted loose late in a 10-6 victory
over the New York Mets on Wednesday night. NEW YORK —From their coach and
throughout the dressing room, the New York Rangers shake their heads with
disinterest whenever someone mentions one of their many accomplishments in a
stellar regular season. Not only dont they care about the achievements,
sometimes they arent even aware of them. Marian Gaborik and Brad Richards scored
early, and defenceman Michael Del Zotto had two goals in the third period as the
NHL-leading Rangers won their fourth in a row and moved closer to securing the
top seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs with a 4-1 victory over the Montreal
Canadiens on Friday night. It is only the third time in franchise history that
the Rangers have won 50 games in a season. “It doesnt mean squat. I will tell
you right now it means absolutely nothing,” New York coach John Tortorella said.
“Its about how were playing as we go through these next four games against tough
opponents. Its about our game going into the playoffs. You get measured by the
playoffs.” That picture is becoming clearer each day for the Rangers, who hold a
five-point lead over the Pittsburgh Penguins in the East and a one-point edge
over Western Conference-leading St. Louis in the race for the NHLs top mark. Any
combination of three points gained by the Rangers or lost by Pittsburgh, and one
earned by New York or lost by Philadelphia will end the pursuit for first in the
East. “We dont focus on them,” Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist said. “I dont
really care if they are winning or losing.” Lundqvist was steady throughout in
winning for the third straight game and for the sixth time in seven. He won at
Minnesota and at Winnipeg to get to 250 NHL victories, and helped the Rangers
widen their lead. His best stop of the night came two minutes into the third
period when he denied David Desharnais on a breakaway to keep the score at 2-0.
Rene Bourque spoiled Lundqvists chances of a shutout when he scored with 2:29
left to make it 4-1. Lundqvist made 19 saves. “The last three or four games, we
really responded in a good way,” Lundqvist said. “Youre going to have games
where you feel like you can do a lot better, but overall our consistency over
the last week has been great. Everybody understands how we have to play to have
success.” Gaborik scored in the first period and Richards had a power-play goal
in the second for the Rangers (50-21-7), who are 6-1 since a 2-5 skid earlier
this month. Del Zotto also had a man-advantage goal. “I didnt even know tonight
was 50,” Del Zotto said. “Knowing now, its great but its not something were
going to be satisfied with. We want to keep moving forward. Wed like to win the
rest of our games. “We know were at the top of the standings, but its not
something were really that foccused on. Torrey Smith Black Jersey. We just want to
peak come playoff time and get all the kinks out of our game.” Carey Price was
sturdy and made 25 saves for the disappointing Canadiens (29-35-14), who played
their first game since general manager Pierre Gauthier was fired, and team
adviser Bob Gainey left on Thursday. “The heart was in the game,” Canadiens
coach Randy Cunneyworth said. “Its an awfully good team that we are trying to
outwork, and I thought we outworked and had some zone time. “They have a lot
going for them. They are a very good team, as everyone knows. We knew it would
be a tough task, but I like the fact that we worked hard.” The Rangers came into
this game facing a lot less pressure because their lead in the East grew this
week from one point to five over Pittsburgh, which surprisingly lost twice to
the out-of-contention New York Islanders. Although there wasnt much action over
the first two periods, the Rangers scored once in each frame and were never
threatened by the Canadiens, who are just hoping to escape the East cellar. This
low position is quite unfamiliar to Montreal, which won the Stanley Cup for the
first time on this date in 1916. Gaborik got the Rangers going 8:59 in when he
took a second whack at a rebound of Richards shot in the slot and slid the puck
inside the left post for his 39th goal. Richards made it 2-0 just 30 seconds
into the second. He took a pass from Derek Stepan at the blue line, skated into
the high slot, and snapped in his 25th goal. New York took advantage of a
penalty for too many men on the ice called against Montreal in the final minute
of the first period. Del Zotto scored a rare power-play goal 8:17 into the
third, firing a shot that squeezed past Price. He made it 4-0 with 3:02
remaining, scoring his 10th of the season. Gaborik and Richards earned assists
on the final goal. Although their power play came in ranked third from the
bottom in the NHL at 14.7 per cent, the Rangers are remarkably efficient when
they cash in—going 24-1-4 in games in which they score a power-play goal. The
Rangers are 4 for 9 on the power play in the past two games. “With the skill we
have, were going to be able to score goals,” Del Zotto said. “You see just the
way were moving the puck, were moving bodies. “Were not predictable. Teams dont
know exactly where were going to be attacking from or whats going to be
happening. Thats what makes us deadly right now.” NOTES: Lundqvist has held
opponents to two goals or fewer 40 times this season, including six of the past
eight. ... Rangers captain Ryan Callahan was given the teams Steven McDonald
Extra Effort Award before the game. He and Adam Graves are the only three-time
winners. ... The Canadiens and Rangers split the four-game season series. ’ ’ ’