The good news is Jerod Mayo catapulted up the draft board to go 10th overall. The bad news? HE WENT TO THE FRIGGIN' PATRIOTS!!! HE'S PLAYING FOR BILL BELICHICK!!! IN NEW ENGLAND!!! HE'S NOW A CHEATER!!! WHY CAN'T I QUIT TYPING CAPITAL LETTERS OR EXCLAMATION MARKS!!!

nastyboys sports blog gives us the leader of the Evil Empire

OK, I really didn't vomit, but the sick feeling in the pit of my stomach just won't go away. This is not quite as bad as Eric Berry announcing he's transferring to Alabama -- which would be a Gouge-Out-My-Eyes-With-A-No.-2-Pencil on a scale of 1-to-Kill Myself. But this is easily a Curl-Up-In-A-Corner-And-Cry move. I mean, I just can't believe it. I have to denounce my favorite Vol since Al Wilson? Really?

Some of you may not understand, but Vols fans do. Jerod Mayo is important to us. Forget the fact that he didn't return for his senior season. The guy ran a 4.52 at the combine. He dominated last season. He was ready. If you watched any Tennessee games last year, you know that he was the Skittle in the turd that was the Vols defense during the early season.

When nobody could make a tackle early in the season, Mayo made 15 a game. At a new position. Because he was asked to move. Because he HAD to carry them.

Then, as a young defense matured and meshed to make a run to the SEC Championship game, Mayo willed the team to wins, making huge plays in every game down the stretch. He wore out the combo of Darren McFadden and Felix Jones, single-handedly beat Vanderbilt, owned Kentucky. Then, in a matchup against LSU and Ali Highsmith, he just made Highsmith look average.

But it goes even further than that.

When the Vols had only slim hope and no leg to stand on back in 2006, coming off a 5-6 season, who was it who dominated Cal with his breakout, four-sack performance? You became a natural leader that year, flying all over the field and becoming Al Wilson on a team that wasn't as good as that 1998 team. Then, last year, you gave us 140 tackles and everything you had. I love you, man!

I'm biased, but Mayo was better than -- is better than -- Keith Rivers. When all is said and done he'll probably be better than (Lord, forgive me...) Al Wilson. And now he gets to wreak havoc for the Patriots. The crybaby, hate-everything-they-stand-for Patriots.

THE PATRIOTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This guy. My guy. Wahhhhhh!

He gets to run around and eat running backs for the AFC champs, making them even better. He gets to learn how to be dirty and grimy and worship Satan. He gets to high-five Tedy Bruschi, Randy Moss and rub the head of -- I'm swallowing puke right now -- Tom Brady.

I just can't live this way anymore. Life changed today.

Mayo matters to Tennessee. And while it looks good for the program for him to be picked that high and it's certainly good in the pocket-lining category for Mayo, I just can't get used to it. I feel like crying. Mayo now becomes the mortal enemy of Peyton Manning. Pulling for Mayo to succeed is almost inconceivable now. Well, pulling for him would be OK, but pulling for him to play for a winner is impossible.

That would be like burning a Ronald Reagan picture at the Republican National Convention.

Congratulations, Jerod. At 6-2, 230 pounds and a freak of nature, you will always, ALWAYS be one of my favorite Vols for the things you did. What you meant to me will never be forgotten. The orange No. 7 will be stamped on my heart forever.

But you have to be dead to me now. I hope we can still be friends. I just can't trust you anymore. It's me, it's not you. We had a good thing, didn't we, you and I? This hurts me more than it hurts you.

Don't look back in anger ... My sorrow consumes me.

Keep him away from the goats, Tom! I MEAN IT!

No, not that kind of draft.

I'm talking about the NFL Draft! Yes, it's that time of year again, and I must admit that I always love watching it if I'm home on that Saturday -- or at least having it on in the background. If you're stuck inside, it's good to have on the draft with a good book in hand, choosing to pay attention when your favorite team or teams come up with their picks or a player from your alma mater is announced.

Well, it's not going to be a huge year for the Vols draft-wise, but I am looking for one player -- junior all-world linebacker Jerod Mayo -- to go in the first round. Whether it's to San Francisco (who loves them some SEC linebackers after last year's glittering selection of Tennessee native and Ole Miss star Patrick Willis) or the Tennessee Titans (who owe the Vols some good vibes after skipping on Robert Meachem last year) or another team, expect Mayo to get snapped up early in the day. He's an electric talent, can fly, makes every tackle in his vicinity, showed the versatility to move inside and play either linebacker position last season, and he's only getting better. When matched up against some of the better linebackers in the conference, Mayo proved he was the best. Expect him to go in a hurry, likely in the first 20-23 picks of the first round.

From there, it gets sketchy. There may not be another Vol taken on Saturday (first and second rounds). As a matter of fact, it would be down-right mouth-dropping if another was taken. The next two who are expected to go are tight end Brad Cottam and quarterback Erik Ainge. Joel over at Rocky Top Talk does a better job of breaking down these two Vols than we have time to do over here, so I'll just let him do the dirty work with the links. Also, Wes Rucker with the Chattanooga Times Free Press hits Ainge with a strong article.

It's funny that looking back at these two guys, UT fans probably don't have a ton of fond thoughts. Personally, Ainge and me never really got off on the right foot. I respected his grasp of the offense, and I know that he made some big plays. That, along with his 6-foot-6 frame, should lead to a selection by some team in the third- or fourth-round. Ainge certainly had the tools, but after a disastrous sophomore year when he may have deserved most of the blame for the 5-6 season, we just never could make up. I never really could accept him as our leader.

Really, Erik, it's my fault, I'll admit. But when you had a chance to get back in my good graces and end your career on a strong note, you threw the two critical interceptions to single-handedly lose us the SEC Championship game, and then you were only mediocre in a win against Wisconsin in the Outback Bowl.

I will pull for you in the NFL, and you will always be a Vol, but pardon me for not being able to completely forgive you for the kid gloves David Cutcliffe always had to equip you with or the mistakes you made with games on the line.

Then, there's Cottam. The 6-foot-8, speedy freak of nature had all of the intangibles to be a Jason Witten-type tight end that went down in Big Orange Lore. Instead, he spent essentially his entire career mired on the depth chart or recovering from devastating injuries. When we finally got a glimpse of what might have been during his 59-yard jaunt against Kentucky that looked briefly like he was the fastest man on the field, it was enough to give us warm and fuzzies. But it was also enough to make us just a little angry that we didn't get to know you better.

Good luck, guys. But when it comes to hero status that has been reserved for recent Vols such as Peyton Manning, Al Wilson, Gibril Wilson, Travis Henry, Albert Haynesworth, John Henderson, etc., you aren't in that conversation. Still, there's nothing wrong with being mentioned in the same breath as Kevin Burnett, Omar Gaither, Parys Haralson, Scott Wells, Donte Stallworth and guys like that who we're still proud were Vols.

Finally, there's one thing I don't understand: Many experts have Chris Brown as a free agent possibility only. Huh? This guy did everything for the Vols as an H-back/tight end/fullback, and now the former five-star may not even get drafted? I realize he's undersized at 6-1, 250, but gosh, the guy has great hands, tenacious blocking ability, is versatile and has a nose for the end zone. UT coaches are dumbfounded that Brown may not get drafted. He did so much for the Vols last year that they went out and tried to recruit to that position, a position that really doesn't have a name because he's such a Swiss Army Knife of a player. Now that Dave Clawson is the OC, there will probably be more of a true fullback in the Vols' system, but I for one thought Brown's versatility would have helped his draft status. Apparently, I was wrong.

Other Vols who could get drafted:

• Eric Young (a near-certain top-three rounder until an injury ended his UT career prematurely. This is a great kid who comes from nothing, so if you're looking for an underdog to pull for to sign a big contract with somebody, pull for Eric. He's a great guy and a great player who got a raw deal with the injury.)
• Jonathan Hefney (a safety that was expected to be a top few rounds pick until he returned for his senior year and stunk up the joint playing through injuries. Hefney is still a good player, but his measuring at 5-foot-7 surely aren't going to help his chances.)
• Xavier Mitchell, Antonio Reynolds (these two defensive ends are essentially the same person as far as production goes.) They just never lived up to expectations -- especially Reynolds. Mitchell and Reynolds had flashes of brilliance, but UT really needed them to have better careers than they had.
• Ryan Karl (OK, I spit out my Diet Dr. Pepper ... seriously, the outside linebacker insists that he's being contacted by some teams, and he may not be such a bad player to use a late-round pick on. Still, he probably lacks the size or speed to play on the next level.)

I'm sure I'm leaving somebody out, but that's all I can think of. Good luck, Mayo! You were really the only one who made enough of an impact to be remembered as a Vols legend.

Without a doubt we can expect more of the same in 2008. But to try to seem as non-partisan as possible, they always have another player about whom they gush uncomfortably (at least to the viewer). Last year it was one Jacob Hester. You might remember him from such coach-saving games as LSU-Florida and LSU-Auburn.

Glenn Dorsey was a chop block away from the CBS amor-athon. But with Dorsey limping around much of the season, the tandem rode the Hester love machine almost as much as Lester Miles. Now with Hester gone, someone's got to step up to fill the number two slot in Verne and Gary's heart. It has to be a high caliber player on a championship contending team that's going to get a lot of airtime on CBS (duh!). Percy Harvin comes to mind, but they normally don't choose players on the same team, with the lone exception being the two Davids for UGA a few years back. Man, that was sickening. And besides that, three hours and forty-five minutes just isn't enough time to extol all the virtues of Tim Tebow.

So who will it be? Unfortunately, or thankfully, for the majority of our readers it's more than likely not going to be a member of either Alabama or Tennessee. That is unless Jesse Mahelona still has a year of eligibility left (Did you know he was from Hawai'i?). One needs to look no further than Athens, GA to find the two most likely candidates to take Hester's place. Matthew Stafford and Knowshon Moreno are key offensive players on a preseason favorite to make a run at the BCS title, and the Bulldogs are sure to be regulars on CBS this fall. Stafford has a high-powered rifle attached to his throwing shoulder, while Knowshon has the power and speed of an NFL ready tailback, but Moreno has the edge here for one reason and one reason only. His first name. Verne already has a notebook filled with Knowshon puns. To Knowshon is to love him. They write themselves, folks. And we'll be mentally bludgeoned by Danielson's discourses on the leadership qualities he displays when he runs back to the huddle after a play like my five-year old who suddenly realized she really, really, reeaally needs to go to the bathroom. I do like that about Moreno, but after the seventh time I've heard about it in the first quarter, I'll hate him for it. And the over/under of comparisons to Herschel Walker (just the football player, not his other personas) is already set at forty-two.

So congrats, Moreno, through no fault of your own (you can blame your parents for the name and their genes for your game), in addition to the members of the linebacking corps and secondaries you'll be facing this year, thousands of other people who you will never meet will become physically ill at the mere mention of your name.

Just to put this into perspective, his 40 inch vertical is higher than anyone jumped at the combine, and 3.5 inches higher than any other linebacker.

Mayo is being projected as a late first rounder, potentially landing with the Titans.

So not only is D-Mac going to be chasing the rushing record of fellow SEC alum Emmitt Smith, possibly in the same city if Dallas trades up, but it seems he's also set his sights on the prestigious procreating record held by one Travis Henry. Aim high, Darren. Errr....well, you already know where to aim. Nevermind.

__________________________________________________

Speaking of the NFL Combine, watching it makes me uncomfortable. Especially the weigh-in. I mean, I've heard of gay rodeos (Tip: stay clear of guys wearing cowboy boots with gold tips), but I think that has to be the closest thing to a gay livestock sale. You have a room full of middle-aged men giving big, muscular young men, wearing only spandex shorts, a thorough once-over. I was just waiting for one of the scouts to go on-stage and check a prospect's teeth. And after they're weighed, they're taken behind a curtain to sit in what appears to be either an escape pod or a cryogenic chamber.  Myself, I would head straight for the showers.

Love them or loathe them, there have been two dominant figures on the University of Tennessee sports scene during the past four years.

Normally, how Vols quarterback Erik Ainge and shooting guard Chris Lofton went, their teams went. That's how it goes when you're the most important player of two nationally-recognized programs.

Well, the two most decorated players in the past four years of UT athletics came to an important crossroads Saturday.

One may have jump-started a surge that could propel his team to its potential and inject himself back into draft projections in one sport. The other may have quieted the speculation that he was a product of a system and a low-round pick at best in another sport.

In the basketball Vols' 16-point victory over Georgia at Thompson-Boling Arena on Saturday night, Lofton absolutely torched the Dawgs as he has done his entire career. His hot shooting began during the first half of his home away from home Tuesday in the Vols' heartbreaking loss to Kentucky at Rupp. But the excitement was temporary and tempered when CLo went cold from the floor until the meaningless final seconds.

However, Saturday, Lofton was, well, Lofton. He was the first-team All-American and the defending SEC Player of the Year. He was all that and more. He was getting open. He was moving around on defense and offense. He was penetrating and finishing, and, most importantly, he was popping shots from beyond the arc, and they were the no-doubters we're so used to seeing. Lofton finished with 27 points and only went mildly chilly when he was trying to set the team record late in the game.

I hate losing to UK more than anything when it comes to basketball, but if it means Lofton getting hot and getting off his butt, it just may be the most valuable "L" of the season. It also couldn't come at a better time for UT, which heads to the road to play a very talented Alabama team with a jolt of energy and home-court advantage Tuesday before going to Starkvegas to take on the only undefeated team left in conference play, Mississippi State.

***

As for Ainge, after being written off and criticized all week in Senior Bowl practice, he was simply the best quarterback on the field in the South's win Saturday, along with Michigan's Chad Henne. The 6-foot-6 former Vols signal-caller looked anything but like the player who threw two crucial SECCG picks against eventual national champion LSU. Instead, he finished 13-for-21 for 159 yards and led the South on the decisive scoring drive.

By comparison, the other quarterbacks who played had numbers that looked like this:

• John David Booty 6-of-12 72 yards and a pick
• Chad Henne 5-of-9 64 yards 2 touchdowns
• Joe Flacco 2-of-7 22 yards 1 pick
• Colt Brennan 2-of-6 30 yards 1 pick
• Andre Woodson 3-of-6 27 yards 1 touchdown

Ainge was 13-of-18 before failing to complete his last three attempts. His performance earned him South team MVP honors and, hopefully, a second look by NFL coaches and scouts after a sub-par week of practice. Knowing Ainge's issues with consistency, the combine will be a huge deal for him. If he goes in on, it wouldn't surprise me if he vaulted into the first couple of rounds -- at least three rounds. If he goes in with the off-switch flicked, he will be a low-round selection. In other words, it'll be worth millions. But Saturday's performance proved what he can do. Once Ainge gets in a groove, he's tough. But he remains easy to rattle, and I won't think otherwise until he proves he can be legit on a consistent basis.

Still, it was very nice to see him succeed like that. Oh, and Brad Cottam -- who may be a top-two-round selection -- caught a touchdown pass, too.

It was a coming-out party of sorts for Lofton and a farewell party for EA. Both of which represented my university very proudly over the past four years. It would be nice if CLo can lead his team to places EA never could. Regardless, EA probably projects as a better professional player, and it would be good to see him get that opportunity.

Well, I was hoping so. But we didn't know for sure what Arian Foster's future would hold until today. It appears, according to the most connected Vols beat writer ever, that Arian Foster is indeed returning to UT for his senior year. A press conference to make things official is scheduled for this afternoon.

In a year when recruiting has been terrible at best for UT, this is a huge get for the Vols, especially now that we have an offensive coordinator who traditionally plays to the strength of his personnel and rides his horses, whether it be at running back, quarterback or receiver.

As for Foster's NFL Draft grade, it came back as a solid second round. That's definitely excellent feedback, and the former three-star from San Diego is just what the pros look for: A big, strong, all-purpose back who can catch the ball, deliver hits on blitzers and make defenders miss. The only knocks on him are his breakaway speed and fumble problems.

That said, if Foster makes as much improvement from this year to next as he did from last year to this, we could be seeing a future first-round draft pick. Whatever the case, this is a huge deal for UT fans. With just over 700 yards next year, he will become a proud university's all-time leading rusher.

That's not a bad tradeoff for having to listen to Fostermom on the message boards for another year. Now, I'm just kidding about that. Arian's mom is a classy lady, but it's not a player's parent's job to mix things up with 30-something-year-old blowhards who think they know something about a program they know nothing about.

It's kind of like dealing with the Alabama fans on this board ... (I keed, I keed).

Anyway, after the recruiting weekend debacle, this is a dose of good news. GBO!!

GBO.

Now, pardon me while I go crawl in my bed and cry. Please let it not be true.

Arian Foster's mother just posted on Volquest.com that her son's NFL Draft grade just came back as a solid second-round selection. Foster will seriously consider jumping his senior year for the League. Foster's rushing statistics this year were terrific, rivaling the numbers of Travis Henry during his senior year.

The biggest knock on Foster is his fumbling issues. He cost the Vols last year's Outback Bowl against Penn State, after losing a crucial fumble as a freshman that led to a South Carolina loss. He also had the fumble this season that opened the flood gates against Florida when UT had the ball in the third quarter, down by only eight points. The blunder led to a 59-20 depression. He also fumbled as the Vols were driving for the tying field goal this year against the Gamecocks, but it was recovered by Jacques McClendon.

Foster is shifty, makes people miss, receives well out of the backfield and gains a lot of tough yards. He's a very solid back that will be an excellent NFL all-purpose back someday. If we'd have kept riding him, the Bama game may have been different. Maybe.

Foster has been an exceptional back for the Vols, and it would be a big, big bonus to have him back for his senior season. Jerod Mayo's grade has not been announced, but Mel Kiper Jr. projects Mayo as at least the third-best linebacker in the class. His combine numbers could bump him up even higher.

It looks like Phillip Fulmer's biggest recruiting job this season may be getting back a couple of super seniors.

The Foster news came on the heels of rumors that San Francisco 49ers quarterbacks coach Frank Cignetti may stay on the West Coast to be the offensive coordinator at California, despite Jeff Tedford being an offensive guru. This doesn't make much sense to me, but I'm not on the inside, nor do I know what the situation is, if he's UT's top choice or if he's even been offered. Former Vanderbilt and current Tennessee Tech head coach Watson Brown spoke with Fulmer yesterday, but it is unknown if it was for the OC job or not. That would be a terrible hire, IMO. Nothing sexy about that one.

Anyway, this is becoming very much like an Alabama-esque search. Of course, that didn't turn out too badly for them with the head coaching search. Maybe we'll reel in a big fish at offensive coordinator.

After watching Terrelle Pryor dominate today's U.S. Army All-American Game and zero of those kids committing to UT after getting six of them last year, pardon me if I sound a little down-in-the-dumps. I don't mind change at all, but I just want some resolution. This is getting me a tad nervous.

Well, it seems that the greatest SEC running back ever not named "Bo" or "Herschel" may be in hot water because his Crown Vic wasn't quite material enough for first-round status. This is what his new ride -- um, his mom's new ride -- looks like, apparently. This or something like it ...

So, DMac may not be able to play in the Cotton Bowl against Missouri, according to this report. I'm a little stunned by this. I mean, players as great as him go to schools like Arkansas every day, right? Meanwhile, Houston Dale is off in Oxford, hoping he doesn't get tied to anything McFadden-related.

After looking at this, I bet Felix Jones is pissed. Wonder if DMac gave him the souped-up Crown Vic?

(Honestly, EDSBS.com beat us to it, but I didn't see it till after I posted it)

Pumping his arms in the air and high-fiving fans, Tebow seemed to be rubbing it in. We were hurting hard, and there was Mr. Perfect down there, celebrating like he'd just won a championship. He wasn't really rubbing it in, but at the time, I didn't want to hear anything of it. If I'd have had a weapon right then, I'd have probably used it.

He's just so freakin' good. He's just so freakin' dominant. He's just so freakin' passionate. And he's really just such a freakin' decent person off the field, it's almost impossible to hate him. He's like the second coming of Danny Wuerffel.

It's almost impossible, but it's obviously not COMPLETELY impossible because I really, really dislike him. I mean REALLY. Still, I'm not dumb enough to think he's overrated or undeserving of college football's most prestigious award.

I know that most have felt the way I feel about Tebow before. There's so much hype for a player who plays for a team you despise, and you shrug it off and think: "Well, he's not that good," or "I'll believe it when I see it," or "He's not going to be able to carry the team on his shoulders though," or something along those lines.

Rarely does a player or coach live up to considerable hype. Tebow has already, and now UT fans just pray he's just simply THAT good. That he's the perfect quarterback for Urban Meyer's system, and that his system is not going to continually produce dominant quarterbacks the way Steve Spurrier's did.

We're just looking forward to him graduating ... or leaving early. We can't stop him. We may win next year (maybe) but it won't be because Tim Tebow plays a bad game. He has never played one of those. Honestly. Look at his numbers.

Auburn is the only team that kept him under three touchdowns this season, and he still had 276 all-purpose yards and a pair of scores. He also played hurt all year and carried a team without a tailback.

Um, the Gators will have a healthy Mon Williams and USC transfer Emanuel Moody next year, too. A nation cringes.

But watching the Heisman Trophy presentation Saturday night, I still couldn't help but feel that Darren McFadden got cheated. He didn't, of course, but I really wanted him to win. After all, he SHOULD have won last year, even though you can't argue against Troy Smith.

I know TideFan's already written about this, so I'll get to the point:

I finally truly realized how I feel about the Heisman. First and foremost, I hate it and I put no value on it after the 1997 debacle involving Peyton Manning and He Of Whom Nobody In Orange Speaks.

But, beyond that, I want the award to be something it simply isn't. The Heisman goes to the best player in the country that season. It's not a Lifetime Achievement Award. But I really wish it was.

When Peter Jackson's third installment of Lord of the Rings essentially swept the Oscars four years ago, was it really the best movie out there that year? Probably not. Not after the sheer brilliance of Clint Eastwood's interpretation of the Dennis Lehane gritty masterpiece "Mystic River." It wasn't even the best of the trilogy.

After the critical acclaim, amazing visual effects, meticulous detail, tedious direction, impeccable acting and such a brilliant, three-year interpretation of one of the great literary treasures of our time, how can you NOT honor it? It has to be rewarded.

In my opinion, the first one (Fellowship of the Ring) should have won the Oscar because it was against weaker competition (A Beautiful Mind won in 2001), but it didn't. The second one was vastly inferior to the first one. Then, you had to give it to the final part of the trilogy. Essentially, the voters were handcuffed.

If Lord of the Rings had won zero Best Picture awards, it would have been a travesty. This is the most beautiful visual movie ever and easily the greatest fantasy film ever made.

This brings us to McFadden. Now, he will go pro after his three amazing years and -- unless he gets hurt -- onto a Hall of Fame NFL career. Everybody who got to watch him play college football will tell their children how amazing he was. They'll tell them how there was nothing like him in college, much like people talk about Herschel Walker and Bo Jackson.

Both those guys have their Heismans, and McFadden should have one, too.

That's taking nothing away from Tebow, because he was absolutely deserving this year. Absolutely. I just feel like it diminishes McFadden's collegiate greatness (and Peyton Manning's greatness ... I'm trying, y'all to leave him out. Really, I am) that he doesn't have the trophy.

And that Tebow could have three.

The massage of millions will mute McFadden's melancholy, no doubt, much like Manning. But people will only be able to shake their heads when recalling McFadden's Heisman-less career. It's a shame. It truly is.

Then I think: Oh well, they can't all be winners. There was nothing like the Wizard of Oz, either. It just so happened to come out the same year as Gone With the Wind.

Thanks, John.

Ghost of Neyland 

There are other viable Heisman candidates out there, for sure. But it is pretty remarkable that three legitimate candidates have surfaced out of the Southeastern Conference. Now, I know that we're only four games into the young season, and a clear list will only begin to emerge about three weeks from now, but an early-season short list would have to include  Kentucky quarterback Andre Woodson.

Now, the Ghost is certainly no expert (although I've been dead-on in my game previews ... which is nice considering my picks section blows) but try Woodson's numbers on for size.

On the season Woodson has completed 64.2 percent of his passes (86 of 134) for 1,008 yards and 11 touchdowns. Um, yeah, and then there's the fact that he has thrown exactly ZERO interceptions. In fact, he has thrown 296 straight passes without an interception, a new NCAA record.

This kid is the REAL DEAL. He has size, athleticism, a cannon for an arm and an able stable of receivers to go along with a Little weapon at running back. This Wildcats team is no longer a fluffy, feel-good story. They're legitimate threats this year. With an offense like that, they can play with 95 percent of the teams in the country. And Woodson is the reason.

If the voting was today, Tim Tebow would have to get most everybody's vote. But Woodson's case is wide open.

Ghost of Neyland