Mizzou Links, 9-18-09

Furman Links!

• PowerMizzou: Paladins Insider: Five questions for Saturday

  What would you say the biggest strengths of this Furman team are?
  
  MR: Furman's greatest strength is its experience and depth at wide receiver. The Paladins boast a five-deep wideout corps, with possessions guys Adam Mims (9 rec., 112 yards) and David Hendrix (5, 99), and speedsters R.J. Webb (5, 46), Sederrik Cunningham (2, 12) and Tyler Maples (4,19), a transfer from Tennessee. Furman will also split out its all-conference tight end Chris Truss. They hope by spreading the ball around and rotating fresh guys, they can wear down Mizzou's secondary.

• The Missourian: 10 Things You Didn't Know About Furman University
• The Trib: Behind the Stripes Webcast: Episode 6, Part 2
• Post-Dispatch: Sore hamstring for Sean Weatherspoon?
• The Maneater: Missouri takes lessons from last week's game

Other Mizzou Football Links!

• The Trib: Explosive, thy name is Will Ebner

  Ebner’s career at Missouri has followed a similar pattern to Weatherspoon’s.

  Much like the All-American, Ebner was overlooked by the top programs in his home state of Texas after coming out of Friendswood High School. He originally committed to Houston, where his father, Tommy, and older brother, Jake, both played, but he switched his allegiance to Missouri after then-Cougars Coach Art Briles accepted the head coaching job at Baylor.

  ...

  "For me, starting out on special teams, no matter what it was — punt, kickoff, whatever it was — I wanted to be the one to make the tackle or make the key block," Ebner said. "When you like to hit hard, that’s something that lets people notice you a little bit better when you make the smacking hit. I’ve been noticing Sean do that and following in his footsteps."

• The Missourian: Missouri punter swings momentum with career-long kick
• The Missourian: Tight end Andrew Jones follows example of Missouri football predecessor
• Post-Dispatch: Touchdowns to come for MU freshman Kendial Lawrence
• PowerMizzou: (Free) Mailbag!
• PowerMizzou: PMTV: Blaine Gabbert Grows Up

Big 12 (and Mizzou Opponents) Links!

• Post-Dispatch: Big 12 takes aim at increasing its TV footprint

  The Big 12 has two TV deals, with ABC/ESPN through 2015-16 and Fox Sports Net through 2011-12. Until the FSN deal ends, the league's hands are tied. Its new TV negotiations won't begin until April 2011. It has from now until then to figure out what the best step is, and that question is very unclear.
  
  ...
  
  The roads chosen by the Big Ten and the SEC represent the two main options for the league. It can start out on its own, or it can make a big deal with a network. The Big Ten went out on its own because it wanted more exposure than it was getting from its existing deal with ESPN.
  
  The SEC didn't have to start its own network because it got that kind of a deal with ESPN, and that may crowd out the possibility for another deal of that kind for anyone else, because the network has limited shelf space. ESPN will air four SEC games this weekend, spread among ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU, and syndicate a fifth. With the existing deals ESPN has in place, giving that kind of wall-to-wall coverage to another league — and the Big 12 would be a prime candidate, considering the power of its football programs — may not be possible.
  
  "There's only so much money to go around," Alden said.

• Dr. Saturday: Huskers up to bat again for big-game breakthrough

  But for the time being, the Hokies are a perennial top-15/20 outfit, an annual BCS contender and a significantly better team than Nebraska has beaten in almost eight years -- and if you want to check on the 'Huskers' last big road win, you'll have to go back to when Pelini was a young position coach in the NFL and everyone on the current roster was in grade school. A win in Blacksburg would be a genuine turn-the-corner moment for Pelini's rebuilding effort.

• Daily Oklahoman: Prescription for an upset: How five college football teams pulled off upsets...could Tulsa be next?
• KC Star (Jason Whitlock...sigh): Seeing Todd Reesing with be awkward after falling for Blaine
• ESPN.com: Illinois middle linebacker Martez Wilson (neck) to miss rest of season
• SI.com (Andy Staples): Texas Tech Red Raiders similar to 2008 Big 12 South contender
• KC Star: Daniel Thomas has carried Kansas State's offense
• Waco Tribune: John Werner's College Predictions: Defense key for Baylor vs UConn

Other Mizzou Links!

• MU Soccer
  Mutigers.com: Soccer travels to Los Angeles for UCLA Women's Cup
• MU Volleyball
  The Trib: Powering past the 'blue and red'

Other!

• ESPN.com (Ivan Maisel): Coaching "fit" is hard to define, but success is one size that fits all
• Awful Announcing: Ernie Harwell Says Goodbye To Detroit, Major League Baseball
  

And of course...