From The Salt Lake Tribune :

The Salt Lake Tribune first reported Monday that Whittingham suffered a cut lip during an altercation on the field after the game. The photos, by a photographer with US Presswire, show an unidentified BYU fan latching on to Whittingham as he is being restrained by other fans. A second photo shows Whittingham and her daughter backpedaling from the altercation.

BYU police reported two different complaints were filed involving on-field scuffles in or near the area Jamie Whittingham and her daughter were following the game.

Idiot fan violence is a noble Holy War tradition, dating at least as far back as 1896, when police were called in to break up a brawl. It was one reason BYU dropped its football program from 1898 until 1922. "A burning cauldron of rivalry loathing," is how the Tribune's Gordon Monson puts it. Still, this latest outbreak has left Monson so shaken that he's throwing around Star Wars dialogue:

It's more likely, sadly, that it will go the other way, and Hall's words about hate will generate more hate. When I sat directly in front of him and heard them come out of his mouth, it reminded me of the quote spoken by that great philosopher Yoda.

"Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering."

So, in the most homogeneous state in the Union, one sect of impossibly blond people has managed to find a reason to irrationally hate another sect of impossibly blond people. Awesome. Somewhere, Joseph Smith is stuffing his head in his hat again.

MWC reprimands Hall; photos show altercation [Salt Lake Tribune]
Monson: There's too much hate in BYU-Utah rivalry [Salt Lake Tribune]

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Thanks for your continued support of Deadspin. Barry Petchesky's here tonight.

As you may have heard, after a 12-game preseason the Gators' first actual football contest takes place this Saturday against Alabama. Winner gets the BCS Championship Game. So obviously Dunlap's timing is impeccable. And now his coach has an interesting decision to make. Will Urban Meyer suspend his team's leading sack maker before the biggest the game of the season? Thanks to the Brandon Spikes incident—where Meyer was lambasted for his one half suspension—he might not have a choice. Or will the importance of this game allow him to make up some sort of excuse about "waiting for the legal process to sort things out" and keep Dunlap active, thereby not punishing him at all?

What if he does suspended Dunlap? Will it matter? Would an Alabama victory (if they can even still get one) be cheapened? Something tells me Tide fans wouldn't be broken up about it. Either way, we're going to learn a little something about the Florida coach this week, although perhaps the fact that no one is totally sure which way he'll go tells us something already.

Also, falling asleep at a traffic light? That shows a real commitment to drunk driving. That's the kind of stuff that makes NFL scouts sit up and take notice.

Dunlap's Arrest Puts Spotlight on Florida [New York Times]
Gators' star defensive end charged with DUI [Journal Constitution]
Dunlap's arrest inexplicable [ESPN]

I, for one, will be sad to see him go, because Weis was a living monument to the hubris and folly of his school and its supporters. (For example, this book was actually written and is still available for sale via their ESPN.com clubhouse page.) Just seven games into his first season as head coach, Notre Dame handed Weis a nonsensical ten-year contract extension lashing themselves to his rather prodigious anchor until 2015—despite the fact that the coach he replaced had an identical record at the same point the year before (and also started 8-0 in his first season) and was fired for it. Five years later, he finished with a lower winning percentage than that previous coach and his team has become a punch line. It will now reportedly cost the school around $18 million just to run him out of town, while they naively cling to the belief that the Fighting Irish name alone will be enough to persuade A-list college coaches to ditch their actual successful programs to come run this terrible one. Good luck with that.

However, I will mostly miss him because his teams were lousy and I enjoyed watching them lose.

Source: Notre Dame fires head football coach Charlie Weis [NYDN]

The senior quarterback threw two touchdown passes in his final home game, including the game-winner in overtime, and when asked at a post-game press conference if that redeemed his six-turnover debacle from 2008, Hall did not mince words....

A little bit, yeah. I don't like Utah. In fact, I hate them. I hate everything about them. I hate their program, I hate their fans, I hate everything. So it felt really good to send those guys home.

They didn't deserve it. It was our turn, and our turn to win. We deserved it. We played as hard as we could tonight. And it felt really good, again, to send them home, to get them out of here, and so it is a game I will always remember."

And then he continued, "I think the whole university, their fans and their organization is classless. They threw beer on my family and stuff last year, and they did a whole bunch of nasty things, and I don't respect them, and they deserved to lose."

Wow. That's like real hate. So that's probably the end of that story, right? Nope. Believe it or not, Utah fans were a little ticked off:

"Max Hall is a jerk. He says he hates Utah. I hate him. I hate BYU. That school is filled with hypocrites." — Steve

"Hall is a whiny b——, just like all Cougars and their fans." — no name

"What a baby Max is. Why is it that BYU players are always the ones saying stupid things. I hate that place. Talk about classless." — Tom.

"MORGAN SCALLEY MADE SIMILAR COMMENTS IN 2004 WITHOUT CRITICISM. YOU NEED TO CALL IT BOTH WAYS." — Mark.

Just to let you know how serious Ute fans are taking this ... they've started anti-Max Facebook groups. No foolin'. So on Sunday, Hall decided to ease the tension a little bit and offered an apology for taking a dump on half his state.

"As a result of what happened to my family last year, this rivalry became personal, and in the heat of the moment yesterday, I made comments toward the entire university that were really directed specifically at those fans in [Rice-Eccles Stadium]. It was not intended to be directed at the entire organization and all of their fans, and I apologize that it came out that way."

First of all, what did he say there about not intending to insult the entire organization?

"I think the whole university and their fans and the organization is classless."

Ok, just checking. But Hall says he was really upset because during the 2008 game at Utah, his family was physically and verbally assaulted, including getting beer dumped on them by unruly fans. So that's why the "rivalry became personal." If ask me, it isn't a rivalry until you take it personally. That's why they're called rivals.

A year ago, Hall got embarrassed on the field and his family was humiliated in the stands. So this time around, he rips the heart out of his opponent and redeems himself. Shouldn't he get to talk all the shit he wants? Like the University of Utah is so kick-ass that no one is allowed to hate it? Ok, maybe when the hate rises to the level of beer throwing and insulting mothers, you've gone a bit too far, but Max Hall should be commended for getting his payback on the field. That's the best kind of revenge there is.

So don't listen to those Mormons, buddy. Hold on to your rage and let it feed your soul. It's healthy for you!

Monson: Mad Max's thunder a blunder [Salt Lake Tribune]
Monson: There's too much hate in BYU-Utah rivalry [Salt Lake Tribune]
Mad Max Will Regret Post Game Blunder [Bleacher Report]
Hall's pain a reflection of self-betrayal [Deseret News]
BYU Cougar quarterback Max Hall apologizes for ripping Utah Utes, fans after victory [ESPN]
[Photo via]

•Al Groh wins best press conference of the day, reciting the entirety of the Dale Wimbrow poem, "The Guy In The Glass:"

You may fool the whole world down the pathway of years
And get pats on the back as you pass
But your final reward will be heartache and tears
If you've cheated the guy in the glass."

Groh then continued with his own words: "When I visited the guy in the glass, I saw that he's a guy of commitment, of integrity, of dependability and accountability. He's loyal. His spirit is indomitable. And he is caring and loving. I'm sure I will always call the guy in the glass a friend."

•Steve Kragthorpe was cut yesterday, as Louisville's AD admitted the relationship hadn't worked "from day one."

•J.D. Brookhart is out at Akron, taking it like a man:

It's a big-boy business," he said. "I know it. It is what it is. It's not what I wanted, but these things happen."

•Mark Snyder resigns as Marshall's coach, possibly giving us the wonderful "coach's first game is a bowl" situation.

•Charlie Weis is somehow still technically Notre Dame coach, despite reports that he's cleaned out his office.

•Ralph Friedgen should know his fate at Maryland sometime this week. Which is more important: giving Fridge a 10th season, or UM's first 10-loss season?

•Bobby Bowden even manages to get his name in the headlines, saying he's not even sure if he wants to return to FSU next season. This is what we call an idle threat, as well all know the moment he steps down, he will collapse into a pile of dust and it will emerge that he's been dead for five years.

Let's set the scene. The week started off with a bang, as the Bruin Statue got a cardinal and gold paint job. Fearing retribution, Tommy Trojan received a round-the-clock guard.

The game was uneventful as usual, until the Trojans kneeled with 54 seconds left to run out the clock. That's when Neuheisel inexplicably called a time out. Pete Caroll could have been the bigger man, and simply kneeled again. But no one has ever accused Pete Carroll of having the moral high ground. The next play:

The Trojans celebrated taunted vigorously, and the Bruins sideline cleared. Who says LA needs the NFL? They've already got fans wholly devoted to immature players and asshole coaches.

Sportsmanship Takes A Timeout In USC-UCLA Game [LA Times]

Did you know that every year for the last 11 seasons, the Bowl Championship Series Championship Game Championship has featured the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in country (as determined by the BCS.) Every year! Let's see your idiotic playoff system do that! You can't compete with that kind of consistency. And you can learn more amazing facts like this at this totally proactive website that was helpfully created by "the BCS group".

"If you think the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) is controversial, wait until you realize how much more contentious a playoff would be."

You know who said that? Bill Fucking Hancock. And he did it with this really cool spiral font that swoops in all awesome-like. Still not on board? Here's some more knowledge, bozo.

A bracket-style playoff wouldn't end the debate, it would only fuel it. Advocates of a hypothetical playoff can't agree on how to resolve key playoff questions: who, what, where and when.
For example,

Who would participate?
How many automatic qualifiers?
What would be the criteria to qualify?
What would be the criteria for seedings?
Where would the games be played?
When would the games be played?
If you could resolve all that would everyone be satisfied? NO!!

Shit. The website is correct. We can NEVER answer all those questions, so we should probably just give up and accept the amazingness that is the BCS. I mean, the previous system of scattered, regionally aligned bowls that never even attempted to create a national champion didn't work, so obviously a playoff system is not the way to go.

I don't even understand why you were complaining to begin with. "Every conference has an opportunity to earn annual automatic qualification into the BCS." (Even though most don't have one now and I can't really imagine how that would ever happen.) Plus, "at the beginning of every season, every team has an opportunity to earn a spot in a BCS Game, including the National Championship Game" ... provided they begin the season ranked in the Top 10 of both polls and every team ranked above them (most of whom they will never get to play head-to-head) loses at least once. Maybe twice.

Oh, and don't forget "bracket creep." Have you ever tried to get that shit out of your hair? Forget about it.

Convinced, yet? Man, you are dumb.

Playoff Problem [Playoff Problem]

The school and the campus police are currently playing dumb, refusing to release any details about the fight and the athletic department similarly won't say why the players were given the boot. But witness told the campus newspaper that one of the guys involved in the Sunday night brawl had dreadlocks, so that pretty much cinches it. Also, Winston is a violent idiot so everyone knows he had to be involved.

As you may recall, Winston (pictured in this bittersweet moment) went to jail this summer after beating up an MSU hockey player—the player missed the whole season as a result—and was reinstated to the football team the day he was released. It's really heartwarming to see a young man make the most of his second chance. Mark Dantonio's sparkling judgment remains unblemished.

Winston, Jenrette removed from team; police, MSU silent [The State News]

From an email sent to Georgia's athletic director:

In the wake of the untimely death of the University of Georgia's (UGA) bulldog mascot, Uga VII, PETA has asked the school's athletic director, Damon M. Evans, to replace the mascot with an animatronic dog—or to rely solely on a costumed mascot—instead of using another real bulldog. Bulldogs are prone to breathing difficulties, hip dysplasia, heart disorders, and other congenital ailments, and acquiring a dog from a breeder perpetuates the animal overpopulation crisis while causing another dog waiting in an animal shelter to be condemned to death.

"It is time for the university to put an end to the cycle of suffering endured by dogs who are brought into the world solely to represent the school's 'brand'," says PETA Assistant Director Kristie Phelps. "By choosing a humane alternative to the use of live animals as school mascots, UGA can show that compassion always wins."

So, let's summarize. Let's stop plucking bulldogs from anonymity to live a pampered life where they receive all the attention and care they could ever need, because they have a ton of defects. It's almost as if PETA would love to do away with bulldogs altogether, perhaps eliminating them in some sort of Doggie Dachau. In fact, it sounds like PETA doesn't love animals very much at all.

Let's leave aside the suggestion of sticking with a costumed student, which is more inhumane than any puppy mill, and concentrate on this robot dog idea. It is madness. If Georgia's teams were perhaps named the "robotic bulldogs," they'd have an argument. But Uga VIII should come from a long line of dogs who lived hard, and died heroes.

Would schools replace our players with robots because football isn't good for their health? Would Yale opt for a robotic coach who plays the percentages and punts on 4th-and-22? Bad example, but my point is that I've seen a lot of movies about robots, and they rarely end well for humanity.

PETA: Replace UGA VII With a Robot [WGAU]

According to the bartender at CJ's Pub in South Bend, Clausen stopped by the watering hole after Saturday's crushing double OT loss to the Huskies. He was there with his family and other upperclassmen teammates following the Senior Day game. There may also have been "a female acquaintance" with the party. As Clausen tired to leave the bar around 2:30 a.m., there was allegedly some sort of disturbance with an irate fan who then "sucker-punched" Clausen, giving him "at least" one black eye. That's gotta suck.

No police were called so details of the incident are sketchy and no one seems to know what happened to the mysterious puncher. My theory? It was Olympic gymnast Alicia Sacramone. Hear me out. See, she used to date a football player from Brown University, but recently traded up for another Brown—Cleveland Brown Brady Quinn. The last Irish starting quarterback before Clausen arrived on campus? That's right ... Brady Quinn.

Quarterbacks. Irish. Browns. Sacramone. It all connects! Sort of like a well-placed punch to the face.

Case closed.

David Kaplan report: Clausen in fight outside South Bend bar [Chicago Breaking Sports]
Jimmy Clausen involved in altercation outside a South Bend, Ind., bar [Chicago Tribune]
Source: Notre Dame Fighting Irish QB Jimmy Clausen punched by irate fan [Joe Schad]
Brady Quinn's New Girlfriend Is Alicia Sacramone [Larry Brown Sports]

See if this sounds familiar. Yale was leading by three points with 2:25 left in their giant season-defining game against Harvard on Saturday. It was fourth down and they had the ball on their own 26-yard line. Seems like an obvious punting situation, right? (After all, their punter is the best in the Ivy league and was averaging 51 yards per kick for the game.) Well, Williams was apparently so won over by the outpouring of love and affection that Bill Belichick got all week by going for it against the Colts, that he decided to do the Patriots' leader one better. The Bulldogs ran a fake punt that gained 15 yards on an end around run. The only hitch in the plan was that they needed 22.

I'm not sure those Ivy League eggheads read all that statistical analysis defending Belichick very carefully. Oh, sure it was a gutsy gamble that really sent a message. The message is that Yalies are not smart. Seriously, fourth and 22? Harvard got the ball at the Yale 40 and three plays later they scored the winning touchdown, their eighth victory in nine tries over their arch rival. Gah!

Williams has made a bit of a name for himself in his first head coaching season with his frequent and effective use of trick plays, and he claims he did not want to play scared. Plus, he was worried that Harvard had gained momentum and he wanted to "keep our foot on the pedal," because you always want to be going full speed when you drive into a brick wall.

Although, to be fair to the Elis, Williams did go to Stanford. Those West Coast buffoons can't do math for shit.

Williams offers apology to players day after loss [New Haven Register]
Head Coach Pulls a 'Belichick,' Yale Loses to Harvard [Fanhouse]
Harvard-Yale Game 2009 Has Yale Lose with 'Belichick' Call [Associated Content]

As noted earlier, the Mississippi White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan were peeved that their state university has banned the song "From Dixie With Love" because they actually believe the South will somehow rise again. (Mississippi: 50th in education eight years running!) So ten dudes in hoods stood on the steps of Fulton Chapel before the LSU game on Saturday and shouted things like "white power"—only no one could hear them because they were outnumbered by 250 people booing and calling them idiots and cowards.

Eventually, the pajama clad bozos slunk off defeated. So not a great day for backwards yokels.

KKK rally at Ole Miss fizzles in less than 10 minutes [Daily Reveille]
KKK Rally At Ole Miss: Klan Outnumbered By Protesters [Huffington Post]
KKK demonstration draws hundreds of protesters to Ole Miss [Raw Story]