I'm no physicist, and the closest I've ever been to a theoretical mathematician was probably at the bar of the TGI Friday's in the Dallas/Ft. Worth Airport (nice guy, Dodgers fan, on his way back from some conference). But even I can tell that Urban Meyer is having some trouble with the fundamental building blocks of existence. No, I'm not talking about Percy Harvin's bum heel. At least not today.

I'm talking about Meyer's comments at a recent booster event in Miami. Meyer said that it's harder to judge players' character these days because "The NCAA is pulling us off the recruiting process", at least according to ESPN . Meyer continued "I'm not allowed to go out  anymore. I'm not allowed to text message. I'm trying to find out as best I can. You just keep re-evaluating."

This response was of course precipitated by the recent scandal brought on by former UF safety Jamar Hornsby's using a teammate's dead girlfriend's stolen credit card  70 times to buy gas. To Meyer's credit, he kicked Hornsby off the team in short order after the allegations came to light. No "letting the system take its course" or referring questions to the university judicial office. Good for him. He also called the girl's father to apologize . Again, that's the stand up thing to do and he should be applauded for it.

But Urb is all wet on this latest justification for player misconduct. Why? Because Hornsby signed with Florida in 2006, when head coaches were allowed to be on the road. In fact, head coaches were only kept on campus this year after other coaches began following Meyer's lead by recruiting on the road extensively. Meyer was previously the unchallenged king of the head coach visit.  And this was also of course before the text message ban. Hornsby signed with UF at the height of Meyer's finger-flapping recruiting heyday.

So, Jamar Hornsby may or may not be a scoundrel or a criminal or any number of other things. I don't know the guy. I do know that college kids do stupid things, some of which are criminal and many of which are morally questionable.

 But I also know this: Urban Meyer had every modern tool available at his disposal to evaluate the young man's character. Perhaps he was wrong. If so I don't fault him for that. If you're going to be too damned something (and we all are, what with being human and all) , being too damned trusting of your fellow man is not a bad option. But don't blame the NCAA for your poor judgment or poor team discipline after the fact.

Because in order for the text messaging ban or the prohibition against head coaches on the road to have had any effect, they would have to have been in place when you recruited the guy, coach. Which they weren't. They also weren't in place before Nyan Boateng broke into his ex-girlfriend's home , or before Ian Smith passed out in the men's room at Amici's. I'm calling charades on this. Meyer is the most recent, possibly the first, but probably not the last coach to invoke this line.

Don't believe any coach who tries to pull this over on his loyal fanbase. The fact is, most high school boys have some character flaws. How do I know this? Because I was one. So were many of you. But I think we can all agree that there's a lot of growin' up to be done between the ages of 17 and 21. College football players do that growin' up under the watchful eye of people like Coach Meyer, who as employees of our nation's colleges and univiersities are acting, for limited purposes, in loco parentis . That is, in place of parents. College coaches have a responsibility both to their schools and to their players. Sometimes they guess wrong on a guy, and when they do, they should discipline accordingly and admit they messed up. It's going to happen at every school eventually.

But they shouldn't blame the NCAA. The NCAA didn't offer the scholarship. The NCAA didn't schedule the character education classes. The NCAA doesn't patrol Austin or Ann Arbor or Athens on a Saturday night looking for bad behavior. When a college athlete does stupid things, it's his or her fault. It might be the coach's fault for not making the school's expectations clear. But it is most certainly not the NCAA's fault.

Rocky Top Talk’s Joel has been trying to talk me into getting a TiVo. I, of course, am dead set against it.

Not that I needed additional reasons to avoid having that infernal HAL-9000-with-a-satellite-dish in my house, but now I have extra ammunition to use in my steadfast opposition to acquiring a digital video recorder.

One of the supposed strengths of TiVo is its ability to recommend programming for you based upon your viewing patterns, a la Amazon.com. I find that more than slightly creepy, but now a further problem with this concept has come to light:

My wife, Susan, a wonderful woman whom I love dearly, watches crap!

Also, the name of the device sounds eerily similar to the surname of the Root of All Evil, but that’s a separate issue altogether.

The other night, while Susan was sorting laundry in the living room, I caught her watching "Jon and Kate Plus 8," a "reality" (read: unscripted) show about a married couple who are neither likeable nor compatible yet who have eight small children. We’re not talking about a family with eight kids like the one on "Eight is Enough," in which Dick Van Patten made former "Crossfire" co-host Tom Braden seem palatable; we’re talking about television that will aggravate you 47 different ways.

Last night, before I put our son, Thomas, to bed and she put our daughter, Elizabeth, to bed, Susan made me promise her that, if (read: when) she fell asleep, I was to make sure she was up in time to watch "Step It Up and Dance," to which I routinely refer as "The World’s Most Effeminate Man Competition." How horrid is this ill-conceived offspring of an unholy union between "The Apprentice" and "A Chorus Line"? It’s so bad that, even though it features Elizabeth Berkley standing around looking like Elizabeth Berkley, I still can’t bring myself to watch it!

If I got a TiVo, I’d get home in the afternoon, and that ominous omniscient box would announce, "I recorded the following programs I thought Susan might like. Would you like to see them?"

That’s what I need . . . more crappy T.V. suggestions. Voluntarily providing my wife with a co-conspirator in her incessant efforts to expose me to the worst that our too many channels have to offer? Thanks, but no thanks.

Go ‘Dawgs!

Due to inclement weather (which is, of course, a euphemism for "rain") in the Classic City, the Diamond Dogs’ scheduled meeting with the Crimson Tide has been postponed. The two teams will play a double-header at Foley Field tomorrow, with the first game slated to start at 3:00 Friday afternoon and the later game getting underway at 6:30 that evening.

Evidently, Damon Evans is serious about Thursday night sporting events in Athens! Nah, I’m just kidding; I think well of Evans, but I don’t think he has the power to make it rain . . . which distinguishes him from Orson Swindle’s readership, who (despite a low total from the Georgia faithful which was bolstered by the admirable efforts of BCDawg97 and NCT) contributed $20,000 towards disaster relief. So much for the notion "that blogs are dedicated to cruelty," huh?

(By the way, I am truly remiss in not having mentioned this sooner, but, as many of you know, Kevin Donahue of Fanblogs fame recently had a heart attack. Naturally, all of us here at Dawg Sports send our best wishes to Kevin, however belatedly, for his speedy and complete recovery. Kevin and his wife, Merrin, have been in our prayers, if not, until now, on our weblog.)

In any event, since you won’t be getting a baseball game against Alabama tonight, I suppose I should offer at least some Crimson Tide-related news, so permit me to point you in the direction of Roll Bama Roll’s long-awaited big announcement. Since Nico is awaiting the publisher’s approval before releasing further details, and since I’m better at keeping secrets than, say, my good friend Doug Gillett, I will add nothing more, except to say that I think you’ll want to stay tuned for those forthcoming additional data.

Go ‘Dawgs!

Ok here's a  quick offseason discussion question: Since the SEC began divisional play in football, who are the three most "successful" teams in the SEC East? The fairly predictable answer across SEC fanbases is Georgia, Florida and Tennessee. What about the West? Again, the answer is fairly predictable: LSU, Alabama and Auburn.

Now for something which you may not have considered before reading Phillip Marshall's recent blog entry over at the Huntsville Times: These "big six" schools have won every single, solitary, bourbon soaked SEC football championship since 1964. That's 43 years for those of you scoring at home. Since Ole Miss last won one in 1963, eight Presidents have occupied the Oval Office. A ninth will be elected before any of the other somnolent six (Arkansas, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Kentucky, South Carolina and Vanderbilt) has the chance to hoist a trophy in the Georgia Dome. That last championship came before the parents of many current SEC players were even born. Let's all take a moment to let it sink in. 43 years.

In contrast, every SEC school except Ole Miss has won at least one SEC men's basketball crown since 1990. The same is true in baseball if you go back only one year further to 1989. 11 different schools have won SEC baseball championships in that time.

Now, some talk about the SEC as being a difficult league with incredible parity. A league where every Saturday is a battle. I'm generally included in that group. But this little nugget seems to indicate that there is in fact a perpetual underclass in the SEC that, while it may rise up in revolution  on occasion is a generally servile lot, destined to fight it out for that at-large spot in the Music City Bowl.

Again, kudos to Marshall for bringing attention to this very enlightening statistic. My only disappointment stems from the fact that the article was written on the paper's Auburn blog and uses words in excess of 5 letters. Ergo, it will go unread west of Columbus.* But I ask you Dawgsports readers, what is the explanation? Is there that much less football talent in the state of Mississippi? Do Vanderbilt's stringent academic standards really make that big a difference? What is the deal here?

*Totally not true, but it's the offseason and we're in a Barner-burning mood. There are in fact lots of Auburn graduates who recognize a variety of words in excess of 5 letters in length. Cheeseburger and midget, for example.

You know how I love a good playoff argument.

I’ve been stating my case against a Division I-A playoff since I first started participating in the blogosphere. I thoroughly enjoy going ’round and ’round (and ’round and ’round) upon the subject. I have no patience whatsoever for state legislators, college presidents, or U.S. Congressmen who abuse their positions to agitate for a playoff.

Self-serving politicians pandering to the baser aspects of their constituents’ presumed beliefs, though, are fair game for cheap shots; the right to criticize them openly, without inhibitions or pulled punches, quite literally lies at the heart of the free speech and free press guarantees of the First Amendment. When a thoughtful blogger treads into the defining mine field of college football fandom, however, he deserves a more measured and articulate response.

This brings me to Garnet and Black Attack, the SB Nation South Carolina Gamecocks weblog whose proprietor has gone fishin’ after a fine week’s worth of work in the form of his two-part proposal for a Division I-A football tournament.

If you haven’t read both parts, go read them in their entirety. I will quote liberally from them, but they warrant your full consideration, so you should not rely solely upon the excerpts I provide.

Brandon---I’m not outing him there; he tells you his real name up front---effectively rebuts some pro-playoff canards by debunking the myth of the "mythical" national championship, noting the relative novelty of playoff systems, reiterating the inevitable diminution of regular-season games under a playoff system, and underscoring the certainty of mission creep.

Brandon then begins to take on some of the familiar arguments in opposition to a playoff, offering, in the style of a formal debate, the following resolution for our consideration: "PROPOSED: That college football fans agree to the following debunking of the arguments of playoff opponents." Unsurprisingly, I take issue with some of these, and I will begin (though not end) my response by taking up the first of these this evening.

Brandon begins:

I will grant that no conscientious person could (and I certainly will not) claim that the B.C.S. invariably has produced the correct championship game pairing---a goal which I, as a fan of the traditional bowl tie-ins, deem of dubious desirability in the first place---but I will continue to insist that the B.C.S., without exception, has produced the correct national championship result.

If we accept as a working definition of "best team" the notion that the team that acquits itself most impressively over the course of an entire season has earned the right to be called the national champion, then Tennessee, the only major-conference unbeaten, was the best team in 1998. Florida State, the only major-conference unbeaten, was the best team in 1999. Oklahoma, the only major-conference unbeaten, was the best team in 2000. Miami (Florida), the only major-conference unbeaten, was the best team in 2001.

The truth of the foregoing assertions, which I offer as statements of what I believe to be incontrovertible fact, is not undermined by the reality (which I also accept as a given) that Oregon, and not Nebraska, should have received the other Rose Bowl invitation opposite the Hurricanes at the end of the 2001 campaign. However, that Miami squad annihilated the Cornhuskers by a 37-14 final margin in Pasadena; no college team would have beaten the ‘Canes that night. There are a couple or three N.F.L. teams that wouldn’t have beaten the ‘Canes that night.

I don’t know whether Georgia would have beaten Miami in the Fiesta Bowl at the end of the 2002 campaign, but Ohio State, the only major-conference unbeaten, was the best team that season. The split title of 2003 between the only two major-conference once-beatens was the most accurate result, in spite of the fact that Oklahoma had no business being in the Sugar Bowl.

Such also is the case in 2004. Yes, the Plainsmen, and not the Sooners, should have been awarded the Orange Bowl berth versus the Trojans, but the Southern California squad that pulverized previously unbeaten Oklahoma in a game that wasn’t even as close as the 55-19 score indicated wouldn’t have lost to Auburn, even though the Tigers likely would have given U.S.C. a better game.

The Rose Bowl showdown between the only two major-conference unbeatens at the end of the 2005 campaign produced an undisputed, and indisputable, national champion in Texas. For all the wailing and gnashing of teeth about the 2006 national title tilt, Florida proved in the desert, and Michigan proved in the Rose Bowl, that the right result was reached. Last year, although Oklahoma deserved the bowl bid that went to Ohio State, Louisiana State earned the right to call itself the 2007 national champion.

Garbage in, garbage out? Not necessarily; whatever one may think of the B.C.S. system---and I, for one, do not care for determining college football bowl match-ups using a formula that seems to combine the conversion from Celsius to Fahrenheit with the worksheet for determining child support under the current Georgia statutory guidelines---the end results have been right.

Even those who believe the foregoing assertion represents too strong a statement, though, have to admit that, whatever the B.C.S.’s flaws, at least this much could be said with a straight face:

Every B.C.S. national champion has had a plausible argument for being the best team in college football that year. Even if another team also had an argument, that argument boiled down to "we deserved it, too" (or, more likely, as in the case of Oregon in 2001 or Auburn in 2004, "we deserved our shot") rather than "they didn’t deserve it." You may think L.S.U. or U.S.C. deserved it more in 2003, but you can’t seriously claim that U.S.C. or L.S.U. didn’t deserve it at all.

Other sports---playoff sports---are a different story, however. No one honestly could claim that the 1997 Florida Marlins or the 2006 St. Louis Cardinals were the best team in major league baseball, that the 2007 Oregon State Beavers were the best team in college baseball, that the 2007-’08 New York Giants were the best team in the N.F.L., or that the 2007-’08 Georgia Bulldogs were the best basketball team in the S.E.C. . . . but, by golly, those are the incongruous, cognitively-dissonant results each of those tournaments turned out, leaving playoff proponents in a very shaky glass house from which to hurl stones at the Bowl Championship Series.

Criticize the B.C.S. if you must, but know that, in comparison to any playoff format ever devised, such animadversions essentially equate to Winston Churchill’s denunciation of democracy.

To be continued. . . .

Go ‘Dawgs!

Is it technically correct to refer to a redneck party as a bubba fete?

But, seriously, folks, a recent posting over at Roll Bama Roll reminded me that, now that Dawg Sports has been moved over to the new SB Nation platform, it’s time we started putting all these new-fangled gizmos to good use, so I’m going to borrow a page from Burnt Orange Nation; to wit:

Go ‘Dawgs!

MaconDawg says Georgia baseball is like locust swarms; namely, an every-other-year phenomenon. I have argued that the Diamond Dogs’ seasons are like "Star Trek" movies: the even-numbered ones are good and the odd-numbered ones are bad. Clearly, the Classic City Canines have rebounded from their dismal 2007 campaign, clinching the S.E.C. championship and claiming a No. 7 national ranking, but their only bit of unfinished business was with in-state rival Georgia Tech, as the Yellow Jackets managed to hammer the Red and Black both in their house and in ours.

At stake on Tuesday evening, therefore, was Georgia’s ability to salvage some small sliver of the regular-season series with a Ramblin’ Wreck squad which was projected on April 30 to face the Diamond Dogs in the Athens Regional. With Nick Montgomery making his first career start, the Red and Black pulled out the win.

Montgomery retired the first batter he faced in the top of the initial inning but conceded a base on balls to Jeff Rowland. After striking out Luke Murton, the Bulldog hurler threw the wild pitch that allowed the Golden Tornado center fielder to advance to second. This enabled a Derek Dietrich single to plate a run before Tony Plagman became the frame’s second strikeout victim.

The Red and Black had a reply in the home half of the canto, which Ryan Peisel led off with a solo home run off of Deck McGuire. After the next two Classic City Canines flied out in succession, Rich Poythress doubled to right field and took third on a base hit from Bryce Massanari, but Lyle Allen flied out to strand the go-ahead run 90 feet shy of paydirt.

Golden Tornado shortstop Derek Dietrich went one for four on Tuesday night with a strikeout and an R.B.I., which really isn’t all that bad for an actress whose film career basically ended with "Judgment at Nuremberg" in 1961.

Although Montgomery plunked Brad Feltes to put a man aboard at the outset of the second stanza, Thomas Nichols took strike three and Chris House grounded into a double play to conclude the visitors’ half of the inning. Following the strikeout by Joey Lewis which began the bottom of the frame, Matt Cerione dropped a double into center field and came around to score on a David Thoms single before Peisel grounded into an inning-ending double play.

The Yellow Jackets went three up and three down in the top of the third canto, but, in the bottom of the stanza, Gordon Beckham drew a one-out walk and took second on a Poythress single. After Massanari walked to load the bases, though, Allen struck out and Lewis grounded out to squander a golden opportunity.

Georgia Tech failed to produce a baserunner in the visitors’ half of the fourth frame and McGuire likewise retired the side in the bottom of the inning. Montgomery allowed a two-out double to House in the top of the fifth canto, but Jason Haniger flied out to strand the tying run in scoring position.

After Matt Olson grounded out to begin the bottom of the stanza, Beckham and Poythress collected consecutive singles. When Massanari subsequently reached on a fielder’s choice, the Georgia first baseman was put out at second, but the Red and Black shortstop scored to make it 3-1 for the nominal home team. Adam Fuller went down swinging to conclude the canto.

Georgia Tech second baseman Thomas Nichols struck out twice and went hitless in four at-bats, which is pretty compelling evidence for the proposition that she should have stuck to playing Lieutenant Uhura.

Alex McRee took over on the mound to start the top of the sixth frame and he immediately allowed a leadoff single to Charlie Blackmon and walked Rowland. The Bulldog reliever then induced Murton to hit into a fielder’s choice, but an error by Thoms permitted the Ramblin’ Wreck right fielder to score. Dietrich grounded out to advance Murton to second and Plagman singled to move him over to third, but the Georgia Tech first baseman was thrown out at second to strand the tying run.

Cerione drew a one-out walk in the home half of the inning and Thoms singled to right field to set the stage for the base hit by Peisel that brought the Georgia center fielder around, but Cerione was thrown out at home. Olson then went down swinging to strand two. McRee retired the Golden Tornado in sequence in the top of the seventh stanza on a strikeout, a groundout, and a flyout.

Andrew Robinson came on in relief of McGuire in the home half of the canto and promptly obtained two of the requisite three outs before giving up a double to Massanari, which came to naught when Fuller went down swinging. The pitching duties fell to Dean Weaver in the top of the eighth inning and the latest Georgia hurler struck out Haniger, conceded a base hit to Blackmon, and struck out Rowland.

After the Georgia Tech right fielder swiped second base, Weaver walked Murton, but he then coaxed the strikeout from Dietrich which ended the frame. Brad Rulon took over on the mound in the home half of the canto and began by striking out Jake Crane and Cerione in succession. Miles Starr then popped up to bring matters to a close.

Ramblin’ Wreck center fielder Jeff Rowland drew two walks, but was held without a hit, so her night at Turner Field doubtless was much less fun for her than the Academy Award ceremony at which she won an Oscar for "Gloria."

Because the Diamond Dogs held only a one-run lead, Joshua Fields felt no need to make matters more dramatic than necessary. In the top of the ninth inning, the Red and Black closer coaxed a groundout from Plagman, struck out Feltes, and struck out Nichols to put the victory in the books.

The contest was a good deal more nerve-wracking than it needed to be; the Diamond Dogs out-hit the Yellow Jackets by an 11-5 margin, yet the Classic City Canines only won by a 3-2 final. Although Ryan Peisel, Rich Poythress, Bryce Massanari, and David Thoms went nine for 14 with a walk and a home run, they only collected three R.B.I. between them.

In his first career start, Nick Montgomery performed well, going five innings while striking out three, walking one, surrendering two hits, and giving up one earned run. The bullpen then proceeded to go four frames, striking out six, walking two, allowing three hits, and conceding no earned runs.

At the end of the day, it was just good to get the win to keep alive the Diamond Dogs’ hopes of earning a top eight national seed for the N.C.A.A. tournament. (By the way, if you happen to think I’m being overly cruel to Georgia Tech by comparing the Institute’s baseball players to women, you truly have no idea how much worse we in Bulldog Nation could mock the Yellow Jacket faithful.)

Go ‘Dawgs!

With the return of internet access to the Macon metro area Sunday, I was pleased to learn of Valdosta linebacker Michael Gilliard's commitment to the University of Georgia. Gilliard is listed variously at anywhere from 6'1 and 200 lbs. to 6'3 and 205 lbs to 6'2 and 208 lbs. Gilliard is rated a 4-star prospect by Rivals and a 3-star by Scout. Rivals pegs him as the 19th best player in the Peach State for the class of 2009, for what that's worth.

Everytime I think we're done signing linebacker-ish prospects for this class the coaches prove me wrong. So I'm not about to say Gilliard is the last linebacker in this recruiting class. I will say however that I think either he or Dexter Moody ends up at safety, and that Chase Vasser may well end up at defensive end. Gilliard looks more natural at linebacker now than Moody, and is probably a better tackler. Moody looks better in coverage, so I'm guessing he moves. Shawn Williams is also a bit of a tossup, though I think he stays at safety at least for the time being, though a move to will linebacker is possible if he fills out some.

I know that Gilliard is not the most highly touted prospect out there right now, but I'm guessing he moves up, for several reasons. One is that he's playing under former Washington County coach Rick Tomberlin. Tomberlin (aside from being the high school football coach from central casting, by virtue of his buzzcut and square jaw) has coached some unbelievable football players. He coached some linebacker from Sandersville named Takeo Spikes*, who turned out ok. There were also two guys named Robert Edwards and Jesse Miller. They weren't bad, either. Neither was Terrance Edwards, another Tomberlin player. So when Coach Tomberlin says Gilliard is a good one, that's high praise.

Also, Tomberlin has been busy at Valdosta building a strength and conditioning program to rival the one he had at Washington County, which was among the best in the state. Thus, Gilliard is bound to report in good shape, and already looks pretty solidly put together.

I'm also encouraged by the fact that Gilliard is playing in Region 1-AAAAA, perhaps the toughest region in the state of Georgia and one of the toughest in the southeast. When you throw people around in that region, playing against the likes of Lowndes, Tift County, and Coffee County, you're doing something impressive.

And, as I like to point out, the offer list is important. A lot of very good football coaches seem to think this guy is going to be a very good football player. Gilliard chose Georgia over offers from Florida, LSU, Michigan, Miami, Alabama and FSU among others. Again, if this young man doesn't pan out, it not only means that Mark Richt and his staff were wrong, but also that Nick Saban, Rich Rodriguez, Urban Meyer and Les Miles were wrong. That's pretty unlikely when you get right down to it.

Now to to the tape. You can find a brief highlight video of Michael Gilliard here . You'll notice right away that the guy's a thumper. He's willing to come up and hit somebody. I would not be at all surprised to see Gilliard grow into a run stopping middle linebacker. He also has decent feet; quick but not choppy. I like linebackers who don't tap dance around, because it just slows them down. In the Gainesville Nike Camp video he does get a little crossed over in pass ocverage, but that's only one play so I can't draw too much of an inference from it.

Gilliard also seems to have good instincts from what I can see in the short highlight clip. In one play for example he appears to be coming on a blitz (maybe a run blitz, but I can't be certain) when he sees the quarterback dropping to pass. He turns and books it toward the receiver the quarterback is locked on and beats the secondary guys to the tackle. That takes quick reaction.

Gilliard reminds me a little of 2007 recruit John Knox. He's not going to be the most decorated recruit we sign this season. But he has good technique, he's physical, he plays smart and he'll develop physically. He also isn't scared to compete. Gilliard said that he looked at our depth chart before committing, then noted that "I am not trying to be cocky or anything, but I think I can go in there an outwork them. I’m confident. I think I am the best.” I like that a lot. This guy is a solid pickup.

*When I say Spikes wasn't bad, let me be clear: he was the only player in the state of Georgia during my high school career who I literally feared. The guy threw opposing players around like pickup sticks. When I hear someone utter the phrase  " a man among boys" ,I still think of Takeo Spikes.

Bulldog Nation is a happier place this morning: Sunday Morning Quarterback has taken a look at Georgia.

When Mark Richt’s quality as a coach was called into question in the comments, SMQ offered this retort:

This is what I’ve been saying!

Go ‘Dawgs!

Before we get started, I should call your attention to BCDawg97’s FanPost on the Swindle Industries Charity Bowl, which challenges us all to support our team while doing our bit for a worthy cause. While I believe donations to the United Methodist Committee on Relief should count toward a team’s total, I will not quibble, but I will encourage you to put your fandom to good use in this cause.

Provided that you didn’t spend Mother’s Day weekend living under a rock or in a Tibet, you are aware by now that David Perno’s Diamond Dogs had a good weekend in Nashville. Following Sunday afternoon’s action around the league, the Southeastern Conference standings look like this:

With the S.E.C. tournament scheduled to begin on Wednesday, May 21, next weekend’s season-ending series are slated to begin on Thursday instead of Friday. These are this week’s match-ups, although I hesitate to call this a weekend baseball rooting guide, since Georgia’s status atop the conference is secure, irrespective of what other teams do.

"Talk amongst yourselves. I’ll give you a topic: the weekend baseball rooting guide involves neither rooting nor the weekend. Discuss."

Arkansas at Mississippi State: Believe it or not, this one actually matters. The Classic City Canines have secured the No. 1 seed and will face the No. 8 seed in the first round at Hoover’s Regions Park. Whichever team wins the Western Division will be seeded second and the six remaining teams will be seeded by winning percentage without regard to division. Had the season ended on Sunday, the Razorbacks’ .500 record in conference play would have earned the Hogs the No. 8 seed, as shown by Jim From Duluth’s chart, which was linked to by Quinton McDawg. Four teams are a half-game ahead of Arkansas in the standings, so Arkansas could move up, stay put, or drop out, depending upon the performances of the quartet of teams with 14-13 conference records. The Gamecocks, the Plainsmen, and the Volunteers all could overtake the Razorbacks for the last spot in the tournament and, hence, the opening-round game against the Classic City Canines.

Tennessee at South Carolina: These two teams are fighting for the chance to get to Hoover. The winner of this series is not assured of getting in, but the loser is guaranteed to stay home. This is the only S.E.C. series of the week in which neither participant currently is among the top eight teams in the conference standings, so this could be meaningless . . . but it could be of considerable importance, as the Palmetto State Poultry are a half-game in back of current would-be No. 8 seed Arkansas, so it is quite possible that Georgia could draw South Carolina in the first round.

Louisiana State at Auburn: There is no hotter team in the S.E.C. right now than L.S.U. The Bayou Bengals have won twelve straight games and they will secure the No. 2 tournament seed if they win the Western Division, in which the Fighting Tigers hold a one-and-a-half-game edge over Alabama and Ole Miss. Since a Louisiana State stumble could open the door for the Crimson Tide, the Rebels, or even the Razorbacks to steal the division title and, with it, the second seed, the Tigers’ continued good fortunes are quite consequential. If L.S.U. wins out and both top seeds perform up to expectations in Hoover, the Diamond Dogs and the Bayou Bengals could meet up in the fifteenth and final game of the conference tourney.

Ole Miss at Kentucky: The Rebels and the Wildcats are two of the four teams tied with 14-13 league ledgers. Where more than two teams are tied, the first tiebreaker is total won-lost record in games played among the tied teams. Right now, Kentucky would be seeded fourth by virtue of the Bat Cats’ 5-1 record against Alabama and Florida, whereas Mississippi would be seeded seventh due to the Rebs’ 2-4 ledger against those same opponents. The Crimson Tide and the Gators both have gone 4-5 against Kentucky, Ole Miss, and one another, with ‘Bama earning the fifth seed due to the Tide’s 2-1 series victory over U.F. last weekend. Confused? You won’t be after this week’s episode of "Soap," but, in the meantime, just know that the Rebels, who have as much incentive to excel as any of the four currently tied teams, could greatly improve their seeding, especially if they secure the sweep. An Ole Miss leap from seventh to second is not outside the realm of possibility.

Vanderbilt at Florida: Here’s an interesting point to ponder . . . if the top-seeded Diamond Dogs win their first-round S.E.C. tournament match-up, their outing on Thursday, May 22, will be against the winner of the Wednesday collision between the fourth- and fifth-seeded squads; if the Red and Black lose on the first day, they will meet the loser of the No.-4-v.-No.-5 clash on Thursday. The Commodores currently would be seeded third and the Gators presently would be seeded sixth. Given the logjam in the middle of the league standings, it is not impossible that the Saurians, playing at home, could inch up a notch and/or knock the ‘Dores down a peg in the pecking order. In other words, Georgia could face one of these two teams in the second round in Hoover.

Go ‘Dawgs!