The notion is that Florida State feels snubbed in the Atlantic Coast Conference, as it’s not considered an “elite” football league and the TV contract pales in comparison to the SEC, Big Ten and Big XII.

To his credit, Bianchi tells Florida State to look in the mirror, citing that they’re the root of the problem, as is Miami, who joined the ACC in 2004 and is yet to seven sniff a conference title game, yet a berth and BCS appearance.

Miami’s downward spiral coincided with the conference move and was simply an imperfect storm for the Hurricanes. Larry Coker took over a loaded team in 2001, but lesser recruiting classes in 2002 and 2003 had UM looking much different when taking the field year one in the ACC.

Talent wasn’t being developed, needs weren’t being met position-wise and the Canes were no longer getting the type of players it was picking up in the Butch Davis era; guys who were ready to get on board, lead, make a difference and put team first. It got the opposite, actually.

Guys who were front-runners, wanted to join a championship caliber program and came in with a sense of entitlement, forgetting that the “U” on their helmet had to be earned, while those top five rankings and BCS berths were the result of the hard work put in by those who came before them.

The decline continued. 9-3, 9-3 and 7-6 on the heels of 12-0, 12-1 and 11-2 were what got Coker fired and from there, the hiring of Randy Shannon, many of the same issues, little progress – 5-7 to 7-6 to 9-4, before falling back to 7-6 again.

It’s not hard to reverse engineer Miami’s decline from the Davis era to the program Al Golden took over in December 2010. Sub-par head coaches, bad personnel decisions, poor recruiting, worse player development, entitled kids and a culture of lethargy are the reason UM is now 41-35 since the 2005 Peach Bowl drubbing courtesy of LSU (40-3). But what’s Florida State’s excuse?

The Noles’ decline started around 2001 when offensive coordinator Mark Richt left Tallahassee to become Georgia’s head coach. Bobby Bowden chose nepotism over logic, promoting son Jeff Bowden to offensive coordinator and the Florida State offense became a shell of what it was in the dominant nineties.

The Seminoles joined the ACC in 1991, but didn’t compete for the football championship until the next season. It then won, or split, the conference title nine straight seasons (seven outright wins) and won three of the next four. Since then, a six-year ACC title drought.

The elder Bowden ran the show through 2009, wrapping up with an unearned Gator Bowl berth after a 6-6 regular season. Prior to that, four- to six-loss seasons were the new norm for a program that like Miami, was in the title hunt annually and was accustomed to losing a game or two a year, max.

Jimbo Fisher took the reigns in 2010 and went 10-4, earning a top-five preseason ranking for 2011, but the Noles again limped to 9-4, falling way short of their season goals and not even winning the ACC Atlantic, let alone competing for a national title.

It’s wild to think that after eight years in the same conference, Miami and Florida State are yet to meet for an ACC Championship, when that was the mindset between putting them in separate divisions.

As Bianchi stated, the conference title game spent the few several years in the Sunshine State, with the belief that the Canes and Noles would tussle every so often – starting in Jacksonville, moving to Tampa and eventually to North Carolina year six, when the game became an afterthought due to poor ratings and lesser match ups. Virginia Tech dominated the Coastal, but Florida State spent a handful of seasons looking up at Georgia Tech, Wake Forest and Boston College before Clemson repped the Atlantic last December.

Even more puzzling, the fact that Miami and Florida State have struggled in a conference that doesn’t even measure up well against the rest of the country. Over the past few years, everyone can see where the Canes have fallen short, but what’s the excuse for the Noles dropping off in a conference that is 2-13 in BCS bowl games since it’s inception?

Florida State’s desire to leave for a better football conference and bigger money makes sense, but the sense of entitlement that their football program belongs elsewhere or deserves better – that’s asinine based on their recent on-the-field performances. – C.B.

Earlier today Johnson was named as one of seventeen members being inducted to the 2012 class.

Johnson put together a 52-9 run at Miami between 1984 and 1988 – five of those losses coming year one. JJ’s Canes went 34-2 over a three-year span, playing for two titles, losing one (1986), winning one (1987) and getting snubbed at a shot in playing for a third straight (1988). In year two (1985), Miami went 10-2, falling to Tennessee in the Sugar Bowl, with a shot at a title due to Penn State’s loss to Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl.

He also left the cupboard stocked for predecessor Dennis Erickson, who went 33-3 his first three seasons at Miami, winning two titles (1989 and 1991) and fielding a team that fell a few games short, but was still one of the nation’s best by season’s end (1990).

Johnson is the third UM coach to reach the College Football Hall Of Fame, joining Jack Harding (1980) and Andy Gustafson (1985), but is the lone national champion of the bunch. He also marks the ninth person with UM ties to be inducted, adding himself to a list that includes Don Bosseler (1990), Ted Hendricks (1987), Gino Torretta (2009), Arnold Tucker (2008), Bennie Blades (2006) and Russell Maryland (2011).

The Herald’s Manny Navarro had some good quotes in his piece, one from Johnson and one from running back Melvin Bratton, who played under him in the mid-80s.

“I’m really happy for him,” said Bratton, who starred in the 1988 national championship game before blowing out his knee. “Motivation-wise he was the type of guy that could get you psyched up mentally to the point where he could get you to run through a wall for him. He was a players’ coach, too.

“I was the team clown and he let me be that guy. I used to go in and take the letterhead from his office from his secretary and post notes on guys’ lockers telling them Coach Johnson wanted to see them. It lasted for a while where nobody knew who it was. But when he found out he just laughed. We had a lot of fun together.”

When speaking about the win over the Sooners, Johnson stated: “We played our way to this championship. What is sweetest is that we did it as a team. We lost starters and had other guys come in and played magnificently.”

The 1987 run truly was a thing of beauty. Not only did Miami string together it’s first undefeated season, the Canes did so with a team in rebuild mode – losing star players like running back Alonzo Highsmith, defensive end Jerome Brown and Heisman trophy-winning quarterback Vinny Testaverde - all selected within the first nine picks of the 1987 NFL Draft, UM went on to do the unthinkable, winning twelve straight, culminating with a win over the top-ranked Sooners, for the national championship.

During the regular season Miami beat No. 20 Florida, No. 10 Arkansas, No. 4 Florida State, No. 10 Notre Dame and No. 8 South Carolina, en route to the showdown against No. 1 Oklahoma.

Talk about a schedule and run college football won’t soon see again … and talk about a benchmark of a coach for UM. Howard Schnellenberger got UM off the ground and on a roll, but Johnson came in and took it to another level.

Congrats, Coach. The honor is well-earned. – C.B.

The Hurricanes just saw five underclassmen give up their remaining eligibility for a shot at NFL riches, some of which are represented by Miami-based Drew Rosenhaus.

Weeks back UM sent an email to all registered sports agents, highlighting its new football policy. The purpose; “to facilitate compliance with NCAA rules and limit distractions created by covered individuals who seek contact with University of Miami student-athletes, their families, friends, or associates.”

Forbes points out that this new policy restricts the speech of student-athletes, as this new policy keeps players and their families from not only speaking to agents, but also “Covered Individuals”, who is anyone that serves as an agent, runner, financial planner, sports marketing representative, sports public relations firm, brand manager, and employees of the aforementioned. This rule is in effect from the time a player signs a letter of intent, until he has exhausted all his football eligibility.

The punishment for players breaking this rule is as light as penalties ranging from practice and competition suspensions, to removal from the team.

Rosenhaus chimed in, as well, stated that he’s worried about the other guys more than himself.

“My only fear would be that the University of Miami is going to isolate the players from the good agents,” said Rosenhaus. “Then, all you have are the bad agents doing the communicating.”

Ryan Morgan, President and CEO at Morgan Advisory Group, LLC, states that he will continue to recruit Miami players if he sees a fit.

“We will just do it either with the oversight and approval of the athletic department or after the end of the season,” said Morgan.

The name Nevin Shapiro was mentioned in the piece, but writer Darren Heitner failed to draw the more important correlation between this new rule and it’s purpose; the fact that UM is trying to do yet another thing in good faith, with the hopes the NCAA will show some mercy when sanctions are handed down in the coming months

No new rule on paper will stop a Rosenhaus, Morgan, family member, street agent or player from doing what they want to do. There are already rules in place that get ignored – what is another? If the Hurricanes start churning out first- and second-round talent again, rest assured that those who want to get around this rule will find a way, or they’ll simply be careful in how they do so.

Heitner writes that Associate Director of Athletics for Communications, Chris Freet, had no comment, stating that the policy is cut-and-dry — and it is. What else is there really to say when something like this is so obvious?

Look two months back at the scandal at North Carolina and how the NCAA responded. The Tar Heels got off with a lighter punishment than expected, mostly due to how it handled itself throughout the process.

Sports agents are a world class ‘no-no’ with the NCAA and former UNC assistant John Blake was accused of having a working relationship with the late Gary Wichard and $31,000 worth of payments that went unexplained. Blake claimed it was a loan, while the NCAA believed the money was compensation for funneling top Tar Heel talent toward Wichard and his firm.

Fourteen North Carolina football players each missed at least one game in 2010, while seven were forced to sit out the entire season – four of which were ruled permanently ineligible or were dismissed from the team.

Blake was also hit with “unethical conduct” and earned a three-year show-cause penalty, preventing him from performing any recruiting duties, which essentially makes him unable to coach.

North Carolina was eventually hit with a one-year post-season ban, three years of probation and lost fifteen total scholarships – which could’ve been much worse if not distancing itself from Blake, forcing head coach Butch Davis out the door and athletic director Dick Baddour using this as the year to finally step down, after being in charge since 1998.

Aside from the issues with Blake, as well as allegations against tutor Jennifer Wiley, there were also allegations of academic fraud against student-athletes and tutors, allegations of preferential treatment for student-athletes – including the receiving of impermissible benefits – and a failure by the institution to adequately monitor.

If the University of Miami is actively trying to show good faith to the NCAA, rules like this new one targeted at sports agent it yet another step in the right direction in regards to cleaning house and straightening up.

Before the “anti” crowd gets whipped into a frenzy, we get it. Some of you believe Vilma’s punishment is deserved and don’t support this shirt – and that’s fine. Different strokes for different folks.

This shirt was created for the camp who feels a one-year suspension for his part in an alleged ‘bounty program’ is a bit excessive. It is a LIMITED EDITION design that will only be in stock for a short while, so if you’re interested, get on board now.

Jon Vilma is an old school Cane, a friend of our shop and we personally felt he was a scapegoat for a bigger issue that the NFL doesn’t want to deal with, making him the fall guy for something that runs rampant with every teams. Doesn’t make it right, but neither is blaming one guy for the mistakes of many.

For those who choose to stand with Vilma and dig the tee, click here. For those who don’t, comment away and let us know why. Either way, it’s ll about the U Family. We’re with you, No. 51.

Eric Erickson got Friday night’s start, where UM cruised to an 11-0 victory. Miami got fourteen hits and played error-free baseball while Wake Forest was held to one his on the evening and posted seven errors.

Erickson was a force, holding Demon Deacon batters hitless for his first six innings, retiring ten in a row, after the Canes’ explosive second inning. Miami sent eleven batters to the plate and scored eleven.

The action started after Brad Feiger and Rony Rodriguez opened things up with back-to-back singles. Michael Broad walked, which loaded the bases and Jarred Mederos singled, driving home Feiger and Rodriguez, giving the Canes an early, 2-0 lead.

Tyler Palmer reached on a error, which plated Mederos and Broad, before Garrett Kennedy advanced Palmer and reached on a clean sacrifice bunt. Stephen Perez then hit a sacrifice fly to left, bringing home Palmer.

Miami went on to add one in the fourth, two in the fifth, one in the sixth and one in the eighth, of a game that was in control from the get-go. Erickson advanced to 8-5 on the season and the Canes looked to be in full control entering Saturday’s showdown.

Unfortunately Game Two was a night where Miami bats went cold and Wake Forest benefited from the big inning, scoring six in the third. The Canes stranded baserunners in all but one inning of the 7-2 loss.

Steven Ewing got the Saturday start for UM and was good for two, but fell apart in the third, hitting his first two batters. From there, he slipped when attempting to cover first on a bunt, loading the bases. Ewing appeared to twist his ankle, but remained in the game and swiftly gave up three straight hits – including two RBI singles.

The Miami bullpen only allowed one run after Ewing’s 2.1-inning outing, with Javi Salas, Christian Diaz, Adam Sargent, E.J. Encinosa, Alexander Fernandez and AJ Salcines combining for 6.1 innings of one-run ball. Diaz gave up the run in the sixth, but Salas held everything in check with four strikeouts during his 2.1 innings. Encinosa sat down three in his 1.1 outing.

The Game Three rubber match took place Sunday and with things tied 2-2 entering the bottom of the sevenths, Miami exploded for four, behind a Feiger-fueled grand slam.

After a Perez bunt, a Dale Carey single and an error which allowed Chantz Mack to reach, the bases were loaded and the sophomore sent one over the left field wall, giving UM it’s first lead since the fourth inning.

Eric Whaley got the Sunday start and only gave up seven hits and two earned runs over six innings. He struck out four, walked one and the two runs came in the fourth when allowing a home run, follow by three back-to-back-to-back hits which tied the game.

Sargent, Diaz and Salcines then shut the door for Whaley, giving the Canes the 6-3 win and a berth in next week’s ACC Tournament. Miami won it’s fifth conference series of the season this past weekend and will look for number six after a road trip to Georgia Tech, starting this Thursday.

Before that, the final home game of the regular season when Florida Gulf Coast visits on Tuesday. The Canes and Eagles met twice this year, with Miami take game one, 3-0 and FGC taking game two, 4-2.

It was either 2000 or 2001 and I was the in-booth producer for ‘Canes football broadcasts.

Typically I’d get to the Orange Bowl about four hours before kick off and the first thing I did, upon arrival, was head to our beyond-cramped broadcast booth. It hung off the bottom of the upper deck on the south side of the old stadium.

I’d get to the booth, check in with our engineer at the time – Jim “Fix It” Yelton – and would get situated for the day’s broadcast.

I can’t specifically remember which game it was – it may have even been Wide Right III (Florida State, 2000) – but I do remember that my dad was in town and when in Miami for a game, I’d bring him up to the press box before he found his seats.

On this particular day I got to the booth and there weren’t enough chairs for all of us. We’d squeeze five of us in there: myself, play-by-play man Marc Vandermeer, Joe Zagacki (who did color commentary at the time, stats guy Phil de Montmollin and “Fix It”.

The third floor of the Orange Bowl hosted the radio broadcast boosts for both teams, as well as the national TV booth. There were also a few VIP boxes, if you could call them that, and at the end of each floor, a tiny food-serving area, packed full of those great OB hot dogs (sarcasm).

Upon the realization there weren’t enough chairs in our booth, I took a walk down to one of the VIP boxes where there were always extra chairs and when decision which chairs to poach, my friend, UM Assistant Sports Information Director, Kiersten Coleman jokingly said, “Hey, what are you doing, this box belongs to Paul Dee“.

She knew there were always extra chairs in there, but was in the mood to bust some chops. With my back to the door and facing her, I then uttered one of my most famous lines.

“Oh, f–k Paul Dee,” I said, with a laugh.

The fun was short-lived.

As I turned around, Mr. Dee was exiting the men’s room and entering the box. He looked at me, but said nothing, leading me to believe I’d gotten away with one.

I dragged the chairs down the hall to our booth, but a few minutes later, as I was chatting up my dad, Dee, redder-in-the-face than I’d ever seen him, appeared in our booth, screaming something to the extent of, “If you ever act like that again, you’ll never work for me again.”

That certainly wasn’t the appropriate time to point out that I didn’t technically work for the athletic department, meaning he wasn’t my boss … but the point was still well-taken. I was hovering somewhere around twenty-four years old at the time and literally saw my career going right down the drain, in front of my eyes.

My dad shook his head and I was on the verge of tears. I don’t think I moved for the next hour, or so.

Word travels fast in that small circle and by the time we were gearing up for kickoff, even the elevator attendant looked at me like I’d just violated every rule in the book.

I ended up hand-writing Paul a letter of apology and over the years we’d actually laugh off the incident. If anything, that moment probably brought us closer. So close, as a matter of fact, that Paul and his then-girlfriend Cathy, honored my wife and I with their presence at our wedding back in 2006. Somewhere I have a video of them dancing and having a great time – to the point where anyone who’s seen the footage comments on their happiness in that moment.

Paul loved radio. He loved listening to The Hammer, The Maddog and especially Uncle Neil. Whenever I’d see him outside The Hecht, he’d always ask me what it was like to work with Neil.

He’d talk about the “Bridge Tender” bit or one of the Boca Brian songs and he thought Neil was radio genius. I think he literally used to drive around at times just to tune in for a few minutes – and remember this is the same Neil Rogers that used to refer to UM’s sports teams as the “Hurri-coons” or played the drop, “the Hurricanes f’ing blow,” but Paul didn’t mind. He got it and he loved being on radio, too.

He would always tell me that the segments he did on “Hurricane Hotline” were the best time of his week and when he retired as athletic director, there were several conversations at QAM regarding bringing Paul on staff as our legal analyst, though it never panned out.

I’ll let all the other writers tell you about the things he did for UM. The on-campus basketball arena. Guiding the university towards the Atlantic Coast Conference. Dealing with the ins, outs, ups and downs of a Pell Grant scandal, as well his many other accomplishments, but I can tell you this – I never would have been able to serve as a sideline reporter on UM’s football broadcasts for seven seasons if it weren’t for Paul Dee.

Think about how big his heart must’ve been to forgive me for what I said, which in turn, allowed me to serve in my dream job for that long.

Paul was always accessible. He’d go out of his way to really communicate with the media – but more importantly, he’d go out of his way to be your friend – a friend, I’ll dearly miss.

The reason is understandable. State budget cuts, less research money, lower compensation from insurers and cutbacks in payments by Jackson Health System, according to President Shalala.

“It’s not a great situation,” Shalala said, “but at the end of the day, we’ll be a much stronger health care system of a much higher quality because we will be able to reinvest in health care delivery. … We’ve moved this institution to new heights. The world is changing beneath our feet.”

Employees will be notified this month and the cutback is the largest by any employer in the state since Jackson announced 920 layoffs in February.

Most of the layoffs are in the research and administration fields. About 150 people who schedule appointments will lose their jobs, as well as 150 in research administration and 110 researchers.

In the past year, the medical school lost about $8M in state funding and upwards of $16M in payments from Jackson.

Recently consultants from PricewaterhouseCoopers were brought in to study UM’s medical school operation, finding “duplication” in some administrative, which according to Shalala, is a reason UM, from top to bottom, will take “a whole layer out”.

There’s much more to this story, for those who care to read up on it. The point of posting in this blog was to merely offer our condolences to the many members of this U Family who will soon be out of work. These are people with families, mortgages and heart. The loss of one’s job or career is right up there with the effects of death and divorce. It’s stressful, it shatters your self-worth and it leave you feeling helpless and alone.

From all of us at allCanes, we wish you the best in your future endeavors and hope all of you land on your feet.

That said, it was Bethune-Cookman and anything other than a sweep is deemed unacceptable at this point of the season. Not because the Wildcats are a bad program, but they’re a lesser one and when you’re a powerhouse program like UM has been over the years, you make a statement in games like these.

Bethune-Cookman traveled to Gainesville late April and was beaten down 10-1 by Florida. That’s what good teams do against opponents like this and Miami looked to be on track on in game one.

UM opened the series with a 7-0 Friday victory, behind the arm of Eric Erickson, as well as nine hits and an explosive eighth inning, where the Canes put up six runs, after a sluggish start.

Bethune-Cookman threw their ace in game one, Rayan Gonzalez, who entered 7-1 on the season and held Miami in check the majority of the evening, getting himself out of hairy situations in the fourth and fifth innings, while Erickson struck out eight, allowed zero earned runs and also went seven innings, holding the Wildcats scoreless. He was relieved by Eric Nedeljkovic and Adam Sargent, who closed out the evening effectively.

Miami took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the sixth, when Brad Feiger doubled to left-center and drove Chantz Mack home, who reached on a two-out walk and found second after a Gonzalez balk.

The Canes tore up the Wildcats’ relievers in the bottom of the eighth, looking to set the tone for the series, though games two and three proved more challenging than expected.

Steven Ewing took the mound on Saturday night and after one, Bethune-Cookman jumped out to a 2-0 lead. Miami pulled out the 5-4 victory, despite only two hits to the Wildcats’ nine. UM also had three errors on the evening.

The defining inning came in the bottom of the fifth, when Miami scored four and chased starting pitcher Gabriel Hernandez from the game. Hernandez issued back-to-back walk to Rony Rodriguez and Esteban Tresgallo, followed by a sacrifice bunt to Jarred Mederos, which moved runners to second and third, with one out.

A weak grounder by Garrett Kennedy ended up scoring both Rodriguez and Tresgallo, aided by a fielding error from second to first. Miami was up 3-2 before recording its first hit of the night, which came from Stephen Perez, driving home Kennedy. Mack eventually drove Perez home and Miami ended the inning up, 5-2.

The Wildcats picked up two in the six, closing the lead to, 5-4, but Sargent, A.J. Salcines and Nedeljkovic shut it down, with Nedeljkovic earning his third save of the season.

With the series in the bag, game three was for bragging rites, the sweep and to hopefully give this Miami program a much-needed shot in the arm. The Canes were up 1-0 after one, but the Wildcats tied things up in the top of the fourth. UM went ahead 2-1 in the bottom of the fourth, but BCU picked one up in the top of the fifth, tying things again.

Bethune-Cookman took a 3-2 lead in the top of the eighth, putting the Canes in position to win it in the bottom of the ninth – and they did just that.

After back-to-back singles from Perez and Dale Carey, Mack walked to load the bases, with only one out. Freshman Alexander Fernandez, who pinch-ran for Feiger earlier in the game, drew a walk and his first career RBI, tying the game, 3-3.

From there, Michael Broad stepped to the plate, sending a shallow fly ball to center, which sent Carey home. Carey tapped home with his left hand, maneuvering around Wildcat catcher Carlos Delgado, plating the game-winner and sending Miami into a celebration that felt like they’d just clinched a trip to Omaha.

While the winning series was a nice shot in the arm, the College World Series remains a lifetime away for the 30-17 Hurricanes. Seven games remain, six of which are ACC contests, which is no easy task as UM is 12-12 in conference this season.

Miami welcomes Wake Forest for a three-game series this weekend, takes on Florida Gulf Coast next Tuesday and then heads to Georgia Tech on Thursday the 17th to close out the regular season. The ACC Tourney kicks off Wednesday the 23rd in Greensboro, with Miami looking to raise its stock before seedings are announced.

A fun weekend for Miami baseball, but definitely not a three-game stint to get too high or too low over. The next seven games set the stage for the post-season and time will tell if these Canes rise to the occasion, or if a season’s worth of mistakes continues plaguing them as 2012 wraps up. – C.B.

His storybook career was something movies are made of; a local kid who made well, was drafted by the hometown team and became a football legend and hero over thirteen seasons playing in America’s Finest City. His tale certainly shouldn’t have ended as it did, but my frustration is rooted in something deeper.

The hypocrisy of the NFL and lack of desire to help its own after players can no longer help the league; it disgusts me to a point where I could care less if the NFL folded up tomorrow.

On a day when Roger Goodell led a witch hunt and rolled out a PR stunt that saw four players suspended for their role in the New Orleans Saints’ bounty program, Seau stood in his Oceanside, CA home, put a gun to his chest, pulled the trigger and ended his life, unable to cope with a world after football, most likely due to a form of depression that stemmed from too many on-the-field concussions.

Seau wasn’t the first to go out this way, nor will he be the last. Last month former Atlanta defensive back Ray Easterling, a plaintiff in concussion-related lawsuits against the NFL, died in an apparent suicide, as did former Chicago safety Dave Duerson, who also shot himself in the chest last year, leaving a note asking his family to donate his brain to be studied, regarding concussions suffered over a lengthy playing career.

Friday morning it was announced that the Seau family will do the same, according to San Diego Chargers team chaplain Shawn Mitchell, with the motivation of helping other individuals down the road.

“The family was considering this almost from the beginning, but they didn’t want to make any emotional decisions,” Mitchell told the Los Angeles Times on Thursday night. “And when they came to a joint decision that absolutely this was the best thing, it was a natural occurrence for the Seau family to go forward.”

More than 1,500 player have sued the NFL, claiming that for years the league has hidden the link between multiple concussions associated with football, and brain damage. The latest lawsuit was filed this week, including over one hundred former players, including former Atlanta running back Jamal Anderson, who alleged the NFL “repeatedly refuted the connection between concussions and brain injury.”

Meanwhile the NFL has spent the better part of this week making Jonathan Vilma, and three others, the poster child for everything wrong with the game. The shame of a ‘bounty program’ and the notion that NFL players would – gasp – aim to hurt a player on the other side of the ball.

Vilma took the biggest hit – a year-long suspension – for supposedly helping create the program, with former Saints defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, as well as offering up $10,000 of his own money to any teammate who knocked a starting quarterback out of the game during his team’s run through the playoffs.

Vilma earned $5,400,000 last season and this past July donated $450,000 to his alma mater, the University of Miami.

When you’re talking about this level of money at this level, $10K is a drop in the bucket. It’s like an average joe putting $100 on Sunday’s game to keep things interesting.

Anyone who truly believes New Orleans players were doubly motivated to win games and take out star players during their run to the Super Bowl courtesy of a $10K bonus – you are completely out of touch with reality and have no idea what really happens inside locker rooms or on the field of battle.

Furthermore, you are clueless to the barbaric sport that is competitive and professional football. The No Fun League is becoming a game of two-hand touch and is the epitome of the ‘pussification’ of America. Ignore the real issue and create a smokescreen distraction by blowing a small matter way out of proportion, complete with the sensationalized headline.

Football is a brutal sport with a kill or be killed mentality. Taking opposing star players out of the game is never openly discussed, but it’s an underlying theme every time two teams take the field. Especially when the ultimate prize is on the line; the big game.

Beyond that, is there not already an official ‘bounty’ in place as NFL players earn bonuses for reaching divisional and conference title games, as well as reaching and winning the Super Bowl?

Members of the New York Giants each earned $172,000 last year in post-season bonus money – $88K of which came from winning the Super Bowl. So in essence, every Giants defender had 88,000 reasons to take out Tom Brady back in February; almost nine times more than the money Vilma supposedly threw in the Saints’ pot.

But punish those Saints and punish them good. Pretend to make an example that the NFL “won’t stand for this type of behavior”, despite the fact that every team and hundreds of players do the same thing week in and week out. ESPN’s Mark Kreidler touched on it earlier this week.

“In the end, Jonathan Vilma is a prop. He’s a tool being manipulated by a commissioner trying to make much larger points.

Which, when you think about it, is not so far removed from the role that Vilma and his teammates play in the NFL in general. These are pieces on a chess board, only now they’re being moved around for other purposes.

Commissioner Roger Goodell’s one-season suspension of Vilma was so over the top that it had to be for effect, and indeed it was. Sending Vilma off the field for the same amount of time as Sean Payton, who as head coach of the Saints can be held directly responsible for the bounty scandal, is ludicrous — but Goodell isn’t interested in the appearance of fairness here. He is sending a message via jackhammer,” wrote Kreidler.

Crucify Vilma and sweep Seau under the rug. That’s the goal here. A distraction tactic against the real issue; the fact that in the NFL, players are nothing more than pawns on a chess board and when they’re no longer in the league, may as well be taken out to pasture.

Goodell has an opportunity to be a difference maker and instead is playing the role of Gestapo. Why not create a legacy that is bigger than dollars and cents, instead of just falling in like like his predecessors, Paul Tagliabue and Pete Rozelle, who together ran the league from 1960 to 2006, when it became all about maximizing revenue instead of the game and fan experience?

Goodell has the power to change everything, but like the standard politician and cardboard cutout, he’s another yes man who just falls in line … occasionally mixing it up on draft day, trying to earn some street cred with his bear hugs and fist bumps.

You can’t turn on an episode of HBO’s “Real Sports” without seeing a story of a former NFLer hobbling around, in a vegetative state or living in some form of poverty. Over-the-hlll men who played the game, either before there was big money, or having squandered away their earnings, and left with nothing as the big machine rolls on.

The NFL doesn’t take care of their own and they don’t give a rat’s ass about the fan, either. Ticket prices. Concessions. Parking. It’s now a $500 day if dad wants to take Johnny and Janie to Sunday’s game to see their heroes.

Heroes that eventually wind up face down with a self-inflicted gaping hole in their chest, unable to cope with life after football.

The NFL needs to hear this message loud and clear, but is too busy, fingers in ears and focused on public relation stunts – like singling out a group of players for doing something everyone is doing. Goodell and his army are nothing more than an annoying red light camera, looking to nail someone for something.

Concussions cause depression and life after football is proving impossible for a handful of guys. Guys who aren’t properly educated. Who never saw their playing days ending. Who never learned to properly manage money and make so many poor decisions that they turn a would-be dream life into a nightmare.

Seau didn’t waste his money, but in the end wasted his life, checking out at forty-three. There was so much life to live. Four kids left behind who needed a dad, as well as a close-knit Samoan family of which he was the patriarch, like it or not.

In a moment he “solved” his issues and life questions, but inevitably left his family and community with a wound that will never heal. And why? Because he didn’t know what to do after his football days ended? Because he was only seen as an on-the-field gladiator? Because machismo kept him from being able to seek help for depression and to get in touch with his feelings?

How do you get a league only concerned with money to start focusing on individuals. Especially when the individual is no longer driving revenue or playing a part as a cog in the system?

It’s as big a question as all the ones surrounding the tragic end to Seau’s tale, neither of which look to provide any answers anytime soon. – C.B.

Some draft analysts graded the 6-foot-5, 219-pound Streeter as a second-round pick, mostly due to his 4.4 time in the forty-yard dash at February’s NFL Combine. By the time last week’s draft arrived, Streeter’s stock had plummeted, with questions over his route-running, as well as the notion he was an NCAA “one year wonder”, having only seen significant playing time his junior season.

Milian stated that according to a long-time NFL agent, with access to contract information, the average second-rounder in 2011 earned $2.2M in guaranteed while a sixth-rounder was in the $101,000 range.

According to ESPN draft analyst Todd McShay, Streeter made a crucial mistake.

“Tommy Streeter should have come back to school. He knew the risks. I thought he could have used more time.”

Lamar Miller was another draft day loser. Once pegged as a top five running back and potential first rounder by ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr., Miller went in the fourth round due to concerns over his surgically-repaired shoulder. He too fell into that “one year wonder” category as Streeter, showcasing his talents in 2011, but never before.

Milian wrote that blame begins with the players, which is a comforting assessment as so many have pointed the finger at agent Drew Rosenhaus, which has been the scapegoat for fans and outsiders alike.

Again it was stated that UM players chose not to petition the NFL Draft Advisory Board before making their decision – something that still confuses head coach Al Golden.

“In fifteen years of coaching, I’ve never seen that,” Golden said weeks back. “It’s a function of what the young person is listening to.”

Seems this story isn’t going to go away anytime soon, despite the pleas from some UM supporters to drop it and move on. As the paths of Streeter, Miller and the other three early departees rolls on – Olivier Vernon, Brandon Washington and Marcus Forston – there will always be that ‘what if’ question.

Not only did they hurt themselves and lose out on big money, the loss of all five will directly impact the 2012 Hurricanes on the field this fall, which was the last thing a depth-challenged program needed as it looks to rebuild.