San Antonio now leads the more talent Miami Heat three games to two.

How long before the difference in coaching becomes a hot subject.

If LeBron James continues to play like he did two years ago against the Dallas Mavericks the Miami Heat will lose.

He’s the baddest guy on the court yet he is standing outside shooting jumpers. He cannot get the foul like like that.

It wasn’t just that the San Antonio Spurs looked old and tired, which they did, their lack of fire and discipline killed the in the loss to Miami in the second game of the NBA Championship.

Compare these statistics: The Spurs had 16 assists and 16 turnovers; the Heat had 22 assists and 6 turnovers. Only two starters and one reserve scored in double figure for the Spurs, while the Heat had four starters and one reserve in double figures.

Tim Duncan was a great player.

Still, most of America will pull for the Spurs because the Heat is the team to hate these days.

Four members of the Arkansas football team were named a preseason All-SEC selection by Phil Steele, it was announced Tuesday.
The quartet is led by Rimington Trophy candidate Travis Swanson, who is the first-team All-SEC center after garnering second-team All-SEC recognition from the Associated Press following the 2012 season. Defensive end Chris Smith, an honorable mention All-SEC performer in 2012, is on the second team. Defensive tackle Byran Jones and kicker Zach Hocker each were named third-team All-SEC.
Phil Steele’s College Football Preview is the nation’s most informative preseason football magazine and has always provided a preseason All-American team as well as preseason All-Conference teams. For more information, visit PhilSteele.com.
The Razorbacks begin their 2013 season Aug. 31 when they host Louisiana inside Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville. To purchase tickets for the 2013 football season, call the Razorback Ticket Office at 800-982-HOGS or visit ArkansasRazorbacks.com.

The Southland Conference finds itself on the verge of history tonight when Central Arkansas plays at Mississippi State in the championship game of the NCAA Starkville Regional.

A win would send the No. 4 seed Bears (42-21) to a Super Regional. That is something no other team has been able to do while a member of the Southland, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2013.

Central Arkansas, which earned the league’s automatic bid in only its third season of Division I postseason eligibility, is the fifth Southland team to advance to a regional final since the NCAA tournament field expanded from 48 to 64 teams in 1999. That is when the tournament went from eight six-team regionals to 16 four-team regionals.

Four of those berths in the regional final, including the Bears’ run in 2013, have come against the Southeastern Conference. Former league member Louisiana-Monroe made the first trip to the regional final in the expanded format in 2000, falling to LSU 5-3. Sam Houston State has reached the regional final twice, falling 21-13 at Ole Miss in 2007 and 5-1 to Arkansas in 2012.

Before Sunday’s 5-2 win by Central Arkansas over Mississippi State, only Lamar had been able to force a second championship game. In 2003, the Cardinals opened with a 3-2 win over Arkansas only to fall 7-3 to Texas. Lamar rebounded to eliminate Arkansas 7-6 to reach the championship round needing two wins over the Longhorns to become the first Southland team to advance to a Super Regional, which pits the winners of two regional sites in a best-of-three series for the right to advance to the College World Series in Omaha, Neb.

Lamar beat Texas 6-2 to force the second game, but the Longhorns won the clincher, 6-3, on its way to a Super Regional win at Florida State and berth in the College World Series.

The Southland Conference had three teams come within one game of the CWS prior to 1999. Former member Louisiana Tech played Texas in the 1974 district playoffs at Arlington Stadium. Only 28 teams played in the tournament that year. After opening with a 3-2 win over Texas-Pan American, the Bulldogs advanced to the title game before falling to Texas 8-0 and 12-2.

The Cardinals were the Southland’s only other regional finalist, playing for a berth in the College World Series in both 1984 and 1985. Both times, Lamar was in the Austin Regional and not surprising, against Texas.

In a four-team regional in 1984, Lamar lost its first game to Texas 6-0, but responded with elimination victories against Oklahoma (4-3) and UNLV (10-5) to reach the title game where the Longhorns prevailed 6-5. In a six-team regional in 1985, Lamar had to come out of the loser’s bracket again to reach the final. The Sooners beat Lamar 9-0 in the regional opener, but Lamar responded with elimination wins against LSU (4-3), Houston (10-9) and Oklahoma (7-5) before falling in the regional championship to Texas, 10-2.

The Southland, which has placed at least two teams in a regional 10 times, including each of the last two years when it has had a regional finalist, continues to enhance its baseball profile on a national scale.

Oral Roberts, which joined the Southland Conference last July, has made 24 regional appearances in its history and played in the 1978 College World Series. The Golden Eagles, who made 15 consecutive regional appearances from 1998-2012, won the 2006 Fayetteville Regional before back-to-back losses at Clemson in the Super Regional. ORU is an 11-time regional finalist, including seven times since the format change in 1999 and most recently in 2011.

Among the four teams that will join the Southland next month – Abilene Christian, Houston Baptist, Incarnate Word and New Orleans – only New Orleans has played in the NCAA Division I tournament. The Privateers have played in the tournament 14 times and became the first school in Louisiana to reach the College World Series in 1984, just two years after playing for its first regional championship in 1982. UNO also played Texas for the regional championship in 1989.

Southland’s Regional/District Title Game Appearances
1974
Louisiana Tech vs. Texas
Arlington, Texas
L, 8-0; L, 12-2
1984
Lamar vs. Texas
Austin, Texas
L, 6-5
1985
Lamar vs. Texas
Austin, Texas
L, 10-2
2000
Louisiana-Monroe vs. LSU
Baton Rouge, La.
L, 5-3
2003
Lamar vs. Texas
Austin, Texas
W, 6-2; L, 6-3
2007
Sam Houston State vs. Ole Miss
Oxford, Miss.
L, 21-13
2012
Sam Houston State vs. Arkansas
Houston, Texas
L, 5-1
2013
Central Arkansas vs. Mississippi State
Starkville, Miss.
W, 5-2;

The National Football Foundation (NFF) and College Hall of Fame announced today that University of Oklahoma Director of Athletics Joe Castiglione has been named the 2013 recipient of the John L. Toner Award. The Toner Award is presented annually by the NFF to an athletic director who has demonstrated superior administrative abilities and shown outstanding dedication to college athletics and particularly college football.

“Since Joe’s hire 15 years ago, Oklahoma has dominated the football and athletics landscape with the Sooners experiencing extraordinary success as a perennial national power,” said NFF President and CEO Steve Hatchell. “The Sooners have a rich football history, and the success of the team would not be possible without Joe’s support and leadership. His accomplishments place him the vanguard of his profession and truly worthy of this prestigious honor.”