Just had some random thoughts after thumbing through the sports section of today's newspapers and a few websites. Nothing really big going on in the sports world right now so I decided to tackle some of the back-page stories and give you my two cents.

At a recent practice session, first-year Marquette coach and one of the finalists for NCAA Coach of the Year, Buzz Williams, was seen dishing out dollops of some type of gel to all of his players during a brief break in the action. Before all of you conspiracy theorists start racking your brain wondering what type of illegal substance the Golden Eagles coach was providing his players with, you can call off the investigation, it was merely a pre-emptive measure to keep his team healthy.

Because Marquette has been hit with a rash of illnesses in each of the last two seasons heading into the NCAA Tournament, Williams decided he would do whatever he could to keep his team intact this year, so the coach administered some hand sanitizer to his players in an effort to keep the germs at bay. Talk about a rookie coach making a veteran move. My prediction is that if Marquette can manage to have a solid showing in the Big East tourney and then win a couple of games in the big dance, Williams claims the Coach of the Year honors. If that doesn't work out he should definitely get the award for running the cleanest program in the country.

Is it just me or does it seem like Ed Hightower is refereeing every college basketball game ever played? Perhaps there is more than one guy named Hightower in the zebra stripes patrolling the hardwood but it seems like every NCAA hoops game I watch (and that's about 10-12 per week) has Hightower blowing the whistle.

I read where Kurt Warner sent the Arizona Cardinals his proposed contract numbers and they included a "hometown discount" and a million-dollar reduction that would help them re-sign receiver Anquan Boldin. For every athlete that has ever held out for more, they should take note of Warner's actions. Here's a guy looking at the big picture and one who fully realizes he has enough green to last a lifetime and wants to keep the team that came up just short of winning the Super Bowl intact so they can try to make another run this season.

After posting a perfect 10 of 10 in last week's contest, I looked forward to this week's picks with hopes of continuing the streak this time around but some tougher matchups will likely make that a difficult proposition. But here goes anyway.

Here are this week's Beat The Blogger matchups. Because nobody Beat The Blogger last week, this week's winner will receive (2) authentic signed 8-by-10 photos featuring the likes of LaDainian Tomlinson, Santonio Holmes, Gale Sayers, Drew Brees among others. With March Madness rapidly approaching, I went heavy on the NCAA matchups so you can all get some practice in before filling out your brackets in a couple weeks.
 
Last week several contestants including The Blogger himself, forgot to designate a "Doubler" pick to earn an extra point so learn from his mistake and make sure you don't forget to tag one of your picks as your "Doubler." It could mean the difference between 1st and 2nd place so don't underestimate the power of the "Doubler" and make sure you get your picks in a 1/2 hour before the start of the first game on Saturday to be eligible to win.
  
Spread the word about the contest to your friends and good luck.

Saturday, March 7                       
College Basketball
UConn at Pittsburgh (Pittsburgh)
Oklahoma St. at Oklahoma (Oklahoma)
Texas at Kansas (Kansas)
Syracuse at Marquette (Marquette)
Sunday, March 8
Duke at North Carolina (North Carolina)
Purdue at Michigan St. (Michigan St.) (Doubler)
Clemson at Wake Forest Wake Forest)
NBA
Miami at Cleveland
(Who will score more: Dwyane Wade or LeBron James?) (Wade)
Orlado at Boston
(Which team will make more 3-pointers?) (Boston)
PGA Tour
Will the winner's final total score be:
(4-under par or lower or 3-under par or higher?) (4-under or lower)

Here are this week's Beat The Blogger matchups. Because nobody Beat The Blogger last week, this week's winner will receive (2) authentic signed 8-by-10 photos featuring the likes of LaDainian Tomlinson, Santonio Holmes, Gale Sayers, Drew Brees among others. With March Madness rapidly approaching, I went heavy on the NCAA matchups so you can all get some practice in before filling out your brackets in a couple weeks.
 
Last week several contestants including The Blogger himself, forgot to designate a "Doubler" pick to earn an extra point so learn from his mistake and make sure you don't forget to tag one of your picks as your "Doubler." It could mean the difference between 1st and 2nd place so don't underestimate the power of the "Doubler" and make sure you get your picks in a 1/2 hour before the start of the first game on Saturday to be eligible to win.
  
Spread the word about the contest to your friends and good luck.

Saturday, March 7                       
College Basketball
UConn at Pittsburgh
Oklahoma St. at Oklahoma
Texas at Kansas
Syracuse at Marquette
Sunday, March 8
Duke at North Carolina
Purdue at Michigan St.
Clemson at Wake Forest
NBA
Miami at Cleveland
(Who will score more: Dwyane Wade or LeBron James?)
Orlado at Boston
(Which team will make more 3-pointers?)
PGA Tour
Will the winner's final total score be:
(4-under par or lower or 3-under par or higher?)

I was reading today how Barry Bonds' former personal trainer Greg Anderson is once again refusing to testify against his buddy when the slugger's perjury trial begins next week. And if that's not the definition of a good friend I don't know what is.

Here's a guy who is willing to go to jail not once, but twice, to protect his friend. Without Anderson's testimony, the judge is barring prosecutors from showing jurors key evidence such as positive drug tests alleged to have belonged to Bonds. What that essentially means is without Anderson's testimony, the prosecutors have nothing to convict Bonds of lying before the grand jury several months ago regarding his "alleged" steroid use. 

If Anderson continues to stick with his "mums-the-word" approach, he will likely find himself behind bars once again for contempt of court. If convicted of the contempt charges, Anderson would be imprisoned for the duration of the trial which is expected to last about a month but could be even less without Anderson's damning testimony.

While I'm sure Mr. Bonds has and will continue to pay Anderson for remaining loyal to him throughout the years, I'd be curious to know exactly how much hush money he's going to ultimately receive. I would wager my car the number reaches well into the seven-figure category, but I also know that there would likely be about the same number of people who would have gone all Benedict Arnold on Bonds by now as well. Many would have caved under the pressure of it all but to his credit, Anderson has remained tight lipped throughout and is finally starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Soon, all of this can be put in the rear view and he can start spending his time spending the money he's earned for remaining true to his friend.

I just wonder if those payments from Bonds to Anderson be continuous and if they'll put a strain on their friendship? If not, I wonder how long it will take for Anderson to start the blackmail process when the payments cease? If I was Bonds I'd plan on continuing the payment plan right up until the day I die or that friendship born in needles and creams will die a quick death.

Although I love the game of golf, I fully understand why it's not a big draw in the TV ratings department. In the give-it-to-me-now world we live in, golf on TV simply doesn't provide viewers with enough action to satisfy us, and when it does, it usually takes longer than a cross-country flight to present itself. Because of his greatness and because of his persona, Tiger Woods remains the exception to golf's boring rule.

No matter if he's 10 strokes up and looking to establish a new course record or slapping down another challenger who thought he was ready to take down the game's best ever, an event with Tiger in the field is instantly ready for prime time while one without him is more suited for a Sunday morning time slot going head-to-head with the 700 Club.

So it's understandable then why PGA Tour officials are jumping for joy as Tiger returns to the Tour this week after an eight-month absence to repair a nagging knee injury. And it wasn't just commissioner Tim Finchem rejoicing either. Thousands of fans joined Woods in Arizona on Tuesday, as Tiger made his official return at the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championships. While huge galleries are commonplace for Tiger, they are usually reserved for in-tournament rounds not meaningless practice rounds. But there they were, Tiger's legions of fans skipping out of work to watch the return of golf's greatest player ever. Did I mention this was a practice round with the real tournament scheduled to get underway on Wednesday when Tiger will undoubtedly take out his eight-month-long frustration on Australia's Brendan Jones.

The PGA Tour needs Tiger even more than Mickey Rourke needs a new hairdo. More than Jessica Simpson needs a new personal trainer. More than A-Rod needs a Selena Roberts detector, and more than the "Slumdog Millionaire" producer Christian Colson needs a bigger trophy case. The point is, the PGA Tour is back, baby. Tiger has come to save the day yet again and we're all happy he did. I'm blaming every Sunday afternoon nap I've taken in the last eight months on his absence. Time to wake up and see what Tiger's up to now. 

Saturday, Feb. 28                        
College Basketball
Clemson at Florida State
Ohio State at Purdue
UCLA at California
Sunday, Feb. 29
Marquette at Louisville
Missouri at Kansas
Michigan St. at Illinois
NBA
Los Angeles Lakers at Phoenix
Higher total: Shaquille O'Neal's Points + Rebounds or
Kobe Bryant's Points
Detroit at Boston
Higher Total: Richard Hamilton + Tayshaun Prince's Points or
Paul Pierce's Points
NHL
Los Angeles at Chicago
Total Goals Scored: 4 Goals or less or
5 Goals or More
NASCAR
Better Finishing Position: Matt Kenseth or
Carl Edwards