The Sporting News recently ranked the SEC's 14 head football coaches.
Not surprisingly, Alabama's Nick Saban is No. 1. No argument here: Saban has won three national championships in six years and has won three SEC championships.
But the rest of the list has some surprises.
• No. 2: South Carolina's Steve Spurrier. He had three consecutive 11-2 seasons from 2011-2013, but the Gamecocks went 7-6 a year ago. And despite his success at Florida (122-27-1 from 1990-2001 with 6 SEC championships and 1 national title), he has yet to win an SEC title at South Carolina in 10 years there.
• No. 3: Arkansas' Bret Bielema. A lot of respect for a coach who has won two SEC games in two years and his bowl victory came over a 6-7 Texas team.
• No. 4: Missouri's Gary Pinkel. The past two seasons the Tigers have gone 23-5 overall and 14-2 in the SEC, winning the Eastern Division both years, yet respect seems to be coming slowly for the Tigers.
• No. 5: LSU's Les Miles. A national championship in 2007 and playing for the title in 2011 seems like a long time ago. The Tigers have gone 14-8 in their past 22 games and 8-7 in their past 15 SEC games.
• No. 6: Guz Malzahn. Going 12-2 in 2013 and coming a few seconds away from winning the national championship to finishing 8-5 can drop you in a hurry.
• No. 8: Georgia's Mark Richt. A 136-48 record in 14 years at Georgia with 2 SEC championships and 6 division titles looks good anywhere, but the Bulldog fan base can be tough to please.
• No. 11: Mississippi State's Dan Mullen. The Bulldogs were ranked No. 1 for five weeks on their way to a 10-3 finish last season, and that would seem to garner more respect. But late losses to Alabama, Ole Miss and Georgia Tech begs the question of whether the Bulldogs reached their ceiling or whether their is potential for more success.
In college football's toughest conference, respect can be fluid and fickle.
Southsider
President Barack Obama is proud of his hometown Chicago and takes pride in following the local professional teams.
But Obama is just like many others in Chicago when it comes to picking sides between the Cubs and White Sox.
On his twitter account Monday, he wasted no time in following the teams from Chicago: Blackhawks, Bulls, Bears and White Sox.
That means the Cubs are not on the list of teams he follows. And neither is the WNBA's Chicago Sky.
Given Obama's love for basketball, the Sky might make his list in the future, but not the Cubs.
That prompted this tweet from the Cubs: "We're big fans of America. Just saying. #YouMissedATeam."
Still a Lakers town
The Los Angeles Clippers blew a 3-1 series lead against the Houston Rockets and lost 113-100 in Game 7 to the Rockets, missing a chance to advance to the Western Conference finals for the first time .
Lakers great Magic Johnson didn't waste time using his twitter account to troll the Clippers.
• "I thought the Spurs taught the Clippers how to win a tough 7-game series. I was wrong. The Clippers are still the Clippers."
• "The Clippers organization will always remember not closing out the Rockets in Game 6 at home. That game will always haunt them."
It's true the Clippers have advanced to the second round of the NBA playoffs two consecutive seasons while the Lakers sat out, but the Clippers are the only Staples Center tennant without a championship banner. Yes, the Los Angeles Kings have two Stanley Cup banners signifying their championship seasons in the National Hockey League.
Sports quiz
What is Nick Saban's record at Alabama?
Answer: 86-17
Sports on 05/19/2015