December 13, 2004 | Volume 101, Issue 23

The Week in Sports

Just like Nick Goings, the Panthers started the season in a hole; now the back and the team are up and running

CINCY'S COMEBACK KID

UNMOTIVATED BROWNS

HOT TOPIC

You get the feeling the Steelers will go 15--1 this season, which would be better than any of the Chuck Noll--coached Super Bowl teams of the '70s fared. But if you're looking for ways they could...

Portland couldn't swing a deal for the Raptors' underachieving Vince Carter, but some other team most likely will

On Bobcats rookie power forward Emeka Okafor (right), who at week's end was averaging 13.9 points, 10.6 rebounds and 1.5 blocks:

Newly licensed minister Roger Powell and fellow senior Luther Head are big reasons Illinois has ascended to No. 1

In the Davis Cup final on the slow clay of Seville, the U.S. bowed to Rafael Nadal and his fellow españoles

I believe Barry Bonds.

FEBRUARY 3, 1975

Changed Man?

LETTERS

When notre dame fired football coach Tyrone Willingham last week after only three seasons in South Bend, the school wasn't merely giving its disgruntled fans an early holiday gift of canned 'ham.

By firing coach Ty Willingham last week, then failing to hire the man they wanted as his successor, Notre Dame demonstrated that the school of legend is no more

The NASCAR Nextel Cup champ spent last week in New York, where he received his trophy--and his $5.3 million check

The author of a new book on the Browns says the team was set up for failure

A TV movie explores the relationship that fueled a NASCAR legend's desire

5 Consecutive games in which Louisville's football team has scored at least 55 points, an NCAA record.

Died at age 93, former Giants catcher Harry (the Horse) Danning, who made the National League AllStar team every year from 1938 to '41. Danning--whose nose earned him the nickname Schnozz before...

With its coach afraid to watch, Notre Dame won its second soccer title

When Robert Jones put his struggling Welsh soccer team, Llanelli AFC, on the block last week, one of the first prospective buyers to emerge was Jones's niece, actress Catherine Zeta-Jones, 35....

Anna Benson, wife of Mets pitcher Kris, promised to sleep with every member of the team, including coaches and groundskeepers, if he cheats on her.

"Indianapolis wide receiver, whose team scored 51 points against the Titans, on whether the Colts' offense is similar to the video game Madden 2005: "Not really. Sometimes in Madden the offense...

Am I wrong, or is Barry Bonds about to be credited with another walk?

What to watch and watch for

Carli Dale COCHRANTON, PA. > Volleyball Dale, a senior setter at Juniata College, has been named 2004 American Volleyball Coaches Association Division III Player of the Year. She led the Eagles...

You Da Manning

Tom Verducci's Free-Agent Bargain Hunt

Which teams should be playing in the Orange Bowl?

Giants Running Back

WHO'S Hot

[Based on a survey of 354 players]

AS ONE writer on baseballblogs.org asked of Red Sox first baseman David Ortiz last week, "WTF [Why the *&@!] Green Bay?" Fans...

Bears Defensive End

Don't hate the wrong guy for dating a Destiny's Child. Check out this guide

SAMARI ROLLE Titans Cornerback

ONE'S A rookie pass maker, the other's a proven Housewife catcher. Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger--whose page has received more than 300,000 hits this season--and Eagles receiver Terrell Owens are...

Houston, you have a problem: Peyton Manning and his 44 TDs

A Colt talks about his trip to the Space City

[This article consists of a photograph--see below.]

Leaked grand jury testimony that Barry Bonds and Jason Giambi used steroids and damning allegations by the infamous drug lab's founder raised new questions about baseball's ability to clean up its...

Here's the real scandal: America has lost sight of deeper values in its obsession with self-improvement

Victor Conte's allegation that Marion Jones was a drug cheat could bring her down -- but she's ready to fight back

On a weekend that left some top teams bemoaning their BCS fate, unbeaten USC got past UCLA and earned a trip to the Orange Bowl for a showdown against Oklahoma

An unheralded wideout corps led by record-setting senior Mark Clayton might be the Sooners' secret weapon

Auburn's SEC title sends the Tigers to New Orleans--and leaves them to ponder why perfection wasn't good enough

Originally snubbed by the ACC, newcomer Virginia Tech overcame a host of setbacks to claim the conference title

After a season rife with breakout performances, we cast our ballots for year-end awards--and offer some kudos of our own

Though saddened by their breakup, the former Mavs running mates are, surprisingly, playing even better apart

Shedding their losers' image, the Chargers closed in on their first playoff appearance since 1995 with the defense saving a win over the Broncos

A BAD DEAL FOR AFC WILD CARDS

• For daily Web-only Leading Off galleries, go to SI.com/scorecard.

Slam-dunking over the skeptics, Washington's 5'9" Nate Robinson has hoisted the Huskies with his irrepressible energy and mind-boggling play

Here are five guards--all comfortably under six feet--who, like Nate Robinson, still loom large

With four wins in the season's first seven races, newly equipped Bode Miller is taking the World Cup by storm

By winning the downhill and Super G at Lake Louise, Alberta, on Thanksgiving weekend, Bode Miller became only the fifth skier ever to win World Cup races in all five disciplines. Here are the Fab...

Can a pro franchise thrive in the gambling capital of the U.S.? You bet. And major league baseball or the NBA may soon put one there

San Diego Chargers: The NFL's Biggest Surprise

Happy memories of one of the game's most popular players and sad news of another tragic plane crash made for a bittersweet Father-Son Challenge

Teen star Paula Creamer throws down the gauntlet with a jump to the LPGA

With Martha II at Augusta, a return to pastoral Pinehurst, Jack's farewell at the Old Course, and a 10th major at retooled Baltusrol, 2005 will be one of the best years ever.

[Up]

Thanks to his compact swing, Q school winner Brian Davis had a disaster-free week in La Quinta and proved he has the chops to succeed on Tour

Voting hours at si.com: 7 p.m. EST Sunday to 3 p.m. EST Monday

Every golfer is familiar with the work of famed architect Donald Ross, but the members of Owasco Country Club in Auburn, N.Y., took a dim view of the work of local amateur designer Donald J....

21%

• BONDS AND GIAMBI What a surprise.

OUR TOUGH-AS-NAILS 2004 Q SCHOOL QUIZ

LAST WEEK the PGA of America changed its formula for calculating U.S. Ryder Cup points. The new system, championed by 2006 captain Tom Lehman, among others, puts greater emphasis on the season in...

PLUS: Whatever Happened to David Gossett? G4 • Teen Takes Q School G19

Battling his swing and beset by family issues, the kid who couldn't miss finds himself at a crossroads at age 25

Unfazed by the celebrity that came with his two Olympic medals, Apolo Ohno is having his best season yet

Apolo Ohno has been a flash point for controversy in Korea since the 1,500-meter Olympic final in Salt Lake City, where he tossed back his hands to avoid a collision with Korea's Kim Dong Sung....

Some say 14-year-old high schooler Alix Klineman could turn out to be the best U.S. volleyball player ever

Long Beach State will host the NCAA women's volleyball Final Four on the weekend of Dec. 16-18, and the California teams will need all the home-state advantage they can get. Two-time defending...

Freddy Adu proved worthy of the hype in his first pro season--and he promises even better things next year

The author reveals how he and his teammates were formed in the crucible of Pop Warner play in the '50s

Since its NBA advent 25 years ago, the three-pointer has won games and thrilled fans. But can it maintain its appeal amid rampant gunning by poor marksmen?

Guard Darrell Walker, a 43.5% shooter from the field during his 10-year career, is the NBA's least accurate three-point shooter among those with 100 attempts: 5.9%. When the minimum is 1,000...

Philadelphia millionaire Tom Stafford wants his two children to be the best tennis players in the world, and he's sparing no expense in building their support system

Teams have player issues to deal with--besides steroids--as they head into this weekend's winter meetings

Five faces to watch in what is shaping up as an increasingly intriguing off-season for baseball

Bears safety Mike Green was once best known as the last player drafted in 2000, but he's become a defensive star