MANY THINGS by Tannen

Let's call it the college hardwood domino effect. When North Carolina fired Matt Doherty following the 2003 season they lured former Dean Smith assistant Roy Williams to Chapel Hill. Williams was king of the campus in Lawrence at Kansas University. This opened the door for Bill Self to move from Illinois to take over the Jayhawk program and in turn, Bruce Weber upgraded from Southern Illinois to the Illini in the Big 10. Keep an eye out on what happens now that Tim Floyd has left USC to take the Arizona gig. There is a very real possibility Jamie Dixon will bolt Pitt for the Southern Cal job. He was born in North Hollywood, went to high school in Sherman Oaks and began his coaching career in that neck of the woods. Should Dixon be lured by the shot to return home, I could see Sean Miller taking the reigns at Pitt. He's done a terrific job with Xavier in recent years including an Elite 8 last year and the recent run to the Sweet 16, ironically falling to Pitt. FYI, he was born in Western Pennsylvania and played collegiately for the Panthers.
I'm on board with not only Ernie Kent remaining as Duck coach, but the decision to bring in a fundamental giant like Mike Dunlap who also has a great rep as a game strategist. Something had to change. This seems like the right move albeit a tad late as far as making the announcement for my taste.
Major League Baseball season begins for real on Sunday night with the World Champion Phillies taking on the Braves. I think the Phils remain the team to beat in the NL. Looks like their ace Cole Hamels will only miss one start with the elbow issue that threw a scare into the organization. He's okay, looked sharp in his most recent outing and will throw his final tune-up Saturday in anticipation of his 2009 regular season debut a week from tomorrow(FRI). They have a really nice rotation and just announced Chan Ho Park will be their #5 starter. Was out of baseball most of 2007, resurfaced with the Dodgers in a relief role last year and pitched exceptionally well. Guy has always been the consummate pro. I like their offense with a healthy Chase Utley, bringing in Raul Ibanez from Seattle to go with horses Ryan Howard and Jimmy Rollins. Obviously with his magnificent 2008, having Brad Lidge at the back end of the bullpen keeps the blood pressure a bit lower. I like the Red Sox as the top gun in the American League. More on this the next couple days on SportsTalk.