Making the morning rounds.• At least someone got some good out of it. The final tally from the dozen bags of discarded Michigan gear donated to a local Salvation Army by fired head coach Rich Rodriguez last weekend: $16,200 for 432 items, compared to an average haul of "about $1,200" for the Wayne, Mich., store on a given Saturday. "I'm shocked at how many people are here and, to be honest, what things are going for," 43-year-old fan Darren Schumacher told the Associated Press on Saturday. "It was kind of an unfortunate era for Michigan football, and people are buying it like it was Bo Schembechler." Thus marks the first and only time Rodriguez has been or will be favorably compared to Schembechler. [AnnArbor.com, Associated Press]
• Promise keepers. True to their word, Ohio State juniors Terrelle Pryor, Dan Herron, DeVier Posey and Mike Adams are all returning to Columbus in the fall to serve five-game suspensions for selling jerseys, championship rings and other mementos of their Buckeye careers. All five promised coach Jim Tressel before the Sugar Bowl date with Arkansas that they'd pass on the draft – even Herron, considered a likely early entrant – and Tressel commemorated the passing of the deadline for underclassmen to declare on Wednesday. "Our kids want to finish their degree and their commitment at Ohio State," Tressel told the Columbus Dispatch. "That is very important to each and every one of them, and to our staff and entire athletics family." [Columbus Dispatch]
• Uncle Ron fights back. Veteran play-by-play man Ron Franklin is suing ESPN/ABC for compensatory damages in the wake of his termination earlier this month for allegedly calling colleague Jeannine "sweet baby" and at least one other non-Yahoo! approved word. According to the suit, "the brief and innocuous personal conversation in no way constituted a 'failure to fully perform,'" and "ESPN and ABC disseminated false and inflated versions of the events.'' [Austin American-Statesman]
• Guns up! And put the money in the bag. Pleased with a nondescript 8-5 record and a notable offensive decline in his first season, Texas Tech has rewarded coach Tommy Tuberville with a one-year contract extension that increases his salary by an average of $500,000 per year through 2015, beginning with a raise to $2 million for 2011. Just, you know, because he's such a nice guy. [Lubbock Avalanche-Journal]
• Hawkeye on trial. An Iowa judge has dismissed the most serious of several sexual assault charges against former Hawkeye Cedric Everson, who was accused along with teammate Abe Satterfield of assaulting a blacked-out female athlete in 2007. Everson no longer faces a charge of second-degree sexual abuse – covering group or gang rape, and bringing up to 25 years in prison – but still faces a possible 10-year sentence if convicted on charges of third-degree sexual abuse, assault and assault with intent to commit sex abuse. His attorney argued for acquittal Tuesday on the grounds that the woman was in a state of "functional blackout" and could have given her consent even if she doesn't remember it. The prosecution urged the jury not to consider the incident "a youthful mistake" or think the end of Everson's football career was "punishment enough." [Associated Press]
Quickly… Miami's new offensive coordinator is a candidate to be lured back to the NFL, unless he isn't. … The LSU-Arkansas game is moving back to the Friday after Thanksgiving this fall, pushing the Iron Bowl back to Saturday after a two-year swap. … The rare top 100 prospect opts for Texas Tech, at least for now. … Georgia Tech gets a five-star guy, too, at Notre Dame's expense. … Wyoming safety Shamiel Gray is transferring to Oklahoma State. … Former North Texas head coach Todd Dodge, a lifelong Texan and Dallas-area mainstay for more than two decades, will move into Yankee territory to coach the quarterbacks at Pitt under new Panther head coach Todd Graham. … Researchers are shocked, shocked, to discover that drinking has been going on here. … And Gene Chizik has earned Auburn's love, but if he wants to endear himself on the Plains for eternity, he'll turn down his latest award.
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Matt Hinton is on Twitter: Follow him @DrSaturday.
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