Penn State rumored to receive "death penalty" tomorrow.

CBS news is reporting that the NCAA is set to level "unprecedented" penalties against the Penn State football program on Monday.
The rumor being tossed around is at least a one year suspension of the entire football program. That, however, would not quite fit the "unprecedented" billing, since SMU was hit with a two year suspension way back when.
Whatever the announcement is tomorrow, expect to hear the sound of every jaw in Happy Valley hit the floor.

UPDATE: Well, it's not the death penalty, but you could argue the long term effect might actually be worse.

Here's a rundown of the pimp slap the NCAA just landed across Penn State's jaw:

• $60 million fine, payable to victims groups and counselling programs for survivors of child abuse
• loss of ten scholarships per year and a cap of 65 total scholarships on the roster for five years
• postseason ban (no championship game, no bowl game) for five years
• immediate granted transfer to any school for any active Penn State player, without having to sit out a year, with the special provision that the scholarship does not count against the 85 scholarship limit of the school the player transfers to for the first eligible season

Let's explain that last one a little bit more. Anyone currently suiting up on Saturdays for the Nittany Lions can put in an immediate transfer wherever they want, and the school they transfer to doesn't have to count that player toward the 85 scholy limit until the 2013 season. 

The NCAA has given the entire active roster of the Penn State football program zero incentive to stay in Happy Valley. This does two things:

1. Insures that this punishment is felt by the athletics department responsible for covering up child rape
2. Insures that the punishment does not harm any innocent player who had nothing to do with the scandal

The B1G has yet to weigh in on the Penn State scandal, but the rumor mill is already churning away that Penn State might be at least temporarily booted from the conference. 

Perhaps there are, indeed, fates worse than death.

UPDATE TWO: Yahoo Sports is reporting that if Penn State had not signed off on the punishment outlined above, which basically everyone is saying overstepped the boundaries of what the NCAA is actually able to do, then the NCAA was ready to drop a bomb on the Penn State football program in the form of a four year suspension of the program.

Let that sink in.

Had that happened, Michael Holmes, who has not yet taken a live handoff in Lane Stadium, would have graduated before Penn State would field another football team.

This might signal the beginning of a new iron-fisted era of NCAA punishments. If I were Al Golden, I'd probably need to change my shorts right about now.

Cody Journell reinstated. Nobody touch his weed.

Per Yahoo Sports, Cody Journell has been reinstated on the football team without restriction or stipulation.

This is possible because Cody plea bargained down off his felony charge to a misdemeanor. Cody did ten days in jail and completed 100 hours of community service.

Opinions vary on Journell and his reinstatement. Personally, I'm withholding judgment for now. But I will say this: people fuck up in creative and spectacular fashion in college, and I myself fast talked my way out of more than one citation during my time in the Burg. I'm not quite ready to crucify Cody for going all Clark W. Griswold, Jr.

Having said that...puff, puff, give, Cody.

It's Official: Pitt and Cuse will join ACC in 2013.

Yahoo Sports is reporting the Big East has settled on an early exit agreement with Pitt akin to what it already hammered out with Syracuse, which will allow the two schools to exit their mid-major on July 1, 2013.

Get ready for a nine conference game tilt starting next season. Don't be surprised to see us have to play at Pitt two seasons in a row, since this year's contest is a non-conference affair. In 2013, when the Pitt game well be a conference affair, the ACC will get to determine the location of the game, and that means a 50/50 shot of returning to beautiful Heinz Field. I'll meet you guys at Primanti Bros.

The one upshot of this is zero retooling of the 2013 schedule since Pitt is already on there. Expect major reshuffling of the nonconference games around the rest of the ACC.

Late summer means another Billdozer VT video.

Watch "2012 Virginia Tech Football Trailer" on YouTube

All that needs to be said.

UVA seriously just got ANOTHER quarterback for this season.

For reasons that might never fully be understood, the NCAA has granted Phillip Sims a transfer waiver, making him immediately eligible for playing time in Charlottesville. 

As you may recall, assuming you paid the Hoos any attention last season beyond our 38-0 dismantling of them in front of a very quickly dissipating crowd at Scott Stadium, Coach Mike London seemed to have enough trouble finding a balance in effectively rotating the pro style Michael Rocco and the dual threat David Watford. Anyone who was a fan of the Hokies during the '07 and '08 seasons know what that feels like.

A Cliff's Notes version of Sims' football career: he set the state of Virginia on fire in high school, passing for 10,725 yards and 119 touchdowns, then signed a LoI to Alabama and wound up riding the pine behind AJ McCarron. On a completely unrelated note to his getting relegated to second fiddle in Tuscaloosa, one of Sims' family members developed serious health problems and Sims put in a transfer to UVA, to be closer to home. 

So here's the rub: Rocco is a junior and Watford a sophomore, which means they're both very much on the team with plenty of eligibility to spare, and now have to face the prospect of major and immediate competition from the incoming Sims. This is sure to ruffle some feathers not only among the quarterbacks themselves but also among the skill positions players and linemen who have cast their lot with one or the other established quarterback, or those who shift allegiance to the new guy. To say that Sims' arrival and immediate involvement in Hooville could be divisive is being obvious, and kind.

The old adage in football goes if you have two quarterbacks, then you don't have a quarterback. What the hell happens if you have three? Well, we probably won't find out, because it will be a goddam miracle of Mike London keeps all three quarterbacks on the roster another full season.

ND talks OB

According to Yahoo Sports, Note Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick has been in discussions with the ACC about a potential agreement to play in the Orange Bowl during seasons the Irish are good enough to merit a top tier bowl but fail to make the four team tournament to crown a MNC.

The face that these discussions have been with Swofford and the ACC instead of the Orange Bowl directly is a good sign, dune that implies the discussions are most likely of a business nature, regarding revenue sharing and the like. The Orange Bowl has already expressed interest in the Fighting Irish, and the fact that talks are already taking place between the potential business partners means things are moving quickly.

Inking a deal with Notre Dame for the Orange Bowl would be beneficial for the ACC on multiple levels. First, it gives the Orange Bowl added gravitas, matching a major conference champion with one of the most historically prestigious programs in college football . Second, it gives the Orange Bowl unmatched flexibility in selecting opponents.

If the Irish fail to meet the selection criteria for the Orange Bowl (I'm guessing nine wins and a top 12 finish), then the Orange Bowl is free to fill that spot through a truly "at-large" process. Contrast that with the agreements the B1G and PAC-12 have with the Rose Bowl and the Big XII and SEC have with the Champions Bowl to send an alternate selection from the conference should the champion make the tournament. It's very easy to see one or both of those bowls becoming a matchup of also rans. (Especially the Champions Bowl.)

Should the Irish either stumble or make the tournament, however, then the Orange Bowl would be free to select the best available opponent, which could be the Big East champion, the champion from one of the other mid-majors, or another attractive team from one of the "big five" conferences.

Nothing is set in stone yet, but the scramble to remain relevant in the "tournament era" of the BCS is on. Notre Dame either has to join a conference (not happening) or ink a deal directly with a top tier bowl. The Orange Bowl, with its opportunity to play a major conference champion, provides the most attractive offer left on the table.

A Dozen Oranges

As was expected, news broke today that the ACC and the Orange Bowl have announced an agreement to send the conference champion to play in South Beach so long as 1.) the ACC champs don't make the four team tournament to crown a national champion, and 2.) the Orange Bowl does not host one of the semifinal games that year. This is a 12 year agreement that begins with the Orange Bowl played after the 2014 season, the first season that will utilize the four team tournament model to crown a national champion.

It was also announced that the Orange Bowl will now always be played at 1:00 PM Eastern on New Year's Day, restoring one of the most storied collegiate bowls to its rightful date. Not announced were opponent selection broadcast partner information. I'm holding out hope that the Orange Bowl can ink a deal with Notre Dame, and crossing my fingers that the Big East doesn't get mentioned.