Brock Berlin and Frank Gore were key players in the Florida-Miami rivalry that may be discontinued. (Bill Frakes/SI)

By Zac Ellis

Florida and Miami might have one of the more exciting in-state rivalries in college football, but that Sunshine State matchup might be coming to an end.

Miami athletic director Blake James told reporters at this week’s ACC spring meetings that no discussion has taken place with Florida regarding a continuation of the series, ESPN.com’s Andrea Adelson reports. James pointed to scheduling concerns as a potential obstacle in future meetings.

“I haven’t spoken with Jeremy or the University of Florida about future games and I don’t know how it would fit into their schedule or fit into ours right now. There hasn’t been any conversation and there isn’t anything on the schedule for the future.”

The two schools are slated to meet this season on Sept. 7 for the first time since 2008, and SI.com’s Stewart Mandel ranked the game as one of the season’s non-conference games to watch. The matchup  will wrap up just the second home-and-home series between the programs since 1987, when the schools snapped a streak of annual meetings dating back to 1938.

Florida already plays an annual non-conference matchup with Florida State, and the SEC’s proposal to move to a nine-game conference schedule could further complicate the future of the Hurricanes-Gators series.

By Holly Anderson

SURGEON GENERAL’S WARNING: This LandThieves video contains mature language and is not safe for office environments, nursing mothers, women who are pregnant or who may become pregnant, readers with heart, neck or back conditions, small children, animals, houseplants, night terrors sufferers, the elderly, those with chronic illness, diabetics or vegans.

Nick Saban makes $5.3 million per season, but his economic impact on Alabama is much greater. (Morry Gash/AP)

By Zac Ellis

Critics and fans alike have used many words to describe Alabama coach Nick Saban’s salary, which leads the nation at $5.3 million per year. But “modest” likely wasn’t been one of them — until now.

That’s how Forbes writer Tom Van Riper recently described Saban’s pay. The logic? Given the economic impact Alabama football has made on Tuscaloosa during Saban’s tenure, that price tag isn’t so bad. The Crimson Tide’s success has indirectly caused an upswing in university enrollment, faculty employment and athletics revenue.

“Powerhouse football is nothing new at the school, of course. But powerhouse football in the modern media age means, thanks to games beamed across the country on a regular basis, a national marketing platform unlike anything Bama enjoyed in Bear Bryant’s day.”

Saban has won three national titles in Tuscaloosa and compiled a 68-13 record since taking over at Alabama in 2007. The school’s revenue flow has increased accordingly: According to Van Riper’s data, taken from USA Today, Alabama recorded revenue of $124.5 million and a profit of $19.4 million in 2012, an increase from $67.7 million in revenue and $7.1 million in profit in ’07. The football program is the money-driver, accounting for around two-thirds of all athletics revenue and $45 million in profit.

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Jimbo Fisher’s Seminoles, if they’re still Jimbo Fisher’s Seminoles, will meet Willie Taggart’s Bulls, if they’re still Willie Taggart’s Bulls, in two years. (AP)

By Holly Anderson

From the Future College Football Department: South Florida and Florida State have booked a two-year home-and-home series, to be played in Tallahassee in 2015 and Tampa in 2016. The teams have met twice before, with the Bulls knocking off the ‘Noles on the road in 2009 and FSU returning the favor last season.

By Holly Anderson

For The First Time This Year We Wish We Worked Offseason Weekends, Vol. 2: In which the President has been reading the message boards.

President Obama just referred to the University of Michigan as That School Up North.—
Kyle Rowland (@KyleRowland) May 05, 2013

President Obama gave Ohio State’s commencement address this weekend, and he adhered admirably to rivalry rhetoric but selfishly neglecting to issue an executive order awarding each of Ohio State’s victories under Urban Meyer to the SEC.

Michigan led the nation last season by averaging 112,252 fans per home game. (Scott W. Grau/Icon SMI)

By Zac Ellis

Michigan’s home-field advantage was the best in college football in 2012, according to at least one list of rankings. Michigan Stadium, also known as “The Big House,” topped StadiumJourney.com’s rundown of the best college stadiums from last season. The Wolverines led the nation in average attendance with an astounding 112,252 fans per game while finishing 6-0 and outscoring visiting opponents 231-96 at home.

The outlet determined its rankings based on several factors, including a team’s win/loss record, average attendance, attendance as a percentage of capacity and points scored/allowed at home. Florida’s Ben Hill Griffin Stadium finished second, while Ohio State’s Ohio Stadium, Nebraska’s Memorial Stadium and South Carolina’s Williams-Brice Stadium rounded out the top five.

You can find the complete rankings here, but here is the rest of the top 10:

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By Zac Ellis

The rivalry between Clemson and South Carolina has bumped up a few notches over the last few seasons. The competitiveness is back, with the Gamecocks claiming the last four victories in a series historically dominated by the Tigers, and the war of words between Dabo Swinney and Steve Spurrier serving as a recipe for great pregame sparring.

Even though the two schools won’t match up until November, the next chapter of the in-state saga appears to have been written overnight. South Carolina staffers came to work Wednesday morning and found an orange tiger paw painted on one of the Gamecocks’ train cars. The vehicle, known as the Cockabooses, was parked next to the stadium.

Enough is Enough! @clem_sux #CockabooseVandalism twitter.com/cookescott/sta…

— Scott Cooke (@cookescott) April 16, 2013

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Rebel and the Golden Egg trophy, returning to your TV this Thanksgiving. (Fred Brooks/Icon SMI)

By Zac Ellis

Fans of Mississippi football can expect a holiday treat this fall: The Egg Bowl will return to ESPN’s Thanksgiving lineup. The network announced Wednesday that the 110th in-state clash between Mississippi State and Ole Miss will once again take place on Thanksgiving, which this year falls on Nov. 28.

The matchup previously took place on ESPN on Thanksgiving from 1998-2003 before moving to Saturdays. But thanks to joint interest from Ole Miss athletic director Ross Bjork and Mississippi State athletic director Scott Stricklin, the game will return as a proper dessert following football fans’ Thanksgiving feasts.

Ole Miss won last year’s game 41-24 to extend its all-time series lead to 61-42-6.

So passes our best hope for an entertaining spring. (AP)

In the most resounding stroke of bad fortune in an offseason fraught with them, Harvey Updyke pled guilty Friday to charges related to the poisoning of Auburn’s beloved oak trees, depriving us all of the opportunity to tailgate a trial. We are sorely disappointed in the legal minds on both sides, although they’re making their excuse sound good:

“We have a significant number of violent felonies awaiting trial in Lee County and I could not in good conscience justify financing a three-week trial merely to arrive at no better a resolution,” Lee County District Attorney Robbie Treese said in a statement.

And while that is all very important, we were going to put on a big hat and white gloves and have a nice picnic on the courthouse lawn to show support for our Auburn pals, consarnit. This could’ve been the In Cold Blood of the internet age, and we are all spiritually poorer for it.

Drake Harris, a 2014 prospect, is expected to focus on football in college after decommitting from Michigan State. (AP)

Class of 2014 prospect Drake Harris, a two-sport star at Grand Rapids Christian, has withdrawn his verbal commitment to Michigan State and has been visiting Michigan, per the Detroit Free Press. Rated as a four-star recruit in both football and basketball, Harris has received football offers from such programs as Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Notre Dame and Oregon. As told to the Freep:

“Since I’m just playing football now,” Harris told reporters after his regional basketball game Monday in Grand Rapids, “I want to play at a bigger school, win a national championship.”

One of the most effective offseason conditioning methods out there is message-board rage sprints. To help you along, here’s a guide to everyone who could conceivably be offended by Harris’ statement:

• Michigan State: For Harris reopening his recruitment and slighting of the Spartans’ football program.

• Michigan: For the implied slight of the Michigan basketball program.

• Everybody else in the Big Ten not located in Columbus, Ohio (probably). Lest we forget, Ohio State also went after Harris, so look forward to whatever bon mots Urban Meyer has to dispense about Harris’ chances of winning a national title with the Wolverines.