For many fans, college football is serious business. To Barrett Ruud and his family, Husker football comes naturally and Memorial Stadium is like home. ...more

December 12, 2007

The good news is they could stumble Sunday and still not fall. Their lead in the NFC South was and still is that big. Good thing, too, because the Bucs clearly stumbled against the Texans, particularly on defense. ...more

December 10, 2007

Simeon Rice is long gone, yet the sack and the strip remain a defensive staple in Tampa, thanks to the remarkable Greg White. ...more

December 10, 2007

Sunday's Best Bucs defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin joked that defensive end Greg White went from being the best player in the Arena Football League to tops in the NFL, and after another standout performance, he might be onto something. White, a first-year player who was with the Orlando Predators last season, had three sacks, three quarterback hurries and two forced fumbles in Tampa Bay's 28-14 road loss against Houston. ...more

December 10, 2007

This is always Job One for the defense anyway, but it bears an underscore here because of the way the Texans attack. They want to run a balanced offense, primarily to set up play-action passes to Andre Johnson. To keep defenses off balance, they often run out of one-back sets using three and sometimes four receivers spread wide. That forces defenses into nickel and dime packages that are easier to run against. The key for the Bucs is to bottle up the Texans rush while playing in those nickel and dime schemes. With a player like Ronde Barber, that shouldn't be a problem. But the Bucs cannot take Ron Dayne for granted if he's the primary ball carrier today. Dayne has run well in Ahman Green's absence and could be the go-to guy in the red zone. The Bucs have to respect his ability to slow that Texans rush. ...more

December 9, 2007