I Hope Paulus Looks Good In Orange…

Courtesy of the Associated Press

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Greg Paulus is returning home to Syracuse to play football. The former Duke point guard will enroll in graduate school at Syracuse and try to make a comeback in football for the Orange, he said Thursday. “My gut and my heart were telling me that (Syracuse) was the best place for me,” Paulus said from Durham, N.C., during a conference call.

“It got me thinking, got me throwing again (and) once I got doing that, the itch and the desire came back,” Paulus said. “To have this opportunity where I have two sports, and to be able to do them both at the college level, it’s something that’s pretty unique and special.”

He said he called new Orange coach Doug Marrone on Thursday morning to notify him of his decision. The three-year starting guard graduated from Duke earlier this month. He has one season of eligibility remaining and can play immediately if he receives a waiver from the NCAA. Marrone was not available and could not comment on the announcement because the NCAA paperwork has not been completed, university officials said.

Paulus was a record-setting high school quarterback in high school at Christian Brothers Academy, located less than a mile from Marrone’s office, and now has a legitimate chance at Syracuse, a proud program that’s fallen on hard times. “I’ve seen a lot of great years at Syracuse,” Paulus said.

The Orange hired Marrone in December to resurrect the team he once played for — Syracuse has gone 10-37 over the past four seasons. He already has moved former starting quarterback Andrew Robinson to tight end and demoted Cam Dantley, last year’s starter, to backup behind redshirt freshman Ryan Nassib, who has never thrown a college pass.

Paulus said Marrone has made “no promises, no guarantees” about playing time. At CBA, Paulus was one of the nation’s top prep quarterbacks. As a senior running a potent spread offense, he threw for 3,700 yards and 43 touchdowns in a 13-0 season. He finished his prep career with 11,763 yards and 152 touchdowns passing.

Miami and Notre Dame offered him football scholarships, and he received a basketball offer from Syracuse before choosing to play basketball at Duke. For most of the past four years, his only flirtation with football came when he threw the ball around with his younger brother, Mike, a quarterback at North Carolina.

Having been away from the game for so long has raised doubts about whether Paulus, at 6-foot-1 and 185 pounds, can succeed at the Division I level, especially for a team like Syracuse, which has struggled to build a solid offensive line.

“There’s going to be challenges along the way with getting into football shape, learning the system, getting back to speed,” Paulus said. “It’s a different challenge, and it’s one that I’m looking forward to.”

Since Paulus did not redshirt and will complete his degree at Duke in four years, he can go to graduate school elsewhere and compete right away if he is granted the waiver. Paulus said he plans to drive back to Syracuse in the coming days to deal with the necessary paperwork.

Copyright 2009 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Alpha Inventions

Poor Choice Fellas…

Courtesy of foxsports.com

The draft stock of Percy Harvin and Brandon Tate may have taken a hit.

Two sources told FOXSports.com that both wide receivers tested positive for marijuana in February at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.

Best of the best The No. 1 pick often has to do with team needs instead of talent. All mock drafts aside, Scout.com’s Chris Steuber ranks his Top 25 players in the draft.

Before the test results became official, Harvin was considered a potential first-round pick after leaving the University of Florida following his junior season. Tate was projected as a first or second rounder after a solid college career at North Carolina.

Joel Segal, the agent who represents both players, didn’t return messages seeking comment.

Harvin and Tate were the only high-profile players to flunk their combine drug tests, the sources said. Fewer than a dozen players tested positive for recreational drugs, one source said.

NFL teams received the drug-test results earlier this week. Players who failed are subject to entry into the NFL’s substance-abuse program.

Sports Illustrated’s Web site reported that Boston College defensive tackle B.J. Raji had flunked a combine drug test. Raji was not on the list of failed players, one source said, and SI.com has since retracted its story.

Harvin excelled as both a wide receiver and running back in Florida’s spread offense. Harvin generated 1,303 yards from scrimmage and 17 touchdowns in 2008. He also posted a blazing time of 4.39 seconds in the 40-yard dash at the combine.

Tate was having a monster season for North Carolina before tearing two knee ligaments midway through his senior campaign. He averaged 23.5 yards on his 16 receptions and was even more dangerous as a punt and kickoff returner. Tate’s 397 all-purpose yards against McNeese State set a single-game record at UNC. Tate didn’t work out at the Combine while still recovering from his injury.

The NFL draft will be held this weekend.

Alpha Inventions

Could Paulus Possibly Be A Michigan Wolverine?

First the Packers, now the Michigan Wolverines?!? Yep, Greg Paulus is officially on Rich Rodriguez’s list of potential starting QBs for the 2009 NCAA Football season. How can this be? Well, Paulus still has one year of athletic eligibility left and technically could transfer to Wolverine country and play QB for them next year in order to sharpen his skills for a potential run at the NFL. Who ever saw these two options coming for Mr. Paulus? I sure didn’t.

According to reports, Rodriguez said that Paulus would be a great fit for his new Spread offense. And for all of you football fans out there, we all know that Michigan needs a “legitimate” QB. What better way for Paulus and the Wolverines to get what they want? At this point for the Wolverine football program, why not? You need to get back on the college football map and be competitive in your conference again. Everyone’s tired of Ohio State winning the conference with an absolutely cake schedule. Why not get some free publicity from stealing a Dukee basketballer and throwing him into your football spread and put him behind center. The college football world would be entertained, that’s for sure…myself included. And for Paulus, this can’t hurt. You haven’t played in a game since senior year of high school as a highly praised recruit to Notre Dame and The University of Miami (“U”). This is a great way to hone back in on your football talent and show the professional football world and scouts together what you can do on the gridiron. No time like the present Greg…

You’re Killin’ Me Hokie Fans….

This weekend I was up in Northern Virginia (NOVA) at a charity fundraiser. At the bar where the fundraiser was held, I was surrounded by crimson and orange…yep, you got it…Virginia Tech fans. Yes, I know Northern Virginia is home to lots of Tech students and VA Tech alumni. However, I knew it would be a long night when Duke basketball popped on the screen as they battled Texas Saturday night. I never heard the end of it….”Duke sucks” or “Go Texas” (out of spite just because they were playing Duke) pretty much themed the night every time Duke scored. But why? Shouldn’t you guys be rooting for the ACC in general now that the Hokies’ basketball season is over?All the while, the Virginia Tech alumni that filled the bar couldn’t stop raving about the Hokies and how excited they were about the upcoming football season (mainly because their basketball team got blown out of the NIT after not making the NCAA). Are you kidding me? Give it a rest…I’m tired of hearing about Hokie football and Frank Beamer way before the College Football season even starts. Would you guys please talk about something different for a change? How about you root for your own pretty talented and youthful basketball team, aye? What about the remaining ACC teams in the NCAA tournament? We’re rivals but together as a conference right? You don’t have to root for them because you hate them so much, but root for their success and the success of the ACC to show up the Big East and other major conferences across the College Basketball world. I’ll be completely honest, if Duke were out and Tech and Carolina were in, I’d definitely root for Tech…and I mean that. As much as I hate Carolina, it would be good for them to win a title if Duke doesn’t…for the ACC’s sake (yes it kills me to say so).

But I never thought I’d say this: Virginia Tech Hokie fans have gotten just as ridiculous as Yankee fans. Everyone hops on the bandwagon if they do well, in anything, but become ghosts if any of the Tech athletic programs struggle, ESPECIALLY the football team. I cemented my position on the topic when Saturday night, a VA Tech football signed by the 2009 roster was auctioned off and people went crazy for it. I am 100% for raising as much money as possible and auctioning anything off that you can get your hands on, but (JOKINGLY) who would want that?!?! I sure as heck don’t. Shoot, I’d rather have a football signed by Mike AND Marcus Vick…it’d be worth more and maybe go for a lot of money in an auction because, well…it’d be controversial and people would get a kick out of it. And enough about Beamer. For goodness sakes people, Bud Foster is the reason that they win so many games. Beamer is just a funny looking guy that gets the credit for Foster’s tenacious defensive leadership each year. Stop blinding your fans Frank!!! Have you ever seen their offense play? They hardly score, especially when led by everyone’s favorite quarterback Sean Glennon (trust me, I’m being 100% sarcastic). Nobody, not even the Tech roster, likes that guy. Hokie this, Hokie that. Blah blah blah…

At the bar on Saturday night and at work every day during the week down in Southern Virginia, Newport News, all I hear about is Tech (apparently everyone in my building went to Tech). You know what guys? Go win a championship…in anything…and then come talk to me. Otherwise, save me the ear pain and stop yelling and screaming about the Hokies and just be normal until football season rolls around..trust me, it’s for the best…for everybody.