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http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080522/SPORTS030102/805220340/1079/SPORTS STARKVILLE — Mississippi State and Sylvester Croom have agreed on financial terms to the base portion of his contract, but it will be a little while longer before State fans know exactly how much their fifth-year football coach will be paid.The state College Board, which meets this morning in Jackson, will be presented with an agenda item that calls for the athletic department-funded portion of Croom's contract to increase from $215,000 to $250,000. The Board's approval is usually considered a formality. The bulk of Croom's pay will come from the private Bulldog Foundation. MSU spokesman Mike Nemeth said Wednesday that State and Croom hope to bring closure to that negotiation "in the near future." Croom had previously agreed in principle to an extension through the 2011 season, and the agenda item reflects that. Croom's current package is worth close to $1 million annually. Croom earned a $720,000 supplement to his base pay from the Bulldog Foundation in the 2006-07 fiscal year, according to an NCAA-required outside income report obtained in a public records request by The Clarion-Ledger. Clarionledger.com 5/22/08

http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080522/SPORTS/805220321 HOOVER, Ala. - Junior right-hander Lance Lynn had never lost in the Southeastern Conference Tournament and he kept that streak alive on Wednesday as Ole Miss (35-22) defeated sixth-ranked and top-seeded Georgia (35-20-1) in the opening round of the SEC Tournament by a score of 4-1. Lynn (7-3) struck out 12 batters on the night, tying a career-high, as he picked up the win and ran his SEC Tournament record to 3-0 for his career. The junior allowed one run on four hits with four walks and 12 strikeouts in 6.2 innings of work. Scott Bittle picked up his eighth save of the season as he worked the final 2.1 innings, striking out four and walking two while allowing only two hits. Georgia's Nick Montgomery (2-2) suffered the loss in only his second career start as he worked 4.0 innings and allowed three runs on six hits with a walk and four strikeouts. "It was a great game tonight and a well played game by both teams," said Ole Miss head coach Mike Bianco. "Lance Lynn was tremendous tonight and very dominant. We were able to get him a lead and then just let him pitch. He looked like vintage Lance tonight." hattiesburgamerican.com 5/22/08

http://www.kentucky.com/609/story/412227.html VANDERBILT, MISSISSIPPI SCORE UPSETS STAFF, WIRE REPORTS Related Content SEC BASEBALL TOURNAMENT Wednesday through Sunday at Regions Park in Hoover, Ala. Wednesday's scores LSU 5, South Carolina 4 (10) Vanderbilt 7, Florida 3 Mississippi 4, Georgia 1 Kentucky 9, Alabama 3 Thursday's schedule 11 a.m. - Florida vs. South Carolina 2 p.m. - Georgia vs. Alabama 6 p.m. - Vanderbilt vs. LSU 9 p.m. - Mississippi vs. UK UK on the air TV: Insight Cable channel 17 in Lexington Radio: WLAP-AM 630 Louisiana State designated hitter Blake Dean hit a walk-off home run in the tenth inning to lift the second-seeded Tigers to a 5-4 victory over No. 7 South Carolina on Wednesday afternoon in the first round of the Southeastern Conference Tournament at Hoover, Ala. The Tigers rallied from a 4-0 deficit in the bottom of the ninth to send the game to extra innings and set up the win, LSU's 17th straight. First baseman Matt Clark hit a three-run homer to make it 4-3, and second baseman Ryan Schimpf drove in the tying run with a bloop double just inside the left-field line. "It was an amazing comeback," LSU Coach Paul Mainieri said. "It was probably one of the best I have witnessed as a coach." Kentucky.com 5/22/08

http://www.nola.com/lsu/t-p/football/index.ssf?/base/sports-2/1211434724144930.xml&coll=1 Logistical issues prevented LSU Coach Les Miles and Northshore tackle Chris Faulk from meeting in person Wednesday, so they took advantage of video teleconferencing. Facing Miles monitor to monitor, Faulk gave the coach a pledge from the Northshore school library. Faulk, 6 feet 6, 315 pounds, is LSU's 12th commitment for 2009, the fourth in-state commitment and second offensive lineman. He said he chose LSU over Michigan, UCLA, Alabama, Tulane, Nebraska, Arkansas, Ole Miss and Southern Mississippi. "We had an interview over the Web cam," Faulk said. "We were looking right at each other. We talked about how good I was doing with my books. I've got my grades up. I'm doing real well. He asked me if I was willing to be a Tiger and I said, 'Yes, I was.' I kind of thought he was going to ask me, but I really didn't know. "My coach (Mike Bourg) had told me that LSU wanted to talk to me after spring (practice). (Bourg) told me it was going to be special, so I kind of had an idea. "It was a little emotional, but I couldn't let (Miles) see that. I was excited, because I had been waiting for this a long time. It's my dream school." nola.com 5/22/08

http://cfb365.blogspot.com/2008/05/sec-positional-breakdowns.html Sporting News recently released their top 5 players from every position in the SEC. I decided to copy them and create my own list. I will compare the two so you can look back at the end of the year and see how badly I handed Sporting News' own ass to them. Quarterback SN.......................................................................ME 1.Tim Tebow-Florida......................................1.Tim Tebow-Florida 2.Matthew Stafford-Georgia..........................2.Matthew Stafford-Georgia 3.John Parker Wilson-Alabama.....................3.Kodi Burns-Auburn 4.Casey Dick-Arkansas...................................4.John Parker Wilson-Alabama 5.Jonathan Crompton-Tennessee.................5.Jevan Snead-Ole Miss Running Back SN.................................................................ME 1.Knowshon Moreno-Georgia...................1.Knowshon Moreno-Georgia 2.Keiland Williams-LSU............................2.Anthony Dixon-Mississippi St. 3.Arian Foster-Tennessee........................3.Keiland Williams-LSU 4.Anthony Dixon-Mississippi St...............4.Chris Rainey-Florida 5.Terry Grant-Alabama............................5.Trindon Holliday-LSU College Football 365 5/21/08