Auburn has room to sign one more in the early period which ends Jan 15

Signing players early not only allows them to go through spring practice but also allows the Tigers to count them against their 2009 recruiting class. This will allow Auburn to still sign 25 more players and effectively give Auburn 29 players in the 2010 class.Auburn has room to sign one more in the early period, which ends Jan 15. JUCO defensive end Ken Adams could be that player, he is expected to choose between Auburn, Tennessee and North Carolina this week.Rivals now has Auburn ranked no.7 among the 2010 recruiting classes. Auburn also has secured verbal commitments from 6 of the top 13 players in the state of Alabama Thats one more then our in state rivals. . It's exciting to hear that the Big Ten has opened itself up to expanding.

The conference is already the richest in the sport today, so why not take things to the next level Of course, all of this talk about expansion means that the media has jumped on the notion of the Irish finally joining the conference. I mean, it sounds like a great marriage right The Irish have been irrelevant since 1993, as Kirk Herbstreit so nicely reminded everyone a few weeks back, and we all know the Big Ten is hurting in perception points. So the two finally coming together could have both parties headed in the right direction Well, they don't see it that way in South Bend. Athletic Director Jack Swarbrick had this to say to the Chicago Tribune , "Our strong preference is to remain the way we are. Independence is a big part of the tradition of the program and our identity. We'd sure like to try to maintain it." So yes, that is another rejection from the Irish, just like back in 1999. This time it has a little bit less sting though, especially because they are in worse shape than they were 10 years ago.

Don't get me wrong, Kelly has the capability of turning things around in South Bend, but I still think it is the Irish that need the Big Ten. Not the other way around!Not only would the Irish be pulling in about $11 million more a year than they are now ($9 million with NBC, $20 million with Big Ten), but their relevance would increase as well.Outside of the Notre Dame faithful, most of the country forgets NBC even broadcasts football on Saturdays But even more important than money would be the exposure Yes, I said exposure. The Irish see their greatest amount of coverage and discussion early in the year when they are battling the teams from the Big Ten. I understand they are happy playing schools like Navy, Air Force, Syracuse, and UCONN late in the season, but no one else cares In fact, we only care when they get upset. Fans particularly enjoy the heated conference contests that take place year after year.For instance, the Buckeyes have waged battles against schools like Illinois, Wisconsin, and Iowa who aren't even suppose to be rivals. The problem is, that gives Notre Dame three of those games, when everyone else has seven or eight. Randomly picking teams to put on your schedule lacks the intensity or history, and I think the nation's lack of interest shows that.