When thinking of modern day athletes, word associations might look something like: "dog fights," "pimped out Escalades," and "dodging domestic violence charges." History teaches us that athletes of yore were a prouder breed. History remembers athletes which role-modeled hard work, pride and dedication, versus self-serving, misfit behavior.  Athletes historically used their star power to incite positive change. Writing for Campus Progress, Andy Kroll discusses this issue with his book review: "Zirin’s latest book, A People’s History of Sports in the United States, illustrates how, beginning with the Native Americans’ early lacrosse matches and ending with the multi-billion-dollar sporting industries of the present, sports have, for better or worse, continually influenced the direction of this country. But more than offering an illuminating and necessary historical account, A People’s History of Sportsis a present-day condemnation of 21st-century professional sports and...

Unless Stanford, presently down 21-14 at TCU in the fourth quarter, comes back, the Pac-10 could start this big weekend 0-3 (and Purdue just jumped on Oregon 7-0). Folks at USC should take note of the way Maryland, which lost last weekend at Middle Tennessee State, physically manhandled California. The very idea that USC wins in a walkover today against Ohio State just seems so... wrong... to me. Consider: In week two, Maryland gets whipped by a mid-major. Ohio State barely handles a mid-major. California looks dominant on its way to 2-0 and a national ranking. USC looks dominant at Virginia on its way to a No. 1 ranking. In week three, Cal, a heavy favorite, lays an egg to a Maryland team that was a laughingstock from the laughingstock ACC. Whither USC against the most maligned elite program from the maligned Big Ten? Here's a big difference, though: USC is playing at home. And, of course, USC is still USC. As for Cal, we probably can close the book on RB...