Crowd noise: Count me among the large number of referees who feel that crowd noise is just as much a part of the game conditions as the weather and that teams should be prepared to handle it. Indeed, the referee may force the issue himself by refusing to stop play. However, the rules committee continues to feel otherwise, so there are specific steps to deal with it.

Violation or penalty: The NCAA rules recognize two kinds of rules infractions: fouls and violations (2-9-1). A foul is an infraction for which some penalty is involved in every case except two. A violation, on the other hand, does not carry a penalty.

Suddenly, writers fell out of the trees: Bob Stone, Gene Dickinson,  Dennis Cirillo, and today....

Today, it's the turn of Alan Roper, whose home is in Bentonville, AR. That town is also the home of Walmart. We don't think Alan is going to be as big as they are. But we already know he's a great writer.

Click the title to read Part I of his new series. Of course, you're supposed to be a subscriber to do that.

This edition will use the 1993 classic, The Program, as the topic film.

Click the title to start the film rolling.

Now, you'll have to click the title and go inside to see what that paragraph has to do with John's article.

Oh, it'll be easier for you to understand if you're Married with Children.