Indiana Pacers guard Anthony Johnson pleaded no contest Friday to a count of misdemeanor assault and battery stemming from last season's brawl at The Palace of Auburn Hills.
He's still awaiting sentencing on his 33 percent shooting performance against the Pistons in the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
Saturday's instant classic 44-41 win over Notre Dame put MSU in the Associated Press Top 25 for the first time this season. They're currently ranked 17th, one spot behind Notre Dame and three behind Michigan.
Now, many of you might be expecting us to complain that we should be ranked higher than U-M. But we're not going to do that. We're not going to mention that we're 3-0 and U-M is only 2-1. And we're definitely not going to mention that we beat a top-10 team this weekend while the Wolverines were playing the Ypsilanti High School women's water polo team, a.k.a. Eastern Michigan.
Nope. Not going to sink to that level.
The only bad part about the MSU-Notre Dame game was that it was broadcast on Irish-friendly NBC, which might as well stand for "No Biases Concealed." By the end of the game, the announcers had us convinced that:
• Brady Quinn is such a good quarterback that he makes Tom Brady look like Cindy Brady
• Every time Darius Walker runs for 2 yards, it's the most amazing physical feat ever achieved by a human being
• Charlie Weis has done more for the game of football than Vince Lombardi, Jerry Rice and the cast of "Rudy" combined
Former Pittsburgh Steeler wide receiver Lynn Swann said in an interview with ESPN this week that he's going to make a serious run at being governor of Pennsylvania.
Which got us thinking: what would some other notable local sports figures use as their platforms if they entered politics?
John L. Smith: Will rename all foreign conflicts "father-son spats," evaluate all Cabinet members "to see if they're worth a hoot"
Charlie Weis: Promises to address problems of crime, poverty and inflation by going for it on fourth down
Lloyd Carr: An always-promising economy, but at least three or four recessions every year
Compiled by Tom Keller
