Last week, Tucker Carlson’s spinning bowtie propelled him back into the news after he said that Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Michael Vick should have been executed for his role in a dog fighting ring. For some reason, Charles Barkley took a moment during last Thursday’s game between the Dallas Mavericks and Oklahoma City Thunder to address Carlson’s comments in a way that only Chuck can.

Said Barkley:

“Now Tucker Carlson, who’s a nobody … he used to work for us over here. We fired him because he sucked. Now he goes over there and he says that Michael Vick should be executed, which is total BS. You know, TV is a very powerful thing and you can’t just go on there and say anything.”

Carlson apologized shortly after his comment became a big deal, but Charles didn’t know that and he elected to rant instead. And really, his rants make the world a better place. Like, I loved his rant in 2008 about how the Auburn Tigers shouldn’t have hired Gene Chizik. Hmmmm, what did he say again…

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One controversial play came out of Auburn’s BCS championship win over Oregon last night, and it was that fourth quarter run from Auburn running back Stephen Dyer. Dyer’s roll-and-run over an Oregon defender looked eerily similar to that of Arkansas tight end D.J. Williams in last week’s Sugar Bowl.

In both instances, the runner appeared to be down while rolling over the top of the defender, but instead got up and kept running. You can see where Williams and Dyer each had his wrist touch the ground at one point during the run. The guys at Mocksession put together a great video for it, which we have for you after the jump.

Oklahoma and Connecticut combined for 68 points in the Fiesta Bowl on New Year’s Day. Will we see another high-scoring game, despite the fact that neither team has played in over a month? Here’s what other people are saying…

Oregon has already blasted one top-five opponent this season. The Ducks defeated Stanford 52-31 at Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Ore., on Oct. 2, rolling up 626 yards of offense and scoring 28 points in the second half. If you watched the No. 4 Cardinal demolish No. 13 Virginia Tech 40-12 in the Jan. 3 Discover Orange Bowl, you know the Ducks beat a really good team. –Mark Schlabach, ESPN.

The sham that is big-time college athletics was on full display this week in the Arizona desert, where the Oregon and Auburn faithful gathered by the thousands to dump millions into the state’s tourism economy on behalf of their alma maters. It was all set to conclude Monday night in a spectacle suspiciously reminiscent of a big game the NFL itself will be holding in just a few weeks.

…Here’s hoping Cecil Newton got his money. It’s only right, because everyone else gets theirs. –Tim Dahlberg/AP.

I assume that the point spread drop [to 72] for tonight’s BCS title game means that Vegas suspects Cecil Newton took Oregon and the points? –@TheCajunBoy

Strong Side: [Auburn quarterback Cam Newton is] still eligible to illegally play college football for five more years. Weak Side: Can run and pass but can’t lateral for sh:t. –Onion Sports Network.

I’m picking Oregon to win, because (a) they’re getting a point and a half, and (b) their offense is so unstoppable that Denzel and Chris Pine should be piggy-backing on LaMichael James. And then after tonight, college football will finally be over. I’ll just have to scream at the nearby university kids at the local bars just to stay in practice? They’ll love the attention, anyway.

When Auburn and Oregon meet for the BCS National Championship game Monday night, there will be more on the line than just college football’s ultimate prize. One male Oregon fan has decided that it would be funny to make an interesting wager with a lady supporter of the SEC champs. And where better to find willing, sexually liberated women than Craigslist?

Ryan Tharp is willing to bet that the Oregon Ducks will crush the Auburn Tigers in the BCS Championship game. He’s so sure of it, he posted an ad on Craigslist saying so.

In that ad, he says he’s looking for an Auburn fan who’s willing to join him in a post-game, short-term Las Vegas wedding.

“I, along with several buddies, will be celebrating the Duck victory in Vegas from Jan. 11 to 14. During that extravaganza, I plan on taking in the entire Vegas experience, including marrying a stranger,” he writes in the ad.

Herein lies the wager: The loser of the game must pay for the following day’s annulment. –KPTV

Maybe I’m just a grumpy Gus constantly yelling at kids to get off my lawn, but this is a really horrible idea. I can just see this dude and his buddies, trying to get laid, commenting how ‘money’ their Ed Hardy tees are. If you do happen to be interested, ladies, and I can’t understand how you wouldn’t be, the Criagslist post can be found here. I, meanwhile, have a lot of things to complain about and little time to do so.

NBA Hall-Of-Famer and current TNT analyst Charles Barkley has opinions on stuff, and even when he’s wrong, he’s a fascinating listen. Over the last seven days, Sir Charles sounded off on a host of issues, and we’ve collected a modest one-stop sampling of those opinions for your enjoyment.

Barkley on Washington Wizards rookie John Wall missing a game last week with tendinitis (it was later reported to be a bone bruise).

“John Wall, I love you, but you can’t miss games with tendinitis.”

On Brett Favre’s alleged sexting with a female New York Jets employee.

“My biggest problem with the whole Brett Favre thing is if you’re going to send a woman a picture of your junk, it should be huge. … That’s one of the Ten Commandments.”

On major-league pitcher Cliff Lee, who used to wear the same number Barkley wore with the Sixers, returning to Philadelphia.

“It’s great for the Philly fans,” Charles Barkley told us yesterday. “As a fan, I just think that you want a legitimate shot to win every year.

“The Phillies for the next three or five years are going to have a legitimate shot to win, and that’s awesome. I’d be honored if they Lee [and Roy Halladay both] wore 34. [Halladay currently wears No. 34 for the Phillies.]

On his alma mater, Auburn, reaching the BCS Title Game in college football, and Mark Cuban’s announcement to explore the possibility of a playoff.

I think Oregon and Auburn are the two best teams. But you look at Stanford, you look at TCU, there are a bunch of good teams out there. I just hate the BCS. It’s got the two good initials – the B.S. But I hate the BCS in general. And Mark, Mark’s a good dude. We need to do something to fix college football because like I said, it worked out great this year.

Vote in the ASYLUM Poll: Can Mark Cuban Establish A College Football Playoff?

I love Charles, he’s the chubby uncle I wish I had growing up. I hope he does run for governor of Alabama in 2014. It would be like Obama times a thousand. “Our governor’s black…Roll Tide.”

Quotes 1 2 3 4.

One of the great human stories of the internet is that of Harry Gerard “Buzz” Bissinger III, who has gone from figuratively defecating on an online writer to literally becoming one. Bissinger has been tapped to write for The Daily Beast, and he started with a rant on Auburn quarterback Cam Newton, who won the Heisman Trophy on Saturday with 82 percent of the vote.

Newton was left off several ballots because his father was trying to sell him. My dad did that to me when I was young, but for totally different reasons.

Cecil Newton knew that, like any father with a kid poised for major college glory knows that. He must have known that Mississippi State was in a position to make a killing off his son while the family itself reaped nothing. He knew that the head coach, if the program was successful because of his son, could move up to the big time, where the salaries go as high as $5 million, not including the country club membership and the annual annuity payment and the bonus for staying for a certain number of years.

–The Daily Beast.

The whole piece has abject generalizations, hyperbole, not a lot of research, and scathing, angry opinion. In other words, he writes just like he’d accuse a “blogger” of writing. I’m actually looking forward to seeing more from him, but so far this doesn’t top his profanity laced tirades on Twitter. I’m actually more nervous when this guy isn’t angry.