Links and videos from recent happenings around the sporting world. If you come across good articles, videos, etc. – please pass them along, I’d love to take a look.

College Football:

The Forde-Yard Dash: Pat joins the Yahoo! party – Pat Forde [Yahoo!] Pat and the Dash are finally back after breaking away from the WWL.

Oklahoma State, Oregon rise in game show Power Rankings – Andy Staples [SI]

Stanford handled adversity; now LSU and Alabama get their turns – Stewart Mandel [SI] his weekly “College Football Overtime” column.

Remembering classic encounters between No.1 and No. 2 teams – Mark Schlabach [ESPN] With insights from Bowden, Switzer & Holtz as LSU and Bama get ready for Saturday’s game.

LSU QB Jarrett Lee

LSU’s Lee gets chance for atonement – Thayer Evans [FoxSports] Good luck against that Bama defense, Jarrett!

Boise State, 3 others (Houston, SMU & UCF) could join Big East by Friday – Brett McMurphy [CBSSports] My interest in conference realignment has decreased significantly with the looong drawn out process but this seems credible. Maybe. (this story keeps updating so the title might be different when you click the link)

Petersen, Kustra hold answers to key decisions – Brian Murphy [IdahoStatesman]

Is ESPN the main force behind realignment in college sports – Steve Wieberg [USAToday]

Poynter Review Project: ESPN in the middle of college realignment- Kelly McBride [ESPN]

What exactly is the benefit of the Longhorn Network – Trey Scott [TheDailyTexan] That’s a great question with no apparent answer.

NCAA begins work on what it hopes is a true reformation – Bryan Fischer [CBSSports] Including multiyear scholarships and $2,000 for athletes.

Q&A with NCAA VP Kevin Lennon – Bryan Fischer [CBSSports] Fischer talks with Lennon about the reforms.

Meet Doug Martin: Boise State’s running back and “physical freak” – Thayer Evans [FoxSports] The Muscle Hamster is awesome but you already knew that.

Kellen Moore, Boise State Broncos: In Focus – Dory LeBlanc [Xlog]

Boise State football, Make-A-Wish plan another “coach for a day” wish for Wyoming game – Chadd Cripe [IdahoStatesman] Boise State and Chris Petersen are awesome but you already knew that too!

Six recruiting rules in need of change [Rivals]

Soccer:

FIFA’s 23 candidates for the Ballon d’Or 2011 award [FoxSports] You have to think Messi is the favorite with Ronaldo a close second.

Gunners back from the dead – Nick Webster [FoxSports] Arsenal 5-3 beating of Chelsea on Saturday was nothing short of awesome.

In Arsene we trust — again – David Hirshey [ESPN] Surprised to see Hirshey actually complimenting Wenger and the Gunners.

Surfing:

Bruce Iron’s HUGE wipeout at Teahupoo that ripped his shorts off [Surfline] Bruce gives some good insight into the massive wipeout.

The Eddie Aikau invite list is out [Quicksilver] The contest will run between Dec. 1st and Feb. 29th provided a swell comes.

Here’s video of Bruce’s 100 point ride when he won The Eddie back in 2004 – not only does he make the huge drop but he rides the wave all the way in getting barreled in the shorebreak:

Betting:

Once the calendar flips to November , it’s time to shift your focus to college hoops [BeyondTheBets] He makes some pretty interesting points.

Vegas Rankings – RJ Bell [Pregame] Who Vegas thinks the top 40 teams are and which are incorrectly valued by the public. Apparently they think Boise State has the best home field advantage in college football.

Any good articles or videos I missed? Happy Humpday Everyone!