By now you know that Georgia’s SEC opener against South Carolina will be at 3:30 on CBS. It will be the nation’s first look at this title contender, and I couldn’t think of a better network on which to make our national debut.

It’s not that Georgia hasn’t had significant wins on other networks. The Sugar Bowl destruction of Hawaii was on FOX, and the overtime defeat of Alabama was on ESPN. But FOX managed to turn a dominant bowl win into a trudging and tedious broadcast that just…wouldn’t…end. ESPN’s production of the Alabama game turned on Mike Patrick’s bizarre fascination with Britney Spears.

But great games on CBS can be transcendent. From the South Carolina and Auburn games in 2002 to the LSU game in 2004 to the Florida and Auburn games last season, appearing on the Canine Broadcasting System has been great for the team. They haven’t always won on CBS, but we’re assured of a first-rate production and broadcast team. While other networks flounder when a close game turns into a rout, the broadcast booth becomes one big party at CBS.

Pendulum Swings Back

Deserved or not, the SEC tied its own record with nine teams in the 2008 NCAA Baseball Tournament. While there is plenty to back up the SEC, I think the reason for nine teams is much simpler: the SEC received only five bids last year – a result that was at least as controversial, if not more, than this year’s nine bids. This year it was the Pac-10 who got five teams in, and defending champ Oregon State was a casualty of that fact. We’ll see if the committee takes that into account next year.

Good News

Finally, it’s always a little weird to get personal with someone whom you "know" only through bits and bytes, but it’s nothing but fantastic news that Doug’s father is doing well. It’s an incredibly jarring experience when the men we hold up have a brush with their own mortality. Father’s Day will have a little more meaning than usual this year.