Tuesday news

As promised, here's the roundup of Tuesday's news. Turns out this would have been a good day to get it done fast early in the morning; there's not much out there. Here's what I've found:

The Anniston (Ala.) Star (sorry, subscribers only) says Jacksonville State is heading into the toughest stretch of its conference schedule, with games against UT-Martin and Eastern Kentucky on the road over the next two weeks, before hosting Murray State at home on a Thursday night.

The Gadsden (Ala.) Times says JSU and UT-Martin mach up extremely well in msot statistical categories, especially on defense. JSU coach Jack Crowe thinks the game might be a showdown between the league's best defensive units.

The Murray (Ky.) Ledger & Times says Murray State's victory over Indiana State Saturday was a validation for the program and its new leadership under coach Matt Griffin. While the 59-40 victory gave the RAcers plenty to celebrate, they've got to improve a lot of defense, Griffin tells the paper. While Indiana State now holds the nation's longest winning streak at 20 games thanks to the Racers, MSU this week faces #6 Illinois State, which knocked off defending OVC champs Eastern Illinois last week.

The Southeast Missourian says SEMO coach Tony Samuel is thankful for his team's week off following Saturday's 38-7 loss to JSU. Samuel tells the paper, "First of all, Jacksonville State is a very good football team. But we made them look better than they are. We didn't perform well."

In his column today, The (Cookeville, Tenn.) Herald-Citizen's Buddy Pearson says Tennessee Tech still has a chance at winning the OVC title in 2006. (Here's a link to the HC sports section) Their chances, he points out, are at least better than his odds at winning the lottery or the world ending tomorrow. But hey, the Golden Eagles are undefeated in OVC play; all things are possible when you're 0-0. TTU hosts Eastern Kentucky Thursday night in a game to be televised live on ESPNU at 7:30 p.m.