** One week of preseason camp is in the books and there is a sense of urgency at the U of M. Tiger coach Tommy West isn't letting up on a group -- the defensive line -- that will be a key to the team's success.
Memphis had one of Conference USA's worst rush defenses in 2006, but the Tigers expect big things out of a huge transfer, former Arkansas signee Freddie Barnett.

** It is apparent that while the Tigers receivers aren't as recognized throughout the league as those at Houston, Rice and SMU, they are an impressive collection. Duke Calhoun has, as the coaches say, potential to become a league star. Transfer Steven Black is a hard-working, sure-handed addition. Earnest Williams is as consistent as they come and Maurice Jones is returning as if he has something to prove for missing time in the past year because of a suspension.

Barefield was not only a gifted athlete -- albeit undersized -- but a pleasant individual. He always walked through the Murphy Athletic Complex with a smile. Often he traded wisecracks, or talked trash, with the U of M sports information personnel in the hallways setting up media interviews. Discussions of his various body piercings -- the markings of youthful independence -- were a popular topic.

While he never duplicated his performance in a memorable forced start at quarterback as a freshman against UTEP, coaches continually attempted to find a spot for him to contribute, trying him as a punt returner and receiver. He was looking forward to an increased role as a receiver.

Under his father, he'll return to the position he covets and become an exciting, productive NAIA quarterback. If Northwestern Oklahoma State does resurrect its program quickly, it could find itself playing in the national championship game in Savannah, Tenn.

Barefield said it was difficult to leave coach Tommy West's program after two years, but, like West told Barefield, the decision to play for his father was an opportunity he couldn't afford to pass.

Time is ticking away for chances to win one of the permits to hunt elk in the Buffalo River country of Arkansas. The hunt dates this year are Sept. 24-28 and Dec. 3-7.

Friday, June 1 is your last chance to apply for one of the coveted free elk hunting permits for the 2007 seasons. Mailed applications will not be accepted if postmarked after June 1. Online applications must be made before midnight May 31.

The applications are available on www.agfc.com, at license dealers, AGFC offices and other outlets across the state. Applying doesn't cost anything, nor does winning one of the available permits. Two other permits are issued through fund-raising activities of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, with 85 percent of the money received returned to Arkansas for elk habitat work.

The drawing for the public land permits will be Saturday, June 30, on the Newton County Courthouse Square in Jasper, near the Buffalo River and center of Arkansas's elk country. Persons applying for permits don’t have to be present, but many attend each year, joining in the festivities and activities.

There is an added attraction this year. One permit will be issued to someone who makes his or her application at the Elk Festival in Jasper, Ark. Sign up, stick around and you may win a permit. For this one, you have to be present to win it. And like the other public land elk permits to be drawn, you have to be an Arkansas resident.

During their meeting last week in Nashville, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Commission voted to allow the use of 28 gauge shotguns for turkey hunting. Shot size of number 4 or smaller is still required.

The Commission also approved the addition of the rock dove (domestic pigeon) to the list of unprotected species.

Commission members approved the proposed change for checking big game harvests, stating that all animals harvested must be accompanied by one tagged animal and must be taken together to the nearest big game checking station by the most reasonably direct route within 36 hours of the first kill where one new temporary kill tag will be issued.

Evidence of species and sex must be available for inspection by wildlife officer or Agency designated personnel prior to issuance of permanent game tag.

All other changes for the upcoming season are posted on the TWRA Web site at www.tnwildlife.org.

The feeling around each afterward was different, but all were sad in a way.

Ken Mears thought his Collierville team played its best game of the year in a 1-0 loss to defending Class AAA champ Knoxville Bearden, and he was right. Yet it wasn't enough.

One year after being undefeated and nationally ranked, then bowing out in the first round last year, Houston coach Mike Irby's Mustangs fell again in the quarterfinals. Irby and his kids couldn't have been more disappointed afterward. There were a mix of crying and ranting afterward.

Briarcrest, the first to go down Wednesday, was a much-improved team than a season ago, when it was eliminated from state quarterfinal play, 6-0, by 2006 D2 champ Franklin BGA. This time the Saints looked like they belonged on the field in a 1-0 loss to Father Ryan.

And an MUS team head coach Vincent Beck praised for its senior leadership played Baylor relatively even in the second half after falling behind early in an eventual 3-1 loss.

Four losses. Lots of disappointment. Sort of like Tuesday, when four of the five Memphis-area tennis teams went down in state team play.

At least in tennis, a Memphis team was expected to win, and did. I'm wondering if perhaps CBHS soccer will do then what Houston accomplished in tennis. The Purple Wave was roughed up in a 1-0 quarterfinal win Wednesday, but managed to keep its composure, like a team with 12 seniors should. The Brothers now appear to be the team to beat.

We'll find out more today.

Of course, black, denim jeans probably wasn't the best choice of threads Tuesday morning before I made my way up here, but sheesh, I don't see how these kids do it. Just take for example my interview with MUS' Barret Folk following his sixth-place finish Tuesday in a grueling Division 2 state decathlon:

Folk gets medal. Folk throws up. Folk wipes mouth with right hand. Folk extends right hand to shake my hand. I shake Folk's hand, then I get queasy. Folk sweats through interview. I sweat through interview.

How's that for Spring Fling fun?

I was a little smarter today, going with the shorts and collared white shirt, but I still feel like I need another shower, and we haven't even made it to tonight's soccer tournament yet, where I'm sure it'll be nice-n-sticky.

Oh well, my job's still quite a bit easier than those of these student-athletes, so who am I to complain? Let's win some state championships for Memphis and get the hell out of this heat.

I'm out.

First place went to the Clinton, Ky., team of Ronnie Grogan and Greg Stairs with 132.05 pounds of catfish. They earned $3,000.

Second place went to John Troutt and Chris Stephens of Newbern, Tenn., with 123.15, and third place went to the Kansas team of John Jamison and Mark Thompson with 90.95. Jamison and Thompson also took big-fish honors with a catfish that weighed 37.55.

Fourth place went to Rob Overbey of Scott City, Mo., and Aaron Palmer of Jackson, Mo., with 83-0. Matthew Bingham of Memphis and John Bingham of Cordova finished fifth with 75.95.

After four rounds, I almost miss Mike Tyson...By now, he would have at least bitten an ear or something

Cory Spinks is first to the ring, accompanied by live rap. It's a slow progression, with a confident Spinks dancing, rather than walking, the aisle. Woooooo. Don King is behind, waving his ever present American flag and looking, well, Don King-ish. Only in America. We're used to seeing fighters walk the aisle with a baleful glare. Instead, we get Dancing with the Stars.

Jermain Taylor is much more business like in his entrance -- not to mention much faster. The crowd, filling in, but still not huge, is definitely pro Taylor.

Taylor is 26-0-1 with 17 KOs. Spinks is 36-3 with 11 KOs.

Team Spinks is decked out in St. Louis Cardinals hats. What would Jack Buck say?

ROUND ONE:
Maybe they got exhausted watching the last fight, but Taylor and Spinks dance their way through the first round, Spinks throwing a majority of the few punches offered. Spinks' southpaw stance keeps Taylor looking for spots, finding none.

ROUND TWO:
Best action so far: A "Cory" chant is countered by Taylor fans, loudly. Spinks is staying outside the reach of Taylor, for the most part. When Taylor finally got inside in the closing 15 seconds, he didn't score. The crowd is antsy, offering some boos.

ROUND THREE:
Note to promoters: If you want a good main event, don't let the fighters be barbecue judges earlier in the day. Maybe that's the reason for the sluggishness of both. Taylor lands some of his best shots in a 5-second spurt midway in the round. 45 seconds later, a left-right combo seems to jar Spinks. Solid round for Jermain after two rounds that perhaps had no winners.

ROUND FOUR:
It's not so much that Taylor has found HIS rhythm, he's found Spinks' rhythm. He's dropping more punches in. Loud JT chants echo as the fighters paw at each other. A roundhouse right gets the crowd going but Taylor's blow glanced off Spinks' glove. Seems like another round for Taylor, but Spinks strode purposefully back to his corner. He's still confident. Maybe there's something to this dancing down the aisle stuff.

ROUND FIVE:
Trainer Emanuel Steward has Taylor fighting with selective aggression. Spinks isn't backing down, but Taylor's defense is tough. A Taylor flurry at 1:40 scores, but he can't follow. Spinks gets aggressive later in the round. Neither seems flustered, but Taylor looks more polished. The most action of the fight so far in a round that belonged to Taylor.

ROUND SIX:
This fight is completely different than its predecessor, and it has nothing to do with the lack of gaudy gold trunks or Internet advertising. These guys pace, look for openings, and attack. Taylor's on his toes, picking at SPinks with solid shots. Spinks starts from so far outside that it takes awhile to get his punch to Taylor. I'm no expert (but I try to play one on this blog), but I can't see Spinks doing much at this rate. Taylor should be solidly ahead.

ROUND SEVEN:
A short right counter punch staggers Spinks and punctuates a round that lacks description (maybe my vocabulary needs work). Taylor flurries a bit at the end and frustrates Spinks, whose walk back to his corner is slower. From where I'm sitting, it appears Spinks' right eye is puffy (but just so you know, my golf buddies call me Mr. Magoo for my lack of vision).

ROUND EIGHT:
Steward has Taylor in remarkable shape. The champ doesn't look tired at all. But Spinks hangs in there, trying to use a right jab to get close enough to do some damage. Spinks throws, not a punch, but a disparaging look after a Taylor punch just misses. Unlike the last fight, this one picks up in pace.

ROUND NINE:
The crowd is loud, but looks vaguely like a Grizzlies-Hawks midweek game in December in volume. The booing starts again as the fans want to see more stars and less dancing. Taylor starts throwing bigger punches, including a huge uppercut that missed, but looked cool. Another one in the books for Taylor. It's a good one to watch, but Ron Higgins, on tight deadline, wants a knockout and fast.

ROUND 10:
I think Taylor is clearly outpointing Spinks, but occasionally Spinks will smirk at Taylor in the ring. Taylor just keeps working, almost emotionless. He's fighting like he knows he's ahead, but still knows there's work to be done. Not much work got done that round.

ROUND 11:
Spinks seems the more active, Taylor the more efficient. Late in the round, Spinks slides to his right and catches Taylor twice, but Taylor shakes it off.

ROUND 12:
Final round, they touch gloves. Spinks has a long hill to climb, but Taylor pushes Spinks to the ropes, looking to end it. He doesn't. Spinks suporters are noticeably quieter, unable to muster enough to answer the LT chants anymore. With a minute left, Spinks loses his mouthpiece i a clinch and the fight is put on hold for a few seconds. Then Taylor bores back in. Spinks finishes the fight with his arms raised. HIs corner celebrates. What fight were they watching?

Here comes Michael Buffer in a ring now full of people. Leon Spinks hugs his son before the decision. 111-107 for Spinks; 115-113 for Taylor; 117-111 for Taylor, split decision for Taylor. Much closer than I could have imagined. Don King is smiling in consolation (he's going to make some money, he always does). The fight media are questioning the first scorecard, 111-107, which seems to be 10 points too low. More to come, I guess.

Anyway, Jermain Taylor survives Cory Spinks and Don King's denim flag jacket (Oh, your flag decal won't get you, into heaven anymore). Well, that's boxin'.

Now they're saying the first judge scored it 117-111 Spinks. Apparently, he and Spinks were watching a fight the rest of us weren't.

Thanks for reading along tonight. Check out commercialappeal.com for coverage and a photographic slide show.

INTROS:
There's music in the air, so we're about to get going here. Promoter Bob Arum is in the ring, but he's not the one doing battle. Jim Lampley, Larry Merchant and Lennox Lewis are tuning up the pipes for the HBO broadcast. The TV people won't want to be kept waiting.

Random thought while the music still plays 15 minutes later, but with no action: If Lennox Lewis stands directly in front of Jim Lampley, Lampley disappears. Lewis is a large -- not fat by any means -- man.

Despite much lower ticket prices than last year's Jermain Taylor-Winky Wright fight, FedExForum isn't exactly packed an hour before the main event. Lampley in his intro -- he's doing it about 10 feet away -- called it a disappointing crowd so far.

Nobody wants to hear the problems of us ink-stained wretches -- can you actually be ink-stained if you're blogging? -- but LET'S GO ALREADY. HBO is showing a feature on Miranda. Time's a-wasting.

Best line of the night (while we're waiting): After Brighton's Ira Terry won a 6-round decision, he needed to wait nearly an hour before he could handle the mandatory urine test. Ron Higgins suggested a headline of "Terry goes wee wee wee all the way home."

OK, recounting the Higgins line has spurred action. Edison Miranda enters the ring at 9:29 p.m. He's wearing a robe touting slickcar.com.

Pavlik and his handlers, in gaudy gold shirts or robes, walk the aisle.We're getting close. Pavlik's robe says "Kelly THE GHOST Pavlik". Can't be a ghost in THAT outfit.

Michael Buffer's doing the intros.

Pavlik comes in at 30-0. Miranda at 28-1.

ROUND ONE:
Pavlik was the aggressor throughout, but Miranda was quicker with his hands. Pavlik controlled the tempo and landed bigger punches, twice cornering Miranda to land telling blows. Miranda rallied in the closing seconds, but the rounds was Pavlik's.

ROUND TWO:
Miranda seemed content the first two minutes to hang on the ropes as Pavlik bored in. But Miranda stood Pavlik up with some big right hands in the final minute and his flurries looked strong enough to win the round.

ROUND THREE:
Pavlik is still bothered by Miranda's lead rights, but a late rally might have given him the round.

ROUND FOUR:
If you're a fan of dancing and jabbing, this ain't your fight. These guys are just laying into each other, at a pace that would seem to indicate 12 rounds is out of the question. Miranda will duck occasionally and block punches with his arms. Pavlik just keeps boring in. Lots of action in this round. Hard to judge, as both guys landed a lot of shots.

ROUND FIVE:
Miranda is warned a second time about punching south of the Mason Dixon line. Pavlik's short, chopping punches aren't slowing Miranda much so far. But he still can't stop the right hand lead. It's slickcar.com vs. slick trunks. Neither fighter has shown any signs of trouble, despite the barrage of punches. Miranda stunned Pavlik with a right and followed with two punches, but the round ended with Pavlik looking ok.

ROUND SIX:
The pace has slowed, and so have the fighters. Not as much leather in the air. In an otherwise non-descript round, Pavlik begins a barrage with a right hand and knocks Mianda down. Afer an eight-count, Miranda gets a break when his mouthpiece needs to be cleaned. Another quick knockdown follows, Miranda beats the count and the round ends. The fight may not be going much longer.

ROUND SEVEN: The replay of round 6 has the fans screaming. Miranda's eyes are puffy and he's fighting defensively. Seven straight punches turn Miranda into a defenseless mess, the fight is stopped and Pavlik dances across the ring with his arms raised at 1:54 of the seventh.

PAVLIK BY KNOCKOUT.

Pavlik is now the No. 1 ranked middleweight in the world and could be up next for the winner of Taylor-Spinks, which (shameless plug dept.) follows on the next blog.

In the ring at the moment, Jose Navarro (25-2) is having his way with Roberto Gomez (with a sterling 14-17-2 record) in the third fight of the night.

We'll get serious about this fight blog along around 9 p.m. when Kelly Pavlik and Edison Miranda go at it.

http://sports.espn.go.com/outdoors/fishing/news/story?id=2870012

First and foremost, the lake needs more water. That, of couse, is up to Mother Nature.

The lake is also infested with small yellow bass. They'll hit anything you throw in the water on just about any part of the lake. Fishermen can - and should - help with this problem by catching keeping as many yellow bass as possible. Even if you don't eat them, you can always find someone who will.

The other problem I see with Herb Parsons is the absurd 10-inch minimum limit for crappie.

That lake isn't nearly big enough and receives far too little fishing pressure for a 10-inch minimum. I'm sure the limit is designed to grow bigger crappie. But it's actually causing the lake to become overpopulated with crappie because most anglers are forced to release every one they catch.

I caught 12 crappie at Herb Parsons Saturday, and they were all closer to 6 inches than 10. They were all rail thin, and didn't look the least bit healthy. Still, there are people out there who would take them home and fry them if it was legal.

It should be legal.

People don't come to Herb Parson's Lake looking for 3-pound trophy crappie. They come looking for a stringer full of fish they can take home for supper.

Removing the 10-inch minimum would make for a healthier lake - and happier fishermen