AP1103300115304If North Carolina incoming freshman P.J. Hairston has big games against Duke throughout his college career, the Blue Devils staffer in charge of mailing monthly letters to recruits may get some dirty looks around the basketball office.

Hairston, a McDonald's All-American small forward from Greensboro, N.C.,  decided to remain close to home in college, so two of the programs to which he immediately gravitated were Duke and North Carolina. He told the Greensboro News-Record one of the reasons the Tar Heels ended up being the more appealing choice was because they had less trouble getting his name correct.

"The thing about Duke was, every time they sent me a letter, they wouldn't spell my name right," Hairston said. "They would have 'T.J. Harrison' or something like that. And I'm like, 'OK. How can I go here? You can't even spell my name right.' It's only two letters and HAIR and STON. I'm trying to figure out how that's so hard."

There's no way of verifying whether Hairston is

Take one glance at Richmond's current mascot, and it's easy to see why the Spiders decided they needed an upgrade.

Fullscreen capture 5142011 90252 AMThe mascot looked more like a deranged red ant than a ferocious spider. He had red fur instead of black, a cartoon grin instead of a feisty growl and worst of all, four legs instead of the requisite eight.

An alumni facebook campaign aptly named "Give Spidey His Legs Back" prompted the Richmond athletic department to commission Rickabaugh Graphics last year to redesign the mascot. Students and alumni voted online in February on two potential designs, with Richmond announcing Friday that the fiercer, eight-legged spider above was the winner.

The new Spider has flashing LED eyes, a scowl instead of a smile and a custom-designed high-powered web shooter than can launch t-shirts and toys to the nose-bleed seats at Robins Stadium or the Robins Center. He'll also don jerseys to match the Richmond football or basketball teams rather than the red cape and tights of his ill-fated

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Even the historic gym where the movie "Hoosiers" was filmed is susceptible to corporate influence.

Butler announced Wednesday that Zotec Partners, a medical billing and practice management services firm, will be the lead sponsor of Hinkle Fieldhouse's upcoming $25 million facelift. As part of that agreement, Zotec Partners will become the first company to have its logo on the Hinkle Fieldhouse floor.

The idea of a corporate logo gracing the floor of the 83-year-old gym has sparked a healthy debate among Butler fans. Some acknowledge that the $25 million won't just raise itself. Others are wary that this could be the first step toward the place one day being renamed "Steak and Shake Hinkle Fieldhouse."

Butler director of corporate sponsorships Joe Gentry said Friday that "there's absolutely no chance" of Hinkle Fieldhouse being renamed. He did not disclose the terms of the agreement with Zotec Partners but said Butler will make sure the logos are tasteful.

"We're always conscientious

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The $200,000 raise Rick Barnes received this week didn't just confound fans surprised the Texas basketball coach would be rewarded despite failing to make the Sweet 16 each of the past three years.

It also angered state lawmakers who criticized the Longhorns for increasing Barnes' salary at a time when the Texas budget crisis may lead to deep cuts to higher education.

One Republican state senator called it "nuts." Another described it as "not appropriate." Democratic state Sen. Kirk Watson, whose district includes the Texas campus, summed up the position of his colleagues when he told the Associated Press the raise suggests regents are "tone deaf" to the budget shortfall.

"I'm a big fan of UT basketball and coach Barnes," Watson said. "But at a time when everyone up here is fighting to come up with money to pay for education, it was disappointing."

It's understandable that Texas lawmakers would be sensitive to frivolous spending at a time when a budget shortfall estimated anywhere

Fullscreen capture 5132011 72739 AMFullscreen capture 5132011 72619 AMIt's a good thing new Maryland coach Mark Turgeon began recruiting as soon as he was hired because the Terps may have a few more vacant scholarships than they expected.

According to various reports, all three of Maryland's incoming freshmen recruits have asked to be released from their letter of intent in the wake of Gary Williams' abrupt resignation last week. New Jersey point guard Sterling Gibbs and Baltimore shooting guard Nick Faust have said they will still consider the Terrapins, but certainly it's more common for recruits in this position to go elsewhere rather than sign with their original school.

"We just felt that it was in our best interest to just explore our options," Gibbs told the Baltimore Sun. "Maryland is still my top priority. But I just want to make sure that it was the best fit for me."

Next season will likely be a transition year for Maryland regardless of whether Turgeon can keep any of Williams' recruits, but the rebuilding process will become more difficult if

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Missouri coach Frank Haith is certainly pleased guard Kimmie English withdrew from the NBA draft last week, but there's a group of women probably far happier the senior-to-be decided to return to school.

Believe it or not, they call themselves "Cougars for Kimmie."

English apparently agreed to meet with members of the pseudo-sorority on Wednesday and tweeted a pair of hilarious photos from the event. Each of the six women pictured wore black T-shirts with "Cougars for Kimmie" printed in yellow on the front and English's No. 24 on the back with "meeeow" written underneath.

How do female Missouri fans qualify for membership of this exclusive group? I'll let English handle this question.

"It's a state of mind," English joked with a fan on Wednesday night over Twitter. "Preferably 30+ and good lookin, love MU, love me."

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It's no surprise that Tennessee would insert a clause in Cuonzo Martin's contract voiding the deal if the Vols' new coach violates NCAA rules the way his predecessor Bruce Pearl allegedly did.

What's more interesting is that Martin also will have some protection if Pearl's mess results in NCAA sanctions.

The Knoxville News-Sentinel obtained a copy of Martin's memorandum of understanding with Tennessee, the preliminary version to a final contract that both sides agreed to upon his hiring on March 27. The first page of the four-page document includes the following paragraph guaranteeing that Martin's five-year contract will be extended an extra year for every year the program is under NCAA restrictions as a result of Pearl.

If, as a result of currently pending NCAA proceedings, the men's basketball program (a) receives NCAA restrictions on recruiting in addition to those already self-imposed by the University; (b) banned from postseason play; or (c) incurs a reduction of one or more