(Derick Hingle/US Presswire)

It might be June, but it's never too early to start talking about the LSU-Alabama game on November 3. At least that's what some players from both teams believe as they engaged in a Twitter war of words Monday as a preview of the hard feelings that exist between these two teams following the BCS national championship game.

LSU cornerback Tyrann Mathieu (@TM7_Era) unintentionally started the conversation by tweeting: "try throwing a corner route or a cross country on me this year!!! i'll be waiting!!"

Alabama quarterback A.J. McCarron (@10AJMcCarron) saw the tweet and fired back: "U can talk ab stopping something.. But actions speak louder than words. Remember that. #neworleans #14"

And we were off:

(Bob Donnan/US Presswire)

The Department of African and Afro-American Studies at North Carolina is under scrutiny after it was learned that more than a third of the enrollment of the department's 54 courses were football players.

Among those courses, AFAM 280: Blacks in North Carolina, had 19 enrollees and 18 of them were football players. Also, the class lacked an actual professor and any actual instruction.

The Red Hot Chili Peppers played Columbus, Ohio, this past weekend, but drummer Chad Smith didn't want anyone in the crowd to mistake his alliance.

So, during the ovation at the end of the concert — after Smith had thrown several of his drumsticks into the adoring crowd — he started singing part of the Michigan fight song.

And it went over about as well as you think it would.

(Courtesy of West Virginia Illustrated)

West Virginia is going gray.

(Courtesy of Pat Miller)Five months after a photo with a potential gray uniform surfaced on the Internet, it looks as though gray uniforms are now part of the West Virginia repertoire.

West Virginia Illustrated posted a photo of all of Tavon Austin's jerseys, which included the traditional blue and white uniforms, the alternate gold uniform and a new gray with yellow lettering and blue numbers.

West Virginia cornerback Pat Miller also posted a photo via Instagram, which included a sheik gray helmet to complete the look.

Les Miles rarely misses an opportunity to inspire — or to be in the spotlight — so while touring his alma mater, Elyria High School in Ohio, and its new $70 million campus on Saturday with some of his former high school football pals, Miles asked principal Thomas Jama if he could say a few words to the 430 graduates who were carrying on the Elyria name.

And one of the things Miles asked the graduates to do during his speech was to show some swag (that's what the kids say, right?)

He urged the 164th graduating class of Elyria High School to "operate with swagger."

"Swagger really means style," Miles said. "I've never met an Elyria High graduate who didn't have style."

Miles knows a little something about style — the hat, the grass eating, this outfit — the man screams swag, ya'll.

Miles did say the customary things that come with a graduation speech, including telling the graduates to "live life like someone is stealing it from you." And, "The reason you are allowed to have success is

(Joshua S. Kelly/US Presswire)The Auburn community is mourning after former Auburn football players Ed Christian and Ladarious Phillips were shot and killed during an off-campus party Saturday night. Offensive lineman Eric Mack also was injured in the shooting, but his injuries are not considered life-threatening. A third person, who was not a football player, also died in the shooting.

"This is a sad, sad day for everyone associated with the entire Auburn family," coach Gene Chizik said in a statement released by the university. "I am devastated by the passing of three young men, including two that I personally knew in Ed Christian and Ladarious Phillips and my heart goes out to their families. My thoughts and prayers are with their families and all of the victims involved in this tragic incident. Nobody should ever have to endure such unimaginable grief, and we will love and support the victims' families during this terribly difficult time.

"We have a lot of people on our football team that are hurting right now and we're going to do everything we can to help them get through this. We are relieved that Eric Mack, who was also a victim in this incident, is expected to make a full recovery. This is a very trying time for everyone involved, and I would just ask that you lift up the victims and their families in your prayers."

(Tony Gutierrez/AP)

LSU might not have an official hated rival these days, but former Texas A&M coach Jackie Sherrill is trying to slip the Aggies into that role.

During a radio interview earlier this week, Sherrill said A&M and LSU should play a primetime game on Thanksgiving night and said making the game a reality is already in the works.

"It's already been discussed," Sherrill said Wednesday. "It's been talked about. (SEC) Commissioner (Mike) Slive, they all have talked about it, and LSU and A&M is going to play on primetime on Thanksgiving night, because that game will draw more people than the Arkansas-LSU or Arkansas-A&M."

(Carlos Osorio/AP)Michigan coach Brady Hoke doesn't want any of his rivals to feel slighted.

While speaking to the Michigan Associated Press sports editors meeting earlier this week, Hoke said his No. 1 focus is the rivalry with "Ohio," but that doesn't mean he gives any less weight to the game against in-state rival Michigan State.

"The in-state rivalry is always something that's important to us," Hoke said. "We have not done our job the last four years if you're on the Michigan side of things. That's coaching, and that has to be better.

"But the Ohio game is the Ohio game. I don't think (that importance is) going to change. And that doesn't lessen anything on the Michigan State game at all, because we realize in this state, you draw a line in the sand."