Romeo Crennel, head coach of the Cleveland Browns, finally decided to pull the trigger and release Maurice Carthon as offensive coordinator. The general belief is that GM Phil Savage forced Crennel to make this move and is still uneasy about why Romeo waited so long.

Terry Pluto writes an interesting article on why this change was necessary and hopefully the correct decision.

The Ohio State Buckeyes and Troy Smith continue to keep winning. The fact that Smith isn’t throwing for 300 yards or rushing for 100 yards each game is no reason to believe he’s losing the lead in the Heisman trophy race.

The Heisman trophy goes to a champion and/or someone that continues to make their team and players perform better. Troy Smith is the key to the Buckeyes success this year. He doesn’t believe in “padding his stats” or doing something that hinders the success of the team for his own numbers.

Smith is a lock to win the Heisman this year; the only thing left to decide is what two players will be sitting next to him.

I researched the internet for articles on college football and came across a very interesting, but biased, point of view on who has the toughest conference this year. I believe this answer depends on how you evaluate a conference. Do you view depth, strength of schedule outside the conference, or how powerful the top teams in that league perform?

This year, depending on how you evaluate a conference, you will get different answers. If depth is critical, then the SEC would have to be your choice. The strength of schedule would be a toss-up; the Big Ten has beaten both Texas and Notre Dame. The SEC and Pac Ten was split, as Tennessee rolled California, but USC returned the favor to Arkansas. If your most important criteria are how powerful the top three teams are in a conference, I believe Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State will overpower any three teams from the top conferences.

This type of question is something people can debate over mixed drinks or bottles of beer. I will end this blog with this statement. There’s not one scenario or statistic that will convince me the Big East is even close to the Big Ten, Sec or Big 12. The only reason they may beat the Pac Ten is after USC the conference starts to fall off dramatically.

Kenny Roda from WKNR SportsTalk 850 will be writing a weekly blog on Cleveland Scores covering the sports world both locally and nationally. Check back often for his updates!

Yes, the Browns were victorious on Sunday, 20-13 over the Jets, but was it really because of the offense and the way they executed the play calls of new offensive coordinator Jeff Davidson? Lets dive into the numbers and facts and you tell me if you agree with what Kellen Winslow Jr. told me: “J.D. is an awesome coach, he did an awesome job!”

- The Browns scored 20 points, which is 5.3 points more than their 2006 season average.

- The Browns gained 267 total yards. That’s 22 more than their season average.

- The Browns rushed for 147 yards against a Jets defense that, on average, gives up 142 yards per game (NFL rank 28th). But the 147 yards by the Browns is 79 more yards than their season average.

- The Browns threw for a net of 120 yards, or 57 less yards than they have been averaging.

- Charlie Frye was 15 of 22 for 141 yards with 1 touchdown and 1 interception for a quarterback rating of 81.8. Charlie’s seasonal QB rating coming into the game was 68.8.

- Rueben Droughns carried the ball 33 times for 125 yards and one score.

- Kellen Winslow Jr. caught 7 passes for 76 yards and 1 touchdown.

- The Browns were 7 of 17 in 3rd down conversions, while last week they were 1 for 11.

- The Browns won the time of possession battle, keeping the ball for a total of 35 minutes and 11 seconds.

- The Browns had a 20-3 lead, but had to hang on for the win and did so, despite going three and out on offense in their final three series (which gained a total of 1 yard) and with getting a favorable call at the end of the game that kept the Jets from forcing overtime.

So when it’s all said and done, and yes the Browns did win their second game of the year, did Cleveland’s offense really perform that much better than it did in the previous 6 games with Maurice Carthon calling the plays? I’m looking forward to your thoughts!

The Browns survived a last-minute Jets comeback and held on for a 20-13 win, their second of the season. Throughout the week, players said the team was going to put a stronger emphasis on the running game now that Jeff Davidson is the OC. Droughns carried the ball 33 times for 125 yards and a touchdown as the Browns pounded away at the Jets. Kellen Winslow led Browns receivers with seven catches for 76 yards and a score.

The Jets came in with the worst run defense in the league so it’s hard to effectively analyze whether or that was the reason Droughns had a big day. However, I do believe a victory the game after Carthon left was no coincidence. While it didn’t seem like the Browns offense changed all that much (other than lining up Braylon in the backfield) under Davidson, the execution was much better. It seems that the players are more relaxed and comfortable with Davidson calling plays and that is looking to translate into better performance on the field.

I do disagree, however, with the play selection towards the end of the game when the Browns continued to run the ball instead of being aggressive and looking for a first down. I’ve never been a fan of conservative play-calling in the fourth quarter. It just keeps the opposition in the game and gives them an opportunity to win.

After all the news reports that detailed how Maurice Carthon was unable to work well with players and with other coaches like Jeff Davidson, there is some reason for optimism that a competent coach like Davidson could make something positive happen with the offense. On the other hand, you have to wonder what the hell Crennel was doing while all this stuff was happening. How could he possibly have stuck with Carthon for so long?

Crennel better hope that Davidson can get the offense going.

Forget the Browns for a moment, let’s talk about a winner for a change. LBJ and the Cavaliers will begin their playoff and potential championship run in just seven days. Big things are expected from Mike Brown’s squad this season and anything less than an Eastern Conference finals appearance may be termed as a disappointment. In any event, we can’t help but be ecstatic over Cavs season finally starting. I think we all have a bitter taste in our mouths over the way last season ended. Ten of ESPN.com’s experts weigh in on how they think the Cavs will finish this season.

Here’s a sample of some various opinions:

Scoop Jackson:
Am I the only Witness? It’s not about LeBron this year, it’s about getting Larry Hughes back. They did everything last year without him — and they still came close. Now watch it really go down.
DIVISION RANK: 1 | CONFERENCE RANK: 1

Chad Ford:
With LeBron, the Cavs are contenders. A healthy Hughes will be gravy. Still, with major issues at point guard and no depth in the middle, the Cavs look like they’re a piece or two away from the title.
DIVISION RANK: 2 | CONFERENCE RANK: 3

Marc Stein:
The Central is so brutal that the Cavs could win another 50 games and still finish third. They’ll need an MVP season from LeBron — or big improvement from Hughes, Donyell Marshall and D-Jones — to avoid that fate.
DIVISION RANK: 3 | CONFERENCE RANK: 5

LeBron James has always put high expectations upon himself, this year the leagues GM’s have done the same. In a preseason poll, the GM’s around the league have predicted that the San Antonio Spurs will become NBA Champions and LeBron James will be this years MVP.

If the General Managers are correct, the Cleveland Cavaliers need to show some support for LeBron and they will go deep into the playoffs. Last year, James showed he can be the “go to” guy in clutch situations. The rest of the team needs to do the little things and the Cavs will be hard to beat.

Jim Tressel, the Ohio State Buckeyes head football coach, addressed the media on rumors that he would consider leaving the Buckeyes to be head coach of the Cleveland Browns. Tressel grew up in Ohio and has been a lifetime fan of the Browns and Buckeyes.

Tressel stated that he loves the college environment and has always considered himself a teacher and a coach. Although, many feel that he left the door open a crack by not completely ruling out the idea.

Jim Donovan just reported that Maurice Carthon has been fired by the Browns. According to Donovan, owner Randy Lerner and GM Phil Savage convinced head coach Romeo Crennel to make the change.

It’s the right move. Carthon was a disaster.