By Mike Lopresti
Gannett News Service

The subject is college football. Pass the pepper spray.

The good times are stopping when the clock runs out. After that comes stupidity, unruliness ... and either the handcuffs or the ambulance.

Not that it is a new phenomenon. Detroit Tigers fans were turning over police cars nearly two decades ago. But the past weekend only made the problem more real. It has become a fad to flood the field, and blow through anyone who gets in the way, friend or foe.

Among the trampled casualties at Clemson was a 67-year-old sheriff's officer. There was a broken leg at North Carolina State. Pepper spray blowing downwind at Ohio State as knuckleheads tried to rip up the turf to sell it on the Internet, and later fires started in the street. Arrested fans taken away in Berkeley, Calif.

There were objects flying out of the stands in Hawaii when the home team and Cincinnati brawled after the game, and bottles incoming from the bleachers at Washington State after Washington pulled off its upset.

Said Barbara Hedges, Washington's athletic director: "I feared for my life."

It has been the mantra of this season. Something had better be done. Saturday was another alert, coast to coast. This is starting to sound like European soccer.

Take tearing down the goalposts. Only truly historic wins used to move a crowd to do that. Now, nearly any victory worth an ESPN highlight is good enough. The standard has been discounted - just like for bowl eligibility.

"It has to be addressed before something happens that we are all going to regret," Michigan coach Lloyd Carr said just last week.

Not that the answer is easy. Do we ring the fields with mounted police? Dogs? Barbed wire?

Do we ask nice that the customers behave sanely? And then duck? Or install disposable, breakaway goalposts?

Here's one idea: The conference commissioners get the power to strip a member of one home game if its fans go over the top. Hit them in the pocketbook before their fans hit you in the head.

Whatever the plan, action is urgent. Someone is going to get killed at a college football game. "Just a matter of time," Carr said.

The sirens soiled a weekend of deliverance in Columbus. Ohio State's coach is 2-0 against Michigan, which qualifies him for governor. Or more.

"Treszel for President," read one poster in Ohio Stadium. And if the Buckeyes win the Fiesta Bowl, they might spell his name right.

Jim Tressel arrived in Columbus selling work ethic, unselfishness, sacrifice and team spirit.

"He repeated it, repeated it, repeated it, and it finally stuck," said OSU safety Donnie Nickey.

I think his way works, obviously."

Coach of the year?

Tressel is 13-0 but probably won't be coach of the year in the country, and maybe not even in his own conference.

Notre Dame's Tyrone Willingham is the favorite for the former, and Iowa's Kirk Ferentz - who has brought the Hawkeyes from 1-10 to 11-1 in four years - is a strong candidate for the latter.

Coming attractions

Notre Dame at USC. The Irish are likely headed to the Orange Bowl with a victory. But USC has won six straight, and is going for its first sweep of UCLA and Notre Dame in the same year since 1981.

Quotable

"He's like a man playing against boys out there." - Penn State coach Joe Paterno on Larry Johnson, who rushed for 279 yards in the first half against Michigan State. Johnson became the ninth Division I-A player to break the 2,000-yard barrier in one season. Five of those won the Heisman.

Stat of the week

Ohio State and Michigan have won or shared the title 69 times in the history of Big Ten Conferece football. The other nine current members have done it 67 times.

Thumbs up, down

Up to Jim Leonhard. Walk-on Wisconsin cornerback - he's listed at 5-foot-8 - leads the nation with 10 interceptions.

Up to Oklahoma's defense. The Sooners wrecked Texas Tech and Kliff Kingsbury's Heisman talk with two safeties, six sacks and two interceptions.

Down to Florida State. Offensive output of 177 yards against N.C. State is second lowest of the Bobby Bowden era. But the Seminoles back into an ACC title and will get a BCS bowl berth anyway, possibly with an 8-5 record. "I ain't too thrilled," Bowden said. Neither is the Sugar Bowl.

Down to Iowa State. Cyclones collapse complete with Connecticut defeat. And who pushed Seneca Wallace's Heisman chances out of the airplane without a parachute? One-time contender had eight interceptions and five lost fumbles in last three games.