By Mike Ball
Cincinnati Enquirer

The top five

1. The Buckeyes. Dream season? They haven't invented the word to describe this 14-0 championship season. Now, just think if we had a national championship game like that every season. Gentlemen, start your playoff arguments.

2. More Buckeyes. Sept. 21, PB Stadium. OSU 23, UC 19. A dropped pass away for UC. The only conclusion we can make? The Bearcats should be ranked fourth or fifth in the country. (Well, maybe not.)

3. The Bengals. It looks as if they're getting down to business on this coaching search. Let's see if Mike Brown actually scratches a check in the $1 million range to bring in a top-flight talent. (Thought: Do you suppose Brown's silence means he's finally a bit embarrassed by his club's performance?)

4. Lefty Driesell. One of college basketball's great characters has called it quits, 786 victories in tow. There just aren't coaches called Lefty anymore.

5. Browns-Steelers III. Great matchup. Good for the Clevelanders. They make the playoffs, leave town/go out of existence, come back and make the playoffs again. All since you-know-who last appeared in the postseason.

The bottom five

1. The Bengals' coaching staff. Nice guys. But it just doesn't seem right that they get off scot-free just because of how furious Bengals fans are at Mike Brown. They should be held accountable, as well. It takes even more than Brown to go 2-14 in this age of parity. (Kicking a field goal, with 24 seconds to play in the half, from the 2, trailing 20-0, in Game 16, at 2-13? We're still hot about that one.)

2. The bowl season. Blowout after blowout. And then, New Year's Day. If you slept in after ringing in the new year, you missed the only decent games.

3. Baseball agents. Finally, some fiscal sanity in the game, and you guessed it: The agents are starting to complain about collusion. The heck with 'em. Only 39 days until pitchers and catchers report.

4. The University of Virginia. The school president apologized to West Virginia because of the band making fun of West Virginia in its halftime show at the Continental Tire Bowl. Geez, lighten up. It's a rivalry.

5. The lack of black head coaches in the NFL. Let's hope the Tony Dungy-Herman Edwards/Colts-Jets game opens some eyes.