• The truth will set you back a million or two. Either Kentucky's defense is really good, after all, or Kansas State is in for another very, very long season despite those pretty purple pants. See: giving up almost 600 yards, more than 300 rushing, in a lopsided loss to Louisville that wasn't even as close as the 38-29 final Wednesday night. This is the same Cardinal offense last seen laying a zero-point, five-turnover egg against Kentucky, leaving K-State boss Ron Prince to rally his shellshocked charges around a hopeful assessment of continued progress:

"There is no positive or silver lining to any of this," Prince said.

Completely true, and thus by his own hand begins the Ron Prince Hot Seat Watch. The honesty is refreshing, coach, but next time (and there will be plenty of next times against the Murderer's Row of Big 12 quarterbacks, believe me), take a page from Tim Brewster's playbook and repeat silently to yourself, "Lipstick on a pig. Lipstick on a pig ..."

 • Drinking and driving a lame vehicle. Technically -- and maybe in no other sense, but technically -- a mo-ped is a motor vehicle in the eyes of the law, as Wisconsin's Jonathan Casillas found out when he was pulled over on campus in late August with an unidentified passenger holding on tight and a breathalyzer score that could wilt a flower on Winston Churchill's lapel. That's good for three misdemeanors, which Bret Bielema said were punished internally, "the same way as any alcohol or drug [violation]." This being Wisconsin, I assume that process involves a "lesson" learned through some combination of pre-dawn ice-diving, cow tipping and Brett Favre Aaron Rodgers idol worship. That's only a guess, though.

Elsewhere in chemically-induced Big Ten chargin', two of the four Penn State players initially named for the noise-n-weed "bust" at their campus apartment two weeks ago were formally charged with one count each of marijuana possession. Abe Koroma and reigning Big Ten sack leader Maurice Evans have missed the last two games, to no effect on the Lion defense, and are still awaiting word on their fate from Joe Paterno, who only wants to know, "They were doing what with this 'Mary Jane'?"

 • Jerry Jones bless this mess. Dallas unveiled $57 million in Cotton Bowl renovations for the press Tuesday, and the writers left mostly impressed by the expanded seating and structural upgrades. Yes, the classic old stadium has been reduced to Texas-Oklahoma and the Cotton Bowl game itself, and even the latter is bailing in 2009 along with several regular season Big 12 games per year for the Cowboys' state-of-the-art Football Mall, which will hover over downtown or something. Still, tens of millions of public dollars was totally worth it:

The renovations are already having an impact, Mr. Huerta said.

The city recently signed Texas Southern University and the University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff to play at the Cotton Bowl.

TSU and UAPB join Texas, Oklahoma, Prairie View A&M, Grambling, Texas A&M-Commerce and East Central U. as Cotton Bowl-featured teams this year. So, yeah, like I said: totally worth it.

Quickly . . .

Jonathan Crompton's ankle is fine and the Tennessee quarterback will start Saturday against Florida. . . . If the early returns are indication, there will be more Nebraska pay-per-view games ahead. . . . Ex-Florida player Mike Nattiel was hit with gun and weed charges in a traffic stop Tuesday in Gainesville. . . . An ankle injury to left tackle Kiante Tripp will ensure even more offensive line shuffling at Georgia. It was a little cool for the Bulldogs' practice Wednesday, too. . . . Pitt linebacker Shane Murray will be back in the lineup against Iowa. . . . Joe McKnight returned to practice Wednesday, migraines/concussion be damned. . . . And USC's Shareece Wright pled not guilty to resisting a police officer at a party, and the judge is not particularly sympathetic.

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Photos of Ron Prince and Jonathan Crompton sack via Getty Images.