No. 12 Long Beach State 49ers vs. No.5 Tennessee Volunteers

SAN ANTONIO REGION

2:35 PM ET  No. 12 Long Beach State 49ers at No. 5 Tennessee Volunteers

Of course, the 49ers are named after the folks who headed up the California Gold Rush  of 1848.  At first, some 300,000 people went back to Cali and made a big score at and around the Sutter Mill.  But greed quickly drew many more settlers to the west coast and the area was quickly overmined.  So, the white gold diggers spread like weeds and pushed out the current settlers: the Native Americans (surprise, surprise). The Native Americans attacked in an effort to preserve their land, but the white man had too much fire power (read: guns) and the Native Americans were slaughtered.  You know, you’d think that the PC police would be less concerned with those mascots who serve as a tribute to the Native Americans and more concerned with the schools who idolize those folks who actually had a hand in the slaughter.  Sometimes we just concentrate on the wrong things…

Conversely, the Volunteers were motivated by pride, not greed.  These average Joes loaded up their muskets and played a huge role in the War of 1812.  According to history books, the Vols had a hand in the Battle of New Orleans, where 385 Brits were killed to the U.S.’s 13.  Still, as an old football coach once told me, “If you ain’t cheating, you ain’t trying.”  The insatiable greed that cause the 49ers to uproot their families in search of wealth and then kill those in there way makes for an uneasy feeling in my stomach.  While the Vols have heart, I could see the 49ers emploring some nasty tricks to kill their counterparts and, before they’re even in the ground, sleep with their widowed wives. Edge: Long Beach State 49ers