This will be the Saints' biggest test of the season.  They are favored by three points. The fans have been urged to wear black to the game that starts at 7:30. Scalpers are asking between $2,000 and $2,500 per ticket for average seats

When Pats coach Bill Belichick talks about how the Saints create matchups, it's the malleable parts that allow them to find the ones they want.

"Everybody is going to be matched up with everybody, I'm telling you," said Belichick. "Jeremy Shockey's at the tight end, he's flexed out, he's out there on the outside. Reggie Bush is in the backfield and he's in the slot, he's outside. Robert Meachem, Marques Colston -- those guys are inside and outside -- Devery Henderson.

"Everybody's everywhere, so unless you just play matchup and go out and find a guy, but even then they have so many different personnel groups you would have matchup because it's not always the same five skill players on the field.

Everybody's going to be against everybody at some point in this game..

I don't know how it's going to unfold, but they move them around so much -- that's just what they do."

No team this season has discovered a way to stop Drew Brees. The most important step might be a strong pass rush. "He's on fire right now," said Pats defensive end Tully Banta-Cain. "If you don't have any water to put it out, he's going to keep burning you up. The only way to beat him is pressure."

Brees is gaining 9.22 yards per attempt against blitzes this season, third in the NFL behind Aaron Rodgers and Peyton Manning. Against non-blitzing defenses, Brees is gaining 8.39 yards per attempt.

“He makes quick decisions," said Banta-Cain, who leads the Pats with five sacks.

"He's got a quick release. It's very tough, very frustrating for a lot of defenses, because you can get to him and he's still getting the ball off and he's getting it into tight places. That's a credit to him and his receivers making plays."

Despite Brees’'s efficiency facing the blitz, sending it provides a better chance of sacking him. In 80 dropbacks against the blitz, Bress has been sacked six times. In 249 dropbacks without a blitz, Brees has been sacked only five times.

"Hopefully if there’s a mistake on the front five, we take advantage of it," said Banta-Cain.

Saints fullback Heath Evans, a former Patriot who is out for the season with a knee injury, wished he was playing on Monday night. Evans had three touchdowns in six games before his injury

"This is a tough game to sit out," said the fullback. "But not for bitter reasons. I love those coaches.  I love that organization. Any time you get to play against your buddies, it's no different than in the backyard and wanting to play football.  You want to beat your buddies. This one I would have loved to play in. Any competitor would have."

Former Saints linebacker/long snapper Rob Ninkovich, now with the Pats, hopes to play against the Saints. "I was a long snapper with the Saints," said Ninkovich, who is coming off a knee injury. "That's not something I really wanted to do.

That was my only opportunity at the time, Me being with the Patriots I have a better opportunity to play football. In my mind,I knew I could do more. I knew I could pass rush, and there were other things I knew i could do." Brees and Saints safety Roman Harper are his good friends.  His girlfriend is a nurse in New Orleans. "It's nice to be back and see all the guys I played with before," said Ninkovich. "They're having a great season."

A look at the numbers shows that defensive coordinator Gregg Williams has made a difference.  The Saints have a league-leading 20 interceptions and are holding opposing passers to a completion percentage of 53.21 as the secondary has been solid.

Still, the Saints are truly middle-of-the-pack.  They are ranked 17th in the NFL in total defense as they are 19th in rushing and 16th in passing yards allowed. The Saints have outscored opponents 181-126 in the first half this season and teams have been passing more to play catch-up, thus increasing opportunities for the secondary.

The defense also deserves credit for finishing games. The Saints have allowed a total of only 24 fourth-quarter points. Ten different players have at least one pick this season.

But the Saints have had trouble locking down top-flight receivers, a category that the Pats' Randy Moss and Wes Welker fall into.  So far the Saints have seven different receivers to top 90 yards in receiving, plus they conceded two TD grabs to Donnie Avery two weeks ago.

The Saints matchup with Moss is especially disconcerting given the history of cornerback Jabari Greer (who'll likely draw the matchup). The former Bill faced Moss off and on over two seasons, in 2007 and 2008, and allowed three touchdowns in four games. If Moss draws help, then look for Welker to come close to repeating last week's 15-catch, 192-yard effort.

The Saints were a better team eight weeks ago than they are now. Part of that

is injuries, part of it is game-planning since opposing coaches have something to go off every week

Prediction: Tom Brady and Belichick have an idea how to beat a Williams defense, but that's not a guarantee they will. I'm picking the Saints to win their 11th game and cover the three points.

Drew Brees knows how lucky Tom Brady is to have Wes Welker as a receiver. Brees was the starting quarterback at San Diego when Welker signed with the Chargers as an undrafted free agent out of Texas Tech. "Wes was awesome," said Brees. :He was one of those work-hard guys, thousand miles an hour all the time." The Pats got Welker in a trade with Miami for a second and seventh-round picks in the '07 draft. Welker is tied for the NFL lead with 79 catches for 854 yards and four touchdowns...The Pats plan on using a silent count on offense in the Superdome. "We've pretty much been on a silent count for about five or six years on the road," said Pats coach Bull Belichick. "The loud stadiums, you've got to have it. And even if it's not always loud, it can be loud at points in the game."...Saints coach Sean Payton on his offensive coordinator Pete Carmichael: "He's very intelligent and an extremely hard worker. He's one of those guys that understands very thoroughly offensive football and not just one aspect of it -- the running game, the protections, all the looks you get defensively, He's really progressed each year."...

Jasper's field goals lift Tigers to win

Josh Jasper's four field goals, including a 36-yarder in overtime, and Arkansas missed its 36-yard attempt in the extra period, as No. 17 LSU came away with a thrilling 33-30 victory on Saturday night in Death Valley.

The Tigers improved to 9-3 over-all and 5-3 in SEC play. LSU awaits awaits a postseason bow berth, most likely the Capital One Bowl on Jan. 1 in Orlando or the Cotton Bowl in on Jan. in Arlington. Tex. SEC bowl announcements will not be made until after the SEC Championship game and BCS selections on Sunday, Dec. 6.

On LSU's overtime possession, receiver Brandon LaFell missed a low pass by Jordan Jefferson on third-and-four and the Tigers had to attempt a field goal. Jasper's kick was true and LSU led 33-30.

The Razorbacks (7-5, 3-5 SEC) were also forced to settle for a field goal attempt when receiver London Crawford was corralled four yards short of a first down by Tigers cornerback Chris Hawkins, who made a one-on-one tackle. Kicker Alex Tejada's attempt wet just outside of the right goal post, sending Tiger Stadium into a frenzy.

"I'm proud of this team," said Tigers coach Les Miles in his postgame discussion. "They fought like hell in an area where there is a swirling backdrop and agendas. It didn't bother them. I'm proud of the coaching staff. This coaching staff helped prepare a  team and pointed them downhill at a game. They got the distraction behind them and came out and played as a team.

"We knew that this team was a very, very talented team. Arkansas has a great quarterback quarterback.in Ryan Mallett (who'll be a first-round draft choice) and the ability to throw and catch. It was very fitting that we get into the back half of this game, and we have to play well in tight quarters, which this team does and how they operate. I'm happy for my team. I'm happy for my coaching staff.

"The way I looked at it is I thought that defense played so well in the first half and fought and hung in there in the second half. If Trindon Holliday didn't muff that punt, we might get away from them. He hit a home run and gave them the ball on a short field, but that happens (touched a punt that the Hogs recovered). Offensively, we played well, but we still sputtered at times. But we're talented Stevan Ridley, a guy who was injured and standing on he sidelines really hoping to get some special teams reps, ends up being our starter and leading ball-carrier. He plays a tremendous game, again in tight quarters."

Ridley rushed 14 times for 40 yards and added catching 5 passes for 30 yards. Jordan Jefferson was 17-of-25 passing for 179 yards and 2 touchdowns with an interception. He added 11 rubs for 33 yards and was sacked twice for mine-12 yards. He threw TD passes of 16 and 15 yards, the latter to tight end Deangelo Peterson that gave LSU an 11-point lead, 24-13, midway through the fourth quarter,

Holliday had a career-bet 212 all-purpose yards, including an 87-yard punt return for a touchdown that put the Tigers ahead 17-3 in the second quarter.

LaFell (who dropped four passes last week against Ole Miss) had a team-high 70yards in catches for 40 yards and a touchdown grab.

Jasper's four field goals matched a Tigers single-game record.

Mallett led Arkansas to a furious comeback as the Hogs scored on five-straight drives in the second half. He finished 19-of-39 passing for 227 yards with a touchdown and an interception.

Jasper, on his game-winning kick in overtime: "I knew if I missed my kick in overtime we weren't necessarily going to lose, but I had a feeling it might come down to them kicking a field goal, too. I knew it was pretty important to get at least three on the board."

Miles, on Jasper's play: "You have to give it to him for a guy who comes onto the field and gets us into overtime and gets us the win in overtime. You count on a guy like that to play big at big times, and he does. We're looking forward to playing the best opponent that we can get in a bowl game."

Porter new Memphis coach

Larry Porter, assistant LSU head coach, is going home to shed his assistant's title.


Porter, 37, was introduced on Sunday afternoon as Memphis' 22nd head football coach. He replaced Tommy West, who ended his nine-year run on Friday. Porter was a two-time recruiter of the year while at LSU. A former Memphis running back, Porter has spent eight years as an assistant under Les Miles. He followed Miles form Oklahoma State to LSU in 2005.


"he's young, he's energetic, and he's been with good college football programs," said Cato Johnson, a longtime Memphis supporter."I think Larry Porter will excite the fan base. He'll connect with the fan base and the fan base will connect with him."


Miles described Porter as "very knowledgeable" with a " great natural instinct for teaching football."


What he brings to Memphis is a familarity with the program and success recruiting in the Memphis and Mid-South area. Porter earned $316,500 at LSU.

As the NFL enters Week 12, two teams -- the Saints and the Colts --could have clinched their division.. The Colts clinched the AFC South division title by beating the Texans, 35-27, and the Jaguars losing to the 49ers, 20-3.

The Saints could clinch the NFC South division by beating  the Pats and plus a Falcons loss. The Falcons beat the Buccaneers, 20-17.The Saints, who have a five-game lead in their division with six games left. The only tight race the Saints are in right now is the Vikings (10-1) for the top over-all seed in the NFC.

The NFL season really starts at Thanksgiving. The game completely changes now. You can tell who the men in the league are.

Hornets fall to Kings, 112-96

The Hornets, struggling on defense, fell to the Kings, 112-96, On Sunday night at the Arco Arena in Sacramento.

The Hornets (7-10) return to Los Angeles on Tuesday night to take on the defending NBA champion Lakers, who walloped the Bees, 104-88, on Nov. 8.

The Hornets now have lost  8 of 9 on the road. It was new coach Jeff Bower's third straight loss away from the Arena. The Hornets have not won a road game since since Nov. 9.

Small forward Peja Stojakovic did not play because of the illness of a family member and the Hornets weren't much of a threat from the 3-point range without him. He had made 22 3-pointers.James Posey started in his place and missed six of his first eight shots. He had  eight points.

David West led the Hornets with 24 points and center Emeka Okafor hit 9 of 10 shots while scoring 20 points,

The Kings' bench outscored the Hornets reserves, 54-21.

Reserve Sergio Rodriguez scored a career-high 24 points for the Kings, who won their third straight game and reached .500 for the second time this season.

SOME HITHER, OTHERS YON: It's no secret that Notre Dame will fire coach Charlie Weis this week and his assistants are already contacting NFL teams looking for jobs. Weis is telling people he's already being contracted by  multiple NFL teams. Don't rule out Weis joining the Patriots for the stretch run. The most obvious choices for Weis are the Chiefs and the Pats....Giants quarterback Eli Manning has been struggling with a foot injury, and over compensating for that may have caused more problems. He has developed a stress reaction in his right foot as a result of compensating for the plantar fascia that has bother him this season. ESPN reports that an MRI revealed the stress reaction in the cuboid bone, and that injury makes Manning susceptible to a potentially season-ending stress fracture.The stress reaction may partially explain why he hasn't played as well recently as he did early in the season. During the Giants' 5-0 start. Manning  was averaging 9.0yards yards per attempt and 10 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. Over the last six games, Manning's averaged 6.7 yards per attempt, with 8 TDs and 8 interceptions, and the team is 1-5...

Trivia time: Which conference has the most representatives in the BCS national title game?...After the death of Uga VII, Georgia's bulldog mascot, PETA requested to Georgia AD Damon Evans that the school use either an animatronic or a costume mascot. "Like other dogs, bulldogs love to run and play, but their compromised respiratory system causes these playful animals to struggle for breath,: wrote Desiree Acholla, the animal rights group's specialist in animals that are used for entertainment."Poor ventilation and hot or humid weather can be deadly for a purebred bulldog." "I can assure the friendly, caring folk at PETA that very few, if any, dogs are treated better than, or are more beloved than Uga," wrote Matt Hayes of The Sporting News. "I can safely say that UGA mascots live better, live larger, than a majority of Georgia fans."...Triva answer: Teams from the Big 12 Conference have appeared in the BCS title game six times, including Oklahoma (2001, 2004, 2005, 2009), Texas (2006) and Nebraska (2002). The Sooners won in 2001 and the Longhorns won in 2006...

Contact Ed Staton at edcoachstaton@yahoo.com.