Folks, word is beginning to circulate that St. George’s guard Elliot Williams has chosen Duke as his college destination. I just received phone calls from credible people who are confirming it. Again, I’d caution that information on Williams’ recruitment has been very difficult to come by and often inaccurate. But at this point, I believe this information to be true.

I’ll post more as I learn more.

UPDATE: I’ve got more confirmation now. Elliot gave the verbal to Duke and has told the Memphis, Tennessee and Virginia staffs of his decision. Barring a very, very, very late change of heart, he’ll announce it at a Friday press conference at St. George’s.

Certainly, the Memphis staff will be disappointed with the decision. I know Coach Cal and Derek Kellogg, who was primarily responsible for recruiting Elliot, think a lot of him. But this is not nearly as big of a blow to Memphis as it is to Tennessee, which had put a ton of eggs into the Elliot Williams basket. It’s no secret the Tennessee staff had basically set up camp in Memphis for the past year trying to seal the deal with Elliot. So far, Bruce Pearl’s efforts to recruit an elite player out of Memphis, while impressive, have not ultimately been successful.

Memphis now turns to Tyreke Evans, who will visit later this month and choose between the Tigers, Villanova, Louisville and Texas. If the Tigers get Evans to go along with Angel Garcia, they are still very much on track to land a blockbuster recruiting class.

Interesting day over at the Finch. First, there was the injury situation with Joey Dorsey, which started with him telling reporters that his right shoulder was hurting but that he was preparing to play Monday. Dorsey was on the floor for the first part of practice (operating mostly with his left arm), but when the action went live, he sat out. The realization that he might miss the first game of his college career apparently hit Dorsey pretty hard, as he was overcome with emotion while sitting on the sidelines. By the end of practice, Dorsey seemed to be in better spirits, but he clearly doesn’t want to miss a game. In some respects, I think Dorsey — if he’s still hurting come Monday — would be better served by sitting out and giving himself another 10 days to get ready for New York. Even without Dorsey, the Tigers shouldn’t have much trouble getting past UT-Martin and then Maine/Richmond.

After Dorsey left the floor, sophomore forward Pierre Niles followed. He tweaked his right knee and is listed as day-to-day. Meanwhile, coach John Calipari wasn’t too happy with sophomore center Hashim Bailey. So the Tigers played a lot of small ball, and the combination of Derrick Rose and Willie Kemp in the backcourt really looked good. If Dorsey can’t go Monday, it wouldn’t surprise me to see a starting lineup with Kemp, Rose, CDR, Antonio Anderson and Robert Dozier. Shawn Taggart had a pretty good practice and looks like he’s ready to play significant minutes in Dorsey’s absence.

Athletic Director R.C. Johnson came in to watch the last half of practice, and he told me that the last season tickets are now gone, so FedExForum is indeed sold out. He also wanted me to relay the message that Memphis is out of parking passes for FedExForum, so please quit calling to ask about them.

Need a place to sight in your rifle?

The Tennessee Sports Foundation (TSF) will open its Roderick M. Fitz-Randolph firing range complex to the public on Nov.10 to allow area hunters an opportunity to sight in their hunting firearms.

Sighting-in will be allowed from noon-5 p.m. for a fee of $10. Each shooter must sign a wavier before using the range.

This is a big-time opportunity for people who need a place to sight in their guns. Obviously, it’s something you can’t do just anywhere.

So you should scheduled some time to take advantage of this.

The Tennessee Sports Foundation is located seven miles south Jackson, Tenn., on Riverside Drive.

For more information, visit TSF on the Web.

THE BIG STORY

Meet Auburn’s new linebacker. . .Quentin Groves.

Moving from defensive end to linebacker may not be a huge adjustment, since Groves was already playing a hybrid role — setting up on the line on some plays, taking a few steps back on others. He mad the switch this week because linebacker Craig Stevens is out with an ankle injury and probably won’t play Saturday against Tennessee Tech. Antonio Coleman has played well in place of Groves at the weak-side end and coaches are eager to keep him on the field as much as possible.

“(Coleman) can have it. I’m a linebacker now,” Groves said.

Groves said he’s working as a strong-side linebacker. When Auburn uses a 4-3 set, Groves would likely play alongside Chris Evans and Tray Blackmon.

“I’m used to it now,” Groves said. “I’ve played on my feet for two years now. It’s pretty easy now. It’s pretty much the same thing. You just have to read runs, key the fullback and use your eyes more.”

Auburn’s game against I-AA Tennessee Tech offers Groves a chance to ease into his new position.

“You have to know your assignment on every play,” he said. “It’s a great week to move to linebacker, I can tell you that. (This game) is before the bullets really start flying against Alabama and Georgia. I’m thanking them for easing me in now rather than just jumping into the fire.”

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John Calipari admitted to me after Tuesday’s practice that he’s still irritated with the Tigers’ effort in the scrimmage Saturday against Saint Louis. But he’s as irritated with himself as much as he is with the team, because as he said to the players Tuesday, he might have let them get a little bit soft.

In other words, country club time is over. It’s so over that after practice, when I asked Andre Allen for a few minutes to chat, Andre insisted that he talk while sitting down. And I don’t blame him, because I watched a 2 hour, 40 minute practice that was as physically and mentally demanding as anything the Tigers have been through all year. From here on out, Calipari is going to concentrate on building his team’s toughness because that’s what he feels they need. That means a portion of practice every day will be devoted to nothing but football-style drills where they just try to beat each other up. Memphis got better last season when Calipari went to more physical, less cerebral practices. We’ll see how they respond leading up to Monday’s opener against UT-Martin.

Of some concern was Joey Dorsey sitting out Tuesday with what they’re calling a right shoulder sprain. Head athletic trainer Chris Simmons said Dorsey is still day-to-day. My gut feeling is that Dorsey will be ready to play Monday, but the progress he makes from now until Friday will be crucial. Shawn Taggart played center with the first team in Dorsey’s absence.

Grizzlies coach Marc Iavaroni revealed that captains had been made official at practice. No surprises here. The obvious choices were Damon Stoudamire, Mike Miller and Pau Gasol.

Those are the captains mainly because of their tenure with the team and/or NBA experience.

Also, I wouldn’t read too much in Brian Cardinal and Tarence Kinsey starting the season on the inactive list. Cardinal is battling the flu, and just because Kinsey will be inactive against San Antonio doesn’t mean he’s not in the plans. Remember, the active/inactive list can change from game to game. Cardinal and Kinsey don’t have to sit on the shelf for at least five games like the “injured list” days.

Thanks GG. I hope there’s one new person reading this after his using the last question on his show. It took me 9 days to figure out the answer. It wasn’t as easy as it sounded. Now I’ll throw an easy one out there. Name the Tigers who have Super Bowl rings? And who still celebrates that SB victory and season with his teammates?

I’ve seen and heard discussions about the Tigers and bowl possiblities with six wins. The University of Memphis WILL play in a bowl if they get six wins. The fact of the matter is that we Tigers fans will travel to that bowl with the exception of Hawaii. Birmingham, Fort Worth and New Orleans are one day drives. And believe it or not, the Liberty Bowl is STILL possible. We need UCF to lose and the Tigers to win out to get there but it is still very possible. I bet the majority of you didn’t realize that a couple weeks ago. In my ever so humble opinion the New Orleans Bowl would attract some 10 to 15,000 Memphis fans. The game is a Friday night game which means many would take Friday off and go down Thursday night. We are still the school that has had the biggest turnout for that game.
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