Not much to report on the status of a new No. 3 quarterback at the University of Memphis behind Brett Toney and Maurice Jones, a receiver-turned-emergency QB.

A walkon from Munford, Tenn., who had been with the team, took some snaps at the end of Tuesday’s practice and defensive back D.A. Griffin, an exceptional athlete, may get a few snaps after today’s practice.

In reality, the Tigers are hoping Arkelon Hall’s fractured right thumb heals quickly. Toney, an intelligent QB with a firm grasp of the offense, is doing a commendable fill-in job. And he seems to be even more at ease in practice, especially at putting the football where the team’s tall receivers can make a play.

…which is probably a little more hypothetical than official at this point (though that never stopped John Calipari before).

Kansas, Duke, North Carolina, Louisville, Tennessee, Gonzaga and Syracuse.

If you want to play that schedule, the Tigers better get a couple of these big-time recruits they’re trying to land.

That is all.

Friday will be the final day this year that fishing reports appear in The Commercial Appeal sports section.

Starting Nov. 7, they’ll be replaced by the Avery Outdoors waterfowl migration reports.

For those of you who like to fish during the cooler months, I’ll still be posting the Mid-South fishing reports on The Memphis Edge.

It’s impossible to keep everyone happy, but I’m gonna try.

With the opening day of muzzleloader season set for Saturday, the Tennessee woods are about to become much more crowded.

Those of us who were too lazy to do all of the scouting and planning necessary for a good bow hunt are finally going to climb into a stand, hoping for a shot of about 50 yards or less.

But before we invade the bow hunters’ space, I’d like to give you an overview of the fun they’ve been having.

As of Tuesday afternoon, according to the TWRA Online Harvest Report, archery and crossbow hunters have killed 24,199 deer. That’s 18 more than they had killed at this point last year.

The top 10 counties were as follows:

1. Stewart 669
2. Giles 598
3. Cumberland 591
4. Hawkins 532
5. Franklin 532
6. Lincoln 507
7. Henry 481
8. Montgomery 453
9. Meigs 417
10. Rhea 407

Perennial top-10 finisher, Fayette County, is just outside the rankings with 400 deer. That’s good for 11th place.

These numbers tend to be a little sketchy, and they’re certain to change rapidly when the guns start firing this weekend.

But it’s always interesting to take a look.

By winning last week’s Women’s Bassmaster Tour Championship on Lake Hamilton and securing the WBT Angler of the Year award, Kim Bain became the first woman ever to qualify for the Bassmasters Classic.

The Classic, of course, is the big one.

Through the years, Classic winners have included fishing legends like Rick Clunn, Denny Brauer and Kevin Van Dam.

In February, Bain could add her name to that list and super-charge a sport that many believe has passed its peak.

If a woman was to win the Bassmasters Classic, it would prove beyond the shadow of a doubt that fishing is a sport for all people.

Let’s face it.

A woman won’t be scoring the winning touchdown in the Super Bowl anytime soon. She won’t hit a walk-off homer to win the World Series or sink a trey to win the seventh game of the NBA finals.

Danica Patrick and Annika Sorenstam have had their moments, but they haven’t won the ultimate championship in their respective sports.

Until Danica wins the Indy 500 or Annika wins The Masters in Augusta, they haven’t come close to what Kim Bain would accomplish if she wins the Bassmaster Classic on the Little Red River four months from now.

Obviously, I’m not saying she has to win on her first try.

By simply reaching the Classic, Kim Bain has already lifted the spirits of female outdoorsmen everywhere.

By cranking her boat on Feb. 20, 2009, she’ll be blazing a new trail for all female anglers.

If she can make a solid showing – and actually beat some of the boys – no one will ever say again that women don’t belong in the Classic.

But if Kim Bain could find a way to win what has historically been a very tough tournament, her accomplishment would literally spawn a new generation of little girls who want to go fishing with their dads.

People don’t get that kind of chance very often.

I hope she gets it done - and gives the guys fits in the process.

…after watching the first 12 practices of the year

- The Tigers’ top three players will be very competitive with the top three of most of the teams in the country. The question is how much they’ll get out of the next five in the rotation.

- This can be a pretty good 3-point shooting team, but it’s not going to be significantly better than it was last season.

- I’ll be honest. When Doneal Mack transferred, and then came back, I didn’t think it would make a huge difference one way or the other. But I’m stunned by how well he’s playing right now, and it’s not even really about shooting 3-pointers. If he continues on this trajectory, he’ll give the Tigers what they lacked last year which is a legit guy off the bench to play shooting guard.

- Shawn Taggart struggled a bit in the scrimmages over the weekend. They need to figure out a way to get him going and how they can create some good scoring opportunities for him.

- Tyreke Evans has improved a ton already because he is extremely coachable. You tell him to do something, and he’ll do it on the next play.

- Wesley Witherspoon is a tough guy to guard, and he’ll be even tougher when he makes all of his layups.

- Matt Simpkins is pretty active inside. He’s been slightly better than I expected.

- There is probably going to be an odd-man out somewhere along the line. If you’re starting lineup is Kemp, Anderson, Evans, Dozier and Taggart, there are three more people and maybe a fourth who will be in the primary rotation. Mack is starting to separate himself, and Pierre Niles is in there because they need a second big. That leaves everybody else fighting for a couple positions. Not to say that the rest of the team won’t play, but a true 10-man rotation is unrealistic.

- I have almost assuredly overrated Memphis at No. 8 in my AP top 25

The AP top 25 poll will be out on Friday. Here’s the ballot I turned in today. Basically, it’s a total guess.

1. North Carolina
2. Connecticut
3. Oklahoma
4. Louisville
5. Duke
6. Purdue
7. Gonzaga
8. Memphis
9. UCLA
10. Notre Dame
11. Michigan State
12. Texas
13. Pittsburgh
14. Tennessee
15. Arizona State
16. Villanova
17. Miami
18. Syracuse
19. Ohio State
20. Southern Cal
21. Kansas
22. UNLV
23. Wisconsin
24. St. Mary’s
25. Baylor