DON McDERMOTT MORE COLUMNS Advertisement

For the last couple years, college coaches have helped Samaritan's Feet, a charitable organization that IUPUI coach Ron Hunter started. Hunter's idea was to go barefoot at a game and donate his shoes to a program to help put those shoes on more than 10 million children worldwide who don't have shoes.

More than 200,000 pairs of shoes will be sent to Nigeria by the Samaritan's Feet staff. It's been college coaches who have driven this cause; my thought is, why not bring the it to the high school level, starting at Pahrump Valley High School in particular and Southern Nevada in general?

Fans wouldn't have to go barefoot; what they could do is bring any extra pair of wearable shoes to a PVHS home basketball game during the remainder of the regular season.

Pahrump Valley's remaining home games are Jan. 22, vs. Bonanza; Jan. 24, vs. Virgin Valley; Jan. 28, vs. Durango; Feb. 4, vs. Western; Feb. 5, vs. Desert Oasis, and Feb. 13, vs. Spring Valley.

For information on how the program works, go to the Web site, www.samaritansfeet.org.

Maybe if the sole fits, the soul benefits.

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Bowling is a big sport for high schoolers in Clark County, with 33 teams competing in four divisions girls competition. Boulder City (Class 3-A) and The Meadows (2-A) are among the teams entered.

At the moment, Eldorado (50-4), Palo Verde (54-0), Coronado (54-0) and Bonanza (45-0) are the top teams this season.

In boys bowling, Rancho (39-6), Eldorado (41-13), Cimarron-Memorial (43-2), Coronado (46-8) and Bonanza (36-9) are the leaders.

Boulder City and The Meadows also have boys' teams.

So, out of curiosity, is anyone discussing organizing high school teams in the Pahrump Valley?

Bowling, as golf, seems to be a logical extension of the competitive programs. Both are lifetime sports, as is swimming. (But I don't know of any indoor pool in the Pahrump Valley at the moment. Swimming outdoors in 40-degree temperatures doesn't have appeal unless you are a polar bear.)

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One more thought ...

Division I football needs a playoff system more than ever.

Really, were you actually interested in watching the Florida-Oklahoma game, after watching USC wreck Penn State ... Utah rout Alabama ... and Texas hold off Ohio State?

Imagine those eight teams in a playoff format. The NFL playoffs should have such drama!

Okay, bowl aficianadoes really got excited watching Wake Forest vs. Navy in the I', Not Broke EagleBank Bowl ... Colorado State and Fresno State in the hot and dry New Mexico Bowl ... Florida Atlantic vs. Central Michigan in the Motor City Bail Me Out Bowl ... Louisiana Tech and Northern Illinois in the Grant Me Independence Bowl ... Rice vs. Western Michigan in the Texas Toast Bowl.

We have an energy crisis and think of all the wasted electricity, gasoline, and uncooked hot dogs that could have gone to good use. Good use? Think of all the homeless that needed a hot meal between Dec. 20, when the first bowl game was played, and Jan. 8, when the Gators chewed up the Sooners.

And contrary to opinion, I am not bitter that my Buckeyes lost to the Longhorns. It was a heckuva battle ... and would have been terrific in a playoff situation.