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Nick Saban’s retiring as the University of Alabama football coach, ESPN reported Wednesday afternoon, turning a long inevitability into a stark reality and sending shockwaves throughout the college football world. It ends arguably the greatest run in college football history where the once famously-nomadic Saban finally planted roots and rebuilt a decaying empire. By reviving a struggling Crimson Tide program — winning 80.6% of his games and seven national titles — Saban placed his name among the all-time greats. That includes Paul “Bear” Bryant, the Alabama coach from six whose national title mark Saban passed in 2020.

Every year, on Dec. 6, children all over Milwaukee wake up to find their stockings filled with goodies from St. Nicholas. The holiday is perfect timing for impatient kids excited for Santa, and, although it's not celebrated everywhere, St. Nicholas Day is especially popular in Wisconsin. When is St. Nicholas Day? And who is St. Nicholas? According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, St. Nicholas Day is the feast day of St. Nicholas, a 4th-century bishop who is also the patron saint of Russia, Greece and children. His feast day is Dec. 6. Interesting facts about St. Nicholas St. Nicholas was...

Top 4 before yesterday: 1) Georgia 2) Ohio State 3) Alabama 4) Cincinnati After a more than interesting day, MY top 4 today 1) Georgia (No one can touch them) 2) Cincinnati (Yes, they play no one but are undefeated) 3) Michigan 4) Notre Dame How they will probably rank them (they have an Alabama bias. Had Auburn NOT gone into "don't lose mode" and remained in attack mode, they would have won). 1) Georgia 2) Michigan 3) Cincinnati 4) Alabama Next weekend after the conference championships will be interesting. Can Alabama hang with Georgia? Will Georgia copy the Auburn...

QB Bryce Young leads a rally for the ages in regulation to help Alabama snap its Jordan-Hare drought and stay in the CFP hunt. AUBURN, Ala.—For 58-½ shocking minutes in Jordan-Hare Stadium, Alabama’s explosive offense was a dysfunctional mess. The nation’s No. 2 scoring team didn’t find the end zone once within that time, trailing three-touchdown underdog Auburn 10-3. After a deft Tigers punt was downed at the 3-yard line, the chances of the Crimson Tide going 97 yards in 95 seconds to tie the game seemed less likely than Nick Saban taking up stand-up comedy. This looked like another...

An ancient merchant had three lovely daughters. But due to a tragic turn of events, he had lost all hope that his daughters would be able to marry and live a happy life. It was the third century, and this businessman had lost his fortune when pirates pillaged his ship. His beautiful daughters were of marrying age, and without money he could give them no dowry.In those days, young women without a dowry had few options for survival. Many were forced into slavery or prostitution.The father prayed around the clock that somehow God would grant a miracle for his...

The true story of Santa Claus begins with Nicholas, who was born during the third century in the village of Patara. At the time the area was Greek and is now on the southern coast of Turkey. His wealthy parents, who raised him to be a devout Christian, died in an epidemic while Nicholas was still young. Obeying Jesus' words to "sell what you own and give the money to the poor," Nicholas used his whole inheritance to assist the needy, the sick, and the suffering. He dedicated his life to serving God and was made Bishop of Myra while...

“Run, run as fast as you can. You can't catch me, I'm the gingerbread man ."Yes I know: another day, another racist outrage. Butt do you know what tomorrow is? It’s the Eve of St. Nicholas Day. You do remember St. Nicholas don’t you? Aka St. Nick, aka Sinterklaas? You may recall when we discussed him last year, during one of BO’s European tours. St. Nick, Dutch progenitor of our own American Santa Claus, visits children on the eve of his feast day (December 6), bringing them small gifts (i.e. no iPhones or Xboxes): Later on the night of December...

My nomination for the dumbest comment of the week by a television host on a news channel goes to CNN's Brian Stelter. While talking to Slate's Aisha Harris about the reaction to her article calling for Santa Claus to be a penguin, the new Reliable Sources host wondered if Megyn Kelly wouldn't have been so adamant about Santa being white if Fox News had more black viewers (video follows with transcript and commentary):http://www.mrctv.org/videos/cnns-stelter-megyn-kelly-mightnt-have-insisted-santa-was-white-if-fox-had-more-black-viewers BRIAN STELTER: You know, to tell you what I think for a minute, I kind of wonder if FOX had a different audience demographic, if she would...

Everyone loves jolly ol’ Saint Nicholas. There is something romantic and cozy about telling Santa stories around the crackling fire. He is an icon of the Christmas season. But not everyone agrees about the real Santa Claus.  Some like to picture Santa as the early-19th century, pipe-smoking elf with a bucket full of coal for naughty boys who don’t eat their cauliflower. Others prefer Santa as an emasculated, overweight consumer who gets bossed around by Mrs. Claus and thus flees the North Pole once a year to relive the glory days. Then there is the wiry bishop who pulled...

The reign of Constantine proved to be a turning point in history. The Edict of Milan helped transform Christianity from a persecuted religion into a popular faith. Christianity spread faster than ever before. Jesus’s message offered comfort in a world full of peril and suffering. His call to love God and neighbor gave meaning to hard lives.Constantine’s own enthusiasm for Christianity helped promote it through all classes of society. The emperor bestowed presents and property upon Christian congregations. He funded the construction of churches and basilicas, including St. Peter’s in Rome. He declared Sunday a day of rest, placed Christian...

Having just turned five years old, I was a little young (at least back then) to question the “holiday” law-of-the-land. Of course five-year-olds believed in Santa Claus! But it was back in the day when several ages of neighborhood kids used to hang around together, and I was running with some seven- and eight-year-olds who were feeding me some pretty good reasons not to believe in that benign big man. Most of you are at least vaguely familiar with the various Protestant Reformation (and later secular) traditions that transformed Saint Nicholas into Santa Claus, so it is not necessary to...

ICE Agents Arrest Jolly Fat Man in Red Suit Attempting to Enter the U.S. Illegally. AXcess News) Reno, NV - Based on U.S. Department of Homeland Security rules, a bearded jolly fat man in a red suit going by the alias St. Nick was captured by ICE agents while attempting to enter the United States illegally after DHS profiling matched the description of Mr. Nicholas as a possible terrorist threat. "Mr. Nicholas doesn't possess a recognized passport and therefore the Department views him a possible threat to the United States," a spokesperson for the DHS said. Nicholas, who says he...

Jeremy Seal on an Epic History BATH, England, DEC. 20, 2005 (Zenit.org).- The modern persona of Santa Claus is a far cry from its origins: St. Nicholas, bishop of Myra. So how did he go from a charitable saint to an icon of Christmas consumerism? Travel writer Jeremy Seal embarked on an international search to answer that question and recorded his findings in "Nicholas: The Epic Journey from Saint to Santa Claus" (Bloomsbury". Seal told ZENIT what he discovered tracking the cult of Santa Claus across the globe and why he thinks St. Nicholas and his charism of charity still...

HoustonChronicle.com -- http://www.HoustonChronicle.com | Section: The News Bizarre Dec. 12, 2002, 2:53PM Santa Claus gets icy reception in Austria Associated Press Associated Press Margit Hammerl and Horst Strauss, members of the Pro-Christkind (Pro-Christ Child) Society, pose in front of a nativity scene at a Vienna Christmas market with Pro-Christkind stickers on their jackets. VIENNA, Austria -- Ho, ho, ho? No, no, no! Santa Claus is coming to town -- and many Austrians wish he'd just stay home. The jolly old elf is getting an icy reception in this alpine country that gave the world "Silent Night" and clings to beloved Christmas...