schools promoted their offensive coordinators to head coach. Under Barry Switzer, Oklahoma won eight of

TAMPA, Fla. -- The Chicago Bears and Tampa Bay Buccaneers insist they arent as bad as their records suggest.The sputtering teams begin the second half of their schedules against each other Sunday, clinging to hope they can eliminate the inconsistency -- and at times, downright poor play -- thats prevented them from being more successful.Chicago (2-6), coming off a bye that gave it extra time to savor a 10-point victory over NFC North leader Minnesota, has already gotten a taste of what a healthy and on-target Jay Cutler back on the field can mean.The Bucs (3-5), whove lost two straight while struggling to run the ball, are clamoring for an opportunity to see whether a mended Doug Martin can change the course of their season.Obviously, it helps to have confidence, and its hard to gain confidence without something good happening, Chicago coach John Fox said. Were in a performance-based business. ... You work very hard in preparation to get that good feeling in the locker room. ... A `W after a game does give you a boost of confidence.Martin, the NFLs second-leading rusher a year ago, has been sidelined since Week 2 with a hamstring injury. He returned to practice this week and is optimistic hell be ready to play against the Bears.With or without Martin, a two-time Pro Bowl selection who rushed for 1,402 yards last season, Bucs coach Dirk Koetter said he has to find a way to get more out of his team.Weve got to coach them better, No. 1. Thats what a coachs job is, thats what my job is, to try to get your team to achieve up to the talent level that they have, Koetter said.Our record is what our record is; we have to own that. ... But I think we can play to a higher level across the board. That starts with me, first and foremost, the coach added. I have to figure out how to reach these guys, how to motivate them, how to get them on the same page, get them to play together, to play up to the talent level that I think we have. That all starts with me.Some things to know about the Bears and Bucs, one-time NFC Central rivals who are playing for the 57th time:PROTECTING THE FOOTBALL: Bucs QB Jameis Winston has made a concerted effort to minimize turnovers following a 1/3 start. The second-year pro, on pace to throw for more than 4,000 yards again, has eight touchdown passes vs. one interception and a lost fumble in the past three games. Tampa Bay is 1-2 over that stretch, primarily because of problems on defense, where it yielded 1,087 yards, including 857 passing, in losses to Oakland and Atlanta the past two weeks.GETTING HEALTHY: The Bears are getting healthier after being banged-up all year.Cutler (thumb sprain) returned after missing five starts to lead a victory over the Vikings on Oct. 31. Linebacker Pernell McPhee (offseason knee surgery) has played the past two games after starting the season on the physically unable to perform list.Coming off a bye, the Bears may be closer to getting a few more key players back, including nose tackle Eddie Goldman, guards Kyle Long and Josh Sitton, and cornerback Bryce Callahan.Goldman is trying to work his way back from a high ankle sprained suffered in a loss to Philadelphia on Sept. 19.If hes doing well in practice and he feels good about it, then we can take a shot with him, defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said. If hes so-so in practice and still hobbling a little bit, then maybe not.ROOKIES ON RISE: There werent many positives for the Bears in the first half of the season. But here are two: rookies Jordan Howard and Leonard Floyd. Howard, a fifth-round draft pick, ranks second among rookies with 505 yards rushing. He ran for 153 against Minnesota, giving him three 100-yard games. Floyd, an outside linebacker drafted with the No. 9 overall pick, has three sacks in the past two games.NEXT MAN UP: With Martin sidelined since Week 2, and backups Charles Sims, Jacquizz Rodgers and Antone Smith going down with injuries, too, the Bucs have used four starting running backs. It has been difficult for Martin to watch.Real frustrating, the fifth-year pro said. Youve seen guys step up. ... and you see guys go down. Its hard to see. You want to get in.SOMETHINGS GOT GIVE: The Bucs are 0-4 at home this season. The Bears are 0-4 on the road.---AP Sports Writer Andrew Seligman in Chicago contributed to this report.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFLHomer Bailey Jersey . Fred Couples, captain of the U.S. side, put it all into perspective. "We know whos in charge," he said. Cincinnati Reds Shirts . -- Chicago Bears cornerback Tim Jennings was selected Monday to his second straight Pro Bowl, while guard Kyle Long made it after a solid rookie season. https://www.cheapredsjerseys.us/1715s-josh-smith-jersey-reds.html . -- For the first time in two months, an opponent was standing up to Alabama. Joe Morgan Jersey . The 18th player to shoot 60 on the tour, Jamieson settled for par on the final hole when his 15-foot birdie chip grazed the edge of the hole and stayed out. After opening with rounds of 66 and 73 to make the cut by a stroke, he had 11 birdies in the bogey-free round. Bronson Arroyo Jersey .C. -- Charlotte Bobcats coach Steve Clifford said after all of these years in the NBA hes still amazed at some of the things LeBron James does.In the 1970s, college football was pretty predictable and coaches were larger than life.The Bear was at `Bama and JoePa was the man in Happy Valley.The Big Ten actually had 10 teams and the best of them was always coached by Woody or Bo.There was a conference called the Big Eight that was dominated by the Big Two and brash Barry almost always got the best of stoic Dr. Tom when Oklahoma played Nebraska.With Hall of Fame coaches at the helm of many of college footballs most successful programs, identifying the best teams in the country during the `70s did not take a ton of searching for voters in The Associated Press poll.During the decade, Michigan, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas, Ohio State, Alabama and Notre Dame appeared in more than 90 percent of all Top 20s. (The poll expanded to 25 in 1989). Add in USC and Penn State, which both appeared in more than 86 percent of all polls, and the top nine schools in all-time total poll appearances were also the nine most represented on ballots in the 1970s.At Alabama, the `70s were Phase II of Paul Bear Bryants dynasty. The Crimson Tide won three AP national titles during the `60s, but late in the decade Bryants teams slipped. The Tide went 6-5 in 1969.People were trying to retire (Bryant), friends and enemies, at the end of the `69 season, said 83-year-old Alabama alum Ken Fowler, who was a close friend of the late Mal Moore, a former Alabama player and coach under Bryant and the athletic director who hired Nick Saban.Alabama went 6-5 again in 1970, including a famous blowout loss to Southern California in Birmingham when Bryant was in the early stages of integrating his program. Wilbur Jackson became the first black player to sign with Alabama that year.Facing an integrated Southern California team coached by Bryants friend John McKay, the Crimson Tide were pounded 42-21. Sam Cunningham, USCs black fullback, had 135 yards and two touchdowns on 12 carries.The long-term effects of that game on the eventual integration of Alabama football have been chronicled, debated and maybe even overstated. The story about Bryant bringing Cunningham to the Alabama locker room to show his players what a football player looked like has been mostly debunked. But there was no doubt Alabama foootball moved into a new era after that season.ddddddddddddith mostly the same team in 1971, Alabama went to USC and won 17-10. The biggest difference in that game was Bryants switch to wishbone and triple-option offense.This new decade, then it started with a whole new outlook, Fowler said. A whole new way of doing it.The Crimson Tide went 11-1 in 1971, the first of eight double-digit win seasons that decade. Alabama ended the `70s with AP national titles in 1978 and `79.At Penn State, Joe Paterno was having similar success with six double-digit victory seasons, though the Nittany Lions would not win their first championships until the 1980s.In the Big Ten, Bo Schembechlers Michigan Wolverines and Woody Hayes Ohio State Buckeyes won or shared every conference title during the 1970s.The Big Eight title always came down to Oklahoma and Nebraska, but the results were far more one-sided. Nebraska had the upper hand at the start of the decade under Bob Devaney. In 1973, both schools promoted their offensive coordinators to head coach. Under Barry Switzer, Oklahoma won eight of nine meetings with Nebraska and coach Tom Osborne in the `70s.BEST PROGRAMSMichigan appeared in 100 percent of all polls taken.Nebraska, 99.32 percent.Oklahoma, 93.92 percent.BEST RIVALRYOhio State-Michigan. The so-called 10-year war between Hayes and Schembechler started in 1969 and lasted until Hayes was dismissed after he hit a Clemson player during the 1978 Gator Bowl. In those 10 games between the Buckeyes and Wolverines, Michigan won five, Ohio State won four and there was one tie.MAIN TAKEWAYNotre Dame, Texas and USC were also forces throughout the 1970s, with all-time great coaches Ara Parseghian, Darrell Royal and John McKay handing off about midway through the decade to successful successors. Add in Dan Devine, who took over for Parseghian, and John Robinson, who succeeded McKay, and thats 12 Hall of Fame coaches at nine programs that dominated the `70s.---Follow Ralph D. Russo at www.Twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP---Online:More on the APs Top 100 retrospective: http://collegefootball.ap.org/ap-poll-all-time ' ' '