I set a meeting in Knoxville for tomorrow afternoon a couple weeks back. It’s a time sensitive meeting plus doesn’t seem like road situation is going to improve that quickly. It also needs to be on site so Zoom doesn’t work.

Is there a passable way to get through Western NC to Knoxville area from Charlotte? Or am I better off taking 77 NB up to VA and coming back down 81 to avoid that area altogether?

I see both sides, kinda curious for those who went what your thoughts were?

Edited for those who can’t put two and two together: did the town look better or worse than you thought?

This is tremendous news for everyone, not just in the US, but across the globe. US fracking technology has increased tremendously over the years, and if this keeps up we will be able to counter the OPEC+ cartel's stranglehold on the market. This coupled with LNG and RNG booming, and them being easily replicable in the US, is a great sign for future US energy independence and growth.

There's also tons of R&D being pushed by O&G companies in Louisiana/southern Arkansas regarding extracting lithium from drill cuttings and wastewater generated at drilling wells. This could also be a great boon for the future of US O&G production, but it's still a ways out.

From intern Toby Corriston:

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I am going on a cruise next week (if it is not canceled) out of Port Canaveral. I am flying into Orlando, and I have a 5- and 3-year-old. Has anyone used Uber rental? It looks like a good deal, and I can leave booster seats in the car during the cruise—it seems like you can rent a booster seat, too. Does anyone have any suggestions/pros or cons? Thanks!

For those interested ... (teams look totally different, obviously)

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"Shout out Will Proctor, wherever you are."

This week's look at the SP+ ratings. If you remember last week there was a top tier of 5 teams with ratings above or right at 30 but there was a lot of movement lower in ratings from that group this week. Only Ohio State remains above 30. The ratings this week seem to be grouping teams into a few more distinct tiers with OSU/Texas/Bama at the top. I was shocked, as was Connelly, that Ole Miss didn't drop further but they are in the second tier with Tenn/PSU/UGA. Then you've got a third tier with ratings btw 20-25 consisting of Oregon/Mizzou/ND/Miami. Our Tigers jumped up a few spots to #13 (from 17) and our rating improved to 16.6 from 15. Our offense ranking dropped to #17 from #12 on the week while the defensive ranking improved to #28 from #36.

The ACC stayed in 3rd in the conference rankings

The SP+ model is still going to be working out the kinks for several more weeks but it's getting there! Still, you gotta lol at #48 FSU and #41 UNC.

Still aging like fine wine and still my #1 all time. I've been on TI for nearly a quarter century, and my interest in learning how to do video edits actually started with massive GIFs I would put together for my TI signature. I used to have a panel built with three different GIFs, and the centerpiece was Monica Bellucci images flanked by different Clemson highlights.

Hard to believe this woman is 60 now. She's currently sharing the screen with another one of my crushes, Winona Ryder, in the sequel to Beetlejuice. That lucky SOB Tim Burton is now dating her which might represent the greatest outkick in nerd history (of course it helps that he is a brilliant artist). The last time Winona and Monica were onscreen together was for the Gary Oldman version of Dracula, and I vividly remember sitting on the front row of a Pee Dee movie theater watching them as a teenage nerd myself.

HBD to the baddest bitch on two legs as my granddad once said.

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Since Friday morning I just have an error message (for only that channel). I was told it was weather related. Anyone else have problems?

NC State DE Davin Vann, mom to bring supplies to flood areas​

By: David Hale - ESPN.com

NC State defensive end Davin Vann is working to bring relief supplies to storm-ravaged communities in western North Carolina after floods devastated communities in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene on Friday.

Vann's mother, Joy Hall, owns a moving company -- Joyful Movers, based in Cary, North Carolina -- and as the two discussed the storm damage on Sunday, they decided to fill one of Hall's moving trucks with needed supplies and bring them to families in need.

"We just came up with the idea of filling up a box truck and getting supplies out there," Vann said. "It might not do much, but it's something that we felt like we could do."

Vann and his mother will be collecting donations at the school's indoor practice facility from 3 to 8 p.m. Monday and from noon to 8 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday.

Vann said they're looking for donations of bottled water or electrolyte drinks, premixed baby formula, baby wipes and other hygiene products, such as toothbrushes, toothpaste, deodorant and hand sanitizer, diapers, shampoo, flight lights, lanterns and batteries, as well as blankets and sleeping bags and canned foods.

"We love the mountains and looking at all these folks, I just can't imagine losing everything," Hall said. "We wanted to do something to help."

Numerous areas of western North Carolina are under water, with residents isolated from basic services, while others have been displaced by storm water. More than 30 people in the state have been confirmed dead and nearly 2 million are still without power.

"We'll be out there all day," Vann said. "We were just talking about how devastating the hurricane was for that region of North Carolina and how we wanted to help. It was just kind of us talking at first and then we just decided it was something we could actually do."

Vann is a fifth-year senior from Cary, North Carolina. He has been a starter on the defensive line for three years, and leads the team with 6.5 tackles for loss this season, including 3.5 in a win over Northern Illinois on Saturday.

"I'm really proud and thankful for Davin and his family," NC State coach Dave Doeren said Monday. "Davin probably just came off the best game of his career, as well. For that to be on his mind today, I think says a lot about that young man and his family."

FSU's depth-chart changes mean more than Mike Norvell is letting on​

By: Curt Weller - The Osceola

Mike Norvell admitted Monday he doesn't put much stock into the depth chart Florida State shares publicly each week.

There's certainly a hidden depth chart the staff keeps behind closed doors, which the FSU head coach does care about.

But as far as the depth chart FSU shares publicly each Monday to begin game weeks, it's something schools do more out of obligation and the unwritten rule that every team shares one than actual information sharing.

"I really don't care about a depth chart to be honest with you. It really means nothing..." Norvell said. "It doesn't really matter what I put on a depth chart."

That may be true to a degree. But there are a few changes to FSU's new depth chart, which was shared Monday afternoon before Saturday's (7 p.m. on ESPN) home game vs. Clemson that show Norvell was well aware that a few optics-based shifts had to be made this week.

Most notably, there's a change at the top of the depth chart. After DJ Uiagalelei suffered a hand injury on his final play of Saturday's 42-16 loss at SMU, the Oregon State transfer is now listed as a co-starter at quarterback alongside redshirt freshman Brock Glenn.

"DJ, something we're going to evaluate throughout the course of the week. Kind of see where it goes from there," Norvell said Monday of Uiagalelei's availability this week.

Uiagalelei has struggled in his first five starts with the Seminoles, completing a career-worst 53.8% of his passes with two more interceptions (6) than he has passing touchdowns (4).

Norvell has fielded questions for a few weeks now on if he's considering a change at quarterback. Each time, he's deferred to saying that the problems go far beyond Uiagalelei and that the rest of the players around him need to help him out more.

While Norvell dodged a question Monday asking if this depth chart change was only due to the uncertainty of Uiagalelei's status or if he may have named them co-starters even if Uiagalelei was healthy, naming them co-starters instead of simply listing as Uiagalelei as the starter as FSU has for the first five weeks of the season — even if he won't be able to start Saturday — seems to indicate at least some awareness of Uiagalelei's struggles.

"There's a lot of things that we go back and look at in the game, DJ did make a lot of good throws throughout the course of the game. Some good decisions, he made some poor decisions and a couple bad throws," Norvell said. "But you've got to surround and you've got to help the quarterback position. I don't think we've done a good job of that consistently and, at the end of the day, we all have to have ownership in that."

Glenn made his season debut late in the SMU game. While it happened after Uiagalelei's hand injury on his third interception, Norvell has said that he was planning on making the change at that moment anyways with the game out of hand.

Glenn failed to complete any of his four pass attempts, one of which was a great pass that was dropped and another of which was an overthrow to an open receiver which likely would have been a touchdown.

"I wanted to see that opportunity for Brock to go in and have a chance to execute," Norvell said. "I thought he did some good things. Had a nice throw that we didn't finish on. I thought he did miss one of the vertical shots that was a touchdown play. But overall operation of what he was asked to do was good. It wasn't shocking to me."

There were a few other offensive changes to the depth chart this week, which certainly appear to be performance-based. Most notably at tight end.

While few players have helped Uiagalelei this season, no one may have hurt him more than tight end Kyle Morlock. The senior added his team-high fourth drop according to Pro Football Focus early in the second half Saturday. And this wasn't just any drop. It was a pass that went through his hands, hit his facemask and popped into the air where it was intercepted by SMU and returned into the FSU red zone.

A drive that began with a chance for FSU to take the lead instead quickly allowed SMU to extend its lead. That coming on the shoulders of a continued underwhelming effort from Morlock — expected to be one of the key contributors in FSU's passing game — makes it that much tougher to swallow.

"That's a position where we have to be better. I've got confidence and belief in Kyle, I do, and you look a year ago, you look for percentage of opportunities and targets and catches and guys making the play, he was as good as anybody we had," Norvell said Monday. "This year, there's been some struggles. There's been some tough moments. That (interception) was obviously a huge play in the game and you know there's nobody more disappointed than Kyle. But right now, it still comes down to production, to execution, and so the doors of opportunity are there. Guys have to take advantage of that."

On the updated depth chart, Morlock is now listed as one of three starters at tight end alongside junior Brian Courtney and true freshman Landen Thomas.

Courtney made his first career start vs. Memphis and has appeared in 31 games on offense and special teams over the last three seasons while not yet recording a catch in a game. Thomas' first career catch was a 20-yard touchdown in Saturday's loss at SMU.

"Obviously really happy for Landen to be able to get that first touchdown," Norvell said. "You can go through the game and there's still some things that he's going to have to take some great strides in to continue to be what I know he's capable of. But that position has to go and get better."

The other position change of note came on the offensive line, more specifically at the guard spots. Norvell shared Monday that Florida transfer lineman Richie Leonard IV is done for the year due to injury after appearing in the first four games and missing Saturday's loss.

With that news, there's a real shuffle on the offensive line depth chart. After redshirt junior Bryson Estes and redshirt freshman Andre' Otto each got some playing time during the second half of Saturday's loss (26 and 8 snaps, respectively), they are now listed as co-starters on the depth chart.

Estes is a co-starter at left guard alongside second-year Auburn transfer Keiondre Jones while Otto is a co-starter with Alabama transfer TJ Ferguson at right guard.

Norvell didn't pull punches when evaluating the performances of those units during his Monday press conference.

"Our guard play has not been as good as it needs to be. That's the reality of it..." Norvell said. "Those guys are going to push for opportunity and we've got to go get better."

These changes on the depth chart may not be reflective of changes on the actual depth chart. It's entirely possible some or all of the aforementioned veterans keep starting Saturday vs. Clemson.

But regardless of that, this feels like a step in the youth movement direction that the FSU fan base has been waiting weeks to see.

There was some discussion on here after week one from some wishing we still had Beaux this season. I was of the frame of mind that he’s already proven what he is. A decent receiver but not an alpha. I think what we are seeing from Wesco and TJ is indicative they can be true #1 guys. I’m personally glad Beaux isn’t here eating into their snaps. But serious question, does anyone feel like we’d be better off with Beaux still here? Again, not saying he’s a bad receiver, just that his presence would have harmed our ability to bring along the young guys. (Or maybe even take both of them!)

Stats below for reference (catches-yards-TDs):

Beaux 17-181-1

Wesco 7-238-2
Tonio 16-196-3
TJ 6-105-1
Cole 8-111-1
Randall 9-100-1

Brad Brownell and Clemson have received another top 100 commitment, this time from forward Chase Thompson of Alexandria, Minn.

Highlights from Florida State's practice this morning

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Just got this link from WNC Magazine - lots of options

Any recommendations for a probate attorney who will litagate in Charleston?TIA

Hope this trend continues this week.

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Just the facts.



For grid operators to intervene in a case asking the Supreme Court to remand regulations back to the agency is unprecedented. The operators' main argument is about the impact the EPA's rules will have on grid reliability.

By Kevin Killough
Published: September 29, 2024 10:35pm
Organizations that manage, coordinate and monitor electricity service for 156 million Americans across 30 states are warning that the Biden-Harris administration’s power plant rule will be catastrophic for the nation’s grid. Four regional trade organizations (RTO), as they’re called, recently filed an amicus brief, also known as a friend of the court brief, in support of a multi-state lawsuit against the EPA over the rule.
The EPA released the rules in April. They require coal-fired power plants that will be operating past 2039 to begin implementing carbon-capture technologies in just eight years. New gas-fired power plants will also need to add the technologies, with those operating 40% of their annual capacity or more to add carbon capture starting in 2032.
Isaac Orr and Mitch Rolling, co-founder and researchers with Always On Energy Research, performed an analysis on behalf of the North Dakota Transmission Authority on the impacts the rules would have on the Midcontinent Independent Systems Operator (MISO), an RTO that covers a swath of the center of the U.S.
The researchers say they found a number of problems. The EPA grossly overestimated the ability of intermittent wind and solar to deliver reliable electricity during peak demand periods, according to the analysis, and it also found the agency didn’t perform any reliability analysis on the rules. The result would be blackouts lasting days in some cases.
The RTOs’ amicus brief points out these same problems. It argues that the EPA’s timeline is too short. The requirements for compliance assume feasibility of carbon capture technology that has not been “adequately demonstrated,” the RTOs explain, and the rules would result in vast retirements of coal-fired power plants while preventing investments in baseload generators, such as natural gas-fired power plants, to replace the lost capacity. The RTOs also noted that the EPA performed no reliability operational assessments. Baseload generation refers to the minimum level of constant power supply that a utility or power grid must produce to meet the continuous and consistent demand for electricity.
“It would be absolutely devastating for the grid,” Rolling told Just the News.
Rolling and Orr reached out to several regulatory attorneys, and none of them were aware of another situation in which RTOs filed an amicus brief asking the court to remand regulations back to the agency. The fact the RTOs intervened in the case suggests that they are especially concerned about the rules.
Supporters of the rules, such as the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), argue the rules are necessary to achieve net-zero by 2050. The target is a key goal for anti-fossil fuel advocates, because they say it would limit global warming to 1.5 degree Celsius above pre-industrial levels. The criticisms the EPA’s rules have received suggest the goal isn’t achievable without serious threats to the reliability of the nation’s grid. Net zero means cutting carbon emissions to a small amount of residual emissions that can be absorbed and durably stored by nature and other carbon dioxide removal measures, leaving zero in the atmosphere.
Rolling said that many grid engineers and planners know that eliminating thermal units — coal- and gas-fired power plants — on the time scale that achieving net zero by 2050 would result in frequent and lasting blackouts. He said, however, there’s a reluctance to be too vocal about it. The industries that contribute to the U.S. electricity supply are interconnected, and there’s pressure to maintain harmony and cooperation, to not rock the boat so to speak, which is a feature of many industries and organizations.
“So they don't say things out in the open, that maybe they should,” Rolling said.
The 2019 blackouts in California, the deadly Texas blackouts in the 2021 Winter Storm Uri, and the Christmas 2022 blackouts in the Southeast, Rolling said, should have been a wakeup call for the country that there are growing risks to our electricity grid. So far, they haven’t deterred the net-zero by 2050 advocates from their agenda.
Rolling said that RTOs and utilities have traditionally been policy takers, as opposed to policy makers. This is leaving a lot of the policymaking up to people who are not as knowledgeable or concerned about the impacts policies can have on the nation’s electricity supply.
“At a certain point, you can't be policy takers. You have to get in the mix of policy. These are the people that know this best. They know their regions the best. They know what their system needs to maintain reliability, and the EPA should listen to them,” Rolling said.
So far, the EPA doesn’t appear to be willing to do that. In its response to the arguments of the plaintiffs, the EPA defended its rule and its authority to enact it. The agency defended carbon capture, pointing to projects the agency claims were successful, and insisted the technology is financially viable. Rolling said he’s talked to engineers that tell him the technology is still in its infancy, but the EPA is trying to force it into primetime.
“We're jumping off a cliff and we're hoping to create the parachute while we're in the air,” Rolling said.