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When the Super Bowl kicks off this Sunday, Ralph Cindrich will be watching two of his clients’ battle for the Lombardi Trophy.

Long time client, Jeff Saturday, will take his usual spot at Center anchoring the Colts offensive line and allowing Peyton Manning to work his magic.  Prior to the season, Cindrich was able to negotiate a new three year deal making Saturday one of the highest paid Centers.  Saturday has spent his entire 11 year career with the Colts and won his first world championship in Super Bowl XLI when the Colts beat the Bears.

On the other side line, Saints Offensive Tackle and Special Teamer, Zach Strief, will be gunning for his first Super Bowl ring.  Since the Saints selected Strief in the 2006 draft, he’s played in 57 games, including all games the past three seasons.  When asked who he was rooting for, Cindrich remarked that he doesn’t play favorites; he wants to see a hard fought game by both clients.

“If they didn’t match up to scholarship requirements, coaches would make them go through the gauntlet until (they went) down,” said Cindrich, a sports agent who played linebacker at Pitt and in the NFL in the early 1970s. “Why did they do that? If someone quits, they give up their scholarship.”

What was acceptable behavior decades ago has become grounds for dismissal, as the conduct of coaches has come to the forefront of college football with the firings of Mark Mangino by Kansas, Mike Leach by Texas Tech and Jim Leavitt by South Florida in the past several weeks following allegations of emotional, mental and physical abuse.

The most stunning development is that all three were prominent coaches at BCS programs. Mangino and Leach are former recipients of national coach of the year honors, while Leavitt was the only coach in the 13-year history of USF football.

Mangino was fired Dec. 3 amid allegations that he was verbally abusive and forced one player to do bear crawls on scorching artificial turf that caused third-degree burns on his hands.

Leach was let go Dec. 30 after being accused of forcing a player suffering concussion-like symptoms to stand in a shed during practice.

Leavitt was dismissed Jan. 8, not so much for striking a player at halftime of the Louisville game but trying to cover it up.

“Shoot, when I was in high school, we did bear crawls all the time,” said Bill Fralic, the former Penn Hills and Pitt All-America tackle who spent eight seasons in the NFL. “I used to get paddled all the time, too, in grade school. I don’t think you can do that anymore.

“I’m sure it was hell, because I’ve been through some of that stuff. But toughness carries you through at the end of the day. With that stuff, you can win a lot of football games with mediocre talent.

“I didn’t want to go through it, but I was forced to. I think society has gotten softer.”

Which begs this question: Where is the line drawn between motivation and humiliation, and when do college football coaches cross it?

“I just wonder how much of this has gone on over the years under the disguise of motivation and mentoring,” said Dennis Dodd, a national college football analyst for CBS Sports. “You can put a lot of false labels on this stuff. When it comes down to it, it’s still humiliation of a player and mistreatment.

“These (coaches) have all the power. I don’t see the reason to do this stuff. It’s a power trip and a character flaw.

“I think something significant is happening here, that we’ve seen three of these in (just over) a month. I wonder if any teams are going to bring in someone from the university to say: ‘This is what you can’t do.’ ”

While NCAA guidelines outline principles for institutional control, student-athlete well-being and sportsmanship and ethical conduct, the onus of responsibility is on each institution to ensure appropriate behavior.

Cindrich doesn’t expect schools to be extremely specific, in part because it takes away some of the leverage they have over coaches with lucrative long-term contracts by having a vague out-clause written into the deal.

Mangino had four years left on a $9.2 million extension. Leach had four years remaining on a $12.7 million deal. And Leavitt was in the second year of a seven-year, $12.6 million extension. Where Mangino reached a $3 million settlement with Kansas, Leach and Leavitt have filed suit against their respective universities to challenge that there was cause for firing.

“If someone is looking to run someone out of town, that is a good way of doing it,” said Cindrich, whose clientele includes college and pro coaches. “It’s too easy of a way to get rid of someone.”

That could be the case for Leach and Texas Tech, as his firing was prompted by the furor caused after he ordered sophomore receiver Adam James, the son of ESPN college football analyst Craig James, to stay in a dark room during practice after Adam complained of concussion-like symptoms.

That football-related concussions are a hot-button topic only made matters worse, but high school football coaches Terry Smith of Gateway and Bill Cherpak of Thomas Jefferson also believe the reaction to the Texas Tech case shows the sense of entitlement belonging to today’s athletes.

“(The abuse is) not near as bad as it used to be,” said Smith, who played at Gateway and Penn State. “In today’s society, not as much is tolerated. I can remember being coached and called names and pushed and shoved and kicked and grabbed by the facemask, but it was tolerated then.

“That’s part of what’s wrong in society today. Kids are growing up with no respect for authority and no fear of authority. You look at the Texas Tech incident. Craig James has some influence and used it.”

Smith recalled being stunned at a prospect camp when a college position coach berated one of Smith’s players with profane language during a drill. Surprisingly enough, the player still signed to play at that coach’s school and had a productive college career.

Even so, Smith warns his players not to choose a school if they don’t like those types of motivational tactics.

“The mental side, that’s sometimes worse than being hit,” Smith said. “You hear: ‘You’re stupid’ enough, for a young, fragile mind, that might not go over too well.

“If you know their reputation, you’ve got to tell your player: ‘Here’s their coaching style. If you can handle this, then this is an option. If you can’t handle it, you’ve got to take them off your list.’

“Don’t get there and think something is going to change.”

Pretty depressing, isn’t it? Can I get you a Kleenex?

Since 1999, Saturday has felt only one man’s supple hands under his ample backside — at least that’s the prevailing rumor — and it’s Peyton Manning. It would have seemed like some kind of a cosmic betrayal if Manning tomorrow was taking snaps from, say, Jamey Richard.

I only bring up this nightmare scenario because it almost happened. Saturday and the Colts came this close to parting ways last winter. After turning down a contract proposal that wasn’t to his liking, Saturday was just days short of entering free agency and doing something he really didn’t want to do: leave Indianapolis.

Everything changed, though, in late February when the salary cap was fortuitously increased by $4 million. On Feb. 26, Saturday signed a three-year, $13.3 million contract that included a $7.45 million signing bonus.

How close was he to leaving?

“Real close,” Saturday said this week. “The way it was presented to me, if that extra cap space hadn’t become available, there wasn’t going to be an agreement. It was that close. I never wanted to leave. I’ve always wanted to finish my career here. But it almost happened.”

In fact, Saturday prepared his family — his wife, Karen, and three kids (ages 9, 7 and 3) — for the possibility they would soon be moving. He didn’t want to go, but business is business. A paycheck is a paycheck.

“I don’t think there is any question that Peyton (Manning) came in and said, ‘Get it done,’ ” said Ralph Cindrich, Saturday’s Pittsburgh-based representative. “You look at (Manning’s) stats when Jeff was out, and it was worse looking at the film.”

When asked about the role he played in Saturday’s return, Manning was a bit uncomfortable and circumspect. He doesn’t want anybody to think he’s one of those mega-stars who moonlights as a general manager and tells management how to do its business.

He has power — shoot, he should have power and they should seek his input — but if Manning were truly the master puppeteer, the Colts would be shooting for 17-0 on Saturday night.

ESPN.com

Unrestricted free agent center Seth McKinney, who started all but three games for the Miami Dolphins over the last two seasons, has signed a two-year contract to remain with the team.

McKinney

The retention of McKinney is a key move by the Dolphins as coach Nick Saban and offensive line assistant Hudson Houck continue to address a unit that was a problem area in 2005. Last week, the Dolphins signed seven-year veteran left tackle L.J. Shelton, who started all 16 games for the Cleveland Browns last season. Miami continues to consider other free agent players as well.

McKinney’s contract will pay him $1.5 million in 2006, with a $915,000 signing bonus and base salary of $585,000. To retain McKinney in 2007, Miami must pay him a spring roster bonus of $2.5 million, and he has a base salary of $1 million for that year.

In the first two weeks of free agency, McKinney drew interest from New Orleans and Houston. He visited with officials from the Texans, where his older brother, Steve McKinney, is a starting guard, but ramped up negotiations with the Dolphins shortly after that.

By keeping McKinney, the Dolphins essentially addressed another offensive line spot, because it means that two-year veteran Rex Hadnot, an emerging young player, can remain at guard. Hadnot, who started all 16 games in 2005 and impressed the coaches, moved to center for the final three games of the season, when McKinney was forced onto injured reserve by a knee injury.

McKinney, 26, is a smart, tenacious player, with the kind of temperament you want at center. He continues to improve and his performance should get even better as the Dolphins solidify the guard spots.

The former Texas A&M standout was a third-round choice in the 2002 draft. He started only five games in his first two seasons, then moved into the lineup full-time in 2004. Until he went on injured reserve last December, he had not missed a game to injury during his NFL career, appearing in 61 straight contests.

Len Pasquarelli is a senior NFL writer for ESPN.com.

BY ASSOCIATED PRESS

Brian Griese agreed to a five-year deal with the Chicago Bears on Tuesday, adding depth behind Rex Grossman at quarterback.

The 31-year-old Griese completed 112-of-174 passes for 1,136 yards and led Tampa Bay to a 5-1 start last year before a season-ending knee injury. The Buccaneers decided to waive him this month rather than pay a $2.6 million roster bonus.

Griese has passed for 16,344 yards and 103 touchdowns in eight seasons with Denver, Miami and Tampa Bay.

The Bears have said they are committed to Rex Grossman as their starter, but Griese has started 72 of 75 games in his career.

After tearing the ACL in his right knee early in the 2004 season, Grossman broke his left ankle in the preseason and missed the first 13 games. Chad Hutchinson flopped, and rookie Kyle Orton began the season as the starting quarterback.

Behind a defense that was ranked No. 1 for much of the season, a strong offensive line and effective running game, the Bears went 11-5 and reached the playoffs for the first time since 2001.

Grossman’s numbers– 20-of-39 passing for 259 yards in two games– weren’t overwhelming, but the passing game opened up when he returned.

Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.