ESPN College Football

Posted by ESPN.com's Adam Rittenberg

Happy hump day to all. Bowl season is right around the corner -- the first Big Ten bowl doesn't arrive until Dec. 27 -- and several teams are conducting media days this week. Exciting times.

Let's see what's happening around the league. 

• The Tostitos Fiesta Bowl likely will be Chris "Beanie" Wells' final game in an Ohio State uniform, while six other Buckeyes juniors are checking in with the NFL to gauge their draft status, Ken Gordon writes in The Columbus Dispatch. 

"[Jim] Tressel said that six underclassmen had filed paperwork with the NFL to get a report of their likely draft status. The list: receiver Brian Hartline, safeties Kurt Coleman and Anderson Russell, tight end Jake Ballard, guard Jim Cordle and cornerback Donald Washington.

And Wells?

'Beanie didn't need to fill out the paperwork,' Tressel said. 'I told him to save the transcript, save the paper.'"

• Northwestern running back Tyrell Sutton practiced Tuesday for the first time since dislocating his wrist on Oct. 25 and hopes to return for the Valero Alamo Bowl, Shannon Ryan writes in the Chicago Tribune. 
• Joe Paterno's new contract takes him through 2011, but the coaching legend will be at Penn State for as long as he likes, Phil Sheridan writes in the Philadelphia Inquirer.
  

"The bottom line is that Joe Paterno was Penn State football, Joe Paterno is Penn State football and Joe Paterno will be Penn State football until he gets tired of it."

• Scott Shafer took the fall for Michigan's struggles on defense this season, but Rich Rodriguez and the offense shouldn't be absolved of blame, Krista Jahnke blogs in the Detroit Free Press.  
• Ohio State defensive end Nathan Williams pleaded not guilty to shoplifting after telling reporters he took the blame for a friend with previous legal trouble. If convicted, Williams could face up to six months in jail.
  
• Michigan State draws motivation from being the underdog heading into its Capital One Bowl matchup with the Bulldogs of Georgia, Shannon Shelton writes in the Detroit Free Press.