In today's show, Jon and Vinny talk Lakers and their deep (and dreamy) bench, how the Celtics and the Heat match up, the woeful Clippers and their full-of-potential Blake Griffin, the tragedy that is USC and UCLA football, Notre Dame's desire to snap their eight-game losing streak against USC, the Norm Chow-Rick Neuheisel situation, the UCLA basketball team (Vinny likes!), UCLA basketball Coach Ben Howland's changing methods, and finally, Derek Jeter and the New York Yankees' contractual dance.

Listen to the show by clicking the play button above, downloading the MP3, or subscribing to the feed via iTunes or your favorite RSS-driven application at the JV Show blog.

"The JV Show" is produced and engineered by Jon Gold and Steven Rosenberg. Theme music by J.Foxx.

For their 20th show, Daily News sportswriters Jon Gold — on the way to UCLA's basketball opener vs. CSUN in Westwood — and Vinny Bonsignore — in the parking lot before Notre Dame vs. Crespi in football at Notre Dame 0in Sherman Oaks — discuss the following:

• High school football: The Marmonte League — what does it mean for competition in Southern California?

• College football: The Cam Newton scandal at Auburn. Is it business as usual, and is the media using too many anonymous sources?

• Now that the Lakers' season-opening streak has ended, how is the team positioned for the rest of the season? Vinny thinks a team that wins every game will be too spent for the postseason.

• Are there too many egos at play on the Miami Heat floor?

• College football: Can USC deal with Arizona's defense?

• The NFL: Can new coach Jason Garrett bring the Dallas Cowboys back from the dead?

• UCLA's basketball season starts tonight vs. CSUN in Westwood. Has Bruins coach Ben Howland righted the ship?
  

Listen to the show by clicking the play button above, downloading the MP3, or subscribing to the feed via iTunes or your favorite RSS-driven application at the JV Show blog.

"The JV Show" is produced and engineered by Jon Gold and Steven Rosenberg. Theme music by J.Foxx.

On today's show Jon and Vinny return in their remodeled studio with a new rap theme song and their take on:

• The Lakers vs. Miami
• The Clippers vs. themselves
• Not one but TWO NFL teams for L.A.
• The mysteries of Minnesota
• Tragedy at Notre Dame
• The Auburn QB controversy
• The Pac-12 schedule for USC and UCLA

Listen to the show by clicking the play button above, downloading the MP3, or subscribing to the feed via iTunes or your favorite RSS-driven application at the JV Show blog.

"The JV Show" is produced and engineered by Jon Gold and Steven Rosenberg. Theme music by J.Foxx.

In today's "JV Show," Daily News staff writer Jon Gold is up North for Saturday's UCLA-Cal game, and Daily News sports columnist Vinny Bonsignore is in the friendly confines of ... chez Vinny to bat around this week's topics:

• Amazing pitching performances in the Major League Baseball postseason

• Would Derek Jeter be a great player without a great team?

• Baseball is driven by statistics and is a 162+ game marathon for its players, yet the baseball postseason is overshadowed by the Minnesota Vikings' trade in the NFL

• Does baseball need an instant replay?

• Turning to college football, Vinny says he can't call the USC vs. Stanford game, but USC should take it

• Jon also thinks USC has a chance to win

• The Pac-10 has caught up to USC, which needs to recruit a good kicker

• In this regard, USC coach Lane Kiffin isn't up to the job, says Jon

• You can't win football games without a kicker, says Vinny

• Jon heard a rumor: USC didn't not offer kicker Kai Forbath a scholarship; and as a Bruin, Forbath has been "near perfect" for UCLA

• UCLA hasn't won at Cal since 1998, but this game is a must-win for UCLA, says Vinny, who claims the Bruins are a better team and should beat Cal

• But there's no way UCLA can beat Oregon, says Jon

• Vinny isn't saying UCLA will beat Oregon, but they have to beat Cal and step up and win some big games

• Jon thinks the energy level in practice, if high, translates to wins for UCLA, and this week's practice has been high-energy

• Turning to the NFL, in the New England-Minnesota trade, the Vikings get "the top deep threat in the game" in Randy Moss, says Jon, in what he describes as "a baffling trade"

• There will be a new "JV Show" theme next week — complete with rap

Listen to today's podcast by clicking the play button above, downloading the MP3 directly, or going to the podcast home page and subscribing to the feeds for iTunes or your favorite podcast-listening application.

"The JV Show" is produced and engineered by Jon Gold and Steven Rosenberg. Theme music by Matt Evans.

Today's JV Show With Jon Gold and Vinny Bonsignore goes from a debate on the strength of the Pac-10 to the NFL's Michael Vick — and whether racism is a factor in people's perception of his return to the league, all the way to the dismal Dodgers and Angels' seasons and why we should give the Lakers' Andrew Bynum a break.

Among today's topics:

• UCLA takes it to the Texas Longhorns.

• Vinny thinks the Pac-10 is college football's second-best conference, and that Oregon, Stanford — or any unbeaten team — can go all the way to a national championship.

• Jon thinks Ohio State or Alabama have a better chance of prevailing.

• Jon is a huge fan of the Philadelphia Eagles' QBMichael Vick, even though he knows many despise him.

• Vinny points out that Vick, who pleaded guilty to federal charges related to a dog-fighting ring, spent more time in jail because he lied.

• Jon thinks the Pittsburgh Stealers' QB Ben Roethlisberger — accused of sexual assault and suspended by the NFL for the start of this season but not charged criminally — will be forgiven by the public while Vick won't. He thinks it's a combination of the race factor (Vick is black, Roethlisberger is white) and the fact that Americans really,really don't like to see pets mistreated.

• Jon and Vinny talk about the general state of the NFL, including the Atlanta vs. New Orleans game and Kansas City's status as the only 3-0 team in the AFC West.

• Turning to baseball and the Dodgers, everyone wants this dismal season to just end already, says Vinny.

• With the Lakers gearing up for the NBA season, Andrew Bynum is missing from camp while recovering from knee surgery and won't be ready to play until November. Jon and Vin think people are being too hard on Bynum.

• Vinny asks, who had a worse year, the Angels or the Dodgers?

• The Dodgers have more sheer talent than the Angels, says Vinny.

• Talent means nothing, says Jon, who says the Angels at least have manager Mike Scioscia.

• The Dodgers' Matt Kemp had a bad season, but he's young, says Vinny. Jon thinks Kemp is "trending down."

Listen to today's podcast by clicking the play button above, downloading the MP3 directly, or going to the podcast home page and subscribing to the feeds for iTunes or your favorite podcast-listening application.

"The JV Show" is produced and engineered by Jon Gold and Steven Rosenberg. Theme music by Matt Evans.

Daily News staff writers Jon Gold and Vinny Bonsignore recorded today's episode in Vinny's Austin, Texas, hotel room in the run-up to Saturday's UCLA vs. Texas game.

Among the highlights of today's show:

• Vinny says Austin is "a college football cathedral"

• They run into a ton of UCLA fans

• They are working on a story about the Austin football scene.

• Austin has a small-town feel — a community atmosphere that rallies around the Longhorns' football and basketball programs

• Austin is the state capital and is heavily into politics, music and sports

• Does Vinny really have a Neil Young tattoo?

• Jon and Vinny met a fan celebrating his bachelor party with group of UCLA fans in Austin ... but he's already married

• Turning to the NBA, the Carmelo Anthony trade to the New Jersey Nets looks like a good fit, says Jon

• Do players really want to "return home," LeBron style?

• In a two-on-two game, who would win in the Jordan-Bonsignore vs. LeBron-Gold matchup?

• Extended talk about the state of the NBA and the Lakers

• In the NFL, what about the Vikings? Brett Favre is a little beat up right now, says Vinny

• A look at the power rankings in the NFL

• Is Jimmy Clauson ready for the Carolina Panthers? Vinny says yes, Jon doesn't like "the Clauson face"

• In Major League Baseball, Now that Manny Ramirez is with the White Sox, how's he looking?

• Vinny says the Dodgers aren't a team where a manager gets his start. No offense to Don Mattingly, but he hasn't been a manager before

• It's high drama in Austin as Jon loses his wallet ... Jon and Vin look everywhere — stay tuned for the exciting conclusion

Listen to today's podcast by clicking the play button above, downloading the MP3 directly, or going to the podcast home page and subscribing to the feeds for iTunes or your favorite podcast-listening application.

"The JV Show" is produced and engineered by Jon Gold and Steven Rosenberg. Theme music by Matt Evans.

In today's show, Daily News Staff Writers Jon Gold and Vinny Bonsignore discuss:

• Joe Torre is out, Don Mattingly in as Dodger manager

• USC's Reggie Bush returns his Heisman Trophy

• Malaise in the UCLA football program: Where's the passion?

• What kind of Dodgers owner do we need?

• Who would star in a Dodgers movie about the McCourt years?

• Predictions for USC vs. Minnesota

• Will the NFL's Vikings move to L.A.?

Listen to today's podcast by clicking the play button above, downloading the MP3 directly, or going to the podcast home page and subscribing to the feeds for iTunes or your favorite podcast-listening application.

"The JV Show" is produced and engineered by Jon Gold and Steven Rosenberg. Theme music by Matt Evans.

In today's episode, Daily News sports writers Jon Gold and Vinny Bonsignore talk about the following:

• If you're playing for or coaching USC and UCLA, you just have to go for it and do what it takes to win

• It's a great weekend for coolege football; Vinny is TiVoing 3 games

• UCLA will wear red on their uniforms in remembrance of 9/11

• NFL — it's here

• Jon bases everything in the NFL on his fantasy-football picks, Vinny hates that and thinks real fans need to root for a real team

• Jon likes the Denver Broncos, but he still has fantasy considerations

• Jon is looking forward to the Indianapolis vs. Houston game

• Vinny is going to Minnesota for next week's USC game, and while he's there he will be looking into a possible move to L.A. by his beloved Vikings

• Shifting to baseball, what's going in with the Giants and the Padres as far as National League West dominance goes?

• The incredible rise of Bud Selig from car salesman to Milkwaukee to baseball commissioner

• Jon likes the wildcard race in baseball; Vinny, usually "a purist," also likes the wildcard

• With a 69-72 record, where do the Dodgers go from here? The ownership issue overshadows everything

• Vinny: The Dodgers have better talent than the Padres, but they don't win; Manny Ramirez was their power hitter with a great half-season ... Jon still hates Manny

• Who's going to be the Dodgers' owner and manager?

• Vinny says the Giants and Padres aren't world-beaters by any stretch of the imagination

• Turning to the Lakers, they are "functional," as opposed to the dysfunctional Dodgers, but what's going on with the Matt Barnes domestic-violence allegations? Vinny says its hard to comment when you don't know all the facts

• This Sunday, Vinny will be watching Cowboys vs. Redskins

• Jon wonders why Vinny doesn't watch "Entourage," and Vinny knows why Jon doesn't watch "Caillou" (hint: it's a kids' show)

• Jon interviews Stanford's Owen Marecic, fullback/linebacker and Geico Caveman

Listen to today's podcast by clicking the play button above, downloading the MP3 directly, or going to the podcast home page and subscribing to the feeds for iTunes or your favorite podcast-listening application.

"The JV Show" is produced and engineered by Jon Gold and Steven Rosenberg. Theme music by Matt Evans.

In today's show, Daily News staff writers Jon Gold and Vinny Bonsignore discuss:

• USC and UCLA football

• Are we glad to see Manny Ramirez in our rear-view mirror?

• The two Matts: Barkley and Leinart

• Jon's exclusive interview with USC and WNBA great Lisa Leslie

To listen to today's podcast, click the play button above, download the MP3 directly, or go to the JV Show home page for links to subscribe in iTunes or via RSS in your favorite podcatching application.

"The JV Show" is produced and engineered by Jon Gold and Steven Rosenberg. Theme music by Matt Evans.