By DAN WOLKEN, Scripps Howard News Service

He swaggered through Mississippi with the force of a revolution, clanking cowbells and slinging arrows like a man who knew he was about to single-handedly swing the state's balance of football power from "The School Up North," as he would refer to it, to Starkville.

And now, Dan Mullen could be as good as gone.

Used to be, you had to wait for the entire bracket to come out before the first complaint was registered. In the world of Twitter, however, it only took about two minutes after his team's name popped up Sunday before Tennessee coach Bruce Pearl was quoted by Mike Griffith of the Knoxville News-Sentinel.

For an entire month, the singular focus of Josh Pastner's preparation was getting the University of Memphis ready to play Jackson State in the regular-season opener last Friday night.

It remains to be seen whether the University of Memphis will have the best team at the NCAA West Regional this week in Glendale, Ariz. But when it comes to playing -- literally and figuratively -- on the big stage of the Sweet 16, the Tigers are miles ahead of the competition.

The reputation was formed long ago, almost as soon as this version of the University of Memphis basketball team took the court.

The reputation was formed long ago, almost as soon as this version of the University of Memphis basketball team took the court.

SAN ANTONIO -- Backup point guard Andre Allen was suspended Wednesday from the University of Memphis basketball team and did not make the trip to San Antonio for the Final Four.Upon arrival at the team hotel, coach John Calipari said Allen was suspended for violating team rules and declined to elaborate. WREG-TV reported Wednesday night that Allen's suspension was drug-related.

University of Memphis athletic director R.C. Johnson said Sunday he didn't expect any repercussions either for Alabama-Birmingham or Tiger basketball players following an ugly post-game fracas that nearly turned violent Saturday night at Bartow Arena.