This week on the Double-A Zone:

• Should athletics departments test for nicotine? We often hear about athletics departments and professional teams testing their athletes for performance-enhancing drugs. But have you ever heard of a school investigating its student-athletes for nicotine? As far as we know, Dowling College, a Division II school in New York, is the only school in the country trying to smoke out the smokers. The athletics department has actually been conducting the tests since 2005, and approximately one-third of the school's student-athletes get tested each year. If the results are positive for nicotine, the punishments can vary from enrolling in a non-smoking program to having the student's aid canceled.
• A report about perceived gender-equity barriers in college coaching and administration found that 51.7 percent of female student-athletes said they would prefer their coach to be a male. Only 40.7 percent said they would prefer their coach be a female. The reasons for the male preference are likely varied and individualized, but nonetheless surprising. Why do women prefer to follow male coaches?
• This past weekend in Division I FBS football, high-octane offenses seemed to be a common theme around the nation. Six quarterbacks threw for at least 430 yards – Western Michigan’s Tim Hiller, Oklahoma's Sam Bradford, Southern Mississippi’s Austin Davis, Texas Tech’s Graham Harrell, Rice’s Chase Clement and Tulsa’s David Johnson. Despite the impressive performances, offensive production has been down this year compared to the high numbers from 2007. This season, 38 teams are averaging over 30 points per game and 400 yards of total offense. In the entire 2007 season, 47 schools averaged more than 30 points a game with 55 offensive squads accumulating over 400 yards per game. How can you explain these numbers?
• The Great Lakes Valley Conference and the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference served up a volleyball buffet ever over the weekend of October 16-17 with 39 cross-over matches in two days in Indianapolis. Though the GLIAC won more matches than their GLVC rivals in this first annual event, the big winner was Division II. As the division re-invents itself around community engagement, game environment and regionalization, the GLIAC-GLVC volleyball tournament fired on all cylinders, offering highly competitive action in a festival-like atmosphere (seven matches going at a time) and a collaborative spirit between two conferences that otherwise compete for regional spots in the postseason.  Should DII offer more opportunities like these?