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The 2010 N.C. Shrine Bowl Combines will be held April 17 (at
Matthews Butler High School), April 24 (at Boone Watauga High School),
May 1 (at Eastern Alamance High School) and May 8 (at South Central
High School).

Andy McCollum, who had coached linebackers for three seasons at N.C. State, is leaving to join Georgia Tech’s staff.

Pending formal approval by the school, McCollum will serve as defensive line coach and recruiting coordinator for the Yellow Jackets.

McCollum, 50, grew up in Marietta, Ga., where his father still lives. He had recruited Georgia for N.C. State.

The Great Schools in Wake Coalition is organizing a trio of meetings to build community support for saving the school diversity policy.

In a press release Monday, the group announced a pair of February neighborhood forums "to educate the public about critical issues facing our schools." But the biggest event could be a March forum that will include Bill McNeal, Gerald Grant, Richard Kahlenberg and Caroline Massengill.

The first forum will be on Feb. 18 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at St. Matthews AME Church, 1629 Bennett St. in Raleigh. The speakers will include retired educator Dudley Flood, Margaret Rose Murray and Wake County Commissioner Lindy Brown.

DURHAM Raleigh and Durham, along with several other jurisdictions, have reached a meeting of the minds on Falls Lake.

While their respective city councils and county commissioners have yet to sign off, officials of 11 Triangle-area governments approved a set of "concensus principles" for the state's program for cleaning up the polluted reservoir at a Tuesday meeting at the Triangle J Council of Governments.

"The managers of Raleigh, Durham city and Durham County, the lawyers representing [them] ... all agree with the guiding principles," said Raleigh City Manager Russell Allen. "We are prepared to recommend them to our boards."

The 12 principles prescribe measures to bring water quality at Raleigh’s intake to acceptable standards within 10 years, and for ongoing water-quality monitoring in the lake and its tributaries and revisions to the cleanup regulations if data indicates they are needed.

“It's a lot of give and take,” said Durham County manager Mike Ruffin. “I think we feel about as good about it as we can feel. We've done what's best for the watershed, we found consensus on what we can work [on] together.”

CHAPEL HILL — North Carolina coach Roy Williams said the retirement of Tyler Hansbrough's No. 50 jersey would be "off the charts" if the 13-10 Tar Heels were playing better. But he knows the official ceremony, which will take place at halftime of Wednesday's game against Duke, will be "fantastic."

"One of these days, when I'm sitting back in my golf cart and waiting for my time to tee it up, I'm going to think about how special it was to coach Tyler Hansbrough,'' Williams said. "I'm going to think of how lucky I was to coach Tyler Hansbrough. I'm going to think of how effective he was for our team; because he set the standard. We had the national championship in 2005, so he didn't have to legitimize our program again or anything like that, but he set a standard for four years for everybody that stepped out on the court.

"And even some of his own teammates -- no, all of his teammates, at some time -- were in awe of what he did. And that's pretty neat."

The 5-feet-by-8-feet banner commemorating his jersey was already in the rafters for Tuesday's practice. It is only the eighth number to be retired.

After playing in the shadow of the Smith Center's retired jerseys and meeting the men who wore them, Tyler Hansbrough can't wait to join them tomorrow.

"I'm really excited just to come back," he said Tuesday from Indianapolis. "It's a big deal for me just to be there. Everybody who wore those jerseys, I watched them all and I have a great deal of respect for them. For me to be in that category is something I take pride in."

Here are upcoming food events, cooking classes, wine dinners and more around the Triangle: 

Edible Arrangements Ribbon Cutting
Please join the Fayetteville-Cumberland County Chamber of Commerce in welcoming Edible Arrangements to our community. 10 a.m. Wednesday. Free. Edible Arrangements, 7737 Good Middling Road, Fayetteville. (910) 484-4242. http://www.fayettevillencchamber.org 
Rhone Valley Wine Course
This course is designed to give a better understanding of the wines from this region as well as the special methods used in making them. 7:30 p.m. Thursdays in February. Wine Merchant, 1214 Ridge Rd., Raleigh. 828-6929.
Chocolate and Champagne tasting
Please join us at our chocolate and champagne tasting fundraiser to benefit the animals of Second Chance Pet Adoptions. Experience the decadent pleasures of all things chocolate, then pamper your taste buds with complimentary sparkling champagne and enjoy an evening of music, fun and the accompaniment of our adoptable cats and dogs. 7:30 p.m. Friday. $15. Second Chance Pet Adoptions, 6003 Chapel Hill Road, Raleigh. 801-3230. www.secondchancenc.org/

Deon Thompson doesn't leave his apartment unless it's absolutely necessary anymore.

North Carolina's recent struggles (seven losses in the last nine games) have been so traumatic Thompson spoke Tuesday of isolating himself.

"I don't even go out of the house," Thompson told reporters Tuesday during North Carolina's news conference to preview Wednesday night's home game against Duke.

View Triangle potholes, 2010 edition in a larger map

Suddenly, we have a pothole epidemic.

Have you hit a bad one? Here's what you should do about it:

1) Share your pothole story with me. E-mail me (bruce.siceloff@newsobserver.com) or leave me a message at 919-829-4527. Please include details on the pothole location, what it did to you and your car, and your daytime contact info.

2) Report your pothole to city and NCDOT road crews so they can fix it. They'll thank you for your call. See call-it-in info below.

3) Pinpoint your pothole on our collaborative Google map, "Triangle Potholes, 2010 Edition." Click the map link or go here for instructions. Be sure to include details in your description.

CALL IT IN:

Here's how to call or e-mail your pothole problem to the people we pay to fix it. ... [MORE]