The bye week is a perfect time to rest, relax and recover, so we'll keep this edition of Saturday Scorecard on the lighter side. You'll thank us nine days from now, when your legs are fresh and it's easier to stay up until the end of the Monday night game in Denver.

On to the notes, with no MSG added (it is Dining Month, after all):

Good cause: Pre-season games are a necessary evil in pro sports. What's more evil is the fact that teams charge big bucks for meaningless practice games. We suspend skepticism for the 31st annual MACC Fund game. The Bucks play the Timberwolves tonight at the Bradley Center and proceeds benefit Midwest Athletes Against Childhood Cancer.

Tickets are available and we encourage you to attend if possible. You can get a preview of what the Bucks will look like this season and help a great cause.

Reality check: Nobody expected the Packers to be 5-1 at this point in the season. Did you ever, in your wildest dreams, imagine that you'd be worried about the ramifications of an injury to tight end Bubba Franks? There were times last year when we wondered if he was still on the team.

Author, author! After reading some interesting nuggets from Deanna Favre's book, "Don't Bet Against Me," particularly those about the troubles in her marriage to Packers quarterback, we wonder if Brett Favre will write a tell-all book someday about his personal problems. Rumor has it that a couple writers are working on unauthorized biographies. If we had to guess now, the author of the "official" version, if one ever materializes, will be Sports Illustrated's Peter King.

Deanna Favre, by the way, will be signing her book before the Admirals game Wednesday night at the Bradley Center.

Comeback kids: Although buried beneath training camp stories of Yi Jianlian's assimilation and Charlie Bell's reluctant (and petulant) acceptance of his five-year, $18 million contract, the progress of Bobby Simmons and Charlie Villanueva are hugely important to the Bucks success early this season.

Unfair advantage: The University of Wisconsin men's hockey team defeated Robert Morris, 7-2, Friday night at the Kohl Center. He must have been really tired afterward. (Just kidding, Colonials fans).

Say it ain't so, Joe: Yankees fans were prepared for the ouster of manager Joe Torre, but nobody seems too happy about the manner in which it happened. Team president Randy Levine and owner George Steinbrenner's sons made Torre an offer - a one-year, incentive laden contract - that they knew he'd refuse and walked away from the "bargaining" session with palms up and a "Hey, he turned us down" manner.

Nobody believes that.

Torre is a class act. He handled the unique pressures of that job as well as anybody could. But, you can't blame the Yankees brass for wanting to make a change. Torre had the Yankees in the playoffs every year, but that organization holds itself to a higher standard. Steinbrenner, who long resented Torre's gigantic salary and the amount of credit the manager received from fans and media, wanted to fire Torre after the monumental playoff collapse against Boston in 2004 but was talked out of it by the members of his inner circle. Maybe that was the first sign that George was losing his edge. With him out of the day-to-day operations and Torre out of the dugout, the Yankees truly are a team in transition.

Next step? Although Torre made it clear that he wants to manage again, we wouldn't be surprised to see him spend a season in the broadcast booth / studio. Either that or he could spend time campaigning for his pal, Rudy Giuliani.

Going south: Marquette fans understandably are bummed that Chicago prep standout Iman Shumpert chose Georgia Tech. The bright side? One of the primary reasons Shumpert pointed to in explaining his decision was playing time.

High school stars want to come in and play right away because most of them, if honest, think of college as a one- or two-year stop on the road to NBA riches.

Surprise, surprise: In a pair of transactions that may or may not have been related, former ESPN TV / radio star Dan Patrick, who recently launched his own syndicated radio show, formed an alliance with Sports Illustrated just as star columnist Rick Reilly left his prime real estate on the back page.

Patrick will write for the magazine and the SI.com Web site, which will host his radio show and blog. He'll also host the TV presentation of SI's "Sportsman of the Year" award show. We're not sure where Reilly will end up. He has a movie project in production, which could lead to more work in Hollywood, but don't bet against the gang in Bristol, Conn.

No surprise: The Brewers severed ties with third baseman Corey Koskie, who missed last season while recovering from a concussion he suffered in 2006. With Koskie and Tony Graffanino out of the picture, perhaps the Brewers will consider bringing Jeff Cirillo back for another season. Cirillo, who made the playoffs with Arizona this season, would like to finish his career as a Brewer.

Bumpy ride: The charter plane carrying USC's football team experienced major turbulence during a severe thunderstorm Thursday night. It was the first time in awhile that an opponent has been scared traveling into South Bend.