No matter what happens the rest of his college football career, Auburn freshman Alonzo Horton will be a happy man.

For more than two weeks, Horton thought that two younger brothers had drowned in New Orleans in the flooding from Hurricane Katrina.

His teammates and his coaches tried their best to console him, but they were hurting almost as much as Horton.

Then on Sunday night, a single phone call turned into an answered prayer. A family member told Horton he should call another cousin.

That cousin, in Houston, told Horton that his brothers Jerry, 8, and Delorean, 6, were alive and in Houston with Horton's father.

"I can't explain how it felt," Horton said of hearing the news.

Horton returned to practice last Tuesday after several days of grieving. He said he has a different outlook on life.

"It's going to strengthen my relationship with a lot of people," he said. "Life is too short, and you don't know what's going to happen."

And for my next trick ...

Wherever ESPN's ESPY awards are handed out next year, Alabama receiver Tyrone Prothro should start booking his reservations now. Prothro's 42-yard catch late in the first half of Alabama's 30-21 victory over Southern Miss on Saturday was one of those plays you can watch over and over and still not figure out how he did it. Prothro, face to face with rover Jasper Faulk, reached around Faulk's neck and caught the ball like a center fielder, with his back to home plate, chasing down a long drive. As Prothro and Faulk fell to the ground and somersaulted, Prothro still held on to the ball at the USM 1, setting up a 'Bama TD. "Like everyone else, I was like 'How in the world did I do it?' Prothro said. "I was just going up and making a play." ... If there was any doubt that JaMarcus Russell isn't LSU's best quarterback, it was certainly erased on his fourth-and-10, 39-yard game-winning TD pass to Early Doucet in the Tigers' 35-31 victory at Arizona State on Saturday. Russell was basically looking for an open receiver to get a first down, but when he had to scramble away from the pass rush, it bought time for Doucet to break free from two defenders. "We worked on the scramble drill all week," Doucet said. "I got open, and JaMarcus was out of the pocket so I came back to the other side of the field until he could find me." Simple as that. ... There's a lot of grumbling in Fayetteville after the Hogs lost to Vanderbilt, 28-24. For the second straight week, Arkansas coach Houston Nutt bypassed a field goal in favor of a fourth-down gamble. Against Vanderbilt, Nutt went for it on fourth-and-2 rather than let placekicker Chris Balseiro try a 40-yard field goal. Running back Peyton Hillis was dropped for a 2-yard loss. ... How bad does Auburn's offense miss NFL first-round draft choices Cadillac Williams, Ronnie Brown and Jason Campbell. Last year after the first two games, the 2-0 Tigers had outscored their opponents a combined 74-14, using a running game that had produced 477 yards. So far this season, the 1-1 Tigers have outscored foes by 42-23, rushing for just 168 yards.