41.   Notre Dame benefited from the alliance system two seasons ago when the Irish received a Fiesta Bowl bid while several other teams were considerably more deserving.

42.   Not everyone was so sure after all that USC would receive a bid to the National Invitation Tournament.

43.   OU is headed for a fourth consecutive NCAA berth and Nebraska is likely to receive a bid.

44.   People close to the transaction said the city hopes to receive several bids by the end of March.

45.   Shares of the eighth-largest credit card company surged in recent weeks after receiving bids from several potential buyers.

46.   So far, seven regional companies in England and Wales have received bids, including four hostile ones.

47.   Since receiving the bids, the Red Sox have declined to comment on any aspect of the sale process.

48.   Syracuse did not receive a bid to the NCAA tournament after a first-round loss to Villanova in the Big East tournament.

49.   The bid was received by telephone.