In San Francisco, wild-eyed head coach Mike Singletary replaced innovative offensive coordinator Mike Martz with journeyman coach Jimmy Raye.

This topic came up during a town hall meeting with season ticket holders.

“Just watch,” Singletary said, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. “If you look on paper, I wouldn’t get excited about Jimmy Raye over Mike Martz, either, because of what Mike Martz has done . . . But just watch . . . I challenge you to step back and see what happens right for the 49ers now.”

The content of those remarks wasn’t exciting, but his delivery impressed the fans. The Chronicle noted that Singletary summed up his philosophy by saying “Physical with an F!”

That got people going.

“When I look around the NFL, I’m amazed by how many people have a dream and how few have a vision,” he said.

A vision, he said, “captures the imagination. A vision is something that consumes you like a fire, won’t let you eat, won’t let you sleep until that vision comes to pass.”

OK then.

BARRY’S MAN FRUIT ON TRIAL

Some aspects of Barry Bonds‘ steroid-related perjury trial are going to be most unpleasant.

MAYBE DALE JR. SHOULD CALL HIM

Here is a new concept: A NASCAR driving coach.

BIZARRE INJURY OF WEEK

The Cleveland Plain Dealer brought us this update on big man Ben Wallace:

The Cavaliers said the veteran forward suffered multiple lacerations on his right forearm from broken glass while playing catch with a football over All-Star Weekend in Richmond, Va. The team said Wallace needed 14 stitches in Richmond and then got another procedure to remove additional glass pieces Tuesday at the Cleveland Clinic.

Somebody please send Wallace a leather football for future use.

DOWN GOES BANGO!

The Milwaukee Bucks mascot needed surgical knee repairs after this mishap. So it’ll be a while before leaps off a trampoline to dunk a basketball.

MYSTERIES OF THE UNIVERSE

Questions to ponder while wondering if Joel Pineiro will recover from his WBC heartbreak:

• How did Illinois score just 33 points against Penn State? Didn’t the Illini score 33 points in about 10 minutes against Mizzou?
• Isn’t it great to see forward Barry Eberhardt answer the Rick Majerus challenge in conference play? Where would the Billikens be without his 74 points in the last six A-10 games?
• On the other hand, could anybody have imagined Tommie Liddell would score just four points in 31 minutes against St. Joseph’s this late into his college career?
• Will Ken Griffey Jr. enjoy a fruitful return to Seattle? Or will he celebrate by tearing several muscles and spending the year on the disabled list?

QUIPS ‘R US

Here is what some of America’s leading sports pundits have been writing:

Mark Kriegel, FoxSports.com, on A-Rod: “There is one way - only one way - for Rodriguez to gentle his reputation. It’s not enough to merely win another MVP award. In fact, in this case, the regular season is of no consequence. The inevitable confusion between victory and virtue gives A-Rod one way out. He shouldn’t need a White House flack or Madonna’s manager to tell him that he needs a great October. Nothing else will do.”

Jeff Schultz, Atlanta Journal-Constitution: “The Falcons announced they would try to trade Michael Vick. Really? And what’s next week’s announcement? That Jamal Anderson won’t be the gatekeeper for the team’s pharmaceutical closet? The Falcons/Vick divorce has been obvious for months. So has the fact that he is not tradable because: 1) His remaining contract could double the national debt; 2) Roger Goodell hasn’t said when he’ll lift the suspension; 3) Teams don’t trade for guys who have been sitting in jail without knowing his state of mind of the condition of his legs; 4) duh.”

Greg Cote, Miami Herald: “Heartwarming story when Stump, a 10-year-old Sussex spaniel, became the oldest dog to win Best in Show at the Westminster Kennel Club. Steroids? I’m not saying. I’m just asking.”

Mike Lupica, New York Daily News: “It was announced this week that David Beckham will be returning to the Galaxy and here’s my questions on that: Who’s the Galaxy? And when did Beckham leave?”

MEGAPHONE

“In the early ’90s, the federal government came into pro wrestling and tried to put Vince McMahon in prison for steroid use of wrestlers. My question is: They’ve now determined 104 baseball players failed their steroid test in 2003 - 104! They indicted Vince McMahon, why aren’t they indicting Bud Selig?”

Former Minnesota Gov. Jesse “The Mind” Ventura, talking steroids with “Your Turn.”

ELSEWHERE ON STLTODAY.COM:

We urged Joel Pineiro to get over his WBC snub and prove himself on the mound. Fans didn’t want to hear his whining after watching his mediocre work last season. Also, we took a look at how good that Cards batting order would look if Skip Schumaker can actually handle second base defensively. Hockey Guy liked the progress the Blues are making on defense.