High winds, dry conditions and low humidity are the perfect mix for fires, but the northerly-winds predicted by the national weather service were a godsend to firefighters on Monday in Rogers. About 50 acres of grassland caught on fire and moved quickly across fields after gusts of 17-20 mph hit Central Texas ahead of a cold front.

BELTON - A 50-acre brush fire between Shanklin Road and Loop 121 Monday came within 30 feet of a nearby propane tank and home. Teresa Ross said she was running errands at 11 a.m. when her teenage son Andrew called from home and said, “Mom, we have a situation.”

When it comes to the top local stories of 2007, Telegram readers could definitely stand the weather news: Snow on Easter Sunday and flooding during a six-month record amount of rain topped results in a poll on the newspaper´s Web site. People were given the choice of 25 stories culled out by Telegram staff and allowed to vote for their top 10, with room for comments at the end.

With parts of the country reeling from a housing bubble that popped like a balloon hovering too close to the birthday candles, local real estate agents are optimistic that residential and business sales in Bell County will hold firm because of the area´s diverse economy and strategic location. Terri Covington, owner of Covington Real Estate in Belton, said 2007 “was a little slower than expected … some properties didn´t move as quickly as we´d hoped.”

WASHINGTON - A deeply unsettled nation takes the first step this week in choosing a president to confront a world of challenges that have flummoxed the current administration and undermined Americans´ confidence in government. In Iowa´s snowy cities and villages, Republican and Democratic activists on Thursday will begin winnowing the candidates who have put themselves forward as best able to end war in Iraq, avert recession at home, heal partisan wounds and combat global warming that threatens the planet.

NASA grudgingly released some results Monday from an $11.3 million federal air safety study it previously withheld from the public over concerns it would upset travelers and hurt airline profits. The data reflects hundreds of cases where pilots flew too close to other planes, plunged from altitude or landed at airports without clearance. NASA published the findings - contained in 16,208 pages - but did not provide a roadmap to understand them, making it cumbersome for any thorough analysis by outsiders. Released on New Year´s Eve, the unprecedented research conducted over nearly four years relates to safety problems identified by some 25,000 commercial pilots and more than 4,000 private pilots interviewed by telephone.

BELTON - Hoping to get on a roll prior to re-entering American Southwest Conference play, Mary Hardin-Baylor orchestrated one of its most complete performances of the season. UMHB shot a season-best 43.4 percent from the field and played stingy defense for long stretches as the Lady Crusaders put away the Austin College Kangaroos 63-52 Monday afternoon at Mayborn Campus Center.

IRVING - Wade Phillips figures a lack of motivation is all that´s been wrong with the Dallas Cowboys lately. Once the playoffs start, he´s certain they will snap back to form. To the form that started 5-0. To the form that had them 12-1. To the form that finished 13-3, tying the best in club history.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The Gator Bowl story line goes like this: Texas Tech and its pass-happy and potent offense against Virginia, with its do-just-enough-to-win approach. For the Cavaliers, this is also about respect. Somehow, the No. 21 team in the country, which finished 9-3 in a feisty ACC, is about a six-point underdog against unranked Texas Tech (8-4) today.

ATLANTA (AP) - Auburn showed off more than a new offense Monday night. Auburn also found a new quarterback.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Andre Woodson threw four touchdown passes against a depleted Florida State defense and Kentucky won its second straight Music City Bowl, beating the Seminoles 35-28 on Monday for Bobby Bowden´s first bowl loss in December. Kentucky hadn´t ended back-to-back seasons with bowl wins since 1951-52 under Bear Bryant, but the Wildcats pulled off the feat in Nashville one year after surprising Clemson, coached by Bowden´s son, Tommy.

FORT WORTH - DeSean Jackson and Robert Jordan returned from their first-quarter benchings and caught touchdown passes to help California rally from a three-TD deficit and beat Air Force 42-36 in the Armed Forces Bowl on Monday. California (7-6), ranked No. 2 in the nation in October before losing six of seven games, managed to finish with its sixth straight winning season.