HOT CELEBRITY

Beyoncé and Taylor Swift were each other's cheerleaders at this year's MTV Video Music Awards, but it was revealed late Wednesday that they'll be duking it out Jan. 31 at the Grammy Awards.

Beyoncé and Swift respectively earned 10 and eight nominations, including song, record and album of the year. Swift's nemesis Kanye West, nouveau soul man Maxwell and the Black Eyed Peas each received six, while Beyoncé's husband, Jay-Z, French DJ David Guetta and provocateuse Lady Gaga earned five apiece.

For the second year, contenders were announced on The Grammy Nominations Concert Live!! – Countdown to Music's Biggest Night, a CBS special featuring celebrity presenters and live performances.

This year's show, broadcast from Los Angeles' Club Nokia, was hosted by veteran rapper LL Cool J, who got the party started with a cheeky medley, accompanying video and audio clips of nominees with referential rhymes. "My tailor's too swift for y'all," he rapped at one point.

Other album-of-the-year nominees are the Dave Matthews Band, the Peas and Gaga; the Peas, Gaga and the rock band Kings of Leon round out the record category. Additional song nods went to Gaga, Maxwell and Kings of Leon.

"It was clear what the juggernauts were this year, and they dominated," says former Vibe and Spin editor Alan Light. As for omissions, Light was surprised that Whitney Houston's celebrated comeback album I Look to You was shut out, though less shocked that U2's acclaimed No Line on the Horizon was relegated to the rock categories: "(Horizon) was a lesser event."

Wednesday's performers included the Peas, who delivered their driving single I Gotta FeelingMichael Jackson's The Lady in My Life, while country duo Sugarland got into the holiday spirit, singing Coming Homebefore a cone-shaped array of lights designed to resemble a Christmas tree. with a little help from Guetta and video clips of giddy fans, among them Adam Lambert and Timbaland. Maxwell crooned

The youngest Jonas Brother made his first public appearance with his new side project, Nick Jonas & The Administration. Introduced by Nick's big brothers Kevin and Joe, the group performed the chugging rocker Who I Am.

The awards will air live on CBS.

WHEELING - Weirton Madonna and Man have different stories coming into Saturday's 7:30 p.m. West Virginia Class A title game at Wheeling Island Stadium.

The Blue Dons have gotten over the proverbial hump with a victory against Wheeling Central and are looking to legitimize themselves as a power.

The Hillbillies are making their first title game trip since 1984, getting back to the game after years of rebuilding from numerous down years.

The experience factor favors Weirton Madonna, but don't think for one second coach Bob Kramer is going to take anything for granted.

''(Man) is a very good football team and they are precise in what they do,'' Kramer said. ''They like to run the football, go double-tight I with a flanker most of the time and run right at us. They have good size and good technique with their blocking.

''They have good quickness in the backfield and their quarterback is very shifty, very elusive. Their tailbacks, they use two or three, they all have good speed and are hard to bring down. They have a big fullback, about 5-foot-9, 5-10, that is a good lead blocker a lot like (Lou) Comis. They like to play smashmouth football.''

Weirton Madonna and Man have met before on the football field - a Blue Dons' victory in 2004 on their way to the championship game.

That is about all the teams know about each other. Separated by 4 hours and nearly 250 miles, the teams don't play each other and common opponents are a rarity.

But both have reached the same destination -Wheeling Island Stadium - and are sure to put on a good show in the Super Six finale.

''The kids are like me, we don't really know what to expect,'' Man coach Harvey Arms said. ''All we know is that we have to get ready to play a football game. We can't get too caught up in the excitement.

''We are going to try and have a normal practice and schedule everything like we would normally do. We know Madonna is a pretty good football team and they beat Wheeling Central convincingly. We have to find a way to break down their defense and put some points on the board.''

The Hillbillies will try to do that with old-fashioned smashmouth football.

''We don't do anything too fancy, we have mostly a ground game but we like to run it at you and run it at you hard,'' Arms said. ''We play a strong defense and we are aggressive.''

Man is led by a strong class of seniors in all the key positions.

Three-year starters Emmanuel Gibson and Tyler Dunigon anchor the offensive and defensive lines.

Ryan Crum is the quarterback, a dual threat that is as solid with his arm as he is with his legs.

Joining Crum in the backfield are Brandon Plymale (1,047 yards, 12 touchdowns) and Andrew Hale (504 yards, seven TDs) at tailback, and Michael Lomax at fullback. Evan Riggins and Jeremy Hatfield are the leading receivers.

''They are very good at what they do and we have to shut down their running game,'' Kramer said. ''They don't throw frequently. They don't like to throw the ball but they can. They are a lot like us.

''Their bread and butter, though, is running the football straight at you and saying 'Here we come, stop us.' It will be a challenge for our defense.''

That Blue Dons defense has been more than up to the challenge this season.

Comis is the captain of the unit and his presence has been a major factor in the Weirton Madonna success. Along with Connor Arlia, Grant Weaver, Nick Nero, and a just about everyone on the roster, the Blue Dons have taken pride in being one of the top defenses anywhere.

Quarterback Max Nogay is a born leader and one of the finest athletes in the state.

When the game is tight, the ball is almost always in Nogay's hands. With a strong line blocking and backs leading the way, Nogay has rushed for more than 1,000 yards this season and thrown for nearly that much.

A loaded backfield that also consists of Comis, Arlia, Jim Deter, and A.J. Klein is also at Kramer's disposal.

Add in the experience factor from playing in last season's title game and Weirton Madonna will likely be one of the more focused teams the Super Six has ever seen.

''They were in the semis two years ago and the final last year so I don't think they will get too caught up in the excitement and that is always a problem,'' Kramer said. ''They know they have another week of football and that's how they look at it. They have another game to play Saturday night and they have to go down and play the best they can. That's all anybody can expect them to do.

''Any time you are playing for a state title, you have to be excited. It's something they've dreamt about and worked real hard toward. It's a fitting reward for the work they put in and the years they've put in.''

Being the underdog doesn't bother Arms too much.

''It takes some of the pressure off but it doesn't make too much of a difference,'' he said. ''We know it's going to be a tough game, but we feel we can play with anybody in the state. Football is always about not turning the ball over and not letting penalties effect your drives or help their drives.

''This is a great group of kids and I expect them to leave it all on the field.''

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Oprah Winfrey's new cable network will feature the media queen in a big way, but fans should not expect her to reprise the talk show that made her famous over the past 25 years, said the CEO of Discovery Communications Inc.

Winfrey will end her reigning daytime broadcast TV talk show in September 2011, and focus on her new Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN), which is 50 percent owned by Discovery.

"That's chapter one. That chapter is ending," Discovery Chief Executive David Zaslav said at the Reuters Global Media Summit in New York on Wednesday. "She will not be doing that show."

Zaslav said Winfrey is already spending significant time on the network and is involved in "all the creative decisions."

He said OWN will feature her in many ways following its launch in 2011, though he did not say what those would be. Initially, the network will be available in at least 80 million homes.

"She'll be on in a meaningful way, with different types of shows, with different types of voices, with a lot of different creativity, but all of it will be different from her show and it will be what she wants to do," he said.

Discovery stands to be perhaps the biggest beneficiary of Winfrey's announcement last month that she plans to pull the plug on her popular TV show.

Walt Disney Co's ABC, which currently carries her show, has not decided how to replace her.

"It's a big win for the cable industry and for us that Oprah will, after September 2011, be available primarily on OWN," Zaslav said. "OWN will really feel the strength of her creativity and presence."

Discovery Communications already owns some of the most popular networks on cable TV, including the flagship Discovery Channel, with hits like "MythBusters" and "Shark Week." In all, Discovery runs over 100 networks in 170 countries.

The hottest couple in Hollywood is still going strong, according to the beautiful Angelina Jolie while doing an interview with OK! magazine.

Jolie said that Brad is an amazing father to their children and that she found “the right person.”

The actress gushed about Pitt, telling of the wonderful person he is and great actor. And he isn’t all serious and businesslike all the time. “He’s extremely down-to-earth, goofy and funny. People know very little about him, and when it comes to where his morals are, how he is with people, what he cares about and what he’s learned about, he is very aware.”

But being the most watched couple must be hard to find time together. The former Mr and Mrs. Smith star says they just do it and work on it. “I met the right person and I don’t’ like being without him,” she says.

Meanwhile, she’s juggling being a mother and a famous actress, but she knows what is most important to her. “I help where I can. I raise my kids with a lot of love and make sure they grow into the individuals they were born to be.”