And sidelined. Thats unacceptable. A student is under fire for hitting opposing players during a college bowl game. He could be kicked off the team for good today, tuesday december 30th, 2014. Good morning. Im savannah guthrie. Al is out in los angeles. Matt and natalie have the morning off. We have a lot to get to this morning. After three days, the airasia flight was located. Dozens of bodies have now been pulled from the java city. We are covering the story this morning. Katie, good morning to you. Reporter it is a tough day out here. Officials say they found wreckage and pulled about 40 bodies from the water. Relatives found out this news by watching live local television and seeing those bodies on air without any warning. There were 162 people on board this plane, that includes 17 kids and one baby. Overnight, indonesian officials confirmed the worse, having sighted debris and bodies in the water. Helicopter rescue teams were lowered into the java sea to recover wreckage. They also spotted a dark shadow under the water. Local tv showed pictures taken by the Indonesian Air force of brown and orange objects, ten in all, things that could be life vests and luggage according to officials. We should be able to locate it. The key now is to get everyone back to surabaya. Reporter meanwhile, loved ones were inconsolable. Acting on request, airasia charted a flight that will circle the islands so friends and family can pray over the area the plane lost contact. It will take off on wednesday, weather permitting. My heart bleeds for all the relatives of my crew and our passengers. Nothing is more important to us. The flight went missing sunday morning local time. Just 24 minutes and halfway into its journey. Seconds before it dropped off radar, pilots requested to fly at 38,000 feet to avoid bad weather, but their request was denied because of air traffic. Now, as it looks like a debris field has been spotted, investigators will begin to piece together how it all happened and if weather was in fact to blame. Even more bad news for airasia as after one of its flights overshot the landing in the philippines. This is still a search and rescue. Nbc news aviation analyst is a former ntsb investigator. Good morning. Good morning. What can we say now . They tell us this is the flight. Whats your best guess about what weve seen here . I thinkally the fact that we do have bodies and do have material from interior of the aircraft suggests that the fuselage broke up on impact with the water. Where did it come from, where did it originate from. We know what we have on the surface. Most of the images of the bodies weve seen, and we wont show them here this morning, show bodies with no life vests on. Do you read anything into that . I think its too early. It would suggest whatever happened is an event that didnt allow for preparation. The crew, pilots and flight attendants werent able to get the passengers prepared. This is probably a very unexpected event. What happens next . We know the waters here are relatively shallow. I think 160 feet at its deepest point. Whats the next step here in the investigation . I think theyre going to have to map all of the wreckage. Just because we have a concentration of debris doesnt suggest all of the debris is in that area. Theyre going to have to determine really how far this wreckage spread, how long its been disbursing and try and use it to backtrack. Despite all the data we may get from the black box and other sources, there are some things we will never know, including conversations that may have happened in the cockpit, about why the captain decided he needed to go to 38,000 feet, when there were six to 11 planes that flew through that same area. Any idea about why he may have decided to climb . I hope that theres a discussion between the captain and the first officer as to what their intent was, why they were defuating. We cant be guaranteed of that. A real question is, what did those other six flight crews know that the accident flight crew didnt know. Why didnt the accident flight crew have the same information and what was predicating their decision to climb . That was an arbitrary type altitude altitude. Hopefully those questions will be answered with conversation on the cvr. Lets hope we get answers in the days and weeks ahead. Thank you very much. All right. Weathers a big story here. Bitter cold gripping much of the country heading into new years eve. The Las Vegas Strip is preparing for a rare snowstorm. Al is out west this morning for us. What can we expect . Its kind of weird because were also talking about bitterly cold temperatures here in pasadena for new years day. Ay. It could be a record. Lets take a look at the other record cold coming across the country. Its not the polar vortex. Dont worry about that. Look at this. We have windchill advisories and warnings all the way from the Pacific Northwest into the upper midwest and down into texas. Temperatures right now are anywhere from 10 to 40 degrees below normal. 52 in memphis, two below in chicago. Those are current temperatures. Afternoon highs anywhere from 10 to 40 degrees below normal. Billings will be a high of 6. Minneapolis, 5. Thats 17 degrees below normal. On new years eve day those temperatures spread even further to the east to cleveland, as far south as dallas. Then were got this storm coming out of the west. Its a fast mover, thats the good news. But it is going to have its effects felt by thursday morning, new years morning. Some areas in the rockies could see one to 2 feet of snow. Las vegas, we are talking about a Winter Weather advisory in effect right now. 1 to 2 inches of snow. Consider, they have almost no snow clearing equipment. Wind gusts could be up to 30 Miles Per Hour. Greg gutierrez is there in las vegas getting ready. Yesterday, they got to a low of 32 degrees which broke a record. 381 days not going below freezing. Now they are bracing for a real Winter Weather situation. Reporter hi, al. Good morning. Sin city may be freezing over. As you mention, a couple inches of snow are expected, but its still a gamble how much the strip will actually see. Hundreds of thousands of tourists are expected to pack in here. Temperatures here have gotten a lot chillier. Although it does feel toastier than colorado. They are expecting recordbreaking cold. Temperatures just barely cracking zero degrees at this point. This is part of the arctic blast gripping part of the nation. On monday, we saw heavy snow and dicy roads in places like nebraska, iowa and montana. Here, snowfall is rare but not unheard of. Six years ago is when they had their last snowfall here and theyre preparing for it yet again. Im guessing the party wont be ruined ruined. Back to you. Probably not. They probably wont even notice it. They are warning folks to be very careful because the roads could become really treacherous. Lets look at whats going on as far as new years eve night. Most of the country going to be fairly dry. Then as we look at new years day, fairly dry. We are looking at icy conditions central texas. Look for wet weather, the Lower Mississippi river valley. The southwest still has snow. And lake effect snow still lingering around the great lakes. Were going to check that out and give you more about this really dangerous situation developing in the great lakes a little bit later. Were talking some areas looking at 2 feet of lakeeffect snow. Get to that in a little bit. Happy new year. Thank you so much. A highranking republican is dealing with fallout over a meeting he attended more than a decade ago. The representative of louisiana is under fire this morning for a speech he gave at a white supreme conference. Overnight, he acknowledged that he might have spoken at a Convention Held by white supremesists but says he was not aware of what the group stood for. He shot back saying, i didnt know who all of these groups were and i de test any kind of hate group. For anyone to suggest i was involved with a group like that is insulting. He says at the time he was making many appearances to oppose a local tax plan. I spoke to any group that called and there were a lot of groups calling. One of those groups that called was the european Rights Organization founded by david duke. His colleagues are speaking out on both sides of the issue. E vet clark called on House Speaker john boehner to conduct an investigation into the congressmans actions. While others are offering the highranking Member Support saying in a statement, im confident he absolutely rejects racism in all its forms. Meantime, Michael Grimm is calling it quits just days after pleading guilty to tax evasion. He admitted to underreporting receipts from a restaurant he managed between 2007 and 2010 and employing undocumented immigrants. Former president george h. W. Bush spent another night in the hospital, but doctors say his breathing has returned to normal. Jacob, good morning. Reporter that improvement in breathing the best news from doctors yet. But despite the daily positive updates, the former president remains hospitalized. Last night was his 7th night at houston methodist. If the past is any indication, well only learn the details of how serious the condition of the 90yearold oldest living president only after he returns home from the hospital. Italian officials still cant say how many more people may be missing from a greek ferry that caught fire. At least ten people were killed and more than 400 others were rescued. Some of the survivors arent included on the list suggesting they may have been traveling illegally. Firefighters were called to the crash scene where they found an suv in a canal. It was on its side in several feet of water. Rescuers cut out the windshield and cut out the driver to safety. And controversy this morning surrounding the actions of a student assistant football coach. Aggie student assistant Michael Richardson was caught on camera hitting a pair of West Virginia players. Richardson shoved one player in the second quarter. Just minutes later, he hits another player in the back of the helmet. When the head coach was made aware, he told the assistant to stay in the locker room during the second half. Someone said further action could follow. This was all over twitter. People were retweeting comments about it. Its shocking. Its a nationally televised games. The officials are standing there. Lets go back to al in pasadena. Actually, sa va na does that to us all the time. Come on. I said dont tell anyone. How many times on the way to the map does savannah give you a swat to the back of the head . Its a love tap. You only hurt the ones you love. Okay. Lets show you whats happening for today. Were talking about a descent about of sunshine in the northeast. Were looking at sunshine in the Pacific Northwest. Windy in Northern California today. And wet weather continues in central florida. Were going to get to your local forecast coming up in the next 30 seconds. Ok, well, good talk good morning. Im meteorologist christina loren. We have a Crystal Clear sky. Thats because of the wind which is just starting to pick up. Wind advisory in place for the entire bay area that will start at 7 00 a. M. And continue until tomorrow morning. 38 degrees, a wind chill factor on top of that in san jose. It is chilly this morning. It will stay nice and cool and this wind will crank up even more. Well start to see the temperatures ease as we head into the new year. Coming up well take a look at the lakeeffect snow situation going on around the great lakes. Savannah guys . All right, al. Well talk to you later. Two american soldiers who tied the knot in hawaii now have a story to tell as president obamas golf outing inging made them scramble to find a different outing. Chris jansing talked to them exclusively. Good morning. Reporter good morning. The golf course president obama plays the most when he is in hawaii. They always warn people planning events when hes in town expect lastminute schedule changes but neither the president nor two u. S. Army captains who got married there sunday expected that the commander in chief might become their wedding crasher. Newlyweds ed and natalie didnt mind when his cell phone rang right after their i dos. Ed and natalie . Hi. Hi mr. President. Both Army Captains their commander in chief phoned in some golf course diplomacy to make sure no one was teed off. Congratulations on your wedding. I feel terrible. Nobody told us. I hope the wedding went okay anyway. It did. Thank you very much. It was a blessing in disguise. It might not have seemed that way at first. Ed an avid golfer wanted to tie the knot at a tee with sweeping views over the pacific, near the base where theyre both stationed in hawaii. We knew two things could mess up the wedding. One was weather and the other was the president. Reporter so when the president decided to play you guys having fun . The couple got word they would have to move their ceremony. Reporter im sure his staffers didnt let him know there was a wedding. Reporter so you werent ready to yell at him . No. Absolutely not. Not at all. Reporter the headlines werent good for white house. Its not the first time that obamas love of golf he admitted his mistake after the beheading of hostage james foley. This photo tells the story of a uniquely memorable wedding. Unbelievable shocked and awed. Incredible. Reporter two west point grads on the phone with their boss. We were watching you golf. That must have been kind of painful. Reporter ed got to ask the president a question the white house wont ever answer. But the president did. He shot an 84. Could you beat him . Probably. Reporter ed is a five handicap. Im told thats really good. And he natalie both did tours in afghanistan. Change in venue wasnt about to throw them. And as west point grads, they both just went into Emergency Planning mode. No honeymoon for now. Many of the wedding guests are sticking around to celebrate the new year with the newlyweds in hawaii. Willie . Chris jansing in hawaii. Natalie and ed congratulations and, mr. President , you better get on that registry crate and barrel. Get them the blender. Exactly. Dylan is in for carson. He has tomorrow nights festivities, getting ready for those. Sometimes its hard to stay awake till midnight. Will you stay awake . Ill try. Its hard. Its also really hard for children to stay awake, too. Parents try to make it easier. 34 of parents admit to pretending that midnight happens a lot earlier than it actually does. Now netflix is trying to help parents pull off that trick. They have created this special threeminute countdown clip featuring the cartoon character king julian. Anyone with a netflix account can log on and start streaming this video. At what age do you let your child stay up for the new years eve countdown . Age doesnt matter says 82 of people. 10 say 9 to 12 years old. Yoly says if they can make it till 12 let them see the ball. Dmoni says im lucky if i can stay up. I might have to tap into that netflix account at about, i dont know 9 00 9 30 . I love that idea. Im going to roll that thing at 9 59. For yourself . Exactly. We had a countdown for the kids at 11 50 in the morning. Theyll never know with the sun out and everything. Am pm. Its kids dylan, thank you. Tragic accident in maryland. States first female bishop on administrative leave after being involved in a deadly hit and run crash. Will charges now be filed . Plus did you have a favorite . Most captivating photos of 2014 according to our friends at time magazine. Well take a look. First this is today on nbc. Coming up on trending break out the leg warmers and feel that burn. Why jane fonda is breathing new life into her famous workout videos more than 30 years later. Thank er behold, the subway steak egg white and cheese start your morning off right with juicy, sizzly steak stacked high with proteinpacked egg whites, melty cheese and whatever else you love, like jalapenos or spinach all on warm, toasty flatbread. Subway. Eat fresh. This is an allen family production. And heres why we love chex. One, we love choices like chocolate, vanilla and honey nut. Two, we dont love artificial colors or flavors. Does anybody . And three. Its gluten free. Chex. Full of what you love. Free of what you dont. Have you tried gluten free chex oatmeal and new chex granola mix . Two more delicious reasons to love chex. Good morning to you. It is 7 26. Im kris sanchez. Fire investigators spent the night at three scenes trying to figure out if a series of overnight car fires are connected. This all happened near the campbell, secret service border. This picture was tweeted out by the Fire Department the the minivan there was destroyed. And the Fire Department is also looking into those three fires and whether theyre connected into three suspicious fires in cars last week. Those fires happened in the same general part of san jose. Investigators tell us they believe the fires were intentionally set but as of last check, no one has been arrested. A south bay cold weather station will remain open all day today to help the homeless stay warm. Santa clara county has started its center to hope people stay warm. How long will this cold continue . It is going to be brutal, especially this time of day. Not only do we have the cold, were fact oororing in the wind chill as well this morning. 38 in santa rosa 40s in San Francisco by tonight those numbers drop into the 30s. This wind is going to crank. We have a wind advisory in place for the entire bay area. Started at 7 00 a. M. , it will remain until tomorrow afternoon. Well gradually warm you up as we get into next week. Lets check with mike for your drive out there. The bay bridge toll plaza is not the problem but the wind is. I told you about almost a dozen cars reported on the shoulder at one point, as well as concrete across the roadway. All lanes are cleared, 580 is clear and so is the rest of the bay. Back to you guys. We have more local news and traffic coming up for you in just a half hour. We are back at 7 30, tuesday morning, 30th of december, 2014. Memorable photos of the past 12 months. Remember that . The president reading where the wild things are to the School Children at the white house. What made times list of images of the year . Well talk about that. Im partial to the jeter shot. For yankee fans its all about the jeter. Lets look at headlines from this morning. Wreckage from airasia flight 8501 and the bodies of several passengers have now been recovered from the java sea. The plane crashed sunday morning