College Football - Football Betting

2005-10-30T18:10:00.000-08:00

Minnesota Golden Gophers

Oct. 29---College Football---
Ohio State 45 ... Minnesota 31---College Football---
Antonio Pittman ran for 186 yards and two touchdowns and Santonio Holmes caught touchdown passes from 41 and four yards out as Ohio State rolled up 578 yards of total offense in the shootout. Minnesota gained 188 rushing yards with a one-yard touchdown run from Laurence Maroney and two from Gary Russell, but the passing game was more effective with Bryan Cupito throwing for 396 yards with a touchdown pass Jared Ellerson. Ted Ginn Jr. answered the Maroney touchdown run with a kickoff return for a score.
Player of the game: Ohio State RB Antonio Pittman ran 23 times for 186 yards and two touchdowns. ---College Football---
Stat Leaders: Minnesota - Passing: Bryan Cupito, 26-35, 396 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Laurence Maroney, 25-127, 1 TD. Receiving: Jared Ellerson, 5-113, 1 TD
Ohio State - Passing: Troy Smith, 14-20, 233 yds, 3 TD---College Football---
Rushing: Antonio Pittman, 23-186, 2 TD, Receiving: Santonio Holmes, 4-94, 2 TD
What to take away from this game: There's no shame in losing to Ohio State, but now the pressure is on to not get down and blow its chance at a winning season and a bowl game against Indiana next week. Bryan Cupito showed he can be an effective playmaker throwing the ball as well as well as he ever had, but the defense couldn't come up with a big stop, the D line didn't hold up against the physical Buckeye front five, and the secondary couldn't stay with the Buckeye receivers. There has to be a big worry about giving up big yards to balanced offenses with Michigan State coming up in two weeks. ---College Football---
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Oct. 15
Wisconsin 38 ... Minnesota 34---College Football---
Wisconsin took advantage of a dropped snap to block a punt for a touchdown with :30 to play for an improbable win. Down 34-24 with just over two minutes to play, the Badgers got a 21-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Williams, and then the defense held forcing the Gopher punt on fourth and one. The ending overshadowed a brilliant day from the Gopher running game, which ran for 411 yards, led by Laurence Maroney, who ran for 258 yards highlighted by a thrilling 93-yard touchdown. The two teams traded scores all game long with Gary Russell running for two scores for the Gophers and Wisconsin's Brian Calhoun scoring on three runs. ---College Football---
Player of the game: Wisconsin RB Brian Calhoun ran 23 times for 110 yards and three touchdowns and caught three passes for 29 yards. ---College Football---
Stat Leaders: Minnesota - Passing: Tony Mortensen, 7-17, 99 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Laurence Maroney, 43-258, 1 TD. Receiving: Logan Payne, 2-24
Wisconsin - Passing: John Stocco, 15-26, 235 yds, 1 TD---College Football---
Rushing: Brian Calhoun, 12-110, 3 TD. Receiving: Brandon Williams, 7-121, 1 TD
What to take away from this game: Minnesota wins a heartbreaker, and then loses in even more painful fashion to Wisconsin. Some will second guess head coach Glen Mason for not going for it on fourth and one instead of punting on the ill-fated play, but that would've conceded a field goal and overtime. The offensive line played a near-perfect game keeping the pressure off QB Tony Mortensen and blowing open huge holes for the running game. With Ohio State coming into town next week, the team has to quickly bounce-back mentally. A big season can quickly go into the tank and become a losing one with Ohio State, at Indiana, Michigan State, and at Iowa ahead.---College Football---
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Oct. 8---College Football---
Minnesota 23 ... Michigan 20---College Football---
Minnesota won the Little Brown Jug for the first time since 1986 when Jason Giannini hit a 30-yard field goal with one second to go capitalizing on a Gary Russell 61-yard run to get into position. Michigan only gained 249 yards of total offense, but got a kickoff return for a touchdown from Steve Breaston and a one-yard touchdown run from Mike Hart for a 20-13 lead. But Laurence Maroney capped off a 13-play drive with a one yard score, and the Gophers were able to finish the upset with a 75-yard drive in eight plays. ---College Football---
Player of the game: Minnesota RBs Laurence Maroney and Gary Russell combined for 257 yards and a touchdown on 52 carries. ---College Football---
Stat Leaders: Minnesota - Passing: Bryan Cupito, 11-23, 139 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Laurence Maroney, 36-129, 1 TD. Receiving: Ernie Wheelwright, 3-44, 1 TD
Michigan - Passing: Chad Henne, 14-29, 155 yds---College Football---
Rushing: Mike Hart, 28-109, 1 TD. Receiving: Jason Avant, 6-73---College Football---
What to take away from this game: Oh those wacky Gophers. If they had played half as physical against Penn State as they did against Michigan, they might still be unbeaten. The offensive line was outstanding against Michigan not allowing much pressure on the quarterbacks, while generating the running game paving the way for two, 100-yard rushers. Bryan Cupito didn't have a good game before he got knocked out, but he didn't make any killer mistakes.---College Football---
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Oct. 1---College Football---
Penn State 44 ... Minnesota 14---College Football---
Penn State got hot and stayed hot jumping out to a 20-0 first half lead helped by two Derrick Williams touchdown runs and to Kevin Kelly field goals. Minnesota got some momentum back late with a 48-yard touchdown catch from Ernie Wheelwright, but the Penn State running game put an end to any drama finishing with two short Tony Hunt touchdown runs for a 37-7 lead going into the fourth quarter. The Nittany Lions outran Minnesota 364 yards to 113. Minnesota's Laurence Maroney was held to 48 yards on 16 carries.
Player of the game: Penn State QB Michael Robinson completed 13 of 32 passes for 175 yards and ran 18 times for 112 yards, and set the tone with a bruising second quarter run that knocked out Minnesota defender Brandon Owens.---College Football---
Stat Leaders: Minnesota - Passing: Bryan Cupito, 16-28, 174 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Gary Russell, 8-53. Receiving: Jakari Wallace, 5-63---College Football---
Penn State - Passing: Michael Robinson, 13-32, 175 yds---College Football---
Rushing: Tony Hunt, 21-114, 2 TD. Receiving: Deon Butler, 6-83---College Football---
What to take away from this game: After a brutal, ugly loss like this one to Penn State, the key will be for Glen Mason not to let his team go into the tank next week against Michigan. This was a loss that took away Minnesota's manhood with the Nittany Lion ground game crushing the Gophers, but this has to be forgotten now or else the next three games (at Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio State) will take a promising season and put it in the tank. Can the ground game rebound at Michigan? Yes, but only if the defense helps the cause by playing like it did against Purdue and not like it did this week.---College Football---
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Sept. 24---College Football---
Minnesota 42 ... Purdue 35 2OT ---College Football---
Minnesota's Gary Russell ran for a three-yard touchdown in the second overtime, and then the defense held knocking away a fourth down pas to come up with a gut-check win. Down 21-20 late in the fourth, Gopher QB Bryan Cupito threw an interception to Dan Bick for a touchdown, but the Gophers responded with a 12-play, 65-yard drive culminating with an eight-yard touchdown pass to Matt Spaeth, followed up by a successful two-point conversion run from Cupito on the option. Purdue scored first in the extra time with a five-yard run from Kory Sheets, but Minnesota answered with an eight-yard touchdown pass to Logan Payne. Russell scored three times for the Gophers; Brandon Kirsch threw two touchdown passes for the Boilermakers.---College Football---
Player of the game: Minnesota RB Laurence Maroney ran 46 times for 217 yards and caught five passes for 59 yards.---College Football---
Stat Leaders: Purdue - Passing: Brandon Kirsch, 15-34, 246 yds, 2 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Kory Sheets, 10-101, 1 TD. Receiving: Charles Davis, 5-110, 1 TD
Minnesota - Passing: Bryan Cupito, 22-35, 271 yds, 3 TD, 3 INT---College Football---
Rushing: Laurence Maroney, 46-217. Receiving: Laurence Maroney, 5-59
What to take away from this game: The Gophers could've easily folded several times against the Boilermakers. QB Bryan Cupito didn't have a great game, but he came through with a great drive to tie the game after his awful pick-six. That's the kind of mental toughness this team has lacked in recent years. Also give credit to the defense that was tremendous on third downs and never let Purdue get into a rhythm. Boilermaker RB Jerod Void only ran for 26 yards. Of course, Laurence Maroney was the star with his ability to carry the workload handling the ball a total of 51 times. Hopefully, Gary Russell's three touchdowns don't take away from Maroney's Heisman stats.---College Football---
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Sept. 17---College Football---
Minnesota 46 ... Florida Atlantic 7 ---College Football---
Minnesota rolled up 349 rushing yards helped by 145 from Laurence Maroney, who ran for two touchdowns and scored a third time on a 37-yard pass play. Garry Russell added touchdown runs of 47 and 30 yards, and Jared Ellerson caught a 56-yard touchdown pass as the Gophers rolled up a 40-0 lead in the first half. Florida Atlantic could only manage a short touchdown run late in the third.---College Football---
Player of the game: Minnesota RB Laurence Maroney ran 20 times for 145 yards and two touchdowns and caught three passes for 55 yards and a score. ---College Football---
Stat Leaders: Florida Atlantic - Passing: Danny Embick, 11-24, 131 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Charles Pierre, 8-25. Receiving: Thomas Parker, 3-46---College Football---
Minnesota - Passing: Bryan Cupito, 10-17, 230 yds, 2 TD---College Football---
Rushing: Laurence Maroney, 20-145, 2 TD. Receiving: Logan Payne, 4-78---College Football---
What to take away from this game: Minnesota is ready. The passing game finally showed a little bit of efficiency, the defense completely stymied the Florida Atlantic offense, and the running game was its usual amazing self. Now it's time to play a big-time team, and in comes Purdue. Minnesota will have to prove it can hold up well against the Boilermaker balance, and QB Bryan Cupito must maintain his poise under a fierce pass rush. He did fine against FAU.
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Sept. 10---College Football---
Minnesota 56 ... Colorado State 24 ---College Football---
Minnesota went up 22-3 helped by two Laurence Maroney touchdown runs. Colorado State started to come back on a 33-yard touchdown pass to Dustin Osborn, but the Gophers put it away in the second half with 27 straight points highlighted by a brilliant 28-yard touchdown run from Gary Russell and a 54-yard scoring pass to Jared Ellerson. The Gophers outrushed the Rams 355 yards to 59. ---College Football---
Player of the game: Minnesota RB Laurence Maroney ran 26 times for 133 yards and two touchdowns. ---College Football---
Stat Leaders: Colorado State - Passing: Justin Holland, 12-23, 211 yds, 1 TD
Rushing: Caleb Hanie, 6-20. Receiving: Dustin Osborn, 7-102, 3 TD---College Football---
Minnesota - Passing: Bryan Cupito, 9-21, 159 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT---College Football---
Rushing: Laurence Maroney, 26-133, 2 TD. Receiving: Logan Payne, 3-51
What to take away from this game: Time to nitpick. It's hard to argue too much after rushing for 355 yards, but the passing game should've been far more effective against Colorado State. Bryan Cupito took several shots down the field, but couldn't connect enough to make the Rams fear the passing game. This will have to be worked out against Florida Atlantic before dealing with Purdue in two weeks. ---College Football---
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Sept. 1---College Football---
Minnesota 41 ... Tulsa 10---College Football---
Laurence Maroney ran for a 63-yard touchdown run on his first carry and added a 73-yard scoring run on Minnesota's third drive on the way to a 203-yard day. Tulsa was able to manage a good fourth quarter drive culminating in a four yard deflected touchdown catch by Ryan Bugg, but the Gophers answered with two Gary Russell touchdown runs. Minnesota QB Bryan Cupito threw a one-yard touchdown pass to Ernie Wheelwright five five seconds left in the first half. ---College Football---
Player of the game: Minnesota RB Laurence Maroney ran 21 times for 203 yards and two touchdowns. ---College Football---
Stat Leaders: Minnesota - Passing: Bryan Cupito, 14-25, 235 yds, 1 TD---College Football---
Rushing: Laurence Maroney, 21-203, 2 TD. Receiving: Ernie Wheelwright, 5-95, 1 TD
Tulsa - Passing: David Johnson, 19-30, 175 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT---College Football---
Rushing: Uril Parrish, 10-72. Receiving: Garrett Mills, 6-46---College Football---
What to take away from this game: The 41-10 final score over Tulsa might look ugly, but Minnesota didn't close things out as quickly as it should have. The defense, particularly the secondary, hit well, but there wasn't much of a pass rush. Laurence Maroney wasn't the only great back in the game as Gary Russell and Amir Pinnix also looked sharp. QB Bryan Cupito made some good plays, but he needs to drive his throws better. ---College Football---
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2005 Schedule ---College Football---
Sept. 3 – at Tulsa (4-7, 3-5 in Conference USA) – Offense: There's an interesting mix of talents that could add up to a good season. The running game should be among the best in Conference USA with a great backfield led by Uril Parrish and Brandon Diles running behind a huge line. The concern is with the passing attack with good prospects, but little proven production outside of all-star tight end Garrett Mills. The quarterback situation is up in the air between Paul Smith and David Johnson. Each has a big arm, but James Kilian will still be tough to replace.---College Football---
Defense: The D gave up way too many big plays and can't allow 33 points and 402 yards per game again. Run defense continues to be a major issue in the 3-3-5 alignment finishing 106th in the nation with little production up front. There's size on the front three, but they have to generate some sort of a pass rush and not be shoved around so much against the run. The back eight should be fine with a good linebacking corps and experience in the secondary. Now they all have to make more big plays and be more physical.---College Football---
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Sept. 10 - Colorado State (4-7, 3-5 in Mountain West) – Offense: Injuries and newcomers prevented the Rams from generating much in the running game, while there were way too many mistakes and turnovers to have a big year. The big backs are in place to get more of a power attack, but it won't work if the line doesn't have a good season and the quarterbacks don't make better decisions. Justin Holland, a pure pocket passer coming off a broken ankle, has to cut down on his interceptions and use the speedy receivers more to stretch the field. The normal one-back Ram look might turn into a two-back attack if the tight ends aren't healthier than they were this spring.---College Football---
Defense: Here's all you need to know about the 2004 Ram defense; the top five tacklers were defensive backs. O.K., so leading tackler Adam Lancisero moved from defensive back to linebacker for most of last year, but it still goes to show how horrible the front seven was against the run. Just about everyone returns with the hope that the injuries and inconsistencies of last year are gone. This isn't a big defense, but it's a fast and athletic one. There aren't many obvious superstars meaning the entire defense has to come up with a strong year.---College Football---
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Sept. 17 - Florida Atlantic (0-11 overall, 0-7 in Sun Belt) – Offense: It could be a long start to the season with almost no experience to rely on anywhere, and even less developed depth. New offensive coordinator, former UTEP head coach Gary Nord, has his work cut out for him. The hope is for a balanced offense needing the super-small line to use its quickness to open up holes for the running game. The receiving corps has some speedy potential and there's some flash in the backfield, but they're going to need a while to get their feet wet. New starting quarterback Danny Embick has been around long enough to be a steady influence.
Defense: The defense doesn't have much experience, but it should be good as the year goes on led by a strong secondary with tremendous corners. The front seven has several good young players, but the leader is senior MLB Shomari Earls who'll be a near lock for All-Sun Belt honors. The key early will be to find steady pass rushing threats among the ends.
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Sept. 24 - Purdue (9-2, 6-2 in Big Ten) – Offense: Considering the hot start and the nation's 13th best offense and 20th best scoring offense, the Purdue attack was a disappointment having problems with consistency along with an inability to come through in most of the big games. Seven starters return to an offense that has the potential to be far better despite the loss of QB Kyle Orton and top receiver Taylor Stubblefield. Brandon Kirsch takes over at quarterback and should add a bit more life and fire to the position. The receiving corps is loaded with rising star Dorien Bryant, 6-9 Kyle Ingraham and top tight end Charles Davis forming a dangerous trio. The backfield is experienced and good with redshirt freshman Kory Sheets pushing veteran Jerod Void and Brandon Jones. The line will be fine as long as there aren't any injuries to the starting five.---College Football---
Defense: All eleven starters return to the nation's 40th ranked defense. Outside of a few hiccups, it was a consistent group finishing 17th in the nation in scoring defense allowing a mere 17.17 points per game. So why is it hard to get too excited about this group? The line is one of the best in the nation with the best ends (Ray Edwards, Anthony Spencer and Rob Ninkovich), that you've never heard of. The back seven is full of hard-hitting veterans, but there are few star playmakers and there should once again be problems against the better passing teams.---College Football---
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Oct. 1 – at Penn State 6-5, 3-5 in Big Ten) – Offense: A ton of experience returns to one of the worst Penn State offenses ever averaging 17.73 points per game with five games scoring seven points or fewer. The line has all five starters returning (if C E.Z. Smith and G Tyler Reed are back from spring suspension) and it has to be much, much better. The receiving corps got a major boost this recruiting season with lightning-fast Derrick Williams and Justin King adding some desperately needed pop. There has to be more from the quarterbacks with the underwhelming Michael Robinson getting the nod since star prospect Anthony Morelli hasn't progressed enough yet. There's talent in the backfield; now it has to do more.
Defense: The nation's tenth best defense and fifth best scoring D should be even better with almost all the parts returning and FS Chris Harrell coming back after missing all of last year with a neck injury. The defense didn't allow more than 21 points per game coming up with a shockingly good season. The corners will be among the best in the nation as will the starting linebackers. Overall depth and a lights-out pass rusher are the slight weaknesses, but that's nitpicking.---College Football---
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Oct. 8 – at Michigan (9-2, 6-2 in Big Ten) – Offense: On straight talent, it'll be hard to beat the Wolverines if QB Chad Henne and RB Mike Hart improve at all on their fantastic freshman years. The loss of all-everything receiver Braylon Edwards will hurt worse than many will you have you believe. However, Jason Avant and Steve Breaston are very, very good. The line will have three All-Big Ten performers in guard Matt Lentz and tackles Adam Stenavich and Jake Long; now the pass protection has to be better.---College Football---
Defense: One of the most scrutinized defenses in the country this off-season after meltdowns against Ohio State and Texas, there's enough talent returning, and enough pressure on defensive coordinator Jim Herrmann, to expect a bit more consistency. There are some big losses, particularly in the secondary, but there are always enough athletes in Ann Arbor to go around. The line will be the strength with Gabe Watson and Pat Massey one of the nation's best tackle tandems. Can the back seven handle mobile quarterbacks? Will this be a tighter D against the top teams? The jury is still out.---College Football---

Oct. 15 - Wisconsin (7-5, 3-5 in Big Ten) – Offense: Paul Chryst comes over from Oregon State to take on the co-offensive coordinator job along with Brian White, and he should do more for the passing game. John Stocco showed flashes of being a reliable quarterback last year, but he didn't do it often enough. The running game needs the backs to stay healthy, and the receiving corps has to make more big plays. While the line loses some key parts, it'll still be a strong group with a few big-time dominators.---College Football---
Defense: Bret Bielema's defense was one of the big stories of the 2004 Big Ten season finishing ninth in the nation and sixth in scoring defense. Now the entire front four needs to be replaced as does most of the secondary with several All-Big Ten talents graduating. However, there's hope with great looking young defensive linemen ready to take over and a good linebacking corps to steady things early on. There's no way to reproduce the same numbers as last year, but don't look for the roof to cave in like many will predict.---College Football---

Oct. 29 - Ohio State (10-1, 7-1 in Big Ten) – Offense: The offense was average to flat-out bad struggling with its consistency, and then came the Michigan game as QB Troy Smith had his breakout game giving hope for a more explosive 2005. The plan is for experience to turn into production with two good quarterbacks, some decent looking, but unproven runners, and a devastating receiving corps with Santonio Holmes and Heisman candidate Ted Ginn Jr. The line returns four starters and should be better. Finishing 98th in the nation in total offense and 71st in scoring offense again will be absolutely unacceptable.---College Football---
Defense: Nine starters return to a defense that was its typical bend-but-rarely-break self for most of the year, but it has to deal with defensive coordinator Mark Snyder moving on to take the Marshall head coaching gig. The nation's best linebacking corps leads the way with A.J. Hawk, Bobby Carpenter, Anthony Schlegel and Mike D'Andrea all sure to be making a ton of dough next year at this time. The secondary will be solid if it can find a second corner across from Ashton Youboty, and the line will be good if it can find a killer pass rusher.
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Nov. 5 – at Indiana (3-8, 0-8 in Big Ten) – Offense: The offense actually wasn't that horrible over the first part of last season. Consistency was the biggest problem and the defense didn't exactly help the cause. Even with the loss of three big starters (QB Matt LoVecchio, RB BenJarvus Green-Ellis and WR Courtney Roby) the potential is there to do much more with an experienced line that gets two of its top players (OT Isaac Sowells and C Chris Mangiero) back from injury The running game will be serviceable with Chris Taylor and Yamar Washington until the young recruits come around and the receiving corps has plenty of speedy prospects. None of the promise will come true if Blake Powers, or one of the other quarterback candidates, doesn't start playing at a D-I level.---College Football---
Defense: The D returns nine starters with the hopes of being stronger in all phases. There's a better chance of the pass defense improving than the run defense with a good pass rush taking the heat off the speedy young corners. Being a wall against the run will be a problem needing to convert John Pannozzo from fullback to middle linebacker and Greg Brown from the offensive line to tackle. Outside of Brown, there's little Big Ten-size inside.
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Nov. 12 - Michigan State (8-3, 5-3 in Big Ten) – Offense: Last year's attack finished tenth in the nation, and first in the Big Ten, exploding on top defenses like Wisconsin's and Michigan's. Consistency was an issue, and it will be again unless talented quarterback Drew Stanton can stay on the field. With no reliable backup quarterback to count on, the oft-injured Stanton's health is the difference between a good and a great offense. While there aren't the name players like other Big Ten teams boast, this has the potential to be the league's best offense if a home run hitter can be found at running back and the newcomers to the right side of the line come through as expected.---College Football---
Defense: Some work needs to be done after losing several top players from just about everywhere. This wasn't a solid defense, but it had its moments and will be athletic this year, if nothing else. There isn't a steady pass rush putting more pressure than needed on the average corners. The linebackers can move and should be the D's strength as the season goes on. Being tougher against the run would be a big plus.---College Football---
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Nov. 19 – at Iowa (9-2, 6-2 in Big Ten) – Offense: Iowa had a big mess on its hands last year with one of the nation's worst running games brought on by injuries to the backfield and inconsistency on the offensive line. Both areas should be much better with the healthy return of lightning fast runner Marques Simmons and an experienced line ready to be one of the Big Ten's best. The passing attack should be tremendous led by All-America candidate Drew Tate at quarterback and an experienced, productive, and very fast receiving corps.---College Football---
Defense: The back seven will be among the best in America as long as there aren't any major injuries. The linebacking duo of Chad Greenway and Abdul Hodge and the corner tandem of Jovon Johnson and Antwan Allen are good enough to make up for the potential problems on the defensive line. There's absolutely no experience to count on up front losing Matt Roth and Jonathan Babineaux, and there's even less depth. If there's no pass rush, the secondary will have a hard time b---College Football---eing as good as it was last year.---College Football---

2005-10-26T22:05:00.000-07:00

Keys to the Big GamesWeek Six, Oct. 15Colorado vs. TexasBy John Harris
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a. Eight is Enough – For all of the great talent on both sides of the football at the University of Texas, one guy that is starting to really step up his play is cornerback Cedric Griffin. The 6’2”, 202 pound senior corner is playing at a level that’ll turn some heads come combine time. But, his true test this week will be facing a QB like Joel Klatt, who lit up Texas A&M for nearly 400 yards of passing, and the Buffalo wide receiving corps.
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The Buffs have some solid receiving threats, but nothing like what Griffin has already seen, in particular Ohio State WR Santonio Holmes. Griffin got burned early against Holmes, but since then he’s played pretty well. ---college football---
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The key for the Horns corner is to continue to use his size against the Buffs to his advantage. Similar to former Horn CB Quentin Jammer, Griffin is the type of corner who can give the Buff receivers problems with his ability to disrupt their routes. The Texas front four has the ability to get some heat on Klatt without having to blitz, so Griffin’s ability to slow down the initial aspect of the route is a key. ---college football---
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CU WR Evan Judge might be the most accomplished of the Buff receiving corps, but he can’t run by Griffin. His size could be a problem, but Griffin isn’t afraid to mix it up. Either way, that’s a matchup that Griffin must dominate on his side of the field.---college football---
b. Klickety Klatt – To say that Joel Klatt, CU QB, has been on a bit of a roller coaster the past three years would be a major understatement. As a sophomore, Klatt seemingly threw the ball on every down, and his numbers were tremendous, but the Buffs finished poorly.
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Then, the proverbial stuff hit the fan over the summer, and Klatt was thrown into the fray as the unofficial spokesman for the Buffs. Whether it was the stress of dealing with that disadvantageous situation and/or the emergence of Bobby Purify and the Buff running game, Klatt threw the ball much less than he had the year before. So, going into this year, it was hard to determine what Klatt we would see. ---college football---

Well, if the A&M game is any indication, Klatt and CU will be just fine. More than fine in fact; he might lead them to the Big XII North title. But, no matter how many yards he threw for against A&M, facing the Texas defense is a different story altogether. ---college football---
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The key for Klatt is to continue to use all of his receivers, spreading the ball all around the field. With Joe Klopfenstein and Quinn Sypniewski, he’s got TE weapons that he can use in the flat, shallow crossing routes or down the seam against any cover two that Texas might play. With RB Hugh Charles, he’s got screen options or flat and circle routes. ---college football---
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But, can his outside WR stretch the field enough to allow Klatt to attack the deep thirds of the field? If so, Texas’ ‘D’ will be pushed to its limits, and with the game slowing to a crawl for Klatt, he should be able to find an open receiver. Oklahoma did have some open receivers, but Rhett Bomar wasn’t accurate at all. If Klatt is, the Buffs will keep Texas’ ‘O’ off the field. That’s a win-win situation for Colorado.---college football---

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c. Protecting your Assets – No one ever talks about the Big Uglies do they? Well, not when Vince Young is throwing touchdown passes or Jamaal Charles is breaking 80 yard runs in the Red River Rivalry. But, the success of this Texas team rests on the large, broad shoulders of the five offensive linemen that line up in front of Young and Charles. ---college football---
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How’s this for evidence to how good the Texas offensive line is – they’re averaging 289 yards per game on the ground and only given up 8 sacks. The sacks are a bit misleading, especially with having to protect a mobile, scrambling type QB like Young, and there might be some that argue that blocking for Young, Charles et al is easier than it is for a pedestrian ball carrying unit. But, watch these guys. ---college football---
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They’re that much more physical than they were two years ago, and even one year ago. OL coach Mac McWhorter has meant the world to this unit and they’ll be a big time key in this game. ---college football---
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The Buffaloes defense hasn’t seen a group of this caliber thus far this year, and, if they’re like most defenses, they’ll focus so hard on not allowing Vince Young to beat them, that the offensive line usually has a field day. What that means is that in some cases, linebackers will run themselves out of a play, tracking Young so fervently that it allows the Horn OL to get a key double team at the point of attack to spring Charles into the secondary. ---college football---
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Even if a backside LB just holds his position, the OL can be extremely physical without having to account for that guy in the run scheme. And, when they open holes like they did against OU, the Horns can have a big ground day. They’re not pretty or sexy and no one talks about them, but they’re good. Very good.---college football---

Conclusion – Coming home to Austin is big for the Longhorns. But, the best thing that could’ve happened in that OU game is that they really didn’t have to expend a ton of energy in beating OU. It wasn’t a draining win that came down to the last seconds and that should help keep UT fresh.
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Colorado will be able to play pitch and catch, but Charles may not do much in the running game, allowing Texas DC Gene Chizik to put some nickel and/or dime coverages out on the field. CU’s defense might hold the Horns for a while. But, in the end, the Triplets – Taylor, Young and Charles – will take over. Texas – 31 vs. Colorado – 19---college football---

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2005-10-22T22:14:00.000-07:00

Instant AnalysisFlorida vs. LSU, Oct. 15By Matthew Zemek

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The storm has truly subsided for the Louisiana State Tigers. At least until Auburn comes into Baton Rouge next Saturday.LSU turned back the Gators on a sun-drenched afternoon because JaMarcus Russell and the rest of Les Miles’ offense finally got out of their own way, enabling a swarming defense to seal a hard-earned victory in an SEC fight for survival.On a day in college football when a lot of things didn’t make sense, this game played right into the pregame perceptions of both teams. Florida and LSU were both very strong on defense, while the Gators’ offense was inept and the Tiger offense incredibly turnover-prone. Nothing from this game did thing one to even slightly change the conventional wisdom surrounding these teams.In the end, then, the Tigers’ victory was simply a matter of securing the ball and enabling LSU’s front four to overwhelm Florida’s continuously leaky offensive line.----collegefootball----

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Once Joseph Addai managed to avoid coughing up the pill, his quality running finally bore fruit, as his go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter enabled the Tigers to lean on their defense over the final 12:35. Once JaMarcus Russell no longer felt pressured to score points, he was able to simply manage the game and run clock, thereby enabling Tiger coach Les Miles to put the game in the hands of his defense against Florida’s nonexistent passing attack.The calculus added up just right for the Tigers and their coach, who might not have been able to win with six turnovers, but survived with only five.

----collegefootball----

On a day when the home team kept squandering momentum—not to mention an early 14-0 lead—the heartache of the Tennessee nightmare a few weeks earlier was avoided because of a defense that, with its legs now fresher and stronger, did not cramp up the way it did against the Vols. With the return of normal football rhythms and the obviously improved physical fitness that accompanies such rhythms, LSU’s entire team—but especially its defense—had a lot more left in the tank come the fourth quarter. The Tigers’ defensive front was constantly able to drag down Chris Leak and prevent the Gators not only from scoring, but from even threatening to pose the slightest scare to the Tigers in the game’s final minutes.----collegefootball----

Had the Gators been able to carry a lead into the final minutes of play,----college----collegefootball----football---- the knowledge of the Tennessee loss might have weighed heavily on the Tigers’ minds. Had Leak and Florida not put themselves in a position where they had to pass, the Gators could have offered more offensive variety and thereby kept Bo Pelini’s defense off balance.----collegefootball----

But those two scenarios did not come to pass, because LSU manag----collegefootball----ed to eliminate crippling mistakes—and take the lead—just in time to reassert control.It wasn’t pretty, and it sure came the hard way, but at the end of the day, LSU got the job done. After early domination and then mid-game mistakes, the Tigers stopped being their own worst enemy and sustained their SEC West title hopes.

----collegefootball----

2005-10-11T09:31:00.001-07:00

College football: Titans hand Stout 1st loss

OSHKOSH — Andy Moriarty ended the University of Wisconsin-Stout’s hopes of an unbeaten season with a 15-yard touchdown run with 14 seconds left in UW-Oshkosh’s 34-27 win in a Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game on Saturday afternoon.

A 50-yard interception return by the Titans’ Ryan Radtke, a junior defensive back from Peshtigo, preceded the winning touchdown. He also had eight tackles for Oshkosh (4-1 overall, 1-1 WIAC). Running back Tyler Jandrin, a former Luxemburg-Casco player, scored on a 1-yard TD run in the fourth quarter - College Football -

The Blue Devils (4-1, 1-1) also scored on an interception return, with linebacker Stephen Schils, a former Ashwaubenon player, going 49 yards in the second quarter.

UW-Whitewater 44, UW-Stevens Point 12

STEVENS POINT — Justin Beaver rushed for 212 yards and two touchdowns for the Warhawks (5-0, 2-0), who had 663 total yards, the most ever given up by the Pointers. - College Football -

Three area players led the Pointers (1-4, 0-2) in tackles: defensive backs Jared Flesch and J.J. Chaudoir, both of Green Bay Preble, and 10 and nine, respectively, and defensive lineman Dan Robinson of Florence had eight.

Ryan Prochnow, another former Preble player, averaged 43.6 yards on seven punts, including a 57-yarder, and landed four inside the Whitewater 20. - College Football -

UW-Eau Claire 21, UW-River Falls 11

RIVER FALLS — Tony Hull had seven catches for 63 yards and two touchdown receptions as the Blugolds (2-3, 1-1) took a 21-3 halftime lead and cruised past the Falcons (2-3, 1-1).

UW-La Crosse 45, UW-Platteville 27

PLATTEVILLE — John Schumann threw for 285 yards and four touchdowns as the Eagles (3-1, 2-0) scored 25 unanswered points in the first half. - College Football -

Michael Schmidt went 26-of-41 with 239 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions for the Pioneers (1-4, 0-2).

Ripon 39, Illinois College 21

RIPON — Joe Reed broke a school record with 189 yards receiving and scored three touchdowns for the Blueboys (5-1, 4-1 Midwest Conference). - College Football -

Bob Faulds, a former De Pere player, led Ripon (2-4, 2-4) with a game-high 168 yards rushing.

Carroll 31, Beloit 21

WAUKESHA — Bryce Crocker, a former Oconto Falls player, ran for 118 yards and three touchdowns as the Pioneers (4-2, 4-1 MWC) beat the Buccaneers (1-5, 1-4).

Lakeland 42, MacMurray 21

HOWARDS GROVE — Ryan Maiuri threw for three touchdowns and ran for another as the Muskies (4-2, 3-0 Illini-Badger Football Conference) beat MacMurray (1-4, 1-2). - College Football -

Concordia, Wis. 60, Concordia, Ill. 0

RIVER FOREST, Ill. — Immanuel Lewis rushed for 124 yards and one touchdown as the Falcons (4-2, 3-0 IBFC) beat Concordia, Ill. (0-6, 0-3). - College Football -

Augustana, Ill. 7, Carthage 0

KENOSHA — Matt Roe threw three passes in the entire game, but one of them resulted in the only touchdown as Augustana (4-1, 2-0 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin) beat Carthage (4-1, 1-1). - College Football -

Kalamazoo 21, Wisconsin Lutheran 13

KALAMAZOO, Mich. — Matt Kehl scored both touchdowns for the Warriors (1-4, 1-1 Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association), which led 13-0 at halftime, then couldn’t hold off the Hornets (2-3, 1-1). - College Football -

Green Bay Press Gazette.

2005-10-11T09:31:00.000-07:00

College football: Titans hand Stout 1st loss

Staff, wire service reports

OSHKOSH — Andy Moriarty ended the University of Wisconsin-Stout’s hopes of an unbeaten season with a 15-yard touchdown run with 14 seconds left in UW-Oshkosh’s 34-27 win in a Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game on Saturday afternoon.

The Blue Devils (4-1, 1-1) also scored on an interception return, with linebacker Stephen Schils, a former Ashwaubenon player, going 49 yards in the second quarter.

UW-Whitewater 44, UW-Stevens Point 12

STEVENS POINT — Justin Beaver rushed for 212 yards and two touchdowns for the Warhawks (5-0, 2-0), who had 663 total yards, the most ever given up by the Pointers.

Ryan Prochnow, another former Preble player, averaged 43.6 yards on seven punts, including a 57-yarder, and landed four inside the Whitewater 20.

UW-Eau Claire 21, UW-River Falls 11

RIVER FALLS — Tony Hull had seven catches for 63 yards and two touchdown receptions as the Blugolds (2-3, 1-1) took a 21-3 halftime lead and cruised past the Falcons (2-3, 1-1).

UW-La Crosse 45, UW-Platteville 27

PLATTEVILLE — John Schumann threw for 285 yards and four touchdowns as the Eagles (3-1, 2-0) scored 25 unanswered points in the first half.

Michael Schmidt went 26-of-41 with 239 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions for the Pioneers (1-4, 0-2).

Ripon 39, Illinois College 21

RIPON — Joe Reed broke a school record with 189 yards receiving and scored three touchdowns for the Blueboys (5-1, 4-1 Midwest Conference).

Bob Faulds, a former De Pere player, led Ripon (2-4, 2-4) with a game-high 168 yards rushing.

Carroll 31, Beloit 21

WAUKESHA — Bryce Crocker, a former Oconto Falls player, ran for 118 yards and three touchdowns as the Pioneers (4-2, 4-1 MWC) beat the Buccaneers (1-5, 1-4).

Lakeland 42, MacMurray 21

HOWARDS GROVE — Ryan Maiuri threw for three touchdowns and ran for another as the Muskies (4-2, 3-0 Illini-Badger Football Conference) beat MacMurray (1-4, 1-2).

Concordia, Wis. 60, Concordia, Ill. 0

RIVER FOREST, Ill. — Immanuel Lewis rushed for 124 yards and one touchdown as the Falcons (4-2, 3-0 IBFC) beat Concordia, Ill. (0-6, 0-3).

Augustana, Ill. 7, Carthage 0

Kalamazoo 21, Wisconsin Lutheran 13

Green Bay Press Gazette

2005-10-03T12:21:00.000-07:00

Football player allegedly stabs teammate in locker room scuffle

MARYSVILLE – A Yuba College football player allegedly stabbed a teammate with a pocket knife during a locker room scuffle, authorities said. - College Football -

Rafael McKinstry, 22, of Beale Air Force Base, was arrested on a charge of assault with a deadly weapon Friday in the stabbing of fellow defensive back Edd Johnson, said Sgt. Teng Saechao of the Yuba County Sheriff's Department. - College Football -
Johnson, 18, of Marysville, was in stable condition at Rideout Memorial Hospital after suffering the stab wound to the abdominal area.

Yuba College officials canceled Saturday's football game against Butte College following the incident. - College Football -

The motive for the stabbing still was under investigation. Football coach Ted Hoal said he was unaware of the any tension between the players. - College Football -

2005-09-19T14:40:00.000-07:00

BYU in the thick of football scheduling

Darnell Dickson
Daily Herald

If there were want ads for scheduling Division I football games, BYU’s might read something like that. - College Football -

Director of Athletics Tom Holmoe and football coach Bronco Mendenhall are hard at work trying to hammer out the details of BYU’s schedule for next season and the years to come. There’s some recognizable names on future schedules (see graphic) but a more pressing need is filling the 2006 slate. The NCAA recently approved a 12th regular-season game in college football. BYU has eight Mountain West Conference games and a trip to Boston College scheduled for next season. That leaves three open spots to fill, the sooner the quicker.

“It’ll be done when it’s done,” Holmoe said. “I could finish it next week, but that might not be in our best interests.” - College Football -

The “best interests” of a football program are the crux of the scheduling issue. Everybody is protecting their own interests, be it home field advantage or maximizing the opportunity to achieve the number of wins it takes to get to the postseason.

There’s a fine line between scheduling yourselves out of a bowl game (which is essentially what BYU did last year with Notre Dame, Stanford, USC and Boise State on its non-conference slate) and setting up an easy schedule where the pollsters forget you exist.

“We realize we have some control over the schedule and you try to be careful,” Holmoe said. “It’s kind of a roll of the dice because you don’t know what a program will be like in five or six years. Some teams don’t want to play BYU at home. It’s not in their best interests to play us. But we’ve talked to a lot of programs. It all comes down to what a program is trying to accomplish.

“We’ve had some teams tell us they’re not interested and we’ve told some teams we’re not interested. The teams we are negotiating with, they wouldn’t be talking to us if they weren’t interested.” - College Football -

Holmoe said the major considerations are financial guarantees, travel and timing. And some schools are inflexible when it comes to protecting their elite status.

“Some schools can’t stand going home-and-home if they have to play the first one on the road,” Holmoe said. “It doesn’t seem like a big deal, but it means a lot to some programs.”

Mendenhall said he submitted a list of games to Holmoe that he thought would work with the progress of his program. - College Football -

“I’m involved at deepest level,” Mendenhall said. “Between Tom and myself, we’ve inherited some games up to 2012. We have two opponents for most of those years and one year we have four. We’re only at the beginning of the process. It’s a work in progress and it’s more complex than I originally thought.”

Mendenhall said the 12th game has become a boon to Division I-AA schools like Eastern Illinois, which BYU defeated 45-10 last week. The EIU program received more than $225,000 for its trip to Provo. A Division I team can now count one win against a I-AA team towards bowl eligibility each season. In previous seasons, a win against a I-AA team could be counted only once every four years. - College Football -

“All I can tell you is that in some of the negotiations we’ve gone through, the I-AA teams are asking for more to play,” Mendenhall said. “We might schedule a Division I team that could pull an upset, one 50-50 game, one team you can beat and probably a I-AA team. That’s just one way of doing it.”

With three games left to fill in 2006, Holmoe said he’s confident he’ll get some good teams involved. Why? BYU, he said, has a lot to offer.

“Teams realize when they play us at their place, we’re going to bring people to the game,” Holmoe said. “When we played USC two years ago in Los Angeles, we had 15,000 fans there. When we played Stanford last year, we brought 5,000 to 8,000. When we played Georgia Tech in Atlanta in 2002, they said ‘Where did all these people come from?’ They came from all over the south. Some teams travel well for bowl games; we travel well for regular-season games, too.

“I’ll have them call (USC athletic director) Mike Garrett or (Stanford athletic director) Ted Leland. They’ll tell them we travel well.” - College Football -

Holmoe wouldn’t disclose too much information on specific teams because deals are being negotiated daily. He did say he’s talked to Utah State athletic director Randy Spetman about renewing that series. This summer, an Oklahoma newspaper reported that Tulsa and BYU had agreed on a deal for a home-and-home series, but Holmoe said nothing has been set yet. Notre Dame, which BYU played twice in South Bend and once in Provo in the most recent series, would be a long shot to renew.

He also said some athletic directors are looking into playing a home-and-home series at a neutral site, a practice that has become popular in college basketball. Holmoe said a deal just like that was discussed for BYU but fell through. - College Football -

If the BYU football team gets better and moves into the national rankings, it may be even harder to schedule games. But Mendenhall knows scheduling is a key element to success for program like BYU, which hasn’t been to a bowl game since the 2001 season.

“I do know the Mountain West Conference is very competitive, top to bottom,” Mendenhall said. “I know that postseason play is directly attributed to preseason schedules. I know how important this is.” - College Football -

2005-09-07T08:20:00.000-07:00

Storm delays junior college season another 2 weeks

The start of Mississippi's junior college football season has been delayed until Sept. 22 in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

The regular season will be reduced from nine to seven games. Weeks 1 and 2, when many teams were scheduled for interdivisional games, have been canceled. Week 3 (games of Sept. 15 or 17) will be played at the end of the schedule, with the start of the four-team playoffs pushed back a week. - College Football -

The school presidents made the decision during a conference call on Tuesday.All other athletic events are also postponed until the week of Sept. 18.

"There was quite a bit of damage done at schools all around," said Jim Southward, athletic commissioner for the community colleges. "The feeling of the presidents was to give people time to recuperate and make whatever restorations they can."That was the reasoning behind pushing the start back another week. We were pretty sure we couldn't play this week, and playing Week 3 would have been a hardship for a lot of folks." - College Football -

Southward said he is aware of some stadium damage at three schools, Gulf Coast in Perkinston, Pearl River in Poplarville and East Central in Decatur.

Jones County coach Parker Dykes said the stadium in Ellisville sustained minimal damage but parts of the campus were still without electricity early Tuesday.

"We're looking forward to the season," Dykes said, "but our minds haven't been on football. They've been on helping people out. - College Football -

"Our community got hit pretty hard. There's still a lot of folks without power or water."Jones hasn't practiced since Aug. 25. Dykes was unsure when they'd be able to get back on the field.

"The powers that be have made a good decision," Dykes said. "It gives us all an opportunity to get prepared. ... It'll give us almost two weeks to get the kids back in shape."

Under the reconfigured schedule, the regular season will now conclude the week of Oct. 30, with the playoffs beginning the week of Nov. 6. The top two teams from each division qualify.The changes will not affect the MACJC schools' eligibility for bowl games.

Pearl River, the defending national champion, was the preseason No. 1 in the NJCAA poll, and three other teams also were ranked. - College Football -

Copyright ©2005 Clarionledger.com All rights reserved.

2005-08-31T08:05:00.000-07:00

The MAC's appeal
Tom Mulhern

So, how did so many big schools miss out on Jacobs? Academic concerns reportedly scared away many schools.

"There are football players all over this country," Ball State coach Brady Hoke said. "They are out there, and the right fit for every school. You have to be willing, you have to have the resources to go find those people." - College Football -

Finding them is just the first step. The MAC coaches say their offensive systems, as well as player development, are the other pieces to the puzzle.

"That is a true part of the story, the coaches in our conference do develop their players," Toledo coach Tom Amstutz said. "They have to go out and find a guy maybe the whole world isn't after yet, but has talent."

MAC schools also usually offer a chance to play earlier than at bigger schools.

"I think it's easy for us to say, 'You're going to play earlier here than you might at Wisconsin or Michigan,' " Novak said. - College Football -

"We can then show (recruits) the Roethlisbergers and the (Chad) Penningtons and the Leftwichs and Jacobs, kids like that, that have had greatcollege careers and gone onto the pros because they got a chance to play."

Brandon credited Marshall, which is no longer in the MAC but started the QB craze with Pennington and Leftwich, with raising the bar in recruiting and forcing the other conference schools to do a better job finding players to keep up.

Several schools, such as Toledo, Miami (Ohio) and Bowling Green, also emphasize the passing game in offenses that prepare quarterbacks for the next level. Even though it used to be said that quarterbacks from smaller schools took longer to adjust to the NFL, Leftwich and Roethlisberger disproved that theory with strong rookie years.

"I think the style of our offenses in the Mid-American Conference now help develop a quarterback quicker," Amstutz said. - College Football -

"The spread-style offense is going to help them once they reach the NFL level. I think the style of offenses in our league, the way the coaches develop the players, I think all those are factors."

Even with a sidearm delivery, Jacobs is regarded as a sure first-round draft pick if he comes out after this season, as many expect. - College Football -

The success of MAC quarterbacks might not make the conference a first-choice destination for the nation's top prep quarterbacks, but it could at least put those schools in the mix more often, Jacobs believes.

"I don't know about first (choice), but I think they'll be (among) their top schools, or top conferences to look (at)," Jacobs said. - College Football -

2005-08-25T08:30:00.000-07:00

Football heads east for practice, opener in sight

A soggy Jimenez Practice Field relegated the Arizona football team to hold yesterday's practice at the Pima Community College East Campus. Heavy rain early Tuesday left Jimenez Field in poor condition for team workouts, which were cancelled and moved yesterday. Only the field was damp, however, as the Wildcats claimed to be in high spirits with the season opener at Utah eight days away. "It's that time," head coach Mike Stoops said. - College Football -
"Our kids, for the last eight months, have put a lot of hard work into this." Stoops said Arizona is quickly making the transition from holding intra-squad workouts to preparing for the season's first games. "It's a different feeling, now that camp is over with and we're getting into a game week. It gets a little more exciting each day," Stoops said. "Hopefully we'll be ready and we'll come out and play a great game in the next eight or nine days," he said. With a depleted linebacker corps, Arizona must go into its 2005 kickoff against a Utah team that a season ago finished 12-0. Redshirt freshman Ronnie Palmer suffered a broken foot earlier this week, which Stoops said will likely sideline Palmer for six weeks. Senior linebacker Randy Sims is expected to return from a leg injury within the next few weeks, but will miss the Utah game. Another senior, Sean Jones, will step into the starting role. - College Football -
"We'll have to make do," Stoops said. "But Sean started in this game (against Utah) last year, so we shouldn't be too far out of whack." The current linebacker woes are coupled with the spring injury of another linebacker, Spencer Larsen. Larsen suffered a knee injury shortly after returning from a Mormon mission in Chile in April, but is expected back to the lineup sometime this season, possibly in September, Stoops has said. No rest for the Wildcats against Utes When the Wildcats take to Rice-Eccles Stadium Sept. 2, they will face a different Utes team than the one that defeated Arizona 23-6 in Tucson nearly a year ago. The reigning Mountain West Conference and Fiesta Bowl champion Utes lost starting quarterback Alex Smith, who was selected No. 1 overall in April's NFL draft. Utah head coach Urban Meyer is also gone, now working the sidelines for Florida. - College Football -
Stoops said the departures will not make for a less competitive team. "We'll still have to worry about the option. ... We have more to look at defensively," he said. Utah ran an aggressive spread-option attack last season, where the quarterback lined up almost exclusively in the shotgun formation. Stoops said that is not likely to change with the addition of former Oregon offensive coordinator Andy Ludwid to Utah's staff. Senior tailback Gilbert Harris said the squad is focused on a win heading into Utah. "This is our golden opportunity," he said. "It's our chance for Arizona football to get noticed, playing in front of the nation on ESPN." Arizona's season opener against Utah is a rare Friday-night game. The Mountain West has a contract with ESPN to play Fridays in an effort to gain national exposure. - College Football -

Kyle Kensing
Arizona Daily Wildcat

2005-08-16T07:48:00.000-07:00

College Preview: Vaught's goal is helping Patriots reach playoffs

In a way, it could be fitting that Jeremy Vaught seems to be headed toward a future in banking.
Throughout his football life, Vaught has been the kind of player his teams could bank on, and that won't change as he nears the end of his playing days.
The player whom Sam Harp, his high school coach at Danville, once referred to as "money in the bank" is as reliable as ever, which is something he takes considerable pride in as he enters his final season at the University of the Cumberlands, where the senior wide receiver has played in all 31 of his team's games in his first three seasons. - College Football -
"That's been very important," Vaught said. "I take a lot of pride in being able to say I got to play in every game. It took a lot of pride to earn a spot where I'd be able to do that."
The satisfaction of showing up every day and of a job well done has its own rewards, whether on the football field or at the bank, which is where Vaught worked this summer.
But Vaught and his fellow seniors are after an even richer reward, the playoff berth they have been pursuing since they came to the school three years ago. - College Football -
"That's been the goal since we came in as a freshman class," he said.
So much has changed for Vaught in three years: His role has changed, the makeup of his team has changed, even the name of his school has changed from Cumberland College to the new moniker it adopted this year.
But Vaught is the same player he has always been, a fierce competitor with a drive to succeed that seemingly has no "off" switch. - College Football -
That drive is what got him on the field as a freshman on special teams. When Cumberland's coaches told Vaught he had a chance to play right away - as small-college recruiters so often do - Vaught did his best to make sure it would happen.
"That's one reason I made the choice to go there," he said. "They told me I'd have a chance to play in some form or fashion when I went down there, even if it was just special teams.
"The more I got to play, they got to see a little more of what I can do. My hard work helped me out." - College Football -

The Advocate-Messenger

2005-08-10T08:31:00.000-07:00

HU coach doubles his workload

HAMPTON -- Joe Taylor has won nearly 70 percent of his games in 22 years as a head football coach. His teams at Hampton University have won six conference titles and have made five trips to the NCAA playoffs in 13 years, with three black college national championships.He is a past president of the American Football Coaches Association and has served on numerous national committees. - College Football -
At age 55, he does not have the first gray hair, and he still looks as if he could wear out a blocking sled if the spirit moved him.In short, Taylor is not a man who needs to pad his curriculum vitae.So why would someone of apparently sound mind and body, whose idea of high-risk behavior is an option pitch inside his own 15, decide to take a second job at this point in his life?"I was always told: The older you get, the less you ought to do, not more," Taylor joked the other day, sitting in his office next to HU's Armstrong Field. - College Football -
Taylor is set to enter his first school year in the dual role of football coach and athletic director. He was approached last spring about replacing Zeke Avery, who will return to teaching after three years as AD, and agreed to take the job on an interim basis."You realize that you're not going to stay on the sidelines forever and you start thinking about what else you might do," Taylor said. - College Football -
"My first passion is still coaching football, but having been approached about the job, and the fact that a lot of people have confidence that you can do it, makes you more willing to give it a try."In early August the two jobs don't seem so daunting. But that's before the first fall practice, before he has to address everything from men's and women's basketball practice times, to the track recruiting budget, to the possibility that the laundry doesn't get the volleyball uniforms Downy-fresh.Taylor took heart from Wisconsin's Barry Alvarez, the Badgers' football coach for the past 15 years and the school's athletic director since April 2004. Taylor said that Alvarez sent him work flow charts and told him that the dual role is workable if he is organized and has a good staff."And then I see in the paper last week where he's resigning as football coach after this year," Taylor said, laughing. "He set me up. - College Football -
"Taylor need not have looked so far for advice."If he had called me beforehand, I would have said, 'Are you nuts?' " said C.J. Woollum, Christopher Newport's basketball coach and athletic director since 1987.Though CNU fields a Division III athletic program and Hampton a Division I program, Woollum has overseen an athletic department makeover that would prompt Ty Pennington to toss his tool belt into a wood chipper in surrender. The Captains added football and experienced a quantum leap in facilities and management. - College Football -
"The best advice I could give him is to make this a short-term arrangement," Woollum said. "Joe is such a good coach and so well respected, I think he'll do a good job. But there's a reason those are two separate jobs."At least for the fall, Taylor said he plans on making Mondays his athletic director day, with staff meetings and such. Barring emergency and the unusual, the remainder of the week will be devoted to football. - College Football -
"If we don't get it taken care of Monday, I'll see you next Monday," he said.Taylor said he would not have taken on the athletic director duties were it not for the fact that the core of his football staff has been together for several years, and the capability of the athletic staff - people such as associate athletic director Keshia Campbell, compliance director Paul Bowden and academic support coordinator Edwina Simmons.But as good as he feels and as optimistic as his nature, Taylor is under no illusion that he is Superman."I could look up and say, 'Whoa, this could be a bit much,'" he said. "I'm not going to fool myself. My university, my family and myself deserve my full integrity."If nothing else, the football coach figures to get an immediate audience with the athletic director. - College Football -

Daily Press

2005-07-27T07:49:00.000-07:00

Q&A with Tom O'Brien

Boston College football coach Tom O'Brien resuscitated a program that had fallen on difficult times in the 1990s. The Eagles -- best known for Doug Flutie's miracle touchdown pass against Miami in 1984 -- were recovering from a point-shaving scandal when O'Brien was hired in 1997. Since then, Boston College has gone 57-39 under O'Brien, won bowls in five straight seasons -- the longest such streak in the nation -- and is the ACC's newest member this season.
Q. How has recruiting changed with Boston College coming into the ACC? "We've always gone into metropolitan areas, like Washington, Baltimore and Atlanta, and that hasn't really changed much. But this gives us an opportunity to be a national school. I'm not naïve enough to think that we're going to go into parts of Carolina or Virginia and be able to recruit kids that grew up Hokies fans or Tar Heels fans. But we can give kids a place who don't have those ties if they want to come to a city like Boston." - College Football -
Q. What's your thinking about coming into the ACC and conference expansion in general? "I can remember as an assistant back in the mid-1980s when people said there would some day be five power conferences in the country. That's come to fruition with the Pac-10 on the west coast, the Big 12, Big Ten and SEC in the middle part of the country, then the ACC from Maine all the way to Key West, Fla. Being the northern most school in a southern conference might not always be the best situation, but we'll make the most of it." - College Football -
Q. What kind of conference will the Big East be? "I think they feel they did nice job with teams they added (Louisville, Cincinnati and South Florida for football). Only time will tell. This isn't a one- or two-year deal. It'll be 10 years before we find out if we made the right decision and I think all of us believe we did. Obviously the Big East was upset, but we saw the tea leaves and had to keep moving." - College Football -
Q. What kind of player is defensive end Mathias Kiwanuka? "He has great quickness and is explosive. He's relentless and never stops. He's got that natural ability and that inner drive that he has to be best defensive football player in country. He wasn't a highly recruited kid -- I think he had one (Mid-American Conference) offer and he was a basketball player first. So he wasn't one of those prima donnas all the way through high school. He's not that kind of kid."
Q. Last season, you had three freshmen running backs -- A.J. Brooks, Andre Callender and L.V. Whitworth -- who played a lot. How do you keep them happy this season? "You really can't. I'd like to have one feature back, and Callender and Whitworth will be the ones to start off. They'll carry the load, except for short-yardage situations." - College Football -
Q. What will you do in short-yardage and goal-line situations? "We'll try (linebacker Brian) Toal. I convinced him if he makes a first down, he gets two more minutes of rest on the bench. He was a great tailback in high school. We're trying to improve in that area, and we really struggled with it in the (Continental Tire Bowl) and too many times during the season." - College Football -

David Scott

2005-07-19T08:29:00.000-07:00

High school all-stars have to choose football or basketball

FARGO, N.D. - Some North Dakota high school all stars have to make a choice.
Linton's Kyle Carr got an invitation to both the Lions All-Star boys basketball games and the Shrine All-Star football game. - College Football -
He decided to finish his high school days on the hardwood.
"It was pretty much a no-brainer," Carr said.
He was one of at least 10 athletes to have the choice of playing in the all-star football game or the all-star basketball game this summer. Nine others also opted to play in the Lions game.
Under North Dakota High School Activities Association rules, a player may play in just one all-star event sanctioned by the state coaches association. - College Football -
"This Lions game is a prestigious event. It draws well and it's a fun time for kids," said Steve Miller, the Class A head coach from Bismarck.
Ten players invited to both the football and basketball games said they would play in both games if rules would allow it. - College Football -
"I would have played in both," said Matt Geiselhart, a Class A all-state first-team forward from Wahpeton. "It would have been fun."
The Lions games are scheduled Tuesday at the Bismarck Civic Center and Wednesday at the Fargo Civic Center. Girls basketball games are scheduled to start at 6:30 p.m. each night, followed by the boys games. - College Football -
Nearly every player said the prestige of the Lions games was a factor in their decision.
"Less guys get chosen," Geiselhart said. "It's more of an honor."
"I just chose what I liked best," Milnor's Ransom Schutt said.
Schutt, an all-state center for Milnor, will attend North Dakota State this fall and won't play basketball. It means the Lions games likely are his last opportunity to play organized basketball.
Many Class B players believe they get overlooked during the regular season and that the Lions game is an opportunity to prove they're just as good as their Class A counterparts.
"You're playing against Class A kids. You're not playing against each other," Flasher's Wes Schafer said. - College Football -
"You kind of get snubbed being from a small town," Carr added.
Jon Meier, a four-year starter at Mott-Regent, is one of several players who will play football in college, yet chose to play in the basketball all-star event.
"I just figured it's my last chance to play (basketball) again," Meier said. "I wanted to be a part of it." - College Football -
Evan Bennefeld and Tyler Cook of Class B state champion New Rockford-Sheyenne said they knew if it came down to it, they would choose the Lions game.
"We kind of knew we were going to play in it," Bennefeld said.

Associated Press

2005-07-12T08:55:00.000-07:00

State's 'Big 3' to lean on their quarterbacks

Even the most casual college football fan would lock in Florida State, Florida and Miami when putting together a top 25 list entering this football season. - College Football -
Without a doubt, each of the three teams have talent and plenty of it.
But it's difficult to really put a gauge on how good any of the three might be this year.
Maybe the BCS's newest poll, the Harris Interactive College Football Poll, has the right idea by not debuting until Sept. 25 -- or after college football has had four weeks of games under its belt. That way, maybe we would know just how good our "Big 3" really are.
Athlon's college football preview magazine ranks Florida State No. 5, followed by Miami (11th) and Florida (13th). - College Football -
Collegefootballnews.com has Miami at No. 4, followed by Florida (8th) and Florida State (11th).
Then you have Dennis Dodd, college football writer for Cbs.sportsline.com, who has Florida at No. 8, Miami at No. 12 and Florida State 18th. (His poll is the only one that takes into account Wyatt Sexton's condition). - College Football -
So there you have it, three polls, three very different predictions.
One of the biggest reasons for the uncertainty has to focus on the quarterbacks.
Look at Florida State. With Sexton, who played 10 games last season, threw for 1,661 yards and completed 55 percent of his passes, out for the year, the job goes to one of two redshirt freshmen -- Xavier Lee or Drew Weatherford. Weatherford is the only one with actual game experience, but that lasted all of one play last year when he lost five yards on a rush and injured his ankle in the process.
The Seminoles can look at Tennessee, which played last season under similar circumstances. The Vols played true freshmen Erik Ainge and Brent Schaeffer and had good success. The Vols went 10-3, losing twice to Auburn (once in the SEC title game) and to Notre Dame.
Miami enters the season with Kyle Wright running the show. - College Football -
Hurricanes fans can say what they want about Brock Berlin last year, but Berlin did bring a sense of calm to the offense and was a frontrunner for ACC Offensive Player of theYear.
Miami expects big things from Wright, a sophomore, who passed for 179 yards in the UM spring game. The 6-foot-4 California native threw for 2,825 yards and 37 touchdowns as a high school senior and was considered the nation's top prep drop-back passer by some recruiting services.The big question is this -- what do the 'Canes do if Wright goes down with an injury?
Kirby Freeman pushed Wright in the spring and Miami hopes he'll be ready to step in if something happens to Wright or if he struggles.
Regardless, the 'Canes will be entering the season with an untested QB -- which should make the Sept. 5 season opener vs. Florida State (which will be in a similar situation) in Tallahassee an interesting one. - College Football -
Florida enters the season with the fewest questions at quarterback. Chris Leak goes into his junior season regarded as one of the top quarterbacks in the country. But, for the first time in his career, he'll have a different coach with a different philosophy.
That philosophy includes the quarterback running with the ball more and taking more hits. Leak has avoided injury his first two years in Gainesville, but an injury to him could be devastating to the Gators.
Gavin Dickey, who played outfield for the UF baseball team that reached the College World Series final, is the experienced backup. He completed 5 of 7 passes for 56 yards last year. But he's considered more of a scrambling QB. - College Football -
Urban Meyer will also have Cornelius Ingram, who doubled as a guard for Billy Donovan and the basketball team. Ingram is a hometown product, having played at small Hawthorne High School. He has talent, but is raw.
There's also Josh Portis, the QB who Meyer brought over from the left coast.
Portis showed some spark in the UF spring game, but you can bet the UF coaching staff would like to redshirt him if possible. - College Football -
The list of great players who have played quarterback at the state's "Big 3" are many -- Chris Weinke, Charlie Ward, Danny Wuerffel, Shane Matthews and Ken Dorsey, to name a few.
This year, new faces will try to put their stamp on the FSU and UM programs, while a familiar one aims to get UF back into the national scene under a new coach.

FLORIDA TODAY

2005-07-06T11:39:00.000-07:00

Early look at the SEC

Today we are only 67 days away from the official opening of college football 2005.
With that in mind, I am starting a month-long look at the upcoming season and what you can expect around the SEC and the ACC. - College Football -
Questions like: Can Auburn repeat? Can Alabama bounce back from injuries and probation? Is LSU as good as it looks on paper? Can Georgia, with D.J. Shockley, beat Tennessee and Florida? How will the new SEC coaches do?
Let's get started.
LSU will start the season as the second-best team in the country behind Southern Cal. The Tigers have all the players they need on both sides of the ball. They also play their three toughest games in Baton Rouge. - College Football -
Auburn, Florida and Tennessee all have to play at Tiger Stadium.
The biggest news out of Baton Rouge this spring is the new head coach, Les Miles. He comes to the Tigers from Oklahoma State, where he took a team that went 3-8 in 2000 to three straight bowl games from 2002-04.
He won't have to worry about rebuilding the Tigers. They are loaded, especially on the line of scrimmage. - College Football -
Andrew Whitworth anchors the offensive line, and with a running back like Alley Broussard, the Tigers should score a lot of points. Finding a starting quarterback will be the biggest job for Miles.
Sept. 24 in Baton Rouge is when Tennessee comes to town. Those two teams could meet again in the SEC title game.
Auburn will again be strong. The Tigers will start Brandon Cox at quarterback, and coordinator Al Borges will be returning for his second season. - College Football -
Despite the loss of outstanding running backs, the Tigers return some good ones, including Tre Smith, Carl Stewart and a transfer from South Carolina, Kenny Irons.
Quentin Groves will anchor the defensive line along with junior defensive end Stanley McClover.
A key game for the Tigers will be October 22 when they travel to LSU for an SEC West contest that could affect the national picture.
Auburn needs to keep its linebackers healthy throughout the season. They were all hurt during the spring. - College Football -
The Tigers open with Georgia Tech at home, followed by four more home games before traveling to Arkansas.
Alabama needs a healthy Brodie Croyle at quarterback. He went down last year in the third game. Alabama threw only four touchdown passes after that. The Tide finished the SEC at 3-5 and 6-6 overall. Mike Shula still needs to prove himself to the Bama faithful.
The Tide travel to Columbia and face Steve Spurrier in his SEC home opener at South Carolina, and it will be a key game for the Crimson Tide. Bama really needs to stay injury free for the entire season to have a chance at a winning record. - College Football -
It must face Florida, Tennessee, LSU and Auburn this year, hosting all of those but Auburn.
Next week we'll look at the new coaches around the SEC along with a look at Georgia, Florida, Tennessee and the rest of the SEC East.

Ducky Wall

2005-06-29T07:09:00.000-07:00

New generation faces hearing loss

Jason Price, 27, was born with a hearing loss and admits it changes a young person’s lifestyle, but it shouldn’t change a person’s life.“It’s one of those things you adapt to and go on,” said Price, a football player at Marietta College from Fredericktown. “What’s most important is normalcy. Kids with hearing problems should be in normal classes, get treated normally — that’s what’s best.”Price couldn’t help his hearing problem, but millions of other young adults can.More than 30 million Americans, of all ages, are exposed to hazardous sound levels on a regular basis and 28 million have some degree of hearing loss.It isn’t just older adults or the elderly anymore. An increasing number of young people are experiencing hearing loss, and the culprit is a lifestyle that listens to loud music and fails to protect the ear when engaging in noisy activities.Price heard his first sound when he was 2 years old, and now he has 80 percent hearing loss. “I’m not so concerned with kids today who listen to loud music and hurt their hearing with noise and all. That's their choice, and they are old enough to know better," Price said.Price, who is studying to be a secondary teacher and coach, said he is more concerned with very young children with hearing loss.“Having to overcome that while learning to read and write is really difficult for them,” he said.There are no firm statistics yet, the problem is so new, but traditionally one in 10 Americans is hearing impaired. It’s expected that number will multiply and update as today’s baby boom generation ages, according to a Marietta hearing professional.“I see more and more people my age having hearing loss. It scares me,” said Jim Davis, a national board-certified audio prosthologist (a hearing aid specialist). “I test myself every month.” Hearing professionals, like the 52-year-old Davis, fear that because of lifestyle issues, within two decades, hearing problems of younger people may become more common.“It’s a grave concern,” Davis, with Wilson Hearing Center, 316 Second St., Marietta, and in Cambridge, said.Dullness of hearing and a sensitivity to noise after exposure to loud music are common symptoms. With young people, these symptoms often are ignored, or never mentioned.“If you have ringing in your ears after experiencing loud noise, you have already caused damage,” John Nussbaumer, president of Pioneer Hearing Aid Center, 206 Putnam St. “It’s like a bad sunburn you get once. It may not show up at first, but will come to fruition later on.”High levels of noise cause irreparable damage to the tiny hairs in the inner ear. The hairs move in response to vibrations and the movement generates an electrical signal transmitted to the brain through the auditory nerve.When the hair cells are damaged by noise, transmission is interrupted. “There can be degradation (loss of the ability to understand speech) as long as the ear doesn’t send the right signals to the brain,” Davis said. “Hearing and understanding are two different things. Your ear hears, but your brain understands.”If your son mows lawns during summer or your teen spends the day with stereo earphones attached to his or her head, you might have reason for concern.“Young men don’t work in steel mills anymore, but kids build car stereos into monsters and love car races, like NASCAR, that are extremely loud,” Nussbaumer said. “The last race I attended, they were selling earplugs.”If your child rides a four-wheeler without ear protection, attends frequent rock concerts, or rides an ATV there is cause to worry, experts agree.A recent report shows that one in four young people suffers from hearing damage with noise they inflict themselves. “My generation used to just play it loud,” Davis said of music. “Today, with high amplification and earphones, we can’t hear it, but they do, and it often causes damage to hearing.” Rock concerts, personal music devices, headphones, cranked-up car stereos lead to an entire generation that may — down the road — experience impaired hearing.School hearing screenings are only part of the solution.“Any child 18 or under, suspected of hearing loss, must see a doctor first,” Davis said. “It’s so difficult to know what you don’t hear.” Harmful noise to young children can be as simple as a vacuum cleaner, garbage disposal, lawn mower, leaf blower, or dad’s shop tools. “A lot of times it’s recreational activities, like ATVs, hunting, car races,” Nussbaumer said. “The River Roar coming up is very loud. People bring their children and don’t realize the noise might be harming them.”The number of young people with hearing loss is expected to more than double in the next 25 years. Many professionals are beginning to advocate putting warning labels on personal music devices or using an electronic warning system to alert listeners when music is at damaging levels.“A full one-third of your life is spent with your eyes closed,” Davis said. “But hearing is 24-7. It’s always. Poor hearing can affect all aspects of your life.”Tips to prevent hearing loss from noise exposureWear earplugs or other hearing protective devices when involved in a loud activity. Anything above 90 decibels is dangerous. Parents should be alert to hazardous noise in the environment.Make family, friends, and colleagues aware of the hazards of too much noise.Have a medical examination by a physician who specializes in diseases of the ears, nose, throat, head, and neck and a hearing test by an audiologist, or hearing professional.Keep the volume low when using earphones or car stereos (noise is accentuated in enclosed spaces such as cars).Get proper immunizations from measles and other diseases and medical treatments for infections for both you and your children.Don't blow your nose too hard.See your doctor immediately if you have any sudden loss of hearing in one or both ears.
By Connie Cartmell

College Football Award

2005-06-22T12:09:00.000-07:00

College Football Award