College Football - Football Betting

2005-10-30T16:11:00.000-08:00

Cincinnati Bearcats

Oct. 22---College Football---
Louisville 46 ... Cincinnati 22---College Football---
Louisville broke open a tight game with two Michael Bush touchdown runs in the third quarter as part of a 33 point run finally halted late in the fourth quarter on a one-yard touchdown pass to Earnest Jackson. Bush finished with three touchdowns, but he fumbled three times. Cincinnati was creative in its play calling with a fake punt and a pass to QB Dustin Grutza in the first half, but couldn't get the offensive moving in the second half, and it couldn't stop the Louisville offense. Elvis Dumervil came up with three sacks for the Cardinals.
Player of the game: Louisville QB Brian Brohm completed 21 of 26 passes for 303 yards and two touchdowns.
Stat Leaders: Cincinnati - Passing: Nick Davila, 9-15, 136 yds, 2 TD---College Football---
Rushing: Greg Moore, 16-75. Receiving: Earnest Jackson, 4-53, 1 TD---College Football---
Louisville - Passing: Brian Brohm, 21-26, 303 yds, 2 TD---College Football---
Rushing: Michael Bush, 17-127, 3 TD. Receiving: Montrell Jones, 6-73, 1 TD---College Football---
What to take away from this game: Give Cincinnati credit for being able to hang around with Louisville for a half, but the defense couldn't come up with a big play to stop two long, third quarter scoring drives and the rout was on. Is Nick Davilla going to be the answer at quarterback? With Dustin Grutza struggling so much, the Bearcats might do a little experimenting and tinkering with the offense to be more consistent and generate more big plays. The run defense is going to have to be tighter over the next few weeks against Syracuse, West Virginia and South Florida.
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Oct. 15---College Football---
Cincinnati 28 ... Connecticut 17---College Football---
Bradley Glatthaar helped give Cincinnati its first Big East win with two touchdown runs including a 72-yard sash in the fourth quarter to put the game away. Dustin Grutza threw a seven-yard scoring pass to Connor Barwin and Butler Benton added a 27-yard scoring run for the Bearcats. UConn struggled with new quarterback D.J. Hernandez going without a touchdown until late in the third quarter. Hernandez threw two touchdowns passes, but couldn't get the ball back after a 13-yard scoring pass to Seth Fogarty with 2:40 to play. ---College Football---
Player of the game: Cincinnati RB Bradley Glatthaar ran 15 times for 123 yards and two touchdowns.
Stat Leaders: Cincinnati - Passing: Dustin Grutza, 9-21, 125 yds, 1 TD---College Football---
Rushing: Bradley Glatthaar, 14-123, 2 TD. Receiving: Earnest Jackson, 3-38---College Football---
Connecticut - Passing: D.J. Hernandez, 19-43, 191 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT---College Football---
Rushing: Terry Caulley, 21-87. Receiving: Dan Murray, 6-70---College Football---
What to take away from this game: There are still major issues after the loss to Connecticut, but there's no knocking the team's first Big East win. The running of Brad Glatthaar carried the offense when QB Dustin Grutza was once again having problems, while the defense took advantage of a green UConn quarterbacks forcing D.J. Hernandez to misfire way too much. To have any prayer of hanging around with teams like Louisville and West Virginia, Grutza has to start making more plays, especially on third downs. He isn't able to generate much deep, and has to start completing more than 50% of his passes on a regular basis.---College Football---

Oct. 8---College Football---
Pitt 38 ... Cincinnati 20---College Football---
Pitt got out to a 16-0 lead in the first half, but it was the special teams that starred setting up a five-yard Tyler Palko touchdown run with a blocked kick, and getting a 79-yard punt return for a score from Rashad Jennings in the third quarter. Cincinnati was down 30-7 before getting a few cosmetic scores on a 47-yard touchdown pass to Brent Celek, and a 22-yard touchdown pass to Earnest Jackson. ---College Football---
Player of the game: Pitt RB Rashad Jennings ran 11 times for 102 yards and a touchdown.---College Football---
Stat Leaders: Pitt - Passing: Tyler Palko, 14-32, 175 yds, 1 TD---College Football---
Rushing: Rashad Jennings, 11-102, 1 TD. Receiving: Greg Lee, 3-77, 1 TD---College Football---
Cincinnati - Passing: Dustin Grutza, 9-19, 180 yds, 2 TD---College Football---
Rushing: Bradley Glatthaar, 16-63, 1 TD. Receiving: Earnest Jackson, 3-85, 1 TD---College Football---
What to take away from this game: Cincinnati is playing like a young team in need of a passing game to get a whole bunch better. Early errors on special teams and defense against Pitt put the Bearcats behind the eight-ball, but the passing game wasn't able to get back in the game as QBs Dustin Grutza and Nick Davila combined to complete a mere 13 of 32 passes for 199 yards and two touchdowns with an interception. To be fair, the line didn't do a great job of keeping the quarterbacks clean, but the quarterbacks have to make quicker, better decisions.---College Football---

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Sept. 28
Miami Univ. 44 ... Cincinnati 16---College Football---
Miami picked off Cincinnati QB Dustin Grutza five times and got three Josh Betts touchdown passes on the way to the easy win. The RedHawks took a 17-0 lead on a 16-yard catch-and-run for a score by Martin Nance, and broke open a tightening game in the fourth quarter on a second Nance touchdown catch and a 35-yard touchdown from Ryne Robinson. ---College Football---
Player of the game: Miami QB Josh Betts completed 22 of 35 passes for 359 yards and three touchdowns with one interception.---College Football---
Stat Leaders: Miami Univ. - Passing: Josh Betts, 22-35, 359 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT---College Football---
Rushing: Brandon Murphy, 27-120, 1 TD. Receiving: Martin Nance, 8-119, 2 TD---College Football---
Cincinnati - Passing: Dustin Grutza, 22-39, 199 yds, 5 INT---College Football---
Rushing: Bradley Glatthaar, 12-36, 1 TD. Receiving: Derick Ross, 7-57---College Football---
What to take away from this game: Cincinnati hasn't exactly impressed so far this year, but the loss to Miami University was the first team the team looked really, really inexperienced. From QB Dustin Grutza's inability to consistently connect with his receivers, to the five interceptions, to all the penalties, this was one to forget. The offense has to find something it can count on, because the passing game isn't there at the moment.
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Sept. 17---College Football---
Cincinnati 7 ... Western Carolina 3---College Football---
Bradley Glatthaar ran for a seven-yard touchdown run in the second quarter and the Bearcat defense did the rest as Dominic Ross picked off two passes helping to hold Western Carolina to a 23-yard field goal. Cincinnati only gained 273 yards, Western Carolina gained 284.---College Football---
Player of the game: Cincinnati SS Dominic Ross made two tackles and stopped two drives with interceptions., RB Bradley Glatthaar ran 18 times for 107 yards and a score. ---College Football---
Stat Leaders: Cincinnati - Passing: Dustin Grutza, 10-24, 88 yds, 1 INT---College Football---
Rushing: Bradley Glatthaar, 18-107, 1 TD. Receiving: Antwuan Giddens, 3-10---College Football---
Western Carolina - Passing: Justin Clark, 19-39, 201 yds, 3 IN---College Football---T---College Football---
Rushing: Darius Fudge, 17-66. Receiving: Lamont Reid, 5-29---College Football---
What to take away from this game: Cincinnati is a very young team with a lot of problems to work out, but this lousy performance against Western Carolina is a big concern before going on the road over the next two games. The passing attack was non-existent as Dustin Grutza appeared to take a step back. Fortunately, RB Bradley Glatthaar carried the offense and appears to be steady enough to revolve the offense around until Grutza can find his accuracy.
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Sept. 10---College Football---
Penn State 42 ... Cincinnati 24---College Football---
Michael Robinson threw for a career high three touchdown passes and ran for another as Penn State coasted to an easy win. Jumping out to a 28-3 lead, Robinson connected with freshman WR Justin King for a 59-yard touchdown and Deon Butler for a 59-yard score. Cincinnati scored 14 points in the final :39. Penn State outgained Cincinnati 148 yards to 31 on the ground. ---College Football---
Player of the game: Penn State QB Michael Robinson completed 11 of 17 passes for 220 yards and three touchdowns with an interception. He also led the team with 62 rushing yards with a touchdown on ten carries.
Stat Leaders: Cincinnati - Passing: Dustin Grutza, 27-47, 286 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Butler Benton, 3-15. Receiving: Brent Celek, 7-73---College Football---
Penn State - Passing: Michael Robinson, 11-17, 220 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT---College Football---
Rushing: Michael Robinson, 10-62, 1 TD. Receiving: Derrick Williams, 4-60---College Football---
What to take away from this game: A young Cincinnati team will have problems with tough teams like Penn State, but the turnovers and penalties have to stop. The offense couldn't generate anything on the ground, but QB Dustin Grutza looked decent under fire. It's going to take a while for this team to grow up. Considering it held on to the ball for over 35 minutes, Cincinnati should've had more success.---College Football---
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Sept. 1
Cincinnati 28 ... Eastern Michigan 26---College Football---
Cincinnati QB Dustin Grutza threw two touchdown passes and ran for a 21-yard score as the Bearcats overcame a 20-14 halftime deficit for the win. Eastern Michigan scored 17 straight first half points highlighted by the first of two Tim Connor touchdown runs, but the Bearcat ground game proved to be too much and controlled the action in the second half. ---College Football---
Player of the game: Cincinnati QB Dustin Grutza completed 17 of 26 passes for 170 yards and two touchdowns and ran seven times for 49 yards and a score. ---College Football---
Stat Leaders: UC - Passing: Dustin Grutza, 17-26, 170 yds, 2 TD---College Football---
Rushing: Bradley Glatthaar, 14-76, 1 TD. Receiving: Greg Moore, 1-38, 1 TD---College Football---
EMU - Passing: Matt Bohnet, 22-33, 162 yds, 1 TD---College Football---
Rushing: Matt Bohnet, 10-64. Receiving: Eric Deslauriers, 6-43, 1 TD---College Football---
What to take away from this game: Considering how many new starters the Bearcats had to break in, coming away with the win is strong no matter who it was against. The defense was able to keep the high-powered Eastern Michigan offense from exploding, while UC QB Dustin Grutza was as efficient as Bearcat fans could've hoped for. Keeping the chains moving on third downs like the offense was able to is a big step for the opening game.
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2005 Schedule ---College Football---
Sept. 3 – Eastern Michigan (3-8, 2-6 in MAC) – Offense: There might not be a better unknown quarterback-running back-receiver combination in America than Matt Bohnet, Anthony Sherrell and Eric Deslauriers. Sherrell is back after flirting with transferring this off-season, and the coaching staff thinks he can regain his 1,000-yard form even in the wide-open passing offense. Deslauriers is simply too big and too good for most MAC cornerbacks, while Bohnet should light up most secondaries like a Christmas tree. Expect 35 points per game, but struggles against the top teams on the slate.---College Football---
Defense; Even with changes and a renewed emphasis on becoming physical, the Eagles still had one of the nation's worst defenses unable to stop anyone's passing game and not doing much against the run. For good or bad, there's major turnover with the loss of six starters needing newcomers throughout the linebacking corps and at tackle.
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Sept. 10 – 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.---College Football---
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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Sept. 17 – Western Carolina---College Football---
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Sept. 24 – at Miami University (9-2, 7-1 in MAC) – Offense: Consistency will be the key after blowing up against the bad teams and struggling against the better ones. Expect more production with Josh Betts experienced enough grow into one of the MAC's best quarterbacks, and a loaded receiving corps good enough to make any passer look good. The line is loaded with size, experience and talent ready to pave the way for a young, but talented backfield.
Defense: The defense should be tighter than last year when it allowed 339 yards and 23 points per game thanks to a loaded linebacking corps and a line that'll camp out in opposing backfields. The pass defense has work to do losing Matt Pusateri and Alphonso Hodge, but the return of safeties Joey Card and Steve Burke from injury, along with lightning-fast corner Darrell Hunter, will help.---College Football---

Oct. 8 – at Pittsburgh (9-2, 6-1 in Big East) – Offense: There will be a slight shift in the offense from Walt Harris West Coast offense to more of a balanced, running style under offensive coordinator Matt Cavanaugh. Even so, there are more than enough weapons to have an explosive air attack with QB Tyler Palko, WRs Greg Lee and Joe DelSardo, and a fantastic tight end pair of Erik Gill and Steve Buches to keep the nation's 24th best passing offense going. The ground game won't be 105th in the nation again with a loaded backfield soon to be led by freshman sensation Rashad Jennings. The line is experienced, but it needs to be more consistent.---College Football---
Defense: Inconsistent throughout last year and average against the pass, there's hope for improvement with the return of seven starters and a truckload of depth. The strength is the back seven led by a linebacking corps that has several talented options to work with. The secondary has good corners in Josh Lay and Darrelle Revis, but they have to be better at not giving up the deep ball. The front four will be a concern if a reliable pass rusher doesn't develop
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Oct. 15 - Connecticut (6-5, 3-4 in Big East) – Offense: All the focus is on the quarterback situation where Matt Bonislawski and D.J. Hernandez will try to replace heart-and-soul leader Dan Orlovsky, but the winner of the derby will be more than capable of putting up big numbers. The backfield is the best in the Big East with Terry Caulley returning from a knee injury to join defending Big East rushing champion Cornell Brockington. The receiving corps is more than solid despite some key losses. And then there's the offensive line. The interior could be a nightmare early, there aren't any true tackles and there's no depth whatsoever.---College Football---
Defense: Is this the Big East's best defense? It'll be close with a deep and experienced front four and secondary. While the numbers are there as far as good retuning players, the star quality is gone with the departure of LBs Alfred Fincher and Maurice Lloyd along with CB Justin Perkins. Even so, don't expect much of a drop-off from the D that finished 27th in the nation last year unless there's a major fallout from losing five players to suspension due to the shooting of a vehicle window with a pellet gun.---College Football---
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Oct. 22 - Louisville (10-1, 6-1 in Big East) – Offense: Talk about reloading. Louisville loses all-star quarterback Stefan LeFors, NFL-caliber, 20-touchdown running back Eric Shelton, and 73-catch receiver J.R. Russell, but should be just as strong as the offense that was the nation's best last year. There's plenty of talent returning and several great options among the reserves to keep the party rolling. QB Brian Brohm will instantly become one of the nation's top quarterbacks now that he's the full-time starter. The Cards are loaded with talented running backs and receivers and blessed with one of the nation's deepest and most athletic lines. However, the party could crash if Brohm gets hurt with no experience behind him.---College Football---
Defense: The Louisville defense was overlooked last year due to the brilliance of the offense. The Cardinal D ranked number one in Conference USA in almost every category and finished second in pass defense. It won't be quite as strong this year replacing three starters in the secondary, some stars on the line and leader and top tackler Robert McCune. Even so, it's a very fast, very athletic defense that should rank near the top of most Big East categories.
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Oct. 29 – at Syracuse (5-6, 4-3 in Big East) – Offense: The offense struggled way too much failing to get anything going in the passing game and finishing 100th in the nation in passing. Quarterbacks Perry Patterson and Joe Fields have to be more consistent, but they also need help with a young receiving corps that could struggle early on. The attack is being changed up a bit to throw it more in a West Coast attack, so the opportunities will be there. The offensive line is decent, but non-descript.---College Football---
Defense: The hiring of Greg Robinson as head coach should do nothing but help a defense that slipped into the abyss finishing 101st in the nation. There was little production against the run, nothing happening against the pass, and few clutch stops. There should be an improvement with a ton of returning experience led by a good-looking front seven. The corner is in the secondary where the corners have to make more plays after getting repeatedly torched last season.---College Football---

Nov. 9 - West Virginia (7-4, 5-2 in Big East) – Offense: Expect a major step back from Big East's number two offense of last year with almost all the skill positions going through a major overhaul hurt by a woeful lack of experience at quarterback and receiver. The running game will be up to the normally high Mountaineer standards with three good backs (Jason Colson, Pernell Williams and Erick Phillips) operating behind a good, veteran line. The winner of the three-man quarterback derby will have to be razor-sharp until the receiving corps comes around.
Defense: The defense had a strong year, but it has to replace some major players including all-everything corner Adam "Pac Man" Jones. Even so, the secondary is the strength of the defense with three solid All-Big East candidates in FS Jahmile Addae, S Mike Lorello and CB Anthony Mims. The front three will be a rock with 295-pound veterans ready to hold the line. The question mark is at linebacker where tough backups have to become reliable starters. There's solid depth everywhere. ---College Football---
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Nov. 19 – at South Florida (3-8, 1-6 in Big East) – Offense: The potential is there for a big improvement after struggling to be consistent. Andre Hall is Big East's best running back working behind a rebuilding, but decent line. The receiving corps is deep and experienced led by tall, speedy Johnny Peyton. The problem is at quarterback where Pat Julmiste couldn't hit water last year if he was standing in the ocean, and Auburn transfer Courtney Denson is a former defensive back. If a steady passer emerges, this should be the Big East's surprise offense.
Defense: The normally good Bull defense struggled last year with no pass defense and little success against the run with a line that was too small. Things should be better with a strong linebacking corps and the return of DT Tim Jones and SS Johnnie Jones after missing all of last year. The key will be the improvement in the corners after struggling to stop anyone, but they could use more of a steady pass rush.---College Football---
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Nov. 26 – at Rutgers (5-6, 2-5 in Big East) – Offense: QB Ryan Hart will once again lead one of the nation's most productive passing attacks with a loaded receiving corps highlighted by Tres Moses and tight end Clark Harris. Can the attack actually produce points on a regular basis? It struggled wildly with consistency and turnovers while getting nothing from a ground game that averaged 2.5 yards per carry and 83 yards per game. There's way too much experience in the backfield to have a repeat disaster.---College Football---
Defense: It's an interesting mix of talents and strengths with a great group of ends led by Ryan Neill and an experience linebacking corps, but there has been little in the way of overall results. With many newcomers to the mix last year in key spots, things got rocky finishing 104th in the nation in total defense and 88th in scoring D. The biggest area of improvement should be the secondary where Derrick Roberson and Joe Porter are good looking corners who should be over most of their struggles.---College Football---
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2005-10-26T20:15:00.000-07:00

WAC Game of the Week
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Boise State (4-2) at Utah State (2-3), 6:35 pm ET ---college football---
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Why to watch: Boise State overcame an 0-2 start to win four straight, even though it hasn’t been all that impressive since blowing out Bowling Green 48-20. With everyone jumping off the Bronco bandwagon and believing Fresno State is the WAC’s best team, Boise State can lay low and use this game to get better on the road. Utah State got destroyed 53-21 by Fresno State last week, but is 2-0 at home and, if everything breaks the right way, could be the one to end Boise State’s 28-game WAC winning streak.---college football---
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Why Boise State might win: Utah State simply doesn’t have the offense to keep up the pace if the Bronco offense gets hot. To beat Boise State, you have to be able to put up a huge number. Hawaii threw 41 on the board and still lost. San Jose State scored 49 last year and lost. Utah State was able to score 31 on UNLV thanks to a kickoff return for a score, but that was its best output of the year. If Boise State gets on an early roll, it can put up 31 in the first half.---college football---
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Why Utah State might win: Boise State isn’t the same team on the road, and after a 21-14 win over D-IAA Portland State and a sluggish 38-21 win over San Jose State last week, it doesn’t appear to be the same team period. The offense is fine, but it’s not getting the pop of past seasons. There are too many turnovers, too many mistakes, and not enough consistency from the passing game. If the Aggies can force a few mistakes and capitalize on each one, they’ll have a shot. ---college football---
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Who to watch: The two teams boast two of the nation’s best kickoff return games with Utah State averaging 25.55 yards per return and Boise State averaging 25.75 yards per return. Lee Marks busted a two early big returns highlighted by a 92-yarder for a score against Bowling Green. Kevin Robinson is a better punt returner and receiver than a kickoff returner, but he’s coming off a big day returning seven for 157 yards against Fresno State. As a receiver, he has caught nine passes for 190 yards and three touchdowns over the last two games.
What will happen: Utah State doesn’t have enough offensive pop on offense to win this game, so it has to pray Boise State doesn’t play up to its capabilities. The Broncos might be good enough to score 65, but will be held under 40. ---college football---
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CFN Prediction: Boise State 38 … Utah State 20 ... Line: Boise State -18.5 | Make your pick and compete against others ---college football---
Must See Rating: (5 lock yourself in a room to watch - 1 The Tyra Banks Show) ... 2
Final Score: ---college football---

2005-10-11T09:18:00.000-07:00

Northwestern College plays football doubleheader

Jerry Zgoda, Star Tribune

Saturday broke clear and crisp, foretelling another glorious autumn day in Minnesota. So the Northwestern College football team played two.

The small Christian college in Roseville most likely became the first team in modern college-football history to play a doubleheader. The Eagles began Saturday at home just after noon in brilliant sunshine with prayer, the national anthem and an instant touchdown against Trinity BibleCollege and completed it in evening's chill 7 miles away and 10 hours later underneath floodlights at Macalester College. They won both games.

The concept, formerly one associated with baseball only, made National Collegiate Athletic Association administrators pause and the vigilant guy who prints the Eagles' team schedules balk. Even major leaguers don't play many doubleheaders anymore.

So when Northwestern's athletic director telephoned the NCAA last winter and asked whether there was a rule that prohibited a college football team from playing twice in a day, he received a simple question back.

"They asked, 'Pardon me?' " Matt Hill said.

The NCAA administrators rustled through some manuals that day, but couldn't find such a rule. Months later, the alarmed printer was reassured there was no mistake.

On Saturday, the Eagles players arrived in the morning's slanted light carrying breakfast in their hands.

During the Eagles' second halftime -- a two-hour break after their 59-0 victory over Trinity Bible -- they wolfed down submarine sandwiches, tossed their grass-stained game pants (their only pair) in the dryer and pulled on fresh white road jerseys before hopping a school bus for the short ride straight down Snelling Avenue to Macalester.

They also debated with one other whether they should shower between games.

"Some guys didn't, but I'm not one of those guys," said Northwestern sophomore Sean Yates, who wore his offensive lineman's uniform number 76 in the afternoon and a receiver's 84 at night. "It was really strange putting wet pads back on."

Northwestern College scheduled both games because of a scheduling quirk that often leaves teams in its Upper Midwest Athletic Conference -- an affiliation of 10 small private colleges from Missouri to North Dakota -- needing another non-conference opponent and a 10th game, the standard length of an NCAA Division III season.

So when Macalester officials called Hill last winter and asked if any UMAC team was available on the second Saturday in October, he looked at a packed conference schedule -- and proposed his team play twice.

He never imagined then the novelty would bring Sports Illustrated and ESPN to Northwestern's intimate Reynolds Field, where family, faculty members and friends bring blankets, poodles and retrievers.

Until this last week, Northwestern College still was considered by many as the little Bible school next to Lake Johanna, even though it hasn't been called Northwestern Bible for years. Its athletes were recognized only when they went into a restaurant with their purple letter jackets and interested eaters inquired about life in Evanston, Ill., home to the Big Ten's Northwestern University.

"At first, I was like, 'Man, this doesn't happen too often,' " said Sam Townsend, a junior defensive lineman from Fergus Falls, Minn. "Then, later, I heard it doesn't happen ever."

Northwestern head football coach Kirk Talley split his assistant coaches and his 75 players into two groups last week. One group -- reserves and junior-varsity players -- prepared for the afternoon game against Trinity Bible. Two years ago, the North Dakota school lost a game 105-0. It's the subject of a former Fargo, N.D., sportswriter's book called "Keeping the Faith: In the Trenches withCollege Football's Worst Team."

The other group -- Northwestern's starters -- prepped for winless Macalester, the cerebral but often athletically challenged school that plays an independentfootball schedule.

On Saturday morning, only 22 players, including five who play both offense and defense, filed off Trinity's bus.

On its first offensive play of the game, Northwestern ran 45 yards for a touchdown. The Eagles led 39-0 at halftime, despite having their skilled players sit the game out and playing their other starters only briefly.

On Saturday night, under a sliver of moon, the Eagles jumped out to a 33-0 halftime lead over Macalester before winning 47-14.

Trinity Bible first-year coach Jim Dotson called Northwestern's doubleheader "offensive" and a "putdown" to both his team and Macalester's.

"It'd be better if they played on Saturday and then again on a Tuesday night," he said.

Talley said his team didn't intend to prove anything or insult anyone Saturday. Instead, he called it an "awesome day of opportunity" for his players.

It also was a chance to summon a tradition -- the "Fifth Quarter," a postgame gathering of song, cheers and prayers with the Eagles players and their loved one -- twice in one day.

"Maybe we'll have to call it the Tenth Quarter just this once," Talley said of Saturday night's gathering.

2005-10-01T16:49:00.000-07:00

College football notebook: Alabama defense prepares for Gators

The Associated Press

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Florida's unstoppable offense. Quarterback Chris Leak's dazzling exploits. Coach Urban Meyer's brilliant system. - College Football -

Alabama linebackers DeMeco Ryans and Juwan Simpson aren't quite sure what all the fuss is about.

"I don't see what's so special about this kid," Simpson said of Leak.

"It's nothing special. Everyone keeps saying that it's a special offense," Ryans said. "They're a five-wide, spread offense. We've just got to come up with a defense to stop it."

The 15th-ranked Crimson Tide defenders said plenty of complimentary things about the No. 5 Gators and their quarterback entering today's game, too. - College Football -

But the gist of the message from Simpson and Ryans is: Don't forget our defense is pretty good, too.

Alabama (4-0 overall, 2-0 Southeastern Conference) will find out just how good against the Gators (4-0, 2-0), who provide easily the Crimson Tide's toughest test so far this season.

Even though Florida's offense has been among the league's best, this isn't quite one of those 1990s matchups between the Gators' high-flying offense versus the Tide's heralded defense.

There's more to it than that. - College Football -

For all the hype focused on Meyer's offense and Leak's statistics, the Gators' defense ranks fifth nationally (Alabama is seventh). And the Tide's offense is only a couple of spots below Florida on the SEC stat sheets.

The Gators are allowing a mere 223 yards and 13 points per game.

"They're an extremely talented group — one of the best, if not the best, we'll play all year," Alabama quarterback Brodie Croyle said. "They're fast, they're big, physical.

"They don't show any tendencies on their blitzes. They bring anybody at any point in time."

Meyer said Alabama's secondary is the best his team has faced. - College Football -

Ryans thinks the key could come down to turnovers.

Alabama has forced at least one in 21 consecutive games and the offense has lost a mere one fumble this season and has two straight turnover-free games. Florida has yet to throw a pass that has been intercepted. - College Football -

2005-09-19T08:54:00.000-07:00

JC FOOTBALL: 3-quarter meltdown costs Mendo College

JEFF CASPERSEN\The Daily Journal

UKIAH Last week, Mendocino College dazzled in its final three quarters after looking atrocious in the first while beating College of the Redwoods 42-31.

On Saturday, the Eagles offense started strong and fell off the face of the Earth in quarters two through four. Diablo Valley College (2-1) capitalized, rebounding from a 14-0 first-quarter deficit to top host Mendocino 17-16 in a down-to-the-wire defensive affair. - College Football -

Freshman quarterback Dayton Edwards and the Mendocino College offense had no trouble moving up and down the field in the first quarter, scoring touchdowns on their first two possessions of the game.

Brad Cintas capped a 10-play, 54-yard opening drive with a 1-yard TD run at the 9:22 mark in the first.

Moments later, Edwards connected with Ryan McCullough on a 52-yard scoring strike. Edwards eluded heavy pressure before dumping off a mid-length pass to McCullough over the middle. The big receiver darted past several defenders, closed in on the left sideline and hugged it all the way to the endzone. - College Football -

That was the last time the Mendocino offense would see the endzone. The defense added a third-quarter safety, but that was the last of the points the Eagles (1-2) would put on the scoreboard.

That didn't mean Mendocino didn't have its opportunities to score. The Eagles' safety was set up by a failed march that ended a yard short of paydirt.

Diablo Valley's defense came up with a huge goal-line stand on the opening drive of the second half. Starting from their own 12-yard line, the Eagles advanced all the way to the DVC 1, where, with 12:25 to go, the visiting Vikings kept their opponents out of the endzone on a fourth-down running try.

From there on, it all unraveled for Mendocino. A fumbled punt, an Edwards' interception and a series of failed offensive drives plagued the hosts as DVC posted TDs in both the third and fourth quarters to complete its comeback. - College Football -

"There's nothing to say. We gave up the game," said a fiery and frustrated Eagles head coach Tom Gang after the game. "We just made too many mistakes. We were the betterfootball team here today."

Vikings running back Jason Palmer, who finished with 90 yards on 26 carries, pounded home each of his team's TDs on short runs.

Edwards finished the day 11-of-35 for 230 yards, but faded down the stretch, missing on 22 of his last 27 tosses. Marcus Hansen was the quarterback's favorite target of the day as DVC's secondary keyed in on fellow wideout Robert Kirvin. Hansen had four receptions for 107 yards.

Running back Brent Barstow saw a fair share of carries early before the Eagles went primarily to their passing game. He racked up 43 yards on 14 takes. - College Football -

The Mendocino defense held up well, putting heavy pressure on DVC quarterbacks. Adrian Dunn and Jo'Dane Craigman were busting through the Viking line with regularity, each in on several sacks. Gary Norris had the Eagles' lone interception.

Mendocino College will attempt to climb back to the .500 mark at De Anza College (Cupertino) next Saturday. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m. - College Football -

2005-09-07T07:51:00.000-07:00

Nuggets of tradition

College fans hang onto special moments like precious jewels.

Spartans fans can detail every play of every victory over the rival Wolverines. We remember Central Michigan's twice-as-nice victories over Michigan State, Bo vs. Woody, national title runs in Ann Arbor and East Lansing, and the 60-minute-and-one-second game that sparked new hostility between U-M and MSU fans in 2001.

New traditions began Thursday and continue tonight when Indiana becomes the first Big Ten team to venture into Kelley-Shorts Stadium, capping three days of celebration by Central Michigan fans.

This weekend, nearly 250,000 fans will pack campuses across the state to root for their favorite teams and become part of the pageantry ofcollege football.

Nationwide, an estimated 33 million fans will attend games.

Football fans never lose ties with their schools.

Despite working 36 years at Michigan, Schembechler still attends events at Miami (Ohio), where he got his start.

Central Michigan athletic director Herb Deromedi, who is retiring, still bleeds maize and blue despite spending five decades at CMU asfootball coach and athletic director.

"I bet you will see Herb at a lot more live Michigan games now," Schembechler said.

How many times have you stepped into someone's office and seen the distinctive Notre Dame gold or Texas burnt orange plastered on the walls?

How about Gary Prudian, who moved from Warren to Los Angeles to attend law school at Southern California? He can get tickets to any home game at USC, which is going for a third straight national title. Yet, every Saturday he slips on his No. 12 Ricky Powers uniform and mingles with other Michigan fans at the Gotham City bar to watch the Wolverines.

What would it take for a fan to stop rooting for his chosen team?

"Ahhhhhhhhh, it would probably take them dropping football," said Nitz, who lives outside Grand Rapids. "Even if they hire a coach I do not like, I would never stop being a fan."

2005-08-31T08:40:00.000-07:00

Shanahan explains why Clarett left Broncos

By EDDIE PELLS, AP Sports Writer

DENVER (AP) - The reason running back Maurice Clarett isn't with the Denver Broncos anymore is pretty simple. "We have four guys I believe can play," coach Mike Shanahan said. And Clarett never made his way into that mix. - College Football -

The Broncos returned to practice Monday and Shanahan answered questions about why he decided to waive Clarett, the surprise third-round draft choice who was slowed by a groin injury and never made any impact in Denver's training camp.

That Clarett was a bust isn't a shock to most around the league. He was out of football for two years and performed badly at the NFL scouting combine - and that's to say nothing of the troubles he endured off the field. - College Football -

In Denver, the pick is being viewed as a bad example of hubris for Shanahan, "the Mastermind," who has turned lower picks - like Terrell Davis, Rueben Droughns and Mike Anderson - into stars and probably thought he could do the same, even with a prospect as checkered as Clarett.

To his credit, Shanahan didn't linger on this mistake, deciding to cut ties quickly instead of forcing something to work. And the coach conceded he did err by picking the star of Ohio State's 2002 national championship. - College Football -

"I think any time you cut somebody in the third round, you feel like you made a mistake," Shanahan said. "When you do that, you make a mistake and you go on. At least you evaluate it. That's not to say that Maurice doesn't have a chance to go to anotherfootball team and make that team and contribute. But in a true evaluation of your own organization, when you use a third-round draft choice and he does not make your team, obviously it's not good."

The Broncos had not officially announced their cuts as of Monday afternoon. When Clarett does officially land on waivers, teams will have 24 hours to claim him and the incentive-laden contract he signed with Denver.

More likely is that Clarett will become a free agent, free to negotiate a new deal with anyone.

"I'm not real confident of anything at this point," Clarett's agent, Steve Feldman said Sunday. "We'll see what happens now."

Clarett missed about two weeks of practice with a nagging groin injury that prevented him from making the trip to Houston, where the Broncos practiced three days and played the Texans in their preseason opener. - College Football -

When the Broncos returned from the trip, Shanahan was no longer in the mood to defend the player he took a chance on, saying instead that he couldn't evaluate Clarett if he wasn't at practice.

Last week, Shanahan said he planned on getting Clarett some playing time Friday in Denver's preseason finale against Arizona. But when Quentin Griffin made his preseason debut last Saturday against the Colts and showed his surgically repaired knee was healthy, the Broncos knew they had their foursome at tailback: Griffin, Ron Dayne, Tatum Bell and Mike Anderson.

Meanwhile, Cecil Sapp can play tailback and fullback and will likely earn a roster spot.

"I felt so good about the running backs and what they've done," Shanahan said. "I wasn't going to give him playing time and take away from our other four."

Second-round draft pick Darrent Williams said Clarett got down about his lack of reps during practices. - College Football -

"I tried to give him encouragement. At times he was down because he was used to starting," Williams said.

Hardly anyone thought he had a chance to start for the Broncos. That he never played a down, not even in the preseason, came as a surprise.

"We've made mistakes before," Shanahan said. "We'll make mistakes in the future. Just because we draft somebody in the third round doesn't mean they're automatically going to be on ourfootball team. We've cut our first-rounders, second-rounders before. You don't feel very good about those scenarios, but they do happen." - College Football -

2005-08-25T07:15:00.000-07:00

College football: Cutright ready to be pass-catching tight end

For the last three football seasons, Brian Cutright has toiled in relative anonymity for Northern Iowa.
His time has come.
It's not that the senior from Bettendorf hasn't filled a regular role for the Panthers. He has lined up at tight end in every game of his career and is regarded as one of the team's top players by his coaches and peers.
However, it's usually been someone else playing the role of featured receiver from the tight end slot. In 2002, it was Ryan Walter. The last two seasons, it was Andy Thorn, who is currently battling for a spot on the Philadelphia Eagles' roster.

"I haven't really had the rock very much since high school," said Cutright, a 6-foot-4, 240-pound target. "I think I have 19 catches in my career here. I'd like to double that, but that's just a personal goal.

"I don't really care that much about myself when it comes to football. I'd rather have no catches and win every game than have 50 catches and not win as many games."

Either way, he's prepared himself for a big senior season by spending part of his summer at the same NFL-oriented Atlanta camp that served former teammates Justin Sandy and Eddie Galles well.

"It's my senior year," he said. "I've put in my time, and I'm ready to go. It's my last time around. It's my last camp. It's my last media day.

"I'm guaranteed 11 games this year, and I want to make the best of every day I'm here."

Cutright will likely have to make the most of limited opportunities in the passing game. UNI is loaded with offensive playmakers at the receiving positions.

"We get the tight ends out as much as possible," Cutright pointed out. "We get the ball as much as anybody else out there."

The Panthers could also have an outstanding rushing attack that may decrease their need to throw the ball. If that's the case, Cutright is ready to lead the way.

"He is probably the best blocker on our football team," said head coach Mark Farley.

Cutright said it's an acquired talent.

"Most of it's heart, man," he said. "It's pretty much, ‘Is this man better than you?' and can you stop him from doing what he wants to do. It's just a mentality. You've got to want to block."

Not every tight end wants to do that in an era when most professional teams have different players at the position for the blocking and receiving roles.

"A lot of tight ends now it seems like want to be more the receiver and the star," said Cutright. "I think being a blocking tight end helps the offense out so much more because of that critical point in a game when you can be a receiver or an offensive lineman."

Whatever his role on the field, Cutright will also be serving in a leadership capacity. The tight ends behind - Ross Hannam, Brandon Vonahme and Kyle Niemann - are young and untested.

"All the senior tight ends have to kind of pass on the tradition," Cutright explained. "There are certain things and certain rules that are carried down from year to year. It's my turn to hand down the torch at tight end."

Farley said he has the right man handling that job.

"He's another quiet leader, and those are the kind of guys who get the most respect from their teammates," he noted.

DOUG NEWHOFF,
CEDAR FALLS

2005-08-16T08:19:00.000-07:00

Preseason magazines can't agree on a champ
If you believe them, Michigan, Ohio State, Iowa and Purdue are worthy of consideration.

Buying preseason magazines is part of college football tradition, just like tailgates.
How else can you keep track of all the season-to-season changes around the country?
The slew of predictions won't mean anything once the games start, but they're all that die-hard fans have for now. - College Football -
In a survey of seven magazines, three name Michigan the Big Ten champion, two pick Iowa, one selects Ohio State and another Purdue.
Here are some of the magazines' highlights:
The Sporting News
• Quoting an anonymous "Big Ten coach" on Michigan: "They are a physical team, and they are extremely talented, but they don't show up every week. I think they're pompous, over-recruited arrogant-type kids. ... Which school has better players, Ohio State or Michigan? Michigan. - College Football -
"If you lined them up and had them run 40-yard dashes and took them into the weight room and had them bench press and power clean, yeah, they are better than Ohio State. Markedly better. The Michigan kids have more talent, but the Ohio State kids played harder.
"And to me, that's a microcosm of the two programs."
• The magazine picks Michigan State eighth in the Big Ten, but it doesn't write off the Spartans entirely. - College Football -
"The program is mired in a bowl-no bowl pattern that started in 1997," The Sporting News wrote. "To break it, the defense must make the same strides the offense did last year. At the least, a winning record and decent bowl are expected. If (Drew) Stanton stays healthy and the defense delivers, this is a dark horse in the battle for the Big Ten title."
Blue Ribbon
• One of the three in this survey that picks Michigan to win the Big Ten (three others said second, one third). - College Football -
It also ranks the Wolverines fourth nationally.
"Much of their success will depend on the continued maturation of (Chad) Henne and (Michael) Hart," Blue Ribbon, a 384-page book, wrote. "There are enough new faces (on defense) to cause concern, but this is Michigan we're talking about -- it's not like (Lloyd) Carr is plugging the holes with just anybody."
• One of four magazines out of the seven that picked Michigan State to finish eighth in the conference (the other three said fifth). - College Football -
Phil Steele
• Generally considered one of the most accurate preview magazines, Steele picks Purdue as the nation's biggest surprise team and the Big Ten champion. The Boilermakers don't play U-M or Ohio State.
• Projects Michigan for the Orange Bowl and Michigan State for the Sun Bowl.
Street & Smith's
• Picks Michigan No. 5 nationally, first in the Big Ten.
"Considering what the Wolverines lost -- wide receiver Braylon Edwards, safety Ernest Shazor and cornerback Marlin Jackson - picking Michigan this high seems highly dubious. Quarterback Chad Henne, running back Michael Hart and wideout Steve Breaston offer enough offensively to get this team to the Rose Bowl." - College Football -
• Gives Michigan State some hope with a fifth-place prediction in the conference.
Lindy's
• Ranks Michigan high nationally in several position categories -- No. 2 offensive backfield, No. 3 receivers, No. 3 offensive line and No. 4 defensive line.
• On Michigan State: "Will fight hard, but might be reduced to being spoiler again."
Athlon
• Projecting Michigan for nine victories with two "swing" games that could go either way (at Iowa, vs. Ohio State). - College Football -
• Has Michigan State with six solid victories, three losses (vs. Michigan, at Ohio State, at Purdue) and two "swing" games (at Notre Dame, at Minnesota).

Dave Dye / The Detroit News

2005-08-10T07:43:00.000-07:00

7-on-7 football team takes on state tournament

After a dream-season run, the Bandera 7-on-7 football team has finished third in their pool during the state tournament held at College Station. - College Football -
Bandera lost to Marshall 49-43 in three overtimes to take third in Pool M. The top two teams in each pool qualified for the championship bracket. Bandera would have qualified for the consolation bracket, but it was cancelled due to pending rainstorms. There were also supposed to be three games in pool play, but rain held the tournament to one game per team.
"Playing in this tournament was a great experience for our athletes," Bandera Head Coach Greg Hicks said. - College Football -
"They competed against some of the best teams and programs in the state."
Marshall, who won Bandera's pool, is picked to finish fourth in the state in the 4A classification. The team Bandera defeated, Spring Westfield, is picked in Dave Campbell's Texas Football to finish second this year in 5A competition. - College Football -
"Our kids really seem to have a grasp on the offense and defense they will be running this year," Hicks said. "I am extremely proud of our team and feel our showing at the state tourney is a tribute to the work ethic and character of our athletes at Bandera."
Bandera was one of only five class 3A teams to qualify for the state tournament, and one of only three greater San Antonio area schools to qualify. - College Football -
The Bandera High School football teams began two-a-days workouts on Aug. 1. When the 2005 season schedule is completed, look for it to appear in the Bandera Bulletin sports pages.

James Taylor - Associate Editor-in-Chief

2005-07-27T08:21:00.000-07:00

Recruiting game never ends
Player procurement is year-round process

The letters for Evangel Christian Academy's Dan Kreamer come in bunches -- three, four times a week. It has been this way since the end of last football season back in December.College football recruiting, you see, has no offseason.For every player like West Monroe's Shomari Clemons who ends the recruiting process early with a commitment (Clemons chose LSU late Sunday), there are others like Kreamer who go through the process.He received his first recruiting letter before the start of his junior year. - College Football -
Now, before the start of his senior year, he has scholarship offers from Mississippi State, Tulsa, Northwestern and Northwestern State. He is also hearing from LSU, Alabama, Arkansas, Florida and Oklahoma State."It's been OK. It's always been pretty crazy, as soon as last season was over,'' Kreamer says.Despite the initial craziness, Kreamer plans on going through the process -- the calls, the letters, the visits and finally the decision.The craziness extends not just to recruits, but to the college coaches as well. - College Football -
Seasons change but recruiting remains."I don't know if it ever stops,'' Northwestern State head coach Scott Stoker says. "I don't think it ever does.''SummerThere is no summer vacation in the football recruiting world. In fact, summer is often one of the most important times of the year in recruiting.Colleges have taken their camps and turned them into mini-scouting combines. Coaches watch players go through drills and physical testing. They get the players' 40-times, shuttle speeds and bench press reps."It's a chance for us to get to see them,'' Stoker says. "You have all of these other times and other stuff."There's been two or three kids every year we probably wouldn't have recruited if they hadn't been to our camp.''If coaches like a player enough, then they'll offer him a scholarship. - College Football -
Camps, though, aren't limited to just campus sites anymore.Louisiana Tech took its senior camps to Shreveport, Baton Rouge and New Orleans this year in addition to its camp on campus in Ruston.Northwestern State took a camp to New Orleans."It is probably more for smaller schools,'' Louisiana Tech offensive coordinator Conroy Hines says of the camps-off-campus trend. "If we want to go see guys in south Louisiana, it's a little difficult for them to come up to Ruston. It's a lot easier for 15 of us to get down there."We had 200 kids in New Orleans and 200 kids in Baton Rouge show up. .. - College Football -
It's been a good thing for us.''Campers often times make good recruits. Hines estimates about 50 percent of Tech's high school signees last year were also campers.FallWhile the season is being played on the field, there is another season being played off the field -- recruiting.In September, coaches begin making their calls to recruits and also evaluating prospects more closely.At Tech, the Bulldogs' coaches take Wednesday and Thursday nights during the season to concentrate on recruiting.The practice is common throughout college football."We take one afternoon where we put the stuff down and everyone is in their office making phone calls,'' Stoker says.This is the time when the recruiting board also gets whittled down.NSU's board has approximately 700 to 1,000 names on it now. - College Football -
It will be cut to "a workable number by December,'' Stoker says.Says Hines: "We start whittling them down on those Wednesdays and Thursday nights when we talk to them on the phone, see how their visits are set up. In the month of November, we really whittle it down even more.''WinterDecember and January are the months most fans associate with recruiting. Recruits take official visits. Verbal commitments become more common. Finally, signing day arrives in February."December is when you want to have your plan of attack and who you want to go after,'' Hines says. - College Football -
"For us, it's closing the deal."The big boys are going to bring in kids on official visits during the season. We haven't done that. December and January is the time to close the deal.''Even signing day doesn't mean recruiting is over."We bring our preferred list two or three weeks after signing day of players who didn't get signed that we think are good players and might be interested in coming to our place,'' Stoker says."Then you're right back on the board because you've already gotten your junior names. That's why I try to keep certain guys in certain areas because they know what is coming up.''SpringThe spring starts the recruiting process. The juniors list serves as a guide for coaches as they go on the road in April and May."In February and March, you start evaluating kids that are juniors and going to be seniors,'' says Hines. "You go out and see them in late April and early May and then you try to get them to come to your camps in the summer."And the cycle continues.'' - College Football -

Scott Ferrell

2005-07-19T07:18:00.000-07:00

Funeral held for Missouri football player

ST. LOUIS — Family and friends of Missouri football player Aaron O'Neal gathered Monday at West Side Missionary Baptist Church to both celebrate the life and mourn the loss of the player who died last week during a workout. - College Football -
The 19-year-old Missouri linebacker died Tuesday shortly after collapsing during a voluntary workout with teammates. The cause of death has not been determined, though a medical examiner has ruled out infection, trauma and foul play.
O'Neal, a redshirt freshman for the Tigers, was affectionally known to many by the nickname "A.O." He was born in New York City, but also lived in Alaska, Kentucky and Missouri.
In Missouri, O'Neal lived in the St. Louis suburb of Creve Coeur and attended Parkway North High School, where he was a four-sport standout. He was recruited by several top teams out of high school, but decided to pursue his dream of becoming a Missouri Tiger.
One of O'Neal's teachers and coaches in both middle school and high school, Jim Arico, said following the funeral, "He had an extreme work ethic. He was a silent leader, who led by example. He was focused, had his priorities (straight) and had a level head."
Those who knew O'Neal well explained that when they first met the young men he seemed quiet, but once they got to know him well, he displayed a deep warmth and sense of humor.
O'Neal's Missouri teammates, coaches and others from the school arrived in buses to attend the funeral. - College Football -
"Even in the college setting, Aaron continued to attract a throng of friends because Aaron was a natural leader and an individual that possessed a love and respect for people that seemingly knew no measure," noted a written life reflection in the funeral program.
Mourners who attended said they were still having a hard time believing such a vital, athletic young man was gone. - College Football -
"It was so unexpected to have him pass away like this, just a hard pill to swallow," high school classmate Damian Jones, 19, of St. Louis, said before he entered the church.
Another high school classmate, Jennifer Kemp, 18, of Creve Coeur, said people looked up to O'Neal and she admired him because he didn't show off his abilities.
"When I ran track, I remember even if he was tired, he'd keep going. He just had a determination," she said. - College Football -
It's still unknown what led to O'Neal's health problems last week.
The workout ended with O'Neal slumped on the Faurot Field turf. After walking off the field with the help of a trainer and then a teammate, he was taken by ambulance to University Hospital, where he died 90 minutes later.
Under NCAA rules, no football coaches were allowed to attend the preseason workouts where players ran sprints and performed agility drills while wearing shorts, T-shirts and cleats, but no helmets or pads. - College Football -
Medical examiner Valerie Rao said Friday in Columbia that she will interview the 11 other players, eight conditioning coaches and three trainers present at the early afternoon workout.
O'Neal was survived by his parents, two sisters and a brother.

Betsy Taylor, The Associated Press

2005-07-13T16:28:00.000-07:00

College Football: BCS adds new poll to mix this fall

The formula for determining the Bowl Championship Series standings was tweaked again yesterday with the addition of a new college football poll that will replace the one conducted by The Associated Press.
The AP had asked after last season not to have its poll included in the formula to determine BCS bowl participants.
The Harris Interactive College Football Poll will rank the top 25 teams on a weekly basis during the season, but the first poll will not be released until Sept. 25, three weeks into the season. The panel will comprise former coaches, players and administrators and select members of the media. Eighty percent of the panel will be former coaches, players and administrators; 20 percent from the media.
Other than the new Harris poll, the elements of the formula remain the same. The Harris poll will count a third along with the USA Today Coaches' poll and an average of the six computer rankings provided by Anderson & Hester, Richard Billingsley, Colley Matrix, Kenneth Massey, Jeff Sagarin and Peter Wolfe.
The 114 participants in the new poll were randomly drawn by Harris Interactive from among more than 300 nominations from Division I-A conferences and Notre Dame athletic director Kevin White. Each of the 11 Division I-A conferences will be represented by 10 voters. Notre Dame was able to nominate three voters. - College Football -
The voters are currently being filled by the conferences. BCS coordinator Kevin Weiberg refused to divulge any of the names yesterday but said the voters' names will be released to the public before the start of the season.
"The voters will take the responsibility seriously," Weiberg said. "The people who give their time have the ability to watch games and study results and will cast their votes as best they can. I think it's a group that has knowledge of and an interest in college football."
The 114 voters is almost double the size of the USA Today poll. Renee Smith, a senior research scientist for Harris, said yesterday that the higher number of voters ensures a better statistical analysis. - College Football -
Weiberg said he tried to get Grant Teaff, the head of the American Football Coaches' Association, to increase the number of voters in the coaches' poll, but Teaff balked at that idea.
Harris Interactive will post the poll on its Web site each Sunday. Individual votes will be made public for the final poll only, although voters can divulge their votes if they wish.
The coaches' poll also will not reveal votes until the final poll.
The AP has made individual votes public for more than a decade because it believes it makes for a more credible poll. Weiberg was asked yesterday about the seeming lack of accountability in the process. - College Football -
"We talked a long time about the poll being made public," Weiberg said. "But we thought it would detract from the games themselves. We decided it was an inappropriate step to take."
Weiberg and Harris Interactive senior vice president John Kennedy said recruitment for the poll is going well, with more than 80 people having committed to be voters.
They did reveal, however, that about a third of the original pool contacted turned down the opportunity to vote for various reasons. - College Football -
A few major news organizations are not allowing their employees to take part in the new Harris poll. The New York Times and the Baltimore Sun are not allowing any of their employees to vote. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is considering allowing only its columnists to participate.
ESPN, which pulled it sponsorship from the coaches' poll after last season, is not allowing any of its employees to vote.
Post-Gazette columnist Bob Smizik has voted in the AP poll in recent years, but no one from this newspaper has been approached about voting in the new Harris poll. - College Football -
"I don't feel like it's our role to select a national champion," said Randy Harvey, sports editor at the Baltimore Sun. "It could lead potentially to great conflicts of interest. If we're in position to determine whether Maryland or Navy gets a bid to a BCS game or a better bowl, we're treading on perilous ground. If we vote for them, it looks like favoritism because they're a local school. If we vote against them, they're mad at us when we were just trying to be fair. I don't think it's a position we should be in." - College Football -
As is the case with other polls, the Harris voters will be evaluated after the season and could be subject to change. Each conference was solely responsible for deciding which voters were qualified to take part.
"We'll make adjustments as needed," Weiberg said. "We will be giving expectations to these voters."

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

2005-07-06T12:21:00.000-07:00

Express Purpose
Playing beneath the radar, the CNY Express punts, passes and kicks toward national gridiron glory

It's not for the money. Players and coaches for the semipro CNY Express football team don't get paid and most of them don't even use the term semipro anyway. The official label is "amateur adult minor league" and their affiliation is the New York Amateur Football League (NYAFL).
But with the lights on in the stadium for an evening game, friends in the stands and a tradition of being nationally competitive, to the schoolteachers, factory workers, firefighters, construction workers and salespeople on the Express roster, it feels like semipro.
So it's not for the money.
"When you're playing it, you can't see it," recalls Ray Seals, now approaching his second year as defensive coordinator for the Fowler High School football team. In 1987, after playing for Henninger High School and spending some time in Florida, Seals was on his way to Hudson Valley Community College when he stopped off to visit friends who were getting ready for a season with the Express. He remembers he started to practice, "had a couple of good games," and wound up with a national minor-league championship. The team had already won the title in 1985, its second season, and they finished as the country's top minor-league football team again in 2004.
"I thought I was in the pros then," says Seals, who parlayed that championship season into a 10-year career in the National Football League. "Now, after being in the pros, I can see how hard it is to be committed {to a season with the Express}. They've got jobs. They've got lives outside of football. And they don't get paid."
Not only is it not about the money, players are required to pay a $100 registration fee or find a sponsor to pony up the dues. Players must also provide a photo ID and a health insurance card to suit up and must have completed 10 hours of community service before the first game. They must also invest in the suiting up by supplying their own shoulder pads, footwear and black helmet. Express management, headed by general manager Chris Gorman, supplies a logo for the helmets, game uniforms and transportation to away games.
They say it's for the love of the game, but while nobody talks much about it, it's partly about a dream. Seals' NFL tenure, including a 1996 trip to a Super Bowl, exists in mythical proportions on the minor-league circuit. But it really happened.
"There's a big difference now," says Seals, 40, assessing the chances of any current Express player to replicate his feat. "Then there was no Arena Football, no World Football League. The only thing then was the NFL and Canada {the Canadian Football League}. Now they have several levels. But you never know."
That myth will hover over Liverpool High School's football field at 7 p.m. on Saturday, July 9, when the 2005 CNY Express plays its home opener, one of 11 games on the schedule. But the players will have added motivation this year: winning a second straight national championship. Although none of them seem to be taking it for granted, with virtually the entire team returning from last year's drive to the top, they appear calmly confident that a repeat is more than possible.
First Down While mythical in scope, Seals' jump from the Express to running with the big dogs took some perseverance. "Back in high school I had a substitute teacher named Joe Riccardi," Seals says. "He was friends with Ray Perkins, who was then coach at the University of Alabama. He encouraged me to visit and my grandmother paid for me to fly down. I was impressed, but after I finished playing at Henninger, I moved to Florida with my mother. But I stayed in touch with Joe Riccardi and when I was playing with the Express he said I should be trying to connect with an NFL team."
Seals was hesitant. The NFL players strike was on that year, 1987. "If I got a shot {as a replacement player}," he says, "I didn't want to get blackballed when the {striking} players came back." Riccardi persisted and together they called the New York Giants and the New York Jets. "We were getting hung up on," Seals says. "People were saying, 'No college? No way!,' and then Joe called Ray Perkins who was coaching the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, telling him I was the next Cornelius Bennett," a former defensive line all-star for the Buffalo Bills.
Perkins flew Seals down to Tampa, but left the field in the middle of his tryout. "I thought I must have messed up," Seals says. "But he came back out after it was over and said, 'We're going to sign you for next year. Go home and finish your semipro season and report to camp in February.' I played six years there."
In 1993 he signed as a free agent with the Pittsburgh Steelers, which played all the way to the conference championship game in 1994 and lost the Super Bowl in the last minute to the Dallas Cowboys the following year. Sidelined by an injury the following year, Seals finished his career with the Carolina Panthers in 1997.
Seals now has renewed dreams of an NFL connection. He recently took a dozen of his Fowler players to the Buffalo Bills summer camp and was pleasantly surprised to see so many people from his playing days now in NFL coaching or general manager positions.
For Chris Bresnahan, the Express quarterback, it's no longer about the dream. After toiling with the Sherman Park junior pee-wees, Pop Warner, Corcoran High School and the University of New Hampshire, in 1997 "Brezh," as his teammates call him, signed with the New England Patriots and lasted almost until the final cuts. After trying to catch on with a couple of other NFL teams, Bresnahan came home to play one game, a national championship playoff, with the old Syracuse Storm.
He moved to Florida and played parts of two seasons with the Arena League Tampa Bay Storm. After two years with the old Syracuse Vipers, he took a year off and signed on with the Express last year, throwing three touchdown passes in the team's national championship victory and being named first team all-America by the Minor League Football News. According to Bresnahan, the dream doesn't die from the physical wear and tear of the football grind.
"It's the business aspect of it," he says. "People have no idea how difficult it actually is to get to that level. I hate to crush anybody's dreams, but you're not going to be some guy on the street playing football and then find yourself on an NFL team. I'm sure there are guys who are out there {who still harbor the dream}, but you've got to have the time, 100 percent, and the connections. There are some very, very good football players that aren't in the NFL right now because they didn't know the right people."
Bresnahan says he and his teammates knew they could be nationally competitive when the season opened last year. They had won the NYAFL championship the year before without a consistent passing game. Last year they lost the league championship game to the Buffalo Gladiators, but advanced through the three-game Harvest Bowl Tournament and on to Homestead, Fla., on Jan. 9, where they beat the Detroit Seminoles, 44-31, to become national champs with a 15-1 record. Bresnahan attributes the success, in part, to Syracuse now fielding only one minor-league team.
"A lot of these guys I played with on the Vipers," he says, referring to this year's teammates. "We were competing for talent then with the CNY Express." Approaching this season--which opened June 18 at the Alex Duffy Fairgrounds in Watertown with a 28-12 victory over traditional rival Watertown Red and Black, the oldest minor-league football team in the country--Bresnahan does not expect to lose a game. The Express won their second game of the season, as well, a 55-12 trouncing of the Southern Tier Green Machine on June 25. "Wherever that takes us," he says calmly, "that'll take us."
Extra Point Express practices are held twice a week at Roosevelt Field at Midland and Brighton avenues, and with jobs and family responsibilities, many of the 46 players listed on the current roster have a hard time making them all. Evening deejay Big Smoothie on WAQX-FM 95.7 (95X) and Express center Jamie Hantke are lucky to make any. A second-team Minor League Football News all-America last year, Hantke says it's difficult keeping pace without participating in the team's regimen. "But I compensate by doing boot camp {a local fitness center routine} three days a week at 6 a.m. And I'm constantly talking to Brezh and the guys about what we need to be doing."
Bresnahan credits Hantke as one of the reasons he's still walking entering his 20th year in football and Hantke returns the compliment, saying Bresnahan's contribution to last year's success was huge. "The year before we won the league championship with only a running game," Hantke notes, "one guy running over 2,000 yards. But we didn't have the quarterback who could pass on a national championship level."
Hantke is hoping for a repeat of last year's success. "The whole team is just looking for respect for minor-league football," says the 26-year-old who is entering his seventh season with the Express.
The question of respect arose last year when the team's Homestead victory garnered front-page coverage in Binghamton's Press and Sun Bulletin but hardly a mention in the local sports pages. "What's up with that?" Express second year coach David Johnson asks playfully. "I coached in Binghamton for 24 years. I was the head coach in the high school. I also coached the semipro team there and developed a good rapport with a reporter there. A lot of people didn't even know I was coaching here.
"I had taken a year off to watch my son play at {SUNY} Brockport, and Scott Irons, who had played for me in Binghamton, told me they had talent here but coaching was lacking. Initially there was a learning curve, but it seems like a perfect fit and I've never coached a better bunch of guys. When we won the Harvest Bowl they started doing a story in Binghamton." Ironically, publication coincided with the Express winning the national championship, but still no press from The Post-Standard.
Johnson still lives in Binghamton, but began work as a treatment team leader at Hutchings Psychiatric Center in January. "This is the hardest level to coach because you're held captive by your players," he says. "You understand they're adults, they have families, they have full-time responsibilities, they have jobs, careers. They all do the best they can. We mandate that you get here one of the two practices a week and that's about all you can ask. We don't do a lot of hitting. If a player, God forbid, is going to get hurt I would rather it be in a game than in a practice. At this level guys have played the game. They know what they're doing. They have the skills. They have the techniques. You can hone them, but come Saturday night, they go out there and they know what they've got to do."
Johnson is blunt when asked if the players come to summer practices in shape. "No," he says with a chuckle. "Some do. A lot of guys do go to the gym. They work out. Physically, muscular-wise, they're in shape, but cardiovascular we need to do some training. That's my job as a coach. Conditioning last year was a big factor."
Injuries are also a factor, more so than at high levels of competition. "Injuries are big," he says, "because generally you have a starting nucleus and then you do drop off talent-wise into the second level. When you lose a starter it's key. We have guys here from 18 up to their 40s. They're here because of the love of the game. Their bodies endure a lot of pain. Last year when I took over there were many of them who were mid-30s up to early 40s. They said, 'Coach, we've been doing this for 12, 15 years, we want to win a national championship before we're too old to play.'"And it really, really is not for the money.

Walt Shepperd

2005-06-29T06:40:00.000-07:00

Auburn champions at Times-Journal

Though it's not likely to mean much to them, we here at the Times-Journal are officially naming the Auburn Tigers our College Football National Champions for the 2004 season.There's not a trophy and it's the first and probably last time we will bestow such an honor, but it's just too hard to watch this team blaze a 13-0 record through the SEC and wind up without a National Championship of some kind.
There has been a lot written about the various and sundry travesties manifested on the fine young men from Auburn this season.They have beaten every opponent placed in front of them, four Top 10 teams, Tennessee twice, Virginia Tech, LSU and Georgia.
This team has won with heart and class as much as offense and defense.Still they have watched as USC and Oklahoma reaped the accolades and marched to the "National Championship" game last night in Miami, which quickly turned into USC beating the dog out of Oklahoma.Auburn is a team filled with players who were not household names coming into the season.It is a team that lost two of their biggest stars to the NFL draft and a team that most thought would take a step back this season.Surprise.The addition of a round offensive coordinator from the West Coast added to an experienced offense proved to be a lethal combination for the poor opponents that found themselves facing the Tigers.The Tigers have proven themselves time and again to be both a great football team and a team of great people.At the least, the Tigers deserved the chance to prove themselves worthy against the Mighty Trojans of USC.At the end of the day, whether they get the shiny glass trophy or not, the 13-0 Tigers are undefeated and champions of the SEC.They gave everything they had this season and left nothing on the field, like champions.

College Football Video Clip

2005-06-22T09:35:00.000-07:00

College Football Video Clip