College Football - Football Betting

2005-11-01T17:32:00.000-08:00

Keys to the Big Games
Week Five, Oct. 1---college fotball ---
Michigan vs. Michigan State---college fotball ---

By John Harris---college fotball ---

a. The Anti-De Milo – Drew Stanton comes to the line of scrimmage against Michigan. He surveys the scene. He doesn’t even look at the Michigan defense. He just looks to the right and sees Matt Trannon, stud power forward and even better WR. Next to him is Jerramy Scott. Then, Stanton looks the other way and spies Kyle Brown, the Spartans’ leading receiver. Next to him is Terry Love. Stanton looks at the play clock and smiles, knowing that he has the best foursome of receivers in the Big Ten. Boy, what a great set of hands. No kidding, Drew. It’s almost like getting the variety cereal pack, if you want Frosted Flakes, have at it. Special K, get the milk. Not many QBs have this type of opportunity to throw to four guys that are so talented. Brown is perhaps the most dangerous of the foursome, and he has shown that he can turn a four yard catch into forty four and a TD. He’s also going to see the ball in the return game, so when he has to rest after a long return, the wide receiver production doesn’t fall off at all. Trannon is the guy that could be the best of the bunch by the end of the year. The 6’4” and 227 pound uber-receiver seems to be a completely different receiver than in prior years. Maybe it was the time he spent with the MSU basketball team on their Final Four run, maybe it’s just reaching his full potential, but whatever it is, Trannon has found it. And, you know what, MSU’s entire WR corps has found it. Against an average Michigan secondary, don’t be surprised to see each of the four WR have solid performances on Saturday.---college fotball ---
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b. Finish the Deal – Flash back to last October, Ann Arbor, Michigan – first half of the Michigan/MSU game. In what should have been a precursor for Michigan’s late season defensive fall, MSU QB Drew Stanton, finally healthy, is tearing Michigan a new one. They can’t stop him throwing. They can’t stop him running. Until…Stanton is fallen on by a Michigan defender. His night is over, and after succumbing to a 17 point lead late in the fourth quarter, so was Michigan State. Stanton’s performance had such a good news/bad news quality to it. You could see how great this offense was when he was in there, but now he was on the shelf for a few weeks. Well, fast forward to October 2005, Stanton is healthy. His team is healthy. And, they’re looking to close the deal…finally. That’s going to be a key in this game. Last year, they couldn’t do it without Stanton, and Drew couldn’t finish with his arm in a sling. What have the two – Stanton and the MSU team – learned about themselves in one year’s time? That they’re pretty dadgum good, especially when #5 is in command. There’s no secret that Michigan has struggled mightily with versatile, dual threat QBs, and they didn’t stop Stanton last year. Expect Michigan State to continue with the QB counters and QB runs that make this offense so difficult to stop. Let’s just hope that Stanton finishes this game, unlike last year.---college fotball ---
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c. Someone, please, get the ball to Mr. Breaston before it’s too late – Okay, someone needs to help out a bit. Answer the following. Steve Breaston doesn’t get the ball because…? Someone help fill in the blanks. This same thing happened last year with Breaston. He never got the ball. He wasn’t fully healthy last year, and by the time that he was, the Wolverines offense went up another notch when they got him back 100%. Shoot, in the Rose Bowl, Breaston and Braylon Edwards went toe-to-toe with Vince Young all night long. Texas couldn’t tackle Breaston, and he was electric all night long. But, where is that this year? Against Wisconsin, he touched the ball one time on offense. ONE?!?!? What? Are you kidding me? Was Wisconsin’s defense that good? Against EMU, he had only two touches – two receptions. Is he hurt again? Someone has to clarify because this is one of the most dangerous players in college football, and the Michigan coaching staff can’t get him the ball more than three times in the last two games? That’s weird, frustrating and just not right. Jason Avant is the go-to receiver, okay, fine, but with Mike Hart on the bench, you don’t think that giving the ball to Breaston on a reverse or the old Florida reverse (where he goes in motion and takes a handoff from Chad Henne as he sprints to the perimeter) would put some pressure on a defense? If he’s not catching the ball well, hand it to him. If that’s not it, then what the heck is it? Teams that win find ways to get the ball to their best offensive players. Avant is the #1 guy. Mario Manningham is a very good secondary threat, but think how good they both could be if Breaston could and would get the ball in space, to open up the field by his presence later. Sorry, diatribe is over. Wait…GET HIM THE BALL! Okay, now it is.---college fotball ---
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Conclusion – Since the loss of Mike Hart in the Notre Dame game, the Michigan offense just doesn’t put fear into defenses like they did in the Rose Bowl. Breaston, okay, that horse is already beaten to death. Michigan QB Chad Henne doesn’t have the sophomore jinx, but he isn’t improving like the Michigan staff would have hoped. On the other hand, the Spartans don’t think the Cincinnati Bengals can stop them. They’re flying high with confidence and unless Ohio State’s defense shows up to shut them down on Saturday, they’ll continue to roll up points. If Drew stays healthy, it might not be this close. Michigan State – 31 vs. Michigan – 23---college fotball ---
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2005-10-26T21:13:00.000-07:00

Perspective Piece
Ohio State - Penn State, Oct. 8
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By Matthew Zemek---college football---
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Saturday night’s tilt between Ohio State and Penn State has a delicious and irresistible emotional feel to it. Buckeyes-Nittany Lions is the kind of game a sportswriter loves to contemplate. It has a texture and flavor that is not just appealing, but even endearing. There’s a sweetness to the subtext of this game that warms the heart, and makes one appreciate college football ten thousand times more than any other sport on the planet.---college football---
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OSU-PSU is an ultimate, prototypical kind of college football game, and I emphasize college here.
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College, after all, is where you learn about yourself, grow up, and become a real man. College is where you get an education, and for education to be relevant, you can’t just study textbooks or notes; you need to learn by experience, having your baptism by fire in so many aspects of life that you were either shielded from by your parents, or which Mom and Dad did for you.---college football---
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Saturday night, Penn State’s precocious freshmen will get a real college education at the hands of the Ohio State Buckeyes’ defense.---college football---
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No, this does not mean that Ohio State will run the Nittany Lions into the ground; the above comment is not meant to convey that idea. It simply indicates that these young Penn State talents will learn a lot about how to conduct themselves and make in-game adjustments—physically, tactically and emotionally—against a veteran defense that is the best in all of college football. The extent to which Derrick Williams and the other young Lion pups can make these changes in midstream will largely determine Penn State’s fate. If you can outfox Nate Salley or Donte Whitner, and minimize the impact of Heisman-worthy linebacker A.J. Hawk (who should cry bloody murder if he doesn’t get a plane ticket to New York this December; surely, he deserves that much), you can then proclaim to the world that your college education is paying big dividends.
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Adding to the emotional sweetness of Saturday night’s battle, which is just as much a “big event” as it is a mere game, is the presence of the Old Master on the sideline, watching over the progress of his too-young-to-know-better freshmen forces.---college football---
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Yes, this heartstring-tugging extravaganza, a Hallmark kind of football game if there ever was one, is made complete by the presence of Joe Paterno, defying time and staying young at heart to lead a resurrected Penn State program unbeaten into battle against the behemoth from Columbus. College football soars with joy and crackles with extra excitement whenever an iconic figure graces a spotlight game, and with PSU rebounding to battle the Buckeyes in a game that’s significant for both teams—and more instructively, significant for the same reasons (a Big Ten title)—you have JoePa back where he belongs: on the sidelines in a big-time game. The fact that he’s entering this contest with a rare youth movement in Happy Valley only adds to the sizzle of this high-stakes tilt.---college football---
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Everything that’s good and right about college football, everything that’s magical and endearing about this treasured sport, will be on display when the legendary coach and his teenage talents face the mighty colossus from central Ohio, loaded with linebackers every bit as good as anyone Paterno himself cranked out at the original “Linebacker U.”---college football---
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Youth and skill. Old age and treachery. The established power and a resurgent one. An established icon—Paterno—against a potential icon in the making in Jim Tressel, who—just like JoePa—loves old-school sweaters, button-down shirts, and ties.---college football---
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The imagery, the cross-generational appeal, and the meaning of a real college education all make Bucks-Lions a game that sings with romance, beauty and magic.---college football---
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Let’s hope the action on the field can match the delicious storylines that give this contest its rare, timeless and endearingly sweet texture.---college football---

2005-10-11T10:59:00.000-07:00

Husson handles long road trip well
Eagles traveled by bus to Southern Virginia only to have game cancelled

The Husson College football team rolled out of Bangor at 8 p.m. Thursday bound for Buena Vista, Va., and Saturday's football game against Southern Virginia University. - College Football -

Coach Gabby Price and the Eagles arrived back in Bangor at 5 a.m. Sunday - after approximately 1,666 miles and 27 hours on the bus - without having played their game.

Poor turf conditions at the municipal field used by SVU and torrential rains that swamped other fields in the area meant no facility was available for the game. It was canceled Saturday morning.

"The players were extremely disappointed," Price said Monday. "Football players practice to play. They want to play football." - College Football -

The game will not be rescheduled and Price indicated Husson has fulfilled its responsibility as part of a home-and-home series with SVU, which played in Bangor last season.

It was at 10 p.m. Friday that Price was awakened by a telephone call asking him to contact Southern Virginia athletic director Tom Longenecker, who explained the dilemma.

"I said, 'Tom, what are you talking about?'" Price said. - College Football -

Longenecker indicated he would continue looking for an alternate location to play the game, but was not successful.

A press release on the SVU Web site that said, in part, "After several exhaustive hours, telephone calls and meetings late Friday night and early Saturday morning, Longenecker arrived at the decision [to cancel], one that was the result of heavy rainfall the past 48 hours in the southern part of the state of Virginia..."

Price said the field SVU uses had previously experienced problems related to a fungus. He expected school officials might have done some preliminary research to find an alternate field, regardless of the rainy conditions.

"[Saturday morning Longenecker] said, 'what do you want from us?" Price recalled. "I said, 'obviously, we want to play the game." - College Football -

SVU wouldn't play Sunday because of religious considerations (it is a Mormon school) and Price said the Eagles weren't willing to wait around until Monday to play.

Price is proud of the way the Husson contingent handled the disappointment while having to endure such a long road trip.

"Our young men were just terrific all the way through it. They handled themselves tremendously," he said. - College Football -

Husson had hoped to build some momentum coming off its 62-18 victory over Mount Ida on Oct. 1.

"Our kids were really excited. There was a really positive vibe," Price said.

Price had promised his players a day off from practice Monday, so the Eagles will this afternoon begin preparing for Saturday's 1 p.m. home game against the State University of New York's MaritimeCollege. - College Football -

"We have great confidence in our young people. They have great resiliency," Price said.

UMaine football seeks to regroup

The University of Maine football team looks to regroup, physically and mentally, in the wake of Saturday's 38-2 loss at then-No. 5 James Madison. - College Football -

Coach Jack Cosgrove's 2-3 Black Bears were outplayed, particularly on the offensive and defensive lines, while dropping to 0-2 in Atlantic 10 play.

"We got a dose of reality," Cosgrove said.

While UMaine may have begun the season with aspirations of challenging for the conference title, it now must face the realization it is playing for more short-range goals.

"Win the next game," is how Bears quarterback Ron Whitcomb described how the team will respond to Saturday's loss. "Winning cures losing. That's what we're going to do."

The Bears continue to lack consistency offensively as they try to rebuild a line that includes three first-time starters - one freshman, a redshirt freshman and a sophomore.

UMaine's inability to run the ball consistently has placed more pressure on Whitcomb and the passing attack. And Whitcomb hasn't had much time to throw the ball against fast, aggressive defenses like that of James Madison. - College Football -

A handful of penalties also further slowed UMaine.

"They called good plays, it's just that their interior offensive line, they weren't getting any push," said JMU defensive tackle Frank Cobbs.

The Bears haven't scored a touchdown in six straight quarters of A-10 play dating back to the Richmond contest. - College Football -

The Bears also are dealing with a few injuries from Saturday's game. Starting defensive end Pat McCrossan missed most of the second half after suffering a shoulder injury in the first half, while starting offensive tackle Ryan Bird hurt his knee and ankle on the last play of the game.

Their playing status won't be known until later this week.

For now, UMaine can do nothing more than look ahead to Saturday's game against Hofstra at Hempstead, N.Y. - College Football -

"We've got to practice well, prepare well," Cosgrove said. "We've got to ante up and get on the road and play another A-10 game. The best thing we can do to cure what ails us is win afootball game."

BangorDailyNews.com

2005-10-05T08:35:00.000-07:00

College football notebook: Former Montana coach dies

By Seattle Times news services

Jack Swarthout, a former Montana coach and athletic director, has died.

Mr. Swarthout, who had been battling non-Hodgkins lymphoma in recent years, died Saturday in Olympia. He was 85. - - College Football - -

Mr. Swarthout coached the Grizzlies from 1967 to 1975 and guided Montana to back-to-back 10-0 regular seasons in 1969 and 1970. Both teams lost in the Camellia Bowl, which crowned the small-college national champion.

"He was one of the classiest people I've known in my life," said Pat Dodson, an assistant coach during Mr. Swarthout's tenure. "He was a greatfootball mind. He surrounded himself with outstanding people. He's one of the greatest coaches that the Grizzlies ever had."

Mr. Swarthout's final visit to Missoula came last November, when he was honored during a halftime celebration. - - College Football - -

His coaching career began at Hoquiam High School in the late 1940s and finished at Capital High School of Olympia in 1992, when he coached the school's ninth-grade team.

He also was an assistant at Washington and Texas, along with his tenure at Montana.

"All of us lost a father in Jack; he meant a lot to all of us," said Robin Peters, a star defensive back for the Grizzlies from 1968 to 1971. "A lot of us are the way we are because of Jack."
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Before Mr. Swarthout took over, the Grizzlies had just two winning seasons in the previous 21 years. He finished 51-41, ranking second behind Don Read in career wins. A former Grizzlies player from 1939 to 1941, Mr. Swarthout guided Montana to its first Big Sky Conference title in 1969. - - College Football - -

2005-09-24T10:42:00.000-07:00

HD stands for heavy-duty TV use during fall Sundays

ALEX L. GOLDFAYN
Published September 24, 2005

On "football Sunday," David Welles and about 10 of his buddies gather at his house to watch NFL games. All of them.

Welles has a six-pack of high-definition televisions set up so he or his friends can catch every snap. - NFL Football -

Welles is a fantasy football junkie. He has been playing for four years and this year he and his friends are competing for $4,500 in prize money. As with most dedicated players, Welles must know how the players on his fantasy team are doing at all times.

Of the six TVs, Welles has "two 42-inch plasmas, a 26-inch LCD and two 20-inch LCDs on what we call the viewing wall. There's another small LCD on the table in front playing the DirecTV screen that shows footage from every game going on so we know to switch the channel [on the other TVs] if something happens."

If a game gets too emotional and Welles or his friends want to watch in privacy, there's a TV on the deck and another one downstairs.

"It's an obsession," he said. "Every Sunday, all my friends are here. And it's not like guys talking together--everyone is watching a different a game and they're all screaming and yelling. There's an obsessive amount of football being watched." - NFL Football -

Welles' league uses the fantasy football tool on CBS SportsLine (www.sportsline.com/fantasy). There are various options for leagues at different price-points, from free to about $500. For example, individuals can buy in for $15 per season, join a league filled with people they do not know and use the site's features the entire football year.

If you're like Welles and have a group of friends that want to play together, you can create a league and make your own rules. Welles' group paid $500 (or about $50 per player) for their league. - NFL Football -

In fantasy football, players are current NFL players and are drafted among fantasy teams. Team owners get points for things the real players do on the field each week. In Welles' Haulers Pigskin League, touchdowns are worth six points and quarterbacks who throw for more than 300 yards get 10 points. Four points are awarded for every 25 yards rushing or receiving, and one point for every reception.

SportsLine, and the other fantasy leagues on Web sites like Yahoo and ESPN (both of which offer free leagues; SportsLine only offers fee-based leagues), tracks this information for your team.

Welles watches games with his laptop open to monitor the teams in his league in real time as the action happens on the field. He knows how he's doing at all times. - NFL Football -

And on those awful football Sundays that he's away from his TV wall and laptop?

He tracks the action on his BlackBerry wireless device, which receives the information directly from SportsLine.

"I got my lineup at all times and it sends me a text message when something happens with my guys. I'm not having to search for my players. It knows my teams and my players, and it even gives me tips." - NFL Football -

What happens to all those televisions when it's not "football Sunday"?

They come down, and, with just three televisions, Welles' house is a bit more like the rest of ours.

Copyright © 2005, Chicago Tribune

2005-09-07T08:59:00.000-07:00

Battle lines drawn at Suwannee River

Tania Deluzuriaga and Steve Elling
Sentinel Staff Writer

EN ROUTE TO TALLAHASSEE -- The sign on the east bank of the Suwannee River outside of Branford reads: "Entering Lafayette County." It could just as well read: "Entering Florida State Country." - College Football -

Like the Suwannee itself, which winds its way from the Okefenokee Swamp south to the Gulf of Mexico, the geographic border between fans from Florida and Florida State is a vague line that meanders somewhere through the country separating Gainesville and Tallahassee.
In terms of where the figurative battle lines have been drawn, the tannin-tainted waters of the dear old Suwannee are about same colors you'd get if you combined garnet and gold plus blue and orange. The long brown smudge is the Mason-Dixon line between rival parties of the state's most popular universities.

"That's it right there," said Nell Lewis, 74, pointing toward the river.

Lewis should know. For the past 35 years she's catered to both sets of fans at her restaurant on the banks of the Suwannee, and even her children are evenly divided on which team reigns supreme.

Tooling along U.S. Highway 27 toward Tallahassee after watching Florida's Saturday night victory over Wyoming, the venerable river celebrated in composer Stephen Foster's 1851 tune, "Old Folks at Home," now seems famous for separating the two enemy camps.

Some folks have claimed for years that the city of Live Oak, located just south of Interstate 10, or perhaps even Lake City were where the territorial lines were drawn. We decided to use a more scientific approach. - College Football -

"This sounds like a geography question," said Chad Allen, an FSU graduate student. "I'm a geography major, so you're probably talking to the right guy."

The Continental Divide it isn't. Branford is located roughly 50 miles from Gainesville and 90 from the state capital, though with respect to the latter, there's little more than critters and varmints along the way.

Sunday morning Allen and some fellow students were getting ready to tube down the Ichetucknee River, which eventually feeds into the Suwannee. They were awful close to enemy ground.

"My mom's side of the family lives in Live Oak and it's pretty much split right down the middle," said Peter Predmore, an FSU student from Clermont. - College Football -

As they tossed the football around in the parking lot at Ichetucknee Springs State Park, a shirtless, grizzly bear-sized man in a Gators hat watched them suspiciously.

In this region, there's often some blurring of the lines. For instance, Predmore's live-in girlfriend Vanessa Ross graduated from UF and now attends law school at FSU.

"When we play Miami, I'll root for Florida State," she said, referring to tonight's big season opener between the two ACC rivals. "But then, I'm a bad Gator, I'll wear an FSU shirt."

Out in the Panhandle, competition between fans of the two schools can get creative. Gordon Fulwood, a policeman from High Springs, roams the hinterlands seeking to strengthen Florida's foothold. A few years back he pulled over a car full of FSU students after Florida had won the annual face-off between the schools. - College Football -

He threatened to write the driver a speeding ticket if he didn't verbally acknowledge the Gators' superiority.

"I tortured him a little bit," Fulwood said. "But he said the Gators were his favorite team to get out of a ticket. He knew what part of the state he was in."

He and his brother Stan were barbecuing on the east bank of the Suwannee on Sunday, looking across the water and cracking jokes. - College Football -

"We understand the IQ of the population drops about 40 points once you get in that area," Gordon said, pointing across the river.

It didn't take a genius to understand that FSU's opener tonight was being watched by friends and foes alike. The Seminoles have lost six in a row to the Hurricanes, a streak that started after FSU's 1999 national championship season. That seems like eons ago to some students.

Copyright © 2005, Orlando Sentinel

2005-08-31T07:32:00.000-07:00

Katrina shakes up college football openers

BATON ROUGE, La. – LSU postponed its scheduled football game Saturday night against North Texas because of Hurricane Katrina.

"The events of Monday and this morning have made it clear that this is not the time to play a football game," LSU athletic director Skip Bertman said Tuesday. "This is a dire situation that rivals any in the history of our state, and our priorities are on participating in recovery efforts." LSU has canceled classes until Sept. 6. - College Football -

"The scope of this tragedy is becoming more evident as time passes, and LSU's focus is on assisting in the recovery effort of our state," LSU chancellor Sean O'Keefe said. "LSU is a primary evacuation site and we are not going to conduct any activities that could deter from our mission of assisting in the recovery mission."

LSU's Carl Maddox Field House is being used a Special Needs Shelter, the Pete Maravich Assembly Center has been designated as a triage unit for medical emergencies, and the Bernie Moore Track will be used as a helicopter landing site.

The school hoped to announce the date for the postponed game in the next two to three days. LSU is ranked fifth in the country. - College Football -

Also, the Tulane-Southern Mississippi game scheduled for Sunday in Hattiesburg, Miss., has been moved to the Saturday after Thanksgiving.

"We have been in contact with the administrators for both universities and we all agree that the focus of our attention should be on the continued safety of the student-athletes, coaches and the lives of those affected by this storm," Conference USA commissioner Britton Banowsky said. "Playing afootball game is not our highest priority at this time."

Tulane's football and women's soccer teams fled New Orleans on Sunday, making a 9½-hour bus ride to Jackson, Miss. They've been practicing at Jackson State.

In other changes, Nicholls State's game at Utah State on Saturday has been canceled. Nicholls State is located in Thibodaux, La. - College Football -

Also, Southern University's game Saturday at McNeese State in Lake Charles, La., has been canceled, and Jacksonville's game Thursday night at Southeastern Louisiana in Hammond, La., has been postponed indefinitely.

2005-08-25T09:23:00.000-07:00

Find out the facts about NSU football opponents

Today we break out ourannual preview of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Football Conference. You can find a look at all the Northern State football opponents

Here are some other facts to chew on as we break down the NSU schedule:

Aug. 27: Mayville State (5 p.m. Swisher Field. Two games before that with Aberdeen Roncalli vs. Redfield at 11 a.m. and Aberdeen Central at 2 p.m., so the NSU game could start earlier as could the Central game). NSU leads the series against Mayville 3-0-1 (38-23 in 1979, 28-28 in '78, 38-6 in '77 and 37-14 in '76).

• Mayville returns 11 starters from a team that went 0-10 last year. Mayville has lost 19 games in a row, last winning a game on Sept. 6, 2003, at home against the University of Minnesota-Morris. The Comets beat Morris 54-14.

Sept. 3: Augustana (7 p.m. Swisher Field). Augustana leads the series 20-5-1.

• Longtime Augie booster and team equipment manager Bob Hall and wife Kari recently donated $1 million for construction of the new new training facility on campus to be ready in the fall of 2006. The Hall Football Complex will include the Jim Heinitz (former coach) Locker Rooms, weight lifting gear, equipment room and meeting rooms.

• Augie has no shortage of quality quarterbacks. Tommy Flyger (Sioux Falls) and Chris Pomerleau (Council Bluffs, Iowa) are both juniors, 6-foot-2 and about 195 pounds. Flyger - who won the starting job for now - has six career starts and threw for 911 yards last season for the Vikings.

Sept. 10: at Nebraska-Kearney (3 p.m.). Kearney leads series 16-7-1.

• The Nebraska-Kearney football team enters the 2005 season coming off back-to-back five-win seasons and with 14 returning starters and 36 letterwinners. The Lopers, who averaged nearly eight wins from 1999-02, were hit hard by the injury bug in 2004, especially at quarterback and along the offensive line.

Sept. 17: at St. Cloud State (6 p.m.). St. Cloud leads series 7-1-1.

• One of the top returnees for St. Cloud is 6-foot-2, 290-pound senior defensive lineman Cory Johnsen, formerly of Aberdeen Central. Johnsen is a two-year starter who has played in 32 games for the Huskies. Johnsen was second team All-North Central Conference last year.

Sept. 24: at Minnesota State Moorhead (1:30 p.m.). NSU leads series 22-19-1.

• With a new coach (Chad Eisele), the NSIC can say goodbye to a long-time Moorhead football tradition on offense. The Dragons' veer option is being replaced with the traditional drop-back passing game.

• Moorhead has lost 11 games in a row; its last win was over visiting Wayne State, 45-21, on Nov. 15, 2003.

Oct. 1: Concordia-St. Paul (2:30 p.m. at Swisher Field, Gypsy Day). CSP leads series 4-2.

• If you want to stop CSP, then you better stop senior quarterback James McNear. McNear passed for 1,938 yards yards and 14 touchdowns and rushed for 795 yards and 10 touchdowns last season. He is also Concordia's all-time leader in passing yards, passing touchdowns, completions and attempts. He is also fifth on Concordia's all-time rushing list.

Oct. 8: at Wayne State (1 p.m.). NSU leads series 14-5.

• Dan McLaughlin begins his first season as head football coach at Wayne State College. Believed to be the only head coach in Nebraska high school history to win state titles at three different schools, McLaughlin will try to deliver a winning record at Wayne State for the first time since 1995 when the Wildcats went 6-4. WSC has gone 3-8 for the past three seasons.

• Wayne State senior quarterback candidate Sean McLaughlin transferred from the University of South Dakota. He is the son of coach Dan McLaughlin, whose youngest son Scott is a defensive lineman at Nebraska-Omaha. Wayne lost three-year starting quarterback Brett Edwards to graduation.

Oct. 15: Winona State (1:30 p.m.). NSU leads series 16-15.

• In the last five years, Winona has advanced to the postseason, going to two bowl games: (Mineral Water Bowl in 2000 and 2002) and the NCAA playoffs in 2001, 2003 and 2004.

Oct. 22: at Bemidji State (1:30 p.m.). NSU leads series 16-11-1.

• Bemidji's Chet Anderson Stadium is one of the most unique venues in the NSIC. The facility rests along the shores of Lake Bemidji. The lake, which can be seen out of the east end zone, offers a tremendous view. The facility is one of just three collegiate football stadiums in the nation with a lakeside setting.

• Bemiji also has a unique homecoming tradition. The Beavers celebrate homecoming wins by jumping in Lake Bemidji and singing the BSU fight song.

Oct. 29: Minnesota-Crookston (1:30 p.m. at Swisher Field, Shrine Game). NSU leads series 5-1.

• One of the NSIC's top running backs, senior All-American Frederick "R.J." Rollins of Crookston, and his teammates will face a tough test in their season opener at 7 tonight when they host the University of South Dakota. The Coyotes return 18 starters and 54 letterwinners from a team that went 9-2 last season and lost to UND 41-21 in the playoffs.

Nov. 5: vs. Southwest Minnesota State (TBA at Metrodome in Twin Cities, NSIC Metrodome Classic). NSU leads series 17-6-2.

• Southwest has 10 South Dakotans on its roster: Doland-Conde's Blake Wilson (freshman running back); Brad Henjum (freshman linebacker) and Bill Noethlich (freshman offensive lineman); Gettysburg's Michael Hagny (freshman linebacker) and Tyler Fischer (sophomore strong safety); Northwestern's Aaron Olson (freshman defensive back); Pierre's Tony Rislov (freshman quarterback); Lake Preston's Jeremy Nopens (junior offensive lineman and a captain); Goodwin's Tom Kolb (freshman offensive lineman); and Sioux Falls Lincoln's Scott Talcott (freshman kicker).

Many thanks to Nick Kornder, who is the athletic media relations director at NSU. Nick is the man who compiled the series numbers that I used to write this column.

John Papendick
News-sports

2005-08-16T07:05:00.000-07:00

Duke's point in poll truly a football farceBig Four's recent history leaves little room to brag

Did you notice Duke got one point -- one vote for 25th -- in the USA Today preseason college football poll, which left the Blue Devils only 1,546 points behind No. 1 Southern Cal?
Duke got a vote? Come on. That's like me getting a vote for Bodybuilder of the Year. (I heard that!) This had to be a mistake. If not, then the ballot should be examined for traces of hallucinogens. Duke has won eight games in five years. In their defense, it can be said the Blue Devils have nice uniforms. - College Football -
Not to pick on Duke. Not that Dukies care a lot, probably, because they're Duke, and that's enough, that and Mike Krzyzewski. Picking on Duke football is like picking on your little brother. But hey, no matter what motivated the voter, the Blue Devils got one point more than hateful rival North Carolina or bookish rival Wake Forest, two of their neighbors in the Big Four. N.C. State managed 69 points, which would place the Wolfpack 31st if the poll went that deep.
The Big Four. That sounds great in basketball, haughty, muscular, with NCAA championship banners draped all over it. But when football rolls around, sad to say, it sounds almost ludicrous. Lately, it should be the Big One, N.C. State, and that one is not something to get into a bragging match about. All the other guy has to say is, "When was the last time one of the Big Four went to a major bowl game?" Many of you weren't even born then. It was 1960. Duke in the Cotton Bowl. Yeah, that Duke. - College Football -
Since we're into trivia, how about the last time a Big Four school won the ACC football title? That would be 1989. Which team? Duke tied Virginia for first place. Yeah, that Duke.
None of the four had winning seasons last year, but there is reason for optimism. Chuck Amato had four winning seasons in a row, including an 11-win year, before last season, when the Wolfpack fell to 5-6 but had a good win against Virginia Tech. Two losses were to Ohio State and Florida State, by eight points or fewer.
North Carolina improved to 6-6 after 3-9 and 2-10 finishes. That 6-6 is not Mack Brown stuff but it's a start back for a school that has all the elements for a football powerhouse if the right man is coaching. Is John Bunting that man? We'll see. - College Football -
There is no point in fussing about the won-lost records at Wake Forest and Duke.
Some excellent coaches have tried at Wake Forest, men such as Al Groh and Bill Dooley, and managed nothing better than mediocrity, and given the limitations, that's OK. Jim Grobe gives hope, though. His record is a respectable 22-25. Last season he beat Boston College and lost to Clemson and N.C. State in overtime, to Virginia Tech by seven and to Florida State by three.
Duke is excused. It lost its grip on the game a long time ago and recruiting is an exercise in futility. The last coach who really had a handle on it was Steve Spurrier. Hmm. What happened to him? - College Football -
So, that's all I have for you. A little hope. Very little. First Florida State came in and dominated the league, and now Miami, Virginia Tech and Boston College are in the ACC. In that preseason poll that Duke got its point in, Virginia Tech ranks seventh, Miami eighth, Florida State 12th, Boston College 22nd and Virginia 23rd. - College Football -
Happy trails, Big Four.

RON GREEN SR.

2005-08-10T09:15:00.000-07:00

Weatherford gets kick learning from Zook

CHICAGO - Steve Weatherford cringed when he learned there would be a new head football coach at Illinois.After all, despite showing signs of being one of the top punters in college football, he had willingly agreed to help shoulder the place-kicking duties. Despite taking on double duty, he had raised his punting average from 44.5 yards as a sophomore to a whopping 45.4 yards as a junior. - College Football -
That made him a semifinalist for the Ray Guy Award as college football's top punter, and he'll begin this season as Illinois' record holder for career punting average.But with the arrival of Ron Zook -a former National Football League special teams coach - Weatherford braced for the one thing that always seemed to find him: Change."I was nervous with a new coach coming in because I had just gotten comfortable punting the ball and felt I could put it anywhere I wanted - inside the 10, the long ball, anywhere. - College Football -
"I was a two-and-a-half step punter," he said, indicating the footwork he used from the time he received the center snap until he stepped forward into his high-kicking punt. "But the first thing coach Zook said was that he wanted to make me into a two-step punter. Having been an NFL special teams coach, I really didn't question him." - College Football -
What Weatherford did was go to work. He's a gifted athlete, a 6-foot-3, 215-pounder who holds the Illini track and field record in the hepathlon and has also competed in the decathlon."After punting a certain way for eight years, you get nervous thinking about changing something your senior year," Weatherford said. "But coach Zook made me feel like I could do it. He wanted me to get the ball off quicker and I understood that. Just talking to him, you can talk to him like you talk to your dad. - College Football -
But if you mess up, he'll rip you like he's your dad. He's a great coach, a great mentor and I'm honored to have him as a coach."Zook hasn't been Weatherford's only coach.He also has turned to former Millikin and McKendree College special teams coach Jared Hooker for guidance. It was Hooker who initially recommended Weatherford to former Illini special teams coach Greg McMahon when Weatherford attended the Illini kicking camp. That was while Weatherford was still in high school in Terre Haute, Ind."He helped get me to Illinois, and I've stayed in touch with him," Weatherford said. "He's made a big difference in my game. I thought I'd have trouble generating enough power and hang time. But by studying film of myself and working with him, we got to where I'm more comfortable."Now I can get up into the ball. It's a quicker stroke and I can get better leg extension and more power and distance. I feel a lot more explosive than I have the previous two seasons. - College Football -
"If that's true, Weatherford should have a banner senior year. He already has positioned himself as a punter the NFL scouts are watching.And if they want the versatility of a punter who can surprise an opponent by running, he's the man. The strong and speedy Weatherford ran twice last season, once for a touchdown, the other time for a first down."Coach Zook has already told me he'll find times when I can do something with the ball," said Weatherford, who while in Indiana helped set a national Junior Olympic record on the 3,200-meter relay team. "They are definitely going to utilize my athleticism." - College Football -

MARK TUPPER - H&R Executive Sports Editor

2005-07-27T07:11:00.000-07:00

Valencia High football star Charles Burnley leaves OSU

Former Valencia High football standout Charles Burnley might be a great running back, but he still can't outrun his problems. - College Football -
Once among California's most touted prospects, the oft-troubled Burnley has flunked out at Oregon State and has left the university after a promising freshman season, sources said.
"He's no longer on the roster," Oregon State spokesman Steve Fenk said. "Unfortunately, I can't get into why he left. Let's just say it's unrelated to football."
Burnley wasn't available for comment. College of the Canyons football coach Chuck Lyon said he was told by OSU coaches that Burnley "flunked out and has decided to pursue a rap-music career." - College Football -
At Valencia, Burnley rushed for more than 3,500 yards over his final two seasons but also made headlines for discipline and academic problems. - College Football -
In 2002, he was arrested on suspicion of battery midway through his senior season after attacking a fellow student. He was suspended for five days -- the school district's most severe allowable punishment short of expulsion -- and was later sentenced to six months probation on a juvenile battery charge. The following semester, Burnley was ruled academically ineligible, costing him a chance to compete in track. - College Football -
After graduation, Burnley failed to meet NCAA academic requirements and couldn't accept an Oregon State scholarship directly out of high school. After taking classes at College of the Canyons and achieving a qualifying SAT score, he eventually signed with OSU in March 2004.
Last season at OSU, Burnley switched to defensive back and played on special teams. He recently switched back to running back and was expected to compete for a starting position this season. - College Football -

Gerry Gittelson, Staff Writer

2005-07-19T09:11:00.000-07:00

Northwest announces football coaching staff

With the beginning of fall football practice less than a month away, Northwest Mississippi Community College first-year Head Coach Randy Pippin has announced the hiring of four new coaches for the 2005 season. - College Football -
The Rangers, who are ranked pre-season No. 14 in the country by the NJCAA, begin preparations for the 2005 campaign Monday, Aug. 8.
Pippin took over the reins of the Northwest football program June 1 and has been conducting interviews and sifting through resumes to find the right personnel to complete his coaching staff. - College Football -
Pippin retained two members from the previous staff including defensive line coach Danny Ray Cole and receivers coach Scott Oakley.
Cole, who is entering his fifth season at Northwest, will also remain the team's strength coach and supervisor of the athletic dormitory. - College Football -
"Danny Ray is probably the strongest coach in America at any level, but more importantly has one of the biggest hearts that I have ever seen," said Pippin. "He is a tremendous mentor for our kids, and should field a quick and aggressive front four."
Oakley is beginning his third campaign at Northwest. Aside from his duties as a football coach, Oakley is also an assistant coach for the Lady Ranger fast-pitch softball team.
"Scott gives much needed continuity to our team on and off the field, as well as the campus and community," said Pippin. "He is a young coach that is well ahead of his years in maturity and has a tremendously bright future." - College Football -
One of the first orders of business for Pippin was to find an offensive and defensive coordinator.
To fill the offensive coordinator's position, Pippin went out and found a person with whom he is familiar in David Thornton.
Thornton held the same position under Pippin at the University of West Alabama from 2001 through 2004, and at Middle Georgia College from 1998 through 2000.
"David brings proven offensive production and explosiveness as well as familiarity and trustworthiness to the table," said Pippin. "He will do a tremendous job as an academic advisor and liason to the campus." - College Football -
For the defensive coordinator opening, Pippin tabbed a person who has some experience in Mississippi junior college football in Ed Holly.
Holly, who will also coach special teams, spent the previous two seasons as defensive coordinator at East Mississippi Community College in Scooba.
"Ed brings a diverse and battle-tested background with him on defense that I expect will turn into a smart, tenacious, hard-working, and high energy unit on the field."
Blake Frazier is also a new face on the Ranger staff. Frazier will coach linebackers and be the program's recruiting coordinator. - College Football -
Frazier worked under Pippin at Cottage Hill Christian Academy in Mobile, Ala., in 2004. He was also a graduate assistant for Pippin at the University of West Alabama during the 2002 season.
"Blake has a passion for helping kids accomplish their football dreams and this makes him an extraordinary recruiter," said Pippin. "His energy and loyalty are two areas that set him apart from most."
Rounding out the Northwest staff is former Ranger football player Tim Nickens who will coach the offensive line and be the team's director of football operations.
Nickens played center for former Head Coach Bobby Franklin during the 1985 and 1986 campaigns. - College Football -
Nickens has coached at several high schools in Mississippi and comes to Northwest from Hatley High School where he was the head coach for two seasons.
"Tim is a perfect fit for developing our offensive line which will be all new players," said Pippin. "He was an outstanding center himself and has a tremendous coaching background to go along with his strong Northwest and regional ties. He will also provide administrative and operations support for our staff." - College Football -

Brett Brown, Northwest Sports Information

2005-07-12T08:13:00.000-07:00

Football field project due to finish before season

Football practice starts in a month and South Tahoe High's Viking Bowl looks like its better suited for a monster truck competition.But STHS Athletic Director Don Borges and Lake Tahoe Unified School District Facilities Director Steve Morales said there is no reason to worry, the resodding project will be completed in time for football. - College Football -
Wear and tear on the field has necessitated a $30,000 resodding project that should have the field playable by mid-to-late August, according to Morales."I don't anticipate it impacting their home game schedule," Morales said. "Until it's ready we've asked that they conduct their conditioning and skills drills in the end zone areas and on the side."Last year, STHS's soccer team lost all of its home games for the first half the season while new grass was put down at the South Tahoe Middle School field. - College Football -
"That's not going to happen here," Borges said. "We're confident that it will be ready. It will have a little over a month of nothing but setting up and growing, and we actually had less time than that with the soccer field."Western Turf of Reno has been contracted to do the work along with city staff members. To expedite the project, slabs of turf 100 feet long by two feet wide will be put down on the field. Contractors started removing the old sod on Friday and continued to haul it away on Monday. Borges said the new sod could be in place by the end of the week.The $30,000 bill will be paid out of the district's facilities and maintenance fund as well as $10,000 from the Community Athletic Coordinating Council.Morales stressed that the public remain off the field until it is ready for play. - College Football -
"When you have new sod you keep it much wetter normally and people getting on wet sod it's more easily damaged than when it has a dry base," Morales said.South Tahoe is scheduled to host a scrimmage with Sparks on Aug. 20 and the school is considering switching the venue to the new synthetic turf field near Lake Tahoe Community College.The Vikings' home opener is Sept 3 against Galena. - College Football -

Steve Yingling
Tribune sports editor

2005-07-06T11:13:00.000-07:00

My top five training camps
Places to get up close and personal with NFL players

NFL training camps were once wide-open to the public. Used to be you could wave to Darrell Green as he rod his bike from the Redskins' practice field back to his dorm at Dickinson College in bucolic Carlisle, Pa., or bump into him in line at Massey's Custard Stand just off campus. Now, that Washington trains at its locked-down northern Virginia facility, fans might see LaVar Arrington wave from his Hummer. Might. - College Football -
Fourteen teams still train in places that allow fans to interact with players.
I've traveled to camps nationwide since 1988, and it wasn't easy picking my top five. But here goes:
1. Steelers (St. Vincent's College, Latrobe, Pa.): Never mind the Rolling Rock Brewery is four miles from campus, and offers tours on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. (They have a fine brewery restaurant, by the way.) But you may not want to leave this campus of rolling hills and cornfields. Get to St. Vincent's, an hour east of Pittsburgh, early in the morning -- Bill Cowher still loves the ol' two-a-days -- and soak it in. You'll be entranced by the fog rising up from the Laurel Highlands. You'll love the view south from the hill overlooking the practice fields, where it seems like you can see clear down to Maryland. You'll probably run into one of the Benedictine monks who still live on campus. If you're lucky, you'll witness the best live action at any training camp at one of the four or five afternoon practices that end with a live goal-line drill. Seven plays, full pads, 11 on 11. Collision city. Great stuff. Watch Joey Porter try to clean Jerome Bettis' clock. And post-practice, it's an autograph-fest. No prima donnas here, just signers. "It doesn't get any better than this," Mr. Throwback, Cowher, told me a couple of summers ago. "This is football, classic football. I know there's been a lot said recently about where teams practice, and some teams are going back to their facilities to have training camp. But look at this place. How can football get better than this? Four weeks of being together, no distractions, everything within walking distance. Nothing but football. Nothing." - College Football -
2. Packers (Don Hutson Center, Green Bay, Wis.): It's Packer paradise. Where else in sporting America is there a donut shop 150 yards south of the practice fields, and a tidy neighborhood of homes 200 yards north? The Hutson Center is across the street from Lambeau Field, and no team integrates the training-camp feel with fan-friendliness better than the Packers. On an early August day -- the Packers have open practices for the first three weeks of camp -- fans can watch a morning practice from just off the sidelines, examine football lore at the Packers Hall of Fame inside the refurbished Lambeau Field, have a Curly's Special Ale and Grandma Lambeau's Meatloaf (served with garlic-whipped potatoes, gravy and crisped pub onions) at the brewpub inside the Lambeau atrium, hustle over for the afternoon practice, and come back to the best gift shop in the NFL (Bubba Franks bobblehead, anyone?) before it closes down. And there's the cutest tradition in training-campdom: Local kids line up with their bikes pre- and post-practice. - College Football -
Players, as many as 50 of the 80 on the roster, climb on, and the kids ride on the back or the handlebars across the street to the locker room. Perfect. This place blends not-yet-crass merchandising of today with the charm of the '60s.

Peter King
Sports Illustrated

Universities scramble to downsize sports media guides

2005-06-29T07:39:00.000-07:00

Universities scramble to downsize sports media guides

LANSING -- Fans interested in how Michigan State teams got their Spartans nickname in 1926 can find the tale in the school's 300-page College football media guide.
The University of Michigan's 416-page guide tells how "The Victors" got its start as the Wolverines' fight song in 1898.
But such interesting historical notes could be forced out by an NCAA edict that colleges trim their media guides to 208 pages for next school year.
The new rule has sports information directors across the country scrambling to decide what will make the cut when a hundred or more pages in some current guides must be scrapped. And many of them aren't happy.
"This has been a knee-jerk reaction, all under the guise of cost containment," said Michigan State associate athletic director John Lewandowski.
Bruce Madej, a Michigan assistant athletic director, said the university will follow the new NCAA rule.
"But does it make sense to me? No," Madej said.
Schools such as Texas, Nebraska and Georgia are faced with the prospect of cutting their College football guides in half before the start of next season. Publications go to print this summer.
Men's basketball guides are the only other publication likely to be widely affected at most schools by the new rules, which were adopted last month.
Supporters of the NCAA rule say restricting the size of the guides would save universities money. It reduces the pressure for lower-income programs to keep up with college athletics' big spenders by producing glitzy guides.
"It's about leveling the playing field," NCAA spokeswoman Jennifer Kearns said.
The proposal also affects recruiting because the guides often are sent to prospective student athletes.
"From a recruiting standpoint, it's more impressive to drop a 20-pound book on the coffee table than a 6-ounce book," said Mike Nemeth, a Mississippi State associate athletic director. "This will put everybody in the same ballpark."
The Bulldogs produced a 296-page college football media guide last year, at least in part to prevent being dwarfed by larger volumes published by Florida, Tennessee and other rivals. Many schools devote space in their media guides to alumni in the pros and draft pick histories, although it's not clear how much weight -- if any -- the books have with recruits.
"It's probably way down the list," Nemeth said.
Mississippi State expects to save a few thousand dollars on printing costs with the smaller guides, money the department will gladly spend on other projects, Nemeth said.
But the overall cost savings aren't much for a major program. Michigan State, for example, spent about $60,225 last year designing and printing its college football media guide. A 208-page guide could cost about $18,000 less. The Spartans' overall athletics budget is about $55 million.
Smaller guides could result in shorter player profiles, abridged records sections or more selective lists of letter winners -- a slap to team members, Lewandowski said.
"It's their keepsake, the record of their careers," he said.
The NCAA will allow schools to distribute some extra information to media through the Internet or printed in black-and-white format. But including records and milestones in such a way could eliminate some of the cost savings realized through smaller media guides.
The Michigan State guide, like many others, lists letter winners from college football teams throughout school history. Each season is listed with game-by-game results dating back to 1896.
The guide details every series the Spartans have ever played, from the 1904-08 matchups with the Michigan School for the Deaf to the century-old rivalry with the Wolverines.
And the book provides history, including the tale of how a Lansing sportswriter, upset with the schools' new nickname, "The Michigan Staters," started using Spartans instead. The moniker, another finalist from a recent contest to nickname the school, caught on.
Michigan's guide documents its string of home games attended by more than 100,000 fans -- a streak that began in 1975. In all, five pages are devoted exclusively to facts and highlights about Michigan Stadium.
There's also folklore, such as how the school fight song came to be. A Michigan fan was inspired to write the song after the school's first conference championship was clinched with a road win over Chicago in 1898.
Dissatisfied with how Michigan fans celebrated in the streets of Chicago, the young man decided the school needed a better celebratory anthem. He wrote "The Victors" over the next few days.
"Every school has it own traditions and the things that make it special," Lewandowski said. "Why try to limit that? Let's not make college sports a cookie cutter like pro sports."
By Tim Martin / Associated Press

College Football Standing

2005-06-28T11:36:00.000-07:00

College Football Standing