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News Nuggets, 10.28.03
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Compiled from staff reports and electronic dispatches

Frogs' No. 12 listing threatens dilemma for BCS

Florida State moved to the top of the one-loss crowd and Texas Christian moved to a high enough ranking to set the stage for some selection-time squirming by the Bowl Championship Series if the Frogs don't falter down the stretch.

The Seminoles were third in the BCS standings released Monday, trailing only undefeated Oklahoma and Miami in the race to play for the national championship.

The Sooners, the top team in the polls all season, have been in first place in the first two BCS standings. Oklahoma will have to keep winning to guarantee itself a spot in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 4, starting with a showdown against Oklahoma State on Saturday.

The BCS standings are used to determine which teams play in a national title game. The teams that finish 1-2 in the final BCS standings on Dec. 7, will play for the title in New Orleans on Jan. 4. The formula uses the AP media and coaches' polls, seven computer rankings, strength of schedule, losses and a bonus-point system for quality wins.

The Sooners (8-0) have a 1.0 for poll average, 1.17 for computer-rank average, 0.28 for strength of schedule and zero for losses for a 2.45 total. Oklahoma is ranked first in five of the computers with Miami the top team in the other two. The Hurricanes (7-0), who play at Virginia Tech on Saturday, are second with 3.87 points, ahead of four tightly packed one-loss teams.

Southern California, third in both the AP and coaches polls, is fourth in the BCS rankings at 11.07, followed by Georgia (11.15) and Ohio State (12.60).

TCU, major college football's only other undefeated team, is in 12th place, in part because of the 99th toughest schedule out of 117 teams. The Frogs will need to stay in the top 12 to be eligible for one of the lucrative BCS games. A top six finish would guarantee the Conference USA squad a bid.

In an inherent contradiction, a team that wins the title of one of the six BCS-affiliated leagues does not have to finish in any particular position in the BCS standing to lock in a spot in one of the BCS bowls. C-USA, TCU's conference, is one of five I-A leagues not included in the BCS power structure.

Champions of six conferences — the ACC, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-10 and SEC — automatically qualify for a BCS game, and two at-large teams are selected to fill out the field. Since the BCS was founded, those at-large selections have also been awarded to members of the BCS conferences.

There has been scrutiny in the media and pressure from schools outside the big six conferences to improve access to the BCS bowls — Orange, Sugar, Fiesta and Rose. The BCS was started five years ago to create a so-called national title game without playoffs.

Following Ohio State in the standings are LSU, Washington State, Nebraska, Michigan State, Iowa, TCU, Michigan, Oklahoma State and Tennessee. Virginia Tech and Northern Illinois had steep falls after losing for the first time last week. The Hokies went from third to 16th and the Huskies dropped from 10th to 23rd.

The BCS standings will be released each week for the remainder of the season. The seven computer rankings are operated by Anderson & Hester, Billingsley, Colley Matrix, Kenneth Massey, the New York Times, Jeff Sagarin's USA Today and Peter Wolfe.

TCU's Patterson in contention for Dodd coaching award

Texas Christian's Gary Patterson is among the potential recipients of a prestigious coach of the year award. The Horned Frogs coach is one of nine Division I-A coaches still under consideration for the annual honor presented by the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation.

Patterson joins a list of coaches that includes Frank Beamer of Virginia Tech, Lloyd Carr of Michigan, Pete Carroll of USC, Larry Coker of Miami (FL), Glen Mason of Minnesota, Joe Novak of Northern Illinois, Mark Richt of Georgia and Bob Stoops of Oklahoma.

Patterson has led TCU to a 8-0 record this season, including a 5-0 mark in Conference USA action.

Patterson owns a 24-9 record in 33 games as the Horned Frogs' head coach. That tops Dennis Franchione's mark (22-10) as the best record after 32 games of any TCU football coach since the legendary Dutch Meyer was 24-7-1 from 1934 to 1936.

The Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Award is presented annually by the Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year Foundation, Inc. A blue-ribbon selection panel of college football experts names the recipient of this annual award. The Award is in honor of Coach Robert Lee "Bobby" Dodd, one of collegiate football's all-time coaching greats.

Wolfpack's Melvin loses control of SUV

RALEIGH — North Carolina State forward Marcus Melvin escaped injury Monday when the sport utility vehicle he was driving went down an embankment near campus. The 6-foot-8 senior, the team's second-leading scorer last season, is not expected to miss practice time, the school said.

Melvin apparently hit a slick spot while pulling into rush hour traffic, slammed the brakes and hit a curb that sent the vehicle down a hill, said Annabelle Vaughan, the sports information director. Melvin and was not hurt and climbed out of the vehicle, she said.

News Nuggets are compiled periodically from staff, ECU, Conference USA and its member schools, and from Associated Press and other reports. Copyright 2003 Bonesville.net and other publishers. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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