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News Nuggets, 11.26.03
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Compiled from staff reports and electronic dispatches

Tigers put Tangerines on Wolfpack's holiday menu

Clemson beat out North Carolina State for the ACC's spot in the Peach Bowl, sending the Wolfpack to the Tangerine Bowl instead.

The decision was reached late Monday night and officials formally invited Clemson on Tuesday.

The Tigers (8-4) won their last three games, including a 26-10 upset of Florida State, to get the nod over N.C. State (7-5) despite losing the head-to-head matchup.

Miami of Ohio also accepted a bowl bid Tuesday and will play in the GMAC bowl on Dec. 18 against a Conference USA team.

Ten teams have been invited to bowls already. There are 28 bowls scheduled for this season, leaving 46 invitations to come.

The Peach Bowl had the third pick among ACC schools. Florida State will play in a BCS bowl after winning the conference, and the Gator Bowl selected Maryland (8-3).

The Wolfpack has record-setting quarterback Phillip Rivers and defeated Clemson 17-15, but the Tigers' overall record, strong finish and proximity to Atlanta - about a two-hour drive from the South Carolina school - won out.

Clemson won't learn its opponent for nearly two weeks. The Peach Bowl has the fourth selection among Southeastern Conference schools, but will have to wait until after the league's Dec. 6 championship game to make its pick.

N.C. State will play a Big 12 team in the Tangerine Bowl, in Orlando, Fla., on Dec. 22.

Bowden contract still in limbo

Clemson coach Tommy Bowden talked with school administrators for the third straight day without reaching an agreement on a contract extension.

"I wish it would've been worked out before I left, but it hasn't," Bowden said Tuesday before leaving for Florida for Thanksgiving. He would not elaborate.

Bowden has four years left on a contract that pays him at least $1.1 million a year. Reports have the two sides discussing a raise and an additional three years that would bind him through 2010.

A contract buyout for Bowden seemed the likeliest scenario a month ago. The Tigers were beaten 45-17 by Wake Forest and stood 5-4 with Florida State, Duke and South Carolina left to play.

But Bowden, his coaches and the players did their best work all season for a remarkable turnaround. The Tigers defeated the then-third-ranked Seminoles to give their coach his first win in five tries against his father, Florida State coach Bobby Bowden.

They followed that up with a 40-7 victory over Duke and a 63-17 win over archrival South Carolina. The surge was a big reason the Peach Bowl selected the Tigers at 8-4 over North Carolina State at 7-5.

Athletic director Terry Don Phillips said talks were progressing and he felt good about negotiations. Clemson officials and attorneys were in contact with Bowden's representatives in Florida and were not talking face to face. Phillips said that sometimes takes additional time. "We're going to work as quickly as we possibly can," he said.

Phillips was asked whether the sticking points were over money or support, which seemed lukewarm to Bowden at times the past year. "He has our total support," said Phillips, hired in June 2002. Beyond that, "I don't want to get into discussions of contracts and what we're talking about. The issue is we want Coach Bowden here for the long term and we're working toward that."

Phillips said it was possible to have an agreement before Bowden returned to campus Sunday.

TCU's Browne lands on All-America team

Texas Christian placekicker Nick Browne has been selected to the 25-man first team All-America squad according to the Football Writers Association of America. Browne becomes the first Horned Frog selected to the first team All-America squad since LaDainian Tomlinson in 2000.

Browne, a senior from Garland, Texas, has hit on eight straight, 20 of his last 21 and is 25-for-28 in field goal attempts this season. He has become the school's all-time single season kicking points leader with 107 this year while setting a school record with 25 field goals.He also holds the school's single game record with 19 kicking points and tied his own mark with five field goals in the win over Cincinnati.

A Groza Award semifinalist for the second straight year, Browne is tied for the nation's lead with an average of 2.27 field goals made per game and is eighth in the country in scoring (9.91 ppg). He has been named the C-USA Special Teams Player of the Week a record five times this season and nine times in his career. He sits atop the all-time scoring list for kickers at TCU with 284 points and is behind only LaDainian Tomlinson in career points at TCU regardless of position. He is also the school record holder for career field goals made, converting 62 of 78 attempts.

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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