News Nuggets, 11.06.04
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NOTES FROM ECU AND BEYOND...
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Compiled from staff reports
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USM poised to increase its
dominance of C-USA
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11.05.04: Pirates
overpower Newberry in preseason warmup ... Cardinals gun
down Memphis in wild shootout ...
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11.04.04: Pirates
poised to hit hardwood amidst news aplenty ... Primetime TV
preview: Louisville at Memphis ...
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11.03.04: Primetime TV preview: South Florida at UAB ... Almond back
in the saddle for No. 21 Southern Miss ...
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11.02.04: Army
game once again the charm for ECU honors ... No. 25 Miners
digging out of rut under Price ... Tar Heels savor first
victory over Top 5 opponent ...
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11.01.04: Games
of interest: Hurricanes stall in Chapel Hill ... College
football weekend: stars & storylines ...
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10.31.04: Games
of interest: Hurricanes stall in Chapel Hill ... College
football weekend: stars & storylines ...
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10.30.04: ECU
shot-blocking wizard sidelined by thumb injury ... Utes tune
out Meyer speculation, BCS chatter ...
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10.29.04: Football
grad rates keep Division I average from sinking ... Despite
miscues, Hokies handle Georgia Tech ...
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10.28.04: CBS,
Fox poised to challenge ABC for BCS rights ... Injury
sidelines prolific Blue Devils newcomer ...
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10.27.04: Coaches
predict Cards to dominate, Pirates to improve ... Seahawks
undergo management shuffle ...
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10.26.04: Mountain
West outsider banging hard on BCS door ... Southern Miss
dominates league's weekly awards ...
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10.25.04: C-USA
standings, scoreboard, schedule & TV ... Associated Press
college football poll ...
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10.24.04: Bearcats
stagger heavily-favored Memphis ... College football
weekend: stars & storylines ...
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10.23.04: Blue
Raiders go hip-hop to fill empty seats
... No. 15 Louisville makes mince meat of Bulls ...
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10.22.04: Black
coaches issue report cards to Division I schools ...
Mountaineers QB rumbles over Syracuse
...
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10.21.04: Holland
successor to head NCAA selection committee ... New BCS model
already begging to be recalled
...
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10.20.04: Cards
shake off loss to Miami, target USF for payback ... McCants
clarifies Chapel Hill 'jail' remarks ...
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10.19.04: Utah
earns lofty spot in BCS poll; Louisville, UAB on list ...
Bad back hounds Marquette basketball coach ... ACC rolls out
new seal, future division names ...
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10.18.04: New
look BCS to debut: Let the bickering begin ... C-USA
standings, scoreboard, schedule & TV ... AP college football
poll ...
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10.17.04: Army
streaking; C- USA, Carolinas scoreboard ... College football
weekend: stars & storylines ...
More... |
|
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JACKSON — Southern Mississippi hasn't
lost a Conference USA game in nearly two years, but some Golden Eagles
players aren't all that impressed.
That's because it's happened in
Hattiesburg before.
No. 21 Southern Miss has won 13
straight conference games and can tie its league record with a victory
Saturday against Cincinnati.
``It's something to have after the
season's over,'' defensive lineman Chad Ruffin said of the streak. ``Right
now, you can't really look at it like that. You have to look at it step by
step and game by game. We have a goal, and that's getting back to the
Liberty Bowl.''
The Golden Eagles (5-1, 4-0) haven't
lost a league game since they were beaten at Tulane in November 2002. They
defeated East Carolina to end that season, won the league title by going 8-0
last year and have four straight C-USA victories in 2004.
``They're a very, very good football
team, and their record indicates that,'' first-year Cincinnati coach Mark
Dantonio said.
Southern Miss set the conference mark
with 14 straight league wins between October 1998 and November 2000.
Louisville ended that string with a 49-28 blowout.
Four years later, the Golden Eagles can
equal the mark by beating Cincinnati (4-4, 3-2).
``You like to have streaks, because
that means you're winning conference games,'' Southern Miss coach Jeff Bower
said. ``You've got to treat every game like a championship in this league.
Whether we're playing the eighth game or the first, they're equally
important.''
The Golden Eagles are neck and neck
with Louisville as the only perfect teams in Conference USA this year, and
are pushing for their second straight league title and fifth in nine
seasons.
``We've got the bull's-eye from last
year,'' said quarterback Dustin Almond, who has won 10 straight
regular-season starts for the Golden Eagles and returns after injuring his
hamstring a month ago.
Perhaps no Conference USA team made
Southern Miss work harder for a win last year than Cincinnati.
Darren McCaleb's 26-yard field goal
with 1:10 remaining lifted Southern Miss past the Bearcats 22-20 in a game
Cincinnati led by 14 points.
``I know they will come and play hard
here to beat us and get their revenge,'' Ruffin said.
Cincinnati gained infamy earlier this
season by losing to lowly Army, snapping the Black Knights' 19-game losing
streak. The Bearcats had five turnovers that day, with one fumble recovered
for an Army touchdown.
Since then, Cincinnati has won two
straight. The Bearcats played turnover-free football in victories over
Memphis and Texas Christian, and are two victories shy of bowl eligibility
with South Florida and Louisville also scheduled.
``They haven't turned the ball over,''
Bower said. ``They've played with more emotion and confidence. When you beat
Memphis and TCU like they did, that will give you both.''
Juggernaut Utah team downplays
distractions
SALT LAKE CITY — Colorado State coach
Sonny Lubick is impressed with what former Rams assistant Urban Meyer has
done in just two years at Utah.
The No. 7 Utes are one win away from
the best start in school history and three victories away from a perfect
regular season. Next up are Lubick's Rams on Saturday.
``Since I've been here, I think this
Utah team probably is as good as any of them,'' Lubick said of the
conference teams he's seen in 11-plus years at Colorado State.
Utah (8-0, 4-0 Mountain West) is trying
for the first 9-0 start in school history. The Utes have opened the season
with eight straight wins twice, most recently 10 years ago.
If that isn't distracting enough, there
is also the rampant speculation that Florida may be interested in hiring
Meyer, Utah's Bowl Championship Series standing and quarterback Alex Smith's
Heisman Trophy candidacy.
Yet none of it seems to faze the Utes.
``I'm glad to say this. There's nothing
phony about (Smith), me, the staff, the team. It's one of the most unselfish
programs I've ever been around,'' said Meyer, who has refused to comment on
the Florida job since Ron Zook's firing was announced last Monday.
The Utes have maintained they don't
closely follow the BCS list, which could put them in one of the top four
bowls when the season ends. Utah has been at No. 6 the last two weeks,
although No. 4 California and No. 5 Wisconsin both jumped ahead of the Utes,
who beat San Diego State 51-28 last week.
It was a reminder that teams from
larger conferences have a chance to pass up the lesser-known Utes, even if
they keep winning.
``We could care less about the BCS. We
have no control over it. All we have control over is winning games. That's
all Coach Meyer expresses to us,'' defensive back Eric Weddle said. ``If it
doesn't happen, it doesn't happen.''
Smith learned this week that he
officially is a semifinalist for the Heisman, which has never gone to a Ute.
Smith is third nationally in passing, completing 131 of 203 passes for 1,905
yards and 20 touchdowns. He has also run for eight touchdowns.
``What makes them so good is their
quarterback (Alex Smith) is very fluid and just very composed. Not only can
he run the ball, he is very smooth in running it and makes people miss,''
Lubick said. ``He reminds you of a nice sleek halfback. But then he also has
the real poise to sit back there and is a very accurate thrower.''
Smith shrugs off Heisman questions.
He's still a little bit baffled by all the attention he's been getting and
tries not to focus on the early Heisman lists.
``If I'm out there thinking about the
Heisman on Saturday, that's going to be bad for me and this team. The bottom
line is to win,'' Smith said. ``If you think about it, of the 15 guys on
that list, I doubt any one of them is on a losing team. Winning is all that
matters.''
Utah edged Colorado State on the road
last year, 28-21, on an 80-yard fumble return with 1:33 remaining. It broke
a five-game losing streak against the Rams and was especially nice for
Meyer, who was an assistant to Lubick from 1990-95.
The Rams (3-5, 2-2) were the preseason
pick to finish second to Utah in the MWC, but have struggled this season.
Starting quarterback Justin Holland broke his leg Oct. 16 against San Diego
State, leaving the offense in the hands of freshman Caleb Hanie.
Hanie completed 20 of 36 passes for 285
yards last week, but the Rams still lost at home to New Mexico. He also gets
the start against a team trying to become the first from a non-BCS
conference to play in the Fiesta, Rose, Orange or Sugar bowl during the BCS
era.
Lubick said he wants the Rams to think
of the Utes more as an MWC opponent than a BCS contender.
``Like it's New Mexico, like it's
Wyoming,'' Lubick said. ``We want to win this game as badly as any game we'd
played. We want to win it as badly as we can. We don't think about (other)
things.''
News Nuggets are
compiled periodically from staff, ECU, Conference USA and its member
schools, and from Associated Press and
other reports. Copyright 2004
Bonesville.net and other publishers. All rights reserved. This material may not be
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