Other College Football Capsules: South Carolina defeats Southern Miss 41-13
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Steve Spurrier's starting to like his offense at South Carolina.
It's not his old, Florida "Fun-n-Gun" — yet. But Spurrier thought enough of his attack on Thursday night, he was shooting to hang half-a-hundred on Southern Miss.
"I was thinking for the first time ever here we might score 50," Spurrier said.
Instead, the Gamecocks coach had to settle for a 41-13 victory that was his 18th straight win in college openers.
Quarterback Stephen Garcia and freshman runner Marcus Lattimore had two touchdowns each as South Carolina posted its most points since winning the 2006 Liberty Bowl 44-36 over Houston.
Back then, Spurrier thought he and the Gamecocks were close to big-time success. After all, they had won their final three games and backed that up by starting 2007 with a 6-1 record.
South Carolina had gone 14-17 since and left Spurrier shaking his head at times about his mission to turn the Gamecocks into Southeastern Conference champions.
After this one, Spurrier has to like some of the offensive weapons he's got.
Lattimore, considered the top high school rusher last winter, had a terrific college debut with scoring runs of 3 and 7 yards.
Sophomore receiver Alshon Jeffery had seven catches for 106 yards and speedy freshman Ace Sanders had a 53-yard run, the Gamecocks' longest in four years.
At the center of it all was Garcia, who shook off months of Spurrier touting first-year backup Connor Shaw with a solid showing against the Golden Eagles.
Garcia got things started with a gritty, 22-yard scoring run. He also had a 3-yard touchdown carry where he crashed hard into a defender but reached to get the ball over the line.
Did Garcia grab the starting job for good? Not even he'd jump to that conclusion given the head ball coach's whims.
"We're going to come in and watch film tomorrow," Garcia said. "I hope I played pretty well. I think I did."
The victory also brought South Carolina something to cheer about after a restless summer.
Spurrier and the Gamecocks have been dogged by the NCAA the past two months. Standout tight end Weslye Saunders, a central figure in the probe for possible contact with agents, did not play because of an unrelated team suspension.
Then South Carolina scratched two starters — left tackle Jarriel King and cornerback Chris Culliver — right before kickoff, although the athletic department would not say why.
Spurrier said it was a relief to have only King and Culliver gone because earlier Thursday it looked like several more players might have had to be held out. While Spurrier hoped the missing players would be back in time for next week's Southeastern Conference opener with Georgia, the Gamecocks were not clear of the NCAA yet.
Spurrier said there are issues with "a couple of guys and we'll see how that turns out in the next couple of days."
Southern Miss kept the Gamecocks offstride early on, forcing a punt on South Carolina's opening series and quickly driving to the Gamecocks 22.
That's when momentum changed for good.
Akeem Auguste broke up a third-down pass that settled into the hands of safety DaVonte Holloman and South Carolina followed with a solid drive of its own led by Garcia.
The junior was 4-for-4 passing for 51 yards on the series and finished things with a gritty, 22-yard TD run.
Then South Carolina's youngest guns took control.
Speedy Sanders had his back-breaking end around to the Southern Miss 9. Two plays later, Lattimore bounced through for his first college score from 3 yards out.
Lattimore, considered the country's top tailback prospect last February, got the call a series later. This time, he picked his way through Southern Miss defenders for a 7-yard scoring run as South Carolina led 24-6 — its most points by halftime since the 2006 Liberty Bowl.
Garcia, who ended 16 of 23 for 193 yards, has always seemed to be on the wrong side of Spurrier. The Gamecocks coach touted the competition between fourth-year junior Garcia and first-year player Shaw throughout the offseason.
Garcia may have put such talk to rest temporarily with his play against Southern Miss.
Golden Eagles coach Larry Fedora followed Spurrier as Florida's playcaller in 2002 and tried to out-scheme him with a no-huddle, flood-the-field attack.
But Southern Miss twice bogged down in the red zone after the early pick, settling for two field goals.
Playmaking receiver DeAndre Brown was covered up most of the night by South Carolina's secondary. The junior, who caught 114 passes his first two seasons, didn't catch one against the Gamecocks until the final period when Southern Miss trailed 41-6.
Brown had the Golden Eagles' only touchdown, a 29-yard scoring catch with 1:33 left.
"Early in the game I felt very confident, very calm," Southern Miss quarterback Austin Davis said. "Our tempo, our communication was good. We made a few mistakes in the red zone and the score got away from us."
Minnesota runs to 24-17 win over Middle Tennessee
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (AP) — Jon Hoese had a tough decision to make earlier this week: Stay at his father's bedside after a severe stroke or join his teammates for Minnesota's season-opener at Middle Tennessee.
Lucky for the Golden Gophers he decided to travel.
Hoese scored three touchdowns and made several key plays, and Duane Bennett rushed for a career-high 187 yards to lead Minnesota to a grinding 24-17 season-opening win Thursday night.
"The story of the game is Jon Hoese," Minnesota coach Tim Brewster said. "It's a story about a kid whose dad is gravely ill, and he played his heart out for his father tonight. He scored three touchdowns and we gave him the game ball. That game ball is going to go to Terry Hoese. That's the storyline tonight, celebrating the love a son has for his father the love a father has for his son."
Bennett becomes the first 100-yard rusher for the Gophers since 2008 and put up the most yards in a game since 2005. His game-opening 32-yard run was longer than any run in 2009 and he never let up. He dominated the Blue Raiders over Minnesota's two game-clinching drives, rushing for 64 yards as the Gophers held the ball for 15:41 on their way to a field goal and Hoese's 1-yard dive with 3:09 left.
Hoese also came up with several big plays with the game on the line, including a fumble recovery on the kickoff after his final touchdown that iced the victory.
"I didn't want to feel guilty coming down here," Hoese said. "But I talked to my family and they said that is what my dad would want."
Rick Stockstill's Blue Raiders had hoped to show the nation they were ready for the big time after a 10-win season, opening against a BCS conference opponent that looked vulnerable on ESPNU. But Minnesota exposed Middle Tennessee's fatal flaw — its size.
"They came here to run the ball," Stockstill said. "When they are as big as they are, they are going to control the clock."
And did they ever. Even without suspended starting left tackle Dom Alford, Minnesota's gargantuan offensive line, which average 317 pounds, absolutely dominated Middle Tennessee's much smaller front seven. The Gophers ran 67 times for 281 yards and held the ball for 45:34 to the Blue Raiders' 14:26.
Minnesota took a quick 14-0 lead early in the second quarter on Hoese dives of 1 and 2 yards that were both set up by pass interference calls in the end zone.
Along with his three touchdowns he jump-started the game-tying drive with a 5-yard run and a 22-yard catch back to back after Minnesota started at the 1. He also picked up a fourth-down conversion on a drive that ended in a failed field goal.
Minnesota rushed for 111 yards by 13:48 of the second quarter when Hoese scored the second time.
Middle Tennessee rallied from there, though. The Blue Raiders had 174 yards of total offense in the second quarter after just 33 and one first down in the first. Quarterback Logan Kilgore, who had a strong game in place of suspended starter Dwight Dasher, hit 6 of 7 passes in the quarter for 111 yards. Passes of 14 and 22 yards helped set up Phillip Tanner's 7-yard scoring run out of the Wildcat formation.
After Minnesota's second failed field goal, he led Middle Tennessee on a five-play, 77-yard drive in 44 seconds, hitting a diving Sancho McDonald with a 22-yard scoring pass with 36 seconds left to tie the game 14-14 at halftime.
"To see everyone not get down after going down 14-0 early, it was great to see everyone get up and keep playing," defensive back Jeremy Kellem said.
The Blue Raiders didn't let up early on the first drive of the second half. Tanner opened with a 51-yard run, setting up Alan Gendreau's 31-yard field goal at 12:44 of the third quarter to give Middle Tennessee it's first lead 17-14.
From there, Bennett took over. He finished with 30 carries and averaged 6.1 yards per attempt and the Gophers held the Blue Raiders to just three more first downs. They had the ball just 3:22 after their field goal and finished with just 40 offensive plays.
Brewster thought it was a strong start to the season: "I loved their style of play."
-- Chris Talbott
Slow-starting Rutgers defeats Norfolk State 31-0
PISCATAWAY, N.J. (AP) — The score was only 6-0 at halftime, three of those points from a bizarre field goal on the final play, and Rutgers walked off the field at the break to boos from its home faithful, but that didn't change coach Greg Schiano's thoughts.
"Too many people get hung up in the result during the game, but that can get you out of whack and get you stuck," Schiano said after his team rebounded from a sluggish first half to trounce Norfolk State, 31-0 Thursday night. "But the kids were playing hard and they believe in the process.
"There was no panic just because the result wasn't going the way they thought it would go. It's a young football team that didn't panic. We were playing hard, maybe too hard. We just had to slow it down and get back to what we do best."
Joe Martinek, who had 109 yards on 20 carries, scored on a 6-yard run to cap the Scarlet Knights' first possession of the second half and they rolled from there.
"We were a little too cute in the first half," Schiano said. "We pounded the ball in the second half. That's what we do."
Tom Savage completed 10 of 19 passes for 148 yards and a score, as Rutgers won its first season opener since defeating Buffalo 38-3 in 2007.
Martinek, a junior tailback, surpassed 100 yards for the fifth time in his career.
Sophomore quarterback Savage was unspectacular but effective, especially hitting Mohamed Sanu (three receptions, 65 yards and one TD).
But Savage admitted that he just wasn't right.
"That was the most nervous I ever was," Savage said. "There was something about this game; I was just nervous. It was the first game going into the season knowing you're the starter, knowing you have everything. On the bright side, I feel we didn't force too many balls or make too many bad decisions. I'm glad I got this game out of the way."
San San Te connected on three field goals for Rutgers. Norfolk State managed just 25 yards rushing on 24 attempts and had only seven first downs.
There was a highly controversial ending to the first half. Savage hit Sanu for a 29-yard pass play and Sanu stepped out of bounds at the 3-yard line as the clock appeared to expire. As the teams were heading off the field for halftime, Te was lined up to attempt a field goal. Referee Jeff Maconaghy ruled that the clock had run out, declaring it halftime.
The play was reviewed with the teams heading to the tunnel, but Te was still standing calmly in kicking formation. One second was placed back on the clock and Te drilled a 20-yard field goal, giving Rutgers a 6-0 lead at halftime. Norfolk State coach Pete Adrian was confused by the whole scenario.
"I don't think they (the officials) knew what was going on," Adrian said. "They first said the catch was out of bounds. I said if the catch is out of bounds, the ball has to go back. They said, 'No, he caught it and the ball went out of bounds.' When he (Savage) went up to spike the ball, we should have finished the half. He (Maconaghy) said we had to start the clock over. When they put the ball in play, the clock should have started immediately and they shouldn't have been able to get the snap off. They were confused over there and they tried to explain it to me."
Schiano applauded his team's poise in getting the kick off.
"The clock stopped with one second and our kids just stood there," Schiano said. "They were able to get the ball down and the kick off before the clock expired. A play like that is the reason why you have the review."
Rutgers took command in the second half. Martinek broke free for a 35-yard run down to the 6-yard line, and one play later he carried it in for the touchdown with 7:55 remaining in the third period, capping a seven-play, 75-yard drive. Sanu scored on a two-point PAT run, pushing the lead to 14-0.
After Norfolk State went three-and-out, Brandon Bing blocked a punt at the 19-yard line and Joe Lefeged recovered at the 3-yard line and took it in for the touchdown. Te added the PAT kick, giving the Scarlet Knights a 21-0 lead.
"It wasn't pretty, but in the second half we played much better," Schiano said. "Our defense was tremendous. We're going to be a much better football team in November."
Adrian then knew that his team was overmatched.
"We had guys cramping up and falling all over the field," Adrian said. "You can't do that against a Division I team. But we rebounded back and fought. I was real pleased with our effort. I knew when they got the touchdown on the blocked punt and we just blew it on the blocked punt, at 21-0, it's pretty much over."
Te had given the Scarlet Knights a 3-0 lead in the first quarter with a 31-yard field goal, but missed on field goal attempts of 40 and 47 yards later in the half.
The Scarlet Knights put the game away with a drive in the fourth quarter, capped by a 10-yard pass from Savage to Sanu with 8:27 remaining. Rutgers went 11 plays, 74 yards for its final touchdown.
Te connected on his third field goal of the game, this time from 27 yards with 4:40 remaining, to close out the scoring.
Late heroics lift Florida Atlantic past UAB 32-31
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Alfred Morris scored on a 38-yard run with 2:20 remaining and Michael Lockley partially blocked a potential 28-yard game-winning field goal on the final play to give Florida Atlantic a 32-31 comeback victory over Alabama-Birmingham on Thursday night.
A 50-yard run by UAB quarterback David Isabelle moved the Blazers to the FAU 5-yard line in the final minute. Marcus Bartels tackled Isabelle for a 4-yard loss on the next play, and then Isabelle took a knee with 5 seconds left to set up the short field-goal attempt.
Josh Zahn's kick was straight, but Lockley managed to get just enough of a hand on the ball to keep it from traveling to the goal post.
"We did enough good things to win the game, but the bottom line is we did more bad things to lose the game," UAB coach Neil Callaway said.
"It's very disappointing."
UAB led 28-12 midway through the third quarter behind three touchdown runs from Isabelle.
But Isabelle also sparked the Owls' comeback with an interception that was returned 38 yards for a touchdown by Brentley Harstad, making the score 28-19.
Jeff Van Camp's third touchdown pass of the game, a 43-yarder to Willie Floyd, enabled FAU to close the gap to 28-26.
Zahn kicked a 34-yard field goal to give UAB a 31-26 lead midway through the fourth quarter. The Blazers had a chance to put the game away in the final minutes, but Isabella barely overthrew Mike Jones on long pass out of the UAB end zone.
The ensuing punt traveled only 31 yards to the UAB 38. Morris scored on the next play, spinning away from one defender and breaking several other tackles.
"That was a great run," Van Camp said. "I thought he was tackled about five times."
Isabelle finished with 214 yards rushing, a UAB single-game record for a quarterback. He scored twice in the first quarter to give the Blazers a 14-0 lead.
FAU answered with second-quarter touchdown passes of 25 and 77 yards from Van Camp to Lester Jean.
Van Camp passed for 254 yards in the game. Jean had nine receptions for 164 yards, including a one-handed grab on the 77-yard touchdown pass.
Features
Vols look for special teams test from UT-Martin
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee's new special teams coach, Eric Russell, really doesn't know what to expect from Tennessee-Martin this weekend. For a special teams unit that's worked hard to improve after struggling in recent years, the uncertainty will be a good test.
"What is it going to be, and how will your kids line up and react to something that they have not seen?" Russell said. "That's where the fundamentals and the rules of their assignments hopefully come into play. Unfortunately, there's one way will find out on Saturday if we got the right things taught."
UT Martin has a new special teams coach of their own in Ryan Nielsen, who doesn't have a background in the discipline. That means there's no tape to study up on his strategies.
And under coach Jason Simpson, the Football Championship Subdivision Skyhawks have been known to throw every trick play in the book at Football Bowl Subdivision opponents.
"You try (to prepare), but you're guessing," said Russell, who also coaches the Vols' tight ends. "If you watch them last year against Memphis, they faked a field goal. They faked a punt. They did an onside kick — a surprise onside kick. You've got to believe they're going to come in here doing the same thing."
The Volunteers didn't exactly have a stellar special teams performance last season.
They gave up touchdowns on a 95-yard kickoff return and a 100-yard return. On the other side of the ball, two blocked field goal attempts cost the Vols a chance to upset eventual national champion Alabama in Tuscaloosa. They also struggled with punt returns, taking only 12 and returning them for an average 9.3 yards.
The Skyhawks are just as uncertain about the Vols, who are under new management. Russell coached special teams at Texas Tech a year ago, head coach Derek Dooley hailed from Louisiana Tech, defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox served the same role at Boise State while offensive coordinator Jim Chaney is one of the few holdovers from last year's Tennessee staff.
"Schematic-wise we're having to watch Louisiana Tech tape, Texas Tech, Boise State and Tennessee," Simpson said. "You can't get ready for it all but you try to look at it and have plan A, B and C."
Russell has heard about Tennessee's foibles on special teams, but he hasn't done much to review what caused them. He's just drilling the Vols the only way he knows how — relentlessly. He usually runs drills three times a practice and holds daily meetings, which Russell admits sometimes go a little long.
It's a bit more of a special teams focus than the Vols are accustomed to. Under former coach Lane Kiffin last season, Eddie Gran coordinated special teams while coaching running backs. In coach Phillip Fulmer's tenure, all assistants split special teams duty with no one coordinator focusing on it.
"This is the best coaching team we've had, special teams-wise," senior wide receiver Gerald Jones said.
Jones will return punts for the first time since his sophomore season, when he returned 15 punts for an average 10 yards each. He was hobbled by a nagging ankle injury last season that kept him from fielding punts but is glad to be healthy and back in his specialist role.
"I actually went on scout team, and said I was going to show them one way or the other that I could do it," Jones said. "I made a couple of guys miss, and coach Dooley liked what he saw and put me back there. I am very excited. I love punt returns. I love the adrenaline rush of being back there."
Sophomore running back David Oku will return kickoffs for a second season after returning 33 last year for an average 26.2 yards. Senior Daniel Lincoln, who made 10 of 16 field goal attempts in 2009, will again handle place-kicking duties, while senior Chad Cunningham will punt for a second season.
Considering how many fresh faces the Vols have on both offense and defense, the experience among the specialists is somewhat refreshing for Russell. He still thinks the veterans need work on fundamentals and techniques as much as anyone on special teams, though.
"We've tried to put an extra amount into fielding balls and that phase of the game," he said. "It is at least a little comforting to know they've at least been in a game, because there's a lot of guys we're rolling out there Saturday that have never been in that stadium and a lot of coaches that haven't been in that stadium."
-- Beth Rucker
Temple Owls hope to rule MAC roost
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — He was no longer Anonymous Al as he vacationed at the beach or waited at the airport. He was "Coach Golden!" with maybe a shout of "Temple!" and a fist pump in his direction as he worked his way through the day.
Al Golden was getting recognized this summer as coach of the Temple Owls.
Yes, these days at the long rundown program, that's a good thing.
The Owls are surrounded by billboards and buzz entering a season where they've positioned themselves as a serious threat to win the Mid-American Conference and maybe — don't laugh — keep building toward Golden's goal of blossoming into the non-BCS powerhouse of the Northeast.
"One day, we want to be considered in the same breath as TCU and Utah and Boise State," Golden said.
One day.
This season, the Owls simply want to grow off a breakthrough 2009 season when they had their first winning record (9-4, 7-1 MAC) since 1990 and played in their first bowl game (a loss to UCLA in the EagleBank Bowl) since 1979.
As former Temple football player and comic Bill Cosby said last year: "Our players catch balls now."
The days of expecting the worst — from the number in the win column to the grades on exam sheets — appear extinct at Temple. Golden first razed the program, then raised the program to a level where top high school talent is taking an interest and major BCS programs are interested in prying away Temple's still youthful and exuberant coach.
"It's amazing how we've gone from, 'Coach, can you just make us competitive? Coach, can you graduate the players? Coach, can you make sure the kids stay out of trouble? To Coach, how come you didn't win 10 games last year? Or, can we go to a warmer bowl game?'" Golden said.
With winning comes lofty expectations. The Owls were picked in a poll of the league's media contingent to win the MAC's East division and they received votes in The Associated Press preseason poll. Put in perspective, Temple's nine wins last year were one more than Golden led them to in his first three seasons combined (10-26).
"It's amazing how the bar raises and we're OK with that," he said. "It just means that we're relevant and it means that we have considerably more talent than we did the last three or four years."
His players couldn't walk a few blocks around campus without hearing someone poke fun at them for all their losing. The Owls now face demand for bowl tickets and better seats for Friday's opener against Villanova in the Mayor's Cup.
When Golden left his job as defensive coordinator at Virginia, he assumed the Owls would have a few bowl berths by now. He envisioned a three-year plan when he took over a program that was nearly scrapped early last decade.
Instead, he found carnage.
"I had no idea to the extent of how bad it was," Golden said. "The talent was really bad. We were losing scholarships. We had to devote so much time to academics that there really wasn't a balance."
Temple's revival has made Golden one of the hottest prospects around.
He's talked in the past to UCLA and Notre Dame, among other schools, about coaching vacancies only to stay put in Philadelphia. Fans and critics have waiting for Golden to take the leap from a MAC program to one in the Big East or Pac-10 or wherever the next big high-profile gig might await.
What did he do instead? Golden signed a five-year contract extension with the Owls through the 2014 season.
"Hey, I'm going to the Jersey Shore," Golden said, laughing. "You can get fresh mozzarella around here and the pizza tastes good."
He's not done with the Owls, either.
Last year was a first step, not a culmination.
Golden is quick to note the Owls didn't win the MAC, didn't win a bowl game, didn't beat Penn State.
Of course, speculation is rampant that Golden has stuck around because the former Penn State captain might be in line to succeed Joe Paterno. Golden called his former coach "an amazing man" and wished him well this season, but otherwise sidestepped questions about JoePa for fear it might fuel the rumor boards.
This was the first summer that Golden and his staff were able to escape for a few weeks and take vacation. There's always work to be done, but there were no off-field distractions, academic obstacles or serious concerns about poor decision-making with what he calls his most mature team yet.
When Golden gathered the Owls for the start of training camp, he told them there was good news and bad news: The Owls started practice with a well-rested coaching staff.
Golden made news early in camp when he demoted running back Bernard Pierce to the second team. Pierce missed practice time with an injury and Matt Brown was promoted to the No. 1 back.
Pierce, though, is no ordinary running back. He had 1,361 yards rushing and 16 touchdowns last season to lead Temple's renaissance. The Owls spent nearly $100,000 on billboards and ads at bus and train stops around the city to promote Pierce as a Heisman Trophy candidate and launched www.pierce4heisman.com.
Pierce is still expected to start Friday's opener against the FCS champion Wildcats.
"I wouldn't say he's hard on us," Pierce said of Golden. "He talks to you like a man. He doesn't belittle anybody. He doesn't yell unless he's on the field trying to get your attention."
Like Los Angeles Lakers coach Phil Jackson, Golden is an avid reader who passes out motivational books to his players. Books written by or about President Barack Obama, W.E.B. Dubois and other black historic figures litter a table on the waiting room to the football office. On a recent visit, a post-it note was attached to a Sports Illustrated cover story on troubled Pittsburgh Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger that read: "Here's how not to behave."
Yup, Golden wants his players to learn how to steer clear of trouble, too.
If the Owls are going crack the AP poll for the first time since 1979 and earn a spot in a warmer bowl game, they need to survive a tricky start to the season. The Owls play a Wildcats team that beat them last season, then its back-to-back games vs. Connecticut (9/18) and at Penn State (9/25).
Temple officials say more than 25,000 tickets have already been sold to Friday's opener, a nice sign that the Owls are inching their way toward sports relevance in a crowded market.
The Owls believe they won't be a one-year wonder.
"People are actually looking at Temple now as a good school for football," Pierce said.
-- Dan Gelston
Cincinnati's no-senior defense gets first test
CINCINNATI (AP) — There won't be any senior moments when two-time Big East champion Cincinnati sends it defense out for the first time this weekend.
That's a problem.
The Bearcats don't have any senior starters on defense this season, leaving it a big concern heading into their opener Saturday at Fresno State. No one is quite sure what to expect.
"I'm excited to see what they can do," first-year coach Butch Jones said. "We're still building our identity. I do like our mentality. I like the way we're flying around. I've been excited. But I'll know more about where we're at as a football team and a football program after the game Saturday."
For the second year in a row, the Bearcats will be trying to win games with a high-powered offense and a defense trying to keep up.
Cincinnati won its second straight Big East title, went undefeated in the regular season and finished third in the final BCS standings last season with a quick-strike offense. The defense got run over, in part because it never got much rest with the offense getting on and off the field so fast.
Opponents held the ball an average of nine more minutes per game. When a few defensive players got hurt, the bottom fell out. The Bearcats gave up 36 or more points in four of their last five games, including a 51-24 drubbing by Tim Tebow and Florida in the Sugar Bowl.
"Oh, man, we've had a chip on our shoulder ever since the Sugar Bowl ended," junior linebacker J.K. Schaffer said. "We've been working out hard, conditioning hard, practicing hard. We definitely have a strong mentality coming into this game. We're ready to prove we can do it, just like our offense."
Only six players on defense have started a game during their college careers. The starting lineup features five juniors and six sophomores. The line is a particular concern, with two redshirt freshmen serving as backups at the tackle spots.
"I'm comfortable in our first unit," Jones said. "Our second unit, we still have to have some individuals step up and develop. We want to play as many defensive linemen as possible, so our backups are basically like starters in our minds."
Cincinnati had one of the Big East's best defenses two years ago when it won its first title. The unit was stocked with seniors and played a 4-3 scheme.
Coach Brian Kelly prefers a 3-4 alignment, thinking it gives defenses a better chance at containing a wide-open, spread offense. He switched to a 3-4 last season, and opponents pounded it by running the ball. Kelly left for Notre Dame, where he has switched the defense to a 3-4.
Jones is taking it back to a 4-3 alignment, convinced that it gives Cincinnati a better chance to stop the run.
"I think it's going to help us a lot to be more sound at stopping the run," Schaffer said. "We're going to be able to put our guys in better position to make plays. I feel we maybe spread people out too much last year. There shouldn't be as many holes in our defense as last year."
Quarterback Zach Collaros practiced against it during spring football workouts and training camp and was impressed by the change.
"They attack a lot more as opposed to last year," Collaros said. "They're back in a 4-3 and they're showing different fronts, different tilts in the coverage. They've gotten me a couple times out there. It's been a lot harder to pick out what they're doing as opposed to last year."
Jones will be happy if he doesn't see much of his defense.
"We've got to be able to get off the field on defense," he said.
-- Joe Kay
LB Wilson looks to live up to promise for Illini
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) — In three years at Illinois, Martez Wilson has gotten a firsthand medical education.
He can talk at length about the numbness and fear that follow a neck injury like his last fall against Missouri, and the months spent recovering after surgery.
He can tell you about the way a jolt of adrenaline can hide the worst of the pain when a knife goes into your back, which happened to him in a fight outside a local bar.
What he doesn't have much experience with yet is what he came to town to do: become a great college football player, the kind who changes games and enters Memorial Stadium history like Grange and Butkus did on their way to the NFL.
"I've been through a lot of things since I've been here," Wilson said. "I had to sit out a whole year; I had to take the constructive criticism from fans and everyone."
Illinois starts its football season Saturday against Missouri. For Wilson, it's not the junior linebacker's first shot to live up to the promise he brought from Chicago. Only the latest.
Wilson was a top prospect when he joined the Illini in 2007 along with fellow high-ranked recruit Arrelious Benn, now a Tampa Bay Buccaneers receiver. Wilson is two seasons removed from his best year, when he had 69 tackles as a sophomore, third-best on a five-win team.
This year in particular, the Illini need the middle linebacker to come through.
Defense was one of the biggest problems last season for the Illini, who allowed a Big Ten-worst 30 points a game. And it was one of the biggest reasons the team went 3-9, a record that cost most of coach Ron Zook's staff their jobs and brought a new defensive coordinator, Vic Koenning, to town.
The defensive scheme is new, but already there are questions. Two of the four starting members of the secondary are out with injuries, one of them for the season.
While Zook and other coaches have talked every year about the need for him to be a leader, Wilson is soft-spoken, and, from all appearances, quiet and patient in a way that most linebackers are not.
Wilson says he's healthy, and ready to lead the defense.
"I'm excited — I've been off for a year, you know?" Wilson said. "No one can take this feeling away from me."
Zook gives Wilson a vote of confidence like the one he's given him every year since 2007, with one qualifier.
"He's a hundred percent, he's fine," Zook told reporters before fall practices started last month. "Everybody wants to dwell, and that's fine — it was a serious injury, (and) he hadn't lived up to maybe what everybody thought he might."
There have never been questions about Wilson's potential.
He is 6-foot-4 and weighs 250 pounds, and passed up USC, Notre Dame, Ohio State and other big-name schools to come to Illinois. He has the kind of lean athleticism on the field that leads coaches to believe he can make plays. The Illini moved him from defensive end to linebacker and told him he'd anchor the defense.
At times, though, there have been other questions.
Wilson was suspended for a game in late 2008 for violating team rules — the details were never made public. A few weeks later, Wilson was stabbed helping out a friend and former teammate who was outnumbered outside the bar, Zook and others said at the time. Police never made an arrest.
"The guy did exactly what I would want him to do," Zook said then. "If a person sees a person in stress, he should come to his aid."
That injury healed in time for Wilson to be back on the field to start the 2009 season against the Tigers, where misfortune struck again.
"It came between two linemen on a screen play," he said, adding that the hit wasn't particularly hard. "As I collided with them I felt a pain in my body that I never felt before — I felt a tingling and numbness, my whole body."
"At that moment I was frightened because I never felt that before," he added. "I couldn't control my muscles."
Wilson went back in the game — finishing with nine tackles in a 37-9 loss that set the tone for the season — but hasn't played in a game since.
A doctor told him he needed surgery to repair a herniated disk in his neck, that not operating could leave Wilson in a dangerously vulnerable position to more serious injury.
"He was really pushing me to have the surgery because it was best, not just for football but for my life," Wilson said.
Doctors plugged a piece of bone from his hip into his neck, but told him he'd have to wait months before thinking about playing football, and it wasn't a given that he would play again. His final OK came in late July.
Now, after playing through fall practice, contact included, with no problems, Wilson says it might finally be his year.
-- David Mercer
Governor's Cup could come down to running game
LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Coaches change. Players change. Venues change.
The key to the outcome of the Governor's Cup does not.
The winner of the annual showdown between Kentucky and Louisville isn't always the one with the better quarterback, more experienced coaching staff or home-field advantage.
For more than a decade, the team that's rushed for more yards has been the one holding the 110-pound Cup aloft at game's end. Kentucky outgained Louisville on the ground 168-133 in a 31-27 win last year, marking at least the 11th straight time the team with the highest rushing total has captured state bragging rights.
While the preseason talk centered on new coaches Joker Phillips and Charlie Strong and the clouded quarterback position at both schools, the biggest battle on Saturday will come on the lines, where two undersized defenses will try to dig in.
It won't be easy. Both Louisville and Kentucky's defensive lines will go against offensive lines that outweigh them by an average of 30 pounds.
"It's great to look bigger because of the intimidation factor, but it all comes down to technique," Kentucky right guard Larry Warford said.
A little bit of deception doesn't hurt.
Strong helped Florida win a pair of national titles by constructing defenses built on speed and smarts. Expect him to do the same at Louisville. The Cardinals will spend the seconds before each snap on Saturday in a state of perpetual motion in hopes of confusing the Wildcats.
"It's not going to be a Civil War battle where we're going to stand still and they're going to stand still and we're going to take turns," Kentucky offensive coordinator Randy Sanders said.
Though Phillips has called his offensive line one of his team's biggest strengths, the Wildcats will be breaking in four new starters on Saturday.
Being bigger is nice. Being better would be preferable.
"We're not really going in thinking 'Oh, they're smaller than us, we'll blow them off the ball,'" left guard Stuart Hines said.
Maybe, but teams had little trouble doing just that against the Cardinals last season. Louisville ranked 81st in the country against the run, allowing teams to pile up 165 yards a game.
Kentucky was even worse, giving up 4.65 yards per carry while ranking 100th out of the 120 schools in the Football Bowl Subdivision.
"We've got to be physical and attack," Louisville running back Victor Anderson said. "We want to go right at them. You want to assert yourself and hopefully that will open things up."
To do it, however, the Cardinals will have to keep Kentucky's offense off the field. The Wildcats went 7-6 last season despite an anemic passing attack that ranked last in the Southeastern Conference. They went to a fourth straight bowl game behind the play of speedster Derrick Locke and versatile wide receiver Randall Cobb, who ran for 573 yards and a team-high 10 touchdowns out of the "WildCobb" formation.
"It's very important for us to contain the football," Strong said.
Even if Strong would like to do it with bigger players.
Strong's preference would be a front four featuring players between 280-295 pounds. His starters at Florida last year averaged 286 pounds, anchoring a defense that finished 12th in the country against the run and allowed just six touchdowns on the ground.
The guys Strong will send out on Saturday are more than a few double cheeseburgers shy of that kind of size.
The linemen at the top of Louisville's depth chart average a svelte 269 pounds. Outside of 298-pound senior defensive tackle Tim High, the Cardinals are downright skinny, both in weight and in depth.
Louisville is so thin along the line junior Greg Scruggs has been moved from end to tackle. The 6-foot-4 former high school marching band drummer has filled out to 273 pounds, a number he's struggled to push higher.
Scruggs stuffed his face so much during the offseason he can barely stomach the sight of a bagel, and knows there's no such thing as "eating light."
He was dining on a grilled chicken sub over the summer when strength coach Pat Moorer walked in, saw what was on Scruggs' plate and offered some advice.
"He said, 'I hope you got extra mayo, I hope you got extra bacon and why don't you grab 3-4 cookies while you're at it,'" Scruggs said with a laugh.
Kentucky is no bigger along the defensive front. The Wildcats average 269 pounds and will face a Louisville offensive line that averages more than 300 pounds.
Though neither Anderson nor backfield mate Bilal Powell have the same gamebreaking qualities as Cobb or Locke, they're the surest thing to a proven commodity in Louisville's revamped spread offense.
Anderson ran for more than 1,000 yards as a freshman in 2008 before injuries last fall. Strong calls the quiet, slimmed-down Powell the face of the program.
Maybe, but ending a three-game losing streak to the Wildcats will just as likely come down to the largely anonymous guys on the defensive line, and Scruggs knows it.
"Our coaches have instilled in us a mindset that we can do whatever we want to do and be whoever we want to be as long as we execute our technique and our fundamentals," he said. "Our size is not the issue ... it's just football."
-- Will Graves
Rebels will play 1st game without DE Lockett
OXFORD, Miss. (AP) — There's multiple ways Kentrell Lockett has helped Mississippi win football games over the past three years.
The 6-foot-5, 260-pound defensive end often chips in with a vicious tackle at a crucial juncture, stopping the other team for a loss. But sometimes, it's a well-timed joke or flawless impersonation of a teammate that might keep the Rebels loose in a tense moment.
"He's got the perfect balance," defensive tackle Jerrell Powe said. "He knows when to be serious and when it's time to ease the tension with something funny."
But Mississippi will begin the season against Jacksonville State on Saturday without its emotional leader, who is one of five team captains, because he's undergoing tests for an irregular heartbeat discovered last week.
"We're definitely going to miss him in the locker room," Powe said. "He's an energetic guy."
Lockett is part of a defensive front that's expected to lead the Rebels while a young offense, which features eight new starters, gains experience. He's an experienced pass rusher who was among the team's leaders with 10 tackles for a loss and five sacks last season.
Lockett's return to the field is uncertain. Over the past week, he's undergone a battery of tests in both Memphis, Tenn., and Cleveland after he was pulled off the field during Saturday's scrimmage when he felt his heart racing.
The university's head athletic trainer Tim Mullins called the issue was a "rhythm problem."
For Ole Miss, the good news is that the defensive line is arguably the deepest spot on the roster. Sophomore Gerald Rivers, who played in five games last season, is expected to get his first career start.
"We expect big things," defensive coordinator Tyrone Nix said. "Gerald's a kid that's been in the system for a few years, he's improved day in and day out and now it's a good opportunity."
Linebacker Jonathan Cornell expects Rivers to play well against Jacksonville State. Lockett will be missed, he said, but part of a successful team is making adjustments with personnel.
Lockett is "a good player and he brings a lot of enthusiasm to the game, but he's just one facet to our defense," Cornell said. "He's an important piece, but life goes on."
Rivers, a converted linebacker who stands 6-foot-5 and 245 pounds, said Lockett's guidance is a big reason he's ready to step into a starting role.
Lockett "always says to stay focused and use your eyes," Rivers said. "A big part of defense is reading the offense. That helps you to make the play before the football's even snapped."
Though Jacksonville State plays at the Football Championship Subdivision level, the Gamecocks are known for their offense. They scored 35 points per game last season, which ranked 3rd nationally in the FCS.
Nix said his defense takes Jacksonville State's ability to score points seriously, but is well-equipped to handle any issues.
"I feel like we still have some quality leaders," Nix said. "There's no doubt Lockett will be missed, but this defense has a lot of character."
-- David Brandt
Arizona looks to end road woes in opener at Toledo
TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) — Hold off on those Rose Bowl dreams for a moment, Arizona. There's another dubious mark to take care of first. Nine seasons have passed since the Wildcats won a non-conference game on the road.
They'll start this season far from home on Friday against Toledo, a team that has knocked off Colorado, Pittsburgh, and Kansas in recent years.
"It's kind of a scary game, going on the road for a lot of first-timers," said Arizona coach Mike Stoops. "We've got a young football team in some areas."
He's most concerned about breaking in seven new starters on defense.
"They're young, but I tell them nobody cares come Friday," Stoops said. "Nobody cares how old you are, how many years you've been here."
His young group has come together in the last two weeks since an embarrassing team scrimmage. "We were just terrible in our fundamentals and adjustments," Stoops said.
The lackluster showing seemed to start a change for the better, he said.
Still, the Wildcats figure to be vulnerable in the middle of their defense, where they'll replace both tackles on the line and three starting linebackers.
That's not a good match up with Toledo, which has an experienced offensive line and three capable running backs.
Morgan Williams, a junior, has nearly 1,500 yards rushing in two seasons and likely will get the bulk of the carries for the Rockets, who had the top offense in the Mid-American Conference a year ago.
Quarterback Austin Dantin will replace Aaron Opelt, a four-year starter at Toledo. The sophomore filled in nicely a year ago when Opelt went down, winning two of three starts last season.
Arizona may need to outscore its opponents, at least early on while the defense settles in under two new co-coordinators.
Quarterback Nick Foles threw for 19 touchdowns and over 2,400 yards a year ago and is one of nine returning starters on offense. They're why Arizona has set its sights on its first Rose Bowl in the 111-year history of the program.
First, the Wildcats need to restore their credibility after a 33-0 drubbing by Nebraska in the Holiday Bowl. "We'll have plenty of opportunities to do that," Stoops said.
Toledo certainly isn't the biggest name on the schedule, but the Rockets have been dangerous at home against teams from BCS conferences.
A year ago, they ran all over Colorado 54-38.
"I think that helps us," Stoops said. "We know we have to be sharp."
Toledo coach Tim Beckman said his team doesn't try to downplay what it means to play against schools from the major conferences.
"It's about showcasing this football program," Beckman said. "We get that opportunity to do that again. You don't get that very much."
Stoops and Beckman have known each other since the early 1980s when Stoops was a safety at Iowa.
Beckman's dad was an assistant there and the second-year Toledo coach remembers throwing balls to Stoops and his brother, Bob, who's now at Oklahoma, during warmups.
"As a young player, I remember wanting to be like Bobby and Mike," he said.
-- John Seewar
Demons bracing for Falcons' vaunted option offense
AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. (AP) — Northwestern State coach Bradley Dale Peveto figures a side trip will help sidetrack the thoughts of his players.
That's why he's promised them a little sightseeing excursion into the mountains when the Demons arrive a day before facing the Air Force Falcons on Saturday.
Anything to temporarily distract his team from the task in front of them.
The Demons, coming off an 0-11 season, enter as vast underdogs against the Falcons, who have never lost to a Football Championship Subdivision squad.
Even more, Air Force routed Northwestern State's Southland Conference brethren Nicholls State, 72-0, in the 2009 opener.
Not that Peveto needs any reminding. Seeing the film of the Falcons is quite enough.
"We know we better have our ankles taped and go in there ready to get after it," said Peveto, who took over last year at the school that's located in Natchitoches, La. "We understand that Air Force is a great challenge. It's a great opportunity."
The temptation would be for the Falcons to simply dismiss the Demons, especially after drubbing Nicholls last year. And especially with Mountain West Conference foe BYU looming next weekend.
But Air Force coach Troy Calhoun is motivating his team through mind games, lecturing about how Northwestern State has produced more NFL talent than the Falcons and about how the Demons knocked off TCU, 27-24, nine years ago.
That got their attention.
"We've got to play. We're going to have to play at a very high pitch, play extremely well," said Calhoun, who's 3-0 in season openers since arriving at Air Force. "You realize you better be so razor sharp every single time you play, and you better not leave anything to chance. ... We're playing against an extremely capable opponent."
The Demons return a solid nucleus on offense, relying heavily on their offensive line and quarterback Paul Harris, who threw for 978 yards and rushed for another 537 in 10 games.
Their defense, though, is green and in for quite a test as it faces an option offense that's always proved difficult to defend.
The Falcons averaged nearly 284 yards on the ground last season, the third-best mark in the country. They return fullback Jared Tew, who led the team with 970 yards rushing, along with quarterback Tim Jefferson and tailback Asher Clark. The team may also incorporate backup QB Connor Dietz into some packages, giving Northwestern State yet another look.
All those different combinations and wrinkles have been keeping Peveto and his staff up at night, trying to figure out a scheme to contain it.
"Very fast tempo and so many different formations — that's how they're different than your typical wishbone," said Peveto, a former co-defensive coordinator at LSU. "You have to line up and defend and make sure your eyes are right, make sure you are taking care of those responsibilities."
Air Force is simply looking forward to lining up against someone other than those wearing familiar blue and white uniforms.
Ready or not, a change of scenery is needed.
"As a coach, you can always say we need six more weeks or 15 more months and whatnot, to get ready to go. We don't," Calhoun said. "We've game planned for this game as much as we have for any other game we've ever played since we've been here at the Academy. ... We just need to get to a point where it's a live Saturday, where our guys get a chance to go play."
For the Demons, it's about seeing the mountains and then attempting to pull off a mountain of an upset.
"It will be a unique experience for us, a very neat experience," said Peveto, who's taking his squad in a day early to help acclimate the players to the higher altitude. "It's going to be a great trip."
-- Pat Graham
Notes
Penn St keeps Ohio St in new Big 10 division
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — Penn State president Graham Spanier was pulling for Nebraska.
So he was pleased when the Big Ten announced Wednesday night that the expansion-revised football schedules would guarantee an annual game between the Nittany Lions and Cornhuskers starting in 2011.
Spanier, a big sports fan and the former chancellor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, noted close competitions between the schools in sports beside football, including wrestling and women's volleyball.
"The rivalry in football has been especially noteworthy. I think a lot of people were hoping that if there was one school we could add to the football schedule, it would be Nebraska," Spanier said Thursday in a phone interview with The Associated Press.
Spanier moved into his current job in Happy Valley in 1995. He supported bringing the Cornhuskers into the conference and kept in touch with the current chancellor, Harvey Perlman.
"And I thought it would be great if Penn State and Nebraska ended up being the crossover schools," Spanier said.
Expansion to 12 teams made led to the Big Ten splitting into two six-team divisions, starting in 2011. Nebraska and Penn State will be in different divisions, but have been designated crossover rivals by the league.
Penn State and Nebraska last met in 2003, an 18-10 win for the Cornhuskers in Lincoln. Penn State leads the all-time series 7-6.
The new schedule has them next playing Nov. 12, 2011 at Beaver Stadium.
The new conference divisions for football placed Penn State in the same division with Illinois, Indiana, Purdue, Wisconsin and Ohio State, with Nebraska in the other division.
"We've played Ohio State every single year in the Big Ten. We're a border state ... it's turned out to be a natural rivalry," athletic director Tim Curley said Wednesday night.
Curley said Penn State didn't lobby to have Ohio State and Nebraska on the schedule regularly.
"The reactions have been almost uniformly positive .... There's a lot of excitement about the new big 12 divisional structure and the schedules for the next two years," Spanier said before clarifying.
"The 12 schools in the Big Ten. The new Big Ten with the 12 schools," Spanier said. "We're going to keep our name. That's our plan."
Spanier this week was also named chairman of the 12-member BCS Presidential Oversight Committee — replacing Nebraska's Perlman.
The senior president in the group, Spanier said the committee's role involves governance, oversight, media contracts and policy matters. School presidents are comfortable with the current structure of the BCS and the new TV contract with ESPN, he said.
"There are a lot of sports writers and fans who I acknowledge would like something different, but when you look at all of the facts surrounding the BCS and how it works, it's a fantastic experience. It's just a fantastic operation for our universities," he said.
-- Genaro C. Armas
Mining activists demand WVU, Nike pull uniform ad
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — After angry environmentalists objected to a Nike promotional ad for a new West Virginia University football uniform, the athletic apparel giant said Thursday it will modify a graphic depicting a mountaintop removal mine.
Nike issued a statement through the university, repeating what the school had said earlier in the day: The new black and white Pro Combat uniform was designed to honor the heritage of coal mining and 29 men killed in the April explosion at Upper Big Branch mine.
"We are modifying the graphic of the player on our website to address concerns," the statement said.
The Oregon-based company did not return repeated messages from The Associated Press.
The Mountaineers will wear the coal-themed uniform for only one game this season, the Nov. 26 Backyard Brawl at Pittsburgh. Nike paid for the new gear.
The problem environmental activists had with the ad was not the color of the gear — off-white that appears coated in coal dust — or the number 29 on the coal-black helmets. It's the depiction of a mountaintop removal mine behind the image of a player, complete with flat, treeless mountaintop, the sound of an explosion and the image of falling rock.
The ad appeared to be a tacit endorsement of the controversial form of strip mining, the activists argued.
Before Nike announced it would modify the ad, opposition was rampant.
Danny Chiotos of Charleston, youth organizer for the Student Environmental Action Coalition, said that WVU football is a uniting force for a small state that lacks a professional team, and for the university to seemingly take a side upsets people.
"I'm largely amused by it and kind of bewildered by it," Chiotos said. "They should come up with a better ad that actually promotes WVU football and the memory of the miners and mine safety."
By depicting a surface mine that also resembles the open pit mines of western states like Wyoming, the original ad also missed a key point about Upper Big Branch: The Massey Energy Co. mine that exploded April 5 was an underground operation.
The graphics were designed by Nike and reviewed by WVU officials.
"The intent was for the player on the field to be surrounded by coal and not as an endorsement of any one form of mining technology," WVU athletics said in a brief e-mail.
The ad plunged both the school and the world's largest athletic shoe and clothing maker into one of West Virginia's most emotionally charged and political divisive issues.
Mountaintop removal was the sole issue of a candidate who ran in last week's special primary to fill the seat of late U.S. Sen. Robert C. Byrd, and both industry and environmentalists are lobbying the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency over the practice.
Naoma activist Bo Webb demanded the immediate removal of the ad and apologies to the people in the southern coalfields who have been hurt by mountaintop mining.
"I am so angry. I love football, and I will not watch WVU again," said Webb, who was in Washington, D.C., with other activists on Monday, urging President Barack Obama's administration to outlaw mountaintop removal. It was a prelude to a much larger "Appalachia Rising" rally planned for Sept. 27.
"I hope the players understand that they're being used and rise up. I'd like them to say, 'I'm not being pimped out by Nike and the state of West Virginia and the coal industry," he said, "and I would like to see WVU admit, 'We made a huge mistake.'"
Webb said it's possible the ad was designed by an artist who didn't realize the implications of using strip mine imagery, but he's skeptical of Oregon-based Nike.
"Maybe they're naive, but I doubt it," he said. "I seriously doubt it."
Mountaintop removal is done mainly in West Virginia, Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee. Forests are clear-cut, explosives blast apart the ridgetops, and massive machines scoop the exposed coal from multiple seams. The debris left behind is dumped into valleys, covering streams with what are called valley fills.
Coal operators say it's the most efficient way to reach some reserves, but people who live near the mines say it's too destructive, ruining their home values, their environment and their health.
The industry, too, is planning a rally in Washington. Its Sept. 15 event will focus on what it considers unfair regulations and the need for jobs.
WVU senior Joe Gorman said Nike and the school should honor underground miners "without glorifying the mountaintop removal that's destroying West Virginia's heritage and the mountains that make us the Mountaineers."
"The ad says, 'It's just the way things are done in West Virginia,'" Gorman said, "but miners and residents of the southern coalfields have been fighting strip mining and mountaintop removal since before I was born, and that's something to be proud of, too."
-- Vicki Smith
Zook: 9 Big Ten games will make schedule tougher
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) — Illinois Athletic Director Ron Guenther says it's important that Illinois will continue to face Northwestern in football every year even though the teams will be in different divisions.
The new divisions announced Wednesday group Illinois with Ohio State, Purdue, Indiana, Penn State and Wisconsin. Every school gets one out-of-division school that will be on the schedule every year.
Football coach Ron Zook says he hadn't thought about having to go through Ohio State, Penn State and Wisconsin to win a division title.
He didn't lobby for any particular lineup and doubts he could have influenced the process.
Zook complained, though, that having nine conference games a year instead of eight will make each season tougher.
Austin Peay reports NCAA violation, suspends 2
CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Austin Peay officials say they have reported an NCAA violation over an extra benefit received by the football program.
The university is continuing to internally investigate the unspecified violation. As a self-punishment, Austin Peay is suspending assistant coach Dainon Sidney and junior offensive lineman James Barker from the Governors' Thursday night game against Cumberland.
Barker, a Dickson native, will remain ineligible pending a review by the NCAA.
Athletic director Dave Loos says Austin Peay takes full responsibility for following NCAA rules and wants to address any problems quickly.
Sidney is a former Tennessee Titan.
Ruffer beats out Tausch
SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — David Ruffer will be Notre Dame's No. 1 kicker for the home opener against Purdue on Saturday after beating out sophomore Nick Tausch.
Taush made a school-record 14 straight field goals during a stretch last season but missed the final three games after injuring his foot.
Ruffer, who transferred to Notre Dame from William & Mary after the 2007-08 school year, didn't miss a field goal in five attempts a year ago. Along with field goals, he will also kick off.
Coach Brian Kelly also listed tight end Mike Ragone as "doubtful" for Saturday's game. Ragone, a senior from Camden, N.J., is still experiencing headaches, vertigo issues and an ear infection. He spent the night in the hospital earlier in the preseason while recovering from heat illness.
Hawaii QB Moniz injured
HONOLULU (AP) — Hawaii quarterback Bryant Moniz was injured after taking a hard hit late in the third quarter of Thursday night's season opener against No. 14 Southern California.
Moniz, who was taken to the locker room and examined for a possible concussion, was replaced by backup Brent Rausch. Moniz's return was questionable.
He was hit by linebacker Michael Morgan after scrambling 13 yards to the USC 5 late with 2:38 left in the third. Moniz appeared woozy as he got up.
The junior was 18 of 36 for 269 yards and a touchdown. He also had 38 yards rushing.
La. Tech adds BYU to football schedule
RUSTON, La. (AP) — Louisiana Tech is adding BYU to its 2011 and 2012 schedules as a part of the Western Athletic Conference's scheduling agreement with BYU. Louisiana Tech will host BYU in 2011 and will travel to Provo, Utah in 2012.
The meeting in 2011 will be the first game between the two schools.
With BYU declaring that it will be an independent in the sport of football effective with the 2011 season, five WAC teams -- Hawaii, Idaho, Louisiana Tech, New Mexico State and San Jose State -- will provide the Cougars with five games in the 2011 season and four games in the 2012 season.
