College Top 25 Preview Capsules: Bama-LSU might be another defensive struggle

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — When they last met, Alabama vs. LSU was all about Nick Saban coaching against his former team.

This year, there’s more pressing business: keeping in the mix to play for the national title.

Two Top 10 Southeastern Conference teams meet Saturday, with a pair formidable defenses and one Heisman Trophy candidate in a game that might be low on points if not drama.

Yes, again.

The first such rendezvous this season resulted in one touchdown and a 13-3 victory by Tim Tebow and No. 1 Florida over then-No. 4 LSU.

Saturday’s matchup between ninth-ranked LSU and No. 3 Alabama has all the makings of a similarly defensive clash. And the stakes are at least as high.

It’s enough to make swashbuckling LSU coach Les Miles embrace a kick.

"If you punt it and go play defense, that’s a good choice," Miles said. "There is nothing wrong with that."

Warm up those legs, P.J. Fitzgerald and Derek Helton. The way these defenses are playing, it could be a busy day for the punters.

Alabama (8-0, 5-0) allows the fifth-fewest points a game in the nation and has given up just one touchdown in the last three games. Only Texas is stingier against the run.

LSU (7-1, 4-1) sports the No. 7 scoring defense, has given up 36 points in its last four games and is coming off a shutout of Tulane.

The game could determine who plays Florida in the SEC championship game. It will definitely be Alabama if the Tide wins. If the Tigers win, they clinch the rematch with wins against Mississippi and Arkansas.

Either way, the survivor is still in the mix for a national title shot.

"In a game like this, you go out on the field and whoever plays the hardest and whoever does the little things right the most consistently throughout the game, that’s who will win the game," Tide linebacker Rolando McClain said. "You can’t really focus on ‘we’ve got to make this big play’ or ‘we’ve got to do this or we’ve got to do that’. We have to focus on the game plan, perfect it and execute it."

Miles looks at an Alabama team led by McClain and nose guard Terrence Cody on defense and relentless runner Mark Ingram — widely considered a Heisman candidate — on offense and concludes: "There are no weaknesses."

The defense certainly hasn’t shown many. The Tide allows only 65 yards a game rushing and has given up only one touchdown on the ground in the past seven games. Alabama’s 23 sacks are tied for the league lead with Mississippi and Florida, which racked up five sacks in its meeting with LSU.

LSU’s defense has allowed only one touchdown in the last two games, and that came in the final 3 seconds against Auburn.

"I think that both defenses are very good and the structures are sound and solid," Miles said. "They play aggressively, and they make tackles. I enjoy watching good college football, and I think certainly that’s what will be played this Saturday."

The key to stopping Alabama’s offense has been to try to slow down Ingram, who had at least 140 yards in three straight games before being held to 99 against Tennessee two weeks ago going into an open date. The Tide squeaked by in that one, winning 12-10 after Cody blocked two field goals in the fourth quarter.

Ingram has been impressed by an LSU defense led by linebacker Kelvin Sheppard and defensive backs Chad Jones and Patrick Peterson.

"They are big and fast, strong and physical," he said. "The scheme they play, they do it really well. They are coached up really well. They all do their assignments. They all get to the ball and they make it really hard for offenses to have success."

LSU has had plenty of success in Tuscaloosa, where the Tigers have won four straight. Alabama’s overtime victory last year in Baton Rouge snapped a five-game LSU winning streak in the rivalry.

One of these two teams has represented the West in the SEC championship game three of the past four seasons.

"I can tell you that our football team wants to compete for the SEC Western Division championship every year, and certainly that’s this game," Miles said.

His teams haven’t fared well lately against Top 10 teams, losing three straight after winning six in a row.

Alabama has won five such regular season games in a row, but lost in the SEC championship game and the Sugar Bowl last year to Top 10 teams.

But Saban has stuck to his standard message this week: Focus on the process, not the results.

"I know it’s a result world, but great competitors don’t focus on the results they focus on what they need to do to get the results," the Alabama coach said. "Sometimes that’s difficult to do with a lot of the external things that we live with, but that’s the most important thing to playing your best. Maybe we were affected by that a little bit in the last couple of games."

No. 4 Cincinnati tries to match best start

CINCINNATI — One bad afternoon, one ugly blemish in the Big East.

Cincinnati went to Connecticut last season with a perfect league mark and high expectations because quarterback Tony Pike had returned from a broken left forearm. Wearing a removable cast on his non-passing arm, Pike started and the Bearcats seemed to be whole again.

Not for long.

Pike only made it until halftime, when his left hand went numb. Freshman Chazz Anderson came on and threw a pair of interceptions. Cincinnati played perhaps its worst game under coach Brian Kelly, turning the ball over six times in a 40-16 drubbing.

Cincinnati still went on to win its first Big East title. Its only loss in the league? That ugly one in Connecticut.

"That’s definitely in the back of our minds," Cincinnati safety Drew Frey said. "To get handled that easily last year — that’s definitely going to sink into our hearts a little bit, and it’s going to be one of the drivers for the game."

There’s faintly similar plot line for the rematch.

The fourth-ranked Bearcats (8-0, 4-0) have a perfect league record and Pike is recovering from an injury to the same forearm as they get ready to play UConn (4-4, 1-3) on Saturday night. This time, they’re at home. And this time, they’ve got a different dynamic at quarterback.

Sophomore Zach Collaros has been sensational as Pike’s replacement for the last 2 1/2 games. He helped Cincinnati pull away to a 34-17 win at South Florida after Pike got hurt, then made his first two collegiate starts and was nearly flawless in wins over Louisville and Syracuse.

In his two starts, Collaros has gone 41 of 52 for 620 yards with seven touchdowns. Against South Florida, he ran for a pair of touchdowns. Each game, he’s looked a little better.

"In the South Florida game, I was kind of nervous getting in there," Collaros said. "Louisville was big because it was my first start. I think I’ve settled down. The better you play, the more confident you are."

It’s the Huskies who might be lacking confidence.

Connecticut has turned into a team that can’t finish games off. The Huskies’ four losses have come by a combined 13 points. They’ve led in the fourth quarter of all those games, only to give up big plays.

During a 28-24 loss at West Virginia two weeks ago, UConn went up 24-21 with 3:50 left, only to watch the Mountaineers score on a 56-yard run with 2:10 to go. Last week, the Huskies took their first lead against Rutgers with 38 seconds left, then gave up an 81-yard touchdown pass for another 28-24 loss.

"They’re clearly a very good football team that hasn’t finished games off," Kelly said.

Toss in a 24-21 loss at Pittsburgh on a last-second field goal, and it’s been an excruciating season for the Huskies.

"The tough losses, they do get to you," quarterback Zach Frazer said. "But every week is a new week."

This week represents a second chance for Frazer, who was the starter until he was sidelined by a knee injury. Cody Endres played so well as his replacement that he kept the job. Endres suffered a major shoulder injury during the loss to Rutgers, giving Endres the opportunity to play. The junior threw for 333 yards, but had three interceptions.

Coach Randy Edsall can relate to Cincinnati’s quarterback situation.

"Maybe it runs in cycles," Edsall said. "I have no idea. Maybe kids don’t drink enough milk nowadays to keep their bones strong, or eat enough vegetables to help ligaments. I don’t know, but it’s part of the game."

Connecticut also continues to mourn the loss of cornerback Jasper Howard, who was stabbed to death outside a dance hours after a game on Oct. 18.

The Bearcats learned a few things from that disappointing day in Connecticut last season. They lost three fumbles and had three interceptions, dooming their chances of a comeback. Through eight games this season, they’ve had only four turnovers — all on interceptions.

Cincinnati is the only Bowl Subdivision team that hasn’t lost a fumble.

"That’s one of the reasons why we’re 8-0," Kelly said. "We’ve taken care of the football. We haven’t given offenses that extra chance, that extra opportunity to put points on the board. And we’ll need to continue to do that to stay in the undefeated ranks."

The Bearcats weren’t the only ones thinking back to that meeting in Connecticut last year. The Huskies did a bit of reminiscing, too.

"Can we just take that game, not play this one, and just substitute it?" Edsall joked.

Uh, no.

-- Joe Kay

Stanford looks for key 6th win vs. No. 7 Oregon

STANFORD, Calif. — Stanford has been pointing to the brutal four-game November stretch as the defining moment for the season ever since arriving at fall camp.

The Cardinal end the season with arguably their four toughest games, facing No. 7 Oregon, No. 12 Southern California, No. 23 California and No. 19 Notre Dame all in succession.

What no one knew at the start of the season was that the toughest game might come first, when the Cardinal (5-3, 4-2 Pac-10) host the Ducks (7-1, 5-0) on Saturday.

"This is a huge opportunity for us if we want to take the next step," running back Toby Gerhart said. "We have a chance to beat the best team in the Pac-10."

Oregon earned that title last week with a 47-20 victory over USC that put the Ducks in control of the Pac-10 race and in contention for a spot in the Bowl Championship Series title game.

Oregon shredded USC for 613 total yards, the second most ever allowed by the Trojans, and gained 391 yards on the ground in a performance that surprised many accustomed to USC dominating the Pac-10.

"Offensively, we certainly don’t expect 600 yards, but we don’t expect to stall out or have any sort of letdown," quarterback Jeremiah Masoli said. "We’ve been practicing really hard and it’s one of those things where we’ll see if our team can handle success."

After beating the Trojans 24-17 two years ago to move into title contention, the Ducks lost three of their final four regular season games — and star quarterback Dennis Dixon to injury — and settled for the Sun Bowl.

The Oregon players believe the lessons they learned in a 19-8 season-opening loss at Boise State will help avoid a similar situation this season.

"None of the games we’ve won have been perfect by any stretch of the imagination and we all realize that and we all understand that by what happened at the beginning of the season, stumbling out of the blocks, we have to focus on the small problems that we have because they can add up," offensive lineman Mark Asper said.

The Ducks have had few problems of late with one of the country’s most dangerous offenses. Freshman running back LaMichael James has replaced suspended star LeGarrette Blount and is the leading rusher in Pac-10 games, averaging 137.6 yards per game.

Ed Dickson is one of the top tight ends in the country, with 30 receptions for 397 yards and four touchdowns and six players have at least 10 catches.

But the key to the offense is Masoli, who threw for 222 yards and a touchdown and ran for 164 yards and a score last week against USC. He has run for 436 yards and eight touchdowns, while also completing 60.6 percent of his passes with six TDs and only two interceptions.

"It’s tough to stop him," Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh said. "We’re going to try and slow him down. He’s as good a dual threat quarterback as there is in the country. He executes with tremendous precision in the option game."

The Cardinal need one more win to become bowl eligible for the first time since 2001. But with four ranked opponents on the docket, that will be no easy task.

Since making it to the Seattle Bowl in Tyrone Willingham’s last season on The Farm in 2001, Stanford has had five shots at a sixth win and bowl eligibility, losing each time.

Perhaps the most painful came last year in Eugene, when the Cardinal took a 28-27 lead with 2:18 to play. But the Ducks answered with a 74-yard drive capped by Blount’s 3-yard run and 2-point conversion that gave Oregon the 35-28 win.

That was Oregon’s seventh straight win in the series.

"It’s been trial and error trying to figure out how to play them the last couple of years," linebacker Clinton Snyder said. "This year I think we’re going to try and simplify things. You just have to be ready and in the right spot. We have to be on top of our game."

Stanford lost to USC and Cal the following two weeks, falling agonizingly short of achieving its goal of a bowl bid.

The Cardinal have four shots this year, but know none of them will be easy.

"We’re excited to go against ranked teams," quarterback Andrew Luck said. "This is why you play college football. Of course we want to win all of them but the focus is toward this week’s goal, and winning this game."

-- Josh Dubow

No. 8 Iowa not looking past Northwestern

IOWA CITY, Iowa — Much of the buzz surrounding No. 8 Iowa has been about its resume, and whether the Hawkeyes can truly be considered national title contenders when they keep sneaking past everyone.

Throw in a showdown with No. 15 Ohio State in Columbus next week that could determine the Big Ten title and Saturday’s home date with Northwestern (5-4, 2-3 Big Ten) has all the makings of the classic trap game.

Let’s be honest, though. Every week’s a trap game for Iowa.

The Hawkeyes (9-0, 5-0) have survived them all so far, despite key injuries and fourth-quarter deficits in four of the nine games.

"I think we’re getting great leadership," Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said. "I think the team overall gets it. I’m not taking anything for granted. But I think they understand we’re going to be up against it week in and week out."

This weekend should be no different, even if the Wildcats’ hopes for an upset rest on the tender left hamstring of quarterback Mike Kafka.

Kafka tweaked the hamstring last week against No. 11 Penn State with the Wildcats ahead 10-3. Sophomore backup Dan Persa led Northwestern to just a field goal after that as the Nittany Lions rolled to a 34-13 win.

Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald said he expects Kafka to play, though Persa was listed as the co-starter on a depth chart released this week.

Few players in the Big Ten are as important to their team as Kafka is to Northwestern. He leads all Big Ten quarterbacks in passing yardage, completions, completion percentage and total offense, and he leads the Wildcats in rushing with 248 yards and six touchdowns.

Despite Kafka’s heroics, Northwestern ranks just 74th in the nation with 25.7 points per game and will face a stout Iowa defense Saturday.

Iowa allowed Indiana to score just 10 points following six Hawkeyes turnovers in last week’s 42-24 win. The Hawkeyes have also forced 26 turnovers this season, including 18 interceptions.

"Iowa is one of those teams you can set your watch by what they’re going to do from a schematic standpoint," Fitzgerald said. "They do what they do very well."

The Hawkeyes offense has been all over the map this season, which in many ways is related to the performance of quarterback Ricky Stanzi.

Stanzi had one of the worst quarters an Iowa signal caller has ever had last week, throwing four picks in the third as Indiana jumped ahead 24-14 and seemed poised to end the Hawkeyes dream season.

But with the unwavering support of Ferentz, Stanzi bounced back with two quick TD throws and Iowa scored 28 points in the fourth quarter — more than they had scored in all but two games up to that point.

The Hawkeyes, who have scored exactly as many points as Northwestern this season, have battled through injuries all season. They are down to their last proven running back, true freshman Brandon Wegher — though he responded with a career-best 118 yards rushing and three TDs last week.

"I think Brandon’s pretty comfortable and has been," Ferentz said. "You have to be patient. I think that’s offense in general. You have to have patience and a lot of people don’t."

Anyone who believes that Iowa will simply cruise past Northwestern at home clearly hasn’t seen the Hawkeyes play this season or doesn’t know the series’ recent history.

Northwestern has won three of the last four in the series, stopping Iowa four times inside the Wildcats 10-yard line late in a 22-17 win in Iowa City in 2008.

"We’re doing a good job of focusing on who we’ve got the next week," said Iowa wide receiver Trey Stross. "Close games definitely make you a little nervous."

-- Luke Meredith

Wounded Trojans looking to bounce back at ASU

TEMPE, Ariz. — The Arizona State Sun Devils hoped Southern California might have a letdown after a big victory over Oregon.

So much for that plan.

Drubbed by 27 points in Eugene last weekend, the 12th-ranked Trojans figure to be in a bad mood when they show up for Saturday night’s game at Sun Devil Stadium. The loss dropped USC from fourth in The Associated Press Top 25 to a tie for fourth place in the Pac-10 and seemingly eliminated the Trojans (6-2, 3-2 Pac-10) as a national title contender.

"We can’t worry about USC," Arizona State coach Dennis Erickson said. "We have to worry about ourselves. Their track record after they lose is pretty darn good if you take a look at it."

Indeed, USC hasn’t had back-to-back losses since a four-game skid early in Pete Carroll’s debut season in 2001. The Trojans snapped that slump with a 48-17 rout of ASU, and two years later they bounced back from a loss to California by defeating the Sun Devils 37-17.

USC has been here before. Two years ago, USC appeared to be out of contention when it suffered its second Pac-10 loss in late October, also at Oregon.

But the Ducks, hampered by a knee injury to quarterback Dennis Dixon, collapsed in November, and the Trojans steamed past them and into the Rose Bowl.

"The ability to return and deal with the finish of the season has been something that’s been pretty unique for us," Carroll said. "We need to see if we can rediscover that again."

Carroll said his team is "on the road to recovery." This week, the road leads to the desert and a meeting with the mediocre Sun Devils (4-4, 2-3).

For ASU, there never seems to be a good time to face USC. The Trojans have won nine straight over the Sun Devils, their longest active streak over a Pac-10 rival.

The average score during the streak: USC 38, ASU 18.

Meanwhile, Arizona State is 3-27 against the Top 25 since 2000 — and 1-6 under Erickson.

"We have to get one of these wins against a top-tier opponent," quarterback Danny Sullivan said. "Let this be the week, get good preparation and be ready to go."

If ASU hopes to end its futility against the Trojans, it likely will need another standout performance from its defense.

Led by senior linebacker Mike Nixon, the Sun Devils are giving up 19 points per game, second in the conference. Their run defense concedes 80 yards per game, No. 1 in the Pac-10, and last week ASU limited California star Jahvid Best to 63 yards, or barely half his average.

"They’ve pretty much taken the running game away from teams for the most part," Carroll said.

The Trojans are hurting at tailback, with Joe McKnight and Allen Bradford limited in practice this week.

McKnight has a sore ankle and pain behind his right knee, possibly related to his hamstring. He leads the Trojans with 712 yards rushing and seven touchdowns.

Bradford has a sore right knee. He has 397 yards rushing and four TDs, averaging 7 yards per carry.

If McKnight and Bradford can’t play, C.J. Gable may shoulder most of the load.

The Sun Devils need to stop USC because their offense could struggle against the Trojans’ defense. ASU’s attack has mustered more than 24 points only once in its last six games — and that was when it put up 27 against woeful Washington State.

But USC’s defense isn’t quite so formidable as it looked early on. After giving up a total of 43 points through five games, the Trojans have conceded 27, 36 and 47 in their last three.

This is USC’s final road game, and Sun Devil Stadium may not seem quite so intimidating as Autzen Stadium was last weekend.

According to NCAA statistics, ASU is playing to 62.1 percent of Sun Devil Stadium’s 71,705 capacity. That ranks 100th in the nation, but a bigger crowd is expected for Saturday night’s game.

After the trip to Tempe, USC closes the regular season against Stanford, UCLA and Arizona. Surprisingly, the Cardinal and the Wildcats are ahead of USC in the conference standings heading into the stretch.

But if USC wins its remaining games, it will give itself a shot at an eighth straight Bowl Championship Series berth.

Carroll said he hasn’t spent much time figuring out the Trojans’ revised postseason outlook; instead, he’s stressed what the Trojans have to do to beat ASU.

"We don’t need the long-range incentives," Carroll said. "We need the short range opportunities to be maximized."

-- Andrew Bagnato

No. 14 Pitt tries to avoid Syracuse stumble

PITTSBURGH — Notre Dame, then West Virginia, with a possible Big East-deciding game against Cincinnati to follow.

No. 14 Pittsburgh hasn’t met a Top 25 opponent all season, but the Panthers will end the season by playing nothing but teams that are ranked or are rivals.

First, there’s Syracuse to deal with on Saturday, and the Panthers realize their remaining games won’t mean nearly as much if they don’t get past the Orange.

With so much to play for, the Panthers (7-1, 4-0 in Big East) might be tempted to forget they were eight points down to Syracuse last season before rallying to win 34-24. Or that neither No. 4 Cincinnati nor No. 11 Penn State was able to run all over Syracuse.

The Orange (3-5, 0-3) may be in last place in the Big East, but records and rankings often matter very little when they play Pitt. The Panthers beat them 20-17 at home two years ago, and Pitt looked ready to be upset last season before outscoring Syracuse 18-0 in the fourth quarter.

Three difficult games to end the season? Pitt fullback Henry Hynoski said it’s more like four.

"These last four games can make us or break us, and we have a tough one to start out against Syracuse," Hynoski said. "So the main thing for us is to not look ahead to next week. We just have to stay focused on Syracuse."

Or what’s left of Syracuse. It was a tough week for the Orange even before they left for Pittsburgh, where they haven’t won since 2001.

Wide receiver Mike Williams, their leading receiver and top playmaker, quit the team on Monday. A day later, tailback Antwon Bailey, defensive end Torrey Ball and guard Andrew Tiller were suspended for violating team rules and defensive end Jared Kimmel was lost to knee surgery.

Beating a Pitt team that’s off to the school’s best start in 27 years would be difficult enough on the road, but doing so with a depleted cast will be considerably harder.

"At the beginning of the year, people said, ‘Where are all the Big East teams in the top 20?"’ Syracuse coach Doug Marrone said. "We just played the No. 4 team in the country (Cincinnati) and we’re getting ready to play the 14th team in the country."

The No. 4 rusher, too.

Pitt freshman Dion Lewis is averaging 128.6 yards per game, and will be a major challenge even for the Big East’s best rushing defense (88.9 yards a game) because the Orange also must deal with quarterback Bill Stull and Pitt’s deep group of receivers. Stull is third nationally in passing efficiency, while tight end Dorin Dickerson is tied for second with nine touchdown catches.

At least Syracuse quarterback Greg Paulus won’t have to listen to all the jeering from his home fans while he’s in Pittsburgh. Marrone was so upset with the booing of Paulus during the 28-7 loss to Cincinnati that he read a statement this week supporting him.

Paulus is the former Duke point guard who is using his final season of college eligibility to return to football.

"When he’s in the game, it’s because we believe he gives us the best chance to win," Marrone said. "I truly thank him for being here."

However, Paulus’ inconsistency (10 TD passes, 11 interceptions) means he’s not always been in games at the end, as Marrone sometimes goes to backup Ryan Nassib.

"Things change," Paulus said, referring to the shifting personnel around him. "It’s about sticking together. We’ll be ready to go."

Last year’s scare in Syracuse might be enough to prevent Pitt from looking ahead to its prime-time game against No. 19 Notre Dame next weekend.

"They’re a team that’s a lot better than their record shows," Pitt linebacker Adam Gunn said. "A win against Pitt would definitely make their season, so we’re not going to give them a chance to ruin our season or spark theirs. We want to be Big East champs, and we have to get past Syracuse to stay on track for that."

-- Alan Robinson

A 48-0 loss to Virginia still remembered in Miami

MIAMI — The last time Virginia coach Al Groh was on the sideline in South Florida, his Cavaliers ended Miami’s era at the Orange Bowl with a stunning 48-0 romp over the Hurricanes.

If his team doesn’t win in Miami again on Saturday, another era — his own — could be closing.

Indeed, No. 16 Miami and Virginia will be desperate teams for different reasons this weekend. The Hurricanes (6-2, 3-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) need a win to remain viable in the league title race, plus keep slim hopes of reaching the Bowl Championship Series going. Virginia (3-5, 2-2) is still part of the league chase as well, but the bigger issue for the Cavaliers revolves around Groh’s uncertain future.

So Saturday’s winner gets a clear and obvious boost. And the loser might feel lingering aftereffects for a long, long time.

"Big game for both teams," Miami coach Randy Shannon said.

Subplots abound, for certain.

For starters, there’s this little matter of 48-0. To Miami, it still matters.

"Still lingers," Shannon acknowledged.

Of the 22 starters the Hurricanes had on the field that November night in 2007, when they played on the Orange Bowl turf for the final time, only five remain on Miami roster. The stadium itself is now gone — by 2012, the Florida Marlins expect to open a ballpark on that site — but the memories of that loss certainly linger around the Hurricanes, even for those who weren’t playing back then.

"It’s kind of a revenge thing," Miami quarterback Jacory Harris said.

Harris was a high school senior that night. The overflow crowd kept him from getting into the stadium until the second quarter, when it was already 24-0. Inside, he seethed at the on-field display, everything Virginia did right almost reaffirming his decision to be part of Miami’s rebuilding project.

"Yeah, 48-zip. That was crazy," Harris said.

Crazy would also describe Miami’s trip to Virginia a year ago.

Physicists would be hard-pressed to explain how that one turned out: Miami was down 17-10 with 8 minutes remaining, getting the ball at its own 5 yard line. With 55 seconds left, facing a 3rd-and-15 from the Virginia 26, Harris rolled left and was eventually hit by Cavaliers linebacker Clint Sintim, who was 69 pounds heavier than the Miami quarterback.

Somehow, Harris got enough on the throw to get the ball into the end zone, where LaRon Byrd caught it for an overtime-forcing touchdown. Another Harris TD in the extra session gave Miami a 24-17 victory and the Cavaliers have been spiraling downhill ever since, losing nine of 12 games starting that afternoon in Charlottesville.

"There’s a lot of players who made good plays last year against us," Groh said. "But it was the Jacory Harris drive that did it. It was his plays. ... He made the kind of plays that the quarterbacks who elevate their teams to win a lot of games make."

Virginia athletic director Craig Littlepage told The Associated Press earlier this week that Groh will face an end-of-season evaluation on his "full body of work." Groh has been on the proverbial hot seat before, and a 9-4 record in 2007 that was helped by that 48-point win in Miami went a long way toward appeasing Virginia’s fan base.

Going 8-12 since, and staring at another season without a bowl bid, seems to have eroded much of that goodwill. If the buzz about his future is wearing on Groh, he isn’t letting much show.

In fact, the only heat Groh’s thinking of is the temperature in steamy South Florida for Saturday’s noon kickoff. It still feels like summertime — mid 80s, hot, humid — in Miami, while the Cavaliers practiced with the mercury in the 50s throughout the week.

"This game being at noon, we do anticipate it being a factor in the game," Groh said. "We have talked about the fact that it’ll be something they’ll have to deal with."

If Jameel Sewell can’t go Saturday, Groh’s job this week will get even tougher. Virginia’s quarterback is 2-0 in his career against Miami, but was listed as doubtful on the team’s injury report with a shoulder injury.

"I don’t think probably that I’m a very hard book to read, because I don’t really try to do things with any pretensions," Groh said. "I’ve got this sign on my desk that says ‘Just coach the team’ and that’s what I like to do, and that’s my responsibility, and I try to coach the team the best way I can every day."

-- Tim Reynolds

No. 19 Notre Dame knows how dangerous Navy is

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) — No one on No. 19 Notre Dame needs convincing about how tough Navy is to play.

The Fighting Irish (6-2) remember how the Midshipmen gave them a scare last season by recovering two onside kicks and scoring two touchdowns in the final 99 seconds before the Irish held on for a 27-21 victory.

Just as vivid is a season earlier, when Navy beat Notre Dame 46-44 in three overtimes to end a 43-game losing streak to the Irish.

"That was kind of the low point of my career," Irish center Eric Olsen said. "Obviously that season wasn’t a season that any of us really want to remember. But when you have a streak that long against a team, you hate to be the team that gives that streak up."

The Midshipmen (6-3) say the memory of ending the NCAA’s longest losing streak by any team to a single opponent gives them confidence.

"We’ll keep that in the back of our minds as a reminder that we have done it before," cornerback Blake Carter said. "We know that we have the ability to beat Notre Dame."

That wasn’t always the case. The Irish beat the Midshipmen annually by an average margin of 24 points from 1964-2006, winning by 30 points or more 16 times. Navy was able to keep the game within a touchdown or less just six times.

Still, year after year, Irish players would talk about how dangerous Navy was and how difficult it was to play the Midshipmen. The players always sounded sincere, but it still seemed a bit hard to believe. That’s not the case any more.

The Irish players say playing Navy isn’t like any other game. Navy may not be as athletic as some teams the Irish face, but they are more tenacious.

"There’s no other way around it," safety Kyle McCarthy said. "I’m not trying to be disrespectful with other teams we play. Navy, I mean, you can just feel it as a player. When you talk about going whistle to whistle, they go from whistle to the end of the whistle. That’s why we respect them so much."

But Olsen said it isn’t just the effort that makes Navy so tough.

"Their schemes on offense and defense, they’re good at what they do," he said.

With its triple option offense, Navy has led nation in rushing for four straight years. This year they are ranked third at 279.8 yards per game.

Navy doesn’t pass much, attempting only 71 passes all season. Two weeks ago, Navy didn’t throw at all against Wake Forest in a driving rainstorm.

Irish coach Charlie Weis is also concerned about the Navy defense, which he called the best he’s seen in his five years here. The Midshipmen are 27th in the country in total defense, giving up an average of 316 yards a game.

The Irish can’t afford to lose if they want to keep their hopes for a Bowl Championship Series berth alive, while Navy needs one more victory to be eligible for the Texas Bowl.

Both teams get back key players from injuries. Notre Dame receiver Michael Floyd will play for the first time since breaking his left collarbone six weeks ago. Floyd is averaging 27.5 yards a catch.

Quarterback Ricky Dobbs will start for Navy after missing the Wake Forest win with a cracked bone in his right knee and getting in for seven plays in the 27-24 loss to Temple last week. He remains Navy’s second-leading rusher with 595 yards and still leads the nation with 16 rushing touchdowns.

"When you sit out two weeks, I don’t think you’re ever at full capacity," Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo said.

Dobbs said this game is "personal" because his roommate is a die-hard Notre Dame fan and has showcases all sorts of Fighting Irish memorabilia in their dorm room.

"Me and his family are real cool. They said they would be rooting for me, but that their hearts were still with Notre Dame," he said.

Notre Dame spent some time this week working on defending against onside kicks after last season’s embarrassment, with Weis calling it "an onside kickathon."

The Irish players say Navy’s rally taught them a lesson.

"Navy is a team that never quits," McCarthy said. "We can’t take our foot off the gas."

-- Tom Coyne

After week off, No. 21 Wildcats take on Cougars

If the last-place Washington State Cougars need inspiration, all they have to do is look across the Arizona Stadium field on Saturday.

Not long ago, the Arizona Wildcats were every bit as bad as the Cougars.

Arizona went 2-10 and finished last in the Pac-10 in 2003. Six rocky years later, the 21st-ranked Wildcats (5-2, 3-1 Pac-10) are in the hunt for their first Rose Bowl appearance.

"I think there’s some definite parallels between theirs and ours in terms of where they began," Washington State coach Paul Wulff said. "There is a blueprint. The blueprint really is, if you want it right and you want to get it done correctly, like Arizona has done, it takes patience."

Patience has been a watchword for both programs.

The Cougars have had 19 players make their first college start this year, and Wulff hopes his team will eventually be able to develop as much depth as the Wildcats, who were thin when Mike Stoops took over after the 2003 season.

"It does take time," Stoops said. "We’ve been under some siege the last three or four years, where we were at."

Washington State (1-7, 0-5) has the fewest championships among the original Pac-8 schools, with four.

Arizona, which joined the Pac-10 in 1978, has the fewest conference titles — one, which the Wildcats split with USC and UCLA in 1993.

But the Wildcats have a shot at doubling their total this year. Oregon’s rout of Southern California last weekend left the Ducks and Wildcats as the only teams that control their own destiny in the conference race. (They meet Nov. 21 in Tucson.)

Saturday’s game will be Arizona’s first since it jumped into The Associated Press Top 25 for the first time since Oct. 22, 2000, a span of 104 games. The Wildcats are no longer an afterthought.

"There’s two ways of looking at it," Stoops said. "You want to lay there and go unnoticed and keep winning. But there’s a certain amount of exposure that goes along with it. You want that for your program."

Stoops said he’s not worried about how his players will respond to their newfound success.

"Our guys, I think, really have come to the point where we know we’re a good football team," he said. "I don’t think we’re satisfied with where we’re at by any stretch of the imagination. Obviously, we know what’s in front of us."

It might be tempting to look past the Cougars, who have two wins in their last 20 games against major-college opponents. But the Wildcats have plenty of reasons not to be overconfident.

"Anybody can beat anybody if you give them the opportunity," Stoops said.

Starting tailback Nic Grigsby and third-stringer Greg Nwoko are nursing sprained shoulders. If they can’t play, most of the rushing load would fall to Keola Antolin, who has been slowed by an ankle injury but gained 77 yards in Arizona’s last game, against UCLA.

Another question mark is quarterback Nick Foles, who is coming off his worst start. Beset by illness, Foles threw three interceptions and had a fumble returned for a touchdown in a 27-13 victory over UCLA two weeks ago.

It was an uncharacteristic performance for Foles, a sophomore transfer from Michigan State who is completing 72.3 percent of his passes, best in the conference. The Pac-10 season record for completion percentage is 70.7 percent, by California’s Rich Campbell in 1980.

Foles will make his fifth college start, as will Washington State true freshman quarterback Jeff Tuel.

Tuel threw for 354 yards and two touchdowns two weeks ago against California, the second-highest passing total for a freshman in school history. Tuel, who replaced Marshall Lobbestael, is Washington State’s first true freshman QB since Drew Bledsoe in 1990.

Tuel grew up in Tucson and attended Salpointe Catholic High School as a freshman before his family moved to Fresno, Calif.

-- Andrew Bagnato

Cal QB looking to erase bad memory against Beavers

BERKELEY, Calif. — Two years after his fourth-quarter mistake against Oregon State cost California a shot at becoming the top-ranked team in the nation, Kevin Riley can’t escape the images of his blunder.

At least now the Golden Bears senior quarterback can laugh about it.

Riley, who has No. 23 Cal back in the Top 25 after a six-week absence, chuckled when remembering the play that ended the Golden Bears’ dreams of national recognition and made him a constant feature on highlight shows.

"You’d see it on TV, and a week after I remember everybody staring at it not saying anything," Riley said. "And I’d go, ‘Hey everybody, I’m on TV,’ trying to lighten up the mood a little bit."

Riley was forced to re-live memories of that infamous day against the Beavers in 2007 this week as the Golden Bears returned home to host Oregon State in a pivotal Pac-10 matchup for both teams on Saturday.

Cal (6-2, 3-2 Pac-10) has won three straight after consecutive blowout losses to Oregon and USC, and is coming off a 23-21 victory at Arizona State in which Riley engineered a late fourth-quarter drive that led to the game-winning score.

Instead of basking in the glow of that win, though, Riley has had to answer questions about that ill-fated play against the Beavers two years ago.

The Golden Bears, then the No. 2 team in the nation, were on the cusp of taking over the top spot after No. 1 LSU lost earlier in the day.

Riley, who was making his first college start in place of injured quarterback Nate Longshore, played well for most of the game and had Cal on Oregon State’s 12-yard line in the final minute while trailing 31-28.

But on first down with his receivers covered, Riley tried to run the ball instead of throwing it away. He was tackled after a 2-yard gain and, with no timeouts remaining, the Bears were unable to get their field goal unit on the field in time as the last seconds ticked off the clock.

"It was a big mistake, that’s all there is to it," Riley said. "I knew the situation but when the play developed I forgot about it and tried to move up in the pocket and make a play. It didn’t work out. Now if I was in that situation, I just would have thrown it out of bounds right away."

Oregon State (5-3, 3-2) has won eight of the last 10 games between the two teams, including four straight at Memorial Stadium. But Beavers coach Mike Riley is leery of a Cal team that comes in with the 18th-highest scoring offense in the country.

"There are a lot of things you have to play against when you play Cal," Mike Riley said. "They’re always a crack away from a big play. Kevin Riley has had a ton of deep passes this year, play-action down the field (stuff). He has the capability of reaching most spots on the field."

Oregon State must also contend with running back Jahvid Best, who has 838 yards and 11 TDs on the ground this season. A contender for the Heisman Trophy, Best has been held under 100 yards only three times this season, including last week against Arizona State when he had just 63 yards on 18 carries.

The Beavers counter with their own potent ground game led by brothers Jacquizz and James Rodgers. Jacquizz Rodgers leads Oregon State in rushing (922 yards, 14 TDs) and is second in receptions (49 for 371 yards) while James Rodgers is second in rushing (223 yards) and first in receptions (60 for 706 yards, 5 TDs).

"It never seems to change with them," Cal coach Jeff Tedford said. "Offensively they’re as explosive as anyone. I don’t know that you’re ever going to stop them completely."

Oregon State has won three of its last four after opening the season 2-2. The Beavers beat UCLA 26-19 on Halloween a week after losing to then-No. 4 USC 42-36.

Quarterback Sean Canfield leads the Pac-10 in passing and is coming off back-to-back 300-yard games with no interceptions, giving the Beavers a consistent complement to the running of the Rodgers brothers.

But it could come down to the play of Cal’s quarterback. Kevin Riley, the Oregon native who spurned a chance to play for the Beavers in order to attend Berkeley. He needs to end his career against Oregon State better than it began if the Bears are going to remain in the Top 25.

"They do what they do and they do it well," Riley said of the Beavers. "I haven’t beat them when I’ve played. Both years we’ve had chances to beat them, and we haven’t."

Hoosiers hope Wisconsin game spurs bowl push

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — At Indiana, it comes down to this.

Forget the blown leads, the narrow loss at Michigan, even the questionable calls.

The Hoosiers can still become bowl-eligible with two wins in their last three games, starting Saturday with No. 24 Wisconsin.

"We do realize it’s still there, we still have an opportunity," defensive end Jammie Kirlew said. "As a senior, we feel we’ve put this team in the right direction, but going to a bowl game would be the icing."

The Hoosiers (4-5, 1-4 Big Ten) are running out of chances.

Two weeks ago, Indiana turned a 25-point first-half lead at Northwestern into a 29-28 loss. Last week at No. 7 Iowa, the Hoosiers again had a double-digit lead in the first half and again after three quarters but gave up four fourth-quarter touchdowns and went home with a 42-24 loss.

Winning either would have been a boon to Indiana’s bowl hopes. Instead, the Hoosiers face a daunting three-game stretch.

First up, the newly ranked Badgers (6-2, 3-2) who haven’t lost to an unranked foe all season. Then Indiana heads to No. 11 Penn State, a team it is 0-12 against all-time. On Nov. 21, they’re back home against rival Purdue, which has won 10 of the last 12 games in the series including last year’s 52-point sendoff for Purdue coach Joe Tiller.

That leaves Indiana with no margin for error.

"I don’t feel any pressure because we’ll be the underdog like we are every game," receiver Mitchell Evans said. "I think the pressure is on them."

The reality is that Wisconsin is already bowl-eligible and after snapping a two-game losing streak with a shutout of Purdue last week, the Badgers can focus on improving their postseason resume by adding to the lopsidedness of this series.

Wisconsin has won four straight over Indiana, including an embarrassing 55-20 blowout in Bloomington last year. The Badgers ran for 441 yards and had three 100-yard runners that day, the third straight game in this series Wisconsin won 30 points or more.

Badgers coach Bret Bielema thinks those results will provide even more motivation for the Hoosiers this week.

"I know what we’re going to see on Saturday because we’ve had a little bit of success on them the last couple years," Bielema said. "I know they’re going to come in, or when we go over there, they’re going to be very hungry to play us."

The Hoosiers have a pretty good idea what they’ll get from Wisconsin, too — a hefty dose of power football.

A year ago, 248-pound running back John Clay burned the Hoosiers for 112 yards and one touchdown. This year, Clay leads the Big Ten with 104.9 yards rushing per game and ranks among the national leaders with 10 TDs rushing. With Indiana allowing more than 145 yards per game and 15 touchdowns on the ground, there’s little reason for the Badgers to change plans.

Yet if Indiana overcompensates against the run, the Badgers may take advantage of the Hoosiers’ banged-up secondary.

Adrian Burks will replace Indiana’s top cornerback, Ray Fisher, in the starting lineup after Fisher had knee surgery this week. The other cornerback, Donnell Jones, is expected to play with a brace on his injured elbow for the second straight week, and safety Nick Polk, who missed last week’s game with an ankle injury, is listed as questionable.

It wouldn’t surprise Lynch, who this week reflected on how the Badgers beat them through the air in 2006.

"They can get you in a lot of different ways," Lynch said. "The first thing you think about is their power running game. This is the one (team) that really lines up and runs power football. They’ve always had big backs, but they can really get you with the pass, too."

Or in the second half.

Indiana’s late struggles have again resurfaced. Northwestern and Iowa outscored Indiana 47-3 in the second half the past two weeks, and now the Hoosiers get a Wisconsin team that outscored them 31-0 in the final two quarters last year.

None of that is a good omen for the Hoosiers.

Then again, only one thing matters in Bloomington.

"There’s pressure every game but we really feel it as a senior class because we want this (a bowl bid)," Kirlew said. "We want it to happen so much. If we bring that intensity for four quarters, I think we’ll be more than ready."

-- Michael Marot

Mendenhall: BYU hasn’t reached potential yet

CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Despite beating Oklahoma and being ranked in the Top 25 most of the season, Brigham Young coach Bronco Mendenhall believes his team has yet to reach its potential.

"I would love to have this team reach their potential as any team that I coach," Mendenhall said. "I’d like to see progress and growth happen in all areas."

No. 25 BYU (6-2, 3-1 Mountain West) faces an improved Wyoming (4-4, 2-2) on Saturday in Laramie. The Cougars are coming off a bye week and a disappointing 38-7 home loss to No. 6 TCU on Oct. 24.

Mendenhall talked to his team during the off week about recommitting themselves for the remaining four games of the season. It starts with the Cowboys, a team that’s rebuilding under first-year head coach Dave Christensen.

"I just asked them to acknowledge the time frame remaining with the work to be done," Mendenhall said. "And they’ve responded very well in terms of practice and just how they’re supporting each other and playing hard."

Defense is one area where Mendenhall believes his team can play better.

The Cougars were gashed by TCU for 412 yards total offense, including a 75-yard touchdown pass.

"And when you give up a one-play drive, whether it be in a pass play or a long run, etc., those things change momentum very quickly," Mendenhall said.

Mendenhall said he believes better execution and concentration are the answer.

Against Wyoming, BYU faces a team that has improved under Christensen and is playing with "grit and determination," Mendenhall said.

Wyoming’s new no-huddle spread offense has been inconsistent this season, scoring 30 versus UNLV and 37 against New Mexico but being shut out against Air Force and Colorado.

Christensen recognizes that his offense struggles against good defenses.

"We’ve obviously got to do a better job of moving the football and scoring points offensively," he said.

Christensen is still trying to find the right players for his scheme although he has settled on a starting quarterback in Austyn Carta-Samuels. The true freshman has performed admirably despite dropped balls from receivers, a sputtering running attack and poor pass blocking.

"What we really need to do is we need to get the 10 guys in the surrounding cast to perform at a higher level," Christensen said.

However, thanks to a stingy veteran defense, Wyoming has proved more competitive this year. Last week against No. 16 Utah, the Cowboys led 10-9 midway through the fourth quarter at Salt Lake City before losing 22-10.

"I think as a football program we’ve competed well in every single game with the exception of maybe the second half of the Texas game," Christensen said. The Cowboys led Texas 10-6 with 1:32 remaining in the first half but ended up losing 41-10 earlier this season.

-- Bob Moen