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Ex-Ray can pitch Cards into Series

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Times wires
Saturday, October 15, 2011

MILWAUKEE — Edwin Jackson was close to picking up a victory in Game 2 but exited in the fifth inning of the Cardinals' 12-3 rout of the Brewers.

Now the former Ray will have a chance to help the Cardinals clinch the National League Championship Series in Game 6 today at Miller Park.

"While you're out there, you're trying to go as hard as you can, whether it will be five, six, seven, eight innings or a complete game," Jackson said Saturday.

"Definitely it wouldn't be a bad idea to be able to close it out with a complete game, but it might not work out that way. Just go out and leave it on the field for as long as you can."

Jackson, 28, was obtained in a late July trade from the White Sox and has been effective.

"One of the first days (after the trade), I remember (pitching coach) Dave Duncan had a meeting with him and said this guy is really intelligent," manager Tony La Russa said.

"I just said that he understands what pitching is all about. Some guys they just never get it; they're just out throwing. So we've learned he's got a good idea, very competitive, and has got a good personality."

Jackson's Game 2 opponent, Shaun Marcum, faces him again, and he may not be on as long a leash. Marcum's postseason ERA in two games is 12.46.

"The first two months of the season, he was probably our best pitcher," Brewers manager Ron Roenicke said.

"I know you look at the last few games, and we talk about whether it's luck, whether he's not quite as sharp; his numbers aren't as good. But I still think Shaun is capable of getting back to where he was like he started at the beginning of the year."


Swimming: Plant, Newsome boys and girls sweep divisions at Western Conference Championships

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By Laura Keeley, Times Staff Writer
Saturday, October 15, 2011

TAMPA — Everyone knew Plant sophomore Kyle Kimura was strong in the water.

Now he's showing the strength of his resolve.

Just about two weeks removed from the death of his mother, Kimura won the boys 200 individual medley and 100 fly at the Western Conference Championships at Bobby Hicks Pool on Saturday. His time of 53.96 seconds in the fly set a school record.

"Swimming lets all that anger out," he said.

Kimura, along with the Panthers' 400 free relay that also set a school record, helped lead Plant's boys team to first place in the American division, and its total of 572.50 points was the highest posted by a boys squad at the meet. The Plant girls, who fielded the winning 200 medley relay and 200 free relay, also won the American division with the highest overall score for a girls team with 627 points.

The Newsome girls and boys teams swept the Federal division with 477 and 457 points, respectively. Seniors Amy Taylor and Gavin Byrd won close races in the girls 500 free and boys 100 breaststroke.

Two freshmen from the Panthers' and Wolves' teams were the only female swimmers to win multiple individual events. Plant's Alexandria Donahue won the 50 free and 100 breast, and Newsome's Maddie Hess posted the top times in the 100 free and 100 back. Hess said she prefers the 100 back and hopes to place in the top three at the state meet in November.

"I'm a backstroker," she said. "It's easier, and I like breathing, and it gives me that chance."

The Wharton girls, with 424 points, and the King boys, with 382.50 points, split the National division. And other than Kimura, Robinson's John Nolte was the only other boys swimmer to take two individual titles, taking the 50 free and 100 free.

Cruz an easy pick for MVP

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Times wires
Saturday, October 15, 2011

Move over, Reggie, Babe and all those other October sluggers. Nobody has ever had a postseason power surge like Nelson Cruz just did in the AL Championship Series.

With a two-run homer Saturday night, Cruz upped his ALCS totals to six homers and 13 RBIs, both records for a postseason series. His breakout helped the host Rangers beat the Tigers 15-5 in Game 6 to advance to a second straight World Series.

Cruz was an easy choice for series MVP. He went 8-for-22 (.364), with every hit going for extra bases; his two non-homers were doubles. Only once has anyone had more extra-base hits in a postseason series; Hideki Matsui had nine for the Yankees when they lost the 2004 ALCS to Boston.

TOUGHING IT OUT: Brewers 2B Rickie Weeks has struggled while playing on a left ankle that is far from 100 percent. He's batting .211 (4-for-19) in the NLCS against St. Louis with one homer and two RBIs and .135 (5-for-37) for the entire postseason.

Weeks also has committed four errors. But manager Ron Roenicke has no intention of sitting him in Game 6 today.

"I think you stick with him," Roenicke said. "Our lineup depends on Rickie. … He's got the ability if you get a couple of guys on base to drive the ball out of the ballpark."

FEELING BETTER: Cardinals 2B Skip Schumaker, who has missed the NLCS because of a strained right oblique, took part in workouts and said he'd be ready to play if St. Louis reaches the World Series.

ROOF CLOSED: After playing two NLCS games at Miller Park under clear skies, MLB officials said the roof and side panels would be closed today.

Sports in brief

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Times wires
Saturday, October 15, 2011

Hall of Famer Jerry West says he has battled depression since childhood, when his father would beat him, causing low self-esteem that has plagued him despite a successful career as one of the NBA's biggest influences.

West, 73, says his West Virginia childhood was filled with anger because of his abusive father, who left him feeling tormented and worthless. "I would go to bed feeling like I didn't even want to live," West says in a segment airing Tuesday on HBO's Real Sports With Bryant Gumbel.

West's memoir, West by West: My Charmed, Tormented Life, is in stores Wednesday. It's a book his wife, Karen, his five sons and his four siblings didn't want him to write.

West tells HBO his father's beatings with a belt were "brutal" and he never knew what would set him off. Not until his father hit his sister, West says, did he stand up to him. At 12, West kept a shotgun under his bed and threatened to use it on his father if the abuse didn't end.

When West's father died of a heart attack, he attended the funeral.

West says his depression never bothered him as a player during 14 seasons with the Lakers because he was so driven by a fear of failure. He says he tried therapy but gave it up, preferring to take Prozac and work through his depression by himself.

Basketball

Hall of famer west tells of abusive childhood, depression

Tennis

Murray in China final, could pass Federer

Andy Murray overpowered Kei Nishikori 6-3, 6-0 in under an hour Saturday to set up a Shanghai Masters final against David Ferrer in China. If No. 4-ranked Murray wins, he will move ahead of Roger Federer into the No. 3 ranking.

"It would be nice to finish the year off No. 3 if I can because that would be the highest ranking I finished at," Murray said. "It's not the ultimate goal, but it's a step in the right direction."

Murray has won 24 of his past 25 matches and is vying for his third title in as many weeks.

Ferrer struggled to beat Feliciano Lopez 6-7 (5-7), 6-3, 6-3, the third straight match the fifth-ranked player has come back to win after losing the first set.

japan open: Top seed and Tampa resident Samantha Stosur reached the semifinals with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Chanelle Scheepers in Osaka. The U.S. Open champion faces either Petra Cetkovska or Jie Zheng, with Zheng leading 0-6, 7-5, 3-2 when play was suspended because of rain.

Generali Ladies: Petra Kvitova beat former No. 1 Jelena Jankovic 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 at Linz, Austria, to reach her sixth final of the season and first since winning Wimbledon. Kvitova plays Dominika Cibulkova, who defeated Lucie Safarova 6-1, 6-4 to advance to her first WTA final in more than three years.

et cetera

gymnastics: American McKayla Maroney, 15, won the vault title at the world championships in Tokyo, and the bronze was won by 36-year-old Oksana Chusovitina of Germany. Japan's Kohei Uchimura won the floor exercise about 18 hours after becoming the first man to win three all-around titles.

high schools: A football player in Phoenix, N.Y., died after he was hit during a varsity game at Homer, N.Y., and suffered an apparent head injury. "It looks like just a bad accident," Homer police Officer Donald Warner said of the death of Ridge Barden, a 16-year-old lineman. Barden was face down after a play in the third quarter Friday and was able to sit up, but he complained of a bad headache and collapsed when he tried to stand, authorities said. He died being taken to a medical center in Syracuse, about 30 miles away.

horses: Unbeaten Frankel won the $1.5 million Queen Elizabeth II Stakes by four lengths at Ascot, England, giving the world's top-ranked thoroughbred a ninth straight victory during the inaugural British Champions Day, the richest day in the history of British racing. The five races had a total purse of $7.9 million.

pan am games: The United States won two gold medals and a bronze in the first three events at Guadalajara, Mexico. Heather Irmiger won the women's cross-country mountain bike race and Margaux Isaksen the modern pentathlon. Jeremiah Bishop took bronze in the men's cross-country mountain bike race.

rugby: France advanced to the World Cup final with a 9-8 victory over Wales in Auckland, New Zealand.

soccer: Manchester City moved into the English Premier League lead with a 4-1 win over Aston Villa 4-1, and Manchester United dropped into second with a 1-1 tie at Liverpool. The Football Association said it was investigating allegations by Man U defender Patrice Evra, who is black, that Liverpool striker Luis Suarez called him a racial slur several times during the game. Liverpool said Suarez "categorically denies" the allegation. … Kansas City clinched a MLS playoff berth with a 2-0 victory over New York, and Philadelphia clinched its first playoff berth with a 1-1 draw against Toronto.

Times wires

North Suncoast swimming: Land O'Lakes girls build Sunshine Athletic Conference streak just like the boys in record-filled meet

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By Steve Lee, Times Correspondent
Saturday, October 15, 2011

NEW PORT RICHEY — No seniors. And no champions in individual or team events.

None of that posed any problems for the Land O'Lakes' girls swim team, which instead relied on depth to win the Sunshine Athletic Conference meet Saturday at the New Port Richey Aquatics Center.

The Gators (468 points) celebrated their third straight conference crown with the Land O'Lakes boys team (398.5), which captured its ninth consecutive SAC title. The boys team had one individual winner: 500-yard freestyler Jordan Wheeler (5:00.92).

Sunlake was runnerup in both the boys (355) and girls (371) competitions, while the Fivay boys (207) and Mitchell girls (332) took third.

Girls coach Robin Hilgenberg and boys coach Barbara Hayes have shared duties overseeing the Land O'Lakes teams during these impressive runs.

"Coach Hayes and I coach the boys and girls together," Hilgenberg said after being tossed into the pool by her son, Cameron, a runnerup in the 100 free. "They practice together, so it makes (sharing championships) better. We would be sad if we won and they didn't."

Not sad either was Mitchell record-setter Devin McCaffrey, who broke two conference meet records and saw one of his former marks fall. The sophomore won the 100 free in 48.26 seconds and the 200 individual medley in 1:56.19.

"That was pretty cool to see one of mine go down," McCaffrey said of Sunlake's Austin VanVliet setting the 100 breaststroke meet record in 1:02.31. "It gives me something to shoot for."

McCaffrey also took pride in knowing that the 200 IM mark he topped belonged to his former club coach, Kevin Rumble, who starred at River Ridge in 1997-99.

In all, four individual conference meet records and one relay mark fell Saturday afternoon. Aside from the aforementioned marks, Mitchell's Mazie Siddens won the 100 butterfly in 58.88. Then she teamed with Elaina Cancello, Claudia Cancello and Taylor Anderson to set a record of 1:46.28 in the 200 free relay.

Florida Gators DE Ronald Powell, RB Jeff Demps forced to sit out with injuries

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By Antonya English, Times Staff Writer
Saturday, October 15, 2011

AUBURN, Ala. — Florida faced No. 24 Auburn without two more starters because of injuries.

Sophomore DE Ronald Powell and senior RB Jeff Demps missed Saturday's game with injuries sustained against LSU last week.

Senior William Green replaced Powell at defensive end/linebacker. Coach Will Muschamp had not disclosed the nature of Powell's injury and said Monday that Powell was "fine" and was expected to practice and play this week. Powell was tied for 11th on the team with 14 tackles.

Demps, the Gators' second-leading rusher with 324 yards, injured his leg but had been expected to play as well.

Dunbar returns: Redshirt freshman WR Quinton Dunbar returned to the lineup after missing last week's game for undisclosed reasons. Muschamp said Dunbar had "personal" issues but was not suspended.

Christy's debut: Freshman Kyle Christy was ranked the No. 2 punter nationally by Scout.com, but he didn't earn the starting job in the preseason. He got his first start in place of senior David Lerner and made the most of it.

In the first quarter, he had punts of 53 and 67 yards — the two longest of the season so far. He had three punts in the first half, averaging 54.3 yards. But Christy had a mistake on his first punt of the second half. After bobbling the snap on the UF 12, he kicked a 20-yarder.

Familiar ties: Auburn freshman RB Tre Mason looked forward to playing the Gators because he would face several close friends, including QB Jacoby Brissett and S Matt Elam.

"Every game is special for me, but this is one of the games I really look forward to playing," Mason said. "A lot of my friends like Jacoby Brissett, Matt Elam, people like that are on that team."

Mason said he and Brissett, who made his second start of the season in place of injured John Brantley, were extremely close growing up and remain friends.

"We spent a lot of time together," Mason said. "He was one of my best friends coming out of high school. He's a good guy. He's a good leader."

Mason said he watched Brissett play against LSU in his first collegiate game and later texted him and told him, "Good job out there." He and Elam went to rival high schools — Elam to Palm Beach Dwyer, Mason to Park Vista — and they became friends.

Close to the action: Brantley traveled with the team again, but this time he watched from the sideline without crutches. Last week, Brantley was on crutches and took in the game from the coaches' box.

Pinellas swimming: Shorecrest boys win first St. Petersburg City Championships team title

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By Bob Putnam, Times Staff Writer
Saturday, October 15, 2011

ST. PETERSBURG — Two years ago, Shorecrest's girls swim team won the St. Petersburg City Championships for the first time in more than two decades. This time, it was the Chargers' boys team that ended years of frustration.

Led by a quartet of swimmers, Shorecrest won the boys meet for the first time, scoring 437 points to beat the defending champion Green Devils by 61.

"I'm ecstatic that the boys were able to win," Chargers coach Patty Nardozzi said. "It was something they've wanted for a while, and I knew they had a pretty good shot at it after the preliminaries. They basically just had to swim clean and not have any disqualifications."

John Farese was the big point scorer for Shorecrest. He won the 100 free (48.65 seconds), 100 back (52.11) and teamed with Joshua Chen, Alex Grant and Mark Marshburn on the 200 medley relay that won in 1:42.11.

In the 100 back, Farese beat his nemesis, Northeast's Georgi Krastev, by 0.12 seconds to set a meet record. The Chargers' time in the 200 medley relay also was a meet record.

Chen also was a champion in multiple events, finishing first in the 200 individual medley (2:01.08) and 100 breast (1:04.06). He swam in the 400 free relay with Farese, Marshburn and Clayton Cravey as the Chargers exacted revenge on Northeast to win in 3:22.50. Last week, the Vikings finished ahead of Shorecrest in the event at Florida Swimming Pool Association meet.

Other winners for Shorecrest included Marshburn in the 500 free (5:01.10) and Jack Stein in diving (469.70 points).

On the girls side, Shorecrest won for the third straight season, beating St. Petersburg 450-389.

The Chargers were led by Hope Andrews, who won the 200 free (1:57.77) and 100 free (54.95). She also did well in the relays, pairing with Courtney Coleman, Emma Spilman and Meredith Little to win the 200 free in 1:57.94, and teaming with Spilman, Little and Summer Kanstoroom to take first in the 400 free in 3:52.76.

Other individual winners for Shorecrest were Little in the 50 free (25.37), Spilman in the 100 fly (59.95) and Hannah Stein in diving (401.05).

St. Petersburg's Jessica Piper won the 200 IM (2:10.08) and 100 back (59.82).

S. Carolina turns to 'jump ball' for first win in post-Garcia era

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Times wires
Saturday, October 15, 2011

STARKVILLE, Miss. — With his team struggling against Mississippi State's defense, South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier found an indefensible play.

Sophomore quarterback Connor Shaw lofted a 4-yard pass to wideout Alshon Jeffery, who stretched his 6-foot-4 frame over two defenders for a touchdown with 3:50 left in the fourth quarter to lead the No. 15 Gamecocks to a 14-12 victory Saturday.

"Somehow or another, Connor found Alshon on the jump ball," Spurrier said. "We had been trying to get the jump ball thrown all day, and he finally threw it perfect."

In his third career start, Shaw went 20-of-28 for 155 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. Shaw, who recently replaced former Jefferson High star Stephen Garcia, also had 28 yards on 16 carries.

The Gamecocks played their first game without Garcia, whose suspension-riddled career ended abruptly when Spurrier dismissed the fifth-year senior last week.

Gamecocks running back Marcus Lattimore had averaged an SEC-best 129.8 rushing yards per game but managed 39 yards and a touchdown before leaving with a leg injury in the fourth quarter. Spurrier said Lattimore had a sprained left knee, though a full evaluation hadn't been done.

The Bulldogs were driving late, but quarterback Tyler Russell's pass was intercepted by safety D.J. Swearinger with 1:45 left. The Gamecocks then ran down the clock, and Shaw ran out the back of the end zone on the final play for a Mississippi State safety.

No. 1 LSU 38, Tenn. 7: Quarterback Jarrett Lee went 10-of-14 for 115 yards with two touchdown passes and running back Spencer Ware caught one and ran for another score for the visiting Tigers, who earned a record sixth straight victory over an SEC East opponent. "We were having fun," Ware said. "When you're having fun, it makes it that much easier."

No. 2 'bama 52, Ole Miss 7: Tailback Trent Richardson ran for a career-best 183 yards and set another career best with four touchdowns to lead the visiting Crimson Tide. Richardson put the Rebels away with a 76-yard run in the third quarter and leads the nation with six straight 100-yard games. The Rebels suffered their most-lopsided defeat since a 49-3 loss to Florida in 1981.

Georgia 33, Vandy 28: Former Plant High star quarterback Aaron Murray threw for a career-high 326 yards and three touchdowns and Blair Walsh kicked four field goals to lead the visiting Bulldogs, who won their fifth straight. The Bulldogs had three interceptions, the last by Bacarri Rambo with 1:10 left.


USF

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Saturday, October 15, 2011

Sept. 17

USF 70, FAMU 17

(3-0, 0-0)

Sept. 10

USF 37,

Ball State 7

(2-0, 0-0)

Sept. 3

USF 23,

Notre Dame 20

(1-0, 0-0)

Saturday

UConn 16, USF 10

(4-2, 0-2)

Sept. 29

Pitt 44, USF 17

(4-1, 0-1)

Sept. 24

USF 52, UTEP 24

(4-0, 0-0)

Nov. 11

at

Syracuse

8 p.m., ESPN2

Nov. 5

at

Rutgers

TBA

oct. 22

vs.

Cincinnati

Noon

Dec. 1

vs.

West Virginia

8 p.m., ESPN

Nov. 25

vs.

Louisville

TBA

Nov. 19

vs.

Miami

TBA



Giddins, defense stand out for USF Bulls, but it's not enough in loss to Connecticut Huskies

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By Greg Auman, Times Staff Writer
Saturday, October 15, 2011

EAST HARTFORD, Conn. — If there was a bright spot in USF's 16-10 loss to Connecticut on Saturday, it was the constant pressure created by the Bulls defense, which matched a school record with seven sacks.

Leading the way was sophomore defensive end Ryne Giddins, who had a career day with a team-best 11 tackles, including two sacks and a forced fumble. All that meant little to the Armwood High graduate.

"It was a great team effort — if my (defensive) tackle didn't do what he was supposed to do, I wouldn't have gotten the sack," Giddins said. "I give the credit to the defense. … We felt real good about it, but it wasn't good enough. At times we needed a big play and we couldn't get home."

On back-to-back plays in the second quarter, Giddins got to Huskies quarterback Johnny McEntee for a 5-yard sack, then hit running back Lyle McCombs for a 6-yard loss and forced a fumble that was recovered by defensive tackle Cory Grissom. In what would be a theme for the game, USF got the ball at the Huskies 35, but they went three-and-out and missed a 46-yard field goal.

Giddins had one sack in the first five games but came through Saturday, coming close to matching his total production of 13 tackles in the Bulls' 4-1 start. Six Bulls had at least a half-sack, including 1½ from linebacker Sam Barrington.

"We had a mind-set coming in of trying to get after the quarterback a little bit, see how he responded to pressure," defensive coordinator Mark Snyder said. "(Giddins) had a great two weeks of practice, and it showed. I'm proud of him. Proud of a lot of those guys for the way they bounced back, handled adversity and responded."

Giddins said as he watched USF move down the field on its final drive — B.J. Daniels had a 32-yard run to the UConn 30 — he was confident his offense would finish with a go-ahead touchdown.

"I still believe in my offense," Giddins said. "I told B.J. I believe in him. If nobody else believes in him, I believe in him. … I see them driving down there and I'm like, 'We're about to score.' … UConn came up with great plays."

Giddins said he felt good in practice the past two weeks, thinking the motivation from a 44-17 loss at Pittsburgh would spark the team. Now it has to prepare for another challenging offense as Cincinnati comes to Tampa on Saturday.

"This is real hard," he said. "Coming off the loss against Pitt, going through practice, I'm like, 'We're going to kill UConn.' We're all coming off this loss, going real hard in practice. It just didn't happen. But it's all good. It just means we have to go harder in practice."

USF Bulls again falter at site of UConn's 'Voodoo'

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By Greg Auman, Times Staff Writer
Saturday, October 15, 2011

EAST HARTFORD, Conn. — The two words that might bring out the worst in superstitious Bulls fans are a reference to the name of a botched trick play in the fourth quarter of USF's 2005 loss at Rentschler Field.

"Voodoo Five" was an ill-fated call on fourth and goal from the Connecticut 6-yard line as USF trailed 15-10 — after a false start from the 1-yard line, WR Courtney Denson was dropped for a 13-yard loss and the Huskies escaped with a victory.

There's a USF blog named after the play, and if you don't believe there's a curse surrounding it, consider a few things from Saturday's 16-10 loss to the Huskies, which was USF's fourth straight at Rentschler.

On the first play of the second quarter — the field had flipped a play after Marcus Shaw took a kickoff 79 yards away from that end zone — the Bulls were on the 7-yard line when QB B.J. Daniels, running the option left, pitched the ball behind Joel Miller, and Connecticut CB Dwayne Gratz recovered the live ball for the Huskies.

If that wasn't enough voodoo, USF's two field goal attempts toward that end zone, into a heavy wind, were missed. Maikon Bonani missed a 46-yard attempt short, then a 44-yarder wide left.

"We had asked before the game what was his distance into the wind, and he said 46," coach Skip Holtz said. "We were right at 46. Maybe it was 45 and we were a yard off. It was right there."

LONG WHILE: When Daniels was intercepted by UConn's Ty-Meer Brown in the second quarter, it ended a streak of 129 consecutive passes without a pick, the second longest such streak in USF history. Daniels, who entered the game with just one interception this season, fell short of the USF record of 235, set by Marquel Blackwell in 2001.

GO FIGURE: For the past five meetings in this series, the team with fewer yards has won — USF held UConn to 232 yards last year, and the last time the Bulls won, in 2008, the Huskies outgained the Bulls 258-247.

THIS AND THAT: Freshman DT Elkino Watson earned his first career start, but after totaling 26 tackles in the first five games, he finished without a tackle Saturday. … Junior Victor Marc is second on the team in receptions with 15, having caught five passes for 50 yards Saturday. … UConn improved to 7-1 in Big East home openers. … This was the second year in a row the Huskies beat USF without scoring an offensive touchdown, and the third time in five years they've scored a defensive touchdown against the Bulls.

Hillsborough: Sunday morning quarterback

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By Laura Keeley and Joey Knight, Times Staff Writers
Saturday, October 15, 2011

What we learned

1. Alonso is for real. Until Friday, we believed it. But by holding Bennie Coney and company to one touchdown in a 9-7 defeat at Plant City, now we know it.

2. Sickles is, too, for the record. In the past two weeks, the Gryphons have gone against Armwood and Hillsborough, the class of the Class 6A-8 district of doom. They weren't blown out by the Hawks (and that's an accomplishment), and they were only a few plays away from upending the Terriers. In another district, this team, 4-2 overall, would be playoff bound.

Looking ahead

(All games Thursday unless noted)

Alonso (5-1, 1-0) at Plant (6-0, 2-0). Who would have thought a few months ago that this could be a can't-miss game? After their strong showing against Plant City, the Ravens will make Plant work to earn the top spot in Class 8A-6.

Durant (4-2, 1-1) at Newsome (3-3, 1-1). There's a four-way tie for second place after Plant City in Class 7A-8. Simply put, this is a must-win for both teams. Newsome has the advantage of coming into this game off an open week.

Berkeley Prep (6-0, 1-0) at Clearwater Central Catholic (5-1, 1-0), Friday. Because CCC topped Tampa Catholic in Week 6, this suddenly shapes up as the de facto Class 3A, District 5 title game. We say de facto only because TC still gets a shot at Berkeley on Nov. 4.

Jesuit (6-1, 6-0) at Lakewood (6-0, 5-0), Friday. A clash of the only two teams without a district loss in the nine-team behemoth known as Class 5A-8. If Jesuit prevails, the Spartans' Oct. 28 contest at Robinson very well could be for the district's No. 2 playoff spot.

Hillsborough (6-1, 4-0) at Armwood (7-0, 4-0) The top two teams from the county's toughest district battle for first place. This likely will be the first competitive game Armwood has played since Aug. 26 in Las Vegas.

Game balls

Alvin Bailey, Armwood. The Hawks' MVP (to this point) scored on punt returns of 46 and 62 yards, and receptions of 6 and 50 yards, in the Hawks' 80-0 annihilation of Strawberry Crest.

Cody Crouse and Adam Posateri, Bloomingdale. Posateri caught five of Crouse's seven completed passes for 104 yards and two TDs. Crouse also threw two other touchdowns in his 7-for-10, 163-yard night as the Bulls bullied Leto 64-15.

Tommy Eveld, Jesuit. The Tigers quarterback was as accurate (19-for-23) as he was prolific (310 yards, three TDs) in a 48-21 romp of Dunedin. Travis Johnson caught 10 of Eveld's throws and probably snagged five more college offers in the process.

Nick Fabrizio, Durant. The senior quarterback accounted for five TDs — four rushing, one passing – in a 50-29 rout of Chamberlain. His last score of the night, a run, covered 70 yards.

Darius Page, Wharton. The Wildcats' workhorse ran for 152 yards and a TD on 25 carries in his team's 28-7 victory against New Tampa rival Freedom.

Tanner Richardson, Seffner Christian. This senior quarterback also scored five TDs, with three coming on the ground and two off of a perfect 5-for-5 passing night. The Crusaders dominated Shorecrest Prep 56-7.

Josh Scarberry, Gaither. The senior linebacker, who had five sacks in the Cowboys' 17-16 win at East Bay, may want to split it with junior Shug Oyegunle. With roughly 2 ½ minutes to play, Oyegunle returned an Indians kickoff 72 yards to set up the winning TD pass.

Dominiq Sicardo, Carrollwood Day. Frankly, he deserves more than a game ball. The day after the sudden death of his mother, Sicardo snagged an 11-yard TD pass in the Patriots' 33-17 triumph against Bradenton Christian.



By the numbers

200 Career wins for Hillsborough head coach Earl Garcia, the county's longest tenured active coach

55 Victories needed by Garcia to match the county's career mark held by Chamberlain's Billy Turner

24 Consecutive quarters in which Armwood's defense hasn't allowed a point

Audibles

"We don't want that runnerup mind-set, man, we want to go out against Armwood and give them a run for their money. We're not going to play for second place."

Jeremy Agrinzonis, Hillsborough QB, already fired up about the Terriers' showdown with the Hawks this Thursday.

"We finally decided to give him the ball more. The kid can fly."

Dale Caparaso, Spoto coach, on junior RB Eric Moate, who ran for four TDs in Friday's 45-28 victory against Blake

Two-minute drill

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Saturday, October 15, 2011

Players of the day

Chandler Harnish, QB, N. Illinois

The senior rushed for 229 of the Huskies' 494 yards on only 14 carries in a 51-22 win over Western Michigan.

Trent Richardson, RB, ALABAMA

The junior ran for 183 yards and four TDs in a 52-7 win over Mississippi.

Ryan Tannehill, QB, Texas A&M Ryan Swope, WR, Texas A&M

Tannehill, a senior, threw for 415 yards and six TDs in a 55-28 win over Baylor. Four TDs went to Swope, a junior who had 11 catches for 206 yards.

Sammy watkins, WR, ALABAMA

The freshman had eight catches for 105 yards and two TDs, ran once for 33 yards and returned five kickoffs for 207 yards, including an 89-yard TD, for a school-record 345 all-purpose yards in a 56-45 win over Maryland.

Receiver of the day

Ryan Broyles, Oklahoma

The senior became the NCAA's all-time leading receiver with catch No. 317. He passed Purdue's Taylor Stubblefield with a 57-yard touchdown during the second quarter against Kansas.

Number of the day

3 Quarterbacks who have set a school record for passing yards this season against Texas A&M: Oklahoma State's Brandon Weeden (438 on Sept. 24), Arkansas' Tyler Wilson (510 on Oct. 1) and Baylor's Robert Griffin (430 on Saturday).

Quote of the day

"We didn't talk about scores. We didn't talk about revenge."

Kevin Wilson, Indiana coach on taking on Wisconsin, which won last season's matchup 83-20; this time, the Hoosiers lost only 59-7

The undefeateds

ACC

Clemson

Big 12

Kansas St.

Oklahoma *

Oklahoma St.

Big Ten

Wisconsin

C-USA

Houston

Mt. West

Boise St.

Pac-12

Stanford

SEC

Alabama

LSU

* Played late Sat.



Good debut of the day | Dan Herron

D an Herron hadn't played since January's Sugar Bowl because of NCAA suspensions. The senior rushed for 114 yards and a TD Saturday in a 17-7 upset of No. 16 Illinois. "It was hard staying at home and watching the games," said Herron, whose 12-yard run made it 10-0 in the third quarter. "Now that I'm back out here, I'm doing everything I can to help this team, be a leader and get some more wins." Herron sat out six games for of his role in a cash-for-memorabilia scandal — which cost coach Jim Tressel his job — then for taking too much money for a summer job. Interim coach Luke Fickell said last week he wasn't sure how much Herron would play. But he started and ran it 23 times. Asked what the suspensions taught him, Herron said, "To think twice when making decisions. It really made me grow up as a man. Just looking at things a lot different and not taking anything for granted."

Bad debut of the day

Nick Montana, QB, Washington

The redshirt freshman and son of Hall of Famer Joe Montana saw his first action late in the third quarter of a 52-24 win over Colorado. On his first snap, he was sacked from behind by Chi Uzo-Diribe and fumbled. Colorado's David Goldberg recovered.

Kick returns of the day

Justin Gilbert, Oklahoma St. Fozzy Whittaker, Texas

Gilbert, a sophomore, returned the second-half kickoff 100 yards for a TD. Whittaker, a senior, returned the ensuing kickoff 100 yards for a TD. It was the second straight game Whittaker returned a kickoff 100 yards for a TD. "Some really bad coverage," Texas coach Mack Brown said. "Or really good returns." It marked the first consecutive kickoff returns for TDs since 2005, when Ball State and Ohio went 94 and 88 yards, respectively.

Under-the-radar game of the day

Colgate 35, Cornell 28 OT

Junior Jordan McCord scored on a 4-yard run then the host Raiders held on defense for the I-AA win. McCord played both ways. He ran it 21 times for 84 yards and two TDs and had four tackles and an interception.

Information from Times wires was used in this report.

Team of the day

Utah

The Utes are 9-0 against current Big East teams after winning 26-14 at Pitt: 4-0 against Louisville, 3-0 against Pitt and 1-0 against USF and West Virginia. But Utah is 17-24 against the six teams who might join the Big East: Air Force (13-14), Boise State (2-5), Central Florida (0-0), Houston (0-4), Navy (1-0) and SMU (1-1).

Clemson stages huge rally to beat Maryland, remain perfect

0
0

Times wires
Saturday, October 15, 2011

COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Tajh Boyd threw four touchdowns as No. 8 Clemson rallied to beat Maryland 56-45 on Saturday and stay unbeaten.

The Tigers trailed 28-10 in the first half and 35-17 in the third before storming back behind Boyd, who led an offense that amassed 576 yards.

The compensated for the defense, which yielded 468 yards and allowed quarterback C.J. Brown to run for 162 and a touchdown and throw three touchdowns in his first start.

"Occasionally, you've got one that looks so ugly you don't want to remember it," Clemson defensive coordinator Kevin Steele said. "But you've got to remember it because if you don't study it and get better, it will bite you again."

Boyd had help. Sammy Watkins' 89-yard kickoff return put Clemson up 49-45 with 7:24 left. And Andre Ellington rushed for 212 yards and two touchdowns.

Meanwhile, the Terps have lost four of five.

"They don't measure how close you were," said Davin Meggett, who ran for a score and caught one. "Either you win or you don't. Either she's pregnant or she's not."

Cavs shock Jackets

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Perry Jones rushed for 149 of Virginia's 272 yards to help upset No. 12 Georgia Tech 24-21.

The Yellow Jackets, who had won their first six games for the first time since 1966, entered with Division I-A's No. 4 offense at 553.5 yards per game. But they were held to season-low 296 by a defense that had an extra week to prepare for the triple option.

"It's probably the hardest we've prepared for a game, and the results showed," Cavs cornerback Chase Minnifield said. "Without that second week, we might not have had the same result."

Georgia Tech saw quarterback Tevin Washington' 85-yard touchdown run and 66-yard pass to Orwin Smith wiped out by penalties during the second half.

"I'm frustrated," coach Paul Johnson said. "We are not good enough to have penalties and kill ourselves. And (Virginia) did exactly what it needed to do."

No. 19 Va. Tech 38, Wake 17: Logan Thomas rushed for two touchdowns and passed for two for the visiting Hokies. Virginia Tech trailed by 10 early but took command by scoring four touchdowns in a span of 11:07. "We knew we'd eventually hit something that kind of got us going," Thomas said. "I think we could just chip away, and we would have been perfectly fine. But just coming back the way we did, it was a good confidence boost for the offense."

Kenseth leaps at chance

0
0

Times wires
Saturday, October 15, 2011

CONCORD, N.C. — NASCAR's championship race took a huge swing Saturday night when Matt Kenseth staked a claim on the title moments after a viscous wreck sent Jimmie Johnson spiraling in the standings.

Kenseth passed Kyle Busch with 25 laps to go in the Bank of America 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway and was pulling away when Johnson's wreck brought the race to a halt.

The five-time defending champion was seventh with 17 laps left when contact with Ryan Newman sent him headfirst into the wall. The hit was so hard, his back tires lifted off the track.

Johnson finished 34th and dropped to eighth in the Sprint Cup Chase for the Championship with five races remaining.

"That one stung for sure. Pretty big impact," Johnson said. "Definitely not the night we wanted. This is not going to help us win a sixth championship."

Johnson was on the cover of Sports Illustrated this week and had dismissed the idea of the so-called cover jinx. His finish was the worst in a Chase race since he was 38th at Texas in 2009.

"What happened to Jimmie Johnson is a sobering lesson for everyone," winning car owner Jack Roush said.

Kenseth, meanwhile, was celebrating in Victory Lane for the third time this season.

He hung near the front all night but missed several chances to take the lead because of botched restarts. He finally got it right with 25 laps remaining when he sailed past Busch and held off him and Carl Edwards on the last restart with 12 laps to go.

Kenseth jumped two spots in the standings to third, seven points behind Edwards at the halfway point of the Chase.

"It was tough to get by him, and I am glad we could make it by him because it was challenging," Kenseth said. "I was going to be pretty mad if I was going to lose this thing on restarts. Finally got one in the end."

Busch, who led a race-high 111 laps, settled for second. Though it was his best finish of the Chase, he was frustrated to fall short.

He also had a late run-in with Edwards, who finished third and leaned into Busch's car after the race to discuss an incident in the closing laps.

They two seemed fine with each other after the talk, with Busch insisting he did not race dirty and Edwards apparently accepting his explanation.

"There was no malicious intent involved," Busch said. "It was just a product of what we had at the end, giving everything we had and trying to come home second."

Busch probably had the best night of anyone after an engine change forced him to start last in the 43-car field. Despite early frustrations with the handling on his Toyota, he drove to the front and was in command until Kenseth came on strong.

"Just got outdrove," Busch said. "He just flat drove past me."

Kasey Kahne and Marcos Ambrose, two drivers not competing for the championship, finished fourth and fifth. It was the third straight top-10 finish for Ambrose, the first time in his career he has pulled that off.

Kevin Harvick was sixth, and he went from one point behind Edwards to fourth. AJ Allmendinger was seventh and was followed by pole-sitter Tony Stewart, who overcame late contact with Greg Biffle to finish eighth.

Kenseth's No. 17 Ford gave Roush Fenway Racing its first victory at Charlotte since Mark Martin in 2002.

"That 17, he found something that none of us could find tonight and made something out of nothing," Busch said.


Duke

0
0


Saturday, October 15, 2011

Sept. 17

Okla. 23, FSU 13

(2-1, 0-0)

Sept. 10

FSU 62,

Charleston South. 10

(2-0, 0-0)

Sept. 3

FSU 34,

Louisiana-Monroe 0

(1-0, 0-0)

Saturday

FSU 41, Duke 16

(3-3, 1-2)

Oct. 8

W. Forest 35, FSU 30

(2-3, 0-2)

Sept. 24

Clemson 35, FSU 30

(2-2, 0-1)

Nov. 3

at

Boston College

8 p.m., ESPN

OCt. 29

vs.

N.C. State

TBA

oct. 22

vs.

Maryland

TBA

Nov. 26

at

Florida

TBA

Nov. 19

vs.

Virginia

TBA

Nov. 12

vs.

Miami

TBA



COLLEGEEXTRA

0
0


Saturday, October 15, 2011

Sunday, October, 16, 2011 , Section X |  R

TOP

25

. PREP FOOTBALL RECAP: The Hot List and Sunday Morning Quarterback look at a high-scoring week. 7X

Tampa Bay Lightning loses in shootout to Florida Panthers

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0

By Joe Smith, Times Staff Writer
Saturday, October 15, 2011

SUNRISE — Lightning coach Guy Boucher challenged his team to play more desperate and relentless Saturday night against the Panthers in the finale of a seasonlong five-game road trip.

And Tampa Bay certainly did that, tying the score twice in the third period, including Marc-Andre Bergeron's tally with just more than two minutes left that sent the game into overtime.

"We gave everything we had," Boucher said.

But it wasn't enough, as the Lightning fell 3-2 in a shootout in front of a sellout home-opening crowd at the BankAtlantic Center.

Tampa Bay (1-2-2) boarded a late flight home, having lost three straight to end the trip (two in shootouts), and will try to collect itself before Monday's home opener at the St. Pete Times Forum, a rematch with Florida.

"I think everyone has a lot better in them," center Steven Stamkos said. "So hopefully this little one-day rest (today) before we head on home ice (will help), and hopefully we can feel some fire under all of us and get things going. Because at the end of the day, we'll take the point, but we're not satisfied.

"It's not up to our standards."

The Lightning was a comeback team last season en route to a remarkable run to the Eastern Conference final. But what Tampa Bay has found is, Boucher says, "any team can beat us, plain and simple."

When Florida's Marcel Goc scored the only shootout goal, with the Lightning's three top stars — Stamkos, Marty St. Louis and Vinny Lecavalier — missing their attempts, the Panthers became the latest.

"We're going to have to find a way. Right now we're on the hard way," Bergeron said. "It seems like we're a little bit floating from the performance from last year. There's no more easy games, and teams are waiting for us."

Bergeron's two goals powered the Lightning offense, which was missing a few regulars; wings Teddy Purcell and Ryan Shannon were healthy scratches. The Lightning turned the puck over less, but it hurt itself with 10 penalties, three coming in Steve Downie's lengthy second-period fight with Panthers defenseman Erik Gudbranson.

The Panthers made Tampa Bay pay with two power-play goals, which snapped Tampa Bay's season-opening streak of killing 22 consecutive penalties.

Goalie Mathieu Garon, making his second start for the Lightning, was sharp, making 36 saves. But he lamented Goc's shootout goal, which went between his legs after he tried to poke check the puck away from the center.

"I usually don't do that," Garon said. "I don't know why I reacted that way. (Goc) had his head down a little bit. I thought maybe I'd surprise him, but it wasn't the right thing to do."

Panthers10103
Lightning00202
Panthers win shootout 1-0

First Period1, Florida, Jovanovski 1 (Kopecky, Booth), 11:48 (pp). PenaltiesCarter, Fla (roughing), 3:18; Ritola, TB (elbowing), 5:32; Moore, TB (goaltender interference), 10:48; Kubina, TB (interference), 12:24; Lecavalier, TB (interference), 15:14; Jovanovski, Fla (interference), 19:08.

Second PeriodNone. PenaltiesClark, TB (tripping), 12:16; Downie, TB, minor-major-misconduct (unsportsmanlike conduct, fighting), 12:16; Gudbranson, Fla (unsportsmanlike conduct, instigator, fighting), 12:16; Moore, TB (tripping), 14:40.

Third Period2, Tampa Bay, Bergeron 1 (Moore), 9:43. 3, Florida, Versteeg 1 (Kulikov, Campbell), 17:05 (pp). 4, Tampa Bay, Bergeron 2 (Kubina, St. Louis), 17:44. PenaltiesKubina, TB (interference), 15:42.

OvertimeNone. PenaltiesNone.

ShootoutTampa Bay 0 (St. Louis NG, Stamkos NG, Lecavalier NG), Florida 1 (Versteeg NG, Goc G, Fleischmann NG). Shots on GoalTampa Bay 9-7-9-5—30. Florida 14-15-9-0—38. Power-play opportunitiesTampa Bay 0 of 2; Florida 2 of 6. GoaliesTampa Bay, Garon 0-1-1 (38 shots-36 saves). Florida, Theodore 2-1-0 (30-28). A18,352 (17,040). T2:39. Referees—Brad Meier, Kyle Rehman. LinesmenJonny Murray, Pierre Racicot.

Florida Gators fall to No. 24 Auburn Tigers 17-6 as skid hits three games

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0

By Antonya English, Times Staff Writer
Saturday, October 15, 2011

AUBURN, Ala. — In the past two weeks, Florida suffered double-digit losses to Alabama and LSU in games where the Gators were essentially out of it by halftime.

So when the first half of Saturday night's game against No. 24 Auburn ended and the Gators were trailing 7-6, things seemed to be looking up.

But as Florida coach Will Muschamp said leading into the game, if you keep playing the same way and making the same mistakes, you're going to have the same outcome.

For a team that has been hampered by penalties and turnovers, there was more of the same.

Florida had three turnovers that led to Auburn scores, giving the Tigers (5-2, 3-1 SEC) a 17-6 victory in front of 87,451 at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

"The turnovers killed us," Muschamp said. "Three turnovers led to 10 points, and it cost us the football game."

It was the Gators' third consecutive loss — all to ranked teams from the SEC West — and sends Florida (4-3, 2-3) into the bye week searching for solutions to myriad problems. This is the second consecutive season Florida has had three straight losses, and it no longer controls its destiny in the SEC East.

Playing with two freshmen at quarterback — Jacoby Brissett in the first half and Jeff Driskel in the second — the Gators could not put together any kind of sustained offensive effort.

Florida's final three offensive possessions ended with an errant throw on fourth down in Auburn territory, a stalled drive at midfield because of a false start and a muffed punt by receiver Robert Clark that led to a 42-yard field goal by Cody Parkey with 35 seconds remaining.

Muschamp said the Gators decided to go for the fourth-down play because kicker Caleb Sturgis injured his leg on a previous play.

Offensive coordinator Charlie Weis said last week that the offense had to start scoring more to give Florida any chance of winning after the team was outscored 79-21 in the previous two games.

But Florida managed just two field goals — 47 and 25 yards by Sturgis in the first half — against an Auburn team that entered last in the SEC in total defense. Senior running back Chris Rainey's fumbled punt also led to an Auburn score.

The Gators generated 104 yards of first-half offense then gained just 90 more in the second half.

Driskel was put into the game because Muschamp said he didn't feel the Gators were moving the ball effectively enough.

"We've got to create some positive momentum for our offense," Muschamp said. "You can't score six points in this league and win football games."

Brissett got his second start of the season, and after going 1-of-5 for 14 yards in the first quarter, he went 4-of-5 for 31 yards in the second quarter.

Florida was without starting running back Jeff Demps because of an injury, which left Rainey to carry much of the rushing load. Florida had 66 total rushing yards.

But Auburn had its struggles. The Tigers missed two field goals, and quarterback Barrett Trotter went 2-of-8 for 33 yards with a touchdown and backup Clint Moseley was 4-of-7 for 90 yards.

The Florida defense, which had been much maligned in previous weeks, held Auburn to 1-of-13 on third down and had eight tackles for loss and one sack. But as the Gators offense sputtered, the defense wore down. Auburn eventually gained 155 rushing yards and 123 passing. The Gators held Michael Dyer, the SEC's third-leading rusher, to 73 yards on 23 carries.

"It was better, but it wasn't good enough," defensive tackle Jaye Howard said.

Antonya English can be reached at english@sptimes.com.

Mistakes in punt-return game prove costly for Florida Gators

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0

By Tyler Jett, Times Correspondent
Sunday, October 16, 2011

AUBURN, Ala. — As Robert Clark stood at midfield with about three minutes left in the game Saturday, Florida still had a chance to tie, even with a handicapped offense.

Clark had not fielded a punt all game, evidence of just how bad Florida had performed in one of the simplest elements of the game. Already, the Gators had muffed two punts, both of them with senior Chris Rainey waiting deep.

So in the fourth quarter, with the game still in the balance, Clark watched a high-arching punt sail toward him. He waited on the ball but at the last second realized he had misjudged it. He was too short.

As the ball dropped, Clark fell forward, hoping to snag it at the Florida 47-yard line. He bobbled the ball, and Auburn's Ikeem Means recovered. Six plays and 2:28 later, the Tigers added a field goal, sealing the 17-6 victory at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

"One play is not going to change the game," said wide receiver Frankie Hammond, who has at times fielded punts for the Gators this season. "We're not putting, like, the whole blame of this game on a muffed punt. There were errors in every phase of the game: special teams, defense and offense."

That may be, but Florida's inability to field punts put even more pressure on a tired defense and an offense led by a pair of freshmen quarterbacks. And it affected the Gators from the get-go.

With about 11 minutes left in the first quarter, linebacker Jelani Jenkins backpedaled into Rainey while the senior was watching the ball drop. It slipped through Rainey's hands, though teammate De'Ante Saunders covered it.

Later, with about 3:30 left in the quarter, Rainey called for a fair catch, but as an Auburn defender closed in, he took his eyes off the ball. Again, it fell through his grasp.

Auburn's Daren Bates recovered at the Florida 32-yard line. Three plays later, the Tigers were up 7-0.

Coach Will Muschamp argued with the referee after the play, claiming kick-catch interference. And Muschamp had a case: The Auburn defender could almost breathe on Rainey by the time the ball sailed to him.

Muschamp would not comment on that play specifically after the game, though he said his team had not struggled fielding punts during practices. Still, it was too many muffs that gift-wrapped 10 points for Auburn on a night the Gators defense played relatively well.

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