Thursday News and Notess

Thursday, October 5, 2006

 

Remember all the top Freescoreboard handicappers are now at OffshoreInsiders.com  

CFB

Florida State-NC State

Seattle Post Intelligencer

N.C. State is the only Atlantic Coast Conference team with four wins against Florida State since the Seminoles joined the league 14 years ago. Three have come under Amato, now in his seventh season at his alma mater after spending the previous 18 years at FSU as an assistant to Bobby Bowden. No matter the reason, the Wolfpack (2-2, 1-0 ACC) has always found a way to match up with the Seminoles (3-1, 1-1) under Amato. N.C. State was the first ACC team to beat Florida State on the road in 2001, then followed that with a 17-7 win here the following season. Last year, Andre Brown ran for 179 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Wolfpack past the Seminoles 20-15 on the road, becoming the first ACC team to win twice at Doak Campbell Stadium. Even the recent losses have been close, with N.C. State losing in double-overtime on the road in 2003 and 17-10 here in ‘04. The Seminoles are more worried instead about coming out of a bye week with a league win. Florida State opened the year by beating league rival Miami, but lost to Clemson 27-20 three weeks ago to drop in the ACC’s Atlantic Division standings. Now it’s N.C. State sitting atop the division - along with unbeaten Wake Forest - after a last-second win against Boston College two weeks ago.

MasterLockLine.com

Florida State will be starting three players in the secondary with a combined one start. NC State QB Daniel Evans will be making just his second start

TCU-Utah

Associated Press

TCU went from having the nation’s longest winning streak to dropping out of the Top 25.

The defending Mountain West Conference champions are trying to keep the damage from getting even worse when they visit Utah on Thursday. Until a week ago, the Horned Frogs (3-1, 0-1 MWC) had won 13 straight and had the longest winning streak in Division I-A. That ended with a 31-17 loss to Brigham Young last Thursday in Fort Worth. The Utes (3-2, 1-0) can sympathize. Utah had an 18-game winning streak - the nation’s longest at the time - before losing to the Horned Frogs 23-20 in overtime in TCU’s Mountain West debut. After going unbeaten in the league a year ago, TCU is 0-1 in the Mountain West and out of the AP poll for the first time this season. A loss to the Utes on Thursday could all but knock the Frogs out of contention to defend their conference title even with six more games to play. Patterson said quarterback Jeff Ballard, who injured his shoulder against BYU, will start Thursday. He rested this week as backup Marcus Jackson worked with the first team. TCU is 11-1 with Ballard starting.

TCU running back Aaron Brown did not make the trip because of a sore right ankle. Lonta Hobbs, who returned last week after missing a year with a groin injury, is the probable starter Thursday. Utah had won three straight before the Boise State game, which was the Utes’ worst home loss since 1989.

Star Telegram

An MRI exam showed no significant damage to the throwing shoulder of TCU quarterback Jeff Ballard, and coach Gary Patterson said Tuesday that the senior will start Thursday night, when the Horned Frogs play at Utah. However, Patterson said, TCU will be without three key players in another important Mountain West Conference game as the Frogs try to rebound from their first loss since early 2005. Sophomore Aaron Brown, TCU’s leading rusher, won’t travel to Utah after injuring his right ankle against BYU. Brown, whose injury originally was thought to be minor, didn’t take any snaps during practices this week.Senior running back Robert Merrill also will not travel with the team as he continues to rehabilitate from off-season back surgery. The rushing load will fall to senior Lonta Hobbs, who played against BYU for the first time since last season.

On defense, junior safety David Roach will remain in Fort Worth with an injured right ankle. Defensive end Chase Ortiz, however, practiced with the first-team defense Tuesday and is expected to play with a shoulder injury.