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| Thursday, November 16 As many as nine SEC teams could be bowl bound By Pat Forde Special to ESPN.com | |||||
Some forces of nature are unstoppable. Continental drift, erosion and the Southeastern Conference come readily to mind.
Despite a paucity of elite teams and a midseason muddle of mediocrity, the SEC has again rounded up a full compliment (and then some) of bowl-eligible teams. At this point eight have the requisite six victories, and Arkansas still has an oustide shot of making it nine. Thank user-friendly non-conference scheduling and a ferocious outbreak of parity in the league for that.
As for where they all end up -- that's when it gets interesting.
Florida is still in the microchip hunt for the national title, pending its collision with Florida State Saturday in Tallahassee. Neither oddsmakers (the Gators are 12-point underdogs) nor history (Steve Spurrier is 0-4-1 at Florida on Bobby Bowden's home field) are with them, but you never know.
A loss to the Seminoles would drop Florida from the Orange Bowl hunt and re-focus their sights on the Sugar Bowl. That would be had by beating an as-yet-to-be-determined underdog from the Western Division in the SEC Championship game Dec. 2 in Atlanta. The opponent will be either Auburn, LSU or Mississippi State, with the Bulldogs winning the tie-breaker if all three win out.
Among the blue million possibilities in the Sugar is a return visit from Virginia Tech to take on the Gators.
Projections become even more perilous after getting past the BCS bowl slot. A huge factor could be the glut of teams making their first bowl appearances in years.
Alabama In a fortuitous bit of timing, Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer spoke to the Birmingham Touchdown Club Monday night and said Alabama had contacted him about replacing Mike DuBose. Beyond that Beamer issued the usual stream of cautious downplays and non-denial denials. ... Job Search, Take II: ABC television commentator Dean Blevins reported on his web site that Alabama has offered Miami's Butch Davis its coaching job for $1.4 million annually, but Bama athletic director Mal Moore says the report is not true. "I have not talked to Butch Davis, contacted him and have not made an offer," Moore told the Birmingham News. Blevins reported that Davis "apparently is countering back wanting to have scheduling authority. ... Sources tell me Davis is keeping Miami apprised of the Alabama deal and giving them a chance to keep him, but only for huge bucks." It was news to most people that Blevins even had a web site. ... It has been widely reported that Alabama representatives have contacted Davis and Beamer through intermediaries, although a school spokesman refused to comment on those reports Wednesday. ... A loss to uber-rival Auburn Saturday in Tuscaloosa would leave the Crimson Tide 3-8, its most on-field losses since going 0-10 in 1955 under the immortal J.B. "Ears" Whitworth. (The Tide was officially 1-12 in 1993 after forfeiting games under NCAA sanctions.) Arkansas The Razorbacks are in a steep slide, losing four straight to drop to 4-5 and the West cellar at 1-5. But they still have plenty to play for in closing out against Mississippi State Saturday and LSU next week. Not only do the Hogs still have a chance for a winning season and bowl eligibility, but they can upset the apple cart in the West. Both State and LSU are in the thick of the title hunt, alongside Auburn. ... The big problem for the Hogs against the Bulldogs in Starkville: Arkansas has lost seven straight road games, and Mississippi State has won 16 straight at home. Auburn As expected, Tommy Tuberville agreed this week to a re-worked contract that will raise his annual pay to $1.2 million. ... Tuberville knows that his team is walking into an emotional cauldron in Tuscaloosa. Not only is it the annual Holy War on enemy turf, but it's the final game for Mike DuBose and a chance to derail the Tigers' surprise bid to win the West. His message to his players this week: "Hey, just forget everything. We know there's going to be some emotion over there at that stadium. Expect to catch Alabama in their best game." Of course, Alabama hasn't even played a decent game in a month, but rivalry games are funny things. ... Sacks are down and rushing yards are up at Auburn, and that reflects directly on a healthy and productive offensive line. Tuberville said that of his five starters up front, there has been just a single missed game due to injury. "We've been really fortunate this year," he said. "The continuity's really showed up in pass protection, and blocking for Rudi (Johnson, the SEC's leading rusher) has gotten their confidence up. They're taking a lot of pride in him gaining all these yards." ... Tuberville has been a combatant in both the Iron Bowl (Alabama-Auburn) and the Egg Bowl (Ole Miss-Mississippi State) and said the latter is "not near the intensity" of the former. LSU Couple the Tigers' late surge with South Carolina's late swoon and Nick Saban could be stealing a few SEC Coach of the Year votes from Lou Holtz. (Not on this ballot, but you can make the argument.) Saban not only has rejuvenated quarterback Josh Booty and made playmakers out of receiver Josh Reed and freshman running back LaBrandon Toefield, he's helped return the mystique to Tiger Stadium. But it remains hard to figure how a team can win home thrillers against Tennessee, Mississippi State and Alabama and lose in Death Valley to UAB. It's hard to be greedy in a surprise 7-3 season, but you know LSU fans wish they could have that one back. ... Toefield is questionable for the Nov. 25 game against Arkansas after spraining his left knee against Ole Miss. Backup Domanick Davis filled in superbly, gaining 106 yards on 25 carries. ... Saban could pick up an extra $30,000 in contract incentives if the Tigers reach the SEC title game. If LSU were to make the game and beat Florida for a berth in the Sugar Bowl, Saban would get another $50,000. As it is now, he stands to rake in another $25,000 for a non-BCS bowl bid. He needs to money desperately, since he's only making $1.2 million per year. Mississippi Deuce McAllister is on the verge of another milestone in the Ole Miss record book, needing 77 yards to rush for 3,000 in his career. With two games left to play, that's a near-lock. He already holds career records for rushing attempts (586), 100-yard rushing games (12), rushign touchdowns (34), total touchdowns (38) and total points (228). Quarterback Romaro Miller needs 88 yards to break Kent Austin's career record of 6,148 yards. ... Closing with a late flourish to beat Georgia and Mississippi State would restore the luster to a mildly disappointing 6-3 season, but it won't be easy. Ole Miss is 1-3 against both packs of 'Dogs since they were moved to the final two games on the schedule in 1996. Mississippi State The Bulldogs are one win away from their third straight winning league record and third straight season of eight or more victories overall. Neither has been accomplished since 1940-42, when State went 26-3-2 under Allyn McKeen. ... Cornerback Kendall Roberson will miss State's game against Arkansas and perhaps the finale against Ole Miss with a sprained right knee. Bulldogs coach Jackie Sherrill asserted that Roberson suffered the injury on an illegal block by Alabama quarterback Andrew Zow. Florida He might do it again. Steve Spurrier has pulled the Rotate-A-Quarterback system against Florida State before, shuttling his signal callers in and out every play, and he said both Jessie Palmer and Rex Grossman will play in the cataclysm with the Seminoles. But who starts and who plays how much remain classified information. "I don't think that's a big deal, to tell the truth," Spurrier said. "I don't know why it matters to some people who starts and who doesn't." ... As his team sits on the BCS bubble, Spurrier got in his weekly dig at the system and the lack of a playoff. "It's hard to tell who the best teams are in the country because of scheduling. But without a playoff, that's the way it is. ... We don't worry about BCS stuff. But we realize where we are." ... Mississippi State coach Jackie Sherrill said Florida freshman Jabar Gaffney "sets himself apart" as the No. 1 receiver in the SEC. Gaffney has been the No. 1 target for whoever Florida's quarterback of the moment happens to be. ... Florida linebacker Mike Pearson, on being a fat 12-point underdog in Tallahassee, where Spurrier is a grim 0-4-1: "if they want to put us under by that much, that's OK with us. We'll get up there and get it done and turn it around on them." Georgia The Bulldogs were preseason favorites to win the SEC East but have slid to 6-3 overall, 3-3 in the league. But athletic director Vince Dooley quieted any speculation that Jim Donnan's job was in jeopardy. "I like where we're at," Dooley told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "I like our coach. He's put together a good program." Asked if Donnan would be retained even if Georgia loses its final games to Ole Miss and Georgia Tech, Dooley said, "I see no reason not to." Donnan is in the fourth year of a six-year deal and has a 38-18 record in Athens. But he's just 6-13 against Georgia Tech, Auburn and East Division rivals Florida and Tennessee. ... One of the 'Dogs' biggest problems this season has been injuries to starting quarterback Quincy Carter. With the thumb on Carter's throwing hand still not healed, backup Cory Phillips figures to make his third start of the year Saturday. Phillips was brilliant in riddling Kentucky, slightly less so in a loss to Auburn last week. For the season his quarterback rating is 25 points higher than Carter's but he is not near the run/pass threat that makes defensive coordinators nervous. Kentucky A year ago, Hal Mumme defiantly told a talk-show detractor of defensive coordinator Mike Major that "if he (Major) goes, I go." This week Major spared Mumme the official act of firing him by resigning Monday, effective after the season-ender at Tennessee, and allowed Mumme to save face by accepting a position as director of football operations. Major's defenses have not improved in four seasons and rank at or near the bottom in every major SEC statistical category. Nevertheless, the resignation was a difficult one for Mumme, since the two have been friends and colleagues since their days coaching high school ball in Texas. "It's been disastrous," Mumme said. "Everybody feels bad." ... The annual tilt at the Big Orange windmill must be played, but historical precedent leaves little doubt about the outcome. Kentucky has lost 15 straight to the Volunteers, only three of them by less than nine points. In three games against the Mumme-coached Cats, Tennessee has scored no fewer than 56 points. South Carolina There may not be a program in America that annually closes the season in more brutal fashion than the Gamecocks, who face Tennessee, Florida and in-state rival Clemson in its final three games for the eighth straight season. Carolina's record against those three in that time: 2-21. (Thank God for Tommy West, or it would be a whitewash.) Moral of the story in Columbia: if you want to go to a bowl game, have six wins before the calendar hits November. ... Linebacker Kalimba Edwards, an athletic playmaker, appears out with a sprained ankle suffered in the loss to Florida last week. Quarterback Phil Petty is expected to go despite two sprained ankles. "That should eliminate him from limping," coach Lou Holtz said. Tennessee In amazingly quiet fashion, Travis Henry is on the verge of becoming the Volunteers' alltime leading rusher. With two games to play, Henry needs just 135 yards to move past James "Little Man" Stewart, and 245 yards would put him over 3,000. Henry has played in the shadow of, among others, Jamaal Lewis, Tee Martin, Shawn Bryson, Peerless Price and some guy named Peyton -- in addition to losing name recognition by sharing carries with another Travis, fellow running back Stephens. Henry did not become the fulltime starter at tailback until this season. "He's been really unselfish," coach Phillip Fulmer said. ... True freshman offensive lineman Michael Munoz was thrown into the fire this season as an immediate starter and lived to tell about it. But it hasn't been easy. "He wasn't ready for it and I think he'd be the first to tell you," Fulmer said of the son of Anthony Munoz, perhaps the finest offensive lineman to ever wear a helmet. "From midseason on I think you'd see a considerable improvement from him. He's grown a lot. He's really, really done well. He's got to get stronger, get a better understanding of what we're doing, and I think you're looking at a future great one." Vanderbilt It's mid-November, but Woody Widenhofer is still trying to pin the Commodores' 3-7 season on an announcement in August that defensive linchpins Jamie Winborn and Jimmy Williams would have to miss the first two games for NCAA rules violations. "That destroyed the attitude and chemistry of that defense," Widenhofer said. "This is the most talented defense we've ever had, in terms of talent, skill and depth. To tell you the truth, they just haven't played very good." ... Widenhofer gives a passing grade to junior quarterback Greg Zolman, with constructive criticism. "If he just plays within himself, he's a very fine quarterback and you can win with him," the coach said. Zolman's biggest problem has been 13 interceptions and only 11 touchdowns. Pat Forde covers college football for the Louisville (Ky.) Courier-Journal. | AUDIO/VIDEO   Auburn's Rudi Johnson breaks through a hole for a 55-yard gain.avi: 769 k RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1 Ben Leard sneaks over the line to give Auburn the victory in overtime.avi: 1207 k RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1 Auburn's Ben Leard hits Reggie Worthy in traffic for the touchdown.avi: 622 k RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1 Georgia's Jamie Henderson steals the pass intended for Auburn's Reggie Worthy.avi: 823 k RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1 Georgia's Terreal Bierria returns the interception 80 yards for the touchdown.avi: 999 k RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1 | ||||
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