Published: November 22, 2008 01:03 am         

College football previews: WVU, VT, UVa, MU

WVU hopes to keep title hopes alive

By WILL GRAVES, AP Sports Writer

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — There will be no “Blackout,” no national title implications, no signature victory in the offing when West Virginia and Louisville meet on Saturday.

Heck, it won’t even be the biggest game of the day in the Big East. That honor goes to the one 90 minutes up the road in Cincinnati, where the 19th-ranked Bearcats will host No. 20 Pittsburgh with the winner gaining the inside track to a conference title and a Bowl Championship Series berth.

The winner of West Virginia-Louisville — which has been the marquee matchup since the conference reconfigured in 2005 — will simply get a chance to play for something bigger down the road.

The Mountaineers (6-3, 3-1 Big East) can keep their hopes of a conference title alive while the slumping Cardinals (5-5, 1-4) will try to avoid a second straight non-winning season.

The stakes will not be nearly as high as the meeting here two years ago, when the fifth-ranked Cardinals beat the third-ranked Mountaineers in a 44-34 thriller that was arguably the biggest game in Louisville history. It’s a memory seared into the minds of the 22 Louisville seniors playing in their final home game. They hope to add one more for the scrapbook before they call it a career.

“This would be a big win for us,” said Louisville center Eric Wood. “We need to get bowl eligible. We need to get back to a big bowl game.”

Or a little one, for that matter.

Louisville appeared to have things heading in the right direction after a stirring win over South Florida last month that put them at 5-2. Three straight losses have followed — the longest losing streak in these parts in more than a decade — perhaps none as frustrating as a 28-20 loss to the Bearcats last week. Louisville led by six points in the third quarter of that game before self-destructing under penalties and turnovers.

“We’re going to have to play really well, more error-free football than we have,” said Louisville coach Steve Kragthorpe. “We can’t turn the ball over, we can’t have costly penalties. ... When you’re playing teams like West Virginia, your margin of error shrinks. We know we’re going to have to get Pat White on the ground and not let him make plays with his feet.”

It’s a gameplan that’s failed for the Cardinals during White’s stellar career. His rise to fame started three years ago in Morgantown when he helped West Virginia erase a 17-point deficit in the second half to win in triple overtime. Two years ago he combined for 347 yards and four touchdowns in a loss and had 328 total yards and the game-winning 50-yard touchdown run in a 38-31 win last season. “When he drops back to pass you hold your breath because he’s got the ability to take off and scramble when his receivers are covered,” Kragthorpe said. “He’s very, very dangerous.”

Maybe, but the Bearcats found a way to slow White down enough to escape with a 26-23 overtime win in Morgantown two weeks ago. Cincinnati held the Mountaineers under 100 yards rushing for the first time in eight years to pull off the upset. Though Louisville has struggled at times against teams that try to jam the ball up the middle, the Cardinals have excelled at keeping speedy players like White and backfield mate Noel Devine under wraps.

“I see them more aggressive this year,” said West Virginia coach Bill Stewart. “They’re blitzing more, getting the other team off balance more. (Defensive coordinator) Ron English has brought blitzing to the table and they’re a sick’em, get after it defense.” Don’t expect Stewart, however, to change tactics. The Cardinals can expect a heavy serving of White. Stewart worried earlier in the season how his senior would withstand three months of pounding. Though White has been banged up at times, missing a win over Syracuse, Stewart knows he can no longer wring his hands over his star’s health.

“If we want to run him, we’ll run him,” Stewart said. “If we want to throw him, we’ll throw him. Our goal is to get him through 12 games because he’s not doing any good on the sidelines.”

Especially if the Mountaineers want to win their third conference title in four years, though they’ll need to beat the Cardinals and get a little help from Pittsburgh. The Panthers — who ended West Virginia’s shot at a national championship by upsetting the Mountaineers in the season finale last year — could set up a winner-take-all matchup between the two rivals on Nov. 29 if they can beat the Bearcats on Saturday.

West Virginia, though, knows it’s got to take care of business before staring at the scoreboard.

“We’re far from being out of it,” said wide receiver Dorrell Jalloh. “As long as we only worry about ourselves and take care of us, then we’ll be perfectly fine.”

*****

Virginia Tech has ACC title still in its sights

By SUE LINDSEY

Associated Press Writer

BLACKSBURG, Va. (AP) — With some help from its friends at Georgia Tech and more needed next week, Virginia Tech still has a chance to reach its first goal: repeating as Atlantic Coast Conference division champs.

The Hokies (6-4, 3-3 ACC) stayed alive Thursday night when the Yellow Jackets beat division-leading Miami, but will have to dash Duke’s postseason dreams on Saturday to keep their improbable push going.

And that’s just what they have to do for this week.

The Blue Devils (4-6, 1-5) still have a chance to reach a bowl game for the first time since 1994, but in their first season under head coach David Cutcliffe, they need to win their last two games.

Something, clearly, has to give at Lane Stadium on Saturday.

The Hokies have had an up-and-down season, losing three of four after a five-game winning streak. Their latest loss was 16-14 at Miami.

“I think it made us stronger, losing that tough one last week,” rover Dorian Porch said. “That’s not something you like to experience, but it definitely brought us closer together as a team.”

They’ll need to show it against the Blue Devils, a largely veteran team that has improved under Cutcliffe.

Duke boasts victories against Virginia, Vanderbilt and Navy, but will arrive having lost three in a row. Even so, “They’ve got a lot of juniors and seniors that have been there, playing through those times,” Porch said.

Virginia Tech rolled over Duke 43-14 last year, but coach Frank Beamer said they have dangerous players on both sides of the ball.

Perhaps Duke’s most imposing offensive weapon is quarterback Thaddeus Lewis, but whether he will play will be a game-time decision. He injured his foot in last week’s game with Clemson.

On defense, senior linebacker Michael Tauiliili leads the ACC in tackles and is fifth nationally with an average of 11.1 per game.

“When you go against the guy who’s the leading tackler, it’s something you think about,” said Hokies offensive guard Nick Marshman. But, he said, “Their whole front seven is good.”

Beamer would not say who he will start at quarterback — Tyrod Taylor has been the starter for most of the season, but Sean Glennon has started the last two games, although Taylor played most of the game at Miami.

Cutliffe said he’s tried to prepare his team for both styles — Taylor’s mobility and Glennon’s passing arm.

“Their dual quarterback system is kind of hard to replicate in practice,” cornerback Glenn Williams said.

So, too, is the atmosphere at 66,000-seat Lane Stadium.

“When I’m watching tape, I don’t see an empty seat in the house, period,” Cutcliffe said.

The Hokies have been careful not to look ahead to next week’s potentially huge game against Virginia, but Porch said “A win this week would give us a little extra boost going into next week.”

If the Hokies beat Duke and the Cavaliers (5-5, 3-3) beat Clemson, the two could meet for the division title next week and a spot in the ACC championship game, providing the Hurricanes lose at North Carolina State.

*****

Last Chance Bowl facing Clemson and Virginia

By HANK KURZ Jr.

AP Sports Writer

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) — Clemson and Virginia are both fighting to get the wins they need to qualify for a bowl game, but the situation is more dire for the Tigers. Lose again, they’re home for the holidays.

The Tigers (5-5, 3-4 Atlantic Coast Conference) have been one of the nation’s most disappointing teams. Picked to win the ACC, they instead faded quickly and saw coach Tommy Bowden resign after just six games.

The Tigers have won twice against teams in the Football Championship Subdivision once known as I-AA, and can only extend their season by beating Virginia and then winning next weekend against South Carolina.

Falling short is not something they care to think about.

“A bowl game is the most fun part of the season. It’s what you play for all year,” receiver Jacoby Ford said. “It’s a reward and a privilege and you don’t want to end things in the regular season, especially for your seniors.”

Virginia (5-5, 3-3) sees it the same way, and will honor its 24 fourth- and fifth-year players before the game, their last at home.

The Cavaliers could wind up having far more to play for than bowl eligibility, too. Because of Georgia Tech’s victory Thursday night against Miami, a Virginia victory could find it playing at Virginia Tech for the Coastal Division title next week if Miami also loses at N.C. State.

“These last two games will really define our season,” Cavaliers linebacker Clint Sintim said. “We’ve had our ups and downs this season. We’ve won some quality games against some really good competition and we’ve lost some games that maybe we shouldn’t have lost the way we did.

“We’ll see how it finishes off.”

First things first, receiver Kevin Ogletree said.

“We can’t win two at once,” he said. “The next game is the most important like we’ve been saying for a while. We’re going to have to play our best ball to win because around this time, everyone’s hungry.”

The Tigers have split four games under interim coach Dabo Swinney, who is also in the running to take over the program on a permanent basis.

Watching Clemson on film highlights their talent on both sides of the ball, Virginia tight end John Phillips said, and makes an impression.

“They were ranked number nine in the country for a reason,” Phillips said. “They’ve got a lot of great players on their team. ... It’s a dangerous game when sometimes they play to their potential and sometimes they don’t, so you never really know what team you’re going to get.”

The Cavaliers can expect Clemson’s best, tailback C.J. Spiller said, citing the 28 seniors on the Tigers as his motivation to finish strong.

“That’s the main thing — you don’t want these seniors to have to play their last game next week. So we have to understand there’s no looking forward,” Spiller said. “We just have to execute and I’ve taken it upon myself to try and see to it these guys make it to postseason play.”

Spiller, along with quarterback Cullen Harper and fellow runner James Davis, was one of the main reasons for the Tigers’ high expectations this year. After an injury-plagued start, though, he’s starting to show why.

In his last three starts, he’s averaged almost 200 yards of offense between running, receiving, returning punts and returning kickoffs.

*****

Urgency begins today for Marshall

By GARY FAUBER

for The Daily Telegraph

The first game of Marshall’s win-or-go-home final stretch begins today.

The Thundering Herd (4-6, 3-3 Conference USA) visits West Division juggernaut Rice (7-3, 5-1) at 3:30 p.m. Eastern time. The season has boiled down quite easily for Marshall: losing is not an option.

Marshall must win today and next week at home against Tulsa to secure bowl eligibility for the first time under coach Mark Snyder. In order to pull off that double, the Herd will have to find a way to slow two the conference’s most explosive offenses.

To put into perspective, the Owls are allowing 36.7 points per game — next-to-last in the league — and are still in a three-way tie for the best record in the West.

“That tells you the kind of offensive output they are having at this point in time,” Snyder said.

Whereas the Rice offense is a veteran group, paced by quarterback Chase Clement and wide receivers Jarett Dillard and James Casey, the defense is less experienced.

“They are young but they move around quite a bit,” Snyder said. “They bring a lot of heat and are very multiple on defense. Just give them a chance because they are young.”

Marshall’s defense has played well the last three games, led by linebackers Maurice Kitchens and Mario Harvey and defensive end Michael Janac. But slowing Clement and Co. would be quite a task.

Rice is averaging 462.0 yards of total offense, with Clement averaging 311.6 yards through the air and 51.0 on the ground, good for eighth in C-USA.

Dillard, a Biletnikoff Award semifinalist, averages a league-leading 109.3 yards per game and is tops with 17 touchdowns. Casey is No. 1 in the conference in receptions per game (8.5) and has 1,007 yards and nine scores.

One of the things Snyder has enjoyed about this year’s defense is its depth, which gives him more personnel options as opponents’ attacks change.

After back-to-back games against bigger opponents in East Carolina and Central Florida, the Herd defense will have to change gears against Rice.

“They are a little different animal,” Snyder said. “We will have to put more speed on the field because they make you defend east to west and north to south. They do a good job of spreading the whole field and making you defend it. That’s why they are putting so many points on the board.

“We will probably go with a little smaller lineup this week like we did against Houston (a 37-23 win) and see what we can get done.”

     

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