Week

WEEK 7 ACC WRAP UP

By Rafael Garcia
Sr. Contributing Writer
Southeast Region
assisted by contributing writer William Queen for Football Reporters Online

 
Below is the Week 7 ACC Wrap. Surprisingly, there were only 5 games involving ACC teams.

 
GEORGIA TECH – 28 VIRGINIA TECH – 24
It was upset city in Atlanta this weekend, as Georgia Tech rallied to a surprising victory over the heavily favored Hokies. Yellow Jackets quarterback Josh Nesbitt was practically the whole story of this game, running for 122 yards and 3 scores, and ultimately winning a key match-up. For Virginia Tech, I hate to say it, but I saw it coming. Though they stomped Boston College last week, they nearly lost vs. Duke the week before, and never really gained any respect in the college football world in my opinion. As of Georgia Tech’s future, I think they’ve really learned from their loss against Miami earlier this season. Right after that loss, they bounced back with dominant wins over UNC, Mississippi State and Florida State. All these games led up to an impressive win over a highly ranked team. As for Tech they continue to play inconsistently. Trips to Georgia this year ruined any hopes of an ACC title and a possible national championship. They have slipped from fourth to about 15th depending on which poll you look at. The ACC picture begins to take shape with the regular season winding down.
 
CLEMSON – 38 WAKE FOREST – 3
No, it’s not a typo. Clemson quite simply slaughtered Wake Forest. A very balanced offensive attack, countered by a rock-solid defense, and an incendiary special teams won it. Where has this Clemson been all season? C.J. Spiller had touchdown runs of 66 and 14 yards. Freshman quarterback Kyle Parker shined going 10-17 for 132 yards and a touchdown. He also had a 3-yard rushing score in the second quarter. I haven’t seen one defense all year shut down Riley Skinner this well. After throwing for more than 300 yards in his last 3 games straight, the Tigers held him to just 82 yards and picked off 2 passes. This game may be one that comes back and bites Wake Forest in the back later. These two teams are tied for second in the Atlantic division of the ACC and because of Clemson’s convincing win, they would easily win the tiebreaker.  Once again no one knew what Clemson team would show up but this one wasn’t bad.
 
BOSTON COLLEGE – 52 NC STATE – 20
They exploded. No one saw it coming; well at least not the State defense. It was 14-13 in favor of BC when they just went off scoring 31 unanswered points. This was practically the story of the game. In a 19 minute 11 second span, the Wolf pack turned the ball over three times, couldn’t seem to get any momentum going, and played some of the worst defense all year. And Montel Harris, where has he been? He had 27 carries for 254 yards and 5 touchdowns for the sophomore running back. He matched his rushing touchdowns this season in just one game! For the Eagles, they couldn’t be any happier with the way this season’s going. 5-2, #1 spot in the Atlantic division of the ACC, things are going well for Boston College. However, this loss pulls the Wolf pack down to a 3-game losing streak; the exact opposite of what head coach Tom O’ Brian was hoping for.
 
VIRGINIA – 20 MARYLAND – 9
Virginia is beginning to set a tempo for their football program. Earlier this season, they were losing to schools like William & Mary. Forcing 4 turnovers in their win over Maryland, the Cavaliers have turned their season around, now riding a 3 game winning streak.
 
MIAMI – 27 UCF – 7
The Hurricanes kept their impressive high ranking a reality, winning a predictable game over UCF. Throwing for 293 yards and one score, quarterback Jacory Harris’s performance helped Miami win perhaps their easiest non-conference game. They are number 10 in the first BCS poll and still have a shot at the division title.

                                        SEC Wrap Up Week 7
 
By Rafael Garcia
Sr. Contributing Writer
Southeast Region
 
(1)    Florida 23 Arkansas 20
It was supposed to be easy when you looked at this game at the beginning of the season, but the Hogs had other plans. They were the first team to score first on the Gators this year. They sacked AT&Tebow six times and forced four Florida turnovers. For the first time in awhile a team made the Gators look normal. As a matter of fact they led 10-3 at the half on the strength of their defense and some good early running by Broderick Green. He had a 19-yard touchdown run called back for holding but later atoned for it by punching it in from the one to make it 7-0. The score was made possible when Tebow was sacked and fumbled the ball back to the Hogs. In the second half the Gators took the lead when Tebow hit Deonte Thompson on a 77-yard strike to make it 13-10. It was the longest scoring pass of his career. This came after Arkansas kicker Alex Tejada missed his first of two field goals that would prove to be the difference. So after three hard fought quarters the game turned in to an offensive one. Arkansas QB Ryan Mallet came out in the fourth and started the scoring tossing a 75-yarder to Greg Childs. The score did was not official until a review of the play showed that Childs recovered a loose ball in the end zone. It put the Hogs back up 20-13 and it looked like Florida may go down on this day. On the next possession they went right down the field with the help of some penalties and tied it at 20. Arkansas got another shot to take the lead when Mallett moved them far enough to set up a Tejada 38-yard attempt. The kick sailed wide left and the Gators took over at the 31. The winning drive was typical Tebow as he drove his team down the field. He hit Riley Cooper a couple of times and ran the ball five times to set up the game winning 27-yard filed goal from Caleb Sturgis. The game told a story for both teams. For Florida it showed that they could have an off day. That you can prepare for them and possibly beat them in this derby for the national championship. It showed that maybe the Gators depend too much on Tebow as he accounted for 324 of his teams 391 yards of offense. They will have to take a closer look at who else can help in the stretch run. To win the BCS title you will need more than one player on your team to do it all. Arkansas will not find comfort in losing the game but found out a few things. Mallett looks everything like they guy they envisioned to lead their team back in the SEC. He has poise and the arm and is only getting better. The young defense showed what it could do against top-tier teams, as they held their own. So if you thought that maybe the SEC might slip up some time soon you were wrong. This conference is stronger than ever and with the new recruits waiting in the wing it will just get stronger.
 
Kentucky 21 Auburn 14
It had been forever since the Wildcats beat the Tigers. It was way back in 1966 to be precise and they did it in comeback fashion. Auburn had come in with this offense that was producing so well, it was assumed that Kentucky would have problems with it. What they did was make it look like another ordinary offense as quarterback Chris Todd had trouble connecting with his receivers all game long. It all started out fine for the Tigers when they blocked a 38-yard field goal attempt and ran it back 69 yards for a 7-0 lead. Kentucky countered with a four-yard run by quarterback Morgan Newton to tie it. Newton had a miserable day, in place of the injured Mark Hartline, going 5-13 for 39 yards but was able to count on his running game to carry the team to victory. Auburn took the lead back on a Ben Tate one-yard run to close the first half. Tate had a great day running for 132 yards on 31 carries. It was his fifth 100-yard game of the season. Yet the Tigers would not score in a second half that belonged to Kentucky. The third quarter was scoreless setting up an exciting fourth. Will Fidler got some time at quarterback for Kentucky and had a 4-yard score late in the fourth to tie the score at 14 with just over six minutes left. He was also 4-9 for 36 yards and will compete for the starting job this week. So the stage was set when the Tigers got the ball again and Randall Cobb (19-126) had a sweet run for 61 yards and then two plays later scored to winning touchdown. Auburn started this season with so much hope only to lose key games that will hurt them at years end. Kentucky got a big win but must deal with the reality that they need to choose a QB and hope to make the right choice.
 
Alabama 20 South Carolina 6
It was the eve of the BCS polls and the Tide wanted to make a statement to the rest of the football world. It could be a number one team if the pollsters just gave them a chance. Well it worked and it didn’t work you could say. By Sunday night they would be No. 2 in the BCS and No. 1 in the AP. It was not one of their best outings of the year because they were up against the best defense they had faced all year long. Quarterback Greg McElroy was not on so he handed the ball off the Mark Ingram 24 times and all Ingram did was rush for a career best 246 yards and a touchdown with 4:54 left in the game for the win. McElroy finished 10-20 for a mere 92 yards and two picks. The Tide had three chances in the red-zone but could only score once. They had as many turnovers in this game as they had all year with four. They got help from a strong defensive showing as the Tide had five sacks and nine tackles for loss. They have not given up a touchdown in two games now. South Carolina had a few chances to put the ball in the end zone but came up short. McElroy’s receivers missed several passes in the end zone that could have turned the game the other way. So now the Tide host Tennessee next week and look to get a hold onto the top ranking in the BCS if possible.
 
Ole Miss 48 UAB 13
It wasn’t even this close as Jevon Snead threw for 240 yards and three touchdowns. They also added 163 rushing yards to finish with just over 500 yards of offense as Ole Miss takes advantage of a lesser opponent to get back into the win column.
 
Georgia 34 Vanderbilt 10
The Bulldogs ended a two game skid while extending Vanderbilt’s losing streak to three. The story of the game was field position as Vandy found itself with horrible position while giving the Dawgz good field position all day. Head coach Bobby Johnson expressed his disappointment with special teams play and the offensive line’s inability to give QB Larry Smith time to throw. The Dawgz needed this one after the whipping they took last week against Tennessee.

Oct 19, 2009
ECAC Announces Second Lambert Meadowlands Football Poll

CAPE COD, Mass. - The Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) has announced the second weekly ECAC® Lambert Meadowlands Football Poll presented by FieldTurf. In the Bowl Subdivision poll, Cincinnati (6-0), ranked No. 5 nationally, continues to hold the top spot, with Penn State (6-1) in second and Pittsburgh (6-1) in third place. Defending national champion Richmond (6-0) grabs the top spot in the Championship Subdivision poll with Villanova (6-1) second and New Hampshire (5-1) third. Bloomsburg (Pa.), undefeated at 8-0, is the top team in Division II. Unbeaten Wesley (6-0), ranked fourth in the country, takes the top spot in the Division III poll.
Five new teams entered the poll this week. In the FCS poll, Penn (3-2) entered at No. 10. In Division II, Assumption (5-2) joined the poll at No. 8, while Merrimack (5-2) entered at No. 10. In Division III, Rowan (5-1) entered the poll in the No. 9 spot, while Trinity (4-0) earned the final spot.
The ECAC will release the weekly poll in each of the four divisions (Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), Division II and Division III) and the final poll in January will determine the trophy winners. The first place teams in the final poll will be presented with their Lambert Meadowlands Awards during the Eastern College Football Awards Banquet, held at the Meadowlands Sports Complex.
Established in 1936 as the Lambert Trophy to recognize supremacy in Eastern college football, the award has since grown to recognize the best team in the East in the Bowl Subdivision. In 1957, the Lambert Cup was created to recognize non-Division I-A teams, and in 1966 a Division III award was added. In 1983, the Lambert family decided the Meadowlands Sports Complex would be the best organization with a sincere and involved interest in college athletics to sponsor and manage the award, and since that time, the awards have been known as the Lambert Meadowlands Awards.
To be eligible for the Lambert Meadowlands Award, a school must be located in the East or play at least half of its schedule against eligible Lambert teams. The territory includes New York, New Jersey, New England and Pennsylvania, while teams in the bordering states of Delaware, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia and the District of Columbia qualify if at least half of their schedule features eligible teams. Teams in Eastern-based football conferences, regardless of location, qualify if at least half their schedule is against Lambert eligible teams.
 
About the ECAC®
The ECAC is the nation's largest athletic and the only multi-divisional conference in the country with approximately 300 Division I, II, and III colleges and universities. The ECAC stretches from Maine to North Carolina and westerly to Illinois. Established in 1938, the ECAC, a non-profit service organization, sponsors nearly 100 championships in 37 men's and women's sports and assigns more than 4,400 officials in 12 sports. The ECAC also administers nine affiliate sports organizations and six playing leagues, and through the public relations arm of the conference, more than 2,000 student-athletes are recognized annually. Finally, the ECAC serves as the primary conference for select members in the sports of men's ice hockey, women's ice hockey, and men's lacrosse.
 
ECAC® Lambert Meadowlands Bowl Subdivision (FBS) Football Poll presented by FieldTurf
1. Cincinnati                           
2. Penn State                          
3. Pittsburgh                           
4. West Virginia                     
5. South Florida                     
6. Boston College                  
7. Connecticut                        
8. Navy                                
9. Rutgers                               
10. Temple                            
 
ECAC® Lambert Meadowlands Championship Subdivision (FCS) Football Poll
presented by FieldTurf
1. Richmond                         
2. Villanova                            
3. William & Mary                
4. New Hampshire                
5. Colgate                             
6. Massachusetts                    
7. Delaware                            
8. Holy Cross                      
9. Lafayette                          
10. Penn
 
ECAC® Lambert Meadowlands Division II Football Poll presented by FieldTurf
1. Bloomsburg                       
2. California (PA)                 
3. Bentley                             
4. Shippensburg                     
5. Edinboro                            
6. East Stroudsburg              
7. Clarion                               
8. Assumption                               
9. Southern Conn. State         
10. Merrimack                       
 
ECAC® Lambert Meadowlands Division III Football Poll presented by FieldTurf
 
1. Wesley                               
2. Washington & Jefferson    
3. Alfred                                
3. Albright                              
5. Thomas More                     
6. Delaware Valley           
7. Kean                                   
8. Cortland State                    
9. Rowan                                
10. Trinity