Boston College-Central Michigan
Morning Sun
On Monday, CMU head football coach Brian Kelly said Brian
Brunner will start Thursday’s contest against
contest. Kelly said there is no set time table on when he will make the switch
to LeFevour, but did say there are plays that LeFevour and Brooks run better than Brunner and vice versa.
All three quarterbacks are trying to replace record-setting quarterback Kent
Smith who is currently on the Oakland Raiders roster after having an
outstanding season last year for the Chippewas.
Brunner played in three games last season and threw three passes. He did
complete all three of those passes for a total of 21 yards. Brooks was the No.
3 quarterback all of last season, as a true freshman.
He made all of the road trips with the team but did not see any action.
LeFevour was a true freshman
last year and did not see any action as the No. 4 quarterback. Bet the NFL now at -107 juice!
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Boston
Although Kelly/Shorts Stadium’s capacity is only 30,199,
it should be rocking for its first nationally televised (ESPN2) night game. It
also should be quite a baptism for the five true freshmen that made BC’s
two-deep roster.
Northwestern-Miami Oh
Press Notes
head football coach Shane Montgomery announced today that junior Mike Kokal has been named the RedHawks’
starting quarterback for the upcoming 2006 season. Kokal,
two seasons, had been one of three
quarterbacks vying for the position since last spring. Since 2001,
passing offense has ranked fourth nationally in passing yards per game (291.0)
behind only Texas Tech,
and
The RedHawks have ranked among the nation’s Top 30 in
total offense, passing offense and scoring offense in each of the past three
years. Joining Kokal
on the offensive side of the ball are five returning starters, including
all-MAC senior wide receiver Ryne Robinson (
running back Brandon Murphy. Bet now through the Greek, home of the 21 percent sign up bonus
Temple-Buffalo
Press Notes
The contest will mark the first career head coaching
contest for both
and
(17 offense, 17 defense, 1 specialist), will employ a multiple offense and a
3-4 defense. The Bulls, who return 13 starters (eight offense,
five defense) among 47 letterwinners (26 offense, 20
defense, one specialist), will utilize a multiple offense and a 4-3 defense.
Minnesota-Kent
Canton
The Flashes could have easily won five games last season.
They lost two games by a field goal, one by 4 points and another by a
touchdown. After losing so many close games, staying mentally focused will be a
big key. “We have to overcome the lack of confidence that we’ve had in the
past,” Head Coach Doug Martin said. “We need to take stock in the confidence of
how hard we worked off the field — particularly in winter conditioning and
spring practice — and let that be the foundation of what we do during the
season. We’ve got to the put the 1-10 year behind us.” As with all teams,
health is always a factor. Last year’s rash of injuries forced the Flashes to
play 14 true freshmen and 26 NCAA Division I rookies. Bet now through the Greek, home of the 21 percent sign up bonus
Pioneer Press
minus two 1,000-yard tailbacks and two four-year starters on the offensive
line. Mason said last week it will be tailback by committee for Thursday’s 6:30
p.m. kickoff, and coaches have declined to name a front-runner, much less a
starter, since fall camp opened on Aug. 5.
Toledo-Iowa State
KTIV
coach Dan McCarney has been in
for 12 years. He has never had a defense with less experience than the one set
to open the season against
Graduations, and the unexpected departures of defensive end Jason Berryman and
linebacker Matt Robertson, cost the Cyclones ten starters from the unit that
played in the 2005 Houston Bowl. Those starters led
defense in the Big 12 a year ago. They have been replaced by newcomers that are
either young, inexperienced or a little bit of both. Still, McCarney
refuses to lower the expectation level for his defense—or reduce its complexity
in order to soften the learning curve. The unit will get its first test
Thursday when
hosts the Rockets at Jack Trice Stadium. It will feature a pair of true
freshman starters, Nate Frere
and Rashawn Parker, on the defensive line. Bet the NFL now at -107 juice!
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Des Moines Register
Before jumping to conclusions that the Mid-American
Conference Rockets are out of their league against a team from the Big 12
Conference – forget it.
in 2000,
in 2003. Another indicator that the teams belong on the same field is the
Rockets’ 45-13 win over Texas-El Paso in last season’s
GMAC Bowl. They have won or shared the West Division title of the MAC seven of
the past nine seasons. They have a 55-19 record since 2000 and a winning record
each of the past 12 seasons.
South Carolina-Mississippi
State
MSNBC
And
will do it with more unproven players than Spurrier has seen in some time.
Center Chris White is the only offensive linemen with more than four career starts.
The defense depth chart features six players who never played a down at their
position. The most impressive performer, at least statistically, at quarterback
this fall hasn’t been returning starter Blake Mitchell, but true freshman Chris
Smelley. The Gamecocks proved that a year ago in Spurrier’s debut season. They started 0-3 in the SEC — a
first for Spurrier — including losses to
and
score. Then came a five-game conference winning streak that featured victories
at
— a double no
coach had accomplished before. Bet now through the Greek, home of the 21 percent sign up bonus
UTEP-San
Diego State
El Paso
The Aztecs return six starters to the offensive side of
the ball, with five of the starters having logged at least 11 career starts.
They also return players that accounted for 100 percent of its passing yards
and 96.6 percent of its rushing yards. They move behind junior running back Lynell Hamilton who, after being riddled with injuries over
his two-year career, appears to be back to his 2003 form when he earned
freshman All-America honors from The Sporting News. Hamilton, who missed the
entire 2004 season due to injury, was San Diego State’s leading ground gainer
last year, with 819 yards on 190 carries (4.3 average), and nine touchdowns. He
also caught 26 passes for 144 yards.
He has rushed for 1,906 yards and has 13 rushing
touchdowns over his career. “This is the best summer I’ve ever had,” said the
6-foot, 225-pound
native of
“I was able to work out and go ahead and do some running and conditioning. Whereas, before, I was always rehabbing. So that’s really
big for me.”
Also returning is junior quarterback Kevin O’Connell, a
consecutive games at the position but had to re-earn his starting spot under
Long. Defensively,
returns eight starters with a combined 109 starts. Players who are returning
accounted for more than 70 percent of total tackles, 90 percent of forced
fumbles and 66 percent of fumble recoveries. The strength, though, might be the
secondary, and senior safety Reggie Grigsby, the
leading returning tackler from last season.
The UTEP football team’s injury
situation is better. But that doesn’t mean that head coach Mike Price isn’t
concerned heading into the season opener Thursday at
Diego
right guard who suffered a low-ankle sprain. A host of others sustained nagging
hamstring pulls, including tailback Marcus Thomas, safety Joe Fleskoski, defensive end Joe Ward, receiver Chris Marrow,
freshman safety Braxton Amy and quarterback/receiver Lorne Sam. Senior
quarterback Jordan Palmer was out for a few days nursing a sore elbow. Sunday,
redshirt freshman quarterback Brandis Dew sat out
with a sore shoulder. Spence and Mauch were suspended
this game for breaking team rules. Bet the NFL now at -107 juice!
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