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Carthon to return Saturday

GAINESVILLE - Although sophomore tailback Ciatrick Fason has been impressive in consecutive games, it appears his stint as the featured back is over.

Florida coach Ron Zook said senior Ran Carthon will resume his starting role Saturday against Georgia.

Carthon has been battling a hamstring injury but practiced this week after sitting out the 33-28 victory against Arkansas, in which Fason had 98 rushing yards and caught a touchdown.

POSITION CHANGE?: With the steady play of freshman quarterback Chris Leak guiding Florida past the first two opponents in a stretch safety Daryl Dixon called "Murderer's Row," there hasn't been much need for depth at the position.

Ingle Martin, the opening day starter, is entrenched as the backup, leaving third-stringer Gavin Dickey with a lot of free time.

Dickey played Saturday, but it was on an onside kick by Arkansas. Since then, Dickey has expressed an interest in playing other positions and talked with Zook.

"I've been removed from football for about two years now," Dickey said. "I'm just itching to get on the field anywhere possible."

- BRIAN SHAFFER

TALLAHASSEE - The weather has been unkind to Florida State as it prepares for Notre Dame. For the second straight day, practice was held inside because of steady rains. Before Monday, the Seminoles hadn't been forced indoors since the preseason.

FSU doesn't have an indoor practice facility, so it moved to Tully Gymnasium, requiring changes to the usual routine.

"Tuesday is a little bit different. You need to get out on the field," defensive coordinator Mickey Andrews said. "You need to see the ball thrown down the field. You need to have to run and make plays, and it's hard to do that inside on a hardwood floor. We had folks slip down a few times. I think the biggest thing is you just don't have a big enough area that we can work to do what you need to do, to simulate being outdoors."

Andrews said he expects coach Bobby Bowden to consider practicing outdoors today regardless of the conditions.

SEXTON HONORED: Redshirt freshman quarterback Wyatt Sexton, the son of running backs coach Billy Sexton and a communication major, was honored Monday at the annual Golden Torch Gala for having the highest grade point average on the team during the 2002-03 academic year.

- ZACHARY SPAIN

TAMPA - South Florida practiced in pads for the second day in a row on a cool, rainy evening. The Bulls hit hard, coach Jim Leavitt said, on the final day of contact before Friday's game against Cincinnati.

"We worked hard," Leavitt said. "I'm sure we're sore. We went right to work after our last game."

The Bulls will have a helmet-only run-through workout today.

CLEAR SAILING: Senior receiver Chris Iskra practiced at full speed Monday and Tuesday. He missed the first two games with a dislocated elbow sustained during the preseason and missed the past four because of a hamstring injury sustained in his return against Army.

HEAD TO HEAD: Friday's game features the best defenses in Conference USA. The Bulls allow 292 yards per game, 123 on the ground. Cincinnati allows 309 yards but only 76.4 on the ground. In its past three games, Cincinnati has allowed a combined 155 yards on the ground and 1.5 yards per carry.

PEP TALK: After Monday's practice, senior safety Kevin Verpaele gave his defensive mates a rousing pep talk. Among other things, he lamented an 80-yard touchdown on Southern Miss' first play from scrimmage and reminded the team it must win its last four games to qualify for a bowl game.

- ROB BRANNON