College football

Gameday

By Times staff writers
Published October 8, 2005

PAINFUL MEMORIES

Florida safety Jarvis Herring remembers the play as if it happened yesterday.

Last October at Mississippi State, Bulldogs running back Jerious Norwood broke into the open field and scored a 37-yard touchdown with 32 seconds remaining.

"I was blitzing on that play," Herring said. "I had to jog behind and watch him running. Just seeing him run by so many people . . . basically, deep down, it was like it was over."

It was. Mississippi State upset Florida 38-31.

The win ended an eight-game SEC losing streak for Mississippi State, and two days later, Ron Zook's career at Florida was over, fired before finishing out the season.

Norwood rushed for 174 yards and scored two touchdowns in that game.

But Norwood said that victory wasn't about him. It was about then first-year coach Sylvester Croom and the rest of the team.

"It meant a lot because after that Florida game, he got all of us together and he told us all we had to do was believe in him and believe in ourselves and we could do great things," Norwood said. "That let us know we can play with anybody. We still feel like we can play with anybody."

- ANTONYA ENGLISH, Times staff writer

The smaller guy wearing No. 86 for Miami is named Ross, although some teammates call him Rudy.

Ross Abramson doesn't mind the teasing. In fact, he embraces the comparisons with Rudy Ruettiger, an undersized kid whose walk-on story was transformed into a Hollywood film.

Abramson is in his second week atop ninth-ranked Miami's depth chart at kick snapper, a largely anonymous yet quite important position. Not bad for a 6-foot, 205-pound guy who played one year of high school football - five years ago.

"I don't know if I expected to play," said Abramson, a junior who nervously - but flawlessly - handled the snaps for Miami's extra points and field goals in last week's 27-7 win over USF. "I just came out, just wanting to try my hardest and try to help out the team any way I could."

There's certainly no shortage of students walking the Miami campus who have harbored dreams of suiting up for the Hurricanes, running out of the giant inflatable helmet and through the white smoke tunnel at the Orange Bowl and playing before national television audiences every weekend.

Yet probably few - if any - wanted to be a snapper.

Abramson is clearly different.

"He's a fanatic," Hurricanes coach Larry Coker said. "The guy is a great kid. Ross is kind of like the Easter Bunny. He just showed up. I have no idea what his background is."

When Florida State and Wake Forest meet today, both teams feature a receiver from St. Petersburg named Chris Davis.

Wake Forest's Davis, a senior sociology major, played at Gibbs while the Seminoles' Davis, a junior social sciences major, played at St. Petersburg Catholic. They graduated from high school in 2002, and each is listed at 180 pounds.

Wake Forest's Davis is third in the ACC in receiving with 19 catches for 112 yards while Florida State's Davis, who was redshirted in 2002, ranks sixth with 17 catches for 267 yards and a touchdown.

Even their career numbers are similar. Florida State's Davis has 54 catches for 759 yards and four touchdowns while the Demon Deacons' Davis has 58 catches for 613 yards and three touchdowns.

Florida State graduate Shawn Tucker, manager of automotive content for AutoTrader.com, gives the Atlanta Journal-Constitution his top five alternative vehicles to tailgate in:

1. HONDA CR-V: Compact SUV is both practical and economical. It comes with a removable picnic table, waterproof storage well (in case your cooler gets too full), and it gets great gas mileage for those out-of-town games.

2. CHEVROLET SSR: With a V8 much the same as the one in the new Corvette, you and one other person can get there faster than anyone else. Despite its design for speed, it still has a tailgate and a locking bed cover that will ensure your gear is still there when you get back.

3. FORD TAURUS/MERCURY SABLE (WAGON): You can refer to your family as the Griswolds and the car as the family truckster. The rear-facing third row is perfect for sitting in the car while still being part of the action.

4. DODGE MAGNUM R/T: With a V8 and all-wheel drive, you can haul while you haul. Even though it's a wagon, the rumble from under the hood will erase any of your friends' thoughts that you have completely grown up.

5. MINI COOPER: You can buy one that matches your team colors, and it kind of looks like a bulldog (which is great if you went to Georgia). Its petite size is perfect for navigating between the party buses.

"It's going to be a really tight race. We're going to need some help. I hope (the champion) has one loss and it's us."

- Louisville coach Bobby Petrino, believing the Cardinals still can win the Big East despite a 45-14 loss to USF.

1. Miami has won 106 of its past 115 games against unranked opponents. 2. Memphis, which plays at UCF today, has lost two starting quarterbacks to broken legs this season, and three players lined up at the position during Saturday's victory over UTEP: freshman quarterback Billy Barefield, senior tailback DeAngelo Williams and senior receiver Maurice Avery. 3. Heisman Trophy winner Jason White has been pursuing a job in the business world with an eye toward getting into coaching next season. White will be at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas today for the Oklahoma-Texas game. 4. If No. 1 Southern Cal (4-0) and No. 2 Texas (4-0) win out, the SEC (Georgia or Alabama) and ACC (FSU or Virginia Tech) could have undefeated teams left out of the BCS title game. 5. Identical twins Trevis and Kevis Coley have combined for more than a quarter of Southern Miss' tackles. Kevis, the starter at middle linebacker, leads the team with 28 tackles. Trevis, who starts at free safety, is second with 22.

10: Combined points allowed by Miami in its past two victories, only the second time since the 2001 national title season that it has had such a stingy two-game run. 57.25: Points per game scored by No. 15 Texas Tech, tops in the nation. 70-10: Score in Texas Tech's rout of Nebraska last year, something the Cornhuskers insist they've forgotten: "It's a different year, a different team, a whole different dynamic than a year ago," coach Bill Callahan said.

1,193: Yards allowed by Purdue in consecutive losses to Minnesota and Notre Dame. Information from the Associated Press, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Orlando Sentinel was used in this report.

[Last modified October 8, 2005, 01:26:19]