Colleges

Freshman DE gets chance he's wanted

By BRIAN LANDMAN
Published September 28, 2006

TALLAHASSEE - Florida State redshirt freshman defensive end Everette Brown saw last weekend's chance to start for the first time as a payoff for hard work and an opportunity to prove himself.

"All through practice, last year during my redshirt year and all through the spring and fall, all I wanted to do was go out and practice every day and do well and gain the coaches' trust so they'll put me out there," he said. "If they don't trust you, they're not going to put you out there to do the job."

Brown used his speed against Rice to show he could do that rather nicely, often disrupting plays and allowing his teammates to make plays. Even though FSU uses a lot of players, especially on defense, Brown said it's easier for him to find a rhythm when he's in from the start, helping set a tone rather than coming in as a backup.

Given the Seminoles' injury situation on the line, he's apt to have that chance again.

"Growing up, I always had to earn and work hard for my opportunities; I never had a coach just, as I would say, give me an opportunity," he said. "It hasn't been any different here. I've had to prove myself every day for that opportunity and now that I've had the opportunity, I think I took advantage of it and proved to the coaches that I'm worthy and responsible."

ROLL TAPE: After the disappointing loss to Clemson, offensive coordinator Jeff Bowden had a tape prepared showing 22 plays that could have gone for big yards. And didn't.

Not exactly a Greatest Hits compilation that the players would rush to watch, you say? Not exactly.

"They were showing us plays where we could have scored or could have gained first downs and it was mental mistakes like missing one block or a tipped pass or a bad throw," senior offensive tackle Mario Henderson said.

The key was the tape highlighted how close the offense was coming to breaking out of its slump. There weren't total breakdowns, Henderson said. That apparently helped some against Rice as the Seminoles had numerous big plays.

BIG-TIME GESTURE: Senior linebacker Buster Davis reached deep into his own pocket - "I'm broke now," he said, joking - to buy 25 tickets so a local Pop Warner team can attend the homecoming game against Western Michigan.

DID YOU KNOW?: Quarterback Xavier Lee has thrown four touchdown passes in his career. All have been to receiver Greg Carr.

FRESHMAN FIRST: For those scoring at home, tight end Caz Piurowski became the first freshman to score this season when he alertly picked up a blocked extra point and ran it in for a two-point conversion on FSU's final touchdown last weekend.

"That wasn't the way I expected to do it, but I'll take it," said the former Land O'Lakes star, adding that if he had thought about what to do when the ball rolled to his feet, he likely "would have just fallen on it. I don't know why I thought to pick it up and run with it."

He had no big celebration afterward. In fact, while on the ground all he could think to do was make sure he still had the ball securely tucked away.

FAST START: The volleyball team (9-3, 3-0), which plays at Georgia Tech on Friday and at Clemson on Saturday, is off to its best start in ACC play since it began the 1993 season 5-0.

LOOKING FOR A FIRST: The soccer team (7-1, 1-1), ranked No. 3 by Soccer America, has never beaten ACC rival Virginia. FSU is 0-13-1 against the Cavaliers, including 0-5 at home. The Seminoles look to change that stat tonight as the No. 11 Cavs (7-2-1, 2-0) come to town.

Brian Landman covers Florida State athletics. Reach him (813) 226-3347 or at landman@sptimes.com.

[Last modified September 28, 2006, 05:57:17]