State scouting reports

By IZZY GOULD, Times Staff Writer
Published September 29, 2007

Miami (3-1, 0-0 ACC) vs. Duke (1-3, 0-1), noon

The Hurricanes are coming off an upset of then-No. 20 Texas A&M, winning 34-17 before a national television audience. Was it enough to start a Miami upswing? A game against perennial doormat Duke could help maintain that confidence. This isn't, however, the Duke program ACC teams have come to know and trounce. The Blue Devils recently snapped a 22-game losing streak with a win at Northwestern, but fell last week 46-43 at Navy. Still, the Blue Devils have one of the worst rushing attacks, ranked 116th out of 119 teams. UM's passing offense ranks 103rd nationally.

FAU (3-1) at No. 14 Kentucky (4-0), 1 p.m.

The Owls head to Lexington coming off a 30-20 win against North Texas. They face their second Top 25 opponent of the season, clashing with a feel-good story at Kentucky. The Wildcats boast the nation's 10th-best scoring offense, with 47 points per game.

UCF (2-1) vs. Louisiana-Lafayette (0-4), 6 p.m.

The Knights bounced back from a near upset of Texas with a 56-20 win last week against Memphis, and could use another win heading into back-to-back road games. First comes ULL, the third opponent in as many weeks to visit Bright House Networks Stadium. UCF used a pair of quarterbacks last week and learned backup Michael Greco can run and throw. He passed for 151 yards and rushed for 77 yards and two touchdowns.

FIU (0-4, 0-0 Sun Belt) at Middle Tennessee State (0-4, 0-1), 7 p.m.

The Golden Panthers look to be at a disadvantage, tugging along the nation's worst scoring offense - 5.5 points per game - and the next-to-last passing and total offense. They've been outscored 163-22 in losses to then-No. 17 Penn State, Maryland, Miami and Kansas.

Bethune-Cookman (2-2, 0-2 MEAC) vs. Morgan State (1-3, 0-2), 4 p.m.

The Wildcats are still sour over a 38-31 loss at Norfolk State, which coach Alvin Wyatt blamed on officials for forcing them out of a legal base offensive formation. He hopes to have the Wildcats refocused today against a team coming off a 24-17 overtime loss to Hampton.

FAMU (1-2) at Tennessee State (2-2),3 p.m.

The Rattlers broke into the win column last week, 30-17 against Howard. They also found a running game, thanks to a 222-yard, one-touchdown breakout performance by freshman Philip Sylvester.

Izzy Gould, Times staff writer

[Last modified September 29, 2007, 00:33:50]