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College football briefs

© St. Petersburg Times,
published October 11, 2001

Upstart Terps seek singing

ATLANTA -- Ralph Friedgen didn't think he would be singing so much.

After his first victory, the coach hoisted himself atop a podium to lead the Maryland band in a rendition of the school's fight song. Although comparable to a bad lounge act, Friedgen's performance became tradition with the No.22 Terrapins, who are off to a 5-0 start.

"It's really out of character for me," said Friedgen, whose team meets 15th-ranked Georgia Tech tonight. "I feel like an idiot. But if that's what turns the fans on, I'll do just about anything to get people excited in this program."

Make no mistake, they're excited. The Terrapins (3-0 in the ACC) are off to their best start since 1978, when a Jerry Claiborne-coached team started 8-0 and finished 9-3. The program fell on hard times during the past 15 seasons, managing just two winning seasons and one bowl trip while going through three coaches.

Friedgen spent the past four seasons as offensive coordinator at Georgia Tech (4-1, 1-1 ACC), which has remained one of the top offensive teams in the country with Bill O'Brien calling the plays.

The Yellow Jackets are averaging 39.8 points and 460 yards, their only loss coming in a game in which they scored 44.

After losing to Clemson at home, Georgia Tech can't afford another defeat if it hopes to remain a serious contender in the ACC -- especially with a road trip to Florida State at the end of the season.

In a 37-10 victory over Duke, the Yellow Jackets defense bounced back from its dreadful performance against Clemson's Woody Dantzler.

"It didn't completely get rid of the taste, but it did a little bit," safety Jeremy Muyres said. "We decided to go out, fly around, have some fun. Hopefully, it will carry over to this week."

Maryland, however, is much more potent than Duke, averaging 34.6 points and 419 yards even though Friedgen hasn't installed all elements of his complex offense. Sophomore Bruce Perry leads the nation with an average of 164.2 yards rushing.

"It's really going to be weird," Muyres said. "This is the same offense I've been looking at the last two years in practice, with all the shifts and motion. I always wondered how the other team prepared for our offense. Now we're the ones having to get ready for it."

Kentucky AD denies allegations

As talk of impropriety started circulating at Kentucky last year, athletic director Larry Ivy said coaches have to cheat sometimes to get a good player, a former assistant coach alleges in a new book.

Ivy denied making any such statement.

"That obviously is not true," he said. "That's very disturbing."

The book, Fourth Down and Life to Go, is by Tony Franklin, who was the offensive coordinator under Hal Mumme until the end of the 2-9 season. Franklin self-published the 229-page book, which raises several allegations about the program.

Among other things, Franklin says in the book he met with Ivy one night during the 2000 season. The meeting, according to the book, was to discuss trouble Franklin was having with Mumme and the "potential blowup" over violations Kentucky later admitted it had committed in trying to recruit players from Melrose High in Memphis.

Franklin said he told Ivy that if other coaches wanted to cheat to get players, "that was their business."

"Ivy responded, 'Sometimes you've got to cheat to get a good player,"' Franklin wrote.

Ivy said he has not read the book.

ARKANSAS: Running back Brandon Holmes is wearing a boot cast and will miss Saturday's game with South Carolina. His status for the Oct. 27 game against Auburn is up in the air. Holmes hurt the foot Saturday against Weber State.

CITADEL: Seven players have been suspended indefinitely for missing a team meeting Saturday morning. They are: defensive ends Alonzo Bethea and Aaron Capps, fullback Carl Perazolla, receiver William Hines, linebacker Kano Dukes, defensive tackle Nick Collins and defensive back Marlin Macklin.

NORTHWESTERN: The NCAA is reviewing the school's report on Rashidi Wheeler's death to determine if additional investigation or sanctions are needed. There's no timetable for a decision. The Big Ten won't decide if it will take action until after the NCAA makes its ruling. The 22-year-old safety died Aug.3 during a workout.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA: Tailback Malaefou MacKenzie will leave the team for at least one semester to be with his family. His father died Sept.11 of prostate cancer.

TEXAS A&M: Nose tackle Ty Warren (bruised left heel) is expected to play Saturday against Colorado, but linebacker Christian Rodriguez (sprained right knee) remains questionable.

WEST VIRGINIA: Tailback Cooper Rego plans to be with the team when it plays at Notre Dame. He was expelled from Notre Dame in a rape case and barred from the campus, and the alleged victim and two victim's advocacy groups wanted the ban enforced.

West Virginia officials said the ban did not apply because Rego was returning as part of a team. Notre Dame officials declined comment on if they would oppose Rego's return. Rego was not charged.

Around the state

CENTRAL FLORIDA: Leading rusher Alex Haynes is expected to miss Saturday's game against Liberty because of a right hip pointer sustained in the fourth quarter of last week's game against Alabama-Birmingham. Clearwater graduate Terrance Williams, who got most of the carries after Haynes left, will replace Haynes.

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