News From Around the SEC

[KY Kid]

Compiled by Kyle Veazey
Daily Mississippian


ALABAMA
The Tide play their Bryant-Denny home opener Saturday, hosting North Texas. It's only the 17th night game in the history of the stadium...Former Alabama quarterback Freddie Kitchens now coaches the running backs at North Texas...Alabama's rushing defense has to be buoyed, as they held Oklahoma to minus 23 rushing yards on 23 attempts Saturday in Norman. It's the first time Alabama has allowed negative rushing yards in three years.

ARKANSAS
Coach Houston Nutt was a little disappointed in his team's effort in Tuesday's practice, saying "There were to many people feeling sorry for themselves today and they were a little sore."...Nutt also bragged on his season-opening 41-14 win over Boise State. "This has been our best season opener from top to bottom with substations, traffic flow from the sideline, penalties," Nutt said.

AUBURN
Defensive coordinator Gene Chizik said after practice Tuesday the Tigers would be prepared for the multiple looks Vanderbilt will give them offensively...Head coach Tommy Tuberville is pleased with the opportunity Western Carolina gave him last weekend to play a bunch of players, 68 in fact. "I needed a roster to figure out everyone's number," Tuberville said...Tuberville was also pleased with Daniel Cobb's work at quarterback, in which the Tigers scored five touchdowns in six possessions.

FLORIDA
The Gators' confidence surely took a blow in last Saturday's blowout home loss to Miami, but coach Ron Zook says he's pleased with the team's attitude. "I really believe we'll use this as a positive thing and come back and become a better football team," Zook said...Zook and his players took to the practice fields Sunday night, instead of taking the day off as is normal. Per NCAA rules, the team took Monday off instead...The Gainesville Sun is reporting numerous possible position changes after Saturday's loss, most notably placekicker Matt Leach, who will now compete with Jeff Whitaker and Brendt Talcott for the starting role.

GEORGIA
The Bulldogs dominate the series between Georgia and South Carolina 39-12-2, but the Gamecocks have won the last two meetings...Marquis Elmore moved from linebacker to defensive end in practice Monday. He is recovered from back surgery last month. Middle linebacker Tony Gilbert is OK after injuring his ankle in the Clemson game Aug. 31...Head coach Mark Richt isn't fooled by South Carolina's loss to Virginia last week, saying "South Carolina should be a 2-0 team right now. I'm treating them like they're 2-0 and I'm kind of treating us like we're 0-1."

KENTUCKY
Good gosh. What more could Kentucky do for an encore after their opening-weekend upset of Louisville? The Wildcats throttled Texas-El Paso 77-17, posting the second-highest point total in school history. Guy Morriss even had to be Spurrieresque, defending his team's running up the score. "I'm surprised at how many points we scored. We were trying to hold it down," Morriss said...If there's one thing Morriss can't afford, it's injuries. His team doesn't have the luxury of depth that some of his conference brethren do. He credits the Wildcats clean bill of health to preseason workouts. "Better conditioning also helps you recover faster. Having shorter practices keeps you fresher. It helps to throw in a dash of luck," Morriss told the Lexington Herald-Leader.

[KY Kid]

LSU
The Tigers, following their opening loss to Virginia Tech and less-than-stellar win over The Citadel, sit at 1-1 with Miami (Ohio) coming to Baton Rouge Saturday. "We obviously didn't always get the execution exactly like we wanted it and that is something that we definitely need to work on and need to improve on," head coach Nick Saban said...Saban, who has coached and played in the Mid-American Conference, told the media at his weekly press conference Monday not to underestimate Miami, which beat North Carolina last week...Center Ben Wilkerson is day-to-day with an injury, while TE Eric Edwards is doubtful.

MISSISSIPPI STATE
Bulldogs' QB Kevin Fant answered questions Monday about his tire purchase and subsequent suspension for the Oregon game, saying he regretted hurting his team and wasn't aware that his purchase violated NCAA rules...This weekend's game against Jacksonville State is the first time the Bulldogs have played a I-AA opponent in four years...State coach Jackie Sherrill used last Saturday's open date wisely, as he prepped for JSU and Auburn. Auburn will visit Starkville for a ESPN-televised Thursday night game next week, giving the Bulldogs two less days to prepare for the Tigers.

OLE MISS
Injured LB Eddie Strong and C Ben Claxton were on the practice field for the Rebels Tuesday. Claxton took snaps with the second team unit, while Strong wore a yellow jersey and took limited action with the second and third team defenses. Strong led the way in his running group in post-practice conditioning. Ole Miss head coach David Cutcliffe has hinted that Claxton will play at Texas Tech Saturday, but Strong might not...Ole Miss will leave Thursday for Lubbock, and will have one walk-through on the turf of Jones SBC Stadium prior to Saturday's 2:30 p.m. kickoff...It's the only game of the season that the Rebels will play on artificial turf.

SOUTH CAROLINA
CB Andrea Gause (knee) may not play in Saturday's game. WR James Adkisson (knee) and LB Rod Thomas (ankle) are both out for the weekend...USC coach Lou Holtz is concerned that his scout team might not properly prepare his Gamecocks for Georgia's blazing speed. "They've got tremendous speed at all of their skill positions," said Holtz. "Their wide receivers and return men are outstanding."...Holtz also said he has confidence that QB Corey Jenkins will recover from last weekend's four turnover performance.

TENNESSEE
The Vols now take the weekend off after beating Middle Tennessee to prepare for Florida's visit to Shields-Watkins Field/Neyland Stadium Sept. 21... WR Kelley Washington swears he'll be back when the Gators and Vols tangle. "Starting (next) Monday, I'll be back out there full speed," Washington told The Tennessean...With the win Saturday, Phil Fulmer passed UT's Robert Neyland as the SEC's all-time winningest coach by percentage. His 97-20 (.82905) mark is fractions better than Neyland's 173-31-2 (.8287) record.

VANDERBILT
The Commodores haven't won in Auburn since 1948, probably before most of the current players' fathers were even born...The Dores have been on both ends of the blowouts in the past two weeks, losing 45-3 at Georgia Tech and then creaming Furman 49-18 last week...Jay Cutler, who accounted for five touchdowns and 322 yards of total offense against Furman, says Auburn is the litmus test. "We bounced back pretty well, but the true test will come against Auburn," Cutler said. "That's going to tell us where we're at and if we've made some strides since the Georgia Tech game or not."


www.collegefootballnews.com/2002/News/sec_news.htm

[Administrator]

I just love it when journalists start their pieces with phrases like, "Good Gosh!."

That tells you that we're suprising alot of people.


We shook up the world!!!
We shook up the world!!!