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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 3, 2000)
Ranked teams put records on the line Saturday By Richard Rosenblatt The Associated Press Will he or won’t he? Not even Michael Vick knows for sure. A sprained right ankle threatens to keep Virginia Tech’s flashy quar terback on the sideline when the second-ranked Hokies visit No. 3 Miami Saturday in what boils down to a national title elimina tion game. “I think Michael is getting better, but I don’t know if there’s enough time,” Hokies coach Frank Beamer says. “He’s still questionable, and it is going to be a last-minute deci sion.” Although Virginia Tech (8-0, 6-0 Big East) pulled out a 37-34 win over Pittsburgh last week with Dave Meyer replacing Vick for the second half, the Hurricanes (6-1, 3-0) pres ent bigger problems. Miami, the nation’s top scoring team at 45 points per game, knocked off a then-No. 1 Florida State to end a five-game losing streak against the team and would like nothing better than to end a five-game slide against Virginia Tech, which routed the Hurricanes 43-10 in ’99. The winner of this Big East Con ference showdown moves a giant step closer to the Orange Bowl, this year’s site of the Bowl Cham pionship Series’ national title game Jan. 3. The Hokies are second and the Hurricanes fifth in the BCS standings, which determine who plays in the title game based on a formula using polls, computer rankings, schedule strength and wins. Vick, among the top Heisman Trophy contenders, has 1,023 yards and seven TDs passing and 584 yards and eight TDs rushing. The Hokies are fifth in scoring at 42 points per game. The Hurricanes are led by Ken Dorsey, who has thrown for 1,675 yards and 14 TDs, and running backs James Jackson — 185 yards last week — and a healthy Clinton Portis. If Vick plays, he will wear a spe cial brace molded to his foot. “I’m better, but I’m still not able to do what I do,” he says. In Tallahassee, Fla., Bowden Bowl II convenes Saturday night when No. 10 Clemson (8-1, 6-1 ACC) plays No. 4 Florida State (8 1, 6-0) in a game with national title implications only for defending champion Florida State. Tommy Bowden’s Tigers lost their title chance with a 31-28 loss to Georgia Tech last week, a game quarterback Woodrow Dantzler left after reinjuring his left ankle. If Dantzler can’t go, freshman Willie Simmons gets his first start. Sim mons, who passed for 131 yards and ran for 25 against the Yellow Jackets, also replaced Dantzler two weeks ago and matched a school record with four TD passes in a 38-24 win over North Carolina. But Tommy’s Tigers can end Florida State’s bid to repeat and make poppa Bobby Bowden an un happy coach. Last year, Florida State rallied for a 17-14 victory as Bobby Bowden claimed career win No. 300. Florida State, coming off a 58-14 win over North Carolina State, fi nally has a healthy Chris Weinke. Weinke, another top Heisman can didate, has been recovering from a sprained left foot since it was first injured against Maryland on Sept. 28. Despite the injury, Weinke has thrown for 2,969 yards and 23 TDs. Florida State is scoring 43.3 points per game, the Tigers 41.4. Bowl Championship Series Rank Team 1 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14 15. Oklahoma Virginia Tech Florida State Nebraska Miami (FL) Florida Oregon Washington TCU Purdue Oregon State Michigan Gemson Notre Dame Miss. State Poll 1.0 2.0 4.0 5.5 3.0 5.5 7.5 7.5 9.0 12.0 14.0 12.0 10.0 15.5 18.0 Comp 1.00 4.43 2.29 3.00 5.57 4.57 7.57 8.57 10.57 10.71 11.43 15.14 16.43 14.21 15.07 Sked 0.46 0.72 0.64 0.68 0.80 0.26 0.60 0.24 4.44 0.92 1.75 1.44 3.68 0.32 0.16 Loss 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 2 1 2 1 2 2 Total 2.46 7.15 7.93 10.18 10.37 11.35 16.67 17.31 24.01 25.63 28.19 30.58 31.11 32.03 35.23 ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll Record Pts. Pvs. Rank Team 1. Oklahoma 2. Virginia Tech 3. Miami (FL) 4. Florida State 5. Florida 6. Nebraska 7. Washington 8. Oregon 9. TCU 10. Clemson 11. So. Miss 12. Michigan 13. Purdue 14. Oregon State 15. Kansas State 16. Notre Dame 17. Georgia 18. Miss. State 19. Ohio State 20. Texas 21. Colorado State 22. Auburn 23. Northwestern 24. So. Carolina 25. Texas A&M 7- 0 1,470 3 8- 0 1,403 2 6- 1 1,324 5 8-1 1,289 6 7- 1 1,217 7 7-1 1,180 1 7-1 1,076 9 7-1 1,047 10 7- 0 984 11 8- 1 964 4 6-1 805 13 6- 2 779 15 7- 2 777 16 7-1 646 1 7 7-2 590 8 6-2 489 19 6-2 486 12 5- 2 445 21 6- 2 444 13 6- 2 426 20 7- 1 233 24 7-2 222 25 6- 2 201 NR 7- 2 184 18 6-2 151 NR Associated Press Top-25 Record Pts. Pvs. Rank Team 1. Oklahoma 2. Virginia Tech 3. Miami (FL) 4. Florida State 5. Nebraska 6. Florida 7. Oregon 8. Washington 9. TCU 10. Clemson 11. Purdue 12. Michigan 13. So. Miss 14. Oregon State 15. Notre Dame 16. Ohio State 17. Georgia 18. Miss. State 19. Kansas State 20. Texas 21. Northwestern 22. So. Carolina 23. Auburn 24. Texas A&M 25. Georgia Tech 7- 0 1,749 3 8- 0 1,633 2 6- 1 1,602 4 8-1 1,539 6 7- 1 1,425 1 7-1 1,395 8 7-1 1,378 7 7-1 1,262 9 7- 0 1,150 11 8- 1 1,071 5 7-2 1,017 16 6-2 925 15 6- 1 897 14 7- 1 893 18 6-2 674 19 6-2 563 12 6- 2 544 13 5- 2 515 20 7- 2 443 10 6- 2 399 22 6- 2 391 23 7- 2 283 17 7-2 274 25 6-2 240 NR 6-2 178 NR In other games involving top-25 teams, it’s No. 1 Oklahoma at Bay lor; Kansas at No. 5 Nebraska; No. 6 Florida at Vanderbilt; No. 7 Ore gon at Washington State; Arizona at No. 8 Washington; No. 9 TCU at San Jose State; No. 12 Michigan at No. 21 Northwestern; Louisville at No. 13 Southern Mississippi; No. CC I think Michael is getting better, but I don’t know if there’s enough time. He’s still question able, and it is going to be a last-minute decision. Frank Beamer Hokies coach 14 Oregon State at California; Michigan State at No. 16 Ohio State; No. 18 Mississippi State at Kentucky; Iowa State at No. 19 Kansas State; No. 20 Texas at Texas Tech; and No. 24 Texas A&M at Oklahoma State. One of the more intriguing matchups features the nation’s top two rushers — TCU’s LaDainian Tomlinson against San Jose State’s Deonce Whitaker. Tomlinson, who leads the nation with 184.7 yards per game, could have a field day against the Spar tans, ranked 108th of 115 I-A teams in run defense at 220.6 ypg. Whitaker averages 178.7 yards per game for San Jose State (6-3, 4-1 WAC). The Horned Frogs (7-0, 4 0), one of only three remaining un defeated teams, are ninth against the run at 93.1 ypg. Oklahoma (7-0, 4-0 Big 12) plays its first game as the No. 1 team against Baylor, one of the nation’s weaker teams. The Sooners are led by Josh Heupel (2,194 yards, 12 TDs), who threw for 300 yards and a TD in last week’s 31-14 win over Nebraska. The Bears (2-6, 0-5) scored their first points in four games last week — a 48-14 loss to Texas. Nebraska (7-1, 4-1 Big 12), meanwhile, is likely to take out its frustration on Kansas (4-4, 2-3), a team it has beaten 31 years in a row. On Nov. 11, the Huskers are at Kansas State and with a win in Manhattan, coach Frank Solich’s team may find itself back in the na tional title chase — with a rematch against Oklahoma looming in the Big 12 title game on Dec. 2. In another game of note, Alaba ma (3-5, 3-2 SEC) is at LSU (5-3, 3 2). In Mike DuBose’s first game as the Tide’s lame-duck coach, the Tigers will try to end a 15-game winless streak (0-14-1) against Al abama that back to 1969. DuBose will resign at the end of a rocky season, one in which Al abama started out No. 3 in the AP preseason poll but faltered badly, including an embarrassing 40-38 homecoming loss to Central Flori da last Saturday. The Tide need to win their final three games to qual ify for a bowl berth. 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