SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2010
KLMNO
COLLEGE FOOTBALL 4
STAROFTHEDAY RussellWilson, N.C. State
Field goals missed by Alabama- Birmingham place kicker Josh Zahn in the Blazers’ 32-29, double- overtime loss to Tennessee. Zahn missed from 30, 35, 41 and 49 yards.
252
Consecutive extra points converted by Missouri’s place kickers, a streak that ended during the Tigers’ 51-13 win over Miami (Ohio). Syracuse holds the record of 262 from 1978 to 1989.
The fourth-year junior quarterback, who was drafted in the fourth round of this year’s Major League baseball draft by the Colorado Rockies, threw for a career-high 368 yards and three touchdowns while also rushing for a touchdown in theWolfpack’s 45-28 win over Georgia Tech. After the Yellow Jackets pulled to 31-28 early in the fourth quarter,Wilson led North Carolina State to two scoring drives to put away the win and give the 4-0 Wolfpack its best start since 2002.
Saturday Season
Terrelle Pryor, QB, Ohio State Saturday Season
Ryan Mallett, QB, Arkansas Saturday Season
Kellen Moore, QB, Boise State Saturday Season
EZ SU
D11
HEISMANWATCH Denard Robinson, QB, Michigan
COMP. 4
57
COMP. 20 71
COMP. 25
COMP. Late 43
ATT. YARDS 4
60
80 731 ATT. YARDS
26 224 107 939
ATT. YARDS 38 359
95 138 1,440 ATT. YARDS
— — 68 585
TD 0 4
TD 4
10 TD
1
10 TD
— 5
INT 0 1
INT 0 2
INT 3 5
INT — 1
“Hopefully, we didn’t make him too nervous.”
Don Treadwell, Michigan State interim coach, who was at the helm for the Spartans’ 45-7 win over Northern Colorado while Coach Mark Dantonio recovers from a heart attack. Treadwell also said he wanted to ask Dantonio’s wife, Becky, how much of the game she allowed her husband to watch.
U-Va.’s backup QBs get aworkout inwin Metheny, Rocco take
VIRGINIA
first college game snaps as Cavs cruise past VMI
BY STEVE YANDA ELSA/GETTY IMAGES Virginia Tech’s JayronHosley (20) intercepts a pass in the end zone that was intended for Boston College tight end Chris Pantale.
Hokies put a stop to Eagles 19 0
QB Shinskie to bench for 2nd straight year
Defense forces BY MARK GIANNOTTO
chestnut hill, mass. — Bud Foster wasn’t ready to compare his charges to the units that have been among the nation’s best during his 15 years as Virginia Tech’s defensive coordinator. But judging from the smile on his face after theHokiesposted their first shutout since 2006 with a 19-0 win over Boston College on Saturday, this year’s version of the Virginia Tech defense is on the right track. It was the first time since Oct.
8, 1998, that the Eagles were unable to score a point, a span of 148 games. Coincidentally, a Fos- ter-led VirginiaTechdefensewas theopponentonthatday, as well. “Obviously, this has to be a
confidence boost,” said Foster, who was quick to point out that theHokies had at least one shut- out per season between 1995 and 2006. “We’re making steps . . . [but] we’ve got a long way to go to where you know how they’re gonnaplaywhenyouwalkonthe field.” Any uncertainty, though,
didn’t stop Virginia Tech from forcing Boston College quarter- back Dave Shinskie to the bench for a second straight year. A year after completing just one pass in a 48-14 Virginia Tech blowout, Shinskie had three turnovers (two interceptions and one fum- ble) and completed just 11 of 25 passes before being pulled in favor of backupMikeMarscove-
VA. TECH BC
turned out to be Virginia Tech’s lone touchdown of the game. Then, with 15 seconds left be-
tra in the third quarter. In particular, Virginia Tech’s
front seven proved up to the task against a stout Boston College offensive line. The Hokies never let Shinskie or Marscovetra get comfortable in the pocket, fin- ishing with six sacks and 11 tack- les for a loss. But early on, it was timely
plays, not any sort of dominance, that helped the Hokies preserve their shutout. On Boston College’s second
drive of the game, junior run- ning back Montel Harris (111 rushing yards) led the Eagles into the red zone before Shinskie made his first mistake of the afternoon. On third and goal, he tele-
graphed a pass to tight endChris Pantale and cornerback Jayron Hosley jumped the route for an interception in the end zone. It was a welcome development for the sophomore, who was sus- pended for last week’s win over East Carolina after violating team policy. “On film, you see that [Shin-
skie] folds a little bit under pres- sure,” Hosley said. “We were waiting on edge for those big- time plays to happen, and they did.” The Hokies’ offense respond-
ed with a nine-play, 80-yard drive that was capped by a three- yard touchdown run by running back Darren Evans to begin the second quarter. Evans had a 30- yard catch on the play prior to the score,getting himselfopenin the flat on a broken play. It
fore halftime, the Hokies’ de- fense again proved resilient. Shinskie had driven Boston Col- lege to the Virginia Tech 11-yard line after the Hokies extended the drive with a roughing-the- kicker penalty on senior Zach Luckett and a pass interference call on freshman Antone Exum two plays later. But instead of throwing a
pass, Shinskie chose to scramble and was tackled inbounds at the 1-yard line by Virginia Tech’s Davon Morgan as time expired. The Hokies entered the locker room with a 7-0 lead, despite allowing the Eagles to gain 211 yards. That, though, would be the
Eagles’ last serious threat of the game. Virginia Tech’s defense forced turnovers on Boston Col- lege’s first two drives of the sec- ond half, and once linebacker Jeron Gouveia-Winslow got his first interception of the year, Shinskie headed to the bench for good. If not for theHokies’ struggles
on offense, Virginia Tech’s ACC opener would have been out of reach much sooner. Despite some great field position thanks to those turnovers, the Hokies couldmuster just four field goals from place kicker Chris Hazley after halftime. “I’d much rather kick four
extra points any day,” Hazley joked. For the third time in four
games, theHokies’ offensive line struggled to create consistent running lanes, especially in the red zone. Evans and sophomore David Wilson combined for 107
charlottesville — The topic had come up among Virginia’s offensive coaches sporadically throughout the offseason, fre- quently during training camp andseveral times aweeksince the season began, but at no point was it more pertinent than in the past five days: Which inexperienced backup quarterback would re- place fifth-year seniorMarc Veri- ca if circumstances necessitated such a move? By halftime Saturday at Scott Stadium, the time for a decision was upon first-year Coach Mike London and his staff. Virginia (2-1) had proven during the first half that it was far superior to its opponent, division I-AA Virginia Military Institute, and the final outcome — which turned out to be a 48-7 Cavaliers victory — was no longer in doubt. In three quar- ters of play, Verica threw for 224 yards and three touchdowns. Redshirt freshman RossMeth-
yards rushing with sophomore Ryan Williams out because of a hamstring injury, but 25 of those came on one run by Wilson late in the fourth quarter as theHok- ies were icing the clock. Aside from a 59-yard comple-
tion from quarterback Tyrod Taylor (16 of 21 for 237 yards and one interception) to wide receiv- er Danny Coale on the third play of the second half, the Hokies gained just62yardscombinedin the second and third quarters. “It’s kind of a slap in the face”
to the defense, Evans said. “They work hard to get the ball for us down there and then we don’t get anything but three points.” But any offensive woes were a
moot point with a defense that only seemed to get stronger as thegamewent along.Using mul- tiple formations, Virginia Tech allowed just 38 yards after half- time, the second straight week it has held an opponent to less than100yardsin thesecondhalf. Foster said afterward that he
was proud of his defensive play- ers after challenging them dur- ing the week to “be ready to hit people in the mouth play after play after play.” Sowhenthe final whistle blew
and the Hokies could bask in their first shutout in almost four years, they did so knowing a disastrous 0-2 start to this sea- son is finally in their rearview mirror courtesy of an emerging defense. “There’s still the question
mark:How are these guys gonna respond to this success?” Foster cautioned. “But I think if I know this group and I know our lead- ership, we’ll take a big step for- ward.Thiswasabiggamefor us.”
giannottom@washpost.com
Bruins enjoy another rout over host Longhorns 34 12
BY JIM VERTUNO
austin — Johnathan Franklin rushed for 118 yards and a touch- down Saturday and UCLA stunnedNo. 7 Texas, 34-12, on its home field again. Thirteen years after the Bru-
ins walloped the Longhorns, 66-3, in the same stadium,UCLA sent Texas fans heading to the exits early by forcing four first- half turnovers, then letting its grinding ground game chew up
UCLA TEXAS
ford, the Bruins have consecu- tive wins over Top 25 opponents. Texas (3-1) lost its first home
the second. The Bruins (2-2) ran for 264 of
their 291 total yards. Quarter- back Kevin Prince’s 38-yard touchdown run in the third quarter put the game away against a Texas offense that mis- fired all afternoon. After starting 0-2, including a 35-0 loss to Pacific-10 rival Stan-
game since 2007 against Kansas State and scored its fewest points athomesince a 12-7 loss to Texas A&M in 2006. The Long- horns’ running game continues to go nowhere and the passing game stalled. Texas fans looking forpayback
for the “Rout 66” game in 1997 never got even a glimpse of re- venge in this one. When it was over and most of
eny and true freshman Michael Rocco — who have been listed as interchangeable on the team’s depth chart at backup quarter- back since Week 1 — were Lon- don’s choices, and given his re- peatedly stated preference for redshirting as many true fresh- menas possible,Methenyseemed to be the fitting option. But after Virginia’s first offen-
sive series of the third quarter, offensive coordinator Bill Lazor pulled Metheny and Rocco aside along the sideline and delivered the verdict: Both quarterbacks would play in the second half. “Certainly, Coach London’s thoughts and his say is the right say, and he did the right thing today,” Lazor said afterward. “Be- cause as a team you’ve got to be prepared, if your starting quar- terback gets hurt, to be able to put the next best guy who can play into the game.” The decision provided a clear
short-term benefit — experience for two backups who previously had none at the collegiate level. The long-term ramifications re- main to be seen. For now, both of Virginia’s re-
serve quarterbacks have gained a sample size — albeit small — of live game snaps from which they can be evaluated. London said part of his decision to playMethe- ny and Rocco stemmed from the fact that “there wasn’t a clear-cut guy over the next guy.” “The next best thing was to put
them in a venue, put them in a game and see how they managed the game,” London continued. “See how—outside of practice—
VMI 48 7
you put yourself in a game and make the calls and see if you’re affected or distracted by any- thing.We wanted to do that. That was the plan.” Metheny entered the game
first, taking over a Virginia of- fense that compiled 466 yards of offense on the day during the second series of the third quarter. He completed 4 of 5 passes for 53 yards and a touchdown.Metheny said feeling the threat of being hit for the first time in two years felt invigorating. “It was good to get out there
and still be productive and put points on the board,” Metheny said.
Rocco’s turn began on Virgin-
ia’s first offensive series of the fourth quarter. His first drive ended in what he called a mis- communication with his wide re- ceivers that led to an interception in which no Cavaliers target was in the vicinity of the ball. On the next drive, Rocco re- sponded with a 17-yard touch- down pass to sophomore tight end Colter Phillips. He finished with 64 yards on 4-of-6 passing. Rocco said he had been prepar-
ing to play this season since he arrived on campus this summer and that he had no issue with burning his redshirt. Had Rocco not played this season, he would have had four years of eligibility remaining at a program coming off a 3-9 season and in the midst of reconstruction. “Whenthey putmein, I had no
reservations to say, ‘No, I want to keepmy redshirt,’ ” Rocco said. “I mean, it wasn’t my decision re- gardless, but I felt they made the right decision, and I’mhappy that I got to play and got some experi- ence.” The two backup quarterbacks
weren’t the only Virginia players to see extended playing time against VMI. Junior wide receiver Jared Green caught four passes for a career-high 63 yards and a touchdown, while junior wideout Matt Snyder tallied three recep- tions for 45 yards. With Virginia set to begin its
ACCslatenextweekagainst Flori- da State, London took comfort in knowing that if an unenviable situation arose and the team needed to turn to Verica’s succes- sor, his options now include play- ers who have taken live snaps in a college game. And that will have to do fornow, since the identity of that successor remains amystery. “It may be that way for the rest
of the season,” London said. “One of them may emerge and become the solid number two, but right now the evaluation process is on for both of them.”
yandas@washpost.com
the Longhorns fans had left the stadium, Bruins players rushed to the corner dominated by fans wearing UCLA blue. Many of them had come down to the front rail where Franklin danced and exchanged high fives amid the chants of “U-C-L-A.” That came after Texas fans
booed throughout much of the second half. Texas has one week to pick itself up for next Satur- day’s rivalry showdown withNo. 8 Oklahoma in Dallas. —Associated Press
STEVE HELBER/ASSOCIATED PRESS
Dontrelle Inman and Virginia’s offense amassed 466 yards under the guidance of three quarterbacks in their win overVMIon Saturday.
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