bullwark

More importantly than $, GET WELL HIXON!

1. e-Decathalon 2. Band of Brothers 3. a. Brett Favre b. Jim Edmonds and Barry Bonds-Tie c. Shaq and Kobe- Tie 4. Paul Oakenfold-Creamfields 5. Sex and Sleep

USF 16-13 191 Green

bulls96go or they will never pay high dollar for a coach again!

Losing skid to Miami ends By Bill Koch Enquirer staff writer The University of Cincinnati Bearcats, after playing it close to the vest in their season-opening loss to Ohio State, unleashed a potent offense Saturday night and blitzed archrival Miami , 45-26, before 30,368 fans at Nippert Stadium. Doug Jones celebrates with teammate Richard Hall (24) after Hall's 2nd quarter touchdown. (Enquirer photo/JEFF SWINGER) Led by senior running back Richard Hall, who rushed for a career-high 238 yards on 14 carries and scored three touchdowns, the Bearcats rolled up 599 yards of offense. "I just felt like they couldn't stop me, like they couldn't stop our offense," said Hall, who gained 161 yards last year against Miami. "Our offensive line did a great job. I didn't even have to make moves sometimes. It was just like a sprint." The victory enabled the Bearcats to reclaim the Victory Bell after three straight losses to the RedHawks and gave Mark Dantonio his first victory as a head coach. "We focused on this game and our guys came ready to play," Dantonio said. "I'm shocked," said Miami coach Terry Hoeppner. "I didn't think we could play this poorly. I thought our coaching staff did a great job. UC was just one step ahead of us all night. They outcoached and outplayed us in almost every phase of the game." UC (1-1) had lost four straight dating back to last season. Miami fell to 1-2. Hall's 70-yard touchdown less than five minutes into the first quarter gave UC a 7-0 lead and made a statement about the Bearcats' ability to handle the RedHawks up front. "That jump-started our offense," Dantonio said. "It showed our offense that we could run the ball against a good football team. That set the tone." Miami entered the game having allowed only 239 yards per game, just 79.5 yards rushing. The Bearcats rushed for 341 yards on 43 carries. UC dominated up front on defense, as well, limiting Miami to just 37 rushing yards on 24 attempts. The RedHawks managed 453 yards offensively, with quarterback Josh Betts throwing for 416. "We went in focused on shutting down their running game," said UC defensive tackle Mike Wright. "We were confident that if we did, everything would fall into place." After Hall's first touchdown run, Miami came right back to tie the game at 7-7 on a 67-yard drive, with Betts hitting Ryne Robinson on a 25-yard touchdown pass. UC regained the lead on a 69-yard touchdown pass from quarteRback Gino Guidugli to wide receiver Hannibal Thomas with 1:26 left in the first quarter. Thomas would finish with five catches for 175 yards. Guidugli, who struggled last week against Ohio State in the Bearcats' buttoned-down offense, was on target all night. He was 12-for-23 for 258 yards, two touchdowns and was intercepted once. "Richard was running that thing all night," said Guidugli, who secured his first win over Miami in four starts. "That helps a lot when you can run the ball on any given down. That's a tribute to our offensive line. They were blocking their tails off. I don't think I got hit all night." Trailing 32-13 at halftime, Miami drove 79 yards on nine plays to start the third quarter, scoring on a 23-yard pass from Betts to Ryne Robinson to close the lead to 32-20. But the Bearcats needed just seven plays to go 81 yards, with Hall going in for his third touchdown from four yards out to spread the lead to 38-20. The Bearcats led, 45-20, before a 70-yard touchdown pass from Betts to Josh Williams with 10:08 left in the fourth quarter. "It's critical for everybody who ever wore a UC helmet to beat Miami," Dantonio. "It's critical." Miami (Ohio)-Cincinnati, Stats Miami (Ohio) 7 6 7 6-26 Cincinnati 14 18 6 7-45 First Quarter Cin-Hall 70 run (Lovell kick), 10:45. Mia-Robinson 25 pass from Betts (Parseghian kick), 7:42. Cin-Thomas 69 pass from Guidugli (Lovell kick). Second Quarter Cin-FG Lovell 33, 11:40. Mia-Larkin 1 pass from Betts (kick blocked), 7:11. Cin-Holly returned blocked extra point, 7:11. Cin-Ross 42 pass from Guidugli (Lovell kick), 4:40. Cin-Hall 1 run (kick failed), :38. Third Quarter Mia-Robinson 23 pass from Betts (Soderquist kick), 10:23. Cin-Hall 4 run (run failed), 7:04. Fourth Quarter Cin-Guidugli 1 run (Lovell kick), 10:49. Mia-Williams 79 pass from Betts, 10:08. A-30,368. Mia Cin First downs 23 19 Rushes-yards 24-37 43-341 Passing 416 258 Comp-Att-Int 26-43-0 12-23-1 Return Yards 0 9 Punts-Avg. 5-42.4 3-36.7 Fumbles-Lost 1-1 2-1 Penalties-Yards 6-40 9-66 Time of Possession 27:51 32:09 INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING-Miami (Ohio), Betts 7-32, Smith 12-12, Clemesn 4-7, Robinson 1-(minus 14). Cincinnati, Hall 14-238, Benton 10-42, Jones 2-16, Glatthaar 4-14, Carpenter 2-13, Daniels 6-11, Thomas 1-10, Guidugli 3-2, Murray 1-(minus 5). PASSING-Miami (Ohio), Betts 26-43-0-416. Cincinnati, Guidugli 12-23-1-258. RECEIVING-Miami (Ohio), Nance 6-85, Robinson 6-83, Williams 3-120, Tyler 3-52, Corbin 3-31, Larkin 2-27, Clemens 2-13, Kirkpatrick 1-5. Cincinnati, Thomas 5-175, Murray 2-16, Ross 1-42, Celek 1-10, Lucius 1-9, Hall 1-3, Daniels 1-3.

Thanks P.P. ;D

Murray, Guidugli click in practice While there's no question who will be throwing passes for the University of Cincinnati football team this fall, the players on the receiving end is another story. Former quarterback George Murray helped solidify his spot as Gino Guidugli's top target, catching six passes for 102 yards in the Bearcats intrasquad scrimmage Friday at the Higher Ground Conference and Retreat Center in West Harrison, Ind. Despite battling the rain, Guidugli threw for 210 yards and three touchdowns, including a 48-yard score to Murray. Sophomore receiver Mike Daniels ran for a touchdown and threw for another. ENZOR ON LIST -- Bearcat senior middle linebacker Jamar Enzor was included on the watch list for the Butkus Award, which honors college football's best linebacker. Enzor led the Bearcats with 137 total tackles last season. BEARCAT KINGS -- Following Sunday's practice at Higher Ground, the Bearcats will appear at Paramount Kings Island in Mason. Players, along with cheerleaders and the Bearcat, will be stationed at four locations at the park between 1 and 3 p.m. to sign autographs and take photos with fans.

Next year the landscape in college football will be drastically different. Many conferences will be adding and subtracting teams, the most notable being the Atlantic Coast and Big East. Here's a breakdown of how the major Division I-A conferences look this year and how they will be aligned next year. In some cases, conferences are unchanged. 2004 2005 Atlantic Coast Clemson North Carolina Division A Division B Duke N.C. State Boston College Duke Florida State Virginia Clemson Georgia Tech Georgia Tech Virginia Tech Florida State Miami Maryland Wake Forest Maryland North Carolina Miami N.C. State Virginia Wake Forest Virginia Tech Big East Boston College Syracuse Cincinnati Rutgers Connecticut Temple Connecticut South Florida Pittsburgh West Virginia Louisville Syracuse Rutgers Pittsburgh West Virginia Big Ten Illinois Northwestern Illinois Northwestern Indiana Ohio State Indiana Ohio State Iowa Penn State Iowa Penn State Michigan Purdue Michigan Purdue Michigan State Wisconsin Michigan State Wisconsin Minnesota Minnesota Big 12 North South North South Colorado Baylor Colorado Baylor Iowa State Oklahoma Iowa State Oklahoma Kansas Oklahoma St. Kansas Oklahoma St. Kansas State Texas Kansas State Texas Missouri Texas A&M Missouri Texas A&M Nebraska Texas Tech Nebraska Texas Tech Conference USA Army Southern Miss Central Florida Houston Cincinnati South Florida East Carolina Rice East Carolina Texas Christian Marshall SMU Houston Tulane Memphis Texas-El Paso Louisville UAB Southern Miss Tulane Memphis UAB Tulsa Mid-American East West East West Akron Ball State Akron Ball State Buffalo Bowling Green Buffalo Bowling Green Central Florida Central Mich. Kent State Central Michigan Kent State Eastern Mich. Miami, Ohio Eastern Michigan Marshall Northern Ill. Ohio Northern Illinois Miami, Ohio Toledo Toledo Western Michigan Ohio Western Mich. >Mountain West Air Force New Mexico Air Force New Mexico Brigham Young San Diego St. Brigham Young San Diego State Colorado State Utah Colorado State Texas Christian UNLV Wyoming UNLV Utah Wyoming Pacific-10 Arizona Southern Cal Arizona Southern Cal Arizona State Stanford Arizona State Stanford California UCLA California UCLA Oregon Washington Oregon Washington Oregon State Washington St. Oregon State Washington St. Southeastern East West East West Florida Alabama Florida Alabama Georgia Arkansas Georgia Arkansas Kentucky Auburn Kentucky Auburn South Carolina LSU South Carolina Louisiana State Tennessee Mississippi Tennessee Mississippi Vanderbilt Mississippi St. Vanderbilt Mississippi St. Sun Belt Arkansas State New Mexico St. Arkansas State Middle Tennessee Idaho North Texas Florida Atlantic North Texas La.-Lafayette Troy State La.-Lafayette Troy State La.-Monroe Utah State La.-Monroe Middle Tennessee Western Athletic Boise State Rice Boise State Nevada Fresno State San Jose St. Fresno State New Mexico State Hawaii SMU Hawaii San Jose State Louisiana Tech Texas-El Paso Idaho Utah State Nevada Tulsa Louisiana Tech Independents Navy Notre Dame Army Notre Dame Navy Temple BCS Affliation: Champions of Atlantic Coast, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, Pacific-10 and Southeastern conferences qualify automatically for the Bowl Championship Series. Two additional berths go to at-large entries; a team outside those six conferences must be considered if it finishes in the top 12 of the ratings and must be chosen if it finishes in the top six. Notre Dame is guaranteed a spot if it wins at least nine games or finishes in the BCS top 10.

Someone else has also recommended moving the HS reviews to another board, and I concur. I would prefer to keep this board focused on USF related matters.

Former University of Louisville tight end Wayne Riles said yesterday that he left the football team to move closer to his Albany, Ga., home, but also to get out of what he called "a bad situation, the way the coaching staff ran things." Riles, a sophomore who was listed at the top of the Cardinals' depth chart heading into preseason workouts, would not elaborate on what he meant by the reference to the coaches. He quit the team less than two weeks before workouts began. In an interview with The Courier-Journal last night, he cited a desire to move back home and unhappiness with the situation at UofL, as well as concern that he wasn't ready to come back from off-season shoulder surgery. "The main thing was just getting back home, being close to my family," he said. "I was really unhappy up there, and I felt it was affecting the way I played." Head coach Bobby Petrino declined to be interviewed in response to Riles' statements, but he issued a statement through the UofL sports information office in which he said: "It's unfortunate Wayne didn't come back. He had a bright future ahead of him. He would have been very successful here at the University of Louisville." Riles first expressed dissatisfaction with the coaches in a story posted on The Albany (Ga.) Herald Web site, saying, "They weren't going about things the right way." He acknowledged making those comments last night, but when asked to be more specific, he said: "A bunch of people from our class have left. I don't know exactly what it was, but evidently it was something if all these people keep leaving. "I really don't want to comment on that because coach Petrino was nice to me. He gave me an opportunity to play football, and I appreciate him for that. I've caused him enough trouble. Hopefully, things will change and people will start liking it and start to stay." Riles is the fifth scholarship player in Petrino's initial 24-man recruiting class to leave the team. Quarterback Eddie Miller transferred to UCLA after Trinity quarterback Brian Brohm signed. Tight end Thomas Boyce left after spring practice, and twins Eric and Thomas Miller went home after both suffered injuries in spring practice. Riles said he obtained his release from the UofL compliance office Monday after Petrino initially told him he wouldn't grant it. In denying him the release, Riles said, Petrino told him: "I want you to learn your lesson from this. I feel like you're making a bad decision. It's a part of life; we all make bad decisions. I just want you to learn your lesson." Petrino said through the sports information office last night that his intent wasn't to punish Riles but to follow NCAA transfer guidelines, which require a player to sit out one season without receiving scholarship money unless granted a release by the school he left. With a release, Riles will be allowed to enroll at another school  likely to be Georgia Tech  on scholarship and attend classes this year before playing next season. Riles added last night that he was satisfied with the medical treatment and training advice he received at UofL. Though he said he would have felt pressure to play while not at 100percent, he added, "I'm sure (team doctors) would have gone about it the right way." Wayne Riles Sr. said he spoke with a "very upset" Petrino twice Friday before calling the compliance office himself on Monday to facilitate his son's release. "I didn't blame coach Petrino for being upset," the father said. "This was bad timing, and we told Wayne it was bad timing. But he was unhappy, and whatever he decided to do we were going to support him. "Coach Petrino was telling me it was devastating to his program, especially on such short notice. And I said, `I agree with you, Coach, but I've got to support my son.'"

With an offense that could become one of the nation's best, University of Louisville football coach Bobby Petrino knows that one of the biggest obstacles between his team and a special season could be its development on defense. Offense is Petrino's specialty. Always will be. He admits that, even embraces it, heading into his second season  which kicked off with the first practice yesterday. But during the off-season, he reached out to embrace his defensive players even more than he did a year ago. He isn't likely to morph into a defensive guru, but neither is he willing to suffer the fate of the University of Kentucky's offense-only Hal Mumme, whose lack of interest in defense had a detrimental effect on that side of the ball. "What you'd like to see (the players) do is take your personality as a coach and play that way," Petrino said. "We've done a good job of that here offensively. Now we've got to do a better job of it defensively." Although he isn't drawing up defensive schemes, Petrino has worked to let his defensive players know that he's there. "Oh yeah, we know he's watching," senior safety Kerry Rhodes said. "Coach Petrino is a great offensive coach, but he's also a great football coach. He has a certain way he wants us to play. And that's the biggest thing he wants to see from us. He wants us fast, smart, hard-nosed and aggressive." Rhodes, like most of his defensive teammates, can rattle off an ugly string of numbers from last season. An average of 40.4 points surrendered over the season's final five games. Ranking last in Conference USA and 14th from the bottom nationally in passing defense at 258.3 yards per game. Failing to stop opponents from scoring 39 times in 49 possessions inside UofL's 20-yard line. Giving up 361 points, the fourth-highest total in school history. "We're real tired of hearing them, to tell you the truth," Rhodes said. "But they are what they are. We gave them up, so now the only thing to do about it is go out on the field and prove we're better." But Petrino said the numbers don't tell the whole story. The U of L defense was a sieve in the first half of the Cards' GMAC Bowl loss to Miami of Ohio, but the Cards trailed by only a touchdown going into the fourth quarter. The Cards gave up 45 points to a Houston team that was one of the nation's better offensive units but yielded only 14 second-half points. In a 31-28 loss at Texas Christian, the defense gave up just 10 second-half points. "I think we're better than the numbers looked," Petrino said. "You look at it and see the strengths that we have, and we have to utilize those. We're going to be a fast defense, and we've got to run to the ball. And we have to develop an attitude that we can go three-and-out and get the offense the ball back." Petrino said his main goal is to instill a winning attitude within each unit of his team. "It's real important as a head coach that you develop that relationship with all the players," he said. "Our defensive players know that when we go out on the practice field, I'm going to spend the majority of my time over on the offense and working with that. That's something I don't want to take away from. And yet I know I need to be a presence over on defense to help that develop and improve." Notes Sophomore Michael Bush saw action at five positions during yesterday's opening practice  tailback, fullback, wide receiver, safety and outside linebacker. Three freshman signees did not report. Bobby Buchanan, a defensive back and younger brother of former U of L star Ray Buchanan, is expected to wait until spring to enroll. Offensive lineman Josh Waller and defensive end Anthony Douglas also were absent, and their status is uncertain. Petrino thought quarterbacks Stefan LeFors, a senior, and Brian Brohm, a freshman, were a bit out of sync but said that's not unusual for the first day. "Our defense was playing a lot of tight press coverage, and normally on the first day you come and try to make things easy," Petrino said. "But we actually are trying to make them a little more difficult on the quarterbacks."

Fresh start excites 'Cats -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Eager players prepare to impress new coach By Bill Koch Enquirer staff writer As the players filed into the University of Cincinnati football offices Tuesday afternoon to report for their first fall camp under Mark Dantonio, the new UC coach admitted to a few butterflies. "You want to make sure everything is ready," he said. "I'm sure there's something that didn't get done that we'll have to adjust on the move. But, yeah, I've got a little anxiety. You want everything to go smoothly." Dantonio, who replaces Rick Minter, was to meet with the entire team at 7:30 p.m., but he planned no first-day pep talk. "I think they'll be pretty wired," he said. "They normally are." Instead, the day was devoted to procedural matters such as physicals, equipment, team policies and the like. The real fun begins this morning when the players go through what Dantonio calls an interval test to see what kind shape they're in. The Bearcats, who open their regular season on Sept. 4 at Ohio State, will conduct their first practice this afternoon. Nine starters on offense and seven on defense return from last year's team that finished 5-7. "This is game time tomorrow morning," Dantonio said of the interval test. "Don't tell me you're going to play well against Ohio State if you can't do this." Everyone showed up except for former basketball player Kareem Johnson, who worked out during spring practice as a defensive end. Johnson still wants to play football, but NCAA rules say the Bearcats must count him as one of their 85 scholarship players. Dantonio had hoped to use Johnson, who completed his basketball eligibility last year, as a walk-on. "We talked to him (Monday)," Dantonio said. "He hasn't played football since the ninth grade. Right now, he's too far away. We were going to give him two weeks to see if he would be in the two deep, but they won't let us do that. If he comes in on day one, he counts and that takes away an opportunity for somebody else." Senior defensive tackle Mike Wright talked with the enthusiasm you'd expect from a player inspired by a new coaching regime and a fresh start for the program. "Everybody's excited," he said. "Before the guys kind of dreaded going to practice. Now I think the guys actually enjoy going to practice. "You can work for two hours and have a good time and get the work done and get out of there. Before, with Minter, it was 3 1/2 hours. You were dreading practice, pacing yourself and you were wanting to get out. "I told coach Dantonio that this is what I envisioned a college football program to be, with the coaches caring for you. It's just a better atmosphere." Not much is expected of this team, which has been picked to finish eighth in its final Conference USA season by the league's coaches. But the players aren't listening to that. "Coach is going to do us right," said defensive end Trent Cole. "These coaches are players' coaches. They're all for the players. I think we'll have a fun year."

Brian Steele, a punter from Scottsdale (Ariz.) Community College, has signed a scholarship letter with the University of Cincinnati and will join the Bearcat team this fall. Steele averaged over 40 yards per punt while sharing the role with Michigan State signee John Goss at Scottsdale in 2003. Steele was the team¹s specialist newcomer of the year. He also was named one of the top four freshman participants at the Arizona Combine, a junior college showcase held this spring. Steele, who will be a sophomore in terms of eligibility at UC, was a first team all-conference tight end as a senior at Southside High in Elmire, N.Y. He moved to Payson, Ariz. following graduation, where he met former New England Patriots kicker Shawn McCarthy, who encouraged him to try punting in junior college.

Head coach Mark Dantonio's first University of Cincinnati football team has been picked to finish eighth in the 11-team Conference USA despite the presence of four players on the preseason all-conference team. The Bearcats, coming off a 5-7 season and a ninth-place C-USA finish, placed offensive lineman Kyle Takavitz, defensive ends Trent Cole and Andre Frazier, and cornerback Daven Holly on the all-conference first team. Only Texas Christian, with five, placed more players on the all-conference team. Louisville was picked to win the league title, followed by Memphis, defending champion Southern Miss and TCU. The voting was done by the league's coaches. This is UC's final season in Conference USA before moving to the Big East. The Bearcats report for practice Aug. 10. They open their season Sept. 4 at Ohio State. Bill Koch

Hey pull my finger!

Yankees bullpen is wearing down, look at their closer-two blown saves in a row-its an omen! Georgie better go out and buy some more arms or they will fade down the stretch! An unbiased third party assessment-I have my own problems as a Reds fan!

Imagine if USF had started a football program twenty years ago!

Smazza I think you will see a better conditioned team due to the new facility.

The Devil Rays winning ways is amazing, they may not be able to sustain their winning ways because of thin starting pitching, however, it has been a helluva ride so far and a great building block for the future.