At least 20 Florida State football players will be suspended from playing against Kentucky in the Dec. 31 Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl, as well as the first three games of the 2008 season, for their roles in an academic cheating scandal involving an Internet-based course, a source with knowledge of the situation said Tuesday morning.
Florida State officials are expected to announce the results of the investigation this week. The source said university officials determined Monday night the exact number of football players who will be suspended. Federal privacy laws prohibit the school from releasing names.
"We have some players not traveling for one reason and some for another, including those who are ineligible for the bowl because of academic issues," coach Bobby Bowden said in a statement released by the university Tuesday.
Including walk-ons, the number of players facing suspension could approach 25. The source said student-athletes in several other sports also were implicated in the cheating scandal.
Florida QB Tim Tebow is the first sophomore to win the Heisman Trophy in the 72 years of the award.
Tebow beat out Arkansas running back Darren McFadden, the first player since 1949 to finish second in consecutive seasons. Tebow received 1,957 points and 462 first-place votes to McFadden's 1,703 points and 291 first-place votes.
Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan was third, and Missouri quarterback Chase Daniel fourth.
A year after Tebow helped Florida win a national title, and in his first season as the Gators' starter, the chiseled 235-pound quarterback in a fullback's body put together a historic campaign. He's the first major college player to run for 20 touchdowns and throw 20 TD passes in the same season.
Tebow's 22 rushing touchdowns are tied for the FBS record for rushing touchdowns in a season by a quarterback.
"When I get back to the University of Florida, we're going to have fun," Tebow said.
The legend of Tebow started at Nease High School in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., where he once finished a game playing on a broken leg.
Homeschooled by missionary parents who run an orphanage in the Philippines, Tebow took advantage of a Florida state law to play
for Nease, about 90 miles from the University of Florida campus.
Tebow has worked and preached at his parents' orphanage since he was 15. He regularly speaks at schools and delivered his message of faith at a prison in Florida earlier this year.
He arrived in Gainesville with superstar status, and Gators fans could hardly wait to see their quarterback of the future.
In a part-time role as a complement to Chris Leak, Tebow played with a fiery passion. He bowled over defenders and bounced around the field, fists pumping and arms waving.
He ran for 469 yards and eight touchdowns as a freshman, throwing only enough to take advantage of defenses stacked to stop him from running.
This season, the Gators became Tebow's team and at times he was a one-man offense.
He completed 68 percent of his attempts for 3,132 yards and 29 touchdowns and continued to run with reckless abandon, even while playing the second half of the season with a very sore shoulder.
Compensating for the Gators' lack of a reliable tailback, Tebow led Florida with 838 yards rushing and set a Southeastern Conference record with 22 touchdowns. With speed and a strong arm to go with his power and grit, Tebow is part throwback to the days of single-wing football and part 21st century prototype for the position.
Exactly 25 years ago today, millions of football fans witnessed "the play", which refers to a last-second kickoff return during a college football game between Cal and Stanford on November 20, 1982.
Given the circumstances and rivalry, the wild game that preceded it, the very unusual way in which The Play unfolded, and its lingering aftermath on players and fans, it is recognized as a highly memorable play in college football history.
After Stanford had taken a 20-19 lead on a field goal with four seconds left in the game, the Golden Bears used five lateral passes on the ensuing kickoff return to score the winning touchdown and earn a 25-20 victory.
Members of the Stanford Band had come onto the field midway through the return, believing that the game was over, which added to the ensuing confusion and folklore.
Navy scored a 46-44 3OT victory over Notre Dame to snap the Fighting Irish's 43-game winning streak against the Midshipmen, the most consecutives victories over one major opponent in NCAA history.
Kaipo-Noa Kaheaku-Enhada threw a 25-yard TD pass to Reggie Campbell on the first play of the third overtime, then found him again for the 2-point conversion.
Notre Dame (1-8) cut the lead to two on a 5-yard TD run by Travis Thomas. But after a pass interference call gave Notre Dame a second chance at the 2-point conversion, defensive lineman Michael Walsh and linebacker Irv Spencer tackled Thomas well short of the end zone on the final play.
For Notre Dame, it was its school-record fifth straight home loss, another low point in a season of lows. Weis said the 43-game winning streak had no meaning to him or the team.
Trinity University's football team scored a game-winning touchdown on the final play to capture a 28-24 victory over Millsaps College on October 27, 2007.
In a play that began on Trinity's 39 yard line with only 2 seconds remaining on the clock, seven different Trinity players touched the ball with a total of 15 laterals. The victory kept Trinity's SCAC title and playoff hopes alive for the 2007 season.
Anything is possible in college football. Something never happens, like a #2 ranked, 41-point favorite team loses at home. Well, it did happen in Coliseum.
Tavita Pritchard threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Mark Bradford on fourth-and-goal with 49 seconds remaining Saturday night, giving the 41-point underdog Cardinal a 24-23 victory over No. 2 Southern California.
The "South Bay Swamp" at The Sports Page is the club's highest attended "Gathering Swamp." On Football game days expect to find 50 to 100 loud and rowdy Gators, and the Swamp Master! The Sports Page has a full bar and food menu, and rebates 10% of all Gator purchases back to the club, so turn in your receipts! These funds are used to support club objectives.
In 2007 The Sports Page installed brand new high tech TV's. They include 7 Samsung 36” LCD's in the main room, along with 2 Panasonic 50” plasmas. They also installed 5 Sony 26” LCD's in the bar area and one in the outside bar area.
In addition, all the DirecTv receivers were upgraded to HD!On Gator Football game days the "South Bay Swamp" has Gator Flags, Gator Fight Songs, Gator Posters, Gator Banners, Gator Heads, Gator Helmets, and loud Gator Cheers! At half time of football games there is a raffle and the grand prize is an annual UF Alumni membership, or something bigger! Raffle tickets are only $1. At the "South Bay Swamp" sometimes you even get free cake.
The Sports Page Address: 1431 Plymouth St. @ Shoreline, Mountain View, CA 94043 Phone: (650) 961-1992
Now everyone knows Mike Gundy is a man, and he is 40.
Gundy, often screaming during a 3½-minute rant that pre-empted any postgame comments about the Cowboys' 49-45 win against Texas Tech, expressed disgust at a column in The Oklahoman suggesting the team's switch to Zac Robinson as the starting quarterback was "less about Robinson's play and more about Reid's attitude."
LSU faked a field goal, with holder/QB Matt Flynn flipping the ball to kicker Colt David, who rushed 15 yards for a TD to put the Tigers up 21-7 at the half.
Bluegrass Miracle again? Not this time. Brohm's last-second desperation attempt was deflected and caught by Harry Douglas at the 10, but the receiver couldn't get into the end zone and time expired.
The "Bluegrass Miracle" refers to one of the most improbable finishes in NCAA college football history. It was a miraculous 74-yard game-winning touchdown pass by the #14 LSU Tigers with no time left on the clock against the Kentucky Wildcats on November 9, 2002 at Commonwealth Stadium in Lexington, Kentucky.
Florida's "blue-out" turned into a blowout, courtesy of Tim Tebow, Percy Harvin and Brandon James.
The Gators dominated Tennessee in every facet of the game, scoring touchdowns on offense, defense and a kickoff return. Florida's defense held the Volunteers to only 37 rushing yards on 21 attempts, and the Vols' defense couldn't slow the Gators.
Dennis Dixon run the Statue of Liberty in the Oregon-Michigan game on September 8, 2007. Not once, but twice.
Statue of Liberty 1
Statue of Liberty 2
Oregon 39, Michigan 7. Another embarrassment for the Wolverines. Another opponent celebrating at the Big House.
A week after getting stunned by Appalachian State, the Wolverines were handed their worst beating since before Bo Schembechler worked the sideline at the Big House.
By the time they saw a blocked field goal in final seconds, this much was certain: The little Mountaineers pulled off one of the greatest upsets in college football history.
That's the beauty of college football.
No Division I-AA team had beaten a team ranked in The Associated Press poll between 1989 and 2006, and it's unlikely that it had ever happened before. The Division I subdivisions were created in 1978.
Top-25 Universities July 1, 2006 through June 30, 2007
1. The University of Texas at Austin 2. University of Notre Dame 3. The University of Florida 4. The University of Michigan 5. University of Georgia 6. University of North Carolina 7. The University of Alabama 8. University of Oklahoma 9. University of Tennessee at Knoxville 10. The Pennsylvania State University 11. Louisiana State University 12. Florida State University 13. Auburn University 14. University of Nebraska 15. University of Wisconsin 16. University of Kentucky 17. University of Illinois 18. University of Arkansas Fayetteville 19. University of Miami 20. Clemson University 21. University of South Carolina 22. University of Kansas 23. Duke University 24. Oklahoma State University 25. University of Minnesota
Instant replay is a method of reviewing a play using cameras at various angles to determine the accuracy of the initial call of the officials. An instant replay can take place in the event of a close or otherwise controversial call, either at the request of a team's head coach (with limitations) or the officials themselves.
In 2006, the NCAA Football Rules Committee enacted instant replay guidelines and added them to the football playing rules. For games involving two schools from the same conference, league policy determines whether replay will be used. For non-conference games, the home team makes the determination.
Plays involving the sideline, goal line, end zone and end line, as well as other detectable situations, are reviewable (e.g., fumble/no fumble, pass complete/incomplete, touchdown/no touchdown, runner down/not down, player or ball inbounds/out of bounds, clock adjustments). Most fouls (e.g., holding, offside, pass interference) are not reviewable, except that in 2006, illegal forward passes, handoffs and punts from beyond the line of scrimmage, and too many players on the field are reviewable and the foul may be called after replay review. Also, while the foul of pass interference is not reviewable, it can be overturned on review based on touching of the pass. By rule, pass interference cannot apply if a pass has been touched by any player before the foul occurs, and the touching of a pass is a reviewable call.
When replay is used, a Replay Official (usually a former college, NFL or XFL game official) reviews every play at its conclusion from a secure booth in the press box. Most plays are routine and the game continues without interruption. If, however, the following criteria are met, the Replay Official may interrupt the contest by paging the game officials to stop the game before the next play starts. The criteria are:
* There is reasonable evidence to believe an error was made in the initial on-field ruling. * The play is reviewable. * Any reversal of the on-field ruling, which can only result from indisputable video evidence, would have a direct, competitive impact on the game.
Once per game, each head coach may also call a timeout and challenge the ruling on the previous play before the next play starts. A coach must have at least one timeout remaining in order to challenge (teams receive three timeouts per half). If the challenge is successful and the on-field ruling is overturned, the team keeps its timeout. If not, the team loses its timeout. In either event, the head coach may not challenge again during the game.
After reviewing the play from available video angles, the Replay Official decides if the call should be upheld or overturned. If the call is overturned, the Replay Official provides the proper information to restart the game, such as the team in possession, the yardline where the ball should be placed, the correct down and distance, and the correct time on the stadium clock.
College football instant replay started in the 2004 season due to what necessarily happened in the 2001 Michigan vs. Michigan State football game, when reviews were used experimentally in the Big Ten Conference only. In the 2005 season, all conferences were allowed to use instant replay. Among Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (see Division I-A) conferences, the Atlantic Coast Conference, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, Conference USA, MAC, Mountain West Conference, Pac-10, and SEC used replay in 2005. The Sun Belt and Western Athletic did not.
In 2005, the Big 12 initially sought to provide field monitors which would allow the on-field referee to assist the replay official; however, by the first game of the season, they decided to only provide equipment to the instant replay booth. Conference USA used a similar system, but the on-field referee made the decision after viewing a TV monitor on the sideline. The Mountain West Conference was the only league to allow a head coach's challenge. Each head coach got one challenge per half. If the call was overturned, the challenging coach kept his timeout and got a second challenge for that half. If not, the challenging coach lost one of his three timeouts for the half. No more than two challenges per half per coach were allowed.
There is not currently an Instant Replay equipment standard, each conference must choose (and purchase) its own equipment. Therefore, systems are quite disparate: they can be as complex as the high-tech custom systems similar as those used in the NFL to as simple as several large screens hooked up to TiVo boxes.
In 2005, the Big Ten, MAC, and SEC only allowed broadcast video (for games that are televised) to be used to determine the correct call. The other conferences allowed broadcast video and scoreboard video. Most conferences provided video equipment for games that were not televised.
Instant replay was first used in post-season games in the 2005 season. It was used in all 28 bowl games as well as the Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS, nee 1-AA), Division II and Division III national championship playoff games.
Charlie and wife Maura have two children, Charles Joseph and Hannah Margaret. In 2003, Weis and his wife Maura established the Hannah & Friends Foundation, dedicated to children affected by developmental disorders and named after his daughter, who is autistic. In the spring of 2004, the first annual Hannah & Friends Celebrity Golf Classic was held to benefit the foundation.
The organization is to provide support for a program called Hannah's Helping Hands, which will fund quality of life grants for Indiana, including the greater Michiana area, and Rhode Island families that care for children and adults with special needs.
Doug and wife Laurie have a daughter, Alexa, and a son, Doug Jr. Their son has autism, and the Fluties established The Doug Flutie Jr. Foundation for Autism, Inc. in honor of him.
The Foundation is to aid financially disadvantaged families who need assistance in caring for their children with autism; to fund education and research into the causes and consequences of childhood autism; and to serve as a clearinghouse and communications center for new programs and services developed for individuals with autism.
Hooters of San Francisco is a home of "Gathering Swamp" on Football game days in the city of San Francisco.
Hooters will set aside more space for the “SF Swamp” Gators in 2007! Expect Gator cheers, fight songs and a raffle. All proceeds will go to support the San Francisco Bay Area Gator Club goals and objectives.
Address: 353 Jefferson Street, San Francisco, CA 94133 Phone: 415-409-9464
Florida was too good to be on the same field as Ohio State, and that Heisman Trophy winner Troy Smith and the Buckeyes were the ones who weren't worthy.
Coach Urban Meyer's once-beaten Gators dominated the undefeated Buckeyes and streaked to college football's national championship, 41-14 on January 8, 2007.
"Honestly, we've played a lot better teams than them," Florida defensive end Jarvis Moss said. "I could name four or five teams in the SEC that could probably compete with them and play the same type of game we did against them."
Chris Leak and Tim Tebow showed off Meyer's twin quarterback system to perfection as the Gators became the first Division I school to hold national titles in football and basketball at the same time.
Keiland Williams ran for a career-high 107 yards and Justin Vincent added 71, grinding time off the clock in the second half as No. 4 LSU sealed a 41-14 victory over the 11th-ranked Fighting Irish in the Allstate Sugar Bowl on Wednesday night.
Notre Dame once again proved it doesn't deserve to play in BCS bowl games, which have become its birthright because of the school's national stature and ability to draw high TV ratings.
The ninth-ranked Broncos completed a perfect season with an exhilarating 43-42 overtime victory over No. 7 Oklahoma in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl on January 1, 2007.
The Broncos appeared to be finished when Oklahoma cornerback Marcus Walker intercepted Zabransky's pass and returned it 33 yards for a touchdown to put the Sooners ahead 35-28 with 1:02 remaining.
The magic came on a stunning 50-yard "hook-and-ladder" touchdown play on fourth-and-18 in the final seconds of regulation. Zabransky hit Drisan James at Oklahoma's 35, and James pitched the ball to Jerard Rabb, who raced into the end zone with 7 seconds to play.
Zabransky said the Broncos practice that play almost every day in practice but that it rarely works against the Boise State defense, which usually knows when it's coming.
Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops said the Sooners were looking for a trick play. But he said the Broncos ran this one to perfection.
That play merely set the stage for more Broncos magic.
Oklahoma's Adrian Peterson opened the overtime with a 25-yard touchdown run. It may have been the final college play for Peterson, who ran for 77 yards and two touchdowns in his first game since breaking his left collarbone Oct. 14.
The Broncos answered with Vinny Perretta's fourth-down touchdown pass to Derek Schouman. With Boise State down by a point, Petersen decided to go for the victory.
On the decisive play, Zabransky looked at three wide receivers to his right, then, with his best Statue of Liberty impression, handed the ball behind his back to tailback Ian Johnson, who raced untouched into the end zone.
