In-game: Duke @ UNC

CHAPEL HILL -- It's good day to be a kicker and Ryan Houston.

Casey Barth's four field goals, and Houston's 157 yards, have North Carolina in front of Duke, 19-6 at 3:56 in the fourth quarter.

Houston carried 10 times, on a 12-play drive, for 55 yards on the game-clinching touchdown, a 3-yard run by receiver Jheranie Boyd. Houston has a career-best 157 yards on a career-best 35 carries.

Houston out-gained Duke's vaunted offense by himself, 172 total yards to 127.

Charlie Brown's interception and 54-yard return set UNC up at Duke's 20 but a illegal block penalty on Greg Little on first down stopped UNC's drive before it started. Barth hit the 41-yarder on the last play of the third quarter for his third field goal.

Barth, who kicked the game-winner on the last play of last Thursday's 20-17 win at Virginia Tech, also hit from 40, 29 and 33 yards.

Nick Maggio hit two field goals in the first half to tie the game at 6 at the half. Maggio's hit a 26-yarder on the last play of the half and a 23-yarder as Duke's passing game has stalled after reaching the red zone twice.

The Tar Heels have leaned heavily on their running game, minus Shaun Draughn, and Barth's right leg with quarterback T.J. Yates struggling. Barth hit a 29-yarder, his second field goal, after Yates whistled a high and hard fastball over the out-stretched hands of Greg Little on the 4-yard line.

North Carolina scored first, on its first possession, running six times on a 10-play drive to set up a 40-yard field goal by Barth for a 3-0 lead at 11:25 in the first quarter.

A blocked punt helped Duke even the score near the end of the first. Jordan Byas' blocked punt set up Maggio's 23-yard field goal to tie the game at 3. Maggio is subbing for regular kicker Will Snyerwine, who is out with a leg injury.

The Heels, at least momentarily, lost starting running back Draughn who suffered a left shoulder injury on the fist play of the game.

Byas blocked Grant Shallock at UNC's 30-yard at 4:00 in the first quarter to give Duke the ball in UNC's territory. A 22-yard pass from Thad Lewis to Brandon King got Duke down to the 14 but the drive stalled.

Yates has badly missed at least four open receivers, including Erik Highsmith on a post route on the first possession. He has completed 15 of 26 passes for 112 yards.
Lewis, who has four straight 300-plus games, has been held in check for 96 yards on 13-of-24 attempts with the one interception.

Receiver Austin Kelly leads Duke with four catches for 22 yards.

-- J.P. Giglio

Wake's Skinner cleared for Georgia Tech

Wake Forest team physicians have cleared senior quarterback Riley Skinner to play against Georgia Tech on Saturday, the school announced.

Skinner suffered a concussion last week against Miami, but is expected to start his 33rd consecutive game for the Demon Deacons as they visit Atlanta for a 3:30 p.m. game.

He did not practice Monday, saw minimal practice time Tuesday and gradually returned to the regular practice routine later in the week.

Ken Tysiac

Wake's Skinner cleared to play at Georgia Tech

Wake Forest quarterback Riley Skinner has been cleared to play Saturday when the Deacons visit 11th-ranked Georgia Tech for a 3:30 p.m. game.

Skinner, who will start his 33rd consecutive game, suffered a slight concussion when he was tackled in the fourth quarter of Wake Forest's loss to Miami last Saturday.

He did not practice on Monday, did limited work on Tuesday and gradually worked back into a regular schedule during the week.
-- Ron Green Jr.

N.C. State's Graham out for season

N.C. State wide receiver and kick returner T.J. Graham is out for the season with a stress fracture in his leg, the school announced Thursday evening in its injury report.

Graham also missed last week's loss at Florida State, but it wasn't determined until this week that he would not play the rest of the season. He was injured on Oct. 17 at Boston College.

Middle linebacker and leading tackler Ray Michel, who also did not play at Florida State, might return for Saturday's 1 p.m. game against Maryland at Cater-Finley Stadium. He is listed as questionable, which means there is about a 50 percent chance he will play.

Michel has an ankle injury.

Ken Tysiac

Meineke Bowl to rise in ACC selection order

Charlotte’s Meineke Car Care Bowl will move up one spot in the ACC bowl selection order starting in 2010 under an agreement the ACC announced Thursday morning.

The bowl, held each year at Bank of America Stadium, has extended existing deals for four more years with the Big East and now the ACC, and will match teams from those conferences through 2013.

Meineke Bowl executive director Will Webb said Thursday morning that beginning in 2010, the bowl will get the fourth selection from the ACC after the Bowl Championship Series. Previously, the Meineke selected fifth after the BCS.

“It’s huge for this bowl,” Webb said. “We’ve worked very hard. We’ve gotten some great games for this community. To be able to move up a spot in the pecking order will help assure us of the long-term viability of this bowl.”

The Orange Bowl will maintain its automatic BCS tie with the ACC. After the BCS selects from the ACC, the Chick-fil-A Bowl in Atlanta gets the next pick, followed by the Champs Sports Bowl in Orlando, Fla.

A bowl new to the ACC lineup, the Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas, will select the ACC championship runner-up, if available, or the third pick after the BCS. The Meineke selects next, followed by the Music City Bowl in Nashville, Tenn.; the Independence Bowl in Shreveport, La.; and the EagleBank Bowl in Washington, D.C.

“These bowl partners provide the opportunity to play unique opponents in quality destinations, while also significantly increasing revenue for our institutions,” ACC commissioner John Swofford said in a statement released by the conference.

If nine ACC teams become bowl eligible, the conference has a conditional arrangement to send its eighth pick after the BCS to the Emerald Bowl in San Francisco in the event that one if that game’s primary partners doesn’t have a team eligible to fill its slot.

The Meineke Bowl will benefit from the new rule the ACC has put in place for the loser of its championship game. In the past, the championship game loser could fall no further than the fifth selection after the BCS.

Now the championship game loser must be selected no later than the third selection after the BCS – the Sun Bowl – and before the Meineke Bowl makes its pick.

With the ACC championship game coming to Charlotte in 2010 and 2011, this means the Meineke Bowl won’t face the prospect of having a championship game loser coming back to town for the second time in a month.

Typically, bowl officials fear that fans whose teams lose in a conference championship game won’t travel in large numbers to a bowl game in the same city.

Webb said Meineke Bowl officials sweetened their payout structure in order to move up in the selection order. The actual dollars paid to the ACC and Big East varies each year based on ticket sales under a revenue sharing agreement.

Last year’s sold-out game between North Carolina and West Virginia resulted in payouts of approximately $1.7 million each to the ACC and Big East, Webb said. Starting in 2010, Webb said, payouts should exceed $1.7 million each year under the new revenue structure.

In its seven years, the bowl in Charlotte has averaged over 62,000 fans with three sellouts. This year’s game will kick off at 4:30 p.m. on Dec. 26.

“Despite all the bad economic news in Charlotte, there’s a lot of positive news on the sports front,” Webb said. “I think the bowl moving up is huge. I think us getting the championship game here is huge. And with the efforts we’re putting forth to meld these two together, we’re going to have a great time with college football.”

ACC BOWL SELECTION ORDER, 2010 TO 2013
Bowl; Site; Opponent
Orange/BCS; Miami; BCS team TBA
Chick-fil-A; Atlanta; SEC
Champs Sports; Orlando; Big East or Notre Dame
Sun; El Paso, Texas; Pac-10
Meineke Car Care; Charlotte; Big East
Music City; Nashville, Tenn.; TBA
Independence; Shreveport, La.; Mountain West
EagleBank; Washington, D.C.; Varies-x
x-The EagleBank Bowl will match the ACC with a Conference USA team in 2010, Navy (if bowl eligible) in 2011, Army (if eligible) in 2012 and a Big 12 team in 2013.


Ken Tysiac

Wilson: No tension between Pack offense, defense

N.C. State quarterback Russell Wilson held his weekly news conference Tuesday morning.

He praised running back Toney Baker, said there is no friction between N.C. State's offense and defense, and explained how wide receiver Owen Spencer gets so wide open for deep balls. Here are excerpts from Wilson's news conference:

Q: Can you talk about the job Toney Baker has done for you guys? It seems like, especially on Saturday, he ran with a purpose.

A: First you have to credit the offensive line. They allowed him to get a few yards to start off with. Then Toney went to work. He is very impressive. I feel like Toney, he's always been an NFL-caliber running back in my mind, and I used to watch him when he used to play when I was younger. It's just amazing to be on the field with him. He's a momentum changer in a way, with the way he runs the ball. He runs the ball hard. He has an extra, sixth gear that he puts it in. He's a big kid, he doesn't look like he would have that burst. But he can run away from people. I'm definitely impressed watching him play Saturday. . . .When I first got here in the summer time, Toney was my running partner. So he and I would be on the same bungee cord rope together. I was with him or Andre Brown every day. It was definitely exciting to run with those guys, because they had so much power and speed. It definitely helped me. And hopefully I helped them a little bit.

Q: When one unit on a football team is performing well and another is struggling - offense or defense - it's not unheard of for the unit that's not struggling to be resentful, or for there to be some friction between the two units. Has that been the case at all with this team? Why or why not?

A: Not at all. Why? I think because of Coach O'Brien, and just the nature of the players, the character of the players on the team. You've got to credit them for recruiting the guys they recruited. And also the guys that are here now that have been here for a long time, the seniors and stuff. I feel the character of the players is what keeps everybody together and everybody believing and trusting in one another. Offensively, you look at it, and no matter what the score is - if it's 150-47, or it's 45-42, or if it's 7-3 or 6-3, it doesn't really matter what the score is. We want to score more points than the other team. And we want to go out there each and every time. That's our goal and we came up short. I think there's not tension between offense and defense, or between offense and special teams, or defense and special teams, or whatever. We have to stick together, and everybody's a part of everything. We're all in the weight room together. We're all in classes together. We're all on the practice field together. The only way we're going to get better is like Coach always said, just circle the wagons and keep believing, no matter what the situation is.

Q: How does Owen Spencer get so wide open?

A: He's got a knack for it. He works at it every day, just studying film, studying certain moves he can do to get open, but also just, he's got a knack for the ball. When he gets that play call, whether it's a run play or a pass play, he wants to work hard each and every time. The same with all our receivers. But also, his acceleration is phenomenal. He's a professional, NFL wide receiver for sure, and I like throwing the ball to him.

Q: There are some guys who are faster. You mentioned acceleration. Is there something about knowing when to turn yourself loose?

A: There's two different types of speed. A lot of people have football speed, and then there's natural speed. He's got both of them. He's got that natural, low-40 time type speed because he's got those long legs, and he just gets there quickly. But also, he knows when to hit the jets, when to time it up and slow pace the defense a little bit, and then burst and get out and get open. And he does that really well.

Ken Tysiac

Bowl outlook good for UNC-Duke winner, ECU

The ACC has nine bowl tie-ins and three bowl-eligible teams (Georgia Tech, Miami, Boston College).

With a win this week, Clemson (5-3) and Virginia Tech (5-3) can push the total to five.

Maryland, Virginia and N.C. State are all but mathematically eliminated, leaving a group of four (UNC, Duke, Wake and FSU) for the final four spots.

If the ACC doesn't have nine eligible teams, the GMAC Bowl in Mobile, Ala. (Jan. 6) would be the first to drop off the list, followed by the EagleBank Bowl in Washington (Dec. 29).

You figure FSU (4-4) and either Duke or UNC (both 5-3) will push the ACC's total to a minimum of seven teams.

Of the in-state teams, ECU (5-3) is the closest thing to a sure bet but here's the bowl outlook for all five teams as we begin the final month of the season:

Duke
Record: 5-3
Need: Two wins
What's left: @ UNC, GT, @ Miami, Wake

Outlook: 50-50. The Blue Devils have already won two must-win games (Maryland, Virginia) and have two left (UNC, Wake).

Typically teams like Duke, with a one-dimensional offense and a forgiving defense, will not sweep a set of four must-win games, more likely they will split them. That could still happen to the Devils but, at this point, you have to like their chances at 7-5.

UNC has always been their "Super Bowl" and the past three games against Wake have been decided by 1, 5 and 3 points, respectively.

Effectively, it's a two-game season against the two teams Duke plays the best against. If you're coach David Cutcliffe, you take those odds and run ... or in his case, throw a "smoke" pass.

UNC
Record: 5-3
Need: Two wins
What's left: Duke, Miami, @ BC, @ State

Outlook: Good. In upsetting Virginia Tech, UNC got back the home loss it gave away to Virginia. In terms of games the Heels were "supposed" to win and "supposed" lose, they're now even thanks to Thursday's 20-17 shocker in Blacksburg.

If the Heels can break even the rest of the way, in four winnable games, then they'll be bowling. The easiest route is obviously beating Duke and State.

Even if they lose to Duke, they're not cooked, and considering how they've gone about the first five wins, it would be fitting for this team to get to seven the hard way.

East Carolina
Record: 5-3
Need: One win
What's left: VT, @ Tulsa, UAB, Southern Miss

Outlook: Good. The Pirates essentially need to beat UAB (3-5) at home to qualify for their fourth straight bowl game. That's not asking a lot, UAB's 3-22 on the road since 2006.

The Pirates would likely repeat as C-USA East champs with home wins over UAB and Southern Miss, which would earn them a date, and beatdown, at Houston. The key is not to get sidetracked by probable losses to VT and Tulsa.

Wake Forest
Record: 4-5
Need: Two wins
What's left: @ GT, FSU, @ Duke

Outlook: Bleak. The Deacs' bowl trip likely slipped through the hands of Devon Brown in the fourth quarter of Saturday's 28-27 home loss to Miami. Without the upset of the Canes — and they led 27-14 in the fourth quarter before Brown's fumbled punt sparked Miami's comeback — the Deacs need to win two of their final three.

The Deacs lost 13-10 at Navy, which plays the same offense as GT, only the Jackets have more talent. They've won three straight against FSU and nine straight against Duke but with quarterback Riley Skinner's health an issue (he left Saturday's game with a concussion), history is unlikely to repeat itself.

N.C. State
Record: 3-5
Need: Four wins
What's left: Maryland, Clemson, @ VT, UNC

Outlook: Dream is over. The Wolfpack has to run the table to get to a second straight bowl. The 146 points the Wolfpack has allowed in the past three ACC games says State would be lucky to win once in the final four games.

The only thing left for State to play for is its Super Bowl against UNC on Nov. 28.

-- J.P. Giglio

Heels upset cost ACC

BCS bowl projections:

National championship: Florida vs. Texas
Rose: Iowa vs. Oregon
Orange: Georgia Tech vs. Penn State
Sugar: Alabama vs. Cincinnati
Fiesta: USC vs. TCU

North Carolina's win, and USC's loss, cost the ACC a real shot at $4.5 million.

Virginia Tech, even with two losses, had a strong chance at an at-large bid to a BCS bowl, which was a driving force idea behind expansion. Florida State and Miami both played in BCS games in 2000, 2002 and 2003, but the ACC hasn't sent two teams to the BCS in first five years of expansion, or since the series was formed in 1998.

The Hokies, with their considerable fan base, would have been an attractive at-large choice this season, until Thursday's choke job against the Tar Heels. Now, the ACC's only other hope for a second bid is Miami, which is a long shot at best.

With no traveling fan base but a popular television appeal, Miami's BCS hopes rest on the generosity of the Orange Bowl, and the combination of Penn State, Ohio State and Notre Dame losing.

Remember, the BCS standings only determine the participants in the national championship game. The other four games are contractually obligated to certain conferences and free to choose from the top 14. Most importantly, bowl games are for-profit ventures, in terms of both selling tickets and television advertisements. They don't care if your team is No. 5 in the BCS rankings, only if your team can make them money.

The Sugar, Fiesta and Orange bowls have contracted conference anchors and then choose from a pool of eligible candidates. (The Rose Bowl, whenever possible, takes the champions from Pac-10 and Big Ten.)

The selection process for the Sugar, Fiesta and Orange is a draft. The bowls that lose their anchor champions to the national title game get to choose first with the bowl that loses the No. 1 team selecting first, followed by the bowl that loses the No. 2 team.

So, if the SEC champion, likely either Florida or Alabama, were to play Texas in the BCS title game, and the SEC champion stays ranked No. 1 in the BCS standings (currently Florida), then the selection order would be:

1. Sugar
2. Fiesta
3. Orange
4. Orange
5. Fiesta
6. Sugar

The SEC runner-up goes to the Sugar and the Fiesta would almost certainly select USC. Oregon's 47-20 win knocked the Trojans out of the Rose Bowl and in the process made the Pac-10 $4.5 million, and a two-team BCS league for the first time.

If USC had won, an at-large spot would have been opened up for the ACC and a two-loss Virginia Tech team. Without the extra spot, and its most attractive second candidate, the ACC is reduced to relying on the Orange Bowl's generosity and multiple losses by big-name teams.

The Orange is contractually obligated to take the ACC champion, which as of today looks like Georgia Tech. With the next pick, the Orange could take the Big East champion, but in the case of Cincinnati, it would mean taking a team with a limited fan base for the second straight season. The Orange, again in the interest of making money, would almost certainly choose Penn State, Ohio State or Notre Dame over any potential Big East champion, even an unbeaten Cincinnati team.

Given GT's inability to sell tickets, there's little chance the Orange could afford to say no to a big-name school, but it's the only hope the ACC has for a second team.

If the Orange takes the Big East champion, there's one at-large spot open. Either Boise State or Texas Christian, as a top-12 automatic qualifier, has to go to somewhere, likely the Fiesta, and that leaves the Sugar with the dealer's choice.

If the ACC somehow convinces the Orange to take the Big East champ, Miami (17) would still have to win out — and the Canes looked shaky in beating Wake, 28-27 on Saturday — and then hope a second Big Ten team and Notre Dame do not qualify.

Only two teams per conference are allowed in the BCS pool, which eliminates LSU (No. 9 but the third SEC team) and either Penn State (11) or Ohio State (16).

Penn State hosts Ohio State on Saturday. Miami, and the ACC, needs Ohio State to win and then a pick up a loss in subsequent weeks to either Iowa (currently in first place in the Big Ten and fourth in the BCS) or Michigan or in both.

Notre Dame, of course, is the wild card. With no conference affiliation, the Irish automatically qualifies with a top-8 finish, which is unlikely considering it's ranked No. 22 this week. But the Irish become eligible if it finishes in the top 14. The Irish (6-2) would have to win out — against Navy, Pitt, UConn and Stanford — and get help from the opponents of the teams in front of them to jump into at-large pool.

If none of the big name schools qualify, that would leave Miami — if it can beat Virginia, UNC, Duke and South Florida — in the at-large pool with a second Big East team (the fan-strapped Cincy-Pitt loser) or a second Big 12 team (a weak Oklahoma State team).

The real loser is either TCU (6) or Boise State (7), and it looks like Boise State given the remainder of its schedule does not offer the Broncos a chance to impress the computers or human pollsters and jump TCU.

Only one team from outside the six qualifying conferences is guaranteed a spot for finishing in the top 12. Given the relatively small fan bases of both, it would either be Boise or TCU, but not both, and certainly not TCU which can't sell out its home games.

Miami wouldn't sell a ton of tickets, or even its allotment, but the Canes are proven television ratings winner and if Florida happened to lose in the SEC title game, a Miami-Florida matchup would be a consolation prize the Sugar would be happy to have fall in its lap. Unless, of course, they could get Urban Meyer-vs.-Notre Dame.

-- J.P. Giglio

SEC dominating football recruiting--so far

Stan Olson writes in the College Recruiting blog:

We've given you periodic updates on ACC recruiting rankings of the Class of 2010, courtesy of Scout.com. Here’s a quick check of where SEC schools stand—and I know there’s plenty of interest in college football’s best league, because I hear from its supporters all the time.

Read more.

Some credit for Roof from Pack's O'Brien

The most unexpected college football news conference quotes Monday probably came from the Murphy Center conference room when N.C. State coach Tom O’Brien was asked about Duke’s success under David Cutcliffe.

After praising Cutcliffe, O’Brien had kind words for Ted Roof, who was 6-45 as Duke’s head coach. This wasn’t intended as a slight of Cutcliffe.

O’Brien has admired Cutcliffe since they became acquainted as assistants coaching Tennessee (Cutcliffe) and Virginia (O’Brien) in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1, 1991. With Duke at 5-3 with three straight ACC wins under Cutcliffe, O’Brien was asked about Cutcliffe’s success.

“He went to Mississippi,” O’Brien said. “God only knows why they let him go. He’s a good football coach. He’s got some good football players, too, and that helps. He’s done really a fabulous job.”

But O’Brien also had kind words for Roof, whose firing after the 2007 season paved the way for Cutcliffe to take the helm. Roof recruited top Blue Devil veterans such as quarterback Thaddeus Lewis and defensive linemen Vince Oghobaase and Ayanga Okpokowuruk.

“I think Ted Roof did a pretty good job recruiting some guys, too,” O’Brien said. “There are some guys on that football team that if they didn’t have (them), they may not be playing the way they are. Thad Lewis has learned a lot in four years. He’s taken his beating, but four years later he’s dishing out some beatings. And that’s all part of growing up, and that’s all part of maturity, and that’s all part of execution. He’s in a good offense for him, and that’s all a part of good coaching, too.”

Ken Tysiac