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Posted: Tuesday May 8, 2007 6:15PM

Miami looks to reclaim South Florida's recruiting pool

By Mike Farrell, Special to SI.com -- The Hurricanes became "The U" by recruiting the top players in Broward and Dade counties, and by keeping the South Florida talent home. Under Coker, they lost that focus. However, under new coach Randy Shannon -- himself a Miami high school standout -- things are quickly changing.

Shannon and his staff have made South Florida the No. 1 recruiting priority for 2008 and beyond. Of the six early commitments for the class of 2008, five play their high school ball south of Port St. Lucie, Fla., within 100 miles of campus. These are kids who grew up watching Coker's first two teams at Miami. These are kids who love "The U."

Source: http://tinyurl.com/342ok7


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---------------------- [ The AYHJA Network ] ----------------------

Tuesday August 14, 2007 4:16PM

McKnight shines, defense dominates]

Los Angeles, CA (CNNSI) -- Joe McKnight is not allowed to talk to the media. Not yet, anyway. Due to the team's freshman policy all McKnight can do at this point is offer up a smile as he runs off the field after practice.

It's just as well. There aren't many words that can describe his style of play. Much like his "presidential" predecessor, his talents need to be seen not heard to be truly appreciated.

After McKnight tallied 120 yards on six touches in his first taste of action at the Coliseum (highlighted by the 74-yard punt-return for a touchdown), Carroll simply shrugged his shoulders when asked to describe the freshman's debut.

Source: http://tinyurl.com/2p4feq

USA Today: Sooner Fans Among Least Educated......

USA Today
Friday, August 24, 2007

Jump on The Bandwagon; Literally: Sooner Fans Among Least Educated

Norman, OK - A new study released last month by the Sports Statistics
Foundation, a research and statistical think-tank based in Dallas ,
Texas , shows that Sooner fans are among the least educated in the
nation, and dead last in the Big 12.

The study was commissioned by the Big 12 last year to assist the sports
marketing department. "We thought the information would be valuable in
determining where to place our TV, radio, and print advertisements",
said Bill Brenner, Big 12 Executive Director, "but we never expected
these results."

The study looked at the percentage of each school's fans that have a
college education. Only 4.7% of sports fans identifying themselves with
The University of Oklahoma had completed a college degree, lowest among
the Big
12 teams. OU ranked in the lower 5th percentile nationally.
Additionally OU ranked 3rd in the nation in number of high school
dropouts claiming allegiance to the school as a percentage of the total
fan base.

The survey results were both good and bad for the State of Oklahoma .
Oddly enough the study showed the Oklahoma State University had some of
the most educated fans. According to Brenner this wasn't so surprising,
"OSU is known nationally and internationally for several programs that
are consistently recognized for their quality. It's not all about cows
and corn there in Stillwater ."

OU fans, get ready. Change is on the way. "Due to the surprising
results, we're going to have to reevaluate our entire advertising
campaign", says Joe Castiglione, University of Oklahoma Athletic
Director . "Historically our strategy has been to target wealthy,
educated professionals in an attempt to increase season ticket holder
revenue which carries higher profit-margins.
Now we see a more targeted economic class approach being appropriate,
focusing on the low-income, uneducated fan base."

What does that mean for the fans in Norman ? "We'll have to explore more
non-traditional ad spaces, says Castiglione. We've started a pilot
program in two separate trailer parks in the OKC metro area in an
attempt to increase the Sooner brand awareness there, passing out OU car
flags and lawn signs to residents. We've also purchased ad space in
several gentlemen's clubs."

These tactics may seem extreme and even bizarre, but this could be just
the tip of the iceberg according to Castiglione, "We've just begun to
explore innovative advertising for the low-income, low-education
demographic. We're currently in discussions the Oklahoma State Prison
system about providing free televised OU football games, as well as
plasma TVs in exchange for exclusive broadcasting rights within the
State's prison system."

It's hard to say if the campaign will be successful according to
Brenner, "We commissioned the study to help schools generate athletic
revenue through improved marketing. How they choose to implement ad
campaigns is up to them.
Though I can't imagine the prisoner fan-base is the way to go. I
wouldn't want to be known as the official school of the state
penitentiary".

Division 1-AA Appalachian State Upsets #5 Michigan

What was supposed to be a tuneup turned into a stunner: Appalachian State 34, No. 5 Michigan 32.

Julian Rauch's 24-yard field goal with 26 seconds left Saturday put the Mountaineers ahead of the Wolverines and Corey Lynch blocked a field goal in the final seconds to seal one of college football's biggest upsets.

"We're still sort of shocked," coach Jerry Moore said after being carried off the field by his players.

The two-time defending champions from former Division I-AA were ahead of the nation's winningest program 28-14 late in the second quarter, then their storybook afternoon seemed to unravel late in the fourth quarter.

Mike Hart's 54-yard run put the Wolverines ahead -- for the first time since early in the second quarter -- with 4:36 left.

One snap after the go-ahead touchdown, Brandent Englemon intercepted an errant pass, but the Wolverines couldn't capitalize and had their first of two field goals blocked.

Appalachian State drove 69 yards without a timeout in 1:11 to set up the go-ahead field goal.

"I've been dreaming about that kick every day," Rauch said.

But it still wasn't over.

Chad Henne threw a 46-yard pass to Mario Manningham, giving Michigan the ball at Appalachian State's 20 with 6 seconds left.

Lynch blocked the kick and returned it to the other end of the field as the final seconds ticked off, and his teammates rushed across the field to pile on as the coaching staff and cheerleaders jumped with joy.

Appalachian State has won 15 straight games, the longest streak in the nation.

The Mountaineers are favored to win the Football Championship Subdivision -- formerly known as Division I-AA -- but they weren't expected to put up much of a fight against a team picked to win the Big Ten and contend for the national title.

That's the beauty of college football.

No Division I-AA team had beaten a team ranked in The Associated Press poll from 1989-2006, and it's unlikely that it happened after Division-I subdivisions were created in 1978.

Appalachian State is not eligible to receive votes in the AP Top 25 poll because the school is not in the Football Bowl Subdivision.

"I wouldn't call it embarrassing because that takes away from them," Hart said. "We're disappointed. I can tell you that.

"It is one of the biggest losses ever, but give all the credit to Appalachian State."

Appalachian State's win does seem to pass the one second-tier programs used to regard as their crowning achievement -- The Citadel's season-opening win in 1992 over Arkansas that led to the firing of Razorbacks coach Jack Crowe following the game.

Michigan coach Lloyd Carr will not get fired after this upset, but he might've wished he retired after last season when the Wolverines won 11 games and played in the Rose Bowl. Michigan has now lost three in a row over two seasons.

Carr will likely second-guess a lot from the game, and the practices that led to it, and might regret going for 2-point conversions twice in the final 15-plus minutes.

After Appalachian State went ahead 31-20, Hart scored with 24 seconds left in the third quarter and the 2-point conversion failed as Carr tried to pull within a field goal. Following Hart's late TD that put Michigan ahead by one, Carr couldn't justify kicking the extra point and backup running back Brandon Minor stumbled to the turf.

Carr didn't regret going for it both times, but did lament the many mistakes, penalties and missed opportunities after opening his news conference by giving Appalachian State credit.

"We were not a well-prepared football team," Carr said. "That is my job, and I take full responsibility."

The Mountaineers improved to 7-36-1 against top-tier teams since 1978, beating a team other than Wake Forest in such matchups for the first time.

Since beating Wake Forest in 2000, they had been respectable against strong programs, trailing LSU and JaMarcus Russell by two touchdowns entering the fourth quarter before losing 24-0 in 2005 and leading Auburn late in the third before losing by a TD in 1999.

But Appalachian State proved it belonged from start to finish, making up for a slight size disadvantage with more speed.

Quarterback Armanti Edwards threw for 227 yards, three scores and two interceptions while he kept Michigan guessing with enough skills running to have 62 yards rushing. Dexter Jackson caught three passes for 92 yards, and scored twice, including a 68-yard reception that tied the game early and provided a glimpse of what was coming over the next three hours.

Hart, who went almost two quarters without a carry because of an injury, ran for 188 yards and three touchdowns. Henne was 19-of-37 for 233 yards in a lackluster game that included a TD and an interception in Mountaineer territory.

Source: Sports Illustrated

This loss should drop Michigan from the rankings and it should also keep them from the rankings for the rest of the season. Jeez...what a loss

Ha..! Man, the Big 10 is soooooooooooo overrated man...They are consistently outclassed by Superior conferences...Why in the hell do you schedule a tuner game against a team like that..? Asking for trouble man...

Well it's against a Division I-AA team so Michigan should have run all over them. But Appalachian State is used to winning - they are the 2 time defending champ for D-1-AA. Michigan should be fucking embarrassed

Michigan Drops Out of Top 25

The final fallout from a disastrous opening weekend for Michigan came Tuesday, when the Wolverines dropped all the way out of The Associated Press Top 25, an unprecedented fall from No. 5 to unranked.

Since the AP poll expanded to 25 teams in 1989, no team has taken a bigger tumble in one week.

After an opening college football weekend filled with blowouts and highlighted by Appalachian State's stunning 34-32 upset of Michigan at the Big House, there was little notable movement in the Top 25 other than the Wolverines.

Southern California was voted No. 1 by the media panel, but the Trojans lost some support. USC received 62 first-place votes in the preseason poll. A lackluster 38-10 victory over Idaho led to the Trojans dropping to 59 first-place votes.

No. 2 LSU picked up those first-place votes, receiving five. No. 3 West Virginia received one first-place vote, the same as it did in the preseason.

No. 4 Florida and No. 5 Wisconsin moved up two spots. Oklahoma, tied for fifth, moved up three spots. No. 7 Texas fell three spots after slogging through a 21-13 home victory over Arkansas State.

No. 9 Virginia Tech held its place and plays at LSU on Saturday.

No. 10 California moved up two spots after a 45-31 victory over Tennessee. The Volunteers dropped eight spots to No. 23.

Florida State also fell out of the rankings. The Seminoles were 19th heading into their season opener at Clemson and lost 24-18 in the Bowden Bowl.

Clemson moved into the rankings at No. 25 and Georgia Tech also moved into the Top 25. The Yellow Jackets were 21st after winning at Notre Dame 33-3.

As for Michigan, the Wolverines became the first ranked team from Division I-A, now known as the Bowl Subdivision, to lose to a team from I-AA, now known as the Championship Subdivision.

"It hurts because you don't like losing," Michigan linebacker Chris Graham said Monday. "But how far can you hold your head down? I'm not holding my head down at all. You've got to move on forward."

Michigan received 39 points from the media voters in the Top 25, including a 16th-place vote by Wayne Phillips from The Greenville (Tenn.) Sun.

"I still think Michigan has a good football team," he said. "I think they're worthy of being ranked. They may prove me wrong."

Phillips said he gave Michigan some leeway because he's very familiar with Appalachian State, the two-time defending I-AA champions.

"They're a pretty darn good football team," he said. "If Michigan had lost to some of the other patsies some of the big teams played, I could see dropping them out."

Appalachian State is not eligible for the AP Top 25, which only ranks Bowl Subdivision teams. The Wolverines host Oregon on Saturday.

Before Michigan's fall, Notre Dame held the ignominious record for largest drop in the rankings in the Top 25-era. The Fighting Irish dropped 16 spots -- from No. 9 to No. 25 -- after losing to Northwestern 17-15 on Sept. 3, 1995.

Texas dropped 15 spots in 1997, going from ninth to 24th after a 66-3 loss to UCLA in September 1997. Louisville also fell 15 spots -- 11th to unranked -- in September 2005 after losing to South Florida.

The highest ranked team to fall from the poll after one loss was No. 2 Oklahoma in 1959, when the AP was ranking the top 20 teams. Later that season Army went from No. 4 to unranked.

In 1950, Tennessee went from No. 4 to unranked in October and in 1960 Illinois fall out of the ranking from No. 4.

In the latest poll, No. 11 Georgia moved up two spots and was followed by Ohio State, UCLA, Penn State and Rutgers.

No. 16 Nebraska jumped four places. Auburn is 17th and Arkansas, TCU and Hawaii round out the first 20.

The final five are Georgia Tech, Boise State, Texas A&M, Tennessee and Clemson.

Source: ESPN

Lower-Division Schools Now Eligible For AP Poll

After pulling off one of the greatest upsets in college football history, Appalachian State is still shaking things up.

The Associated Press said Thursday that lower-division schools -- that means you, Mountaineers -- are now eligible for its 71-year-old poll.

"It's great they opened the door," Appalachian State coach Jerry Moore said. "Certainly we're not going to be the No. 1 team in the country. We know that. We're not even going to be in the top 10. But if you have a win over a nice football team, I like that it's not out of the realm of possibility for a school like us to be one of the top 20 or 25 teams in the country."

Several AP voters expressed interest in putting Appalachian State on their ballots after a shocking 34-32 upset at then-No. 5 Michigan last weekend. But the poll guidelines, which mirrored the coaches' rankings conducted by USA Today, limited eligibility to teams competing in the former NCAA Division I-A, now known as the Football Bowl Subdivision.

The Mountaineers compete in the Football Championship Subdivision, known before this season as Division I-AA.

The AP decided to make the change because schools that show they can compete with big-time teams on the field should have a chance to be recognized with them in the top 25, Sports Editor Terry Taylor said.

"Why not? The poll was always intended to measure teams that compete against each other, regardless of division, based solely on on-field performance," she said. "It was that way long before Division I was divided into I-A and I-AA in 1978."

One poll voter, Adam Van Brimmer, said he wanted to put Appalachian State at No. 25 after their win over the Wolverines, largely as a symbolic gesture. He might still do it next week, assuming the Mountaineers beat Division II Lenoir-Rhyne.

"If I have any openings in my poll, they would certainly be strongly considered," said Van Brimmer, who works for the Georgia-based Morris News Service.

"Having spent so much time watching those Georgia Southern teams, I'm sure the top teams in the Southern Conference are as good as any mid majors," Van Brimmer said. "They're probably as good as anybody in the MAC (Mid-American Conference). They're probably better than most in the Sun Belt."

USA Today plans no change in its poll, which will continue to be limited to schools in the division formerly known as I-A.

As Giglio pointed out, the Football Championship Subdivision has its own poll (Appalachian State was a unanimous choice at No. 1) and a playoff system to determine its champion (the Mountaineers have won the last two titles).

"It would be pretty difficult to evaluate some of the I-AA teams they play, because they don't have the same exposure as I-A teams," said Heuser, who covered Saturday's shocking upset. "We know how good Appalachian State is because they beat Michigan. But I would not really be able to assess how good their opponents are the rest of the season."

Heuser said the Mountaineers were certainly deserving of being in the top 25 for at least one week.

"They are an impressive team," he said. "I thought they were Michigan's equal on the field. I didn't think it was a fluke at all."

Source: ESPN

^ I agree ^

Good move man, give the little schools some love cause some of them have awesome fucking programs, and lots of talent goes to the NFL from there...Jerry Rice...T.O just to name a couple...

Week 3 AP Top 25

1. USC (46)
2. LSU (19)
3. Florida
4. Oklahoma
5. West Virginia
6. California
7. Texas
8. Ohio State
9. Wisconsin
10. Penn State
11. Rutgers
12. South Carolina
13. Oregon
14. Boston College
15. Clemson
16. Alabama
17. Virginia Tech
18. Louisville
19. Hawaii
20. Texas A&M
21. Kentucky
22. Georgia
23. South Florida
24. Nebraska
25. Missouri

Dropped From Rankings

UCLA 11
Georgia Tech 15
Arkansas 16
Tennessee 22