QB Mauk loses final appeal to NCAA
CINCINNATI -- Former Cincinnati quarterback Ben Mauk lost his final appeal to the NCAA for more playing time.
Mauk was turned down Wednesday by the NCAA's reinstatement committee, the last step in trying to get another season of eligibility. It was the fifth time that he was turned down by the NCAA staff or its reinstatement committee.
He contended that injuries cost him playing time at Wake Forest, so he should get one more season at Cincinnati, where he is a graduate student. The committee heard his appeal by phone last Thursday and concluded there was no proof that Mauk had to redshirt his freshman season at Wake Forest because of injury.
Mauk's lawyer said Wednesday that he will resume his attempt to overturn the NCAA's decision in court.
Lawyer Kevin Murphy filed a lawsuit last month in Hardin County, where Mauk lives when he's not at school, and got a temporary restraining order against the NCAA. The case was put on hold after the NCAA agreed to reconsider the case.
Now, Murphy will ask Hardin County Judge William Hart for a permanent injunction on Thursday.
"We're going to take our case to the judge, that they didn't apply appropriately their own standards and regulations," Murphy said. "We're just quite puzzled in regard to how they reached their conclusions. It will come out in court tomorrow."
Cincinnati opened its season last Thursday with a 40-7 win over Eastern Michigan. Dustin Grutza, who was Mauk's backup last season, threw for three touchdowns and ran for another, and was honored as the Big East's offensive player of the week.
Mauk was one of college football's biggest success stories last year. He broke his passing arm and dislocated his right shoulder in the 2006 season opener for Wake Forest, then transferred to Cincinnati and overcame his extensive injuries.
He threw for 31 touchdowns and 3,121 yards last year, leading Cincinnati to 10 wins and a No. 17 final ranking. Then, he asked for another season of eligibility because of the injuries.
When the NCAA turned him down, Mauk appealed again, this time contending that he had to redshirt his freshman season at Wake Forest because of injury. The NCAA ruled that there was inconclusive evidence in Wake Forest's records, and the reinstatement committee agreed.
"Even after reviewing the latest information, the committee was unable to identify compelling factors that might be viewed as beyond the control of the student-athlete and the University of Cincinnati," said Carol Iwaoka, who is head of the reinstatement committee and associate commissioner of the Big 10.
The university declined comment. Mauk did not respond to a text message left on his cell phone.
Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press
Ohio State DE Gholston going pro; Oregon's Stewart, Louisville's Myles also entering draft
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- Defensive end Vernon Gholston, who helped lead Ohio State to the BCS title game, is leaving early for the NFL.
The Big Ten defensive lineman of the year and second-team All-American threw his name into the draft Friday, along with Louisville linebacker Lamar Myles and Oregon's Jonathan Stewart, who joins several other top tailbacks to declare early.
"As a son and as a man, it is my duty to serve and support my family to the best of my abilities," Gholston said in a statement. "My childhood dream was, and still is, to one day be fortunate enough to do just that. I feel that time has come."
Many draft experts project Gholston as a first- or second-round selection, after surpassing Mike Vrabel's single-season school record with 14 sacks.
The Buckeyes' chances of reaching a third consecutive title game may have taken a hit when Gholston announced his decision, but coach Jim Tressel did get some good news when receiver Brian Robiskie and cornerback Malcolm Jenkins said they would return to Columbus.
Stewart, the bruising 5-foot-10, 230-pound junior from Oregon, ran for a school-record 1,722 yards in leading the Ducks to a 9-4 record last season. He scored 11 touchdowns on the ground and caught two touchdown passes.
"Up until the beginning of this week, that's the only time I've really been able to sit down and actually think about what I wanted to do," said Stewart, who made the choice Thursday night.
Stewart made a big statement with 253 yards rushing in Oregon's 56-21 victory over South Florida in the Sun Bowl, which could give him a boost in a crowded running back class that already includes Texas' Jamaal Charles, Illinois' Rashard Mendenhall, Clemson's James Davis, Michigan's Mike Hart, Tulane's Mike Forte, Rutgers' Ray Rice and Central Florida's Kevin Smith.
The list could get even longer if Darren McFadden (Arkansas), Felix Jones (Arkansas) and Steve Slaton (West Virginia) forgo their senior seasons.
"To be honest with you, it came down to my faith," Stewart said of his decision. "It's a crapshoot, nothing is set in stone."
Oregon coach Mike Bellotti believes Stewart will go in the first round of the draft, which will take place April 26-27 in New York.
"I know this wasn't an easy decision for him but he feels in his heart that this is what he wants," Bellotti said. "I assured him that we would support whatever conclusion he came to."
Myles joined Louisville receiver Mario Urrutia in declaring early entry for the draft, after leading the disappointing Cardinals with 128 tackles last season.
"The time is right for me to move on," Myles said. "The coaching staff helped me improve as a player and I look forward to competing in the NFL."
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
2-loss LSU finishes No. 1, winning second AP national title
NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- For the first time, a team with two losses ended up No. 1.
LSU climbed to the top of The Associated Press college football poll for the third time this season, winning its second title after beating Ohio State 38-24 in the BCS national championship game Monday night.
This truly is a great team," LSU coach Les Miles said. "There may be more talented ... but this is the best team."
Right behind the Tigers, who received 60 of 65 first-place votes from the media panel, was another Southeastern Conference team. Georgia was No. 2, making the SEC the first league since the Big 8 in 1971 to have the top two teams in the final AP poll. National champion Nebraska was followed by Oklahoma that season.
Southern California, which started this season ranked No. 1, finished No. 3. Missouri was fourth, its best finish in the AP poll, and Ohio State fell from No. 1 to No. 5 after losing the title game.
Georgia received three first-place votes, USC got one and so did No. 7 Kansas.
The last time four teams received first-place votes in the final AP poll was after the 1977 season, when No. 1 Notre Dame, No. 2 Alabama, No. 3 Arkansas and No. 4 Texas split up the top votes.
It was the first time a team with two losses finished No. 1. Colorado was 11-1-1 when it won the 1990 AP national title.
After a wild season in which four teams were No. 1 and nine teams were No. 2, LSU shouldn't mind a little dissension. The top six teams in the final poll all had two losses.
"Certainly there will be some argument as to who's the best team," Miles said.
Twice before in this improbable college football season the Tigers reached No. 1, but both times they could only hold it for a couple of weeks.
LSU became No. 1 on Sept. 30 for the first time since 1959, but two weeks later the Tigers lost 43-37 in triple overtime at Kentucky. They worked their way back to the top, replacing Ohio State when the Buckeyes were beaten by Illinois on Nov. 10.
Two weeks later it was Darren McFadden and Arkansas knocking off the Tigers 50-48 in triple overtime. At that point, LSU's national title hopes were bleak at best.
But when Missouri and West Virginia lost their regular-season finales, Ohio State moved to No. 1 with LSU at No. 2 in the polls and in the BCS standings to set up a second straight Big Ten vs. SEC championship game.
Ohio State jumped out to 10-0 lead, but the Tigers, healthy for the first time in a while, played much like the team that started the season as one of the national title favorites.
And now, when it matters most, LSU is No. 1.
The Tigers won their first AP national title since 1958. LSU won the BCS championship in 2003, but had to share the national championship with USC, which finished No. 1 in the AP poll and had been No. 1 in the coaches' poll entering the bowls.
Having their team called co-champions has always burned LSU fans. But there will be no sharing this time. The Tigers managed to come out on top after a season in which having a high ranking often didn't mean much.
Only five of the teams that started the season ranked in the top 10 finished there.
West Virginia finished sixth, followed by the Jayhawks, Oklahoma and Virginia Tech. Boston College and Texas tied for No. 10.
For Kansas, this matches its best final ranking. The Jayhawks also finished seventh in 1968.
No. 12 Tennessee was followed by Florida, BYU and Auburn.
Arizona State was 16th with Cincinnati, Michigan, Hawaii and Illinois rounding out the top 20.
Michigan moved back into the rankings by beating Florida in the Capital One bowl, coach Lloyd Carr's final game.
The final five were Clemson, Texas Tech, Oregon, Wisconsin and Oregon State.
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
Purdue's Tiller, Central Michigan's Jones match offenses
DETROIT -- When Joe Tiller came to Purdue in 1997, he was told his high-octane offense would never work in the Big Ten.
Not only would the spread attack be frowned upon in a conference that still believed in Woody Hayes, Bo Schembechler and "3 yards and a cloud of dust," but a pass-based system would be grounded by the wind and cold of a Midwest autumn.
Tiller didn't pay any attention. Nor did his opponents in the Motor City Bowl. On Wednesday night at Ford Field, Purdue will play its 10th bowl game in 11 years, facing the back-to-back Mid-American Conference champion Central Michigan Chippewas, who also use the spread offense.
"When I got to Purdue, they told me that there was no way the spread would work here because of the weather," Tiller said. "That never made much sense to me, because I had just been having great success with it in Wyoming. Maybe they didn't know what November is like in Wyoming."
While Tiller was one of the coaches to bring the spread offense -- a system using four or five receivers on many plays, and a quarterback in the shotgun formation on most snaps -- to a wider audience, it has now become the latest trendy scheme. Tiller, though, doesn't consider it some kind of unstoppable attack.
"It's one of those cyclical things. Right now, the spread is the hot offense," he said. "In a few years, the pendulum might change again, and everyone will be playing the wishbone again."
First-year Central Michigan coach Butch Jones is another spread believer, and he inherited a program that already ran Brian Kelly's version of the system. He made some changes, adding things he had learned in his two years as an assistant at West Virginia under new Michigan coach Rich Rodriguez.
Rodriguez's system, unlike many flavors of the spread, makes heavy use of the quarterback as a runner, and Jones had the perfect player in Dan LeFevour.
LeFevour led the Chippewas to a MAC championship and a Motor City Bowl title as a freshman, but took a big step forward as a sophomore, joining Vince Young as the only quarterbacks to ever throw for 3,000 yards and rush for 1,000 in the same season.
LeFevour will be lining up Wednesday against another quarterback with gaudy numbers, Curtis Painter. The Purdue senior threw for 3,300 yards and 26 touchdowns this season, but in Tiller's version of the spread, he's not the same type of runner as LeFevour.
When Purdue played Central Michigan in September, a game the Boilermakers won 45-22, the teams combined for 1,048 yards of offense, including 724 in the air. Painter and LeFevour combined to complete 64 of 95 passes, with five touchdowns and one interception.
"We know from firsthand experience that this game is going to feature two dynamic offenses," Jones said. "It might come down to whichever defense can make a play."
Purdue won the first game after leading 38-0 early in the third quarter, but Painter doesn't expect a repeat.
"That's an entirely different team to the one we played at the beginning of the season," he said. "They've improved a lot, enough to win their conference championship, and they learned a lot from having played us once already.
"This isn't going to be easy."
Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press
Tampa to host 2008 ACC title game
GREENSBORO, North Carolina (Ticker) -- Tampa, Florida has been named the host city for the 2008 and 2009 Atlantic Coast Conference championship games, the league announced Wednesday.
The two games will be played at Raymond James Stadium, the home of the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The ACC also announced that the 2010 and 2011 ACC title contests will be played in Charlotte, North Carolina at Bank of America Stadium, home of the NFL's Carolina Panthers.
"We are extremely excited about the future of the ACC football championship game at these sites," ACC commissioner John Swofford said. "Both Tampa Bay and Charlotte are tremendous destinations in terms of their football venue, community support and partnership with the Atlantic Coast Conference."
The first three ACC championship games were played in Jacksonville, Florida, beginning in 2005.
In this year's title game, Virginia Tech defeated Boston College, 30-16.
Copyright 2007 PA SportsTicker. All Rights Reserved
Hargrave coach talks future of his stars
CHATHAM, Va. - Chatham, Virginia is home to arguably the best prep school talent in the nation at Hargrave Military Academy, led by the country's No. 1 post-grad player in Deangelo Benton.
Rivals.com met up with the Tigers head coach Robert Prunty on Monday to get a brief take on the top talent in this year's class.
Prunty first discussed his five-star prospects, beginning with Benton.
"He is one of those guys you see, he's physical and looks like a Chad Johnson type," he said. "He's got that physical make up, runs great routes and will be another physical receiver that'll come out of LSU. He's tenacious, attacks the ball and plays hard."
Benton isn't the only big-time receiver; he is joined by North Carolina pledge Dwight Jones.
"He's a big receiver," Prunty said. "He's got great hands and will make a lot of big plays at North Carolina. He's just a big receiver with a physical presence on the field."
Auburn commit Enrique Davis rounds out the five-star guys.
"Enrique got injured here," he said. "From what I saw, he's got power and speed, a guy a lot like Bo Jackson. The injury is fine too."
Davis will be joined at Auburn by huge offensive tackle Jermaine Johnson.
"He's going to be a great left tackle," he said. "He's probably the most athletic guy we've got on the line. He has great hands, is tall, lanky. He's a basketball player type and unless something happens he is going to be playing on Sundays. He's got too much talent to not play next year."
Auburn's rival, Alabama, has the No. 5 prep prospect in the nation at Hargrave, jumbo defensive tackle Kerry Murphy.
"He's a three-technique guy on defense," he said. "He's very explosive and runs off the ball very well. He plays with a lot of leverage."
Linebacker Quillie Odom for Virginia Tech made a big impression on Prunty.
"He's got a great motor, a real great motor," he stated. "He plays hard, is a strong guy that is very aggressive and is going to be a great player for Virginia Tech. He can come in and play right away with Xavier Adibi and Vince Hall leaving."
Staying in the ACC, Maryland tight end Devonte Campbell stands out as well.
"He's a big tight end," he said. "He's a big, strong athletic guy, he's very athletic."
North Carolina State offensive tackle Sam Jones is also high on Prunty's list.
"He's a big athletic lineman. He's 6-foot-5, 6-foot-6, can move and has very good hands."
He is joined at Hargrave by future teammate Kyle Linney.
"He is a very physical player at tackle."
West Virginia has two prospects at Hargrave as well, starting with 6-foot-4, 195-pound wide receiver Andrew Harris.
"He's a sleeper," Prunty stated. "He'll be another good one. He's got the same type of body as these other receivers. He's a big guy and is very good."
The Mountaineers other recruit is bruising tailback Terrence Kerns.
"All I have to say about him is power," he said. "He's got a lot of power and is a powerful runner."
One player that has risen up the charts is Josh Pleasant, an uncommitted cornerback.
"He's getting a lot of looks," he said. "He's going to be a good one, another one of those corners like Brandon Flowers, Brent Vinson and Ras-I Dowling. He's another good corner from Hargrave."
Fellow cornerback Randez James is a commitment to Duke, but he may be back on the market.
"He's supposed to be with Duke, they fired their coach," he said. "We'll see what happens and he'll entertain schools. He's going to play it by ear and see what coach they bring in.
"Randez is a speed guy. He's a cover corner that can lock you down and be physical when he has to. He's in the mode especially of Brandon Flowers."
The final four-star prospect is also not committed, but has caught Prunty's eye, linebacker Kent Walker.
"He's another one of those sleepers," he said. "A guy that comes here and everything goes right for him. He's a great player that is very aggressive. He's a good guy too, the kind of kid you want on your football team."
Copyright 2007 Rivals.com. All Rights Reserved.
Indiana State hires longtime assistant Trent Miles as football coach
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (AP) -- Trent Miles, an assistant on Tyrone Willingham's staffs at Stanford, Notre Dame and Washington the past seven years, was chosen as the new football coach at Indiana State on Tuesday.
The Sycamores were winless last season and have won just one of their 33 games the past three years.
Miles was a wide receiver for the Sycamores and started his coaching career at Indiana State in 1987 as a graduate assistant and coach of receivers and defensive backs. He later coached at New Mexico, Oklahoma, Northern Illinois and Hawaii before joining Willingham's staff at Stanford.
He recently completed his third season as running backs coach at Washington.
"Coach Miles brings a wealth of experience having worked in some of the most respected programs in the nation, alongside some of the most respected coaches in the nation," Indiana State athletic director Ron Prettyman said.
Miles will take over from former Sycamores coach Dennis Raetz, who was interim coach the final seven games after Lou West was fired in September.
West, a former defensive coordinator at Toledo, was 1-25 with Indiana State, the only win coming against Missouri State in 2006. He was fired after the Sycamores dropped to 0-4 with a 54-20 home loss.
Raetz, who won 94 games in 18 years with the Sycamores, stepped down after the 1997 season and retired as associate athletic director in June. He currently is a scout for the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League.
Indiana State's most recent winning season was 6-5 under Raetz in 1996.
Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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