NEWS RELEASE – University of North Carolina senior tailback Ryan Houston has been cleared to play and will make his 2010 debut Saturday at Virginia. A native of Charlotte, Houston was held out of the first five games of the season while the University worked with the NCAA to determine his eligibility status.
Top sports handicapper doesn’t like Carolina Hurricanes’ chances
Doc Moseman, a pioneer of the sports handicapping industry, says the Carolina Hurricanes will need a lot of things to go right just to approach the 80 points they got last year in a disappointing, non-playoff season.
“It always seems to be all or nothing with these Carolina Hurricanes,” Moseman says. “In their 13-year existence they have missed the playoffs seven times but have also reached the Stanley Cup Finals twice and the Eastern Conference Finals three times. Unfortunately this year has more the look of a ‘nothing’ year than an ‘all’ year.”
The Hurricanes have a lot of youth and a lot of questions, he says. “This is a full-fledged rebuilding process,” Moseman says.
A lot of veterans are gone as the Hurricanes have a youth movement which includes 18-year-old Jeff Skinner. “The only way fans may recognize the Hurricanes is by their colors and veteran holdovers, captain Eric Staal and goalie Cam Ward,” Moseman says.
Of course you can throw in veterans Erik Cole, Jussi Jokinen and Chad LaRose in there too but the point is well taken.
Two years after compiling an impressive 97 points and a year after finishing with 80 points, Carolina’s over/under for points is 86.5. They are long shots to win the Southeast Division (+2000), Eastern Conference (+4000), and Stanley Cup (+6000). NHL odds are courtesy of BetUS.
Weather forecast nice for Friday night’s high school football games
Here are 10 football games that are within driving distance in the Triangle area. After today’s rain, Friday night’s weather is nice with virtually no chance at rain. In bold is the predicted winner. Most games are at 7:30 p.m. You might want to check with local officials as some games start at 7.
My record last week was a perfect 10-0 for the first time this season. The season total is now 62-18.
Athens Drive at Panther Creek
East Chapel Hill at Northern Durham
Enloe at Broughton
Green Hope at Fuquay-Varina
Holly Springs at Apex
Jordan at Hillside
Leesville Road at Sanderson, 7 p.m.
Middle Creek at Cary
Northern Vance at Chapel Hill
Ravenscroft and North Raleigh Christian
Check the scores in our Sports Roundup on the left navigation bar.
Big home matchups for UNC and State women’s soccer teams
If you haven’t been out to a women’s soccer match this season, Thursday night or Saturday afternoon would be a good time to go.
No. 2 UNC (11-1-1 and 3-1 in the ACC) hosts No. 7 Florida State (10-2 and 4-0 in the ACC) at 7 p.m. Thursday night while N.C. State (7-7 and 1-4 in the ACC), losers of four in a row including three by one goal, play host to Miami (8-4-1 and 2-2 in the ACC) at the same time.
The teams switch opponents for 1 p.m. matches on Saturday. State’s game against Florida State will be the Wolfpack’s final home game of the season. After this weekend, Carolina will have four ACC games left before the league tournament which is being held Nov. 3-7 in Cary while State has three ACC games remaining.
UNC Statistical Leaders
Goals: Alyssa Rich & Kealia Ohai, 7
Assists: Courtney Jones, 8
Points: Alyssa Rich, 19
Saves: Anna Sieloff, 27
NC State Statistical Leaders
Goals: Kristina Argiroff, 5
Assists: Kristina Argiroff, Tanya Cain, Jennie Krauser, 4
Points: Kristina Argiroff, 14
Saves: Kim Kern, 65
UNC’s Yates goes from interception machine to completion machine
North Carolina senior quarterback T.J. Yates has the lowest interception percentage in the country at .063. Last year there were only three games in which he did not throw an interception.
UNC coach Butch Davis says Yates is not as overly protective and cautious with the ball. He says that from last year to this year, Yates has a greater understanding of the Tar Heels offense and what it takes to be successful in it.
He’s also been healthier. “For the first time in his career, he’s really had kind of a consecutive 15, 16, 17 months of health,” Davis says. “You cannot underestimate how important it is to go through an off-season where you can lift, and you can get bigger and stronger and quicker.
“And you can go through spring practice with the fractured ankle that he had and missed seven weeks, then with the shoulder surgery, I think those two things really kind of somewhat limited his ability to improve himself.”
Yates has only one interception in 160 attempts and that was a tipped pass off the hands of a receiver at Rutgers. The one interception is the fewest of any quarterback in the ACC. He had a string of 117 passes without an interception and has since thrown 61 passes without being picked off.
O’Brien raves against East Carolina fans
One of Tom O’Brien’s better traits is he doesn’t try to act like every game is the same. Every N.C. State fan knows the North Carolina game is bigger than Western Carolina, and every Wolfpack fan knows what it means to play East Carolina, too.
N.C. State travels to Greenville for Saturday’s 2 p.m. contest, a game that many ACC coaches might dread. But listening to the ACC teleconference, you got the feeling O’Brien relishes a game like this.
“We know how important this football game is within our state,” O’Brien said. “They are coming off a great victory Saturday in Hattiesburg [over Southern Miss]. We look forward to a tough game.”
O’Brien didn’t mince words when saying what Greenville was such a tough venue.
“The fans. They are great. They are loud. They are enthusiastic,” he said. “We go down there with a big bull’s-eye on our chests. The whole atmosphere is, ‘Whatever it takes to beat State.’”
By the way, O’Brien is 9-3 at NCSU against in-state schools.
History or not, UNC needs this game in Charlottesville
So what were you doing in 1981? Butch Davis was an assistant coach at Oklahoma State, Mike London was playing defensive back for the University of Richmond, and Dick Crum was leading UNC to a 17-14 victory over Virginia in Scott Stadium.
That win didn’t seem remarkable at the time. In fact, it made Carolina 12-3 in Charlottesville since the ACC began in 1953. But now, Dick Crum is … well, wherever he is … and Carolina has had as much luck in Charlottesville as a Hokie fan hoping to hook up on the Corner.
With the Cavaliers breaking in new coach Mike London, you’d think this might be the Tar Heels’ chance to win for the first time since ‘81. Carolina is now 3-2 and is finally gaining some resolution on its roster, while Virginia is 2-3 with wins over Richmond and VMI.
This is a huge game for Carolina, with history as a weight. The Cavaliers stuck UNC with a bitter loss two years ago, winning 16-13 in Scott Stadium on a day Heels fans thought the streak might finally end. That was Davis’ only trip to the Bermuda Triangle of Carolina football. Davis said Wednesday he is not putting any emphasis on the historic nature of Saturday’s game.
“What transpired 10 years ago shouldn’t have any relevance on what will happen this Saturday,” he said.
Well, maybe it shouldn’t – but it does. Programs on the ascent find ways to smash those negative marks as they build wins and confidence. A look ahead for UNC shows only three games where it would be favored – this one, William and Mary and Duke. The others – at Miami, at Florida State, Virginia Tech and N.C. State – won’t be easy.
History or not, this is a game North Carolina needs.
Shannon says Miami will be angry this Saturday at Duke
Miami comes into Duke’s Wallace Wade Stadium Saturday after a lackluster loss at home to Florida State.
“They will be angry,” Coach Randy Shannon said of his Hurricanes. “They are disappointed, upset.” He added that today’s practice was very physical and the players were very enthusiastic.
“You can tell false enthusiasm and this wasn’t false enthusiasm,” he said. “There were some big hits in practice today. Guys were going after each other offensively and defensively. Anytime you have that you feel good about it but you have to bring that to the game.”
Duke is coming off a decent effort in a close loss at Maryland two weeks ago but will be underdogs at home this week to Miami.
Blue Devils coach David Cutcliffe says his team used the off week to not only heal physically but to heal mentally. “I think confidence has suffered to some degree,” he said. “Confidence is never given, confidence is earned. So it gave us a chance to get back our confidence, and hopefully we’ve done that.”
They’ll need it against an angry Miami team.
Little says he is ‘remorseful’ for actions affecting UNC
North Carolina receiver Greg Little apologized Tuesday for his actions that led to him being suspended from the team for the season. Keep in mind that the statement was surely managed by his attorney and was released by the school, so it has a formal feel in the language. Also, it’s not like he spoke with reporters and answered tough questions about his actions – or was in a position to ask the coaching staff or university to share some responsibility.
Still, the statement is extensive and shows some real remorse. It’s noteworthy that Little, who is from Durham, originally committed to Notre Dame before switching to UNC. Here is the statement, with our questions in italics:
“One of my greatest accomplishments was receiving a scholarship to the University of North Carolina. Perhaps, but he was also offered by Notre Dame. Representing the University was a true honor and I am so appreciative of Coach [Butch] Davis and his staff for giving me the opportunity to achieve my dream of playing for North Carolina. OK, OK, then why did he commit to Notre Dame? I want to apologize first to my teammates, coaches, and the support staff for letting them down. To the community of Chapel Hill, students, alumni, and supporters of the University, I am terribly remorseful.
“The recent decision from the NCAA regarding my eligibility as a collegiate athlete is extremely painful, and has been a distraction from the team throughout the past five months. Five months ago was June. The NCAA visited July 12 and 13. Sounds like this was on the minds of the program a month before the NCAA arrived. My situation should not take away from any of the team’s current accomplishments or future accomplishments. Now that I am no longer a part of the program, I hope my actions will not distract the team any longer.
“For the remainder of this semester, I will continue to pursue my education at North Carolina.For this semester? Will he graduate this semester? Does that mean he will not take classes next semester if he needs them to graduate? I understand the negative connotations associated with my punishment, but I would like to continue to be active in the community and participate in various outreach programs that I have always enjoyed. Classy comment there.
“There are defining moments in everyone’s life. I will use this as one of mine to shape and mold my morals and values as person. My time at UNC came to an abrupt conclusion, but I will forever be a proud supporter of the Tar Heels and the University of North Carolina.” Great point – and he still has a chance to play in the NFL
Poll indicates not much interest in attending Hurricanes games
Even though Capital Sports is getting 100-plus unique visitors to its site each day, only a handful of people were interested in responding to this week’s poll question: The Carolina Hurricanes open the home schedule Oct. 27. How many games will you attend this season?
I’m assuming that means that our readers don’t have a good feel for how many games they will attend or that they don’t care enough about hockey to even answer the question.
Of the respondents to the poll 55 percent said they would not attend a Hurricanes game at all this season. Only one voter said he would attend 10 or more games. Two others said they’d attend one or two while one voter said he’d attend three to five games.
Hurricanes games aren’t inexpensive but they are a fun time and the club has managed to make it more of a family-friendly event than at some other NHL arenas.