News and Notes from East Carolina, Conference USA and Beyond

PREVIOUS NUGGETS

12.28.06: Ford, former gridder and President, succumbs ... MAC champs cruise to Motor City Bowl win ... Cremins fills a need with return to coaching

12.27.06: Hoops: Houston's Dowell named player of week ... Southern Miss announces pair of juco transfers ... Fundraiser for Buckeyes' families questioned

12.26.06: ECU women's soccer performs in classroom ... Warriors' offense rolls past ASU in Hawaii Bowl

12.25.06: Aborted flight grounds ECU fans ... Utes' get their kicks at Tulsa's expense ... Fumbles leave Lobos lamenting

12.24.06: Returnees yield No. 1 baseball ranking for Rice ... Owls wings clipped again at Superdome ... Air Force alum succeeds DeBerry

12.23.06: Nifong hangs on to unraveling Duke rape case ... BYU seniors realize their dream in Las Vegas ... Paulus wows homefolks, Coach K in Big Apple ... Appalachian State basking in a multi-sport roll

12.22.06: Former ECU assistant Brindise leaving coaching ... USF's Burnett apparently out for bowl ... ECU's Mills scores 24 in losing effort in Cancun

12.21.06: Cavanaugh joins Pirate baseball staff ... Lady Pirates lose opener in Cancun to Pitt ... Derek Dooley leaving Dolphins for La. Tech

12.20.06: ECU's Graham getting double exposure ... Stanford names Harbaugh as new coach ... Women's hoops contest called due to rain

12.19.06: ECU's Allison selected for Senior Bowl ... BC picks longtime ECU assistant Jagodzinski ... Television numbers up for college football

12.18.06: Former ECU aide Calloway takes helm at UAB ... Auburn suspends 3 from bowl game ... 17,000-plus watch Nebraska win volleyball title

12.17.06: Orange Bowl resets ECU-Wake hoops to Jan. 1 ... Spurrier's wife, Lawing commit infractions ... Rebs, Bulldogs shuffled on Memphis schedule

12.16.06: Appalachian State repeats as I-AA champ ... DeBerry announces retirement at Air Force ... Possible perp in Pata shooting held in Boston

12.15.06: Boone booming with football success ... All-America: Rice's Dillard and UTEP's Higgins ... Miami offensive coordinator moving to ASU

12.14.06: Grobe gets national recognition for coaching ... ECU soccer duo receives honors

12.13.06: Pirate baseball competes to get in shape ... Holy Toledo! Green Wave's search over ... Arizona State fills football coaching void

12.12.06: Garrard not complaining after Jags win ... Rutgers' Schiano named coach of year ... Wolfpack dominates Lady Pirates in Raleigh

12.11.06: Watson Brown heads home to Tennessee Tech ... Boston College names Spaziani interim coach ... Georgia Tech's Johnson wins Biletnikoff award

12.10.06: Junior Smith involved in Cox commitment ... WVU's Rodriguez says no to Bama's big bucks ... Boykin leaves Blue Devils hoops program

12.09.06: Garrard named AFC player of the week ... C-USA players of year: Kolb, Bunting, Higgins ,,, Miami elevates Shannon to head coach

12.08.06: Rivers tips off conclusion of coaching search ... Orioles' Roberts serving FCA baseball camps ... Hoops: Lady Pirates defeat UNC-Wilmington

12.07.06: Nine Pirates named to all-conference teams ... League honors four ECU freshman gridders ... Recruiting thumbnail: Rodney Cox ... ECU's Norris named to All-South 2nd team

12.06.06: UTEP's Higgins named AFCA All-American ... Memphis thumps Herd in C-USA hoops opener ... C-USA names top cross country performers

12.05.06: First-ever Gators- Buckeyes match-up a big one ... Boise State crashes BCS party in Fiesta ... Seminoles top Lady Pirates for tourney title

12.04.06: New recruiting thumbnail: Tyrell Worthington ... McFadden leads Independence into title game ... Bearcats bound for new bowl in Toronto

12.03.06: Paper: Hudson among Cincy coaching targets ... UAB ousted from NCAA volleyball by UCLA

12.02.06: Witter wins minor league baseball honor ... Millican in position in LPGA qualifying ... ECU announces challenging softball slate

12.01.06: C-USA announces football players of year ... Rice's Graham gets coach of year award ... ECU's Krug lands All-America honor

Compiled from staff and electronic reports
©Bonesville.net. All rights reserved.

Houston continued its preparations for today's Liberty Bowl game against South Carolina with a solid workout Wednesday at the University of Memphis Athletics Complex, according to a report on the Cougars' athletic website.

Working out in shirts and shorts, the Cougars practiced for about 90 minutes during their final full workout of the 2006 season.

The Cougars will meet South Carolina at 3:30 p.m., today, at the Liberty Bowl. This marks UH's third appearance in a bowl game in the last four years, a feat that has not been accomplished since the 1979-81 Cougar teams competed in four straight bowl games.

The game airing of the game on ESPN will be the Cougars' eighth appearance on television during the 2006 season. John Saunders will call the play-by-play action with Craig James and Doug Flutie providing color analysis and Todd Harris on the sidelines.

UH earned the right to meet the Gamecocks with a 34-20 win over Southern Miss in the 2006 Conference USA championship game. It marked the first league title for the Cougars since 1996.

In a game which features the No. 1 ranked offense in Conference USA in the Cougars and a South Carolina team coached by Steve Spurrier, many of the pundits are expecting a high-scoring, high-octane bowl game.

The 2006 AutoZone Liberty Bowl marks the end of the college careers of 15 Cougar seniors, including 2006 C-USA offensive player of the year Kevin Kolb, who owns virtually every UH passing record and will start his 50th consecutive game this afternoon.

Earlier Wednesday, the Cougars attended a luncheon featuring players, coaches and fans from both teams at their hotel. Following their workout and a return to the hotel to get cleaned up, Cougar players and coaches had the option to attend a local rodeo, see movies or attend the NBA's Memphis-Milwaukee game, with most players choosing the latter.

Florida State coaches talked to players about a past it did not want to match — a 5-6 season in 1976 that was the program's only losing effort under Bobby Bowden.

And FSU's young players entered the Emerald Bowl seeking to make a statement about next season, according to this excerpt from a Tallahassee Democrat report.

But mostly Florida State (7-6) played for the moment — making gutsy calls on offense, pulling off a big play on defense and pouring it on at the end to capture the Emerald Bowl with a 44-27 victory over UCLA.

“It gives you a little optimism, it gives you a little enthusiasm going into next year,” FSU coach Bobby Bowden said.

Quarterback Drew Weatherford, facing fourth-and-9 with just under 10 minutes remaining, found a favorite big-play target in Greg Carr for a 30-yard touchdown strike. As defending cornerback Rodney Van fell to the ground and Carr cradled the football, departing FSU offensive coordinator Jeff Bowden thrust his arms into the air.

“I was surprised that they had double-covered Chris Davis, and that left single coverage for Greg Carr,” Jeff Bowden said. “So at the snap, I knew.

“Going for it was just a matter of either punting the ball or taking a shot at the end zone. That was easy. This is just such a positive note for everyone.”

California native Lorenzo Booker sealed the victory four minutes later with a leaping 3-yard run to cap his FSU career with 91 yards rushing and 117 receiving. And then cornerback Tony Carter snagged a pass from Pat Cowan and returned it 84 yards for FSU's third touchdown in 10 minutes.

Duquesne athletic director Greg Amodio has announced that basketball coach Ron Everhart would miss Duquesne's game at Boston College on Thursday as he recovers from a gastrointestinal issue.

Everhart admitted himself to UPMC Passavant Hospital early Monday afternoon with abdominal pain and remained there overnight. He is currently being treated with antibiotics and is expected to be hospitalized for several days.

"I have been with Ron off-and-on for the past 24 hours," Amodio said. "Ron is in good spirits and is focused on getting well. We hope to have him back on the bench very soon."

Assistant coaches Kim Lewis, Richard Pitino and Daryn Freedman shared coaching duties in Everhart's absence.

News Nuggets are compiled periodically based on material supplied by staff members; data published by ECU, Conference USA and its member schools; and reports from electronic services and other sources. Copyright 2006 Bonesville.net and other publishers. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.