By Mitch Vingle, Special to CNNSI.com
Jonathan Vilma is caught in the middle of the Bowl Championship Series debate.
If Miami is to win convincingly over Nebraska in the Jan. 3 Rose Bowl, if the Hurricanes are to prove the Cornhuskers don't belong in the national championship, Vilma might be most responsible.
For he is the Hurricanes' middle linebacker. And conventional wisdom says the Huskers will have to run over him in order to win one for the BCS micro-chipper.
"Yep," said Vilma, "I expect them to run at us and around us. And if they can't? They'll keep trying to run the ball at us."
It may be Nebraska's Plan A, B and C. But it's not such a bad plan. The Huskers led the nation in rushing (314.7) during the season. Meanwhile, run defense is Miami's only phase that resembles a boil. The Hurricanes are tops in the country in scoring defense and sixth in total defense, but are No. 40 in rushing defense, surrendering 132.7 a game.
"Nebraska will keep running the option," said Vilma. "None of the other teams we've played are like that. Some teams have run the option, but got away from it after a while. No matter what the score is, Nebraska will stick with it."
For better or worse.
"They are just tough. They like to get after you and pound you. Then they'll sneak a pass in trying to keep you off balance."
Vilma said he has two reasons to be confident. One is his ever-improving defensive front.
"Our defensive line really improved at the end of the year," said the middle linebacker. "We rotate eight guys; we're two-deep at every position. And they've been keeping the blockers off me and then some."
Second, Vilma said Colorado's blowout of Nebraska lent confidence.
"It gave us a lot of confidence," said the linebacker. "Still, while Colorado was scoring, they were too. Colorado just put up more."
Vilma may be a key on Miami's side, but he pointed to Nebraska's Heisman Trophy winner as the key for the Huskers.
"If [quarterback Eric] Crouch isn't having a good day," said Vilma, "they aren't either."
In three of the last four bowl matchups between the Hurricanes and Cornhuskers, the winner has emerged as the national champion. This will be the sixth time in 10 all-time meetings that the teams will meet in a bowl.
Two years ago, Virginia Tech and Florida State were the ones playing for the title. This season, on Jan. 1, the two will play in the Gator Bowl.
There is no Michael Vick for 8-3 Tech. And the Seminoles have four losses. But the tickets have been selling fast in Jacksonville.
The attraction is the offense of Florida State coach Bobby Bowden, which averages 33.9 points a game, and the stingy defense of Tech coach Frank Beamer, which allowed an average of 13.4 four points a game. The Hokies pitched four shutouts this season and was No. 2 nationally in scoring and total defense.
On Dec. 29, 9-3 Syracuse will face 6-5 Kansas State in the Insight.com Bowl at Phoenix. But don't let the records fool you.
K-State runs the ball well behind its two-headed QB system of Ell Roberson and Marc Dunn. Syracuse, meanwhile, is 72nd nationally in run defense, allowing 170.2 yards per game.
That could put the pressure on SU's sophomore quarterback R.J. Anderson.
A day before that matchup, Boston College and Georgia will meet in Nashville for the Music City Bowl.
The 7-4 Eagles will try to snap a 21-game losing streak against ranked opponents. A key matchup will be between BC tailback William Green, who is pondering whether to turn pro, and a Georgia defense that is surrendering but 108.8 yards per game.
Pitt star Antonio Bryant, meanwhile, may have given Panther fans a farewell gift by leading his team to a 34-19 win over North Carolina State in the Tangerine Bowl.
Bryant, who almost certainly will turn pro, had seven catches for 101 yards and Pitt's first two touchdowns. The Panthers won their last six games.
 |
|---|
|
While Virginia Tech's Kevin Jones was the Big East's most glamorized freshman, Boston College guard Chris Snee quietly won the praise of the coaches.
Snee and sophomores Augie Hoffman and Leo Bell all emerged as starters on the offensive line this season.
"If you look at our season, we've gotten much better in the last five weeks and I think that has to do with the maturity of the offensive line," said BC coach Tom O'Brien. "They've progressed as we've progressed.
"Chris Snee as a redshirt freshman has been one of the best guys we've had here. He's a very talented kid for 300-some pounds who move around on his feet well."
|
|
|
|
 |
|---|
|
HOT:
Pittsburgh wide receiver Antonio Bryant
Had 28 catches for 487 yards and eight TDs in his last four games.
NOT:
West Virginia's coaching staff
Turmoil resulted in a "parting" with defensive coordinator Phil Elmassian.
HOT:
Miami Hurricanes
After a year fighting for No. 1, the 'Canes are tops unanimously.
NOT:
Syracuse and its fan base
The Orangemen finished No. 2 in the league, but the Gator Bowl took Tech.
|
|
|
| |
 |
|---|
|
The score was only 17-10 when Pitt punted on fourth-and-21 on its own 40-yard line, and Wolfpack freshman Lamont Reid ran into Panthers punter Andy Lee.
Pittsburgh took advantage, eventually scoring on a Rod Rutherford 1-yard plunge, extending the lead to 24-10. Pitt won 34-19.
"That was big," said N.C. State coach Chuck Amato, "because we would have had the momentum back on our side."
|
|
|
|
 |
|---|
|
 Pittsburgh QB David Priestley
Passed for 271 yards in his swan song -- with a sprained ankle.
Pittsburgh's defense
Snuffed State after the Wolfpack closed to 27-19.
Panthers coach Walt Harris
Earned his first bowl win in three tries with Pitt.
|
|
|
| |
 |
|---|
|
If Pittsburgh's win over N.C. State is any indication, the Big East may be in for another fine postseason.
Last season, the Big East went 4-1 in bowl games, the best record among BCS conferences. Big East teams have won six of nine bowl games in the last two years and have eight victories in three years.
Also, the league has sent a team to the BCS national championship game in two of the last three seasons. Five of its eight teams have gone to bowl games for the second straight season.
|
|
|
| |
 |
|---|
|
Miami junior fullback Najeh Davenport will miss the Rose Bowl because of a break in his foot. ... Word from Jacksonville is the 72,500-seat Alltel Stadium may be sold out for the Gator Bowl. ... Virginia Tech's Frank Beamer hired former Notre Dame offensive coordinator Kevin Rogers as the Hokies' quarterback coach. Rogers replaces longtime Tech assistant Rickey Bustle, who was named head coach at Louisiana-Lafayette. ... Tech tailback Kevin Jones, dealing with a sprained shoulder, sat out pre-Christmas workouts, but should be fine for his team's bowl. ... Pittsburgh started Marcus Furman at tailback against N.C. State ahead of fellow freshman Raymond Kirkley. ... Boston College left tackle Marc Colombo is back from a knee injury. Defensive end Antonio Garay, however, is still uncertain with a neck problem.
|
|
|
