| |
|
EVENTS Fantasy Central Inside Game Multimedia Central Statitudes Your Turn Message Boards Email Newsletters Golf Guide Cities Work in Sports
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE |
MIAMI (Ticker) -- It was little preparation for Penn State, but 12th-ranked Miami looked ready. Miami clubbed Division I-AA Florida A&M, 57-3, improving to 2-0 in its final tuneup before a battle with mighty Penn State on September 18. The Hurricanes rolled quickly in the rout, getting playing time for many players, including true freshman running back Jarrett Payton, the son of NFL all-time leading rusher Walter Payton. Payton carried nine times for 32 yards. There was no letdown for Miami a week after it beat Ohio State, 23-12, in the Kickoff Classic. In that game, second-string running back Najeh Davenport tore his ACL, leaving Payton and Clinton Portis, another true frosh, to battle for the No. 2 spot. The Hurricanes actually lost the first of five games in this series on October 6, 1979 at Florida State's Doak Campbell Stadium. But Miami since has outscored FAMU, 193-6, holding the Rattlers without a touchdown in 18 straight quarters. "You have to get a feel for what they were doing, but our game plan was ready and we simply adjusted," Miami coach Butch Davis said of the Rattlers' no-huddle attack. "We knew they were explosive. We had to do a good job on the first tackle or their gains could have gone for 15 yards." After going 11-2 in 1998, Florida A&M was ranked ninth in the preseason ESPN/USA Today I-AA poll. The Rattlers looked good on their first drive, which led to a 25-yard field goal by Jeremy Edwards 4:48 into the game. But Miami scored 57 unanswered points. Kenny Kelly gave the Hurricanes the lead with 5:33 left in the first quarter with a nine-yard scoring pass to Santana Moss. James Jackson ran 43 yards for a score 2:22 later for a 14-3 lead. Jackson carried seven yards for a score 12 seconds into the second quarter and Andy Crosland kicked a 22-yard field goal 2:28 later for a 24-3 lead. Jackson carried 19 times for 103 yards and Kelly completed 9-of-15 passes for 119 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. "Our receivers ran good routes and our running back ran well, which really helped me out," said Kelly. "I need to do some things better to be effective against Penn State." "We wanted to come out, win and improve on some things," Davis said. "I thought we were able to do that. Kenny made some good throws and as a whole I thought he played pretty well." Kelly threw a three-yard scoring pass to tight end Daniel "Bubba" Franks 9:29 before the half and Portis bulled in from a yard less than four minutes later for a 35-point bulge. Aaron Moser blocked a punt out of the end zone later in the half for a safety that gave the Hurricanes a 40-3 lead. It was the 31st blocked kick in Miami's last 47 games. The 40 points were Miami's best first-half total since October 14, 1995 against Rutgers. In the third quarter, Crosland tacked on a 32-yard field goal and Ethenic Sands caught a 13-yard scoring pass from Ken Dorsey, an all-true freshman combination. Portis ran two yards for the final score in the fourth quarter. Miami limited FAMU to six first downs and 69 yards of total offense, including minus-17 rushing. Florida A&M was 1-of-16 on third-down conversions. The Hurricanes totaled 364 yards, including 191 on the ground. The Rattlers' Quinn Gray was 4-of-11 for 55 yards before leaving with an injury and Roland Dykstra was nearly as bad, going 3-of-11 for 25 yards. Jorade Jackson was just 1-of-7. "You can't feel bad about a game like this," said FAMU's Jacquay Nunnally, who caught five passes for 36 yards. "Miami is ranked in the top-10 in Division I-A. It's like we're playing the Green Bay Packers."
|
