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USC's McCullough grows up
For two years, USC tailback Sultan McCullough believed he could outrun any defender. No matter where the play was called, McCullough would try to bounce around the end and use his speed. But McCullough has finally figured out that football doesn't always work that way. In the Trojans' win over Penn State on Sunday, he ran between the tackles. McCullough twisted and fought. Anyone who finishes with 128 yards on 29 carries has learned how to gain the tough yards. Like the entire Trojan team, McCullough looks as if he has matured.
Seminoles find their fullbackThere was nothing special about the block that Florida State fullback William McCray made to spring tailback Travis Minor around right end for a five-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter of the Seminoles' 29-3 rout of BYU Saturday. McCray led the way with your garden-variety kickout block and Minor followed into the end zone.But McCray's return after breaking his ankle in the first game of the 1999 season is a good sign for the Seminoles. The best they could do at fullback a year ago was Dan Kendra, who was really a quarterback, and Jeff Chaney, who was really a tailback. McCray gained 25 yards on the ground against BYU, which may be the least accurate measure of his worth.
Budding story in AmesOhio opens the season at Iowa State on Saturday, and if you're looking for a feel-good dark horse this season, take whichever team wins this game.The Bobcats welcome back 14 starters from a team that started out 0-3 last season, then won five of seven. The Cyclones have an underrated quarterback in Sage Rosenfels and nearly got over the hump last season, when they fell just short of upsetting Kansas State, Texas and Colorado. In coach Dan McCarney's five seasons, Iowa State has never beaten a I-A team that finished with a winning record. That streak could be on its way to ending Thursday night. Sports Illustrated senior writer Ivan Maisel covers the college football beat for the magazine and appears each Saturday on CNN's "College Football Preview." Click here to send a question to his mailbag.
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