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09/03/2010 -
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) -Noel Devine stayed in school just for this.
Rather than take a chance on the NFL draft last April, Devine is returning for one final season in which he believes ``the sky is the limit.''
Liftoff starts Saturday when No. 25 West Virginia plays FCS school Coastal Carolina.
``It's my senior year,'' Devine said. ``I'm just trying to enjoy it all and embrace it. I'm happy with the team we have now and I'm proud of my decision. It's a destiny. It's laid out already and it's not like I'm in control.''
Despite rushing for 1,465 yards last season, including a 220-yard effort against Colorado, Devine wasn't the center of attention even within his own conference, and that might be the case again this year.
All eight Big East teams return their top rushers from 2009, led by Pittsburgh's Dion Lewis, who ran for 1,799 yards as a freshman. Not far away at Virginia Tech, teammates Ryan Williams and Darren Evans are being touted as perhaps the top running back tandem in the nation.
Devine needs 1,784 yards to overtake Avon Cobourne as West Virginia's career rushing leader, although that would require an amount of carries atypical of West Virginia's philosophy of spreading the ball to many weapons.
``As many times as they'll give it to me,'' said Devine, who averaged nearly 19 carries a game last year. ``I want to be a key aspect to this team and do all that I can.''
If the diminutive Devine can approach Cobourne's record, it might end up getting him mentioned as a Heisman Trophy candidate.
Those suggestions get stopped as quickly as Devine changes directions when he has the ball.
``It's all talk. I have to prove myself on the field,'' Devine said. ``It's an honor to be mentioned, but it's just going to be up to me to come through with it.''
Coastal Carolina coach David Bennett wishes Devine had taken the money and run to the NFL.
``Our guys have an opportunity to try to slow him down a little bit,'' Bennett said. ``You're not going to completely stop him. He is lightning. What he does a great job is hiding behind those big ol' linemen that they've got.''
Devine's decision to return in January came the same day slot receiver Jock Sanders also announced he'd return for his season season.
It was fitting considering the Florida natives - Devine from Fort Myers, Sanders from St. Petersburg - entered the program together in 2007. Both are fathers and would be the first in their families to earn college degrees.
``We just had that instant vibe,'' Sanders said. ``We're just always on the same page because we're around each other so much.''
Sanders led the team a year ago with 72 catches for 688 yards and needs 55 catches to become the school's leading receiver.
But he'll have someone new throwing to him. Sophomore Geno Smith is making his first start after backing up Jarrett Brown last season.
Smith's arm might get plenty of work Saturday. Coach Bill Stewart warns Coastal Carolina might follow the lead of other teams in the past by clogging the line of scrimmage and denying Devine his running lanes.
``If we can't get free, if they load the box, it's going to be a long struggle no matter who you play,'' Stewart said.
Coastal Carolina quarterback Zach MacDowall is hoping for a better season after throwing for more interceptions (11) than touchdowns (nine) in 2009.
That chance may have to wait until after Saturday. West Virginia intercepted 17 passes a year ago and returns nine starters on defense.
Coastal Carolina is the second straight Big South team to open a season at West Virginia. Liberty gave the Mountaineers early fits last year before West Virginia pulled away in the second half for a 33-20 win.
Bennett said he might follow up on someone's suggestion to get some tips on playing West Virginia from Liberty coach Danny Rocco, but that his biggest worry wasn't his opponent.
``We're really more concerned about our guys, getting us ready,'' he said. ``I think in coaching a lot of times, we worry too much about what are the other guys going to do.''Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
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Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It's a milestone in itself that Penn State
icon Joe Paterno is still coaching in the twilight of his years. So it comes
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League East in the opener of a three-game set against the Florida Marlins at
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under interim manager Mike Quade this afternoon when they open a three-game
series against the New York Mets at Wrigley Field.
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PITTSBURGH (AP) - The Pittsburgh Penguins have signed forward Mike Comrie to a $500,000, one-year contract, giving them a proven scorer who might be capable of playing on one of their top three lines.The Penguins, looking for affordable scoring help
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AUBURN, Ala. (AP) -Quarterback Cameron Newton has been the talk of Auburn since his arrival on campus. He's big, he's mobile and he's a skilled leader who can direct Gus Malzahn's offense to even bigger numbers.That's the buzz, at least.Really, the
Two playoff teams from 2007 take center stage on the NFL Network Sunday night in a Week 2 NFL betting match-up when the (0-1) New England Patriots betting head south to Florida for a contest with the (1-0) Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
New England HC Bill Belichick couldn’t care less about the way his team plays in the preseason. With a chance to tie last week’s game with the Baltimore Ravens betting, He elected to go for the two-point conversion and outright victory. The conversion failed, and the Pats ended up falling to the Ravens by a 16-15 final count.
New England rolled off twelve unanswered points to give it a chance at securing the victory, but it never threatened to cover the 3.5-point spread. NFL bettors saw this one coming, as they bet the Ravens down from +6 to +3.5 as the week progressed. QB Tom Brady didn’t take part in the Patriots first preseason clash, but could see action this weekend.
His three replacements all put up embarrassing numbers. They went a combined 17 for 33, and threw three interceptions and no touchdowns. The New England defense was encouraging, as they held the Ravens to 2/12 third down conversions and surrendered just ten first downs. That ‘D’ should be bolstered with the addition of former Bucs and Denver Broncos betting safety John Lynch, who could make his Patriots debut on Sunday against his former mates.
HC Jon Gruden had to be impressed with the way his Bucs played on both sides of the ball in their dominating 17-6 victory over the Miami Dolphins in Week 1’s NFL pre-season betting action. Bucs bettors were quite happy with the effort, as they made a mockery of the fact that they were underdogs in the game.
The logjam at the quarterback position didn’t get any easier to separate for Gruden, as all four of his QBs had positive experiences in the first exhibition of 2008. The four combined to complete 28 of their 40 passes for 204 yards and a touchdown, and that was without starting QB Jeff Garcia in the lineup.
RB Michael Bennett had 19 carries and four receptions, totaling 90 yards and a touchdown. Expect to see more of Bennett, Kenneth Darby, and Earnest Graham, as they all compete for playing time with Warrick Dunn in the backfield this season. Defensively, the Bucs recorded four sacks and held the Fins offense in check all day.
First round draft pick Aqib Talib was impressive in the secondary, recording a tackle and two pass defenses in his debut. Don’t be surprised to see Talib in the starting lineup opposite Ronde Barber for the Bucs in ’08.
The betting trends suggest that NFL bettors should be backing the Bucs in this intra-conference exhibition.
These two teams hooked up last year in Tampa Bay, with the Bucs winning that game 13-10. The Buccaneers have only lost one preseason game at home dating back to the beginning of the ’05 preseason. The Patriots have had a mixed bag of results in their recent exhibitions. They have gone 2-2 ATS and SU each of the last three years.
New England currently sits as modest 1-point favorites in this preseason showdown with the ‘total’ now sitting at 34.5.
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