Rivers vs. Schaub: ACC’s top quarterbacks square off
By ED MILLER, The Virginian-Pilot
© November 1, 2003

The best quarterback in the ACC stands 6-foot-5 and weighs about 240 pounds. He’s a senior. He completes nearly 71 percent of his passes.

He’s on the cover of his team’s media guide and owns most of his school’s passing records. He began the season as a Heisman Trophy hopeful, but circumstances beyond his control will prevent him from winning it.

He’s Philip Rivers of N.C. State. Or Matt Schaub of Virginia. Take your pick.

They are “really pretty much the same player,” Virginia coach Al Groh said. Certainly, Rivers and Schaub have more similarities than differences. Both are tall and unflappable in the pocket. Both possess a quick release. Both are masters of the short passing game. Both play within their team’s systems and rarely try to force a throw that isn’t there.

Above all, both are pinpoint accurate. Schaub leads the nation in completion percentage, at 70.95 percent. Rivers is second, at 70.83.

Even their teams are deadlocked in the ACC standings, at 3-2. One will separate itself today, when Virginia and N.C. State meet at Carter-Finley Stadium.

The game could be a pitcher’s duel of a different sort — high-scoring — particularly if both Rivers and Schaub are on their games.

“If both these quarterbacks come out of this game having completed 70 percent, it’s going to be a long game,” Groh said. “I’m sure each team is going to try to get the other team’s completion percentages down.”

Easier said than done. Schaub completed 19 of 22 passes against North Carolina, and two of his incompletions were drops. The 2002 ACC Player of the Year has no shortage of possible targets. Seven Virginia players have caught 10 or more passes.

In the five games since returning from a separated shoulder suffered in the season opener — an injury that took him out of Heisman consideration — Schaub has averaged 289.6 passing yards per game.

“He’s done just about all he can do in the amount of games he’s played,” Rivers said. So has Rivers — in far more games. A quarterbacking prodigy, Rivers graduated from high school early — in December 1999 — so he could participate in spring practice at N.C. State. He started the first game of his career and every one since, 47 in all.

Rivers owns every major ACC career passing record and is climbing the NCAA list in several categories. He’s sixth in career yardage and total offense and 12th in touchdown passes.

“His numbers are spectacular,” Schaub said. Spectacular enough to merit Heisman consideration, if the Wolfpack — expected to be a national power this year — had not dropped three games. Rivers has thrown for 2,901 yards and 21 touchdowns, with just six interceptions. He’s fifth nationally in total offense, 11th in pass efficiency.

Since N.C. State has more speed at receiver than Virginia, he’s been able to throw the deep ball more often than Schaub. “He’s able to attack you in a lot of ways,” Virginia cornerback Almondo Curry said. “It’s always hard to stop a guy who’s been in his system that long.”

Virginia has had more luck than most. Rivers had thrown 82 career touchdown passes, but none in three games against Virginia. Last year’s game — played on a raw, rainy afternoon — was a defensive affair, won by the Cavaliers’ 14-9.

“Certainly, that’s been brought to my attention,” Rivers said of his touchdown drought against Virginia.

Rivers said the drought only bothers him because a TD throw or two could have helped N.C. State win the two games it has lost to Virginia in his career.

Schaub can relate. Of all the similarities between him and Rivers, Schaub said one thing stands out above the others.

“We’re guys who only care about winning,” Schaub said. “And doing whatever it takes to accomplish that.”
 

Rivers gets final shot to outshine Schaub
Philip Rivers faces UVa and Matt Schaub, who edged Rivers for last season's ACC player of the year award. Virginia at N.C. State TODAY 3:30 p.m., WSET
By Doug Doughty

By now, North Carolina State quarterback Philip Rivers should have had his fill of Virginia.

In his first three seasons, UVa was the only ACC team against whom Rivers did not throw a touchdown pass.

What's more, a 14-9 Wolfpack loss last year in Charlottesville may have cost Rivers his best shot - to date - at ACC player of the year.

Votes were due the week after the UVa-N.C. State game and Rivers was outpointed by UVa quarterback Matt Schaub.

"What can you do?" Wolfpack coach Chuck Amato said Wednesday on the ACC's weekly teleconference. "Only one guy can win it. It's not like there was a lot of disparity.

"They're both outstanding quarterbacks. They're the reason that both their teams won a lot of football games last year. Sure, I was upset for the young man [Rivers] because he's been trying to get there for three years, but things happen for a reason."

If so, what was the reason that Schaub got the vote over Rivers?

"You guys tell me," Amato said. "You guys vote. I don't."

On a rainy November afternoon last year in Charlottesville, Schaub completed 14 of 26 passes for 149 yards and two touchdowns. Rivers was 28-of-47 for 236 yards, but was intercepted once - the only interception yielded by either QB.

"They both did a great job," Amato said sarcastically. "The two best quarterbacks in the league, with the highest percentages and all those yards, and there were 23 points scored in the football game."

On the last play of the game, cornerback Jamaine Winborne deflected a pass in the end zone to preserve the UVa victory.

"The ball hit the receiver in his hands," Amato said. "It would have been a phenomenal catch, but had he caught that and N.C. State would have won, I wonder if the [All-ACC] vote would have gone the other way. On one play? How about that?"

Rivers clearly has the edge this year, particularly because Schaub missed two games with a separated shoulder and was not ranked by the NCAA until this week, when he finally had played in the required 75 percent of his team's games (six of eight).

In the meantime, Rivers had broken the ACC record for passing yardage in a career. He stands fifth on the all-time Division I-A passing list with 11,922 and needs just more than 800 yards to get as high as second. Former BYU quarterback Ty Detmer looks untouchable at 15,031.

"When I think of football at N.C. State, the one name that always comes to mind is Roman Gabriel," said Amato, a former Wolfpack player. "That's just my opinion, now. Roman Gabriel was All-American. Roman Gabriel was All-Pro. Roman Gabriel's in halls of fame and things of that sort.

"It took 40 years for somebody to come along and even nudge him. There have been a lot of greats - Torry Holt, Ted Brown, Jim Ritcher - but there's finally been one that has surpassed Roman, and I'm sure that Roman is one who is so happy for what Philip has done. [Rivers'] records are going to be tough to break."

Unlike Rivers, who has been a starter since the first game of his freshman year, Schaub did not win the job for good until his redshirt junior year and will be making only his 26th career start today against the Wolfpack.

Schaub has made a swift move up the ACC passing charts, moving into the top 20 last Saturday with 6,082 yards in his career. That's second on Virginia's all-time list behind Shawn Moore at 6,629.

"I had a brief conversation with a scout who I know well," UVa coach Al Groh said, "and the two of them [Schaub and Rivers] came up in the conversation. I told them that they were both pretty much the same player, especially when you look at them.

"People are going to say that the delivery is a little bit different, but, for both players, the ball comes out in a hurry and they make all the throws. They throw from one hashmark to the [other] sideline, they throw in-cuts, they throw quickly against the blitz. They have comparable accuracy percentages and are both vital to the success of their team.

"There certainly are a great many things they have in common."

 

Why would anybody listen to this guy?
Tech to entertain 69 prospects
By DOUG DOUGHTY
Exclusive to roanoke.com by 5 p.m. Fridays

It continues to amaze me that anybody would be interested in the opinion of somebody who is predicting the winners of college football games at a 55-percent clip.
That's my record over the past four weeks with the Fearless Forecasters: 10-10, 10-10, 13-7 and 11-9. On Oct. 2, after a 17-3 week, I had moved into first place. This week, I was 10th.

The first week of October was when I was embroiled in a flap with popular talk-show host Allan Jackson and his sidekick, Greg Roberts, but, really, how could anybody place any stock in the teams I'm picking?

This week, I came up with a new strategy: If you can't be right, be popular.

As a result, I went from thinking I would pick Miami to beat Virginia Tech and North Carolina State to beat Virginia -- that was Monday -- to going with Tech and UVa when the picks came due Wednesday.

There's only one fallacy to that approach. Short of killing myself, I'm not sure what I could do to become popular with some readers.

In any case, I do think there's cause for picking Tech and UVa.

Every time I think of Miami, I'm reminded of Kellen Winslow's highlight-reel catch on fourth-and-13 against West Virginia. If Winslow doesn't make that catch, the Hurricanes lose at home to West Virginia.

Memo to Doug: Hey, maybe West Virginia's pretty good.

The folks at the SEC Roundtable on Friday reminded me that Miami probably should have lost before that, when the Hurricanes came from 23 points against Florida to beat the Gators 38-33 on Sept. 6 in Miami.

Of course, Tech needs to play a lot better than it did against WVU, but the Hokies will be at home, at night and on ESPN. That's been a good combination in the past.

As for the Virginia-N.C. State game, I was surprised to see the Wolfpack favored by 1. If I understand oddsmaking -- and my colleague, Randy King, says I don't -- that means that Virginia would be favored if the game were in Charlottesville or at a neutral site.

Consequently, in the eyes of the people who make a living at such things, Virginia is the better team.

I think N.C. State has the more potent offense, but if you were to rank the respective units in order, I think you'd have: 1) N.C. State offense; 2) Virginia offense; 3) Virginia defense, and 4) N.C. State defense.

Is there a greater disparity in the country than N.C. State being ranked fourth in Division I-A in passing offense and 112th (out of 117 Division I-A teams) in pass defense?

Those figures might be somewhat inflated based on a Week 4 non-conference matchup with Texas Tech, whose B.J. Symons and Co. passed for 586 yards against the Wolfpack.

FORMER SALEM HIGH SCHOOL quarterback Seth Moore, a Virginia Tech graduate, is among those who has responded to an incident between Tech coach Frank Beamer and wide receiver Ernest Wilford at the Hokies' game at West Virginia.

At issue is whether Beamer, in slapping Wilford, should be held to a different standard than a university professor.

"I've also heard this comparison in other media conversations when discussing the slap," said Moore, now in business in Manassas. "Comparing the classroom to the football field is ridiculous. Each are governed by a completely separate set of rules.

"For example, would it be acceptable for a teacher to slap a student on the posterior for correctly responding to a difficult question? I don't think so. However, it is an acceptable practice for coaches to slap players on the buttocks following a good play on the field.

"It is obvious that the people making these comparisons never stepped foot on a playing field and don't understand the dynamic between player and coach. I can't remember a football practice I didn't leave the field with my ears ringing from the wedding band of a coach who had slapped my head gear.

"I can't believe how P.C. (politically correct) this world has become."

IT MIGHT SURPRISE some readers to learn that I walked up to Virginia Tech athletic director Jim Weaver and told him I thought he was "getting a bad rap" on a decision to postpone a 2004 trip to LSU until 2007.

Yes, I think it was a mistake to back out of the 2004 game. Did you see what happened to Tech in the BCS Standings after it lost to West Virginia, dropping from third to 16th? If you don't play a tough schedule, there are going to be severe consequences whenever you lose a game.

On the other hand, I think the decision was made with the knowledge and support of the football staff. So, when Weaver talks about "scheduling for success," I think we have to believe that Beamer is on the same page.

My colleague, the above-mentioned King, said that Weaver seemed to perk up this week on the Hokie Hotline when a caller reported that Florida A&M is joining Division I-A. If the Hokies do not re-enter conversations with a willing LSU, which is unlikely, I believe that adding Florida A&M as a seventh home opponent would be sending the wrong message.

A TOPIC OF CONVERSATION at Friday's roundtable was the Heisman Trophy race and the way the media is shoving Oklahoma quarterback Jason White down everybody's throat.

For the record, when a service called the Heisman Tracker asked for my picks this week I gave them: 1) Colorado State quarterback Bradlee Van Pelt; 2) Mississippi quarterback Eli Manning, and 3) Michigan State quarterback Jeff Smoker.

I've been known to change my opinion overnight and found myself intrigued Thursday night by Boise State and its quarterback Ryan Dinwiddie. Dinwiddie has thrown for more than 2,800 yards and 20 touchdowns for the Broncos (8-1).

VIRGINIA TECH WILL have 69 prospects on hand for its game Saturday night with Miami, including six of the state's top 10 uncommitted players, according to The Roanoke Times.

They are No. 1 Olu Hall, a defensive end from Robinson High School in Fairfax; No. 2 Kent Hicks, a safety from Culpeper; No. 5 Andrew Bowman, a linebacker from Highland Springs; No. 9 Brandon Ore, a running back from Indian River in Chesapeake; No. 12 Clint Sintim, a defensive end from Gar-Field in Woodbridge, and No. 13 Eddie Royal, a wide receiver from Westfield in Fairfax County.

Ryan Pond, an uncommitted quarterback from Deep Creek in Chesapeake, will be in Blacksburg on an official baseball visit. Pond, rated the No. 17 football prospect in the state, has an offer from Clemson to play both sports.

 

ACC's top two QBs square off
DAVID DROSCHAK
Associated Press

RALEIGH - Cold, wind and rain won out in last year's North Carolina State-Virginia game that turned into a defensive struggle won by the Cavaliers.

The sun is expected to be shining Saturday and balls should be flying all over the field as the ACC's two best quarterbacks square off in a key league game with bowl implications.

N.C. State's Philip Rivers and Virginia's Matt Schaub, who were billed as Heisman Trophy candidates before the season, have each completed 71 percent of their passes and are the undisputed leaders of their teams.

Some NFL scouts believe the two quarterbacks are carbon copies of each other, meaning both defenses shouldn't be surprised when passes are on target this weekend.

"It won't be any revelation to (the defenses) that the ball can get there with the timing and velocity that it does," Virginia coach Al Groh said. "It'll work both ways. If both of these quarterbacks come out of the game having completed 70 percent of their passes it's going to be a long game."

Virginia safety Jermaine Hardy said the defensive backs in this game better have some tough skin.

"One big play you might give up -- everybody's going to be watching you," he said. "The next play you might be a super hero and pick off a pass."

N.C. State coach Chuck Amato said the quarterback matchup is interesting for the fans, but the outcome will likely come down to who plays the best in the trenches.

"It's going to come down to fundamentals," Amato said. "Who blocks and tackles the best. Can you imagine that game last year had the top two quarterbacks in the league and there weren't a lot of points scored."

Virginia won last year's matchup 14-9 in miserable weather. The victory helped propel the Cavaliers (5-3, 3-2 ACC) into a second-place tie in the ACC standings.

The Wolfpack (6-3, 3-2) have won three in a row but all have been decided by seven points or less.

And while Schaub can rely on a solid running game Saturday, Rivers has had to carry the offensive load for N.C. State since T.A. McLendon and Josh Brown have been sidelined with injuries.

N.C. State comes into the game last in the ACC in rushing at 89.6 yards a game.

"Philip is more concerned about going up against the University of Virginia defense than he is going against Matt Schaub," Amato said. "Look at last year's game, neither one of them could put the ball across the little white line with any consistency.

"I'm not going to say, 'You've got to outplay him.' He's got to outplay their defense. Our offense has to outplay their defense."

N.C. State and Virginia are two of five ACC teams that enter Saturday's action with two league losses.

"The final stretch is on," Groh said. "It will be four weeks of much the same. We're just focusing on this particular one. That's how you play playoff ball."

Virginia running back Alvin Pearman said Saturday's environment should be special.

"Those N.C. State fans don't hold anything back," Pearman said. "This is the part of the season where championship teams are made."
 

Pack-Cavs clash key in scramble for second place
BY AL FEATHERSTON : The Herald-Sun
afeatherston@heraldsun.com
Nov 1, 2003 : 12:13 am ET

RALEIGH -- As Florida State sprints away from the pack in the ACC football race, the Pack -- as well as the Cavaliers, Terrapins, Tigers and Yellow Jackets -- are reduced to battling for second place.

"Every team is looking at the same thing," Virginia coach Al Groh said. "I think most of the teams in this little horserace have a challenging November in front of them. It's very similar to the circumstance we faced last year. We understand what is necessary and we understand what it takes. We just have to see if we're up to it again this time."

Either N.C. State (6-3, 3-2 ACC) or Virginia (5-3, 3-2 ACC) will drop off the pace a bit after they meet today at 3:30 p.m. at Carter-Finley Stadium. The winner will remain no worse than tied for second in the league standings. The loser will drop behind at least one -- but probably three or four -- other second-place contenders.

"We're all in the same boat," N.C. State coach Chuck Amato said. "We're all fighting for the same thing. That's what makes these three final games so neat."

The Pack's closing stretch is a killer -- Virginia today, a trip to Florida State in two weeks, then a final home game with Maryland.

"While we haven't been pleased by our season, we can still make it a season to remember," Wolfpack quarterback Philip Rivers said. "We set our expectations and goals high [before the season]. I know we've had some blemishes, but we still have an opportunity to win a bunch of games and finish as high [in the ACC] as we have since I've been here."

But that means beating a Virginia team that is scrambling to overcome its own early season blemishes. The Cavaliers did that a year ago, beating N.C. State and Maryland in November to claim a share of second place in the league standings.

"Last year and even the year before, we've ended the season on a high note," Virginia quarterback Matt Schaub said. "So I think we've proven that we can play well in November. It definitely gives us confidence to have players around who have done that. We can make this happen."

The irony is that even though the Cavaliers edged the Pack last season in Charlottesville -- and finished atop N.C. State in the ACC standings -- it was Amato's team that earned the plum bid to play Notre Dame in the Gator Bowl, while Virginia was relegated to the inaugural Continental Tire Bowl in Charlotte.

But Schaub insisted that circumstance would not impact this matchup.

"It's not based on that," he said. "It's just the competitive nature of the games we've been involved in. We've gone back and forth. It's always a competitive game."

Both teams run an effective passing game built around the skills of the ACC's two most accomplished quarterbacks. Virginia's Schaub was the league's player of the year last season when he threw for 2,976 yards, 28 touchdowns and just seven interceptions. N.C. State's Rivers is the ACC's all-time passing leader and needs just 92 more passing yards to become the first quarterback in ACC history to top 3,000 yards in three separate seasons.

"I'm aware of what Philip has been able to do down at N.C. State," Schaub said. "We've been at our schools for the same years and being in the same conference. He's a great player and a great leader for his team."

Rivers has made N.C. State, plagued by an inconsistent running game, into the ACC's top-scoring offense this season, averaging 34.9 points a game -- exactly a touchdown more than the Cavs. The Pack's offense may get a boost with the probable return of tailback T.A. McLendon to the lineup.

The Wolfpack defense has not been as effective as the offense, allowing an average of 408.8 yards and 27.3 points a game. By contrast, Virginia's defense allows just 368 yards and 16.6 points a game.

But linebacker Manny Lawson said the N.C. State defense is improving.

"I see consistent progress on defense, offense and special teams," Lawson said. "Yes, we've given up some big plays, but for the most part we've pretty much done what we're supposed to. If we keep focused and keep working hard and eliminate some of those plays, we can get to where we want to be."

N.C. State has won five of its last six games and has shown some defensive improvements in recent weeks in victories over Connecticut, Clemson and Duke. But only the Tigers -- another one of the five ACC teams with two league losses -- can be considered in a class with Virginia.

For all the hype about the matchup between Rivers and Schaub, Amato pointed out that the last time the two teams met, they produced just three touchdowns and 23 points between them.

"I doubt it will be that low this time," Groh said. "I'd like to see it in that range. I think we have a better chance [if the score is low]."

NOTES -- The football game will be preceded by the Pack's annual Red-White basketball scrimmage at 1 p.m. in the RBC Center. ... Rivers and Schaub are two of the seven finalists for the Johnny Unitas Award, given annually to the nation's top senior quarterback. ... N.C. State leads the series with Virginia 31-20-1, including a 14-9 edge in Raleigh. But Virginia has won four of the last five meetings. ... Virginia has scored in 26 straight games since being shut out 24-0 on its last trip to Raleigh. The Pack has scored in exactly 100 straight games, since it was shut out 14-0 by Baylor in 1995. ... N.C. State has had 14 drives this season of 80 or more yards -- the most in the ACC. Virginia has had just four 80-yard drives. ... McLendon (1,409 yards) and Virginia sophomore Wali Lundy (1,387 yards) rank as the No. 5 and No. 6 active career rushers in the ACC. The top four are all seniors.

 

Schaub to face Wolfpack defense

By Tim Peeler Staff Writer
News & Record

RALEIGH -- Here's a radically different idea coming out of the N.C. State football camp this week: Go the more subdued route. At least that's senior wide receiver Jerricho Cotchery's idea of how to go about winning the Wolfpack's final three games, a challenging stretch that begins today when the Wolfpack faces Virginia at Carter-Finley Stadium (3:30, WXLV-45).

"You know coach (Chuck) Amato and his quote about killing a fly with an axe," Cotchery said. "We might need to switch that up and use a flyswatter."

Ever since Amato arrived to coach his alma mater, the Wolfpack has been lumbering noisily down the street with the temerity of the Sta-Puff Marshmallow Man. It's the program that talks in the loud, high-pitched voice of its leader, trying hard to get to the upper echelon of the ACC and college football.

One way Amato has tried to get his team there is by telling his players to exert more energy. They need to crush an opponent from the beginning, to use an axe to kill a tiny fly.

"We are kind of finding that difficult," Cotchery said. "Maybe if we do get another big lead, we should just use the flyswatter."

The Wolfpack (3-2 ACC, 6-3 overall) saw its dreams of a big season dashed when it lost two of its first three games, then lost at Georgia Tech. And even though State has won five of its last six games and has the second best overall record in the ACC, the season has been a disappointment.

Beginning today, Amato's team has a chance to change that perception as it finishes the season against the Cavaliers, at fifth-ranked Florida State and at home against Maryland. To do it, the Wolfpack defense has to stop giving up big yardage in the passing game, something that might prove impossible to do now that the reigning ACC Player of the Year, Virginia quarterback Matt Schaub, is healthy again for Virginia.

State's defense has improved in recent weeks and no longer is at the bottom of the NCAA or ACC statistics in passing yardage allowed. Still, it has struggled to put away opponents in all five of the team's recent wins. With the offense hampered by a knee injury to sophomore tailback T.A. McLendon and sophomore wide receiver Richard Washington out at least until the Florida State game with cracked ribs, Amato's defense will have to prove it can slow Schaub as it did last year in Charlottesville.

McLendon, who had arthroscopic surgery twice in the past two weeks, is listed as doubtful for today's game, but Amato said he might be able to return for limited action.

The defense might get some help with the return of cornerback Lamont Reid, who missed the last two games with a shoulder separation. However, the other starting cornerback, Greg Golden, is hobbled with a toe sprain.

"Forget about killing the fly with the axe," Amato said. "We can't even pick up the axe right now. We'll have to do it with a piece of paper."

N.C. State-Virginia game to feature top-flight QBs
By Bill Cole
JOURNAL REPORTER

N.C. State's Philip Rivers and Virginia's Matt Schaub have been flinging footballs around ACC fields at record-breaking paces for the past four seasons, and they will have one final showdown today at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh.

In August, Rivers and Schaub were promoted by their schools as Heisman Trophy candidates, but setbacks and losses dimmed the chances of both. But the outcome of today's game will improve the winning team's bowl outlook.

The Wolfpack is 6-3 overall, and the Cavaliers are 5-3 and need one victory to become bowl eligible. Both teams are 3-2 in the ACC and locked in four-way tie for second place.

Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 on ABC (WXLV Ch. 7).

Rivers and Schaub aren't only two of the best ACC quarterbacks this season but also among the best of all time. Seven other ACC coaches who have watched them play have said that both will play in the NFL.

Coach Chuck Amato of N.C. State said that putting a price tag on what Rivers has meant to the football program, the school and the community is impossible.

"When I think of football at N.C. State, the one name that always comes to my mind, all the years I've been associated with this university, is Roman Gabriel," Amato said. "Roman Gabriel was All-American. Roman Gabriel was All-Pro. Roman Gabriel is in halls of fame.

"It took 40 years for somebody to come and even nudge him. There's been a lot of great ones - Torry Holt, Ted Brown, Jimmy Ritcher - but there's finally been one that has surpassed Roman."

Rivers, who will have one home game left after this one, needs only 92 yards to become the first ACC player to have three seasons with 3,000 yards passing. With 23 completions, he will become only the fifth quarterback in NCAA Division I-A history to complete 1,000 passes.

He is fourth in NCAA history in total offense (11,922 yards) and fifth in passing (11,901 yards). Coach Al Groh of Virginia marvels at Rivers' accomplishments because his production has been consistent over four years. Most great quarterbacks, Groh said, have only one or two outstanding seasons.

Schaub has his share of achievements, too. He leads major-college football with a completion percentage of 70.95. Rivers is second at 70.83. Only one other quarterback in the nation has completed 70 percent of his passes.

Schaub was the ACC player of the year last season after passing for a school-record 2,976 yards and 28 touchdowns. He ranked in the top 10 in the nation in four passing categories last season. He led the ACC in all four and was third in another.

Schaub has 6,082 yards passing and 47 touchdowns in his career. Amato said he was upset last year when Rivers wasn't the ACC player of the year, but he conceded that Schaub deserved the award.

Rivers leads the ACC with 2,908 yards passing. He has thrown 21 touchdown passes, giving him an ACC-record 82 for his career, and is averaging 323.1 yards.

Schaub has recovered from a separated shoulder that knocked him out of the season opener in the first quarter and kept him out of two other games. He has 1,532 yards passing (255.3 ypg) and nine touchdown passes.

Rivers most likely will have one of his top running backs today. T.A. McLendon - who had a-rthroscopic surgery for torn cartilage in his knee Oct. 17 - is considered probable by team trainers, although Amato said all week that he doubted that McLendon would be available.

Freshman Reggie Davis will start at tailback, unless Amato changes his mind. Josh Brown, another tailback who has missed the last three games with a hip injury, is also considered probable.

Schaub will have one of his top running backs available. Wali Lundy has been slow to recover from a sprained ankle suffered Oct. 11, and he carried only six times last week against Troy State but is full speed, Groh said.

Lundy teams with Alvin Pearman to give Virginia one of the top running combinations in the ACC. Lundy is second in the conference averaging 80.4 yards, and Pearman is fifth at 59.6. They have combined to rush for 10 touchdowns.

Groh gave his players Monday off, even canceling meetings.
 

McLendon might play
Tailback T.A. McLendon won't start against Virginia, but he might play, N.C. State coach Chuck Amato says.
Amato optimistic about back's return
By LORENZO PEREZ, Staff Writer

N.C. State tailback T.A. McLendon has gone from "very, very, very doubtful," in coach Chuck Amato's words, to very, very, very possible for Saturday's game against Virginia.
After two recent knee operations, McLendon was practicing gingerly this week. Amato even joked that he kept McLendon from practicing on a rainy Tuesday because "he might have slipped on a puddle of water."

By Thursday night, however, Amato said he had seen enough from McLendon to call him a game-day decision.

"I feel cautiously optimistic about him playing," Amato said after Thursday's practice. "He won't start. I can tell you that much."

BOWLING FOR ACC TEAMS: It's that time of year bowl-game scouts wearing their corporate-logo sweaters and lapel badges start appearing in stadium press boxes.

Peach Bowl delegations are expected Saturday in Raleigh, Winston-Salem and College Park, Md., for the N.C. State-Virginia, Wake Forest-Clemson and Maryland-North Carolina games. Any of those teams, except North Carolina (1-7) could end up in Atlanta on Jan. 2 for the Peach Bowl.

Georgia Tech rounds out the logjam of five ACC teams with two conference losses apiece. After the Bowl Championship Series selections -- Florida State is the only likely ACC contender for one of those four bowls -- the Gator Bowl gets the first pick of ACC teams, followed by the Peach, Tangerine, Continental Tire and Humanitarian.

The Continental Tire Bowl sent a delegation to the Oct. 16 N.C. State-Clemson game. Tangerine scouts also checked out that game, as well as games involving Maryland, Georgia Tech, Virginia and Wake Forest.

"All of those teams are on our radar screens right now," said Brett Sowell, director of communications for Florida Citrus Sports, which organizes the Tangerine Bowl.

RESPECT THE IRISH: The last time Florida State visited Notre Dame, the Seminoles left with a 31-24 loss 10 years ago -- the only defeat in FSU's national championship season.

Florida State coach Bobby Bowden said he is taking a different tack for this return trip.

In 1993, Bowden said, he tried to downplay Notre Dame's tradition so that his players wouldn't be intimidated. He even had his team show up wearing green hats with the Florida State logo, a fashion switch that Notre Dame coach Lou Holz used to fire up his team.

"It backfired," Bowden said. "You learn not to play around with their tradition, because it's there."

The Seminoles shouldn't have to dig that deep in their memories for motivation. The Fighting Irish (2-5 this season) beat FSU 34-24 in Tallahassee last season.

ROCKY TOP OVERLOAD: Tennessee expects a sellout crowd of 104,079 for Saturday's homecoming game against Duke. In six home games at Wallace Wade Stadium this season, Duke has played in front of a total of 127,205.

Take away last week's predominantly Wolfpack-red crowd of 27,614, and the Blue Devils will see more fans at one game at Neyland Stadium than they did in their first five home games (99,591).

Duke interim coach Ted Roof said he hopes his team enjoys the sights and sounds without being intimidated.

"We've got to enjoy being in that environment and being in that atmosphere and not worrying about how many [fans] there are," Roof said. "They're not going to block or tackle anybody."

HONORED RECEIVERS: N.C. State senior Jerricho Cotchery and Florida State junior Craphonso Thorpe were among 10 semifinalists announced Thursday for the Biletnikoff Award, given to college football's top receiver.

The other semifinalists are Pittsburgh's Larry Fitzgerald, Oklahoma State's Rashaun Woods, Southern California's Mike Williams, Washington's Reggie Williams, Texas' Roy Williams, Miami's Kellen Winslow, Oklahoma's Mark Clayton and LSU's Michael Clayton.

The winner will be announced in December.

HONORED COACH: Amato turned out to be a teacher's pet this week. N.C. State's College of Education chose the Wolfpack coach its 2003 "Distinguished Alumnus."

Amato graduated from N.C. State in 1969 with a bachelor's in mathematics education and received his master's in education in 1973.



 

Who's better?
There are striking similarities between the two seniors, but NFL scouts and some in the ACC give State's Rivers a slight edge over Virginia's Schaub
By CHIP ALEXANDER, Staff Writer

Dean Hood never will have to face N.C. State's Philip Rivers or Virginia's Matt Schaub again, and for that he is thankful. Hood is the defensive coordinator at Wake Forest. For the past three years, he has tried to devise coverages, blitzes and innovative X-and-O wrinkles to thwart the ACC's two most productive quarterbacks -- with limited success.
"Both are very good quarterbacks, that's a given," Hood said this week. "Both understand what defenses are trying to do to them. Both are accurate throwers."

So, who's the better of the two seniors? Hood didn't hedge.

"Let's just say I'm more excited about not having to face Rivers again," he said. "Rivers, to me, is the scarier of the two.

"Schaub is prettier throwing the ball. Rivers is the ugliest I've seen throwing it. But Rivers is the kind where he can be parallel to the ground and will get the ball off -- between his legs, underhanded -- and get it to the receiver. He's the kind where it's, 'We've almost got him, almost ... uh, oh, he just made the play.' "

Today, Rivers will make his 48th straight start when the Wolfpack (6-3, 3-2 ACC) faces Schaub and Virginia (5-3, 3-2) at Carter-Finley Stadium. It's likely he'll make a few more of those uncanny plays.

Rivers, the 2000 ACC rookie of the year, holds nearly every ACC career passing record worth having, yet he never has been chosen for the All-ACC first team. Schaub, more of a latecomer, took that particular honor in 2002, when he was the ACC's player of the year.

In a few months, NFL teams will have a decision to make come draft time: Rivers or Schaub? Opinions vary on who'll go first and in which round.

North Carolina's John Bunting, another coach whose team has been burned by both quarterbacks, gives the nod to Rivers.

"I've said all along that Philip Rivers is a coach's dream, [and] Schaub makes a lot of great decisions," he said. "They're probably the two best in our conference. I think Rivers, because of the experience, has the edge on Schaub.

"Matt Schaub is a great quarterback. He's a competitor. Rivers is competitive. Rivers, to me, is a guy with a Peyton Manning-type brain. He studies all the time. ... He has a funny delivery, but he gets the job done. [He] starts four years and never gets hurt, knock on wood. That kid's never been injured. I think that's the difference."

Rivers insists last year's All-ACC vote wasn't a slight. Schaub, he said, deserved the honor after passing for 2,976 yards and 28 touchdowns and finishing sixth in the nation in passing efficiency.

"It's nothing personal and never has been," Rivers said.

But he has had to endure some relentless needling this week in practice.

"We've been kidding Philip about who the offensive player of the year was," cornerback Dovonte Edwards said. "Schaub kind of came out of nowhere and snatched it from Phil. A couple of the guys have been picking on Phil, hoping he'll go out [today] and do something about it."

Also at practice, NCSU coach Chuck Amato said, have been six or seven NFL scouts giving Rivers a close look.

"There's no question they like what they see," Amato said. "They look at after the ball comes out of his hand and where it ends up."

More alike than not

Schaub and Rivers are about the same size: 6 feet 5 and about 235 pounds. While Rivers tends to move around more, to improvise, neither has anything close to Mike Vick-like elusiveness.

"We're both big, tall quarterbacks who pretty much sit in the pocket," Rivers said. "He's a little more orthodox. I might scramble around more, maybe throw one sidearm across the middle."

"I think there are a lot more similarities between us than there are differences," Schaub said. "He's had a lot more experience, playing all four years."

Virginia coach Al Groh said he was talking with an NFL scout this week about Schaub when Rivers' name came up.

"I told him I thought they were both pretty much the same player," Groh said. "People will say the delivery is a little bit different, but when the ball is in the air, for both players, the ball is out in a hurry. They make all the throws. They throw quickly against the blitz. They have comparable accuracy percentages."

Both were touted as Heisman Trophy hopefuls. Both have Web sites to promote them, although Schaub's hits dwindled when he injured his right shoulder early in this year's opener against Duke.

Schaub sat out the next two games before returning to pass for 326 yards and two scores in a win over Wake Forest. He has thrown for 1,532 yards and nine touchdowns, with a 139.7 passing efficiency rating.

"He can't help that he got hurt early," Rivers said. "He's done just about all he can do in the games he's played."

Rivers is the ACC's leading passer with 2,908 yards and 21 TDs, and his 160.6 efficiency rating that is 11th-best nationally. With a limited running game, the Pack is fourth in the country in passing with 332.3 yards a game.

They rank 1-2 nationally in accuracy, Schaub having completed 71.0 percent of his passes and Rivers 70.8 percent.

"Both play a little bit of the West Coast [offense] -- a dink [pass] here, a dink there," Amato said. "Not as many passes of 20 or more yards, the kind fans and [media] like, but they move the football."

Experience and poise

But stats reveal only so much. Intangible qualities also make both attractive to NFL teams.

"They're both veterans -- you can't rattle them," Clemson coach Tommy Bowden said.

Their patience impresses Wake coach Jim Grobe most. They don't go "looking for the home run every snap," he said. "I think they have their egos in check. Their No. 1 priority is to win football games."

Schaub is 1-1 against the Pack, throwing for a modest 149 yards in each game, although his two TD passes last year were the difference in the Cavs' 14-9 win in Charlottesville, Va.

"The thing about [Schaub] is that he has great downfield vision, he can see it and he can do something about it," NCSU cornerbacks coach Greg Williams said. "If that tight end separates from the linebacker and he has to hit him on the right shoulder pad, that's where he hits him. There's never indecision."

Rivers is 1-2 against Virginia -- one stat he doesn't like. He has thrown 82 career TD passes but nary a one against the Cavs.

Rivers has averaged 239.7 yards passing in the three games, going 28-of-47 for 236 yards last year on a wet day. On the Pack's last play, he nimbly sidestepped a blitzer and fired a pass into the end zone that State's Bryan Peterson couldn't hold as cornerback Jamaine Winborne got a hand on the ball.

That one play, Amato believes, probably was decisive in Schaub's edge for first-team All-ACC.

"I was upset for the young man because he's been trying to get there for three years," he said of Rivers. "But what are you going to do?"

Rivers and Schaub should be in the NFL next season, although Rivers' funky throwing motion has raised some eyebrows.

"The scouts I talk to either love or hate Rivers because of that unorthodox delivery," said Nolan Nawrocki, a draft analyst for Pro Football Weekly. "He's smart, he's mature, he's a married guy. But the way he kind of pushes the ball out of his hand ... that scares some NFL guys. Some say [he'll be picked] high on the second day. Maybe the fourth round."

Nawrocki said Schaub has been compared to Michigan's John Navarre. Both, he said, have strong arms and good touch, and neither "can create much with their feet."

"Some are saying fifth or sixth round for Schaub," he said. "But others say he'll go before Rivers."

NFLreport.com, an Internet service that analyzes draft candidates, has Rivers going higher.

The Deacons' Hood doesn't care, just so they leave.

"I'm just glad I don't have to defend Rivers again," he said. "He drives you nuts."


 

Nation's most accurate quarterbacks will clash today for Cavs, Wolfpack
BY JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Oct 31, 2003

Between them, Virginia's Matt Schaub and N.C. State's Philip Rivers average more than 70 passes a game, and they usually hit their targets. Schaub leads the nation with a 71.0 completion percentage, and Rivers, the ACC's all-time leading passer, is second at 70.8.

If you plan on watching the last collegiate meeting between these seniors today, be advised not to make an early dinner reservation. If form holds and passes fill the sky at sold-out Carter-Finley Stadium, this ACC game "might take six hours," Virginia coach Al Groh said.

Kickoff in Raleigh, N.C., is set for 3:30 p.m.

"It'll be an interesting game to watch," North Carolina coach John Bunting said. "They're probably the two best [quarterbacks] in our conference. Hold on to your hats there, defenses!"

Of course, fireworks were expected when U.Va. and State met last season in Charlottesville, too. But a cold rain fell on Scott Stadium that day, and raw conditions helped limit the scoring.

U.Va. relied on its running game and a surprisingly stout defense to upset 20th-ranked N.C. State 14-9. Rivers ran for a touchdown, but for the third straight season he failed to throw a TD pass against U.Va. No other ACC team has shut him out.

Today, sunshine and unseasonably warm weather are predicted for Raleigh, and another 23-point effort seems unlikely.

"I doubt it'll be that low," Groh said. "I think we'd have a better chance if it was down in that range."

Both teams ended last season with resounding victories - State hammered Notre Dame 28-6 in the Gator Bowl, and U.Va. humbled West Virginia 48-22 in the Continental Tire - and each entered 2003 expecting to contend for the ACC title.

Barring a collapse by fifth-ranked Florida State (6-0, 7-1), however, the highest either team can finish is second. Each is 3-2 in ACC play, and neither is ranked. N.C. State, which has lost numerous key players to injuries, is 6-3 overall. Virginia is 5-3. One of those losses came when Schaub, the reigning ACC player of the year, was sidelined with a separated shoulder.

So the BCS is out. Still, with a strong November, each could write a happy ending to its season.

"It's very similar to the circumstance we faced last year," Groh said. "We understand what is necessary, and we understand what it takes. We just have to see if we're up to it again."

Among ACC teams, N.C. State ranks first in passing offense but last in rushing offense. Chalk that up to the injury woes of sophomore tailback T.A. McLendon, the 2002 ACC rookie of the year. He's had arthroscopic surgery on his left knee twice recently, and Amato said Wednesday that it was "very, very, very doubtful" that McLendon would play against Virginia.

McLendon has since been upgraded to probable, though Amato said he won't start this afternoon.