CFB: Florida State Holds on to Defeat Florida, 24-19, in Muschamp's Finale

By MIKE BONTS

(FLORIDA SPORTS WIRE)
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. --  FSU finished the regular season 12-0 for the second consecutive season with a 24-19 come from behind win against Florida Saturday.

It was Will Muschamp's last game as head coach of the Gators.

“I’m just upset about the loss right now. The other stuff – Carol and I are excited about the next step I can assure you of that. Carol and Jackson and Whit and I are fired up about the next step and that is what we are looking forward to," Muschamp said. "I am extremely disappointed for our football team right now. They’ve got a good team, they did a good job. We had our opportunities and didn’t get it done.

Florida (6-5) blocked a punt in he final minute of the first half and converted the turnover into their first touchdown of the game on QB Treon Harris' 15-yard pass to Clay Burton to pull within five points.

Harris was 13 of 31 passing for 169 yards and two interceptions. He was also Florida's leading rusher with 49 yards on eight carries. The Gators' Demarcus Robinson led all receivers with four receptions for 71 yards.

FSU QB Jameis Winston's  second of  two TD passes to tight end Nick O'Leary gave the Seminoles their biggest lead of the game, 21-9, with 2:14  to play in the second quarter. Dalvin Cook gained 144 yards on 24 carries for the defending champion Seminoles, whose last three wins have come by a combined 12 points.

"Well, it's a new scenario every game, but the same thing is there is always room for improvement. So we're just going to take this. This is a good win against Florida,and look towards the next game against Georgia Tech. Hopefully I won't turn the ball over and get us some touchdowns in the second half," Winston said.

Winston was 14 of 24 passing for 125 yards but threw four interceptions. O'Leary, a senior playing in his last home game, led the FSU receivers with four catches for 52 yards.

"We wanted to get it to him. I thought he blocked well, caught well. And he had that big catch on that drive right there in the second half. He played really well," said FSU coach Jimbo Fisher of O'Leary. 

Roberto Aguayo's 37-yard field goal was the only scoring in the final quarter.

​​Three field goals by Austin Hardin gave the Gators an early 9-0 lead.  Hardin made it 21-19 with his fourth field goal of the game to open the second half. The Gators made four field goals in a game for the first time since Sept. 17, 2011, against Tennessee. 

Terrance Smith returned a 94-yard interception for a TD to cut the Florida lead to 9-7 and the Seminoles never trailed.

Muschamp was asked how he wants to be remembered at Florida.

​“Just a guy who did it the right way. I hold my head walking out of here. We did things the right way. We didn’t win enough games. I was asked to clean up a program. We did that," Muschamp said.

NOTES FROM DOAK: The Seminoles lost running back Karlos Williams to a concussion. 82,485 was the announced attendance. FSU now faces Georgia Tech for the ACC Championship Saturday in Charlotte.  It was the Seminoles' 28th straight win and 15th in a row at home. The Gators held FSU to a season-low 306 yards. The Gators were 6-of-18 on third down, while FSU was 4-of-13. Florida missed two potential go-ahead field goals in the second half and had the ball at midfield in the waning minutes. Gators QB Treon Harris went 0-for-6 through the air on the final drive.

CFB: Georgia Tech wins OT Thriller Over Dawgs in Athens

ATHENS, Ga. --  Yet another Georgia Tech-Georgia clash came down to the wire, and this time the Yellow Jackets survived in a Peach State thriller.

Zach Laskey's third touchdown run of the day accounted for the only score in overtime, and the 16th-ranked Yellow Jackets escaped Sanford Stadium with a memorable 30-24 victory over the No. 8 Bulldogs.

The roller-coaster finish saw Georgia Tech give up a go-ahead touchdown with 18 seconds left in regulation, only to have Harrison Butker force OT with a clutch 53-yard field goal.

Butker's extra point in overtime was blocked, but D.J. White picked off Hutson Mason on the ensuing possession to give Georgia Tech (10-2) its first win over its in-state rival since 2008.

"It was a really crazy game," said Georgia Tech head coach Paul Johnson. "I am so proud of our players."

The Yellow Jackets, who will play Florida State for ACC crown, had lost 12 of the previous 13 meetings with Mark Richt as Georgia's head coach, including a disappointment in double overtime last year.

Another heartbreaking loss seemed imminent after Justin Thomas lost a fumble with 2:41 remaining, leading to Mason finding Malcolm Mitchell on fourth down to put the Bulldogs in front, 24-21, with 18 seconds on the clock.

Richt made what turned out to be a poor decision, opting for a squib kick that gave Georgia Tech the ball on its own 43-yard line.

"I'm disappointed in my decision to squib kick," Richt admitted. "That gave them the field position to get it in range and kick it. That was a poor decision on my part. That was no one's decision but mine."

Thomas ran 21 yards before going out of bounds with four seconds left, and Butker, whose previous career-long was 49 yards, got just enough from 53 yards out to force OT.

Five straight runs -- four by Laskey -- gave the Yellow Jackets the lead, and  Mason's ill-advised pass on 2nd-and-goal was picked off by White.

Laskey gained 140 of Georgia Tech's 399 rushing yards, while Thomas passed for just 64 yards and a touchdown on 6-of-16 attempts.

Mason finished with 194 passing yards for Georgia (9-3), which committed three turnovers after totaling 11 in its first eight games.

The Bulldogs, whose hopes of reaching the SEC title game were dashed with Missouri's win on Friday, turned to Nick Chubb out of the backfield with star running back Todd Gurley having undergone knee surgery earlier this week.

Chubb gained 36 of his 129 yards on the game's opening possession and punched one in from the 1-yard line to give Georgia the early lead.

The freshman nearly scored again in the opening quarter when he ripped off a 65-yard run. He was pushed out just before the goal line, and two plays later he tried launching himself into the end zone and coughed it up.

A long Georgia Tech drive after the turnover came up empty when Butker had his 37-yard field goal try blocked midway through the second quarter.

Georgia was going in for another score but again fumbled it away. Sony Michel lost the ball this time, and Georgia Tech recovered in the end zone.

The Yellow Jackets, in danger of being shut out in the opening half for the first time since 2008, converted a pair of fourth-down tries and got on the board on Darren Waller's 7-yard touchdown grab with eight seconds left.

They were on the doorstep early in the second half, but Thomas, on 3rd-and- goal, was stuffed up the middle and disappeared among the mass of bodies. No whistle was blown for forward progress, and Damian Swann came out of the pile with the football and raced 99 yards the other way for a touchdown.

Following a blocked Georgia field goal try, Laskey's 4-yard touchdown run pulled the Yellow Jackets even late in the third quarter.

Marshall Morgan kicked a 19-yard chip shot with 11:19 remaining, and Georgia Tech responded with a 13-play, 80-yard drive that took nearly seven minutes off the clock.

Laskey's 8-yard touchdown run was followed by a pooch kick that the Yellow Jackets recovered. They took over at the Georgia 27 with 4:22 remaining, and Thomas' turnover led to the dramatic conclusion.

Game Notes: This was the first overtime game in the history of Sanford Stadium ... The last time these rivals squared off with nine wins apiece was 1942 ... Georgia still leads to all-time series, 64-40-5.

SOCCER: Penalty Kicks Separate Florida and Stanford Soccer in NCAA Quarterfinal as Advances 4-3

STANFORD, Calif. – The Florida soccer team saw its season end at Stanford Friday on a penalty kick decision in front of sell-out crowd of 1,900 at the Laird Q. Cagan Stadium.

Florida and Staford played to a 2-2 double overtime tie, forcing penalty kicks to determine which team would advance to the NCAA College Cup. A 4-3 penalty kick advantage sends the Cardinal to their sixth NCAA College Cup of the last seven season (2008, ’09, ’10, ’11, ’12, ’14).

Stanford now advances to play Florida State in NCAA semifinal action next Friday at the FAU Stadium in Boca Raton, Florida

FSU advances with a 5-0 win over South Carolina Friday afternoon in Tallahassee. 

Florida State was the 2013 NCAA runner-up with a 1-0 overtime loss to UCLA. The Bruins will not be back to defend their 2013 NCAA title, falling 2-1 to Virginia Friday in Los Angeles.

In Friday’s NCAA Quarterfinal action, Stanford struck quickly in the fourth minute when Chioma Ubogagu put a cross across the face of the goal. Fellow senior Taylor Uhl put the ball in at the far post from a short distance to give the Cardinal the early lead.

The match was evened up in the 10th minute when Annie Speese took a free kick about 15 yards above the box. An attempt to clear the ball slipped backwards off a Cardinal player to the far corner of the goal.

In the second half, the teams traded goals off of corner kicks in just over a four-minute span. In the 75th minute, Kendall Romine gave Stanford a 2-1 leads when she headed in the Andi Sullivan corner kick.

Then in the 79th minute, Speese’s corner kick was touched in at the near post by fellow senior Havana Solaun to tie the match.

After two scoreless overtime periods, the match moved to penalty kicks to determine the advancing team. Florida’s first two shooters missed and Stanford owned a 2-0 lead after the first two rounds of penalty kicks. 

The third Cardinal shooter missed and the final three Gators successfully converted their PKs, but Stanford’s final two players were successful to take the advancing spot.

GATOR NOTEBOOK:  Solaun scored her fifth goal of the last seven matches and has turned in at least a point in each match during that span. It was the 30th goal of her career, moving her into sole possession of 10th on Florida’s Career Goals Leaders list. Florida goalkeeper Taylor Burke equaled her career-high with eight saves Friday. Among the eight were several key saves. In the 34th minute, Lo'eau LaBonta took a hard 14-yard shot, but Burke made a diving deflection to keep the ball out of the goal. With just over two minutes, remaining in the second overtime, Burke made a one-handed save to keep Uhl’s shot out of the net.

MBB: No. 5 North Carolina Takes Down Florida in Battle 4 Atlantis

By Mike Bonts, GATORS INSIDER

Kennedy Meeks led North Carolina with 18 points and 13 rebounds as the No. 5 Tar Heels defeated 18th-ranked Florida, 75-64, in the fifth-place game of the Battle 4 Atlantis on Friday.

Marcus Paige scored 16 points, Brice Johnson had 10 and seven rebounds and Justin Jackson and J.P. Tokoto chipped in 12 and 10 points, respectively.

Kasey Hill had a game and career-high 20 points and Michael Frazier finished with 17 points and nine rebounds for the Gators, who have dropped two of their last three games.

North Carolina opened the game on a 12-0 run, capped off by Marcus Paige with 14:00 minutes left in the first half. The Tar Heels held the lead the entire game.

Florida converted on 18-of-23 free throws and entered this week ranked 18th in the country in free throw percentage (76.8). 

With tonight’s 75-64 win, UNC holds the all-time series lead, 4-2, including 1-1 under head coach Billy Donovan. The only meeting during Donovan’s tenure came in the 2000 Final Four in Indianapolis, propelling the Gators to their first national championship game appearance.

The Tar Heels (5-1) were coming off a 78-56 win over No. 22 UCLA on Thursday.

GATORS NOTES: Tonight’s game was Florida’s final contest at the Battle 4 Atlantis and its first this season first game against an opponent ranked at the time of the game. With the loss, Florida is now 7-7 vs. non-SEC AP top-five teams under Donovan, including 6-2 on a neutral court.

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MBB: Bulldogs Drop NIT Season Tip-Off Third Place Game 66-62 to Minnesota

NEW YORK, N.Y. --- Georgia’s comeback attempt came up just short as the Bulldogs fell to 3-3 overall with a 66-62 loss against Minnesota in the NIT Season Tip-Off third place game at Madison Square Garden in New York on Friday.

The Bulldogs fought back from a 12-point halftime deficit and came to within three with under a minute remaining, but were unable to cap off the come-from-behind victory over Minnesota (4-2).

A three by J.J. Frazier cut Minnesota’s lead to seven with just over 11 minutes on the clock and put the score at 46-39 after trailing 37-25 at halftime. Frazier and Nemanja Djurisic each hit a three with under one minute remaining to cut the lead to three, but Minnesota’s DeAndre Mathieu hit one-of-two free throws with 10.1 seconds remaining to seal the final score at 66-62.

“We had 15 turnovers in the first half and only 16 shots,” Georgia head coach Mark Fox said. “We just did not start well. And finally [J.J.] Frzier gave us great leadership at the point and we stopped turning it over and gave ourselves a chance to win. Congrats to Minnesota. They outplayed us.”

The Bulldogs were held to just eight points in the first nine minutes of play, falling behind 20-8 at the 11:00 mark in the first half and were down by as much as 16 with just over seven minutes remaining. Minnesota forced a 15 Georgia turnovers and connected on 7-of-12 three point attempts in the first half.

After scoring a career-high 23 points against Gonzaga on Wednesday, Charles Mann did not attempt an official shot, and was held scoreless in Friday’s contest. Marcus Thornton led the Bulldogs with 14 points and also chipped in 10 rebounds to record his fourth-career double-double and second of the season. Yante Maten scored a career-high 12 points, all of which came in the first half. Frazier scored all 12 of his points in the second half.

Joey King paced the Golden Gophers with 15 points. Mathieu finished the game with a season-high 12 points and five assists.

CFB: Pac-12 Football Championship Game Set as Arizona Captures South Division Title

SAN FRANCISCO—The Arizona Wildcats captured their first Pac-12 South Division title as they defeated rival Arizona State in the Territorial Cup, 42-35. Arizona will face the Oregon Ducks from the North Division in the fourth annual Pac-12 Football Championship Game on Friday, December 5.

Following Stanford’s 31-10 victory at UCLA to eliminate the Bruins from the Pac-12 South Division race, the path was cleared for the winner of the Arizona-Arizona State game to advance to the Pac-12 Championship Game.

Arizona captured the South title after finishing the regular season with a 7-2 Pac-12 record, 10-2 overall. Oregon (7-1, 10-1), had previously captured the North Division title and will conclude the regular season Saturday at Oregon State.

The Pac-12 Championship Game will be televised by FOX at 6 p.m. PT/9 p.m. ET.

CFB: Gators Set Sights on Top-ranked Seminoles in Regular Season Finale

Gators Insider

Tallahassee, Fla - The top-ranked Florida State Seminoles take aim at their second straight undefeated regular season, as the close out the 2014 schedule against rival Florida on Saturday at Doak Campbell Stadium.

Jimbo Fisher's Seminoles have certainly not won games pretty this season, but they have continued to stay unblemished, running the nation's longest current win streak to 27 games with last week's 20-17 win over Boston College. 

The Seminoles have won the ACC Atlantic Division and will play Georgia Tech in the ACC Championship Game. FSU does not hold the top spot in the College Football Playoff rankings, but is in the top four, where it should stay barring a loss.

It has been a different story at Florida, as the Gators were never really relevant in the SEC this season. The team is 6-4 on the year and 4-4 in conference play, but it is considered a sub-par year by Florida standards. 

The team enters off a 52-3 rout of FCS foe Eastern Kentucky. This will be Will Muschamp's final game with the team, as he has stepped down as head coach at the conclusion of the regular season.

Muschamp's team didn't need any extra incentive for this one.

"They don't need fireworks to get ready for this one," he said. "They'll be ready to go. Our guys are excited about this game."

This is the 59th all-time meeting between these two rivals, with UF holding a 35-22-2 advantage. The Gators are the last team to defeat the Seminoles, a 37-26 decision in Tallahassee in 2012. Last season, Florida State beat Florida, 37-7.

Both quarterbacks Treon Harris and Jeff Driskel were productive in last week's lopsided win over Eastern Kentucky, but unfortunately that has not been the norm in Gainesville this season.

Florida is averaging a respectable 31.6 ppg this year, but it has been fueled by a solid rushing attack (197.1 ypg) and hampered by a stagnant passing game.

Junior Matt Jones (788 yards, 5.0 ypc, 6 TDs) and sophomore Kelvin Taylor (528 yards, 5.3 ypc, 6 TDs) are a potent one-two punch in the backfield.

However, both QBs have struggled, completing 54.4 percent of their passes. 

Driskel has nine touchdowns against 10 interceptions, while the freshman Harris has taken over as the starter and has a much better six TDs against one pick.

Regardless of the guy throwing the football, the usual target is sophomore wideout Demarcus Robinson, who paces the team by large margins in receptions (43), receiving yards (703) and TD catches (7).

The defensive numbers seem solid for Florida, which has done a nice job against the run (110.4 ypg) and the pass (201.1 ypg) this year. The team ranks 11th nationally in total defense (311.5 ypg).

Linebacker Antonio Morrison leads the Florida defense with 93 total tackles. Defensive end Dante Fowler Jr. (53 tackles, 11.0 TFL, 4.5 sacks, 2 FF) has made his share of plays as well. Defensive end Alex McCalister (20 stops) hasn't been in on a ton of tackles this year, but he has made the most of them, with 8.0 TFL and a team-high 6.0 sacks.

Florida State is averaging 35.5 ppg this season, so scoring points hasn't been a problem. What has is the team's penchant for falling behind.

A lack of a dominant run game has certainly been a concern, with FSU averaging a modest 126.6 ypg on the ground. The passing attack is much more potent at 314.9 ypg.

That has a lot to do with reigning Heisman Trophy winner Jameis Winston under center. While not on his pace from last year, Winston's numbers haven't been awful. The sophomore has completed 66 percent of his passes, for 3,125 yards. 

However, his TD (19) to interception (13) ratio leaves a lot to be desired.

Still, Winston does have a supremely gifted talent on the outside to throw to in All-America candidate Rashad Greene. The school's all-time receptions leader, Greene has hauled in 83 balls this season, for 1,148 yards and five TDs.

Dalvin Cook (584 yards, 5.8 ypc, 7 TDs) and Karlos Williams (571 yards, 4.3 ypc, 10 TDs) aren't workhorse backs, but both are more than serviceable.

There have certainly been some chinks in the armor of the FSU defense this year. The team is allowing 22.3 points per game, and foes have had some success both on the ground and through the air against the Seminoles.

Still, there are playmakers at every level. The linebacking corps is anchored by Reggie Northrup (90 tackles) and Terrance Smith (80 tackles). The secondary features defensive backs Jalen Ramsey (68 tackles, 9.5 TFL, 3.0 sacks, 2 INTs) and P.J. Williams (47 tackles, 1 sack, 1 INT). Eddie Goldman (31 tackles, 8.0 TFL, 4.0 sacks) and Mario Edwards Jr. (38 tackles, 11.0 TFL, 3.0 sacks) are the ones to watch up front.

Fisher commented on all the close calls his team has had this season.

"We're going into battle," he said. "These games are going to be dogfights. People are going to try and be the one that knocks us out, knocks us off. They've got nothing to lose."

NFL: Coughlin Returns to Jacksonville with Reeling Giants

By Shawn Clarke, Contributing NFL Editor

The New York Giants were feeling good after three straight wins for a 3-2 start in early October.

Then the wheels began to fall off one at a time.

New York hopes to earn some respect and stop a six-game losing streak Sunday on the road against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Giants lost their first six games of the 2013 season and haven't suffered seven straight losses since an eight-game slide from Nov. 7 - Dec. 26, 2004. 

It was head coach Tom Coughlin's first season in the Big Apple and the Giants went 6-10 that year.

It looks as if the G-men are headed to another disappointing finish and can point fingers in all directions as to why 2014 has been a dud. Quarterback Eli Manning and his interception issue (12), a poor running game (99.3 ypg) and even more porous defense under coordinator Perry Fewell.

Fewell could be looking for a new job at season's end. His unit is 24th in passing yards allowed (253.9), 27th in points allowed (26.7), and 31st in both rushing yards permitted (142.6) and total yards given up (396.5). However, the Giants are tied for fifth in the NFL in interceptions (13) this season.

The defense did show up in last Sunday night's 31-28 loss to the visiting Dallas Cowboys until the final minute, when Tony Romo found Dez Bryant for the go-ahead score. Defensive end Damontre Moore and linebacker Mathias Kiwanuka each had a sack, but it wasn't enough to phase Romo, who had four touchdown passes and no interceptions.

Manning played better with three TD passes to just one interception, a far cry from what he did the previous week in a 16-10 loss to San Francisco in which he was picked off five times and had one touchdown pass. Manning and the Giants are frustrated, and hope to end the slide Sunday.

"I think everybody wants to win," Manning said. "Everybody wants to get that feeling back. I have seen that these last few weeks, we haven't got discouraged, it is frustrating."

The Giants can't take the Jaguars for granted this week.

"We are going to Jacksonville; they have one win, and we have three wins," Manning said. "I don't think we are in a position to label anybody or to think we are better than anybody. We have to play well. We've got to find a way to get a win, we've got to put 60 minutes together and play great football for that whole time."

Manning became the 16th quarterback in NFL history to throw for at least 250 touchdowns and is nearing his 10th straight year with at least 3,000 yards.

New York will play its next two games on the road against Jacksonville and Tennessee, two teams from the AFC South. Coughlin was Jacksonville's first- ever head coach from 1995-2002 and won a franchise-best 72 games. Manning, who has made 162 consecutive starts, has four TDs and no interceptions in his last two games against AFC opponents.

The Giants are 1-4 on the road and have lost three straight as the guest.

Jacksonville is mired in a four-game losing streak and fell to a lowly 1-10 on the season after Sunday's 23-3 loss at Indianapolis last Sunday.

The Jaguars amassed only 194 yards of offense and that has been a major issue all season. Rookie quarterback Blake Bortles was intercepted once and threw for 146 yards on 15-of-27 passing with no touchdowns. Bortles has thrown an interception in every game this season (15 total) and hasn't recorded a touchdown pass in the last two games.

"It was hard. The defense played really well," Bortles said of not converting on Andrew Luck's miscues. "They stood up when we put them in some bad situations and they got us some turnovers, so that was good. I thought they did a really good job and obviously we weren't able to capitalize on it."

Bortles knows he has to improve on his end, too.

"There are passes I could get off quicker, and make a quicker decision, so that's all part of it," Bortles said. "That's all part of it. It's a part of getting reps and continuing to learn from it."

Jacksonville hopes to find some success in its first game at EverBank Field since Oct. 26 against Miami. 

The Jaguars have been abysmal on offense this season. They are 24th in rushing yards (96.5), 27th in passing yards (207.6), 31st in total yards (304.1) and dead last in scoring with just 14.6 points.

It gets no better on defense. Jacksonville is 27th against the pass (257.5), 28th against the rush (130.6), 30th in total yards allowed (388.3) and last in points against (27.7). On a positive note for the defense, the Jaguars have recorded 33 sacks in 11 games and have been led by Chris Clemons, who has registered seven sacks. Defensive end Ryan Davis is second with 5 1/2 sacks and DT Sen'Derrick Marks has five.

Clemons had three of the five sacks on Luck last week and has six in his past seven games. Marks has posted a sack in three of the past four.

Jacksonville, which is the best in red-zone defense, will try to get to Manning, who was sacked twice versus Dallas and has gone down at least two times (9 total) in his past four games. Manning has been sacked 22 times this season.

New York is 3-2 all-time against Jacksonville and the home team has won each time. The Giants won the last encounter between the team by a 24-20 score on 

Nov. 28, 2010, when Manning put the Giants ahead to stay with a 32-yard touchdown pass to tight end Kevin Boss. Current Giants running back Rashad Jennings was a Jaguar then and had 53 yards and a score on seven carries.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR

Rumor has it that Giants rookie wide receiver Odell Beckham, Jr had a terrific grab for a touchdown against the Cowboys last week. Beckham, who missed the start of the season with a hamstring injury, grabbed a Manning pass with one hand for a score and set social media into a frenzy.

Beckham has a bright future for the Giants and will give them a solid 1-2 punch when Victor Cruz returns from a torn knee ligament. Beckham will try to continue his success against a weak Jacksonville defense and leads the team with 69 yards receiving. He had 10 catches for 146 yards and two scores versus Dallas and owns three 100-yard receiving games in the past four.

He is currently dealing with a back contusion and said he just had to loosen it up. Beckham has 31 receptions for 503 yards in November, and said he's trying to put his one-handed catch in the rearview mirror.

"It's definitely still there. There's no way of denying that," he said. "For the most part I'm just trying to get ready for this week. We do have another game coming up Sunday. You've got to put it behind you at some point."

Beckham will get behind coverage once or twice Sunday.

Jacksonville hopes to get to Manning before he settles in to make that happen for Beckham and the New York offense. Coughlin knows the Jaguars can cause problem up front.

"Their front is really good. Deep, they've got all kinds of guys that ran rush," Coughlin said. "The kid that comes off the edge with the second group, Ryan Davis, is a pass rusher whether he plays over the guard or outside. They're very fast at the linebacker plateau, very fast. They have good speed at the corners."

Demetrius McCray and Dwayne Gratz are the starting corners and safeties Johnathan Cyprien and Josh Evans provide help on top and against the run.

"At safety, (Johnathan) Cyprien is the leader of the secondary. He's physical, he plays down in the box," Coughlin said. "They want him in the box, they want Josh Evans in the middle of the field."

On offense, Jags wide receiver Allen Hurns leads the team with five touchdown receptions and Denard Robinson is the leading rusher with 508 yards and four TDs. Robinson, who was a passing and running threat at Michigan, is averaging 98.2 yards from scrimmage this season and plays a role in the aerial attack.

OVERALL ANALYSIS

Are the Giants counting down the days for a new coach and quarterback? Does Manning still have enough talent and confidence to lead another New York resurgence? 

It's too early to tell, but patience is running thin for the G-men and all they can do from here is play hard and earn respect.

In order to avoid a seventh consecutive loss, the Giants must not overlook the Jaguars and come out firing from the jump. Jacksonville also needs to bounce back and has the home crowd in its corner. Some of the fans can do a better job than some of the players, but let's be realistic.

New York finally gets off the schneid this week for its first win since Oct. 5 and Manning is the reason why.

"They are pretty talented defensively. Their front four, they get a lot of sacks. They are big up front. Their linebackers can really run. They have a good scheme. They get after some teams. They get after the quarterback," Manning said. "We have to be safe with the ball, protect the ball, and try to get into a good rhythm and down and distance and see if we can hit a couple big plays."

Manning said playing a clean game and not turning the ball over will help in capturing a win.

"Finish strong. We have to get this first win," he said. "It has been a while. We have been doing some good things and have been close in the last two. We played it right down to the wire. We had great opportunities, but we have to find a way to get over that hump and get a win."

Sports Network predicted outcome: Giants 24, Jaguars 13

MBB: Chiozza Powers No. 18 Florida Past UAB

The 18th-ranked Florida Gators got an unexpected boost from freshman Chris Chiozza, who came off the bench and supplied 13 points with six steals in Florida's 56-47 win over UAB in the second round of the Battle 4 Atlantis.

Chiozza, who went scoreless in Wednesday's overtime loss to Georgetown in round 1, had scored just 19 points in his collegiate career prior to Thursday's win. The reserve guard made three of Florida's seven 3-pointers, including consecutive triples during a crucial stretch midway through the second half.

Tosin Mehinti made a layup around Chiozza's 3s and UAB scored the next five points to tie the game at 39.

The Blazers led by two after Mehinti split a pair of free throws out of the final media timeout. But Florida climbed in front when Chris Walker and Jon Horford made two free throws and Kasey Hill had a layup with 1 1/2 minutes to play.

After Hakeem Baxter missed twice at the rim out of a timeout, Dorian Finney- Smith's dunk and more free throws secured the game for the Gators.

Michael Frazier II scored a game-high 14 points for Florida (3-2) while Hill and Horford netted eight apiece.

Robert Brown was the only Blazer to score in the first 15 minutes of Wednesday's loss to Wisconsin, but his teammates stepped up in the opening stages of this one. Mehinti had five of UAB's first 10 points and Brown was scoreless as the Blazers jumped out to a 12-5 lead midway through the first half

UAB flipped the script in this one, keeping every Gator besides Hill off the scoreboard until Walker's dunk at 9:20. Hill had Florida's first five points.

Florida led by as many as seven late in the first half, but Brown made it 27-22 at halftime with his jumper before the buzzer.

Brown and Mehinti both scored 12 points to lead UAB (2-4).

Game Notes: UAB has lost nine of 10 against ranked opponents ... Florida will play UNC in the final day in the Bahamas, while UAB awaits a meeting with UCLA ... UAB made five of its seven free throw attempts.

CFB: USF Defense Shines In Loss To UCF

TAMPA, NOV. 28, 2014 – The USF defense posted a shutout in the second half, but the Bulls weren’t able to cash in on three turnovers in a 16-0 loss to UCF before a Senior Day crowd of 36,963 at Raymond James Stadium on Friday afternoon.

“We had opportunities in that football game that we didn’t take advantage of and it cost us,” head coach Willie Taggart said. “We had penalties that cost us in that game, things you can’t do against a winning football team. And we didn’t make the plays we needed to make to win the game.”

UCF (8-3, 6-1) came in averaging 29 points and 363.7 yards per game before the Bulls (4-8, 3-5) limited the Knights to 295 total yards and 131 yards in the second half. Junior safety Jamie Byrd (Dade City, Fla.) started the turnover trend with an interception at the beginning of the third quarter and junior defensive end Demetrius Hill (Kankakee, Ill.) and sophomore linebacker Nigel Harris (Tampa) followed with fumble recoveries.

“They got turnovers for us to give the ball back to the offense, so we could go down and try to score. I’m sure it’s very frustrating for everyone,” Taggart said.

Byrd’s second interception of his stellar debut season with USF came on the opening drive of the second half and set the Bulls up at midfield. Byrd led the Bulls with 95 total tackles this season. USF wasn’t able to capitalize on the turnover after being stopped on fourth-and-1 at the UCF 24.

Down 16-0 late in the third quarter, the Bulls needed a big play on defense to shift the momentum and got it. Hill’s first-career fumble recovery and return set the Bulls up at the UCF 14. USF failed to find the end zone, however, when tight end Mike McFarland’s pass on a fake field goal attempt fell incomplete.

The USF defense kept its second-half shutout going with 9:24 remaining when the Bulls forced their third turnover. Junior linebacker C.J. Garye (Tallahassee) forced a fumble on a carry by Micah Reed and Harris recovered it at the USF 17. Harris posted a game-high nine tackles and finished the season ranked second on the team with 75 total tackles.

Thanks in part to a 27-yard catch by junior tight end Sean Price (Citra, Fla.), USF drove all the way down to the UCF 1 but turned the ball over on downs following a costly personal foul call on second down.

“Those guys moved the ball down there and we didn’t get any points, it’s very frustrating for everyone,” Taggart said. “You punch it in there and get some points and it’s a different ballgame, especially for our team. We needed to do that against a good football team.”

Despite the loss, a trio of players on the offensive side of the ball capped off highly productive campaigns.

Senior and proud Tampa native Andre Davis posted a team-leading six catches for 57 yards against UCF, which added to his amazing career numbers. Davis owns 13 of the program’s receiving records, including career yards (2,136), career catches (153), consecutive games played with a catch (39) and single-season receiving yards (735, 2013).

“Not necessarily breaking records, but I came in here to make big plays and make plays for my team,” Davis said. “The records came with it. I appreciate all my teammates.”

Marlon Mack became the third Bull and the first freshman to rush for 1,000 yards in a season. The Sarasota native finished with 1,041 yards, which ranks third all-time at USF behind Andre Hall’s 1,374 yards in 2005 and 1,357 yards in 2004.

Senior receiver Deonte Welch (Williston, Fla.) passed the 1,000-yard mark Friday and finished his career with 1,008 yards.

MBB: Gators Fall to Georgetown in Battle 4 Atlantis

By MIKE BONTS
GATORS INSIDER

(NASSAU, Bahamas) - D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera hit a pull-up jumper with 3.4 seconds left in overtime and Georgetown beat 18th-ranked Florida 66-65 in the opening round of the Battle 4 Atlantis.

Following 21 lead changes and 10 ties throughout the game, Georgetown (4-0) won the game on the Smith-Rivera jumper after being down one point, 65-64, on its final possession.

Kasey Hill helped the Gators gain that one point advantage on a three-point-play that included a layup and made free throw with 12 seconds left. To force overtime, Jacob Kurtz stood his ground and forced a charging foul on the defensive end with the game tied at 53-53 and 35 seconds left. 

On the ensuing possession, Eli Carter had a layup blocked with three seconds to go in regulation.

After Florida led 22-21 with 6:05 remaining in the first half, GU closed the half on a 10-4 run and led the Gators, 31-27 at intermission.

Florida ( 2-2) held Georgetown to 26 percent  (6-of-23) from long range, the lowest total for an opponent this season since it held William & Mary to 9.1 percent from downtown on 2-of-22 shooting in the season-opener. 

UF held GU to its lowest point total (66) of the season, as the Hoyas scored 83, 78 and 80 points in its first three contests. 

Florida out rebounded the Hoyas, 37-34, including an 18-9 margin on the offensive glass. Three players scored in double figures, led by Dorian Finney-Smith with 16 points

GATORS NOTES: With the win, GU holds the all-time series lead over UF, 3-2. In overtime contests, the Gators fell to 49-41 all-time, while moving to 18-16 under Billy Donovan. Tonight mark the second straight game UF has gone into overtime, as the Gators defeated ULM, 61-56 last Friday at home. UF’s last three contests have been decided by five or less points.The Gators have made a 3-pointer in 767 consecutive games dating back to 1992.

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WBB: Saints ride big halftime lead to 66-49 win

ST. AUGUSTINE – Teosha Ray scored a team-high 13 points to help lead a balanced Flagler College attack in a 66-49 win over the University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez in a non-conference women’s basketball game Wednesday night at Flagler Gymnasium.


Flagler improved to 2-3 overall while Puerto Rico-Mayaguez dropped to 1-4.
Ray made three of her five 3-point attempts and was a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line. She added six rebounds. Treva Mason added 11 points and grabbed a game-high nine rebounds. Jasmine Celestin, Ditara Pack and Parker 

Nayman each contributed eight points. DeAsha Campbell tallied seven points, three assists and four steals. Allie Mano collected five steals. Alex Alford registered a game-high five assists.


The Saints forced 30 turnovers but were only able to cash those in for 13 points. Flagler out-rebounded UPR-Mayaguez 43-30. The Saints bench scored 32 of the team’s 66 points. All 13 players for Flagler played in the game.


Yaileen Medina scored a game-high 19 points. She drained four 3-pointers and tallied four steals. Jeileen Rodriguez added 16 points. Ashley Rios grabbed a team-high five rebounds. Marta Nieves scored three points, grabbed three rebounds, tallied four assists and added five steals.


The Janes forced 25 turnovers and converted those into 19 points.


The Saints never trailed in the game and took a 36-16 into the break.
Flagler will have a two and one-half week break, returning to action on Dec. 15 at Florida Tech at Melbourne.

SEC: No. 6 Gators Volleyball Celebrates SEC Title

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- It was a picture-perfect night in the Stephen C. O'Connell Center on Thanksgiving Eve as the 2014 SEC volleyball champions capped off the program's 13th undefeated SEC season with a sweep of South Carolina (25-19, 25-9, 25-20). 

The No. 6 Gators (24-3, 18-0 SEC) celebrated their three seniors, Maddy Monserez, Holly Pole and Taylor Unroe, in a pre-match ceremony, and were presented with the program's 21st SEC trophy in a post-match celebration.

Four Gators -- including Player and Freshman of the Year Alex Holston (12) and Rhamat Alhassan (13), All-SEC middle Simone Antwi (10) and standout outside hitter Carli Snyder (10), all put down double-digit kills thanks to All-SEC junior setter Mackenzie Dagostino's 46 assists and stellar ball distribution, leading the Orange and Blue to their 19th straight win and 13th conference sweep of the campaign. 

Florida dropped just five sets in SEC play and racked up its 13th undefeated conference slate in program history.

Monserez (12), Pole (12) and Unroe (6) accounted for 30 of Florida's 44 digs Wednesday evening, while Pole (3) and Monserez (2) had all five of Florida's service aces. Alhassan denied the Gamecocks six times to lead UF in blocks for the 25th time this season. The Gators hit .450, their second-best offensive hitting efficiency this season.

Florida will enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday with its annual trip to the UF Health pediatric unit before heading to the Pole family home in Ocala for Thanksgiving dinner. The Gators hit the road for their regular-season finale at No. 3 Texas Friday and meet the Longhorns in Austin Saturday at 2:30 p.m. on the Longhorn Network with Paul Sunderland and Nell Fortner.

The 2014 NCAA Volleyball Selection Show is Sunday, Nov. 30, at 8:30 p.m. on ESPNU.

MBB: Saints need OT to silence Tarzans, 82-80

ST. AUGUSTINE – Lydell Manigo scored a team-high 21 points and grabbed nine rebounds to help Flagler College fend off a frantic rally by the University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez and escape with an 82-80 overtime win in a non-conference men’s basketball game Wednesday night at Flagler Gymnasium.

Flagler remains undefeated with a 4-0 record while Puerto Rico-Mayaguez fell to 1-5.

It was Jerrell Oxendine who drained a 3-pointer with five seconds left to go in overtime to erase a one-point deficit and give the Saints an 82-80 lead. Matt Clark took a hand-off low in the paint, slipped, but found Oxendine open for the shot. The Tarzans could not get a shot off in time after a 30-second timeout with three seconds left.

Manigo made 8 of 14 from the field and sank three 3-pointers. Oxendine added 16 points and six rebounds while Dennis Diaz chipped in with 12 points, 10 of which came in the first half. De’Aires Tate grabbed a season-high 15 rebounds with eight of those coming in the second half and overtime session. He added eight points to his line. Desmond Gibson finished with eight points, eight rebounds and two blocked shots. Kessler Bell hit a pair of key 3-pointers and tallied eight points.

The Saints sank 45.5% (10-22) of their shots from long range and shot 41.5% (27-65) from the field in the game. Flagler out-rebounded UPR-Mayaguez 47-39. The Saints grabbed 17 offensive rebounds which led to 23 second chance points.

Alexander Rivera led the Tarzans with 21 points and 10 rebounds before fouling out of the contest. Jaime Perez scored 18 points and grabbed six rebounds coming off of the bench. Jerome Caraballo and Giovanni Guzman each tallied 13 points. Francisco Lopez added 10 points and dished out a game-high eight assists.

The Tarzans struggled in the first half shooting 38.7% (12-31) from the field and trailed at the half 39-32. They turned it on the second half shooting a blazing 54.5% (18-33) from the field. The Tarzans held a 42-30 advantage in points in the paint.

Flagler returns to action on Monday (Dec. 1) when it plays host to Saints Leo University at 7 p.m. at Flagler Gymnasium.

MBB: Bulldogs Fall to No. 10 Gonzaga 88-76

NEW YORK ---- Kyle Wiltjer scored 32 points as 10th-ranked Gonzaga built a big early lead and held off repeated Georgia challenges to defeat the Bulldogs 88-76 in the NIT Season Tip-Off here Wednesday night.

Georgia will now play Minnesota, which lost the other semifinal game to hometown team St. John's, on Friday at 4:30 p.m. at Madison Square Garden. The game will be televised on ESPNU.
Gonzaga needed less than four minutes to build its lead into double digits. The 

West Coast Bulldogs scored on three of their first four possessions, two buckets coming from Wiltjer, a junior in his first season at Gonzaga after transferring from Kentucky.


The Zags' fast start basically proved to be the difference in the game. "We didn't get off to a very good start but after that, we played it pretty nose to nose," said Georgia coach Mark Fox. "We made it a point to try to take away the three-point line, which we did and we knew when we did that, they were really good post players one on one, and they completed those plays inside and that was the difference."


The Gonzaga lead reached its largest at 54-35 less than 3 1/2 minutes into the second half, when a technical foul assessed to Fox yielded two Kevin Pangos foul shots. Thereafter, Georgia rallied behind junior point guard Charles Mann to get within striking distance on several occasions.


Mann's layup at the 10:12 mark pulled the Bulldogs with single digits for the first time of the half at 60-51. A outback by freshman Yante Maten with 9:22 left got Georgia its closest margin at 61-53.


Georgia got with eight one final time on a Mann-assisted layup by Nemi Djurisic with 7:35 left, cutting the margin to 65-57. Another jumper by Wiltjer brought the lead back to 10 on Gonzaga's next possession. The Zags sealed the victory by scoring 15 of its last 21 points at the free throw line.


Mann led the Bulldogs with 23 points, 16 in the second half. J.J. Frazier added 14 points, 11 coming in the final period.

MBB Jacksonville Steps Up To Down Trinity Baptist

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Jacksonville used a pair of defensive stands in the second half to cruise to its second win of the season, a 69-57 victory over Trinity Baptist at Swisher Gym on Wednesday.

The Dolphins first (2-4) first showed their defensive might with a 15-3 run that spanned 9:12 to end the first half and start the second.

After taking a 32-30 lead with 2:45 to go in the first half, the Dolphins held the Eagles (4-5) to only three points until the 13:33 mark in the second.

As the defense did its work, Jacksonville's Kori Babineaux and Tim Gill led a scoring parade that put the Dolphins up 47-33.

From there, Jacksonville pulled out to a 15-point lead, 53-38, with 12:02 to play. The Eagles pulled back to within seven, but the Dolphins sealed the deal with another defensive stand that held Trinity Baptist to only six points in the last 6:12 of the game.

Four Dolphins scored in double figures with junior Anders Misters leading the way with 19 points. Sophomore Shea Jones added another 12 while J.R. Holder had 11 and Babineaux 10. The Dolphins hit a season high with 19 assists and took in 69 rebounds to the Eagles' 57.

"Our whole emphasis over the last, probably, week has been to simply play harder for longer stretches,'' head coach Tony Jasick said. "I thought we got in a little bit of a lull the last week where we didn't play with the same fight and same energy that I thought we did when we came out of the gate early in the year.''

Jasick said the emphasis seems to be taking hold.

"I thought we guarded better and we turned it into some baskets on the other end,'' he said. "That's how we want to play.''

The game was the second consecutive in which the Dolphins had multiple double-digit scorers.

"That's the only way we can be successful,'' Jasick said. "I don't think we have a guy who can 'quote, unquote' put a team on his back and get you 30. Our strength as a team has got to be as a collective unit sharing the ball, getting the ball in the paint and being ready to play. We were really, really, really efficient on the offensive end when the ball was passed in to the paint. When we don't get the ball to the paint we are very average.''

After falling behind 4-0 with 18:42 to play in the first half, the Dolphins threatened to put the game away early as they scored 16 consecutive points.

Nine of those came from Misters who had three two-point field goals and a three-pointer in the spurt. He wound up with 12 points in the half.

Trinity got rolling again with 13:02 to go in the half when Kirk Hill hit a three-pointer and from there the Eagles went on a 14-2 run to tie at 18 with 8:43 to go.

After another tie at 23 with 7:12 in the half, Holder, who had 11 first-half points, took control and scored nine points and the Dolphins scored the last seven points to take a 39-30 halftime lead.

The Dolphins travel to South Florida Saturday for a 2 p.m. game with the Bulls.

Armada FC announces inaugural match against MLS' Philadelphia Union at EverBank Field

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The Armada FC, Jacksonville's new professional North American Soccer League (NASL) team, will play its inaugural soccer match against the Philadelphia Union at EverBank Field on Saturday, Feb. 7, 2015 at 5 p.m.

Armada FC owner and CEO Mark Frisch joined with city leaders in Jacksonville to make the announcement on the preseason fixture - the first competitive match in the new club's history - which will be part of Armada FC's season ticket package currently on sale starting at $10 per seat.

"We are delighted to be able to announce our inaugural match against Philadelphia Union of Major League Soccer to be played here in Jacksonville at EverBank Field on February 7," Frisch said. "We've teamed up with the City of Jacksonville to make this match a reality, and I think that it's fitting that we kickoff our professional history against a team of the Union's standing."

"We are thrilled to return to Jacksonville to play a preseason exhibition match against Armada FC in its inaugural match as it prepares for its first season in the North American Soccer League," said Philadelphia Union CEO and operating partner Nick Sakiewicz. "Armada FC owner Mark Frisch has been a great friend to us and we look forward to playing his team at EverBank Field to prepare for the upcoming season."

Mayor of Jacksonville, Alvin Brown, welcomed the fixture to the First Coast, saying: "We are excited to have our Jacksonville Armada FC's first game at EverBank Field to usher in a new era in professional sports. Hosting this preseason game against Philadelphia Union is a great opportunity to launch Jacksonville's newest professional sports franchise and continue our efforts to make Jacksonville a premier sports destination."

Soccer fans will be able to purchase tickets for the match by contacting the Armada FC at 1-844-2-ARMADA or by visiting www.armadafc.com. Current Armada FC season ticket owners will be able to attend the match as part of their Armada FC season tickets.

AFL: Sharks Add Lineman Tribue to Roster

The Jacksonville Sharks announced that the team has made another significant addition via free agency, as All-Arena offensive lineman Wayne Tribue has been assigned to the Jacksonville roster on a one-year contract.

“Wayne is a very talented player who quickly established himself as one of the top offensive linemen in our league,” Sharks head coach Les Moss said. “He brings both youth and proven ability to our pass-protection unit, and we’re excited to have him as part of our team in 2015.” 


The 24-year-old Tribue (6’3”, 330) enters his second season in the Arena Football League after breaking into the AFL with the Philadelphia Soul in 2014. Though just a rookie this past season, Tribue emerged as a force along the line in his 15 starts, earning All-Arena Second Team honors for his consistent play with Philadelphia.