The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, September 14, 2005, Page 13, Image 13
Wednesday, Sept 14,2005 SPORTS __ Page 13
Katie Kirkland/TIIK IIAMKCUCK
Cornerback Johnathan Joseph returned a pick for a touchdown on Saturday.
Secondary improves at UGA
Joseph, Thomas flash
brilliance in early-season
SEC showdown
Jonathan Hillyard
SPORTS EDITOR
Bolstered by preseason All
American Ko Simpson, USC’s
secondary was in the spodight
throughout the 2005 preseason. With
three of four starters from the unit
returning, there was no reason to
believe the unit would be anything but
the strength of coach Steve Spurriers
first team at Carolina.
Junior cornerback Johnathan Joseph
was in the spotlight for all the wrong
reasons in game one, as a fumbled punt
only highlighted a sub-par game in the
secondary. Joseph led the team in
tackles against UCF, a stat very rare for
a cornerback. The Rock Hill native also
dropped an interception in the contest.
“In game one I guess I was kind of
shaked up a little bit, nervous a little
bit,” Joseph said. “I didn’t play as well
as I should have been playing. But in
game two I just came back and
focused and did the litde things right.
I just pretty much played like I was
capable of playing.”
Joseph bounced back in week two
to become the first player in the SEC
this year to return an interception for a
touchdown.
“0oseph) was really down after the
first game,” Carolina secondary coach
Dave Wommack said. “But he’s a
competitor and I expected him to
bounce back well, and he responded
and scored last week.”
Improvement wasn’t just evident in
Katie Kirkland /THE GAMECOCK
Two-way player Carlos Thomas showed his defensive prowess against Georgia.
Joseph on Saturday. After giving up
258 yards through the air in the
opener against UCF, "the Carolina
secondary stepped forward to hold
D.J. Shockley and Georgia to only
112 yards passing and intercepted the
senior quarterback twice.
“We still dropped two or three
interceptions in the game last week
that could have been helpful of
course,” Spurrier said. “But our
defense has played much better I
thought certainly than in the Central
Florida game.”
Another bright spot for Carolina on
Saturday was the emergence of
freshman Carlos Thomas on the
defensive side of the ball. While seeing
limited action, Thomas picked off a
Shockley pass on a fade route late in
the first half. Leaping up against
Georgia receiver Sean Bailey, Thomas
snagged the ball out of the air just
before Bailey could haul it in for a
touchdown that would have given the
Dawgs the lead.
“Carlos is a guy that is a tremendous
athlete on our team,” Wommack said.
“He can help us on offense, defense
and in the kicking game as well. I
would hope that we would get an
opportunity to play him more and
more as the season goes along.”
The competition will not get any
easier for Carolina as the Alabama
Crimson Tide roll into town on the
shoulder of senior quarterback Brodie
Croyle.
NOTES:
Spurrier said Tuesday that freshman
linebacker Dakota Walker, who had
missed the first two games with a knee
infection, is practicing and could play
in Saturday’s game. He also said that
tight end Andy Boyd is suffering from
a hyper-extended knee and will miss at
least two to three weeks.
Comments on this story? E-mail
gamecocksports@gwm.sc. edu
Parker highlights surprises in week one
GeneJ. Puskar IASSIICI.V
Pittsburgh’s Willie Parker breaks a 46-yard run in a win against Tennessee.
Old names, new faces boost
fantasy teams as 2005 NFL
season kicks into high gear
Week one is in the books, and your
fantasy football team is either
looking real good or real bad.
The good news for bad teams is
most of the teams will come back
toward the middle somewhere,
especially because the first week held
few big shockers.
The biggest surprise was
Pittsburgh running back Willie
| Parker. He’s the third-string running
back, and because of injuries to the
Steelers’ Duce Staley and Jerome
Bettis, he got the start.
Parker put up 161 yards rushing,
48 yards receiving and a touchdown.
The question is, will he perform like
this all year? The answer is probably
not. He might get two or three more
starts, but if you have this guy you
might want to put him on the
trading block and try to get a good
trade while he has some value; Staley
should be healthy in two to three
weeks.
We go from Pittsburgh Steelers to
Pittsburgh Panthers, as former Pitt
star Larry Fitzgerald was this week’s
leading receiver with 155 yards and a
touchdown. Fitzgerald had a
mediocre year in 2004 but might put
up numbers this year.
Look for him to have
a decent game in
week one against a
Rams team not
known for its
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receiver Steve Smith,
Fourth-year fresh off an inj
student Plagued 2004 season,
put up 138 yards and a
touchdown against
New Orleans on Sunday. Fie is the
number one target for Jake
Delhomme in 2005. If he stays away
from injury, expect many games like
this one.
Surprises from the quarterback
position are mainly ones that aren’t
going to make coaches happy.
Minnesota’s Dante Culpepper had an
abysmal first game, throwing three
interceptions and only 233 yards.
IJouston’s David Carr matched
Culpepper’s three interceptions but
managed to throw for only 70 yards.
Neither player threw a touchdown
pass.
Don’t expect Carr to improve on
these stats too much; he might throw
more interceptions than
touchdowns. Culpepper is definitely
feeling the effects of the Randy
Mossless-offense; look for him to
improve when he gets better situated
with new receivers Nate Burleson
and Kelly Campbell.
Dallas signal caller Drew Bledsoe
was week one’s best passer with three
touchdowns and 226 yards passing.
Last year Bledsoe threw 16
interceptions; he probably wont
throw that many this year, but don’t
expect him to throw three
touchdowns every week, either.
Rams quarterback Mark Bulger
threw for 362 yards and two
touchdowns for the offense-heavy
St. Louis squad; New England’s
Tom Brady also threw a pair of
scores and racked up 306 yards of
passing. These two QBs will put up
consistent numbers all year. Look
for Bulger to have another big week
next week as the Rams play the
Cardinals, who gave up 42 points in
week one.
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because the Patriots go up against
the Panthers, who have a strong
defense. Green Bay’s Brett Favre will
also have a better week two as the
Packers play the Browns, whose
defense gave up 420 yards to the
Bengals. Buffalo’s J.P. Losman had a
great first week, but he might
stumble in week two against a
talented Buccaneer defense.
Packer wide receiver Javon
Walker is out for the season with a
leg injury suffered in week one.
Picking up Robert Ferguson might
not be a bad move, as he will take
Walker’s starting position. And if
you were counting on Carolina
defensive tackle Kris Jenkins to
bolster your squad, you could be in
trouble, as the All-Pro is out for the
season with a torn ACL. Good luck
in week two.
Comments on this story? E-mail
gamecocksports@gwm. sc. edu
Kyle Parker /Tf IE < JAM E<XX1K
USC’s men’s soccer team is off to its worst start in school history.
Schedule more strenuous
in move to Conference USA
Brian Dauis
FOR THE GAMECOCK
USC’s men’s soccer team has
tripped to an 0-4 start, the worst in
the program’s history, but things won’t
get any easier as Carolina enters highly
competitive Conference USA.
Conference USA featured three
preseason top-30 teams: No. 10
Southern Methodist, No. 15 Tulsa and
No.27 Memphis. USC has already
played and lost to three top-20 teams
this season — No. 2. North Carolina,
No. 13 Clemson and No. 16 Wake
Forest — apparent stepping stones for
Conference USA play.
“We always play a pretty tough
schedule,” coach Mark Berson said.
“If you look at the schedule this year,
it’s probably our toughest ever, not
only a very difficult regional
schedule, but the Conference USA
games added in.”
The schedule’s density will improve
the team’s RPI, an NCAA tool testing
each team’s skill.
“The Ratings Percentage Index, or
RPI, is a formula used by the NCAA
to help determine which teams go to
postseason tournaments and how they
are seeded. The NCAA does not
Release an official RPI calculation
during the regular season,” according
to RealTimeRPI.com.
This is something Berson said he
looks forward to, as it increases
postseason opportunities, as it
provides the team the ability to
compete in a conference tournament
and another chance to prove itself to
the NCAA selection committee.
“Well I think our RPI will be
excellent this year, there’s no question
about that,” Berson expressed. “It will
be very strong. That’s a good thing for
us as far as the NCAA selection
committee.”
The Gamecocks lost one player
from last year’s team, goalkeeper Brad
Guzan, and will lose only four
members of their 28-man roster next
spring. Prominent threats Ayo
Akinsete, Ramon Paracat, Michael
Sambursky and, upon his return,
Sebastian Lindholm will anchor a
threatening force next season.
“Part of this year is going to be
adjustment,” Berson said. “Playing
some teams that we haven’t played
ever, some not in a long time. I’m
really happy with this team they’ve
worked real hard up until this
point.”
SOCCER • IS