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IT’S NOT EASY BEING GREEN | Gators got Rolled, looking to rebound big Florida Gator fans coined the phrase “Urban Renewal” as a fitting description for the work that first-year football coach Urban Meyer undertook in accepting the post atop Gator nation. Meyer came to Florida from Utah, where he guided the Utes to an undefeated season and a Todd Green Graduate student in sports and entertainment management in impressive fashion. The biggest question mark on Meyer heading into his first year at the helm of Florida was whether his offense would work in the SEC. After a crushing 31 3 defeat to Alabama, Gator fans might be wondering whether this “Urban Renewal” project is wrought | victory against Pittsburgh in the Fiesta Bowl last year. Meyer came to prominence on the national scene by crafting his spread-option offense to perfection. At Utah, and Bowling Green before that, the spread-option offense rolled over opposing defenses with fraud and corruption. Chris Leak, entering his third straight year as the Gator quarterback, failed to throw a touchdown pass against Tennessee or Alabama. The offensive line has given up a league-worst 18 sacks. The 28 point defeat against Alabama was worse than the four losses last year combined, which only totaled 18 points. Meyer cannot say the Gators don’t have talent. Former coach Ron Zook signed top-tiered recruiting classes in each of his three seasons at Florida. Zook was fired for not being able to use that talent. Meyer was handed a program, gift wrapped, with national championship aspirations. If the Gator offense does not begin to click, one can only wonder how long it takes before somebody comes up with www.fireurbanmeyer.com. Florida should get back to form this week as they play host to Mississippi State, an ominous game, as it was the one that cost Ron Zook his job after the Gators lost to the Bulldogs last year. Prediction: Florida 36 MSU 12 The No. 1 Southern Cal Trojans found themselves in a familiar situation against Arizona State on Saturday. Just as they had done against Oregon the week before, USC laid an offensive egg in the first half against the Sun Devils, trailing 21-3 at the break. Quarterback Matt Leinart has not looked his Heisman Trophy-winning self to date, but luckily Trojan running backs LenDale White and Reggie Bush have. White rushed for 197 yards and two scores on 19 carries. Bush ran for 157 yards and two scores on 17 carries. That is an unbelievable running game juggernaut. The Trojans have outscored their opponents by 132 points in the second half this year. Still, the game was close, and the Trojans actually trailed in the fourth quarter at one point. The looming matchup with Notre Dame next week is looking more interesting. The Trojans no doubt correct their first-half misfortunes this week as they take on a hapless Arizona Wildcats. Prediction: USC 57 Arizona 10 1 he game or the week once again features the Tennessee Volunteers. The Vols play host to the undefeated Georgia Bulldogs in what will be the toughest test Georgia has faced so far as they head to Neyland Stadium. Tennessee is battle weary, having split a pair of grueling road games against Florida and LSU. D.J. Shockley has the shadow of David Greene, former Georgia quarterback, looking over him. For Shockley to truly establish himself as the man, he must win a game like this one. The Tennessee defense has proven to be elite among all of college football. A defense itching for the chance to make plays and 107,000 screaming fans may prove too much for Shockley to overcome. Tennessee running back Gerald Riggs Jr. has proven that he can take over a game. Prediction: Tennessee 24 Georgia 14 One of the stories of 2005 thus far, having gone somewhat under the radar, is the re emergence of Penn State, which stands at 5-0. It’s great to see Joe Pa winning again, but more importantly, it makes Saturday’s PSU-Ohio State matchup a big-time game. In beating No. 18 Minnesota last weak, the Nittany Lions snapped an 11 -game losing streak against ranked opponents. Penn State is ranked No. 16. The atmosphere in Happy Valley will be harsh for the visiting Buckeyes. Ohio State has rebounded well after losing to Texas, and now they have a permanent starting quarterback in Troy Smith. Smith has looked impressive, completing 32 of 56 passes with four touchdowns, since taking over the starter’s role. Penn State’s return to national prominence continues. Prediction: Penn State 28 Ohio State 24 Other notable games: California vs. UCLA: Believe it or not, there are important games on the West Coast involving teams other than USC. For football fanatics out there, like myself, this game can be found on TBS Saturday at 7:30 p.m. Prediction: Cal 31 UCLA 28 Texas VS. Oklahoma: The “Red River Shoot-out” is prime for the Longhorns taking. The Sooners are struggling this year, having lost two games. Prediction: Texas 38 Oklahoma 21 Weather update for Nashville, Tenn.: Hell has finally returned to its normal blazing self after a surprisingly undefeated Vanderbilt team finally lost to Middle Tennessee State on Saturday. The forecast for the region of eternally damned souls looks to remain super hot this week as the LSU Tigers go to Nashville to take on the Commodores. Last week: 4-1 Season: 18-7 overall I I Deep-fried Twinkies aside, this weekend counts I Easy Kentucky matchup should give Carolina much-needed SEC win 1) Will USC be able to run the ball and stop the runi Usually, stopping Kentucky from running all over your defense wouldn’t be a problem. But this year, nothing is coming easily. Oh, and Raphael Litde — Kentucky’s running back — guess where he’s from? You guessed it: South-Freakin’ Carolina. Apparently every team in the SEC has some kid from South Carolina that for 1 whatever reason USC didn’t recruit, and they all seem to have the game of their lives against the Gamecocks. If Little comes out looking like Barry Sanders, don’t say I didn’t warn you. 2) Will it be Blake Mitchell or Antonio Heffner at quarterback? It shouldn’t really matter which of the two quarterbacks starts, USC should be able to beat Kentucky. Period. In a perfect world, Spurrier would start Heffner, things would go well, Carolina would win the game easily and Blake Mitchell’s ankle would have plenty of time to heal during the bye week so he would be totally healthy for Vanderbilt. But the fact that I’m honestly worried about whether our quarterback is totally healthy for Vanderbilt is a pretty good sign that this is not a perfect world. 3) How good is Kentucky? When I watched Kentucky play Louisville in their opening game, I was impressed. Then I watched them get blown out by Indiana, and I was not impressed. Then I watched South Florida absolutely spank Louisville, and I realized that I with Jake Broom Third-year political science student KENTUCKY wasn’t as impressed as I once thought I was. After being impressed, not impressed and even more not impressed, I have come to the conclusion that Kentucky really is not good at all. Nobody likes saying stuff like this, because if we lose to Kentucky, I’ll come off looking like a total idiot. But if you’ve ever read any of my columns, you know that coming off looking like a total idiot doesn’t really faze me. So, I’ll go ahead and say it: Kentucky is bad. They are the worst team left on USC’s schedule. If Carolina doesn’t find a way to win, my column Monday will just be me typing out the sounds I make while crying myself to sleep. * 4) How will the State Fair affect the game? Well, the actual football won’t be changed by the fact that the fair is in town, but everything else will be. Day games are bad enough by themselves, but pair them with thousands of extra people driving hundreds of extra minivans, and it creates an interesting situation. The traffic gets worse, the parking gets worse and kids are all over the place. Also, just the smell of those deep-fried Twinkies makes my arteries clog a little bit. 5) Can Sidney Rice keep his streak of consecutive games with a touchdown reception going? Sidney Rice is quickly climbing his way up my list of all-time favorite Carolina football players. The kid is a beast. All he does is show up and catch touchdown passes. Unfortunately I’m not the only one that has noticed this, and as the year goes on, he will continue to get more and more double coverage, meaning his chances to make big plays will be limited. But, seeing as he accounts for almost half of Carolina’s receiving touchdowns and exacdy one-third of the offensive touchdowns the Gamecocks have scored this season, I’d say him continuing to produce is important. And by “important” I mean “absolutely vital unless either somebody else steps up big time or Carolina plans on losing every game for the rest of the season, thereby sending me into a downward spiral of depression, fueled by an endless supply of sarcasm riddled hate columns.” But I figured “important” was the best way to put it. Fair weekend adds panache to game day experiences Another tasty preview of this weekend’s fun during fair festivities [With the Kj5 n t u c k y game and State Fair upon us, I’d like to go hi n i ahead and RlexRileu a give Second-year precautions to PrlM all you new journalism r . . student fans who have never experienced this great moment that happens every year in Gamecock football. I present to you Alex Riley’s Top Seven Things to Look Out for this Weekend: 1. Terrifying parking — With horror houses and funnel cake stands fdling the spaces in the fair grounds, parking is going to be hellacious. Get there early before all the good spots run out. Or shoot up to' $30 in pricp. z. fair rood ine aromas will be tempting, but alcohol, sunshine and grease do not mix. No matter what your buddies tell you, a sausage dog and Everclear are not friends. 3. Carneys — Or circus folk. Some will be toothless, grungy and lack the ability to form complete sentences. Their lack of intelligence is not to be confused with Clemson fans. Actually, the carnies are smarter. 4. Airborne projectiles — With rides spinning, whirling and twirling all around you, watch out for stuff flying out of your inebriated friends pockets. Drunk people don’t realize their car keys aren’t tucked in their pockets, making them a possibility of metallic missile. The chance of flying vomit also comes into play with the large quantity of alcohol being consumed. 5. Scary out-of-towners — The fair attracts Upstate dwellers like a bug-zapper does moths. The backwoods will be empty, as every Tiger supporter makes their annual pilgrimage to the “big city” for new inventions such as running water and electricity. Careful. 6. Funny names over the “ intercom — Listen out for names like Ima P. Brane or R.U. Joking over the fair’s intercom system. Young children love to try this, and it can be quite entertaining. Since the announcers want parents to find their kids at the Rocket, looking for the lost little-ones is a blast. 7. Way too much love — With a USC, fans will want to celebrate and the fair provides the ultimate experience. Watch out after the game, as the booze will be flowing and the possibility of hoping on the tilt a-whirl will grow. The chance of airborne vomit also grows with such boldness. In all, have a good weekend. Enjoy the sights, sounds, and smells of the yearly traveling freakshow. And by all means, get your party on at the Rocket. mUIR • CORTinUED PROm B6 goal and accomplish that goal,” Muir said. “Playing in the Peach Bowl, unfortunately we lost to a West Virginia team coached by Jim Carlen, who finished that year and went to Texas Tech. Then a couple of years later, he replaced coach Dietzel. It was an exciting part of my life.” The Gamecocks lost the Peach Bowl 14-3, but left the school with one of the finest seasons ever played in Columbia. For his efforts on the field, Muir earned All-ACC*his senior year as well as All-American honors on two squads — the American Football Coaches team and the Detroit Sports Extras 33-man squad. Fie also earned a spot on the Coaches All-Star Game roster in Lubbock, Texas, one of only four Gamecocks to achieve the honor. “It does mean a lot personally to attain that goal,” Muir said. “It’s all the coaches and the team that are part of it. Without all those fellas, I never would have gotten the chance. The opportunity to go out there and beat some players of tremendous caliber was great. Just wish I could remember them all.” The professional football draft came calling for Muir, but it came very late, as the New York Giants picked him in the 15th round. The life of professional football wasn’t for Muir. “I never really played; I played in one exhibition game,” Muir said. “We played Green Bay at Green Bay on Saturday night, and I was cut the next Monday or Tuesday. I had gotten drafted by the Canadian league. I went out visit them, way on tthe west coast of Canada. They wanted me to stay out there, get a job and play with the team the next year. That’s when I decided to hang up football.” More than 30 years after leaving Carolina, Muir is still listed among one of the best in Gamecock history. When he left, his 2,234 yards were good enough for second all-time, behind only Steve Wadiak. Today, he sits in 10th place overall. Until Derek Watson in 2000, Muir’s 969-yard rushing season in 1969 was good enough for 10th alt time in Carolina history. Muir tallied six games with more than 100 yards rushing during his collegiate career, including a 164-yard performance against North Carolina in 1967, still the 22nd-highest rushing game in USC history. “All records and stuff are meant to be broken,” Muir said. “I’ve gradually worked my way down the list with all these great running backs that have come through.” After his short stint in the pros, Muir returned to South Carolina, where he put his civil engineering degree to us£. He’s worked for many companies throughout the state. He resides in Aiken, working for Gilliam and Associates. “After being in the area for four years, I had a lot of friends and contacts. And I didn’t have to shovel snow, and I’ve been in the South Carolina area ever since,” Muir said. “It’s been a good, good place to be in construction. I started the summer between my junior and senior year in Columbia and been doing it ever since.” Comments on this story? E-mail gamecocksports@gwm.sc.edu