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09/04/2010 -
LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) -June Jones knows the order is a tall one for his improving SMU squad.
The Mustangs will open the season Sunday in Lubbock as the first opponent for new Texas Tech coach Tommy Tuberville, who vowed when he took over in January not to dismantle the Red Raiders' dizzyingly successful aerial attack.
Facing a coach - and a program - eager for a win in the post-Mike Leach era, SMU also faces some daunting history. Texas Tech has won the past 13 meetings between the two former Southwest Conference rivals dating to 1989.
Jones, who in his second season last year led SMU to the most wins (8-5) since 1984, said the Mustangs will need to be sharp. After going 1-11 in Jones' first year, SMU's seven-win improvement was the largest for any team in Division I last season.
``We feel like we have to go in there and play our best football game to win,'' Jones said. ``We have our hands full, obviously. I think they are a very talented team.''
Tuberville is hoping so - particularly on defense, long maligned and a stepchild to Leach's passing offense that had most of his quarterbacks leading the nation in passing. Linebacker Bront Bird said the Tech defense is more complicated then in previous years.
``In the past, a lot of guys were satisfied knowing what they were supposed to do, but you are a better player when you understand the whole scheme of what everyone is doing, as far as coverages,'' Bird said.
Jones thinks Texas Tech's offense, behind starting quarterback Taylor Potts, will run more.
``But that doesn't mean they're not going to throw it 60 times a game,'' Jones said. ``It's not going to be just like Mike Leach's offense.''
It's Texas Tech's first game in Lubbock since 1999 without Leach on the sideline. University officials fired Leach Dec. 30, two days after suspending him amid allegations he mistreated a receiver with a concussion. Leach has denied he mistreated the player and has a lawsuit pending against the school.
Tuberville, who is beginning his 15th year as head coach after stints at Auburn and Mississippi, said he thinks the game will answer many questions.
``I wanted everyone to see what this program is about,'' he said. ``We are still here and we are going to be able to throw the football, run it and play defense and play special teams.''
Is he nervous about the game?
``I'm more nervous for the players and what they're doing and if they can get it done,'' Tuberville said. We'll go into this game knowing we've pretty much done everything we can. We'll be a little nervous about execution and how we handle certain situations.''
SMU will rely on quarterback Kyle Padron, who took over at midseason as a freshman last year and went 5-1 as a starter, throwing for a school-record 460 yards and two touchdowns in the 45-10 win over Nevada in the Hawaii Bowl. That game ended a 25-year bowl drought for the program that took years to rebound from the NCAA's so-called death penalty.
``I think his best football is ahead of him, certainly,'' Jones said of Padron. ``We just have to keep getting good around him. I think we have a guy that can take us to the promised land.''
A seasoned offensive line will be protecting him, and Tuberville said a strong pass rush will be ``huge'' for the Red Raiders defense.
``First we have to stop the run,'' he said. ``The quarterback is a young guy, who has had some success. He's a pretty seasoned veteran but hopefully we can give him some problems.''
He doesn't expect much different from Jones, who last week got a contract extension expected to keep him at the school through the 2014 season.
``He's coached in pro and college and he's does the same things,'' Tuberville said. ``He hasn't done anything different. We'll be able to prepare on what he has done.''
In two weeks, Texas Tech hosts No. 5 Texas - a huge Big 12 test for Tuberville, who said he won't hold back anything this week for that game.
``You'll see it all (Sunday). You need to run things to see if you can execute,'' he said. ``We'll always add one or two things. I think we have a good game plan.''Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
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NEW YORK (AP) -By staying away from the cupcakes, Southern California earned itself a slim new ranking.
No. 1 always seems to fit USC.
Southern California jumped two spots to No. 1 in The Associated Press Top 25 on Tuesday, rewarded by voters for opening the season with a dominant performance on the road against a BCS conference opponent.
Georgia and Ohio State, the preseason Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, started their seasons with glorified scrimmages at home against FCS (formerly I-AA) teams. USC, however, traveled across country to face Virginia and could not have been more impressive in a 52-7 victory.
Georgia fell to No. 2 and Ohio State to No 3.
"We realize that rankings so early in a season are certainly fluid. But rankings do help establish a pecking order for things later in the season," USC coach Pete Carroll said in a statement. "As for moving into the No. 1 spot, it's nice to know that people think highly of our team."
Since reaching No. 1 on Dec. 7, 2003, the final-regular season AP poll of that season, USC has been No. 1 in 39 polls, by far the most of any team during that time.
"Some have said the voters are taking our schedule into consideration," Carroll said. "Our philosophy has always been to schedule outstanding opponents. We need to play challenging games like we just did, traveling across the country to open the season at Virginia. Games like that bring out our best and make us stronger as a team."
The latest voting was close. USC received 21 first-place votes and 1,539 points from the 65-member media panel. Georgia had 20 first-place votes and 1,506 points. Ohio State got 15 first-place votes and 1,497 points.
"I'd say we've evolved as pollsters," said Stewart Mandel of SI.com, who moved USC up to No. 1. "In the past, voters just kind of automatically moved teams up and kept teams where they were if they won."
Georgia beat Georgia Southern 45-21 on Saturday and Ohio State opened with a 43-0 win over Youngstown State.
"There's a bit of a growing backlash for the amount of teams that open with I-AA cupcakes," said Mandel, whose book "Bowls, Polls and Tattered Souls" chronicles college football's controversies. "To see a team [USC] go on the road and play a New Year's Day bowl team from last season, and not only play them but destroy them, how could you not reward that team?"
USC also jumped past Georgia to No. 1 in the USA Today coaches' poll, which has the same top five as the AP poll.
"It's definitely a privilege to be No. 1. But it's not heartbreaking to me if we drop," Georgia offensive lineman Josh Davis said. "It doesn't matter right now what we're ranked. What matters is our next game and right now, that's Central Michigan. The only time the polls matter is in December. That's when the polls matter."
While the Bulldogs opened easy, their schedule ultimately should be as difficult as any team's. Georgia's big nonconference test is at No. 15 Arizona State on Sept. 20. The Bulldogs also face six Southeastern Conference rivals that've been ranked in the first two polls.
As for Ohio State, the Buckeyes play at USC on Sept. 13 before getting into the Big Ten schedule.
But of the teams in this week's top 10, USC and Texas are the only ones that don't play an FCS opponent, and the Trojans are the only team that doesn't play a team from a non-BCS conference.
Get the latest 2009 BCS Championship odds at MySportsbook.com.
The last team to drop from No. 1 after a victory was USC last season. LSU jumped from No. 2 to No. 1 when it beat Tulane 34-9, the same week the Trojans edged Washington 27-24 on the road.
The last preseason No. 1 team to lose the top spot after winning its opening game was Florida in 2001. The Gators beat Marshall 49-14, but preseason No. 2 Miami opened with a 33-7 victory over Penn State and the Hurricanes jumped to No. 1 with Florida slipping to second.
The next four teams in the new Top 25 stayed the same: No. 4 Oklahoma (two first-place votes), No. 5 Florida (five first-place votes), No. 6 Missouri (one first-place vote), No. 7 LSU (one first-place vote) and No. 8 West Virginia.
No. 9 Auburn and No. 10 Texas each moved up a spot, taking advantage of Clemson's big drop. Clemson, ninth in the preseason, fell out after losing 34-10 to Alabama on Saturday.
Also falling out after losses were Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh and Tennessee.
Moving into the rankings were No. 21 Fresno State, No. 22 Utah, No. 23 UCLA and No. 24 South Carolina.
Alabama moved up 11 spots after its big victory over Clemson.
The second 10 started with No. 11 Wisconsin, followed by Texas Tech, Alabama and Kansas. BYU and Arizona State were tied for 15th. Rivals BYU and Utah are both ranked for the first time since 1996.
South Florida was No. 17, ahead of Oregon, Penn State and Wake Forest at No. 20.
The final five were all the teams to move into the ranking, except for Illinois, which dropped four spots and tied South Carolina for No. 24.
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