Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, September 3, 1994 TAG: 9409070073
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Jack Bogaczyk
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
It's an atmosphere warmed by three top 10 teams, Florida, Florida State and Miami, and seemingly unending controversy.
When Miami had problems with too much Pell Grant money being doled out to players, the wry question was whether those were named for gone-but-not-forgotten Gator coach Cheatin' Charlie Pell.
For years, it's been obvious the most disliked Gator has been Florida coach Steve Spurrier. A joke that has spread from Pensacola to Key West says that's no longer the case.
``Now,'' the tale goes, `it's the Investi-Gator.''
In the last nine months, the Seminoles have won their first Heisman Trophy - thanks to NBA draftee Charlie Ward - and a national championship. However, after an NCAA probe into an agent-funded shopping spree by some Seminoles last season and other assorted embarrassing incidents since, FSU has found sinning brings as many headlines as winning.
It is in this atmosphere that Virginia begins the 125th anniversary season of college football today, with a 3:30 kickoff against the fourth-ranked defending national champions - who may be ranked No. 1 in emotion.
The Cavaliers have never won in this state, going 0-5 by an average score of 41-14. Three weeks ago, UVa coach George Welsh said he was ``not averse to opening with Florida State.''
Any other season, that might be wishful thinking. This year, even with five expected starters sidelined by suspension or injury, FSU can't wait for the opener.
There maybe hasn't been as anticipated a season start here since FSU, 90 years after its beginning, played its first football game in 1947, a loss to Stetson.
The Seminoles will play this game like it's Miami or Florida on the other sideline. Welsh is right in thinking the Cavaliers will get their toughest game out of the way first, because this season, Florida State should continue embarrassing the rest of the ACC - as it has continued to do this summer.
Some aren't surprised FSU - Spurrier has been calling it ``Free Shoes U.'' - has found the NCAA's Columbos picking through its trash. When the ACC expanded with the Seminoles, there were howls about the school's academics and whispers about its successful programs.
However, the conference has to be concerned about the impact any sanctions on FSU might have, particularly with a new telecast contract with ABC starting in 1996. There's no question the Seminoles would be the biggest attraction in that deal.
Now, there is good reason for opponents to call them the Criminoles, a name they earned with basketball probation as a Metro Conference member more than a decade ago. Of course, its soon-caught Metro peers could hardly throw stones.
The mess has tarnished the career of coach Bobby Bowden, a longtime media darling - he's still very accessible - who for years got sympathy because he came so close to winning a national title without accomplishing his stated goal.
Once Bowden got there - by beating a Nebraska team that outplayed the Seminoles last New Year's night in the Orange Bowl - he's had few moments of cheer since. He's admitted the probe and its accompanying mud-slinging has been a distraction, but not a large one.
It has contributed to a notion - correct or not - that Bowden has run a loose program at FSU. There is no questioning the Seminoles' success, however. A program once known for little more than receivers Fred Biletnikoff and Ron Sellers has delivered more than alumnus Deion Sanders' neon.
Starting in 1987, FSU's finishes in the Associated Press polls have been Nos. 2, 3, 3, 4, 4, 2, 1. Bowden's last 12 teams have played in bowls. They're 11-0-1. He doesn't duck anyone. The non-conference games this season are Miami, Florida and Notre Dame, not here, but in Orlando's Citrus Bowl.
However, embarassing the ACC is nothing new for the Seminoles. Last year, they beat their league peers by an average 49-6 score, improving from 36-15 in 1992. FSU is 16-0 in two ACC seasons, and the end to that dominance isn't in sight.
``Florida State has been better the last couple of years than I thought they were,'' Welsh said as UVa began preseason drills.
Here's the really bad news for the rest of the ACC. When suspended linebacker Derrick Brooks returns - likely after two wins - FSU's defense might be better than it was last year, when eight ACC foes scored only 51 points against the national champs.
There are question marks in the program, but none of them have anything to do with talent. The ACC's best chance to catch the Seminoles is in the hands of the NCAA.
by CNB