in NCAA F Articles

CHICK-FIL-A PEACH BOWL - Atlanta, Georgia

December 30, 2005, 7:30 p.m. ET ESPN

Georgia Dome 71,250

ACC No. 3 vs. SEC

Bowl Matchup: Miami vs. LSU

Miami Hurricanes

Coach: Larry Coker (4th year)

Conference: Atlantic Coast

Record: 9-2

ATS: 4-7-0

O/U: 4-7

Bowl History:

2004 Peach Florida W 27-10 (-3, 52)

2003 Orange Florida St. W 16-14 (-1.5, 46.5)

2002 Fiesta Ohio St. L 24-31 (-12, 48)

2001 Rose Nebraska W 37-14 (-8.5, 54.5)

2000 Sugar Florida W 37-20 (6)

1999 Gator Georgia Tech W 28-13 (-4.5)

1998 Micron PC North Carolina State W 46-28

1996 Carquest Virginia W 31-21

1994 Orange Nebraska L 17-24

1993 Fiesta Arizona L 0-29

Schedule/Results:

September 5 at No. 14 Florida State L 10-7 0-1 (0-1)

September 17 at No. 20 Clemson W 36-30 1-1 (1-1)

September 24 Colorado W 23-3 2-1 (1-1)

October 1 South Florida W 27-7 3-1 (1-1)

October 8 Duke W 52-7 4-1 (2-1)

October 15 at Temple W 34-3 5-1 (2-1)

October 22 Georgia Tech Postponed

October 29 North Carolina W 34-16 6-1 (3-1)

November 5 at No. 3 Virginia Tech W 27-7 7-1 (4-1)

November 12 at Wake Forest W 47-17 8-1 (5-1)

November 19 Georgia Tech L 14-10 8-2 (5-2)

November 26 Virginia W 25-17 9-2 (6-2)

Trends:

-Miami has the second-stingiest defence in the nation at 11.9 per game

-Miami is 2-4-0 ATS in its last 6 lined games

-After a win are 7-2

-When playing outside conference are 10-0

-When playing on turf are 10-0

-When playing in December are 7-1

The Hurricanes’ dreams of an ACC title and a shot at BCS berth went up in smoke as they succumbed to a swarming defensive attack by the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in the second-last week of the season. Georgia Tech sacked Kyle Wright seven times as they scored a 14-10 upset win. Still, the Hurricanes are a force to be reckoned with and the Peach Bowl matchup with the LSU Tigers on Dec. 30 promises to be classic defensive battle. The Hurricanes ended the season ranked No. 9 in both the Associated Press poll and the coaches poll, and No. 8 in BCS rankings. They had a 9-2 record (straight up) and were 4-7 ATS.

Wright stepped up this year after attempting just nine passes during his freshman season. He amassed 2,303 yards (4th in the ACC) and 18 TDs. He completed 59.4 per cent of his passes and was picked off just 10 times. Alas, Wright’s inexperience showed up in the sack column as he ate the ball 30 times. He had a quarterback rating of 140.9, which ranked second in the conference to Marcus Vick of Virginia Tech. Tyrone Moss led the ground attack with 701 yards on 137 carries for a 5.1 yard average. He ran the ball in 12 times for a major. Wright’s favorite targets were Sinorice Moss (35 catches, 604 yards, 17.3 avg., six TDs) and Greg Olsen (31 catches, 451 yards, four TDs.) Moss is the younger brother of Washington Redskins wide receiver Santana Moss. Although he is only five-foot-eight and 183 pounds, Moss is a game-breaker because of his electrifying speed. He is one of the fastest players available in next spring’s NFL draft.

The Hurricanes averaged 145.3 yards per game on the ground and 226 in the air for a total of 371.3 yards per game. They averaged 29.3 points per game, third in the ACC. On defense, a trio of defensive backs tied for the ACC lead in interceptions with three apiece. They are junior Brandon Meriweather, senior Kelly Jennings and freshman Lovon Ponder. Senior DT Orien Harris also gave the Hurricanes some fine work up front as he helped shut down opponents’ running games. Miami ranked among the best teams in the country by allowing just 11.9 points per game. The only other blemish on the Hurricanes’ season was in their season-opener, when they lost a 10-7 squeaker to Florida State. More recently, the Hurricanes put the boots to No. 3 Virginia Tech with a 27-7 romp on Nov. 5. The Hurricanes appeared to be building strength, but stumbled when they lost Georgia Tech. Coach Larry Coker took over in 2001. He has upheld the Hurricanes’ winning tradition, and won a national title in his first year as Miami beat Nebraska 37-14 in the Rose Bowl. The next year, they lost to Ohio State, falling 31-24 in double overtime in the Fiesta Bowl in 2002. They got back on the winning track in 2003 by beating rival Florida State 16-14 in the Orange Bowl and followed that up with a 27-10 win over Florida in last year’s Peach Bowl.

LSU Tigers

Coach: Les Miles (6th year)

Conference: Southeast

Record: 10-2

ATS: 5-5-1

O/U: 6-5

Bowl History:

2004 Capital One Iowa L 25-30 (-6, 41)

2003 Sugar Oklahoma W 21-14 (6, 47)

2002 Cotton Texas L 20-35 (-10.5, 46.5)

2001 Sugar Illinois W 47-34 (-2, 60.5)

2000 Peach Georgia Tech W 28-14 (-8.5)

1997 Independence Notre Dame W 27- 9 (-7)

1996 Peach Clemson W 10- 7 (-6.5)

1995 Independence Michigan St. W 45-26 (-6)

1988 Hall Of Fame Syracuse L 10-23

1987 Gator South Carolina W 30-13

Schedule/Results:

September 3 North Texas Postponed

September 10 at No. 15 Arizona State W 35-31 1-0 (0-0)

September 26 No. 10 Tennessee L 30-27 1-1 (0-1)

October 1 at Mississippi St. W 37-7 2-1 (1-1)

October 8 at Vanderbilt W 34-6 3-1 (2-1)

October 15 No. 11 Florida W 21-17 4-1 (3-1)

October 22 No. 16 Auburn W 20-17 5-1 (4-1)

October 29 North Texas W 56-3 6-1 (4-1)

November 5 Appalachian St. W 24-0 7-1 (4-1)

November 12 at No. 4 Alabama W 16-13 8-1 (5-1)

November 19 at Mississippi W 40-7 9-1 (6-1)

November 25 Arkansas W 19-17 10-1 (7-1)

December 3 No. 13 Georgia L 34-14 10-2 (7-1)

Trends:

-LSU is 2-4-1 ATS in its last 7 lined games

-After a loss are 7-1

-When playing outside conference are 9-1

-After being out gained by opponent are 8-2

-When playing on turf are 9-1

-When playing in December are 6-1

Les Miles has had more than his fair share of troubles to deal with in his first season as head coach of the LSU Tigers. Not only has Miles had to adjust to a new job and a new team, but the Tigers were top of the list among teams hit hardest by the after-effects of Hurricane Katrina. Despite all of the adversity associated with the resulting schedule changes (including a “home” game in Arizona), the Tigers have apparently weathered the storm with defiance, determination, and ultimately, success. In fact, prior to their loss to No. 13 Georgia on Dec. 3, the lone blemish on their record was a close defeat they suffered against the Tennessee Volunteers back in September, and LSU was earning consideration for top-dog status along with USC and Texas when talk turned to titans in the hunt for the National Championship. The Tigers reeled off an impressive 10-2 record this season, but like most of college football’s elite, they haven’t been a bettor’s best friend. LSU has played some tight contests and as a result have posted a mediocre 5-5-1 record ATS. Their over/under mark also must be frustrating to the cause of totals bettors at 6-5. On offense, LSU has been steady if not spectacular. Quarterback JaMarcus Russell can usually be counted on to put 20 or 30 points on the board for the defense to protect as a winning total. Russell hasn’t been flashy, but he’s got the job done without making too many mistakes to hurt the Tigers. Russell sports a respectable 136.6 QB rating while passing for 2,443 yards with 15 touchdowns and nine interceptions. Russell’s main target for most of the season has been wideout Dwayne Bowe. The junior receiver leads the team with 38 receptions for 659 yards and nine touchdowns. Craig Davis and Early Doucet III have also been reliable targets for Russell, racking up over 460 and 389 receiving yards respectively. Aside from Russell, the Tigers’ offense relies heavily on running back JosephAddai. Unfortunately an ankle injury limited Addai’s carries later on in the season, but he was still able to record 781 rushing yards and eight touchdowns on 163 carries. The wonky ankle could continue to hamper Addai for the rest of the season, but Justin Vincent has demonstrated his abilities to be a capable replacement with 482 yards on 119 carries and five touchdowns in spot duty. The Tigers’ defense has been stepping up all season with a consistent effort. LSU has the eighth-best defense in Division I, allowing an average of only 15.2 points per game. The Tigers also ranked fifth in yards allowed per game at 276.3. Adding another layer of strength to the Tigers is a special-teams unit that ranks third in the SEC on punt returns. Speedster Skyler Green has averaged 13.6 yards per punt return, including a 66-yard return for a touchdown, and is a threat to find the end zone whenever he touches the ball. With a well-balanced team across the board, the Tigers should improve on their Capital One Bowl showing from a year ago when LSU was bounced 30-25 by Iowa. The Tigers had won three of their last four bowl games before that loss.

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