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| Wednesday, November 1 SDSU's Ned looking at the big picture By Ed Graney Special to ESPN.com | ||||||||
Maturity has never been Larry Ned's problem. He has always owned the strength to see things clearly, to make sound decisions, to do what's best for his future.
San Diego State's star running back will do so again now.
Ned's season, thought so promising last summer, has been stalled by injury a second time. A dislocated left shoulder kept him out of SDSU's 34-22 loss to first-place Colorado State on Saturday and will sideline him against New Mexico this week and possibly the final two games at Air Force and against Nevada-Las Vegas.
Off-season surgery looms.
Ned does have one thing going for him: Another season of college football.
A partial qualifier out of high school who needed to graduate in four years to gain back that first season of eligibility, Ned is one internship shy from earning a degree. He will return to SDSU next season, hardly a surprise based on what has transpired this season.
"It's like I'm working on a project here and it's only half finished," Ned said. "I'm not leaving until it's done. I'm not ready for (the NFL). I have a lot of work to do. I have to get better."
A preseason all-conference pick whose name was included on several All-America teams, Ned had arthroscopic surgery on his left knee Aug. 20 and missed the season-opener against Arizona State.
In six games, he has rushed 139 times for 357 yards, a 2.6 average. He has scored six touchdowns and struggled both mentally and physically to return to the form of previous seasons, facts that would not helped his NFL potential or where he might have fell in the draft.
Air Force It was four years ago all over again, up until the point another big kick had to be made. Then it became a nightmare. The Falcons couldn't pull off the same kind of magic at Notre Dame that lifted them to victory in 1996, instead losing 34-31 in overtime on Saturday. David Adams -- kicking from nearly the same spot as Dallas Thompson's 27-yard game-winner in '96 -- had his attempt blocked at the end of regulation. "I was really heartbroken for our team," said coach Fisher DeBerry. "What a complete swing of emotions." ... Tough kid, this Ryan Fleming. The receiver had a career-high 163 yards in South Bend, despite playing with a separated shoulder. ... When numbers don't matter: Air Force had more yards, passing yards, first downs and plays than the Irish. ... Air Force plays at Army on Saturday, when the Falcons can clinch a fourth straight Commander-In-Chief's Trophy and become bowl eligible. "Certainly, it's a big game," DeBerry said. "Half of that trophy isn't worth a dang-gone thing. Our goal is to go in there and take it all. We should have beat (Notre Dame), but it's good to have a game against another service academy after it. It gets your attention." BYU Let the interview process begin. BYU athletic director Val Hale will start some face-to-face meetings with those being considered to replace coach LaVell Edwards at season's end. The favorite -- a heavy one in Provo -- remains Chicago Bears offensive coordinator Gary Crowton. Others who can probably expect a sit-down: Alabama quarterbacks coach Charlie Stubbs, Philadelphia Eagles coach Andy Reid and current BYU assistants Lance Reynolds and Ken Schmidt. It will be a major upset if Crowton isn't the guy. He is a longtime friend of Hale's (the two are former Orem High teammates) and the Cougars can afford Crowton with a package worth a reported $500,000 annually. ... The 19-7 win against Wyoming gave Edwards career victory No. 255, tying him with former Nebraska boss Tom Osborne for sixth place on the all-time Division I list. "Obviously, it's nice," Edwards said. "I think it took (Osborne) 25 years and it took me 100." Colorado State Special teams is right. The Rams in beating SDSU had 259 return yards in the first half and 298 for the game. Dexter Wynn, a redshirt freshman defensive back who had never returned a collegiate kickoff, brought one back 100 yards for a score and another 66 yards to set up another touchdown. CSU set up a first-half TD via Pete Rebstock's 57-yard punt return and then scored with 56 seconds left before intermission when Rebstock shuffled a 4-yard TD pass to linebacker Rick Crowell off a fake field goal. "The players really take a lot of pride in our special teams," said CSU coach Sonny Lubick. "We can point out example after example in how they help win games." The Rams at 7-1 overall and 4-0 in the MWC are marching towards a fifth league title in eight years and a second straight Liberty Bowl berth. CSU hosts BYU on Thursday night on ESPN. Key stat: The Rams have not beaten the Cougars in Fort Collins in 25 years. "That says it all right there," Lubick said. "A lot of those games weren't even a contest. This is huge for us. We'll talk to our players about the history." ... You have to like CSU's chances of winning another conference championship. The Rams, which lead the league by a game over New Mexico, are 17-2 under Lubick in November. New Mexico The Lobos at 5-4 still need two wins to become bowl eligible off a 12-game schedule. They host SDSU on Saturday having won five of six and four of those by seven points or less. The key? There is no panic in the Lobos. "We're getting more comfortable as a team," said coach Rocky Long. "We're reacting to things better." New Mexico is above .500 for the first time since Long's third game as coach in 1998, when the team was 2-1. "I hope we just remain focused on the next game," Long said. "Good things can happen if we win our last three games. But if we get too excited and don't concentrate, there's some disappointment that can happen, too." ... New Mexico took a giant step forward in beating Utah 10-3, considering the Utes had won the previous two meetings by scores of 41-7 and 52-7. This time, the Lobos not only matched up physically, but actually won that battle. Junior fullback Jarrod Baxter rushed for career highs in carries (29) and yards (135). "The last two games against Utah, I don't even remember being tired," Baxter said. "This time, I was winded. I knew we were playing hard." UNLV An injured Jason Thomas is not an effective Jason Thomas. The sophomore quarterback is battling a bum ankle and it showed in the team's 43-40 overtime loss at Mississippi. He gained just 32 yards on 14 carries while completing 7-of-25 for 93 yards with one TD and two interceptions. "He has lost a step with (the injury)," said UNLV coach John Robinson. "It would be nice if he got well." ... The Rebels rushed for 378 yards against Ole Miss, nearly having three backs -- James Wofford 138, Jeremi Rudolph 107 and Kevin Brown 95 -- with 100-yard efforts. It was the first time since 1995 (against North Texas) that UNLV topped the 300-yard mark. How confident was Robinson in his ground game? The Rebels, down eight with five seconds left in regulation and sitting on the Ole Miss 17, called for a run to Rudolph instead of throwing into the end zone. A two-point conversion then forced overtime. "It was a great experience for us," Robinson said. "We came up short, but those are the kind of games our conference needs to seek out and play. You have to go see what that level is like." San Diego State As sound as CSU's special teams were, the Aztecs were, well ... "Horrible," said coach Ted Tollner. "Our coverage was as bad as it gets." CSU had 31 first-half points and SDSU's poor special teams play led to 24 of them. "All we can play for now is pride," said Tollner, whose team has three games remaining and is assured a third losing season in the past four years. "We'll find out a lot about what we have on this team." Athletic director Rick Bay has again echoed his support of Tollner, saying the coach will return for an eighth season. "Absolutely," Bay said. "He is my coach and he will be here next year, no matter what happens these last three games." The Aztecs are 39-38 under Tollner, whose contract extends through 2007 and is guaranteed through February of 2002. Bay said he will not publicly attach specific standards -- things like a winning record and bowl appearance -- when deciding Tollner's future after next season."I've seen too many athletic directors trapped there," Bay said. "Then the team goes out, loses its first four, wins its next seven and where are you? I think it's important to let (next season) play itself out and see where we are. If I felt we had a better chance by going in a different direction, I'd do it. I don't feel that way." Utah Things have probably been worse for coach Ron McBride. He just can't remember when. The Utes are out of the conference race and have no chance at a bowl, officially making a laughingstock of all those preseason predictions. "I can't take too many more losses," McBride said. "You just try and keep the players as positive as you can. Nobody said this was easy. Hopefully, guys will still come out and want to make a difference. I don't care how bad it is, I told the players to refuse to give up." ... The future was called upon in Albuquerque and Lance Rice looked every bit the redshirt freshman he is. Utah's promising young quarterback replaced an ineffective Darnell Arceneaux in the second quarter. Rice completed 13-of-29 for 185 yards against a New Mexico defense that leads the conference in sacks with 35. "I rushed a lot of things," Rice said. "I have to be more patient and get a better feel for who is around me." Rice served a two-year mission out of high school and last played a game in 1996. He should start against UNLV on Saturday at, yes, Rice-Eccles Stadium. Utah's home field gets half its name from benefactor Bob Rice, the quarterback's grandfather. "We have to get Lance some experience now," McBride said. Wyoming There were tears in the locker room after such a close loss at BYU, after shutting out the Cougars in the first half only to fall for the eighth time in nine games. "That was the first time we resembled Wyoming football in a long time," said coach Vic Koenning. "That's what we should have been doing all season. We came out with a fanatical effort, one we haven't had all season. We will get this thing turned around and headed in the right direction." The Cowboys are off this week before hosting Utah on Nov. 11. Senior quarterback Jay Stoner sprained an ankle against BYU and will be limited in the off week. "Hopefully, he'll come back and can be effective," Koenning said. ... There has been some talk locally that Koenning was not happy with his team's overall talent to begin the season, calling into question the recruiting efforts of former coach Dana Dimel. "You can't blame anyone," Koenning said. "We just have to learn from the past and bring in some quality prospects. I'm not casting stones. We have to move forward and make good recruiting evaluations. We need to tell kids there is an opportunity to play here right away." Ed Graney covers college football for the San Diego Union Tribune and can be reached at ed.graney@uniontrib.com | ALSO SEE Big Ten notebook Big 12 notebook WAC notebook | |||||||
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