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Extra points

By Compiled by ANTONYA ENGLISH

© St. Petersburg Times, published September 29, 2000

Measuring up

How South Florida and Troy State match up at various starting positions with their average height/weight:

(Position,USF,TSU)

Wide receiver - 6-1, 185 -6-0, 182

Quarterback - 6-1, 205 -6-1, 208

Tailback - 5-9, 190 -5-10, 191

Fullback - 5-9, 220 -6-0, 250

Offensive line - 6-3, 298 -6-4, 284

Tight end - 6-2, 240 -6-1, 230

Defensive end - 6-3, 253 -6-2, 246

Defensive tackle - 6-1, 275 -6-4, 280

Linebackers -- 6-1, 233 -6-1, 233

Defensive backs - 6-0, 189 -5-10, 182

We're No. 1

Troy State is ranked No. 1 in Division I-AA in the ESPN/USA Today and the Sports Network polls. Since becoming a Division I-AA program in 1993, Troy State has been ranked No. 1 during the season four times, most recently in October 1999 for four weeks before losing to McNeese State. The Trojans are 7-3 overall and 5-2 in the regular season when ranked No. 1.

Tough at the top

It's not easy to maintain that top spot in national rankings. After rising to No. 1 on the list of punter returners last week, sophomore DeAndrew Rubin is third in I-AA this week, averaging 26 yards on seven punt returns. USF, which led the nation with a punt-return average of 36.6 before last week's game at Baylor, also is No. 3 (26.5).

Inside the numbers

9 -- Preseason All-Southland selections on the Troy State roster.

6 -- Career-high receptions (for 90 yards) for USF sixth-year senior Scott McCready in last week's game at Baylor.

4 -- USF kicker Bill Gramatica's rank among I-AA field-goal leaders. He has 2.25 field goals per game, including a seasonlong 51-yarder.

2 -- No. 1 teams the Bulls will have faced in their four-year history after Saturday.

2/1 -- Years before Troy State becomes a Division I-A school; Years before USF becomes Division I-A.

Quotable

"From the press articles we've been reading, they are supposed to beat us. Some guys feel like they are looking down at us because of the I-A stuff. I am impressed by how they run against the inside zone. The thing is that our defense is geared toward stopping the zone, so it should be a good matchup to watch."

-- Naazir Yamini, Troy State linebacker

Jim Leavitt Q&A

Q Assess Marquel Blackwell's performance last week

A: I was really happy with some of the things he did last game. The fumbles are not good (two against Baylor), and he feels as bad as anybody about those. If he's going to carry the ball as much as we have him carrying the ball, then we've got to work a lot more drills with how to carry the ball going through traffic."

Q: What happened when the team got ready to leave Baylor last week?

A: "We get to the airport and it's like things go when you lose. The plane wasn't there, and it was supposed to be there and we hurried up. First, it was supposed to be there at 9:30, then I was told, well, it's not going to be here until 10:30. So I sat back and just relaxed hoping, okay, it will get here at 10:30. And then it wasn't there at 11:30 or 12:30 or 1:30. And it got there around two-something, 2:30, and about that point I was falling asleep on the runway. Honestly, I just laid back and was looking up at the stars feeling sorry for myself, I guess, and got on the plane and got back here around 5 a.m. And we were ready to go to work. It was a long night, a long day, and not on that was a lot of fun."

Q: What did you think about the play of your offensive line in the Baylor game?

A: "I thought our offensive line played as good as they've played all year. Joey Sipp played real good and Kenyatta (Jones) and Jimmy Fitts. But I was especially proud of Mike Snellgrove, who had never started a game here and played every snap. When Ken Dawson couldn't play, there's our starting back tackler who was out and Mike stepped up and did a great job. That was nice. The offensive line -- none of them came out, every single one of them played the whole game, and I think that's impressive."

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