Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, November 4, 1995 TAG: 9511060046
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DANIEL UTHMAN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
On Friday, Bowden recalled coaching track at Samford University and hearing that Roger Bannister had just become the first man to run a four-minute mile. Nobody thought it could happen.
``Two weeks later, four guys broke it in one week,'' Bowden said.
Nobody thought the Seminoles would lose a conference game in the near future, certainly not this season. But Virginia changed some minds Thursday night with a 33-28 victory. ``They showed it could be done,'' Bowden said. ``Now we really have our hands full.''
Might the rest of the ACC now rush to line up for a shot at the Seminoles? FSU's players say they expect that to happen. And it doesn't seem to bother them. They say they've never felt at ease among their league peers, anyway.
``There's no doubt in my mind the whole league was rooting for them,'' center Clay Shiver said of the Cavaliers. ``I think even the commissioner said they were going to have a party for whoever beat us first in the ACC.
``When the front office is rooting against you, that's bad.''
ACC director of media relations Brian Morrison denied that commissioner Gene Corrigan ever said such. ``No way,'' Morrison said. ``He's the one that invited them into the league!''
The Seminoles took their invitation and rattled off 29 straight conference wins. Since its first year in the conference in 1992, Florida State has only lost to three teams; Miami (twice), Notre Dame and now, Virginia.
``We did something nobody had done before,'' said FSU quarterback Danny Kanell. ``This is where rivalries start to develop - when people beat you.''
Shiver and others mentioned that having not been in a close game may have hurt the Seminoles in Charlottesville. Florida State had scored more than 70 points in three ACC games already this season, with no game closer than 19 points. The Seminoles still have not beaten a ranked team this season, either. ``What would I do different?'' Bowden asked. ``Go back and tell them not to score fast?''
``We're in a fight for our lives every week,'' said Virginia safety Percy Ellsworth. ``We're used to it. They haven't played any tight ones.''
FSU's dominance of this year's slate brought out hordes of critics ripping the ACC's collective football prowess.
``This is the best thing that could happen for the conference,'' Bowden said. ``It's been knocked so much for being so weak. This was the only way to get people to believe it's a good conference.''
But while Bowden was trying to salvage something positive out of the loss, he also figured there were some negative feelings among fans in Tallahassee. He waited until 2 p.m. to report to work Friday, and only spent an hour at his office. He said he wondered what people on campus were thinking, but added, ``I was scared to go find out.''
He knows what his upcoming opponents are thinking. Virginia did it; we want our shot.
by CNB