Associated Press
The college football notebook …
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Former Florida State coach Bobby Bowden says LSU will have a tough time beating Alabama twice in the same season.
Bowden should know. His 1996 team lost the national championship to rival Florida in a rematch just five weeks after the Seminoles had won the regular-season game.
Bowden said Alabama and LSU are the two best teams he saw this year and deserve to play again for the national title.
His Seminoles won national championships in 1993 and 1999 and went 14 straight seasons between 1987-2000 with 10 wins or more.
The 82-year-old Bowden returned to Florida State’s campus Tuesday night for the first time since he was replaced as head coach two years ago. He spoke at the Tallahassee Quarterback Club’s final meeting of the season.
AUBURN
AUBURN, Ala. — Kiehl Frazier appears to be becoming more than just Auburn’s wildcat quarterback.
It remains to be seen if the Tigers freshman can jump all the way to the role of starter — and next year’s front-runner — in time for the Dec. 31 Chick-fil-A Bowl against Virginia.
Frazier is getting more of a chance to run the whole offense in practice alongside Clint Moseley.
“He’s getting more reps in the regular offense, because he understands it better,” Auburn coach Gene Chizik said Tuesday. “He understands different concepts. It’s kind of like spring practice No. 1. So you’re expecting all of the young guys to come in and have a better grasp of what we’re doing. So he’s not the only young guy that is happening to.”
SPURRIER CONTRACT
COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolina has extended football coach Steve Spurrier’s contract through the 2015 season, the school said Tuesday.
The board of trustees approved the two-year extension.
Spurrier says he appreciates having four years remaining on his contract, which he says will help as he recruits athletes by letting them know he will be around for their collegiate career.
“Our football program is headed in the right direction,” Spurrier said in a statement. “We’ve had some success and have had some good things happen here, but winning the SEC is one goal we have not yet reached. We hope and believe we can do that in the next four years.”
NAGURSKI TROPHY
CHARLOTTE — Boston College linebacker Luke Kuechly won the Bronko Nagurski Trophy given to the nation’s top college defensive player.
The other finalists were LSU defensive back Morris Claiborne, Alabama defensive back Mark Barron, Illinois defensive end Whitney Mercilus and Penn State defensive tackle Devon Still.
The 6-foot-3, 237-pound Kuechly led the nation in total tackles with 191 and solo tackles with 102 and was the only unanimous selection to the all-ACC first-team defense this season.
He was All-American last year as a sophomore.
KANSAS
LAWRENCE, Kan.— Charlie Weis has begun assembling his coaching staff at Kansas, hiring Ron Powlus to tutor quarterbacks and Tim Grunhard to work with the offensive line.