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Saturday's Notables

The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 18, 2007

Updated: 11/18/2007 01:12 am

HE SAID IT

"We'll just have to wait and see like everyone else."

- Michigan CB Morgan Trent, who said Coach Lloyd Carr did not address his future before or after the Wolverines' 14-3 loss to Ohio State. It might've been Carr's last regular-season game at Michigan and speculation has run rampant that the 62-year-old will announce his plans within days.

NUTT-Y SITUATION

Arkansas coach Houston Nutt scolded the media Saturday about reports indicating this will be his last year with the Razorbacks. "Stop predicting and stop making up rumors," Nutt said after Arkansas beat Mississippi State 45-31. "I would wait until after the meeting with the athletic director - the new athletic director, Jeff Long - and then make comments to get some facts." Various reports have surfaced saying Nutt won't be back next year, although they did not give a clear indication of whether Nutt would be dismissed or leave on his own. "It wasn't true yesterday and it's not true today," Nutt said. The university strongly denied Friday that any decision has been made on Nutt's future. AD Frank Broyles is retiring at the end of the year and has said he'll leave a decision on Nutt's status to Long, his replacement. Long was at Saturday's game but would not comment on Nutt's situation.

HIGH FLYING OFFENSE

Chad Hall is used to 100-yard rushing performances. Jim Ollis and Ty Paffett? Not so much. All three topped the 100-yard rushing mark and combined for 419 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground to lead Air Force over San Diego State 55-23. They became the first Air Force trio to gain 100 yards each since 1988. "It doesn't get any better, I don't think," Ollis said. "Getting over 100 yards, it is amazing." The Falcons (9-3) ran for a season-high 569 yards and seniors Ollis, Hall and QB Shaun Carney capped an undefeated home season for the first time since 2000.

REINSTATED

The NCAA reinstated five Alabama players - starting OL Antoine Caldwell and Marlon Davis, No. 2 rusher Glen Coffee, and reserve DBs Chris Rogers and Marquis Johnson - who were suspended for improper receipt of textbooks, making them eligible for the regular-season finale at Auburn. The four-game suspension for violating rules covering free books for course work will wrapped up with Saturday's Louisiana-Monroe game. The NCAA informed Alabama of the decision before the game, a university statement said. The NCAA ruling followed a report submitted this week by the university regarding its ongoing investigation into the case.

HITTING 2,000

Tulane RB Matt Forte rushed for 194 yards to eclipse 2,000 for the season, and scored five touchdowns in a 45-31 win over Rice. Forte, the nation's leading with 2,007 yards, is the first Division I-A back with 2,000 in a season since California's J.J. Arrington in 2004. Forte tied his Conference USA record with the five touchdowns. He scored that many Sept. 22 against Southeastern Louisiana.

BIG PERFORMANCES

•Missouri's Jeremy Maclin scored three touchdowns and had 252 total yards to set the NCAA single-season freshman record for all-purpose yards. He returned a kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown and caught two touchdown passes, giving him 2,201 all-purpose yards for the season - 175 more than Terrell Willis of Rutgers had in 1993. Maclin finished with nine catches for 143 yards.

•Bucknell QB Marcello Trigg (Robinson) threw two touchdown passes and ran for a third as the Bison snapped a five-game losing streak with a 38-24 win over Patriot League champion Fordham.

•South Carolina State RB Will Ford ran for a school-record 322 yards and a touchdown in a 51-7 victory against North Carolina A&T. The sophomore's 322 yards broke the previous record of 307 yards set by Kenny Bynum in 1996.