Florida and Texas look to settle scores

[September 17, 2009]  STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) -- Florida has a score to settle. Texas, too, but for a different reason.

Coach Urban Meyer and his top-ranked Gators welcome (sort of) Tennessee coach Lane Kiffin to Gainesville, Fla., and the Southeastern Conference on Saturday.

Kiffin took aim at the Mighty Gators in the offseason, throwing a few verbal jabs at Meyer and even accusing the Florida coach of breaking NCAA rules.

The Gators have generally played it cool publicly.

"It's an intense rivalry," Florida quarterback Tim Tebow said. "People go out there and play extremely hard. It's one of the most physical games we'll play all year."

But Meyer, Tebow and the Gators have shown they are not above holding a grudge, having answered some perceived slights in the past with very real beat downs.

Just ask Georgia. In 2007 against Florida, the Bulldogs held a team party in the end zone after their first touchdown and went on to beat the Gators.

Florida's response last year: A 49-10 victory against Georgia, in which Meyer was calling late timeouts.

Kiffin's first Tennessee team doesn't appear ready to compete against the defending national champions after a 19-15 home loss to UCLA last week.

In Austin, Texas, the Longhorns are looking for revenge of a different kind against Texas Tech.

Colt McCoy and No. 2 Texas lost only once last season, a 39-33 setback in Lubbock on Graham Harrell's unforgettable last-second touchdown pass to Michael Crabtree. It was one of the best games of the season.

It also kept Texas from playing for the national title and vaulted the Red Raiders into the championship chase.

Harrell and Crabtree are gone now and coach Mike Leach's Red Raiders aren't even ranked, though that would change if they can make it two straight over the Longhorns.

The picks:

Thursday

No. 14 Georgia Tech (plus 5) at No. 20 Miami

Yellow Jackets ran for 472 in win over Hurricanes last season ... MIAMI 28-24.

Friday

No. 10 Boise State (minus 7 1/2) at Fresno State

Broncos have won three straight, seven of eight against Bulldogs ... BOISE STATE 30-24.

Saturday

Tennessee (plus 29 1/2) at No. 1 Florida

For Lane Kiffin, this might be worse than working for Al Davis ... FLORIDA 52-7.

Texas Tech (plus 17 1/2) at No. 2 Texas

Red Raiders new QB Taylor Potts tries to keep up with Colt McCoy ... TEXAS 40-28.

No. 3 Southern California (minus 19 1/2) at Washington

Huskies coach Steve Sarkisian was USC offensive coordinator ... USC 28-17.

North Texas (plus 38) at No. 4 Alabama

Mean Green have already matched last season's win total with one ... ALABAMA 50-10.

SE Louisiana (no line) at No. 5 Mississippi

Rebels feeling better after getting hit with swine flu ... MISSISSIPPI 51-14.

Temple (plus 29 1/2) at No. 5 Penn State

Owls last beat Nittany Lions in 1941, even before JoePa's time ... PENN STATE 38-7.

Florida State (plus 7 1/2) at No. 7 BYU

Cougars trying to prove Oklahoma win was no fluke ... FLORIDA STATE 28-24.

No. 8 California (minus 14) at Minnesota

Bears need early wake-up call for noon kickoff ... CALIFORNIA 35-24.

Louisiana-Lafayette (plus 26) at No. 9 LSU

Tigers are 21-0 against Ragin' Cajuns ... LSU 41-3.

No. 11 Ohio State (plus 20 1/2) vs. Toledo at Cleveland

"Neutral" field for Buckeyes to bounce back ... OHIO STATE 45-21.

Tulsa (plus 16 1/2) at No. 12 Oklahoma

Even without Sam Bradford, Sooners offense starts to click ... OKLAHOMA 48-24.

No. 19 Nebraska (plus 4 1/2) at No. 13 Virginia Tech

Cornhuskers could make statement with road victory ... VIRGINIA TECH 24-21.

Texas State (no line) at No. 15 TCU

Horned Frogs face No. 18 in FCS poll ... TCU 41-14.

Rice (plus 32 1/2) at No. 16 Oklahoma State

Cowboys won't take C-USA foe lightly after last week ... OKLAHOMA STATE 56-21.

No. 17 Cincinnati (pick'em) at Oregon State

Bearcats QB Tony Pike is fourth in nation in passer rating ... CINCINNATI 28-21.

No. 18 Utah (plus 4) at Oregon

Utes' winning streak up to 16 games ... OREGON 28-20.

Duke (plus 22) at No. 22 Kansas

First football game between basketball powers ... KANSAS 47-21.

No. 23 Georgia (plus 1) at Arkansas

Bulldogs have won eight of 11 against Razorbacks ... ARKANSAS 28-24.

East Carolina (plus 7 1/2) at No. 24 North Carolina

Pirates relish taking down in-state rivals from ACC ... NORTH CAROLINA 24-14.

Eastern Michigan (plus 24) at No. 25 Michigan

Former Michigan defensive coordinator Ron English now EMU head coach ... MICHIGAN 45-10.

___

Last week: 20-2 (straight); 10-9 (vs. points)

Season record: 36-6 (straight); 15-19 (vs. points).

[Associated Press; By RALPH D. RUSSO]

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.