By Kevin Askeland
MaxPreps.com
Emmitt Smith’s scoring record at the University of Florida was broken over the weekend by, of all players, a quarterback, when Tim Tebow rushed for three touchdowns in a convincing 49-10 win over the Georgia Bulldogs on Saturday.
Tebow is now the all-time leading touchdown scorer for the Gators with 39. He had tied Smith, who had 36 career touchdowns between 1987 and 1989, last week and broke the record with his first touchdown against the Bulldogs. Tebow, a junior, is the reigning Heisman Trophy winner after rushing for 23 touchdowns last year as a sophomore. A graduate of Nease High School in Ponte Vedra Beach in Florida, Tebow was a two-time Florida Player of the Year, leading Nease to a state title in 2005. He finished his career with 9,810 yards passing, 3,186 yards rushing, 95 passing touchdowns and 62 rushing touchdowns according to Wikipedia. Check here for Tebow’s stats his senior year at Nease.
The Panthers are currently 5-3 on the season and finish the year with a game at Middleburg on Friday. Emmitt Smith’s alma mater, Escambia, is also in the news this week. Current Gator running back Trent Richardson rushed for 351 yards on 39 carries and three touchdowns in Escambia’s 21-14 win over Pensacola Catholic.
Hansbrough, Oden on the Mend
Injuries have sidelined two of basketball’s brightest young stars early in the season with Greg Oden of the Portland Trailblazers sitting down with a foot injury, which he sustained in his team’s season opener, and Tyler Hansbrough of North Carolina going gown with a stress reaction in his right shin.
Oden was a force in high school, teaming up with Mike Conley Jr., at Lawrence North to win three straight Indiana state championships, including a 29-0 season in 2006 when the Wildcats were the No. 1 team in the MaxPreps national rankings.
The previous year, when Oden was a junior, Hansbrough’s Poplar Bluff High School team in Missouri was winning the second of its two straight state championships, including a win over Vashon High School, which was ranked No. 1 in the country at the time.
Hansbrough and Oden met on the court on Dec. 9, 2004, when Poplar Bluff took on Lawrence North in a nationally televised game. Oden’s team came out on top, 56-40, with Oden scoring 16 points on five dunks. Hansbrough also finished with 16 points and outrebounded Oden 12-5.
USC Alumnus Will Ferrell Pulls Gag on Trojans
Comic actor Will Ferrell teamed up with Southern California coach Pete Carroll to pull a Halloween trick on the Trojan football team last week. The Saturday Night Live alum and USC grad posed as Captain Compete in a gag that involved a stuntman falling from a tower and Ferrell saving the day, as shown in this story from the Los Angeles Times. Ferrell was a fair high school athlete in his day at University High School in Irvine. Although he played a cheerleader on SNL and has been a soccer coach, a basketball player and a race car driver in his movies, Ferrell was actually a placekicker for the University Trojans.
Donovan McNabb, Mt. Carmel Both on Top
Philadelphia Eagle quarterback Donovan McNabb had the top passing performance in the NFL last week, throwing for 349 yards and two touchdowns in a 26-7 victory over Seattle. McNabb’s 2,178 yards for the reason rank third in the NFL. A graduate of Mount Carmel High School in Chicago, Ill., McNabb helped lead the team to a state championship in 1991. Things haven’t changed too much for the Caravan, which began the week as the No. 10 team in the state in the MaxPreps/National Guard rankings and could move up after defeating Central of Naperville in the first round of the Illinois state playoffs. Mount Carmel takes on Lincoln-Way East this week.
Iverson, Billups Trade Places
NBA point guards Allen Iverson and Chauncey Billups traded places on Monday as part of a blockbuster trade that sent Iverson to the Detroit Pistons and Billups back to his former team, the Denver Nuggets. Iverson is in his 13th year in the NBA and ranks as the league’s 25th all-time leading scorer with 23,044 career points. Iverson led Bethel High School in Hampton, Va., to a state title in football and basketball in 1993-94. Bethel recently finished its regular season with a 7-3 mark, falling to Kecoughtan 28-12 in the season finale
Billups grew up in Denver and was named Mr. Basketball in Colorado three times while at George Washington High School. He was selected to the McDonald’s All-American Team in 1995 before playing at the University of Colorado and ultimately the NBA. Billups has played for five different teams in his 11 seasons in the NBA. The Patriots had a rough football season this year, going 2-7; however, George Washington was 20-6 overall last season in basketball.
