The Charlotte Observer from Charlotte, North Carolina • 37

Sunday December 5 2010 COLLEGE FOOTBALL 14-160 CO HIGH SCHOOLS Butler and three more area schools play for state titles this weekend 2C WEATHER: Decreasing clouds chilly High 43 Forecast on 20C SCORES 76ERS 109 BOBCATS 91 Jodie Meeks scored a career-high 26 points 20 in a big first-quarter run for Philadelphia 4C JEFF SINER jsinercharlotteobservercom charlotteobservercomsports SEC Championship Game Virginia tech 44 Florida state 33 ACC Championship Game ALL HOKIE-DOKIE Virginia Tech completes its turnaround season by winning the ACC football title GERRY MELENDEZ gmelendeztoDthestate com South Carolina safety Antonio Allen (left) and safety DeVonte Holloman a former Rock Hill South Pointe star sit dejectedly as the final seconds wind down against Auburn Awesome Newton Auburn win SEC Tigers QB has a Heisman-quality day accounting for six touchdowns JEFF SINER jsinenaicharlotteobservercom Virginia Tech Hokie quarterback Tyrod Taylor eases into the end zone for a touchdown against Florida State on Saturday He also threw three touchdown passes and the 5-yard scramble for a TD in the fourth quarter helped propel the Hokies to their third ACC title in four years ACC title game finds its rightful home here OPINION By David Scott dscottiaicharlotteobserver com ATLANTA Auburn quarterback Cam Newton leaned back in his chair grinned a big grin and simply said Newton had just led the second-ranked Tigers to a 56-17 blistering of No 18 South Carolina in the SEC championship football game Saturday the Georgia Dome An hour after the game he sat before reporters with his coach Gene Chizik who had just said Newton was the best college football player he had ever seen response to his compliment was pretty much the type of performance he delivered against the Gamecocks If he a cinch to win the Heisman Trophy before the game he is now His 408 yards in total offense (335 yards pass mg 73 rushing) were part of a record setting game for Auburn (13 0) which will officially learn today that headed to Glendale Anz to play Oregon for the national championship on Jan 10 only is he an excellent runner but an excellent passer and we stop said Gamecocks coach Steve Spurrier whose team was playing in its first SFG championship game A victory by South Carolina (9-4) would have sent the Gamecocks to the Sugar Bowl end up in a lesser game now likely dropping to SEE SEC 16C By Ron Green Jr rgreenrcharlotteobservercom Of all the many impressive things Virginia Tech did its 44-33 victory over Florida State the ACC championship game Saturday night at Bank of America Stadium perhaps the most meaningful was where the Hokies put themselves late on a cold damp December night They had turned a seemingly lost season one that began with losses to Boise State and James Madison into their third league championship in four years and another trip to the Orange Bowl It just a victory painted with big plays and three touchdown passes by quarterback Tyrod Taylor It was Virginia 11th straight win after those opening losses one more stamp of validation in a salvaged seasoa On Friday Virginia Tech coach I rank Beamer said if his team completed its dramatic turnaround by winning the league championship it would be some- JEFF SINER Jsiner(acharlotteobservercom Virginia Tech tailback Darren passed through the turnstiles despite the fact it had sleeted for some of the day and would drizzle a cold mist for much of the rest Still the people came The crowd was largely Virginia Tech but Florida State brought a respectable number of tomahawking supporters too The fans from both sides just had to cowboy up wearing sweatshirts and parkas One guy in a Santa suit walked around in heavy rain boots The ACC FanFest outside was a wet but wild party most notably when country rockers SEE FOWLER 13C FOWLER On a chilly wet Saturday night at Bank of America Stadium there were two winners Virginia Tech and the city of Charlotte Virginia Tech won by beating Florida State 44-33 and earning a trip to the Orange Bowl in a compelling ACC championship game the first contest in the ACC title six year history played outside the state of Florida Charlotte won too because the game was sold out and a major success in just about every aspect except the weather The official attendance was 72379 By kickoff more than 60000 of those people had IN MY SCOTT Evans runs downfield Saturday in the victory Virginia Tech is headed to the Orange Bowl thing he talks about for a long time Beamer may go hoarse telling this story two early losses make these 11 wins and championship seem even Beamer said SEE ACC 13C North Carolina 75 No 10 Kentucky 73 Carolina at Seattle 4 15 pm tv fox (wccb Kasay is quietly making history Juniors Drew Zeller rescue North Carolina More College Basketball 17-18C Nolan Smith scored 24 to lead No 1 Duke to an 82 70 victory against Butler moving Mike Krzyzew-ski into a tie with Adolph Rupp for third place on the coaching career wins list No 7 Syracuse 65 State 59 started to kick every He stopped was the his father said 30 years later still doing Kasay is 4i and in his 20h NI season He has been with the Carolina Panthers for all 16 years of then existence owns 20 team records and is climbing the all-time charts as well And though he missed a game-winning field goal attempt last week in a 24-23 loss at Cleveland Kasay is enjoying another solid season for the 1-10 Panthers made 818 percent of his field goals -nearly identical to his career mark of 81 6 percent and connected on a 55-yarder against San Francisco that tied for the second longest of his career Kasay is in Seattle today to face the Seahawks the team that drafted him in the fourth round 1991 when the first George Bush was the White 1 louse American troops were in Kuwait as part of Operation Desert Storm and Seattle was the center of the grunge rock SEE KASAY 9C Panthers stalwart has been getting big kicks for most of his life By Joseph Person com The championship game of the YMCA youth football league in Athens Ga was on the line and John coach needed a kicker His team had bogged down short of the goal line ard now the coach was asking for a volunteer to try a game-winning field goal Kasay an 11-year-old who played soccer before signing up for football in 1980 ran out and told his coach he could kick Watching from the sideline parents were stunned even more so when the hall sailed through the uprights Sittmg in the backseat of his car he beamed all the way home was almost like a revelation There was something on his John Kasay the father said le got that instant gratification Whatever happened to him that day he defense big inside presence help Tar Heels topple Kentucky for key win By Robbi Pickerai robbi pickeralfif'newsobservercom CHAPEL HILL Fntering the season fans were looking to North highly touted treshmen to lead their team back to prominence But with a much needed victory on the line Saturday it was the juniors who made the biggest impact for the Tar Fleels down the stretch Point guard larry Drew II clamped down on defense and 7-footer Tyler 7eller scored 12 of North final 16 pomts to top No 10 Kentucky 75-73 at the Smith Center It was as close to a must win as you could get this early in the season for the Tar Heels (5-3) considering they had fallen out of the Top 25 and were facing serious questions about their foughness offense and ability to improve was extremely important Kicker John Kasay 41 in his 20h NFL season has been with the Panthers for all 16 years of their existence and owns 20 team records also climbing the all-time charts for us for every reason to go out there and win the said Drew who helped his team hold the Wildcats to two field goals in the final 9 minutes 57 seconds came here with the mindset of if this or What if this We all came in here to say going to get this wm no matter what Indeed UNC won despite the fact that Kentucky (5-2) made 42 9 percent of its 3 point shots the Tar Heels score a field goal in the final SEE TAR HEELS 1C ONLINE Follow the team all game day with our blogs and notes at charlotteobserver companthers More Panthers Inside Scott Says The Panthers actually have a shot in this one based on a running game that has finally coughed to life Panthers GameDay 8C NFL GameDay 12C i.