Allen takes over for Dwyer in Ga. Tech backfield

NCAA Football Betting Lines

08/07/2010 -

ATLANTA (AP) -Jonathan Dwyer is off to the NFL, but Georgia Tech's potent rushing attack might not miss a beat.

Anthony Allen moves over from A-back to the featured B-back position in coach Paul Johnson's spread option offense, and he could be even more of a threat than Dwyer, now a rookie with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Allen averaged 9.7 yard per carry last season and is convinced that figure doesn't have to decline despite the switch and a heavier workload.

``Who says I can't match it,'' asked the speedy 229-pound senior, breaking into a smile.

Allen had a Louisville record 275-yard rushing effort in 2007 as a sophomore before transferring. He is now at more of his natural position, running from behind the quarterback after playing on the wing last season.

``I think Anthony will have a really good year,'' Johnson said after Georgia Tech's third practice session. ``He's a very talented guy and I think he's excited about moving in there.

``He actually was a B-back when he came here. That's where he first started. So it isn't like he's going back there and trying to learn from scratch.''

Allen, from Tampa, Fla., had just 64 carries last season, but gained 618 yards and scored seven touchdowns, one receiving. He broke off an 82-yard TD against Clemson and had a 60-yard run against Florida State.

Dwyer, who declared for the NFL draft after his junior season, carried 235 times a year ago as he repeated the 1,395-yard rushing total that earned him ACC Offensive Player of the Year honors as a sophomore.

``I can't lie. I'm really looking forward to that part,'' Allen said when asked about the extra touches he'll get at B-back.

A key element in the Georgia Tech offense is the exchange between quarterback and B-back. Joshua Nesbitt missed spring practice because of ankle surgery, but Allen said things are good between them after working on handoffs during the summer.

Although Dwyer left a year early, Nesbitt gives Georgia Tech a senior leader as the Yellow Jackets try to repeat as ACC champions in Johnson's third season as coach.

``You don't have to worry because you know Joshua knows what he is doing and is going to make the right reads,'' Allen said. ``It's real comfortable.''

In addition to Dwyer, wide receiver Demaryius Thomas, defensive end Derrick Morgan and safety Morgan Burnett left early for the NFL. But the Yellow Jackets list 15 returning starters from a team that finished 11-3 last season. Georgia Tech beat Clemson for the ACC title before losing to Iowa in the Orange Bowl.

Despite the returnees, Georgia Tech was picked to finish third in the ACC's Coastal Division during preseason media voting.

``We're not worried about it,'' Allen said. ``They did the same thing to us last year. We just use it as motivation that people are still looking at us as underdogs. We'll prove 'em wrong again.''

``People talk about the players we lost, but I'd rather focus on the 15 starters coming back,'' Johnson said. ``This is the first time since I've been here that we have a large senior class.''

The Yellow Jackets will hold their fourth practice on Sunday as they work toward the opener on Sept 4 at home against South Carolina State. Georgia Tech plays at Kansas the next week before opening the ACC season at North Carolina on Sept. 18.

``It's been rough. It's been hot,'' Allen said of the first three days of practice. ``We've been making it happen, though. We're looking good out there. Real good.''Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

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Police report: Terrell Owens hospitalized after attempt

Terrell Owens will address the media at a 3:15 p.m. ET news conference outside the Cowboys' practice facility after an internal police report indicated he tried to kill himself by overdosing on prescription pain medication, even putting two more pills into his mouth after a friend intervened.

The Dallas police report said Owens was asked by rescue workers "if he was attempting to harm himself, at which time [he] stated, 'Yes.'"

Owens left the hospital late Wednesday morning, giving reporters a "thumbs up" but making no comment as he was driven away in an SUV.

Michael Irvin said that Owens denied he attempted suicide and said he was rushed to the hospital as a result of an adverse reaction to medication. And a source close to Owens told Michael A. Smith that Owens wasn't attempting suicide.

NFL Network analyst Deion Sanders said he spoke with Owens shortly before his release from the hospital and that Owens was in good spirits.

"The fact that it has been reported a suicide attempt, he's laughed at that notion. It was a case that medication that was taken wasn't accepted well in his system with the other vitamins he's on," Sanders said.

The series of events began a little before 8 p.m. Tuesday.

Owens' publicist, Kim Etheredge, said she was at Owens' home when he took pain medicine for his broken right hand. Concerned by how he began acting, Etheredge said in various interviews Wednesday with Dallas-area media that she called 911. Owens was taken to a hospital, with Etheredge saying it was an allergic reaction to the medicine.

But early Wednesday, several media outlets received a police report -- that had yet to be released by the authorities -- saying Owens had attempted suicide by overdosing on the painkillers, even putting two more pills into his mouth after an unidentified friend intervened.

The police document, first reported by WFAA-TV, said Owens was asked by rescue workers "if he was attempting to harm himself, at which time [he] stated, 'Yes.'"

When officially released by police, about half the document was blacked out, including the phrases "attempting suicide by prescription pain medication" and "a drug overdose," as well as the details of Owens having two pills pried from his mouth and Owens saying "Yes" when asked if he intended to harm himself.

Etheredge, who said she was the friend cited in the police document, told Dallas-area media Wednesday that the police got the story wrong.

The tape of the 911 call could help clear things up. The Associated Press filed a request under the Freedom of Information Act to get its contents, but fire department officials said it would not be available before late Wednesday.

The police report said the 32-year-old Owens told his friend "that he was depressed." Details of the police report were first reported by WFAA-TV.

The friend, who is not identified in the report, "noticed that [his] prescription pain medication was empty and observed [Owens] putting two pills in his mouth," the police report said.

Using her fingers, the friend attempted to pry them out of Owens' mouth. Owens told police he had taken only five of the 40 pain pills in the bottle he'd emptied before the incident.

Etheredge told the Star-Telegram that Owens was "fine."

Etheredge said she called 911 because Owens was groggy and lethargic. After taking some supplements "it kicked in a reaction" with the painkillers, she told the Star-Telegram.

"Here's a person whose body is so clean, it really had a negative reaction to the medication and supplements he was taking," Etheridge told The Morning News. "Thank goodness someone was there to call an ambulance."

Police Lt. Rick Watson said he could only confirm that paramedics called police to say they were taking Owens to the hospital. He said no more details would come from the police because no laws were broken.

It is not a crime in Texas for a person to attempt suicide.

"This is a high-profile person. We looked into it and we determined it is not a criminal offense," Watson said. "This a medical type of situation that occurred."

Watson and fire department spokesman Joel Lavender cited privacy laws for the lack of information they could provide. Lavender said more details could come from the 911 call. The Associated Press filed a request under the Freedom of Information Act to get the contents of the call.

"Let's just look at the tape, review the tape," Lavender said. "I'll give you an honest answer once I know something."

At the police news conference, Watson released a version of the police narrative with certain sections blacked out. The full report was obtained by several news outlets and reported first by WFAA. The AP received the full version from WFAA.

According to the police report, Dallas Fire and Rescue was called regarding someone "attempting suicide by prescription pain medication." Officers arrived to find Owens being stabilized by ambulance workers, who then took him to Baylor University Medical Center.

Owens was hospitalized late Tuesday because of what his publicist said was an allergic reaction to pain medicine he was taking for a broken hand. Doctors reportedly tried to induce vomiting.

Owens, one of the league's top receivers during his 11-year NFL career, is best known for wild stunts on the field and other publicity-seeking antics off it.

When the Cowboys signed him to a $25 million, three-year deal in March, they said their background checks indicated no red flags. In fact, team consultant Calvin Hill -- who mostly deals with troubled players -- said during training camp that his department was not involved with Owens because he didn't have a history of those kinds of problems.

He missed most of training camp, and three of four preseason games, because of a hamstring injury. He was late for work during his recovery and was fined for it, but Owens laughed it off, saying he overslept. He said it had happened before, though not with Dallas, and would probably happen again.

Owens broke the bone leading to his right ring finger during a game a week ago Sunday. The next day, doctors screwed in a plate so the bone could heal without fear of further damage. Cowboys coach Bill Parcells said last week that the pain medicine made Owens ill.

Owens had not practiced since the injury, but because Dallas had a bye this past weekend he did not miss a game. He was expected to practice Wednesday, and Parcells had said there was a chance Owens could play Sunday against Tennessee.

Owens had been especially looking forward to the Cowboys' game after that -- Oct. 8, in Philadelphia, against the team that dumped him midway through last season only months after he helped them nearly win the Super Bowl.

Owens was seen laughing and joking on the practice field Tuesday morning. He chatted briefly with reporters in the locker room in the afternoon and seemed fine. A 2-inch scar on the top of his hand was puffy but not wrapped, and he said the swelling was doing down.

While in the locker room, he took a pill from a white paper bag and looked at another medicine bottle that was in the bag. He also called a business partner about a towel-wrap venture they're starting and joked to TV cameras that he wasn't talking until Wednesday and it was only Tuesday.

"My little boy knows better than that," he said, laughing, as he plopped onto a sofa in the middle of the locker room.

Also Tuesday, Owens was involved in launching a national campaign for the National Alliance to End Abuse, an organization aimed at helping at-risk youngsters. He appeared at a high school Tuesday morning and was scheduled to visit others but had to cancel because of changes in the team's practice schedule.

Owens has played two games for the Cowboys, catching nine passes for 99 yards and a touchdown. For updated football betting lines and Dallas Cowboy Superbowl odds visit online sportsbook MySportsbook.com

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