Jeff Bowden Sightings:Say It Ain't So Jeff Or Jeff Bowden Look Alike?

Disclaimer:The real Jeff Bowden was not present in this doctored photo. It is our understanding that he still thinks he is an offensive coordinator and someone will discover that soon.

FSU Basketball and Britney Spears Have Something In Common

Beating Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium is about as rare as Britney Spears wearing panties. FSU has never won at Cameron Indoor Stadium (0-15) and could use a high-profile road victory in its quest to return to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1998. The Seminoles (16-6, 4-4 ACC) can actually move into a tie in the league standings with the 10th-ranked Blue Devils (18-4, 5-3).

Duke is coming off a loss so they will have something to prove to the Cameron Crazies.

Hyde and Six

FSU played errorless ball for the second straight game, impressing head coach Mike Martin."We had a zero on the last column. That's the one that we always point towards."

Senior starter Michael Hyde was practically unhittable, scattering three walks while striking out ten batters during his 6.2 innings on the mound. Senior Brian Chambers pitched solid relief for the second straight game, and sophomore Jimmy Marshall saw his first action of the season, finishing out the game in the ninth.

"Michael was very impressive. He threw three pitches in the zone. It was a day that I was pleased with the poise that we showed," Seminole head coach Mike Martin said. "It was not the greatest day to play a baseball game, but our guys were very professional about the way they went about playing the game and I'm very pleased right now."

FSU Blanks Vols 4-0

The Seminoles are 2-0 headed into the third game against the Vols on Sunday. Michael Hyde earns the win for FSU. James Adkins takes the loss for Tennessee.

"New" Clock Operator At Duke

On the day before the FSU-Duke game, head coach Mike Krzyzewski announced that the Blue Devils had hired a new clock operator after the recent Clemson debacle. "R.U.Clown will be the new clock operator and will wear the clock around his neck to ensure that he keeps up with the time accurately" said Coach K.

FSU Takes On Tennessee In Game 2 Of Series

Probable pitchers for FSU and Tennessee:
Florida State - Michael Hyde, rhp (2006 stats: 9-1, 4.34 ERA)
Tennessee - James Adkins, lhp (2006 stats: 8-6, 4.50 ERA)

FSU is coming off its first win of the season and hopes to win number two on Saturday against the Tennessee Volunteers.

Mike Martin Jr. Regarding 2007 Season: "The most crucial aspect for us in producing runs is going to be competitive at bats. We feel like we are going to put 8-10 guys in the mix that are going to be difficult to strikeout, know how to bunt and run the bases. We are not going to be a team that hits 90-100 homeruns but we feel like we will produce runs in other ways that will be just as effective. Dennis Guinn and Jack Rye had double digit homers last year and I think Buster Posey can get there as well. With those three guys in the middle of the order we feel like we have some power there. If Travis Anderson can get it going like he did down the stretch last year, you could possibly reach 70 or 80 homers, which is about right for the ACC and southeastern baseball. We feel we have enough.

Almost Finished

It ia almost over-National Signing Day is next Wednesday. FSU coaches are entertaining recruits for the weekend and will be visiting others in hopes of finishing strong. The following recruits will be visiting this weekend.

Bernard Brinson - Solid FSU commitment
Nick Fairley - Being recruited as a defensive lineman but doesn't have an offer. Leaning to Auburn.
A.J. Ganguzza - Solid FSU commitment from Boca Raton, FL.
Maurice Harris - New LB FSU is recruiting from Homestead, FL. Does not yet have an FSU offer.
Jatavious Jackson -Belle Glade OL.
Bert Reed - Wide receiver prospect from Panama City (Bay HS) that is currently committed to Florida.
Jonathan Hannah - Former Rivals100 TE that signed with South Carolina out of high school. Went to JUCO and is currently committed to NC State (but committed to Chuck Amato). He is now looking at FSU and the 'Noles have a good shot.

Oh Henry!

Florida State won its ninth consecutive baseball opener Friday as the Noles took down the Volunteers 9-2.

Jack Rye had the big blow for the Seminoles, hitting a three-run home run with two outs in the fifth inning.

Starting pitcher Bryan Henry was sensational as he went six scoreless innings while striking out 11 to earn the win. He allowed four hits, walked none and hit a batter.

Henry To Start For FSU

Probable Series Pitching Match-ups:
Friday, February 2, 2007 - 4:00 pm
Florida State - Bryan Henry, rhp (2006 stats: 9-4, 2.88 ERA)
Tennessee - Craig Cobb, rhp (2006 stats: 9-3, 3.31 ERA)
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Bryan Henry should open the season on the mound for Florida State for the second straight year Friday. The senior is the only back-to-back first team All-ACC pitcher in Florida State history. In 2006, Henry opened 13 series on the hill on Friday nights and posted a 9-2 record in regular season series openers. Henry has clearly been the ace of the FSU staff since moving from a starter at third base to the mound in the middle of the 2005 campaign. In his career, Henry is 13-2 in the regular season when he opens a series on the hill for the Seminoles.

Play Ball!

The Seminoles and Volunteers meet for the first time since 1998 when the teams opened their seasons at the ACC Baseball Blast in Orlando, FL. FSU, Tennessee, Ohio State and Notre Dame all participated in that tournament. This will be the first trip by the Vols to Tallahassee since March 23, 1974. That was Jack Stalling's last season at the helm of the Seminole program. Tennessee has the overall lead in the series (4-3) and is on a three-game win streak. The last time a Seminole squad defeated the Volunteers was May 19, 1966. The two teams have never met more than twice in any season. This weekend's three-game series will mark the most meetings between the schools in one season in program history. One of the highlights of this weekend's opening series is the coaches. Tennessee Head Coach Rod Delmonico was an assistant coach for Mike Martin at Florida State from 1984-1989. The two remain close friends and Delmonico was in attendance at Martin's induction to the ABCA Hall of Fame just a few weeks ago.
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* Florida State will chase its 29th consecutive NCAA Regional appearance this season.
* Mike Martin is just 11 wins away from moving into fifth place for all-time career wins in NCAA Baseball history.
* The Seminoles played in the program's 28th consecutive NCAA Tournament last season.
* FSU starts the season ranked 13th by Collegiate Baseball, 15th by the NCBWA and 18th by Baseball America.
* Half of the 2006 College World Series field was made up of ACC teams and FSU will play weekend series with all four of those squads.
* The 2005 and 2006 squads rank as two of the top five best defensive teams in FSU history.
* Bryan Henry has a chance to become the first three-time All-ACC first team selection in school history.
* The Seminoles lost pitchers that accounted for 23 of the team's 44 wins in 2006.
* Seven of Florida State's top nine pitchers as far as ERA are back in 2007.
* In 59 years of FSU baseball the Seminoles have only lost a season opening series on two occasions. The last time the Seminoles lost a season-opening series came in 1981 when Georgia Southern took two of three games from FSU.

To Err Is Human To Forgive "Devine"

FSU has yet to have any commitments at the running back position. The recruit that FSU has been aggressively pursuing is the number one back in the country, Noel Devine. He was supposed to visit FSU last week but did not show and instead took a visit to Alabama. He is said to still be considering FSU and wants to visit but no one seems to know when. He is not currently qualified and has other issues surrounding him. This is what gives recruiters and supporters gray hairs and pains in their chest.

Reptiles Playing Hardball

Seems that the Florida Reptiles are playing hardball with Florida commitment Bert Reed who says that he will visit FSU this weekend.

The Panama City Beach athlete said that several Reptile coaches visited him yesterday and told him that they would "prefer" that he not take anymore visits. Boy, the pea brains know how to win friends and influence people. Reed is still planning to visit FSU this weekend.