FSU Baseball Players Garner Awards

With the start of the 2007 baseball season close, Florida State players continue to garner pre-season award honors. Seminole pitchers Bryan Henry and Luke Tucker were once again singled out as two of the nation's best. After being named to the National Collegiate Baseball Writer's Association preseason All-America team, Tucker and Henry were named to the watch list for the Clemens Award last week.

Florida State is one of just two ACC schools with two pitchers on the Clemens Award Watch List and one of only 14 schools in the nation with multiple players on the initial watch list. The ACC is tied with the SEC with 10 pitchers each on the list.

The finalists for the 2007 Roger Clemens Award will be selected in voting by a national panel that includes: all Division 1 head baseball coaches, a selection of national media who cover collegiate baseball, the 16 winners of the R. E. "Bob" Smith Award, which was presented to the top player in the country in Houston in 1988-2003. In addition, the 10 previous finalists for the Clemens Award are also issued ballots. The 2007 award will be presented at a gala dinner next July.

FSU Far Down ACC National Team Recruiting Rankings

ACC National Team Recruiting Rankings:
1. Georgia Tech- #13

2. Clemson- #14

3. Virginia- #17

4. Virginia Tech- #25

5. Miami- #29

6. Maryland- #33

7. UNC- #35

8. FSU- #41

9. BC- #42

10.NC State- #60

11. Duke- #73

12. Wake- #82

Mike Martin Inducted Into ABCA Hall Of Fame

As the 2007 FSU baseball season looms near, FSU head coach Mike Martin was recently accorded yet another honor.

The legendary baseball coach has been honored in almost every way imaginable in his 27-year career as the FSU baseball head coach. He is a 10-time conference coach of the year. He has led his FSU teams to 27 consecutive NCAA Regionals, coached in 12 College World Series and won 15 conference championships. Hundreds of his players have won all-conference and All-American honors and 13 have been first round draft picks. As proud as he is of all those accomplishments, his induction into the American Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in Orlando may have topped them all.

"It was a very humbling experience," said Martin of his enshrinement. "I was overwhelmed with joy. I got a chance to see people I haven't seen in a long time. It was very exciting. Rod Delmonico from Tennessee was there. I saw Duane Banks from Iowa who is a retired coach. It makes you reflect on so many things. This job has been an unbelievable blessing for me and my family. It has to do with the relationships I have accumulated over the years and it seems all are in the area of baseball."

Martin was enshrined in the ABCA/Louisville Slugger Hall of Fame at the annual convention held this year in Orlando. The Seminole coach was one of nine men enshrined in the hall this year. Martin was joined by his family and friends at the induction ceremony.

As his 28th season gets under way shortly, Martin continues to cement his legacy as one of collegiate baseball's most prolific coaches. In just the last year alone the Seminole coach won his 1,400th game. The Florida State graduate is one of just eight baseball coaches in the history of the NCAA to win 1,400 games and with just 11 more wins he will pass two more coaches and move into the top five for victories in the history of the sport.

Martin has become the face of Florida State baseball having been associated with the Seminoles for 35 of FSU's 60 seasons. He is by far the winningest coach in the history of the program. Of the 3,205 baseball games played in program history, Martin has been involved in 2,316 as a player, assistant coach and head coach. What is even more impressive is that Martin has been at FSU for 1,719 of the 2,330 all-time baseball victories. In one way or another Mike Martin has been a part of almost 74% of Florida State's victories.

Martin has led the Seminoles to 12 College World Series appearances and 27 consecutive NCAA Regional Appearances, one for each year he has been on the bench. He has won 15 conference championships since taking over as head coach in 1980 with 11 from the Metro Conference and four in the ACC. He was a six-time Metro Conference Coach of the Year and has been the ACC Coach of the Year four times as well. Fifty-six Florida State players have earned All-America honors under Martin and 108 players earned first team all-conference recognition. He has coached four players, Mike Fuentes, Mike Loynd, J.D. Drew and Shane Robinson, who were named national players of the year.

For the past 27 seasons, Martin hasn't just produced great players he has developed great teams. Florida State has grown into one of the most prestigious collegiate baseball programs in the NCAA under Martin's guidance. FSU baseball is the second-winningest program all-time but since 2000 no school has won more games than Martin's Seminoles. No other Division I school has finished in the top 10 more times, compiled more 50+ win seasons or gone to more NCAA Regionals since 2000 as well.

FSU Retro Look Back: Dave Cowens

Dave Cowens is considered by many to be the greatest player in the illustrious history of the Florida State men's basketball program.

Cowens, who led Florida State to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history in 1968, is the Seminoles' all-time leader in rebounds with 1,340 and ranks eighth in scoring with 1,479 points. He averaged 18.9 points and 17.2 rebounds during his 78-game career and is one of only six players in school history to average a double-double in points and rebounds. Cowens averaged a career-high 20.3 points per game during the 1969 season and never averaged fewer than 17 rebounds per season in any of his three seasons wearing the garnet and gold.

One of the great rebounders in college history, he still holds most of the Seminoles' rebounding records including most rebounds in a season (456) and rebounds in a career (1,340). He is one of only two players in school history to pull down more than 30 rebounds in a single game and pulled a single-game career-high 31 against LSU as a freshman. Cowens holds two of the top three and five of the top 10 top single game rebounding totals in school history.

Cowens led the Seminoles in scoring, scoring average and rebounds during each of his three varsity seasons in Tallahassee. He led the Seminoles in free throw shooting percentage in 1968 and shot nearly 70 percent from the line for his career.

Cowens averaged 18.8 points and 17.0 rebounds in leading the Seminoles to the NCAA Tournament in 1968 for the first time in school history. He led the Seminoles to a 19-8 record that season the second highest total for wins a season in program history at the time.

Cowens continued to excel once he reached the NBA. He was selected with the fourth pick in the 1970 NBA Draft by the Boston Celtics. During his rookie season with the Celtics, Cowens averaged 17 points and 15 rebounds per game, helping him attain the coveted Rookie of the Year honors. He enjoyed success throughout his professional career and in 1973 he received both the All-Star MVP and league MVP trophies.

Cowens was named as one of the 50 greatest players in NBA history in 1996 after being enshrined in the NBA Hall of Fame in 1991. He was a seven-time NBA All-Star.

Following his standout career as a player in the NBA, he became a successful head coach as he won more than 150 games in just over four seasons. He led the Charlotte Hornets to the playoffs in both 1997 and 1998 and won more than 60 percent of his games as the Hornets' head coach. Cowens coached former Seminole star and 1995 All-ACC First-Team selection, Bob Sura, as the head coach of the Golden State Warriors in 2001.

Cowens was inducted into the FSU Basketball Hall of Fame in 1977.

Stick A Fork In Him, He's Done

Enrique Davis, the 4-star running back prospect, visited FSU this past week despite having verbally committed to Auburn. FSU was still holding out hope that they could sway the talented recruit.

Regarding FSU, he said, "I had a real good visit there. That's a great school and a great program and it's close to home. But I'm done with my visits and I'm solid with my commitment to Auburn."

"It's over," he said. "I enjoyed the process. I enjoyed the extra visit. But I'm done. I'm going to Auburn."

FSU Baseball Projected To Finish Second In Atlantic Division

The ACC released its pre-season coaches' poll and Florida State was picked to finish second in the Atlantic Division behind 2006 College World Series team Clemson. FSU received one first place vote and had the fourth-most total votes from the conference coaches.

Atlantic Division Schools (Last years record) :
1. Clemson 53-16, 24-6 ACC
2. Florida State 55 44-21, 16-13 ACC
3. NC State 40-23, 16-13 ACC
4. Wake Forest 33-22, 16-13 ACC
5. Boston College 28-25-1, 9-21 ACC
6. Maryland 26-30, 8-22 ACC
____
The 13th-ranked FSU baseball team is just over a week away from opening the 2007 campaign but you won't have to wait that long to see this year's squad. Fans can get their first glimpse of the 2007 Seminoles at Baseball Fan Day this Saturday at 11:00 a.m.

Fans are welcome to come out to Mike Martin FIeld at Dick Howser Stadium and meet the 2007 squad. The players and coaches will sign autographs and the bat girls will be on hand with free posters and schedule cards. The team will then take BP and scrimmage later in the day.

ACC Releases 2007 Football Schedules

The 2007 Atlantic Coast Conference football schedule released today by Commissioner John D. Swofford is comprised of 96 games, including 48 conference match-ups, over a span of 13 weeks.

Twenty-four of the league's 48 non-conference games (50 percent) are against 18 teams that earned bowl berths in 2006 including defending national champion Florida, third-ranked LSU and No. 6 Louisville. In all, seven of the non-conference games are scheduled against five opponents - Florida, LSU, Louisville, Notre Dame (three games) and Oklahoma - that comprised half of the teams that played in BCS bowl games this past season. Eight of the 17 non-conference opponents were ranked in last season's final polls.

Non-conference opponents who earned bowl bids this past season are Alabama, Central Michigan, East Carolina (3 games), Florida, Georgia, Louisville, LSU, Middle Tennessee State, Navy (2), Nebraska, Notre Dame (3), Ohio, Oklahoma, Rutgers, South Carolina (2), South Florida, Texas A&M and West Virginia. In addition, two other non-conference opponents, Pittsburgh (vs. Virginia, Sept. 29) and Wyoming (vs. Virginia, Sept. 1), were bowl-eligible with 6-6 records.
____
Two Clemson stars - offensive lineman Dustin Fry and wide receiver Chansi Stuckey - are among the 100 top NFL draft prospects participating in the 2007 Under Armour Senior Bowl this week in Mobile, Alabama.

Fry and Stuckey will play on the Senior Bowl's South squad, which is being coached by San Francisco 49ers head coach Mike Nolan and his staff.
____
Clemson defensive end Gaines Adams was named to all five official All-America teams acknowledged by the NCAA in 2006, one of seven unanimous All-Americans this year.

FSU Falls Short Against BC

Woulda...coulda..shoulda... Seems like a familiar refrain with FSU basketball. One step forward and two steps back. Another one got away as FSU lost to Boston College 85-82 on Tuesday

FSU Head coach Leonard Hamiltos stated that "We're playing better basketball and we realize we still have 10 more games in our league to go.We're not happy with the position that we're in. But we feel that we still have plenty of enough time and a lot of games available to us to right the ship, so to speak."

FSU (14-6, 2-4 ACC) is taking on water defensively. The Seminoles have allowed three of their last four opponents to shoot at least 50 percent from the field. BC sizzled at 52.8 percent and received an aggregate 71 points from Tyrese Rice (26), Jared Dudley (23) and Sean Marshall (22). It was Marshall's 3-pointer at the buzzer - contested by Jerel Allen and Isaiah Swann - that finished FSU.