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Home , Gus Malzahn, Houston Nutt

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WORLD SERIES YANKEES 3, PHILLIES 1 THUMBS UP Vince Young. It’s all about second chances for the 2006 Offensive Teixeira, Matsui help even series Rookie of the Year. The QB will return to a starting role for Yankees’ Burnett gets first postseason win the 0-6 Tennessee Titans this Sunday with a shot at redemption against a By RONALD BLUM early deficit and won in the Series Jacksonville defense that has picked The Associated Press for the first time since taking a 2-1 him off eight times. NEW YORK — Mark Teixeira and lead against Florida in 2003. Hideki Matsui shook the New York After a day off, Game 3 will be at THUMBS DOWN Yankees from their lumber slumber Philadelphia on Saturday night. and sent the World Series to Phila- Light-hitting Matt Stairs put the Bob Knight. Saying his delphia all tied up. Phillies on top with an RBI single in attendance would be a the second. Burnett then used a bit- Teixeira and Matsui hit solo hom- distraction to the ers off familiar foe Pedro Martinez, ing curveball to keep Philadelphia backing a sharp performance by A.J. from advancing another runner past other six inductees, the Burnett and giving the Yankees a second base against him. legendary Indiana coach 3-1 victory over the Philadelphia Teixeira, in an 8-for-44 (.182) declined an invite to be at the Phillies in Game 2 on Thursday postseason slump, tied the score AP school’s Hall of Fame induction. night. when he led off the fourth with a Some might say that’s a noble reason A night after getting stopped by drive into the Yankees bullpen. Hideki Matsui, right, is greeted by his Yankees Cliff Lee in the opener 6-1, the teammates after hitting a solo home run Thursday not to attend. Others might say it’s a Yanks bounced back from an See SERIES Page 3C night against the Phillies. petty grudge. AUBURN FOOTBALL MAGIC CITY CLASSIC Student of UNLIKELY JOURNEY the game Ex-Jess Lanier star Speight knows Bowden his Classic history By DOUG SEGREST didn’t not News staff writer When Alabama State linebacker Adrian say he’ll Hardy learned Anthony Speight would start at last week, he offered words of encouragement. coach UAB “I told him if he didn’t do good, his car wouldn’t start,” Hardy said with a grin. hy do I believe OK, the words weren’t that encourag- will ing. But the results were. not be the next head Speight, a junior from Jess Lanier High, W made his first start of the season at the football coach at UAB? position and led the Hornets to a 24-17 Lots of reasons. Here’s victory against Alcorn State. That one: He didn’t say he snapped a three-game losing record for wouldn’t be. Alabama State (4-3, 1-3 in the SWAC). Taking over a program Speight is expected to get his second has become a 12-step pro- straight start Saturday at Legion Field gram all its own. One of the when the Hornets meet archrival Ala- key steps is denial. Bowden bama A&M (4-3, 1-2) in the State Farm violated what should be one Magic City Classic presented by Coca- of the cardinal rules of his Cola at 2:30. profession after a Florida Speight got the start against Alcorn be- State practice this week. He NEWS STAFF/HAL YEAGER cause starter Chris Mitchell “is a bit addressed Internet specu- Auburn talks to quarterback Chris Todd after Todd turned banged up,” Hornets coach Reggie Bar- lation. the ball over to Arkansas. low said. But make no mistake, Speight He laughed at it, but still. brings some impressive traits to the In this case, he was asked lineup. about the informed specu- “You want someone who can protect lation or irresponsible ru- From high school to the SEC, himself and move around,” Barlow said. mor — you be the judge — “Anthony is a student of the game and a that he might just take his good player — that’s why he was the top ball after this season and Malzahn travels improbable path quarterback we recruited as a senior.” come home. To the town where he was born. To UAB. By JON SOLOMON See CLASSIC Page 3C That notion first surfaced News staff writer on the Rivals site War- us Malzahn was always chant.com. a doodler, beginning as Andrew Carter of the Or- a child when he would lando Sentinel asked Bow- diagram football plays den about it, and here’s while watching his be- what the coach said: “I have lovedG Cowboys on TV. heard that. And Tommy’s “He would do all kinds of lat- going with me. Have you erals and double passes, any- heard that?” thing weird that somebody else That’s right. This “story” wasn’t doing,” said Ray Ruh- has Tommy Bowden joining man, Malzahn’s stepfather. his dad’s UAB staff as head In high school, Malzahn took coach-in-waiting. As if coaching fifth-graders on a boys Bobby hasn’t had enough club team so seriously that he problems with that concept game-planned in advance. It re- at FSU. mains a family joke that Mal- “I don’t know where it zahn was discouraged from be- started, there or here or coming a coach by his AP what,” Bowden said. “You Philosophy of Coaching college Then-Arkansas , right, introduces know, you hear so many dif- professor at Henderson State. ferent rumors, you get im- Guz Malzahn as his offensive coordinator before the 2006 Malzahn always assumed he season. The Razorback marriage did not end up well for mune to them.” would be a coach. But there has A-ha. So he didn’t deny it. been nothing conventional either. I first heard this rumor about the offense he designed or more than a week ago from the 15-year path in high school Kristi Malzahn, Gus’s wife. Miss coach Houston Nutt, an informed source: Terry football he took to the college When his struggling Auburn opened the door for Malzahn NEWS STAFF/MARK ALMOND Bowden. He laughed at it, game. offense faces Ole Miss on Satur- into college — and could have too. “We’ve both been in day, Malzahn, 44, will be re- shut it. Alabama State’s Anthony Speight is amazement at times that it’s minded of the unlikely journey. expected to start at quarterback in See SCARBINSKY Page 3C happened the way it did,” said The man across the sideline, Ole See MALZAHN Page 4C Saturday’s Magic City Classic. Last laugh will belong to Ole Miss’ Nutt, not AU’s Malzahn

here’s nothing better Auburn’s offense is run by canned. get a chance to show the has one proven playmaker than a little bad blood Gus Malzahn, whom Nutt When Arkansas’ offense other who was right, or in running back , Tbetween coaches to plucked out of the high struggled in ’06 with future wrong. Ole Miss has quarterback Je- spice up a good rivalry, or a school ranks to be his offen- NFL stars Darren McFad- This week’s picks: van Snead, running back game that isn’t the big deal sive coordinator at Arkansas den, and Peyton Dexter McCluster and wide- we thought it would be a in 2006. Hillis, Nutt pulled the plug OLE MISS outs Shay Hodge and Pat- few weeks ago. To cut to the bad blood, on Malzahn’s play-calling AT AUBURN rick Patterson. The Tigers’ That’s what we have Sat- think Tony Franklin. and deflated his ego even Chris Todd? The Manning urday when Houston Nutt When Auburn’s 2008 sea- more when he brought in Saturday’s game shapes up Award Watch List QB hasn’t brings his 24th-ranked Re- son turned for the worst un- David Lee to take over the as a mismatch despite odds- completed half his passes bels (5-2) to Jordan-Hare der Franklin, the offensive offense the next year. Mal- makers making the free-fall- the past two games. 1 Stadium to face the Au- guru whom Tommy Tuber- zahn quickly left for Tulsa. ing Tigers only a 3 ⁄2-point burn Tigers (5-3). ville brought in, he was Malzahn and Nutt now underdog. Where Auburn See HOLLIS Page 3C