Regeln » ars 41, No. 17 Huskies 35 (win sent Washington SState to th

ATHENS, Ga. -- Once they were eliminated from their respective conference races, Georgia and Georgia Tech began focusing on other goals.Winning records and bowl eligibility, that sort of thing.Now they get a shot at a really sweet consolation prize.A victory over their state rival.Georgia hosts Georgia Tech between the hedges Saturday in a matchup between 7-4 teams that failed to meet their preseason goals but havent lost sight of how important this game is to fans on both sides.It doesnt matter the records or whats going on between the two (teams), Georgia offensive guard Greg Pyke said. It is going to be heated out there, probably a little bit chippy too.This will be the first meeting between the coaches, though there are some ties between Georgia Techs Paul Johnson and Georgias first-year leader, Kirby Smart.When Johnson was coaching at Georgia Southern, he interviewed Smart but didnt offer him a job.I didnt really know him, Johnson recalled. Im not sure I had an opening or whatever.Johnson said he spent time with Smart at a celebrity golf tournament last spring.Nice guy, Johnson said. I mean, hes no different than any other coach when youre around him. You tend to get along. I think sometimes fans dont quite understand that relationship. Its not all `dont speak to guys and cant stand them and that kind of thing.But rest assured, they wont be on friendly terms Saturday.---Some other things to watch for in the latest edition of the rivalry known as Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate:QUARTERBACK DUEL: Justin Thomas is winding down his Georgia Tech career. A three-year starter, he is adept at Johnsons triple-option offense and will go down as one of the rare players in NCAA history to pass for 4,000 yards and rush for 2,000 yards in his career. Georgia counters with freshman Jacob Eason, who took over the starting job in the second week of the season and never looked back. While there have been some growing pains along the way, Eason guided the Bulldogs to a couple of last-minute victories as well as an upset of Auburn.X FACTOR: When asked about containing Georgia running backs Nick Chubb and Sony Michel, Johnson quickly shifted his attention to receiver and return specialist Isaiah McKenzie , who has the school records with five punt returns for touchdowns and six overall TD returns. Hes the guy who has been their big-play guy, Johnson said. When he gets the ball in his hands, whether its on a kick return or a pass or reverse or counter, hes got the ability to take it the distance.BIG PLAYS: The Bulldogs will be going against an offense they havent seen in any other game this season. Discipline is always a key when facing the Yellow Jackets, who try to wear down their opponents with ball control and tedious runs in hopes of getting defenders to venture out of their lanes, opening up a shot at a big play. Smart emphasized that Georgia didnt just start studying the triple-option this week, but the Bulldogs did give up five plays of at least 25 yards in last weeks victory over Louisiana-Lafayette. And Georgia Tech is coming off a game in which it had scoring plays of 54, 60 and 67 yards against Virginia .BALL HAWKING: Georgia leads the Southeastern Conference with 14 interceptions, so Georgia Tech doesnt want to get behind and have to rely on its shaky passing game. Overall, the Bulldogs are plus-seven in turnover margin.COACHING FALLOUT: A victory over Georgia would go a long way toward cooling speculation that Johnsons job might be in jeopardy with Georgia Tech bringing on a new athletic director, Todd Stansbury. Johnson has a 2-6 mark against the Bulldogs. Smart is on much more secure footing as he wraps up his first season as the Bulldogs coach. Still, his Georgia debut has hardly been a rousing success, marred by ugly losses to Florida and Vanderbilt, and the grumbling would surely intensify if he lost his first meeting against the Yellow Jackets. Its worth noting that Smarts predecessor, Mark Richt, went 13-2 against Georgia Tech.---AP Sports Writer Charles Odum in Atlanta contributed to this report.---Follow Paul Newberry on Twitter at www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963 . His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/paul-newberry .---For more AP college football coverage: www.collegefootball.ap.orgCheap Jerseys . -- When the Florida Panthers fell behind by two goals in the first period to the top team in the NHL, it appeared they were on their way to yet another loss. Cheap Wholesale Jerseys . Clarke was injured while practicing on the Doha Golf Club range after the pro-am on Tuesday. The Northern Irishman arrived at the course on Wednesday hoping to start, but after hitting a few balls on the practice putting green Clarke advised officials he was not fit to play. http://www.cheapjerseysbychina.com/ . Ibaka equaled a career high with 20 rebounds, adding four blocked shots and 15 points as the Thunder smothered the Milwaukee Bucks offence in a 92-79 victory Saturday night. Cheap Jerseys China . According the Toronto Star, a knee injury will keep Sundin out of the lineup, which includes former teammates Gary Roberts, Darcy Tucker, Tie Domi and Curtis Joseph. Cheap NFL Jerseys . Tuesdays surgery at Atlantas Piedmont Hospital was performed by Dr. Xavier Duralde and Hawks team physician Dr. Michael Bernot.SEATTLE -- The Apple Cup is rarely this significant.Sure, the rivalry has gone through plenty of years where either Washington or Washington State had a significant stake in the outcome. But rarely has there been so much riding on this game as there will be Friday when the No. 6 Huskies and the No. 23 Cougars meet for the 109th time.This is just the sixth time both teams are ranked entering their rivalry week. Its also the first time in 35 years that a shot at the Rose Bowl -- at minimum -- will be at stake for the winner.Its a lofty place for both programs and has fans on each side in agreement: this could be the biggest Apple Cup ever.These kids have been all in on like every game, so to say, OK, this ones like . I dont know. I just want them to prepare like they have and go over and compete like they have, which I know they will, Washington coach Chris Petersen said Monday. We know its like all this hard work kind of comes down to this. But its really hard for me to say, like, `OK, now were really all in on this. I just think theyve really been invested this whole year, every game, and I think thats what youve kind of seen. But itll be exciting.Its not as simple as it was 35 years ago when the then-No. 17 Huskies beat the No. 14 Cougars 23-10 in Seattle to claim the Pac-10 title and a spot in the Rose Bowl. The winner on Friday still must win the conference championship game over the Pac-12 South winner to assure themselves of at least a spot in Pasadena.That 1981 game was the third time both schools were ranked. The other games:- 2001: No. 16 Huskies 26, No. 9 Cougars 14- 1997: No. 11 Cougars 41, No. 17 Huskies 35 (win sent Washington SState to the Rose Bowl for the first time since 1930 season)- 1972: No.dddddddddddd 20 Cougars 27, No. 17 Huskies 10- 1936: No. 6 Huskies 40, No. 20 Cougars 0The past two weeks have taken a bit of luster off the meeting.Washingtons loss at home to Southern California and Washington States setback at Colorado diminished some of the significance.Washington State (8-3, 7-1 Pac-12) no longer has a path to the Rose Bowl via just a win over the Huskies; the Cougars only hope for a trip to Pasadena would come through winning the Pac-12 title game.Washington (10-1, 7-1) lost any wiggle room it had in the College Football Playoff rankings and must beat the Cougars and win the Pac-12 championship game to have a shot at being in the final four.I didnt think we played together particularly well, Leach said Monday of the loss to Colorado. (I) thought we should have played together better. I thought that was the case team-wide.The beginning of the week wasnt without distractions for the Huskies, who were dealing with the departure of reserve cornerback Darren Gardenhire on Monday. Gardenhire first posted on his Instagram page that he was transferring and Petersen later confirmed that Gardenhire is no longer with the program. Petersen said the decision was a bit of a surprise.Gardenhire appeared in 11 games and had 13 tackles, one interception and one fumble recovery.Difference in philosophy is probably the best way to put it, Petersen said.---More AP college football: www.collegefootball.ap.org and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25 ' ' '