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Florida St.-North Carolina Preview

Oct 22, 2009 - 5:21 PM By AARON BEARD AP Sports Writer

Florida State (2-4) at North Carolina (4-2), 8:00 p.m. EDT

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) -- Entering the season, this seemed like the perfect setup for North Carolina and Florida State: a nationally televised game, the first Thursday night home date in Tar Heels' history and a matchup of contenders in the Atlantic Coast Conference division races.

Reality has turned out much differently.

These are teams that have gone from nationally ranked to a combined 0-5 in the ACC heading into late October. One boasts the league's best offense and its worst defense, the other has the best defense and the worst offense. And both have plenty of unfulfilled expectations and frustrated fans.

At least the Tar Heels (4-2, 0-2) can still claim the benefit of that national TV audience to showcase Butch Davis' program and the novelty of the first Thursday nighter at Kenan Stadium.

"It's going to be a special night," North Carolina quarterback T.J. Yates said. "It's going to be a different feel."

Probably, but it's a lot less glamorous than everyone expected when the schedules were set. Bobby Bowden's Seminoles (2-4, 0-3) were ranked 18th to start the year, but they've lost three straight games - all by 10 or fewer points - and have had to work through the growing distraction of Bowden's uncertain future at the program he built into a national power.

No one has to tell the Seminoles what they need to do more to quiet all the chatter.

"Knowing the potential we have and the talent we have on this team, I really think we shouldn't be 2-4," receiver Bert Reed said. "But it is what it is. We have to learn from everything we've done and not let it happen again."

While the Seminoles still have a strong offense led by quarterback Christian Ponder, the defense ranks as the league's worst (426.7 yards per game) and is allowing 28 points per game. In the last loss, the Seminoles gave up 49 points to the Yellow Jackets, though Bowden sounds optimistic.

"We've had a hard time stopping the big play," Bowden said. "We'll go out there and stop a team and stop a team and stop a team, and then, whoop. So if they ever get that squared away, we'll be a pretty good ballclub."

The Tar Heels could say the same thing about their offense. While the defense is among the nation's best (237.7 ypg), the offense has been awful (282 ypg) and managed a combined 10 points in league losses to Georgia Tech and then-winless Virginia.

North Carolina, ranked as high as 19th in early September, used its off week to do what the team described as self-scouting and restore their banged-up morale.

"We got our head back on straight," cornerback Kendric Burney said. "All the frustration is pretty much gone. It helps that we're playing on a Thursday night for the whole world. It's definitely going to help us out."

The other challenge was more for the university, namely with the logistics of holding the game at Kenan - which is nestled in the center of campus and backs up against UNC Hospitals. The game was timed to take place during the school's fall break so as not to seriously interfere with classes, while the hospital closed clinics early and the school ended its work day two hours early to get ready for the crush of fans.

In addition, ESPN agreed to broadcast the game at a slightly later start time of 8 p.m. to accommodate fans whose drive to campus will coincide with the rush-hour delays that are a frequent occurrence along Interstate 40 between "Triangle" cities Chapel Hill, Durham and Raleigh.

Those headaches, however, are worth it for a program that Davis aims to put among the nation's elite again.

"Games like this certainly become to some extent measuring sticks," Davis said. "At some point, you want to find out the progress. Are you making progress that you hope you're making? The exposure is always good. I think it'll be a great atmosphere. It'll be something that's never happened here before.

"There's a lot of things still left to do in building and growing this football program. ... This is one of several steps that have to take place, but this will be a good one."