Just because his Florida State Seminoles aren't playing for the national championship, don’t think they're not motivated, Coach Bobby Bowden said at the last press conference before the Gator Bowl.

"We practiced just as good for this bowl as we did all those national championship games," Bowden said. "It (motivation) would have been a problem if we'd had all seniors. But this is a young team, so they're excited about it. I've enjoyed the heck out of this week. You can be loose, not playing for the national championship.

"The difference," Bowden went on to say, "is that if we lose this game, they won’t hang me tonight. They might wait a couple of days."

Bowden was his usual wise-cracking self at the event, which included Bowden and Tech coach Frank Beamer, plus three players from each team: defensive tackle Chad Beasley, wide receiver Andre Davis, and linebacker Ben Taylor from Tech; quarterback Chris Rix, offensive tackle Brett Williams, and safety Chris Hope from Florida State.

For the Hokies, one big offensive question is how they'll get Davis involved. Tech's academic All-American wide receiver was shut out in the Miami game, a close 2-point loss in which he didn't catch a single pass.

"Not really," Davis said when asked if the Miami game weighs heavily on his mind. "(Tech QB) Grant (Noel) and I weren't able to hook up, but it was still a close game. That goes to show you that it's not a one man show, all eleven guys have to play the game."

You've got to figure that Tech will make an effort to get Davis more involved in Tuesday's Gator Bowl game, perhaps with an end-around or some early deep passes. "We're going to stick with the same game plan we've had all year," Davis said. "I trust the coaches to call the plays and get the offense working."

For Beasley and Taylor, who like Davis both played in the 1999 national championship game against FSU, this year's version of the 'Noles offense presents a new challenge: a mobile QB. This time, it's Chris Rix, not Chris Weinke, that the Hokies will try to stop, and Rix does something Weinke didn't: he runs with the ball. In addition to passing for over 2700 yards this year as a freshman (no other FSU QB had thrown for over 2500 yards in a season prior to his junior year), Rix ran for 389 yards and 3 TD's. His 389 yards is the most rushing yards for an FSU QB since Charlie Ward ran for 339 yards in his Heisman Trophy-winning 1993 season.

"We've put special emphasis on stopping that (Rix's running)," Beasley admitted. "Our defensive ends are going to have to stay in their lanes, and our defensive tackles are going to have to get a good push up the middle and not give him anywhere to go."

Taylor noted, "A lot of times, down near the goal line, they'll put the ball in his hands and see if he can get it into the end zone, so we've had our eye on that. I just think that when you look at Chris Rix, he can get himself out of some situations that Weinke wasn't able to."

Beasley acknowledged that trying to rattle Rix would be a key, but he added, "It's going to be tough. He's a good, heady quarterback. If we can get after him and rattle him and keep that offense off the field, we'll have a good shot at winning this game."

Beasley said that in watching film, the Seminole offense isn't running anything different than what they ran two years ago. "They've got an explosive offense, and they try to take advantage of that. We have to stop the big play. If we don't, we're going to lose the game."

Indeed. In the national championship game loss two years ago, Florida State had 359 yards of offense, but 170 of that came on three passing plays. Florida State's other 54 plays only gained 189 yards.

• Bowden was candid when discussing what motivates him to continue coaching at the age of 72. "My dad retired when he was 64 and died a year later. I've seen so many guys retire and then die quickly. What else is left? You can play golf, but how much golf can you play?" Bowden went on to say that the biggest reason he keeps coaching is because he likes interacting with young players and being a part of their lives.

• Gator Bowl Chairman Jim McCollum, in his opening comments at the press conference, made a passing allusion to the furor that the Gator Bowl selection committee's choice of Virginia Tech over Syracuse created in the Orangemen camp. "I thought then and I think now that we made the best decision for the Gator Bowl and Jacksonville," McCollum said firmly. He talked about the huge Hokie crowd in the lobby of the Adam's Mark Hotel, where the press conference was held, as evidence of that.

• Frank Beamer spoke once again about wanting to be among those "elite top 5 programs in the country," territory in which the Florida State Seminoles reside year after year. "You have arrived, Frank, you're there," Bowden said graciously. Bowden later said of the Hokies, "They're kind of a new kid on the block, but they are on the block."

• Beamer's wife Cheryl was present at the press conference, but Mrs. Bowden was not. It appeared that perhaps she had gone shopping. "If you go out on the street," Bowden advised, "and find a smoking credit card -- I mean really smoking -- that's where she is."

• Florida State quarterback Chris Rix bears a strong resemblance to a young Elvis Presley. He also looks a lot like Ron Darling, a New York Mets pitcher from the 1980's.

• While speaking about Bobby Bowden's record at Florida State, Beamer said, "One of the things I've discovered in college football, the more you win, the more they want you to win. Bobby Bowden went through that and then kept on winning."

• Beasley echoed a feeling that he, Taylor, and Tech's other seniors share. "I just want to be able to go out there and give it my best, and when I walk off the field, and this is my last game, be able to look my teammates in the eye and tell them I gave it everything I had."

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