Boston College

If it was Larry Coker's final game at Miami, at least the Hurricanes sent him off with a victory. Kirby Freeman threw for 181 yards and a touchdown, Javarris James' 2-yard run in the third quarter put Miami ahead to stay, and the Hurricanes' defense stifled No. 18 Boston College in rallying for a 17-14 win last night. The Hurricanes (6-6, 3-5 Atlantic Coast Conference) snapped a four-game losing streak and became bowl-eligible. Soon, they'll know if they'll get an invitation to a postseason matchup - and if the embattled Coker will be coaching.

Dee Brown backpedaled with his right arm held high and wrist cocked after making a three-pointer. It was a sight No. 1 Illinois forced Michigan State to get used to. Luther Head scored 22 points, Brown had 18, and the Fighting Illini made 13 three-pointers to remain undefeated with an 81-68 victory over the 12th-ranked Spartans last night in East Lansing, Mich. Illinois (22-0 overall, 8-0 Big Ten) was expected to face a tough test against Michigan State (14-4, 5-2) in an arena known to be raucous.

Boston College will join the Atlantic Coast Conference as its 12th member, guaranteeing the league a future football playoff game while landing another major television market. The school had until Nov. 1 to accept the ACC's offer, but agreed in less than four hours after ACC presidents and chancellors voted unanimously yesterday to include Boston College in their expansion plans. Big East bylaws require that a team give 27 months' notice to leave that conference or face a reported $5 million exit fee - meaning the Eagles cannot begin participating in ACC sports until 2006.

Marc Dowdell, a polite and unassuming Villanova junior who majors in business and favors the button-down look, has recently become a basketball terror. The 6-foot-9 center and forward has been charging to the basket with no regard to life or limb, his or anybody else's. Last night, in a generally sloppy and ugly game, Dowdell - who is more likely to be described as awkward than athletic - fit in perfectly. Dowdell scored a career-high 18 points, added four rebounds and three assists, and led Villanova to a 72-59 Big East win over Boston College at the Conte Forum.

No. 24 Pittsburgh snapped a three-game losing streak and made sure the Big East race will come down to the final weekend of the regular season. Chris Taft had 12 points and eight rebounds to lead the visiting Panthers (19-7, 9-6), 72-50, over No. 5 Boston College last night. The Eagles (23-3, 12-3), who are leaving for the Atlantic Coast Conference next season, could still win the Big East outright or share it if they beat Rutgers on Saturday. No. 15 Connecticut, which is a half-game behind BC, plays Georgetown tomorrow and No. 13 Syracuse on Saturday.

Boston College cornerback Kiernan Speight, accused but exonerated in the gambling scandal that led to the suspension of 13 teammates, said yesterday he will not return to the team. "Right now, I think the door's been shut as far as I'm concerned," he said during a news conference. "I'm going to go . . . finish the semester out and put the whole thing behind me and try to start anew somewhere. " The sophomore was among four players confronted by the team's captains and coach Dan Henning during a contentious meeting following the Eagles' Halloween night loss to Pittsburgh.

Troy Bell scored a career-high 42 points last night as No. 11 Boston College improved to 8-0 with an 86-81 victory over Iowa State (5-5) in Boston. The junior guard, who says he has yet to fully recover from off-season surgery on his right knee, was 5 of 8 from three-point range and 17 for 17 from the free throw line. Bell was coming off his previous best of 34 points in a win over Massachusetts on Saturday. "It's feeling better," Bell said of his knee. "I'm almost there. " The 42 were the most points scored by a player in Conte Forum, which opened in 1988.

LUKE KUECHLY, BOSTON COLLEGE - He led the nation in tackles for two seasons and complemented his intelligence and instincts with impressive athleticism at the NFL combine, where he ran the third-fastest 40 among linebackers. He is considered one of the safest picks in the draft, and the Eagles would probably have to move up to get him. DONT'A HIGHTOWER, ALABAMA - The next choice among inside linebackers, Hightower is more of a run-stopper, and analysts don't see the speed and cover abilities the Eagles covet.

In one sense, Johnny Gaudreau's freshman season at Boston College was nothing less than remarkable. In another, it was nothing more than typical. Gaudreau has been skating circles around conventional wisdom for years. He has been too short, too light, and too young at every level of ice hockey. He has dazzled and dominated them all. He did the same thing as an 8-year-old playing with the 10s, and as a 12-year-old playing with the 14s. He did the same thing at Gloucester Catholic, where he scored 48 points (21 goals, 27 assists)

In one sense, Johnny Gaudreau's freshman season at Boston College was nothing less than remarkable. In another, it was nothing more than typical. Gaudreau has been skating circles around conventional wisdom for years. He has been too short, too light, and too young at every level of ice hockey. He has dazzled and dominated them all. He did the same thing as an eight-year-old playing with the 10s, and as a 12-year-old playing with the 14s. He did the same thing at Gloucester Catholic, where he scored 48 points (21 goals, 27 assists)

BOSTON - James Q. Wilson, 80, a political scientist whose "broken windows" theory influenced a nationwide move toward community policing, died Friday at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Mr. Wilson had been treated for leukemia, according to Boston College professor Peter Skerry, a family friend. Mr. Wilson and coauthor George L. Kelling argued in a 1982 article in the Atlantic that communities must address minor crimes and their effects, such as broken windows, to prevent larger problems from developing.

Temple confirmed what was previously reported by announcing Monday that former Boston College assistant coaches Ryan Day and Kevin Rogers are new to the staff. Day, Boston College's former wideouts coach, is Temple's co-offensive coordinator and wideouts coach. Day will share offensive coordinator duties with Matt Rhule, who will also remain the tight ends coach. Rogers, who was Boston College's offensive coordinator before taking a leave of absence, is Temple's associate head coach and quarterbacks coach.

Six months after retiring, NFL wide receiver Randy Moss wants to play again. Moss posted on his Twitter page Monday - his 35th birthday - that he's planning a comeback: "Now back to biz!!" Moss last played in 2010, getting traded by the New England Patriots to the Minnesota Vikings before finishing the season with the Tennessee Titans, and career season lows of 28 catches for 393 yards. In 13 seasons, he has 14,858 receiving yards and 153 TDs.   Former Miami Dolphins and 49ers wide receiver Freddie Solomon , who played on the first of San Francisco's four Super Bowl championship teams, has died at age 59. The 49ers said Solomon, who lived in Florida, had battled colon cancer over the last year.

About this series: Over the next two months, philly.com's Sheil Kapadia will be chatting weekly with Boston College linebacker Luke Kuechly and chronicling his preparation for April's NFL draft on his blog, Moving the Chains ( www.philly.com/mtc ). This is a sampling of the second installment.   Luke Kuechly's alarm goes off at 6 a.m. That's about 90 minutes earlier than he was used to last fall as a junior at Boston College. Depending on the day, there may be a snooze, or even two, but then it's time to go to work.

As a preferred walk-on, quarterback John Loughery could have attended Boston College, where his cousin, Matt Ryan, excelled en route to the NFL. Instead, he's bound for Division I-AA Elon. "I wanted to create my own path," said the 6-5, 210-pound Loughery, who's now doing a prep school year at Hun in Princeton, N.J., after starring at Penn Charter. "I wanted to be somewhere where they really wanted me. "I'm going to play my whole career at Elon with a major chip on my shoulder.

Paul VI senior Matt Barnett has committed to attend Wagner University on a football scholarship. Barnett also was involved with Boston College, Navy, and Connecticut, among other programs. "I felt like it was the right place for me," Barnett said. Wagner, on Staten Island, N.Y., is a Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) program that plays in the Northeast Conference with schools such as Monmouth and Sacred Heart. The 6-foot-1, 230-pound Barnett, who lives in Washington Township, was a four-year varsity player at Paul VI. A fullback and linebacker, he helped the Eagles to three division titles in his career.