NOTEBOOK | Sugar Bowl

Family ties: The Sugar Bowl will give West Virginia linebacker Boo McLee the chance to become closer to the father he didn't know well as a child. Kevin McLee Sr. played for Georgia in the 1977 Sugar Bowl, when the Bulldogs lost to top-ranked Pittsburgh. McLee's father plans to be in attendance when No. 11 West Virginia (10-1) meets No. 8 Georgia (10-2) in the Sugar Bowl tonight. "It brings a special significance to the game. It is great to be in the same bowl as my dad. We have talked a lot about the game," the younger McLee said Saturday. "He said he would be pulling for West Virginia, because I play there. But he also said he would be wearing some red-and-black, as well." The elder McLee, a running back, finished his Georgia career with 2,581 yards, including 1,058 in the 1976 season. "I heard he was a great player. I never really saw him on film or anything," Boo McLee said. The younger McLee was raised by his paternal grandparents in Uniontown, Pa., while his father attempted an NFL career. His mother wasn't a part of his life. His father took him to Athens, Ga., for a Bulldogs game when he was 8 or 9. Boo McLee was a star running back in high school but was never offered a scholarship by his father's alma mater, instead following the path of two uncles who played at West Virginia. Another uncle played at Michigan State, and McLee is a relative of the late Ernie Davis, the 1961 Heisman Trophy winner at halfback from Syracuse. Boo McLee concentrated on linebacker when he first arrived at WVU. The junior led the Mountaineers in tackles this season and was a first-team all-Big East selection. The elder McLee, a longtime resident of the Los Angeles area, saw his son play in a game in each of the past two seasons. The pair talk about three times a month. "I talk to him a lot more than I used to," Boo McLee said. "We're getting closer now because he experienced a lot of the stuff that I'm going through."
Ready or not: As West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez roamed the sidewalks and hotel lobbies of Atlanta, fans in town for the Sugar Bowl often greeted him with the same thought. "If I had a dollar for everyone who said, 'Are you ready?', I could get a lot of things done in our program," Rodriguez said Sunday. "I think I'm going to turn to one of them and say, 'No, we're not,' and then see what their reaction is. I think our guys are ready to play. I'm sure the Bulldogs are, too."
Scouting WVU: Georgia coach Mark Richt said it was nearly impossible to mimic mobile West Virginia quarterback Pat White during practices. The Bulldogs used freshman Joe Cox on scout teams to throw passes. Overall, Richt doesn't know how long it will take for Georgia to adjust to West Virginia, which uses a 3-3-5 defense and a spread offense. "The offense, in general, is just not one that you can get a scout team to simulate very well at all," Richt said. "My guess is it's going to take us a little while to get used to the speed at which West Virginia goes about their business on offense. Defensively, we really haven't played anybody this season that lines up the way they do. That's a new challenge for us, also."
Associated Press
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