Sept. 18, 2003

Flowers, Gaffron are Game Captains for Indiana: Junior cornerback Earven Flowers and senior tight end Win Gaffron are the game captains this week, joining permanent captains Jared Lorenzen and Vincent “Sweet Pea” Burns.

Flowers has started all three games this season. He has nine tackles and leads the team in pass breakups with three. Gaffron has started the last two games and he caught a 33-yard pass last Saturday at Alabama.

Abren Out Indefinitely: Freshman defensive lineman Ricky Abren will be out of practice indefinitely because of an unspecified medical condition, Coach Rich Brooks announced Thursday.

Brooks said that Abren is undergoing tests and would not return to practice until the test results were received. The coach noted a strong possibility that Abren, who has not played in the first three games, would redshirt the 2003 season.

Abney Needs One Play to Set All-Purpose Record: Kentucky wide receiver/kick returner Derek Abney is on the verge of yet another school record, this one for average yards per all-purpose play.

In his career, Abney has 299 all-purpose plays (pass receptions, rushing attempts, kickoff returns, and punt returns) for a school-record 4,528 all-purpose yards. He has averaged 15.1 yards per play. When he gets his next play, he will reach the minimum standard of 300 plays needed to claim the school record for average yards per all-purpose play.

Currently, the record is 8.4 yards per all-purpose play by Calvin Bird, who amassed 2,686 yards in 318 all-purpose plays from 1958-60. It is interesting to note that Abney is nearly doubling Bird’s record, an amazing feat.