PITTSBURGH -- There was a time when Ejuan Price wondered if his college career would ever end.Now that its fast approaching after six seasons, three different head coaches, a position change, one college degree earned and another on the way, the Pittsburgh defensive end almost doesnt want to cross the finish line.Almost.I look at it like, a lot of unfortunate things that happened to me were kind of like a blessing in disguise, Price said. I feel me being here right now is where Im supposed to be.Thats understandable. The Panthers are competitive, his NFL draft stock is rising and the 23-year-old is seventh in the country in tackles for loss and 12th in sacks.But he isnt the only late bloomer making an impact across the Atlantic Coast Conference.Well-traveled Syracuse wide receiver Amba Etta-Tawo has turned out to be a perfect fit in head coach Dino Babers uptempo offense. The Maryland graduate transfer leads the ACC and ranks in the top 10 nationally in receiving yards (1,246), receiving yards per game (124.6) and receptions per game (7.9). Hes also second in the league with eight TD receptions and his 79 catches are tied for fifth in the country and he most among Power 5 receivers.Amba has been outstanding, Babers said. Hes been a pleasant surprise. Obviously, we had no idea hed be able to do the things that hes done.North Carolina senior receiver Bug Howard is suddenly in a much larger role since top deep threat Mack Hollins was lost for the season with a broken collarbone. Howard has had some good moments as part of four-receiver sets in 2015 and caught the winning touchdown with 2 seconds left to cap a wild comeback win against Price and Pitt in September.Howard -- now wearing Hollins No. 13 in his teammates honor -- was just getting started. He had 10 catches for 156 yards at Miami in the game Hollins was injured, had seven catches for 109 yards with a score against Virginia then had six catches for 120 yards and another TD against Georgia Tech. His streak of 100-yard receiving games ended at three in last weeks loss at Duke, though he still had a TD catch there, too.The 6-foot-5 target whose pet peeve is being mistaken for a player on the Tar Heel basketball team is finally living up to his massive potential. He already has a career-best 45 receptions with at least three games left to play. The NFL isnt out of reach either. The way Howard boxed out Pitts Ryan Lewis for the clinching score on Sept. 24 showcased the kind of ball skills that would translate well at the next level.Its a destination that might be in reach for Price too, one he doubted would materialize at times during his star-crossed career at Pitt. Hes been around so long he originally signed at Ohio State when Jim Tressel was the Buckeyes coach before flipping to the hometown Panthers when Tressel stepped down that spring.Price is one of the emotional leaders for the surprising Panthers (6-4, 3-3 ACC) heading into their game against Duke on Saturday.Price made an immediate splash with the Panthers, collecting four sacks as a true freshman for Todd Graham in 2011. Then Graham left and a pectoral injury in 2012 forced Price to take a medical redshirt. New coach Paul Chryst moved Price to defensive end in 2013, intrigued by the explosiveness in Prices 6-foot, 255-pound frame. The experiment lasted all of six games before a back issue shelved Price yet again and he didnt play a snap in 2014 after tearing a left pectoral muscle during the offseason that required surgery.He tried to keep his spirits up during the long layoff, it wasnt easy when he was unsure about the payoff at the end.Its easy to be motivated for a couple days, Price said. But do it over and over and over and over, youve got to find a reason to stick with it.So the player teammate Brian ONeill likened to a Steady Eddie because of his relentlessness learned to train his mind as well as his body. Price knew he could be a force if he stuck with it. The reprieve came last fall. Finally healthy and emboldened by new coach Pat Narduzzi -- the programs third coach in four years -- to get to the quarterback, Price picked up 11.5 sacks while earning first-team All-ACC honors even though he hardly fits the mold of prototypical defensive end.He can bull rush you, ONeill said. Hes so low. You see how low he can get, how he gets leverage. Thats how he uses his height to his advantage.In February the NCAA granted Price a rare sixth year of eligibility. He picked up his degree in communications last spring and is currently working on one in administration of justice, fitting for a player whose long journey appears headed for a happy ending.All the blemishes in my past that got kind of looked down upon, Price said, Im thanking god for putting me in that position.---AP Sports Writers John Kekis in Syracuse, New York and Aaron Beard in Raleigh, North Carolina contributed to this report.---More AP college football: www.collegefootball.ap.org http://www.jetsrookiestore.com/Jets-Jermaine-Kearse-Jersey/ . The catch: It needs a lot of money, and it needs it fast. http://www.jetsrookiestore.com/Jets-James-Carpenter-Jersey/ . At a Manhattan federal court hearing, attorney Jordan Siev said his law office has gotten more evidence nearly every day to support its lawsuit accusing MLB and Selig of going on a "witch hunt" to ruin Rodriguezs reputation and career. He said the defendants went "way over the line. http://www.jetsrookiestore.com/Jets-Julian-Howsare-Jersey/ . The defence is doing its part, too. Drew Brees threw a pair of touchdown passes in the first half and the guys on the other side made sure that was enough, sending the Saints to a 17-13 victory over the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday night. http://www.jetsrookiestore.com/Jets-Eric-Tomlinson-Jersey/ .500 on the season. The Jets are now 0-5-1 in the second game of back-to-backs. The game started the same way the Vancouver game started the night before, with the Jets taking the first two penalties of the game and killing off the first, but the Oilers getting on the board first, scoring on the second man-advantage. http://www.jetsrookiestore.com/Hats/ . They reached the 100-point plateau for the fourth time in five games, bested the visiting Trail Blazers by 34 in the paint and scored 19 of the final 25 points in regulation. Fourth-and-no is becoming fourth-and-go in the NFL.More coaches are going for it in situations that used to be automatic punts or field-goal attempts. Through Week 13, teams went on fourth down 350 times and converted 181 or 51.7 percent.Washington Redskins coach Jay Gruden made perhaps the boldest call when Washington faced fourth-and-inches from its 41-yard line with a 29-24 lead and 6:12 remaining against the Green Packers on Nov. 20.Going for it meant risking the possibility that Aaron Rodgers would get the ball close enough for a short field with the game on the line. It defied conventional coaching logic, but Gruden kept his offense on the field, quarterback Kirk Cousins sneaked for the first down and the Redskins went on to score and secure the win.I think its confidence in the offense, No. 1 and, quite frankly, the defense if you dont get it, that if you do give away a short field that theyll get the ball back for us, Gruden said this week. But mainly, its confidence in the offense. We have a big, physical offensive line, we have got a big back, and we have a quarterback where if we want to do a bootleg or if we want to drop back and throw it, we have confidence that he can make an accurate throw.Confidence in the offensive line that can get movement, we can get a foot or a yard or 2 yards, and confidence in the quarterback to get it done.For Cousins, it was an easy decision, even if teams holding leads late in the fourth quarter usually punt in that situation.I think you had to do it, Cousins said. Its just a matter of which play to call and how do we execute it versus the front or blitz that they will bring.No team has more fourth-down attempts than Philadelphias 19. But coach Doug Pedersons aggressive playcalling cost the Eagles (5-7) a win against the New York Giants in November.Pederson passed up two chip-shot field goals to go on fourth downs in the first half. Both attempts failed. The Eagles lost 28-23 after failing to score a touchdown on four tries from the Giants 17 in the final minute.Obviously, six points wouldve made a difference. But Pederson had no regrets and stuck by decisions that backfired.It shows confidence and belief in the guys, Pederson said. At that time, I felt like we were moving the ball.Last week, teams were 17 for 30 on fourth down. Several of those attempts came aat odd times during games, including a few in the Texans-Packers game played in snow.ddddddddddddhe Texans went on fourth-and-1 from the Packers 49 early in the second quarter in a scoreless game. Alfred Blue got stopped and Green Bay turned the short field into a touchdown.Houston later passed up a 23-yard field goal and went on fourth-and-1 from the Packers 6 midway through the third quarter. Brock Osweiler tossed a TD pass to tie it 7-7.But coach Bill OBrien got conservative after that conversion.He chose to punt on fourth-and-5 at Green Bays 36 in a 7-7 game late in the third. He decided to punt again on fourth-and-7 from the Packers 44 with 8:59 left and trailing 14-7.Its just where we were on the field, said OBrien, offering no explanation for the inconsistent decisions.The Packers converted on fourth-and-2 from the Texans 42 when Cristine Michael ran for 5 yards on their first scoring drive. But they failed on fourth-and-2 at the Texans 48 later in the game.OBrien also had some interesting fourth-down calls against Oakland in the Monday night game in Mexico on Nov. 21.He went on fourth-and-inches from the Raiders 15 with the score tied and 6:15 left in the game. Akeem Hunt got stopped short on what appeared to be a poor spot by the officials.I felt like we needed a touchdown there, said OBrien, even though a field goal wouldve given Houston the lead.After Oakland went up 27-20, the Texans faced fourth-and-5 from their own 44 with only 3:13 to go and one time-out remaining. Yet, OBrien chose to punt. The Texans never got the ball back.If I had it back, Id go for it, OBrien said afterward.Atlanta Falcons coach Dan Quinn passed up a short field goal down 27-16 in the third quarter against Kansas City last Sunday. He went on fourth-and-1 at the Chiefs 10. Atlanta didnt convert and eventually lost 29-28 because Eric Berry picked off a 2-point conversion and returned it the other way. Quinns decision to go for it earlier instead of kicking a 23-yard field goal also proved costly.---AP Sports Writer Stephen Whyno contributed to this report.---For more NFL coverage: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL---Follow Rob Maaddi on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP-RobMaaddi Cheap Soccer Jerseys Authentic Wholesale Hockey Jerseys Nike NFL Jerseys China Cheap Nike MLB Jerseys China Wholesale Baseball Jerseys China Wholesale College Jerseys Cheap Jerseys From China Wholesale Jerseys Near Me Cheap Jerseys Online Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys Authentic Cheap Soccer Jerseys China Cheap NCAA Jerseys Authentic Cheap Nike NBA Jerseys Cheap NHL Jerseys Authentic MLB Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Throwback Jerseys Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China ' ' '