Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Alabama A&M notebook


Huntsville Times

Game holds no added incentive for Jones

Alabama A&M coach Anthony Jones interviewed for the Grambling job on two occasions last January.

Grambling officials eventually hired former North Carolina Central coach Rod Broadway to lead the school's football program.

But Jones doesn't plan to add anything extra to Saturday's game when the Bulldogs and Tigers meet at Robinson Stadium in a big Southwestern Athletic Conference game.

"This game is important to me because it's the next game," he said. "It's important to me because it's a conference game. I don't care if USC was in our conference. If that was the next game on our schedule, that would would be the next important game.

"I don't try to build ballgames up more than what they are. The game is big because it's our next game, it's a conference game and it's against a good football team."

Tough crowd: Alabama A&M has beaten every team in the SWAC on the road except Grambling.

The Tigers hold a 12-4 advantage in the all-time series against the Bulldogs, but the teams have split the last four meetings.

However, A&M's last three trips to play the Tigers in Louisiana haven't been fun.

Grambling won 30-7 in 2001, 45-14 in 2003 in Shreveport and 44-0 in 2005.

"It would be nice to get a win down there," senior defensive end Chris Traylor said. "My favorite wins are road wins. Hopefully, we can pull it off this time."

After watching Grambling's game against Pittsburgh, Jones said it won't be easy.

"They played Pittsburgh tough," he said. "They didn't lay down. They had opportunities to win the game. If they had had a little more success in the red zone, that game is a different ballgame.

"They had a punt blocked and three turnovers in the red zone. It wasn't like they went up there and got sandblasted. They went up there to win the ballgame and I admire that."

Grambling had the ball in the red zone four times, including three times inside Pittsburgh's 10-yard line, but came away with just three points.

The Tigers also were whistled for 14 penalties for 108 yards, were 6-of-17 on third down and allowed two touchdowns on special teams in the 34-10 loss.

Baxter likely out: Wide receiver Nate Baxter, who sprained his right ankle in the first quarter Saturday night against Mississippi Valley State and never returned, will likely miss the Grambling game, Jones said.

A redshirt freshman from Enterprise, Baxter has five catches for 48 yards and a touchdown.

"It's too tender," Jones said of the ankle. "He's still not walking on it."

-Reggie Benson

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