Wednesday, September 5, 2007

SWAC Team Notes


By JOSEPH SCHIEFELBEIN, Advocate sportswriter

Grambling
First-year Grambling coach Rod Broadway didn’t sound impressed with his team before a 31-10 victory at Alcorn State and he wasn’t impressed after.

“We’ve got to get much better. &hellip The way we played Saturday isn’t good enough to compete in this league,” said Broadway, who counted 14 points his team didn’t score. “I don’t know if we’re good enough right now.”

Quarterback Brandon Landers (303 yards, four TDs) was the SWAC Offensive Player of the Week, and true freshman running back Frank Warren (143 yards on 30 carries), the son of the late New Orleans Saints defensive end of the same name, was the SWAC Newcomer of the Week.

Broadway said Warren should have had 200 yards.

“We expect more out of him,” Broadway said. “We get him one-on-one on a safety, and he has to win some of those.”

Broadway did at least say his team had a “chance to be good.”

Grambling had 37 passes, with 11 first downs through the air, and 37 rushes, with nine first downs rushing, Saturday. &hellip Senior WR Reginald Jackson had six catches for a career-high 198 yards and two TDs. He had 12 catches and two TDs all last season. &hellip Senior Clyde Edwards had three catches, two for TDs. Edwards has a TD grab in his last four games and 10 of his last 12. He has 25 in his career.

Jackson State
Jackson State coach Rick Comegy said he was upset Ron Roberts, a first-year coach at Division II power Delta State, told him the Statesmen had tapes of JSU, even though the two schools did not exchange tapes. Comegy said he had no film on Delta State, which won 27-15.

Comegy said he was worried the same would happen this week, with Tennessee State.

“It hurts me to know our conference (teams) are sending film on us,” Comegy said. “I just think (SWAC Interim Commissioner) Duer Sharp has to have a handle on our conference teams sending film to other people.”

Sharp said, “That’s something we’ll look into.”
JSU may replace QB Jimmy Oliver (7-for-20, 93 yards, one TD, one INT) with Tray Rutland (4-for-14, 58 yards, two INTs), a Mississippi State transfer. &hellip RB Erik Haw, sprained ankle, and Cordy Hull, a Southern Miss transfer who was ineligible, did not play Saturday, but Comegy said he expected both to play against TSU. &hellip The offense totaled 122 yards Saturday.

Alabama State
Chris Mitchell, a junior-college transfer who was 10-for-11 for 206 yards and two TDs off the bench in a 24-19 win over Jacksonville State, has surpassed incumbent Alex Engram, a 43.1-percent passer last season who was 3-for-6 for 44 yards and an INT.

“He gave us a spark,” said first-year Alabama State coach Reggie Barlow, quarterbacks coach the last two years. “He has all the measurables, and he has a calm presence about him. He gives us the opportunity to get some things done downfield. We just weren’t sure how well he knew the system.”

Arkansas-Pine Bluff
Marquee RBs Martell Mallett (23 yards on five carries) and Mickey Dean (19 yards on nine carries) fizzled and UAPB suffered four sacks Saturday in a 16-9 loss at Valley. The opener confirmed the concern of rebuilding the offensive line, with three to four new starters. Mallett was knocked out with a hip injury.

“We knew we were going to have some problems with our offensive line,” UAPB coach Mo Forte said. “We have to get that fixed. In order to get your running game going, you have to get your offensive line going.”

Notes
Saturday, SWAC teams will play in Chicago (Southern vs. Valley), Pittsburgh (Grambling at Pitt), Memphis (Jackson State vs. Tennessee State) and Los Angeles (PVAM vs. North Carolina A&T). Alcorn QB Chris Walker will be out after getting injured Saturday. The Braves will go with Tony Hobson or Tim Buckley.

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