Friday, September 2, 2011

Howard alum Gary Harrell looks to reverse the Bison’s downward trend

Washington, D.C. - If anyone knows how far the Howard football program has fallen, it’s first-year Coach Gary Harrell. As a 5-foot-7 wide receiver, he helped lead the Bison to an 11-1 record and the NCAA Division I-AA playoffs in 1993. Since 1999, though, Howard has had only two winning seasons and is coming off a 2010 campaign in which a win over Division II Lincoln was its only victory.

So it’s no surprise that Harrell has one word on his mind: redemption.

“It’s not just redemption toward the other schools in our conference, it’s redemption for ourselves, getting back to the way we play at Howard University, getting back to our tradition,” said the 39-year-old Harrell, who had a brief stint with the New York Giants. “This is the job I’ve been praying for, been preparing myself for, to be the head coach at Howard University, to be in charge of leading this program in a different direction.”

Harrell still owns the Howard record for career receptions and is known around campus as “The Flea,” the nickname he earned as a player because of his size and tenacity.



READ MORE

No comments: