Saturday, November 22, 2008

Bulldogs shut out Aggies, 55-0, get ready for playoff announcement

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- “Where and who?” It was the question most on S.C. State head football coach Oliver “Buddy” Pough’s mind after Saturday’s 55-0 rout over North Carolina A&T at Aggie Stadium. Having wrapped up a perfect run to the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference championship, the 15th-ranked Bulldogs (10-2, 8-0) could now turn their full attention toward the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs and their first-round opponent.

“We wanted to kind of get in here and just get through this game and win the football game,” Pough said. “Our big thought has been since last Saturday has been doing something in the playoffs. So, it was great getting in here and getting this win and we’re excited about the win. But, we really have to get something done in the playoffs.”

S.C. State will learn today whether its eight-game winning streak and fifth double-digit victory season in school history will be enough to convince the NCAA Selection Committee to award it an opening-round home game. The Bulldogs more than made their case for a higher seeding by posting a third consecutive shutout for the first time since 1971.

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Attendance: 7,343 at Aggie Stadium, Greensboro, N.C. (Capacity: 22,000)

Tough times sack Grambling band: School notified TSU weeks ago about no-show

Houston, TX - To all those disappointed college football fans who were expecting a battle of the bands at Thursday's game between Texas Southern University and Grambling State, Grambling sends its apology for being a no-show. Challenging financial times forced the Grambling Tiger Band to stay home, school officials said Friday. "We have to be fiscally responsible to make our dollars go as far as they can," said Grambling spokesman Byron McCauley. "It does not mean that we don't love Houston. I really want people to know that we're hopeful there will be more opportunities for the band to be in Houston to perform."

Grambling has a big Thanksgiving weekend game, the Bayou Classic, in New Orleans on Nov. 29. It's the premiere game of black college football. TSU spokeswoman Eva Pickens said Grambling notified TSU several weeks in advance that its band would not attend the game. Mississippi Valley State University's band did not attend TSU's Nov. 8 homecoming game for the same reason, Pickens said. "We're thinking it's a sign of the times" Pickens said.







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FAMU hunts for playoff spot

TALLAHASSEE, FL — This is Florida A&M coach Joe Taylor's first experience with the Florida Classic, the rivalry game between the Rattlers and Bethune-Cookman University. He's heard about the atmosphere and the revelry. "The Classic is the fanfare," he said. "It's for people to come and party. But that's not why we're there."

The Rattlers (8-3, 4-3 MEAC) are there to earn at least a share of second place in the conference and line themselves up for a possible Football Championship Subdivision playoff berth, which they can do with a win over the Wildcats (8-2, 5-2 MEAC). Few thought FAMU would get to this point so quickly. The Rattlers lost six of their last seven in 2007 to finish 3-8. That led to the dismissal of coach Rubin Carter and the hiring of Taylor, who spent 16 years coaching Hampton University.

The Rattlers lead the MEAC in scoring offense and are third in passing offense and total offense. They've won five of their last six games, and linebacker Vernon Wilder said it's a different feeling around the program. "It's exciting," Wilder said. "The Classic is already exciting, but all this stuff on the table makes it even more exciting. "Winning cures a lot of stuff. A lot of things go smoother," Wilder said. "We're having fun."

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Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Keys: SU gets win, but still searching for answers

Sunday afternoon, less than 24 hours after Southern pounded out a frosty 15-0 win over Alabama State at the Gulf Coast Classic, the campus back home at SU was almost empty. Only two or three students stood on the bluff near the Mississippi River, taking in the scenery on a cool-but-beautiful day. Classrooms were silent. The nearby sandwich shop was closed.

Just outside Jesse Owens Hall, the parking lot was vacant — except for one car.
It belonged to Pete Richardson. Inside, his thumbs were in overdrive, working two remote controls. Pause, rewind, play. Pause, rewind, play. Over and over, on a modern-style projector, he watched videotape — first of his own team, then of other Southwestern Athletic Conference opponents. Then of his own team again. Richardson had given his players a rare Sunday off, and while some members of his coaching staff shuttled in and out, only the head coach stayed inside all day.

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Attendance: 25,387 Gulf Coast Classic, Ladd Peebles Stadium, Mobile, AL


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Florida A&M returns, beats UMES

HAMPTON, Va. ---- The University of Maryland Eastern Shore volleyball team was three points away from their first Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference championship Sunday afternoon at Hampton University. The Hawks were up 2-1 in sets on Florida A&M, and held a 22-19 lead in the fourth set. Three points and UMES was on to its first NCAA Tournament appearance. The Rattlers battled back to win a long fourth set, 31-29 setting up the deciding fifth set. The fifth was tied 10-10, but a Florida A&M kill and pair of UMES attack errors gave the Rattlers a 13-10 lead on their way to a 15-10 win in the set as they won their eighth straight MEAC title (17-25, 25-15, 23-25, 31-29, 15-10).

"Coming into the match, we knew that we would be up against the number one team in the south and it's a match that everyone would expect to go five sets, which it did," UMES coach Don Metil said. "I thought that the third set that we regrouped very well after we lost the second set by a large margin and we put ourselves in a position in set four to have numerous match points and unfortunately we ran out of subs."

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S.C. State captures MEAC, playoff berth with 32-0 victory over Morgan State

BALTIMORE, MD — Atter a 26-year absence, S.C. State will be returning to the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) playoffs after clinching the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Championship with a 32-0 win over Morgan State Saturday at Hughes Stadium. The Bulldogs, who last appeared in the playoffs in 1982, earned the league’s automatic berth with the win, which lifted Coach Buddy Pough’s team to a 9-2 mark on the season and a perfect 7-0 in the league, with one game remaining.

“It’s just a great feeling,” said Pough. “Can you imagine being so close for all the six years I’ve been here and we finally got it done.” Backup quarterback DeWain Clark, in his second start in relief of Malcolm Long, directed the victory, which gave Pough his first outright title MEAC title in his seven-year tenure. S.C. State tied Hampton for the title in 2004 but Hampton went to the playoffs by virtue of a win over the Bulldogs that season.

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Monday, November 17, 2008

Road loss knocks TSU out of OVC contention

Jacksonville St. blocks 2 kicks, route to title

JACKSONVILLE, Ala. — Tennessee State's chances of winning the Ohio Valley Conference suffered a fatal blow Saturday when the Tigers were beaten 26-21 at Jacksonville State. TSU (8-3, 5-2) now must win its final game at Murray State for a shot at finishing second in the conference and securing an at-large playoff berth. JSU's special teams were huge in the game, blocking two field-goal attempts. The first one, snuffed by Alexandria's T.J. Heath, was returned by Andrew Ridgeway 72 yards for the Gamecocks' first touchdown.

"Special teams and too many mistakes," Tigers Coach James Webster said of the reasons for the loss. "We just couldn't put it in the end zone." The Tigers played without their OVC-leading rusher. Javarris Williams didn't play — depending on who you talked to — either for disciplinary reasons or a hamstring injury. JaJuan Spillman proved an effective alternative. He caught six passes for 104 yards, including a 63-yarder for the game's first touchdown, and ran five times for 53 yards. Quarterback Antonio Heffner threw for 170 yards and a touchdown pass. He also rushed for 55 yards.

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Attendance: 7,956

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