Tuesday, May 22, 2012

TSU's Williams Signs Two for 2012-13 Season

NASHVILLE, Tennessee - Tennessee State University men's basketball coach Travis Williams announced the first two signings under his tutelage on Monday. Jordan Gaither and Chaed Wellian inked National Letters of Intent (NLI) with the Tigers.

Gaither, a native of Snellville, Ga., comes to Tennessee State after helping Shiloh High School to the best record in school history. Wellian, a native of Amsterdam, Netherlands, comes to TSU after two seasons at Atlanta Metro College.

"I am extremely excited about coaching these two young men this season," said Williams. "I appreciate the opportunity to help prepare them for success on and off the basketball court."

While at Shiloh, Gaither garnered All-County and All-Region honors. The 6-foot-3 guard averaged 14 points, five assists and three steals. He was a four-year starter for the Generals, helping guide Shiloh to a 25-5 record this past season.

Gaither is the son of Ben and Sherry Gaither. His cousin Trey Thompkins currently plays for the NBA's Los Angeles Clippers.

"Jordan has shown the talent, work ethic and leadership that I was looking for in the guard position," noted Williams. "He has the versatility to play both guard positions and wanted to be a Big Blue Tiger. He will bring some defensive tenacity. I love his mental approach to the game. Jordan is a very coachable young man and comes from one of the top high school programs in the state of Georgia."

Wellian averaged 14.9 points and seven rebounds for the Atlanta Metro Trailblazers last season. Offensively, he hit forty percent of his three-point attempts. On the defensive side, the forward averaged two steals a contest.

"Chaed Wellian is a very versatile and skilled combo forward," said Williams. "He competes, plays hard and is capable of scoring inside and outside. He is a good three-point shooter. He has solid ball handling and passing skills for his size and will bring an added dimension to our team."

Tennessee State is coming off a 20-13 season and an appearance in the CollegeInsider.com Tournament. Coach Williams enters his first season as the head coach at TSU after serving three seasons as first assistant.

CLASS OF 2012 TSU MEN'S BASKETBALL SIGNEES
Name HT WT POS Hometown (Previous School)
Jordan Gaither 6-3 180 G Snellville, Ga. (Shiloh HS)
Chaed Wellian 6-8 225 F Amsterdam, NL (Atlanta Metro College)

COURTESY TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

Law could severely limit potential damages in FAMU hazing lawsuit

EXCERPT:

ORLANDO, Fla. _ With every troubling new revelation about Florida A&M University's Marching 100, the pending civil case against FAMU seems to grow stronger for the parents of Robert Champion, the drum major who died from being hazed on a charter bus in Orlando.

But the prospects of Robert and Pamela Champion collecting a large financial settlement or jury award is another matter. That's because the university enjoys the legal protection of sovereign immunity, which could severely limit the amount of money the Champions ultimately collect if they win a lawsuit.

But no matter how negligent FAMU may be proved to be, sovereign immunity could limit the university from liability payouts greater than $200,000 per claim. That would be $200,000 for Robert and $200,000 for Pamela. In the Champions' home state of Georgia, the claim cap is higher -- $1 million per claim, Chestnut said.

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Former Hampton Pirates Kenrick Ellis to serve 45 days in jail

HAMPTON, Virgina -- When the New York Jets' mandatory minicamp ends June 14, backup nose tackle Kenrick Ellis will go to jail for 45 days, but will avoid deportation.

Ellis, who reached a plea agreement last week in which he accepted a reduced charge of misdemeanor assault and battery, was sentenced Monday in Hampton, Virginia, to 179 days in prison, with 89 days suspended. The deal also includes two years of supervised probation.


KENRICK ELLIS, DT, 6'- 4"/346 LBS, NEW YORK JETS
2011 NFL DRAFT 3RD RD PICK, HAMPTON UNIVERSITY


ESPN VIDEO

Based on Virginia law, Ellis will serve 45 days with good behavior, his attorney, Timothy Clancy, said in a phone interview. Ellis will report June 15 to the city jail in Hampton, where two years ago he was arrested and charged with malicious wounding -- a felony that carried a five- to 20-year sentence. He was a Hampton University student at the time.

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UMES' Nelson Townsend Named to NACDA 2012 HOF Class


Nelson Townsend, a 1962 graduate of then
Maryland State College (UMES) holds
the distinction as A.D. of moving Buffalo
and Delaware State from NCAA
Divisions III and II, respectively, to
NCAA Division I.
(Photo Courtesy: UMES Athletics)
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The 2012 Hall of Fame class includes: Nelson Bobb, University of North Carolina Greensboro; Bob Bottger, St. Louis Community College Meramec; Rudy Carvajal, Cal State Bakersfield; Oval Jaynes, Jacksonville State University; Laing Kennedy, Kent State University; Andrea `Andi' Seger, Ball State University; and Nelson Townsend, University of Maryland Eastern Shore.

The inductees will receive their awards on Tuesday, June 26 at NACDA's 47th Annual Convention at the Learfield Sports Directors' Cup Awards Luncheon, located at the Hilton Anatole Hotel in Dallas, Texas.

Nelson Townsend began his storied athletics administration career when he was named director of athletics at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) in 1975, and again, in 2003. During his career, Townsend oversaw athletics programs at Delaware State, Florida A&M and the University at Buffalo.

While at Buffalo, he became the first African-American AD in 1987, and worked to move the athletics program from NCAA Division III to Division I in just three-and-a-half years. During his time at Delaware State, Townsend oversaw the athletics department transition from Division II to Division I.

During his time as an administrator, he served on various committees, including the NCAA Olympic Liaison Committee, NCAA Nominating Committee, Board of Directors for the Boy Scouts of America and National Education Association.

In February, Townsend was inducted into the University of Maryland Eastern Shore Athletics Hall of Fame, which only has 199 total members. This marked the second time that he has been inducted into a collegiate hall of fame. In 1987, he was selected into the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Hall of Fame.

About NACDA: NACDA, now in its 47th year, is the professional and educational association for more than 6,500 college athletics administrators at more than 1,600 institutions throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico. More than 2,200 athletics administrators annually attend the NACDA Convention. Additionally, NACDA administers 11 professional associations, including six for the separate business units that report directly to the athletics directors and two foundations. For more information on NACDA, visit www.nacda.com.

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Monday, May 21, 2012

Hampton Football Releases 2012 Schedule

HAMPTON, Virginia -- The Hampton University football team released its 2012 schedule on Monday, a slate that included four home games.

The Pirates, coming into their fourth year under head coach Donovan Rose, will look to build on last year’s 7-4 campaign.

Hampton will open the 2012 campaign on the road, taking on Tennessee Tech on Aug. 30 in Cookeville, Tenn. The Pirates will then come home on Sept. 8, holding their 2012 Armstrong Stadium debut at 6 p.m. against local rival Old Dominion.

After traveling to Tallahassee, Fla. on Sept. 15 to take on Florida A&M and former coach Joe Taylor, Hampton will have a bye week before returning to Armstrong Stadium on Sept. 29 to take on Bethune-Cookman at 6 p.m.

After another bye week, the Pirates will take on defending MEAC champion Norfolk State in the annual Battle of the Bay at Armstrong Stadium on Oct. 13 at 1 p.m. The Pirates will then head to Durham, N.C. on Oct. 20 to take on North Carolina Central.

Homecoming will be on Oct. 27, when the Pirates play host to Savannah State at 2 p.m.

The Pirates will then close the 2012 season with three straight road games, beginning on Nov. 3 in Washington, D.C. against rival Howard. Hampton will then head to Dover, Del. on Nov. 10 to take on Delaware State.

Hampton will close the regular season on Nov. 17 in Baltimore, Md. against Morgan State.

All dates and times are subject to change.

For more information on Hampton University football, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811, or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.



Full Schedule

DateOpponentLocationGame TagTime/Result
8/30/2012Tennessee Tech Cookville, TNTBA
9/8/2012Old Dominion Hampton, VA6:00 pm
9/15/2012Florida A&M Tallahassee, FL6:00 pm
9/29/2012Bethune-Cookman Hampton, VA6:00 pm
10/13/2012Norfolk State Hampton, VABattle of the Bay1:00 pm
10/20/2012North Carolina Central Durham, NC2:00 pm
10/27/2012Savannah State Hampton, VAHomecoming2:00 pm
11/3/2012Howard Washington, DC1:00 pm
11/10/2012Delaware State Dover, DE1:00 pm
11/17/2012Morgan State Baltimore, MD1:00 pm

COURTESY HAMPTON UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

FVSU to compete in NCAA DII Championship

FORT VALLEY, Georgia -- After a grueling season of competition, the Fort Valley State University (FVSU) Track & Field Program has a total of five (5) female student-athletes who will compete for national championships. When the 2012 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championship gets underway on May 24-26th in Pueblo, CO, the Lady Wildcats will be contending for titles in the 4x100 meters relay; the 100 and 200 meter dashes; and the triple jump. This year's championship will be held at the Neta & Eddie DeRose Thunderbowl on the campus of Colorado State at Pueblo.

Junior Portia Wilson will be vying for three national titles at this year's Championship. The former Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) Female Track Athlete of the Year will compete in the 100 and 200 meter dashes. During the course of the season Wilson posted qualifying times of 11.69 in the 100 meter event and 24.18 in the 200 meter dash.

Wilson will join teammates Victoria Ingram (JR); Shakeyla Faulk (FR); and Shankevia Burke (JR) in the 4-x100 meter relay event. The Lady Wildcats posted their best time of 46.32 in season competition. In what's expected to be a very competitive field, FVSU will have to shave almost two seconds off of its best time to beat last year's championship winning time of 44.7 posted by Lincoln University.

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Missing track and field nationals doesn't dampen season for Paine athletes

AUGUSTA, Georgia -- Ever since the conclusion of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championships, Victoria Claytor, Baiesha Johnson and Mason Rhodes have been been putting in extra work.

The Paine College track trio continued to hone their skills in preparation for the national tournament. Yet when the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships begin Thursday in Pueblo, Colo., Claytor, Johnson and Rhodes won’t be there.

The Paine athletes all provisionally qualified for nationals during the season, making themselves eligible for selection to the event. But days ago, they learned they were not among the top participants chosen to compete at the national meet.

“They know they did their best,” Paine track coach Latasha Clark said. “They’re still national qualifiers. They’re champions.”

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