SIAC commissioner: HBCUs left out of college sports talk

MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA -- Gregory Moore felt compelled at Monday's SIAC Media Day in Montgomery to address what he feels is an alarming problem.

The league commissioner said historically black colleges and universities haven't been a part of the discussions regarding hot-button issues in intercollegiate athletics that could impact HBCUs.

"I believe the gap between the have and have nots is growing to the point where it's becoming alarming," Moore said. "When you have the average payout at a Power 5 conference school exceeds the top line revenue of all the HBCU conferences combined, that's a problem," Moore said. "That should be discussed. No one is talking about it."

Bernard Franklin, NCAA executive vice president and chief inclusion officer, hosted a meeting Moore attended last week in Atlanta with several presidents, chancellors at conference commissioners of HBCU schools.

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Report: JSU expects to hire Leon Seals as DL coach

JACKSON, Mississippi ;-- Former Jackson State defensive lineman Leon Seals might return to his alma mater.

Footballscoop.com reported Monday that Seals will be the new defensive line coach. A source told The Clarion-Ledger Seals interviewed for the position but nothing was confirmed as of Monday evening.

At last Friday's SWAC media day, Tigers coach Harold Jackson said he already had in mind who he wanted to hire and hoped to have it done by Tuesday.

Seals was selected by the Buffalo Bills in the fourth round of the 1987 NFL draft. He earned All-SWAC honors in 1985 and 1986, when JSU finished 8-3, 6-1 SWAC and 9-3, 7-0, respectively.

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Tuskegee hopes to play for SIAC title at Cramton Bowl

MONTGOMERY, Alabama -- The Golden Tigers missed out on playing in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title game, but earned a spot in the NCAA Division II playoffs for the first time in school history.

"We lost the Miles game and from that point on, everything was over," Tuskegee senior receiver Larry Cobb said. "It was completely done. Then we found out we made the playoffs. We were ecstatic. We got another chance, another opportunity to go out and play."

Looking to make amends, Tuskegee enters this season as favorites to win the SIAC West and play in the Nov. 15 conference championship game as a result of voting by the league's 12 head coaches.

Defending conference champion ...

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SIAC championship game moving to Montgomery in 2014 from Atlanta

ATLANTA, Georgia – In addition to holding its 2014 Football Media Day in Montgomery, Ala., the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference will host its football championship at the Cramton Bowl.

The SIAC formally made the announcement during its football media day and is slated to hold the championship game at the Cramton Bowl for the next three seasons starting in 2014.

"The SIAC football championship game has grown significantly over the years and Montgomery is great fit for our postseason atmosphere. The Cramton Bowl is a spectacular venue as it has held some legendary  games in college football," said SIAC Commissioner Gregory Moore. "We want to thank the City of Montgomery, Mayor Todd Strange, The Central Alabama Sports Commission and Convention & Visitor Bureau, as well as the Chamber of Commerce for embracing and assisting our transition to such a historic venue."

The decision to move the championship was unanimously approved by the SIAC President's Council. It relocates after spending its first three years in Atlanta. The inaugural game was played at Panther Stadium on the campus of Clark Atlanta University in 2011 before moving to Lakewood Stadium the last two seasons.

SIAC President's Council Chair Dr. George T. French added, "It is both exciting and appropriate that the SIAC championship game is relocating to a venue in Alabama which holds such rich history and tradition, very much like the HBCU's represented by the teams that will be playing there."

Cramton Bowl is a 25,000-seat stadium located in Montgomery, Alabama. It opened in 1922 has been home to Major League Baseball spring training, the Turkey Day Classic, 20 games for the University of Alabama, and several high school football games. In June 2014, a new synthetic turf field was installed. Starting in December 2014, the Cramton Bowl will be the location for the Camellia Bowl featuring teams from the Sun Belt Conference and Mid-American Conference.

"We are proud to welcome the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Football Championship Game to the city named by USA as the Best Historic City in the U.S., Montgomery, Alabama," said Mayor Todd Strange. "The Central Alabama Sports Commission and Convention & Visitor Bureau are working hard to insure that the next three championship games at the world class Cramton Bowl and Multiplex are the best and most memorable SIAC history."

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Alabama State, other SWAC football teams get no free pass, must improve APR, commissioner says

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama - Southwestern Athletic Conference Commissioner Duer Sharp said during Football Media Day last week that conference schools have not been given a free pass when it comes to making progress on theirAcademic Progress Rates.

"It's time," Sharp said at the Birmingham Marriott. "It's been long enough that SWAC's been front page as far as APR and it's time that we step up and do something about it."

The APR is billed as a real-time measurement for all teams and is based on a points-system that rewards athletes for staying academically eligible and staying in school.

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TSU Tigers Picked Third at OVC Media Day

NASHVILLE, Tennessee -- The Tennessee State football team was picked to finish third and six Tigers were named to the All-Preseason Team announced at the Ohio Valley Conference Media Day, Monday.

Big Blue garnered four first-place votes and 107 total points, which trailed only Jacksonville State (118), who TSU beat 31-15 on the road in 2012, and Eastern Illinois (108). All three teams made it past the First Round of the FCS Playoff a season ago.

Tennessee State has improved its win total in each of Rod Reed's first four seasons, reaching 10 overall wins and a second-place finish in the conference. The team was 6-2 in OVC play and earned an at-large bid to the FCS Playoffs, shutting out Butler 31-0 in the first round to snap the OVC's 19-game postseason losing streak.

Now in his fifth season as head coach Reed returns 58 players from last year's team including six offensive and six defensive starters. The defense should once again be solid after ranking sixth nationally in total defense (296.9 yards/game) and scoring defense (18.1 points/game) and ninth nationally in turnovers gained (31) last season.

That defensive unit is led by reigning OVC Defensive Player of the Year Anthony Bass who was also tabbed this year's Preseason Defensive Player of the Year; in 2013 Bass had 34 tackles, 14.5 tackles-for-loss, 10.0 sacks, four pass breakups, six quarterback hurries, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, a blocked kick and a safety.

Also back is senior defensive back Daniel Fitzpatrick who was named the National Defensive Back of the Year by the FCS ADA a season ago. Fitzpatrick led all Division I players (FBS or FCS) with eight interceptions as a junior and is on the Preseason Buck Buchanan Award Watch List.

Middle linebacker Nick Thrasher returns for his senior season after amassing 110 tackles, the most for TSU since 2002. Thrasher now has 230 career tackles which puts him sixth in the school record books, and just 16 away from cracking the top-five.

The other defensive player to be named to the All-Preseason Team was cornerback De’Ante Saunders. Saunders was named to the OVC All-Newcomer Team following a year in which he intercepted four passes and even ran one back for a touchdown at UT Martin. The junior also made 39 tackles and broke-up a team-high nine passes.   

The offense will be led by senior quarterback Michael German who missed the beginning of last season but worked his way back in the lineup before the end of the season. In seven games German completed 60 percent of his passes for 1,168 yards and 13 touchdowns without throwing an interception.

Blocking for German will be fellow All-Preseason Team nominee, Robert Myers. Last season, Myers helped block for Tim Broughton who rushed for 1,146 yards (25th-most nationally) and six touchdowns. He also protected a quarterback duo that combined for 26 passes touchdowns and only four interceptions.

The Tigers will report for fall camp on Aug. 3 in preparation of the John Merritt Classic on Aug. 30.

2014 OVC Preseason Football Predicted Order of Finish
1. Jacksonville State (10 first-place votes) - 118 points
2. Eastern Illinois (4) - 110
3. Tennessee State (4) - 107
4. Eastern Kentucky - 82
5. UT Martin - 79
6. Murray State - 54
7. Tennessee Tech - 48
8. Southeast Missouri - 34
9. Austin Peay - 16

Note: 8 points awarded for a first-place vote, 7 for second, etc. - Coaches and SID's could not vote for their own teams

2014 Preseason All-OVC Football Team
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year: DaMarcus James (RB), Jacksonville State
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year: Anthony Bass (DL), Tennessee State

OFFENSE
QB - Michael German, Tennessee State
QB - Eli Jenkins, Jacksonville State                     
RB - DaMarcus James, Jacksonville State
RB - Shepard Little, Eastern Illinois
WR - Adam Drake, Eastern Illinois
WR - Josh Barge, Jacksonville State
WR - Paul McRoberts, Southeast Missouri            
TE - Jeff LePak, Eastern Illinois
C - Max Holcombe, Jacksonville State
OG - Collin Seibert, Eastern Illinois
OG - Blake Burks, Jacksonville State
OT - Charles Sweeton, UT Martin
OT - Robert Myers, Tennessee State
 
DEFENSE
DL - Anthony Bass, Tennessee State
DL - Dino Fanti, Eastern Illinois                                           
DL - Caleb Lawrence, Jacksonville State
DL - Chris Landrum, Jacksonville State                                
LB - Nick Thrasher, Tennessee State                                                   
LB - Tony Bell, UT Martin                                                    
LB - Robert Haynes, Eastern Illinois
LB - Tra'Darius Goff, Tennessee Tech
DB - Daniel Fitzpatrick, Tennessee State
DB - Jourdan Wickliffe, Eastern Illinois                                
DB - Marty Jones, Tennessee Tech                                                    
DB - De'Ante Saunders, Tennessee State             
 
SPECIALISTS
K - Andrew Lloyd, Eastern Kentucky                                    
P - Hamish MacInnes, Jacksonville State                             
RS - Shepard Little, Eastern Illinois

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Chicago State Track and Field Adds Three for 2014-15

CHICAGO, Illinois -- The Chicago State University track and field program has made three additions for the 2014-15 campaign. TaQuoya Jones (Calumet Park, Ill./Dunbar High School (Fla.)) and Ashlynn Terry (Detroit, Mich./Renaissance High School) have joined the women's team. Local product Landis Houston (Chicago, Ill./De La Salle Institute) has agreed to join the Chicago State men's track and field team.
 
Jones earned 11 total varsity letters, including four in track and field at Dunbar High School in Fort Myers, Fla. She was a three-time all-area first team selection. As a junior and senior she was the Lee County Conference Champion in the 100 and 200 meters. As a senior she also took home the long jump and 4x100 meter relay titles. She was named MVP and earned district champion honors in the 100 meters, 4x100 relay and the long jump the same year. She was also a regional champion in the 100 meters. As a senior, her squad won the regional championship.
 
"TaQuoya is an exceptional student-athlete and is dedicated to getting positive results," Chicago State head coach Craig Collins said. "Her work ethic and concentration on self improvement is what I was looking for to push our young, but very talented team. I'm positive there will be a lot of school records with Jones' name attached in the near future."
 
Terry recorded her best times as a senior when she ran a 25.60 in the 200 meters and 58.00 in the 400 meters. As a junior she was part of the state 4x200 relay champion as well as taking fourth in the city in the 100 meters. Renaissance High School won the state championship her junior year. Academically, she was a four-year member of the honor roll. She ran for the Detroit Cheetah Track Club, setting records for the 100, 200 and 400 meters.
 
"Ashlynn is quite accomplished academically as well as athletically and knows what it takes to win," Collins said. "She will fit in perfectly with our young team. She has great range as a sprinter and brings to us the tough Detroit 'get the job done' mentality. We are very pleased that Ashlynn is a CSU Cougar and expect great things ahead."
 
Houston recorded his best triple jump performance as a senior when he earned a mark of 44'8". As a sophomore he helped his team win the sectional championship. Academically, he was a member of the honor roll, the National Honor Society and the National Society of High School Scholars. He ran for one season with the Saints Track Club.
 
"I am very pleased to welcome Landis to our Chicago State family," Collins said. "Landis has loads of potential in which he is still learning his events as a hurdler and horizontal jumper. He's an excellent student and his strength and his natural athletic ability is what stands out. I'm positive that in a short period of time Landis will show his ability and represent CSU and the Chicago track and field community well."
 
The Cougars open the 2014-15 season, their second in the Western Athletic Conference, in December.

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