Alabama A&M after Southern harmony

By REGGIE BENSON, Times Sports Staff

'Dogs hope second trip to Louisiana more fruitful

Alabama A&M failed miserably in its first big test of the season. On Saturday, the Bulldogs hope to pass their second one.

They will travel to Baton Rouge, La., to take on Southern in a big Southwestern Athletic Conference game at Mumford Stadium. Kickoff is at 5:30 p.m.

The Jaguars, coming off back-to-back losing seasons for the first time in Pete Richardson's tenure, have been the class of the conference so far. Southern is 5-0 overall and 3-0 in league play following Saturday's 21-2 thumping of previously unbeaten Alabama State.

"They're playing the best football in the conference right now," A&M coach Anthony Jones said Sunday. "They're the only undefeated team left. When Pete has them playing this way, they're hard to handle.

"Then, you've got to do it on the road in front of their crowd and their fans. It's their homecoming and I guarantee you they'll have close to 40,000 there."

A&M failed to show up just over a week ago in its first trip to Louisiana. Grambling whipped the Bulldogs 31-6, limiting A&M's potent offense to a pair of Jeremy Licea field goals and only 147 total yards.

However, quarterback Kelcy Luke and company got back on track Saturday as the Bulldogs whipped Texas Southern 48-24. A&M rolled up 514 yards in total offense, including 308 on the ground, to take out the Tigers.

The Bulldogs scored on four of their first five possessions and topped the 40-point mark for the fourth time in five games.

"I liked our focus when we came out and the energy that we had," Jones said.

It'll take that same kind of focus and energy, Jones said, if A&M is going to come away with a win over a Southern team that is playing as well as it has since winning the SWAC and the black college national championship in 2003.

"Coach Richardson has them playing great football right now," Jones said. "He is the dean of this conference for a reason. He's been here the longest for a reason and it's very, very evident this year why he has the record he's had over the years.

"He's going to have his team ready to play. I've got to do the same thing."

That wasn't the case against Grambling, but Jones predicted his team would be ready to play this time around.

"I think our guys will be up for this game," he said. "We're not going down there just to be going down there."