Southern University to kick off 2010 football season in Orlando

SU to kick off 2010 football season in Orlando

Stump Mitchell’s new office overlooks the playing field at A.W. Mumford Stadium, but his first game as Southern’s new football coach won’t happen there. It’ll be 798 miles away. Mitchell and the Jaguars will kick off their season at Orlando, Fla., in the MEAC-SWAC Challenge — the first of six games on the road in 2010, according to the schedule released by the university Thursday. Athletic Director Greg LaFleur confirmed that Southern had been tabbed as the SWAC’s representative for months. The MEAC hasn’t officially settled on its participant, though LaFleur expects the announcement will come by the end of this month. Attempts to reach Patricia Porter, media relations director for the MEAC, were unsuccessful.

SOUTHERN RELEASES 2010 FOOTBALL SCHEDULE

BATON ROUGE, La. - Nine Southwestern Athletic conference games, six games inside the state and the first meeting with Arkansas-Monticello highlight Southern's 2010 football schedule, which all adds up to what should be another exciting year of Southern Jaguar Football.

Southern will open the 2010 season in the sixth annual MEAC/SWAC Challenge in Orlando, Florida on September 4th. The SWAC earned its first and only MEAC/SWAC Challenge trophy in 2007 when the Southern Jags defeated Florida A&M, 33-27. SU will return home the following week to face the Boll Weevils of Arkansas-Monticello for the first time on September 11th. After the Jags first open week, Southern will then hit the road for Huntsville, Alabama to take on Alabama A&M on September 25th. The Bulldogs are back on the SU Jags schedule after a two-year hiatus.

Southern University 2010 Football Schedule

Sept. 4 SWAC/MEAC Challenge Orlando, Fla. TBA
Sept. 11 Arkansas-Monticello Baton Rouge 6 p.m.
Sept. 25 at Alabama A&M Huntsville, Ala. TBA
Oct. 2 Arkansas-Pine Bluff Baton Rouge 6 p.m.
Oct. 9 Mississippi Valley St. Baton Rouge 6 p.m.
Oct. 16 at Jackson State Jackson, Miss. TBA
Oct. 23 at Prairie View Houston TBA
Oct. 30 at Alcorn St. Lorman, Miss. TBA
Nov. 6 Texas Southern Baton Rouge 6 p.m.
Nov. 13 Alabama St. Baton Rouge 5:30 p.m.
Nov. 27 x-Grambling St. New Orleans 1 p.m.
Dec. 11 SWAC Championship Birmingham, Ala. TBA

x-Bayou Classic
Note: game times are subject to change

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NOTE TO FANS: Here are some facts to limit Jaguar speculations on the MEAC opponent for the MEAC/SWAC Challenge...

• Florida A&M opens its season on Thursday, Sept. 2 at the University of Miami (Sun Life Stadium) in a $600,000 money game. As much as Rattlers fans would love to steamroll the Jaguars, don't expect the Rattlers to walk away from the big money Miami is offering nor break its pact with Bethune-Cookman. Both agreed in principle to not complete against its own Florida Classic in Orlando's Citrus Bowl, the site of the MEAC/SWAC Challenge. Although attendance fell in 2009, the FAMU vs. Bethune-Cookman, Florida Classic was the highest attended HBCU game of the season with 59,418. Last year Challenge with Grambling State vs. South Carolina State drew only 21,367 to the same Citrus Bowl.
• 2-Time MEAC Champions South Carolina State Bulldogs are scheduled to play a money game with ACC Champions -Georgia Tech on Sept. 4 at Bobby Dodd Stadium, Atlanta. The payout for the Bulldogs is $400,000.
• The Hampton Pirates will open their season at Central Michigan on Sept. 2 in another much needed money game in a down economy.
• North Carolina A&T opens their season against arch-rival Winston-Salem State at Aggie Stadium on September 4. The question is will the Aggies forego a home date with a hated rival with a guaranteed 21,000+ Rams/Aggie fans--for a little ESPNU television time? Not likely with the higher costs for travel and lodging.
• Norfolk State is the best candidate for this game. The Spartans finished '09 in 3rd place at 7-4, behind S.C. State and FAMU. The others--Howard (2-9), Morgan State (6-5) and Delaware State (4-7) averaged less than 4,000 fans to home games last season. Delaware State is still in our doghouse for forfeiting a conference game with N.C. A&T last season, to play at Michigan on the same date. They are the very last team I would want representing the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. However, expect the ESPNU brass to select Morgan State--playing off the fact that Southern's new coach Stump Mitchell previously coached at Morgan State (1995-98). In Florida, who cares? Count this as just another Southern "home game" for the JaguarNation with 16,000 -20,000 in attendance to watch the Human Jukebox do their thing.
• Either way-- Norfolk State or Morgan State will steamroll the Jaguars! The Howard Bison are not ready for prime time, although we love the Howard "Showtime" band.

-beepbeep