PINE BLUFF, Arkansas -- Not much has been written about Arkansas-Pine Bluff, but the Golden Lions (6-2 overall, 5-1 in SWAC) have quietly put together a great season.
UAPB is on top of the league’s Western Division, and its only losses are to Alabama A&M and Tennessee State, two of the nation’s top black college football teams.
UAPB head coach Monte Coleman has succeeded with great defense and a solid running game. Coleman has some of the best defensive players not only in the SWAC, but in the FCS. The linebacker corps has been tremendous, led by Bill Ross (85 total tackles, 44 solos), Jer-ryan Harris (68 total tackles, 33 solo) and Xavier Lofton (65 total tackles, 38 solo). They all do a great job of swarming to the football, and it’s hard to move the ball against them. The Golden Lions don’t give up many big plays and are just fundamentally sound.
Of course, it all starts up front. Defensive end Brandon Thurmond leads the SWAC with 10.5 sacks. Thurmond, a 6-foot-2, 260-pound senior, is one of the best pass-rushers in the country. In fact, Thurmond and Ross are solid NFL prospects. Ross, a 6-2, 240-pound senior, leads the conference in tackles.
Offensively, the Golden Lions have a reliable running back in Justin Billings. Billings, who has good quickness and can turn the corner, has 76 carries for 406 yards and three touchdowns. He had 18 carries for 82 yards and one touchdown in UAPB’s 10-0 victory over Mississippi Valley State.
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