ETTRICK, VA -- What makes Virginia State University junior Howard Spencer so easy to identify is not the free-flowing mane of dreadlocks that billows out of his football helmet. Nor is it the head-turning speed with which he roams the baselines.
It's his unfailing smile -- an ear-to-ear grin that rarely leaves his visage and has come to define the 21-year-old two-sport athlete. "Everybody always calls me 'Smiley,'" Spencer said. "They say I'm always smiling and they know something is wrong when I'm not."
To be fair, the 2007 Thomas Dale graduate has a lot to smile about. His work ethic and positive approach have become contagious and lifted him into leadership roles on the VSU football and baseball teams.
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Showing posts with label Coach Andrew Faison. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Coach Andrew Faison. Show all posts
Monday, April 25, 2011
Friday, November 26, 2010
VSU: Alfred the Great
ETTRICK, Va. -- Every day after practice, Virginia State Football coach Andrew Faison leaves Rogers Stadium and heads down a winding walkway that takes him past Daniel Gymnasium and in the direction of the James Hugo Johnston Memorial Library.
Along the way, he sometimes pauses to watch intramural football games at a nearby field. He's not necessarily expecting to find anything, but he looks nonetheless. Good thing he does. It was on one of those visits in 2009, albeit after the urging of some of his players, that he first discovered Alfred Ngauja.
Faison liked what he saw enough to offer Ngauja a chance to participate in spring workouts. "Once we got a chance to put the pads on him and see how he fared, he had that 'it' with him," Faison said.
Videographer: UrbanSportsITG (#26 Alfred Ngauja earns MVP for performance in 2010 CIAA Championship game).
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Along the way, he sometimes pauses to watch intramural football games at a nearby field. He's not necessarily expecting to find anything, but he looks nonetheless. Good thing he does. It was on one of those visits in 2009, albeit after the urging of some of his players, that he first discovered Alfred Ngauja.
Faison liked what he saw enough to offer Ngauja a chance to participate in spring workouts. "Once we got a chance to put the pads on him and see how he fared, he had that 'it' with him," Faison said.
Videographer: UrbanSportsITG (#26 Alfred Ngauja earns MVP for performance in 2010 CIAA Championship game).
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Monday, November 15, 2010
Shaw Edges Virginia State 14-7 to Claim CIAA Championship
The Central Interscholastic Athletic Association (CIAA) football championship game was a tale of two stories Saturday, Nov. 14 at Durham County Stadium.
You would think the Shaw University Bears completely toppled the Virginia State University Trojans (VSU) by looking at the box score. Shaw out gained VSU with 412 total yards compared to the Trojans’ 136. Yet Shaw only barely edged the Trojans, 14-7, to claim the CIAA crown.
VSU was able to keep the score tight despite being blasted by Shaw’s potent running game. Bears’ star tailback Raymond Williams was named Shaw's Most Valuable Player after rushing for 117 yards and a touchdown on 33 carries.
Videographer: hbcusportsonline - (Virginia State University Trojan Explosion 11/13/10)
Trojans fall to the Bears
DURHAM, N.C. - Brian Berry had a step on his defender, it seemed, but the ball sailed just beyond his outstretched arms, thus ending the Virginia State University football team's storybook season. The CIAA Northern Division champions lost to Shaw 14-7, winners of the Southern Division, in the conference championship game at Durham County Stadium on Saturday.
The Bears dominated at times, posting a 412-136 advantage in offensive yards, but the Trojans lingered thanks to an ability to play timely defense and propensity to make big plays when they needed them most. In the end, however, Shaw's senior duo of running back Raymond Williams and quarterback Kevin Atkins did enough to secure the Bears' third conference title in four years.
VSU comes up short in title game
DURHAM, N.C. -- The Virginia State Trojans tried to make the most out of the least yesterday in the CIAA football championship game. And it almost worked. But the Trojans were unable to score when they needed a touchdown most and lost to Shaw University 14-7 in Durham County Stadium.
Shaw will find out today if it advances to the Division II playoffs. The Trojans' postseason hopes rest with the chance of an invitation to the Pioneer Bowl in Columbus, Ga.
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Videographer: hbcusportsonline
You would think the Shaw University Bears completely toppled the Virginia State University Trojans (VSU) by looking at the box score. Shaw out gained VSU with 412 total yards compared to the Trojans’ 136. Yet Shaw only barely edged the Trojans, 14-7, to claim the CIAA crown.
VSU was able to keep the score tight despite being blasted by Shaw’s potent running game. Bears’ star tailback Raymond Williams was named Shaw's Most Valuable Player after rushing for 117 yards and a touchdown on 33 carries.
Videographer: hbcusportsonline - (Virginia State University Trojan Explosion 11/13/10)
Trojans fall to the Bears
DURHAM, N.C. - Brian Berry had a step on his defender, it seemed, but the ball sailed just beyond his outstretched arms, thus ending the Virginia State University football team's storybook season. The CIAA Northern Division champions lost to Shaw 14-7, winners of the Southern Division, in the conference championship game at Durham County Stadium on Saturday.
The Bears dominated at times, posting a 412-136 advantage in offensive yards, but the Trojans lingered thanks to an ability to play timely defense and propensity to make big plays when they needed them most. In the end, however, Shaw's senior duo of running back Raymond Williams and quarterback Kevin Atkins did enough to secure the Bears' third conference title in four years.
VSU comes up short in title game
DURHAM, N.C. -- The Virginia State Trojans tried to make the most out of the least yesterday in the CIAA football championship game. And it almost worked. But the Trojans were unable to score when they needed a touchdown most and lost to Shaw University 14-7 in Durham County Stadium.
Shaw will find out today if it advances to the Division II playoffs. The Trojans' postseason hopes rest with the chance of an invitation to the Pioneer Bowl in Columbus, Ga.
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Videographer: hbcusportsonline
Sunday, August 29, 2010
VSU rolls but still sees room for improvement
ETTRICK, VA - Virginia State picked up where it left off last season, playing strong at both ends of the field, but it still wasn't enough to satisfy coach Andrew Faison in the Trojans' season opener. "We got the 'W,' that's the main thing," said Faison, after watching his Trojans whip Livingstone 30-6 last night before 2,577 at Rogers Stadium."I thought we had too many personal fouls. We played to the end and then we had a couple of letdowns, special teams-wise. A couple of big third-down plays [by Livingstone]. I'm real disappointed for us because we put the ball on the ground so many times [five fumbles]. "We got down in the red zone and couldn't punch it in." Indeed, as VSU linebacker Jeremy Pruitt put it, "I think we could have won by at least 50 points."
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