Will Coach Moton fly from NCCU Eagleland?

North Carolina Central University athletics director Ingrid Wicker-McCree, Ed.D., has been one of the driving forces behind the Eagles reclassification to NCAA Division I and membership in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. The well-respected Wicker-McCree is a member of the NCCU Eagles Athletic Hall of Fame.

When LaVelle Moton was announced as N.C. Central's men's basketball coach in March 2009, it was his dream come true. The NCCU alumnus and third all-time leading scorer (1,714 points) had come full circle from NCCU, where he graduated in 1996; then overseas to play professional ball; back to Raleigh to coach at West Millbrook Middle before moving on to Sanderson High, where he led the Spartans to two straight Cap 7 tournament championships; and then back to the Eagles in 2007 as an assistant.

Now, just over a year after taking the head job, the honeymoon may be over. At press time, Moton was mulling over an offer from Xavier (Ohio) University to join the Musketeers coaching staff as an assistant. Six months ago, the mere thought of Moton leaving his beloved Eagles was as improbable as another gulf oil spill. But in the year since his hire, sources say his relationship with NCCU has been likened to dating a pretty woman. At first she looks good, talks good, even smells good, but the longer you get to know her, the uglier she gets. (And vice versa with men, of course).



LaVelle Moton, Men's Basketball Coach for NC Central University, speaks at the NC Center for After school Program...

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Ingrid Wicker-McCree named NCCU Athletic Director

Photo: North Carolina Central University athletic director, Ingrid Wicker-McCree.

It turned out to be something entirely different when N.C. Central on Wednesday announced that Ingrid Wicker-McCree, 41, had been hired from a large pool of candidates as the school's athletic director, a job she had held on an interim basis for five months.

In landing the job, Wicker-McCree qualifies as a rarity in college athletics. Less than 2 percent of the NCAA's 300-plus Division I schools have female African-American ADs, which in part explains her surprise when the school made the decision.

"It was a big surprise, but it was a big, pleasant surprise," she said. "I don't know who all of the candidates were, but I do know there were a lot of very good ones."

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