Back to work for the North Carolina A&T Aggies‎

GREENSBORO, N.C. — He is N.C. A&T’s most decorated returning football player, the kind of guy any coach would eagerly build his defense around. And yet, Justin Ferrell stood on the lush, manicured grass of Aggie Stadium on Tuesday morning and pointed out his own flaws. Drenched in sweat from A&T’s first football practice under the August sun, Ferrell vowed to be better.

“I really looked forward to this practice because my last two years, as a freshman and sophomore, I really didn’t show the passion I should have,” Ferrell said. “I didn’t show the intensity in practice I should have to get better, to take heed to what the coaches are putting forth to make us better in life and on the field.” This from a first-team All-MEAC defensive back. This from a player who volunteered to move from cornerback to safety last season to help his team. This from the guy who led the league with six interceptions last season.

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• Gallery:Photos from the first day of practice
• Html:N.C. A&T football: Official site

N.C. A&T scrimmage a real hit parade

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Alonzo Lee made his reputation as a defensive coordinator long before N.C. A&T hired him as its head coach last year. So it should come as no surprise the Aggies' first-team offense couldn't score a touchdown against the second-team defense at the Blue vs. Gold spring game Saturday afternoon at Aggie Stadium. And the first-team defense? It shut out the second-team offense, thanks to Marquis Sutton's interception in the end zone with 35 seconds left.

Patrick Courtney kicked 32- and 37-yard field goals to lead the first-team Blue to a 6-0 victory over the Gold in an intrasquad scrimmage that featured more tackles for losses (15) than completed passes (11). Scrimmage or not, a lot of those tackles were of the pad-popping variety. "We're going to fight defensively. That's my bread and butter," Lee said. "I don't believe in tacklers; I believe in hitters. If you're banging that (running) back, by the fourth quarter he's starting to tip. If you're just tackling him, he's still going to be running his butt off in the fourth quarter."

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North Carolina A&T Aggies win A&T Invitational

GREENSBORO, N.C. – All the positive attributes people have come to associate with North Carolina A&T softball were on display during the three-day N.C. A&T Softball Invitational played at the Lady Aggies Softball Complex. Lillian Bullock hit for power. Yahamma White showcased her tremendous speed by constantly getting on base. Ryanne Hill produced runs, and pitchers Jennifer Luper and Sahsa Philpot were dominant. Throw in what was a career-best weekend for senior Bianca Alsobrook, and the start of the 2010 season has to be considered a success.

It all culminated in the Aggies 12-3 win over Appalachian State in the championship game of the invitational Sunday afternoon. After losing to the Mountaineers 3-0 on Friday, the Aggies (4-1) won four straight games to win the title. Senior Channing Statham, Alsobrook and Bullock had three RBIs apiece for the Aggies. Bullock hit her 30th career home run in the fourth, and White added three hits and scored a run. Junior Jennifer Luper earned the win on the mound by striking out six over six innings to improve to 2-1 on the season.

Alsobrook hit an impressive .571 (8-for-14) for the tournament with two doubles and four RBIs to earn all-tournament honors. White was also an all-tournament selection after securing eight hits and scoring six times over five games. Philpot was the only other all-tournament selection for N.C. A&T. Philpot went 2-0 and did not give up a run over 10 innings pitched in the tournament.

BOX SCORE vs. APPALACHIAN STATE

All Tournament Team
Inde Whitehurst, UMES
Jade Dudley, CSU
Sasha Philpot, A&T
Katie Boyd, ASU
Caitlin Wainright, ASU
Yahamma White, A&T
McKenzie Phillips, ASU
Travonna Byrd, HAM
Bianca Alsobrook, A&T

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New A&T coach Lee likes first recruits

GREENSBORO, N.C. - Alonzo Lee seemed more relaxed Thursday than when he first took over three weeks ago as N.C. A&T's new football coach. Gone was the urgency and anxiousness to beat the bushes for bodies. Lee seemed more at ease - at times ecstatic - with the 22 players the Aggies signed on Wednesday, the first day high school and junior college players could sign national letters of intent.

"It's a very deep, very talented class for us - even more so when you think about the time we had to get everything together," said Lee.Lee, who promised to tap into the Triad's football market when he was introduced last month, made good on that promise. He signed five players from Guilford County, including all-state players Ricky Lewis and Chris Neal from Dudley. Besides filling some obvious holes, Lee believes the Aggies sent a message to football players and coaches throughout Guilford County.

Click Here to view NCA&T 2009 Recruiting List

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Morgan State's Lee gets A&T job

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- N.C. A&T has a new head football coach. Morgan State defensive coordinator Alonzo Lee accepted the job Thursday, according to several university sources with knowledge of the search process. Athletics director Wheeler Brown said Thursday night he had extended an offer to one of the two remaining candidates -- Lee or interim coach George Ragsdale -- earlier in the day and that the candidate had accepted.

Brown said he would not identify the new coach until "personnel issues" -- presumably Ragsdale's fate -- were resolved. The announcement of Lee's hiring could come as early as today, Brown said. "I'm excited about our new coach and getting back to football," the AD said. "It's been a long process, but it's been worth it. I believe we've come out of this process with the best coach for A&T." Reached at home in Washington (D.C.) earlier in the day, Lee declined to say whether he had been hired.

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Ax falls on another Aggie coach

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- In the end, it was about confidence. No matter how hard N.C. A&T coach Lee Fobbs tried to restore the confidence of those around him -- his football players, his assistant coaches, the athletics department and fans -- the damage done by under performing players and all those losses was simply too much to repair.

















Finally, N.C. A&T athletic director Wheeler Brown makes the right decision to send Lee Fobbs packing with his 2-28 career record and with $200,000 remaining on his contract to be paid.

That, more than anything else, was the reason A&T athletics director Wheeler Brown offered for firing Fobbs on Monday after just 21/2 seasons as the Aggies' head coach. Fobbs' dismissal took effect immediately. Minutes after informing Fobbs he was being let go, Brown met with assistant coach George Ragsdale and named the former Aggies running back interim head coach for the remaining four games.

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Fobbs out, Ragsdale in at A&T

Lee Fobbs is out as N.C. A&T’s football coach.

A&T Athletics Director Wheeler Brown made the announcement today, bringing to an end Fobbs’ run with the Aggies after a 2-28 stint. Brown named George Ragsdale interim coach for the remainder of the season. "We feel like this is the best decision for the program at this time,'' Brown said Brown. "I certainly want to thank Lee for all his efforts over the last 2 1/2 years, and I want to wish him well in all his future endeavors. The program just needs a new direction."

The Aggies, who had lost five straight games when Fobbs took over in 2006, lost another 22 before ending the skid Aug. 30 against Johnson C. Smith. A&T beat rival Winston-Salem State the next week, then lost the next six. Fobbs, who took over the Aggies program, was previously running backs coach at Texas A&M. He played collegiately at Grambling State under legendary coach Eddie Robinson.

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N.C. A&T eager for some home cookin'

COASTAL CAROLINA AT N.C. A&T
When: 6 p.m. Saturday
Where: Aggie Stadium, Greensboro
Records: Coastal Carolina 2-2; N.C. A&T 2-2

GREENSBORO, N.C. — The N.C. A&T Aggies play host to Coastal Carolina on Saturday, which is nice for reasons beyond the totally obvious: It means they won't be going to Tidewater Virginia for the third straight week. An odd scheduling quirk sent A&T to Norfolk State on Sept. 13 and Hampton last week, and the Aggies made the five-hour drive back home with a pair of losses. It is the mirror image of scheduling in 2005, when the teams came to Aggie Stadium.

"It's like following your own footsteps back up there," coach Lee Fobbs said this week. "Hopefully, in the future, we can correct that. Is that the reason we lost? Probably not. At least (change) would give us some peace of mind." So how does this happen? Imperfections are almost certain when the process is complicated by two otherwise welcomed trends, expansion and television.

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