SSU boosters: We'll support new athletic director

Photo: Savannah State University new athletic director Bart Bellairs will start on June 1.

'Race doesn't matter'

SSU booster Danny Parrish, a founding member with Alfred Berry of the Atlanta-Downtown Alumni Chapter, one of SSU's largest clubs, is ecstatic that Bellairs was selected from 32 applicants. The Richmond, Ky., native was chosen over Wichita State assistant AD Leonard Clark and NCAA assistant director of championships Keshia Campbell.

"I'm very excited to have him there," Parrish said. "He has the background and experience to build the program to what we need. Everybody wants the same thing: to turn the Savannah State athletic program around and have a successful athletic program. I think he's capable of doing that.

"Race doesn't matter at all. I think diversity is very good. We need to represent the entire Savannah community. I'm glad that we're getting past the color issue." Horace Scandrick, president of the SSU Community Booster Club, agreed with Parrish.

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SSU goes for experience in AD hire

Within seconds of being introduced as Savannah State University's athletic director, Bart Bellairs on Tuesday used words like "gold mine" and "sleeping giant" to describe Savannah's only NCAA Division I school.

He'll no doubt use those terms frequently in his quest to help SSU increase revenue, join a conference and achieve success, both athletically and academically. Bellairs will begin at SSU on June 1.



Bellairs, 51, has spent the past three years as Virginia Military Institute's senior associate athletic director. He was instrumental in tripling revenue during his first two years at the Lexington, Va., school, which competes in the Big South Conference.

Bellairs is the first white AD at SSU, a historically black university that began playing sports in 1915. His hiring comes five months after SSU hired its first white football head coach, 39-year-old Robby Wells.

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SSU down to three AD finalists

Savannah State University has narrowed its search for an athletic director to three finalists, all of whom are scheduled to visit campus early next week. SSU's finalists are:

Bart Bellairs, Virginia Military Institute assistant AD for operations and marketing, who will visit Monday.

Keshia Campbell, NCAA assistant director of championships, who will visit Tuesday.

Leonard Clark, Wichita State assistant AD for corporate relations, who will visit Wednesday.

SSU vice president for administration Claud Flythe, who oversees the athletic department, said he hopes to reach a decision by May 9 and announce a hire May 10.

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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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SSU's Edwards, Osborne lead Orange in SSU's spring game

Running back Antwan Edwards and wide receiver Isaiah Osborne were the stars for the Orange team, which wore white jerseys, in Savannah State's football spring game Saturday. Linebacker Calvin Leonard and defensive back Jamar Graham were standouts for the Blue team.

A Memorial Stadium crowd of 389, including two handfuls of signees, watched the Orange's 18-6 victory over the Blue end four weeks of spring practice. Edwards ran 15times for 122 yards, and Osborne made 13 catches for 123 yards and a touchdown.

Video Report - Click link:
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Second scrimmage in the books for SSU

Photo: #22 Running Back Antwan Edwards.

Mother Nature dumped a different element - rain - on Savannah State's football team Saturday morning. But wet conditions were a delight to SSU first-year head coach Robby Wells, whose Tigers conducted their second scrimmage of spring practice at 10 a.m.

Although it was a pleasant 72 degrees, handling a wet football and maintaining footing presented challenges similar to those SSU faced for three weeks at 5:30 a.m. practices when it was 35 degrees.

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NCCU Football announces the addition of two coaches

Cabell Named Defensive Coordinator, Gladden Tagged Running Backs Coach

DURHAM, N.C. - North Carolina Central University head football coach Mose Rison has announced the addition of two coaches to the Eagles staff, defensive coordinator Jake Cabell and running backs coach Marcus Gladden.

"We are fortunate to have both of them as part of this football program," Rison said. "They coach with a great deal of enthusiasm and energy."

Cabell, a veteran defensive coach who played for and graduated from the University of Nebraska, will serve as NCCU's new defensive coordinator.

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SSU conducts first scrimmage of spring practice

Photo: SSU Tigers have won three games in two years playing Division I-AA, Division II and NAIA competition. The Tigers defeated the Golden Bulls, Johnson C. Smith University (D-II) 24-10 on Sept 7, for their only victory in 2007.

Running backs Edwards, Curry and Babb run for touchdowns.

The performances of Savannah State's running backs and offensive linemen highlighted the Tigers' first scrimmage of spring practice Saturday morning.

Antwan Edwards, Rashad Curry and Justin Babb each ran for touchdowns behind an offensive line that was proficient with the Tigers' zone-blocking scheme.

There was not a final score or a winning team among the blue and white squads (the quarterbacks wore orange jerseys). There was not a roster and no statistics were recorded. SSU coaches used the scrimmage to evaluate performances and develop techniques.

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Savannah State announces 2008 football schedule

Savannah State on Friday released its 2008 football schedule featuring 12 games - the most since 2003.

The Tigers will play four home games - two on campus at T.A. Wright Stadium and two at Memorial Stadium. They will play three opponents - Jacksonville, Concordia and Webber International - for the first time.

SSU, which moved to NCAA Division I from Division II in 2002, competes in the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) in football. Since the move, the Tigers have not been affiliated with a conference, forcing them to scramble to find opponents.

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SSU FOOTBALL 2008 SCHEDULE

Date Opponent Location Time

Aug. 30 JACKSONVILLE Memorial Stadium TBA
Sept. 6 LIVINGSTONE T.A. Wright Stadium TBA
Sept. 13 Winston-Salem St. W.-Salem, N.C. 6 p.m.
Sept. 20 Bethune-Cookman TBA TBA
Sept. 27 *Howard Miami, Fla. TBA
Oct. 4 Clark-Atlanta Atlanta 1:30 p.m.
Oct. 11 CHARLESTON SOUTHERN Memorial Stadium TBA
Oct. 18 Mississippi Valley St. Itta Bena, Miss. TBA
Nov. 1 #CONCORDIA T.A. Wright Stadium TBA
Nov. 8 Edward Waters Kingsland TBA
Nov. 15 Webber International Babson Park, Fla. TBA
Nov. 22 N.C. Central Durham, N.C. 1 p.m.

HOME GAMES INCAPS *Miami Classic #Homecoming

Cold weather challenges SSU quarterbacks

JaCorey Kilcrease and Brandon Webster also learning a new offense. Welcome to winter, uh, spring football practice at Savannah State. It was 35 degrees when the Tigers began drills at 5:30 a.m. Tuesday under the lights at T.A. Wright Stadium. It was their fifth practice since opening camp March 18.

"This is good for these kids," SSU first-year head coach Robby Wells said. "When you think spring practice, you don't think about 35 degrees. But my thing is I want to make it as tough on them in practice as possible so that when we get to the game it will be a little bit easier for them."

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SSU Tigers add five to 2008 football recruiting class

SAVANNAH, Ga - The Savannah State football staff has announced additions to the recruiting class for 2008. The Tigers have picked up commitments from five players incluiding three from College of the Sequoias in California.

Inking grank-in-aids to play at Savannah State were Pasa Mohetau (6-4, 330), Sangatua Lelea (6-3, 295), Jackie Crankfield (6-3, 285), Todd Bowden (6-3, 305) and running back Kendall Blackshear (5-9, 195) from Kempner High School in Sugar Land, Texas.

Mohetau, Lelea and Crankfield are junior college transfers while Bowden originaly signed with Norfolk State in high school but never played with the Spartans. These signees increase new coach Robby Wells first recruiting class to 33 players.

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SSU's Wells conducts first football practice

Photo: Savannah State University head football coach Robby Wells.

Tuesday morning lights.

It's not the sequel to the movie "Friday Night Lights." It's what Savannah State's football team was practicing under at 5:30 a.m. at T.A. Wright Stadium.

The Tigers had their first spring practice and conducted a variety of drills for first-year head coach Robby Wells and his six assistants until 7:30 a.m.

For the next four weeks, SSU will conduct 11 practices from 5:30-7:30 a.m. The Tigers will have one afternoon practice and two late-morning scrimmages before wrapping up with an afternoon spring game April 12.

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For North Carolina Central University, Division I humbling, rewarding

Eagles crash-land often in first year at top NCAA level, but the money is good

DURHAM, N.C. - Imagine being an athletic competitor -- someone who has been taught all your life to play to win. Now imagine being an athletic competitor and knowing you have virtually no chance. For members of N.C. Central's men's basketball team, imagining is unnecessary. In their first season at the highest level of college basketball, losing has been their almost certain fate. Only one team out of 341 in Division I has fewer wins than Central, whose record went to 3-23 with a win against Chowan on Saturday.

Losing is hard on the players, dispiriting for the fans, but oddly profitable for Central. As a newly minted D-I school, Central is a team big-time basketball schools are eager to play -- and pay -- for another notch in their win column. In NCAA circles, these are "guarantee games," in which a team agrees to visit for a price and makes no demand for a return match at its home arena.

Records show that NCCU has received $434,500 so far, the combined take from 21 road games -- including 17 guarantee games. Every guarantee game was a loss. Central has fewer home games this season than any team except Presbyterian College. Of Central's first 16 games, 15 were on the road.

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Great Story! The Eagles will prevail in the end and the move to Division I will be proven the right move to make. However, the athletic director need to ease back on the guarantee games in 2008/09 and give the team a competitive chance of getting a .500 record. Money is important to sustain the program, but it is also very important to the players and for recruitment to show competitive progress. There is no shame for NCCU, as none of the current Division I HBCUs could defeat Duke, Florida or Nebraska at their home arena or neutral site for that matter.

Central deserves membership in a conference.

The administrators at NCCU should not limit themselves to only the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference but should make overtures to the Big South Conference and the Southern Conference. The MEAC has severe limitations in developing a comprehensive marketing program that generates serious revenue for the conference from television, satellite radio and Internet, with little income being generated for the member institutions. NCCU should consider all options.

-beepbeep

Savannah State drops Longwood in O.T.

FARMVILLE, Va. – Longwood University dropped a disappointing 69-66 men’s basketball decision to visiting Savannah State University Saturday afternoon at Willett Hall in Farmville; a closely-played contest that featured 12 lead-changes and 14 ties. The Lancers (6-21) were led by senior Lamar Barrett/Providence, R.I. (St. Andrews) who matched his career-high with 23 points, adding a season-high 12 rebounds, while the Tigers (11-16) were led by Chris Linton with 14 points. Longwood will play again on Monday, February 11, on the road at Florida Atlantic University of the Sun Belt Conference in Boca Raton, Florida beginning at 7 p.m.

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Savannah State announces Coach Wells first recruiting class

Photo: Savannah State University head football coach Robby Wells

SAVANNAH, Ga.- First year head football coach Robby Wells completed his recruiting class at Savannah State Wednesday with the announcement of 23 National Letter of Intent signees.

The jewels of the class could be athlete Kurvin Curry (6-2, 200) and Deron Talley (6-1, 175). During the 2007 season, Curry passed for 3,000 yards and 30 touchdowns, rushed for 1,575 yards and 15 touchdowns and was voted most valuable player in 2006 and 2007. In 2007, Talley recorded 36 receptions for 626 yards.

Savannah State Tigers 2008 Recruiting Class 2/6/08.

Name Pos. Ht. Wt. High School/Hometown 2007 Stats/Honors

1. Travis Alston DE 6-3 210 Cedar Grove/Ellenwood, Ga. Two-year starter.

2. Jared Brunson OL 6-2 290 Maynard Evans/Orlando, Fla. Graded out at 82% for the season with 48 pancake blocks and 27 knock downs.

3. Chris Bush WR 6-0 185 Bainbridge/Bainbridge, Ga. 52 receptions for 618 yards. 612 kick return yards and 10 touchdowns. 4x100 State Champion.

4. Cedric Chambers WR 6-0 185 Kendrick/Columbus, Ga.

5. Kurvin Curry QB/Ath 6-2 200 Hart County/ Hartwell, Ga. Passed for 3,000 yards with 30 Touchdowns, rushed for 1,575 yards and 15 touchdowns in two years. Team MVP in 2006 and 2007.

6. Jamal Davis OLB 6-3 195 South Aiken/Aiken, S.C. 48 receptions for 680 yards. Region 4-A Player of the Year. 182 tackles and three sacks.

7. Stephen Dorn LB 6-1 200 Apopka/Apopka, Fla. 68 tackles with five TFL along with four sacks and two hurries. One touchdown and one blocked punt.

8. McKeaver Edwards OL 6-2 300 Stephenson/Stone Mountain, Ga. Graded out at 88% with 20 pancake blocks. All Region 5-A. 25 key blocks.

9. Edward Endem OLB 6-0 190 North Clayton/Atlanta, Ga. Two-year starter.

10. Quintez Hayes DL 6-3 260 Thomasville/Thomasville, Ga. 76 tackles, 10 sacks and two pass break-ups.

11. Demetrius Holmes WR 5-11 195 Stockbridge/Stockbridge, Ga.

12. Johnny Howard DT 6-2 255 Dublin/Dublin, Ga. 54 tackles, 37 assists and four sacks. All-State selection and 2006 State Champion.

13. Tametrick Hunt DT 6-0 290 Hart County/Hartwell, Ga. 35 TFL, 15 sacks and team Most Valuable Defensive Lineman.

14. Thelmore Jackson OL 6-6 298 Tri-Cities/Atlanta, Ga. Two-year starter.

15. Timothy Jackson RB 5-7 170 Lovejoy/Hampton, Ga. Three-year starter.

16. Stephan Meyers DL 6-1 275 Camden County/St. Mary’s, Ga.

17. Alex Miller RB 5-11 190 Salem/Conyers, Ga. 183 carries for 1,008 yards and 12 touchdowns. 10 receptions for 145 yards. Team Offensive Player of the Year.

18. Grant Newman OL 6-4 280 Jefferson County/Louisville, Ga. Graded out at 85%. 16 knockdowns.

19. Keenan Ray OL 6-3 290 Lovejoy/Hampton, Ga. Two-year starter.

20. Richie Rucker FS 6-2 185 Hart County/Hartwell, Ga. 58 tackles, five break ups, two forced fumbles and eight interceptions.

21. Deron Talley WR 6-1 175 Orange Park/Orange Park, Fla. 36 receptions for 626 yards.

22. Pat Thomas DB 5-10 180 Mays/Atlanta, Ga. Three-year starter.

23. Anthony Young DB 5-10 170 Gainesville/Gainesville, Ga. Eight interceptions, 35 tackles, 14 assists and five break-ups. Team Most Valuable Defensive Back.

Savannah State head football coach salary released

Photo: Savannah State University head football coach Robby Wells has one year contract to turn program around.

Savannah State University has signed first-year football head coach Robby Wells to a one-year contract with a base salary of $90,000, the school's vice president for administration confirmed Wednesday. "Robby Wells will have a job at Savannah State University as long as I have a job at Savannah State University," Claud Flythe said.

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What's right with this picture?

Coach signed to a ONE year contract at $90,000. SSU football championship subdivision classified football program is given 35 scholarships out of possible 63. The Tigers are on their second NCAA probation through May 18, 2009. Their 1-AA record is 6-58 since they moved up from Division II. They have no conference affiliation.

SSU only victory came in 2007, against Division II, Johnson C. Smith University. The Tigers lost against NAIA Edward Waters College, Division II Fort Valley State and Morehouse College and I-AA Morgan State, Bethune-Cookman, Charleston Southern, N.C. Central, Gardner-Webb and Mississippi Valley State.

So, who's expecting a miracle? Some schools should just stay outta Division I.

-beepbeep

SSU undecided about Kilcrease's playing status

Photo: QB JaCorey Kilcrease

By Noell Barnidge, Savannah Morning News

Savannah State starting quarterback JaCorey Kilcrease practiced Tuesday but he will have his left (non-throwing) shoulder re-evaluated by the team's physician today, SSU sports information director Opio Mashariki said.

Kilcrease re-aggravated his shoulder while being hit after a 20-yard scramble with 4 minutes remaining in the first half of SSU's 32-14 loss at Morehouse last Saturday night.

It was Kilcrease's first time playing in a game since Sept. 15, when he separated the shoulder against Bethune-Cookman. The sophomore was sidelined against Fort Valley State (Sept. 29) and Charleston Southern (Oct. 6).

Kilcrease's status for the Tigers' game Saturday against North Carolina Central is undetermined. SSU (1-5) will play host to NCCU (5-2) at 1 p.m. at Memorial Stadium.
NCCU defeated North Greenville, 17-14, last Saturday. The Eagles are competing in their first season in the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA).
The Durham school is the defending Black College Football national champion and won the NCAA Division II Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association championship last season.

McCrary developing at QB

If Kilcrease can't play Saturday, freshman Greg McCrary will start at quarterback. McCrary produced the best performance of his career against Morehouse, leading SSU's offense with 112 total yards.

He ran 10 times for 40 yards, and was 5-for-11 passing for 72 yards and two touchdowns. He was intercepted once, did not fumble and was not sacked.

"We were happy with the way (McCrary) played," SSU second-year coach Theo Lemon said. "He did some things where we had a chance to score some points. We haven't done a lot of that in the last three weeks."

After the Charleston Southern game, McCrary said he was having trouble adjusting to the speed of the college game, something that Lemon said only experience can alleviate.

Against Morehouse, McCrary took over for Kilcrease and led SSU to its first scoring drive in 10 quarters when he connected with freshman running back Justin Babb for a 34-yard touchdown early in the third quarter.

McCrary found wide receiver Deleon Hollinger for a 21-yard touchdown late in the third quarter. Hollinger, a sophomore from Miami, caught two passes for a team-high 25 yards.

Johnson still punter; Justiniano out for season

After the Charleston Southern game, Lemon said the starting job at punter was up for grabs between senior Jeremy Johnson and freshman Brandon Webster, a McIntosh County Academy graduate.

Lemon said the starter for the Morehouse game would be determined by how Johnson and Webster performed during practice last week.

Johnson kept the starting job and executed all five of the Tigers' punts against the Maroon Tigers for a 31.8-yard average, including two attempts inside Morehouse's 20-yard line. His longest punt traveled 36 yards.

Johnson also made an extra point and kicked off once while filling in for sophomore kicker Luis Justiniano, who was injured against Morehouse.

Justiniano is out for the season after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in one of his knees, Mashariki said.

Justiniano, a walk-on from Bluffton (S.C.) High School and Armstrong Atlantic State, was 1-for-5 on field goals and 6-for-7 on extra points this season.
SSU senior defensive end Dominique Clark (ankle sprain) will not play against NCCU, Mashariki said.

Beach High grad led all receivers

Morehouse wide receiver James Steadman, a Beach High School graduate, made five catches for 58 yards, both game highs, against SSU.

Steadman, a 6-foot-4, 215-pound junior, is the Maroon Tigers' leading receiver with 26 receptions for 402 yards and two touchdowns. He has played in six of seven games for Morehouse (5-2).

Defensive standouts

SSU junior middle linebacker Calvin Leonard made a game-high 12 tackles against Morehouse.

Sophomore strong safety Antwan Allen and junior weakside linebacker Chris Herans made 10 tackles apiece.

Allen and junior free safety Javorris Jackson each intercepted passes. Jackson has a team-high four of the Tigers' nine interceptions.

NCCU relishes playing on the road

By MIKE POTTER, The Herald-Sun

With the odd schedule the Eagles are having to play in their first season in the NCAA's Football Championship Subdivision, N.C. Central has already played its last home football game of the year.

But first-year head coach Mose Rison said he isn't worried about it.

The Eagles relish the chance to play on the road.

"We talk about it all the time," said Rison, whose 5-2 Eagles will travel to Savannah State (1-5) on Saturday at 1 p.m. in the first of three road games to finish the campaign. "Our kids for some reason like to play on the road and like hostile environments."

"That was something [senior nose guard] Courtney Coard said to me once, and I've found it to be true."

The Eagles are 2-1 this season away from home, winning at North Carolina A&T and beating Elizabeth City State on a neutral site while losing to Presbyterian in the season opener.

This year's NCCU senior class has three chances to become the school's first football team since 1984 to put together four straight years of winning records. And since the beginning of the 2004 season, they're 15-3 away from O'Kelly-Riddick Stadium.

"I don't know if it's history or what it is, but I've found it to be true," Rison said of the road-warrior mentality during his weekly press conference on Tuesday at The Chicken Hut.

This season, the Eagles have been very good at winning close games. Only their 17-0 romp over Fayetteville State was decided by more than seven points. St. Augustine's, A T and most recent victim North Greenville have all had the ball with a chance for victory in the closing seconds, but all have come up empty.

"After looking at the film from Saturday's game, we played well on both sides of the ball," Rison said. "We didn't want to give up any big plays, and we were successful at that. And our offense played a really good football game -- I was extremely pleased with that."

One thing that has made him particularly happy is the continued progress of sophomore quarterback Stadford Brown, who last year was named the Black College offensive player of the year.

Brown may not have the stats to repeat, having completed 98 of 195 passes for 1,150 yards and 11 touchdowns with five interceptions, but with a less experienced group of skilled players around him, Brown has continued to direct a winner.

"Stadford isn't big on stats," Rison said. "He just likes to win football games. He's done a very good job of knowing when to just throw the ball away and live to fight another day.

"We're proud of our [+12] turnover ratio. We trust our defense to get the ball back for us."

NCCU is 1-0-1 all-time against the Tigers, having played back-to-back in 1974 and '75. Savannah State, currently the only other Historically Black College playing as a Division I independent, is in its first season under head coach Theo Lemon.

Rison and Lemon were on the same sideline for one season, when Rison was wide receivers/tight ends coach and Lemon linebackers coach at Rutgers in 1994.

"I know what kind of coach Theo is, and he'll have his team ready to play," Rison said. "They would like to have a better record, but they're a Division I football team with Division I talent."

NOTES -- Savannah State has lost four straight games, with its only victory so far a 24-10 win over visiting CIAA member Johnson C. Smith. ... NCCU has no reported injuries except for the two players - kicker Brandon Gilbert and running back Jeff Tolliver - who were reported out for the season in September. ... NCCU is 34-7 since the beginning of the 2004 season; the previous best four-year run was 30-10-2 for the class of 1974.