Benedict Tigers Riley focuses on results

Columbia, S.C. --Pat Riley knows the deal. The talented Benedict College senior quarterback is aware of his importance to the Tigers’ hopes for challenging for the SIAC championship and a NCAA Division II playoff berth. Riley is the face of the team, the man in the spotlight and the guy on the hot seat. But what matters to the Attapulgus, Ga., native is the bottom line.

The Tigers broke through for an 8-3 record last season, Riley’s first in Columbia. The quest for greater glory begins with Saturday’s SIAC date against Morehouse in the 9th annual Palmetto Capital City Classic at Charlie W. Johnson Stadium.

“I’m a competitor and I know I get pulled out a lot because of my position, but in no way am I an ‘I’ player,” Riley said. “My success depends on the team’s success. It’s not about the offense or the defense or special teams this season. It’s about the Benedict Tigers as a group. There are no individual agendas on this team.”

Palmetto Capital City Classic
WHO: Benedict vs. Morehouse
WHEN: 4 p.m. Saturday
WHERE: Charlie W. Johnson Stadium
TICKETS: $10, $15, $20 depending on seating

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Palmetto Capital City Classic: Benedict aims to keep moving up‎

Benedict aims to keep moving up

At this rate, Benedict College might get a Chick-Fil-A Bowl invitation before long. The Tigers in their breakthrough season of 2009 went 8-3, the best record since the school took up football again in 1995.

Led by versatile quarterback Pat Riley, head coach Stanley Conner's team won eight of its last nine games and finished 6-3 in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. It was an exciting leap for a program that went 7-15 the previous two years. Riley returns for his senior season as the SIAC's 2009 leader in total offense. The 6-0, 180-pound native of Attapulgus, Ga., rushed for 1,088 yards and threw for 887 in Benedict's option style offense.

Jeffries gets key to city

Fresh from induction ceremonies at the College Football Hall of Fame last month, Willie Jeffries found himself in the spotlight again on Monday at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center.

The legendary coach, who spent the majority of his 29-year career as South Carolina State, was the guest of honor at a reception hosted by the Palmetto Capital City Classic committee and the City of Columbia that kicked off a week of activities leading to Saturday’s game between Benedict College and Morehouse at Charlie W. Johnson Stadium.

Mayor Steve Benjamin presented Jeffries with a key to the city.

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QB Riley runs Benedict on right path

Coach Stan Conner arrived at Benedict in 2007 with the stated goal of leading the mired-in-mediocrity Tigers to a SIAC championship. Conner endured a 7-15 record his first two seasons, but he never stopped scouring the nation’s junior-college ranks for players whose skills fit into his system.

Last year, Benedict finished with an 8-3 record — winning eight of its final nine games to land in a tie for third place with Morehouse behind Albany State and champion Tuskeegee. Now, the Tigers figure to reach title-contender status for the first time since the school revived the sport, initially as a club team, in 1995. “We’re getting to the point where we have the talent in place to make a run,” Conner said. “The schedule is front-loaded again (season-opening games against Morehouse and Tuskegee), but if we get through that OK we should have a shot.”

The program’s rise can be attributed to the arrival of Pat Riley — Conner’s first quarterback recruiting coop.

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