MEAC Notebook: Taylor has Florida A&M rolling

Coach Joe Taylor of Florida A&M has his team playing very well and is 2-1 heading into Saturday's game against Tennessee State in Atlanta's Georgia Dome. Taylor, a former coach at Hampton, said that Tennessee State is very talented. "I think they have seven Division I transfers on offense and six on defense," Taylor said.

Taylor inherited a young team but said he doesn't like to talk about that aspect. "I usually don't talk about how young they are because I don't want to scare the hell out of them," Taylor said. Taylor has a chance to get his 200th career win on Saturday. "That just speaks to the fact that you've been around a lot of good people and outstanding young men," Taylor said.

Taylor also said that getting 200 wins also means: "I'm getting old."

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ASU 47, MVSU 7: Hornets gain 1st victory of season

Photo Galleries:

• ASU plays Miss Valley for homecoming
• ASU Hornet Walk
• ASU Pep Rally

After opening the season with three straight losses, the Alabama State football team needed something to go right. Enter Mississippi Valley State: the cure for every strug­gling football program. The Hornets (1-3, 1-0 in the SWAC) turned in their most dominating performance in years, as they breezed to their first win, 47-7, at Cramton Bowl.

"(The first three weeks have) been rough on us," ASU head coach Reggie Barlow said. "We needed (this game) bad. We needed the good feelings. We needed the confidence. This was very good for us, very good for our offense." It was very bad for Valley. For three hours Thursday night, the Delta Devils provided a clin­ic on how not to play organized football. And ASU took full advan­tage.

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Homecoming Attendance: 7,783 (31.8%) at Cramton Bowl, Montgomery, AL (Capacity: 24,500).

Rutgers football: Morgan State coach Donald Hill-Eley meets the media

With Morgan State (2-1) set to visit Rutgers on Saturday -- a Championship Subdivision School looking for its first-ever victory over a BCS opponent -- head coach Donald Hill-Eley met with the media on Monday to discuss the game and the prospects of an upset.

Here is what the sixth-year coach had to say:

Q. As fragile as Rutgers' psyche seems to be, is it important for your team to have some early success to have a chance?

Hill-Eley: As with any game, it's important to try to get some success early, moving the ball to get that confidence that we can compete with them.

Q. What type of matchup problems does your quarterback, Carlton Jackson, create with his athleticism and running ability?

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No game here, folks...Rutgers by 55! The only suspense is will Morgan score 3. No need for wishful thinking, the MEAC and SWAC have proven they can't beat an average FCS/1-AA outside the MEAC. This is simply a paycheck game for the Bears. Just pray Hill-Eley makes a better showing than the Norfolk State Spartans that got shellacked 59-0 last season by the Scarlett Knights.

FAMU vs. Tennessee State is on nation-wide TV at 3:00 p.m. and the Rattlers will give the MEAC something to cheer about in this OVC-MEAC rivalry game before a packed house at the Atlanta Football Classic.

Florida home to many successful programs

Except:

We take an inside look at the state of Florida's programs.

8. BETHUNE-COOKMAN

It's not often that a team out of the MEAC causes headaches for opposing teams, but Bethune-Cookman certainly is the exception. The Wildcats haven't been able to make a huge splash on the national stage, but have caused some waves inside the state of Florida. Long-time coach Mervyl Melendez has done a tremendous job at BCC, and the Wildcats continued their winning ways last season by going 17-1 in conference, 36-22 overall.

13. FLORIDA A&M

There's no question Florida A&M has the worst program in the state of Florida. The Rattlers consistently finish near the top of the MEAC, but that obviously doesn't mean much considering they've finished the last two seasons with overall records of 20-22 and 16-36. FAMU should look at Bethune-Cookman as a perfect example.

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Hampton U. win comes easy over A&T

Photo Gallery: Hampton vs. North Carolina A&T

Hampton 44, North Carolina A&T 7

HAMPTON, VA - It was plenty impressive that Jeremy Gilchrist returned three punts for touchdowns in 11 games last season, particularly since that number led the Football Championship Subdivision. Even more spectacular was Gilchrist returning two punts for touchdowns Saturday in a span of 1 minute, 59 seconds. His first, for 56 yards, gave Hampton University the lead in its Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference game against North Carolina A&T. His second, for 88 yards, turned the game into a rout before halftime as the Pirates crushed the Aggies 44-7.

The return touchdowns were the fourth for the Pirates within four quarters. Kevin Teel returned kickoffs 87 and 90 yards for touchdowns a week earlier in the Pirates' 38-27 win over Howard.

Hampton's WR/KR Kevin Teel

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Attendance: 5,103 (30%) at Armstrong Stadium, Hampton, VA (Capacity: 17,000)
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TSU stays unbeaten despite sloppy play

PHOTO GALLERY: TSU vs. Eastern Kentucky
Click here for official box score.

Even with three turnovers, Tigers are 4-0

Sometimes it's good to be bad. Tennessee State was not as good as it could be Saturday night, but still managed to beat arch-nemesis and Ohio Valley Conference power Eastern Kentucky 34-20. An LP Field crowd of 8,276 watched the Tigers commit costly turnovers and a flurry of frustrating penalties while still handily beating a team it hadn't beaten since 1999.

"We won despite having some penalties and having some turnovers and that's a testament to how good this football team can be,'' TSU Coach James Webster said. "It's also a testament to the heart of this football team. We had some fumbles and interceptions at key times and they could have folded, but they were very confident in what they were doing." TSU (4-0, 1-0 OVC) committed 11 penalties for 103 yards, while EKU (1-4, 0-1 OVC) had three penalties for 20 yards. The Tigers also had three turnovers — two interceptions and a fumble — yet improved to 4-0 for the first time since 2001.

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Attendance: 8,276 (12%) at LP Field, Nashville, TN (Capacity: 68,800).

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FAMU blasts Howard Bison

PHOTO GALLERIES:
FAMU at Howard Pregame
FAMU 51 Howard 24

Even a certain gentleman who lives in a big white house several blocks from here would have struggled to bail out the hometown Howard University Bison. Like the Bison, he probably would have never had time to react to a Florida A&M football team that simply came on too strong -- too early. Now 17 days removed from a game they lost in overtime, the Rattlers appeared to need little time to overwhelm the Bison on their way to a 51-24 road win.

In less than one minute, the Rattlers turned a 3-0 lead in the first quarter into 17-0 with two long defensive touchdowns. First, FAMU defensive end Joseph Wims picked up a fumbled snap and made a mad 65-yard dash for a touchdown, the first of his career. "Before the game, (head coach Joe Taylor) was talking about 'Start out fast. Start out fast,?' " Wims said. "When they made errors, we just capitalized on it. We just do our job. We expect to win. That's why we got up at 5:45 in the morning all spring -- for this."

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ATTENDANCE: 5,297 (53%) at William H. Greene Stadium, Washington, D.C. (Capacity: 10,000).

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