Rain can't dampen Aggies' spirits

GREENSBORO -- The sky was gray, the field green, the jerseys blue and gold. And for one day, at least, the outlook was rosy. With new head coach Alonzo Lee running the show from the sideline, N.C. A&T's Blue team defense eked out a 27-26 victory over its Gold team offense in the annual spring game Saturday at Aggie Stadium. Rising junior linebacker Brandon Jackson made eight tackles for the Blue, which came back from deficits of 14-0 and 17-10. Linnell Evans, another linebacker who redshirted as a freshman last season, made four of his six tackles in the backfield.

Carlton Fears, who will be a senior in the fall, staked an early claim to the starting quarterback job, completing 17 of 28 passes for 158 yards and two touchdowns for the improved offense. But in this controlled scrimmage -- the offense scored points on touchdowns and field goals, while the defense earned points based on things like third-down stops and turnovers -- the final stat sheet didn't matter much.

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Alcorn State releases 2009 Football Schedule

by ASU Sports Information

Alcorn State, MS--- The Alcorn State University Department of Athletics announces its 2009 tentative football schedule. The schedule has a new twist to it with the Golden Eagles of Southern Miss as an opponent. This will be the first meeting between the two schools in football.

The Braves will have a three game road swing after opening up at the “Rock” in Hub City. Alcorn State will travel to the Midwest to face Central Michigan on September 19th before beginning conference play in Baton Rouge, Louisiana against Southern University. Pine Bluff, Arkansas will be the final stop on Alcorn State’s travel schedule for a while when they line up against the Golden Lions on October 3rd.

The Braves will not see the field at Jack Spinks Stadium until October 10th when they face the Delta Devils of Mississippi Valley. Homecoming will feature divison rival Alabama A&M. Alcorn State will go back on the road to play Southwestern Athletic opponents Texas Southern Tigers and Alabama State Hornets. The final home game of the season will be against Prairie View A&M University. The Braves will face arch-rival Jackson State University on November 21st in the Capital City Classic.

Click here to view the ASU Braves 2009 Football Schedule.

Braddy says JSU needs $500,000 to save some sports

Only four SWAC institutions, Alabama State, Southern, Prairie View A&M and Jackson State have 18 sports programs. Southern is in danger of losing men's tennis and women's golf.

Jackson State might be forced to drop some sports if the athletic department's financial situation does not improve, administrators say. Offering 18 intercollegiate sports on a $6.5 million budget, the department is scraping to get through the 2008-09 fiscal year that ends June 30. If more money is not raised through donations and sponsorships, JSU might have to eliminate two or three sports, athletic director Bob Braddy said. Braddy said the department needs to raise $500,000 by June to feel secure going into the 2009-10 school year.

Jackson State president Ronald Mason said he won't slash budgets of individual sports in order to keep all 18 programs. JSU has won the Southwestern Athletic Conference All-Sports competition two years running and a large crystal vase signifying those successes sits in the lobby of Mason's office. He said he would rather maintain success in fewer sports than fall to mediocrity in others by cutting the recruiting budget or other needs. About half of JSU's $6.5 million budget comes from student fees and general funds.

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A&M preps for spring game

There will be plenty of work to do when Alabama A&M reports for fall camp in August, but the Bulldogs will try to have some fun today as they wrap up spring practice with the annual Maroon and White Game at Louis Crews Stadium.

Kickoff is 2 p.m. and admission is free.

"Hopefully, we can go out and light it up," said quarterback Kevin Atkins. "We don't have all of our guys, but we've got some weapons and we're going to go out and try to have some fun." The Bulldogs are without three potential starters along the line and receiver Rashad Johnson is out after breaking his arm. Despite that, receivers Thomas Harris and Nate Baxter and running backs Ulysses Banks and Tony Green have been impressive. "Banks has had a good spring," running backs coach Errol Jones said. "He looks like he did two years ago when he was first-team All-SWAC."

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Howard Announces 2009 Football Schedule

by HU Sports Information

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Howard University kicks off the 2009 season with Rutgers from the Big East and will follow with games at Florida A&M and cross town against Georgetown before its home season opener against Winston-Salem State on October 3.

The Bison, who play five of their first six games at away from home, will then return to the road for conference games at Hampton and at Morgan State before hosting North Carolina A&T for homecoming on October 24. A road game at Norfolk State follows and then there are back-to-back home contests against South Carolina State and Bethune-Cookman. Howard will close out the regular season with a road game at Delaware State on November 21.

The Bison are playing Rutgers and Georgetown for the second time. Howard played Rutgers in 2006 and they played the Hoyas last season at Greene Stadium.

Date Opponent Location Time

Sept. 12 Rutgers Piscataway, N.J. TBA
Sept. 19 Florida A&M Tallahassee, Fla. TBA
Sept. 26 Georgetown (Multi-Sport Field)% Washington, D.C. TBA
Oct. 3 WINSTON-SALEM STATE WASHINGTON, D.C. 1 p.m.
Oct. 10 Hampton Hampton, Va. 1 p.m.
Oct. 17 Morgan State Baltimore, Md. TBA
Oct. 24 NORTH CAROLINA A&T STATE* WASHINGTON, D.C. 1 p.m.
Oct. 31 Norfolk State Norfolk, Va. TBA
Nov. 7 SOUTH CAROLINA STATE WASHINGTON, D.C. 1 p.m.
Nov. 14 BETHUNE-COOKMAN! WASHINGTON, D.C. 1 p.m.
Nov. 21 Delaware State Dover, Del. TBA

Home games in CAPS
MEAC games in bold
All Times are EST and subject to change

% - D.C. Cup
* - Homecoming
! - Senior Day

Auburn assistant picked to coach TSU men's team

After having a positive impact on one group of Tigers this season, John Cooper hopes to carry that over. The longtime Auburn men's basketball assistant was announced Friday as the new head coach at Tennessee State. Cooper, 40, replaces Cy Alexander — who was fired in February after five-plus seasons at the TSU helm — and Mark Pittman, who guided the Ohio Valley Conference program on an interim basis following Alexander's departure.

"First of all, it is a lifelong dream and a lifelong journey," Cooper said in a statement. As associate head coach under Jeff Lebo, the Kansas City, Mo., native helped Auburn to an NIT quarterfinals berth and a 24-12 record, tying for the second-most single-season victories in the program's history.

"I am really enthusiastic and excited about the opportunity," he said. "My goal is to obviously be successful, but also to put a product on the court that Tennessee State University is proud of, and one that is successful both on and off the court. In the future, we want to be able to say that we competed for championships in the OVC and hopefully say that we have won championships." Prior to his arrival at Auburn in 2004, Cooper served as an assistant at Oregon, South Carolina and Fayetteville (N.C.) State. Cooper inherits a program that has not posted a winning season since the 1996-97 team was 15-13.

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Taylor seeking reliable tight end for FAMU

Photo Gallery: FAMU football practice

As a tight end, the role might call for blocking on one play and making a catch on another. FAMU football coach Joe Taylor just wants to find the right player who could execute both roles well enough. If that player steps up during spring, he could very well end up with a significant role in the Rattlers' offensive scheme. Taj Jenkines proved himself to be the right fit in his final season last year, but it's a wide-open position with at least three candidates making a push.

"It takes a special kind of guy to get down there and do that three-point stance," Taylor said Thursday, following the third day of spring practice in soggy conditions. Max Purcell and Tobias Lee are the two leading candidates, but freshman Brandon Hepburn might make a case if he could mature fast enough. Fullback Mykel Benson could also be considered, Taylor said.

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