NCCU Eagles eye third straight MEAC title as 15 starters return

DURHAM, North Carolina -- After closing the 2015 season with seven straight wins to earn a share of the MEAC championship for the second consecutive year, N.C. Central has its eyes on making history in 2016.

The Eagles have never won three straight conference titles — not since their football program began in 1923, and certainly not since moving from Division II to the FCS in 2011. The Eagles have also never beaten an FBS opponent, a streak that they’ll have two opportunities to break this season.



“That ball is very funny, and it bounces a lot of different ways, so as long as we try to continue to improve and control the things we can control ... hopefully it goes in our favor in trying to make history,” said head coach Jerry Mack, who returns 15 starters from last season’s 8-3 squad.

Here are four things to know about N.C. Central this season:

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Florida A&M: The New Voice of Bragg - Episode II And I

TALLAHASSEE, Florida -- FAMU Athletics is searching for the next announcer at Bragg Stadium. longtime announcer Kenneth Jones retires after 30 years on the job. It's down tot he final 11. See who makes the cut to the final 3.  Watch as the contenders are dwindled down until there is a winner.




COURTESY: GOFAMUATHLETICS

Norfolk State Football Preview

NORFOLK, Virginia -- Trouble with the ground game

With a two-headed monster of Greg Hankerson and Gerard Johnson carrying the football, NSU's rushing attack was surprisingly bad last year. They didn't have a single rusher average more than 50 yards per game, and averaged under 100 yards per game and a paltry 3.1 yards per carry as a team. If the Spartans want to put up points, they'll have to fix their ground game.

Deep Defensive Line

During the offseason, the Spartans switched their base defense from a 3-4 to a 4-3 to emphasize the depth they have on the defensive line. Chris Lee and Phoebus high product Walter Brantley give the Spartans a strong interior presence.

Stability at QB

 The Spartans have experienced a lot of turnover at the quarterback position in recent years, so they are looking forward to the return of senior quarterback Greg Hankerson, who started all 11 games last season after transferring in from Florida Atlantic.



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Hampton U football preview: Breaking down players, storylines and games to watch

HAMPTON, Virginia -- THE COACH

CONNELL MAYNOR

Seventh year (54-20, 9-14 in two seasons at HU).

After being hired from Winston-Salem State, Maynor went 3-9 in his first season. That should put last year's 6-5 record, the program's first winning season since 2011, in better perspective. After losing 24 seniors, Maynor had to bring in more than a dozen transfers, including nine from FBS programs. Many of them could turn out to be starters.

THE STANDOUTS

T.J. Mixson

Sr. | 5-10 | 166 | WR

He goes into his final season with 140 catches for 2,171 yards and 19 TDs. That's fourth, fifth and sixth on the school's all-time list. All he needs to break all three marks are 50 receptions, 920 yards, and four TDs. A great season, to be sure, but each category would be a drop-off from his junior year (59 catches, 1,027 yards, 9 TDs).

Chaka Diarrassouba

Jr. | 6-0 | 188 | DB

With seven of the top eight tacklers from last season gone, he's the top returner with 42 stops and a blocked a field-goal attempt. He had eight tackles twice and seven in two other games. His most productive day came against Morgan State (seven tackles and an interception).

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Kellenberger: Predicting the football season

JACKSON, Mississippi -- Brandon Bryant has eight career starts. Breeland Speaks has two. Tony Hughes has never been a head coach before. Jay Hopson has never been a head coach at a FBS-level school.

Yet these are the men that are on the front of this year’s The Clarion-Ledger college football preview because they represent the future. We’ll always remember 2014, and 2015 was pretty great with Ole Miss winning a Sugar Bowl, Southern Miss and Alcorn State both taking home conference titles and Mississippi State sending out Dak Prescott with nine wins.

But it’s 2016 now, and it’s time for something new. It’s time for who is next.

That does not mean we’re predicting a slide. Quite the opposite, actually. It’s our opinion that there’s no outside forces preventing Ole Miss and Mississippi State from continuing to win in the vaunted SEC West, and why should Southern Miss not continue to score at will against most of Conference USA? Hughes was the best hire Jackson State could have possibly made, and those games against Alcorn State should be contentious, meaningful and fun as hell to watch.

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Experienced ASU Hornets try to take step toward SWAC title

MONTGOMERY, Alabama -- FOUR-DOWN TERRITORY

1. Welcome back: Alabama State begins the second season of the Brian Jenkins era with reasonably higher expectations. The Hornets were picked to finish second in the SWAC East behind defending SWAC champion Alcorn State. ASU return 17 starters from a season that was defined by resiliency. “Experience helps to build the team,” said lineman Kerry Williams, a three-year starter. “We’ve played together for a number of years so we all know each other. There will be nothing new to us.”

2. Ready to run: The Hornets have rushed for more than 2,000 yards as a team each of the last three seasons. Last season, ASU was fifth in the SWAC with an average of 182.3 rushing yards per game. Senior Khalid Thomas (720 rush yards and five touchdowns last season) returns to lead the backfield, but may have to shoulder even more of the load early as sophomore Alex Anderson, the second-leading rusher for the Hornets last season, is currently nursing a leg injury.



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Previewing SWAC Football

ALWAYS WATCH IN 1080p HD, WIDE SCREEN

JACKSON, Mississippi -- his article is part of the 2016 ClarionLedger.com College Football Preview. To find out why first-year coach Tony Hughes is the man to lead Jackson State, click here. Defensive end Javancy Jones wants to return to the SWAC title game during his senior season, click here.  Quarterback LaMontiez Ivy is out to prove he’s a winner, click here.  A pair of guys from “Last Chance U” have provided a boost to the JSU defense, click here. To find out how the Tigers’ schedule shapes up, click here.  And you can read more about Mississippi Valley State and Alcorn State.

Coach with the toughest job

Rick Comegy, Mississippi Valley State: Comegy is working with a lot less resources than most of the conference’s other coaches. The Delta Devils are starting to build some talent, but went 1-10 last season and were picked to finish last in the East Division this year.

Newcomers to watch

Darius Floyd, Prairie View A&M, WR: The 5-foot-10, 175-pound redshirt junior should be a nice receiving target for Panthers quarterback Trey Green, who is one of the better quarterbacks in the conference.



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Gimme Some Mo Blue and Gold Marching Machine ... North Carolina A&T State University Blows Open the 2016 Band Season

Here it is, the first field show of the 2016 marching season! The band salutes various female artists at "The Battle for the Crown" in Greenville, SC., Aug. 20, 2016.






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THE BGMM MEDIA TEAM: FOLLOW THE AGGIES AT Thomas L. Jones, Jr.

Winning the new normal for MEAC favorite N.C. A&T Aggies

GREENSBORO, North Carolina -- The rebuilding project is officially over at A&T.

Now it’s just building.

The Aggies will open their football season at 6 p.m. Saturday at home against Division II St. Augustine’s.

It’s a season full of hope for A&T, which has shared the MEAC championship two years in a row and won the inaugural Celebration Bowl in December.

This year’s seniors — even the fifth-year redshirt players — have never experienced a losing season at A&T. Not one.

Let that sink in.

The Aggies are 33-13 (.717) the last four seasons. A&T had losing records in nine of the previous 10 seasons, going a combined 34-80 (.298).

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Southern notebook: Few surprises as Jaguars release Week 1 depth chart

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana -- Southern released its first updated depth chart since the start of preseason camp, and while it mostly held true to the units the Jaguars ran out to the practice field, there were a couple of interesting notes.

Senior defensive back Rhaheim Ledbetter was not listed on the depth chart at all. Ledbetter missed all of last season because of eligibility issues but is considered to be a key component of this year’s secondary.

Three true freshmen appear on the two-deep, with one — Southern Lab graduate Curtlan Williams — penciled in as a starter.

Freshman Jerimiah Williams is listed as the top backup at both guard positions, and Kaycee Ntukogu is listed as Blake Monroe’s backup at the rover position.

Redshirt freshman Mason Sims won the camp battle with junior college transfer Christian Rodriguez to be the starting left tackle.

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Analyzing Grambling's floor, ceiling for 2016 season

GRAMBLING, Louisiana -- It's been five years since Grambling last won a Southwestern Athletic Conference championship.

Not long enough to call it a drought, but the Tigers are thirsty to bring home another conference title after falling short in the 2015 championship game to Alcorn State.

Is this the year Grambling climbs back to the top of the HBCU mountain of college football?

Grambling certainly has the makings of a championship team. Yes, Grambling lost about a quarter of its seniors from 2015, but an influx of transfers and in-house talent from the last two signing classes has expectations sky high around the football building.

Led by quarterback DeVante Kincade, running back Martez Carter, a deep receiving corps and a defense revamped with transfers, the sky is the limit for Grambling's potential. It all depends on how things progress, and more importantly, how the Tigers finish the season.

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Del State Hornets aim to improve as Carter enters 2nd year

DOVER, Delaware -- Once the curtain came down on the 2015 season, the Delaware State football team had already put it in the rearview mirror.

It was coach Kenny Carter’s first season and the Hornets slumped to a 1-10 record.

But Carter has called it a transition year. It took him some time to establish his system, his outlook for the program and, perhaps most importantly, bring in the players he wanted.

So the 1-10 year doesn’t have any effect on how the Hornets are setting their goals for this season. They’ve seen improvement in the spring, summer and fall. They want to keept up that trend of getting better.

“Hopefully we can keep progressing so we can be in Atlanta in December,” said sophomore quarterback Kobie Lain. “Because at the end of the day, that is the ultimate goal.”

A December trip to Atlanta means a MEAC Championship and a berth in the second-annual Heritage Bowl against the champion of the SWAC.

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2016 Norfolk State football preview: Impact players, big numbers and more

Impact players
QB Greg Hankerson

The first season-long starter to return at NSU since 2011, Hankerson is a dual-threat passer and runner with the ability to escape trouble in the pocket. The senior transfer from Florida Atlantic passed for 2,052 yards and rushed for 423 last season, but his goals are loftier: 2,500 passing yards and 1,000 on the ground.

RB Gerard Johnson

A senior transfer from ODU, Johnson is coming off ACL surgery to his right knee late last season. In his first campaign at NSU, Johnson led the team’s running backs with 418 rushing yards but just one touchdown. Scott expects bigger things: “I think Gerard Johnson’s back,” he said.

LB Kyle Archie

The former star at Portsmouth’s Norcom High was second on the team as a sophomore last season with 66 tackles, behind graduated LB Deon King’s FCS-leading 163. In NSU’s new 4-3 defense, the defensive line will be relied upon to replace the production of King, who has spent the summer in camp with the Dallas Cowboys. But should opposing runners get past the linemen, Archie will be waiting.

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Wyatt sees improved Edward Waters College football program

JACKSONVILLE, Florida -- A good start and a solid finish couldn’t mask the disappointment of six lopsided losses in the middle of Edward Waters College 2015 season. As far as head coach Alvin Wyatt is concerned, the Tigers have already put that 4-7 season behind them.

“Right now as we speak, Morehouse College is watching videos of this team from last year,” Wyatt told EWC supporters Wednesday at the school’s fall sports media day in the school gym. “But all those old tapes do is provide a false, negative view of our past. We are better than that now. We are ready to move forward.”

EWC hosts Morehouse on Saturday, Sept. 3, at Stanton Stadium. The NAIA Tigers will be looking for some payback from a year ago when Morehouse hung a 51-7 defeat on the Tigers to start their six-game slide. EWC allowed at least 42 points in all six losses, including 44-31 to Jacksonville University in the first Jacksonville Classic between the two city schools. They will meet again this year at JU on Sept. 17.

There’s reason for optimism this season. It starts with Wyatt, whose fiery, passionate dissertations to his team and the EWC community are met with the same enthusiasm and vigor in which they’re delivered.

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WSSU eyeing opener against UNC Pembroke

WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina -- Winston-Salem State has its new-look helmets almost ready to unveil.

The helmets are all red with new decals complete with a new logo coming next week. They should be ready to go right before Sept. 3 and the opener at Bowman Gray Stadium against UNC Pembroke.

Coach Kienus Boulware and the Rams completed their camp Wednesday, and now the preparations in practice will be geared toward UNC Pembroke.

“Our camp went well, and we had a lot of competition really at all positions,” said Boulware, who will start his third season as head coach. “I like the way the guys got after it, and the energy level has been very high.”

With classes starting, Boulware said it’s a great time to eONnd the two-a-day workouts as practices will be scaled back to once a day. There will be a final scrimmage over the weekend, then the normal game-week approach will take hold Monday.

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Transfers bolster St. Augustine’s as Chavous era begins

RALEIGH, North Carolina -- Tom Chavous was named St. Augustine’s head coach during the offseason after he coached the final eight games of the 2015 season. He now has the opportunity to bring in new talent on the field and in his coaching staff.

New assistant coach Alvin Parker and new quarterbacks coach Jason Mai were hired from CIAA rivals Elizabeth City State and Winston-Salem State, respectively.

Additionally, Chavous said he recruited more than 30 college transfers to add depth — and, in some cases, elite talent — to his roster.

The parade of new acquisitions joins 14 returning starters on a St. Augustine’s squad that went 1-9 last year, beating only rival Shaw.

“(I’m) bringing in experienced players that focus on academics first. If I can get guys that focus on the main thing while they’re here, football is going to be pretty much easy for them, the playbook is going to be a little easy for them,” Chavous said. “I just want to change the attitude and bring a winning tradition here ... that they’ve never had.”

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Willie Slater, Tuskegee shooting for SIAC title in 2016

TUSKEGEE, Alabama -- The preseason goals for Willie Slater and the Tuskegee football team never change.

"We have pressure every year," Slater said. "We want to win every game we play. That is the only pressure I feel. Every time we line up, I want to win that game."

Entering his 11th season as the Golden Tigers' head coach, Slater has won almost 80 percent of his games (92-24). Tuskegee went 10-3 a year ago, going 7-1 in the SIAC, and reaching the NCAA Division II quarterfinals.

This year's team returns 50 lettermen and has been picked to finish second in the SIAC West, just behind defending conference champ Miles College. Slater's team lost a big lead at home to Miles a year ago, eventually falling 26-23.

Slater hasn't forgotten that November day. The rematch comes Nov. 5 in Birmingham – the regular-season finale.

"Our goal is to win every game we play, and we definitely want to win our conference," Slater said. "But we also say that if we can be good enough to play in the playoffs, then we will be good enough to win our conference.



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Bevy of HBCU football games to air in 2016

DAYTONA BEACH,  Florida -- If you follow and like watching black college football and you have cable TV or internet access, then you’re in luck in 2016. That’s because there are more games to watch on TV (on cable and over the air) or being streamed over the internet this season – nearly 50 – than in any previous season. Take for instance the opening week’s games beginning next Thursday, Sept. 1.

Starting with the Jackson State at UNLV contest over the Mountain West Sports Network at 10 p.m. in Las Vegas, 11 games will be available thru various broadcast outlets thru the weekend ending on Sunday, Sept. 4. Those games include a number of black college FCS vs. FBS match ups to open the season including Friday’s Mississippi Valley State at Easterm Michigan game and Saturday’s match ups of Savannah State vs. Georgia Southern, preseason BCSP No. 7 South Carolina State vs. Central Florida and BCSP No. 8 Southern vs. Louisiana-Monroe, all streamed over ESPN3.

The highlight of the kickoff weekend could be Sunday’s SWAC/MEAC Challenge pitting two-time defending SWAC champion and BCSP No. 4 Alcorn State vs. defending MEAC co-champion and BCSP No. 3 Bethune-Cookman Sunday on ESPN at 1 p.m. This game should be a doozy and a good indication of just how strong these teams will be this season. A week later on Saturday, Sept. 10, another seven games hit the airwaves. They include big showdowns on the road for BCSP No. 1 North Carolina Central and BCSP No. 5 North Carolina A&T. NCCU plays at Western Michigan while A&T is at Kent State. Both games will be streamed on ESPN3.



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Alabama A&M aims to make noise in the SWAC in 2016

NORMAL, Alabama -- James Spady says it has been and continues to be a process to make Alabama A&M a consistent contender in the Southwestern Athletic Conference.

“Last year was obviously one of the early steps in the process,” the Bulldogs coach said. “We were in our second year and some of the expectations had been met. Obviously the big one is the won-loss record. That was a kind of disappointing record.”

The Bulldogs were 3-8 in 2015 after going 4-7 in Spady’s first season.

“I thought we’d be farther along than we were,” he said. “But then you have to make every preparation to move on to the next rung on the ladder, and that’s what we think we’ve done this summer.”

Alabama NewsCenter is posing five questions to state college coaches as the 2016 football season draws near. Next up are Spady and his Bulldogs, who open their season at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 3, at Middle Tennessee State.

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NCCU Announces Tavius Walker as Director of Track & Field/Cross Country

DURHAM, North Carolina – Tavius "T.J." Walker, an alumnus and former All-American sprinter at North Carolina Central University with 13 years of coaching experience, is the new Director of Men's and Women's Track & Field/Cross Country at NCCU, the Department of Athletics announced on Wednesday (August 24).

"I am pleased to announce Coach T.J. Walker as our new Director of Men's and Women's Track & Field/Cross Country," said NCCU Director of Athletics Dr. Ingrid Wicker McCree. "Coach Walker knows how much our track & field/cross country program means to the history of this university and will continue building upon that legacy. His contribution to our track & field/cross country program as an outstanding NCCU student-athlete, along with his roles as volunteer assistant coach and assistant head coach will enable him to recruit the top student-athletes in the State of North Carolina and from all around the country. I am confident in his ability to build a MEAC championship program."

As a coach who specializes in sprints, hurdles and relays with a strong recruiting background, Walker boasts 13 years of coaching experience, including 11 seasons at NCCU.

"I am honored and humbled to have an opportunity to continue in the great legacy of NCCU track & field as its Director of Track & Field/Cross Country," Walker said. "I want to thank Chancellor Debra Saunders-White, Dr. Ingrid Wicker McCree, Derrick Magee (associate athletics director/sport administrator for track & field/cross country), the search committee and our athletics administrative staff for this exciting opportunity."

During his 11-year coaching tenure at NCCU, Walker has worked with student-athletes that earned 11 NCAA Division II All-America awards, including two All-American relay teams, and 41 all-conference honors, including eight all-conference relay squads, with one winning a conference championship. Among the three NCAA Division I East Region qualifiers under his tutelage, he also recruited and coached a Lady Eagle sprinter who ranked fourth in the nation in the 200-meter dash in 2013.



"My vision is clear… myself and the coaching staff will teach, mold and guide our student-athletes with passion and a belief in success," Walker said. "While fostering an unforgettable team experience, we will be strategic in our recruiting and establish student-athlete development along with national and international success as the cornerstones of our program."

A native of Raleigh, North Carolina, Walker started his coaching career in 2003 at NCCU, returning to his alma mater as a volunteer assistant coach from 2003-05.

After two successful seasons at NCCU, Walker left to become the Head Track & Field Coach for both boy's and girl's programs at Needham B. Broughton High School, his alma mater located in Raleigh, North Carolina. While there, he coached a program that had athletes who broke three school records, numerous state qualifiers and one state champion. He also led the Broughton Caps to one of its more successful seasons in recent years.

Walker returned to the NCCU coaching staff in 2007 as a full-time assistant coach with both men's and women's teams, aiding in the transition from Division II to Division I competition. The following year, he earned the position as Assistant Head Coach of the men's and women's track & field/cross country program.

In late February of this year, Walker was named interim head coach prior to the start of the outdoor track & field season. Under his direction, the student-athletes achieved inspiring results. The men's and women's teams combined for seven event victories in the first meet of the season, tallied the most top-10 finishes at the Raleigh Relays since 2012 and earned five medals at the MEAC Championships, where the NCCU men celebrated their best finish at the conference outdoor championship since rejoining the MEAC in the 2011-12 season. The men's 4x100m relay team recorded the school's fastest time in eight years to place fifth in the College Finals of the prestigious Penn Relays, the women's 4x100m relay squad broke a High Point University meet record with the fastest time in eight years, and both of the 4x100m relay teams captured bronze medals at the MEAC Championships for their best conference finishes since returning to the league.

After excelling as a multi-sport athlete at Needham B. Broughton High School in Raleigh, track & field became his sport of choice in college.

As a sprinter at NCCU, he amassed such honors as becoming a four-time All-CIAA performer from 1996-1999, a CIAA champion in 1998, an All-American in 1999 and ranked fourth in NCAA Division II Track & Field in the 200m dash.

Walker received his bachelor's degree in Sociology from NCCU in 1999.

NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL UNIVERSITY ATHLETIC MEDIA RELATIONS

Auburn transfer DE Raashed Kennion joins FAMU Rattlers

TALLAHASSEE, Florida -- Defensive end Raashed Kennion, who earlier this month left Auburn to "pursue politics," according to reports, is listed on Florida A&M's roster.

Kennion, a 6-foot-6, 240-pound defensive end who was a three-star prospect in the class of 2014, according to 247Sports' composite rankings, arrived in Tallahassee last week. In an interview with the Tallahassee Democrat, the junior said his mother, father and grandparents all attended Florida A&M and he "wanted to continue the legacy."

He added he's going to major in political science while at FAMU.



"It was a very hard decision," Kennion said about leaving Auburn. "Probably one of the the harder ones in my life. I had to go with my heart, honestly. I established a lot at Auburn and it hurt."

Kennion was primarily a backup on Auburn's line during the 2015 season. He played in eight games and recorded eight total tackles and one tackle for loss.

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Sanford Seminole's Demetrius Artis works to be leader at FAMU, home

TALLAHASSEE, Florida -- Life hasn't exactly been easy for Demetrius Artis.

The Florida A&M redshirt freshman linebacker doesn't complain. He battles.

That's the way of life in Sanford and that's what Maurice Artis taught his two sons, Demetrius and DeMarco, who have refined their football skills on the fields of Seminole High.

Maurice Artis, however, was not there to watch Demetrius play his senior year of high school football. The elder Artis passed away in his sleep in 2013, a victim of natural causes at the age of 40. Demetrius Artis found his father that morning. It will stick with him the rest of his life.

"It was a devastating moment. It still is devastating," Demetrius said. "It gets hard to deal with, but you gotta keep pushing and do what would make him happy."

Demetrius Artis was suddenly the man of the house. His grandmother moved in to help out with the three children, older sister DeMaria, Demetrius and youngest DeMarco, but it wasn't easy living without their father.

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Rankin: Pivotal year for Jenkins, ASU

MONTGOMERY, Alabama -- Alabama State passed the test.

Brian Jenkins has had his team practicing during the peak heat hours in preparation for the 2016 season and believes the Hornets have met the challenge.

“I really wanted to test this team and see where their will and drive was at and I tell you what, they’ve responded,” Jenkins said. “They really have and that’s always a good thing to see out of your team this early in the year.”



It’s been nearly two years since Jenkins replaced Reggie Barlow after the 2014 season. There have been highs and lows throughout, but ASU has found its comfort zone with its demanding head coach and staff.

“Comfortably with the coaching staff is the main thing,” Jenkins said. “The closeness as a group and as a program is another thing that I’ve noticed. Their expectation of the coaching staff and the coaching staff’s expectations of the players, you notice that instantly. Their work ethic. It’s not a lot of talk out there on the field. It’s a lot of encouragement on all ends.”

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A contrast in styles, SU's Willie Quinn and Randall Menard work well together

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana -- Earlier this week, Southern caught its first glimpse of what its offense might be capable of this season.

On the practice field for the first time together in 2016 were senior receivers Willie Quinn and Randall Menard, a pair who contrast in ability but work well in tandem.

The 6-foot-3 Menard missed all of preseason camp while recovering from a hamstring injury. But he showed what he brings to the offense in his first full practice with the team Tuesday.



“That’s an extra weapon,” Quinn said. “That’s like having Dez Bryant back. Everybody needs that Dez Bryant on their team.”

Quinn is almost a full head shorter than Menard at a listed 5-foot-5, but he makes up for his height by often being the most elusive player on the field.

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Alabama A&M makes coordinator changes after 3-win season

NORMAL, Alabama -- Will this be the year Alabama A&M puts the pieces together?

The Bulldogs are 7-16 in two seasons under coach James Spady, including last year's 3-8 mark. Spady has taken over play-calling duties and he hired a new defensive coordinators to help turn around a Bulldogs squad that is picked to finish fourth among five teams in the SWAC East Division.

"I do feel a little bit of pressure," Spady said, "but more self-imposed than anything, to make sure we're in a position to compete. It's Year 3; we should be able to compete, for goodness sake. We've got a team full of guys who have a lot of experience and I expect them to turn the corner and I expect us to do better this year."

Returning at quarterback is senior De'Angelo Ballard, who threw for 1,516 yards, nine touchdowns and three interceptions last season. He was also the team's No. 2 rusher with 340 yards and four scores. Four of Ballard's top-five receivers are back, led by senior Tevin McKenzie, who had 32 grabs for 472 yards and four TDs.

"Tuttie (Ballard) is a more experienced player now," McKenzie said. "He's ready. We studied a lot of film over the summer and worked hard with one-on-ones. You have to have quarterback-receiver chemistry. If your eyes aren't on the same page, nothing would click."

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