by Prairie View A&M Sports InformationOnce one of the weakest programs in the SWAC, PVAMU has rebounded to claim its place among the SWAC’s elitePRAIRIE VIEW, Texas- With recent success in football, women’s basketball, men’s indoor track and field, volleyball, baseball, and men’s tennis the Prairie View A&M athletics program currently stands as one of the strongest athletic programs in the Southwestern Athletic Conference.
An in-depth look at how far the program has come When taking into account where the program was just eight years ago one can only begin to marvel at the turnaround the department has made as a whole over the past seven years. The turnaround began to take form in 2001 when current PVAMU Athletics Director Charles McClelland was selected to take leadership of an athletics department that had been marred by losing programs and financial instability.
The Prairie View A&M Panthers football team at one point lost 80 consecutive games, a streak which still stands as an NCAA record and spanned nearly a total seven years (1991-98). The 1991-92 PVAMU men’s basketball team went 0-28 during regular season play setting an NCAA record. That feat was matched by Savannah State in 2005 (0-28) and eventually broken by the New Jersey Institute of Technology (0-29) in 2008.
The Panthers baseball and men’s tennis team are two other programs within the department that struggled in years past. Up until 2006 Panthers baseball had never had a winning season or won a conference title. Men’s tennis had fallen off the radar after 1970 which was their last SWAC Championship season.
Women’s basketball failed to reach the Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament in several seasons leading up to the hiring of current head coach Cynthia Cooper-Dyke. The program had also never won a conference title or completed a 20 plus win season.
The current state of Panthers and Lady Panthers athleticsCurrently the Prairie View A&M athletics program ranks pound for pound as one of the best programs in its conference. Last fall PVAMU athletics placed second in the SWAC’s Commissioner’s Cup.
CONTINUE READING THIS STORY BY CLICKING ON THE BLOG TITLE.Now that Prairie View is conquering the Southwestern Athletic Conference, it's time to aim high and become a beast in the NCAA playoffs in women's basketball, men track and field and baseball. What's more amazing 'bout this turnaround is it has been accomplished with the second lowest athletic budget in the SWAC. Only Mississippi Valley State University has a lower budget than the PVAMU Panthers.
The crown jewel of this coaching staff is simply Cynthia Cooper-Dyke. This former WNBA head coach has the recruiting capability and coaching skills to lead a premier institution to the NCAA Final Four. I would love to see Cooper-Dyke move her athletic vision for greatness further south to an "unnamed HBCU" and its brand new 9,000 seat arena which is due for completion in February 2009.
With the Florida hot bed of superior women basketball talent which Cooper-Dyke dipped into with the signing of three players from Orlando Christian Prep, (freshmen guards Trinity Robinson (5'-7"), Dominique Smith (5'-10") and starting sophomore guard Gaati Werema (6'-0"), she has proven she can recruit against superior Division I programs with huge budgets.
Cooper-Dyke, operating with PVAMU's pea sized budget was able to swoop into Florida and snatch 21.4 percent of her present team including Gaati Werema, who was ranked by Rivals.com as the eighth (8th) best woman player in Florida in 2006. The talent she has assembled at Prairie View is truly remarkable for an HBCU taking the low budget approach to athletic supremacy.
Imagine the possibilities for Cooper-Dyke with a brand new first class division I arena, an institution with a legendary athletic and academic program history, capital city location and easy access to recruiting hotbeds in Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Texas and California. But, more importantly--a national stage to perform her craft and a conference with better positioning to the NCAA Tournament.
Cooper-Dyke run at Prairie View may be short lived as the call for a larger paycheck for her accomplishments will keep other athletic directors knocking on her door with offers that PVAMU cannot possibly match. There is a brand new arena due East-Southeast of Texas that is begging for crowds of over 5,247 that Cooper-Dyke has been able to attract for a home Lady Panther basketball game (w/Texas Southern).
The last time that a national championship was purchased on the cheap was 1966, when Coach Don Haskins led Texas Western College (today: University of Texas at El Paso) to the NCAA Division I men's national basketball championship.
Haskins and Texas Western (28-1 record) made history by starting five African American players for the first time in a championship game against Kentucky’s all-white squad, coached by Adolph Rupp. Texas Western won 72-65 over the storied program and the 1966 team was nominated in its entirety to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1997.
Haskins was inducted to the Hall as coach in 1997 and the entire Texas Western College team was inducted on September 7, 2007. The 2006 movie, "Glory Road" that memorialized the achievements of the 1966 Texas Western team did in fact have a positive impact on the latter event coming to fruition for the team members.
Oh, the possibilities with Cooper-Dyke as head women's basketball coach at a premier HBCU with a generous budget and honorable salary for this accomplished coach. No doubt, with proper financial and athletic program support, she has the capabilities and passion to move a college program successfully towards an NCAA tournament national championship.
We must first dare to dream--then pursue the dream!
Being cheap gets you nowhere in today's college athletics but out on the street recruiting for new coaches for the possible future Hall of Famers that were recruited away from you for a bigger paycheck and a national stage to showcase their talents and coaching abilities.
Prairie View A&M University is now prime for the taking of a few good coaches over gridiron, diamond, court, track and field.
-beepbeep
PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas- Grambling State won the first two games of a three-game series against the Prairie View by the score of 4-2 and 3-0 in games one and two respectively.
Photo: Chief Kickingstallionsims, a seven footer, scored a career high 22 points on Jackson State.
Courtesy: Tennessee State Sports Information
Winless and yet to establish a consistent offense and left trying to regain the glory two years since a reign of conference domination ended, the Southern University baseball team begins Southwestern Athletic Conference Western Division play today.
A&M's 6-foot-11 center rims out on trey in 74-43 win as 3-point attempt thrills Gladness on Senior Day
Photo: ASU junior guard Andrew Hayles drove his way to a 28 point night against GSU Tigers.
Mujahid El-Amin wants to make more than a splash at Sunday’s James Martin Invitational swim meet. The Florida A&M University junior wants to make history.
Photo: Senor guard Roy Bright scored his first career double/double against the UMES Hawks. The 6-6 Hornets star hit for 18 points and pulled down 10 rebounds.
DOVER -- Baskets of gifts awaited them, but a win came first on Thursday for the seniors on the Delaware State women's basketball team. It was senior night, after all. And those eager underclassmen had prepared the pleasantries for their three senior leaders as a thank you for their four years of contributions.
Photo: Ta’Wuana Cook scored 14 points, 4 assists and 3 steals in 22 minutes of action against Norfolk State.
Photo: 6-3 Junior Center Whitney Cunningham is proving to be an offensive and defensive force for the Eagles.
Photo: Morgan State Bears, with a 20-9 record and first MEAC Basketball Championship (regular season) can finally show their faces in Division I with pride.
Photo: Senior guard Rachel Butler lead the Lady Pirates in the rout by scoring 22 points and 10 rebounds.
Photo: Senior Rashad West lead the Pirates with 17 points, 9 assists and 2 rebounds.
Photo: Farewell to Coach Debra Clark; we love you too, but you can't coach the Lady Rattlers to championships.
Photo: Senior guard Leslie Robinson has had a breakout season leading the Rattlers in scoring averaging 15.2 ppg, 3.3 rpg and 1.1 apg.
WSSU’s Hayes Restores Human Element to Draft Process
Courtesy: Tennessee State Sports Information
by Prairie View A&M Sports Information
Photo: Prairie View A&M University head basketball coach Cynthia Cooper-Dyke records the Lady Panthers first 20 victory season in history with win over Alabama State University.
It was Senior Night at Jackson State Monday night, but slender sophomore Grant Maxey made the biggest impact in the Tigers' 57-49 victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Maxey scored 10 of his 16 points during a 2-minute, 19-second span of the second half. JSU increased its lead from 29-21 to 39-23 during that time.
Photo: Winston Salem State University head football coach Kermit Blount
