Jackson State women win SWAC Track and Field Title

NEW ORLEANS — When Pauline Banks got hired away from her alma mater, Mississippi Valley State, to take over the Jackson State’s women program, she promised progress in five years. True to her word, Jackson State won the Southwestern Athletic Conference women’s track and field outdoors championship by holding off Grambling, 182.5 points to 180, Monday at Tad Gormley Stadium, and Banks will make five years in September.

Leadrianna White, the outstanding field performer, contributed 20 points by winning the hammer throw and the shot put. “We knew it was going to be a dogfight,” Banks said. “We just kept putting numbers where we needed to be.”

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Southern University women's basketball signs 3 prospects

The Southern women’s basketball team has landed a big one in 6-foot-4 center Sabrina Scott. The heir apparent to 6-4 Fredrieka Lewis was a recruiting must and one of a trio of players signing Tuesday and Wednesday.

Duncanville (Texas) High guard Carneta Henderson and forward Chardennae McGowan of Houston also have signed with SU. That brings the current signing class to four. We’re just ecstatic. … I think we sold her the first time she tasted the crawfish,” Pugh said of Scott, from Mount Tahoma in Tacoma, Washington. “There’s nothing like a little Louisiana food to entice the average person.”

A week earlier, Southern signed 6-0 forward Kim Griffin of Southwest Mississippi Community College.

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New Jacksonville State basketball coach aims to build program with good citizens

JACKSONVILLE, AL - New Jacksonville State University men's basketball coach James Green promised to develop good players and good citizens as he was introduced to supporters and media on Wednesday. Green's contract at JSU will be for five years and is expected to pay approximately the same as the $106,000 paid LaPlante.

Video: http://www.annistonstar.com/PDF/video/042408jsu.htm

Green, who also coached eight years at Southern Mississippi, becomes the first black head coach in a major sport at JSU and just the second in any sport there. He will also be the second black men's head coach in the Ohio Valley Conference, joining Cy Alexander of historically black Tennessee State University.

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ASU basketball player dies in pickup game

Grief counselors were at Alabama State University's Joe L. Reed Acadome hours after 19-year-old Deshean Porchea died Wednesday during a pickup basketball game on campus. They will have their work cut out for them.

This is just a heartbreaking loss for us," said ASU head basketball coach Lewis Jackson about the death of Porchea, a player on the team that won the regular season SWAC championship just a month ago. "I don't think we've comprehended it all just yet." Wednesday there were many mourners, but few answers.

Porchea, a 6-foot-1, 175-pound sophomore from Rochester, N.Y., was playing basketball with a large group of students in ASU's Lockhart Gymnasium when he collapsed. He never regained consciousness.

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MEAC/SWAC Sports Main Street creates Division II site

Today, we launched a mirror site of MEAC/SWAC Sports Main Street to cover Division II HBCU sports for both the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA), Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) and Division II HBCU Independent programs.

Our objectives are to maximize exposure for these 23 member institutions and to develop a repository of current HBCU sports information on Division II athletic programs.

You may visit the new site, "CIAA/SIAC Sports Main Street" at: http://ciaasiacsports.blogspot.com/

For the 38,658 regular visitors to "MEAC/SWAC Sports Main Street," we hope you equally enjoy the CIAA/SIAC site and continue to share the information with others around the world. The MEAC/SWAC site has regular visitors from 104 countries and territories--which indicates that HBCU sports are important and have a global marketplace.

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FAMU athletics certified by NCAA

Florida A&M's athletic program, which has struggled with academic problems in recent years, received good news from the NCAA on Wednesday. The Rattlers' program received a designation of certified from the NCAA Division I Committee on Athletics Certification.

FAMU, which underwent an athletic peer review session in October, was one of 35 institutions designated as certified. Two other schools were certified with conditions. All 326 active Division I members participate in the certification process.

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The following 35 institutions were certified, including MEAC members FAMU, Morgan State and Hampton University (with conditions):

• University of Arizona
• Austin Peay State University
• University of California, Irvine
• Chicago State University
• The Citadel
• University of Connecticut
• Duquesne University
• Florida A&M University
• Georgia Institute of Technology
• Georgia State University
• University of Houston
• McNeese State University
• Morgan State University
• University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV)
• Nicholls State University
• Pennsylvania State University
• Pepperdine University
• Purdue University
• Robert Morris University
• Sacred Heart University
• St. Peter’s College
• University of South Florida
• Southern Illinois University at Carbondale
• University of Oklahoma
• University of Texas at Arlington
• University of Texas at Austin
• University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP)
• University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA)
• University of Toledo
• Utah State University
• Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University
• Western Michigan University
• University of Wisconsin, Green Bay
• Wofford College
• Xavier University

In addition, two Division I institutions have been certified with conditions:
• Hampton University
• New Mexico State University

This classification means that the institution is considered to be operating its athletics program in substantial conformity with operating principles adopted by the NCAA’s Division I membership. However, problems identified during the course of the institution’s self-study and the peer-review team’s evaluation were considered serious enough by the Committee on Athletics Certification to cause it to withhold full certification until those problems have been corrected. The NCAA does not divulge specific information related to an institution’s self-study or peer-review visit or specific information concerning the conditions set forth for certification.

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Green introduced as new Gamecock hoops coach

Photo: Former Mississippi Valley State University head basketball coach James Green was introduced as the new head coach at Jacksonville State University.

Jacksonville State University formally introduced James Green as the Gamecocks' new men's basketball head coach at a Wednesday afternoon press conference. Green becomes the 10th head coach of the JSU men's basketball team, taking over for eight-year coach Mike LaPlante, whose contract was not renewed at the end of the 2007-08 season.

Building teams around defense and rebounding, Green served the last three seasons as head coach at Mississippi Valley State in Itta Bena, Miss., where he guided the Delta Devils to the SWAC Tournament title and a berth in the NCAA Tournament, where they lost to top-seeded UCLA in the first round.

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FAMU's Roosevelt Kiser, Hampton's Princeton Shepherd sign with CFL Roughriders

Photo: FAMU's former WR/KR, Roosevelt Kiser runs for 72 yard TD against Virginia Union in 2004. The Fort Lauderdale, FL native was cut by the NFL Jacksonville Jaguars.

Saskatchewan Roughriders have signed import receivers Roosevelt Kiser, Princeton Shepherd and DaVon Fowlkes to one-year plus an option contracts. Financial details of the signings were not released.

“These three young men will be competing as wide receivers in training camp,” stated Roughriders’ general manager Eric Tillman. “Princeton is a former quarterback, but his height, athletic skill set and understanding of defenses will certainly help him in the attempted transition. DaVon and Roosevelt are both smaller receivers with excellence quickness, and they will also be given strong consideration for our special teams opening. Each can make things happen in the open field, and establishing a quality return game will be one of our highest priorities in training camp.”

Photo: Columbia, S.C. native Princeton Shepard is attempting to make the Roughriders roster as a WR. The former quarterback played at Hampton University during the 2004-2006 seasons with career totals of 43 games, 48 touchdowns and over 5, 494 in total offense.

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This will not be a cakewalk for the former MEAC players making the final roster with the 2007 Grey Cup Champions Roughriders. As import players, they will have to beat out other import players for a roster spot.

Here is how the CFL Import Player rule works...

The roster size for a CFL team is 40 players. 3 of the 40 are Quarterbacks and can be either imports or non-imports no restrictions. Of the remaining 37 players, no more than 18 may be imports. Therefore the maximum amount of imports allowed per team is 21.

View Roster: http://www.saskriders.com/

Jacksonville State-Alabama State football 'Spygate' escalates; sanctions possible

JACKSONVILLE, AL — The Spygate controversy that added spice to the weeks leading to last season's Jacksonville State-Alabama State football opener has turned into possible NCAA sanctions for the Gamecocks.

JSU president Bill Meehan is scheduled to meet with NCAA officials at an undisclosed location next week to discuss the case, which began as a self-reported secondary violation and has escalated, according to a university source who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.

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Bethune Cookman Wildcats release 2008 football schedule

BCU will play 11 football games next season, including nine Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference games. Eight of the conference games will count in the standings, while Winston-Salem State plays its final MEAC provisional season.

The Wildcats will host Norfolk State, Delaware State, North Carolina A&T and Howard. They'll meet Florida A&M in the annual Florida Classic in Orlando on Nov. 22 and play South Carolina State, Morgan State, Winston-Salem and Hampton on the road.

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BCU 2008 Football Schedule

Sept. 6 Alabama State, 4 p.m. (home)
Sept. 13 at S.C. State, TBA
Sept. 20 Savannah State, 4 p.m. (home)
Sept. 27 Norfolk State, 4 p.m. (home)
Oct. 4 at Morgan State, 4 p.m.
Oct. 11 Delaware State, 4 p.m. (home)
Oct. 25 at Winston-Salem St., 2 p.m.
Nov. 1 North Carolina A&T, 4 p.m. (home)
Nov. 8 at Hampton, 2 p.m.
Nov. 15 Howard, 4 p.m. (home)
*-Nov. 22 vs. Florida A&M, 3:15 p.m.

*-at Florida Citrus Bowl, Orlando

Bethune Cookman University Marching Wildcats Band

DSU finalizes 2008 football schedule

Delaware State University's 2008 football schedule will feature non-conference games against Kent State and Central Connecticut State, the school announced today.

The Hornets, who went 10-2 and earned their first Division I-AA playoff berth last season by winning the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, open the 2008 season Sept. 6 at home against MEAC rival Florida A&M.

“This schedule is going to be challenging,” head coach Al Lavan said in a press release. “Opening with Florida A&M and then testing ourselves against an upper level program at Kent State. It will most certainly give us the opportunity to continue to grow our football program.”

Photo: The DSU Hornets opens the 2008 season with the FAMU Rattlers in a home contest at Alumni Stadium, Dover, Delaware.

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DSU 2008 football schedule
Sept. 6, vs. Florida A&M*
Sept. 13 at Kent State
Sept. 27 vs. Central Connecticut State
Oct. 4 vs. Hampton*
Oct. 11 at Bethune-Cookman*
Oct. 18 vs. North Carolina A&T* (homecoming)
Oct. 25 at Morgan State*
Nov. 1 vs. South Carolina State*
Nov. 8 vs. Winston-Salem State
Nov. 15 at Norfolk State*
Nov. 22 at Howard*

* MEAC game
Game times to be determined

Jones, Schalch push FAMU by Alabama St.

Photo: FAMU Outfielder Jared Grace, 6-5/210 junior, Pensacola, Florida, Pensacola Junior College.

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Tim Jones homered in the eighth to break a 3-3 tie and Tim Schalch added a couple insurance runs in the ninth to lead Florida A&M (14-18) past Alabama State 6-3 in a nonconference baseball game Tuesday.

Schalch also picked up the win after pitching a complete game on the mound. He held the Hornets (13-16) scoreless and with only three hits until the seventh when ASU scored three runs to tie the game. After Jones' homer in the eighth put the Rattlers up 4-3, Schalch doubled home Jared Grace and Jared Jeffries for the final tally.

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FAMU launches coalition for National Minority Cancer Awareness Week

April 20-26 is National Minority Cancer Awareness Week and Florida A&M President James Ammons launched the week off by announcing the start of a Coalition on African American Men's Health.

Administrators say the mission of the coalition is to develop, promote and sustain independent men's health research and training at FAMU. But the reasons behind forming the new group is to correct statistics which show that black men are disproportionately affected by cancer.

The coalition has been initiated to increase awareness on the disproportionate burden of cancer among the minorities and inform the public on the universities' initiatives.

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TIMEOUT

If you are a regular reader of MEAC/SWAC Sports Main Street, you may have noticed that no posts were made during the period of April 16 - April 22. The reason for the brief exodus was due to the death of my oldest brother, who died from CANCER on the evening of April 15, 2008. This is the first article that I read on my return from my trip to Montgomery, Alabama for his funeral.

Unfortunately, cancer was discovered in his body in late December 2007, and his life ended less than four (4) months later. Black men, like you and I have to understand that regular check ups with our doctors on any ailment and annual physicals are part of the screening process for early detection of cancer. It can strike at any time and at any age group; so you are never exempt from the disease, especially if you are a black male.

With more than 37,605 visitors coming from 107 countries and territories around the world to this Blog site, it is very important that our readers hear this message: Cancer is real and can strike at anytime, within any part of your body from the tip of your head to the bottom of your feet.

Florida A&M University and the Coalition on African American Men's Health are to be commended for starting such an important project.

Two of the keys to defeating cancer are to get educated and get your annual physical examinations for early detection. There is nothing we can do for my brother at this point, but his story may inspire you to start getting an annual check up for early screening and possible detection. After many tests, his cancer was finally exposed through an MRI examination, and by then, it had spread throughout his body touching every organ within, with the exception of his eyeballs.

As a committed organ donor, his finally wishes were unable to be fulfilled to improve the quality of life for others in the transplant of his organs in others, due to the contamination by cancer cells in his body. Even in death, cancer denied his final, planned request to help others live.

Cancer is real, and so is death.

Continue to enjoy MEAC/SWAC Sports Main Street and our HBCUs sports programs, but please do your part to stay healthy and live a long life - get your annual check up strong, black men.

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Alabama State Hornets set great store by preparations over summer

Spring practice the last few weeks was important for the Alabama State football team. Fall camp, which will begin around the first of August, will be equally meaningful.

The significance of both, however, might pale in comparison to the three and a half months in between. "This is the most crucial time for us -- the summer before fall camp starts," ASU head coach Reggie Barlow said. "We'll learn during this time what we're going to be. We'll find out a lot about our team."

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Lee Looks To Soar With The NCCU Eagles

Photo: North Carolina Central University incoming 5-10 recruit Whitney Lee, led the Class 4A Blue Streaks to a 19-8 regular season record, a district runner-up finish and a win in the state quarterfinals.

SEBRING, FL — When Whitney Lee was little, she often wore a shirt that said, "Forget the doll, give me the ball."

Years later, that mantra has paid off in the form of a Division-I college basketball scholarship, as the Sebring girls hoops standout and All-Heartland girls basketball player of the year inked a letter of intent on Tuesday to play basketball for North Carolina-Central University in Durham, N.C.

The hard-nosed, high-scoring guard and daughter of SHS head coach Mike Lee, was, perhaps not surprisingly, drawn to the school by the work ethic she saw displayed by her future teammates during a visit.

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MEAC/SWAC Challenge rotates away from Legion Field

The fourth annual MEAC/SWAC Challenge is set for Aug. 31 and, for the first time, the football game won't be held at Legion Field.

The game is moving to Orlando but the move was not unexpected because, from the birth of the event that is owned and operated by ESPN Regional Television, the plan was to hold the game on a rotating basis in the footprint of each of the two historically black college conferences.

Along with leaving SWAC country, the game also picked up Walt Disney Resort as presenting sponsor for the three-year deal.

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Howard Football to Host Spring Game on Saturday

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Howard University football team will close out its 2008 spring schedule with the spring game at Greene Stadium on Saturday, April 19. Kick-off is slated for 1 p.m.

Head Coach Carey Bailey and his staff will split the squad into two teams and run an offense/defense format. "We've had a very good spring and are looking forward to finishing on a strong note on Saturday," Bailey said.

Bailey, who is completing his first season with Howard, and the Bison will open the 2008 season on September 6 at home versus cross town rival Georgetown University.

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Morgan State to Hold Spring Game Friday at Hughes Stadium

Photo: Morgan State's head football coach Donald Hill-Eley

BALTIMORE, Md. - Morgan State University head football coach Donald Hill-Eley is leading his team through the last few days of Spring practice in preparation for Friday's annual Blue & Orange scrimmage. The game will be played at Hughes Stadium.

“The purpose of the scrimmage is to help our young men gain an understanding of our schemes,” said Hill. “It will also enable the coaching staff to evaluate the depth of our team.”

The scrimmage will pit the offense versus the defense with a scoring system in place to determine the outcome.

The annual Blue & Orange scrimmage will kick-off Friday, April 18th at 6 p.m. at Hughes Stadium. Admission is free.

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FAMU to get Jenkins more involved

Jenkins has earned a place in coach Joe Taylor's offensive scheme that will make him a fixture in the Rattlers attack. Jenkins' size and agility makes him a must-have in the offense, Taylor said, especially because of the options that his presence presents.

"Jenkins has proven to us that he needs to be on the football field," he said. "When you're throwing the football to everyone on the field, you're forcing the defense to play honest. When they play honest, it creates more voids that you can attack. That's very, very important."

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Defense shines for S.C. State in practice

Monday's spring practice at Oliver C. Dawson Stadium proved productive in many forms for South Carolina State. Not only were the Bulldogs able to get in the 2 1/2 hour session before any potential rainfall, the oft-criticized defense had one of its best showings of the spring.

During one goal line drill, the secondary managed to keep the offense out the end zone. Despite still having low numbers on the defensive line, the defense also held its own stopping the run. "They're trying to find their way back," S.C. State head football coach Oliver "Buddy" Pough. "We're starting to get some of those people back that we had on the shelf with injuries and what not. But yeah, they showed some signs of being okay."

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FAMU search continues for new women's basketball coach

The Florida A&M University committee charged with finding a new women’s basketball coach will meet today with the returning players, according to Athletic Director William Hayes. Debra Clark, coach of the Lady Rattlers for the last seven years, was informed on March 25 that her contract would not be renewed. FAMU finished the season 14-17. Clark’s overall record at FAMU was 100-109.

Twelve of the 15 players on the 2007-08 team will return for the Lady Rattlers. Their season ended with a 76-65 loss to North Carolina A&T in the quarterfinals of the MEAC tournament. Today’s meeting will be the second time the search committee has convened, Hayes said. Rosalind Fuse-Hall, chief of staff for FAMU President James Ammons, is chairwoman of the search committee.

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SCSU revives "Jet" Invitational

Aside from making the program competitive again, reviving the Robert “Jet” Johnson Invitational was one of Tyree Price’s goals in his first season as S.C. State track and field coach.

After a one-year hiatus, the event named after the S.C. State Athletic Hall of Famer returned Saturday to the Lorry H. Dawkins Track Facility as part of a busy athletic day on the campus. A total of six schools, including Claflin, Benedict, Queens College out of North Carolina, Voorhees and Morehouse College, and former track and field athletes from S.C. State and the University of South Carolina took part in the 18-event meet.

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BCU Tops Norfolk State, 5-2 to Complete Series Sweep

Daytona Beach, Fla. - Eric Thomas struck out seven over seven innings, and Jose Ortiz went 3-for-4 with two RBI as first-place Bethune-Cookman completed a three-game MEAC sweep of Norfolk State with a 5-2 win on Sunday afternoon at Jackie Robinson Ballpark.

Thomas moved to 6-0 on the hill as he allowed just three hits and two runs (one earned) for the Wildcats (22-13, 9-0 MEAC). Phil Enright got the save by pitching the final two innings on the bump. For Enright, a strong right-hander from nearby Deltona, it was his third save in four attempts this year.

NSU starting pitcher and stud ace Leon Schabacker took the loss for NSU (13-13, 3-6 MEAC) to drop to 4-3. He allowed four earned runs in seven innings, striking out three Wildcats in the process.

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DSU baseball splits with Florida A&M

Courtesy: DSU Athletic Media Relations, Release: 04/13/2008

DOVER, DE- The Hornets split the doubeleheader against FAMU today, losing the first game 7-4 and winning the second game 10-4 at Soldier Field. The Hornets improved their record to 11-20 and 6-2 in the MEAC while the Rattlers record is now 10-15 and 3-5 in the MEAC.

The Hornets tied the first game 4-4 in the fourth inning with a solo homeruns by both Jose Sanchez and Jamie Friel while Troy Drummond drove in two runs off a double to right field. However, the Hornets were unable to score the rest of the game off of Rattlers starter Miguel Parga.

The Rattlers came back and scored two more runs in the 7th inning and took the lead for good when Corey McFadden hit a two-run homerun to right field. The Rattlers won the game 7-4.

Leading offensively for the Rattlers were Jared Jeffries, Corey McFadden and Timothy Schalch. Jeffries went 3-for-5 with 1 run and 2 RBI's. McFadden and Schalch also contributed 2 RBI's on the day.

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Pickoff highlights average day for TSU defense

When Jamal Coleman raced 40 yards with an interception return Saturday in Tennessee State's Blue & White Spring Game some fans might have been relieved to see that replacing Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie was possible. But Coach James Webster and new defensive coordinator Rod Reed warned against being too presumptuous.

As it turned out, Coleman's big play was one of the few highlights for the unit in the offense versus defense game. Even without starting quarterback Antonio Heffner or 1,000-yard rusher Javarris Williams on the field, the offense had more highlights in a 36-20 victory at Hale Stadium before a crowd of about 1,000.

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