Harris' exit from NFL's Jaguars was all about the green

James “Shack” Harris, the local quarterbacking hero, found a pursuer he couldn’t outrun this season. Harris, vice president of player personnel for the Jacksonville Jaguars since 2003, was ousted last week after the club stumbled amid Super Bowl expectations. Not the starting passer. Not the coach. Those guys own new goal-mine contracts. It was Harris, somehow, who got the shaft.

Granted, it’s true this was one of the NFL’s most confusing turnarounds. Jacksonville came into 2008 having posted an 11-5 mark and a playoff victory over Pittsburgh the year before. With principal rival Indianapolis struggling, the Jaguars were a trendy pick to go all the way. But pre-season predictions like that are based on talent – something put in place by the front office, where Harris sat.


Photo Gallery: Memories of Doug and Shack

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Saturday: Kent State at Hampton Pirates

Courtesy: Kent State Athletic Communications

Complete Notes in .pdf

The Game
Kent State (6-6) rings in the new year with games at Hampton on Saturday at 6:00 p.m. and at Temple on Monday. The Golden Flashes are beginning a three game road swing looking for their first win away from home since a Nov. 19 overtime victory over Saint Louis.

Coming off a 93-42 win over Shawnee State on Tuesday, Kent State has won three of the last four. Six players reached double figures in the game for KSU led by 2008 Mid-American Conference Player of the Year Al Fisher with 16 points. Fisher, who played just 22 minutes for the game, tied a career high with four three-pointers - all coming in the first half. The Golden Flashes well balanced offense was fueled by a season high 30 assists - including seven from senior Jordan Mincy - on 36 made field goals. In the his first start of his KSU career, junior guard Tyree Evans scored 12 points and is now averaging 15.0 points and 2.0 steals in his three games Evans is also shooting 50.0 percent (9-18) from three. Freshman Justin Greene led the team with a career best eight rebounds in just 15 minutes of action.

Hampton (6-6) is coming off a 58-56 win over Yale on Tuesday. Led by a season high 21 points from Christopher Tolsen the Pirates snapped a three game losing streak with the win. Tolsen is averaging 19.5 ppg in the last two games, while Vincent Simpson leads the squad with 10.0 ppg this season.

Series Notes
• Kent State leads the series 1-0. The Golden Flashes won the only other meeting 77-71 last season at the M.A.C. Center.
• Kent State is 4-2 all-time against the MEAC after wins against Hampton and Coppin State last season.
• This is just the third game in Kent State history in the state of Virginia (George Mason, 2007; James Madison, 1987).

TV/Radio WNIR 100.1 FM (Tom Linder)

Next Up For Kent State
Kent State heads up east coast for a game at Temple on Monday.

Pdf. Game 13 - at Hampton (1/3/09)

A&T keeps football coach a secret

GREENSBORO -- N.C. A&T athletics director Wheeler Brown said Tuesday he knows who he wants as the Aggies' next football coach. But here's the rub: State hiring guidelines prohibit him from announcing his decision until Jan. 6. Brown said he interviewed three candidates for the job -- interim coach George Ragsdale and two coaches from outside the program.

Brown declined to name the other two candidates. A source with knowledge of the search process who declined to be identified said one of those interviewed was Morgan State defensive coordinator Alonzo Lee, a former A&T assistant coach. "Unless I get another resume that really impresses me," Brown said, "I could be happy with one of the three as our coach." Asked if one candidate stood out over the other two, Brown said, "I believe so, yes." Neither Lee nor Ragsdale could be reached for comment Tuesday.

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Happy New Year AggieNation! While you guys are sorting through the hiring process with suspects-- George Ragsdale, Alonzo Lee and the mystery man--Division II, North Alabama goes out and hire Terry Bowden for less than A&T paid Lee Fobbs. The former Auburn, Samford University and Salem College head coach is the son of Florida State coach Bobby Bowden and brings a 111-53-2 record to North Alabama, which finished the 2008 season 12-2 and reached the semifinals of the Division II playoffs.

Can't wait to see who Wheeler Brown selects that will make a winner out all of that great talent in Aggieland. Anything less than Prairie View head coach Henry Frazier III will be a huge disappointment. Please, no more trainees for the MEAC...

SDSU Aztecs pummel road-weary (UAPB) foes

UAPB first year head coach George Ivory accepts that economic reality dictates that the Golden Lions play all of their OOC games on the road for a paycheck to support the basketball program. Results: 1-10 record!

They are opponents that pose minimal risk of marring one's record but offer little reward in terms of RPI. They are mercenaries bouncing from gym to gym, picking up paychecks while paying dearly in the process. Arkansas-Pine Bluff, which has yet to work up so much as a bead of sweat in its own building this year, playing its first 11 games on the road, exited another town in tatters last night in being leveled by San Diego State 93-61.

“These are hard games for coaches, because you want to make sure your players are prepared mentally,” Aztecs coach Steve Fisher said. “Often times, players look at (opponents') records and they come out and don't perform.” Before 4,441 at Cox Arena, SDSU improved to 10-3, matching its best record after 13 games since 1984-85. The road-weary Golden Lions, preseason favorites to win the Southwest Athletic Conference, fell to 1-11.

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Dolphins/Former HU Pirates Kendall Langford Unfiltered

Dolphins rookie DE Kendall Langford attempts to knock the snot out of Bills QB J.P. Losman in road game several weeks ago.

Kendall Langford has stood tall all season, anchoring one end of the Dolphins' front line. The Hampton University product, who has contributed 31 tackles, two sacks and three pass deflections this season has been one of the Dolphins' four rookie starters who have held their own this season. His steady play as a run stuffer has not only provided hope for the future, but the present looks pretty bright.

During this unfiltered Langford, the Dolphins' third-round pick, explains why he wouldn't do anything different with his football career if he had to do it all over again, he breaks down the other rookie contributors, and he talks about his team's storybook turnaround.

I'm disappointed to inform you that Langford did dodge my bar fight question, calling it a "trap." Considering he beat out Matt Roth for the starting spot during training camp it's hard to believe he's scared of the team's resident tough guy. But exactly how am I going to force a guy twice my size to answer a question. I tried, but much like this season, Langford held his ground.

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Pirates' defense smothers Yale Bulldogs

Junior guard Vinny Simpson left shooting game at dorm, going 0-8 in game against Yale.

HAMPTON, VA - Hampton University has developed the habit of smothering opponents on defense and making do with marginal shooting. Entering Tuesday night's home contest against Yale, the Pirates (6-6) had held foes to 39.4 percent field-goal shooting, while making only 38.3 percent of their shots. With 32.3 percent shooting Tuesday, the offensive touch eluded Hampton again, but in the final five minutes, freshmen Chris Tolson and Kwame Morgan drained three successive 3-pointers to lift Hampton to a 58-56 come-from-behind win.

Morgan gave Hampton its first lead and capped a 9-0 Pirate spurt when he fired in a trey from the right wing for a 50-48 advantage with 5:18 remaining. Until that basket, Hampton had made only one of 15 attempts from beyond the 3-point line. Yale's Travis Pinick tied the score at 50 with a basket, and then Tolson, who led all scorers with 21 points, pumped in the next eight Pirate points. Tolson made a 3-pointer with 4:41 left to regain the lead at 53-50. He then drew a foul while shooting from long-range and made two of three free throws. When he drilled a 3-pointer with 3:05 left, Hampton led 58-52.

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No. 23 Georgia Tech Routs Florida A&M

ATLANTA, Ga. - Georgia Tech coach MaChelle Joseph was a little concerned about how her team would respond after a 10-day holiday layoff. She shouldn't have been. Jacqua Williams led four double-figure scorers with 16 points as No. 23 Georgia Tech routed Florida A&M 77-42 for its seventh consecutive victory on Tuesday night. FAMU (4-6) missed 21 of its first 24 shots while falling behind 24-7 and trailed 40-17 at halftime. The Rattlers were down by as many as 42 points in the second half.

"I was pretty pleased defensively the way we came out," said Joseph, who said she "didn't expect the fast start against the Lady Rattlers." Instead the Yellow Jackets (11-2) dominated defensively and shot 51.7 percent from the field, going 30-for-58. Williams, a senior guard, led the way, making 7 of 9 shots, including two 3-pointers, to go with five assists and four steals.

"She filled up the stat sheet," Joseph said, "and she does so many intangible things out there as well. … I was impressed with her leadership." The Yellow Jackets also got 13 points from Brigitte Ardossi, 12 from Alex Montgomery and 10 from Deja Foster. Stephanie Foster scored 18 points for FAMU. The Rattlers shot just 20.6 percent from the floor (7 of 34) in the first half and 24.6 percent (16 of 65) for the game.

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A Fire Karl Hobbs Site: Coppin State 57, George Washington 53

What happens when a middle-of-the-pack Atlantic 11 team goes on a three-game losing streak thousands of miles from home, capped off by a 26-point loss to Hawaii and a narrow decision against a previously 1-10 MEAC squad whose only W came against Wilmington College? Well, among other things, the coach of that middle-of-the-pack team will be honored with possibly the first "FireThisCoach.com" Web site in Atlantic 11 poll history.

And so, meet Fire Karl Hobbs!, which was launched amid yesterday's Coppin State disaster, in a frenzy of pre-New-Year's cheer. Six posts in eight hours on Dec. 30! Pace yourself, guys.

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Best of Oliver "Buddy" Pough - 2008

Excerpt:

About hiring new assistant coaches: “I get a lot of feedback from people, from our fans saying that we’re tired of us training coaches for other schools. I take it as a compliment that we hire people here who are taken by other coaches. I think that means more than anything that we hired the right people. At the same time, I need to get more out of them when I get them here.”

Following the 54-0 loss to Clemson: “We’ve put Clemson pretty much to bed this year. We said goodbye and let’s move on.”

Reflecting on the victory over Florida A&M: This FAMU game was one where I was really concerned, especially after they saw them on tape against Tennessee State, I’ll be honest with you. They scared the fool out of me. They went down the field almost as effortless as you could possibly imagine. The first three drives, the game is 21-0 before Tennessee State got off the bus. So I was afraid that we were going to get beat Saturday, and I guess that’s the reason for our relief of sorts because of the fact that we were able to be successful.”

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Former Clackamas (Oregon) lineman goes with a winner, SCSU

CLACKAMAS, Oregon – Former Clackamas High School (Oregon) football lineman Sam Timothy has accepted a scholarship to play football at South Carolina State University, a NCAA Division I-AA school in Orangeburg, South Carolina. A 2006 graduate of Clackamas High School, Timothy played linebacker for three Clackamas High teams that had nine-win seasons, advancing to the state semifinals in 2003 and winning a league title in 2004. After high school he was a part of Foothill College (Los Altos Hills, CA) teams that finished with records of 10-1, 10-1 and 8-3, playing linebacker as a gray-shirt, offensive guard as a freshman, and center during the past season.

Timothy also got offers from four other Division 1-AA programs: Grambling State, Southeast Missouri State, Texas Southern and Wagner College in New York. Timothy said he accepted South Carolina’s offer over the other four schools because, “I really appreciated how the coaches treated me, plus their record is outstanding. I wanted to play in a high-level program that has had success….

“South Carolina State has a really good football program. Last year they went undefeated [in conference] and won a conference title. They’ve been getting better every year. I want to be a part of that and help them win a national championship.” Timothy said he’ll play center for the Bulldogs. He reports to the school on Jan. 13. He plans a marketing major. He earned an associates degree in Communications from Foothill College. Timothy, who stands 6-0 and tips the scales at 290, says he plans to coach at the collegiate level someday.

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Cats drub 'em (Tennessee State) inside, out

Photo Gallery: Hoops: UK vs. Tennessee State action

Meeks rules 1st half; Patterson owns 2nd

LEXINGTON, Ky. -- At one point in the first half of the University of Kentucky's 102-58 rout of Tennessee State last night, Jodie Meeks pulled up from about 30 feet and let fly a shot. "I think it was a little bit of a heat check," he said later. The shot misfired, but that was a rarity last night, as Meeks once again lit up like a Christmas tree. The junior guard scored 32 points in Rupp Arena two days after scorching Appalachian State for 46 in Louisville.

But perhaps in the spirit of this season of giving, Meeks shared his scoring spotlight. Teammate and roommate Patrick Patterson led UK (9-3) with a career-high 33 points, controlling the paint the way Meeks did the perimeter. It marked the first time since 1975 -- when Jack Givens scored 31 and Rick Roby 30 in a win against Miami of Ohio -- that two UK players scored 30 points in the same game.

"We were laughing about it in the locker room, how easy it was to get assists tonight," said guard Kevin Galloway, who had four of UK's 30 assists. Meeks and Patterson made everything look easy, each dominating a half. In the first half, Meeks' sizzling shooting staked the Wildcats to a huge lead. For the third straight game, UK hit double-digit points before its opponent scored, jumping ahead 15-0.

Attendance: 21,958 at Rupp Arena, Lexington, KY

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2009 College Hoops Preview: Jackson State University

by Doctor S

Coach: Tevester Anderson (seventh season, 77-85)
2007-08: 14-20 (10-8 SWAC)
Arena: Athletics and Assembly Center, Jackson
Radio: 1300 AM

Last season, Jackson State came within one point of going to the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year. The Tigers lost to Mississippi Valley State, 59-58, in the SWAC Tournament final. JSU has reloaded for another run at the NCAA. The Tigers have four starters back including preseason SWAC Player of the Year, Grant Maxey. And JSU has a bench full of talented reserves. “We do have depth, and it’s a pretty talented team,” Tigers coach Tevester Anderson told USA Today before the season began. “We’ve got some good young kids, too.”

Maxey, a 6-foot-6-inch junior forward, has averaged 15.0 points and 7.4 rebounds per game this season. And this has come against some big-name competition that includes defending national champion Kansas, LSU, Arizona State, Illinois, Providence and Texas A&M. “He’s one of the best I’ve ever coached,” Anderson told Blue Ribbon Yearbook. “I expect Grant to get a lot of recognition this year. I expect him to get stronger this season, and with the right opportunity and right timing he could make some money (playing pro ball) one day.”

Other top players for the Tigers include Darrion Griffin (13 ppg) and Murrah High alum Jeremy Caldwell (10.5 ppg).

JSU OUTLOOK
Excellent. The Tigers are 1-10, but that will mean nothing when SWAC play begins. Every SWAC team has a losing record right now. And JSU has been playing its usual band of heavyweights in November and December. Hey, the program needs the money.

“You never know who (in the SWAC) is going to have a knockout punch or hit a home run,” Anderson told USA Today. “But we always feel like we will be in the top three.”
The Tigers should cruise through SWAC play and—barring a major upset in the SWAC tourney like last year’s—go back to the NCAA Tournament.

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Sanford Seminole (FL) stuns Miami Northwestern for 6A Florida Football State Title

Sanford (FL) Seminole High School spots Miami Northwestern 21 points before fighting back to shock the Bulls for the 6A Football State Championship.


PHOTOS: Seminole stuns Northwestern 28-21

Andre Debose's 40-yard touchdown catch with 33 seconds left lifts Seminole to 1st state title.

Andre Debose labeled it a leap of faith. The Seminole senior went up against Miami Northwestern defensive back Tevin McCaskill with time running out and came down clutching the ball, a touchdown and a championship Saturday night. Debose's tumbling catch on a 40-yard bomb from Aravious "Ray Ray" Armstrong with 33 seconds remaining gave Seminole (13-2) a 28-21 victory over Miami Northwestern (13-2) in a Class 6A state championship thriller seen by an announced paid crowd of 12,764 at the Citrus Bowl.

"I just concentrated and when I grabbed the ball I squeezed it with all my life," Debose said. "It was like God came down with me too." Northwestern scored on the first play of the game and on its first three possessions to go up 21-0 and threatened to roll up another rout a year after it beat Boone 41-0 in the 2007 final. But Seminole, just as it had done after trailing 10-0 at the half against Boone last week, fought back. "We was down last week, we was down this week. We know how to handle adversity," said senior Dyron Dye, who capped a night of big plays with a sack of Northwestern quarterback Teddy Bridgewater on the final play.

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Amazing! My ole high school, Seminole High School (Sanford, Florida) wins the state championship over the legendary Miami Northwestern Bulls and Coach Billy Rolle, a FAMU Hall of Famer. The boys from "Goldsboro" finally put it together to win it all. Look like Seminole developed a good crop of Division I seniors that would be a nice fit at Florida A&M University, under Coach Joe Taylor and his outstanding staff.

Choose Florida A&M University--Andre Debose and Aravious "Ray Ray" Armstrong. I did!

(beepbeep)

Today: Norfolk State (1-7) vs. Middle Tennessee (5-5)

GAME NOTES: Losers of seven in a row, the Norfolk State Spartans give it another shot this evening as they contend against the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders as part of the second round of the Basketball Travelers Tip-Off Tournament at JQH Arena in Springfield, Missouri.

Norfolk State won its season opener against Longwood on the road, but since then the team has failed to make it back into the win column. Saturday saw the squad bow to Missouri State in the first round of this event by a score of 75-66. As for the Blue Raiders, they managed to snap a brief two-game slide yesterday with a 65-52 win over UC Irvine, evening the team's overall record at 5-5 in the process. Meeting for the first time on the hardwood, both Middle Tennessee and Norfolk State will be back in action on Monday as they swap partners with UC Irvine and Missouri State again to close out the tournament.

Corey Lyons scored a career-high 32 points, shooting 11-of-23 from the field and 7-of-14 behind the three-point line on Saturday night, but even his efforts were not enough to earn the Spartans a victory. Also having a strong scoring game was Michael Deloach with 24 points, but he needed 9-of-24 shooting from the floor in order to pull it off. Brandon Monroe accounted for a team-best nine rebounds, but he failed to score a single point for a team that turned the ball over 21 times. Even with the offensive burst, Lyons is still averaging just 13.8 ppg while shooting 34.3 percent from the floor. Deloach has become one of the top scorers in the MEAC this year with his 20.8 ppg, and he is pulling down almost five and a half rebounds per game while ranking second in the assists department with 18 over eight games.

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WKU to Host Alabama A&M on Sunday Afternoon

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. -- Following a successful three-game, 19-day road swing, Western Kentucky University returns to the friendly confines of E.A. Diddle Arena on Sunday afternoon for a non-conference match-up with Alabama A&M University at 4:00 PM. It is the first-ever meeting between the programs.

Television coverage will be provided by HSSN and carried locally on WKYU-PBS and regionally/nationally on Fox College Sports and DirecTV Channel 617.

GAME #10:
WKU vs. Alabama A&M
Sunday, December 21, 2008 • 4:00 PM CST
E.A. Diddle Arena (7,326) • Bowling Green, Ky.

►SERIES HISTORY: WKU (6-3) and Alabama A&M (2-4) have never met previously.

►COVERAGE: Television coverage will be provided by Hilltopper Sports Satellite Network in conjunction with Fox College Sports and DirecTV Channel 617. Radio coverage will be provided by the Big Red Radio Network. The broadcast team for both will be Randy Lee and Hal Schmitt providing the call. Live stats and live audio and video via the internet is available at www.WKUsports.com .

►SIZING UP THE BULLDOGS: Alabama A&M returns 10 of 12 letterwinners including all five starters from last year's squad that went 10-20 overall and finished 10th in the Southwest Athletic Conference with a 4-14 mark. Trant Simpson leads the team in scoring (17.0 ppg) and assists (4.5), one of three players averaging in double figures.

►TAKING ON THE SWAC: WKU is 8-0 (1.000) all-time against the 10 current members of the Southwestern Athletic Conference. The Toppers last met a SWAC school 11 years ago when WKU downed Mississippi Valley State 75-66 at Diddle Arena on Dec. 18, 1997.

WKU vs. Alabama A&M Game Notes -- 12/21/08

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DSU can't keep up with Notre Dame's Harangody

Photo Gallery: Delaware State 58, Notre Dame 88

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Luke Harangody had 20 points and eight rebounds and Ryan Ayers added 18 points, leading No. 12 Notre Dame to an 88-50 victory over Delaware State on Saturday night. Notre Dame dominated inside, outscoring the Hornets in the paint 32-10 with a 41-24 rebounding advantage. Delaware State tried to slow Notre Dame's high-scoring offense with its slow, deliberate offense, but had minimal success because the Hornets couldn't slow Harangody.

Harangody was 7-of-8 from the floor for 16 points in the first half to lead the Irish to a 39-21 halftime lead. The Irish used a 12-0 run to extend the lead to 29, then continued to pull away for most of the rest of the game. Kyle McAlarney added 14 points for the Irish (8-2). Kris Douse and Marcus Neal led Delaware State (2-13) with 11 points each.

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Monique Holland named Alabama State University Athletic Director

Alabama State University Hornets director of athletics, Monique Holland

New ASU AD strives to lead Hornets in positive direction

Alabama State's appoint­ment of Monique Holland as its athletic director sends a mes­sage. School officials appointed their leading expert on NCAA compliance to the program's top position to emphasize that the school is serious about playing by the rules, Holland said Fri­day. ASU President William Harris voiced his full endorse­ment of the new AD in a state­ment that announced her hir­ing. "Monique Holland is the right person at the right time to lead ASU's athletic department forward . . ." he said.

Holland, an ASU alum and former athlete, was promoted from the associate athletic di­rector for NCAA rules educa­tion and compliance, a position she's held since last June. She came from Georgia State with the mission to clean up a program that was wrecked by an NCAA infractions case that had dragged on for years. The hundreds of violations the school self-reported resulted in self-imposed sanctions that included firing coaches and limiting scholarships. Earlier this month, the school received notice that the NCAA had com­pleted its investigation and mandated five more years of probation and a ban on postsea­son championship play next year for the football team.

Photo Gallery: Monique Holland named ASU Athletic Director

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Delaware State Preview vs. #12 Ranked Notre Dame

Final exams are over and the Notre Dame student body has gone home for the holidays, but the Irish basketball team still has a couple of tests before it can head home for Christmas. Notre Dame (7-2) entertains Delaware State (2-12) at 7 p.m. tonight at the Joyce Center. Tonight’s game against the Hornets will be followed by a home date on Monday evening with Savannah State before the Irish players leave campus for break.

Notre Dame is currently ranked 12th in the Associated Press Poll and 14th in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches’ Poll, but have a great chance to move up in both with a strong showing on Saturday. Delaware State, of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, has played an extremely difficult non-conference schedule and has suffered losses at Ohio State, Kentucky and Maryland along with Big East defeats to West Virginia, Connecticut and Rutgers. Notre Dame head coach Brey said that he respects what Delaware State is doing with its non-conference schedule and believes that it will help them down the road.

“I understand what they’re trying to do here in the non-conference,” said Brey. “That’s a grueling thing to do, they’ve done a pretty good job of that and the one thing they’ve got is really tough kids. I know that from talking to people in their league, they’ve got tough kids and probably going through this toughens them up.” The Hornets opened the season with a victory over Division II Wilmington and won its MEAC opener against Maryland-Eastern Shore on Dec. 4, but have lost every other game. Delaware State is 0-9 on the road this season.

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FAMU Marching 100 Requests Your Help!

In this season of giving, here is an opportunity for you to put your signature on assisting the Florida A&M University Marching 100 Band in participating in the Presidential Inauguration Parade of our 44th President, Barack Obama. The FAMU Marching 100 is the NUMBER ONE marching band in the United States and this event will afford the Washington, D.C. metro area citizens and the world community to see what Florida has enjoyed with the Incomparable Marching 100 for the past 55 years.

Here is how YOU can help and become an important and valued supporter of the FAMU Marching 100 Band program... and see the HUNDRED on Pennsylvania Avenue on January 20, 2009.

FAMU 2008 The Road To Washington and Beyond Campaign

CBS Evening News - 2008 FAMU Marching 100

FAMU 2008 "ESPN College Gameday" Performance



DONATE HERE: http://www.famu.edu/GiveToThe100

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WSSU gives Blount extension through 2015

Blount will get a raise of about $20,000 a year; A&T had talked to him about vacancy

Football coach Kermit Blount and Winston-Salem State have reached an agreement on a contract extension. The deal was completed shortly after the season ended Nov. 22 but still needs the approval of the school's board of trustees, which is expected soon. "I'm happy that this is taken care of because it means a lot to me to have that security," Blount said. "But at the same time, I've learned you just have to do your job, and things will take care of themselves, so this wasn't something that was keeping me awake at night."

Blount has a 90-77-3 record in 16 seasons at WSSU, his alma mater, and holds the school record for career victories. The Rams, however, had their worst season under Blount this year, finishing 3-8 despite road wins over Hampton and Florida A&M, future Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference opponents. The extension comes at a time when Winston-Salem State's fiercest rival, N.C. A&T, is seeking a head coach. Athletics Director Chico Caldwell of WSSU and Blount both said that A&T expressed interest in Blount.

"I did talk to them, but they weren't any kind of serious talks," said Blount, pointing out that he did not have a formal interview.

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Correction: This writer did little research for this article...Winston Salem's three victories were again Howard, Hampton and Delaware State. FAMU embarrassed WSSU on a ESPNU nationally televised Thursday night game, 23-0 in Tallahassee, Florida on October 9, 2008. The Rams road wins were at DSU (27-26) and Hampton (35-30).

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WSSU says no radio for basketball games

SWAC PAYBACK: Grambling avenges '07 title game loss with thrashing of Jackson State

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Performing with a steely sense of urgency, Grambling State grabbed control of the Southwestern Athletic Conference championship game Saturday at Legion Field — and never let go. Big plays in every phase of the contest fueled Grambling’s sweeping dominance. The ruthless defense showed the way early with a takeaway on Jackson State’s opening drive — the first of five turnovers for the rattled Mississippi Tigers. Grambling turned the miscue into points, following its season-long script to a 41-9 win and the 22nd SWAC championship in school history.

“Coming into the season, everyone underestimated us,” said David Stuckman, who provided a 91-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in the third quarter. “But the coaches stressed the little things. Little things win championships.” Grambling (11-2) improved to 5-1 in SWAC championship games. The Tigers also won the title game in 2000, 2001, 2002 and 2005. The win avenged a 42-31 loss to Jackson State in 2007. “Winning the championship is big for us,” said Carroll product Desmond Lenard. “We worked all year just to play this game. Words can’t explain the way I feel right now.”

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Attendance: 25,873 --Birmingham, AL Legion Field

MVSU basketball falls to 0-11; SWAC schedule bailout needed

It took a while to chip off the rust from an 11-day layoff, but the Houston Cougars got things in gear and rolled to a 34-point win over Mississippi Valley State Saturday night at Hofheinz Pavilion, 92-58. The Delta Devils, who have yet to play a home game this season, ran out of gas in the second half to fall to 0-11. The Cougars stepped on the gas in the final 20 minutes, putting 59 points on the board to win their sixth straight game (now 6-1 on the season). lvin Lewis led the way with 23 points, but the star was big Marcus Cousin, who overpowered MVSU's relative runts inside for 18 points and nine rebounds.

You have to feel for the Delta Devils. Like many SWAC teams, they've been farmed out as a rent-a-win crew, playing teams like Arizona State, Washington State, Oklahoma, Arizona, James Madison, Creighton and Kentucky. Coach Sean Woods (MVSU), who was a late hire and didn't get to do much recruiting, deserves better. So do his players, who worked hard, but simply didn't have the horses to run with the Cougars.

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LeRoy Vann, FAMU and Zach East, PVAMU named to Walter Camp All-American Team

Florida A&M University junior return specialist LeRoy Vann was named Friday to the 2008 Walter Camp Foundation NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) All-America Team. The all-star team is selected annually by the head football coaches and sports information directors of the FCS member schools.

The 5-9, 185-pound speedster from Tampa, Florida's Blake High School, shattered numerous school, conference and NCAA records for total returns, return yardage, while tying NCAA marks for combined TD kick returns with six. Vann tied Bashir Levingston of Eastern Washington (1998) and Corey Smith of Montana State (2003) with six (6) combined TD returns in NCAA FCS for a season. He also finished the 2008 campaign as the NCAA FCS all-time single-season leader in combined kick return yardage with 1,583 yards, surpassing the old mark of 1,469 set by Samford's David Primus in 1989. Vann also ended the season with 66 combined returns, surpassing the former mark of 64 by Connecticut's Joe Markus in 1981.

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Prairie View A&M University Panthers side linebacker Zack East was also named to the Camp All-American Team. The 6-2/230 defensive standout lead the Panthers to their best record in three decades (9-1) with 69 tackles in 10 games, with two quarterback hurries, three sacks, 14.5 tackles for losses, 1 interception and one funble recovery. East has lead Prairie View nationally ranked defense for the past two years.

In all, players from 13 different conferences and 20 institutions were represented on the 2008 Walter Camp FCS All-America team. The Southern Conference had the most players (6) followed by the Big Sky Conference (5) and Colonial Athletic Association (4). Five schools had multiple players selected, led by Appalachian State with three. Elon, James Madison, Northern Arizona, and Montana each placed two players on the 2008 Walter Camp All-America team.

2008 Walter Camp Football Championship Subdivision
All-America Team

OFFENSE
WR Ramses Barden* Cal Poly Sr. 6-6 227 Altadena, CA
WR Terrell Hudgins* Elon Jr. 6-3 235 Rocky Mount, NC
TE Scott Sicko New Hampshire Jr. 6-3 230 Stillwater, NY
OL Colin Dow Montana Sr. 6-5 300 Billings, MT
OL Nick Hennessey Colgate Sr. 6-6 300 Danvers, MA
OL Joel Bell Furman Sr. 6-8 308 Spartanburg, SC
OL Jonathan Bieschke Appalachian State Sr. 6-5 275 Port St. Lucie, FL
C Scott Lemn James Madison Sr. 6-3 285 Virginia Beach, VA
QB Armanti Edwards Appalachian State Jr. 6-0 184 Greenwood, SC
RB Herb Donaldson Western Illinois Sr. 5-11 225 St. Louis, MO
RB Rashad Jennings Liberty Sr. 6-1 230 Forest, VA
PK Andrew Wilcox Elon Sr. 6-2 231 Richmond, VA

DEFENSE
DL Greg Peach Eastern Washington Sr. 6-2 250 Vancouver, WA
DL Jovan Belcher Maine Sr. 6-2 228 West Babylon, NY
DL Larry Hart Central Arkansas Jr. 6-1 242 Madison, MS
DL Greg Miller Villanova Sr. 6-3 250 Willow Grove, PA
DL John Faletoese UC Davis Sr. 6-3 292 Carmichael, CA
LB Nathan Williams Murray State Sr. 6-1 225 Murray, KY
LB Zach East Prairie View A&M Sr. 6-2 230 Houston, TX
LB Bobby Abare Yale Sr. 6-2 220 Acton-Boxboro, MA
DB Mark LeGree Appalachian State Soph. 6-0 200 Columbus, GA
DB Marcus Haywood James Madison Sr. 6-0 190 Williamsburg, VA
DB Colt Anderson Montana Sr. 5-11 195 Butte, MT
DB K.J. Gerard Northern Arizona Sr. 6-1 187 Fountain Valley, CA
P Robbie Dehaze Northern Arizona Sr. 6-3 193 Sherwood, OR
KR LeRoy Vann Florida A&M Jr. 5-9 182 Tampa, FL

* - 2007 Walter Camp FCS All-America selection

- http://www.waltercamp.org/

FAMU's successful volleyball program faces uncertain future

Getting FAMU’s volleyball team into the NCAA tournament was one of coach Tony Trifonov’s goals, but not the way he did it with a short-handed roster. Trifonov had hoped to achieve even more along the way to reaching the national tournament a week ago. He had big plans before he found out that some of the players he was banking on wouldn’t be admitted.“We were thinking that we were going to have a top-25 team and be in a position to host a regional again like we did in 2004,” he said. “The MEAC shouldn’t have been a contention for us.

“Of course we were going to play the games, but we would have been heavy, heavy favorites. At it turned out, that wasn’t the case.” Five days after FAMU was eliminated from the NCAA tournament, Trifonov is facing a future of uncertainty. He isn’t sure if Barry transfer Samara Ferraz will regain one more year of eligibility for the time she sat out to have a son. If she doesn’t there is no telling whether he’ll find a replacement who would have the same immediate impact as Ferraz did when she joined the team this season.

Trifonov’s program is one that doesn’t generate revenue and it’s caught in the current budget crunch at FAMU. As a result, he can’t get the kind of money it would take to recruit and reload the Rattlers for next season.

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President says Jones is still Alcorn's coach

Alcorn State football coach Ernest T. Jones was fired on Thursday. Or he wasn’t. Or no one knows. One day after Jones’ attorney said he received a letter from the university informing him of the coach’s dismissal, Alcorn State President George Ross said this morning that Jones has not been fired. “Coach Jones is not fired. There are lawsuits filed, so I’m limited in what I can say. But Coach Jones has not been fired,” Ross said. “Ernest Jones is the head coach at Alcorn State University.”

Jones, on a recruiting trip, said that was welcome news, although he hadn’t heard from his attorneys or Alcorn officials today. “I’m on the road recruiting. All I hear is what I know from the newspapers, the TV and what you guys tell me,” Jones said. “I’m going to do my job until somebody tells me to park the truck and turn my keys in.” On Thursday, Jones’ attorney, Wayne Ferrell, told The Associated Press the firing was detailed in a letter from the university. Jones learned of his apparent dismissal from reporters and his attorney early Thursday afternoon. He had no contact about the matter from Alcorn officials, he said.

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