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SELMA, AL — Concordia College weathered two rain showers, a lightning delay and a host of injuries to win its home opener, 52-20 over Miles College on Saturday.
After trading scores — and leads — in the first half, Concordia shut out the Bears in the second half and racked up four touchdowns to win going away. “We know we can play at a high level,” Concordia quarterback T’chelipo Woods, said. “We were playing fast and executed. We hit on all cylinders.”
Hornets coach Shepherd Skanes was less enthusiastic, but happy with the win. “I wanted them to close it out,” Skanes said. “We had West Georgia (last week), but we left some points out on the grass. They closed it out today, and did a good job.”
East Hartford, CT — UConn did exactly what you would expect it to do against an inferior opponent. The Huskies never gave Texas Southern a chance to breathe, scoring on their first five possessions, converting a pair of first-half turnovers into touchdowns and allowing the Tigers no room to roam on offense.
The result: After building a 45-0 halftime lead, UConn's reserves got the bulk of the work in the second half of a 62-3 victory over Texas Southern before 37,359 in the home opener at Rentschler Field.
In the first half, Jordan Todman rushed for 151 yards and three touchdowns, Zach Frazer threw a pair of touchdown passes and the UConn defense, which couldn't get off the field on third down a week earlier at Michigan, allowed only one first down. That's all you really need to take from this game, although you must applaud the Huskies for coming out prepared, not taking the Tigers lightly, and dominating from the start.
DOVER, Del. — A lot of what coach Joe Taylor expected from his Florida A&M football team didn't materialize, but he was thankful Saturday night at Alumni Stadium. Taylor's biggest thank you after watching the film could go the Rattlers' defense, which turned away Delaware State twice during the final seven minutes to secure a 17-14 victory in FAMU's first Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference game.
"It's always been tough to play up here," Taylor said, "but we will take a victory." Neither team could do much offensively early on. The teams mustered just 16 points in the first half with the Rattlers taking a 10-6 lead at halftime.
DOVER, DE -- The good thing is that Delaware State's football team might be just one swift kick away from solving its problems. The bad thing is that Mario Diaz-Aviles, the Hornets' freshman placekicker, sat on the bench with a severely injured ankle against Florida A&M University and won't be ready to come back anytime soon.
The lack of a reliable placekicker put DSU coach Al Lavan and his Hornets at a sizable disadvantage in field position -- and scoring -- against the Rattlers.
Delaware State's football team wore stickers with the initials "KG" on their helmets during Saturday's game against Florida A&M in honor of New York City firefighter Keith Glascoe, a DSU graduate who played for the Hornets in the early 1980s and was among those killed while performing rescue efforts at the World Trade Center on 9/11.
Jacksonville State inspired Football Championship Subdivision programs across the country when it stunned Mississippi in a 49-48 double-overtime victory last Saturday at Oxford, Miss. Later that evening, North Dakota State outlasted Kansas 6-3 in Lawrence, Kan., to gain another upset for the FCS.
Today, Texas Southern and Prairie View A&M will have their shot at shocking the Football Bowl Subdivision establishment. TSU will face Connecticut at 11 a.m. in East Hartford, Conn.; Prairie View will take on Southern Mississippi at 6 p.m. in Hattiesburg, Miss.
The Southern Miss football team holds its home opener at 6 p.m. today against Prairie View A&M, trying to bury last week’s disappointing 41-13 loss at South Carolina. USM has never lost to an opponent from the SWAC, but the Panthers are the best team that the league offers after a 9-1 season in 2009 and a season-opening 16-14 win over Texas Southern.
Southern Miss players admit that Ole Miss’ loss to another FCS team, Jacksonville State, last week has been a refresher on what can happen when you don’t play your best against a lesser opponent. The Golden Eagles went 6-0 at home last season, and have an eight-game home winning streak going.
STORRS, CT — Following up last weekend’s season-opener at Michigan to Saturday’s game with Texas Southern is a little like going from playing Carnegie Hall to the local fair in consecutive weeks for the UConn football team. Then again, beggars can’t be choosers. The Huskies are fairly lucky to have landed anyone at all for today’s home-opener at Rentschler Field (noon, SNY).
Northeastern, an old Yankee Conference rival from UConn’s Division I-AA football days, was the original opponent. But when it abruptly ended its football program last December it left UConn coach Randy Edsall scrambling to fill the open date.
DOVER, DE -- Both Delaware State University and Florida A&M lost their season openers last week.
For the Hornets, it was a second-half breakdown that led to a 37-27 loss to Southern. For FAMU, it was a 45-0 rout at the hands of national power Miami. So both will be eager to get their seasons headed in the right direction in tonight's match-up between the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference rivals at Alumni Stadium.
Hornets defensive lineman Andre Caroll set a career high with 13 tackles against Southern. He cannot wait to get back onto the football field. "Honestly, I was really heartbroken after that game," Caroll said. "I felt like we all played hard, we just messed up on the little things. Then in the fourth quarter I think we all got tired and that Florida sun really took a toll on us. Fatigue set in.
DOVER, Del. — With his Delaware State football team having just three seniors on offense, Al Lavan still isn't too sure about the character of the Hornets. But he insists his younger players don't have much time to show how good they could become.
"We are evolving into a maturing football team," Lavan said as he prepared DSU to face Florida A&M today. "We've got a very young squad in most areas. We've got a couple of positions and personnel that have played a little bit, but overall it's a mixture. We will just have to grow up fast and become more resilient and tougher mentally."
Florida A&M will mix and match instead of relying on one returner as it did during the past two seasons when LeRoy Vann ran his way into the NCAA and school record books. Jerral Stewart came out of spring camp as Vann's successor for both kick and punt returns, but coach Joe Taylor has decided to capitalize on the speed of University of Florida transfer receiver T.J. Lawrence. He will take the punt return job while Stewart will return kickoffs.
As the Southern Heritage Classic heads into its 21st game Saturday night at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium, one thing it's proven is that it has staying power.
Throughout the Classic's existence, founder Fred Jones has been able to keep the annual event, which culminates with Tennessee State meeting Jackson State, fresh, exciting, and more importantly, relevant.
Fans come to Memphis from across the Mid-South to attend the Classic Comedy Jam, the Classic R&B concert, the Ed "Too Tall" Jones Golf Classic, the SHC parade, the high school Battle of the Bands, the tailgating - and yes, the game itself.
Yes, new Mississippi Valley State coach Karl Morgan might have been better off scheduling schools like Lincoln College and Texas College, two of three games the Delta Devils won last year. But he wanted to go bigger and better. So, Morgan scheduled South Carolina State.
"We want to build this program," Morgan said. "We are going to play the big guys." It's safe to say South Carolina State is a big guy. The Bulldogs are the unquestioned No. 1-ranked HBCU and the No. 13 Football Championship Subdivision team. They've won 10 games each of the last two years. They gave Southeastern Conference member South Carolina a test last season and nearly...
DURHAM, N.C. -- N.C. Central quarterback Michael Johnson received clearance on Wednesday from the NCAA and will be able to play in Saturday's game at home against Winston-Salem State. Johnson, a red-shirt junior, was held out of NCCU's season opener against Johnson C. Smith while the school waited to hear from the NCAA on his playing status. The Eagles prevailed without Johnson as backup Keon Williams threw four touchdown passes in NCCU's 59-0 victory over the Golden Bulls.
Hampton, VA – Last weekend produced mixed results for the CIAA as it enjoyed exhilarating victories as well as disappointing defeats. This weekend, ten CIAA schools will be in action and eight of them will be meeting nonconference opponents. The lone contest featuring CIAA teams, Bowie State – Fayetteville State, is a rematch of the 2009 Championship Game. However, several nonconference tilts will be important as the league continues to raise its football reputation.
GAME OF THE WEEK: WINSTON-SALEM STATE AT NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL:The Rams have come out of the gate fast with an impressive 2-0 start. With victories over Virginia Union and its long-time rival, North Carolina A&T, WSSU has already earned one more win than it did in 2009 (1-10). Last weekend’s comeback win over the Aggies is one of the best wins the Rams have enjoyed in years. After last weekend’s handling of VUU, the mettle of WSSU was put to the test. The Rams came through with flying colors. Two quarterbacks were necessary to orchestrate the win over the Aggies. This strategy might be necessary to knock off North Carolina Central. RB Nic Cooper has also provided a consistent running threat. Defensively, the Rams are giving up only 13.5 points per contest and will need to play solid against an NCCU team that won 59-0 last weekend. The Eagles knocked off WSSU 18-10 last season and the Rams once again seek revenge against its one-time CIAA divisional rival (6:00 p.m. at Durham). Players to watch: (Winston-Salem State: LB Carl Fields; DB Alton Keaton; RB Nic Cooper).
HATTIESBURG, MS — With Prairie View A&M star quarterback K.J. Black questionable for Saturday night's game against Southern Miss, the Golden Eagles have made sure to cover all their bases on defense.
If Black doesn't go at Roberts Stadium, Jonathan Troast will step in after leading the Panthers to a 16-14 win over Texas Southern in a defensive struggle on Sunday.
Prairie View coach Henry Frazier said that Black could return against USM but will more likely be held out until next week against Alabama State.
The University of Maryland’s 17-14 Labor Day win over Navy leaves Terrapin fans optimistic a successful start to the season signifies the revived team’s ability to play competitive football and hold its own in a talented conference.
Maryland defensive back Kenny Tate and defensive lineman Joe Vellano were awarded Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Week honors for their noteworthy roles in Monday’s win, but fans are already focusing on the future.
After upsetting Navy, led by Heisman trophy candidate Ricky Dobbs, Saturday’s home game against Morgan State (1-0) -- the first meeting between the two schools -- is predicted to be an old-fashioned beat-down. However, Maryland’s shocking losses last season, including to Middle Tennessee State, make a win tricky to guarantee.
As Rod Reed became better acquainted with Tennessee State's offensive players after moving from defensive coordinator to head coach, he had a suggestion for wide receiver Joseph Hills. Reed knew enough about Hills to tell him the nickname he had chosen was not a good fit. "He was wearing No. 85 and calling himself (Bengals receiver Chad) Ochocinco and I told him, 'No, you're Ouchocinco' because when the ball hit him in the hands he dropped it like it hurt," Reed said.
Hills didn't allow the ribbing to rub him the wrong way. He used it as a catalyst to become a more dependable pass catcher and then spent the summer working with TSU's quarterbacks. The extra work paid off Saturday when Hills had five catches for 67 yards and a career-best two touchdowns in a 27-14 win over Alabama A&M. The 6-foot-5, 205-pound senior from Palmetto, Fla., led TSU in receiving...
Tennessee State Coach Rod Reed promised redshirt freshman Ray Weatherspoon playing time at cornerback heading into Saturday's game against Alabama A&M. Weatherspoon returned the opening kickoff 89 yards for a touchdown and said it was his way of making sure Reed didn't forget his promise in the Tigers' 27-14 win. The kickoff return was a John Merritt Classic record, erasing the 64-yard mark set last year by A&M's Ulysses Banks.
Two things came to mind when QB Casey Therriault finished watching film of Tennessee State earlier this week. "They are big, big bodies," Therriault said. "They like to send a lot of blitz packages." During its 27-14 win over Alabama A&M last Saturday, Tennessee State sacked Bulldogs QB Deaunte Mason seven times for a loss of 48 yards.
With the game against TSU set for Saturday at 6 p.m. in Memphis, those aren't numbers Therriault wants to see. "They do a lot of stunts, twisting and turning. They got a lot of guys who keep on going," Therriault said. Therriault was sacked twice in JSU's 32-17 season-opening win over Delta State, but he was forced from the pocket several more times.
Renty Rollins immediately covered his head with his hands. He knew his snap was, by now, soaring high above Jackson State punter Reed Gallagher's head. Rollins, JSU's new snapper, wheeled around to see that he was, indeed, correct. "You hate to see it happen," Jackson State coach Rick Comegy said. "You think, 'Oh my God.'''
Most Jackson State fans likely had similar thoughts as Rollins' first punt snap flew over Gallagher's head less than five minutes into last Saturday's opener against Delta State. To his credit, though, Rollins' next three snaps were just fine. READ MORE, CLICK EACH TITLE.
A heightened sense of excitement is in the air for Alabama A&M’s home opener Saturday against Central State (Ohio) in the inaugural Louis Crews Classic. The game honors one of the Bulldogs’ legendary coaches, whose 93-53-3 record in 16 seasons makes him No. 1 in school history in victories and second in winning percentage (.624) behind only current A&M coach Anthony Jones (.642). A week of activities surrounds the game, which coincides with the 100th anniversary of Alabama A&M football.
“This is a way to honor a great man and set the tone for the season,’’ Alabama A&M Director of Athletics Betty Austin said.
Charlotte tourism leaders are ready for some more roundball.
The Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority has begun formal negotiations to keep the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association’s annual men’s and women’s basketball tournaments here for several more years. Tim Newman, the visitors authority’s chief executive, told board members this week the CRVA submitted a bid last month to the conference of historically black colleges and universities to extend the partnership.
“They’re evaluating that,” Newman says. “We think we’ve got a great shot based on the great relationship we’ve had.” The current three-year deal expires in 2011. Charlotte has hosted the CIAA since 2006 at Time Warner Cable Arena. Economic impact from the tournament in 2010 was $37.1 million, dipping from $38.2 million a year earlier.
NORFOLK, VA - Norfolk State's cramping put a crimp in its season opener. It also sent NSU strength and conditioning coach Reese Bridgman on a search for answers. Bridgman said a combination of factors caused the Spartans' issues last Thursday at Rutgers, and he doesn't expect cramps to be a major problem Saturday against North Carolina A&T.
Bridgman said the amount of time the defense spent on the field and the spongy turf of Rutgers Stadium led to NSU's problems. Oh, and just like most of the issues plaguing the country, the economy can be blamed as well. "I spent a lot of time looking at it," Bridgman said. "I feel some responsibility. As a team, we weren't in as good aerobic shape as we'd have liked to be. You only have so many weeks of preseason. It takes six weeks to get kids in aerobic shape. Preseason is four weeks."
SHREVEPORT, LA — Grambling might be lacking experience at quarterback, but if Saturday night's game against Louisiana Tech is any indication, the Tigers are not lacking talent. Tech defeated GSU 20-6, but even in defeat Grambling's Anthony Carrothers, making the start as a true freshman, showed flashes of being an explosive playmaker.
He completed 9-of-16 pass attempts for 86 yards and was intercepted once. He was also an elusive threat on the ground, gaining 39 yards (he ended the game with 14 net yards, having lost 25 yards on sacks).
SHREVEPORT — The question heading into Saturday night's Louisiana Tech-Grambling State game wasn't "Who is going to win?" The questions were "How good is Tech going to feel about its win, and how bad is Grambling going to feel about its loss?"
No disrespect to the Tigers, but they're probably the weakest team Tech will face this year. In turn, the Bulldogs are nowhere close to being...
The pomp and pageantry of college football was in full display on Saturday night in Shreveport's Independence Stadium with Grambling State University and Louisiana Tech University meeting for a historic first time.
Located just five miles, in the piney woods of Lincoln Parish, the schools have met in other sports but avoided the gridiron, where emotions can run to a fever pitch, for oh these many years. Fortunately for both schools, they picked a perfect fall night for the meeting that attracted one of the largest crowds either school will draw this season.
FORT VALLEY, GA — The good news was that Fort Valley State’s offense moved the ball, to the tune of more than 400 yards and four touchdowns. The bad news was that same offense had more turnovers than touchdowns, and Morehouse made the Wildcats pay dearly. No matter what happens the rest of the season, Fort Valley State won’t forget Saturday’s 47-34 loss.
“Wooo, boy,” FVSU linebacker Ricky Johnson said, shaking his head. “We never should have lost that game.” But FVSU gave up points on a 95-yard fumble return and 60-yard interception return while watching Morehouse convert two more fumbles into touchdowns. “Without the turnovers, I think we win that game,” Johnson said. “Point-blank, period. But we can’t win with too many turnovers.”
The Wildcats depart SIAC competition — perhaps just in time — when they take on Savannah State on Saturday at Henderson Stadium.
Dandridge named SWAC player of week in first game with Tigers
Tim Dandridge hadn't heard about Jackson State's "Dark Side" defense before transferring from Minnesota after last season. But it didn't take the outside linebacker/cornerback long to learn the tradition built on that side of the ball.
Last season, the Tigers were eighth in the nation in total defense, ninth in passing efficiency, 12th in pass defense and third in tackles for loss. In his first start for JSU last Saturday, Dandridge showed he was more than capable of replacing last year's leading tackler, Malcolm Palmer.
The junior not only had eight tackles, including one for a loss, he also forced a fumble that prevented a Delta State touchdown and had two interceptions, one of which he returned for a touchdown in JSU's 32-17 victory in the W.C. Gorden Classic.
Jamila McKinnis, a junior outside hitter on the Stillman College volleyball team, was selected as the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Player of the Week.
McKinnis was named to the All-Tournament team after the Lady Tigers participated in the Christian Brothers Invitational in Memphis, Tenn. A two-time All-SIAC selection, McKinnis was chosen the league’s most valuable player after her sophomore season.
McKinnis recorded a .250 hitting percentage and had 43 kills in four tournament games. Stillman lost to Christian Brothers (3-0) and Cameron (3-0) on Friday. On Saturday, Stillman lost to Ouachita Baptist (3-1) and to Illinois Springfield (3-0). McKinnis had 12 kills, 12 digs and 10 assists against Ouachita Baptist. She posted 17 kills and 12 digs against Illinois-Springfield.
A&T head coach Alonzo Lee prides himself on being an eternal optimist, but even he has to be shaking his head these days when contemplating some of the setbacks that have recently besieged his football team.
Just one game into the 2010 campaign, the Aggies are already searching for answers following a disappointing 21-14 loss to rival Winston-Salem State University last weekend. Contributing to that surprise defeat was the fact A&T saw its top quarterback go down with a possible season-ending knee injury in a preseason scrimmage two weeks ago and, just hours before the Winston game on Saturday, learned that at least four players were declared academically ineligible by the university.
Not exactly the way Lee envisioned the start of his second year in Aggieland. However, don’t expect A&T’s fiery leader to throw in the towel anytime soon.
ATLANTA, GA — Latrice Lewis led Albany State University with 22 kills and Sabrina Garcia added 14 more, but it was not enough as the Lady Rams volleyball team lost, 3-2, to the Clark Atlanta University Lady Panthers in their SIAC opener Wednesday night in Atlanta.
The Lady Rams dropped to 0-2 on the season and 0-1 in conference play. The Lady Rams won Game 1, 25-21, but dropped the next two games, 25-18, both times. The Lady Rams won Game 4, 25-20, but lost the final game, 15-10. Adrienne Morris led the Lady Rams’ defense with 25 digs, and Priscila Sena recorded 44 assists.
The Lady Rams will be in action on Friday against the Edward Waters Lady Tigers in Jacksonville, Fla.
As with most games between teams at college football's highest level and those one step below, this one should be a mismatch. Just as the players on the Connecticut sideline will realize quickly Saturday they aren't playing the likes of Texas or Texas Tech, those on the Texas Southern sideline at Rentschler Field will undoubtedly see they aren't facing Concordia.
It can be as much a negative for the favorite as a positive. Overconfidence often arises from the Goliath in these games, leaving David with one or two shots at a huge upset. Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) teams annually knock off one or two of the big boys, proving the task at least isn't impossible.
ITTA BENA, Miss. - Karl Morgan knows the feeling of leaving Oliver C. Dawson Stadium a victor.
In 2004, the Mississippi Valley State head coach was in his second season as defensive coordinator for Hampton University when Hampton defeated South Carolina State 52-36. At the time, the Pirates were about to start a three-year run of winning Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference championships.
Things have drastically changed six years later as it's now S.C. State looking to claim a third straight conference title and extend its MEAC record winning streak of 19 games previously held by Hampton. What's also different for Morgan is the fact he's returning to Orangeburg to face a Bulldogs' team that bears little resemblance to the one he faced in 2004.
It was not that long ago that Elizabeth City State’s football team struggled for wins. The turnaround occurred in 2006 when Curtis Rich emerged from a crowded quarterback corps to lead the Vikings to the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association championship game and head coach Waverly Tillar made a commitment to solidifying the position.
The next season, with Rich entrenched, Tillar recruited Pasquotank’s Creven Powell, convincing him to come to ECSU over offers from Norfolk State and North Carolina A&T, and the rest, as they say, was history. “I told the coaches after the 2006 football season, I don’t ever want to have another quarterback situation where we played musical chairs with quarterback and not having the type of quarterback to move this offense,” Tillar said.
SELMA, AL — Concordia College weathered two rain showers, a lightning delay and a host of injuries to win its home opener, 52-20 over Miles College on Saturday.
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