FAMU Excited About Renovated Track

TALLAHASSEE, Florida  -- Wayne Angel couldn’t help acting like a child showing off a new toy recently to a visitor at Pete Griffin Track.

The FAMU men’s track & field coach began talking about the new surface. Then, he began talking about the new lane guards, modernized steeplechase pit, remodeled restrooms and the 8-foot fence that encloses it all.

Angel went on to talk about how he sees good things for his current team and the future of the program.

“Perspective recruits look at the resources that you have,” he said. “Now that we have a really good track, it’s a good thing to have.”

Darlene Moore, coach of the women’s team, was just as ecstatic over the renovations that took a year to complete.

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TSU's National Signing Day Celebration Set for Wednesday

NASHVILLE, Tennessee  -- The Tennessee State football team will hold its annual Signing Day Celebration on Wednesday, Feb. 5 at 5 p.m. in the Indoor Football Facility.

The event coincides with the 24-hour period that high school recruits can agree to commit to a school by faxing a National Letter of Intent.

 

Video footage of all of the new Tigers will be shown and head coach Rod Reed will provide insight into what each player brings to the program.

 

TSU’s recruiting class has been rated No.1 among HBCUs by BOXTOROW for two straight years.

 

TSUTigers.com will have a live updates all day Wednesday here and via our social media pages on Twitter - @TSU_Tigers and Facebook.com/TSU_Tigers.

 

Admission to Wednesday’s festivities is free open to the public and the media. Light refreshments will be served.

 

COURTESY TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

SU Women's Tennis falls 6-1 to ULM in home opener

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana  --  Junior Camara Davis scored Southern's lone point in singles play as the Lady Jaguars fell 6-1 to UL Monroe in the 2014 home opener at the SU University Courts Thursday afternoon.

In a rescheduled match that was postponed early in the week due to inclement weather through much of south Louisiana, Davis defeated Sthefani Rodriguez in straight sets 6-4, 6-4 and recorded her first win of the season.

Southern began the match dropping the doubles point when Gabrielle Moore and Danesha Moore fell 6-0 to Petra Horakova and Medy Blankvoort prior to Kendall Bunch and Laura Syori lost 6-1 to Sophie Rufyikiri and Angela Tejedor.

In singles play, Morgan Taylor fell 6-1, 6-2 to Sandy Lochu in No. 4 singles match. ULM clinched the No. 2 and No. 3 singles point after Sophie Rufyikiri ousted Gabrielle Moore 6-2, 6-2 and Petra Horakova defeated Darnesha Moore 6-3, 6-2.

ULM added to its point total winning the No. 1 and No. 5 singles point after Laura Syori fell to Medy Blankvoort  6-0, 7-5 and Kendell Bunch lost to Angela Tejedor 6-3, 6-4 prior to Davis' srtaight set win.

Southern will return to the SU University courts to host UL Lafayette Wednesday, Feb. 5. First serve is set for 2 p.m.

Southern Women's Tennis 2014
ULM vs Southern U. Lady Jaguars (Jan 30, 2014)

ULM 6, Southern U. Lady Jaguars 1
Jan 30, 2014 at Baton Rouge, La. (SU University Courts) 

Singles competition

1. Blankvoort, Medy (ULM) def. Syori, Laura (SUBR) 6-0, 7-5

2. Rufyikiri, Sophie (ULM) def. Moore, Gabrielle (SUBR) 6-2, 6-2

3. Horakova, Petra (ULM) def. Moore, Darnesha (SUBR) 6-3, 6-2

4. Lochu, Sandy (ULM) def. Taylor, Morgan (SUBR) 6-1, 6-2

5. Tejedor, Angela (ULM) def. Bunch, Kendall (SUBR) 6-3, 6-4

6. Davis, Camara (SUBR) def. Rodriguez, Sthefani (ULM) 6-4, 6-4

Doubles competition

1. Blankvoort, Medy/Horakova, Petra (ULM) def. Moore, Gabrielle/Moore, Darnesha (SUBR) 6-0

2. Rufyikiri, Sophie/Tejedor, Angela (ULM) def. Bunch, Kendall/Syori, Laura (SUBR) 6-1

3. Taylor, Morgan/Davis, Camara (SUBR) vs. Rodriguez, Sthefani/Lochu, Sandy (ULM) unfinished

Match Notes

ULM 1-0

Southern U. Lady Jaguars 0-2 COURTESY SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS MEDIA RELATIONS

Southern's Annual National Signing Day event set for Feb. 5

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana  -- February 5^th, 2014 marks National Signing Day and the Jaguar Nation is encouraged to come celebrate the next generation of Jaguars with Head Coach Dawson Odums and staff.

The Blue & Gold Century Club and the S.U Quarterback Club will host the Southern University Annual Football Recruiting Celebration in the Royal Cotillion Ballroom in the Smith-Brown Memorial Union on the Baton Rouge campus.

Doors will open at 6 p.m. and the program is set to start at 7 p.m. After the unveiling of the 2014 recruiting class, fans are welcomed to meet and greet with Head Coach Dawson Odums and enjoy a light meal.

Donations of $20 are welcomed and to reserve a table for 10 is $300.  Tickets may be purchased from any club member of the Blue and Gold Century Club and S.U. Quarterback Club.

The Jaguars are coming off an exceptional 2013 season.

After demolishing long time rival Grambling State University in the 40^th annual Bayou Classic 40-17, the Jaguars traveled to Houston and defeated the Jackson State Tigers 34-27 in a down-to-the-wire, double overtime matchup for the 2014 SWAC Championship.

The Jaguars, in their first full season under Odums, finished 7-2 in conference and held an overall record of 9-4.

There will be a viewing of both, the Bayou Classic and the Toyota SWAC Championship trophies at the celebration and fans will be allowed to take pictures.



Courtesy Briana Brownlee, Southern University Athletics Media Relations Student Assistant

Nicholls beats Gold Rush 6-3; Montrel wins twice for XU

THIBODAUX, Louisiana -- Xavier University of Louisiana, ranked sixth in the NAIA, opened the dual-match portion of its men's tennis season with a 6-3 loss to NCAA Division I's Nicholls State on Friday.

Sophomore Kyle Montrel won in doubles and singles for the Gold Rush. He and Nikita Soifer defeated Kiernan Cronin and Evan Karatzas 8-6 at No. 1 doubles, then Montrel beat Partha Adovelly 6-3, 3-6, 6-2 at No. 1 singles.

Montrel, an NAIA All-American in doubles last season, has won 10 of his last 11 singles matches and 10 of his last 11 doubles matches. Soifer, XU's other returning All-American, has won 20 of his last 22 in doubles.

Xavier's other victory came at No. 6 singles, where newcomer Vincenzo Ciccone trailed 5-0 in the first set but defeated Kiernan Cronin 4-6, 7-5, 6-2.

"I was encouraged by what I saw," 11th-year XU coach Alan Green said. "Everybody got to play, and all the guys fought hard. I liked the fight in our team. Nicholls State is tons better than the team we faced two years ago, but I think we're better, too."

Nico Mertens, Lukas Clemens and Bernard Wezeman won in doubles and singles for Nicholls State (1-1). Mertens and Adovelly rallied from a 5-4 deficit to beat Tushar Mandlekar and Jordan Harrell 8-5 at No. 3 doubles.

It was the first of seven Gold Rush matches this season against NCAA Division I opponents. Xavier was 4-2 against NCAA D-Is last year.

Both Xavier teams will play city rival Loyola at 2 p.m. next Friday at the XU Tennis Center. It will be the first dual of the semester for the Gold Nuggets, who are ranked third in the NAIA.

 Results

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAATHLETICS
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
https://twitter.com/xulagold
https://www.facebook.com/xulagold

35-Team Field Highlights TSU Invite Saturday

NASHVILLE, Tennessee – After taking a week off the Tennessee State track and field team will return to action hosting the annual TSU Invite.

 

The meet will include 30-plus teams from across the southeast. Saturday will also mark the final tune-up at the Wilma Rudolph Indoor Track before TSU plays host to the 2014 OVC Indoor Championships.

 

Four Ohio Valley schools with also participate in the Feb. 1 meet: Austin Peay, Belmont, Murray State and Tennessee Tech.

 

The Flying Tigers and Tigerbelles last took to the track on Jan. 18 in the Niswonger Invitational where the jumpers took the spotlight.

 

Royce Dates jumped a distance of 7.50 meters to win his first long jump of the indoor season. The mark stands as Dates of the year. Kareem Nicholas also put in a strong jump, of  6.90 in the long jump for a fourth place finish.

 

The Flying Tigers claimed top spot in the high jump with a 2.08 jump from Daryl Rice. Caleb Carrothers finished fourth in the event, clearing a mark of 1.98 meters.

 

Tigerbelle Clairwin Dameus captured the long jump on the women’s side, clearing 5.68 meters. The win was Dameus’ third time winning the event on the young season. Dameus paired her event winning performance with a fifth place time of 24.96 in the 200 meters.

 

COURTESY TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

2013 D2Football.com All-America Team

LIBERTY, Missouri  -- Offensive Player of the Year Franklyn Quiteh and Defensive Player of the Year Matt Longacre highlight the 2013 D2Football.com All-America team.  Players from 62 schools were selected with West Texas A&M leading the way with eight selections.  Adam Dorrel, coach of National Champion Northwest Missouri, is the 2012 Coach of the Year.  It is the first time he has received this honor.

 

The D2Football.com All-America Team was selected by the staff of D2Football.com with input from coaches, scouts, media members, and sports information directors from around the country. 

 

D2Football.com has named an All-America Team since its inception in 2000.

2013 D2Football.com All-America Team

 

QB	Dustin Vaughan	6-5, 220, Sr.	West Texas A&M
RB	Franklyn Quiteh	5-9, 206, Sr.	Bloomsburg
RB	Rondell White	5-10, 185,Sr.	West Chester
WR	Jeff Janis	6-3, 218, Sr.	Saginaw Valley State
WR	Marquez Clark	5-11, 190, Jr.	Central Oklahoma
TE	Joe Don Duncan	6-4, 270, Sr.	Dixie State
OL	Matt Feiler	6-7, 325, Sr.	Bloomsburg
OL	Brian Clarke	6-3, 290, Sr.	Bloomsburg
OL	Jeremy Gatson	6-4, 325, Sr.	Shaw
OL	Matt Armstrong	6-3, 290, Sr.	Grand Valley State
OL	William Wright	6-3, 310, Sr.	West Georgia
DL	Jake Metz	6-7, 255, Sr.	Shippensburg
DL	Larry Webster	6-7, 250, Sr.	Bloomsburg
DL	Matt Longacre	6-3, 240, Jr.	Northwest Missouri State
DL	Darius Allen	6-3, 239, Jr.	CSU-Pueblo
LB	Carlos Fields	6-2, 220, Sr.	Winston-Salem State
LB	Tavarius Wilson	5-11, 235, Sr.	North Alabama
LB	LeRon Furr	6-3, 225, Sr.	Fort Valley State
DB	Pierre Desir	6-2, 206, Sr.	Lindenwood
DB	Brandon Dixon	6-0, 195, Sr.	Northwest Missouri State
DB	Dexter Moody	6-3, 204, Sr.	Albany State
DB	Michael Green	6-0, 195, Sr.	Lenoir-Rhyne
K	Sergio Castillo	5-11, 195, Sr.	West Texas A&M
P	Brandon Kliesen	5-10, 221, Sr.	CSU- Pueblo
AP	John Brown	5-11, 170, Sr.	Pittsburg State
Second Team
QB	Kevin Rodgers	6-3, 215, Jr.	Henderson State
RB	Keidrick Jackson	5-9, 210, Sr.	Midwestern State
RB	Tyler Tonderum	5-10, 191, Jr.	Southwest Minnesota State
WR	Trevor Harman	6-2, 210, Jr.	Shippensburg
WR	Freddie Martino	6-0, 195, Sr.	North Greenville
TE	Ryan Corbin	6-4, 250, Sr.	Southwestern Oklahoma State
OL	Craig Watts	6-4, 335, Sr.	West Texas A&M
OL	Cole Manhart	6-6, 300, Jr.	Nebraska-Kearney
OL	Matthew Reece	6-3, 310, Jr.	Tuskegee
OL	Byron Dovales	6-3, 290, Sr.	IUP
OL	Jamal Ellis	6-4, 315, Sr.	Newberry
DL	Charles Tuaau	6-5, 310, Jr.	Texas A&M Commerce
DL	Zach Moore	6-6, 278, Sr.	Concordia St. Paul
DL	Ethan Westbrooks	6-4, 275, Sr.	West Texas A&M
DL	Jamie Meder	6-2, 304, Sr.	Ashland
LB	Taylor McCuller	6-2, 240, Sr.	West Texas A&M
LB	Chris Pope	6-1, 215, Sr.	Valdosta State
LB	Keaton Stigger	6-2, 245, Sr.	Henderson State
DB	Brian Dixon	6-0, 195, Sr.	Northwest Missouri State
DB	Thomas Wolfe III	6-0, 185, Sr.	Fort Valley State
DB	Justin Bell	5-10, 185, Sr.	Ohio Dominican
DB	Jack Moro	5-11, 190, Sr.	St. Cloud State
K	Steve Wakefield	5-11, 175, Sr.	Mercyhurst
P	Scottie Gallardo	6-0, 215, Sr.	Fort Lewis
AP	Nathan Slaughter	5-10, 185, Sr.	West Texas A&M
Honorable Mention
QB	Jonathon Jennings	6-2, 205, Sr.	Saginaw Valley State
QB	Joe Clancy	6-3, 210, Sr.	Merrimack
QB	Jon Wolf	6-4, 230, Sr.	Minnesota State
QB	Bo Cordell	6-0, 205, Sr.	Tusculum
RB	Glen Clinton	5-10, 200, Sr.	Chadron State
RB	Daiquone Ford	5-7, 190, So.	Findlay
RB	Anthony Taylor	5-11, 209, Jr.	Ashland
RB	Terrell Watson	6-2, 230, Jr.	Azusa Pacific
WR	Robert Holland	6-3, 190, Sr.	Chowan
WR	Vernon Johnson	6-1, 190, Jr.	Texas A&M-Commerce
WR	Gregory Moore	6-4, 200, Sr.	Lane
WR	Corey Washington	6-4, 200, Sr.	Newberry
WR	Torrence Allen	6-1, 190, Sr.	West Texas A&M
WR	Darius Davis	5-11, 212, Jr.	Henderson State
TE	Reggie Jordan	6-3, 235, Sr.	Missouri Western State
TE	Michael Flacco	6-5, 245, So.	New Haven
TE	Scott Simonson	6-5, 255, Sr.	Assumption
TE	Jamie Potts	6-3, 235, So.	Grand Valley State
OL	Marcus Cuellar	6-4, 320, Sr.	Western Oregon
OL	Viondy Merisma	6-4, 285, Sr.	American International
OL	Mike Nelson	6-4, 305, Sr.	Central Washington
OL	Joe Ray	6-0, 245, So.	Lenoir-Rhyne
DL	Julian Howsare	6-3, 255, Jr.	Clarion
DL	Kraig Akins	6-2, 290, Jr.	Western Oregon
DL	Chris Schaudt	6-4, 272, Sr.	Minnesota State
DL	Mike Pennel	6-5, 363, Sr.	CSU-Pueblo
DL	Troy Harris	6-4, 260, Sr.	Mars Hill
DL	Donnie Owens	6-3, 295, Sr.	Winston-Salem State
DL	Howard Jones	6-4, 238, Sr.	Shepherd
DL	Lawrence Virgil	6-5, 290, Sr.	Valdosta State
DL	Robert Hayes	6-2, 278, Sr.	Shepherd
DL	Blake Baker	6-1, 215, Jr.	Lenoir-Rhyne
LB	Jake Edmiston	6-2, 225, Sr.	Colorado Mesa
LB	Nate Dreiling	6-4, 226, Sr.	Pittsburg State
LB	Colby Ring	6-1, 225, Sr.	Minnesota Duluth
LB	Ronell Williams	6-1, 230, Jr.	West Chester
LB	Isaiah Fleming	5-11, 220, Jr.	Cheyney
LB	Grant Singer	6-1, 215, Jr.	Mary
LB	DJ Gnader	6-2, 225, Jr.	Northwest Missouri State
DB	Dewey McDonald	6-0, 215, Sr.	California
DB	Neiko Conway	5-10, 185, Sr.	Midwestern State
DB	Devin Wallace	6-0, 201, Sr.	Virginia Union
DB	Curtis Slater	5-9, 195, Sr.	West Texas A&M
DB	Tyler Thornton	5-8, 182, Jr.	Azusa Pacific
DB	Dashaun Phillips	5-10, 180, Sr.	Tarleton State
DB	Caleb Massey	6-0, 226, Sr.	North Alabama
DB	Darnell Evans	5-8, 181, Sr.	Shaw
DB	Malcolm Butler	5-11, 180, Sr.	West Alabama
P	James McCombie	6-0, 170, Sr.	Slippery Rock
AP	Mike DeCaro	5-9, 191, Sr.	New Haven

COURTESY D2FOOTBALL.COM

Southern teams enjoying each other’s success

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana -- This championship stuff could become contagious.

The 2013 Southwestern Athletic Conference football championship trophy has found a home in Southern coach Dawson Odums’ office.

From there, it’s just a short walk to the F.G. Clark Activity Center, which houses both first-place basketball teams from the SWAC.

Earlier in this school year, the women’s soccer team won the SWAC regular-season title.
Right now is a good time to be a Southern Jaguar — and it’s not a real good time to be a Jaguar opponent.

The Southern men’s and women’s basketball teams have played eight doubleheaders in conference play, and only once did they fail to come away with a sweep. The women have won eight consecutive league games by an average margin of 12 points.

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Texas Southern featured on ESPN Sports Nation

Fans turn up and videobomb the camera pregame of a college basketball game betweeen Arkansas Pine-Bluff and Texas Southern.

Kicker Jacquemin sticks with Jackson State

MIAMI, Florida  -- Former Jackson State kicker Eric Perri sees glimpses of himself in Chris Jacquemin.

Perri — JSU’s all-time leader in made field goals (17) in a season and longest field goal made (50) — owns a kicking academy in Miami and trains Jacquemin. He’ll soon see one of his top students donning his alma mater’s uniform.




“I haven’t seen a kid with more accuracy and consistency coming out of high school, especially in Florida, than Chris,” Perri said. “He has a lot of power and is an all-around guy who can kick and punt.”

Jacquemin, a 5-foot-11, 180-pound left-footed kicker who made 8-of-8 field goals as a senior, committed to Jackson State previously. But he stumbled across a dilemma after learning that Rick Comegy was fired as head coach in December.

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Ex-Wesley Chapel QB’s ‘long journey’ leads to NFL

WESLEY CHAPEL, Florida — For a moment, sitting in the metal bleachers, overlooking his old high school’s football field, Greg Jenkins allowed the memories to flood back.

It was a time when a frail high school kid dreamed of playing college football and then, maybe, in the National Football League.

Jenkins, 24, is living those dreams as a college graduate and member of the Oakland Raiders.

“It feels like I’m in a dream and I haven’t even woke up yet,” said Jenkins, a 2008 Wesley Chapel High School graduate who recently completed his first season with Oakland. “I was thinking about it the other day and I just thought, ‘Wow, I’m blessed. Fortunate.’ I worked hard for it.

“One percent of college athletes make it to the NFL and (when) you can say you’re one of those guys, that’s amazing.”

Jenkins signed a three-year contract with the Raiders in ...

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Biloxi QB Damion May headed to Alabama A&M

BILOXI, Mississippi  -- Biloxi quarterback Damion May has verbally committed to Alabama A&M.

Indians coach John Shannon confirmed to the Sun Herald on Thursday that May will play for the SWAC school based in Huntsville.

May transferred Biloxi from Texas last year, but battled a few injuries during his only season with the Indians.

May's father, Damion Sr., played football for the Indians during the 1990's.



CONTINUE READING

SWAC Men's Basketball Release - January 30

UPCOMING SCHEDULE

Saturday Feb. 1
Alcorn State at Southern 5:00 p.m.
Prairie View at Alabama State 5:00 p.m.
Jackson State at Mississippi Valley State 5:00 p.m.
Texas Southern at Alabama A&M 6:00 p.m.
Grambling State at Arkansas Pine Bluff 7:30 p.m.

Monday Feb. 3
Texas Southern at Alabama State 7:30 p.m.
Jackson State at Arkansas Pine Bluff 7:30 p.m.
Prairie View at Alabama A&M ESPNU/WatchESPN 8:00 p.m.
Grambling State at Mississippi Valley State 8:00 p.m.

---

CONFERENCE NEWS & NOTES

The 2014 SWAC Basketball Tournament will be held at the Toyota Center from March 11-15. The Southwestern Athletic Conference will host the 2014 Championship for the first time in Houston, Texas
• Two four-game winning streaks were snapped last week. Alabama State’s was snapped by Southern and Alcorn State’s was ended by Alabama State
• Aaric Murray has scored 20 or more points on 14 different occasions this season and scored in double figures 17 out of the team’s 19 games
• Brandon West (Jackson State) is the only player currently averaging a double-double in the league with seven on the season. He is averaging 12 points and 11 rebounds per game. West is the only player in the confereance that leads the league in more than one statistical category. The center leads the way in rebounds and blocked shots (45)
• Marshall transfer D’Aris Scarver made his debut for Texas Southern on Jan 1. Through six games, the senior guard is averaging 18 points per outing
• After winning its first two conference games, Arkansas Pine Bluff has since dropped five straight
• Top leaders in the conference in points, assists and rebounds:
Points - Aaric Murray(TXSO) - 23.6 /game
Assists - Jamel Waters (ALST) 5.8/game
Rebounds - Brandon West (JKST) 10.9/game
• Out of 100 NCAA Div I players, Jamel Waters is currently ranked 14th in assists and averaging 6.3 per game. Brandon West is ranked sixth in rebounding
• Texas Southern’s Aaric Murray scores 48 (20-of-28) at Temple. No player in college basketball 6-10 or taller in college basketball has scored this many points in a decade and Murray is the first player since BYU’s Jimmer Fredette in 2011 to knock down 20 field goals
• Marcel Mosley (UAPB) leads the SWAC in three-point field goal percentage .425. He’s made a total of 14 in the last five games
• A’Torri Shine (Grambling State) holds the longest stre
ak of posting double figures consecutively with nine games.

COURTESY SWAC.ORG

Three Rattlers Elected To SIAC Hall Of Fame Class

COURTESY FLORIDA A&M ATHLETICS
VISIT: FLORIDA A&M UNIVERSITY
VISIT: FAMUATHLETICS.COM

ATLANTA, Georgia – The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference announced it’s 2014 class of inductees, which includes three FAMUans.  Andre Dawson, Clemon Johnson and Willie Galimore will be inducted in a ceremony surrounding the 2014 SIAC basketball championship in Birmingham, Ala., on March 5.

 

Florida A&M was a member of the SIAC from 1913-1979, where it competed against some of the best athletes in the country, barring no division status.  Florida A&M established it’s history of dominance during Alonzo “Jake” Gaither’s tenure as head coach of the Rattler football team.  He captured 22 championships in 25 seasons as head coach.  That feat has not been duplicated.  FAMU also won several basketball championships and stood out in baseball, and track and field.

This year, the SIAC Hall of Fame will pick up induction into the hall after an absence of 13 years; with the last inducting class being in 2000.  Recognizing that the history of athletics in the conference represented some of the best athletes in the world, the SIAC began their hall of fame with a ceremony in 1992.

 

Dawson, known as the “Hawk," for his trademark stare, was outstanding defensively in the outfield.  He was a three-time All-SIAC baseball player at Florida A&M, where he played under legendary coach Costa “Pop” Kittles. He finished his 21-year big league career with a .279 batting average, 438 home runs, 1,591 runs batted in and 314 stolen bases. Dawson was the National League Rookie of the Year with the Montreal Expos in 1977 and the NL Most Valuable Player in 1987 with the Chicago Cubs. He managed the MVP season while playing on the last place Cubs, the only time that feat has been done.  The eight-time All-Star became the second player (Willie Mays) to join the 400 HR/300 SB club.  His speech at Cooperstown was considered by many to be one of the greatest ever.  Dawson was inducted into the FAMU Sports Hall of Fame in 1981.

 

Johnson, known as “CJ,” was an All-SIAC and All-American selection as a senior and finished his career as the all-time leading rebounder at FAMU, as well as one of the top scorers in school’s history. Johnson played 10 seasons in the NBA and won an NBA championship as a member of the Philadelphia 76ers in 1983. He won the NBA championship on the team with Andrew Toney, Daryl Dawkins and NBA legend Julius “Dr. J” Erving.  Today, he serves as the head basketball coach at Florida A&M.  Johnson was inducted into the FAMU Sports Hall of Fame in 1986.

 

Galimore, known as “Gallopin Gal,” is considered one of the greatest running backs of his time. He was a four-time All-SIAC selection and three-time Pittsburgh Courier All-American. He also led Florida A&M to four SIAC Football Championships and one Black College National Championship. He holds the current career rushing yards title at FAMU with 3,592, averaging an astronomical 7.0 yards per carry in 1955.  He holds these records despite not playing much more than a half, as the powerful Rattlers, under Jake Gaither, often were able to play reserves for the duration of the game after halftime.  Galimore played six seasons with the Chicago Bears until he died tragically in an auto accident in 1964.  He was also a member of the College Football and FAMU Hall of Fame.  He was inducted into the FAMU Sports Hall of Fame in 1976.

COURTESY FLORIDA A&M UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION