Faulkner defeats Nuggets in 4 in XU season opener

NEW ORLEANS (Aug. 23) — Xavier University of Louisiana, despite career highs of 10 kills by Jodi Hill and 22 digs by Darian Harris, lost its women's volleyball season opener, 24-26, 25-22, 25-22, 25-10 to Faulkner on Saturday.
    
The Lady Eagles (2-0) became the first to defeat the Gold Nuggets in their Convocation Center. Xavier was 9-0 in the facility last season and — including four 2012 victories in its previous venue, The Barn — had a school-record 13-match home winning streak.

Faulkner also snapped the Gold Nuggets' school-record 17-match regular-season win streak.

Box Score
Facebook photos
    
Sarah Ford had 11 kills, and Sarah Stout-Dubberley and Brittnay Renfroe had 10 apiece for Faulkner. Lindsay Ortner had 14 digs, and Stout-Dubberley and Cassie Bailie had 12 apiece.
    
Claudia Haywood had eight kills, Jelena Vujicic seven and CeCe Williams six for Xavier. Williams had 13 digs. Franziska Pirkl had 24 assists, nine digs and served two of the Gold Nuggets' four aces.
    
Hill's previous high for kills was nine, achieved twice last season. Harris had a pair of 20-dig matches as a freshman in 2012. Both are juniors.
    
Xavier got kills from Haywood, Vujicic and Jada Broussard to rally from a 21-17 first-set deficit. The Nuggets led 5-1 in the second set before Faulkner scored 15 of the next 21 points.
    
The Gold Nuggets did not lead in either of the final two sets. Faulkner opened the final set with a 9-1 run.
    
Faulkner outhit the Gold Nuggets .173 to .062 and had a 50-37 advantage in kills. Xavier outhit opponents .302 to .030 at home a year ago, and no Gold Nuggets home opponent hit higher than .098 in 2013.
    
Xavier will play Mobile at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Convocation Center.
    
NOTES:  Attendance was 305 — the largest for an XU non-conference match and the second-largest overall since the program resumed in 2010. Xavier averaged 143 per home date in 2013, and its largest crowd last season was 200 . . . Xavier is 1-6 in season openers and 2-5 in home openers . . . Faulkner leads the series 5-1 . . . The Gold Nuggets will play 11 of their first 14 matches at home.
 

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAATHLETICS
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
https://twitter.com/xulagold
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2014 Xavier University of Louisiana women's volleyball preview

Franziska Pirkl acknowleges the crowd during prematch introductions

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana's women's volleyball program will take aim at extending a slew of streaks in 2014.
    
The Gold Nuggets, 26-8 overall and 12-0 in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference a year ago, seek fourth consecutive GCAC regular-season and tournament championships, plus a fourth straight appearance in the NAIA National Championship.
    
Xavier also will enter the season with a 17-match regular-season win streak, a 13-match home win streak (9-0 in 2013) and 43 consecutive victories against GCAC opponents, 34 in the regular season.                        

There are six returning letterwomen, including 2013 GCAC Tournament MVP Claudia Haywood at middle blocker and two-time first-team all-conference setter Franziska Pirkl. A third returning starter is outside hitter CeCe Williams, who was second-team All-GCAC as a freshman in 2012. All three are juniors.
    
"This team is capable of reaching the goals we reached a year ago," said second-year head coach Hannah Lawing, who led the Gold Nuggets to a school-record victory total in her debut season. "We have several new players and some key players to replace, but I believe this team can grow quickly and be as successful as recent Xavier teams."
    
Haywood hit .298 in 2013 — .441 in the GCAC Tournament — and had 180 kills and 58 blocks. At 5-feet-11, she's the team's tallest player.
    
Pirkl had a team-leading 878 assists last season. She also hit .314 with 53 kills, 20 aces, 195 digs and 28 blocks. She has produced 12 assist-dig doubles — two in the national tournament — in two seasons.
    
Williams had 50 kills and 238 digs a year ago. Three times she recorded 17 digs, twice against GCAC runner-up SUNO and the other against nationals qualifier Mobile. All three matches were XU victories.
    
Also back is middle blocker Jodi Hill, who recorded 124 kills and 33 blocks in a breakout sophomore season in 2013, and libero/defensive specialist Darian Harris, who had 96 digs and 12 aces. Both are juniors.
    
"Our juniors are finally taking a leadership role and doing a fantastic job with it," Lawing said. "Claudia and Jodi are turning into greedy hitters who always want the ball, which is something a coach wants to see. Fran has transformed from a shy, timid player to a leader on the court who gives all the credit to her hitters.
    
"CeCe and Darian will run the back row. CeCe is always inquisitive about reading the hitter. Darian is a fantastic communicator who does a great job at serve-receive, defense and setting from the back row. She has made tremendous improvement since she arrived at Xavier."
    
New to the Nuggets are middle blocker/right-side hitter Jada Broussard, setter Ralitsa Hadzhistoyanova, libero/defensive specialist Kayla Jones, outside hitter/defending specialist Kaelan Temple and outside hitter/setter Jelena Vujicic. All are freshmen except for Hadzhistoyanova, a transfer from NCAA Division I's Chicago State.
    
"Our newcomers are talented and bright," Lawing said. "The elements and experience they bring to Xavier will add more variety and depth to our team."
    
Redshirting this season will be outside hitter Taylor Reuther, the 2012 GCAC Player of the Year and All-GCAC and All-Louisiana three times. Reuther had offseason surgery to repair a labral tear in her right shoulder. She expects to play her senior season in 2015.
    
Also new to the program this season is assistant coach Hilary Lobenstein. "As a coach, Hilary brings a great technical aspect to our team," Lawing said. "She can effectively evaluate any position on the floor, and our players appreciate her constructive analysis."
    
Of Xavier's 23 regular-season matches, a school-record-tying 13 will be at home. Eleven of the Gold Nuggets' first 13 matches will be at home, including a school-record five in a row from Sept. 20-29. The GCAC Tournament will return to New Orleans for the first time since 2010, with an automatic bid to the NAIA National Championship awaiting the winner.
 
About the Gold Nuggets
• Head Coach:  Hannah Lawing (South Carolina 2011), second season
• Assistant Coach:  Hilary Lobenstein (West Alabama 2012), first season
• 2013 Record:  26-8 overall, 12-0 Gulf Coast Athletic Conference (first place)
• 2013 Postseason:  GCAC Tournament champion; first round of NAIA National Championship
• Returning Players:  6
• Newcomers:  5

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

TSU 2014 Football Media Guide Now Available

NASHVILLE, Tennessee  -- The 2014 Tennessee State Football Media Guide is now available for viewing and for download. Click on the Issue box below to download.

   2014 TSU Football Media Guide

ASU Football Defensive Line Could Be Intimidating

PHOTO COURTESY: ASU ATHLETICS

MONTGOMERY, Alabama  -- When you return the best rushing defense in the conference and you have your top four defensive linemen returning, and two of those are all-conference performers, things may look good along the defensive front.  That is exactly what the Hornets have coming back along their impressive front line of the defense and may be a reason the Hornets were picked to win the East Division of the Southwestern Athletic Conference.

Back to lead the defensive front will be senior Derrick Billups, a 2013 All-SWAC pick and a 2014 preseason pick.  Another All-SWAC honoree Edward Mosley will man one of the defensive end spots while Chris Terry will man the other.  Justin Mitchell will join Billups at defensive tackle and Roderick Henderson will also be at tackle while Antoinio Humphrey will be at defensive end.

"We know we have some strong and talented players along the defensive front," Head Coach Reggie Barlow said.  "When they are in shape they are tough to deal with.  We know they are going to be the front line of defense and if they play well we know we have a shot on defense."

Former Auburn standout DeMarco McNeil knows what it takes to play on the defensive line of scrimmage after fighting those battles in the SEC four years.  He has coached the Hornets defensive front for the past three years and he likes what he sees from the defensive front.

"So far so good, but there are still a couple of days where they don't come out with genuine enthusiasm but that's football," McNeil said.  "Overall the guys are working hard and they are playing the game the right way.  They do everything I ask them to do and that's all you can ask for from a group."

Only Henderson and Humphrey are not seniors among this group of linemen so the Hornets brought in six new defensive linemen to begin to work into the system so they will be ready when their numbers are called.

"We got some younger guys like Marcus Adams and Andre Wilson who are going to play a lot for us this year," McNeil said.  "The younger guys have been practicing hard and grasping what we are trying to do.  There are a few days where their heads are spinning, but for the most part they give us everything they have."

It will not take long for the defensive line along with the rest of the defense to be tested as they will face a top-20 team in Sam Houston State to open the season this weekend.

COURTESY ALABAMA STATE UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS MEDIA RELATIONS 

MEAC player of the year Greg McGhee leads Howard football into 2014 season

WASHINGTON, D.C.  -- On a typically muggy late August morning last week, the Howard footballteam was winding down practice when Coach Gary Harrell blew his whistle and called for players to gather for wind sprints. There were a few muffled groans for the least popular portion of drills, but not from quarterback Greg McGhee.

The senior consistently was among the first to finish when his group comprising the skill position players ran the roughly 53 yards from sideline to sideline a half-dozen times. With some teammates hunched over and breathing heavily afterward, McGhee smiled wide as if he were welcoming additional cardio.

Entering his final season, the reigning Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference player of the year has been pleasantly engaged in even the most grueling parts of training camp. The mundane details — walking through the Greene Stadium tunnel onto the field, pre-practice stretching and joking with teammates during water breaks — are no longer taken for granted.

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Chiefs Hosting Missouri Classic

KANSAS CITY, Missouri  --  On September 6th, Arrowhead Stadium will once again host the Missouri Classic. This year, the game will feature the Langston University Lions against the Lincoln University Blue Tigers.

Councilman John Sharp and Councilman Jermaine Reed both played a pivotal role in bringing the Missouri Classic back to Kansas City for the second consecutive year.

This will be the 14th straight year the Chiefs have hosted a college football game at Arrowhead Stadium.

Langston University, the game’s visiting team, finished the 2013 campaign with a 6-4 record and a No. 21 overall ranking, missing out on the NAIA playoffs by one spot. Chiefs Hall of Fame RB Mike Garrett, who spent five years in a Chiefs uniform from 1966-70 and is a member of the club’s Super Bowl IV-winning team, is currently the Athletic Director at Langston University.

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Patricia Cage Bibbs shares long-term vision for Grambling athletics

BASTROP, Louisiana  -- Patricia Cage Bibbs has hit the ground running in her new capacity as interim athletic director at Grambling State University.

Relinquishing her duties as women's basketball coach, Bibbs accepted her current position on July 1. She has hardly had time to catch her breath ever since.

“I thought I worked hard when I was coaching basketball, but I have never worked as hard and diligently as I have over the past 45 days,” said Bibbs, who was among the contingent of guests from the athletics department attending Thursday night's gathering sponsored by the Bastrop Chapter of the GSU Alumni Association.

Since taking on her new role, Bibbs typically leaves home at 5:30 a.m. and returns somewhere around 10 p.m.

“I don't have a clock in my office,” Bibbs said. “We don't leave until a particular job is finished.”

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Big crowd expected for Southern at UL game

LAFAYETTE, Louisiana  – Add Southern University’s Jaguar Nation to an anticipated large Cajun Field crowd and UL head football Mark Hudspeth coach feels his team’s Saturday night 2014 season opener could be something special.

The last time Southern played UL in 2009, the 41,357 who witnessed the game set a Cajun Field single game attendance record.

Hudspeth said at his weekly Monday press luncheon that crowd record five years ago could be surpassed when the teams meet beginning at 6:05.

“There have been more than 100 requests for (recreation vehicle parking) for the game. Now tell me where you are going to find more RV’s at a single event .

“If we don’t blow (the Cajun Field attendance record) out of the water I’ll be shocked,” Hudspeth said.

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KHOU College Preview: Prairie View A&M Panthers

PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas  --  Next up on my College football preview series is Prairie View A&M.

After a 6-6 season in 2013, head coach Heishma Northern is looking for a couple of more wins during his fourth season. There's a good chance that will happen considering the Panthers feature one of the most explosive offenses in the SWAC.

When you talk Panther football, it all begins with quarterback Jerry Lovelocke The senior from Baltimore already holds numerous offensive records at Prairie View. He threw for 2,833 yards and 23 touchdowns last season and he is one of 8 starters that return.

Running back Courtney Brown will also a factor in offensive game plan, he racked up 1,039 yards and 10 touchdowns, plus, he can dance.

 

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AAMU Football With Two More Practices Before First Game

NORMAL, Alabama  -- With just two more practices this week before the team leaves for the MEAC-SWAC Challenge, Alabama A&M Head Football Coach James Spady wants his players to concentrate on Bulldog football.And one important item: Game week.

The Bulldogs open their season Sunday against North Carolina A&T in the 10th annual MEAC-SWAC Challenge in Orlando.

Though Alabama A&M will represent the Southwestern Athletic Conference in the game, Spady makes it clear that the players know they are representing the Maroon and White.

"We know we represent the SWAC… we’ll represent the SWAC in a stellar way,” the first-year head coach said Monday in a SWAC teleconference.

“We have to make sure Alabama A&M takes care of Alabama A&M.”

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Stokes to start at QB in NSU season opener

HEAD COACH PETE ADRIAN
NSU SPARTANS ATHLETICS

NORFOLK, Virginia  --  Junior quarterback Malik Stokes will start Norfolk State's season opener at Maine on Saturday, coach Pete Adrian said.

Stokes, who threw for 465 yards and two TDs in seven games, including three starts, last season, gets the nod with fellow junior Tyler Clark still nursing an injured hamstring.

"We don't want to play musical chairs, and (Stokes) has had a real good camp," Adrian said Saturday morning at NSU's inaugural Fan Fest.

Stokes' most memorable performance last season was in a 27-24 loss to Old Dominion when he came off the bench to complete 7 of 14 passes for 87 yards and a score. His most forgettable was an 0-for-10 outing in a 38-0 loss at Rutgers.

"I played in some big games," said Stokes, a 6-foot-2 transfer from Bowling Green. "I had a lot of mental errors and a lot of mistakes. I did some good things. All of that is just growth."

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A coaching pioneer: Willie Jeffries helped blaze trail for black coaches and players

ORANGEBURG, South Carolina  -- Oh, the irony of it all. Willie Jeffries, raised by a mother who was a servant to white families in Union for more than 50 years and the product of the segregationist South, scheduled a recent lunch meeting at the Orangeburg Country Club.

When Jeffries entered South Carolina State University as a freshman in 1953, the only blacks at the Orangeburg Country Club were caddies, cooks and waiters. Even as S.C. State’s head football coach – during his first stint from 1973 through 1978 – Jeffries was not allowed to so much as dine, let alone be a member at the all-white, private club.

So, his lunch in the Club’s dining room on that steamy hot afternoon served as an example of how far race relations have advanced over the decades. The color of a person’s skin no longer is important to the Club’s membership. Dining at the adjacent table were three black women. Both waiters were white.

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Read more here: http://www.islandpacket.com/2014/08/23/3272953/a-coaching-pioneer-willie-jeffries.html?sp=/99/419/#s

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DSU Hornets ready to be a contender again in the MEAC

Delaware State opens the season at Monmouth University on Aug. 30. Game time is 1 p.m. in West Long Branch, N.J.
Courtesy Delaware State University Athletics

DOVER, Delaware  — Kermit Blount’s first three years at Delaware State University were all about trying to close the gap between the Hornets and the top of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.

As he enters his fourth season as head coach, Blount thinks he has succeeded. That was evident last year as the Hornets were in a rebuilding season but contended for the MEAC title and ended up third.

But there’s another step Blount wants DelState to take. He wants to be where the Bethune-Cookmans and South Carolina States are in the MEAC. He wants to be competing to make the playoffs.

“We’ve been close here or there,” Blount said. “But it’s time for us to take the lead in this conference.”

Delaware State hasn’t won the MEAC since 2007, also the last year the Hornets made the postseason.

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ASU preview: Are Hornets finally SWAC title material?

COURTESY ALABAMA STATE UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS

MONTGOMERY, Alabama  -- FOUR-DOWN TERRITORY

1. Secondary still a question: The Hornets may not know their starting secondary players until they line up in the season opener, and that unit is certain to face challenges. "It's a work in progress in the secondary," Barlow said. "There isn't a group of guys playing with the confidence that we would like to see them play with. From a scheme standpoint, what we do is what we do. We're aggressive and we're going to get after it. If we have to adjust that according to how guys are playing (in the secondary), then we'll do it."

2. Best front seven?: With NFL prospect Derrick Billups anchoring a line that includes Justin Mitchell, Chris Terry and Edward Mosley (and occasionally Roderick Henderson in the middle), along with Dareus Washington, Kourtney Berry and Deontrelle Silmon at linebacker, the Hornets' front seven may be the best in all of HBCU football. "I hate to say that to them because (of how) they may read it," Barlow said, "but they're combative and they're coming on. The biggest question is their conditioning. If they're in great shape, they can be very dominant."

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Cheyney University Wolves penalized after committing eligibility certification violations

CHEYNEY, Pennsylvania -- Cheyney University of Pennsylvania lacked institutional control over its certification processes, according to a decision issued Thursday by the Division II Committee on Infractions.

During the 2007-08 through 2010-11 academic years, the university violated NCAA rules in the certification of initial, transfer and continuing eligibility involving all sports programs. During the four-year period, numerous student-athletes competed while ineligible due to improper certification. In amateurism certification alone, 109 student-athletes practiced, competed and received travel expenses and/or athletically related financial aid before the university received their amateurism certification status from the NCAA Eligibility Center. The committee also concluded that a former compliance director failed to monitor when she did not follow proper procedures in the certification of student-athletes’ eligibility.

CHEYNEY UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA PUBLIC INFRACTIONS DECISION (Full Report .pdf)

PENALTIES, CORRECTIVE MEASURES
• Public reprimand and censure.
• Five years of probation from August 21, 2014 through August 20, 2019.
• Relinquished voting privileges in the NCAA for two years, beginning on August 21, 2014.
• Postseason ban for all sports during the 2013-14 academic year (self-imposed by the university).
• Vacation of all wins in which ineligible student-athletes competed during the 2007-08 through 2010-11 academic years. The public report contains further details on the vacation.
• Five-year show-cause order for the former compliance director. The public report contains further details.
• Attendance at an NCAA Regional Rules Seminar each year during probation beginning in 2015 for the athletics staff members.

Penalties include five years of probation, a postseason ban, a vacation of wins and a five-year show-cause order for the former compliance director. If the former compliance director seeks employment at an NCAA member school during her show-cause period, she and the new employing school must appear before the Committee on Infractions to determine if the school should restrict athletically related duties. Because the institution is considered a “repeat violator” due to an infractions case in 2007, it must relinquished voting privileges in the NCAA for two years.

In an instance of improper certification, six student-athletes in several sports practiced and completed in their initial year without the university completing the academic certification process through the Eligibility Center. The university could not produce any documentation to explain why the student-athletes were allowed to complete without the certification.

A men’s basketball student-athlete was allowed to compete while he was not enrolled in the minimum required credit hours and did not meet the appropriate progress-toward-degree requirements. The university utilized a campus-wide program that could verify full-time enrollment status, but it was not reliable, forcing staff to access student-athlete records by hand. The university did not have systems in place within the registrar’s office to monitor full-time enrollment for student-athletes or to alert the athletics staff if a student-athlete fell below full-time status.

Additional certification violations occurred when the university allowed a second men’s basketball student-athlete to compete during his year in residence after transferring to the university. He was also allowed to compete after his fourth season of competition. Despite not meeting the two-year college transfer rules, two other men’s basketball student-athletes were permitted to compete. Additionally, two football student-athletes competed after being certified as academic nonqualifiers by the Eligibility Center.

The university lacked institutional control when it did not establish adequate compliance processes, monitor and evaluate its athletics programs, and provide rules education and training to staff to ensure the athletics program complied with NCAA rules. Contributing to the lack of institutional control, the university did not maintain student-athlete records and did not establish policies and procedures to allow the university to monitor certification.

A former compliance director failed to monitor when she neglected to follow proper procedures in student-athletes’ eligibility certification. The failure resulted in violations of initial, transfer and continuing eligibility certification; financial aid; and extra benefits involving numerous student-athletes in all of the university sports.

COURTESY NCAA.COM MEDIA RELATIONS

College Preview: Texas Southern Tigers

HOUSTON, Texas  -- It's been a rough three years for the Texas Southern Tigers. 

After having to vacate the SWAC title they won in 2010 because of NCAA violations, TSU has only won 8 games since. 

But they have now come in compliance with the NCAA and several sanctions are starting to go away. Now the program can focus on getting back to their championship form.

The first good thing the Tigers have going for them is experience. Because the program put so much emphasis on recruiting freshman instead of bring in transfers, the team returns 17 starters and 50 players overall to the 2014 team. 

Head coach Darrell Asberry called last season's 2-9 campaign one of the worst he's ever gone through but he's anxious to see what his guys do now that the weight of sanctions is starting to come off.

Offensively, quarterback Homer Causey will have to ...

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Atlanta Falcons bring back B-CU's Eric Weems

ATLANTA, Georgia  --  The Atlanta Falcons brought back a familiar face Thursday by signing wide receiver/special-teamer Eric Weems to a one-year contract. 

Weems (5-9, 195) entered the NFL with the Falcons back in 2007 as an undrafted free agent from Bethune-Cookman. He spent five seasons with the team before signing withChicago Bears in 2012. 

Weems was waived by the Bears last week in favor of Santonio Holmes, allowing Weems to test the free-agent market. Weems apparently took a physical with the Tennessee Titans this week and was poised to sign, but negotiations hit a last-minute snag. 

Weems' deal with the Falcons materialized late Wednesday night, according to a source familiar with the talks. Star receiver Roddy White actually went to bat for Weems with the coaching staff. 



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The Prospector: Bethune-Cookman thriving under head coach Brian Jenkins

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida  --  This offseason when members of the Bethune-Cookman football coaching staff traveled the state on their recruiting rounds, they had a bit more of a swagger in their step.

The Wildcats, under the guidance of fifth-year head coach Brian Jenkins, have established quite a winning attitude and atmosphere at the Daytona Beach school and it’s starting to catch on.

Not only did the Wildcats win their second straight MEAC title a year ago, and third in the past four seasons, but B-CU also knocked off FIU, its first victory over a Football Bowl Subdivision opponent. In fact, the Wildcats hit the recruiting path with this little nugget as a selling point: B-CU, at 37-11, is the second-winningest college football program in Florida over the past four years. FSU is 45-10, UCF 36-15, UF 30-21 and UM 29-21. 

The Wildcats have qualified for the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs in three of those four years. Jenkins took over the program after the Wildcats went 5-6 in 2009. Now winning is expected at B-CU.

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Jackson State turns to youngsters with back-up QB out

JACKSON, Mississippi  --  Jackson State is tapping deeper into its quarterback pool.

Evan Ingram, a reliable backup to LaMontiez Ivy, has sat out the last three practices due to a right knee injury he suffered during Saturday’s scrimmage.

“His role is very important, he’s got the next, most experience on this football team,” coach Harold Jackson said. “We’re depending on him just as much as we are depending on the next guy in line. The other guys behind him have to be able to know what’s going on too because they could be one play away from getting into the ball game.”

The Tigers are optimistic Ingram won’t be out for long. In the meantime, they’ll have to look deeper into Plan C, which consists of young talents in Benjamin Thomas and Brent Lyles.

Neither has played a collegiate game, but that’s not what offensive coordinator Timmy Chang is looking at in the upcoming practices.

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Coach Jackson eyes ways to keep JSU D-line fresh

JACKSON, Mississippi  --  As a freshman last year, Jackson State defensive lineman Cornelius Henderson thought his playing time would be limited.

He sold himself a bit short. 

“(Former defensive line coach Jonathan Thompson) said, ‘I got you in the next series,’” Henderson recalled for the opener against Tulane last August. “My eyes got real big. The first play kind of shocked me a bit, but after that I was good.” 

Henderson went on to play in eight more games, finishing the season with five tackles. It’s not an attractive stat line, but it’s his early experience that matters for the defensive line this year. 

The Tigers need to replace three starters from 2013’s Southwestern Athletic Conference championship game, but they’ll have to turn to a group short on experience.

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Holmes says he doesn’t feel pressured to win

TALLAHASSEE, Florida  --  After a highly-anticipated first year as head football coach at FAMU ended at 3-9, you’d expect Earl Holmes to feel somewhat pressured. 

He actually is, but he said what he feels is self-applied – not because last season might have left some fans questioning whether he can right the ship before it sinks. 

“When I took this job, I knew what it would be all about,” Holmes said. 

“I’ve been in this business for a very long time as a player and as a coach. I know the demands, the challenges. And I know it’s ‘what have you done for me lately.’ ”

A lot was thrown at Holmes quickly.



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New RB coach on mission to improve running game at FAMU

TALLAHASSEE, Florida  -- When reoccurring injuries forced Shawn Bryson to retire before he turned 30, he decided to catch up on some things that playing in the NFL made difficult for him to do – raise his child and try his hand in business.

But football kept beckoning and he couldn’t swear it off. Bryson, 37, had to find a way to give back to the sport that was his ticket out of rural Franklin, N.C. 

“I got into (coaching) because I played for a long time and I have all this knowledge that I need to give to somebody, especially the young kids that are striving to make it,” Bryson said. 

After stops at Lenoir–Rhyne University as an assistant coach and most recently at Temple University, where he was a graduate assistant, the one-time leading rusher for the Buffalo Bills – Bryson also played for the Detroit Lions – believes he’s found his niche at FAMU.

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Board OKs contracts for four SU coaches

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana  -- The Southern Board of Supervisors approved contracts for four Jaguars coaches at its monthly meeting Friday.

The board OK’d a four-year deal for men’s basketball coach Roman Banks ($165,000 average salary) and a three-year deal for women’s coach Sandy Pugh ($100,800 average salary), both of whom were named Southwestern Athletic Conference Coach of the Year after leading Southern to aregular-season championships last season. Baseball coach Roger Cador’s two-year deal ($106,250) also was approved.

For the first time, the university gave a multi-year deal to its tennis coach as Jeff Conyers’ three-year contract ($47,000 average salary) was approved. Southern has won five consecutive SWAC women’s tournament titles under Conyers.

The board also approved the athletic budget for 2014-15 and a new parking plan for football games this season.

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Morgan State Bears complete final scrimmage of fall camp, shift focus to Eastern Michigan

BALTIMORE, Maryland  -- The Morgan State defense recorded four turnovers Wednesday at Hughes Stadium in the team's final scrimmage of preseason camp. The scrimmage lasted two hours and was 84 plays long.

Senior linebacker Cody Acker and freshman Damare Whitaker led the Bears with six tackles, registered a forced fumble apiece, and had two of the team's six sacks.

Senior safety Nate Ayers had four tackles and had a 30-yard interception return. Junior Delonte Hall and freshman Anthony Fludd each also had an interception during the scrimmage.

Redshirt senior quarterback Robert Council completed 7-of-12 passes for 85 yards, including a 30-yard hookup with redshirt sophomore Ricky Fisk (3 rec., 40 yds). Redshirt junior Moses Skillon added 48 yards on 5-of-10 passes, including two interceptions.

Redshirt sophomore running back Lamont Brown III led the Bears with 74 yards on 15 carries, including a long of 17 yards. Fellow redshirt sophomore Herb Walker Jr. added 54 yards on 12 carries and scored on a 1-yard touchdown.

Marcolm Banks recorded one of the highlight plays of the scrimmage. The sophomore running back took a handoff off tackle, spun in the hole, and raced 23-yards for the first touchdown of the day.

Morgan State first-year head coach Lee Hull thought the team looked solid in its final scrimmage of preseason camp.

"I think training camp started off strong, " said Hull. "We had a couple of bad practices in the middle of camp, but I think we finished strong at the end with today's scrimmage."

There are still a few areas that Hull is looking to develop, but one in particular as the team prepares for the season-opener.

"We need to improve in our passing game: said Hull.  "I think we're a little bit behind in our passing game, compared to our running game. That's a little bit due to the fact that they had always been a run-oriented team, and now we're trying to throw the ball a little bit more.

"Everybody -- quarterbacks, receivers, tight ends, running backs and o-line will need to learn all the nuances of pass protecting, running routes, throwing the ball on time… all of those things. We just need to hone up a bit."

The team's attention will now turn to Eastern Michigan, where the Bears will start their 2014 campaign on the road Aug. 30.  Morgan State's home-opener is on Saturday, September 13 when they welcome Bowie State to Hughes Stadium for Family, Friends, Youth & Faculty Day.

Game Tickets: Season tickets for all four contests at Hughes Stadium are on sale now. Tickets for the Whitney Young Classic at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. on Sept. 20 will be on sale on campus soon. For Morgan State football ticket information click here 

THE BEARS 2014 SCHEDULE 
Aug. 30    at Eastern Michigan       6 p.m.
Sept. 6     at Holy Cross                 1 p.m.
Sept. 13   vs. BOWIE STATE       1 p.m.
Sept. 20    vs. HOWARD*%           4 p.m.
Sept. 27    at Norfolk State*           4 p.m.
Oct. 4        at Florida A&M*            5 p.m.
Oct. 11      BYE
Oct. 18      N.C. CENTRAL*@       1 p.m.
Oct. 25      at Villanova                   3:30 p.m.
Nov. 1        at Hampton*                 2 p.m.
Nov. 8        at N.C. A&T                  1 p.m.
Nov. 15     S. CAROLINA STATE*    1 p.m.
Nov. 22    DELAWARE STATE*      1 p.m.


COURTESY MORGAN STATE UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS MEDIA RELATIONS