Offensive Coordinator Mark Orlando Walks Away From Texas Southern for Alabama State

HOUSTON, Texas -- Texas Southern University head football coach Darrell Asberry has announced that recently hired Offensive Coordinator Mark Orlando has resigned effective immediately to accept a similar position at Alabama State University.

"Coach Orlando has informed me of his decision to join the Alabama State football coaching staff," said Asberry. "We wish him well and we'll begin the process of identifying someone to fill the now vacant position."

Asberry hopes to name a new Offensive Coordinator within the upcoming weeks.

"We hope to move quickly in the naming of our next Offensive Coordinator," said Asberry. "There are several that I have in mind which should expedite the process of bringing in a qualified replacement."

COURTESY TEXAS SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

NOTE: Coach Mark Orlando is one of the six named finalist for the Florida A&M University head football coach vacancy.  Is Orlando taking himself out of the running for the Rattlers top position or increasing his personal economic stimulus package?  An educated guess says the short list now consists of: Joker Phillips, Corey Fuller, Tony Samuels, EJ Junior and Charlie Weatherbie.  Just pick a winner, FAMU!   

Bluefield State outplay Bowie State for Sims Classic Championship

BLUEFIELD, West Virginia -- The Herb Sims Classic finished up with another Lady Blues victory over the Bowie State Lady Bulldogs 90-68 Saturday afternoon in the Ned E. Shott Gymnasium.

The first game of the day was West Virginia Tech against Kentucky State. West Virginia Tech had a good showing, but couldn't overcome the deficit they kept facing. Kentucky State defeated West Virginia Tech 85-60.

The Lady Blues had another hot streak in the beginning of the game with a 7-2 lead. Midway through the half, the Lady Blues pushed the lead to 12 after an old fashioned 3-point play, a layup and a free-throw, by Senior Tasia Nolan (pictured) and a layup by Sophomore Shakima Wiggins.

Bowie State came back to take a 2 point lead under two mins left, but Shakima Wiggins grabbed an offensive rebound and made a layup to tie the score 35-35 at the half.

In the second half, both teams were scoring back and forth baskets, but by the midway point, the Lady Blues were up by 21 points, 70-49. The Lady Blues pushed the lead to 27 at one point, but ultimately won by 22 points.

Four players for the Lady Blues were in double-figures. Senior Tasia Nolan had a double-double with 13 points (5-for-6 shooting) and 11 rebounds, she also had 4 assists. Senior Charity Harris had 22 points on (6-for-11 shooting) and 2-for-4 from 3-point land. She also had 7 assists, 3 rebounds, and 1 steal.

Senior Hope Smith was efficient with 12 points on 5-for-8 shooting and grabbed 4 rebounds. Sophomore Shakima Wiggins had 17 points, 4 rebounds, and 1 assist.

The Lady Blues next game will be against North Carolina Central University in an exhibition on Jan. 3rd, 2014 at 2pm in Durham, NC.

COURTESY BLUEFIELD STATE COLLEGE SPORTS INFORMATION

HBCUGameday: HBCU Coaching Moves

Steven J. Gaither and Tolly Carr break down a wild week of coaching moves around the MEAC, SWAC and CIAA in Dec. 2014.

Claflin men defeat Florida Tech, 85-66

ORANGEBURG, South Carolina -- Florida Tech (9-2) was unable to overcome a 10-point halftime deficit on the road Saturday afternoon, falling 85-66 to Claflin (3-6) at Tullis Arena. 

Claflin held the Panthers to a season-low 38.2 field goal percentage and an 18.8 three-point percentage. Coincidentally, the opposition shot the best an opponent has on the Panthers this season, connecting on 56.9-percent. Claflin also hit 5-of-13 from long distance, while holding FIT to 3-of-16 from three-point range.

Chris Carter paced all scorers with a season-high 27 points, 13 were earned from the free throw line. Jermaine Jackson finished with 16. Claflin surrendered only seven points to Corbin Jackson, who entered the game averaging just over 15 points. Defensively, Jackson totaled five blocks, one off his season-high.

“Hats off to (head coach) Ricky Jackson and his staff,” head coach Billy Mims said. “They had a great game plan. They exposed a lot of our weaknesses today. They did a great job taking away things we like to do and they forced us to do things we don’t like to do. They played harder and smarter than we did.”

Trailing by 17 points with 16:07 remaining, FIT trimmed its deficit to nine in less than three minutes following a three-point play by Jermaine Jackson. However, Claflin’s Fare’al Walker pushed his team’s lead back to double figures with a layup at the 12:53 mark.

Claflin never let up the rest of the game, winning by 19 points for its third win. Adolph Caldwell scored a team-high 21 points. Walker led all rebounders with 12 and he helped his team outrebound FIT 40-30. Claflin also won points in the paint, 42-30, and bench scoring, 39-4.

The Panthers will have a 10-day break before they take on Stetson on Dec. 30 at 1 p.m. in DeLand. The game is an exhibition contest for the Panthers and a regular-season match-up for the Hatters.

The game will be carried on ESPN3 and the WatchESPN app. FIT fans can also tune into Jim Mitchell’s audio broadcast at FloridaTechSports.com/live.

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Texas Southern Tigers upset Michigan State for 1st win over AP Top 25 team since '94

EAST LANSING, Michigan  --  It's been almost twenty years to the day the last time Texas Southern defeated a ranked opponent. On Saturday the Tigers captured the biggest win in the Mike Davis era versus one of the top programs in the nation.

History once again repeated itself in the month of December as the Texas Southern Tigers won a thrilling 71-64 contest over Big Ten member Michigan State on the road.

The game went into overtime tied at 55. TSU's Chris Thomas scored 22 points, and Texas Southern never trailed in the extra session. The Tigers had not beaten an AP Top 25 team since a win over 16th-ranked Minnesota on Dec. 21, 1994.

"We did know it was possible as long as we stayed as a team," Thomas said. "We've played good teams before. We knew we were getting better."



Michigan State needed a free throw with 6.8 seconds left in regulation just to force overtime.

The Spartans came in leading the nation at 44 percent from 3-point range, but they went 4-of-21 against Texas Southern.

In the final seconds of overtime, the Tigers converted key free throws to finish off the game.

The Spartans led 30-25 at halftime, and after the Tigers tied it early in the second, Michigan State seemed to begin to get in a groove. But after a 3-pointer gave the Spartans a 50-42 lead, Texas Southern went on an 11-2 run and took a 53-52 advantage on Jason Carter's 3-pointer with 1:26 remaining.

The Tigers were up one when MSU came up with an offensive rebound and the Spartans drew a foul in the final seconds of regulation. Michigan State got one of two free throws to tie it at 55.

Texas Southern regrouped and scored the first four points of overtime, and the Tigers defense got the needed stops to win the contest. The Spartans didn't make a field goal in overtime until the final minute.

TSU turned the ball over only 11 times and shot a season-best 53 percent from the field.

"It means a lot, but we're not done yet," Thomas said. "We've got to win a lot more games to get to the tournament. It doesn't stop here."

Malcolm Riley scored 20 points for Texas Southern in what will go down as one of the biggest wins in the history of the TSU Tigers basketball program.

COURTESY TEXAS SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

Texas Southern Stuns #25 Michigan State 71-64 in OT

EAST LANSING, Michigan -- Chris Thomas scored 22 points, and Texas Southern beat 25th-ranked Michigan State, outlasting the Spartans 71-64 in overtime Saturday.

The Tigers (2-8) were coming off a loss to Gonzaga, but coach Mike Davis' team was poised throughout against Michigan State.

The Spartans (8-4) were without starting forward Branden Dawson, who fractured his wrist in a win over Eastern Michigan earlier in the week. Michigan State needed a free throw by Javon Bess with 6.8 seconds left in regulation just to force overtime, and the Spartans never led in the extra session.

The Spartans came into the game shooting 44 percent from 3-point range, but they went 4 of 21 against the Tigers of the Southwestern Athletic Conference.

The Tigers won the SWAC tournament last season to advance to the NCAA tournament, but they have endured struggles against a tough nonconference schedule.

But the Spartans struggled from the perimeter all game. They led 30-25 at halftime, and belief began to build on the Texas Southern bench when the Tigers tied it early in the second.

Texas Southern took a 53-52 lead on Jason Carter's 3-pointer with 1:26 remaining, and the Tigers were up one when Bess came up with an offensive rebound and was fouled in the final seconds of regulation. A freshman playing only his second game, Bess made one of two free throws to tie it at 55.

Texas Southern regrouped and scored the first four points of overtime. The Spartans didn't make a field goal in overtime until the final minute.

The Spartans had 18 offensive rebounds, but they were outscored 36-32 in the paint.

Box Score »  Play‑By‑Play »  Videos »  Photos »   Photo Gallery 

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U.Houston Men's Hoops Falls to South Carolina State

HOUSTON, Texas -- University of Houston sophomore forward Danrad Knowles scored a career-high 22 points with 11 rebounds to lead the Cougars, but it would not be enough as South Carolina State claimed a 71-63 win on Saturday afternoon in the Continental Tire Las Vegas Classic Regional Round inside Hofheinz Pavilion.

Knowles enjoyed the first double-double of his collegiate career. The Nassau, Bahamas, native connected on 8-of-13 shots from the field, including 3-of-5 from behind the 3-point arc, and snared 11 offensive rebounds.

With his performance, Knowles became the fourth different Cougar to post a double-double in 2014-15. He joined teammates Devonta Pollard, Cavon Baker and LeRon Barnes.

The Cougars (5-3) fell behind early and played catch-up for most of the game. Trailing 32-27 at the half, the Cougars continued to threaten and used a 10-3 rally early in the second half to take a 43-41 lead on a Knowles' 3-pointer.

However, South Carolina State took advantage of a 15-4 run over the next 8:27 to build a 56-47 advantage. Houston could move no closer than five points the rest of the way.

Although the Cougars committed a season-low five turnovers in the game, South Carolina State outrebounded Houston 50-35 and connected on 47.2 percent from the field while limiting the Cougars to only 31.3 percent.

Guard Edward Stephens led four Bulldogs in double digits with 19 points, including three 3-pointers, while guard Jalen White added 17 points with four rebounds. Forward Darryl Palmer posted 10 points with 13 rebounds, five assists and eight blocked shots, and forward Tashombe Riley finished with 10 points and five assists in the win.

In addition to Knowles, junior point guard L.J. Rose posted 14 points with two rebounds and three assists, while junior guardJherrod Stiggers totaled 12 points with three rebounds and a pair of steals.

BOX SCORE

UP NEXT
Houston opens the Continental Tire Las Vegas Classic Championship Round play at 9:30 p.m. (CST) Monday against Boise State inside Orleans Arena in Las Vegas. The Cougars then meet the winner/loser of Texas Tech-Loyola (Ill.) on Tuesday evening in the final game before Christmas.

COURTESY UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON ATHLETICS MEDIA RELATIONS

North Carolina A&T Aggies Escape Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles At Christmas Classic

BOX SCORE

CHATTANOOGA, Tennessee  –  It took a complete team effort for the North Carolina A&T women’s basketball team to defeat Tennessee Tech 54-49 Saturday afternoon in the opening game of the Chattanooga Christmas Classic at McKenzie Arena. 

The Aggies (7-4 overall) used 11 players, including nine who scored, to shoot a season-best 49 percent (24 of 49) from the field. Redshirt junior Eboni Rossmade it hard for the Golden Eagles (2-9) offensively as she recorded a career-high eight blocks, a team-leading eight rebounds and eight points.

“Before the game we talked about being positive, and we focused on having good vibes so that we could get over the back-to-back losing hump,” head coach Robinson explained about the Aggies who lost two straight before facing Tennessee Tech. “It was a great defensive effort. Everyone who played contributed. I’m excited about the win.”

Redshirt junior Adriana Nazario finished with nine points ahead of redshirt juniors Aprill McRae and Christina Carter who recorded eight points each.

After taking a 27-22 lead at the half, the Aggies opened the second half on a 7-2 run to push the score to 34-24 with 16:44 left. Tennessee Tech answered and scored seven consecutive points capped off with a 3-pointer from Hannah Goolsby to trail A&T 38-35. The Aggies slowly pulled away and held a solid 50-41 lead after Ross hit a short jumper with 6:02 remaining. But Goolsby nailed another three as the Golden Eagles orchestrated an 8-2 rally to cut A&T’s lead to 52-49 at the 3:35 mark.

Tech had several opportunities to score but it missed six shots over a three-minute span. A fast-break layup by McRae from redshirt sophomore Dana Brown made it a two possession game as A&T clung to its 54-49 lead with 10 seconds remaining in the game.

A&T held a 12-10 edge with 10:44 remaining in the first half but used an 11-4 rally to stretch its lead to 23-14 at the 4:06 mark. The Golden Eagles cut the lead to five after scoring four straight points to trail the Aggies 27-22 at the half. During the first half Tech held a 21-12 advantage on the glass over the Aggies.

“We didn’t do a good job boxing out,” Robinson said. “Tech played hard to crash the boards. We’ve got to get better in that aspect.”

Candace Parsons led all scorers with 11 points on 5-for-10 (50 percent) shooting. Samaria Howard finished with 10 points and eight rebounds. Catherine Taylor also added 10 points.

A&T will face host Chattanooga on Sunday, Dec. 21 at 2 p.m., in its final game of the tournament.

COURTESY NORTH CAROLINA A&T STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

Jackson State Conquer Northwestern State Lady Demons 62-61 in Home Opener

JACKSON, Mississippi -- Ayanna Hardy-Fuller and Alisa Ross led the Lady Tiger to a 62-61 overtime win over Northwestern State in their first home game of the season on Saturday.

Both Hardy-Fuller and Ross led the Lady Tigers with 16 points apiece. Hardy Fuller shot 7-9 in field goal range and 2-4 from the free-throw line. Ross shot 5-13 at the field goal, 4-9 in the three-point range, and 2-5 at the free throw line. Hardy-Fuller recorded her fourth double-double of the season tying the game high of 10 rebounds.

    Box Score 

The Lady Tigers were able to out-rebound Northwestern 49-35 but had issues with turnovers. JSU had 39 turnovers while forcing 29 from the Lady Demons.

“We had to really focus on our defense,” said head coach Surina Dixon. “We had to make the stop and then we had to score.”

The Lady Tigers played an intense first half, leading most of the first half. Ayanna Hardy-Fuller went 4-5 at the field goal with 8 points and 5 rebounds. JSU shot 30.0 percent at the field goal, 11.1 percent at the three-point range, and 50.0 percent at the free throw line. The first half ended with Northwestern up by 3 points.

Entering the second half down by three points, the Lady Tigers struggled to regain the lead. At 6:04, Northwestern was up by 10 points.

Refocusing, JSU got back in the game with 3 three pointers from Ross, ending the second in a 54 point tie. The Lady Tigers increased their field goal percentage shooting for 43.5 percent in the second half, 44.4 percent in the three-point range, and 69.2 percent from the free-throw line.

In overtime, the Lady Tigers were able to close the game by out-scoring Northwestern 8-7, shooting 2-4 at the field goal, 0-2 in three-point range, and 4-9 at the free throw line.

The Lady Tigers will be back in action when they play their final game of the non-conference season at Louisiana-Lafayette on Sunday, Dec. 28. The game is set to tip off at 4 p.m.

COURTESY JACKSON STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

SCSU: Eddie Moe: "He Was Loved by Everyone"

ORANGEBURG, South Carolina -- This week, the South Carolina State University and the Orangeburg community is mourning the loss of one of their own.

Eddie Moe - arguably one of the most iconic people in Orangeburg--was hit and killed Thursday.

"Eddie marched and danced the heels off of his shoes and he came to me and said, I need another pair of shoes," said Marching 101 Band Director Eddie Ellis.

At every South Carolina State University football game, halftime is show time for many. But often times all eyes weren't on the band, they were on Eddie Moe.

  CONTINUE READING

Dan Land named interim ASU head football coach

DAN LAND
Courtesy: Albany State Athletics

ALBANY, Georgia  -- Albany State has announced that ASU football assistant coach Dan Land has been named the interim head coach for the program.
 
"We are pleased that Coach Land has accepted the position of head coach on an interim basis," ASU athletics director Dr. Richard H. Williams said. "He is familiar with our program and has been a part of our many successes. 
 
"We are confident he will do a stellar job for Albany State football during our continue search."
 
Land has served as an assistant coach for Albany State since 2002. During that time, he has coached the defensive backs and has been a part of six SIAC championships and 11 NCAA Division II playoffs appearances.  Land has also coached numerous defensive backs who have been named to the SIAC all-conference and NCAA South Regional teams.
 
A former standout player Albany State, Land joined the Golden Rams football program as a running back in 1983.  As a Golden Ram, he was a two-time All-Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) team member. During his junior and senior seasons, Land accumulated 2695 rushing yards and led the team and SIAC in rushing touchdowns.
 
In 1987, Land was drafted as a running back by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He later played 10 years with the Oakland Raiders as a defensive back and completed his career with the Atlanta Falcons.
 
Albany State will launch a national search for its head football coaching position.

COURTESY ALBANY STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION 

Hampton Pirates Back With Win Over Tennessee State

HAMPTON, Virginia  --  The Hampton University men's basketball team got back into the win column Friday night, as the Pirates swept the season series with Tennessee State after a 66-54 win at the HU Convocation Center.

The Pirates (5-6) have won four of their last five games.

Three Pirates finished the night with a team-high 15 points: junior guard Deron Powers (Williamsburg, Va.), guard Quinton Chievous (Chicago, Ill.), and junior guard Brian Darden (Hampton, Va.). Chievous also grabbed a team-high 12 rebounds for his third double-double of the season.

Powers also had seven assists, while Darden came off the bench to hit three 3-pointers.

Head coach Edward Joyner Jr., in his sixth season, is now four wins away from becoming the program's all-time winningest coach at the Div. I level. He has 87 wins during his tenure.

Hampton shot 34.3 percent (23-for-67) from the floor and hit four of 22 3-pointers (18.2 percent). The Pirates also turned 21 Tennessee State turnovers into 20 points and held a 44-39 advantage on the glass.

Tennessee State led for much of the first half, controlling from the opening tip, and the Tigers held a 24-15 lead with 4:38 left in the half after Christian Crockett hit a jumper. But that marked the last time Tennessee State scored in the half.

Meanwhile, the Pirates kicked off a 14-0 run to close out the half after Chievous hit four straight free throws. Those shots cut the lead to 24-19 with 3:18 left in the half, before Darden added a trey at the 2:20 mark.

Powers tied the game at 24-24 with two free throws with 1:32 left, before senior forward Emmanuel Okoroba (Garland, Texas) converted an off-balance, reverse layup to put the Pirates up 26-24 with 53 seconds left in the half.

Powers hit a deep 3-pointer with eight seconds left to send Hampton into the half with a 29-24 lead.

A one-handed slam from redshirt junior guard/forward Dwight Meikle (Baltimore, Md.) with 18:22 left in the second half put the Pirates up 33-25, but the Tigers answered by scoring the next five points to cut the lead to 33-30 with 16:51 remaining.

Hampton answered with a 10-0 run, taking a 43-30 lead at the 14:48 mark after a Meikle jumper.

Tennessee State scored 19 of the next 29 points, cutting Hampton's lead to 53-49 with 7:52 remaining after Jay Harris hit a pair of free throws. But the Pirates scored the next six points to go up 59-49 after a fastbreak layup from junior guard Reginald Johnson (Chicago, Ill.).

The Pirates held control from them on, never leading by fewer than nine points.

Tennessee State (2-9) shot 34.7 percent (17-for-49) from the floor and hit three of 10 3-pointers, but the Tigers went just 17-for-30 (56.7 percent) from the free throw line.

Harris led the Tigers with 16 points.

The Pirates will play host to Northern Arizona on Sunday at 4 p.m. For more information on Hampton University basketball, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811, or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.

Next Game:

Northern Arizona
12/21/2014 - 4 p.m.

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COURTESY HAMPTON UNIVERSITY PIRATES SPORTS INFORMATION

Norfolk State Spartans cruise past Northern Arizona

NORFOLK, Virginia -- The opponents may change but their production does not. And after leading the Norfolk State men's basketball team to another solid win on Friday night at Joseph Echols Hall, juniors Jeff Short and RaShid Gaston have become arguably the top duo in the MEAC.

For the third time in five games, both players reached the 20-point plateau in the same contest, and the most recent result was an 81-62 victory over Northern Arizona in NSU's last home game in nearly a month.

Short tallied 25 points on 9-of-12 shooting, while Gaston added 20 points and 11 rebounds to pace the Spartan offense. NSU outscored Northern Arizona by 18 in the first half while shooting better than 57 percent overall for the game.

The Lumberjacks were coming off an upset of mid-major Saint Mary's on Tuesday on the road, but the Spartans used an efficient offense and some tight defense to move to 8-5 on the season.



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Bethune-Cookman gets permission to talk to Southern coach Dawson Odums

MEAC school, searching for new coach, gets permission from Southern athletic director to make contact

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana  --  For the second time in a year, another university is looking at Southern football coach Dawson Odums as a candidate for its vacant head coaching position.

Last season, it was North Carolina Central that interviewed Odums, who turned down his alma mater before signing a new contract with the Jaguars.

On Friday, Bethune-Cookman received permission from Southern Athletic Director William Broussard to talk to Odums, who has taken the Jaguars to consecutive Southwestern Athletic Conference championship games, winning the 2013 title and losing to Alcorn State 38-24 two weeks ago.

Bethune-Cookman seems to have a greater sense of urgency about filling the opening than Odums does. Wildcats Athletic Director Lynn Thompson told the Daytona Beach News-Journal on Wednesday that he planned to fill the position quickly.

CONTINUE READING 

Message to FAMU President: Pick a Winner for Rattler Football

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- In a few days, Florida A&M University President Dr. Elmira Mangum will make one of the most important decisions of her career in the selection of the Rattlers new head football coach. This won't be nuclear science, but it’s an important decision.

We all have our opinions on who from the pool of eight (now six) should be selected.

I have one thought on this matter -- pick a winner!

Like you, I have two choices. But I am ready to financially support any choice that Dr. Mangum makes. At the end of the day, that's all that really matters and that's what true Rattlers do.
 

What we have observed so far is no one cares about Florida A&M's bureaucratic selection process, established to save Kellen Winslow's job. Winslow is gone. So are two winners -- Willie Simmons (PVAMU) and Latrell Scott (Norfolk State).

Simmons had the North Florida connections and Scott is just a darn good coach that will make NSU a FCS powerhouse.
 

Playing it political correct is not always the best policy. We just watched the most successful, young head football coach since Jake Gaither (Brian Jenkins) leave a tiny, Florida private school for Alabama State. Are you kidding me?  Really!
 

So the short list now consists of: Charlie Weatherbie, EJ Junior, Tony Samuels, Corey Fuller, Joker Phillips and Mark Orlando. No disrespect intended for all of these highly qualified candidates, but two stand above the crowd in my view.
 

Dr. Mangum, if you have time to read this blog, please consider my choices in this order: (1) Mark Orlando (2) Joe "Joker" Phillips, Jr.
 

Mark Orlando

• Can successfully recruit Tallahassee, the Big Bend and Florida talent
• Strong offensive coordinator/QB Coach
• Won FCS National Championship at FAMU in 1978, on Rudy Hubbard's staff
• Salary won't bust athletic department budget for FY 2015
• Understands the challenges of running a successful HBCU football program
• Ready to step up to HC position
• Will sign Cory Fuller on as defensive coordinator
• Will build an exciting championship program and satisfy the Rattlers stakeholders

Joker Phillips

• Strong Florida recruiter with connections
• Marque name in HBCU community
• Last salary at Florida was $260,000 as WR and recruiting coordinator
• Phillips signed on as Kentucky's HC for $11M over 5 years. Need an opportunity to prove his failure at Kentucky was a fluke
• FAMU is perfect for what Phillips needs right now -- a marque brand to re-build his coaching career.

Just pick a winner, Dr. Mangum. Go with your instincts! No, your motherly instincts that didn't want to fire Earl Holmes during homecoming week.

(beepbeep) 

From the Mailbag 12/20/14:

carlishamckissic@ymail.com says...
 
Here are some items, I feel, which were left out for Joker Phillips.

-Although Wikipedia has his first name listed as "Joseph", it's just "Joe".
-Randall Cobb (enough said there)
-He has been on the following teams' coaching staff: Kentucky, Notre Dame, Minnesota, South Carolina and Florida.
-He is ranked by ESPN as one of the top football recruiters

Thank you in advance for considering my cousin as one of your top picks. I'm keeping my fingers crossed and hope to one day wear FAMU colors!

Sent from my iPhone

Gold Rush erupt in overtime to win 92-82 at No. 5 Carey

JOSH FREEMAN
GUARD, 5'-10"/160   JUNIOR
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS
RICHARDS HIGH SCHOOL/KENNEDY-KING CC

HATTIESBURG, Mississippi -- Morris Wright scored 10 of his 22 points in overtime Thursday to help Xavier University of Louisiana defeat William Carey 92-82 in a matchup of ranked NAIA Division I men's basketball teams.

The Gold Rush (11-4), ranked 22nd, ended the 29-game home winning streak of the Crusaders (8-2), ranked fifth, and defeated a top-10 opponent on the road for the first time in nearly seven years.

Wright scored six points during a 10-0 run fueled by five William Carey turnovers in the first 2:42 of overtime. The Crusaders never came closer than six points thereafter.

Xavier scored an NAIA Division I-record 24 points in overtime after LaSheddrick Edmondson's putback with two seconds remaining in regulation tied the score at 68 for William Carey.

Texas Lutheran held the previous NAIA DI record for points in an overtime period, 22 against Concordia (Texas) in 1995.

"We fought through a lot of challenging situations," XU coach Dannton Jackson said. "We defended well, made free throws in overtime and came out with a big win."

Xavier had not beaten a top-10 team on the road since a 75-72 overtime decision against NAIA No. 3 LSU-Shreveport on Jan. 23, 2008.

Sydney Coleman had 16 points and seven rebounds for the Gold Rush. Jarvis Thibodeaux had 14 points -- he made 10-of-13 free throws -- and grabbed a career-high 13 rebounds. Anthony Goode scored 12, and Wesley Pluviose-Philip matched his season high with 11 points.

Deoine Weeks scored 17 points, Leo Garrett 16 and Donta Pittman 12 for William Carey. Those three combined for all 11 of the Crusaders' 3-pointers.

Xavier shot 50 percent from the floor for the second consecutive game and limited the Crusaders to 41.5 percent. Outrebounded by two in a 69-59 home loss to William Carey on Dec. 1, the Gold Rush held a 45-36 advantage this time. Reserve guard Josh Freeman, who entered the game with 10 rebounds in 10 games, grabbed a career-best seven.

"It was a team victory with a lot of guys contributing," Jackson said.

Xavier trailed 12-7 through the first 5 1/2 minutes but rallied to take a 39-33 halftime lead. There were five ties and 10 lead changes in the second half before the Crusaders forced overtime with four consecutive points to erase Xavier's 68-64 lead in the final 1:37.

It was the second straight season that Wright starred in a victory against William Carey. He scored six of his career-high 26 points in overtime in a 90-80 home decision on Dec. 3, 2013.

"This win was about toughness, about survival," Jackson said. "It was like two heavyweight fighters going after it. You get smacked in the mouth, you get knocked down, but you get up."

Goode opened overtime with a 2-pointer, then Xavier pulled away when the Crusaders committed turnovers on each of their first four possessions.

"Our guys did a great job in overtime taking away William Carey's dribble penetration," Jackson said. "We got our hands on the basketball, got some points in transition and seized momentum early."

It was the third consecutive victory for Xavier after losing 3-of-4, including two straight home defeats. Xavier is 4-1 on the road this season and 2-0 in overtime.

"We've been through a lot the last few weeks," Jackson said. "This was a great win before Christmas against a tough opponent."

It was William Carey's first home blemish since a 63-58 loss to Loyola on Feb. 23, 2012, and the Crusaders' 11th loss overall in their last 72 games.

William Carey was the first of three consecutive NAIA top-10 opponents for the Gold Rush. Xavier will play No. 9 Concordia (Calif.) at 7 p.m. Dec. 30 at XU's Convocation Center, then open its Gulf Coast Athletic Conference schedule Jan. 5 at No. 6 Talladega.

Box score

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director

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XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA

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Sixers small forward Robert Covington (TSU) playing well

PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania  -- When Robert Covington signed with the Philadelphia 76ers as a free agent a month ago, he was excited about his chances of playing with the Sixers. Covington also thought about two of his friends from Philly who played basketball with him at Tennessee State. He played with Kenny Moore (University City) and Jay Harris (Paul Robeson) at TSU.

“They were really good players in college,” Covington said. “Actually, Jay is still there. This is his senior year right now. It was great playing with both of them. Jay always came in with a spark. Kenny was a great player. We grew a lot as teammates.”

Covington hails from Chicago where he was a big star at Proviso West High School. The 6-foot-9, 215-pound small forward, headed down to Nashville, Tenn., to play basketball at one of country’s legendary Black colleges. Covington played some great basketball for the Tigers. He received second team All Ohio Valley Conference honors. He was a Boxtorow HBCU All-American. He finished his playing days with 1,749 points and 876 rebounds.

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Rod Reed agrees to extension at TSU

NASHVILLE, Tennessee  -- Tennessee State football coach Rod Reed is staying put.

Bethune-Cookman athletics director Lynn Thompson received permission on Wednesday from TSU athletics director Teresa Phillips to speak with Reed about the Wildcats coaching vacancy.

Reed was on the road recruiting at the time and returned to campus Friday.

Before he had an opportunity to meet with Thompson, Reed met with Phillips and said he agreed on an extension in principal to his current contract.

Reed signed a five-year deal in April that extended his contract until 2018.

He declined to say how long the extension is for or if he received a raise.

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Bernard and Worsham lead JSU past Southern Miss, 66-46

JACKSON, Mississippi  --  Kaven Bernard and Raeford Worsham combined to score 39 points for the Jackson State men’s basketball team, as the Tigers defeated the Southern Miss Golden Eagles 66-46 Thursday night at the Lee E. Williams Athletics and Assembly Center.

Bernard led all scorers with 21 points on 7-12 shooting to go along with his six rebounds. Worsham played an all around solid game as he added 18 points on 6-12 shooting. He also had six rebounds and six steals.

“We have been on the road for six weeks,” said JSU head coach Wayne Brent. “I was just so happy for our kids. People get down on them and wonder what’s wrong with them, but the thing that’s wrong is we have been on the road for so long and people don’t understand how hard it is to win on the road. So to come out here tonight and bring that same energy and same effort and get a win will help us build confidence. It will go a long way.”

A swarming defense was the name of the game for JSU as the Tigers held the Golden Eagles to 37.1 percent shooting (13-35) and 27.3 percent shooting from beyond three-point range.

“I thought we did a good job in contesting every shot and just playing with energy,” said Brent.

JSU converted its defensive efforts into 23 points. JSU shot 45.8 percent from the field (22-48), 30 percent from three-point range (6-20) and 66.7 percent from the free throw line (16-24). The Tigers also held the advantage, 36-1, in bench scoring.

Matt Bingaya led USM with a 20 point and 10 rebound effort.

The Tigers never trailed and eventually built their lead to 24 points early in the second half.

Worsham scored the first eight points of the game for the Tigers as JSU opened the game with a 10-2 run and never looked back. USM cut JSU’s lead to 10-6 by the 14:44 mark in the first half, but never got closer any closer as the Tigers went on an 11-0 run over the next over the next two minutes. The Tigers led 38-16 at halftime.

USM opened the second half with a 6-2 run to cut JSU’s lead to 40-22 by the 17:08 mark. JSU again followed the Golden Eagle run with one of its own, scoring the seven of the last 11 points of the game.

Jackson State will have a quick turnaround as the Tigers travel to New Orleans, La. to face Tulane in non-conference action Friday, Dec. 19. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m.

STAT LINE OF THE NIGHT
In only his third game of the season and his JSU home debut Raeford Worsham scored 18 points, pulled down six rebounds and had a game high six steals.

HIGHLIGHT OF THE NIGHT
Bernard and Worsham accounted for all 11 JSU points during JSU’s first half run.
 
OTHER KEY PLAYERS
Janarius Middleton came off the bench to score eight points on 3-5 shooting. He made the last field goal of the game for the Tigers on a layup at the 1:43 mark in the second half. Middleton also led the team with three blocked shots.

Dontaveon Robinson and Yettra Specks each added seven points. Specks finished with a game high four assists.

Treshawn Bolden pulled down six rebounds in 13 minutes of action.

Box Score

COURTESY JACKSON STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION

Bethune-Cookman receives permission to talk to Tennessee State head football coach

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida -- Bethune-Cookman has received permission to talk to Tennessee State head football coach and former B-CU assistant Rod Reed about its vacant head coaching position, the Tennessean reported.

Reed told the Nashville newspaper that B-CU athletic director Lynn Thompson received permission from Tennessee State athletic director Teresa Phillips to talk to the Tigers’ coach. But Reed declined to say if he planned to speak to Thompson about the position.

Thompson told The News-Journal on Wednesday the Wildcats are “moving rapidly” to find a replacement for Brian Jenkins, who resigned Tuesday to take the head coaching job at Alabama State.

“Within the week, Bethune-Cookman will have a new head coach on board and working,” Thompson said.

Thompson said one of B-CU’s targets is a head coach at another school.

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Mike White introduced as Benedict football coach

COLUMBIA, South Carolina -- By Mike White’s estimate, he has been involved in Albany State athletics since he was a football player at the school in 1975, and his career as player, assistant and head coach spanned most of the next four decades.

That affiliation with the Golden Rams ended Thursday afternoon, when White was introduced as the next coach of the Benedict Tigers.

Speaking in the media area at Charlie W. Johnson Stadium, the former NFL defensive tackle and five-time SIAC coach of the year said he is intent on getting to work and changing the Tigers for the better.

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Muscatine graduate Brooks commits to North Carolina Central

MUSCATINE, Iowa -- Tyler Brooks had no shortage of choices to continue his college football career.

In the end, the Muscatine native and current Iowa Western Community College student chose something that felt like family.

Brooks, who graduated from Muscatine High School in 2013, signed a letter of intent Wednesday to play college football at North Carolina Central, a NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision school. He plans to transfer as early as January, pending the completion of his classes at Iowa Western.

Brooks also received offers from FCS schools Murray State and Bethune-Cookman, in addition to offers from Football Bowl Subdivision schools Louisiana-Monroe and Idaho, but verbally committed to the Eagles on Monday.

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Alcorn State offers scholarship to Pascagoula football player

PASCAGOULA, Mississippi  -- Pascagoula senior linebacker Randy Hogan recently received a scholarship offer from Alcorn State, his first from a four-year school.

Hogan had 90 tackles this season as part of a talented Panthers defense that featured a pair of FBS commitments - defensive tackle Jauan Collins (Southern Miss) and defensive end Keith Joseph Jr. (Mississippi State).

Hogan already had three scholarship offers from Pearl River Community College, Jones Junior College and Southwest CC, but it was a relief to get his first offer from a four-year school.

"It feels great," Hogan said. "Back at the beginning of the season, I had a couple of schools looking at me but they weren't sure how I would do against the pass. They knew I could stop the run. Now schools see I can defend the pass. I can be versatile on both sides of the ball (playing fullback also)."

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Lack of discipline main reason ASU didn't win SWAC under Barlow

MONTGOMERY, Alabama  --  One player is a three-year starter on the offensive line. The other had just three carries last season.

Seniors Damian Love and Rodney Cross are on opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to playing time, but both say the main reason the Hornets failed to win the SWAC under Reggie Barlow was lack of discipline.

The two believe new head coach Brian Jenkins can bring that ingredient to the Hornets and win a conference title.

"It's really discipline and that's what Coach Jenkins said in his speech," said Love, a Stanhope Elmore graduate who was a 2014 first-team All-SWAC selection. "He's going to bring discipline and we really need that. Once we have discipline, I feel like nobody in the conference, FBS, FCS level; they can't play with us."

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