Virginia Union Moves Up To #3 In NCAA Division II Top 25 Coaches' Poll

RICHMOND, Virginia -- The Virginia Union University women's basketball team continued their climb in the WBCA/USA Today Top 25 rankings by being ranked third in the nation in the latest poll, released on Tuesday, January 3, 2017.

The Lady Panthers are now third in the nation behind Ashland University (14-0) and Emporia State University (12-1). There are a total of 322 colleges playing women's basketball at the NCAA Division II level.

The ranking marks the highest place a VUU women's team has occupied since the 1982-83 team finished the season as National Champions (last year's squad finished the season ranked #4).

The Lady Panthers are also the only CIAA team to be ranked in the WBCA/USA Today poll.

VUU also captured the top spot in the latest D2SIDA Atlantic Region Poll, released on Tuesday, January 3.

Virginia Union is undefeated at 11-0 overall and 1-0 in the CIAA, and sit atop the Northern Division of the CIAA.

The Lady Panthers travel to Raleigh, N.C., to face Shaw University in a rematch of the 2016 CIAA Championship Game at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, January 5.

WBCA NCAA DIVISION II TOP 25 COACHES POLL - January 3, 2017

Rank	School (Record)	Points	First-Place Votes	Last Week's Rank
1	Ashland (14-0)	598	22	1
2	Emporia State (12-1)	556	0	5
3	Virginia Union (11-0)	512	2	6
4	Bellarmine (10-1)	490	0	4
5	Angelo State (10-0)	486	0	7
6	Pittsburg State (11-1)	485	0	3
7	Alaska-Anchorage (10-0)	476	0	8
8	California, PA (11-1)	444	0	2
9	Colorado State-Pueblo (13-0)	422	0	9
10	Lincoln Memorial (11-0)	405	0	10
11	California Baptist (13-2)	362	0	11
12	Drury (11-2)	297	0	14
13	Arkansas Tech (7-1)	267	0	15
14	Winona State (12-2)	261	0	16
15	Seattle Pacific (11-1)	228	0	13
16	Lewis (11-2)	200	0	17
17	Bentley (11-3)	194	0	12
18	Wheeling Jesuit (9-1)	186	0	18
19	Columbus State (8-0)	156	0	23
20	Central Oklahoma (11-1)	104	0	19
21	Grand Valley State (9-3)	98	0	21
21	North Georgia (10-1)	98	0	24
23	Clayton State (9-2)	80	0	22
24	Minnesota State-Moorhead (11-1)	71	0	NR
25	Northern State (10-2)	65	0	25

Dropped Out: No. 20 Florida Southern (8-4).
Others receiving votes: Eckerd (10-2) 52; Saint Mary's, TX (11-2) 29; Adelphi (11-2) 28; Simon Fraser (12-2) 24; Queens, NY (10-3) 17; Central Missouri (10-1) 17; Regis, CO (10-2) 11; West Florida (9-2) 11; Limestone (7-3) 10; Anderson, SC (8-2) 9; Glenville State (9-1) 8; Caldwell (10-3) 7; Fort Hays State (11-2) 7

D2SIDA ATLANTIC REGION POLL
1. Virginia Union - 40 points - previously 2
2. California - 35 - 1
3. Wheeling Jesuit - 31 - 3
4. Mercyhurst - 30 - 4
5. Glenville State - 24 - 5
6. Edinboro - 20 - 8
7. IUP - 15 - 9
8. Chowan - 10 - 6
9. East Stroudsburg - 7 - 10
10. Bowie State - 5 - NR

VIRGINIA UNION UNIVERSITY ATHLETIC MEDIA RELATIONS

Football Is Forever: The Money-Losing Drug These Schools Can’t Quit

Clear eyes, full hearts, can’t let go

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- For the University of Massachusetts Amherst, moving into the top echelon of college football looked a lot like going pro.

Robert Holub, then the university's chancellor, announced the change at the 68,000-seat Gillette Stadium, 90 miles east of campus. Just like the NFL’s New England Patriots, the Minutemen would play at Gillette, selling more tickets to make up for the increased costs of big-time football. “We promise national excellence and prominence to the citizens of the Commonwealth,” Holub said in April 2011.

Five years later, the school’s plan appears, at best, naively optimistic. The projected revenue has failed to materialize, and the athletic department now relies on more financial support from the university than it did before its football team joined the Football Bowl Subdivision. Fewer than 15,000 fans on average attended UMass home games this season. The Minutemen no longer belong to a conference and won’t play a single game at Gillette in 2017.



“I see nothing changing in terms of the financial viability, the attendance or the conference opportunity,” said Max Page, a UMass architecture professor who co-chaired the faculty senate’s Ad Hoc Committee on FBS Football in 2014. “It’s going to continue to drain money from the core mission of the university. And there’s no end in sight. How many years do we do this?”

Quite possibly forever. Once a school fields a top-division football team, it’s nearly impossible to reverse the commitment. UMass is one of 10 schools to join the FBS since 2009, and most are struggling financially. In theory, they have alternatives—drop down to the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), known until 2006 as Division I-AA, or cut football entirely. Neither is a panacea, as the University of Idaho and the University of Alabama at Birmingham are learning.

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Could FSU Football’s Game vs. Delaware State be Worst in Program History?

FSU will pay Delaware State a $475,000 guarantee for the game

TALLAHASSEE, Florida -- Last week, FSU football announced that they had found a 12th team for their schedule next season. After presumably looking across the nation for an opponent they would pay hundred of thousands of dollars to come to Tallahassee and get beat, the Seminoles settled upon…drumroll please… The Delaware State Hornets!

That’s right, ladies and gentleman – a team that went 0-11 last season as members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (the same one Tallahassee neighbors FAMU play in) will be the team Florida State will be beating up on come November 18th in the home finale next season.



It’s no secret that the ‘Noles have started to adopt the SEC schedule theory of playing at least one cupcake each season – usually from the FCS group. The Hornets – who lost by an average of 25 points a game last season and had just three defeats of 10 points or less – will be the ninth FCS team FSU has played since Jimbo Fisher’s first year in 2010 (and the third MEAC team).

The argument from FSU officials and Fisher himself is going to be the fact that the 2017 schedule is already chalk full of battles. The Seminoles start the year with Alabama in Atlanta while including home games against Louisville and Miami to go along with road games at Clemson and the season finale at Florida.

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College Football Teams Are Risky and Expensive—and Schools Keep Adding Them

Universities still think the sport’s benefits outweigh the costs

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- At many schools, the costs of football are starting to challenge the benefits. It’s expensive, it doesn’t always make money, many academic faculty resent it, and the ongoing debate over health risks and players’ labor rights put universities in an awkward position.

Taken together, football could look like the kind of hassle a university president might try to avoid.

Yet few do. In the past eight years, 57 colleges and universities have started an NCAA football program. The University of Alabama, at Birmingham, restored its team to the Football Bowl Subdivision. Another 11 joined the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly known as Division I-AA), and the rest are competing at lower levels—Divisions II or III. For all but UAB, there’s little money to be made from TV or ticket sales.

In the past decade, annual football expenses at a typical FCS school have increased from less than $2 million to $3.5 million. In the same period, revenue has expanded from $430,000 to $1 million. Middle-of-the-road FCS programs—a division that includes University of Maine, Colgate, Portland State—are losing millions on football altogether.

In spite of all this, East Tennessee State University still decided to add football in 2015. The team costs about $4 million to field, one-quarter of the overall department budget. Encouraged by the school’s president, students approved a $125 fee that would cover $2.8 million of the football team’s costs. “That was the only way we could do it,” said Richard Sander, originally a consultant on the football revival and later hired as the school’s athletic director.



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Why TV Riches Aren’t Enough to Keep College Football Alive Anymore

Programs and conferences have sacrificed ticket sales for media money. What happens when that dries up?

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The business model of college football, long a financial boon to universities, is breaking down. A weeklong look at the pressures of rising costs, falling revenue and what, if anything, universities can do about it. Read the rest of the series here.

College football is sloshing around in television money. You can see it in inflated coaching salaries and practice facilities that feature spas, juice bars, and movie theaters. Clemson’s football players are getting a mini-golf course and an indoor slide.



One athletic director, in little Las Cruces, N.M., is trying to rebalance the scales. For the next couple of years, Mario Moccia plans to do all he can to keep the New Mexico State University Aggies off TV. Think of it like an NFL broadcast blackout.

“I’m choosing not to do damage to myself,” Moccia said. He suspects more people will come to the games if they can’t watch from home and the school will make up any lost revenue at the gate. Only 5 percent of the Aggies' $29 million annual athletic budget comes from TV, and Moccia figures it’s worth experimenting.

It's hard to overstate how unusual Moccia is. The pursuit of TV money has led programs and conferences to make all kinds of concessions, and while that might make short-term sense -- media money is guaranteed, ticket sales are not -- it threatens to irritate and alienate the fan base over the long term.

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College Football’s Top Teams Are Built on Crippling Debt

Football’s critics often point to multimillion-dollar coaching salaries. They should be more worried about debt, which costs more and lasts longer



WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The business model of college football, long a financial boon to universities, is breaking down. A weeklong look at the pressures of rising costs, falling revenue and what, if anything, universities can do about it.  Read the rest of the series here.

By many standards, University of California, Berkeley has an incredible sports program. Its 30 sports are second only to Stanford in the Pac-12 Conference, and the school has won 22 national titles in the past decade. At the Rio Olympics, current or former Cal athletes collected 21 medals, including eight golds.

By another measure, Cal sports are in big trouble. After completing the most expensive college football stadium overhaul ever, the Golden Bears now owe more money than any other college sports program. Hobbled by debt service payments, the athletic department ran a $22 million deficit last year and expects to end this fiscal year deep in the red.

A university task force is looking for possible solutions, including reducing the total number of Cal’s sports programs. Any cuts could endanger some of the school’s most successful teams, which cost a lot more than they bring in, and Chancellor Nicholas Dirks recently gave the group more time. “Everything is on the table,” said Robert O’Donnell, a lecturer at Berkeley’s Haas School of Business who co-chairs the task force.

Football critics nationwide often point to multimillion-dollar coaches as emblems of excess. They should be more worried about debt, which costs more and lasts longer. A high-priced coach might earn $4 million to $5 million a year. Meanwhile, according to public records, athletic departments at least 13 schools in the country have long-term debt obligations of more than $150 million as of 2014—money usually borrowed to build ever-nicer facilities for the football team.



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The Unravelling of College Football Starts With All These Empty Stadiums

Low attendance threatens today’s ticket revenue and tomorrow’s alumni donations.

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The business model of college football, long a financial boon to universities, is breaking down. A weeklong look at the pressures of rising costs, falling revenue and what, if anything, universities can do about it. Read the rest of the series here.

On a warm November Saturday in Boca Raton, 5,843 people turned out to see Florida Atlantic University play its final home football game of the year. With 80 percent of the seats empty, it was the Owls’ smallest audience since the team jumped to college football’s top division in 2005.

A week later and a world away, the Florida State Seminoles played their last home game in front of a crowd of more than 78,000. The student section alone had three times as many fans as FAU had in its whole stadium.

With the fanfare building for the College Football Championship on Monday, it’s hard to remember that packed stadiums like Florida State’s are the exception. FAU’s empty stands are the rule, and lackluster ticket sales are starting to take a financial toll on programs across the country.

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Hodge earns Nuggets' 1st GCAC weekly honor of 2016-17

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana's Jalyn Hodge has been named Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Player of the Week in women's basketball for Dec. 26-Jan. 1.
     
Hodge, a 5-foot-8 freshman guard from Plano, Texas, and a graduate of Plano West High School, scored 11 points Saturday in the Gold Nuggets' 78-42 victory at Dallas Christian. The winning margin was XULA's largest of the season.
     
Hodge is averaging 5.1 points in 15 games. She is the first Gold Nuggets freshman to win a GCAC weekly award since another Plano West alum, Carmen Holcombe, did it in December 2010. During Bo Browder's 18 seasons as head coach, 21 Gold Nuggets have won a combined 32 GCAC weekly awards.
     
The Gold Nuggets (9-6) will play their GCAC opener at 3 p.m. Saturday against Tougaloo (4-3) at XULA's Convocation Center.

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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Confirmed: Mike London expected to be named head football coach at Howard University

London won the 2008 FCS National Championship in 2008 at Richmond

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Mike London, Maryland football’s associate head coach, is expected to be named head coach at Howard, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.

London, 56, who resigned as Virginia’s head coach in 2015 after five seasons, spent just one year on DJ Durkin’s staff in College Park, where he also served as a defensive line coach and helped bolster the program’s recruiting presence in Virginia’s Hampton Roads region. Neither Maryland nor Howard officials would confirm London’s hiring on Friday evening. London did not respond to a request for comment.



He was one of Durkin’s first hires at Maryland, signing a two-year, $800,000 deal last December and becoming a key figure on a diverse staff that briefly included three former head coaches. London also played a pivotal role in Maryland’s 2017 recruiting class, which comprises 29 prospects and is projected to be the highest-rated class in program history.

It was widely assumed that London would be a head coaching candidate at another area school this offseason. He will return to the second-tier Football Championship Subdivision eight years after he left his post as Richmond’s head coach to take the same position at Virginia. At Howard, London will take over for Gary Harrell, who was fired in November after serving six seasons as head coach.

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Howard University Bison picks up commitment from Cam Newton's brother, Freshman 3-Star QB Caylin Newton

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- On Thursday, Howard picked up a commitment from Georgia prospect Caylin Newton, the younger brother of Carolina Panthers star quarterback Cam Newton.  Caylin Newton will be taking his talents to Howard University in Washington, D.C.

The younger brother of former Auburn and current NFL star Cam Newton announced his decision Thursday on Twitter.

View image on Twitter

 Follow

Caylin Newton @NewtonCaylin

I am extremely blessed to be attending Howard University for this upcoming Spring semester! On to the next chapter in my life! #TherealHU

4:31 PM - 5 Jan 2017

As a senior at Grady High School in Atlanta, the 5-foot-11, 185-pounder completed 65.7 percent of his passes for 3,322 yards, 33 touchdowns and eight interceptions in 2016. He also led his team rushing, carrying 92 times for 1,036 yards and 13 more touchdowns.

Newton camped at Auburn once and made multiple visits, but the Tigers didn't offer. According to 247Sports, His only other offers were from Hampton, Kentucky Christian and Savannah State.

"To be honest I think (his recruitment) should have gone much better than it did," Grady head coach Earthward Moreland told AL.com.  "But moving forward I think he's happy with his decision he's made. He's just going to go from there.



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Nuggets move from 32nd to 35th in NAIA coaches poll

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana, unbeaten since the previous NAIA Division I Women's Basketball Coaches Top 25 Poll, lost ground Tuesday when the newest rankings were announced.
     
The Gold Nuggets are in the "others receiving votes" category for the eighth time in the last nine polls. They're 35th overall with four points. In the previous poll (Dec. 6), they were 32nd with 11 points. Two teams behind XULA in the Dec. 6 voting passed the Nuggets despite a combined three losses between polls.
     
"Can't worry about that," XULA coach Bo Browder said. "We're just trying to get our young team better."
     
XULA, 9-6 and winner of three straight and six of its last seven games, will play its Gulf Coast Athletic Conference opener at 3 p.m. Saturday against Tougaloo at XULA's Convocation Center. The Gold Nuggets tied for second in the GCAC regular season a year ago, then won the GCAC Tournament for a league-record 15th time.
     
Freed-Hardeman is No. 1 for the second consecutive poll. The next poll will be announced Jan. 17.

NAIA Division I Women's Basketball Coaches Top 25 Poll
(first-place votes in parentheses — records through Jan. 1)

Rank	Team	Record	Points	Last
1	Freed-Hardeman (9)	13-0	250	1
2	Lewis-Clark State (1)	15-0	242	2
3	Westmont	12-1	231	4
4	Lindsey Wilson	13-0	228	5
5	MidAmerica Nazarene	9-2	216	3
6	Vanguard	12-1	207	tie-6
7	Campbellsville	14-2	206	tie-6
8	Oklahoma City	11-1	192	9
9	Lyon	10-2	182	8
10	Shawnee State	17-1	180	10
11	Montana State-Northern	11-2	172	11
12	Columbia (Mo.)	12-2	156	13
13	Great Falls	11-2	153	tie-14
14	Baker	9-3	150	12
15	Cumberland	11-2	135	19
16	Central Methodist	10-2	130	17
17	The Master's	9-3	123	16
18	John Brown	9-4	108	20
19	Benedictine (Kan.)	7-5	101	tie-14
20	Loyola (N.O.)	11-2	91	22
21	Bethel (Tenn.)	8-6	90	18
22	Our Lady of the Lake	8-6	85	21
23	Pikeville	11-4	72	24
24	Lindenwood-Belleville	9-4	63	23
25	Carroll (Mont.)	11-3	47	25
Dropped from previous rankings:  none Others receiving votes:  Montana Western 40, Wayland Baptist 39, Talladega 33, Biola 19, Harris-Stowe 8, Wiley 8, William Penn 8, Martin Methodist 6, William Woods 6; XULA 4. Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director XULAgold.com XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA  twitter.com/xulagold www.facebook.com/xulagold

Rush, Nuggets to open outdoor season in town March 3

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana will open its 2017 outdoor track and field schedule March 3 at a city rival's meet, the Tulane Early Bird Twilight.
     
Coach Joseph Moses announced Wednesday the eight-meet schedule, which also includes competitions in Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi and Texas.
     
XULA, an NAIA member, will compete at four meets hosted by NCAA Division I members: Tulane, the McNeese Cowboy Relays at Lake Charles, La., on March 11, the Rice Victor Lopez Classic at Houston on March 24-25 and the Southern Miss Invitational at Hattiesburg on March 31-April 1. XULA will compete at a fifth Division I venue — South Alabama's Jaguar Track — in the University of Mobile Invitational on April 7.
     
The Tulane meet and the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Championships (April 21-22) will be run at the same venue, Tad Gormley Stadium.
     
Xavier also will compete in the Emory Invitational March 17-18 in Atlanta.
     
Student-athletes who meet qualifying standards will be eligible to compete at the season-ending NAIA National Championships May 25-27 at Gulf Shores, Ala.
     
XULA will attempt to win the GCAC women's team championship for the sixth time in eight attempts. The Gold Nuggets won three straight GCAC team titles from 2013-15.

2017 Xavier University of Louisiana
Outdoor Track and Field Schedule

March 3 (Fri.):  Tulane Early Bird Twilight at Tad Gormley Stadium, New Orleans, La.
March 11 (Sat.):  McNeese Cowboy Relays at McNeese Cameron Communications Track and Field Complex, Lake Charles, La.
March 17-18 (Fri.-Sat.):  Emory Invitational at Woodruff P.E. Center Track, Atlanta, Ga.
March 24-25 (Fri.-Sat.):  Rice Victor Lopez Classic at Wendel D. Ley Track, Houston, Texas
March 31-April 1 (Fri.-Sat.):  Southern Miss Invitational at Southern Miss Track and Field and Soccer Complex, Hattiesburg, Miss.
April 7 (Fri.):  University of Mobile Invitational at Jaguar Track, Mobile, Ala.
April 21-22 (Fri.-Sat.):  Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Championships at Tad Gormley Stadium, New Orleans, La.
May 25-27 (Thu.-Sat.):  NAIA Outdoor Championships at Mickey Miller Blackwell Stadium, Gulf Shores, Ala.

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

Former Virginia head coach, Maryland assistant Mike Locndon reportedly becoming head coach at Howard University

COACH MIKE LONDON
 2011 ACC COACH OF THE YEAR

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Associate head Maryland football coach Mike London is the top candidate for the head coaching job at Howard and could be announced as the Bison's new coach soon, sources confirmed to Inside Maryland Sports early Friday.

London, Maryland's defensive line coach, has spent just one season in College Park after joining first-year head coach DJ Durkin's staff in Dec. 2015 following five season as head coach at Virginia. It was expected the 56-year-old London would be in the market for a head coach job this offseason, but it seem surprising to see him move on to the downtrodden Football Championship Subdivision program in nearby Washington; Howard, a MEAC school that lost to Maryland by 39 points this past season, offers minimal exposure and has had one winning season in the past 10 years.

If London leaves, Durkin will be in the market for a new defensive line coach. The Terps ranked 10th in the Big Ten in rush defense and ninth in passing defense during his year as defensive line coach. They did rank third in the conference in sacks, though, despite the new staff inheriting limited talent on the defensive front. From a recruiting standpoint, London, renowned for his ability to draw talent to Virginia, is the primary recruiter for three three-star commitments in Maryland's 29-member 2017 class: Virginia athlete Dazz Newsome, Virginia lineman Tyran Hunt and Baltimore defensive lineman B'Ahmad Miller.

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Florida A&M "Will Play Football At Bragg Memorial" According To Athletic Director

TALLAHASSEE, Florida -- After sitting out spring practice last year, the Florida A&M Rattlers will participate in spring football this spring thanks to a successful appeal of APR sanctions. The problem is, Bragg Stadium is in need of a face lift, and that face lift doesn't come cheap.

Last month, it was announced that Bragg Memorial Stadium, home of the Rattlers, needed around $600,000 worth of structural repairs and stair replacements, or else FAMU would have to find a new home turf.

On Wednesday, Athletic Director Milton Overton confirmed that FAMU will play football at Bragg Stadium through a statement issued to WTXL.

The statement reads as follows:

The Florida A&M University Rattlers will play football at Bragg Stadium. Although there are some areas of the stadium which require repairs, our plan is to play the spring game there as well as fall football. Engineers have provided a plan and timeline to complete the immediate repairs before the first home game in 2017.

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SMITHSONIAN MAGAZINE: March to the Joyous, Raucous Beat of the Jackson State University Sonic Boom of the South

College football seasons come and go, but the joyous thunder of Jackson State's iconic marching band rolls on

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- It takes two charter planes to move the Sonic Boom of the South from its home in Jackson, Mississippi, to the first event of the season, in Las Vegas, Nevada. The 230 musicians are traveling with four band directors, support and medical staff, a security detail, a social media and video unit, cheerleaders and a team of swivel-hipped female dancers called the Prancing J-Settes.

The Sonic Boom of the South is the marching band of Jackson State University, and a leading exponent of the high-stepping, high-energy, razzle-dazzle style that has developed in historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in the Deep South. Known as “show style,” it combines the military marching band tradition with funky syncopated rhythms and elements of jazz, R&B, pop and hip-hop. The bands play with tremendous power and incorporate tightly choreographed dance routines into elaborate field drills. This unique American art form has honed and perfected itself over many decades and is now breaking through into wider cultural prominence.

Michelle Obama, in her commencement speech at Jackson State in April 2016, declared the Sonic Boom of the South one of the best bands in the country, and told university officials how much she enjoyed watching the band’s performances on YouTube. The Boom, as it’s known for short, played at the 2016 inauguration of Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant, and just headlined the annual Jackson Christmas Parade, a holiday tradition drawing thousands of spectators. “We don’t have the very best musicians, or the most precise drill formations,” says O’Neill Sanford, the director of bands at Jackson State. “But no one else can bring the same energy and showmanship, and electrify a crowd of 110,000 people like we can,” he says. “That’s what everyone wants to see.”



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Can Grambling football be even better in 2017?

GRAMBLING. Louisiana — Spend just a few minutes inside Grambling’s football offices next to Eddie Robinson Stadium, and it’s apparent the Tigers’ staff is eagerly awaiting the 2017 season.

The excitement is based off Grambling’s potential to be even more talented and more dynamic than the group that won 11 games, an HBCU national championship and a Southwestern Athletic Conference championship in 2016.

Of course, several things need to occur for a repeat in 2017, but the outlook sure is looking nice.

“I do believe we’ll have some things in place that can help us be a really good football team. What’s gong to be interesting is the personality and the character,” Grambling coach Broderick Fobbs told The News-Star after the 2016 season. “This team had a lot of character, great character. They had a lot of guys who wouldn’t take no for an answer.”

Grambling is losing a potential NFL ...

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The Legendary Florida A&M University Marching Band ...the History of "The Hundred" by author Curtis Inabinett, Jr.

Curtis Inabinett, Jr. is a well-known musician as well as a Ravenel town council member. Now he is the author of the book "The Legendary Florida A&M University Marching Band: The History of “The Hundred.” In this special edition of 'Quintin's Close-Ups', I speak exclusively with him, one-on-one.

RAVENEL, South Carolina -- Author Curtis Inabinett, Jr., dedicated himself for a seven-year period and delivers the undeniable story of the Legendary Florida A & M University Marching Band. Inabinett’s extraordinary biographical display of words, vividly paints an illustrative mind’s eye view of the famous band from 1946 to 2015, leaving no stones unturned in his quest to deliver the truth.

Released on November 10, 2016, this 296-page 8 by 10 full color book is filled with facts that will instill in readers why ‘The Hundred’ has survived as one of the top marching bands in America. Inabinett tells the story of Dr. William P. Foster, the band’s creator, and how he overcame racism while an undergraduate music major student at the University of Kansas in the early 1940’s. This heartfelt message reveals the power of god and perseverance, and is a must read for all lovers of marching bands, but not only that, Inabinett explores the down side of hazing in marching bands, and how ‘The Hundred’ came back to prominence after a self-imposed suspension in 2012 for a hazing death within its famed band.



Inabinett, who has never formally studied journalism, was awarded the first annual ‘2015 – 2016 Alyce Hunley Whayne Award’ for his book manuscript of ‘The Hundred,’ and spent one week in December of 2015 at the University of Kansas’ Kenneth Spencer Research Library completing research for this book.

The book can be ‘order purchased’ at all Barns & Noble, and Books A Million retail stores. On-line purchases can be made at Page Publishing. You can also purchase eBooks through Kobo, Barnes & Noble, Google Play, ITunes, and Amazon.

Media interviews for Curtis Inabinett, Jr., can be secured by contacting Page Publishing at media@pagepublishing.com or by calling 866-315-2708.

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Gold Nuggets roll past DCC for 5th win in last 6 games

DALLAS, Texas — Xavier University of Louisiana outscored Dallas Christian in every quarter and rolled to a 78-42 women's basketball victory Saturday.

Freshman guard Jalyn Hodge, who lives in the Dallas suburb of Plano, Texas, led the Gold Nuggets (8-6) with 11 points. She reached double figures for the first time since XULA's opener.

XULA has won five of its last six games.

Angelle Simon scored a career-high-tying nine points for XULA. Mikayla Bates, Bianca Brown, Kelsee Singleton and Maya Trench scored eight points apiece.

Breana Stoner scored 10 points for the Lady Crusaders (4-9).

XULA produced its largest winning margin on an opponent's floor since an 84-34 victory at Barber-Scotia on Nov. 29, 2002. XULA outscored DCC 39-21 in both halves and produced its largest-ever third-quarter scoring margin, 19-6.

"We had been off 15 days, and I thought we played pretty well at times," XULA coach Bo Browder said. "We're still a work in progress. I was pleased with our post play, and we'll be looking for that same kind of production in the second half of the season."

The Gold Nuggets will stay in Dallas and visit Paul Quinn at 2 p.m. Monday. The Nuggets' next home game will start at 3 p.m. Saturday against Tougaloo in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference opener at the Convocation Center.

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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Rush defeated by NCAA Division II's 10th-ranked team

MIAMI SHORES, Fla. — Xavier University of Louisiana, in its sixth game of the men's basketball season against a ranked opponent, lost 96-68 Saturday to Barry.

Leland Alexander scored 11 points, Donovan Armstrong 10 and Seth Jackson nine for the Gold Rush (3-9). Alexander was 5-of-6 from the floor, 4-of-4 in the second half, reached double-figure points for the fifth time this season and had a career-high three steals. Armstrong did not commit a turnover

Continuing his perfect shooting was XULA's Elex Carter, who was 2-of-2 from the floor and is 7-of-7 in the last three games. At 1:42 of the first half, he made the first 3-point attempt of his collegiate career.

The Buccaneers (10-1), No. 10 in the NCAA Division II media rankings and No. 12 in the coaches poll, had five double-figure scorers. Adrian Gonzalez had 17 points, Elvar Fridriksson 14, Arie Williams and Sawyer Glick 12 apiece and Evan Walshe 11. Fridriksson had 10 of Barry's 25 assists.

XULA had runs to start both periods, outscoring Barry 7-2 in the first 3 1/2 minutes and 5-0 to open the second half.

Barry outshot XULA 65.4 to 47.4 percent from the floor and outrebounded the Gold Rush 32-20. XULA had 12 steals, one fewer than its season best, and Carter had three steals to equal his career high.

XULA will stay in Florida to play Concordia (Canada) Monday and Keiser Tuesday in Keiser's Chuck Daly Classic at West Palm Beach. Starting time both days will be 7 p.m. EST. The next Gold Rush home game will start at 5 p.m. Saturday against Tougaloo in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference opener at the Convocation Center.

BOX SCORE

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
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