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Entering the season, Arkansas-Pine Bluff coach and defensive coordinator Monte Coleman said he wanted his defense to be one of the best in the Southwestern Athletic Conference. On Saturday, they played like they were, as the Golden Lions forced six turnovers and sacked Mississippi Valley State quarterback Paul Roberts four times in a 34-0 victory at Golden Lion Stadium on Senior Day. Martell Mallett gained 160 yards and scored two touchdowns on 24 carries in the victory.
“Valley threw the ball against Jackson State over 90 percent of the time, (in a 58-44 victory last week), so my thing was to try to make them run the football,” Coleman said. “They still came out and threw the football. My thing was to take away their best suit.” While the Golden Lions weren’t able to force Valley to run the football, they were able to limit the effectiveness of the Delta Devils aerial attack. Roberts completed only 13-of-35 pass attempts for 123 yards. And though UAPB used a varied rush of only three or four defenders, the Golden Lions were able to pressure Roberts for four sacks and three interceptions. Coleman said he only called one blitz on the game.
DURHAM, NC - Winston-Salem State played give away yesterday and N.C. Central was more than happy to accept the gifts. The Eagles feasted on four turnovers from quarterback Jarrett Dunston and a poor snap on a punt in a 23-16 on Saturday afternoon at muddy O'Kelly-Riddick Stadium. The field, which took on quite a bit of rain in the morning, was more suited for mud wrestling than a football game.
Because of the sloppy conditions the teams combined for six turnovers, but it was Dunston who struggled the most. "Any time you are playing no matter what the field looks like you have to take care of the football," said Dunston, who had two interceptions and two fumbles and was sacked six times. "And I didn't do that today. "The plays were there and they were bringing the pressure, but whenever you have four turnovers it's hard to win a game."
North Carolina Central University Marching Band - "Car Wash"
LAKE WALES, FL - Webber International University closed the 2008 season with a 24-7 loss against Football Championship Subdivision's Savannah State University on Saturday at Legion Field. The Tigers gained 238 yards on the ground and had 457 total yards in the game. The Warriors, playing without top runner Taylor Atwood, ran for 96 yards. Rupert Webley carried the bulk of the load on the ground with 13 carries for 36 yards. Webley also caught two passes for 25 yards to lead the team in receiving yards.
Savannah State (5-6) got on the board first with a trick play. The Tigers ran a double-reverse that ended with receiver Deleon Hollinger throwing a 25-yard touchdown pass to Isaiah Osborne. Savannah State struck again in the second quarter. After back-to-back holding penalties, the Tigers were forced into a third and 30 situation, but quarterback Kurvin Curry completed a 43-yard pass to Javares Taylor to put Savannah State ahead 14-0. Webber's best drive of the first half started at the 3-yard line. The Tigers punted and the officials ruled the ball went into the end zone for a touchback, but after a conference, they ruled the ball out at the 3.
GameDay's Desmond Howard hopes the show brought attention to HBCU football.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Hours before Hampton's game at Florida A&M kicked off Saturday afternoon, the FAMU campus was abuzz with the presence of ESPN's weekly pregame show, College GameDay. More than a thousand people, including a number of fans wearing HU's blue and silver, attended the show's first visit to a historically black university, and Pirates players and coaches were plenty excited to be focused in the national spotlight.
"It's great because you get the nationwide exposure," said Hampton coach Jerry Holmes. "(To) have an opportunity to be Hampton University and represent HBCU schools, it's a great feeling for the kids, great exposure for them." GameDay host and 1991 Heisman Trophy winner Desmond Howard said that having ESPN's presence helped raise the profile of HBCU football. "I think it brings a lot of attention to it, first and foremost," Howard said. "It raises awareness. There's football played in other areas, other universities, not just the BCS schools."
The show, which took place in front of FAMU's Lee Hall, featured Hampton and FAMU helmets displayed prominently on the set. Segments featuring the schools were aired, and the Rattlers' Marching 100 band gave a live performance.
The fans who flocked to tiny Burr Gymnasium last night didn't see any future world leaders, but they launched a resplendent celebration nonetheless. Howard University's 47-45 victory over Oregon State spoiled the debut for first-year Beavers coach Craig Robinson, the brother-in-law of President-elect Barack Obama, and prompted many of the more than 2,000 fans in attendance to dance in the aisles. A few dozen, including a man wearing a Howard cape, stormed the court.
"I am glad the crowd didn't leave when Obama didn't come," an ecstatic Howard coach Gil Jackson said. "They stormed the court? I have never seen that. They stormed the court at Howard."
A little more than two miles from the White House, Howard showed just how hard Robinson's job will be at Oregon State. It took Obama 20 months to make a quick ascension from senator to president-elect. Robinson, who spent the past two seasons as Brown's head coach, knows it will take longer to turn the Beavers into a contender.
The stage is now set for the seventh annual Honda Battle of the Bands (HBOB) Invitational Showcase (http://www.hondabattleofthebands.com/) scheduled to take place Saturday, January 24, 2009 at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. Ten Historically Black College and University (HBCU) marching bands have been chosen to participate in the 2009 Invitational Showcase through a combination of online voting by fans and a selection process involving HBCU band directors and university presidents.
Fine-tuning their instruments, practicing their drum major acrobatics and choreographing the dance team's routines all in preparation to "stomp at the Dome," the 2009 lineup includes:
--Virginia State University and Fayetteville State University, representing the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA); -- Florida A&M University andNorth Carolina A&T State University, representing the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC); -- Tuskegee University and Kentucky State University, representing the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC); and -- Jackson State University and Texas Southern University, representing the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC); -- North Carolina Central University and Edward Waters College, both independents.
The ten bands selected to participate in this year's Invitational Showcase will be awarded $20,000 by American Honda for their music scholarship programs--a $10,000 increase over last year. They also will receive an additional $1,000 grant for their participation in the Celebration Tour, HBOB's pre-qualifying event series. In total, $244,000 in scholarship monies will be granted to HBCU music programs through this program for 2008-09.
This year Honda Battle of the Bands welcomes four new bands and looks forward with anticipation to the return of HBOB's longest running participant, Virginia State University, and the goliath of all marching bands -- 440 member-strong Florida A&M University. This year's show, filled with HBCU pageantry and tradition, is sure to be one for the history books as world-class musicianship, show-stopping drum majors, scintillating dance teams and syncopated drum lines come together with one basic goal in mind: To win the crowd.
Florida A&M Universiy Marching 100
"The Honda Battle of the Bands Invitational Showcase not only celebrates the pageantry and showmanship of America's HBCUs, but also works to expose people, young and old, to the power and importance of music and higher education," said Marc Burt, Senior Manager, Office of Inclusion and Diversity for American Honda. "Music education has been shown to have a strong correlation with high academic achievement, and American Honda has been humbled to bring an event that combines both. Our overarching objective is that this program continues to grow in stature and significance."
HBCU Recruitment Fair
The Honda Battle of Bands HBCU Recruitment Fair will return this year for the fourth year in a row. This event, held prior to the main event in the Georgia World Congress Center, presents young people with the opportunity to meet with marching band and admissions recruiters from all around the country to discuss their unique music programs and distribute information about admissions requirements, academic programs and scholarship opportunities. Last year thirty-four schools exhibited and nearly 2,000 young people attended.
Interested high school students and their parents are welcome to visit the Honda Battle of Bands HBCU Recruitment Fair from 10:00 a.m. -- 2:00 p.m. the day of the event to learn more about the nation's black colleges, their music programs, scholarships and admissions requirements.
Tickets to this highly anticipated family event are on sale now and can be purchased for $10-$12 on www.HondaBattleoftheBands.com, through Ticketmaster or via the Georgia Dome box-office. For downloadable broadcast video and high resolution photos of the 2008 Invitational Showcase, or more information on the Honda Battle of the Bands Invitational Showcase bands, visit www.HondaBattleoftheBands.com.
Teams are pressing forward after successful 2007-08 seasons
"Yes, we had success, but last year is last year," said the Bears' Todd Bozeman, 2008 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Coach of the Year. "And while I appreciate [the award], it's not going to carry any weight this season." Morgan lost three key players but will bank on returning forward Marquise Kately (13.1 points per game) and guards Reggie Holmes (12.9) and Jermaine "Itchy" Bolden.
Kately, 6-5, is "the consummate team player," Bozeman said. "He rebounds, scores and covers for others on defense. Last year, he was even pressed to play point guard for two games." Morgan also corralled a handful of transfers who should help to put more distance between the Bears and their abysmal 2005-06 record of 4-26.
Though Morgan won the MEAC regular-season crown, it lost the tournament title game to Coppin State on a late basket by the Eagles' Tywain McKee. The Coppin star returns with an iffy supporting cast, but how can the Eagles top last year's wacky season in which they went 16-21 and still reached the play-in game of the NCAA tournament?
Entering the season, Arkansas-Pine Bluff coach and defensive coordinator Monte Coleman said he wanted his defense to be one of the best in the Southwestern Athletic Conference. On Saturday, they played like they were, as the Golden Lions forced six turnovers and sacked Mississippi Valley State quarterback Paul Roberts four times in a 34-0 victory at Golden Lion Stadium on Senior Day. Martell Mallett gained 160 yards and scored two touchdowns on 24 carries in the victory.
