Southern-FAMU to be shown by Versus

Atlanta, GA - The Atlanta Football Classic between Southern and Florida A&M will be televised by the cable network Versus, according to a release from the Southwestern Athletic Conference.

SU and FAMU will play at 2:30 p.m. Sept. 24 in the Georgia Dome. It is the first meeting between the longtime rivals since FAMU held off the Jaguars in a 52-49 shootout at A.W. Mumford Stadium in 2008. The teams have played 58 games since 1941, according to school records. The Rattlers hold a 33-24-1 edge.

The Atlanta Football Classic is one of two Southern games to appear on national television this season.

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MEAC to use instant replay for televised games

NORFOLK, Va. — To this day, there is still some debate about one play three seasons ago that might have changed the postseason fate for Florida A&M in Joe Taylor's first season as head football coach.

At the crux of matter is a pass by quarterback Eddie Battle that was ruled a fumble, enabling South Carolina State to score the first six points on its way to a 20-point halftime lead. FAMU mounted a furious second-half comeback but the momentum swing caused by the questionable call was too much to overcome in a 28-21 loss.

Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference commissioner Dennis Thomas on Friday said the league will be implementing the use of instant replay, a move that he hopes will alleviate calls such as the one that still haunts FAMU. Instant replay will be available this season to teams whose games are televised, Thomas said during the conference's media day at the Waterside Marriott.

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SIAC Championship debate

ATLANTA — Albany State’s road to its sixth SIAC football title in the past decade will be a little rockier than normal. Yes, the Rams were named preseason favorites to repeat as conference champions at Wednesday’s SIAC Kick-Off Luncheon at Fox Sports Grill in Atlanta.

But there is a new factor in this year’s conference — a championship game.

In the past, the team with the best regular-season conference record was crowned as the SIAC champ. This year, the 10 teams are divided into two five-team divisions — East and West — and the winner of each division will face off in the inaugural SIAC Championship game Nov. 12.

Teams will play a seven-game conference slate, including all four divisional opponents and three rotating non-divisional opponents. Every two years, one non-divisional opponent will rotate on, and off, each team’s schedule over a 10-year period, and each team will play its non-divisional opponents an equal number of times.

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Battle For Atlanta: Clark Atlanta Panthers vs. Georgia State Panthers

BATTLE DATE: FRIDAY, SEPT. 2, 2011 GEORGIA DOME, ATLANTA, GA 7:30 p.m. ET

Southern, Grambling State already in a Bayou Classic mode

State Farm presents…

2011 BAYOU CLASSIC

November 25-27, 2011

New Orleans, LA

Baton Rouge, LA - Southern fans have already penciled in the Nov. 26 football game on the Jaguars’ schedule as an automatic victory. The problem is that Grambling State fans have done the same thing.

It’s not because they view each other as a slouch. Rather, it reflects the deep level of passion and pride behind the State Farm Bayou Classic, now in its 38th year. There are certainly no shortage of story lines for this year’s game. Second-year Southern coach Stump Mitchell’s team is seeking to rebound from a 2-9 season that included a 38-17 loss to Grambling.

Grambling interim athletic director Aaron James is no stranger to the New Orleans area, having played in high school at Cohen, then collegiately with the Tigers, and in the NBA with the New Orleans Jazz.

“This is a great rivalry and a family affair,” James said. “It’s the Black College Super Bowl. The reason why we are out here this early is that, since Hurricane Katrina, the attendance has dropped, and we want to build it back up to where it use to be. We’ve got to get the 65,000-75,000 people back in the Superdome.”

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Albany State Rams looking for big things from passing game

ALBANY, GA — Uyl Joyner knows exactly what his bread and butter is going to be this year.

After all, Albany State certainly feasted on it last season. Star quarterback and reigning SIAC MVP Stanley Jennings is back for his senior season, and Joyner — the Rams’ new offensive coordinator — is ready to hit the ground running.

Joyner and the rest of the ASU coaching staff spoke to alumni, fans and media at Friday’s 12th annual Quarterback Club Kickoff Football Reception at Eula Lovett Hall, and excitement floated around the room every time Jennings’ name was brought up.

“We are looking for big things out of the quarterback play this year,” said Joyner, who will also remain the quarterbacks coach — a position he has held for the past two seasons. “That’s the one solid area we do have on offense. Stanley is ready to go, and I am ready to run with him.”

Jennings, a 2010 Harlon Hill Trophy nominee and...

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Rimmer signs with Alcorn State Braves

ASU Braves Coach Luther Riley

Lorman, MS - Former Piney Woods School point guard Xavian Rimmer, who earned second-team All-State honors this past season from The Clarion-Ledger, has signed to play basketball at Alcorn.

“Alcorn is really coming along with a great new coach in Coach (Luther) Riley,” said Rimmer. “It’s a great program that I would like to be a part of. I think we’re going to make things happen there.”

The 6-foot-2 Rimmer averaged 14.2 points, 5.2 assists and 4.3 rebounds, leading the Tornadoes to the Class 2A state title. He signed with Tennessee-Chattanooga, but after not qualifying academically because of his ACT score, he was released from his national letter-of-intent and was able to go elsewhere. He has since met the NCAA’s eligibility requirements and is expected to be eligible at Alcorn this fall.

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