Bayou Classic to be on NBC through ‘12

New York, NY - NBC Sports announced Tuesday it will continue to televise the annual Bayou Classic through 2012. The Southern-Grambling football rivalry in the Louisiana Superdome has been televised by NBC on Thanksgiving weekend since 1991. As part of the agreement, State Farm is continuing its title sponsorship.

“The Bayou Classic is a slice of Americana, and at the end of this agreement we will have broadcast this iconic event for 23 straight years,” said Jon Miller, president of programming for NBC Sports and VERSUS in the announcement. This year’s Bayou Classic is scheduled for Nov. 26.

“The NBC Sports broadcast and the title sponsorship helps us spread our Jaguar pride into millions of households nationwide,” Southern University System President Ronald Mason Jr. said in the release. “(The) Bayou Classic is more than a football game; it’s a tradition of family fun and camaraderie that we look forward to every Thanksgiving weekend.”

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UAPB now a SWAC title contender?

Pine Bluff, Ark. - Having spent his childhood in Arlington, Texas, with freeways and skyscrapers that seemed to stretch on forever, Colton Jones had plenty to enjoy. Even late into the night, Jones could find a hot hamburger, a cold milkshake and, in all likelihood, a pro sporting event nearby. Then, at 18 years old, Jones headed to Pine Bluff, Ark., which was, suffice it to say, a little different.

“You just have to get used to the atmosphere, the people around town, everything,” said Jones, now a fifth-year senior and a mainstay on the Arkansas-Pine Bluff offensive line. “The surroundings are very different between home and Pine Bluff. It was hard at first, but I’m a survivor. Basically, you adapt to your circumstances.”

Now, that trait might come in handy again.

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Jackson’s promotion at W.Va. Wesleyan a league accomplishment

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- When his predecessor accepted another job at another West Virginia Conference school, Jonas Jackson received a promotion from West Virginia Wesleyan officials.

Changing one word in his job title resulted in a historical accomplishment for Jackson, who went from assistant head coach to interim head coach in June after Dennis Creehan resigned to become the athletic director at Alderson-Broaddus.

Jackson is believed to be the first black head coach at a non-HBCU (Historically Black College or University) in the league's long history.

"It says a lot about our institution, and it says a lot about our president, our dean and our athletic director," said Jackson, a 32-year-old Boston native who has a bachelor's degree from Eastern Michigan and a master's degree from Valparaiso.

"It's an honor, and I embrace it. I have to make sure I work very, very hard to represent the institution and those who aspire to be where I am. For up-and-coming black coaches like myself, we have to work our tails off and put our best foot forward so other guys get this opportunity."

Despite the historical significance of his promotion, Jackson said he is not sure colleges' hiring practices are "a black-and-white issue."

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Howard University Bison: A Star On And Off The Floor

Greenbelt, MD - Eleanor Roosevelt graduate and incoming Howard University freshman Prince Okoroh has balanced his athletic accomplishments with an impressive academic career.

Prince Okoroh’s talent on the basketball court gained the former Eleanor Roosevelt High School standout an athletic scholarship to Howard University. It’s his dedication to performing well in the classroom, though, that may be even more impressive.

You didn't have to worry about eligibility stuff with Prince, Roosevelt coach Brendan O’Connell said. “It’s weird, because, like, in the offseason and stuff, he would miss practice or miss a workout or miss a running session. But it’s because he was going to take a college class at Johns Hopkins or something like that. So how can I get mad at him, you know?”

Okoroh — who was awarded a Gates Millennium Scholarship at Roosevelt — took part in the 2011 World Scholar-Athlete Games in the Greater Hartford, Conn. area, which ran June 26 through July 4.



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Southern University moving forward after tough ‘10

Baton Rouge, LA - At the intersection of Swan Avenue and Scenic Highway, less than a mile from A.W. Mumford Stadium, a homemade sign hangs underneath the window of a sports apparel shop. Painted in sloppy blue letters, the sign reads: “Just get it done.”

That was the slogan adopted by Stump Mitchell’s first football team at Southern University.

As fans and alumni painfully remember, there was only one problem: When it came to winning games, the Jaguars didn’t get it done. After the final whistle at the Bayou Classic, players slowly walked off the field inside the Superdome and headed toward the tunnel, looking upward, toward thousands of empty seats.

The Jaguars had clinched a 2-9 record, the worst season in school history.

SU key football dates - Wednesday: Players report...Thursday: Practice begins... Aug. 14: Media day...Aug. 22: Classes begin...Sept. 3: Season opener, at Tennessee State...Sept. 10: Home opener, vs. Alabama A&M.

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NSU quarterback makes preseason first team

NORFOLK, VA - In just one offseason, Norfolk State quarterback Chris Walley has gone from criticized to recognized. The NSU senior is 1 of 3 Spartans on the preseason All-MEAC first team, joining offensive tackle Kendall Noble and defensive tackle Josh Turner. Linebacker Corwin Hammond was named to the second team. The teams were announced at the MEAC's preseason luncheon Friday.

It's the first time an NSU quarterback has earned the preseason recognition. Heading into last year, the Spartans' quarterback competition was the focus of training-camp conversation - and Walley's start was poor.

While learning a new offense and rotating through an uninspiring selection of wide receivers, the Spartans spent much of the season near the bottom of the MEAC in passing. Walley, a junior college transfer, passed for fewer than 55 yards in consecutive weeks during the middle of the season.

He rebounded, though, averaging more than 240 yards in his final three games ...

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North Carolina Central excited to return to MEAC as D-1 member

NORFOLK, Va. — The Eagles of N.C. Central are expected to do better this football season than their staunch rival from Greensboro, those N.C. A&T State University Aggies. That’s the good news for NCCU. The bad news, announced Friday during the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference annual football luncheon, is NCCU is predicted to finish in the bottom half of the conference they just rejoined.

Head coaches and sports-information directors from the MEAC pegged NCCU to finish seventh among the 11 teams that play football in the league, while A&T was picked to finish ninth.

NCCU was a founding member of the MEAC in the early 1970s and then left in 1979 for the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association when the MEAC moved to Division I. The Eagles have been going through the process of reclassifying as a D-I program since 2007 and this will be their first year as a full member pending more approval step by the NCAA in August.



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