Game Notes: Alabama State Hornets vs. UAPB Golden Lions

Alabama State University vs. University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
Time: Today, 2:30 p.m.
Where: Golden Lion Stadium, Pine Bluff, Arkansas
Listen Live on 90.7 WVAS FM
Alabama State Game Notes
2011 Hornet Football Media Guide

THE GAME: The Alabama State Hornets will play their final road game of the season when they face the University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions in
a battle of two teams looking to get back on the winning track.

THE SERIES: This is the 13th meeting between the Hornets and Golden Lions, with Alabama State leading 7-5. Alabama State has won six straight meetings between the teams, including last season’s 38-31 win in Montgomery.

LAST TIME OUT: Both teams lost last week. Alabama State had a nine-game SWAC winning streak end, losing to Alabama A&M 20-19. UAPB lost at home to Grambling State 27-20.

STILL IN THE HUNT FOR THE EAST CROWN: The Hornets’ loss to the Bulldogs
last week puts Alabama State in the position to win and need help to repeat
as Eastern Division champions. The Hornets need to finish ahead of Alabama
A&M in the standings to win the title, as the Bulldogs hold the head-to-head
tie breaker over Alabama State.

LAST ROAD GAME:  This Saturday’s game in Arkansas is the final contest
outside the state of Alabama for the 2011 season. The Hornets will conclude
the regular season schedule with home games vs. Southern Nov. 12 and
Tuskegee in the Turkey Day Classic Nov. 24.

POLL POSITIONS: After ascending to the top of several Black College Football poll at the beginning of October, last week’s loss moved the Hornets from the top spot. Alabama State is now ranked second in the Urban News Poll, fourth in the HSRN.com poll, fifth in the Boxtorow.com media poll, and sixth in the Sheridan Broadcasting Network poll. After being ranked 16th last week, Alabama State fell out of the FCS Sports Network/Fathead.com Top 25.



NOTABLES
• QB Devin Dominguez’ 59-yard touchdown run was the longest of his career
and the longest rushing play of the season for Alabama State.
• WR Nick Andrews had the fifth 100-yard receiving game of the season and
his 134 receiving yards was his third-highest total of the season. Andrews’
nine receptions was one short of his career high.
• FS Kejuan Riley has made interceptions in back-to-back games for the
second time this season (Sept. 17 vs. Grambling; Sept. 24 at Jackson State).
• With one takeaway against Alabama A&M, the Hornets have forced at
least one turnover in 27 straight games (73 takeaways over that time: 30
fumbles/43 INTs).
• LB Brandon Slater made a career-high 13 tackles, while CB Donovan
Masline made a season-high eight tackles.
• LB Demarques Taylor has made at least 10+ tackles in three consecutive
games.
• K/P Wenzig averaged 51.0 yards on three punts, including a season-long
69-yarder.

By Duane Lewis, Sports Information Director/Football, Alabama State University

Jackson twins pit stats from TSU, Tennessee

Southern at Texas Southern
When/where: 6 p.m.; Delmar Stadium, Houston, Texas
TV/radio: KHOU 11.2; 90.9 FM.
Records: Southern 3-5, 3-3 Southwestern Athletic Conference; Texas Southern 3-5, 3-3.
Last meeting: TSU won 54-7 last season at Baton Rouge, La.

Houston, Texas -- Texas Southern defensive end Marquis Jackson made his strongest statement of the season against Central State of Ohio on Oct. 22. He finished with a season-high three sacks to go along 4 ½ tackles for loss and a forced fumble in the Tigers' 42-11 victory.

That gave him plenty of breathing room against one of his main rivals. "Three sacks," Jackson said after the game. "(Let's) see if he can beat me now."

The challenge was directed at Jackson's twin, Malik, a senior defensive tackle at Tennessee. Malik Jackson went up against No. 2 Alabama in a Southeastern Conference showdown later that Saturday. Malik recorded just one sack.



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Jackson State vs. Grambling State

When: Today, 2 p.m.
Where: Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium, Jackson, Mississippi
Television: Online only at www.swac.org
Radio: WHLH-95.5 FM in Jackson
Last meeting: Grambling won 28-21 last year at Grambling, La.
All-time series: Grambling leads 40-20-1

Scouting the Tigers

Keep an eye on...Cliff Exama, LB
The 5-10, 235-pounder leads the SWAC with 96 tackles, 38 more than anyone else on the team. He has 11 1/2 tackles for loss. JSU coach Rick Comegy joked earlier this week that the Tigers would have to use 11 men to block him.

Unit that could give Tigers fits... Running backs
Grambling's Dawrence Roberts has run for 596 yards on 105 carries. The Tigers have broken the 125-yard rushing barrier four times in the last five games.



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Grambling Tigers face test in JSU's Therriault

Jackson State quarterback Casey Therriault played well enough last week to share the Southwestern Athletic Conference's Offensive Player of the Week award. His team may be doing even better than its senior signal caller.

"At this point, they're probably playing the best football in the conference," said Grambling coach Doug Williams, whose team faces Jackson State today at 2 p.m. in Jackson. "The one thing they have going for them that we don't have, but eventually will have, is they have a veteran quarterback who has played well. He's an All-American."

The experience Therriault brings stands in contrast to Grambling's two first-year quarterbacks, Frank Rivers and D.J. Williams. Behind Therriault, Jackson State has risen to 7-1 overall and 5-1 in the SWAC while GSU has struggled to find offensive consistency.

Stopping Therriault will be key for Grambling (4-4, 4-3), but the senior from Wyoming Township, Mich., added a wrinkle to his game last week, rushing for 56 yards and two touchdowns.

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XU Gold Nuggets defeat Florida Memorial in opener, 72-48

Coach Robert "Bo"  Browder
Xavier Career Record: 299-102 (13th season)

NEW ORLEANS -- Keldra Hall and Chelsea Broussard scored 10 points apiece Friday to lead NAIA No. 16 Xavier University of Louisiana in a 72-48 women's basketball victory against Florida Memorial.

It was the opener for both teams. The Gold Nuggets won their home opener for the 20th consecutive season.

Hall, an All-Gulf Coast Athletic Conference center this past season, scored all her points in 11 second-half minutes. Broussard, a sophomore forward, reached double figures for the third time at Xavier.

"I struggled the first half but I was more determined to be effective in the second half," Hall said.

Jasmine Grant, who missed the final 26 games of 2010-11 because of a knee injury, put Xavier ahead to stay at 7-4 with a 3-pointer during the third minute. The Gold Nuggets led by double digits for the final 24:52, including 37-25 at halftime, and the final margin was their largest of the game.

Dominique Jackson had 13 points and eight rebounds for Florida Memorial, a qualifier for the NAIA Division II National Championships a year ago, and Kalicia Battle had 10 points and six rebounds. The Lady Lions never led.

Xavier, the NAIA Division I leader in scoring defense the past two seasons, outshot the Lady Lions 37.3 to 25.9 percent from the floor and outrebounded them 53-46. Hall and Paige Gauthier grabbed seven rebounds apiece for the Nuggets, with Gauthier matching her career high.

Fifteen players saw action for Xavier, and 13 scored. SiMon Franklin, a junior guard who redshirted this past season, started and had nine points and three steals in a team-best 23 minutes. All four of the Nuggets' freshmen -- Jessica Savannah, Crystal Wallace, Cleosha Lee and redshirt Dalila Robinson -- scored, with Savannah and Robinson getting seven apiece.

"Our team played well after a disappointing exhibition loss at LSU," said Xavier coach Bo Browder, who is 299-102 in 13th seasons. "We need more work on defense and rebounding. Other than that it was a good night."

Xavier has won 11 straight at The Barn and 110 of its past 117 games in its campus facility.

NOTES: Xavier beat Florida Memorial in both teams' opener for the second straight year. It was 55-47 at The Barn last season . . . XU's 2010-11 team members received Gulf Coast Athletic Conference Tournament championship rings in a pregame ceremony . . . Xavier's tournament next week at Georgetown (Ky.) changed sponsors -- it's now the Chick-fil-A Classic -- and game times. The Gold Nuggets will play at 6 p.m. EST next Friday against Indiana Wesleyan and 4 p.m. EST the following day against Georgetown.

Next Game: The Gold Nuggets will play Spring Hill at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, November 8 at The Barn. Bo Browder will try for his 300th victory as Xavier's head coach. He is the Gold Nuggets' winningest coach.

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
VISIT: XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA
VISIT: XULAATHLETICS

College football preview: Howard vs. Hampton

Hampton, Virginia -- Another tough out:  A week after losing its ninth straight game to South Carolina State, Howard will aim to end a 14-game drought against Hampton, which includes a 31-21 loss at Greene Stadium last season. Hampton has scored an average of 34 points in the teams’ past five meetings.

Pirates air it out: Led by quarterback David Legree, the Pirates lead the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference in passing offense (255 yards per game). Legree, a 6-foot-4, 225-pound senior with a powerful arm, ranks third in the conference in passing, completing 141 of 229 attempts (61.5 percent) for 1,626 yards and 10 touchdowns. Howard, however, leads the MEAC in passing defense, yielding a scant 145.2 yards per game (fourth nationally).

Good foot: The Pirates’ Taurean Durham, a two-time MEAC special teams player of the week, ranks second in the conference in kicking, connecting on 10 of his 15 attempts (tied for most). The junior is 5 for 7 from 20 to 29 yards and 5 for 6 from 30 to 39 yards.



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Savannah State University Tigers looks for elusive second win

Savannah, Georgia -- Savannah State coach Steve Davenport remembered when times weren’t so good as a player. Davenport, a wide receiver with Georgia Tech, went into the sixth game of the 1988 season against undefeated and eighth-ranked South Carolina with a 1-4 record.

Tech won only three games, but surprised Carolina 34-0 that day in the Yellow Jackets’ only Division I-A victory that season. He relayed that story to his Savannah State players during a recent team meeting.

“I have a picture in my office from the South Carolina game,” Davenport said. “I took that picture into our team meeting. We were struggling; we won only three games (two against I-AA teams). But we made a memory that day.”

Davenport wants his players to look the same way at highly regarded Norfolk State — a team that leads the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference standings and ranks seventh in the Sheridan Broadcasting Network Black College football poll.



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B-CU hopes to continue strong running against Morgan State

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida -- Nothing is more pleasing to an offensive lineman than creating big holes for running backs. Bethune-Cookman senior center Natiel Curry is one happy guy these days. Since gaining a total of just five yards rushing in a loss to North Carolina A&T on Oct. 8, the Wildcats have averaged 332 yards on the ground in their last three games.

"I don't know what was making us stumble at first, but we've caught our rhythm," Curry said. "It seems like we've gone from a spread, passing offense to running the ball down your throat. "Our running plays have been working for us. I just have to credit it to the rest of the O-line and the running backs for finding the holes and making it work."

B-CU (5-3 overall, 3-2 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference) will try to win its fourth straight today in its homecoming game against Morgan State (5-3, 4-1).

"Our guys are just playing hard, playing physical and executing the scheme. Because of that we're seeing good results," B-CU coach Brian Jenkins said. "The A&T game woke us up and got our guys to understand that we're not going to be able to just line up and beat people."



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