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WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina -- Connell Maynor, who guided Winston-Salem State to a school-best 14-1 record, was named the All Super Region One coach of the year Friday by the Don Hansen Football Gazette.
Maynor, who is 35-4 in three seasons, led the Rams to their second straight CIAA title and their first appearance in the Division II national championship game.
The Don Hansen teams carry on the legacy of Dan Hansen, a small-college football advocate who died in August 2010, at 75.
Hansen published his national weekly football gazette for three decades, selecting NCAA Division II All-America teams for the first time in 1988. Don Hansen’s Football Gazette began selecting Division II All-Region teams in 2003.
The Rams had nine players make the first, second and third teams in Super Region One.
TALLAHASSEE, Florida -The Florida A&M University Department of Athletics announced today that Earl
Holmes has been selected as the new head football coach. Holmes, a FAMU graduate
and All-American in his playing days with the Rattlers, has served as defensive
coordinator the last two years and acting head coach for the final two games of
the 2012 season, guiding the program's day-to-day operations thereafter.
Holmes' proposed multi-year contract, which offers him an annual salary of
$200,000 over the next four years, must be approved by the FAMU Board of
Trustees.
FAMU director of athletics, Derek Horne, is very pleased that the process was
done in an expeditious manner, resulting in a thorough vetting of the candidates
by a cross-section of constituents.
"We are excited about the new era of FAMU football under the leadership of
Earl. He has done an awesome job of transitioning immediately to acting coach
and maintaining the program through this crucial recruiting period," Horne said.
"We look forward to his dedicated efforts in this next level of leadership."
FAMU Interim President Larry Robinson said, "I believe we have selected the
right coach to lead Rattler football. I am impressed with his plan to develop
the whole person, not just the student's athletic ability. Coach Holmes is a
solid choice when you consider his vision for the program, 10-year- career in
the NFL as a linebacker and experience gained at FAMU as a defensive coordinator
and linebackers coach. I look forward to the launch and achievements of the Earl
Holmes era. I look forward to presenting this appointment to the Board of
Trustees for consideration."
Holmes is overwhelmed with the reality of leading the Rattlers. " I am truly
humbled," said Holmes. "First, I would like to thank God, because he continues
to prove that he is able to make dreams come true. I want to thank Coach Joe
Taylor for his mentorship and having the confidence in me to bring me back to
FAMU as a part of the coaching staff. I also want to thank everyone from
President Robinson, athletic director Horne, the entire athletic staff, the
search committee and everyone who has offered encouragement to me in the pursuit
of me being in this position today. There is no one you could have selected that
will work harder to return FAMU football to the prominence it deserves than I am
dedicated to doing."
Holmes, affectionately known as "The Hitman" in his playing days at FAMU,
played from 1992-1995, leaving with several school records including most career
tackles. He captured NCAA DI-AA and Sheridan Broadcasting All-American honors in
1994 and 1995. He was named Sheridan Broadcasting Network and Mid-Eastern
Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year in 1995.
A three-time first team All-MEAC selection, Holmes was a devastating tackler
while at FAMU, completing his career with 509 total tackles, 309 solo take downs
and 200 assisted tackles - all Rattler career records. His 1995 senior season
totals shattered all existing school marks for season solo tackles (103) and
total tackles (171), highlighted by a spectacular one-man demolition derby
performance against Southern University in Atlanta on November 4, when he
totaled 30 tackles against the Jaguars.
Following his collegiate career, Holmes was drafted in the fourth round of
the 1996 National Football League drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers. He played
10 seasons in the NFL as linebacker, six with Pittsburgh (1996- 2001), one
season with the Cleveland Browns (2002) and three with the Detroit Lions
(2003-2005) before retiring.
Holmes is married to the former Tiffany Bell and they have one child, Earl
Jr.
"I would like to thank the head football coach selection committee that
worked through the holidays to maintain the strict timeline I charged them
with," said Horne. "We appreciate each one of them and commend committee
chairman, Dr. Ebenezer Oriaku, and the entire committee for their service this
effort."
"With our football program in place, it's now time for our Rattler fans to
put 100-percent support behind Coach Holmes, the athletic department and the
university to bring the environment back to the great days past and even better
days ahead," Horne concluded.
Florida A&M is expected to introduce Earl Holmes as its next head football coach at a 6 p.m. press conference today at the Lawson Center.
Holmes emerged from a field of 23 other applicants to land his first job as a college head coach at his alma mater. He spent the last two weeks of this past season as acting head coach and has been running the day-to-day operations since.
Holmes, 39, was a finalist along with John Hendrick and John Eason.
Multiple sources had told the Democrat that Holmes and Hendrick were the two frontrunners before Holmes won the job. Holmes spent the past five seasons as defensive coordinator under former coach Joe Taylor, who retired with two games left in the 2012 season.
JACKSON, Mississippi -- When Hector Stanback verbally comitted to Jackson State last October, it wasn’t based solely on the fact that the Tigers had just come off a SWAC Championship game appearance.
As is usually the case, there were many factors for the linebacker from Martin Luther King High in Lithonia, Ga.
Along with feeling comfortable with the coaching staff, Stanback pointed to the school’s criminal justice program as a major selling point. Stanback, who laughed as he recalled playing “cops and robbers” as a kid, has hopes of one day following in the footsteps of an uncle and becoming an FBI agent.
He thinks JSU could help make that dream a reality.
“A lot of alums that came from Jackson State are FBI agents,” Stanback said. “I just think I could make a difference.”
JSU thinks Stanback can be a difference maker on the field as well. At 6-foot, 200 pounds, Stanback is listed as a two-star athlete by Rivals.com.
NASHVILLE, Tennessee -- The Tennessee State men's basketball team improved to 6-0 at home this season
with an 80-48 win over UT Martin on Thursday night.
TSU
(10-7, 4-0 OVC) was paced by Kellen Thornton who had a team-high 13 points and
added seven rebounds.
Patrick Miller also had a strong game, scoring 12
points, dishing out three assists and securing four boards.
The
Tigers also shot 47.6 percent (10-of-21) from downtown and 87 percent (20-of-23)
from the line.
TSU
fell behind, 7-12, in the game's first six minutes as UT Martin (4-13, 1-4 OVC)
made six of the squad's first eight shots (75 percent). The Tigers also
committed four turnovers during the stretch which further limited their
offensive opportunities.
After the Skyhawks strong opening surge, TSU
fought back with a 17-2 run that included a three-pointer by Jay Harris. The run made the score 24-14 in favor
of the home team with eight minutes remaining in the first half.
The
Tigers continued to roll and eventually stretched their lead to 22 when Jordan Gaither sunk a pair of free throws. The
buckets allowed TSU to take a 46-24 lead going into the break.
Tennessee State made 14-of-26 during the opening
stanza for a 53.8 shooting percentage, and held the Skyhawks to a 32.4 line
(11-for-34). TSU also made 13 out of 15 free throws in the first half, and UT
Martin only got to the line once.
UT
Martin started the second half on a 10-4 run before TSU head coach Travis Williams called a timeout to stop the flow
of Skyhawk points.
Williams's pep-talk worked as Gaither sunk
a layup immediately following the stoppage and Cyphers drained a three on TSU's
next possession. The flurry was part of a 10-2 run that culminated in a Miller
jumper from outside the arc.
The
Tigers maintained their 20-plus points lead for the remainder of the contest
thanks to a suffocating defensive effort that forced 16 turnovers and only
allowed an 8.3 three-point percentage (1-of-12).
TSU
was able to rest some of its starters for the last eight minutes of the game,
and the squad actually raised the lead to 32 before the final horn sounded and
the Tigers walked away with an 80-48 victory.
Eleven Tigers scored in the contest and TSU's
bench outscored UT Martin's 36-8.
TSU
will defend its spotless OVC record on Saturday when the team takes on Southeast
Missouri at 7 p.m.
BATON ROUGE, Louisiana -- One week and four days after the Southern Jaguars unveil it's 2013
football signing class, head coach Dawson Odums will be honored during "Meet
Coach Odums" night at the SU basketball game against Alabama A&M Feb.
18.
Odums and his wife, Audrey, and their daughter, Jasmine, 9 and
son, Jaiden, 1, will be introduced to the Jaguar Nation. Members of Odums newly
minted coaching staff will be present as well.
Southern will also offer the 2013 football schedule posters autographed by Odums to the
first 200 fans to arrive for the Jaguars
home game at the FG Clark Activity Center.
Tipoff for the Alabama A&M game is slated for 2 p.m. and
will be televised live on Cox Sports Television (Ch. 37, HD Ch. 1037).
COURTESY SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY ATHLETIC MEDIA RELATIONS
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Howard Sports Network will again broadcast live women's and men's Saturday home basketball games from Burr Gymnasium on www.whbc963hd3.com beginning this Saturday, January 12, 2013 with a doubleheader starting at 2:00 p.m. versus MEAC rival Hampton University.
Join the Howard Sports Network broadcast team of Nakia McFarlane, Wesley Rimpson and Jasmine Bailey as they call the action for the Lady Bison. The men's broadcast team will be led by veteran commentators Charles Walton and Otha Navels and newcomer Glynn Hill.
In studio reporters and field reporters include Shayna Calandro, Israel Alao, Sarafina Hamer, Kyleah Starling and Krystyna Braxton.
The weekly "Coach's Segment" will be hosted by Jourhan Henry and Khari Arnold on Mondays and Fridays from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Guests will include Coach Niki Reid Geckeler and Coach Kevin Nickelberry.
Ricky Clemons will serve as executive producer and Courtney Zellars, general manager WHBC as producer of each broadcast in conjunction with the Howard Sports Network, WHBC and the Howard University Athletic Department.
The Howard Sports Network will broadcast the games listed below live on www.whbc963hd3.com:
January 12, 2013 vs Hampton – 2:00p women/4:00p men
February 2 vs Savannah State - 2:00p women /4:00p men
February 9 vs UMES – 2:00p women/4:00p men
February 23 vs Coppin State – 2:00p women/4:00p men
March 2, vs Delaware State – 2:00p women/4:00p men
The women's and men's Monday night games including Norfolk State (Jan. 14); South Carolina State (Feb. 4) and Morgan State (Feb. 11) will be covered by the Howard Sports Network via live updates and podcasts posted on the station's website www.hbc963hd3.com.
WINSTON-SALEM, North Carolina -- Connell Maynor, who guided Winston-Salem State to a school-best 14-1 record, was named the All Super Region One coach of the year Friday by the Don Hansen Football Gazette.
