FAMU Band Camp wraps up another successful year

TALLAHASSEE, Florida -- Over 200 high school and middle school students from all over the country have been practicing for their weekend performances at FAMU.

The Marching 100 Summer Band Camp is one of the most comprehensive band camps in the country offering students the opportunity to improve their music proficiency and marching concepts.

Along with band, the staff also instructs the color guard, dancers, twirlers and drum majors.

The band camp will wrap up this weekend with performances both Friday and Saturday at the FAMU campus.

CONTINUE READING

XULA Gold Rush earn first-ever NAIA Scholar-Team award

NEW ORLEANS — The most successful postseason team in the history of Xavier University of Louisiana Athletics also had the department's highest GPA in 2015-16.

As a result, XU men's tennis — the 2016 NAIA national runner-up — has received an NAIA Scholar-Team Award because of a collective 3.03 GPA for the fall 2015 and spring 2016 semesters. The NAIA announced the award Friday.

"I'm really proud of my guys for this accomplishment," 13th-year XU coach Alan Green said. "It really shows the hard work they have put in off the court in addition to being national runner-up on the court. I've always wanted a team that could contend for a national championship but also have good team GPAs. These guys deserve it."

For a team to be considered for the NAIA Scholar-Team award, it must have a minimum 3.0 GPA on a 4.0 scale as defined by the institution. The team GPA includes all eligible varsity student-athletes.

This is the third consecutive year that Xavier produced an NAIA Scholar-Team. Tennis is the first XU men's sport to be honored. Volleyball was a Scholar-Team in 2013-14 and 2014-15.

Narrowly missing NAIA Scholar-Team status for 2015-16 was XU women's tennis, which compiled a 2.97 team GPA.

Men's tennis was the first XU team in any sport to reach the championship round of an NAIA national tournament. It was the first XU men's team to advance past the national quarterfinals.

The NAIA said 1,585 teams nationwide — 83 more than a year ago — achieved Scholar-Team status in 2015-16. Xavier was one of four Gulf Coast Athletic Conference schools to produce a Scholar-Team; the others were Dillard (women's basketball), Edward Waters (volleyball, women's cross country, women's outdoor track and field) and Philander Smith (volleyball). Edward Waters volleyball led all GCAC teams with a 3.42 GPA.


Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAgold.com
XAVIER UNIVERSITY OF LOUISIANA 
twitter.com/xulagold
www.facebook.com/xulagold 

2016 SWAC Football Media Day Recap

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama - The Southwestern Athletic Conference officially opened the 2016 football season with its annual SWAC Football Media Day in Birmingham, Alabama at the Birmingham Marriott.

The event featured several workings including the All-SWAC Preseason Team announcement with a live video and radio broadcast stream. A series of special guest included LT. COL Keith Bland of the Air Force Reserve, ESPN’s John Grant, Executive Director of the Air Force Reserve Celebration Bowl, Mark Wright from The Undefeated, Jay Walker ESPN College Football Analyst and Shack Harris from the Black College Football Hall of Fame.

Head coaches from all 10 schools accompanied with two players each were in attendance. Over 130 media members were credentialed for this year’s gathering.

The SWAC released a pair of public service initiatives to highlight the conference member institutions, promote the upcoming 2016 Toyota SWAC Football Championship in Houston, Texas on December 3.

The SWAC released its 2016 SWAC Preseason Teams with Southern running back Lenard Tillery and Alabama State linebacker Kourtney Berry being tabbed for individual honors.

Two-time defending champion Alcorn State totaled 44 votes points as it was named the preseason favorite out of the East Division. Alabama State followed with 35 points, Jackson State received 28 points, followed by Alabama A&M (16) and Mississippi Valley State (12).

Out in the West Division, Prairie View A&M was chosen as the division favorite after amassing 41 points in the voting. Grambling State followed with 35 points, and Southern received 32 points. Texas Southern (16) and Arkansas Pine Bluff (11) rounded out the order of predicted finish.

COURTESY SWAC MEDIA RELATIONS

Southern confident in the face of adversity, lowered expectations

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama — Lenard Tillery, Southern’s standout senior running back, scoffed when he caught his first glimpse of the Southwestern Athletic Conference’s predicted order of finish early at Friday’s media day.

“Third?” Tillery said to teammate Aaron Tiller.

Then he remembered: “Last time we won the SWAC we were picked third.”

Added Tiller, “We like being in positions like this.”



Southern’s expectations for itself have not diminished even after a disappointing 6-5 season last year and academic-related NCAA sanctions that have resulted in a postseason ban and eliminated spring practice for each of the past two seasons.

The Jags enter the 2016 season with a wealth of returning talent, much of which was there to experience back-to-back appearances in the SWAC title game, and they’re not ready to let preseason predictions or adversity brought on by the sanctions dictate how they feel about the upcoming season.

CONTINUE READING

NOTEBOOK: Preseason SWAC Player of the Year Lenard Tillery has rushing record in sight

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama — Southern running back Lenard Tillery isn’t really sure how close he is to breaking Destry Wright’s 17-year old Southwestern Athletic Conference’s career rushing record.

But his offensive linemen are probably well aware that the magic number is 968 to tie Wright’s 4,050-yard total, 969 to make history.

“I don’t really think too much about records, I just try to be productive for my team,” Tillery said. “But my offensive line, they really think about it more than anything. They were the ones that were keeping me up to date when I was reaching the Southern (record).

“The offensive line, the offensive line coach, they want me to have it. They’re anticipating it.”

Other people seem to be anticipating it, too. Tillery was named the SWAC’s preseason Offensive Player of the Year Friday after rushing for 1,102 yards and 13 touchdowns in 2015.

He’s topped 1,100 rushing yards in each of the last two seasons, and if he puts together a similar year in 2016, he’d have the SWAC’s all-time lead around week eight or nine.

CONTINUE READING 

Fobbs undecided on discipline for WR Williams

GRAMBLING, Louisiana -- Grambling star wide receiver Chad Williams earned preseason first-team Southwestern Athletic Conference honors on Friday, but the bigger news of the day surrounds his status for the Tigers’ 2016 season opener.

Williams, who was arrested in May on drug and weapons charges, has yet to be disciplined by Grambling coach Broderick Fobbs, who said Friday he will wait until the legal proceedings play out.

“I want to get the final verdict of everything that is happening. He had a court appearance this past week,” Fobbs said on Friday morning before SWAC Media Day. “I’m gonna wait and take care of everything once everything has been determined.”

While Fobbs said he doesn’t want to jump to conclusions, he did indicate there will be some type of penalty for Williams.

CONTINUE READING

Grambling picked second in SWAC West behind Prairie View

GRAMBLING, Louisiana -- Preseason polls don't matter much to Grambling football coach Broderick Fobbs.

He said it in 2015 and will continue to say it as long as he's coaching. Last year came under different circumstances, though, as Grambling was picked to win the Southwestern Athletic Conference West Division, a label the Tigers lived up to with a trip to the title game in Houston.

This year, that target goes to Prairie View A&M, which was picked as the preseason favorite to meet Alcorn State in the 2016 SWAC title game.

Prairie View earned 41 points to push Grambling (35 points) aside as the team to beat in 2016. In 2015, Grambling was picked to win the West, edging out Southern by just two points (93-91).

"We have a lot of potential. Potential doesn't mean anything," Fobbs told The News-Star on Friday morning via telephone from Birmingham before SWAC Media Day kicked off. "We have a lot of depth, a lot of guys who have played a lot of football and have played well for us. That's the way we set our program. We set our program where a lot of guys play. The reason we do that so when guys leave we always have guys with some experience to step in and play."

CONTINUE READING