Sunday, August 9, 2009

MEAC/SWAC/OVC Sports: This Week in Review

North Carolina Central University Eagles
Eagles still knocking on MEAC's door

Stop me if you've heard this one before: N.C. Central is this close to becoming a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. Yep, any day now; yes sir, Bud, just you wait -- and wait and wait. The conference last Friday hosted its annual kickoff football luncheon in Newport News, Va., and once again the Eagles were on the outside looking in. When asked for the umpteenth time about NCCU's status, Commissioner Dennis Thomas said -- for the umpteenth time -- "Both schools [Savannah State is the other] are still under review. We are in the process of reviewing and a decision is very soon. We're on the tail end."

That tail must be on the end of a donkey. NCCU is doing everything on its end: the athletics department has combined all the booster clubs into one, a suggestion the NCAA strongly recommends to keep better track of funds; increased scholarships and coaching staffs; an enlarged sports information department to further expand coverage of all its programs, and now the installation of artificial turf at O'Kelly-Riddick Stadium to curtail costs.

Commissioner, Dr. Dennis E. Thomas, Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference

And let's not forget NCCU's most important asset: its countrywide fan base. With the economy squeezing wallets and advertisers scaling back on sponsorships, the MEAC needs all the leverage it can get. Somebody needs to remind them of that since NCCU can't. Instead of saying something like "What the heck is taking so dang long? Do we have to turn into Keith Sweat and beg all night long?"

NC Central looks to make progress in Division I

Maturing Eagles face ambitious schedule...N.C. Central is in position to put together its best Division I season ever. The Eagles return 18 starters from a team that went 4-7 last year. Improving that record in 2009 will be difficult with a schedule that includes Championship Subdivision powerhouse Appalachian State and Bowl Subdivision rival Duke. NCCU finished strong in ‘08, winning three of its final four games. Half of the returning starters are juniors, with six on defense, but head coach Mose Rison is looking to boost depth through competition with the addition of several redshirt freshmen and a highly-regarded recruiting class.

The Eagles’ offense, a weak link over the past two seasons, could be an asset with more experienced personnel throughout the lineup. NCCU has 33 letter winners on offense, with 16 who were in the starting lineup at some point a year ago. “Unlike in years past, we do have returning starters and people who have played on offense,” Rison said. “They will be comfortable. They will not be shell-shocked playing in their first game.” Four starters return to the offenisve line, anchored by senior tackle Gabriel Manns (6-6, 305), a three-year starter. “We are going to line up with some experience, size and athleticism up front,” Rison said.

Helmet auction bodes well for Central

Maybe the helmet is a good sign. One of the highlights of the Triangle Pigskin Preview is the auctioning off of the four universities' helmets. Last Thursday for the first time in a long while, if ever, N.C. Central's helmet wasn't the lowest bid. It came in third at $500 behind Duke ($1,000) and UNC ($600). Those cheap N.C. State folks were last at $350. The Eagles are nowhere near the caliber of major Division I programs yet, but maybe, just maybe, the helmet signals that better times are ahead.

Coach Mose Rison sounded cautiously optimistic as his team tries to rebound from a 4-7 season. "We have tremendous speed on both sides of the ball," he said. "And, unlike two years ago, we return a veteran of core players." NCCU won all of its games either at home or on a neutral site. But it must be emphasized that one of those wins was against hated rival N.C. A&T. That lone made the season a success.

Stephens Inks Three Year Deal

Cheyney University Men’s Basketball Coach Dominique Stephens (NCCU '92) signed a three year contract extension. Last season, as interim head coach, Stephens guided the Wolves to the PSAC post season tournament compiling an 18-9 mark along the way. He also led the Wolves to a victory over Division I Delaware State. It was the first time in more than 20 years that Cheyney knocked off a D I opponent.

On the signing of his contact Cheyney athletic director China Jude stated, “Coach Stephens has demonstrated his commitment not only to the athletic department’s success but to the University. He is a strong teacher, administrator and role model for our student athletes. We are very proud of his contribution and are happy that he has committed to remain at Cheyney.” The previous five seasons, Stephens served as an assistant coach under Cleo Hill Jr. Stephens is a native of Philadelphia and younger brother of Cheyney University women’s head coach and former Temple All-American women’s basketball player Marilyn Stephens.

Stephens has been part of many championships and great team from Philadelphia and Durham, NC. From past to present, Stephens was a member of the Dobbins High School Football team and 1984 basketball team that consisted of Doug Overton, Bo Kimble, and the late Hank Gathers. That famous hoop squad went onto win the Philadelphia Public League Championship. After high school, Stephens enrolled at North Carolina Central University. As a sophomore, NCCU posted a 26-3 mark. The following year the NCCU won the NCAA Division II title with a 28-4 season. The championship season, Stephens was named to the NCAA Tournament Team. His senior year, the Eagles went 28-5. Stephens was inducted into the North Carolina Central University Hall of Fame in 1995.

After college Stephens signed to play professionally in the Philippians Basketball League. In 2000, he was a member of the Lancaster Storm of the Eastern Basketball League. While always dreaming to play in the NBA, Stephens continued his schooling earning his Bachelors of Science in Mathematics from NCCU in 1992. Stephens went on to earn a Masters of Science in Human Services from Springfield College in 2002. He is the father of Cheyney standout Dominique Curry.

Brickey named assistant coach at NC Central

North Carolina Central University head men's basketball coach LeVelle Moton has announced the hiring of former Duke University standout Robert Brickey as assistant coach with the Eagles. Brickey comes to NCCU after serving a one-year stint with the women's basketball program at Duke University as the assistant director of basketball operations. Prior to that, he was the head coach at Shaw University for three years (2005-2008).

Before his arrival at Shaw, Brickey was an assistant coach at James Madison (2004-05), Southern Methodist (2002-04), and the United States Military Academy (2000-02). He also served as the community outreach coordinator with the Blue Devils from 1999-2000, before going into the coaching business.

"Robert brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to our staff," Moton said. "Because of his previous stops at the Division I level at places like James Madison, West Point, and SMU, his recruiting territories expand outside of North Carolina. At the same time, he is a hometown guy, with strong ties to the Triangle and Fayetteville areas. Everything he does and everything he stands for is parallel to what I was looking for in an assistant coach."

A native of Fayetteville, N.C., Brickey played four years at Duke from 1986-90. He served as team captain in 1990 and received first team All-Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Tournament honors in 1988. He was a member of three Final Four teams and started in the national championship game in 1990. During his Blue Devil career, Brickey amassed 1,299 points, 649 rebounds, 146 assists, 115 steals and 90 blocked shots in 134 games played. Known for his athleticism, Brickey had a brief stint with the Global Basketball Association's Fayetteville Flyers in the early 1990s. He received his bachelor of arts degree in political science from Duke University.

Moton, named head coach at his alma mater on March 25, has now completed his full-time coaching staff with the addition of Brickey. Ray Martin, a former men's basketball student-athlete at Notre Dame with more than 30 years in the coaching profession, returns for his third season on the NCCU bench as assistant coach.

NCCU leases buses for school use

North Carolina Central University announced Friday that it signed a 5-year lease for two 56-passenger motor coaches. The brand new 2009 buses will be used to transport students, faculty and staff to cultural and athletic events. The buses are named Eagle One and Eagle Two. They are equipped with satellite TV and radio, Wi-Fi, video monitors and a DVD player. "The division of student affairs takes very seriously the stewardship of the student fees and other monies," says Vickie McNeill, special assistant to the vice chancellor.

Texas Southern University Tigers
TSU football program taking steps in right direction

Johnnie Cole wants to see more improvement from his young TSU team this season... Texas Southern’s 2008 season can be summed up in one word — inconsistency. TSU went on a three-game winning streak after dropping its first two but lost six out of its last seven to finish 4-8 overall and 1-6 in the Southwestern Athletic Conference, fifth in the Western Division. The start of preseason camp is less than a week away, and more consistent play is a priority for second-year coach Johnnie Cole.

“During the season, teams make jumps from game to game,” Cole said. “We’re expecting better things this year in order to make a jump from season one to season two.” In Cole’s first year back at his alma mater, the Tigers did produce the program’s best finish in six seasons, but that’s not good enough for Cole. Part of TSU’s problem in 2008 can be attributed to youth. The Tigers played 30 freshmen, including both starting cornerbacks. Moreover, their starting safeties were only sophomores.

Delaware State University Hornets
2009-10 DSU Men's Basketball Schedule Announced


Twenty-one teams from nine different conferences highlight the 2009-10 Delaware State Men's Basketball slate as announced by Head Coach Greg Jackson. The 2009-10 schedule will feature four teams that earned berths in the 2009 NCAA Tournament. Included in this year's schedule will be three former NCAA Division I Champions (Arkansas, Ohio State and UCLA) as well as the first meeting between Delaware State and Delaware since 2000.

"This year's schedule is a challenging one," said Jackson. "That will give us a chance to gauge where our team is at heading into MEAC play. We have gone to a lot of tough places during my 10 years here at Delaware State and this year's trips to UCLA, Arkansas, Ohio State and Arizona State continue that trend. Our home schedule, once again, will be exciting as teams like Maine, Lehigh and Delaware along with a number of tough MEAC foes come to Memorial Hall."

DSU opens the season with a five-game home stand, featuring Holy Family (Nov. 14), Wilmington University (Nov. 16), Maine (Nov. 18), Mary Washington (Nov. 24) and Delaware (Dec. 1). A pair of Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) teams in Holy Family and Wilmington visiting Memorial Hall. The season-opening meeting between the Hornets and Tigers will be the first-ever. Wilmington University will visit Dover two days later as the Hornets look to improve their all-time record versus the Wildcats to 4-0. Last season, DSU downed Wilmington, 71-59, to tip off the 2008-09 campaign. America East's Maine Black Bears come to town on Nov. 18 before Mary Washington (Capital Athletic Conference) takes on the Hornets on Nov. 24. DSU closes out its five-game home stand with the Delaware Blue Hens on Dec. 1. This will mark the first meeting between the two teams since Nov. 20, 2000 - Coach Jackson's first-ever contest at Delaware State.

Prairie View Agricultural and Mechanical University Panthers
Westminster star signs with Prairie View A&M

Westminster Christian Academy graduate James Fontenot has received an athletic scholarship to Prairie View A&M. The son of Tellin and C. James Fontenot, he has played baseball, basketball and football for the school, but it was his skill at baseball that attracted the attention of more than one university. Southern University and the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff have expressed interest in the former Westminster shortstop, but Prairie View appealed to him more than the other two schools.

"I wanted to be someplace I felt comfortable," he said. After meeting with Prairie View's baseball coach, he decided the Texas university was that place. A good student, as well as a good athlete, Fontenot attended LSU E and took online courses from South Louisiana Community College, said his mother, Tellin Fontenot, a native of Ville Platte. His mother and father, C. James Fontenot, were with him Thursday at Westminster as he signed the papers that made his future association with Prairie View official. He plans to major in management.

Former UL wide receiver Jawanza Mitchell has transferred to Prairie View A&M...

Former University of Louisiana - Lafayette, wide receiver Jawanza Mitchell has transferred to Prairie View A&M, a FCS school in Prairie View, Texas. The Mesquite, Texas native redshirted as a true freshman in 2007 and did not make any catches in 2008 …

Data find more injuries for girls there than in any other sport

Although Title 9 has increased the participation of girls and women in high school and college sports, little has been done to address the most serious source of catastrophic injuries for young female athletes — cheerleading.

Data from the Consumer Products Safety Commission show that the number of catastrophic injuries — those involving death or disability caused by head or spine trauma — have grown from fewer than 5,000 in 1980 to 26,000 to 28,000 per year in the past few years, said Dr. Amy Miller Bohn, a family medicine specialist at the University of Michigan Health System in Ann Arbor. According to the National Center for Catastrophic Sports Injury Research, cheerleading accidents account for 65 percent to 66 percent of all female catastrophic sports injuries in high school and college.

The problem, Bohn said, is that cheerleading has become a competitive sport, with girls being tossed high into the air, jumping off pyramids and trying other risky stunts, often without adequate supervision. Prairie View A&M University cheerleader Bethany Norwood, 24, was left paralyzed in January 2004 after a fall during cheerleading practice. She died two years later. Injuries such as Norwood's are repeated every day around the country, Bohn said on Monday.

On the heels of a 9-1 season, the Panthers find themselves wanting more: a SWAC championship

Prairie View may be coming off its best season in years, but make no mistake about it, the Panthers finished short of their goal of winning a conference championship. Last season, Prairie View finished 9-1, its best record since it went 9-0 in 1964, claiming both the Southwestern Athletic Conference and Black College national championships. Prairie View's last SWAC title came that year. The Panthers have played 35 seasons of football since.

If they do make a championship push, Anthony Beck's play will have a lot to do with it. “We had a lot of individual accomplishments and broke a lot of records last season, but we didn't win a championship, so that stuff doesn't mean that much,” Beck said. Somehow, Prairie View will try to replace the leadership and experience of fifth-year senior quarterback Mark Spivey. Junior Jay Bluford and Western Kentucky transfer Kenneth “KJ” Black will battle it out in training camp to determine who takes the starting role. Camp begins Aug. 10, and coach Henry Frazier III expects to name a starter by the third week of camp. Defensively, Prairie View lost Zach East, its best linebacker. “You start looking at those holes losing East and Spivey — those were our leaders,” Frazier said.

Winston Salem State University Rams
WSSU recruit Wells academically eligible


Victories haven't been plentiful for Coach Bobby Collins in his first three basketball seasons at Winston-Salem State, but that could change with the latest news about this year's recruiting class. Collins signed three players in April, including point guard Marcus Wells of Southern Durham High School. Wells, however, had yet to qualify for freshman eligibility through the NCAA clearinghouse. That changed this week, and Collins got word Thursday that Wells (6-2, 160) is eligible for the 2009-10 season.

"We're definitely excited, and now we feel this class is complete," Collins said. "It's the first great step in the right direction with us having a team that can compete at the Division I level." ESPN.com, in its ranking of senior guards at North Carolina high schools last season, called Wells "a true point guard who possesses terrific vision with passing skills you just can't teach."

ESPN.com ranked Wells as the No. 3 senior point guard in the state after last season, behind John Wall (who signed with Kentucky) and Akeem Richmond (who signed with Rhode Island). Wells' status as a non-qualifier might have caused several schools to back off, but WSSU stayed with him. According to Collins, James Madison, George Mason, Cincinnati, N.C. State and Southern California also recruited Wells. Wells started for four years at Southern Durham and averaged 15 points and six rebounds over his final two seasons. He averaged 18 points, six rebounds, four steals and five assists as a senior, and the Durham Herald-Sun named him its player of the year.

Grant interviews for AD position at WSSU

Tim Grant, a former basketball player, assistant coach and administrator at Winston-Salem State, has been interviewed for the vacant athletics director's job at WSSU. According to several sources, Grant was on campus earlier this week for a lengthy interview with the 15-person search committee. Grant, now the director of Winston-Salem's Recreation & Parks Department, did not respond to phone messages left by the Journal.

Grant, 50, is the second candidate known to be interviewed by the search committee, according to sources. Michael Bailey, the AD and football coach at Virginia Union, was interviewed in mid-July. Several sources said that another candidate who has experience as a Division I athletics director also has been interviewed, but none of those sources knew the candidate's name.Dennis Felder, an assistant compliance coordinator in athletics and the head of the Human Performance & Sports Science major at WSSU, is the chairman of the search committee. He would not comment on any facet of the search.

Winston-Salem State Adds New Members To Hall Of Fame

The Winston-Salem State University Clarence E. "Big House" Gaines Athletic Hall of Fame will welcome seven former WSSU student-athletes and athletic supporters in the induction class of 2009. The WSSU C.E. "Big House" Gaines Athletic Hall of Fame enshrines a 2009 class of distinguished individuals in four different categories as football, wrestling and track and field will see members inducted into the Hall of Fame and two members of the 2009 induction class will be enshrined for their untiring service to the WSSU Department of Athletics.

Three former Ram football players will be enshrined as Derrick Beasley, Hubert "Muddy Waters" Hargett and Harrison Junior Stokes will earn the highest WSSU athletic honor in 2009. Willie Mouzon will be enshrined after a record-setting wrestling career with the Rams a history that saw him earn a pair of CIAA titles and receive back-to-back All-America honors. Vanessa Kaye Smith Johnson will be the sole Lady Ram to be inducted after a stellar track and field and women's basketball career.

DeValdean Penn and Michael McCoy will be inducted for their 30-plus total years of meritorious service to the WSSU Department of Athletics. The seven inductees will be honored with enshrinement into the Winston-Salem State C.E. "Big House" Gaines Athletic Hall of Fame in a formal ceremony to be held on September 4, 2009 at the Anderson Center McNeill Banquet Hall. The inductees will also be honored at halftime when the Rams take on the North Carolina A&T Aggies on Saturday September 5, 2009.

Jackson State University Tigers
84 of 89 Tigers report on time

Eighty-four of Jackson State's expected 89 players reported for duty Tuesday to kick off the 2009 football preseason. The five absences were no reason to panic as coaches had excused the players and knew they wouldn't be arriving on time. Freshmen Qutavious Parks (athlete), Antowan Westry (offensive lineman) and Tobias Williams (linebacker) were among those expected to miss check-in. Transfer Akeem Williams (cornerback) and sophomore Marcellos Wilder (receiver) rounded out the quintet.

Not even listed on today's roster was linebacker LeBrandon Glover. The senior took the lion's share of the starting snaps, during the spring session, at the inside position vacated by 2008 SWAC defensive player of the year Marcellus Speaks. But Glover had knee surgery (meniscus) over the summer and is expected to miss at least four games. Freshman linebacker Todd Wilcher was another expected no-show after tearing an ACL this summer. He is out for the season.

Comegy seeking toughness

Tigers begin practice today with few spots to fill...Optimism hung thicker than imagined smoke in the hallways of Stewart Hall on Tuesday. Two false fire alarms and the subsequent evacuations couldn't even dampen spirits. Eighty-four Jackson State football players reported to preseason camp in the morning of what is routinely one of the most positive days of the year. There are no losses to cause stress. Two-a-day practices have yet to begin. Dreams of championships are still alive.

JSU Head Football Coach Rick Comegy

And no one has been benched yet. Newcomers and veterans alike know there's opportunity to impress coaches and fight for jobs. Truthfully, reality will be a disappointment for the majority of those 84. Several starting offensive positions were up for grabs in 2008 as every skill position was left open by departing seniors. That's not the case this season as experienced returners are the favorites to hold onto positions throughout the lineup. But there are holes to be plugged.

Season Opener
Jackson State at Mississippi State
Sept. 5, 2:30 p.m., ESPNU
Scott Field, Starkville, Mississippi

Takin' it back to the house: Ex-Dog now home at JSU

It was his crowning moment, the kind small boys dream about in front of the TV during SEC games every Saturday. When the moment happens, and 50,000-plus people in the stands cheer your name, it almost seems surreal. Sometimes, though, those moments can be fleeting and those who pat you on the back one second ask you to disappear the next. Anthony Johnson knows. Two years ago, the Jackson native returned an interception 100 yards for a touchdown, helping Mississippi State beat Alabama 17-12. The victory sparked MSU's first winning season in seven years and the play was, arguably, the biggest of the Sylvester Croom era.

"It felt like a dream come true," Johnson said. "A moment of a lifetime." The moment also feels like a lifetime ago. Less than six months after scoring that TD, Johnson had withdrawn from school after an on-campus gun charge. He subsequently pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of obstructing an arrest. He was ineligible for the 2008 season and was released from the team in the spring of 2009. It wasn't until a week ago that the Provide High graduate signed to play with Jackson State.

Mile run brings thrills, chills

The first official Jackson State football practice featured plenty of enthusiasm and one extremely scary moment during the session that lasted just over two hours - and that was without a single football brought onto the field. The coaching staff put players through a conditioning session that included a timed mile run before heading to the weight room for 225-pound bench presses. "I wanted to see what they had, who worked out this summer," coach Rick Comegy said. "I see some excitement. That feeling of accomplishment ... we had to have that at the start before we do anything."

Strength coach Derek Scott signaled the beginning at 4 p.m. by shouting, "It's time to go to work!" Linemen, who were broken into two groups, had to finish the mile run in under 9 1/2 minutes. Defensive end Javarius Conner led all linemen with a time of 7:11, but it was offensive lineman Terrael Williams who was the talk of the day. At 6 feet 8, 350 pounds, Williams' size has been tantalizing to fans and coaches alike. His conditioning and mental approach have been in question. Williams had everyone roaring when he was the fourth among the second group, finishing in 9:07. He pointed to the sky and flexed both arms immediately afterward. Less than 20 minutes later, he would put up 225 pounds 22 times in the weight room.

South Carolina State University Bulldogs
Bulldogs Kick Off Preseason Camp


Unlike the past couple of years, S.C. State head football coach Buddy Pough did not have to answer questions about how close his team came to winning the conference title. Instead, Pough was talking about how his team will handle the role of defending MEAC champion. Pough guided the Bulldogs to their first playoff appearance in 26 years, but said his team needs to win a playoff game in order to stake its claim as one of the country's top programs.

The good news for the Bulldogs is that it will have All-America running back Will Ford. Ford rushed for nearly 1,500 yards in 2008 will be joined by in the backfield by returning starter Malcolm Long who set school records for passing yards and completions. Also back is running back Travil Jamison who led the Bulldogs with 16 touchdowns. Throw is receiver Tre Young who led the way with 48 receptions in 2008 and you have an offense that should not have trouble scoring.

Defensively, the Bulldogs should be fine with all-MEAC safety Markee Hamlin and second-team all-conference linebacker Marshall McFadden leading the way. S.C. State will open the season September 6 in the MEAC/SWAC Challenge against Grambling.

Excitement, expectations high for SC State football

The South Carolina State Bulldogs kicked off preseason football practice Friday afternoon in Orangeburg. The Bulldogs have the added pressure of being the defending champs of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. Buddy Pough is starting his eighth season as head coach of the Bulldogs. Last year was his best. SC State finished 10-and-3 overall and 8-and-0 in the MEAC as the Bulldogs won their first outright conference championship since 1994.

After having such a stellar season, the Bulldogs are eager to return to work. "It's been a long off-season," said Pough. "Anytime you've had some success, I think it makes it that much more excited just to go again, so our kids are excited and the staff's ready to go." "It's going to be kind of exciting until the ball snaps and we get back in the groove of things, you know, back to football," said defensive back Marshall McFadden.

Video: Excitement, expectations high for SC State football, Rick Henry reports

University of Arkansas Pine Bluff Golden Lions
GOLDEN LIONS DEFENSE RETURNS DEPTH IN SECONDARY

Returning three of four players who started games for what turned out to be — statistically speaking — the best defensive backfield in the Southwestern Athletic Conference last season would most likely garner high expectations. And that’s just the way Arkansas-Pine Bluff defensive coordinator Alonzo Hampton likes it. When thinking back to last season, Hampton, who will still coach defensive backs after being given defensive coordinator duties this summer, can quickly list off all of UAPB’s impressive statistics.

Without any quick glances he knows the Golden Lions allowed 160 passing yards per game (best in the conference), he knows they intercepted 15 passes and he also knows they gave up 12 passing touchdowns in 12 games. But he also knows every other team in the conference is curious to see if the Golden Lions can do it again. “People are going to throw the ball. They want to throw it,” Hampton said. “We’ve got to go out and prove ourselves, (prove) that it wasn’t a fluke.” Hampton is hoping the return of Kevin Thornton, Robert Mingo, Joseph Brown and James Harrell will prevent that from happening.

Thornton’s six interceptions last season are the most of any player returning to the SWAC this season. And Brown’s 13 passes defended are also the most of any returning player. Harrell, a true freshman last season, started the final three games of the season and intercepted two passes, one that was returned for a touchdown against Lincoln (Mo.) University.

Alcorn State University Braves
Braves report for Fall Camp

The countdown for the 2009 Football season has officially begun at Alcorn State University. First-year head coach, Earnest Collins, Jr., and his staff welcomed the returning players as well as newcomers to campus yesterday. “There seems to be a different temperament of the senior class. Players are also holding their teammates more accountable. We tested some things out today in practice to see what we needed to do,” says Collins.

Collins also feels that the incoming freshman class is one of the best in the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC). Yesterday, the players were issued equipment, given physicals and had a series of meetings with the football staff. The Braves will face Southern Mississippi in their first game of the season on September 5, 2009 at 6 pm in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.

Alabama State University Hornets
Nixon's the one to run ASU defense


First-year Alabama State defensive coordinator Jo Nixon isn't into pacing himself.Tuesday morning, as the ASU players reported for their first practice for the fall, Nixon was seemingly in midseason form already. He was ready to move forward implementing his defensive schemes and appeared ready to start the season.

"Our motto this year is 'Restore the Tradition,'" Nixon said. "That's what we're going to do. I can't wait. You know, coming from NAIA, I had some success against SWAC programs, but there was always an excuse. They always said, 'We weren't really looking for you guys.' Now the playing field's level, and I just can't wait to hear the excuses. I'm so ready to do this." And that was before the first practice even started.

Photo Galleries: ASU 1st practice

Alabama State opens the season at home on Sept. 5 against Concordia College. Kickoff for the season opener is slated for 7 p.m. at Cramton Bowl.

Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University Rattlers
Big day comes for Dallas Cowboys' Hayes as his teammates kept the faith...

Mel Renfro never doubted he'd return to Canton one day to see his Cowboys teammate Bob Hayes join him in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Keeping the faith in Hayes was easy for Renfro after the consternation over his own candidacy for the Hall of Fame. "I got passed over a long time myself," Renfro said. "I'd get real angry. My statistics were better than a lot of guys in the Hall. But Bob Lilly told me one time, 'Mel, you're going in. It's not a matter of if, it's a matter of when.'

"That's the way I felt about Bob Hayes. It was never a matter of if – it was always a matter of when. He revolutionized the game. He deserved to be in the Hall of Fame." Renfro waited 19 years for his own stamp of approval from the Hall of Fame selection committee. Three times he was a finalist and three times he was rejected before a fourth and triumphant trip to the finals in 1996. Hayes was enshrined Saturday – 35 years after playing his final NFL game. He spent 25 years as a modern-era candidate but never was a finalist.

That's a long time to be overlooked. His candidacy was resurrected by the Hall of Fame's seniors committee in 2004. That put Hayes in the finals for the first time but, in a cruel twist, he received a thumb's down from the selectors in a yes-no vote. Four of the finalists were enshrined that year and two were rejected – the two Cowboys, Hayes and Rayfield Wright.

Hayes became the ninth player on the Cowboys inducted into the Hall of Fame and the fourth in the last four years. He joined Staubach, Troy Aikman, Tony Dorsett, Michael Irvin, Rayfield Wright, Bob Lilly, Randy White and Mel Renfro. He is also the first FAMU Rattler inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and the second Olympic gold medalist holder, joing Jim Thorpe. But the bust of Hayes honors the only athlete to win both an Olympic gold medal (2)and a Super Bowl ring.

Granbury sculptor carves Hall of Fame busts of Hayes, other stars ...

GRANBURY, Texas – He was 8 years old then, in the stands at the Cotton Bowl, so infatuated with the Dallas Cowboys that he'd memorized the jersey number of every player on the roster. But even on a team filled with superstars – Lee Roy Jordan, Don Meredith, Chuck Howley and Don Perkins – Scott Myers had his favorites: Bob Lilly on defense, and on offense, Bob Hayes, the man who changed the way the game was played.

Today, Hayes finally takes his place in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. Myers will be there as the bronze bust of the late player is revealed, proud to have created his long-ago hero's image with his own hands. Trained as a veterinarian, a profession he still pursues three days a week, Myers is also a largely self-taught artist and sculptor, with seven Hall of Fame busts to his credit. But the bust of Hayes honors the only athlete to win both an Olympic gold medal and a Super Bowl ring – Myers' homage to the man he watched so many years before.

"It will be a little bit bittersweet," he said. "Bob's family is so happy this day has come, but they wished Bob could have been here for it. He's in several halls, but this is the one he always wanted." Hayes, a man so fast that no defensive player could cover him one on one, died of kidney failure in 2002. He was 59.

Health care is focus of FAMU TE

The politicians in Washington, D.C., might not care what FAMU tight end Brandon Hepburn thinks of their action on hot-button health-care issues, but he is watching their every move. With reason. Hepburn has dreams of one day building his own biochemistry company. One of his goals is to make prescription drugs affordable to everyone.In other words, he said, he wants to be a part of the change that he believes health-care reform could bring.

"The Lord put it in my heart to write goals from what the trend is from most pharmaceutical and biochemical companies today," said Hepburn, a devout Christian. "They're trying to turn people into dollar bills, kind of like the matrix." It's not like he doesn't have his own issues. Hepburn is looking to move up on the depth chart on FAMU's football team — although, as a redshirt freshman, he has some maturing to do. Max Purcell and converted quarterback Tobias Lee are the front-runners to replace Taj Jenkines, who held down the starting job the last two seasons.

FAMU volleyball team has full roster »

FAMU's volleyball team could end up having plenty of competitions for playing time at some positions this season. To anyone who has been following the program for the past two years, that might seem a little out of the norm. But for the first time since the 2007 season FAMU coach Tony Trifonov will have more than eight players on his roster. The team will be bolstered by three recruits and at least three experienced walk-ons. Samara Ferraz, one of the Rattlers' who transferred from Barry University last season and became a leading performer on the team, also is hoping to return.

Ferraz' fate rests with the NCAA, which has to decide whether it would reinstate a year of eligibility based on her petition for a medical hardship, Trifonov said. In all, Trifonov hopes to have a 12-player roster for the first time since the 2004 season. That year the Rattlers broke into the NCAA national rankings. Two of the three recruits – Pamela Barrera and Maria Cicccarelli – are former members of Peru's junior national team. The other recruit, Jessica Barnes, is just as experienced. She played two seasons at Southwestern Oregon Community College.

FAMU won't have Graham »

Lincoln High School standout receiver D'Vonte Graham didn't take North Carolina A&T's scholarship offer on National Signing Day, but when the 2009 season starts he will be wearing the Aggies' blue and gold. Graham changed his mind on signing day about taking a scholarship offer from A&T, deciding instead to walk-on at FAMU. He has since changed his mind again. FAMU coach Joe Taylor said it was a family decision for Graham to follow through on his commitment to the Aggies.

Graham's mother Gladys Pleas had said on signing day that she was glad that her son made his own decision to attend FAMU. Taylor seemingly wasn't bothered by the decision. Graham would have joined an already loaded receiving corps at FAMU. "I've learned a long time ago you've got to have a strong team," he said, "not a strong segment." Graham's move to North Carolina gives the Aggies five Tallahasseeans on its roster. They include Purdue transfer Kevin Green, a sophomore defensive back who starred in high school at Rickards.

FAMU LB has eyes on more

Last season was supposed to be a time for FAMU redshirt freshman linebacker Alvis Graham to learn his role in the new defensive scheme that Coach Joe Taylor introduced during his first season as head coach. But consider this: Graham overcame an early season ankle injury and wound up as the second-leading tackler for the Rattlers. During the spring, Graham raised a few eyebrows. As the Rattles begin to count down to starting practice on Aug. 17, Graham knows that the bar has been taken up a notch to the point that he's expected to be an impact player.

"Now that I know the defense, I can put the speed behind it," he said. "I want to be the best that I can be to help my team out as much I can. I'm trying to work hard to be the kind of player who could do whatever I need to do on the field." Graham was a fast study last season. He credits senior Vernon Wilder for being his mentor and helping him grasp the system. But as fast as Graham was learning, linebackers coach Earl Holmes gave just enough for the freshman to handle.

On the Recruiting Trails

Roberts getting interests from South Carolina...WR Dominique Roberts (6-0 203) of Daytona Beach, FL is getting interest from USC and he likes the Gamecocks and Wake Forest the most right now. Neither has offered. Roberts had planned to visit USC in late July but that visit was postponed. "They said they want to see me," Roberts said. "I met coach Spurrier Jr. last year."

Roberts has offers from Connecticut, Florida International, Western Kentucky, Florida A&M and Bethune-Cookman. He's also getting interest from Florida and Rutgers. Roberts plays quarterback but is being recruited as a receiver. He was 4A all state last season after rushing for 1227 yards and 17 touchdowns and passing for 1145 yards and 9 touchdowns.

Mississippi Valley State University Delta Devils
Cox signing with Mississippi Valley State

Cor-J Cox will officially become a member of the Delta Devils today. Thanks to some help from NBA player and fellow Washington native, Damien Wilkins, Cox will be signing a basketball scholarship with Mississippi Valley State University today. Cox also sparked interest from Tennessee Chattanooga, Auburn and Chipola (Fla.), but the former Pam Pack star said signing with Mississippi Valley State was an easy choice.

“I feel great about it,” Cox said. “ I feel comfortable with the coaching staff and the area.” Cox, who averaged 12.4 points, 11.9 rebounds, 5.7 assists, 2.3 steals and 1.0 blocks per game as a senior at Washington, played last year at Olney Central College. The 6-5, 215-pounder averaged around 4 points and 3 rebounds per game at Olney. Cox is ready to contribute right away at Mississippi Valley, a Division I program that plays in the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC). The Delta Devils went 7-25 overall and 7-11 in SWAC play last year.

Tennessee State University Tigers
Receiver's eligibility leaves Tennessee State in the air

Rebuilding Tennessee State's offense might be tougher than expected because the eligibility of JaJuan Spillman, the Tigers' leading returning receiver, is in limbo.Spillman, a transfer from Louisville, was held out of spring practice so he could concentrate on academics. Coach James Webster said on Tuesday he is not sure whether Spillman, who is taking summer classes, will be allowed to report when the Tigers begin practice Monday.

"We'll have to wait and see what happens because he is in school right now,'' Webster said. "JaJuan has been a model player and person for us, and I have nothing but respect for him. We're going to work with JaJuan to help him be successful in life … whatever we need to do whether he's here for our first practice or not we're going to work with him to get that done." Spillman, who could not be reached for comment, would be one of the few returning starters for a unit that ranked third in the Ohio Valley Conference in total offense last year. TSU has three other offensive starters back — tight end Enoch Hill, left guard Jarvis Canty and right guard Alex Davis.

TSU Women's Hoops Coach Inks Contract Extension

Tennessee State University women’s basketball coach Tracee Wells has signed a contract extension. The deal adds five years from her previous contract and runs through the 2014-15 season. Wells, the 2008 OVC Coach of the Year, led the Lady Tigers to an 18-13 mark in 2008-09, marking the program's first winning season since the 1994-95 campaign.

The Lady Tigers also notched a 13-5 conference mark, the best OVC record since the 1993-94 season. This record led to TSU securing a third place finish in the league and hosting round one of the OVC tournament for the first time in school history.

The 2008-09 campaign was a season of history making accomplishments as TSU advanced to the OVC semifinals game for the first time since the 1998-99 season. The Lady Tigers were ranked in the top 10 nationally for most of the season in turnover margin and finished the campaign leading the OVC in steals.

Additionally, TSU had three players to receive All-OVC honors. Seniors Kendra Appling and Tiffany Jackson were named to the All-OVC first and second teams, respectively while sophomore Jasmine Smith made the All-Newcomer team.

“We are pleased to have come to an agreement with Coach Wells on extending her employment contract,” commented athletic director Teresa Phillips. “Coach Wells is one of the young, bright and ambitious coaches in women’s basketball, and we think she will continue to build a successful program here at TSU. “

TSU Football Camp Opened This Week

The 2009 football season will begin as Tennessee State football players report to campus on Saturday, August 8, and will begin one-a-day practices on Monday evening August 10. Two-a-day drills will begin on Saturday, August 15. The Tigers are scheduled to participate in one-a-day practices during the first week, culminating in Fan/Media Photo day on Friday, August 14. The first full scrimmage is set for Saturday morning, August 15.

Head coach James Webster, begins his fifth campaign at the helm of the Tigers' program, and looks to prepare his players to improve on last year's 8-4 record, the best in seven years. Webster says he and his staff face the task of re-tooling an offense that lost seven starters. TSU, however, will welcome back nine defensive starters from the top defensive unit in the Ohio Valley Conference in 2008.

Preseason practice will end on Sunday August 30 after which, the Tigers will prepare for their season opener against Alabama A&M in the John Merritt Classic on September 5.

* Fans /Media are welcome to attend Photo Day at Hale Stadium with cameras - Contact TSU Athletic Media Relations Personnel for assistance arranging shots of players/coaches.

Bethune Cookman University Wildcats
Pushing for more than athletes

There is a simple question Jerrell Cogmon (former Plant High and Bethune Cookman University Linebacker) poses to his players. "Do you want to be a $100,000 man or $6-an-hour man?" In other words, would you rather settle for a low-paying job or attend a university and transition into a lucrative career? That isn't a question used to test the players' football acumen, although it could bleed into the world of football smarts.

When Cogmon, who was hired in April to take over the Zephyrhills (Florida) Bulldogs' high school football program after Tom Fisher retired after 20 seasons, poses that question, he wants his group to think beyond the playing field. He's not looking to fill his roster with players that are just "jocks." "It's all about application," Cogmon said. "Applying yourself in all the things you need to do to get yourself to that point where you can actually see the light at the end of the tunnel and let it translate itself into going in any direction. I think the kids are doing a good job as far as buying into that. I know they are."

It appears the message has taken hold. Zephyrhills has several players on its roster with grade-point averages that are 3.0 or higher. Those players include: Stephen Cottrell (4.0), Adrian Sanchez (3.5), John Dodd (3.4), Josh Geiger (3.4), Nick Trujilo (3.3), Chris Reaves (3.1) and Ben Williams (3.0). Geiger, Williams and Anthony Viernes also have posted ACT and SAT scores that qualify them to play college athletics. So why the heavy hand when it comes to academics?

North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University Aggies
Freshmen could make immediate impact at NC A&T

Football practice officially began Tuesday morning at N.C. A&T and new head coach Alonzo Lee spoke about the senior leadership he's seen so far. But Lee also said his new recruits could make an immediate difference in the Aggies' efforts to stem the tide of six losing seasons in the last seven years. So far, leading the way among the freshmen are wide receiver Larry Raper from Shelby and two defensive linemen from Greensboro.

"We found out Mr. Raper can definitely fly," Lee said after the freshmen went through running tests starting at 6 a.m. Tuesday. "He can run. He's doing some great things. Matter of fact, he's worked his way into that starting huddle when we go to four wideouts." The running tests are no picnic. To pass, a player must run 110 yards in 16 seconds. If that sounds easy, there's a catch: The player has to run the 110 sprint 16 times. "You've got to be humpin' to make that happen," Lee said. "You can gut out about five or six of them, but come eight, nine, 10 and beyond, everything has to kick in right there. That's when being in shape comes into play."

Lee said more than 80 percent of the players passed the running tests, including most of the freshmen. "Chris Neal and those guys from right here at Dudley, oh, they look great with the running tests," Lee said. "We're looking for some real good things from those guys." Neal, a 6-foot-1, 230-pound defensive end, has a chance to get on the field right away. So, too, does Darius Hall, a 6-2, 260-pound freshman from Dudley who is working at both defensive tackle and defensive end.

NC A&T Adds Three Recruits to Football Team

The North Carolina A&T football program added three signees as the 2009 season approaches quickly. Head coach Alonzo Lee announced the signing of two defensive players and one offensive lineman. Cornerback Kevin Green (6-foot, 185 pounds, Tallahassee, Fla.) offensive tackle Terrance Humes (6-5, 320, Compton, Calif.) and linebacker Eteyen Edet (6-2, 240, Fort Washington, Md.) all signed with other schools before coming to N.C. A&T.

Green comes to North Carolina A&T after spending one season with the Purdue Boilermakers of the Big 10. He played in nine games for the Boilermakers in 2008. Purdue signed Green out of Rickards High School, where he put together a stellar career. Rivals.com ranked him 64th nationally among cornerbacks. As a senior, he recorded 49 tackles, recovered three fumbles, returned two fumbles for touchdowns and has an interception. Green's play earned him All-State, All-Big Bend and All-District honors.

Humes is a junior college transfer out of San Bernardino Valley Junior College. He was a two-year starter for SBVJC. As a high school standout at San Bernardino High School, Humes was a two-time All-San Andreas League member. Humes was named Cardinal Lineman of the Year during his junior and senior seasons in high school.

Edet was highly-recruited coming out of Friendly High School. Scouts.com rated him the No. 41 linebacker in the country. Edet turned down Louisville, Ohio, Pitt, Michigan State and UNC to sign with the University of Maryland. After his decision to play at Maryland did not work out, he spent one season at North Carolina Tech Prep School, where he had a successful season.

Renewed sense of optimism for A&T football

The day was already warm a few minutes before 9 a.m. Tuesday, the scheduled start of N.C. A&T's first football practice. And the players were already on the dew-covered field.Offense in gold jerseys. Defense in blue. Quarterbacks, kickers and punter in red. Everyone in blue "Aggie Pride" shorts and shiny new Riddell helmets that gleamed in the bright sun. It was hot. But it will only get hotter as the Aggies work toward their opener Sept. 5 at Winston-Salem State.

The heat is on this program, which is on its fifth head coach in eight years. Take away 2003 -- when A&T went 10-3 and won the MEAC title -- and the Aggies are 13-55 in that span, including a 27-game losing streak that mercifully ended last year during a 3-9 season. And this year? A&T was picked eighth among the MEAC's nine football-playing schools in a preseason poll.

Against that backdrop and under the hot sun, the Aggies officially started work Tuesday under new coach Alonzo Lee. If they lose again this season, it won't be for a lack of effort. "We're just thankful we were able to have most of our young men around working out this summer," Lee said. "It makes a difference. Look around. Those guys right now look good. We're looking like a football team. We're in shape."
They ought to be.

Southern University & Agricultural and Mechanical College Jaguars
SU’s Wells learning valuable lessons


Way back in his toddler years, before he could walk steadily or speak a complete sentence, Anthony Wells learned a valuable lesson: Sometimes it’s harder to get out of trouble than to keep away from it. He was about 3, strolling around his mother’s college apartment in Tennessee, when he decided to shove one of her keys into a light socket. The results? Not pretty.

“I don’t really remember much of it, but it shut off the electricity. The whole building went dark,” Wells recalls. “My mom told me that all I did was say ouch. I didn’t cry or anything.” Fast-forward to Sept. 30, 2008. That day, Wells woke up in a hospital, fresh from knee surgery, with a tube of morphine running into his leg. This time, he was truly in pain. This time, he cried. Southern’s starting free safety was a starter no more. The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee was a mess. In fact, Wells’ knee throbbed so heavily, he figured his football career was over.

Keys: Jaguars explain why they play football


Thirty more days. Thirty days still stand between the Southern Jaguars and their Sept. 5 season opener, just down the road at Louisiana-Lafayette. Between now and then, it’s all about practice, heat, fatigue and misery. Between now and then, at some point, almost every player will wonder if it’s worth the trouble. With that in mind, this week was a good time to ask two simple questions: What got you into football in the first place? And why do you still love it?

The answers varied. But they were always interesting. Defensive coordinator Terrence Graves: “I played soccer, baseball and basketball. I swam. I did it all. ... But eventually I had to make a decision, and football was my first love. My father was a baseball man; he wanted me to play baseball. “But there’s just something about football. It’s the excitement, the camaraderie, the team chemistry. It’s the strategy, the competition. It’s all that. ... And it’s not just the sport; it’s the building of the total man. That’s part of what keeps you going.” span>


Chinyoung happy man despite heat

It was shaping up to be a hot one, all right. Wednesday afternoon at Southern, for the first practice of training camp, the air was vintage south Louisiana — warm, humid and not very forgiving. By the middle of practice, even some of the Jaguars’ veterans started to drag a little, their bodies showing rust from the offseason. It was the start of the 17th fall camp at Southern under coach Pete Richardson, who noted Wednesday was just the beginning of a long journey — a season premiere in helmets, jerseys and shorts.

Still, Ramon Chinyoung could not have been happier. The senior center looked like a man who’d gotten an extra cookie from his grandmother. “I feel great, man,” he said. “I feel ready.” Although the Jaguars are much deeper on the offensive line than they’ve been for the past few seasons, Chinyoung is SU’s only proven commodity at center as camp begins. He also knows what it’s like to miss football. He was academically ineligible in 2007, then returned to the lineup in 2008, when the Jaguars went 6-5 and finished third in the Southwestern Athletic Conference Western Division. Naturally, Chinyoung hoped to close his career with a bang this fall.

SU football going digital in film room

When Southern University’s coaches move into the new field house at A.W. Mumford Stadium next month, they will not only move into the modern era of football offices, weight rooms and meeting rooms. They will go digital, too. For years, SU coaches have relied on old-fashioned, time-tested tools to review game film: VCRs, VHS cassettes and cathode-ray tube-style televisions. In some cases, they used projectors.

Heck, some staffers — including head coach Pete Richardson and defensive coordinator Terrence Graves — lived in an era when 16-millimeter film was the most modern development. That era is gone, much to the delight of interns and graduate assistants who usually had to cut and splice. “I did all that. Oh, yeah,” Graves said. “When I was a freshman in college, we went from black-and-white to color. But I actually learned how to splice film as a player.

Savannah State University Tigers
SSU in good 'Hans' with Batichon

Coach reflects upon journey from Haiti to becoming three-time national champion. As a football player at Appalachian State, Hans Batichon learned how to win. Now, can he teach it? The 23-year-old native of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, is the wide receivers coach at Savannah State, his first collegiate coaching job. He replaced second-year assistant Eddie Johnson, who was promoted to offensive coordinator in March.

Appalachian State finished with a 6-5 record during Batichon's freshman season in 2004. During his final three years, he helped the Mountaineers become the only program to win three consecutive national championships in the Football Championship Subdivision. "Isn't that cool?" said Robby Wells, SSU's second-year head coach. "These kids are going to gain a lot of experience and a lot of knowledge from this guy because this guy's been there and done it. Not just once. Not just twice. But three times he's done it. Actually scored a touchdown against Michigan in 'The Big House."

SSU's Baker hires two assistants

Savannah State University women's basketball head coach Cedric Baker has hired Sonya Wilson and Billy L. Hamilton II as assistant coaches, SSU announced. Wilson comes to SSU from Orangeburg-Wilkerson High School in Orangeburg, S.C. A 1994 cum laude graduate of South Carolina State University with a bachelor's degree in business administration, the Orangeburg native was a standout player for the Bulldogs. She was named the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Tournament's Most Outstanding Player in 1992-93 and received a second-team All-America citation in 1993-94. After her collegiate playing career, Wilson spent two seasons playing in Switzerland and Italy.

Hamilton was an assistant at Tallahassee (Fla.) Community College last year and spent the 2007-08 season as an assistant at Albany State University. A 2008 graduate of Albany State with a bachelor's degree in recreation health and physical education, Hamilton was a member of the Rams' football team for two years as a tight end.

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Monday, August 3, 2009

MEAC/SWAC/OVC Sports: This Week in Review

Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University
Prep, college, NFL teammates will be among supporters turning out ...

When it comes time Saturday night for Jacksonville native and the late Bob Hayes to be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, his family and friends in attendance - despite being 725 miles away in Canton, Ohio -will have no problem feeling at home. It's because hundreds of Hayes supporters, including all five of his children, seven grandchildren and former teammates from Matthew Gilbert High, Florida A&M and the Dallas Cowboys, are expected to be on hand at Fawcett Stadium for his posthumous induction. Hayes, a speedy receiver who first became a star as a double-gold medalist sprinter at the 1964 Olympics, is Jacksonville's first Hall of Famer in any major pro sport.

People are coming by the bus loads; it's going to be an amazing sight," said Bob Hayes Jr., a Dallas resident who will help present his father for induction along with Roger Staubach, the Cowboys' Hall of Fame quarterback. Hayes' approximate 10-minute enshrinement ceremony will begin with a video presentation of his son making remarks about his father, the excerpts coming from a taped interview done in June by NFL Films.

USF, Florida A&M talking about 2011 game

Florida A&M could be returning to Raymond James Stadium in two years, as USF officials have talked with the Rattlers about being the Bulls' 2011 season opener. The first meeting in 2005 drew an announced 43,122 fans, then the second-largest home crowd ever to see the Bulls. "The only thing we haven't done is sign a contract," said FAMU assistant athletic director Alvin Hollins Jr., who coordinates the program's football scheduling. "Our president is very interested in us opening the (2011) season there, and we're looking at trying to do something down there every other year. ... It's percolating pretty good."

USF dominated Florida A&M 37-3 when the two teams first met in 2005, but the game -- and the allure of FAMU's famous "Marching 100" band -- drew a strong crowd in Tampa. USF's three home games against I-AA opponents since that game have averaged an announced 36,016 fans by comparison. Anticipating that, the game contract in 2005 called for FAMU to get a share of ticket revenues once the attendance passed a certain mark, but it's unknown if such an arrangement would be in place for future games.

Famu's Okeafor wants trip to playoffs

Robert Okeafor has a few reasons for wanting FAMU to finish the football season with a chance to play in the postseason. It's his senior year and the memories would be nice. Plus, winning the conference title also would make his story about overcoming adversity even more significant. His biggest reason for wanting to play beyond the 11-game schedule doesn't have much too much to do with him, though. He thinks his program deserves the prize. Considering the decline that FAMU's football program had seen the last three seasons before Joe Taylor took over and guided the Rattlers to a 9-3 finish, Okeafor might be sharing the same wish of his teammates.

"This is the most important season I'll ever have," the senior offensive lineman said. "I've never been on a team that is this well put together." Okeafor is a big part of that. He came back last season after missing the final three games of the 2007 season with a torn meniscus in his left knee. It required surgery and he came back just before the start of the 2008 season.

MEAC coaches follow Taylor's blueprint »

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — Donovan Rose and Alonzo Lee might be the newest head coaches in the MEAC, but they've known for a long time how they would run a college football program when they got their chance. They learned the how-to concepts from FAMU head coach Joe Taylor. They've turned to the same blueprint that has given Taylor more titles than any other coach in the league. Neither Rose nor Lee was shy about making it known Friday afternoon that the way they are preparing their teams – Rose at Hampton University and Lee at North Carolina A&T State — is similar to the system Taylor used when they were assistants on his staff at Hampton.

Having two more of his former assistants at the helm of other programs is another sign that Taylor's blueprint is getting around the MEAC. Donald Hill-Eley, another Taylor's protege, has been using it at Morgan State since he became head in 2002. Taylor didn't seem to mind that his fundamentals for developing a football program are getting popular. "It's really humbling because those guys mean a lot to me in terms of my success," he said. "I know it means I'm getting older, but it says that the blueprint works. They came through it and look at them."

Pulley may be the MEAC's biggest star »

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – A large photo of FAMU return specialist Leroy Vann was hard to miss on the table where coach Joe Taylor fielded questions from reporters in a room where football was the only topic. Every other coach had a similar photo of a star player on his table. A lot was said about Vann, who had a record-setting season last year.

But it was Curtis Pulley who created the buzz during Friday's MEAC media day inside the Marriott City Center. It's been at least 15 years since FAMU has had a quarterback that garnered so much attention. "A guy like Curtis doesn't come along at this level too often," Taylor said. "Not only does he have a strong arm, but he is very athletic. When the pocket is breaking down he has the ability to make something out of nothing." Pulley's star appeal has given the league an attraction — not to the level of the University of Florida's Tim Tebow, although Pulley has the kind of talent that makes him the talk of the conference.

FAMU picked to finish second in MEAC title race »

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — Some moaning from a section near the head table broke the silence that came over the room as the announcement was made that FAMU was predicted to finish second in the MEAC this season. About two hours after South Carolina State was picked to repeat as conference champion, FAMU coach Joe Taylor had some consoling words for those who expected better.

"I don't know how much stock you put into the preseason," Taylor said. "This conference has really gotten a lot stronger and any time you're picked in the top half it's a real honor. "But it's just on paper right now." FAMU finished second last year with a 9-3 record after being picked to place seventh. The predicted order of finish behind the Bulldogs and Rattlers are Hampton University, Bethune-Cookman, Norfolk State, Morgan State, Delaware State, North Carolina A&T State and Howard University.

FAMU's swimming coach hopes to revive pool »

Every day when FAMU swim coach Douglas Carrington walks into his office and turns on his computer, there is a vivid reminder of what his program used to be — and where he is trying to get it. His screen saver flashes photos of the pool that's nestled between the campus tennis courts and the athletic department. The snapshots show swimmers competing in crystal clear blue water. For almost two years, the pool has been drained and the team uses FSU's pool for training.

But Carrington hasn't missed a beat since being hired last year, even as it gets tougher every day that the pool is empty for him to persuade potential recruits that they should join the team. The screen saver keeps him optimistic. "Seeing the pool just lets me know that it can be done," Carrington said, as the pictures of better days flashed behind him. "It's not just being done at this moment. When I look at (pictures of) the pool, I know it's empty but I look at my screen and know that there can be a pool. It's just going to take time."

Vasquez to coach FAMU's special teams »

Florida A&M football coach Joe Taylor already knew of Juan Vasquez's ability to work with kickers. Then, Vasquez brought something else to the table during a staff development meeting that made Taylor give up on searching for a new coach for his special teams. Vasquez touched on a few things during the meeting that Taylor was looking for in the man who would be his new special teams coach.

"When that happened, I was excited about it because he knows the whole program," Taylor said. "He showed me that he not only knows it, but I was totally impressed." Taylor confirmed Thursday that Vasquez has been promoted to special teams coach. He replaces Rod Plummer, who left at the end of last season. Taylor also said Jimmie Tyson, who worked with the Rattlers' secondary as a graduate assistant, also was promoted to full-time.

Friends reunite to kick at FAMU »

Trevor Scott and Brandon Holdren, two former high school teammates who were brought together by a bit of irony, have just a little more than a week to enjoy the rest of their summertime reunion. Both Scott and Holdren were soccer teammates at First Coast High School in Jacksonville. They also shared kicking duties with the football team.

Ironically, both took the same round-about path to FAMU. Scott was at USF looking for a walk-on spot with the soccer team two seasons, but never got his break before transferring. Holdren was just hoping to play somewhere after he graduated from high school. Instead, he spent a year wondering if he'd ever kick a punt for a college team. All the time, Scott was talking him up with FAMU coaches. Associate head coach George Small saw enough in him to offer him a partial scholarship.

Lucas returns as head coach of FAMU baseball »

Robert Lucas will return for at least one more season as head baseball coach at FAMU, with his top priority being to shore up the Rattlers' bullpen. At the end of last season when the Rattlers reached the semifinals of the MEAC tournament, Lucas hedged on saying whether he'll return. That was answered recently when he and assistant Brett Richardson signed one-year contracts.

"You can breathe a sign of relief," Richardson said of having a new contract. "I wouldn't want to be anywhere else but Florida A&M. I'm a hometown kid. I played baseball here so I've always been close to the program for as long as I can remember. Honestly, this is my dream job." While Lucas is going into the fifth season of his second stint as coach at FAMU, Richardson will be embarking on his 12th as an assistant.

FAMU's Priester all about everyday sacrifice »

It's just a little after 8 in the morning and FAMU linebacker Damien Priester is already wrapping up his workout for the day. Some days he makes it to the practice field for a second workout in 7-on-7 drills. He might even make some time for watching film. All that and it's still summertime. "I have no problem making the sacrifice because I know the ultimate goal is a championship," Priester said. "It's just something I have to do."

Priester has been putting in overtime since his freshman season when he had to play behind starter Vernon Wilder. That was a major adjustment for Priester, who came to FAMU after being a star linebacker at Orlando Jones High School. Now that he's in his senior year he finds himself as part of a linebacking unit that is loaded and on a defense that was top-ranked in the MEAC last season. But just being one of the guys is fine with Priester, who the unit will be looking to for leadership.

Acosta feels FAMU is perfect collegiate destination »

After spending time at three different prep-schools following his graduation from New London High School in Connecticut, Nikko Acosta found himself on a bit of a whirlwind tour. His stop included three pre-schools over the past 18 months. Now he's convinced he's done moving since signing to bring to FAMU a post presence it so lacked last season. "I'm bringing it all here," Acosta said. "I'll continue to work hard and you'll see when I get on the floor. This is the next chapter; FAMU basketball. I feel like I've picked the right school."

Acosta is well-traveled, a journey he might not have had to take if it weren't for a knee injury just before the start of his senior year at New London. Suddenly, all of the big schools that were pursuing him backed off. Some of them began calling again just before he signed with FAMU, but the more serious offers came from MEAC and SWAC schools. He signed soon after visiting FAMU.

Rattlers' Chaney deals with change »

Crystal Chaney knows that a change is coming. She played her entire high school career at center for a team that didn't have too many tall players. At 6-foot, Chaney was the second tallest player for the Collins Hill (Ga.) Screaming Eagles last season. But that is about to change now that she's signed to play at FAMU. Since the start of summer drills, she's been working on the adjustment that will put her in a position to get more touches and do more dribbling.
No more catching and shooting.

"That's all I knew," Chaney said. "That's all I've played my whole life. Every time I've played I've always played the post. They might try to put me somewhere else, but I've gone back to the post. I like that. I like to be dominating in the post. "I've never really had to dribble but I'm excited that I will be getting more touches on the ball." In high school, there were times when Chaney had to do more than block shots and take down rebounds. That much FAMU coach LeDawn Gibson saw while recruiting Chaney, who Gibson said comes with a knack for playing physical.

Durden balancing track, hoops at FAMU »

If there were any questions that basketball — not track and field — will be Simone Durden's priority at FAMU, she quickly put those concerns to rest. "I really want to contribute to the team," she said. "I'm going to give it my all. I'm going to try my hardest." But first there is the business of going to the AAU track and field national championships in two weeks. Up until her recent signing to join FAMU's women's basketball team, Durden competed in both sports at Gainesville Buchholz High School.

She became better than average at both, too. Durden was ranked as one of the top runners in Florida at the high school and AAU levels. Yet she managed to average 12 points and 15 rebounds per game during her senior season. The option to run track for the Rattlers is still on the table, said FAMU women's basketball coach LeDawn Gibson, who is allowing Durden to split her time between both sports this summer. She commutes every other week to participate in summer workouts with her new teammates in Tallahassee while the rest of her time is spent preparing in Gainesville with the Striders for the upcoming national meet in Iowa.

South Carolina State University
SC State picked to win MEAC

South Carolina State, led by reigning offensive MVP Will Ford, is the preseason pick to win the MEAC championship. The Bulldogs, who finished 8-0 in the conference and 10-3 overall last season, received 10 first-place votes and 290 total points. Florida A&M was picked to finish second with Hampton, Bethune-Cookman and Norfolk State rounding out the top five.

Ford, a second-team All-American last season, was named the preseason offensive player of the year with Norfolk State DB Terrell Whitehead earning defensive honors. In addition to Ford, South Carolina State had four first-team selections while the Rattlers, led by QB Curtis Pulley, had nine first-team selections. For the entire preseason squad, visit the MEAC website.

SC State Coach Buddy Pough's Head is Uneasy With Preseason Crown

His team went 8-0 in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference last season and returns preseason offensive player of the year Will Ford, who rushed for 1,499 yards. But South Carolina State coach Buddy Pough isn't counting his conference crowns just yet. "I didn't quite pick us to win, but the rest of the guys did," Pough said. "I actually picked us to be fourth. ... We think that we've got our work cut out for us."

The Bulldogs, who went 10-3 and lost to Appalachian State 37-21 in the first round of the FCS playoffs, received 10 first-place votes. "It's good that we've got enough respect that people feel like our program is going in the right direction, but that's about as much as you get out of it," Pough said. "Once we leave here today, I don't know if it'll ever be brought up again in our offices."

Florida A&M, in former Hampton coach Joe Taylor's second season, lost just four starters from last year's 9-3 team and has 24 seniors. "Coaches love experience, and we do have some experience on both sides," said Taylor, who isn't conceding the league title to the Bulldogs or anyone else. "Every January, you get up and you start your season. You get up at 5:45 a.m. You don't get up that early to lose. You do that because you anticipate winning."

Bulldogs Picked to Repeat in MEAC

For the third consecutive year, South Carolina State has been picked to win the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football title. In a preseason poll of head football coaches, sports information directors and selected media, the defending champion Bulldogs earned 10 first-place votes and 290 points to edge runner-up Florida A&M as the 2009 choice. The Rattlers received five first-place votes and 273 points and led the preseason All-MEAC team with 11 selections.

Eight SC State players were named to the preseason team, led by senior running back Will Ford, the 2008 Offensive Player of the Year. The Travelers Rest native was the preseason pick for Offensive Player of the Year for a second consecutive season. "Everybody in our league respects Will Ford and what he does for our team," said Bulldog Head Coach Buddy Pough. "He's about as good a player as we've had around here and in the MEAC. He will be the guy for us this season."
Ford was joined on the preseason first team by junior offensive lineman Johnny Culbreath and three other seniors -- wide receiver Oliver (Tre') Young, linebacker Marshall McFadden and safety Markee Hamlin. SC State second-team selections were sophomore offensive lineman Juavahr Nathan, senior defensive lineman Markus James and cornerback Phillip Adams, also a senior.

The Bulldogs open the 2009 campaign Sept. 6 against Grambling in the 5th ESPN MEAC/SWAC Challenge in Orlando, FL in a 2 p.m. contest. SC State opens its home schedule Sept. 26 against Winston-Salem State. Kickoff is 2 p.m.

SCSU gets breach of contract letter from Carter

Buddy Pough is not the only South Carolina State coach unhappy with dealings within the athletic department. The Times and Democrat confirmed that South Carolina State men’s basketball coach Tim Carter had a letter delivered Tuesday to S.C. State President George Cooper and the university’s general counsel, Edward Givens, claiming his contract was breached.

The author of Carter’s letter was his attorney, Joseph R. Lefft, who also presented Cooper and Givens with Pough’s letter claiming breach of contract less than a week ago.According to Lefft, at the crux of Carter’s complaint is an agreement that was in place with the university to develop the Bulldog men’s basketball team into a mid-major contender. The plan included a guarantee that Carter would be able to comprise his own staff of three assistants and one director of basketball operations. According to Lefft, South Carolina State has reduced Carter’s staff by one assistant. He said it also included issues of funding.

“There was a long-term strategy,” Lefft said. “It was a plan to build the program into an elite mid-major. As it stands, they have not followed through on the plan and the program has not evolved.” At the heart of the plan, according to Lefft, was a facilities outline for the team. “Look at some of the other institutions in the conference. Florida A&M just built an 11-million-dollar arena that is state of the art. If you look around the conference they are investing in basketball.”

Third DB transfer coming to SCSU

Something about South Carolina State University apparently is attractive to defensive backs looking for new teams this summer. The Times and Democrat confirmed that former N.C. State defensive back Dominique Ellis (5-11, 190) is transferring in to play for the Bulldogs next season. He joins former Boston College athelte Razzie Smith and Tillman Millhouse, formerly of The Citadel, as defensive backs transferring in with the hopes to play for SCSU next season.

In his first season of action with the Wolfpack, Ellis played in 13 games, recording 11 tackles and an interception. He played 136 specials teams snaps and 109 snaps from scrimmage. Ellis’ best game came against Maryland when he played a total of 30 snaps and recorded three tackles. A former North Carolina Shrine Bowl selection, Ellis was ranked as the nation’s No. 41 ranked cornerback by Rivals.com, and listed as No. 60 nationally at safety by Scout.com coming out of high school in 2007.

Agreement in place to bring Harrison back to SCSU coaching staff

South Carolina State head coach head coach Oliver “Buddy” Pough has confirmed that Bulldogs assistant coach Gerald Harrison is scheduled to be re-instated by the school. “We worked it out in principle,” Pough said Wednesday afternoon. Word on Harrison’s re-instatement to the SCSU coaching staff comes just hours after South Carolina State President George Cooper balked at giving a definitive answer as to anything that may have been discussed regarding Harrison in the board of trustees executive session. Last week, Pough’s attorney, Joseph R. Lefft, sent a letter to Cooper claiming that Harrison’s firing was a breach of Pough’s contract.

“As I indicated earlier this week, our legal, we are seeking our own opinion in order to respond,” Cooper said following Wednesday’s meeting. “When I have an opinion I will let you know. At this particular point, I acknowledge receipt of the letter. I indicate that we are reviewing the letter from coach Pough’s attorney and when I render an opinion the public will know.”

‘Top Dogs’: S.C. State’s Hamlin is a gambling man, aggressive

Markee Hamlin is a gambling man. No, the South Carolina State safety has not been hitting the slots in Las Vegas over the summer. In this instance, gambling refers to his tendency to take risks on the playing field. It can be a positive sometimes. Other times, it can be a major negative. The 6-foot, 170-pound rising junior, the fifth-ranked player in The T&D’s top 20 countdown, said he has had several discussions about his approach to the game with the SCSU coaching staff and that he is doing his best to reign himself in a bit.

“It’s pretty tough (to not be so aggressive),” he said. “I’m trying to listen to what they say they want me to do.” Last season, Hamlin’s aggressiveness put him right in the middle of the on-field action. He finished third on the team in tackles with 56 and collected one interception. He played one of his best games in S.C. State’s 17-0 loss to Central Florida, coming up with eight tackles, seven solo and a fumble recovery. In 2007, Hamlin had five interceptions, and despite the fact that he wants to tune the on-field gambling down his goals are high for this season. “Stay healthy … that’s my first goal,” Hamlin said. “My second goal is to break the school record for interceptions with 10 and win the MEAC.”

‘Top Dogs’: Johnny Culbreath is the nastiest Bulldog on the field

The thinking is pretty simple when Johnny Culbreath looks across the line of scrimmage at his opponent. “I’m basically thinking ...” he said, pausing for a moment to laugh a bit. “Basically, I’m thinking about which way I’m going to knock him down. And, I don’t just think it. I tell him too. I tell him what is fixing to happen to him. I tell him I’m about to whip his butt. I want it to be the worst game they have ever had.”

The thing about the 6-6, 300-pounder is the nasty streak is a beautiful thing to have in an offensive lineman but, at times, Culbreath can take it a bit too far. Johnny Culbreath picking up a 15-yard penalty every now and then is to be expected. “That is the only thing,” Culbreath said. “It does come back to bite me. I get a little over aggressive, but coach tells me it’s better to be over aggressive than not. I try to give everything.”

“He is the prettiest offensive lineman in the league by far,” South Carolina State head coach Oliver “Buddy” Pough said. “He is athletic as anything, has pretty could strength ... he could be a great player. I really feel an obligation to drive this guy to greatness. He could almost be a first-round guy. He’s a little immature at times, but he has really come a long way from where he started.”

Grambling State University
Tech and Grambling in talks for 2010 football matchup

Louisiana Tech and Grambling State are close to signing a contract to open the 2010 football season in Shreveport’s Independence Stadium. The Labor Day contest would be played Sept. 4 and would be the inaugural meeting between the Lincoln Parish neighbors located just three miles apart. Apparently, the game would be designated as a home game for the Tigers. Tech already has six games scheduled for Ruston’s Joe Aillet Stadium in 2010.

Shreveport Mayor Cedric Glover, who apparently has sought a Grambling game in Shreveport for quite some time, held a meeting Friday attended by SPAR, Independence Bowl, Shreveport Regional Sports Authority and Shreveport-Bossier City Convention and Tourism officials.

ALL BUSINESS: Grambling still committed to getting better

Even after winning a championship, the mantra for third-year Grambling coach Rod Broadway remains “getting better.” Converse with Broadway long enough, and you’ll hear the phrase often enough to become numb to its implications. “Everybody has to improve,” he’ll say. “Every individual has to improve. That’s one of the goals. We have talked about that as a team.”

No one is questioning the talent of this group, which opens the season as favorites to win in a return trip to Birmingham, Ala., and the Southwestern Athletic Conference Championship Game. That includes Broadway, who — when talking, say, about shooting star Greg Dillon, the former walk-on quarterback turned MVP of both the Bayou Classic and 2008’s conference title match — will occasionally invert the thought. “Greg made the whole offense better,” Broadway will say.
Yet the conversation always turns back to ... getting better.

Grambling, Jackson State the favorites in SWAC

BIRMINGHAM, AL — Defending champion Grambling is the preseason pick to win the SWAC West Division title for the third straight year, and Jackson State is predicted to three-peat in the East. The preseason vote, which came during Tuesday's SWAC Media Day, also had Alabama A&M second in the East, followed by Alabama State, Mississippi Valley State and Alcorn State. "A lot of times our conference doesn't get its just due for the player product we produce, but there's great parity in our league," said Grambling coach Rod Broadway. "Last year we had to battle week in and week out for every win we got, and we're not expecting anything short of that this year."

Grambling and Jackson State have split the last two SWAC titles. "We have a solid football team," said JSU coach Rick Comegy. "We had a great spring and our guys are ready. There are some great teams in this conference and this game is played between the lines. Therefore, preseason polls are nice, but we have to suit up and play football week in and week out." Southern University quarterback Bryant Lee was selected the preseason offensive player of the year. The senior led the league in passing yards (2,498) and touchdowns (19) last season, and accounted for 3,008 yards of total offense. Grambling defensive lineman Christian Anthony was chosen the defensive player of the year after posting 55 tackles (17 for loss) and 8 sacks.

LET'S DO IT AGAIN: Grambling picked to win SWAC in preseason poll

It may as well be 2008 all over again. Or 2007, for that matter. Grambling and Jackson State are predicted to win their respective divisions and meet in the SWAC championship, according to a poll of conference coaches released on Tuesday at the SWAC media day. Grambling finished last season with an 11-2 overall record (7-0 SWAC) and beat Jackson State 41-9 in the conference championship game. JSU had the upper hand the previous season, beating Grambling 42-31 to win the SWAC title.

Grambling's Anthony named SWAC preseason defensive player of year

Grambling defender Christian Anthony has been named the Southwestern Athletic Conference's preseason defensive player of the year. GSU had four others honored in preseason voting: Offensive lineman Revay Smith and defensive back Kenneth Anio made first team, while running back Cornelius Walker and quarterback Greg Dillon earned second-team honors. Grambling was picked to repeat as SWAC champions. GSU, the two-time reigning Western Division champs, has played in back-to-back title games, and last year avenged a 2007 SWAC Championship Game loss to Jackson State.

HAIL TO THE HALL: 25 inducted into Grambling's inaugural class

Some of the biggest names in the history of Grambling State athletics were on hand at the Monroe Civic Center on Saturday (7/19/09) for the inaugural induction ceremony of the Grambling Legends Sports Hall of Fame. Inductees Charles Hardnett, Willis Reed, Robert Hopkins, Willie Brown, Willie Young, Lane Howell, Charlie Joiner, Helen Richards-Smith, Richard Stebbins, Willie Davis and Henry Dyer were all present.

In attendance, too, were many of the families of honorees who have passed away — including Eddie Robinson Jr., son of Grambling’s celebrated late football coach; the daughter-in-law and grandson of school president and baseball coach Ralph W.E. “Prez” Jones and the widows of sports information director Collie J. Nicholson and basketball coach Fred Hobdy. The stars of the night were Grambling’s four true “legends” — the pioneers who built the university into an athletic powerhouse. Robinson, Jones, Hobdy, and Nicholson were memorialized throughout the night by the players they mentored.Jones was inducted first, followed by Hobdy, Nicholson, Robinson and then the rest.

Photo Galleries: Grambling Legends I Grambling Legends II

Four 'Legends' were main inspiration for new Grambling hall of fame

Twenty-five of the biggest names in Grambling athletics history compose the Grambling Legends Sports Hall of Fame’s inaugural class, which was inducted in a ceremony at the Monroe Civic Center. Though all 25 names have a special place in Grambling lore, there are four specific individuals — the Mount Rushmore of GSU sports — that give “Legends” a capital “L.” Football coach Eddie Robinson, basketball coach Fred Hobdy, school president and baseball coach Ralph W.E. Jones, and sports information director Collie Nicholson were the main source of inspiration behind the forming of the hall of fame.

"We looked on those four guys as the legends, and that’s where the name came from,” said James “Shack” Harris, who helped organize the hall along with fellow GSU great Doug Williams. “We felt all the players who played for them were a part of their legacy, and we wanted to keep it alive. “So we organized this group, and it was more than Doug and myself. There were a lot of different athletes that came together and wanted to support it, and wanted to do something on behalf of Grambling.” Williams said it wasn’t difficult to gather support.

Tennessee State University
OVC's football coaches place TSU fourth

Tennessee State was picked to finish fourth in the Ohio Valley Conference in football this season by the league's coaches and sports information directors. Tennessee Tech was projected sixth and Austin Peay was picked to tie for seventh. Eastern Kentucky is favored to finish first.
TSU defensive back Eugene Clifford, Tennessee Tech defensive lineman Charlie Seivers and APSU linebacker Daniel Becker, defensive back Kevis Buckley and return specialist Terrence Holt made the preseason All-OVC team.

TSU plans to build indoor practice field

A change in location has delayed the start of construction, but work on a $3.2-million indoor practice facility for Tennessee State's football team is still expected to begin this fall. Initial plans called for the structure to be built atop a hill overlooking Hale Stadium, where the team has many of its practices. School officials eventually decided to retain that site as a practice area and now plan to build the 50,000 square foot indoor facility in the parking lot of Gentry Center, where the basketball teams play and the football weight room is located.

"By putting the indoor facility up on that upper practice field we were losing a practice field,'' Athletics Director Teresa Phillips said. "We didn't want to do that. This is really a better location." Primarily, the football team will use the facility; it will also be available for use by other sports teams and the school's marching band. The indoor facility project is being funded by an increase in student fees, which was approved in the spring of 2007 by TSU students, who were allowed to vote when the athletics department presented its budget at that time. No state funds will be used for the project.

Two-sport TSU player might go football only

Gershom Jordan is hard to miss. Not only because of his size — the former Whites Creek star is 6-foot-6 and weighs 309 pounds — but also because he shows up in football — and basketball — season at Tennessee State. Jordan grew up playing both sports and saw no reason to stop when he got to college. "I feel like if it's something you can do in college then why not?" Jordan said. It is something Jordan proved versatile enough in last year when he played in eight football games and all but three basketball games. However, it also is something Jordan is reconsidering as he heads into his sophomore season.

The football team is in need of defensive linemen. Jordan, who is on a football scholarship, will move from tight end to defensive tackle when camp opens next month. That probably will mean more playing time and definitely require a stronger commitment to football, Coach James Webster said. "With him moving to defense he has a chance to be a major contributor if he will continue to dedicate himself,'' Webster said. "He just needs to decide what he wants to do. If he decides he wants to play football then he'll be an excellent player."

Southern University
Southern players report today as fall camp starts

In four weeks and six days, the Southern University football team will play its first game of the season. Let the countdown begin. Coach Pete Richardson, entering his 17th season at SU’s helm, welcomes players to campus today as the team reports for fall camp. “I’m excited about this group,” Richardson said. “We have a good nucleus coming back that showed some leadership, and it’s just a matter of some individuals coming in — especially in certain areas — and competing to add some depth to our team.” Richardson said SU, which went 6-5 last season, has no team activities planned for today.

Monday, however, looks to be busy. Players will take physicals and be issued equipment, and they will meet with the school’s academic compliance team. Wednesday, SU will have its first practice. The Jaguars open the season Sept. 5 at Louisiana-Lafayette, followed by three home games to close the month. Quarterback Bryant Lee, the Southwestern Athletic Conference preseason player of the year, and wide receiver Juamorris Stewart lead the list of returning starters. Lee — like many veterans — spent the summer working out on campus, Richardson said.

Jaguars ready for bigger move soon

While Southern football players had their annual move-in day Sunday, a move that looms as much more significant for the program is on the horizon. Soon, the program will move out of cramped, worn-out Jesse Owens Hall and into the new north end zone facility — containing coaches offices, training room, locker room, meeting rooms, equipment room and weight room along with luxury suites and seating — once the building gets released for use. That could happen within the next few weeks.

After the building is released, Southern coach Pete Richardson said, his staff likely will make a gradual transition to the new digs. “At least that gives us an opportunity to have more ample meeting space,” Richardson said. For years, SU has had to meet in nearby classroom buildings for team meetings bigger than small group meetings.

Cador staying put as Southern coach

Roger Cador went to school at Southern University, played basketball and baseball there, went on to coach both sports there and has, in the past 25 years, put together a baseball dynasty at the school. And Sunday, for at least the sixth time after being courted by another school, he reaffirmed his lifelong commitment by agreeing to a three-year contract which will pay him at least $125,000 per year. Cador had interviewed at the University of New Orleans twice in the past few weeks, but after a day of negotiating with SU officials, he agreed Sunday to stay where he’s always been.

“It tells me there must be something that is so powerful that keeps me yearning to come back and give it a little bit more,” Cador said. SU Chancellor Kofi Lomotey said the school will pay Cador $125,000 per year and has agreed to allow him to raise up to another $25,000 per year through the Southern University Foundation. Cador, who coached without a contract last season, said he had been paid $83,000 per year, with a housing allowance for an additional $12,000.

Hampton University
HU coach Rose still getting adjusted to new role

There's a lot that goes into being a head coach. Donovan Rose still is learning — and listening — seven months after taking over Hampton University's program. Florida A&M coach Joe Taylor's take?"Everybody must have ownership," Taylor said. "You must convince (assistants) that it is theirs just as much as yours, (and) you've got to impress upon them the importance of carrying out their responsibilities.

"South Carolina State coach Buddy Pough's advice?"You've got to surround yourself with good people. You've got to be in a situation where you get great support from the administrative people. And you've got to have players," Pough said. "If you can get all those ingredients together, and if you can stay calm enough on the sidelines to not just mess it up, most times you've got a chance to be OK."Pough, who's coached the Bulldogs for seven seasons, and Taylor, who was Hampton University's head coach for 16 years before taking over the Rattlers two years ago, have decades of head-coaching experience between them.

Norfolk State University
NSU's whitehead tabbed as top defensive player

The preseason honors continue to roll in for Norfolk State's Terrell Whitehead.
Already tabbed as a first-team preseason All-American, Whitehead was selected as the MEAC preseason Defensive Player of the Year by the conference's coaches and sports information directors. "It's a team award," said Whitehead, a senior safety from Kempsville High. "It's my teammates pushing me hard to be the best." Whitehead led NSU with 83 tackles in 2008 and had four interceptions and 11 passes broken up.

Transfers bolster Spartans' secondary

With Whitehead and three other players with starting experience returning, the secondary already was shaping up as strength for the Spartans. With the addition of two recent transfers, the unit looks even stronger. Cornerback Dante Barnes, a former teammate of Whitehead's at Kempsville, has transfered from Akron and will have two years of eligibility. Barnes was recruited by NSU out of high school but wanted to get away from home, he said. He redshirted in 2006, played on special teams in 2007 and missed last year because of an injury.

He opted to transfer after the coach who recruited him left, he said. "He'll probably be the fastest guy on the team," coach Pete Adrian said. "He's got legitimate 4.3 speed and has that big corner size (6-2, 190) that you like to see." Also expected to join the team is Davon Smart, a former reserve defensive back at Rutgers who has a year of eligibility and will play as a graduate student. Smart played in 26 games in 2007 and 2008, making 32 tackles.

Delaware State University
Lavan not hung up on preseason poll

Like many successful football coaches, Delaware State University's Al Lavan hardly puts any stock in preseason polls and predictions. What matters the most to Lavan is the effort he sees at practices and steady improvement from week to week. So when Delaware State was picked to finish in seventh place out of the nine teams in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference at the MEAC Football Press Luncheon on Friday, Lavan simply shrugged it off.

After all, crying about it won't accomplish anything. "I think it's about like it was my first year at Delaware State," Lavan said. "Whether we're picked No. 1 or seventh, it doesn't really change your approach. "It's certainly a reflection of how people see you. Our approach is going to be just as it's been each year that I've been here." And once the season gets under way in a little more than a month, the preseason predictions will be long forgotten anyway.

University of Arkansas Pine Bluff
UAPBs Mickey Dean Named to the 2009 Preseason All-SWAC First Team

The University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff football team had a total of six players selected to receive preseason accolades as the Southwestern Athletic Conference unveiled it 2009 All-SWAC Preseason honors. The selections were based on votes from the conference's Sports Information Directors, Head Football Coaches, and select media personnel.

Running back Mickey Dean was the Golden Lions lone 1st team selection. Last season Dean served as one of UAPB's key offensive threats as he ranked second in rushing yards en route to amassing a total 632 yards on the ground. Fellow teammates Colton Jones (OL), Jared Dorn (DL), Michael Weatherspoon (LB), Kevin Thornton (DB) and Mareo Howard (RS) joined Dean on the All-Conference team as all five were tabbed 2nd team selections. Arkansas-Pine Bluff was picked to finish fifth in the SWAC's Western division as UAPB tallied a total of 36 points.

ARKANSAS-PINE BLUFF PRESEASON ALL-SWAC SELECTIONS 2008 STATISTICS

PRESEASON ALL-SWAC 1ST TEAM RUNNING BACK
#23 Mickey Dean, University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff (5-10, 215, Sr., RB, Little Rock, Ark.)
Key Statistics (rankings) - Games: 12; Rushes: 150 for 632 yards (4th in SWAC, 2nd on team). Averaged 4.2 yards per carry(tied for 5th in SWAC) and 52.7 yard per game (4th in SWAC); Rushing touchdowns: 5, ranked 3rd on team in scoring, Season Highs - Ran for 129 yards against Central Arkansas, tallied a 58 yard rush and 32 yard pass reception.

PRESEASON ALL-SWAC 2ND TEAM DEFENSIVE LINEMAN
#1 Jared Dorn, University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff (6-3, 255, Sr., DL, Pine Bluff, Ark.)
Key Statistics (rankings) - Games: 10; Tackles: 46 (5th in SWAC for lineman, 5th on team); Tackles for loss: 11 (15th in SWAC, 1st on team); Sacks: 6.5 (7th in SWAC, 1st on team); Quarterback Hurries: 3; Fumble forced: 2 (tied for 2nd on team); Season Highs -Accumulated 4 sacks against Mississippi Valley State and 4.5 tackles for losses.

PRESEASON ALL-SWAC 2ND TEAM OFFENSIVE LINEMAN
#67 Colton Jones, University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff (6-2, 280, Jr., OL, Arlington, Texas)
Key Statistics (rankings) - Games: 12; Helped anchor a offensive line unit that ranked 5th in SWAC in rushing

PRESEASON ALL-SWAC 2ND TEAM KICK RETURNER
# 33 Mareo Howard, University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff (5-9, 180, Jr., ATH, Fort Valley, Ga.)
Key Statistics (rankings) - Games: 12; Kick Returns: 15; Average per return 26.8 (1st in SWAC, 1st on team); Tallied 402 return yards with a long of 55 yards. Averaged 10.1 yards per punt return (4th in SWAC, 1st on team);

PRESEASON ALL-SWAC 2ND TEAM DEFENSIVE BACK
#7 Kevin Thornton, University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff (6-1, 210, Sr., DB, Little Rock, Ark.)
Key Statistics (rankings) - Games: 12; Tackles: 45 (12th in SWAC for defensive backs); Tackles for loss: 1.5; Interceptions: 5 (3rd in SWAC, 1st on team) for a total of 105 yards; Passes defended: 12 (6th in SWAC, 2nd on team) Pass Breakups: 6 (2nd on team); Season Highs - Tallied 2 interceptions versus Alabama A&M Awards/ Honors - 2008 All-SWAC 1st team member at defensive back, named to the 2009 CDS All-American-Honorable Mention list.

PRESEASON ALL-SWAC 2ND TEAM LINEBACKER
#5 Michael Witherspoon, University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff (6-3, 225, Sr., LB, Little Rock, Ark.) Key Statistics (rankings) - Games: 11; Tackles: 70 (3rd in SWAC for defensive backs, 3rd on team for team); Averaged 6.4 tackles per game, Tallied one pass breakup and five tackles for loss.

UAPB Sports Information

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Marching 100 Band Camp Rock Finale Performance

Local high school musicians showed they just might have what it takes to make it to the college level. Friends and family packed the stands, excited to see what more than 400 band campers have learned. Over the past week, the high school musicians got the chance to hit the high notes with the members of the "Marching 100". Some of the camp's leaders say the chance to learn from their role models played a huge part in coming to the camp.

"I honestly think that quietly most of the students come because of the counselors, because of the chance to meet some of the section leaders that they see across the field and get up close and personal with them and learn from them," says Craig Beachum, a member of the Marching 100, and camp counselor. This is the 20th year FAMU hosted the band camp.

Summer Band Camp 2009, Drill #2
BACKSTABBERS/ DRUM FEATURE/ TOTAL PRAISE
FAMU BAND CAMP '09 "NEW SCHOOL"

America the Beautiful

Summer Band Camp Dance Routine