Turnaround trio leaves mark on PV

 Basketball Hall of Famer Cynthia Cooper-Dyke  

Like Robertson, Cooper-Dyke, Frazier departs after reviving dreadful program

Henry Frazier III’s decision to leave Prairie View A&M for North Carolina Central last week closed the book on one of the school’s most successful football coaches.

It also signaled the exit of the last remaining coach in Prairie View’s former “big three.” The three were Frazier, Cynthia Cooper-Dyke (women’s basketball) and Michael Robertson (baseball). They stood out as Prairie View’s most significant coaches in recent years because of their roles in turning around programs that were doormats before their arrival.

When Robertson began in 2003 after leaving Forest Brook High, the baseball team had won only 17 games in...

Northern ready for the next step at Prairie View

Heishma Northern was placed on the fast track to become a Division I head coach when Prairie View A&M named him coach-in-waiting Oct. 13.

It turned out to be much faster than the sixth-year defensive coordinator or most others envisioned. Northern was elevated to head coach Monday after Henry Frazier III stepped down to pursue coaching opportunities at programs in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. A person familiar with the situation said Frazier, who went 43-30 in seven seasons at Prairie View, will fill the coaching vacancy at North Carolina Central.

Meanwhile, Northern is left with the keys to a program that went 32-9 over the last seasons and won the Southwestern Athletic...

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Tennessee State Tigers safety is an AP All-American

Ohio State Coach Jim Tressel told Tennessee State Coach Rod Reed to expect great things from Eugene Clifford, a safety Tressel had dismissed in 2008. Clifford transferred to TSU, where he was a three-year starter, and on Wednesday was selected to the Associated Press Football Championship Series All-America first team.

"After we got Eugene I ran into (Jim) Tressel at the coaches convention," said Reed, who was TSU's defensive coordinator at the time. "I introduced myself and he said, 'Coach, I tell you what, you've got a great one on your hands.' As soon as Clifford got on the field, you could see it. He has that ability to explode plays. He's a good tackler in the open field, and he played well in our system."

FHSAA: Tampa Jefferson wins first state title, beating Miami Norland 44-34 in the Class 3A football final

Jefferson quarterback Quentin Williams (oral commitment to Bethune-Cookman) runs for two touchdowns and throws for three more.

Quentin Williams was named the Florida Dairy Farmers Mr. Football Friday afternoon. Then he went out and showed the announced crowd of 2,908 at the Citrus Bowl for the Class 3A Florida High School Athletic Association football final exactly why he deserved the award.

Williams ran for two touchdowns and threw for three more as Tampa Jefferson (15-0) defeated Miami Norland (13-2) 44-34 to win its first state championship in a game stopped with 3 seconds remaining after a fight broke out. Williams finished with 73 yards rushing and connected on 11-of-16 passes for 151 yards.

"It's a great feeling, a great blessing," Williams said about being Florida's top football player. "But, it's even better to know that we are state champions."

JEFFERSON'S WILLIAMS WINS STATE'S TOP FOOTBALL AWARD

Quentin Williams has made a verbal commitment to Bethune-Cookman University, his mother's alma mater, but said he's planning January recruiting trips to Ohio University and Florida International University.

Jefferson High senior quarterback Quentin Williams was named Florida's Mr. Football on Friday, becoming the third Hillsborough County player in history to win the state's highest honor.

Williams, the Class 3A player of the year, had 137 points in a vote of high-school football coaches and media representatives, outdueling Demetrius Hart of Class 6A Orlando Dr. Phillips (128 points). Plant running back/defensive player James Wilder, the top Class 5A player, was third with 119 points.

Other Hillsborough County players to become Mr. Football were Robinson running back Zain Gilmore (1997) and Plant quarterback Robert Marve (2006).

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FHSAA Class 4A state football final: Tallahassee Lincoln 17, Armwood 14

ORLANDO, FL — The sun made a brief, belated appearance Saturday at the Citrus Bowl, peering from behind the clouds late in the first half of the Class 4A state football final. It was a meteorological tease for the Armwood High Hawks. A depression unlike any they’ve experienced in recent memory was only starting to form.

On an overcast, periodically rainy afternoon, the top-ranked Hawks (14-1) let a team they had statistically outplayed for three quarters stick around and, in the end, surpass them. Senior kicker Carlos Gaston’s 37-yard field goal with four seconds to play — set up seven plays earlier when he drew a roughing-the-punter penalty — lifted Tallahassee Lincoln (11-4) to a 17-14 upset before a meager audience of 2,217.

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Lincoln wins title in Class 4A

Tallahassee Lincoln senior Carlos Gaston nailed a 37-yard field goal with four seconds left to give Lincoln a 17-14 victory against Seffner Armwood in the Class 4A state championship game at the Citrus Bowl on Saturday afternoon in Orlando.

Armwood (14-1) came into the game nationally ranked and a heavy favorite against Lincoln (11-4), which started the season losing four of its first seven games. ``Our kids knew that nobody gave us a chance and nobody expected nothing,'' said Lincoln coach Yusuf Shakir, a Lincoln alumnus.

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FHSAA: Dr. Phillips' title hopes defused by Miami Central

Orlando, FL - Miami Central's swarming defense corralled the state's all-time scoring leader, Demetrius Hart, and the Rockets rode their own thoroughbred running back to a 42-27 victory over Dr. Phillips in Saturday night's Class 6A football state championship game at the Citrus Bowl.

Devonta Freeman, a 5-10, 192-pound senior who has orally committed to Florida State, put the Rockets on his back after DP took advantage of Central miscues to take a 17-0 second quarter lead. He carried 36 times for 308 yards and scored three touchdowns.

 
A paid crowd of 10,078, easily the biggest for a year when finals attendance dipped, included FSU head coach Jimbo Fisher.

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Best (or worst) of Southern University season

Since elementary school, we’ve all known that, like snowflakes and fingerprints, no two words in the English language are identical. With that in mind, it’s important to remember that “memorable” does not always mean “enjoyable.”

Take, for example, the 2010 football season at Southern University. For fans and alumni, it was rarely enjoyable. But it was, indeed, memorable.

It started with the hiring of a bold new head coach in Stump Mitchell, who vowed to instill discipline in the SU program and, of course, win. A lot. The Jaguars, he said, had enough talent on hand to go 12-0. Instead, they won two times in 11 games, clinching their first nine-loss season in school history.

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Williams Helps N.C. Central Edge Liberty

North Carolina Central's Chasidy Williams scored 14 of her game-high 18 points in the second half, helping the homestanding Lady Eagles come from behind to defeat Liberty, 50-48, Saturday afternoon at McDougald-McLendon Gymnasium.

Despite Avery Warley's third double-double of the season (14 points, 10 rebounds), Liberty drops its second straight contest, falling to 3-6 on the year. The Lady Flames are 0-4 in road matchups this season. North Carolina Central improves to 2-8, while snapping a seven-game losing streak. The Lady Eagles improve to 19-8 at home since beginning their transition to the NCAA Division I level in 2007-08.



NCCU women topple Liberty

DURHAM, N.C. -- Sophomore Chasidy Williams scored a season-high 18 points off the bench to push the N.C. Central women's basketball team past three-time reigning Big South champion Liberty 50-48 on Saturday at McDougald-McLendon Gym to snap a seven-game losing streak.

"I am very pleased with what we were able to do today," NCCU coach Joli Robinson said after her 210th career victory. "We needed our younger players to grow and mature, and it was amazing to see what they did against this team." Williams did not miss a shot, going 6-for-6 from the field and 6-for-6 from the free-throw line. She added a team-high seven rebounds.

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