FAMU's Taylor Announces Retirement At Pre-Game Breakfast

GREENSBORO,  North Carolina (Nov.3) – FAMU head coach Joe Taylor announced his retirement from coaching this morning in the team's pre-game breakfast. Taylor said that after 40 years on the sideline, "You know, when you know. From 1972 to now is 40 years. It's been a blessed career. We've touched a lot of lives. I'm officially announcing today that this is the year I retire, humbly.  Full of gratitude," he said.

As players prepared for the MEAC game against the North Carolina A&T State University, they had no idea that Taylor was about to make such a startling announcement. Players coaches and support staff embraced Taylor and vowed to give their all in winning the last three games.

Taylor has amassed a record of 233 wins against 95 losses. He accumulated a 35-18 record thus far in his tenure at FAMU. With the 233 wins, Taylor sits tied with longtime Southern University coach A.W. "Ace" Mumford for third place all-time in wins. He is two wins away from tying John "Big John" Merritt, at 235 to move into second place behind the untouchable record of Grambling's Eddie Robinson.

FAMU Director of Athletics, Derek Horne, said "We are proud of what coach Taylor has brought to this program. As an administrator, I have been fortunate to have the opportunity to work with a coaching legend, who will go down as one of the best ever in HBCU athletics. We understand his desire to move into the next phase of his life and we support him wholeheartedly."

FAMU interim president, Dr. Larry Robinson praised Taylor for his successes on and off the field. "We reached some great milestones during Coach Taylor's career, including FAMU's debut in November 2008 on ESPN College Game Day in which FAMU became the first historically black college or university to host the program. Coach Taylor has had a storied career as one of the winningest coaches in black college football. In addition, he has built character and promoted academic progression of students athletes, always reminding them that their best contributions will often occur off the field of athletic competition. We certainly appreciate everything he has done to advance the football program at FAMU and we wish Coach Taylor all the best in his retirement," Robinson said.

Taylor is the 15th head coach in the history of Florida A&M University. In 2007, the season before his arrival, the Rattlers finished 3-8 overall. In his inaugural campaign in 2008, he crafted the best one-year turnaround in the country with the football team finishing 9-3. In doing so, he tied legendary coach A.S. Jake Gaither for the most wins by a first-year coach.

 

He followed that season with a 8-3 record in 2009, vaulting the Rattlers into the NCAA FCS polls for the first time since 2001. In 2010, which was Taylor's best at FAMU, his team won a share of the MEAC football championship, going 8-3. That team capped the season with six straight wins.

Taylor is a native of Washington, D.C. and graduated from Western Illinois University. He has been a part of several coaches associations and organizations. He is on the American Football Coaches Association board, the Board of Directors of the Black Coaches Association, the advisory board of Wilson Sporting Goods Company and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He is also a member of the CIAA Hall of Fame.

Horne said the department will move swiftly in preparing for Taylor's successor. "We will make deliberate efforts to find the ideal person to continue the legacy of head coach of Rattler Football here at Florida A&M."


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WSSU Rams need one more win for 2nd straight undefeated regular season

FAYETTEVILLE, North Carolina  --  Coach Kenny Phillips of Fayetteville State has found one weakness in Winston-Salem State.

“I don’t think their buses are that strong,” Phillips joked about the transportation that No. 2-ranked WSSU used to travel to Fayetteville for today’s 1:30 game at Luther Nick Jeralds Stadium.

Phillips, the dean of CIAA coaches and a three-time CIAA championship coach, turned more serious when trying to sum up just how good the Rams (9-0) have been.

“I sit there and watch film, and Coach (Connell) Maynor has quite an arsenal, and he’s got an experienced team to boot,” Phillips said.

The Rams have won 14 straight against CIAA opponents and are 15-1 on the road in Maynor’s three seasons. They’ll try for a second straight undefeated regular season today, then they will play for their second straight CIAA title next weekend.

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DWIGHT FLOYD WEEKLY COMMENTARY: It’s A Mad Scramble

DWIGHT FLOYD
"The Editor"
 

TALLAHASSEE, Florida  -- There is a new number one at the top of each of the FCS polls as teams scramble to win and stay on top. Perhaps this is no more understated than Tennessee State’s win last week with no time left on the clock. Their last minute drive showed what they are capable of when they put their minds to it. Should they make the playoffs they will be the team that no one else wants to play. Meanwhile, Bethune Cookman should continue to win and become the darkhorse in the playoffs. Clearly, in the Sports Network and Coaches Polls they get no respect. Cal Poly and North Carolina Central had an opportunity to prove themselves, but instead showed that while they are good, they are not worthy just yet of the rankings given last week in the SportsEdit.Org Fan Poll. There is still time in the season for both of them.

In the SWAC, Alabama A&M got off to a fast start and has begun to slow the winning pace last week losing to the Alabama State Hornets in a big game. Arkansas Pine Bluff is on their way to meeting whoever wants it bad enough in the East Division to make it to the SWAC Championship, their equivalent of a playoff game. I would love to see the SWAC champion take on one of the so called “Super Conference” teams.

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ECSU Vikings looking for strong finish

ELIZABTH  CITY, North Carolina  -- A second straight Northern Division title is great, but the Elizabeth City State football team is not done yet.

“We’ve got one horse in the barn, now we need to get the other two,” Vikings coach Waverly Tillar said.

Stalls are reserved in the ECSU barn for the CIAA championship and a berth in the NCAA Division II tournament.

Whether the Vikings can corral those two horses will be decided next week when they meet unbeaten, defending champion Winston-Salem State (9-0) in the CIAA title game in Durham.

Spring an upset over the Rams, who are ranked No. 2 in Division II, and ECSU, which lost last year’s championship game to Winston-Salem State 38-18, might get a return trip to the national tournament.

That’s assuming the Vikngs, whose 6-3 record is not the resume of a playoff team, win at Bowie State in today’s regular-season finale.

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Week 10 - HBCU Football

SIAC
Albany State vs. Fort Valley State, 2pm, Fountain City Classic, Columbus, GA
Kentucky State @ Morehouse, 2pm
Benedict @ Lane, 3pm
Tuskegee @ Miles, 5pm
Clark-Atlanta U. @ Stillman, 6pm

OVC
Tennessee State @ Murray State, Noon

MEAC
Bethune- Cookman @ Morgan State, 1pm
Hampton U. @ Howard U., 1pm
Florida A&M @ North Carolina A&T, 1:30pm
Savannah State @ Norfolk State, 2pm
Delaware State @ North Carolina Central



OTHERS 
Cheyney @ Shippenburg, 1pm
West Virginia State @ Fairmont State, 1pm
Huntingdon @ Point U., 1pm
Central State (Ohio) @ McKendree, 2:30pm
Texas College @ McMurry, 3pm
Lincoln (Mo.) @ Northeastern State, 3pm
Alderson Broaddus @ Virginia University of Lynchburg, 12pm, (Tri-City Classic)
Ava Maria vs. Edward Waters @ Kingsland, GA
Langston @ SW Assemblies of God
New Orleans @ Concordia-Selma, 2pm, Homecoming

SWAC
Alabama State @ Prairie View A&M, 2pm
Alcorn State @ Mississippi Valley State, 2pm
Southern U. @ Alabama A&M, 2 pm, SWAC-TV 
Jackson State @ Grambling State, 3pm
Arkansas Pine-Bluff @ Texas Southern, 3 pm

CIAA
Vrginia State @ Virginia Union, 1pm
Livingstone @ Johnson C. Smith, 1 pm
Elizabeth City State @ Bowie State, 1pm
Shaw U. @ Saint Augustine's U., 1:30pm
Elizabeth City State @ Bowie State, 1 pm

Alabama A&M linebacker Denzel Cotton's had good ride into his home finale with Bulldogs

HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- The bright yellow rag-top 2001 Mustang rests impatiently in a parking lot next to Louis Crews Stadium, an eye-catcher for anyone passing by.

It would seem a collector's item, or maybe some mid-life crisis vehicle for a man needing a diversion from a suit-and-tie world.

 Instead, the front license plate reveals the owner: "#48" it reads.

That matches the jersey number for Denzel Cotton, the Alabama A&M senior linebacker from Birmingham.

"My mom actually got it for me. I wanted something different and she went and got a yellow Mustang," Cotton said. "I don't consider myself a car guy. I just wanted something that was gonna stand out."

  Cotton loves to pull the top down on good days.

However, "We've got to win in order to drop the top," he said.

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Bazemore stands out, but WSSU can’t stay with Duke

DURHAM, North Carolina  --  Winston-Salem State found out in a hurry what it’s like to play Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

The Rams were scrappy enough in their preseason game last night, but they couldn’t overcome the talented and bigger Blue Devils, who opened a big first-half lead on the way to a 69-45 victory.

With the Blue Devils starting 6-11 Ryan Kelly and 6-10 Mason Plumlee, the Rams never found a flow on offense.

“We know what we have to work on,” Coach Bobby Collins of WSSU said. “When teams are stronger, faster and bigger, we have to do a better job of being disciplined offensively. I don’t think we stayed with our offensive sets long enough.”

Although the Blue Devils struggled with their shooting (39 percent), Plumlee was solid, going 7 for 7 from the field and finishing with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Amile Jefferson added 13 points for Duke, and Rasheed Sulaimon scored 12.




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