2015-16 SWAC Preseason women's Basketball honors announced

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama – Texas Southern University was picked to win the 2015-16 Southwestern Athletic Conference women's basketball title in a preseason poll of the league's head coaches and sports information directors. The announcement was made during the SWAC’s annual tipoff media teleconference Wednesday morning.

The Lady Tigers, last year's SWAC Regular Season Champion, raced to a 19-10 overall record during the 2014-15 season and a conference mark of 16-2. The defending SWAC Tournament Champions, Alabama State was predicted to finish second, followed by Southern, Prairie View and Jackson State rounding out the top five.

Alabama A&M was picked to finish sixth, followed by Grambling State, Alcorn State, Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Mississippi Valley State completing the predicted order of finish.

2015-16 All-SWAC Preseason Women's Basketball Team

Alabama State earned the leagues preseason top honors as Britney Wright was selected SWAC Preseason Player of the Year and teammate Jasmine Peeples was elected as the Defensive Player of the Year.

As a sophomore for the Lady Hornets, Wright was selected First Team All-SWAC and named SWAC Tournament MVP. She averaged 16.7 points per game to go along with 7.4 rebounds per contest.  Wright scored a season high 32 points against Arkansas-Pine Bluff and produced a career high fourteen rebounds against Grambling State. 

Peeples was named the Defensive Player of the Year last season and earned a spot on the All-SWAC First Team. In 2014, she broke the single season record in blocks registering 135 which now ranks her fifth all time in school history. Peeples graduated with honors in December of 2014 with two degrees. She majored in Communications and she obtained a minor in Criminal Justice.

The pres first team also features guards, Brianna Sidney (Texas Southern), Alexsus Parker (Prairie View A&M) and forward Norianna Haynes (Alcorn State).

The second team includes: guards Brittney Washington (Southern) and Shamiyah Smith  (Alabama State), forwards Janie Myles (Alabama A&M), Briana Green (Southern) and  center Shamiya Brooks (Prairie View) closing the selections.

Women’s 2015-16 Preseason Award Winners

PLAYERS OF THE YEAR
Britney Wright (Alabama State)
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Jasmine Peeples (Alabama State)
ALL-SWAC WOMEN’S BASKETBALL - FIRST TEAM
G	Brianna Sidney (Texas Southern)
G	Alexus Parker (Prairie View A&M) / Jazzmin Parker (Texas Southern)
F	Britney Wright (Alabama State)
F	Norianna Haynes (Alcorn State)
C	Jasmine Peeples (Alabama State)
ALL-SWAC WOMEN’S BASKETBALL - SECOND TEAM
G		Brittney Washington (Southern)
G		Shamiyah Smith (Alabama State)
F		Janie Myles (Alabama A&M)
F		Briana Green (Southern)
C		Shamiya Brooks (Prairie View A&M)

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL – PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH

1.       Texas Southern  - 127

2.       Alabama State - 126

3.       Southern - 112

4.       Prairie View A&M - 97

5.       Jackson State – 73

6.       Alabama A&M – 66

7.       Grambling State – 57

8.       Alcorn State – 55

9.       Arkansas-Pine Bluff – 31

10.    Mississippi Valley State - 26

SWAC 2015 Football Teleconference - Week 7

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama  -- Take a listen to the SWAC Coaches and their views of their Week 7 Football Contest.  Click on each school and coaches name to hear podcast.

Alabama A&M - James Spady 

Alabama State - Brian Jenkins

Alcorn State - Jay Hopson

Jackson State  - Derrick McCall

Mississippi Valley State - Rick Comegy

Prairie View A&M - Willie Simmons

Grambling State - Broderick Fobbs

Southern - Dawson Odums

Texas Southern - Darrell Asberry

Arkansas-Pine Bluff - Monte Coleman

COURTESY SWAC MEDIA RELATIONS

Black College Football Hall of Fame Announces Class of 2016 Finalists

ATLANTA, Georgia -- The Black College Football Hall of Fame announced today the 25 Finalists for induction into the Black College Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2016. The list includes 20 players and five contributors.

The Finalists were selected from a field of over 175 nominees by a Selection Committee composed of prominent journalists, commentators, historians, former NFL General Managers and football executives.

"Players from Historically Black Colleges and Universities have an indelible mark on football at all levels,” said Selection Committee Chairman Roscoe Nance. “There has been more talent to come from HBCUs than most people know; this Hall of Fame is about shedding light on that talent.”

“The Selection Committee spends hours on research and deliberation,” said former New York Giants General Manager Ernie Accorsi, a member of the Selection Committee. “Hundreds of former players, coaches and contributors belong in the Black College Football Hall of Fame, so our job becomes more challenging each year.”

This year’s inductees will be announced on October 27, 2015. They will be honored during the Black College Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Ceremony, on February 27, 2016 at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta, Georgia. For more information, please visit www.BlackCollegeFootballHOF.org.

At a glance: 

• Finalists have been selected from over 175 nominees.
• Finalists represent 13 NFL & Super Bowl Championships, 53 Pro Bowl selections, three Pro Football Hall of Famers and 12 Black College Football National Championships.
• The Class of 2016 Inductees will be announced on October 27, 2015.
• Inductees will be honored during the Black College Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement Ceremony on February 27, 2016 in Atlanta, Georgia.

PLAYER FINALISTS

• Joe “747” Adams (QB, Tennessee State University, 1977-1980)
• Coy Bacon (DL, Jackson State University, 1964-1967)
• Emerson Boozer (RB, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, 1962-1965)
• Ken Burrough (WR, Texas Southern University, 1966-1969)
• Harold Carmichael (WR, Southern University, 1967-1970)
• Raymond Chester (TE, Morgan State University, 1966-1969)
• Parnell “Paydirt” Dickinson (QB, Mississippi Valley State University, 1972-1975)
• Len Ford (DL, Morgan State University, 1944-1945)
• Earl “Air” Harvey (QB, North Carolina Central University, 1985-1988)
• Harold Jackson (WR, Jackson State University, 1965-1968)
• Gary “Big Hands” Johnson (DL, Grambling State University, 1971-1974)
• Leo “Lincoln Locomotive” Lewis (RB, Lincoln University, 1951-1954)
• Tyrone McGriff (OL, Florida A&M University, 1976-1979)
• Timothy Newsome (RB/KR, Winston Salem State University, 1976-1979)
• Jethro Pugh (DE, Elizabeth City State University, 1961-1964)
• Isiah Robertson (DB, Southern University 1967-1970)
• Otis Taylor (WR, Prairie View A&M University, 1961-1964)
• Emmitt Thomas (QB/DB, Bishop College, 1962-1965)
• Everson Walls (DB, Grambling State University, 1977-1980)
• Aeneas Williams (CB, Southern University, 1987-1990)  

CONTRIBUTOR FINALISTS

• Joe Gilliam, Sr. (Defensive Coordinator, Tennessee State University, 1963-1983)
• Ralph Waldo Emerson Jones (President, Grambling State University, 1936-1977)
• James Frank (President, Lincoln University, President NCAA and Southwestern Athletic Conference Commissioner)
• Lloyd C. A. "Judge" Wells (AFL/NFL scout for the Kansas City Chiefs)
• Kenneth Free (Commissioner, Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, 1978 -1996)

Lee Hull admits he didn't know where Morgan State football would be after five weeks

BALTIMORE, Maryland -- After Morgan State graduated eight starters from last season’s team that captured a share of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference title and lost five more in September due to a certification snafu, there were plenty of questions about how the team would fare in 2015.

Even coach Lee Hull was unsure how the Bears would play. But after five weeks, they own a 3-2 overall record and are tied with Bethune-Cookman for first place in the league with identical 3-0 marks in conference play, and no one is more pleasantly surprised than Hull.

“We’re such a young team that I didn’t know where we would be,” Hull said Tuesday morning during his weekly conference call arranged by the MEAC. “I thought that we could be here at this point, standing 3-0, but I’m just excited. The guys are getting better and better each week, and you can see their development through each game. So we’re just going to keep grinding and getting the guys ready to play and see what happens.”

After opening the season with back-to-back losses at Air Force and Illinois State, Morgan State is riding a three-game winning streak. Hull said Saturday’s 42-3 thrashing of league foe Savannah State at Hughes Stadium was a building block for his team, which started 11 freshmen and sophomores.

CONTINUE READING

FAMU coach Alex Wood: ‘Disappointed’ Rattlers still playing with pride

TALLAHASSEE, Florida -- Florida A&M football coach Alex Wood frequently fields questions about the morale of his 0-6 football team.

That didn’t change Tuesday during his weekly press conference, where he said he’s sure everyone on the Rattlers is experiencing “some level of disappointment.”

The Rattlers are 0-6 for the first time in program history. Last year’s 0-5 start broke the previous record for losses to start a season, which was set in 1984 when the Rattlers opened 0-4 and ended 3-7-1.

Wood said the disappointment stems from the Rattlers being unable to finish the year (there are five games remaining) with a winning record.

They are at home Saturday against Delaware State for homecoming.

CONTINUE READING

Grambling's 'refreshing' win extends streak to 4 games

GRAMBLING, Louisiana -- The sign of a good team usually is on display when it doesn't "play well" yet still wins by 24 points in convincing fashion.

That was Grambling in a nutshell on Saturday.

The Tigers put up 513 total yards but committed three turnovers and converted just 4-of-18 third downs in a 37-14 win over Alabama A&M at Eddie Robinson Stadium to extend their winning streak to four games.

"Being able to go out and the offense not put up the amount of points that they've been putting up and we come out with a victory that wasn't close, that's always refreshing," Grambling defensive back coach Brian Ware said Monday. "Just being able to come in Sunday, grade the film, come in on Monday and do the corrections with the guys and understand there were still mistakes that were made but defensively only giving up one touchdown, that's always a plus."

CONTINUE READING

JCSU Mourns the Passing of Former Men's Basketball Coach Robert D. Moore

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina -- The Johnson C. Smith Department of Athletics mourns the loss of former men's basketball coach Robert D. Moore.

Moore served as head coach of the JCSU men's basketball program from 1978-1987. During his nine years at the helm of the JCSU program, he compiled a 148-101 overall record. His best season came in the 1981-1982 season, as he led JCSU to a 22-8 overall record. He also had a 21-9 mark in his final campaign during the 1986-1987 season.

Prior to coming to JCSU, he served as the head coach at Virginia Union. During his five seasons in Richmond, he compiled a 90-48 overall record with his best season coming in 1976-77, when the Panthers finished 25-5.

Prior to his collegiate coaching career, Moore spent numerous seasons as the head coach at Atkins High School in Winston-Salem, N.C. While with the Camels, he was named conference coach of the year four times (1967, 1968, 1969, 1970) by compiling an overall record of 80-11. In 1969, he was named the North Carolina Coach of the Year after leading Atkins to the North Carolina 4A State Championship, being the first African American to be honored with the award.
In 1971, Atkins reached the championship game for a second time.

He also coached basketball at West Forsyth High School, Asheville Senior High School and Harding High School in Charlotte.

In addition to his basketball coaching prowess, Moore coached high school football and track and field. His track and field teams earned several conference championships and won three state titles.

COURTESY JOHNSON C. SMITH UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION