Tarniesha Scott hired as Gold Nuggets assistant coach

ASSISTANT COACH TARNIESHA SCOTT

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana announced Thursday the hiring of Tarniesha Scott as assistant women's basketball coach. Scott, who has experience as an NAIA head coach and an NCAA Division I assistant coach, began her XU duties Monday (Aug. 1, 2016).

"I am very appreciative of the Xavier administration for giving me the opportunity to advance my coaching career with the Gold Nuggets," Scott said. "I'm excited to be a part of such a great university and successful women's basketball program. I'm ready to assist the program in achieving our desired goals and help further our success."

Scott was on the women's basketball staff at Talladega College for two seasons (2012-14). She led the Lady Tornadoes to a 10-3 record as interim head coach to close the 2013-14 season, the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference regular-season championship (by a half-game over Xavier), a berth in the NAIA Division I National Championship and a No. 25 ranking in the postseason coaches poll.

Scott was an assistant coach at NCAA DI Prairie View A&M during the 2014-15 season. She helped the Lady Panthers tie for third place in the SWAC and win non-conference road games against Houston and Sam Houston State.

Scott also was a volunteer assistant coach at UT Dallas, her alma mater, during the 2011-12 season. She played at UTD from 2007-11 and ranks second there in career rebounds and sixth in career points. Scott led the American Southwest Conference her senior year with 17.4 points per game and was first-team All-ASC and was honorable-mention All-America on teams chosen by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association and Women's D-III News. Scott was Academic All-ASC three consecutive seasons.

"Tarniesha Scott has great passion for basketball," XU head coach Bo Browder said. "She has head-coaching experience. She has recruited at the NAIA and NCAA DI levels. Her communication skills are outstanding.

"But what I like most about Tarniesha is that she is a winner on and off the court. She possesses great integrity, and she'll be a great role model for our student-athletes."

Scott is an Arkansas native and a graduate of that state's Jacksonville High School. She replaces Darrilyn Broussard, who resigned during the spring after 15 seasons at Xavier, the last 10 as associate head coach.

Xavier's Gold Nuggets were 22-12 in 2015-16, won the GCAC Tournament for the sixth time in 11 seasons and qualified for the NAIA Division I National Championship for the 19th time in 22 seasons.

Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
XULAgold.com
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Can Johnson C. Smith football take a step forward as a CIAA contender?

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina -- The Golden Bulls, who report for camp next week, are more seasoned under coach Kermit Blount, who led JCSU to a 4-6 campaign in his debut, which included a three-game win streak that put them within a game of .500. The key is more consistency on offense and veteran leadership to replace All-America linebacker Austin Jacques.

CIAA coaches aren’t sold on the Golden Bulls, picking JCSU fourth in the Southern Division, trailing perennial power Winston-Salem State, Fayetteville State and Livingstone.

Here are eight of the hottest topics heading into fall drills:

More consistent play and leadership at quarterback
Jordan Lane, a sophomore from Charlotte, was up and down last year, but had a proper spring practice to learn the offense under coordinator Tory Woodbury.

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Albany State Golden Rams Basketball releases 2016-2017 schedule

ALBANY, Georgia -- Last season, the Albany State men's basketball program finished with a dismal 5-22 overall record. However, this season, the Golden Rams will look for vast improvements during their 28-game schedule in 2016-2017.

ASU will open its season against Gulf South Conference member West Florida (Nov. 11) during the SIAC-Gulf South Challenge, which will be held in Fort Valley, Ga on the campus of Fort Valley State University. The following day, the Golden Rams will play Valdosta State University.

The games against West Florida and VSU are the first two of a 10-game non-conference slate. Albany State will also play Peach Belt Conference members Georgia Southwestern (Nov. 19) and Georgia College (Nov. 22 and Dec. 3), NAIA foes Point University (Nov. 26), Edward Waters College (Dec. 9) and Auburn-Montgomery (Dec. 12) and CIAA combatants Livingstone College (Dec.17) and Shaw University (Dec. 18). The games against Livingston and Shaw will be part of the SIAC-CIAA Classic at Clark Atlanta University.

On Dec. 1, Albany State will open its 18-game SIAC schedule against LeMoyne-Owen in Albany, Ga. Contests against SIAC foes Kentucky State (Dec. 29) and
Central State (Dec. 30), will close the first part of the Golden Rams' schedule.

The Golden Rams will continue its league play on Jan. 5 against Lane College, the team that eliminated them from the 2016 SIAC tournament. Contests against Benedict College, Miles College, Tuskegee University and archrival Fort Valley State University, also highlight the SIAC schedule.
Albany State will begin postseason play in the 2017 SIAC Men's Basketball Championship Tournament. The event will be held in Birmingham, Alabama at the Bill Harris Arena.

For more information about Albany State men's basketball, contact Stan McCormick at (229) 420-7013.

2016-2017 Albany State Men's Basketball Schedule

COURTESY ALBANY STATE UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS MEDIA RELATIONS

Sims, Wildcats open camp ready to defend MEAC Title

DAYTONA BEACH, Florida — Bethune-Cookman head coach Terry Sims will discuss just about anything with you.

He'll talk about the starting quarterback battle between Larry Brihm and redshirt freshman Akevious Williams.

He'll go over the playmakers to watch on defense, like linebacker Trenton Bridges and lineman Todney Evans.

He'll even talk about his expectations for the season, even though the first game is still a month away.

"I want to see a disciplined, detailed football team that fights hard and never quits," Sims said on Tuesday.

But bring up last week's MEAC preseason poll that predicted the Wildcats to finish second, and the head coach wants nothing to do with it.

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What to watch for: Jackson State training camp

JACKSON, Mississippi -- A new coach was hired, another recruiting class was signed, spring ball finished months ago and summer conditioning is done.

Another offseason is in the books at Jackson State. With training camp kicking off on Tuesday, the focus is on actual football now.

Here's are some things to watch for as the Tigers, who are coming off a 3-8 season, progress through training camp this next month.

A kicker to count on

Good, reliable kickers aren’t the easiest to come by in the SWAC. Jackson State had a good one last season with Ryan Deising, who connected on 16 of his 21 field goal attempts and made 24 of his 28 extra points.

Deising was a first-team All-SWAC selection, but his eligibility has been exhausted, so it’s up to the Tigers to find a suitable replacement.

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FAMU Rattlers report to fall camp Wednesday

TALLAHASSEE, Florida -- Florida A&M’s football team is looking to rebound after one of the worst seasons in program history. The Rattlers went 1-10 last season. It was the first time FAMU’s football program ever finished a season with 10 losses and first time since 1943 the Rattlers finished the year with just one win.

The Rattlers report for fall camp today, and the team’s first outdoor activities will be on Thursday at 9:30 a.m. There are plenty of questions surrounding the Rattlers this season, but a influx of JUCO talent and some solid recruits can help turn things around at Bragg Memorial Stadium.

FAMU opens the season at Miami on Sept. 3. The Rattlers play four home games this year and two neutral-site games. For the first time since 1996, the Rattlers will play Tuskegee in the new 5th Quarter Classic at Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile, Ala.

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Southern Jaguars open camp focused on the future

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana -- The Southern University football team reports to camp Wednesday exactly 248 days since the Jaguars walked off the field at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome following a 34-23 loss to Grambling State.

The loss put to rest arguably one of the most frustrating seasons since coach Dawson Odums took over the team in 2013 with Southern winning consecutive games just once all year.

Since then, there’s been little relief from the memory.

Odums said he doesn't yet know what this team is capable of after spending another spring under the thumb of NCAA sanctions due to insufficient Academic Progress Rates

But the past is the past and Odums and the Jaguars are ready to start focusing on the future.

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