Thursday, August 25, 2016
Bevy of HBCU football games to air in 2016
DAYTONA BEACH, Florida -- If you follow and like watching black college football and you have cable TV or internet access, then you’re in luck in 2016. That’s because there are more games to watch on TV (on cable and over the air) or being streamed over the internet this season – nearly 50 – than in any previous season. Take for instance the opening week’s games beginning next Thursday, Sept. 1.
Starting with the Jackson State at UNLV contest over the Mountain West Sports Network at 10 p.m. in Las Vegas, 11 games will be available thru various broadcast outlets thru the weekend ending on Sunday, Sept. 4. Those games include a number of black college FCS vs. FBS match ups to open the season including Friday’s Mississippi Valley State at Easterm Michigan game and Saturday’s match ups of Savannah State vs. Georgia Southern, preseason BCSP No. 7 South Carolina State vs. Central Florida and BCSP No. 8 Southern vs. Louisiana-Monroe, all streamed over ESPN3.
The highlight of the kickoff weekend could be Sunday’s SWAC/MEAC Challenge pitting two-time defending SWAC champion and BCSP No. 4 Alcorn State vs. defending MEAC co-champion and BCSP No. 3 Bethune-Cookman Sunday on ESPN at 1 p.m. This game should be a doozy and a good indication of just how strong these teams will be this season. A week later on Saturday, Sept. 10, another seven games hit the airwaves. They include big showdowns on the road for BCSP No. 1 North Carolina Central and BCSP No. 5 North Carolina A&T. NCCU plays at Western Michigan while A&T is at Kent State. Both games will be streamed on ESPN3.
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Alabama A&M aims to make noise in the SWAC in 2016
NORMAL, Alabama -- James Spady says it has been and continues to be a process to make Alabama A&M a consistent contender in the Southwestern Athletic Conference.
“Last year was obviously one of the early steps in the process,” the Bulldogs coach said. “We were in our second year and some of the expectations had been met. Obviously the big one is the won-loss record. That was a kind of disappointing record.”
The Bulldogs were 3-8 in 2015 after going 4-7 in Spady’s first season.
“I thought we’d be farther along than we were,” he said. “But then you have to make every preparation to move on to the next rung on the ladder, and that’s what we think we’ve done this summer.”
Alabama NewsCenter is posing five questions to state college coaches as the 2016 football season draws near. Next up are Spady and his Bulldogs, who open their season at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 3, at Middle Tennessee State.
NCCU Announces Tavius Walker as Director of Track & Field/Cross Country
DURHAM, North Carolina – Tavius "T.J." Walker, an alumnus and former All-American sprinter at North Carolina Central University with 13 years of coaching experience, is the new Director of Men's and Women's Track & Field/Cross Country at NCCU, the Department of Athletics announced on Wednesday (August 24).
"I am pleased to announce Coach T.J. Walker as our new Director of Men's and Women's Track & Field/Cross Country," said NCCU Director of Athletics Dr. Ingrid Wicker McCree. "Coach Walker knows how much our track & field/cross country program means to the history of this university and will continue building upon that legacy. His contribution to our track & field/cross country program as an outstanding NCCU student-athlete, along with his roles as volunteer assistant coach and assistant head coach will enable him to recruit the top student-athletes in the State of North Carolina and from all around the country. I am confident in his ability to build a MEAC championship program."
As a coach who specializes in sprints, hurdles and relays with a strong recruiting background, Walker boasts 13 years of coaching experience, including 11 seasons at NCCU.
"I am honored and humbled to have an opportunity to continue in the great legacy of NCCU track & field as its Director of Track & Field/Cross Country," Walker said. "I want to thank Chancellor Debra Saunders-White, Dr. Ingrid Wicker McCree, Derrick Magee (associate athletics director/sport administrator for track & field/cross country), the search committee and our athletics administrative staff for this exciting opportunity."
During his 11-year coaching tenure at NCCU, Walker has worked with student-athletes that earned 11 NCAA Division II All-America awards, including two All-American relay teams, and 41 all-conference honors, including eight all-conference relay squads, with one winning a conference championship. Among the three NCAA Division I East Region qualifiers under his tutelage, he also recruited and coached a Lady Eagle sprinter who ranked fourth in the nation in the 200-meter dash in 2013.
"My vision is clear… myself and the coaching staff will teach, mold and guide our student-athletes with passion and a belief in success," Walker said. "While fostering an unforgettable team experience, we will be strategic in our recruiting and establish student-athlete development along with national and international success as the cornerstones of our program."
A native of Raleigh, North Carolina, Walker started his coaching career in 2003 at NCCU, returning to his alma mater as a volunteer assistant coach from 2003-05.
After two successful seasons at NCCU, Walker left to become the Head Track & Field Coach for both boy's and girl's programs at Needham B. Broughton High School, his alma mater located in Raleigh, North Carolina. While there, he coached a program that had athletes who broke three school records, numerous state qualifiers and one state champion. He also led the Broughton Caps to one of its more successful seasons in recent years.
Walker returned to the NCCU coaching staff in 2007 as a full-time assistant coach with both men's and women's teams, aiding in the transition from Division II to Division I competition. The following year, he earned the position as Assistant Head Coach of the men's and women's track & field/cross country program.
In late February of this year, Walker was named interim head coach prior to the start of the outdoor track & field season. Under his direction, the student-athletes achieved inspiring results. The men's and women's teams combined for seven event victories in the first meet of the season, tallied the most top-10 finishes at the Raleigh Relays since 2012 and earned five medals at the MEAC Championships, where the NCCU men celebrated their best finish at the conference outdoor championship since rejoining the MEAC in the 2011-12 season. The men's 4x100m relay team recorded the school's fastest time in eight years to place fifth in the College Finals of the prestigious Penn Relays, the women's 4x100m relay squad broke a High Point University meet record with the fastest time in eight years, and both of the 4x100m relay teams captured bronze medals at the MEAC Championships for their best conference finishes since returning to the league.
After excelling as a multi-sport athlete at Needham B. Broughton High School in Raleigh, track & field became his sport of choice in college.
As a sprinter at NCCU, he amassed such honors as becoming a four-time All-CIAA performer from 1996-1999, a CIAA champion in 1998, an All-American in 1999 and ranked fourth in NCAA Division II Track & Field in the 200m dash.
Walker received his bachelor's degree in Sociology from NCCU in 1999.
NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL UNIVERSITY ATHLETIC MEDIA RELATIONS
"I am pleased to announce Coach T.J. Walker as our new Director of Men's and Women's Track & Field/Cross Country," said NCCU Director of Athletics Dr. Ingrid Wicker McCree. "Coach Walker knows how much our track & field/cross country program means to the history of this university and will continue building upon that legacy. His contribution to our track & field/cross country program as an outstanding NCCU student-athlete, along with his roles as volunteer assistant coach and assistant head coach will enable him to recruit the top student-athletes in the State of North Carolina and from all around the country. I am confident in his ability to build a MEAC championship program."
As a coach who specializes in sprints, hurdles and relays with a strong recruiting background, Walker boasts 13 years of coaching experience, including 11 seasons at NCCU.
"I am honored and humbled to have an opportunity to continue in the great legacy of NCCU track & field as its Director of Track & Field/Cross Country," Walker said. "I want to thank Chancellor Debra Saunders-White, Dr. Ingrid Wicker McCree, Derrick Magee (associate athletics director/sport administrator for track & field/cross country), the search committee and our athletics administrative staff for this exciting opportunity."
During his 11-year coaching tenure at NCCU, Walker has worked with student-athletes that earned 11 NCAA Division II All-America awards, including two All-American relay teams, and 41 all-conference honors, including eight all-conference relay squads, with one winning a conference championship. Among the three NCAA Division I East Region qualifiers under his tutelage, he also recruited and coached a Lady Eagle sprinter who ranked fourth in the nation in the 200-meter dash in 2013.
"My vision is clear… myself and the coaching staff will teach, mold and guide our student-athletes with passion and a belief in success," Walker said. "While fostering an unforgettable team experience, we will be strategic in our recruiting and establish student-athlete development along with national and international success as the cornerstones of our program."
A native of Raleigh, North Carolina, Walker started his coaching career in 2003 at NCCU, returning to his alma mater as a volunteer assistant coach from 2003-05.
After two successful seasons at NCCU, Walker left to become the Head Track & Field Coach for both boy's and girl's programs at Needham B. Broughton High School, his alma mater located in Raleigh, North Carolina. While there, he coached a program that had athletes who broke three school records, numerous state qualifiers and one state champion. He also led the Broughton Caps to one of its more successful seasons in recent years.
Walker returned to the NCCU coaching staff in 2007 as a full-time assistant coach with both men's and women's teams, aiding in the transition from Division II to Division I competition. The following year, he earned the position as Assistant Head Coach of the men's and women's track & field/cross country program.
In late February of this year, Walker was named interim head coach prior to the start of the outdoor track & field season. Under his direction, the student-athletes achieved inspiring results. The men's and women's teams combined for seven event victories in the first meet of the season, tallied the most top-10 finishes at the Raleigh Relays since 2012 and earned five medals at the MEAC Championships, where the NCCU men celebrated their best finish at the conference outdoor championship since rejoining the MEAC in the 2011-12 season. The men's 4x100m relay team recorded the school's fastest time in eight years to place fifth in the College Finals of the prestigious Penn Relays, the women's 4x100m relay squad broke a High Point University meet record with the fastest time in eight years, and both of the 4x100m relay teams captured bronze medals at the MEAC Championships for their best conference finishes since returning to the league.
After excelling as a multi-sport athlete at Needham B. Broughton High School in Raleigh, track & field became his sport of choice in college.
As a sprinter at NCCU, he amassed such honors as becoming a four-time All-CIAA performer from 1996-1999, a CIAA champion in 1998, an All-American in 1999 and ranked fourth in NCAA Division II Track & Field in the 200m dash.
Walker received his bachelor's degree in Sociology from NCCU in 1999.
NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL UNIVERSITY ATHLETIC MEDIA RELATIONS
Wednesday, August 24, 2016
Auburn transfer DE Raashed Kennion joins FAMU Rattlers
TALLAHASSEE, Florida -- Defensive end Raashed Kennion, who earlier this month left Auburn to "pursue politics," according to reports, is listed on Florida A&M's roster.
Kennion, a 6-foot-6, 240-pound defensive end who was a three-star prospect in the class of 2014, according to 247Sports' composite rankings, arrived in Tallahassee last week. In an interview with the Tallahassee Democrat, the junior said his mother, father and grandparents all attended Florida A&M and he "wanted to continue the legacy."
He added he's going to major in political science while at FAMU.
"It was a very hard decision," Kennion said about leaving Auburn. "Probably one of the the harder ones in my life. I had to go with my heart, honestly. I established a lot at Auburn and it hurt."
Kennion was primarily a backup on Auburn's line during the 2015 season. He played in eight games and recorded eight total tackles and one tackle for loss.
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Kennion, a 6-foot-6, 240-pound defensive end who was a three-star prospect in the class of 2014, according to 247Sports' composite rankings, arrived in Tallahassee last week. In an interview with the Tallahassee Democrat, the junior said his mother, father and grandparents all attended Florida A&M and he "wanted to continue the legacy."
He added he's going to major in political science while at FAMU.
"It was a very hard decision," Kennion said about leaving Auburn. "Probably one of the the harder ones in my life. I had to go with my heart, honestly. I established a lot at Auburn and it hurt."
Kennion was primarily a backup on Auburn's line during the 2015 season. He played in eight games and recorded eight total tackles and one tackle for loss.
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Sanford Seminole's Demetrius Artis works to be leader at FAMU, home
TALLAHASSEE, Florida -- Life hasn't exactly been easy for Demetrius Artis.
The Florida A&M redshirt freshman linebacker doesn't complain. He battles.
That's the way of life in Sanford and that's what Maurice Artis taught his two sons, Demetrius and DeMarco, who have refined their football skills on the fields of Seminole High.
Maurice Artis, however, was not there to watch Demetrius play his senior year of high school football. The elder Artis passed away in his sleep in 2013, a victim of natural causes at the age of 40. Demetrius Artis found his father that morning. It will stick with him the rest of his life.
"It was a devastating moment. It still is devastating," Demetrius said. "It gets hard to deal with, but you gotta keep pushing and do what would make him happy."
Demetrius Artis was suddenly the man of the house. His grandmother moved in to help out with the three children, older sister DeMaria, Demetrius and youngest DeMarco, but it wasn't easy living without their father.
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Rankin: Pivotal year for Jenkins, ASU
MONTGOMERY, Alabama -- Alabama State passed the test.
Brian Jenkins has had his team practicing during the peak heat hours in preparation for the 2016 season and believes the Hornets have met the challenge.
“I really wanted to test this team and see where their will and drive was at and I tell you what, they’ve responded,” Jenkins said. “They really have and that’s always a good thing to see out of your team this early in the year.”
It’s been nearly two years since Jenkins replaced Reggie Barlow after the 2014 season. There have been highs and lows throughout, but ASU has found its comfort zone with its demanding head coach and staff.
“Comfortably with the coaching staff is the main thing,” Jenkins said. “The closeness as a group and as a program is another thing that I’ve noticed. Their expectation of the coaching staff and the coaching staff’s expectations of the players, you notice that instantly. Their work ethic. It’s not a lot of talk out there on the field. It’s a lot of encouragement on all ends.”
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Brian Jenkins has had his team practicing during the peak heat hours in preparation for the 2016 season and believes the Hornets have met the challenge.
“I really wanted to test this team and see where their will and drive was at and I tell you what, they’ve responded,” Jenkins said. “They really have and that’s always a good thing to see out of your team this early in the year.”
It’s been nearly two years since Jenkins replaced Reggie Barlow after the 2014 season. There have been highs and lows throughout, but ASU has found its comfort zone with its demanding head coach and staff.
“Comfortably with the coaching staff is the main thing,” Jenkins said. “The closeness as a group and as a program is another thing that I’ve noticed. Their expectation of the coaching staff and the coaching staff’s expectations of the players, you notice that instantly. Their work ethic. It’s not a lot of talk out there on the field. It’s a lot of encouragement on all ends.”
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A contrast in styles, SU's Willie Quinn and Randall Menard work well together
BATON ROUGE, Louisiana -- Earlier this week, Southern caught its first glimpse of what its offense might be capable of this season.
On the practice field for the first time together in 2016 were senior receivers Willie Quinn and Randall Menard, a pair who contrast in ability but work well in tandem.
The 6-foot-3 Menard missed all of preseason camp while recovering from a hamstring injury. But he showed what he brings to the offense in his first full practice with the team Tuesday.
“That’s an extra weapon,” Quinn said. “That’s like having Dez Bryant back. Everybody needs that Dez Bryant on their team.”
Quinn is almost a full head shorter than Menard at a listed 5-foot-5, but he makes up for his height by often being the most elusive player on the field.
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On the practice field for the first time together in 2016 were senior receivers Willie Quinn and Randall Menard, a pair who contrast in ability but work well in tandem.
The 6-foot-3 Menard missed all of preseason camp while recovering from a hamstring injury. But he showed what he brings to the offense in his first full practice with the team Tuesday.
“That’s an extra weapon,” Quinn said. “That’s like having Dez Bryant back. Everybody needs that Dez Bryant on their team.”
Quinn is almost a full head shorter than Menard at a listed 5-foot-5, but he makes up for his height by often being the most elusive player on the field.
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