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Thursday, December 4, 2003
For the Week of Dec. 2 through Dec. 8, 2003
JAGUARS
REGAIN
TOP SPOT
All Pro Photo
RICHARD: Southern QB
Quincy Richard threw for
552 yards and five TDs in
44-41 Bayou Ciassic win
over Grambiing.
T SOUTHERN WINS EXCITING BAYOU
CLASSIC; A&T, B-CC FALL IN PLAYOFFS
UNDER THE BANNER
WHAT’S GOING ON IN AND AROUND BLACK COLLEGE SPORTS
SWAC TO HONOR LEGENDS:
The SWAC Alumni Association will present its Lifetime
Achievement Award to Davey L.
Whitney, Sam Jefferson and
William J. "Billy" Nicks (posthu
mously) at its fourth annual Legends
Reception Dec. 12 at the Sheraton
Hotel in Birmingham, Ala. The award
is given to individuals in recognition
WHITNEY for (ijeij. contributions to athletics in
the Southwestern Athletic Conference. Whitney, former
men's basketball coach at Alcorn State, compiled a 567-
357 career-record in 32 seasons, including five at Texas
Southern. He led Alcorn State to 12 national postseason
tournament appearances, including five trips to the NCAA
tournament, two trips to the NIT and five NAIA appear
ances. Whitney retired following the 2002-03 season.
Nicks, who was inducted into the National Football
Foundation College Football Hall of Fame in 1999, com
piled a 189-55-9 record at Prairie View and Morris
Brown. His teams at Prairie View won five black national
championships, eight SWAC championships and were
undefeated five times. He is the only college coach to win
a national championship in each decade of his career (the
1940s, '50s and '60s). Nicks died in 1999 at age 94, short
ly after his induction into the National Football
Foundation College Football Hall of
Fame. Jefferson was Jackson State's
first full-time sports information direc
tor and held that position for 29 years
before retiring in 2002. He was named
SWAC Sports Information Director of
the Year and unprecedented eight
times, including six consecutive times
from 1997-2002. He also served as
president of the SWAC SIDs and Black College Sports
Information Directors Association (BCSIDA) in addition
to serving on the CoSida (College Sports Information
Directors Association) Board of Directors being a member
of several committees within that organization. The
SWAC Alumni Association was founded four years ago.
Its purpose is to support the Southwestern Athletic
Conference events, promote its legacy, and preserve its
athletic heritage. Former athletes in all sports from all
member institutions are eligible for membership, as are
head coaches, assistant coaches, athletic trainers and ath
letic administrators, referees and employees of the confer
ence office. For information about becoming a member,
contact Roscoe Nance, SWAC Alumni Association coordi
nator by phone at 800-872-3410, extension 3722 or by e-
mail at scomobile@aol.com.
JEFFERSON
BCSP NFL
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
OFFENSE
JIMMY SMITH, 6-1, 213, WR,
Jacksonville (13th year, JACKSON
STATE) - Ten receptions for 136
yards including the game-deciding TD
on a 48-yard pass from rookie QB
Bryon Leftwich in the fourth quarter of a win over
Tampa Bay. The winning catch was only one of the
night's nice moments for Smith. In the first quar
ter, he caught three passes to become the 16th
player in NFL history to reach 700 receptions.
DEFENSE
RASHEAN MATHIS, 6-2, 202,
DB, Jacksonville (1st year,
BETHUNE-COOKMAN) - Led Jags
with nine tackles in upset win over
Tampa Bay. Mathis was also credit
ed with defending one pass.
SRES WESLEY, 6-2, 206, SS,
Kansas City (4th year,
ARKANSAS-PINE BLUFF) - Five
tackles, one assist, and an intercep
tion in win over San Diego.
©AZEEZ Communications, Inc. VOL. X, NO. 17
2003 BLACK COLLEGE FOOTBALL (Results, Standings and Weekly Honors)
SCORES
THUR., NOV., 27
Alabama State 48
Tuskegee 28
SAT, NOV. 29
Southern 44
Grambiing St. 41
l-AA PLAYOFFS
(FIRST ROUND)
WofforO 31
NC A&T 10
FI. Atlantic 32
Bethune-Cookman 24
Athletic Association
DIV
ALL
W L W L
6 5
6 4
7 3
5 5
2 8
E. DIVISION
' Virginia Union
Bowie Stale
Shaw
Virginia State
Eliz, City State
W. DIVISION
* ''Fayetteville State
W-Salem State
St. Augustine's
Livingstone
N.C. Central
J. C. Smith
’Clinched Oiv. wle
'' Won title game ■ will represent conterence
Dec. 20 Pioneer Boy4
CIAA PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
OFFENSE
Athletic Conference
’NC A&T State
Hampton
Bethune-Cookman
SC State
Morgan State
Howard
Norfolk State
’Clinched conference itie
6 5
4 7
1 10
MEAC PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
OFFENSE
SCOTT AUSTIN, Sr., QB, B-CC -Threw for191
yards (16-33-2) and two TOs in relief of Allen
Suber in playoff loss to Florida Atlantic.
DEFENSE
STEVE BAG(jS, Sr., LB/DE, B-CC - Two sacks,
a forced fumble and pass break-up in playoff loss
to Florida Atlantic..
ROOKIE
ERIC WEEMS, Fr., WR, B-CC -11 rec., for 124
yards and a TD In playoff loss to Florida Atlantic.
Also ran the ball lour times for 12 yards.
SPECIAL TEAMS
NA
Athletic Conference
W L W L
’Albany State
Kentucky State
Miles
Fort Valley State
Benedict
Tuskegee
Morehouse
Lane
Clark Atlanta
’Clinched Conference title, Pioneer Bowl berth
SIAC PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
OFFENSE
Athletic Conference
E. DIVISION
Alabama State
Alcorn State
Alabama A &M
Jackson Slate
Miss. Valley St.
W. DIVISION
Grambiing State
Southern
Texas Southern
Ark. Pine Bluff
Prairie View A&M
L w
2 8
2 7 5
3 8 4
5 2 10
6 2 9
1 9 3
1 11 1
4 5 6
4 4 7
9
7 1
SWAC PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
OFFENSE
QUINCY RICHARD, Sr., QB, SOUTHERN •
Ckxnpleted 34 of 42 passes for 552 yards and
five TDs in win over Grambiing that clinched
SWAC West tide.
BRUCE EUGENE, Jr., QB, GRAMBIING - 26-'
48 for 409 yards and 3 TDs, rushed for 80 in loss
to Southern.
INDEPEND.
Tenn. State
Florida A&M
Edw. Waters
Stillman
Lincoln (Mo.)
Allen
W. Va, State
Cheyney
Sav, State
PUYERS OF THE WEEK
OFFENSE
Southern prevails; B-CC, A&T fall
LUT WILLIAMS
BCSP Editor
The top five teams in the BCSP Top Ten took
to the field for important games over the weekend.
The two winners have another game to play while
the three losers saw their seasons come to an end.
Classic Rivalry
BCSP Nos. 1 and 2, Grambiing State and
Southern, staged a shootout for the ages at the
30th Bayou Classic Saturday with the Jaguars pre
vailing, 44-41.
Southern (11-1) and coach Pete Richardson
not only got their tenth win in 11 games in the clas
sic against Grambiing (9-3), but this time halted
the Tigers three-year stranglehold on the SWAC
(itle by taking the West Division crown and a spot
in the Dec. 13 SWAC Championship Game in
Birmingham.
The Jaguars also moved back atop the BCSP
Top Ten and in position to take their first black col
lege national championship since 1998.
When the dust cleared Saturday in the offen
sive slugfest before the season's second largest
black college crowd, 70,151 fans at the New
Orleans Superdome, Southern and Grambiing had
combined for 1,136 yards and a classic-record 85
points.
Southern senior quarterback Quincy Richard
and a host of his receivers were the stars. Richard
(34-42-2 ints.) ran for one touchdown and threw
for a career-high 552 yards and five touchdowns
while three of his receivers (Alfred Ard, Chris
Davis and Drayton Bridges) topped 100 receiving
yards.
Grambiing junior quarterback Bruce Eugene,
who passed for 409 yards and three TDs (26-48-2),
was in tears after the game. And as great as the
contest was, perhaps the most outstanding high
light was the Southern players’ reaction to Eugene.
As the New Orleans native shed tears pro
fusely with NBC's cameras giving an up-close
glimpse to millions on national TV, player after
player from Southern came up to console him.
Perhaps the most poignant comment about the
so-called Tierce rivalry' between the two Louisiana
schools came from Southern defensive back Erin
Damond, who picked off Eugene’s final pass as he
attempted to lead Grambiing to a last-minute vic
tory.
"I've never experienced anything like this,"
said Damond, an LSU transfer. "It's a rivalry, but
it's nothing but love, no hatred. You have to be a
part of it to really feel how it is."
Playoff Debacles
BCSP No. 3, North Carolina A&T and No.
4, Bethune-Cookman battled gamely but went
down to defeat in the first round of the NCAA Div.
I-AA playoffs against higher ranked opponents.
BCSP Notes
MEAC Grid Stars
Bethune-Cookman quarterback Allen Suber
has been named the Mid Eastern Athletic
Conference Offensive Player of the Year and his
teammate, defensive end Steve Baggs was named
the Defensive Player of the Year, the league
announced last week.
Hampton's freshman running back Alonzo
Coleman picked up Rookie of the Year honors,
while his teammate, Patrick Cheatham was named
the MEAC Offensive Lineman of the Year. North
Carolina A&T head coach George Small earned
Coach of the Year honors.
This mai’ks the second straight season that
Bethune-Cookman produced the leagues' offensive
and defensive players of the year. Last year, Suber
and former teammate RaShean Mathis were the
recipients of the two awards.
Suber, the preseason favorite, was named the
MEAC player of the week three times this season.
Suber led the MEAC in total offense, averaging
212.5 yards per game. He currently has 4,950 pass
ing yards (15th all-time in MEAC) and 2,875 rush
ing yards (8th all-time in MEAC). Suber is a final
ist for the coveted Walter Payton Award given to the
top I-AA football player in the nation.
Baggs, a Buck Buchanan Award finalist, leads
division I-AA and set a division record with 35 tack
les for losses. He averages 3.00 tackles for losses
per game. Baggs is also fifth nationally in sacks
averaging 1.14 (14.5 total sacks). On November 15
Baggs became the Wildcats’ all-time sack leader
with 36.5 sacks, eclipsing the previous mark of 34
set in 1997. He currently has 37 sacks.
Coleman burst into the Hampton lineup as a
WINNERS: Charlie Coe (I.) and Pete
Richardson (r.) emerged from their Thanksgiving
weekend battles and will now face off Dec. 13 in
Birmingham at the SWAC Championship Game.
The Aggies (10-3) fell at Wofford, 31-10, while the
Wildcats (9-3) lost at home to Florida Atlantic, 32-
24.
Wofford's methodical option attack rolled up
370 rushing yards on 58 attempts while getting
none through the air (0-2,0 yds.) in wearing down
A&T.
Wofford QB Jeff Zolman did the most dam
age, getting most of his 141 yards on 12 carries
through the middle of the Aggie defense. RB
Kevious Johnson got most of his 106 yards on the
edges as the Terriers varied their ground attack.
After trailing 10-0 at the half, and going down
17-0 early in the third period, the Aggies fought
back to within 17-10 on a three-yard TD run by QB
Rico Watkins and a 25-yard Yonnick Matthews
field goal, both in the third quarter. But Wofford
opened the fourth quarter with a 17-play, 85-yard
drive consuming almost seven minutes and result
ing in Zolman's four-yard TD run that effectively
put the game away.
The Aggies rushed for 162 yards and netted
176 passing yards but were hurt by Watkins' four
sacks for -44 yards.
Bethune-Cookman, playing without injured
star QB Allen Suber for more than three quarters,
battled back from 17-point deficits in the first and
fourth quarters getting to within 27-24 late before
FAU pulled away for the victory.
Suber, the Wildcats' versatile MEAC offen
sive player of the year, went out early in the first
quarter with a bruised sternum and did not return.
B-CC head coach Alvin Wyatt used three reserve
QBs, using all three in some drives, as the Wildcats
went away from their option attack choosing
instead to put the ball in the air after trailing 17-0
in the first quarter and 27-10 in the last period.
Reserve Scott Austin (26-42-1 int., 191 yds.,
2 TDs) was the most effective. After a 23-yard
Jesus Cortez field goal got the 'Cats on the board
before the half, Austin hit Jonathan Summers
with a 53-yard TD pass to open the second half
scoring and get them to within 17-10 early in the
third quarter.
FAU came back to score 10 more points
starter midway through the season. He led the MEAC
in scoring and is currently seventh nationally, averag
ing 9.8 points per game. He has a league-leading 18
touchdowns for a total of 108 points. Named MEAC
rookie of the week four times this season, Coleman
had four games this season where he scored three
touchdowns and six games where he scored at least
two. An All-MEAC preseason pick, Cheatham was a
two-time MEAC offensive lineman of the week pick
this season. He led a Hampton offensive line that
cleared the way for Hampton’s 26 rushing touch
downs, 18 by teammate Coleman.
Small, in his first season as A&T's head coach,
led the Aggies to a 6-1 record in league play and the
team’s first MEAC Championship since 1999. The
Aggies’ 10-2 regular season record is the team’s first
10-win season since 1999 and only the second 10-win
season in the school’s 80-year history. The MEAC
All-Conference First and Second Teams were also
announced, as selected by the MEAC’s head coaches
and sports information directors.
OFFENSE
WR - Tavarus Morgan,So., SCSU
WR - Jerome Mathis, Jr., Hampton
OL - Patrick Cheatham, Sr., Hampton
OL - Brandon Torrey, Jr., Howard
OL -Yannick Boka, Sr., MSU
OL - Corey Haynes, Sr., SCSU
C - Jelani Clement, Jr., Hampton
TE - Chris Cash, So., MSU
QB - Allen Suber, Sr., B-CC
RB - Alonzo Coleman, Fr., Hampton
RB - Antoine Rutherford, Fr., Howard
KR/PR - Leonard Goolsby, Sr., SCSU
PK - Yonnick Matthews, Sr., NCA&T
BCSP TOP TEN
1. SOUTHERN (11-1) - 44-41 win over Grambiing clinches
SWAC West title. NEXT: Dec. 13 vs. Alabama State in SWAC
Championship Game.
2. GRAMBLING ST. (9-3) - Lost to Southern, 44-41, in Bayou
Classic. NEXT: Season over. Tied for first in SWAC West.
3. N. C. A&T (10-3) - Lost 31-10 at Wofford in first round of I-
AA playoffs. NEXT: Season over. MEAC champ.
4. BETHUNE-COOKMAN (9-3) - Lost to Florida Atlantic. 32-
24 in first round of I-AA playoffs. NEXT: Season over. Tied for
second in MEAC.
5. ALABAMA STATE (8-4) ■ Beat Tuskegee, 48-28. NEXT:
SWAC Championship Game, Dec. 13 vs. Southern in
Birmingham.
6. ALBANY STATE (9-2) - SIAC champs. NEXT: Pioneer
Bowl vs. CIAA champ, Fayetteville State.
7. ALABAMA A&M (8-4) - Season over. Third in SWAC East.
8. HAMPTON (7-4) - Season over. Tied for second in MEAC
9. S. C. STATE (8-4) ■ Season over. Tied for second in MEAC
10. ALCORN STATE (7-5) - Season over. Tied for first in
SWAC East.
(TIE) TENNESSEE STATE (6-5) - Season over.
before two quick B-CC touchdowns, Austin's six-
yard scoring pass to Eric Weems (11 rec., 124 yds.)
and a 19-yard TD run from Brad Lee got B-CC to
within 27-24 midway through the fourth quarter.
But they could not mount a scoring threat after that.
B-CC outgained the Owls 400 to 316 yards and
sacked FAU QB Jared Allen six times but were
done in by four lost fumbles, two interceptions and
16 penalties for 142 yards.
Holiday Treat
BCSP No. 5, Alabama State, who had already
clinched the SWAC East title and a spot in the Dec.
13 SWAC Championship Game, ended four years
of frustration by knocking off Thskegee 48-28
Thursday at the 80th annual Turkey Day Classic in
Montgomery, Al.
In getting the win, new head coach Charlie
Coe accomplished something that L. C. Cole, the
man he replaced barely a month before the season
stated, could not do in four tries.
After falling behind 14-0 in the first period, the
Hornets scored 34 unanswered points to take con
trol of the contest. ASU QB Tavarus Jackson (11-
22-0, 230 yards) threw for three TDs while WR
Reginald Glover (6 rec., 176 yds.) hauled in two
scoring passes. RB Keldrick Williams ran for 112
yards and another two TDs (40 and 12 yards).
ASU will enter the SWAC title game with an
84 record. Tuskegee ends its season at 5-6.
BAGGS
SUBER
DEFENSE
DL - Steve Baggs, Sr., BCC
DL - Isaac Hilton,Sr., Hampton
DL - Paul White, Sr., Hampton
DL-Albert Gamble, Sr., MSU
LB - Kevin Talley, Jr., NSU
LB - Jamal Muhammad, Jr., BCC
LB - Kitwana Jones, Sr., Hampton
DB - Tor-El Robinson, Sr., BCC
DB - Antoine Bethea, So., Howard
DB - Eddie Ravenall, Sr., NCA&T
DB - Johnny Williams, Sr., SCSU
P - Cameron Muro, So., Hampton
SECOND TEAM
OFFENSE
WR -Thomas Bolden, Jr., DSU; Tommie Manus, Jr.,
MSU OL- Julius Franklin, Jr., BCC; Kareem Sanders,
Sr., NCA&T; Maurice Foster, Sr,MSU; Aaron Wiggins,
Jr, MSU C-Junius Coston, Jr, NCA&T TE-Samuel
Buck, So., Howard QB - Reese McCampbell, Sr,
SCSU RB-Terrell Johnson, So., NSU; Coty Martin,
Jr, SCSU KR/PR-Jonathan Brewer, Sr, Howard PK-
Jon Voroshilin, Sr, MSU
DEFENSE
DL-Olufemi Oyedele, Jr, DSU; Samuel Murphy, Sr,
Hampton; Rickie Lewis, So., NCA&T; Travis Kinloch,
So., SCSU LB-Vincent Brown, Fr, MSU; Herbert
Dixon, Fr, NCA&T ; Andreakos Pooler, Sr, SCSU
DB-Kenny Heatly, Sr, BCC; Dewitt Ellerbe, Sr,
SCSU; Travis Oliver, Sr, Hampton; Tyrone
Greenwood, Sr, DSU P-Jon Voroshilin, Sr, MSU