Newspapers / The Charlotte Post (Charlotte, … / Aug. 18, 2005, edition 1 / Page 17
Part of The Charlotte Post (Charlotte, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
http://www.thecharlottepost.com c Section Cl^arlotte SPORTS Panthers’ Smith returns to form Ib put it bluntly, it was one stinking NFL preseason game. In this dty, however? From talk- radio shows to watering holes to barber shops, folks have been rej oicing C. Jemal about how Horton good the Carolina Panthers looked in last Saturday’s 28-10 victory over Washington at Bank of America Stadium. Such an over-the-top reac tion to a preseason victory is to be attributed, in lai^e part, to the fact that the Panthers went a pitilul 7-9 last season, one year after making it all the way to the Jackson Bowl... I mean. Super Bowl. Nonetheless, there indeed is a legitimate reason for gid diness ai’ound here after that preseason victory And its name is Steve Smith. The teams sole playmaka*, it appears, is back. For real. Finally, the football portion of this city can exhale. I mean, come on. We fig- m’ed quarterback Jake Delhomme would be good. And we knew the Panthers defense, with guys such as Julius Peppers and Mike Rucker and (a healthy) Dan Morgan on the field, would be fine. But Smith? There still were so many questions about whether he would be folly recovered fi*om a broken left leg that kept him on injured reserve pretty much all of last sea son. But Smith answered them. It’s not that he caught long, dreamy touchdown passes laist Saturday In fact, he actually dropped a pass that he had a good chance of run ning into the end zone. No, it was just in the way Smith looked like his flashy, cocky, Fm-better-than-you self. He caught an early quick pass fit)m Delhomme and exhibited his familiar bxirst of speed, delivering his trademark stiff arm to the defender as he scooted out of bounds. And, then, it happened. As Smith turned head toward the huddle, he took the football and gave it a sig nature spin on the ground. THAT swagger, that ability to make a short gain resem ble a work of art, was what this team had been missing last year. “I think Steve Smith has proven what kind of player he is when he’s healthy,” Panthers coach John Fox said after the exhibition. ‘1 think it was pretty evident he was healthy (last Saturday).” Smith, who finished with two catches for 18 yards and one punt return for a sdntil- lating 11 yards, ^reed with that sentiment. “It felt good to be out there producing, especially with my teammates,” Smith said. ‘It’s exciting to be out there, but we’re missing a special guy — Stephen Davis. Once he gets bade out there, we’ll be complete.” Davis, a star running back who still is missing time with a knee injury, certainly will help the Panthers when he returns. However, there is a huge difference between See SMITH/3C Got Smart: Special teams aces boosts Panthers PHOTO/WADE NASH Rod Smart’s (32) return from knee surgery provides an immediate upgrade for the Carolina Panthers’ special teams. By C. Jemal Horton THE CHARLOTTE POST All the pomp and circum stance going on inside Bank of America Stadium Saturday night hadn’t even gotten a chance to settle down. Nonetheless, Rod Smart had a point to make. And, well, it took the Carolina Panthers’ star spe cial-teams player and reserve running back rough ly six seconds to do it. BOOM! Washington’s Antonio Brown was heading up the field witli the opening kickoff of Saturday’s exhibition game, when the 5-foot-ll, 201-pound Smart smashed into him with the violence of a play-fight between Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown. The hit sent Brown to the ground immediately and served as a dear indication that Smart, who spent most of last season on injm’ed reserve with a knee injury, was back to his familiar form. “That’s the way you do it! Ri^t off the bat!” Smart said with a biuad grin after the Panthers’ 28-10 victory ‘You PHOTO/WADE NASH Johnson C. Smith head coach Daryl McNeill will decide on a starting quarterback among three candidates: Senior Edvard Jean (from left) and freshmen Rodriguez Patterson and Carlton Richardson. Quarterback derby J.C. Smith’s offensive options hinge on inexperienced trio By Herbert L. White herb.whiie& tliecharlotiepostrom Experience is a rare commodity among Johnson C. Smith quarter backs. Of the three candidates participat ing in preseason drills — senior Edvard Jean and fi'eshmen Rodriguez Patterson and Carlton Richardson - only Jean has taken a snap in college. But coach Daiyi McNeill believes a serviceable starter can be developed quicldy if someone emerges as the fiontrun- “The thing we want to do is keep pushing those kids and make them think they are going to start,” he said. “One will, but we fed like all three (non-starters) of them will be ready to start.” After a week of competition, it’s hard to handicap the derby Jean (1- of-12, 9 yards, 2 interceptions in 2004) is the only holdover fix)m spring diills, but Richardson (Columbia, S.C.) can have an imme diate impact. A backup for most of his hi^ school career, Richardson had a threw for over 2,000 yards as a senior and has the size at 6-foot-2 and arm strength to provide an upgrade over last year. “It’s definitely open,” he said. “Edvard hasn’t taken many snaps as a college quar terback going into his senior year. Carltcai Richardson hadn’t taken a lot of snaps going into his high school (senior) year. We’re in a situation where these gu}^ are going to really, really compete for that posi tion.” The starter will have one of the CLAA’s better receivers in Marquis Belton to See J.C. SMITH/2C Aggie-Eagle labors on with new date By Bonitta Best WE TRIANGLE TRIBUNE RALEIGH - The CIAA is gone, and the MEAC has yet to make its debut and eco nomic impact. That leaves the Aggie Eagle (Hassic as the biggest black college sports event in the Triai^le. The football game Division I-AA N.C. A&T State against Division n N.C. Central is Sept. 5. Unlike the CIAA tourna ment, Aggie-Ea^e fans just want to kick some serious behind on the field - whether it’s the game or the halftime battle of the bands. It’s about bragging rights among play ers, fiiends, relatives, neigh bors, dogs, cats, you name it. ‘Tm still very excited,” said A&T alum Lonnie “Tre” Spinks, 33, who has attend ed every Aggies-Eagles game since childhood. “They are serious about their bands and we’re serious about ours, they send messages back and we send messages back; it’s not just the football, it’s the whole hype.” Despite dwindling atten dance, the game has been good to Raleigh. In 2002, the last economic impact report on the classic by the Ralei^ Convention and \fisitors Bureau, the event brought an estimated $3.2 million to the local economy, and 43,000 fans. HELLO, DARLING Since replacing Staley, Sting point guard has blossomed By Aaron Summer llIE CHARLOTTE POST Three minutes, one field goal attempt, no points. For Helen Darling, her July 29 box score was all too familiar Smc6 her February trade to the Charlotte Sting, playing time had been scarce^ opportunities to shine few and far between. The lack of time was throi^h no fault of Darling’s, nor was it an indication of her skills The point guard just had the misfortune of backing up a women’s basketball legend, Olympian and Sting cap tain Dawn Staley • But just three days after that pal try performance against Seattle, everything changed. In an attempt to give their aging star a shot at a championship, the Sting traded Staley to the Houston Comets. The move left Darling as tiie only point guard on Charlotte’s roster. In the following game at Washington, Darling logged 39 minutes, sur passing her total fiom the prior six games combined. Darling took full advantage of the opportunity to start, generously See DARLING/3C PHOTO/WADE NASH Helen Darling’s minutes and production are up since replacing Dawn Staley at point guard. Bonitta Best have to let people know that you’re going to be your old self. I established myself early tonight. That was cool.” Smart paused and smiled again. “After* last year, you just don’t know how good it feels to be back on the field.” If Smart’s opening sequence was a foreshadow ing of how good he will be this season, then it also means the Panther’s’ special teams are going to be among the league’s best once again. Losing Smart in the thu*d game last season was a See SMART/2C HBCU sports finally noticed Black college sports is hot. Really hot. Really, R-E-A-L- L-Yhot! Why is it so hot? Because white folks, i.e. advertiser’s have discovered it. We all know nothing is legit until white people “get it” - right? Black Entertainment Television, ESPN, CSTV, NBC and the Black Family Channel all want a piece of the HBCU action. (Dn sec ond thought, cancel out the BFC, formerly MBC Network but still owned by Shaw alumnus Wfilie Gary. We probably won’t be seeing too many more games on that channel since rumor has it paychecks roll out slower than molasses over there. Talk about BET all you want - and you should - but the network has broadcast black college games long before anybody else. NBC televises the Bayou Classic featuring Southern versus Grambling. It took the CIAA 60 years for ESPN to notice the conference. Now it and CSTV are battling it out for the black sports market. So what took so long? “The change occurred a couple of years ago,” said Eric Moore, publisher of HBCUsports.com. “The suc cess of black college teams began to get noticed on a much larger scale. “ So true. Despite the tur moil swirling over at Florida A&M, it was only six years ago that the Rattlers were two games away fium the NCAA Division I-AA cham pionship. ESPN came sniffing for the CIAA after the tourney was profiled in USA Tbday a cou ple of years ago. See, when black people see a crowd of black fans, we think “Dang, somebody must be having a good time. Whae’s the party?’ White people look at a crowd of black fans and think “CnA-CHING!” Then they start plotting. Sadly, though, when it comes to whites relating to blacks, even in 2005, you’d be amazed at how many don’t know Martin Luther King Jr. fium Martin Luther the protestant. The same with advertisers. Somebody has to teach them. “Local advertisers who may have had a successful ejqDerience with a black col lege event have gotten per haps promoted up to a regional or national level, See BLACK/2C • #oi
The Charlotte Post (Charlotte, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Aug. 18, 2005, edition 1
17
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75