The Choice for African-American Sews
The Chronicle
SportsWeek^
r ' ' october 3, 2002
Parkland, Carver
prepare to do battle
Carver hoping for payback to settle last year's score
BY SAM DAVIS
Carver began the 2002
football season with a basic
theme: This season would be
the year of the "Big Payback."
With the exception of Carver's
season-opening tie against
Mount Tabor, that theme has
held true to form.
The Yellowjackets, who
defeated Greensboro Smith
35-14 Friday night, would like
for that trend to continue Fri
day when they play host to
Parkland at Bowman Gray Sta
dium.
Coach Keith Wilkes and
-his team tuned up for their bat
tle against the Mustangs by
shutting down an explosive
Smith team Friday. Carver
held Smith to just over 2(H)
yards of offense and went over
the 300-yard mark in total
offense for the sixth consecu
tive game as it improved to 5
0-1.
"Right now I think we're
playing our best football of the
season." Wilkes said. "I
thought our defense did a good
job of holding Smith to its
lowest scoring total of the sea
son. and our offense seems to
be improving each week."
As it has all season, Carver
hit the Golden Eagles with a
one-two punch at quarterback
(D'Angelo Gra^, and Jamar
Pitts) and had several running
backs to factor into the victory.
See Mustangs on B2 I
Photo by I mas Sivad
Coach Grady Crosby of the Winston-Salem Vikings Pee Wees gives instructions to his team
during the Vikings' game against the South Fork Panthers. The Vikings rallied to take a 7-0
overtime victory.
Disturbing trends in
Pop Warner football
deserve some review
From The Press Box
^ Sam Davis
The local Pop Warner football season Is
nearing the halfway point, and teams
throughout the Triad Area are enjoying
phenomenal success in participation and attendance.
Local teams are the lifeblood of the high school pro
grams in the area, particularly in Forsyth County,
where there are no feeder programs for high school
teams.
When you look at the success of the high school
programs in Forsyth County, you have to believe
that the Pop Warner coaches have had a lot to do
with the early development of players who have
come through those programs.
By the time this season comes to a close, local
teams - who are now jockeying for playoff position
- will be crowned as champions in two divisions.
Those teams will then advance to state, regional and
national competitions. The experience the players
gain will be invaluable to the players who are par
ticipate in those winning programs.
Yet. all is not well with Pop Warner football.
From time to time there are disturbing issues that
arise iu little league sports, and despite all the posi
tives Pop Warner football provides, a negative shad
ow is cast on it.
Perhaps the most disturbing issue currently cir
culating relates to the" number of athletes who are
either being coerced to or are choosing to lose
weight to play. In many instances the athletes are
"cutting" weight so they can play "older lighter." In
that category, athletes who are a year older than the
other players can play at the division lower than
their age group if they are 10 to 15 pounds lighter
than their counterparts.
The intent is to give players who weigh less an
opportunity to play with players who are of the same
weight. Some coaches have deliberately made an
effort to attract players who are a year older and
more mature physically than the players who are in
their natural age grouping.
See Press Box on B2
Photo by Bruce Chapman
Vincent White of W55U strips the ball from Jerome Lesley during the Rams' battle against
the Panthers Saturday at Bowman Gray Stadium. Lesley and the Panthers escaped with an
18-15 victory.
Rams face Broncos in key battle
The CI A A this Week
BY SAM DAVIS
THE CHRONICLE
The pecking order in the
CIAA is beginning to take shape,
and it looks like this season
could be the most competitive
one in more than a decade.
While Winston-Salem State and
Virginia Union were favored to
capture divisional titles and
could still be the front-runners,
both are being pushed by divi
sional foes. And both have stem
tests coming up this weekend.
Virginia Union got a leg up
on the race for the league crown
by taking an 18-15 victory on a
last-second field goal over
WSSU last weekend. But the
Panthers can't afford to savor
their victory long. VUU will
travel to Bowie State for an East
ern Division battle against the
Bulldogs Saturday.
The Panthers are starting to
resemble the Willard Bailey
coached teams that dominated
teams in the early 1980s with
their bruising style of play on
offense and defense. They will
battle a Bowie State team that
could be the league's best defen
sive unit. However, the Bulldogs
have struggled on offense for
most of the season and will need
one of their best defensive
efforts of the season to shut
down a potent Virginia Union
offense.
Bowie State has three of the
top defensive players in the con
ference on its squad. But unless
the ifulldogs' defense can pro
duce points they will be hard
pressed to come away w ith a vic
tory. VUU quarterback Cofdell
Roane has stepped into the line
Scc CIAA on B5
Last-second field
goal downs Rams
BY SAM DAVIS
THE CHRONICLE
Winston-Salem State has reached a point
that none of the players on its football team
has seen before, but coach Kermit Blount
isn't panicking. The Rams, who have gotten
out to a 1-3 start, will play host to Fayetteville
State Saturday in their homecoming game.
After losing both of their home games thus far
this season, the Rams are hard-up for a victo
ry
The Rams saw their 12-game regular-sea
son home winning streak against C1AA oppo
nents come to an abrupt halt. The 18-15 loss
dealt to WSSU by Virginia Union Saturday at
Bowman Gray Stadium was the Rams' first
season defeat during the regular season since
they lost to Livingstone in 1998. It is also the
first time the Rams have started the season 1
3 since the 1996 season.
WSSU led for most of the game after scor
ing on its first possession. The Rams jumped
on top after taking the ball, driving 80 yards
and tacking on the extra point. The game
score remained 7-0 until the third quarter
when VUU finally got on the scoreboard after
a muffed punt by the Rams.
By that time WSSU had blown several
chances to get on the scoreboard. The Rams
had several opportunities to add points in the
third quarter but failed to do so. VUU took
advantage of its chances, scoring all 18 points
after intermission, including a 47-yard field
goal by Tony Oby on the game's final play as
She horn sounded.
Coich Kermit Blount said the Rams' mis
takes cost them a chance at victory.
"It's a tough ballgame. and it's one that we
shouldn't have been in that situation." Blount
said. "We had the opportunity to score again,
and we couldn't get it done, and those guys
played a helluva ballgame, and I take my hat
off to coach Bailey and his staff."
Bailey, whose team brought a 3-1 overall
record into the game, said the game-winning
field goal was an added dimension for the
Panthers, who defeated the Rams on a last
Set- Rams on B5
'Jackets' JVs sting Smith
BY THERESA DAVIS
FOR THE CHRONICI F
Carver got a chance to see
just how well its youth move
ment was taking shape when
the Yellowjackets' Junior varsi
ty squared off against Greens
boro Smith Monday night.
Carver's entire starting back
field was made up of three
freshmen. However, that unit
got the Yellowjackets out of the
gate quickly and helped Carver
roll to a 33-14 victory at David
Lash Stadium.
"Those guys could all make
weight for the Junior Midgets
in Pop Warner." said coach
Sam Davis, whose team
improved to 4-1 overall and 2-1
in the Piedmont Triad Confer
ence. "But they go hard at it
every play, and they're very
dependable."
The unit - with Levon
Lawrence at quarterback.
Tyrone Springs at halfback and
Eric Brown at fullback - bene
fited from a 60-yard kickoff
return by DeMario Smith to
open the game. The Yellow
jackets then stormed in for the
touchdown to grab a 6-0 lead.
Smith answered with a touch
down of its own. but the Yel
lowjackets clamped down on
Smith the remainder of the half.
Smith, which rushed for
more than 100 yards for the
third consecutive game, added
a 2-yard touchdown and added
a two-point conversion to lift
Carver to a 14-8 lead at the
half.
Carver's defense came to
life in the second half, led by
the inspired play of linebacker
Octavius Davis. Davis finished
the night with 12 tackles.
Sir Carver JV on B3
Photo b> Imas Sivad
Members of the Crowe// family tailgate in the parking lot before Virginia's game ttgainst
Wake Forest Saturday. With his family cheering him on, Angelo Crowe// and the Cavaliers
fought back to take a 38-34 victory.
Local players
make impact
in Virginia's
win over Wake
BY SAM DAVIS
THE CHRONICLE
Losing a football game
that you're expected to win is
one thing. But losing to a team
in your own back yard is even
more difficult to accept. That
prospect was on the mind of
two former Forsyth County
players when Virginia and
Wake Forest battled in an
ACC game at Groves Stadium
Saturday night.
The game was a home
St t Crowell on B3
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