| HBCU Pre-Season Football Camp Report – Plus More….Aug. 26 |
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| Thu, Aug 26, 2010 > 8:43am |
One thing we do know, HBCU teams have been practicing hard and everyone is presently undefeated. There are some teams and fans believe they will stay that way, there are also teams and fans believing this will be a breakout year and we all know there some who are hoping, but have a realization it won’t happen. The season kicks off this Saturday in Division II action and next Thursday for Division I. 2010 Football season is here, so let’s have some fun…..
The big shocker during this pre-season was learning that Grambling’s All-American defensive end – Christian Anthony has been sidelined with heart problems. The good thing is he is out of the hospital and recuperating. Speaking with sports information spokesman Roderick Moseley, there is no official word on his playing status. The important fact with Christian is to get well. By the way, Moseley was also hospitalized during the same time as Anthony. He is also recuperating after the doctors found an irregular heart beat. Christian was released from the hospital last Tuesday and Moseley last Friday. GSU head coach Rod Broadway is not expecting, Christian to play this season, according to the News Star.
The subject of the Legacy Bowl and if you haven’t heard, this game will pit the MEAC Champion against the SWAC Champion…..The Virginian Pilot and the Times & Democrat have been keeping up with that subject and they did a public poll that is pretty interesting. In Norfolk, VA, Virginian Pilot fans were asked – “Should the MEAC give up its spot in the FCS Playoffs in favor of a post season ending bowl game?” As of Wed. Aug. 25, with 411 voters, the count is 71% No, 25% yes, and 4% undecided. Now in Orangeburg, SC with 1,028 fans voting so far, were asked more in-depth questions:
• The Legacy Bowl is a bad idea. It will hurt the university financially and will hinder recruiting efforts - 76%
• The Legacy Bowl is a great idea and will only provide an initial boost – 12%
• The Legacy Bowl is a great idea and will provide a financial boost to the institution and program – 12%
This topic has been one of the biggest off-season topics around both conferences. The SWAC gave up their FCS playoffs automatic bid in favor of their championship game and other classic games in the late ‘90’s, while the MEAC has an automatic bid to the playoffs and all members are eligible for the national playoffs. According to the MEAC, their decision will be made sometime this fall.
Now back to the upcoming season, let’s take a look at camp reports.
Alabama State – The Hornets held its final scrimmage of the preseason last weekend, and like prior week, the defense dominated early with the offense scoring late.
During the 65-play scrimmage, the defense only allowed 282 total yards with 153 of those yards coming on the final four possessions of the scrimmage.
There were 13 drives in all, and the defense forced six three downs-and-out possessions, while also turning the ball over on downs and stopping one early drive with an interception. Three of the drives were stopped with minus yardage in the drive.
The offense finally put together a seven-play 59 yard drive on the fifth possession of the scrimmage. Demetric Price was the quarterback in the drive and culminated the drive with a 15-yard touchdown pass to Landon Jones. Price finished the scrimmage completing seven of his 11 passes for 72 yards and one score.
Devin Dominguez stepped in for his turn at the quarterback position and struggled early. He was intercepted by Brandon Roberts on his first pass attempt and missed on his first three passes. During his third possession he led the offense on a six-play 60 yard drive that ended with Ronald Belser scoring on a 36-yard touchdown run. Belser broke four tackles on the fourth-and-one play.
Dominguez finished the scrimmage three-for-seven passing for 35 yards and the interception.
Rashard Burkette directed the final three possessions of the scrimmage, including the final two which ended in scores.
The offense scored on a seven-play 45-yard drive with Quendarious McKibbons scoring from three yards out. The final possession of the day was also the best. It went 11 plays and covered 60 yards with the final three yards covered by a scoring pass to Jones, his second of the scrimmage.
Burkette finished the scrimmage with six completions among his 11 attempts for 63 yards and a score.
Belser led the team in rushing with 52 yards on four carries while McKibbons and Andrew Pitts each had 12 yards on seven carries.
Tim Clark, Maurice Tate and Marcus Solomon all had four tackles to lead a balanced defensive effort. The defense also registered seven sacks on the day and broke up two passes to go along with Roberts’ interception.
The kicking game was once again solid with Andrew Lyons connecting on all four extra points. He also attempted a 57-yard field goal that fell just short during the scrimmage.
Anthony Speight had a good scrimmage punting the football. He was actually able to flip the field on several of his punts as he averaged 40 yards per punt. Lyons also had two punts and averaged 43 yards on his punts.
Even though the offense struggled during some of the possessions in today’s scrimmage, offensive coordinator Melvin Spears saw some good things coming from the offense. “We were able to finally kick it in a little late during the scrimmage,” Spears said. “We spent a lot of time today working with our second tier guys. We played them a lot today and it showed.” We have to work on getting the offense to jell a little more and to play with more tempo. We want to play at a high level on each play and to do that we need to get in better shape.”
Head coach Reggie Barlow echoed a lot of Spears comments. “Once again we had several individual players that did some good things,” Barlow said. “We played with a lot of young players, especially on the offensive line, and did not play some of the older players as much. We need to see how the young players are going to help us this year and see how they step up and compete. I am pleased with our wide receivers and our running backs. The backs ran the ball hard and the receivers can make some big plays, but we have to get the offensive linemen in shape.”
All three quarterbacks were able to take around the same amount of snaps again in this scrimmage, and once again the offense was able to score under the leadership of each quarterback.
“We will take a long look at evaluating our quarterbacks,” Barlow said. “All three played behind a young offensive line today as we played all of those young players. It showed as there were several sacks out there. But sometime for the quarterbacks to be effective it is not all about stats, but the way the team plays for them, how they handle adversity, how they organize the team and their sense of urgency. All three have shown a lot of positives so we will carefully evaluate them.”
Bethune Cookman – The Wildcats got a chance to test out their new turf at Municipal Stadium and there were bright spots to talk about. The top downfield play from Saturday’s Bethune-Cookman University practice at Municipal Stadium was a nice 65-yarder from QB Jackie Wilson to WR Patrick Harris.
But as far as receiving went, the day was a showcase for Bethune-Cookman running backs. Androse Bell, Isidore Jackson and Angelo Cabrera each registered a first down catch during the workout, with Bell eluding tacklers for what would have been a 50-yard gain after the catch. “Today was one of those where the backs stepped up and made plays,” said B-CU coach Brian Jenkins. “We were looking at all types of situations.”
Quarterback Matt Johnson appreciates what his running backs can do in addition to the carrying the ball. “When we call their number, they respond and do what is asked of them,” said Johnson, who also scrambled for a touchdown during red-zone drills. “Androse knows the offense as well as I do. When he saw the coverage, he knew he was going to get the ball.”
“Hot, very hot,” Johnson said about the combination of Florida weather in August plus the new surface.” But the field is very fast. It’ll make for great football. B-CU opens the season at Municipal Stadium September 4 against Edward Waters College.
Norfolk State - Takeem Hedgeman (Charlottesville, Va.) ran 10 times for 41 yards and the lone touchdown of the evening to highlight the Norfolk State football team’s final scrimmage of preseason camp on Saturday night at Dick Price Stadium.
The 65-play scrimmage was the second in three nights for the Spartans, who concluded camp on Saturday and will begin preparations for their season-opener at Rutgers on Monday, which is also the first day of first-semester classes. Hedgeman’s 1-yard plunge on the final play of the scrimmage served as the only points of the night.
Hedgeman’s run, though, wasn’t the only offensive highlight. The offense opened the night with a 10-play drive which included a 20-yard run by Donovan Cotton (Tampa, Fla.) and a 20-yard pass play from quarterback Chris Walley (Tallahassee, Fla.) to tight end Sherron Childress (Hampton, Va.). But Walley’s pass into the end zone on the 10th play of the march was intercepted by cornerback Jamie Short (Virginia Beach, Va.).
NSU sat out a couple of players due to minor bumps and bruises, giving the reserves the chance to showcase the team’s depth. That allowed players like Hedgeman, a sophomore who redshirted last season, the opportunity to play extended time. Hedgeman was one of four players to get at least five carries in the scrimmage, along with sophomore Markeith Brisco (Stephens City, Va.), freshman Marvin Ford (Orlando, Fla.) and junior transfer Patrick Mills (Petersburg, Va.). That quartet combined for 25 carries for 108 yards. Walley completed 10-of-13 passes for 91 yards.
“Overall I was very pleased with our two weeks in camp,” head coach Pete Adrian said. “We’ve made a lot of progress on both sides of the ball and managed to stay pretty healthy. Now, we can turn our attention to Rutgers full time starting on Monday.” After the Monday practice, Chris Walley was tagged the starting quarterback for their season opener.
N.C. Central – In their scrimmage last weekend, it was also a day for their fans. An eager crowd of devoted fans braved 90-degree heat to “Meet the Eagles” on Saturday (Aug. 21) as the NCCU football team made its public debut. The 85-member team signed autographs and chatted with fans before entertaining the crowd with a 61-play scrimmage at O’Kelly-Riddick Stadium in Durham, N.C.
Senior linebacker Calvin Hillie has high expectations this season and hopes to win every home game, especially the season-opening contest against Johnson C. Smith University on Thursday, Sept. 2. “We have 17 starters returning, a lot of experience and a load of depth,” said Hillie. “The strength of the team right now is the defense.”
Junior offensive lineman Timothy Charity said this year has been a learning experience with so many newcomers to the offensive line, but his hopes are high. “With so many new guys on the offensive line, we have been doing a lot of learning in the preseason,” said Charity.
Head coach Mose Rison said that he is pleased with the progress of the team at this point. “I think it’s been a good fall camp and I know come the second of September it’ll be a good turnout,” said Rison.
During the Maroon versus Gray scrimmage, the Maroon defense held the offense to eight first-downs, a field goal and a lone touchdown on the last of 61 plays.
Hillie and fellow senior linebacker Donald Laster each had sacks, while junior defense back James Reese returned an interception 47 yards. Junior linebackers Eliezer Sandifer and Roger Stewart recorded three tackles apiece.
In limited action under center, junior quarterback Michael Johnson completed 2-of-7 passes for 70 yards. Winston-Salem State transfer Jordan Reid took a majority of the snaps, collecting 176 yards on 8-of-16 passing. Junior signal caller Keon Johnson was 3-for-8 with 56 yards passing and 22 yards rushing.
The Gray ground game was paced by senior running back Tony McCord with 52 yards on eight carries, including a 15-yard touchdown scamper. Fellow senior Tim Shankle added 28 yards on three rushes.
Red-shirt freshman Marvin Poole impressed the fans with 84 receiving yards on just two catches. Sophomore Phillip Barren had a 50-yard reception, while red-shirt sophomore Geovonie Irvine grabbed two passes for 39 yards.
As a unit, the Gray offense amassed 302 total yards.
Sophomore placekicker Frankie Cardelle made 1-of-3 field goal kicks, missing from 46 and 32 yards out, while converting a 24-yard try and an extra-point.
The Eagles kickoff the season by hosting Johnson C. Smith on Thursday, Sept. 2 at 7 p.m., marking NCCU’s first night home game since Sept. 8, 2007.
S.C. State - It was a long day for the South Carolina State football team, which began the day with a morning scrimmage, which was followed by the annual “Meet the Players Day and Fan Fest.”
The priority for Bulldog head coach Buddy Pough and his staff in the approximately 80 -snap scrimmage was how much his team had improved from the Aug. 14 scrimmage, but the highlight for the Bulldog players, perhaps, was receiving their 2009 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference and Sheridan Broadcasting Network championship rings. Pough said that he and his staff were looking for a more productive performance from his team; however, he noted that the anticipation of meeting the fans and receiving the 2009 championship rings may have been somewhat of a distraction for the Bulldogs.
“I saw some improvement from a week ago,” Pough said, “But we still have a lot of work to do. When I assess things, I don’t know whether I should be happy or concerned. The defense showed a lot of fire, no matter what group was in there and I’m happy about that. “On offense,” he continued, “We couldn’t stick it in (the end zone). In fact, we didn’t make much happen on offense until we just put the ball close to the goal line and made it easy for them. We thought the defense would play better.”
Pough said he and the staff were trying to figure out exactly who could do what and which players would step up and contribute. “We saw some glimmers of hope, but some of the players that had been doing well in practice, were not very productive. Maybe the other activities scheduled were a distraction, but we have to step up. We are only two weeks away for our first game and it’s key that we get rid of any chinks in our armor.”
Pough said Saturday’s scrimmage culminated the meat of his team’s preseason preparations and that the final two weeks would consist of in-season game preps and concentration on the 2010 Sept. 4 opener at Georgia Tech.
A solid group of SC State alums and supporters turned our for “Meet the Players Day and Fan Fest,” which allowed attendees to interact with the players, take pictures and get autographs during the annual event sponsored by the Bulldog Boosters – The STATE Club.
St. Augustine’s - - All-CIAA linebacker Mark Hall (Sr./Suitland, Md.) recorded nine tackles including one sack and one interception to highlight Saint Augustine’s College’s intra-squad football scrimmage Saturday at Emery Field on campus.
The defense, led by Hall, collected five sacks, three fumble recoveries and two interceptions during the two-hour morning scrimmage. The defense held the offense scoreless in the first half, but the offense responded with six touchdowns during red zone situations in the second half.
“We showed good signs of stopping the run and throwing the football well in the red zone,” Falcon Head Coach Michael Costa said. “It was a good first scrimmage. We are starting to see everything come together that we have worked on in practice.”
The defense brings back eight starters and the offense returns nine starters from last year’s squad, which finished 4-3 in the CIAA and 4-6 overall. The first-team and second-team offensive and defensive units rotated each series during the scrimmage. Safety Chris Tucker (Sr./Hampton, Va.) added eight tackles including one tackle for loss and one sack for the defense. Defensive lineman Andre Baxter (Sr./Jacksonville, N.C) had four tackles.
Quarterback Joaquin Green (Redshirt Sophomore/Pittsboro, N.C.) threw three touchdown passes - two to Bryan Richards (Fr./Waldorf, Md.) and one to Jamain Smith (Jr./Kenansville, N.C.). Green is the 2009 CIAA offensive rookie of the year. Quarterback Antonio Jones (So./Germantown, Md.) and running back Deonte Toliver (So./Gaithersburg, Md.) both added scoring runs. Quarterback Teddy Bacote (Fr./Hampton, Va.) connected with Josh Debro (Fr./Morganton, N.C.) for another touchdown for the offense.
Linebacker Chaz Robinson (Fr./Hampton, Va.) ended the scrimmage with an interception return for a touchdown. “We are solid at linebacker,” Costa said. “We have some depth. Overall, our second group did a good job.”
The Falcons will hold their second intra-squad scrimmage on campus Aug. 28 at 1 p.m. Their first regular-season contest is Sept. 4 at Catawba College in Salisbury, N.C., starting at 7 p.m.
Winston Salem State - Coach Connell Maynor, who has been oscillating for the last two weeks about who would be his starting quarterback for Winston-Salem State's opening game on Saturday, made the decision after practice yesterday. "We're going to go with Octavius," said Maynor, whose Rams will play at Simeon Stadium in High Point on Saturday against Virginia Union.
Hawkins, a transfer from UMass, signed as a quarterback but never played that position at UMass in a game. Maynor originally was recruiting another player at UMass who was thinking about transferring and that player told Hawkins about WSSU. "He's just making more plays," Maynor said about why Hawkins will get the start. "He's starting to do a better job than the other guys on making reads. I tell them all the time, ‘I don't mind a bad pass now and then but what I want to see is the ball going to the right spot.'" The other three candidates were freshman Vernon Brandon, who will likely be the backup to Hawkins in Saturday's game, as well as transfers Jamie DeGeare (Appalachian State) and Cameron Smith (Navy).
Maynor is in his first season as a head coach admits to being rather hard on quarterbacks because he was such a perfectionist when he played. At yesterday's practice he doled out plenty of criticism to all four quarterbacks, but he also praised them when they made the right plays. Maynor is a former QB at N.C. A&T, where he earned All MEAC honors. "I'm looking for somebody who is playing the position of quarterback and not just dropping back looking to throw the ball," Maynor said. "I think Octavius is doing that better than anybody."
Hawkins, who is 6-2 and 215 pounds, was a star quarterback at South Broward High School in Hollywood, Fla. He threw for 1,539 yards with 15 touchdowns as a senior in 2006 before signing with UMass. He redshirted at UMass in 2007 as a quarterback, spending time on the scout team but in 2008 he played as an H-back and had two catches for 26 yards. Last season, he saw action on special teams in nine games and was listed as the third-string quarterback.
Maynor said that all four quarterbacks had their good moments in practice, but nobody stood out earlier in camp.
"I've been frustrated with the quarterbacks and I've been waiting for somebody to step up and take control of this position and show that you want to lead this team," Maynor said. "I don't have favorites because I love all of those guys, but I'm here to win football games and I need to put the guy out there that's going to give us the best shot to win. "That's why I'm here."
The 2010 season is upon us and as usual all fans are excited. We did find out that Bethune Cookman will have a new artificial surface on their home field. It is also a fact that the MEAC have some of the best playing surfaces among HBCU football as a conference. There are five schools with artificial turf this season (Bethune Cookman, Delaware State, Howard, Morgan St. and S.C. State) and next season with N.C. Central and the plans at Florida A&M, seven of the ten schools playing football will have turf. |
