Five keys for NSU football team this season

The way Norfolk State's football schedule has worked out the past three years, the team has built hope heading into the next season thanks to late runs against the bottom of the MEAC.

The Spartans are looking to show the strides made under new offensive coordinator Joe Blackwell are legit - and not the product of inferior competition - and that they're ready to join the upper level of the conference.

Doing that will require the team to answer five questions as Norfolk State heads into the start of spring practice today.

Who will the new hogs be?

Spartans begin Spring Practice Today

NORFOLK, Va. — Norfolk State’s 2011 spring football practice is scheduled to get underway Friday with a late afternoon session at the NSU practice field.

The Spartans are slated to spread their 15 practices over a three-week period. There will not be a typical spring football game, but rather several smaller intrasquad scrimmages throughout spring practice.

NSU is scheduled to return 14 starters off of last fall’s 6-5 team which became the first team in the program’s Division I history to record back-to-back winning seasons. Included among the returnees are quarterback Chris Walley, who completed an NSU single-season record 61.1 percent of his passes last year; and the top five tacklers off the Division I Football Championship Subdivision’s No. 6 defense, led by linebacker Corwin Hammond (76 tackles, 11 TFL) and nose guard Josh Turner (46 tackles, 12 TFL).

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UMES Hawks Earn Eighth Straight Bid To The NCAA Tournament

INDIANPOLIS, IN - The eight-team field competing for the 2011 National Collegiate Women's Bowling Championship was announced Wednesday by the NCAA Women's Bowling Committee and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) will make their eighth straight trip to the event.

"We are very excited," said head coach Sharon Brummell. "This is a very tough field, very strong and we have a lot of work ahead of us to get to our goal of another NCAA championship."

The championship field consists of all at-large participants, including Arkansas State, Central Missouri, Fairleigh Dickinson, Kutztown, Nebraska, Sam Houston State Vanderbilt and the Hawks.


Videographer: UMESHAWKSATHLETICS; Feature story about UMES senior bowler Kristina Frahm from her hometown.

UMES is one of three teams in the field to have made the field in all eight tournaments since the NCAA offered championship starting in 2004; the others are Nebraska and Central Missouri.

The Lady Hawks are coming off of winning the 2011 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) Championship earlier this month in Greensboro, N.C. The last conference title for the Hawks was 2008, the same year they won the National Championship. UMES has three players who were on that squad, Maria Rodriguez (Ibague Tolima, Colombia), Kristina Frahm (Oswego, Ill.) and Martha Perez (Bogota, Colombia). That trio has piled up numerous accolades during their time at UMES, those include a combined seven All-American honors, 11 All-Conference honors and a pair of MEAC Outstanding Performer honors.

"I have mixed feelings," said Perez. "I am excited to go again, but sad that it will be my last NCAA Championship. It is win or go home and we want to go out with a win in our last NCAAs. We have been winning a lot this year, we know we can win, we just have to go out and do what we know."

Printable Bracket

Detroit Mercy and the Detroit Metro Sports Commission will play host to the championship, which will be held April 14-16 at Skore Lanes in Taylor, Mich. Tickets can be purchased by calling (313) 291-6220 before to the championship.

Fairleigh Dickinson captured the 2010 National Collegiate Women’s Bowling Championship at Brunswick Zone Carolier Lanes in North Brunswick, N.J. The Knights defeated 2009 national champion Nebraska in the final, needing all seven games in the best-of-seven matchup to edge the Cornhuskers 4-3 and claim their first title since 2006.

A tape delay broadcast of the championship finals will air on ESPN Sunday, April 17 at 2:30 p.m. ET.

Compliments of the NCAA and UMES Hawks Media Relations

DSU Hornets Begin Spring Training Drills

Dover, Del. -- Delaware State University head football coach Kermit Blount will lead his first spring football camp with the Hornets beginning tomorrow (Friday). Blount says he expects about 80 players to participate in spring drills, including up to 12 newcomers.

"This year's spring camp is critical for our program as we introduce new systems to our players," said Blount, who was introduced as the new head coach of the Hornets on February 4. "The camp will also give our coaching staff a better opportunity to evaluate the conditioning and skill of the players." According to Blount, everyone has a clean slate heading into camp.

"As far as I'm concerned, everyone is fighting for a job," Blount said. "I believe the players understand that and are looking to make a good impression on the new coaching staff. We have to make every minute count as we look to rebuild this team."

DSU Hornets 2011 Football Schedule

Date Opponent Location Time (ET)
Sat, Sep 03 Virginia Military Institute at Lexington, Va
Sat, Sep 10 SHAW Dover, Del 
Sat, Sep 17 Delaware at Newark, Del.
Sat, Sep 24 South Carolina State * at Orangeburg, S.C.
Sat, Oct 01 Florida A&M * at Tallahassee, Fla.
Sat, Oct 08 NORFOLK STATE * Dover, Del. 
Sat, Oct 15 North Carolina A&T * at Greensboro, N.C. Homecoming
Sat, Oct 29 MORGAN STATE Dover, Del.
Sat, Nov 05 NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL Dover, Del.
Sat, Nov 12 Hampton * at Hampton, Va.
Sat, Nov 19 HOWARD * Dover, Del.
* Conference Games

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Spring is in the air: Blue vs. Gold scrimmage tonight

ALBANY, GA — Steaks or hot dogs? That’s what’s on the line tonight when Albany State holds its annual Blue and Gold scrimmage spring football game.

The game starts at 6 p.m. and tickets are $10 for anyone who wants to get a glimpse of what the 2011 Rams are going to look like next fall. The game is sponsored by the 100 Black Men of Albany, who will have free T-Shirts for fans who arrive early for the game.

Everybody at ASU should be eating steak after the season the Rams produced last fall when they won the SIAC title and advanced deep into the Division II playoffs. By the time it was over ASU had been named 2010 SBN Black College national champions.

It’s that memorable season that has ignited spring practice, and the progress and promise will both be on the field at the ASU Coliseum, where the rules are simple: Winners eat steak, losers get hot dogs.

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ECSU Releases 2011 Football Schedule

ELIZABETH CITY, NC- The Elizabeth City State University Athletic Department has released their 10-game football slate for the 2011 season.

ECSU will host four games at Roebuck Stadium beginning with the season opener September 3rd against Winston-Salem State University at 6:00pm. In their last meeting during the 2005 season the Rams held on for a 24-23 win over the Vikings at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem.

The Vikings will return to the River City in week seven (October 15th) for Homecoming 2011 when they welcome Virginia State University for a 1:30pm kick-off. Bowie State will visit the following week on October 22nd) and ECSU will close out their home slate with the season finale on November 5thagainst Lincoln University. Both games will begin at 1:00pm at Roebuck Stadium.

On September 10th the 14th Annual Down East Viking Football Classic will feature Livingstone College as the Blue Bears make their first trip to Rocky Mount. Kickoff is scheduled for 4:00pm at the Rocky Mount Athletic Complex.

After the "Down East" ECSU will hit the road for four straight away games beginning with Fayetteville State on September 17th (6:00pm), defending CIAA Champion Shaw University in Durham on September 24th (2:00pm) followed by Saint Paul's College on October 1st. The Vikings will look to play spoiler when they visit Virginia Union University as the Panthers' Homecoming opponent at Hovey Field in Richmond, VA on October 8th.

ECSU will take a short trip to Chowan University on October 29th, their first to Murfreesboro since the Hawks joined the CIAA (football only) in 2008. The Vikings are coming off a 6-4 season (CIAA 5-2) good for third place in the CIAA Northern Division.

The 2011 CIAA Football Championship will take place on November 12th. For more information on ECSU Athletics, visit www.ecsuvikings.com.

2011 Vikings Football Schedule
Date Opponent / Event Location Time

09/03/11 vs. Winston-Salem State Elizabeth City, N.C. (Roebuck Stadium) 6:00 p.m. ET
09/10/11 vs. Livingstone Rocky Mount, NC (Rocky Mount Athletic Complex) 4:00 p.m. ET
09/17/11 at Fayetteville State Fayetteville, NC (Luther "Nick" Jeralds Stadium) 6:00 p.m. ET
09/24/11 at Shaw* Durham, NC (Durham County Memorial Stadium) 2:00 p.m. ET
10/01/11 at St. Paul's College Lawrenceville, VA 1:00 p.m. ET
10/08/11 at Virginia Union Richmond, VA (Hovey Field) 1:00 p.m. ET
10/15/11 vs. Virginia State (HOMECOMING) Elizabeth City, N.C. (Roebuck Stadium) 1:30 p.m. ET
10/22/11 vs. Bowie State Elizabeth City, N.C. (Roebuck Stadium) 1:00 p.m. ET
10/29/11 at Chowan Murfreesboro, NC (Garrison Stadium) 12:00 p.m. ET
11/05/11 vs. Lincoln (Pa.) (SENIOR DAY) Elizabeth City, N.C. (Roebuck Stadium) 1:00 p.m


Courtesy ECSU Media Relations

Xavier University of Louisiana: 4,500-seat Convocation Academic Center to replace The Barn for 2012-13

NEW ORLEANS — Xavier University of Louisiana announced Thursday that a 4,500-seat Convocation Academic Center will be constructed across Washington Avenue and near the main campus on a site bounded by Short, Palm and Stroelitz streets.

Test pilings were driven into the site earlier this year. Construction is expected to begin in May, with anticipated completion in late summer 2012.

The facility will include a 4,500-seat arena suitable for athletic and other large-scale events. It will become the home of Xavier men's and women's basketball and women's volleyball and replace The Barn, a 1,300-seat gymnasium opened in 1937.

"This new arena will be a tremendous addition for Xavier athletics," XU Athletics Director Dennis Cousin said. "It will upgrade our already excellent programs and take them a notch higher. It will be a big boost to us in recruiting."

The Convocation Academic Center also will contain classrooms, offices and meeting spaces. A regulation-size auxiliary basketball court also will be included to add flexibility in scheduling practices for the basketball and volleyball teams.

Manning Architects' rendering of Xavier's Convocation Academic Center, which is expected to be completed in late summer 2012.

"This is an exciting time for Xavier," women's basketball coach Bo Browder said. "We've been blessed with a lot of fun, a lot of success and a lot of great memories in The Barn. But I'm looking forward to this new arena and creating some new memories."

A pedestrian bridge will be constructed across Washington Avenue to help the Xavier community better access the new building. And for Xavier athletics, the progress does not stop there.

"There also are plans to construct tennis courts in the near future not far from the Convocation Academic Center," Cousin said. "This will give our nationally ranked tennis teams the ability to not only practice on campus but to also host dual matches, something we haven't done in decades."

By Ed Cassiere, Sports Information Director
Xavier University of Louisiana
Visit: XULA Gold Rush & Gold Nuggets

FAMU launched new website - www.famuathletics.com

Florida A&M athletics took off into cyberspace Thursday night with a new website that not only promotes sports but also creates an avenue for advertisers to support the university.

One of the main attraction on the site will be streaming video of live sports events, primarily football, baseball, basketball and softball games. Fans also will have access to videos that feature some of its former greats, including football coach Jake Gaither and Olympian Bob Hayes.

Interim sports information director Vaughn Wilson said those will be added to the site in about three weeks.

"One thing that had frustrated some of alumni and fans from afar is not having a platform that gives them a FAMU experience," Wilson said. "We are going to give them a snapshot of everything that's going on in the athletic department through this website."

VISIT: FAMUATHLETICS ---(www.famuathletics.com)



FAMU's Ethridge making strides at tight end

During a drill with receivers Thursday afternoon, the ball was being thrown everywhere — long, short and laterally. One of the short passes went to tight end Michael Ethridge. He made the catch and he looked more experienced than a sophomore doing so. He even plowed his way to a few extra yards after the catch.

"The attitude I have is that I have to catch every pass that comes to me; good pass, bad pass, I have to catch it," Ethridge said afterward. Then a few passes later, the maturity of the Godby High School graduate was tested. The ball was thrown around his ankles. He grappled with it for a few seconds before losing control.

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