Thursday, August 2, 2012

Bethune-Cookman fall football camp kicks off



DAYTONA BEACH, Florida - There is one game film that Bethune-Cookman head football coach Brian Jenkins keeps going back to. The game does not feature the Wildcats and predates his time at B-CU. But Jenkins said he keeps watching South Carolina State's 37-21 playoff loss to Appalachian State in 2008.

The Bulldogs led that game 14-10, before the Mountaineers pulled away. If they just could have held on, Jenkins reckons, the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference may be viewed in a different light as it pertains to the Football Championship Subdivision title picture.  Instead, the league is winless in the playoffs since 1999 -- 0-for-14.

"They were right there," Jenkins said of S.C. State. "If they would've done that, we wouldn't have these conversations about schools in the MEAC and (the FCS title)."

In his first two seasons at B-CU, Jenkins produced a solid 18-5 record. Season 3 under Jenkins is slated to kick off with the start of fall camp around 9 a.m. today at New Smyrna Beach Sports Complex. Bethune-Cookman will spend its first two weeks of practice in New Smyrna Beach while its on-campus practice facilities undergo renovations.



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ASU to hold first fall practice Thursday

MONTGOMERY, Alabama - The Alabama State football team reports to camp Wednesday and will hold its first fall practice Thursday afternoon at Hornet Stadium.  Approximately 95 players are set to check in to dorm rooms today and get settled in before getting down to business on the practice field Thursday at 3 p.m.

The Hornets are coming off an 8-3 season in 2011, with a 7-2 mark in Southwestern Athletic Conference play. Each victory total was one more than what was achieved in 2010.

"We're excited; it's been a long time," Barlow said since last season ended with victory in the Turkey Day Classic over Tuskegee to the eve of fall camp. "It's kind of been surreal as I think about it. I remember early in the summer thinking ‘when will that day get here'. Now, report day is here and we're a month away from the first game (on Sept. 2 in the MEAC-SWAC Challenge vs. Bethune-Cookman in Orlando, Fla.). I think the players are excited; many of them stayed here over the summer, and we are looking forward to getting started."

Barlow has an experienced group reporting ...

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Savannah State football team gets back to work

SAVANNAH, Georgia  --  Quarterback Antonio Bostick looked leaner, stronger and swifter, and he wasn’t the only Savannah State football player who underwent a transformation this summer.

“The kids are in good shape,” said second-year head coach Steve Davenport as the Tigers opened preseason camp Wednesday morning with 95 players on the field. “Bostick had a tremendous off-season.”

Coming off a 1-10 season that included seven straight losses to end the year, Davenport is not dwelling on the past. And he’s not dwelling on season-opening games at Oklahoma State and Florida State, which figure to push the losing skein to nine straight.

In Davenport’s world, the days ahead for the Tigers are going to do nothing but get better.

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Wednesday, August 1, 2012

QB biggest question mark as Jackson State football starts practice

JACKSON, Mississippi - Not long after being promoted to offensive coordinator, Jackson State assistant coach Derrick McCall stated his plans for the Tigers' offense this season. In short, he wanted to keep the train moving.

"Offensively, our job is to score points," McCall said. "We want to do it in a way that has never been done before. I want to be better than we were last year.

"What we want to do is try to continue to build on what we've been doing."
As players report today in advance of Thursday's first practice, there's understandable skepticism among JSU faithful as to whether or not that can truly occur.

Can the Tigers' Air Raid offense - a unit that led the Southwestern Athletic Conference in passing offense and total offense each of the past two seasons - keep up its frantic pace without record-breaking quarterback Casey Therriault?

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GSU football returns after short, hot summer

GRAMBLING, Louisiana - This summer may have been — and continues to be — hot, but it wasn't particularly long for the Grambling football team.

The Tigers report for training camp today, and will meet with their coaches and hit the field Thursday evening for their first full team practice of the fall.

"It's here, and the kids this year should be a little more excited because of how we ended last year," coach Doug Williams said. "Hopefully some of the younger guys who played and some of the younger guys who were waiting their turn will be ready for their opportunity and show some enthusiasm."

Fresh off 2011 Bayou Classic and SWAC championships, Grambling will be ...



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Hometown Olympics - SSU's Amara Jones

SAVANNAH, Georgia - In an Olympic 100 meter dash, every step, every arm movement could be the difference between a spot on the medal stand and a long trip home. This year, one of Savannah's State's own headed to the biggest stage in sports.

"It's a life changing experience even to know you will be a part of something that's so much bigger than yourself," said Jones.

Amara Jones is just 20 years old, a MEAC track champion, a college graduate, and now a member of the Bahamas Olympic Team. "She does not think she can lose, and that's a good thing," said Ted Whitaker.



Ted Whitaker was Jones' track coach at Savannah State, and one of the first to recognize her talent.

"Wish I could take all the credit, but you have to come with the desire, with the heart," explained Whitaker. "And she's an extremely strong young lady."

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UMES conducting search for new baseball coach

PRINCESS ANNE, Maryland -- The University of Maryland Eastern Shore is in the middle of a search for a new baseball coach after declining to renew the contract of Will Gardner. Gardner was 61-260 over six seasons with the Hawks. His teams went 39-73 in Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference play.

Gardner's contract expired June 30; UMES does not announce personnel changes.

"I want to thank Coach Gardner for all of his hard work and I think that he has left the program in a stronger position than when he found it in terms of moving it forward and our level of competitiveness and talent," said UMES athletic director Keith Davidson. "It was my opinion that there were some benchmarks and expectation that had been set before the beginning of the year that weren't quite met and we need an opportunity to turn the corner with a fresher approach."

The Hawks did finish 11-13 in the MEAC this past season and won two games in the postseason conference tournament, but still finished 14-39 overall.

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