Former Stillman football coaches find news homes in Birmingham

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama -- Three members of the Stillman College football staff have moved on to coach in Birmingham. Former Stillman head coach Teddy Keaton and assistant James Johnson have landed at Miles College, and offensive line coach John Causey has taken the same position at Birmingham-Southern.

Stillman announced last December that it is discontinuing the football program and also dropping all sports but men’s and women’s basketball after this spring. Coaches and players have been looking for new schools to continue their careers.

“When Stillman shut their football program down, I still wanted to remain on the college level,” Causey said. “Coaching, there’s not a lot of stability in that anyway but you want to leave a place on your own. My initial (reaction) was I was hurt for the players, not just in football but in all sports. You hate to see any program shut its athletics down.”

For Keaton, the move to Miles keeps him in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, where Stillman competed as an NCAA Division II program. It also keeps him at home, as he is able to commute to his job in Birmingham. He is associate head coach and coaches running backs.

“It’s a great opportunity,” Keaton said. “It’s an easy transition for me. It gave me the opportunity not to uproot my family.”

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HU accomplished plenty in another championship season

HAMPTON, Virginia -- Hampton University's basketball team didn't accomplish the unprecedented this season. Coach Buck Joyner isn't claiming otherwise.

But the 2015-16 season was, at the very least, noteworthy. For only the fourth time since the program went Division I in 1995, the Pirates won 21 games. And for only the second time in that stretch, they made the NCAA tournament in consecutive seasons.

"The school had done it before," Joyner said. "But to be able to put it back on the national stage where people can view us on a different light was big for us. And it was big for the university.

"Everybody wants to make a mark when they come in. The seniors that we had, over these last two years, they made quite a mark. From a conference standpoint and a national standpoint, they've done some good things."

Looking back, it seems odd that Hampton (21-11) wasn't the overwhelming pick to finish first in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. The coaches liked North Carolina Central, which ended up tied for sixth. The Pirates led the MEAC race virtually wire-to-wire and swept the conference tournament.

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Back at work, NCCU Eagles eager to put things right

DURHAM, North Carolina -- Carl Jones could barely stomach watching his archrival, N.C. A&T, win the inaugural Air Force Celebration Bowl in December.

North Carolina Central had defeated the Aggies in the regular-season finale for the second season in a row, which created a three-way tie for the MEAC championship. (Bethune-Cookman was the third team.)

But A&T won the tiebreaker and represented the conference against SWAC opponent Alcorn State, which the Aggies won 41-34 to earn the black college national championship.

“I watched it, most of it, although towards the end I kinda got a little sick,” the redshirt senior offensive lineman said, only half jokingly. “I was happy for them representing the MEAC, but I felt like we should have been there.”

NCCU could “have been there” if not for a missed assignment with 32 seconds left against Bethune-Cookman. Place kicker Nigel Macauley’s field-goal attempt was blocked, giving the Wildcats the win.

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Prairie View fires head coach Dawn Brown over Title IX issue

DAWN BROWN

PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas -- Prairie View A&M announced Tuesday evening that Dawn Brown will not return as women’s basketball coach next season. Brown said she was fired for allegedly violating Title IX by enforcing a team rule that she says was approved by the school’s Title IX coordinator.

“Clearly, I feel betrayed and unjustly penalized by this action,” Brown said in a statement to USA TODAY Sports.

Prairie View A&M athletics director Ashley Robinson declined comment through a school spokesperson.

Brown removed two members of her team during the season for having a dating relationship. She said the relationship broke a team rule that she put in place before the season. The rule said: “Players may not have nonprofessional relationships with other players, coaches, managers, trainers, or any other persons affiliated” with the program.

The former players filed a complaint that said their dismissal was based on sexual orientation and that it violated Title IX, the law that bans discrimination based on sex at schools receiving federal funds.

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Virginia Union women ready for Elite Eight

WATCH GAME ONLINE
TIME: 3:30 PM ET

SIOUX FALLS, South Dakota -- After a special dinner, the Virginia Union women still are hungry.

The Panthers set off for Sioux Falls, S.D., on Saturday for today’s 3:30 p.m. game against Bentley in the NCAA Division II Elite Eight after a week of rest, preparation, congratulations and dinner with members of the 1983 women’s national championship team.

The university president and his cabinet brought them roses. They were visited by administrators from all over the school who came out to congratulate them and show their support.

“Different people who touch our program throughout the year, so that was really special,” said VUU coach AnnMarie Gilbert.

Later that evening, the players had a team dinner with members of the group this year’s Panthers are three wins from emulating.

“Very encouraging people,” said Kiana Johnson, VUU’s leading scorer. “It’s always good to be around good company, people who want to see you excel and do well, and just give you great advice. It was a joy.”

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Prized recruit Javier Roper transferring from Grambling

GRAMBLING, Louisiana -- Former New Living Word star Javier Roper was a part of a talented 2015 signing class at Grambling that hoped to change the culture of the program. He'll end his career having never played a minute for the Tigers.

Roper, a three-star guard won won three state championships at New Living Word, announced Monday he will transfer from Grambling.

The 6-foot-6 small forward redshirted in 2016 and watched the Tigers finish 7-24, a five-win improvement from 2015 under second-year coach Shawn Walker.

Roper informed Walker of his decision Monday — they met last week to discuss his future — although Roper said he had planned to transfer all along. He cited style of play and position as his reasons to end his short tenure at Grambling.

"I don't think I fit the system they got going. I'm used to more of a run and gun team and playing more on the wing. They had me playing more in the post. That's basically it," Roper told The News-Star.

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Alcorn kicks off spring looking for another SWAC title

LORMAN, Mississippi -- Who knew the Tampa Bay Buccaneers firing of Lovie Smith would end up having so much impact on Alcorn State?

Smith's firing opened the door for Dirk Koetter to take over as head coach. Koetter plucked Southern Miss coach Todd Monken to be his offensive coordinator.

The Golden Eagles hired Jay Hopson, who led the Braves to back-to-back SWAC championships, to be their coach.

The Clarion-Ledger will take a look at what Alcorn State will look like post-Hopson and other storylines as the Braves kick off spring practice on Tuesday

Hopson gone, McNair in

Shortly after Hopson's departure, Alcorn State hired Fred McNair to be its coach. McNair had been a finalist for the job before and served as the assistant head coach under Hopson, so the move made sense on paper.

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