Tripp Harrington takes most reps at QB as Norfolk State camp opens

NORFOLK, Virginia -- Norfolk State coach Latrell Scott gave freshman quarterback Tripp most of the reps during the first official practice Wednesday.

"Tripp's the starter right now at the end of day one," Scott said.

Day Two could be different. Harrington is in a battle with sophomore Tyre Givers-Wilson and freshman Juwan Carter for the starting job.

Harrington, a Raleigh, N.C., native, started and played the entire spring game and apparently showed enough to get the early nod.

Givers-Wilson and Carter split reps in practice behind Harrington.

"I think it's a great relationship," Scott said of the quarterbacks. "It's a friendly competition which is good."

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RICK CLEVELAND: Six more ready to join state hall of fame

JACKSON, Mississippi -- The Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum has worn a funeral wreath on its doors five times since last year’s induction ceremonies. That’s because Boo Ferriss, Orsmond Jordan, Robert Morgan, Larry Grantham and Eddie Crawford all have died in the interim.

All contributed much to Mississippi sports lore in their respective fields of endeavor.

And the legends of all five will live on in the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum, an important Jackson museum that tells the remarkable, uplifting story of the Magnolia State’s history of athletic success.

The Hall of Fame will induct six more members with a weekend of planned activities culminating in Saturday night’s induction banquet at the Jackson Convention Center. The latest inductees:

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Woodbury resigns as offensive coordinator at J.C. Smith

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina -- Tory Woodbury, a Hall of Fame quarterback in his playing days at Winston-Salem State, has left his job as offensive coordinator at Johnson C. Smith.

Woodbury, 39, is a Winston-Salem native and a Glenn High School graduate.

Woodbury could not be reached for comment but posted on his Facebook and Twitter accounts that he is no longer works at Johnson C. Smith.

Woodbury, a member of the Big House Gaines Hall of Fame at WSSU and a member of the CIAA Hall of Fame, helped the Rams to CIAA titles in 1999 and 2000. Before getting into coaching he spent four seasons in the NFL signing as a rookie free agent with the New York Jets in 2001.

He’s the second-leading passer in WSSU history with 4,493 yards, and he is tied for third in school history with 38 touchdown passes.

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Hampton grad David Watford working hard to make the Eagles

PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver David Watford has been keeping his sleeves rolled up in training camp. Watford landed a spot on the Eagles practice squad last year. The 6-foot-2, 212-pounder accomplished this task as an undrafted free agent out of Hampton University. The next step for Watford is to secure a spot on the Eagles’ 53-man roster. He knows what he has do to in order to reach this goal.

“I just have to keep working every day,” Watford said. “I just have to keep proving myself day in and day out. I have to keep working and finding the little things to do. I did get a lot of experience last year. I’m just using that experience for this year. I’m just trying to take it one day at a time to get better.”



Watford has made a lot of strides over the past year. In 2015, he came out of Hampton as one of the top quarterback in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. He completed 167-of-315 passes for 2,088 yards with 21 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. He made a big adjustment when he came to Eagles moving from quarterback to wide receiver.

“It took a little while,” Watford said. “It wasn’t easy. It was a tough transition in a sense because it take a lot of attention to detail. It was a lot of work and a lot of practice.”

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Sophomore quarterback TJ Bell now the go-to guy for Savannah State

SAVANNAH, Georgia -- The news of Savannah State’s upcoming transition to NCAA Division II athletics affected different players different ways.

Sophomore quarterback TJ Bell didn’t waver from his commitment and now the Tigers football program is committed more than ever to the dual-threat performer.

“At the end of the day it’s football, you have to go out and compete,” said Bell at SSU’s football media day Tuesday morning. “Just think positive about any situation.”

The Tigers’ first of 29 football practices begins today at 8:30 a.m., leading up to the Sept. 9 season opener in Boone, N.C., against Appalachian State.

At one time, naming SSU’s starting quarterback for the opener might have been a coin flip. Bell and Blake Dever, both heralded freshmen last season, saw nearly equal playing time during the 2016 season.

But in April, Tiger officials announced a plan to drop athletics from Division I to Division II. SSU’s football program had competed in the Football Championship Subdivision.

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NCCU Football: Strength in numbers

DURHAM, North Carolina -- Last month during the Pigskin Preview in Cary, North Carolina Central football coach Jerry Mack told the crowd he wasn’t worried about his 22 starters on offense and defense. His concern, going into his fourth season as head coach, was depth.

Mack and his staff want to make sure the guys behind his starters are quality guys, players he can plug in and not see a drop off in production. Tuesday, the first official day of practice for the Eagles, Mack looked over the practice field and saw more than 100 guys running around, the most players since he’s been at N.C. Central.

The Eagles, who won their first outright MEAC title last season, return 11 starters, including seven on defense. The guys who will fill those vacated spots are players who have been in the program for a number of years, but may not have seen a lot of snaps. That’s OK with Mack because those guys know the system. Once you get pass those first 22, it’s wide open for spots on the two-deep.

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GSU’s DeVante Kincade ready to leave mark among Tiger greats

GRAMBLING, Louisiana -- Life beyond Grambling's campus is still many month away for DeVante Kincade of early visits to the Eddie Robinson museum left him inspired.

"The day I stepped in there I couldn't believe it. It was so many NFL players. It's just like when you walk into Nick Saban's place; all them NFL players on the wall. I walked into Eddie Robinson's museum I said oh my goodness. All I could see is myself up there because they came through and did it so it's not impossible," explained Kincade.



The quarterback earned SWAC offensive player of the year honors and led GSU to a HBCU national championship in 2016 and even with some key names missing from the receiving corps, he's confident in their ability to take up the mantle.

"We got some you guys that's hungry and you know what they say about people that's hungry, they'll do anything to eat. So my receivers I know their excited to come in and fill those shoes because they know that everybody knows those guys are gone. They read the media, they know that they got to come out and play hard and meet their expectations and go above those expectations because there's no way you can be the same way and go back and win another championship," said Kincade.

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