CIAA comes down to the wire
LUT WILLIAMS
BCSP Editor
Champions could be crowned in both divisions of the CIAA while big games in the MEAC and SWAC highlight this weekend in black college football.
CIAA - East
The East Division title and a spot in the Nov.
6 CIAA Championship Game could be determined Saturday when
Virginia State (6-2, 3-2 E) hosts Shaw
(6-2, 4-2 E) in Petersburg, Va., (1:30 p.m.).
A win by Shaw would give the Bears the outright division title with 5-2 mark and a date vs. the West Divison winner in the title game. That would be the simplest outcome in the East and prevent tie-breaking procedure headaches.
Shaw finishes the regular season Oct. 30 with a non-conference date hosting Kentucky State.
A Virginia State win however would keep the Trojans in the division title picture pending their final game against N. C. Central on Oct. 30. VSU would then need to defeat NCCU to claim the outright division crown. Losing to NCCU would tie Virginia State and Shaw for the East Division title with 4-3 marks.
A VSU win over Shaw would also put Bowie State (3-5, 2-3 E) back in the East Division picture, provided the Bulldogs get by Virginia Union (1-7, 1-4 E) Saturday in Bowie, Md. (1 p.m.). BSU owns a 26-23 win over VSU from Sept. 11.
BSU would then have to defeat Johnson C. Smith on Oct. 30 to create a three-way tie atop the East with VSU and BSU. Let's leave the East there for now.
CIAA - West
In the West, Fayetteville State (6-2, 4-1 W)
can celebrate homecoming and move a step towards
its third straight division title with a win Saturday vs.
St. Augustine's (4-4, 3-2 W). If FSU wins, they
would only have to defeat Livingstone at home on Oct. 30
to clinch. A win by SAC however would throw the
West into a tizzy, bringing both the Falcons and
N. C. Central into the divisional title picture.
N. C. Central (6-2) is currently tied with FSU at 4-1 in the division standings but FSU holds the tie-breaker by virtue of a 17-7 win over the Eagles on Oct. 9. NCCU plays Saturday (2 p.m.) at Livingstone (2-6, 2-3 W). A win by NCCU Saturday coupled with a loss by FSU would put the Eagles on top of the West headed into their final game, Oct. 30 vs. Virginia State.
St. Aug's would need to beat FSU and then knock off Winston-Salem State on Oct. 30, and have NCCU lose one of its final two games to tie for the title.
If all that happens, more headache-bearing tie-breaking procedures will come into play.
SWAC
There could also be trouble brewing in the
SWAC.
Before the season, defending SWAC champion Southern basically refused to schedule Arkansas-Pine Bluff for a date in November. Despite efforts by the SWAC office to get Southern to put UAPB on its schedule, Jaguar officials did not budge.
Now with surprising UAPB (5-1, 4-0 W) tied atop the SWAC West with Southern (5-2, 4-0 W), a pending debacle is possible.
Southern has a big date at Alcorn State (4-2, 2-1 E) this week. Alcorn State was the only team to defeat Southern last year and also defeated the Jags in 2002. UAPB is idle this week and then has games vs. Jackson State (Oct. 30) and Prairie View (Nov. 6). The JSU game replaces Southern on UAPB's division schedule. The Golden Lions will then be off for nearly a month before meeting Alabama State Dec. 4 in a game cancelled on Sept. 18 because of Hurricane Ivan.
SIAC
Albany State (7-0, 5-0) remains the only
undefeated team in black college football (not counting
St. Paul's, a club team) and can move within one game
of its second straight SIAC crown with a win Saturday
at Benedict (2-5, 1-3).
The Golden Rams have moved to fourth in the latest Sports Network Div. II poll and are atop the Southeast Region NCAA rankings.
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