Things already interesting three weeks in
It's only three weeks into the 2005 football season and there are already some interesting developments in the black college conferences.The CIAA, supposedly the weakest black college football conference, has fashioned an impressive 3-3 record against MEAC competition thus far.
Three CIAA teams are undefeated at 3-0
Bowie State, St. Augustine's and North Carolina Central
and two of them, BSU (over Morgan State)
and NCCU (over North Carolina A&T)
have wins over MEAC teams. Virginia State is the
other CIAA team with a win over an MEAC opponent
(Norfolk State). Two of the CIAA's three losses
to MEAC teams were by Winston-Salem State who
has lost to Howard and South Carolina
State. Elizabeth City also lost to
Bethune-Cookman.
The biggest battle looming in the CIAA is in the West Division where it looks like St. Aug's, NCCU and three-time defending division champion Fayetteville State are headed for a showdown. FSU has to play both NCCU (Oct. 8) and St. Aug's (Oct. 22) on the road. NCCU hosts St. Aug's on Oct. 1.
Bowie State may have to search for a challenger in the East where all four other division teams are at 1-2 early in the season.
This week Bowie State hosts Livingstone (0-3), St. Aug's hosts Virginia State (1-2) and NCCU hosts defending champion Shaw, who's struggling at 1-2. FSU is in Martinsville, Va., to take on St. Paul's (1-2) in the game named for my uncle (no kidding), the Clyde Williams Classic.
If the downside of the MEAC has been its play against the CIAA, the upside has been how it has fared against the SWAC.
So far, the MEAC is 3-0 vs. the SWAC with Labor Day weekend wins by South Carolina State over defending SWAC champ Alabama State and Hampton over Jackson State, and Bethune-Cookman with its win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff Saturday.
SC State has a big date this weekend with league championship contender Bethune-Cookman (2-0) in Jacksonville, Fla. (7 p.m.) at the 52nd Gateway Classic. The teams finished behind Hampton last year in the MEAC race and the winner will be considered the Pirates' chief competition this year. SCSU defeated B-CC 28-14 a year ago.
Delaware State, who already owns a win over Florida A&M, travels to defending I-AA national champion James Madison (1-1) Saturday (6 p.m.) for a severe test. The Hornets were the only MEAC team to defeat Hampton last year and finished in a tie with B-CC for third. JMU is coming off a loss to Coastal Carolina that knocked them out of the top ten in the I-AA national poll (Sports Network).
Howard (1-1), who threw a scare into Hampton Saturday before a late turnover sent them down to a 22-12 defeat, travels to Tallahassee for a 7 p.m. date with Florida A&M (0-2). Hampton (2-0) is in Greensboro for a nationally televised Thursday night game vs. N.C. A&T at 7:30 p.m. that will be carried on ESPNU.
Things have pretty much gone according to form thus far in the SIAC. Tuskegee (2-0, 2-0 SIAC), Albany State (2-1, 2-0 SIAC) and Fort Valley State (2-1, 2-0 SIAC) are on top and are expected to stay there.
This week Tuskegee is at Benedict (2-1, 0-1 SIAC), FVSU takes on Clark-Atlanta (1-2, 1-1 SIAC) in Brunswick, Ga., and Albany State is at Lane (0-3, 0-2 SIAC).
The winds of change are blowing in the SWAC. Mississippi Valley State beat Southern 31-28 Saturday behind star QB Aries Nelson's 353 passing yards. It was the first win for the Delta Devils over the Jaguars in 11 years. Just how serious of a challenger the Devils will be for defending East Division and league champion Alabama State could be determined this weekend as Willie Totten's troops travel to Alabama A&M (6:30 p.m). The Bulldogs are coming off an embarrassing performance at Grambling, a 44-0 loss.
Southern (0-1, 0-1 SWAC W) hosts Prairie View (1-0) in Baton Rouge (7 p.m.) Saturday while Grambling travels out to Seattle to take on Div. I Pac-10 member, Washington State in what should be a stern test for the talented G-Men and QB Bruce Eugene. Eugene threw for 275 yards and three TDs vs. A&M, his first game back since undergoing knee surgery last season.
© 2005 Azeez Communications, Inc.