Elimination games top the charts
LUT WILLIAMS
BCSP Editor
At the top of the black college football schedule this week is a battle for early season division supremacy in the Southwestern Athletic Conference and what could be called an "elimination game" in the Mid Eastern Athletic Conference.
But don't miss out on the "Backyard Brawl" near Baltimore.
SWAC
In the SWAC, defending division champ Alabama A&M (2-0, 1-0 SWAC E) and Mississippi Valley State (1-1, 1-1 SWAC E) were the preseason picks for the top two slots in the East Division and they'll meet Saturday in Itta Bena, Mississippi. Alabama A&M won last year's game 27-13.
A&M is coming off a big 30-27 overtime win over defending conference champ Grambling State while MVSU struggled offensively, for the second week in a row, in its 31-14 loss Saturday to Southern.
"We know they really, really want to beat us, so we know we're going to get their best effort," said A&M coach Anthony Jones Monday on the SWAC teleconference.
MVSU head coach Willie Totten will be looking to get his preseason Offensive Player of the Year, QB Aries Nelson, and his offense untracked. Nelson is 25 of 61 with one touchdown and three interceptions in the first two games.
"Our quarterbacks and our receivers are not in sync," said Totten. "We're going to do some heavy evaluation this week to find out where the problem lies. Our problem right now is within."
Elsewhere in the SWAC, Grambling State (0-2, 0-1 SWAC W) travels to Div. IA Houston (2-0) trying to avoid an 0-3 start. Texas Southern (2-0, 2-0 W) also has a IA road opponent at New Mexico State (1-1), Southern (2-0, 1-0 W) is at Prairie View (1-1, 0-1 W) in a West Division match-up. Alabama State (0-2, 0-1 E) hosts Arkansas-Pine Bluff (1-1, 1-1 W) in a inter-divisionsal battle and Jackson State (1-0, 0-0 E) travels to Memphis to face non-conference Tennessee State (1-1) in their annual Southern Heritage Classic. Fox Sports South is carrying the game line on cable TV.
MEAC
In the MEAC, South Carolina State (1-1, 0-0) and Bethune-Cookman (1-1, 0-0), two perennial challengers for the MEAC crown, open their bid to unseat two-time champion Hampton when they meet in Charleston, S.C.
The game was moved to Charleston's Johnson Hagood Stadium because of renovations at SC State's Oliver Dawson Stadium. SCSU won last year's close battle in Daytona Beach, 27-24. SC State head coach Buddy Pough has won the last two meetings with Alvin Wyatt's Wildcats after the Bulldogs had lost six straight in the series.
"You hit it right on the head," said Pough Tuesday of the 'elimination game' status of Saturday's game.
In other MEAC games, North Carolina A&T (0-1, 0-0) is at Hampton (2-0, 1-0), Howard (0-1, 0-1) hosts Florida A&M (0-2, 0-1), Delaware State (2-0, 1-0) travels to Natchitoches, Louisiana to take on Northwestern State (0-2). Norfolk State is off this week.
The non-conference toss-up between MEAC member Morgan State (0-2) and CIAA member Bowie State (2-0) has taken on some added dimensions _ bad blood. The schools, separated by about ten miles in the Baltimore area, have traded insults on and off the field.
MSU head coach Donald Hill-Eley termed the contest a "grudge match" and "HBCU Brawl" on the Tuesday MEAC teleconference. Hill-Eley said BSU players stomped on the MSU midfield emblem during last year's game and "tore up" the locker room. Adding fuel to the fire is that the Div. II Bulldogs have also beaten the I-AA Bears the last two years, including a 35-21 win last season.
CIAA
The CIAA enters play this week with a 1-5 record vs. its Div. II rival, the South Atlantic Conference, so far this season. North Carolina Central's 38-16 win over Lenoir-Rhyne Saturday is the only CIAA win.
Three more CIAA/SAC games are on tap this week as St. Augustine's (1-1) hosts Carson-Newman (2-0), St. Paul's (1-1) hosts Tusculum (1-1) and Virginia State (0-1) travels to Catawba (2-0).
In conference games, Virginia Union (1-1, 0-0 E) hosts Livingstone (0-3, 0-0 W) and Elizabeth City State (2-0, 0-0 E) takes on Fayetteville State (1-2, 0-0 W) in the Down East Classic in Rocky Mount, N.C. Shaw (0-2) is at Edward Waters (0-3) in a non-conference tilt.
SIAC
The SIAC schedule kicks off this week with Thursday's Stillman (0-1, 0-1) at Albany State (0-2, 0-0) game to be carried live on CSTV (8 p.m.). In other games, Miles (1-1, 1-0) coming off its first win over Tuskegee in 45 years, hosts Fort Valley State (2-1, 1-0), Morehouse hosts Kentucky State. Tuskegee (1-1, 1-1) hosts Benedict (1-1, 1-1) in game to be webcast on CSTV.com. Lane (3-0, 2-0) hosts Concordia (1-1), 1-1 E) in a non-conference affair.
© 2006 Azeez Communications, Inc.