Contenders head down the stretch
LUT WILLIAMS
BCSP Editor
After season-long jockeying, contenders have been separated from pretenders and the 2007 football season enters its stretch drive with teams now in position to clinch division or conference titles and earn playoff berths.
For the black college teams that compete in NCAA Div. II football, this weekend begins the final three weeks of the regular season. The CIAA title game is Nov. 10 in Charlotte with the playoffs set to begin a week later (Nov. 17).
For Football Championship Subdivision (formerly I-AA) programs, the fields have been narrowed for the Dec. 15 SWAC Championship Game in Birmingham and the FCS playoffs involving MEAC teams that begin on Nov. 24.
Let's start with the situations involving the FCS schools.
MEAC
Delaware State (6-1, 5-0) and surprising Norfolk State (6-1, 5-0) continue to set the pace in the MEAC headed into the final four weeks of their regular season. An automatic FCS playoff berth awaits the MEAC regular season champion as well as a possible at-large berth.
DSU, up to 12th in the latest FCS national poll,
plays in the game of the week Saturday (1:30
p.m.) when it travels to Orangeburg, S.C. to take on
South Carolina State (4-3, 3-1) for the preseason
favorite Bulldogs' homecoming. The Bulldogs trail the leaders by just
one game in the loss column.
SCSU is coming off a big road win (28-24) over three-time MEAC champion Hampton Saturday which all but eliminated the Pirates (4-3, 3-3) from the title picture. A year ago, Buddy Pough's SC State troops won their homecoming game vs. Hampton only to get knocked off a week later (10-9) at DSU.
With SCSU playing in front of its homecoming crowd, and playing well since its lone conference loss to Norfolk State (20-13, 2 OTs) three weeks ago, the edge goes to the Bulldogs. PREDICTION: SCSU by 10
Norfolk State, 23rd in the latest FCS poll, gets to display its new found talents on national TV when it entertains Howard (3-4, 1-3) Saturday in Norfolk, Va. (1 p.m.) in a game to be carried live on ESPNU. The Spartans' remarkable turnaround is the story of the black college season so far. Expect the Spartans to keep their great season going.
By the way, if the teams keep winning, the NSU/DelState meeting on Nov. 10 in Dover, could decide the MEAC title.
SWAC
Grambling State (6-1, 6-0) has a two game lead over Southern (6-2, 4-2) in the West Division while Alabama A&M (6-1, 4-1) and Jackson State (4-3, 4-1) have two-game leads over their competitors in the East.
Grambling plays its homecoming this week vs. winless Texas Southern (0-7, 0-6). A&M is in Birmingham for the 66th Magic City Classic (2:30 p.m.) vs. Alabama State (4-3, 3-3) while JSU tries to rebound from its loss to Grambling taking on Arkansas-Pine Bluff for homecoming in Jackson, Ms. (3 p.m.). A&M and JSU play on Nov. 3 in Normal, Al.
SIAC
The only undefeated team in black college football, 7-0 Tuskegee, is the first team to clinch at least a tie for a 2007 conference title.
The Golden Tigers' 40-28 win over Albany State Saturday moves them to 6-0 in the SIAC with only one conference game left , a Nov. 3 home game vs. Clark Atlanta. Their date Saturday vs. Kentucky State (1 p.m.) does not count on its conference ledger (it does count for KSU). Tuskegee already has wins over its nearest pursuers, Fort Valley State (34-3) and Albany State.
The wild card in this scenario is Lane (3-1, 6-1), who like FVSU and Albany State, has just one loss (to Morehouse 14-7) in conference play but does not face Tuskegee this year. The Dragons have three conference games left, beginning with this week's tussle at FVSU (5 p.m.). If the Dragons win out and Tuskegee loses next week to Clark Atlanta, the two would tie for the SIAC title. That's the worst that could happen for Tuskegee.
Tuskegee is ineligible for the NCAA Div. II playoffs but Albany State, Fort Valley State, Morehouse and Lane are still in the mix. As of this week's Southeast Region poll, FVSU is 7th, Morehouse is 8th, Albany State is 10th and Lane is 12th. Those ranking will likely change with the teams facing each other over the next two weeks. The playoffs begin on Nov. 17.
Albany State hosts Morehouse Saturday for homecoming (3 p.m.) and closes out the season next week vs. Fort Valley State in Columbus, Ga. Lane plays this Saturday vs. Fort Valley before closing out at Benedict (11/3) and at Clark Atlanta (11/10). After facing Albany State this week, Morehouse closes the season Nov. 3 vs. Miles.
CIAA
CIAA favorite Elizabeth City State (4-4, 2-0 E) stumbled mightily coming out of the blocks, stunningly losing its first four games. But head coach Waverly Tiller righted the ship and has the Vikings riding a four-game win streak headed into Saturday's big East Division match-up on the road (1:30 p.m.) vs. St. Paul's in Lawrenceville, Va.
ECSU, who has a head-to-head victory over Virginia Union (7-1, 4-1), is currently tied with VUU atop the CIAA East but is not ranked in the NCAA Div. II Southeast Region poll. VUU is sixth. VUU tangles with Virginia State (4-4, 3-2) at the Trojans homecoming Saturday (1:05 p.m.).
In the CIAA West, Fayetteville State (3-5, 3-2) handed Shaw (5-3, 4-1) its first conference or division defeat Saturday (24-16) but trails the Bears going into this weekend's games. Neither Shaw nor FSU is ranked in the region. FSU plays at Johnson C. Smith's homecoming (1 p.m.) Saturday while Shaw travels to Bowie State's homecoming (2 p.m.).
© 2007 Azeez Communications, Inc.