BCSP Notes . . .
2009 John Merritt Classic to honor '82 Tennessee State team
The John Merritt Classic Committee has announced that the 1982 Tennessee State University football squad will be honored at the eleventh annual Classic in Nashville on September 5, 2009.
The 1982 team finished the regular season
with an unbeaten 9-0-1 record, and advanced to the
semi-final round of the NCAA I-AA play-offs.
The 2009 JMC will pit the Tennessee State Tigers against the Alabama A&M Bulldogs at LP Field, home of the Tennessee Titans. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:00p.m.
Seven of the 1982 "Big Blue" Tigers garnered All-American honors. Notable players from that team include defensive end Richard Dent,who wend on to earn a Super Bowl title and was named Super Bowl XX MVP while starring with the Chicago Bears, wide receivers Mike Jones and Golden Tate, running back Larry Kinnebrew and quarterbacks Kenneth Biggles and Brian Ransom.
The John Merritt Classic, first played in 1999, honors the legendary TSU football coach who led the Tigers from 1963- 1983. During those twenty-one seasons, "Big John" won four undisputed national championships among historically black colleges ranked by the Sheridan Poll, compiled a lifetime record of 172-33-1, and built a powerful program that produced NFL stars like Dent (Chicago Bears), "Jefferson Street" Joe Gilliam (Pittsburgh Steelers), Ed "Too Tall" Jones (Dallas Cowboys), Claude Humphrey (Atlanta Falcons) and many others.
The JMC, the only football classic solely hosted by an NCAA institution, is intended to allow Tennessee State to raise funds for scholarships and other related needs for TSU student-athletes. The Classic also provides an opportunity for community outreach with its weekend of activities.
ECSU's April Emory named CoSIDA Rising Star
April Emory, who recently completed her eighth year as Sports Information Director at Elizabeth City State University, has been named the recipient of the 2009 College Division Rising Star Award by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).
The award is presented to a College Division member with 10 years of service or less whose work at their institution and service, dedication; energy and enthusiasm to the profession make that individual a "rising star" in sports information.
Emory began her career with a two-year stint as Sports Information Director at Saint Paul's College prior to moving to ECSU in 2002. A member of the CoSIDA Board of Directors as the College Division representative, Emory also is a member of F.A.M.E. and the Black College Sports Information Directors' Association.
Emory's spirit, compassion and work ethic have served to make her a strong role model and mentor for younger SIDs. A consummate professional, she has promoted numerous All-Americans, successfully placing several of her athletes in Sports Illustrated's popular "Faces in the crowd" feature.
As a student at St. Paul's, her potential was so evident that Saint Paul's hired her as its SID upon graduation in the summer of 1999.
While at Saint Paul's she quickly learned the inner workings of the athletic department and was given day-to-day oversight for the game day management of all sports. As a freshman, she was handed the responsibility of the basketball media guide and got her first taste in the promoting of a student-athlete while working with three-time basketball All-American Antwain Smith, who was selected by the Vancouver Grizzlies in the second round of the 1999 NBA draft.
During her stint as the first female SID at ECSU, she has been responsible for the promotion of 15 intercollegiate sports. In 2005 she was instrumental in the launching of the school's first athletic website. While at ECSU, she has been responsible for the promotion of several All-Americans, including the 2008 Division II Women's National Player of the Year, Celeste Trahan-Davis.
Emory has been a trailblazer as the first female President of the CIAA-Sports Information Directors Association (2005-2009) and holds the distinction as the first African-American female to sit on the CoSIDA Board of Directors (2005-present). Additionally, she was recognized by her peers as the 2006-07 CIAA Sports Information Director of the Year.
She has previously been awarded a Citation for Excellence in Writing by CoSIDA and has served as the press room coordinator for the CIAA Basketball Tournament (third-largest tournament in the country) since 2000. Emory has already helped guide two of her former student assistants within the profession, one as a former head SID at her alma mater and the other as sports information graduate assistant.
She is currently the President of the CIAA's Sports Information Directors Association, having served in that post since 2005.
SC State's Bill Hamilton to receive Arch Award for excellence in sports info
William "Bill" Hamilton, the Sports Information Director at
South Carolina State University, has been named the
Arch Ward Award winner by the College Sports
Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). The award
is presented annually to a CoSIDA member who has made an outstanding contribution to the field
of college sports information and who, by his or
her activities, has brought dignity and prestige to
the profession.
Hamilton is in his 36th year as sports information director at South Carolina State, where he earned his undergraduate degree in 1973 and a master's in 1979. He was named Staff Employee of the Year at SC State in 1999, inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame in 2002 and earned the NAFEO Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2006.
Hamilton, who served on the NCAA Men's Final Four Media Coordination Committee from 1999 to 2007, earned a CoSIDA Excellence in Writing citation in 1989, and received the Black College Sports Information Directors Association (BCSIDA) Cal Jacox-Champ Clark Award as the top SID at a historically black college.
A past president of BCSIDA who has served on various CoSIDA committees, Hamilton was a member of the CoSIDA Board of Directors from 1993-96 and has attended every CoSIDA workshop since 1974. A CoSIDA member for thirty-five years, he has earned multiple honors, including the CoSIDA Bob Kenworthy Community Service Award (1998) and the CoSIDA Trailblazer Award (2005). He has also received several CoSIDA publication and writing awards during his long tenure at his alma mater.
In 2005, Hamilton received the All-American Football Foundation's Scoop Hudgins Outstanding SID Award. Most recently, Hamilton was among five inductees into the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Hall of Fame in a ceremony that took place on March 12, 2009.
Over more than three decades at SCSU, Hamilton has distinguished himself as an able and versatile administrator, as well as an excellent writer. He has provided feature articles and game stories for various newspapers and magazines in an effort to bring awareness to the achievements and accomplishments of SCSU's athletics program.
Hamilton has promoted numerous athletes who have gone on to distinguish themselves in the National Football League and other professions including Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker Harry Carson (New York Giants) and National Football League standouts Robert Porcher (Detroit Lions), Donnie Shell (Pittsburgh Steelers), Charlie Brown (Washington Redskins), Edwin Bailey (Seattle Seahawks), Dwayne Harper (Seattle Seahawks), William Judson (Miami Dolphins) and Dextor Clinkscale (Dallas Cowboys). Current NFL players Chartric "Chuck" Darby and James Lee also came thru SCSU on Hamilton's watch.
Hamilton has also mentored a number of SCSU students who have gone on to positions at other colleges and universities and in the professional ranks, including five currently - Corey Bowdre (Boston Red Sox), Avis Roper (New York Giants), Ted Crews (St. Louis Rams), Damon White (Urban Sports Marketing and Entertainment) and Brad Gillens (Florida Citrus Bowl).
In addition to being recognized for the Arch Ward Award, Hamilton will also be honored at this year's CoSIDA convention as an inductee into CoSIDA's Hall of Fame. Hamilton, a Life Member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc., is involved in a number of civic and community endeavors.
© 2009 Azeez Communications, Inc.