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Key conference tussles bring first month to close
LUT WILLIAMS Florida A&M (2-1, 2-0 MEAC), fresh off their 27-7 humbling by Tennessee
State at the Atlanta Classic, has to travel to Howard (1-2,
1-0 MEAC) Saturday (12 noon, MEAC TV) in a game with serious ramifications for
the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference outcome. The Rattlers, who have made five straight appearances in the NCAA Div. I-AA playoffs and are known for their high-scoring offense, showed none of that ability against TSU. They'll be facing another tough defense in the Bison, who got their offense untracked in posting their first win of the year, 41-14 over Morgan State. FAMU blitzed the Bison, 43-0, last year in Tallahassee but struggled two years ago at Howard's Greene Stadium before pulling out a triple-overtime thriller, 40-34. Howard coach Steve Wilson has never beaten FAMU since Billy Joe took over in 1994 and is 0-8 against Joe overall, including a 1991 loss when Joe was at Central State. FAMU leads the series 20-4. "I am not buying into that," Wilson said at his Tuesday press conference of the demise of the Rattlers. "They have the master (Joe) at retooling programs and let's not forget, they are still in first place (in the MEAC). ` "Any time you lose a player the caliber of (defensive end) Jauron Dailey, and a receiver who has the greatest stats in the history of college football in Jacquay Nunnally, it has to make a difference. They still have the QB (Quinn Gray) who took them to the playoffs for the last two years. FAMU will bring their best and we will bring our best. It's going to be a great game." Jackson State kept alive their hopes last year for a chance at the division title with a 34-28 overtime win in Jackson on Nov. 4. Then freshman QB Robert Kent got the winning score on a 25-yard run on the Tigers first play of overtime. Kent passed for 309 yards and three TDs in the game. A&M got their first win after two losses last weekend with a 24-10 decision over Texas Southern. The Bulldog, defense, the best in the SWAC last season, held their own while the offense struggled in the two losses to open the season. Their held their end of the bargain against TSU, registering four interceptions, getting four sacks and recovering three fumbles. Running back Curtis Donnell helped the offense come alive against Texas Southern, running for 138 yards on 22 carries and scoring one TD. Kent has started off this season in a blaze, throwing eight TD passes in JSU's first two games. Converted QB T. C. Taylor has caught four of those scoring strikes, and is averaging 17.5 yards on his 11 receptions. Jackson State leads the series, 8-3, winning eight of the last nine decisions. The big question in the CIAA is whether Fayetteville State (3-1, 1-0 CIAA W) is ready to make a step into the upper echelon of the conference. They can answer that question when they host two-time defending champion Winston-Salem State Saturday (7 p.m.) in a huge West Division tussle. The Broncos are off to a 3-1 start, and are looking for their first winning season since 1993. In his second year, Kenny Phillips has the Broncos playing well, posting a big win over Benedict to open the season, getting wins over CIAA-members Livingstone and Elizabeth City, and battling I-AA Tennessee Tech evenly for a half before losing 31-10. FSU stayed with WSSU last year before falling 28-14. The Broncos offense, led by running backs Nathaniel Benton and Nick Green, and QB Victor Leath, is among the league leaders. They will have to produce against a stingy WSSU defense. Linebacker Clint Cochran leads the FSU defense. Winston-Salem State is coming off a heartbreaking, last-minute, 24-22 loss to Virginia Union last Saturday. The Rams kept VUU's offense out of the end zone until the final 35 seconds but their special teams gave up three scores. QB Aubrey Jones, who threw for 298 yards against VUU, is the trigger man in the Rams' new wide-open offense. © 2001 Azeez Communications, Inc.
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The
key SWAC game will be in Huntsville, Alabama as defending East Division
champ, Alabama A&M (1-2, 1-0 SWAC E) hosts perennial SWAC contender
Jackson State (2-0, 0-0 SWAC E).