BCSP IX-20: BCSP Notes

Eugene, who led Grambling to its third straight Southwestern Athletic Conference, had the best numbers of the three quarterbacks named finalists for the award but finished behind winner Tony Romo of Eastern Illinois and Brett Gordon of Villanova.

Romo, who passed for 2,950 yards and 33 TDs, received 24 first place votes and 268 points. Eugene, who threw for 4,483 yards and 43 TDs, had more first place votes (21) than Gordon (18) but finished behind him in total votes (245 to 234). Gordon threw for 4,305 yards and 36 scores.

The award, named for the former Jackson State and NFL star, was established in 1987 by The Sports Network and is voted on by 109 I-AA sports information directors and selected members of the media.

I-AA Black College All-Americans
Thirteen (13) black college performers, including five members of the first team, were named to the Sports Network 2002 All-America Team last week.

Three-time Southwestern Athletic Conference champion Grambling State placed two players on the first team, senior offensive lineman Terry Riley and junior wide receiver Tramon Douglas. Also named first teamers were Bethune-Cookman safety Rashean Mathis, Alabama A&M defensive end Robert Mathis and Delaware State return specialist DeShaun Morris. Both Mathis's are seniors while Morris is a junior.

Douglas, a first team all-SWAC selection, completed his season with totals of 92 catches for 1,704 yards and 18 touchdowns. Rashean Mathis, who won the Buck Buchanan Award as the best defender in I-AA football, had a I-AA record 14 interceptions while leading the Wildcats to the Mid Eastern Athletic Conference title (See story above).

Robert Mathis, named the SWAC Defensive Player of the Year while spearheading the Bulldogs run to the SWAC E. Div. crown, led all of I-AA in sacks (20) and was a finalist for the Buchanan Award. Morris averaged 28.3 yards on 25 kickoff returns including three he brought back for scores.

On offense, Bethune-Cookman senior offensive lineman Napoleon Joseph and Grambling sophomore quarterback Bruce Eugene were named to the second and third teams respectively. Hampton sophomore defensive end Isaac Hilton, Mississippi Valley State senior defensive lineman Joseph Crear, Southern junior defensive back Lenny Williams and Florida A&M junior cornerback Levy Brown were named to the second team on defense, with Texas Southern senior linebacker Lenard Mack and B-CC junior lineman Steve Baggs on the third team.

A Different Take
The American Football Coaches Association had a much different take on the NCAA Div. I-AA All-American Team.

The AFCA squad, voted on only by coaches of I-AA teams, picks only one team and three black college players were named to that squad.

The only black college player voted to the team that also made the Sports Network All-America squad is Bethune-Cookman senior safety Rashean Mathis.

Hampton return specialist, senior Zuriel Smith and Jackson State senior linebacker Elgin Andrews were the other black college products selected.

Smith led Div. I-AA in punt returns with an 18.5 average on 27 returns. Smith brought back one kick for a TD. Andrews led the Southwestern Athletic Conference in tackles posting 58 solos, 63 assists along with three sacks.

And in Division II
Two black college players, both on defense, were named to the AFCA's NCAA Div. II All-America squad.

Bowie State senior defensive end Charles Alston and Tuskegee defensive back Drayton Florence were chosen to the only team picked by the nation's Div. II coaches.

Alston (6-6, 275) anchored a Bowie State defense that keyed the Bulldogs to their first CIAA East Division title. He was a first team all-CIAA selection posting 42 solo tackles, including 20.5 for losses and seven sacks.

Florence was the key stopper in the SIAC champion Tuskegee secondary, picking off five passes and returning two of them for scores.

Orlando's Florida Classic pitting FAMU against Bethune-Cookman at the Citrus Bowl on Nov. 23 drew 70,201 to take the top spot for the second year in a row and third time in four seasons.

FAMU's Sept. 28 date with Tennessee State at the Atlanta Classic played in the Georgia Dome finished second for the first time, knocking the Nov. 30 Bayou Classic at the New Orleans Super Dome between Grambling State and Southern from second to third place.

The Capitol City Palmetto Classic pitted in-state rivals South Carolina State and Benedict on Sept. 7 and was played for the first time this year at Columbia's William Brice Stadium. It made the biggest jump, leaping to sixth on the list with 46,304 fans in attendance.

The largest homecoming crowd of the season (37,843) was at Jackson's Memorial Stadium on Oct. 12 to watch the Jackson State Tigers host the Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils.

NC Central Loses A Star
North Carolina Central University men's basketball transfer Melvin Whitaker has been declared ineligible by the school's Department of Athletics after receiving new information from the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association last Wednesday (Dec. 18) in regards to Whitaker's last date of competition prior to joining the Eagles.

The 6-10 Whitaker is a Raleigh native and McDonald's all-American signed by Virginia out of high school before off-court troubles landed him at Mount St. Mary's. He played in three games for NCCU, all losses, starting on Sunday, Dec. 15.

"Based on information we received from Mount Saint Mary's College (the last college where Whitaker played basketball), we felt confident we could use the NCAA Two-Year Non-participation Exception and sent his paperwork to the (CIAA) conference office for approval," said Lin Dawson, NCCU Director of Athletics in a press release from the school.

"A few days later, we received word from the conference office that his eligibility start date was incorrect. Our department immediately declared him ineligible" A Mount Saint Mary's College official stated that Whitaker's last season of competition was 1999-2000. The information forwarded to NCCU on Wednesday by the CIAA demonstrated that the center participated during the Spring of 2001.

"When student-athletes seek to transfer to NCCU, we have set procedures that we follow to ensure that we are in compliance with NCAA By-Laws," Dawson explained. "We process more than 20 Transfer Release Forms per year for student-athletes seeking transfer status. This is

the first incident of its kind that our department has experienced. It is unfortunate that we did not get this handled before Melvin Whitaker played a game."

"Although we have not had this type of violation before, we are initiating new steps that will strengthen this process," said Dawson. "We have notified the NCAA of our intention to self-report this matter on Monday (Dec. 23)."

BCSP Notes . . .