Inside Hotlanta and the SIAC

By Hal Lamar
Photos by Patsy Collier-Lamar

Aaron Bennett

Jovan Bennett

Tyler Bennett

Tuskegee  University, founded by Booker T Washington, the training ground for the  Tuskegee airmen, winningest historically black college., longtime host of the  SIAC basketball tournament and a founding member of the 100 year old SIAC ( The Goldens and Clark College, now Clark-AU are the only two original members still  playing football since the SIAC’s 1913 birthdate) now have another first to put on their crimson and gold helmet. Lest this columnist is corrected by more knowledgeables, the Georgia born (as in Hinesville) brothers Aaron , Jovan and Tyler  Bennett are the only threesome playing college football on the same team (BCS, FCS or any other S). Jovan is a 285 pound junior defensive  tackle, brother Tyler is a 301 pound senior and third sibling Aaron tips the  scales at 302 pounds. (I fail to list his classification only because there  seems to be some confusion with that. SIAC defensive statistics have him listed as a  freshman, while Tuskegee’s roster has him down as a senior (?). Nonetheless,  the latter member of the Bennett family is kicking. In six games, Aaron has  recorded 15 tackles, eight of them solo shots and four sacks, all of them in last weekend’s Morehouse game. He is currently 5th in the conference in that category.  Credit the Bounce TV  broadcast of Morehouse-Tuskegee with the tip on the Bennetts.  By the way,  their parents were seated in the stands last weekend in Columbus wearing shirts  with their sons named emblazoned on the back….

SIAC ACTION LAST WEEK - The Panthers  of CAU , with their 56-0 whipping they inflicted upon College of Faith from  West Memphis Arkansas, have evened last season’s two wins. The Panthers showed  little mercy to the visiting Warriors on a sunny day Saturday, October 12 as they kept the ball strictly on the ground and out of the air.  That gave their running back tandem of freshmen  Montavious Taylor, Jordan Dooley  Eric  Farley , Aquimial Burton plus sophomores Shaquil Traylor and Trevious Blair a chance to strut before the hometowners. The Panthers racked up 591 rushing yards with all eight of their scores on the ground. The leading ground gainer for the quintet was Dooley, who rushed for 147 yards and scored once. The last time CAU  shut out an opponent was 2010, when they blanked Miles 14-0. The last time they  shut out an opponent scoring 50 or more points was 1966 when they defeated  Morehouse 68-0. Ironically, last year when the Panthers were 2-8, one of their  two victories came against Benedict 14-10 at home.

Morehouse’s  story last week was anything but joyful. Poor performance by special teams,  little to no protection from the team’s offensive line for either of the  school’s quarterbacks and Tuskegee’s 28-0 whitewashing of the Marooners in the  second half led to their embarrassing 54-10 loss last weekend at the 78th ‘Skegee-Morehouse Classic in Columbus, Georgia. Interestingly, it was a former  Atlanta high school product that led the charge for the Golden Tigers.  True freshman Hoderick Lowe, who played his prep ball for Atlanta’s Grady High School, accounted for only 85 rushing yards  but scored three of the Tigers’ eight touchdowns. It was Morehouse’s most  humiliating defeat at the hands of Tuskegee since their 56-8 loss in 2004.  Against Albany Saturday, Morehouse head coach Richard Freeman faces another  team he has only beaten once since taking the helm in 2007. A year after his  first stint as a head coach, the Marooners defeated the Rams 24-19 in Atlanta.

ELSEWHERE IN THE SIAC: Miles College  got the shock of its life as the guests of 0-5  Central State University’s homecoming. The  Marauders inched ahead of the Bears in the last few minutes of the contest,  held on and defeated them, 25-21, for their first win of the year and the first victory for coach EJ Junior….  Speaking of surprises, only 665 showed up in  Jackson Tennessee for Lane and Albany State but they got their tickets’ worth  as the Dragons leaped to 4-2 and third place in the SIAC west with an upsetting, 37-31, win over Albany State. An interception by Lane’s Michael Ruffin with 35 seconds left stopped an ASU drive and preserved Lane’s lead and the  victory……And Stillman refused to let their homecoming crowd down. The 4-2  Tigers led throughout the game and hung on to defeat Benedict 35-21…….Fort  Valley, leader in the SIAC East by virtue of their 2-0 division mark,  stayed put despite losing to Kentucky State  on the Thorobreds’ homecoming 17-11. An interception by KSU sophomore defensive  back Eric Rawls drowned a Fort Valley drive before it started to preserve the  victory….Rawls

XTRA POINTS: Atlanta native Michael Paden, a graduate of Tuskegee University, will be consecrated as a Bishop in the Church  of God in Christ this month. Paden comes from a family of superlatives. His  brother Kenneth , also a minister, was director of the Georgia Mass Choir and  the writer of the hit gospel selection “Help is on the way”…..CAU’s 56-0  drubbing last week of the College of Faith from West Memphis Arkansas was a  worst licking of 50 points or better that the school has inflicted on an  opponent since their 66-0 shellacking of Morehouse back in 1966…….Morehouse’s  loss to Tuskegee last week still leaves  Richard  Freeman with having defeated the Goldens only once since he took over as head  coach in 2007. He will face Albany State this weekend as the Rams homecoming  guest and again another school he has managed to defeat only once in his six  years as head coach game….Can CAU stretch their two game win streak to three this  weekend in Columbia, South Carolina against Benedict? Last year under another coach, the Panthers went 2-8 . One of those victories was over… Benedict.

RoweTHIS WEEK’S GAMES AND PICKS
Washburn(6-0) over Fort Valley (2-4, 2-0  division)
Tuskegee (5-1) over Stillman (4-2)
CAU (2-3) over Benedict  (2-4)-Benedict homecoming
Lane (4-2) over Central State (1-5)- Lane  homecoming
Morehouse (2-4) over Albany State  (1-4, 0-0 division)-ASU Homecoming
Kentucky State (4-2) over Miles  (2-3)-Miles Homecoming –Bounce TV broadcast

Got an item? Contact Hal -> hallamar at comcast.net