Winston-Salem State Does The Right Thing

It became official earlier today: Winston-Salem State University will not become a full-fledged member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.

The Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association board of trustees voted unanimously to allow the Rams to return to the NCAA Division II member CIAA, beginning in the fall of 2010. While the venture of moving to Division I could be looked at as a failure, a more grounded perspective will reveal that WSSU certainly did the right thing.

With the current economic climate affecting every facet of life from education to commerce, no one is in a position to lose dollar on top of dollar, as the Ram Athletic Department was doing. Winston-Salem lost 1.8 million last fiscal year, a deadly amount to lose for any college, let alone an HBCU, during these tough times. It took obviously wisdom and some courage for the Ram family to say “Hey, we’re not ready for this. Let’s cut our losses and not run the school into the ground.”

So now that the MEAC is back to 12 member institutions and 10 football playing members (with last month’s addition of North Carolina Central), the proposed divisional format is now up in the air. The conference has been mum about admitting Savannah State University, so if the Tigers are in, then you can split into divisions with an 11-team football league. If the Tigers are shutout or kept waiting, then you certainly have to keep MEAC football as a one-division situation.

Winston-Salem meanwhile will cut its losses significantly by returning to Division II and the CIAA and also increasing their chances of competing on a regular basis.

When HBCUs were routinely sending their athletes into the professional ranks, the saying was “They’ll find you anywhere if you can play.” Kudos to WSSU for keeping that in mind as they save themselves some heartache – and quite a lot of money in returning to Division II.

Central Comes Back to MEAC

Everyone familiar with the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference knew this was going to happen, but it just a took awhile for it to become official.

In an official press conference this afternoon, North Carolina Central University was re-admitted to the MEAC after a 30-year absence, completing their re-classification as a NCAA Division I school. The Eagles will become full members on July 1 of next year, bringing the number of institutions in the MEAC to 13 teams. What this means for the MEAC remains to be seen.

Speculation naturally suggests that the conference would split into Northern and Southern Divisions, especially now that there are 11 football schools in the conference.

This also enhances fear among many that Commissioner Dennis Thomas is angling to take the MEAC out of the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs and engage in a black national championship with the Southwestern Athletic Conference. It will be a long, hard fight if Thomas plans to remove the MEAC from the playoffs, one that might end up with a new leader for the conference, or several schools splintering off to form another HBCU conference that would be eligible for the postseason if there are eight teams in said conference.

With the FCS playoff field expanding from 16 to 20 teams in 2010, it makes sense to keep the MEAC in the postseason with the chances of two teams from the conference getting in being greater with four more playoff spots.

The wild card in all of this is Winston-Salem State’s upcoming vote on whether to remain in Division I and the MEAC or return to Division II and the CIAA. If the Rams leave, then the door would be open for Savannah State to step in their place and keep the Divisional Format plans alive.

As for what Central brings to the table, this isn’t a Mickey Mouse program. They have sizable facilities in place with room for upgrades, they’ve constantly been in CIAA title contention in the revenue sports (football and basketball) for years, and they strengthen the conference’s Carolinas presence, which is vital if the MEAC basketball tournament, now based in Winston-Salem, is to become successful.

While the question of FCS participation looms large, the consensus is clear that North Carolina Central is a welcome member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.

Bulldogs Showcase Depth In Challenge Win

After finally breaking through for the first MEAC title and Football Championship Subdivision playoff appearance in the Buddy Pough Era, South Carolina State University opened their 2009 campaign with a 34-31 win over Grambling in the fifth annual MEAC/SWAC challenge in Orlando, Fla.

While the Bulldogs have some work to do, particularly with the middle of their defense, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a better and deeper offense in Black College Football than the one the boys from Orangeburg possess.

At Quarterback, Malcolm Long has a live arm with trained accuracy, as evidenced by his 13-yard touchdown strike to Trey Young to give SCSU a lead they would hold on to throughout the contest. When Long wasn’t throwing accurate passes, the Bulldogs turned Cat = Wildcat that is, and red-shirt freshman Derrick Wiley made plays with his feet and his arm in the second half, stepping in for a cramp-plagued Long. The running game is still strong, even if the arm injury Will Ford suffered early in the third quarter is a concern. Travil Jamison (SCSU’s leading scorer in 2008 with 16 touchdowns) and Wiley stepped in and kept the Bulldogs just one step ahead of the Tigers.

If SCSU can keep their offense healthy and pick it up on defense, not only will they be a nightmare for MEAC opponents, but any team they may draw in the first round of the FCS playoffs. While FAMU certainly earned its keep with a 21-12 victory over DSU (their first over the Hornets since 2003), South Carolina State is still the team to beat.

A Stinging Embarrassment

Well, ladies and gentlemen, if you haven’t heard the news, the Delaware State University football team will be forced to forfeit a game this coming season and possibly be rendered ineligible for the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference championship because of a major scheduling snafu.

The Hornets will not only face the University of Delaware for the first time in regular season play September 19th, but they have a date in Ann Arbor with the Wolverines of Michigan on October 17th. However, that was the day they were scheduled to play Norfolk State University, and the Spartans (well within their rights) refused to move the game to their bye week, which would’ve meant 10 straight weeks of games. For any football team, high school, college or pro, that’s a lot to ask. So in order to keep the dates, the Hornets surrendered their game with North Carolina A&T and will start the 2009 campaign 0-1 overall and in conference play.

Needless to say as a Delaware State alum, this is embarrassing. With the University suffering some serious tragedies in the past 20 months as well as the inability to find a President (Allen Sessoms is now terrorizing the University of the District of Columbia), the football team, arguably the school’s biggest athletic program, suffers because of an administrative error, adding to the reputation that DSU has of being ignorant and blind to authority and regimen, especially in an HBCU conference.

While I will agree that MEAC commissioner Dennis Thomas could certainly have found a way for DSU to keep the game and appease Norfolk and all others, the blame rests with Delaware State because the board of trustees and administration lacks respect for HBCUs and the tradition of these schools as a whole (see the Sessoms era as a reference point). One could say that DSU’s attempts to move away from everything HBCU-related is being prompted by state legislature, but the state of Delaware really isn’t moved one way or the other. Right now, it’s just a couple of folks (*ahem* Clay Smith and John Land) who doggedly believe that DSU has no place among the HBCU family and should try and compete with PWIs with larger endowments and better athletic programs.

I remember taking a trip to the University of Maryland-College Park when the Hornets men’s basketball team, fresh off its first NCAA tournament appearance, traveled to the Comcast Center to play the Terps. We were fortunate enough to get there early and we toured a bit of the campus, including the football stadium and the Comcast Center. I thought about the millions – no, BILLIONS of dollars that went into all of the facilities and recruiting and such, and I said out loud “our admin must be smoking that white, not just the green.” Everyone laughed, but for me, it was ridiculous to think that we should be trying to compete with schools who’s budget for lacrosse is probably bigger than the whole DSU athletic program budget as a whole. While I’m not saying we can’t compete on a national level, and I would like to see all Black Colleges do so, let’s be real with ourselves. Let’s build our programs up before we start making plans to stomp with the big dogs.

This scheduling drama only serves to prove that Delaware State has a long way to go before the expectations of the folks in charge are met, if they are even met at all.

Lady Hornets ascend to “Ed” of the class

In the interest of full disclosure, I covered the Delaware State University men’s and women’s basketball teams for four years as sports editor of the student newspaper, The Hornet, so I may be a little biased in my praise of Lady Hornets head coach Ed Davis.

As a sports journalist, it is often tough to get words out of coaches and players – they may be shy, reticent to deal with the media, but I never had that problem with Coach Davis. He was and is forthcoming, always willing to give you a moment when needed and he’s never pulled any punches. If he felt his girls were playing great, he’d say it, if they weren’t, he would let you know why and what changes would be necessary to improve the program.

That said, I challenge anyone reading this post to name a coach in black college hoops that is doing a better job with less than Ed Davis. With their 68-66 victory over Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference leader North Carolina A&T Monday night, the Lady Hornets handed the Lady Aggies their first conference loss of the season and gives A&T and Coppin State something to think about when the MEAC tournament begins in about three weeks.

Gone are the big three of Rocky Collier, Katreem Palmer and Ashlee Burbage. The team’s leading scorer, 5′10 guard/forward Sonia Johnson, is a freshman. Johnson and senior guard Keyhana Wakefield are the only two players scoring 10 points per game. So how can a team with limited offensive options and limited game experience give quality schools like A&T, Coppin and Hampton a run for their money? Easy – defense, defense, defense.

DSU is currently allowing just 53.1 points per game overall, 51.8 in conference contests, including holding two teams (Howard and Florida A&M) to under 40 points.

Davis has often preached defense in recent years because he hasn’t had the scoring weapons in his early DSU days with Terrelle Waller and Mandy Clark. In the 2004-05 season, Davis’ Lady Hornets because the first D-I team in women’s hoops history to hold opponents under 50 points per game for an entire season, and they also led the conference in points allowed when they broke through two years ago and earned a trip the NCAA tournament.

When I spoke to Coach Davis at homecoming, he couldn’t believe that his team had been picked to finish second by conference coaches and SIDs, NOT because he felt it was a slight – He wasn’t sure he had the firepower to stand up to a loaded A&T squad (with a great coach and master recruiter in Patricia Cage-Bibbs) and an always tough Coppin State team.

Yet and still, with five games left in the regular season, DSU stands at 14-11 overall and 11-2 in MEAC play, with an outside shot at the top seed in the conference tournament and a chance to repeat their unexpected run to the MEAC title of 2007.

He may not have the facilities or the star power that other coaches in the MEAC or college hoops as a whole enjoy, but Ed Davis certainly has been able to work magic in his nine-year run in Dover. A team can say that they outplayed DSU but they will never out-coach the Hornets as long as Ed Davis is patrolling the sidelines.

If the Lady Hornets are able to win the conference tournament this year, no one will be more surprised than Ed Davis, although he shouldn’t be. His motivational skills and tremendous coaching abilities will be the reason they pack their bags for an NCAA first round game.

The Journey Of 1000 Miles Begins With One Step…

Alas, despite a tremendous all-around effort on the part of South Carolina State, it is now nine seasons and counting since a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference team won an FCS first-round playoff game.   Armanti Edwards passed out of his mind and the Bulldogs clean out of the playoffs as three-time defending champion Appalachian State took a 37-21 victory at home and will continue their march for a fourth-straight FCS title.

Meanwhile, the MEAC continues to have some up and down performances on a larger stage, and as a DSU alum, I can agree that SCSU represented the conference much better this year than the Hornets did in 2007 at the University of Delaware.  Yet, something seemed incredibly different about this year’s MEAC winner, making its first postseason appearance since 1982.  They were confident, undaunted by the task of battling the dragon slaying-Mountaineers, who of course began Michigan’s epic spiral with an Opening Day upset last season.

The Bulldogs and their fans believed THEY could be the Upset Kids, and for three and a half quarters, they certainly gave ASU a run for their money.   While a different play call here or there could’ve turned the tide of the game, the fact is on this day, Appalachain State was the better team…but not by much.

And so the countdown to the 2009 season begins.  Even though the SWAC still has their championship game left to play, it’s incredible to think that four or five HBCUs had at least an outside shot at a playoff spot.  Tennessee State had a respectable year, as did Bethune-Cookman and Florida A&M, the latter under the direction of new head coach Joe Taylor.  Prarie View A&M, once the laughingstock of HBCU football, turned in a 9-1 season, and only missed the SWAC title game because of a coin flip (that’s another story for another day).

So the question has to be asked – can there be TWO HBCU teams in the post-season party in 2009?   Well quite frankly, it’s a little early to tell since we’re just about finished with 2008, but it’s never too early to guess and play around with some situations, so here goes.

Florida A&M: Fantastic start to the Taylor era as the Rattlers went 9-3 and put a hurting on the Wildcats in the Florida Classic.  However, two things hurt FAM’s drive for a post-season berth.  1) Their homecoming loss to Morgan State University and 2) Tennesee State missing out on the playoffs.

The Rattlers’ win over the Tigers two months ago would’ve looked great to the FCS playoff committee if the Tigers hadn’t fallen out of the Ohio Valley Conference title chase late in the season.   The Morgan State loss probably hurt more as the Bears also slumped late in the season after beating some of the MEAC’s better teams early in the season.

What Florida A&M will need to do in ‘09, especially since the 12th game option is not on the table for that season, is schedule one heavy hitter outside of their appointed dates with Southern and Tennessee State next year.  Maybe a game with UCF or USF or perhaps a FBS school outside of Florida and a good showing there could do the trick.  Of course another solid showing in conference play wouldn’t hurt either.

Tennessee State: Oh so close, but oh so far away for the Tigers in 2008, as a two game slide at the end of the campaign, courtesy of Jacksonville State and Murray State, ended their playoff hopes.  One wouldn’t think the Tigers would have to change much to make the postseason next year, but who they return in key positions remains to be seen.

Prarie View A&M: Well, to go 9-1 less than 15 years after an 80-game losing streak is a noteworthy acheivement in itself, but the poor Panthers were screwed out of at least a chance at the SWAC west title by of all things, a coin flip.  If Southern had beat Grambling in today’s Bayou Classic (which didn’t happen), all three teams would’ve been 6-1 and if the coin ended up in PVA&M’s favor, they would have the option of going to the SWAC title game, or the FCS playoffs if they were invited, and indications were the Panthers would be invited.

Only thing Prarie View has to do for ‘09 is beat Grambling and Southern to win the West, maybe schedule someone a little larger than Texas College and who knows?  It would make for an interesting conversation to say the least.

South Carolina State: After exorcising the ghosts of Pirates’ and Hornets’ past, the Bulldogs gave App State a fight before falling in the final seven-plus minutes of their FCS first round game.  MEAC observers, fans and alumni all agree that SCSU’s the team to beat in 2009.   Quarterback Malcolm Long will be back, as will record-setting running back Will Ford.   Several members of that nasty State defense will be returning as well, and with a playoff game under his a belt, hopefully a wiser and more calculated Buddy Pough will be patrolling the SCSU sidelines.

They’ve already scheduled the big dogs, they’ve run the table in conference and earned their playoff spot.   Now the only thing the Bulldogs need to get back to the post season next year is hunger.  And after an upset just eluded their grasp this afternoon, you can bet they’ll have plenty of that.

Thomas Must Go

Count Florida A&M President Dr. James Ammons and his Bethune-Cookman counterpart Dr. Trudie Kibbe Reed as two more folks who are tired of Dennis Thomas.   Amidst speculation and innuendo of FAM and BCU backing off their stances of not competing in the MEAC/SWAC challenge, Ammons and Reed released a joint statement this past Monday to the Tallahassee Democrat, making it quite clear that they will not participate in any game in Orlando that is not the Florida Classic.   Instead of looking at this as an “inmates running the asylum” situation, Ammons and Reed should be applauded for standing up for the conference’s signature sporting event and not going along with the commissioner’s status quo, which is painfully outdated and out of touch.

Thomas felt compelled to move the MEAC/SWAC Challenge – which will never be confused with the Red River Shootout or the World’s Largest Cocktail Party (Florida vs. Georgia) – from Birmingham, AL to Orlando, FL in order to appease ESPN, with whom the MEAC has a flawed TV deal with.  Disney, the company that owns ESPN also ended its sponsorship of the Florida Classic, making the MEAC-SWAC move to the Magic Kingdom all the more suspicious.

This entire fiasco is just one of many “huh, say what” moves that have been made in recent years since Thomas has pledged to “raise the profile” of the conference.   Sadly, making the conference look like a laughingstock that’s pulling itself in 15 different directions is what passes for raising profiles these days.  Aside from potentially alienating the Florida schools entirely, pick something ridiculous that has happened under Thomas’ watch in the last three or four years.  

Accepting Winston-Salem State as a MEAC member immediately after they reclassified as a FCS (formerly Division I-AA school), yet keeping original MEAC member North Carolina Central on hold after they have been in FCS for a year?  Check.  Going away from Raleigh as the host site for the men’s and women’s basketball tournament when the city was indeed willing to bring it back?  Check.  Meackie?  Dear God, Meackie.  Check.

If there wasn’t a sense of urgency for the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference to begin searching for a commissioner with vision, a plan and more importantly, common sense, the time is now.  Before the risk of ticking off two of the conference’s best-known schools and crippling its major event becomes a certain fact, MEAC presidents have to know that Dennis Thomas is not the answer now, nor has he ever been.  The conference can thank James Ammons and Trudie Reed for making that obvious fact public.

The Future Of The MEAC

With the possibility of North Carolina Central University rejoining the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference at the annual spring meetings, the seemingly age-old never fully answered question comes up. Will the MEAC drop the Football Championship Sub-Division playoffs in order to throw down with the Southwestern Athletic Conference for black college football supremacy in a reborn Heritage Bowl?

As a student journalist a little over three years ago, I wrote a commentary on Black College Wire, suggesting that the MEAC was never going to get a fair shake after an 11-0 Hampton team was forced to play its first round playoff game on the road, a loss at William & Mary. I then followed that up by saying a Black College Title game would be better for business instead of trying to go head to head with predominately white institutions. Well, we all have the right to change our minds, and consider this one overhauled. The MEAC should continue to take steps towards an FCS championship instead taking a step backwards.

The MEAC is much closer in terms of parity than even fans, alumni and administration realize, because of the passion and desire of the presidents in this conference to hire quality coaches and recruiters, thinking outside of the box instead of hiring noted HBCU retreads who can’t get the job done. With improving facilities to match the improved staffs, the MEAC will be able to make some noise in the FCS playoffs very shortly.

However with the potential addition of the Eagles (a conference charter member that reclassified as DII in 1979), the MEAC would then have 13 member institutions, 11 of which field football programs. With the usual 11-game schedule, Central’s readmission would seriously put a crimp in the conference mandated hopes of scheduling bigger and better opponents if no open dates are available. So what to do? Simple math says two divisions (North and South) and an eight-game schedule. That would leave three (in some years, four) open dates for MEAC teams to find FCS powers and BCS teams to play.

Yet and still, you have to pose the question of dissent in the ranks. Many people foolishly assume that Delaware State University is looking to join up with the Northeastern Conference, which will gain full scholarship status as soon as 2010, not to mention the fear that Florida A&M will attempt another BCS reclassification effort in the near future. I’m sure those rumors and thoughts are news to Allen Sessoms and James Ammons, but let’s play the game anyway. First the divisional breakdown:

North (Football)

Delaware State

Morgan State

Howard

Hampton

Norfolk State

South

Bethune-Cookman

Florida A&M

North Carolina A&T

North Carolina Central

South Carolina State

Winston Salem State

This alignment keeps a majority of the natural rivalries the conference has alive (especially the Battle of the Bay and the Florida Classic) and leaves room for teams to schedule the UDs, Appalachian States and Kent States of the world. However if the conference does indeed splinter as some are predicting, what would another HBCU conference look like? Here’s my take on what could possibly become a third D-I HBCU conference.

Southeastern Athletic Conference or South Atlantic Athletic Conference:

FAM

BCU

South Carolina State

North Carolina A&T

Alabama A&M

Albany State

A&T

Central

And what’s left of the MEAC would probably be:

DSU

Hampton

Howard

Norfolk

Morgan

WSSU

Splintering the MEAC wouldn’t work because neither hypothetical conference would have enough football playing members to be considered for an autobid in the FCS playoffs, and with that field expanding to 20 teams in 2010, it just makes more sense to keep the conference together as a whole so two MEAC schools could get in on a regular basis.

So the overall point of this is that the MEAC should stand pat and stick together and work as a unit to make that conference the best it can possibly be in FCS from top to bottom. It can be done if all parties involved work together towards the one goal all MEAC schools covet; holding their own and thriving against the best competition possible.

HBCU Players in NFL Camps

As the first full week of May signals the beginning of mini-camps around the National Football League, there are several HBCU athletes who were either picked in April’s NFL Draft, signed on with teams as Un-drafted Free Agents or got invites to team mini-camps. Here is the full list, along with brief into about each player, along with the chance that you could see these players representing your alma mater on Sundays this fall.

Dominique Rogers-Cromartie, cornerback, Tennessee State University. Drafted 16th overall in the first round by the Arizona Cardinals.

Notes: The cousin of San Diego Chargers star cornerback Antonio Cromartie, Dominique (First Team All Ohio Valley Conference in 2007) has as much skill and ability as his more famous (for now) relative. Tall and rangy at 6′1 1/2, 184 pounds, Rogers-Cromartie’s speed and quickness will benefit the Cardinals’ defense as the franchise looks to shed its decades-long label as losers.

Kendall Langford, defensive end, Hampton University. Drafted with the 66th pick overall (third round) by the Miami Dolphins.

Notes: One of the more dominant defenders in the MEAC over his four years at Hampton, Langford (6′6, 295 lbs.) is as nasty and as confident as any D-lineman you could have ever seen playing I-AA football. It was hard to run or pass on the Pirates as Langford, a three-time all-MEAC First Team selection, compiled 236 tackles and 23.5 sacks in his career and led the nation’s best I-AA scoring defense (14 ppg) in 2005. Look for Langford to have a big impact as the Bill Parcells era begins in 2008.

William Hayes, defensive end, Winston Salem State University. Drafted with the 103rd pick in the fourth round by the Tennessee Titans.

The man Rams faithful have affectionately dubbed “Big Play” will take that big play ability to Music City to help an aging Titans defensive front (the team recently re-signed long time Titan and former Eagle Jevon Kearse). At 6′2 and 260 pounds, Hayes doesn’t fit the mold of an NFL DE size-wise, but his quickness will make up for it, as he was the defensive leader of a Rams team that won five games in its first season competing in Division I-AA.

Jaymar Johnson, wide receiver, Jackson State University. Drafted with 193rd pick in the sixth round by the Minnesota Vikings.

The lone offensive skill player from any black college chosen in the draft, Johnson will be vying for a roster spot on a team that is sure to have opportunities for receivers, as defenses will no doubt key on all-world running back Adrian Peterson. Johnson (6′0, 176 pounds) caught 36 passes for 613 and scored seven touchdowns for the SWAC champion Tigers.

Alex Hall, defensive end, St. Augustine’s College. Drafted with the 231st pick in the seventh round by the Cleveland Browns.

Notes: Hall, the first player drafted from St. Augustine’s since the school restarted its football program in 2002, will look to crack a Browns roster whose 3-4 defensive scheme might give the 6′6, 250-pound DE a chance to be a key contributer to a team that missed the playoffs by virtue of a tiebreaker with Tennessee last season. Hall comes to Lake Erie as the Falcons all-time leader in sacks (25) and tackles for loss (54).

Notable Undrafted Free Agents.

Shaheer McBride, wide receiver, Delaware State University. Signed by the Philadelphia Eagles.

Notes: With the size (6′2, 205 lbs.) and the stats (DSU’s all-time leading receiver), McBride will be looking to crack the roster of a team that Donovan McNabb says is hungry for playmakers. Time will tell if McBride can help the Birds in 2008.

Marcus Dixon, defensive end, Hampton University. Signed by the Dallas Cowboys.

Notes: Anyone who is familiar with Marcus Dixon’s story should wish him the best, but his immense size (6′5, 275) and talent should give him a shot on a not-so-deep Cowboys defensive line come training camp.

James Lee, offensive tackle, South Carolina State University. Signed by the Cleveland Browns.

Notes: Joe Thomas? Check. Hank Fraley at Center? Check. Maybe the best OT in the MEAC? Check. Lee will more than likely make a Browns roster searching for consistency along the O-line to open holes for Jamal Lewis and protect current starting QB Derek Anderson.

Clyde Edwards, wide receiver, Grambling State University. Signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Notes: The Tigers’ all-time leader in receptions and receiving yards, Edwards joins a Jaguar team that looks to take the next step in David Garrard’s first full season as a starter. Having capable weapons like Edwards on the outside should help their chances.

Bobbie Williams, safety, Bethune-Cookman University. Signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Notes: Another success story in the defensive backfield under legendary coach Alvin “Shine” Wyatt, Williams will join fellow Wildcat Alum Rashean Mathis on a stingy Jags defense that ranked in the top half of the NFL in total defense (giving up 313.8 yards per game).

We will update the progress of these players as well as all HBCU NFL hopefuls during the course of the NFL calendar year.

About Me

C.J. Writes is currently involved in two lifelong love affairs of the heart; sports and writing.  An August 2007 graduate of Delaware State University, C.J. is currently employed at a weekly newspaper in rural Maryland.  Sports On The Yard was created on May 6, 2008 to give C.J. an outlet to write and talk about his most pressing sporting interest: Black College Athletics.  After covering Delaware State University for the campus newspaper, The Hornet, C.J. is ready to share his thoughts, opinions and insight on HBCU sports with his readership and the general public.

He can be reached at sportsontheyard@gmail.com if you’d like to engage him in arguments about the HBCU tradition at his alma mater or who has the best fish fry in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.