Forte to remain at helm of Norfolk State Football

Norfolk, VA-Norfolk State University will retain Head Football coach Maurice "Mo" Forte, according to NSU Athletic Director Orby Moss. "No one was pleased with how we ended the season, but to change coaches now and start over again is in no one's best interests", said Moss.

Forte, is in the third year of a four-year contract. He has compiled a 10-23 record overall and a 6-18 MEAC conference record. Norfolk State has not fielded a winning football team, since their move to Division I-AA in 1997.

"Certainly we all expected more, said Moss. "We all thought that the big win over rival Hampton, a quality program, and the homecoming victory over Howard was an indication that our program was headed in the right direction. But losing our last three games was disappointing.

"I'm here to change the situation with this program," said Forte. We are going to make changes and I believe we will turn things around next season. With only two years of recruiting, it is evident we still have some holes to plug. We are trying to show these guys how to win and what it takes to win. That is not easy for program, which has had five straight losing seasons.

Moss agreed with Forte that there were many supplemental improvements that had to be made just to get the program at a competitive level in recruitment. "We had to renovate locker rooms, hire another full-time coach, and build a new training room to name a few," said Forte. All of this took a great deal of funding, funding that we should have used for recruiting and scholarships, but we had to start somewhere.

"When Coach Forte was named head coach, he said it was going to take all of four-years," said Moss. I will be expecting to see better things next year.

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