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by Hal Lamar INSIDE goes to the SWAC Championship(BIRMINGHAM)-With the SIAC football season in the can for 2007, INSIDE decided to step outside the conference and attend the 9th annual championship of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) December 15 at Birmingham Alabama’s Legion Field. In my last column, I stated that picking a winner of this contest between the Tigers of both Jackson State and Grambling would be hard. Both were coached by men who had extensive experience on the gridiron, knew what it meant to take a floundering program and rebuild into a winner. Both knew full well the pressures related to championship play,.
Rod Broadway’s Louisiana Cats and Rick Comegy’s boys from Mississippi didn’t disappoint. When the smoke and dust cleared from Legion’s massive stadium cooled by a brief rain shower that dampened the field around the third period, Jackson State had prevailed 42-31 and did so on the strengths of senior quarterback Jimmy Oliver (12 of 25 for 192 yards and 3 throwing touchdowns) and senior running back Lavarus Giles (23 rushes for 130 yards and 2 touchdowns). Oliver, who was named offensive MVP of the game, said he had a point to prove to a lot of doubters. “I didn’t make first team All-SWAC or even second team All-SWAC, I just had to come out and make some things happen. That way, they couldn’t take that away from me. I broke down crying after the game because I knew it wasn’t me out there doing all that. It was God, the God in me.” Jackson State also got some big help from their defense. In the first quarter, cornerback Dominique Johnson stepped in front of a Grambling pass and raced the other way 34 yards for a score. Another interception by JSU linebacker Marcellus Speaks late in the second period set up the Tigers offense at the Grambling 26. Six plays later, the Tigers scored on a three yard run by Giles and took a 28-12 lead in the locker room at the break.
But to Grambling’s great credit, they came on like a house afire in the second half, scoring at the 9:46 mark of the third, then exploiting a Jackson turnover only 24 seconds later with a 44 yard pass from red-shirt junior Brandon Landers to junior wide receiver Nick Lewis. Two gutsy two-point conversion attempts tied the score at 28. Most of the 43,236 fans at Legion began to watch with baited breath (especially on the JSU side) as Grambling place-kicker Tim Manuel gave Grambling the lead, 31-28. It was also the last points that Grambling would score the rest of the afternoon. Jackson State roared back in the fourth period to score twice while their defense thwarted any drives by Grambling. “I‘m proud of our guys,” said Grambling first year head coach Rod Broadway. “Naturally we are disappointed with losing two conference games back to back (Grambling lost to Southern last month in the Biyou Classic). I thought our guys played well coming off last year’s 3-8 season and losing 26 seniors. To start basically from scratch, (finishing) 8-4 is not bad.” Jackson State also finished 2007 at 8-4 but relished in their win over Grambling, a first for the college since their 68-35 triumph back in 1998. It’s Comegy’s second winning season since arriving at the school last year and turned around a program which hadn’t much to cheer about since their 7-4 year in 2002. It also allows Comegy to add yet another championship trophy to his shelf alongside his three SIAC championships and the national black college flag he won as head coach at Tuskegee. “It’s a new level (JSU) and new challenge,” he told INSIDE as we walked toward the JSU locker room. “ It’s just great to be able to turn a program that was down and make it a winner.” EXTRA POINTS…..This year’s SWAC Championship drew 43,236 fans, second only to the 47,621 which witnessed “SWAC Bowl I” in 1999… “I’m staying away from that,” he answered and then with a nervous grin said, I’ll answer anything you want about my football team which is Grambling State University and our football players and the game. You guys can have those rumors.” …A front page story in Saturday’s Birmingham News indicated promoters of the annual Magic City Classic in Birmingham are irritated with bad traffic management, long lines and bad shuttle service that haunted this year’s game. Organizers say many out-of-town guests for the annual football “do” between Alabama A&M and Alabama State say they will stay away if conditions don’t improve. This year’s contest drew 68,500 fans to Legion Field which seats 71,594…. BACK TO THE SIAC: As hinted heavily by this column space, Miles fired head coach Wade Streeter and has replaced him with former Florida A&M head coach Billy Joe. I wonder if Billy will be able to handle coaching at the Division II level after having so many years at D-1?......If former Lane head coach and now Texas Southern head man Johnnie Cole is still in the market for a defensive coordinator, he might want to peruse the credentials of Lee Calland. The architect of the famed “blue devil” defense at Fort Valley State a few years ago is bidding his time in Atlanta….By the way, INSIDE has been told that Calland’s former boss at FVSU, Kent Schoolfield, is on a short list of candidates for the FAMU head coaching job…and we spotted former FVSU head coach Doug Porter in Grambling colors along the side line Saturday in Birmingham........ Got an item or comment?
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