Races tight at halfway point

LUT WILLIAMS
BCSP Editor

Here's an assessment of where individuals, teams and leagues stand as the 2007 football season has, for all practical purposes, reached the halfway point and enters pivotal games this weekend.

With losses by Southern and Alabama State over the last two weeks, the only undefeated teams in black college football are of the NCAA Div. II variety ­ Virginia Union of the CIAA at 6-0 with just four games remaining and Tuskegee of the SIAC at 5-0 with six games left.

VUU, outscoring opponents by a 33-12 average this season, hosts offensively challenged Elizabeth City State (2-4, 1-0 CIAA E) this Saturday (1 p.m.). An offensive juggernaut last year and a preseason favorite for conference honors, ECSU has scored only nine touchdowns in six games and is averaging just 12.4 points per game this season. Still, they're in a position to spoil the Panthers' (6-0, 1-0 E) party with an upset win.

Tuskegee (5-0, 4-0) is even more dominant. The Golden Tigers are averaging 38 points per game and are giving up just 7.2 points per contest. Opponents have reached double figures just once, the ten points the TU defense allowed in last week's 33-10 thumping of Morehouse. TU entertains Stillman (5-2, 1-2) Saturday (1 p.m.). The Tigers' only losses have been to Albany State (24-17) and to Fort Valley State last week in overtime (20-19).

The initial rankings for the four NCAA Div. II football regions were released on Monday, Oct. 8. Both the CIAA and SIAC play in the Southeast Region.

VUU is ranked sixth in the region. No other CIAA school is currently ranked. Tuskegee is ineligible for the playoffs and is therefore not ranked. Among SIAC schools, Albany State (5-1) is ranked seventh and Fort Valley State (5-2) is 11th.

With their first-ever 3-0 start in the MEAC, a tie for first place in the conference with tough wins over Bethune-Cookman (38-31) and conference favorite South Carolina State (20-13 in overtime Saturday), all eyes will be on Norfolk State this Saturday to see if the Spartans can conquer their nearest and most bitter rival, Tidewater Virginia neighbor and three-time defending MEAC champion Hampton (4-1, 3-1) in their annual Battle of the Bay Classic (2 p.m.).

The Pirates have thumped NSU five straight times by an average score of 47-10 since the Spartans' last win (28-20) in the series in 2001. Since Pete Adrian became NSU's head coach in 2005, the scores have been 55-14 and 42-13 for Hampton.

But this year is different. Adrian says he's matched Hampton in mining the talent-rich Tidewater high school ranks and this is a different Norfolk State team. Results bear him out. Hampton (35.8 ppg.) and NSU (28.2 ppg.) are 1-2 in scoring in the conference.

The biggest obstacle for Virginia Union in the CIAA could be resurgent Bowie State (3-3, 1-0 E). After averaging just over ten points per game in a 2-2 start, BSU (4-2) has exploded for 41 and 44 points over the last two weeks in blowout wins. That scoring explosion can be attributed to the return of former CIAA rushing leader Isaac Redman, who has totalled 417 rushing yards and seven rushing touchdowns over those two games. As it stands now, both VUU and BSU have identical 1-0 division marks and 3-0 conference records.

Bowie State needs a win this week at Virginia State (2-4, 0-1 E), to set up a showdown next week (Oct. 20) in Richmond with VUU in the Gold Bowl Classic.

Morgan State running back Chad Simpson, with 979 yards thru six games, is averaging 163.1 rushing yards per game and 5.1 yards per carry. He's the leading ball carrier in the MEAC and in black college football and is fifth nationally in NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) stats.

The Bears' workhouse is averaging over 31 carries per game. Look for Simpson to be the first black college runner to top the 1,000 yard mark this Saturday when MSU hosts Howard for homecoming (1 p.m.).

If he keeps up this pace, the Miami, Fl., native and University of South Florida transfer will break Delaware State RB Gene Lake's MEAC single season record of 1,722 rushing yards set way back in 1984.

Among the most dominant teams in their respective conferences have been Albany State and Tuskegee in the SIAC and Grambling State and Southern in the SWAC West.

Either ASU or Tuskegee has claimed nine of the last ten SIAC titles, with the two sharing last year's crown and ASU winning the previous three. Barring a major upset, the winner of this year's Oct. 20 match-up in Albany will take this year's championship. This week Albany State (5-1, 4-0) will have to be careful and not get caught looking ahead as plays at Clark Atlanta (2-4, 1-2).

Southern (3) or Grambling State (4) has represented the SWAC West Division in seven of the eight league championship games and their traditional season-ending Bayou Classic at the New Orleans Super Dome looks like it will again determine which team represents the division this year.

Southern (5-1, 3-1) suffered its first loss of the season 33-28 Saturday at home to defending SWAC champ Alabama A&M, a team Grambling (4-1, 4-0) dominated 31-6 two weeks earlier. New coach Rod Broadway flexed the G-Men's muscles with a equally dominating 40-0 win over Mississippi Valley State Saturday.

Both Grambling and Southern have plenty of obstacles however before their storied Thanksgiving weekend (Nov. 24) meeting.

GSU takes on the only other team to win a West Division title, defending champ Arkansas-Pine Bluff (3-2, 2-2) Saturday (4 p.m.) in Little Rock, Ar., in the Delta Classic for Literacy. UAPB is coming off a week of rest after playing perhaps its best game of the season, a 20-17 loss to BCS member New Mexico State.

Southern has an equally tough task hosting Jackson State (3-2, 3-0 E) who is on a three-game win streak and currently sits atop the East Division standings. JSU defeated Alabama State 32-20 last week to take over the East Division lead.

Delaware State is riding high at 4-1 overall, sitting atop the MEAC standings at 3-0 with a big win over three-time champion Hampton already in its nest, a shiny, new ranking (17th) in the latest Sports Network FCS national Top 25 and the top spot in every black college poll.

So why would a date this week (1:30 p.m.) at winless North Carolina A&T (0-6, 0-3), riding the longest losing streak in the nation (22 games), be something to worry about? Well, the Hornets are playing on the road against a team that's gaining confidence and has been on the verge of ending that streak for six weeks now. The Aggies crept still closer with a 22-17 loss to a good Morgan State in a game that wasn't decided until the Bears scored twice in the final quarter Saturday.

And nothing could shut up the Aggie faithful calling for second-year coach Lee Fobbs' scalp like a win over a team riding so high. Every coach relishes the chance to spin the David vs. Goliath scenario. That spells danger for the Hornets.

© 2007 Azeez Communications, Inc.

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