Page 13 - Florida Sentinel 11-24-15 Edition

Young Man’s Perseverance Makes Him A Champion
Arthur Casey and his coach at Virginia Union University, Wilbert Johnson.
Bethune Cookman Routs Florida A& M In The Florida Classic
BY LEON B. CREWS Sentinel Staff Writer
Arthur Casey said it would have been so easy for him to just surrender to the streets, and not amount to anything.
“When I graduated from Mid- dleton in 2011, I had hopes of attending college and being a world-class runner. I was ranked in the top 5 among 300 other competitors nationwide, things were looking great.
“However after an injury, I didn’t get a chance to run for 2- 1/2 years, and that made me start asking myself if this is what I really wanted to do.”
Casey said he overcame a lot of problems, one of them if he’d even stay in school and be able to run again.
“I was enrolled in school at Virginia Union University, and because I couldn’t run, I started selling drugs to support myself and to stay in school. Of course, that didn’t work out and only made things worse.
“I met Coach Wilbert Johnson at Virginia Union, and he asked me when was the last time I ran? He told me to get in shape and send him in- formation on my history as a runner. He wanted to see me perform, and I ended up beat- ing some of his best runners. In
the end, I won a championship ring as a CIAA Men’s Cross Country Champion.”
Casey said he had lost a lot of faith in himself, and it all started with the loss of his brother, who died after being shot to death.
“His body wasn’t found until 3 in the morning. That really hurt that he died that way.
“When I started feeling sorry for myself, my mother became disappointed in me, because she wanted me to be successful. But, when she saw me running again, it brought tears to her eyes and my eyes were full of water as well. She told me how proud she was of me and I worked so hard and had to overcome so many injuries to be successful.”
Casey said he wants to en- courage others to never give up on themselves.
“Fear is only an illusion. I’ll be graduating in 2017 with a degree in Entrepreneural Man- agement, and I also want to continue competing as a run- ner and I have an indoor meet coming up.”
“I want to thank all of the people who encouraged me to stay in school and continue to compete. I see myself improv- ing ever year, and I now know great things are ahead for me.”
Tampan and Bethune’s sen- ior star quarterback, Quentin Williams threw for three touchdowns and ran for an- other on Saturday to help No. 22 Bethune-Cookman beat Florida A&M 35-14. The win earned Bethune Cookman a share of its fourth straight Mid-Eastern Athletic Confer- ence (MEAC) championship. The game was played as the annual Florida Blue Florida Classic at Orlando Citrus Bowl Stadium.
Quentin Williams was named as the Most Valuable Player from Bethune-Cook- man.
The Wildcats (9-2, 7-1) shared the MEAC title with North Carolina Central and North Carolina A&T. For B- CU, the title also represents the fifth of its kind in the last six seasons, but the first under first-year head coach Terry
The players lift 1st year coach Terry Sims after the Wildcats beat the Rattlers.
Sims North Carolina Central was eliminated from repre- senting the MEAC in the inau- gural Celebration Bowl based on the points-tiebreaker. The remaining tie between Bethune-Cookman and North Carolina A&T went to the team with the highest Sagarin rank- ing on Sunday.
If the Wildcats don't earn the Celebration Bowl bid, they will still be eligible for the FCS playoffs. The FCS Playoff selec- tion show was Sunday, Nov. 22. Bethune-Cookman last represented the MEAC in the FCS Playoffs in 2013, falling at Coastal Carolina in the open- ing round.
FAMU Athletic Director
Announces Self-Imposed Sanctions
For Secondary NCAA Violations
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Florida Agricultural and Me- chanical University (FAMU) Athletic Director Milton Overton, announced Monday self-imposed penalties and other sanctions due to the iden- tification of violations of sec- ondary NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) rules during previous academic years.
After an internal investiga- tion by the University and the Mid-Eastern Athletic Confer- ence (MEAC), and a joint in- vestigation by FAMU and the NCAA, FAMU self-reported findings of violations to the NCAA Infraction Committee regarding the Athletics Depart- ment’s failure, in previous years, to properly administer general student-athlete eligibil- ity and playing season require- ments between the 2010-2011 and 2013-2014 academic years,
FAMU AD Milton Overton
in addition to financial aid re- quirements during the summer of 2013.
FAMU is required to pay a one-time fine estimated at $153,255. These monies will be retained by FAMU and rein- vested into the cost of external compliance reviews. The fine will be assessed to ensure that adequate financial resources are devoted to improving the University's compliance pro- gram.
FAMU did not suffer any loss of scholarships, coaches being suspended, or any further ban on post-season play as a result of these Level II violations.
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