Page 25 - Florida Sentinel 11-27-15 Edition

HBCU Football Teams Passed Over By NCAA Div. 1 Committee; No Teams In Playoffs
Alcorn State lost a one-point game to Alabama A&M, which ultimately kept the Braves out of the 2013 SWAC Football Championship game.
On Saturday, the Braves se- cured a second straight ap- pearance in the conference title game after defeating Ala- bama A&M 44-10. The Braves set a school record for rushing yards in a game with 500.
Alcorn State team celebrates after win.
The third time is the charm. For two consecutive years, the Tuskegee University Golden Tigers have been on the verge of making history by winning their first round playoff game, only to fall short by a couple of plays in both games.
After months of preparation through the spring and sum- mer, the Golden Tigers made their dream a reality as they defeated third-seeded Catawba College 26-16 on the road Saturday afternoon.
The win marked the first-
Tuskegee will meet North Alabama this weekend.
WORCESTER, Mass. – As- sumption College had no trou- ble with Bowie State University on Saturday afternoon, cruis- ing to a 51-29 NCAA Super Re- gion One quarterfinal win. The loss ends the Bulldogs season record at 9-3.
Turnovers and penalties re- ally hurt the Bulldogs as Bowie State was flagged 12 times for 105 yards and committed a season-high five turnovers.
HBCU Bowie State loses to Assumption College.
ever playoff victory for Tuskegee and propelled the Golden Tigers into the Round
of 16 to face a familiar foe in the University of North Ala- bama next weekend.
BCU’s Quentin Williams run s for yards at the Florida Classic. BCU was among teams that did not get chosen by NCAA.
Alcorn State Back In SWAC Title Game By Being East Champions
Tuskegee’s Win Propels Them Into Round 16 In Playoffs
Bowie State Loses In First Round Of Playoffs
For the first time in two decades, there won’t be an HBCU football program in the FCS postseason.
The 24-team field revealed Sunday did not include a school from the MEAC, SWAC or Ohio Valley’s Tennessee State.
Entering play Saturday, there was an outside chance that as many as two HBCU schools — Bethune-Cookman and Prairie View — could receive at-large bids to the postseason.
Prairie View (8-2) beat Jack- son State convincingly 56-14 and Bethune-Cookman (9-2) topped Florida A&M 35-14.
Both teams, however, were passed over by the NCAA Divi- sion I Football Championship Committee.
Prairie View first-year head coach Willie Simmons was
not pleased with the Panthers being left out of the playoff pic- ture taking his sentiments to Facebook.
“The Good Lord constantly shows us that our work is NEVER done,”he wrote. “With a 9-2 record (8-1 conference) and only one loss to an FCS opponent, Prairie View A&M got shunned from the FCS playoffs for multiple 4 loss and even a 5 loss team!!! My play- ers have nothing to hang their heads about! I’m blessed to be their coach!!!”
With MEAC co-champion North Carolina A&T represent- ing the conference in the Cele- bration Bowl against the SWAC champion, it took the auto- matic bid out of the equation.
The last time the FCS play- off field was without an HBCU team was 1991.
MEAC Co-Champion North Carolina A&T Beats Out Bethune To Play In Inaugural Celebration Bowl
N.C. A&T was in 3-way tie with Bethune and N.C. Central. They were chosen to represent the MEAC conference.
North Carolina A&T State will represent the MEAC in the inaugural Celebration Bowl, the conference announced Sunday. The game is slated for Dec. 19 at Noon at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta and televised on ABC.
“We are excited to announce that North Carolina A&T State will serve as the MEAC repre- sentative in the Inaugural Cele- bration Bowl,” said MEAC Commissioner Dennis Thomas.
“To have three teams fight- ing down to the wire for their chance to serve as this year’s representative continues to demonstrate the strong parity and tremendous talent of these student-athletes and coaching
staffs in the MEAC.’’
North Carolina A&T State
rose to the top of the MEAC’s tiebreaker formula following a three-way tie for first place along with Bethune-Cookman and North Carolina Central. All three teams will share the conference’s regular season title with a finishing mark of 7- 1 in MEAC play.
The Celebration Bowl pits the conference champion from the MEAC and the SWAC against one another in a post- season bowl game. North Car- olina A&T will face the winner of the SWAC Championship game between Alcorn State and Grambling State on Dec. 5 in Houston, Texas.
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