bluehaze
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Post by bluehaze on Jul 31, 2015 13:03:47 GMT -5
A&T Picked To Win MEAC, Cohen Named Preseason POTY ncataggies.com NORFOLK, Va. – The North Carolina A&T football team went nine straight seasons (2004-12) without being predicted to finish in the top 5 of the MEAC standings. On Friday at the annual MEAC Media Luncheon at the Norfolk Waterside Marriott, the Aggies were not only picked to win the league, but MEAC head coaches and sports information directors also selected A&T star junior running back Tarik Cohen (5-foot-6, 173, Bunn, N.C.) as the preseason offensive player of the year. Joining Cohen on the preseason first team are senior cornerback Tony McRae (5-9, 178, Laurinburg, N.C.), redshirt junior defensive tackle Marquis Ragland (6-3, 271, Fayetteville, N.C.) and junior place kicker Cody Jones (5-11, 141, Gastonia, N.C.). Senior defensive tackle Michael Neal (5-11, 260, Greensboro, N.C.) , senior rover Landis Shoffner (6-0, 186, Greensboro, N.C.) and redshirt sophomore left tackle Brandon Parker (6-7, 279, Kannapolis, N.C.) were second-team selections, while junior offensive guard Wes Cole (6-6, 335, Norwood, N.C.) was selected to the third team. A&T, who finished last season 9-3 overall and 6-2 in the MEAC, received nine out of 22 first-place votes and received 425 points, 17 more than S.C. State who was picked to finish second with four first-place votes. Bethune-Cookman (one first-place vote), N.C. Central (four first-place votes) and Morgan State, last season’s MEAC representative in the NCAA FCS playoffs, rounded out the top 5. The MEAC race finished in a five-way tie for first in 2014 with A&T, Morgan State, Bethune-Cookman, NCCU and S.C. State sharing the MEAC title. “How about that?” said fifth-year head coach Rod Broadway about being picked to win the conference. Broadway is four wins shy of his 100th career victory. “When we stated four years ago, no one thought we were in the position to compete for a championship after coming off 27 straight losses,” he continued. “Just getting to the point where we are expected to do well is a great accomplishment by our players and coaches.” Cohen, the league’s co-offensive player of the year in 2014, is coming off of a season where he rushed for 1,340 yards and 15 touchdowns, the second most yards in a season in A&T history. Only Maurice Hicks (2,812) has rushed for more yards in a two-year period than Cohen (2,488) in program history. Cohen has led in the MEAC in rushing over his first two seasons at A&T, and also led the MEAC in scoring (96 points) and touchdowns (16). Nationally, he ranked third in yards per carry (6.8), 11th in rushing yards per game (121.8) and 15th in rushing TDs. “He’s just a special talent,” Broadway said. “I think what makes him special is his will to win and work ethic. He is one of our most talented players, and he has the heart of a champion. He has an excellent skill set with that work ethic, which makes him a great player.” McRae serves two roles for the Aggies. He is their top corner and kickoff returner. He was a first-team defensive back and second-team kickoff returner in 2014 after making five interceptions, breaking up 11 more passes and earning 25.7 yards per kickoff return. He ranked 13th nationally in passes defended (1.3 per game) and 15th in INTs (0.4 per game) as the Aggies led the nation in turnovers gained and were second in INTs. Ragland is coming off a career season in which he made 69 tackles (38 unassisted), 15.5 tackles for loss, eight sacks and he blocked three kicks. From his nose guard position, he was third in the MEAC in sacks and fifth in tackles for loss. Jones was a first-team 2014 All-MEAC selection after connecting on 15 of 19 (.789) field goals and 45 of 47 (.957) extra points. His 90 points were second in the MEAC behind Cohen. He led the conference in field goal percentage and was second in extra point percentage. Jones also doubled as the Aggies punter last season, ranking seventh in the league in yards per punt. A&T opens the season Sept. 5 at home against Shaw University at 6 p.m. The Aggies first conference game is Oct. 3 at Hampton at 1 p.m.
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oleschoolaggie
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Post by oleschoolaggie on Jul 31, 2015 14:04:08 GMT -5
dang!! i luv the "respect" that our program is getting, but i'd prefer not to be picked #1 in the preseason poll. given our last 3 seasons, i know we can no longer "fly under the radar", but i just don't like the pressure that comes with being predicted to win the meac championship. my concern is that it might diminish the "hunger" that we've had and played with for the last 3 seasons. psychologically, we must now learn to compete at our maximum level despite having high expectations placed on us. so if I'm coach broadway, i'm telling my guys that the preseason predictions don't mean jack!! championships are won on the football field, not in preseason polls. that all being stated, i must admit, it feels awfully good to be picked #1!
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Maxell
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Post by Maxell on Jul 31, 2015 14:20:53 GMT -5
so if I'm coach broadway, i'm telling my guys that the preseason predictions don't mean jack!! championships are won on the football field, not in preseason polls. I'm telling the kids the opposite. We're picked to be champions, so play that way and prove them right. Beat the hell out of everybody we play and LEAVE NO DOUBT!!
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trues
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Post by trues on Jul 31, 2015 14:34:42 GMT -5
I am tired of losing to SC state and we got to go out and beat NCCU.
Did you all hear what Cornell said. He Said I respect these coaches but I dont fear them. See you all in Atlanta LOL
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Post by Aggie One on Jul 31, 2015 15:55:53 GMT -5
The MEAC voters today probably just pushed the anticipated opening night attendance for the Shaw game to somewhere close to some 20,000 onlookers and a lot of very anxious loyal fans.
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ohsixrain
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Post by ohsixrain on Jul 31, 2015 16:11:01 GMT -5
I am tired of losing to SC state and we got to go out and beat NCCU. Did you all hear what Cornell said. He Said I respect these coaches but I dont fear them. See you all in Atlanta LOL Now see that quote by Connell has some teeth! I think we will beat them but, dare not overlook them.
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Aggie E
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Post by Aggie E on Jul 31, 2015 16:14:10 GMT -5
I am tired of losing to SC state and we got to go out and beat NCCU. Did you all hear what Cornell said. He Said I respect these coaches but I dont fear them. See you all in Atlanta LOL Yeah...Connell did talk a little trash up there. He and Coach Scott have some history going back to their CIAA days. I liked the new format, having both the coach and moderator seated makes it much more informative. It's nice to be picked first, but we all know that means nothing in the MEAC!
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Post by Aggie One on Aug 3, 2015 11:52:16 GMT -5
Cornerback Tony McRae and Running Back Tarik Cohen at MEAC Media Day
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oleschoolaggie
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Post by oleschoolaggie on Aug 3, 2015 13:27:59 GMT -5
Cornerback Tony McRae and Running Back Tarik Cohen at MEAC Media Day see, where is bluehaze? see, that's the attitude from our guys that i wanna hear! like mcrae said, "predictions mean nothing", we have to prove it on the field. exactly!! i can rest a lot easier at night knowing they feel that way...
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Post by The Professor on Aug 3, 2015 13:40:01 GMT -5
I am tired of losing to SC state and we got to go out and beat NCCU. Did you all hear what Cornell said. He Said I respect these coaches but I dont fear them. See you all in Atlanta LOL All that big talking isn't gonna work in the MEAC. He can't build a team via transfers no more
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bluehaze
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Post by bluehaze on Aug 3, 2015 15:45:36 GMT -5
I am tired of losing to SC state and we got to go out and beat NCCU. Did you all hear what Cornell said. He Said I respect these coaches but I dont fear them. See you all in Atlanta LOL All that big talking isn't gonna work in the MEAC. He can't build a team via transfers no more He's got a transfer QB coming in, so we shall see...
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bluehaze
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Post by bluehaze on Aug 3, 2015 15:48:26 GMT -5
Cornerback Tony McRae and Running Back Tarik Cohen at MEAC Media Day see, where is bluehaze? see, that's the attitude from our guys that i wanna hear! like mcrae said, "predictions mean nothing", we have to prove it on the field. exactly!! i can rest a lot easier at night knowing they feel that way... lol! I'm trying to remember what I said. McRae and Cohen are definitely two vocal leaders. Hopefully the rest of the team feeds off of that. Looking forward to a great season!!
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saabman
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Post by saabman on Aug 3, 2015 21:26:18 GMT -5
All that big talking isn't gonna work in the MEAC. He can't build a team via transfers no more He's got a transfer QB coming in, so we shall see... Watford from UVA is a ? Mark he is not started in two years and only played in four games last year. I really don't think that is being in Hampton will be the difference maker for them. I think and feel that if we play up our full potential this year Hampton will just be another team on this schedule with a loss. this all depends on how the Aggies come out and play this season. we have the best talent on paper and have a lot of proven players . I'm not worried about any team on this schedule but what I am worried about is the mindset of the players on the Aggies squad not taking anything for granted and playing to their full potential.
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oleschoolaggie
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Post by oleschoolaggie on Aug 4, 2015 9:36:46 GMT -5
see, where is bluehaze? see, that's the attitude from our guys that i wanna hear! like mcrae said, "predictions mean nothing", we have to prove it on the field. exactly!! i can rest a lot easier at night knowing they feel that way... lol! I'm trying to remember what I said. McRae and Cohen are definitely two vocal leaders. Hopefully the rest of the team feeds off of that. Looking forward to a great season!! bluehaze, remember under a different thread i stated that i’d rather not be the “preseason” #1 pick in the meac and that if i were coach broadway, i’d be telling my guys that “preseason predictions don’t mean jack”? and then you quoted me to say that you would tell them the exact opposite and for them to prove the predictors right? that’s why i asked, where is bluehaze because based on that video it sounds as if coach broadway just might have agreed with me or more appropriately, i should say that i agree with him...
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Maxell
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Post by Maxell on Aug 4, 2015 13:24:16 GMT -5
lol! I'm trying to remember what I said. McRae and Cohen are definitely two vocal leaders. Hopefully the rest of the team feeds off of that. Looking forward to a great season!! bluehaze, remember under a different thread i stated that i’d rather not be the “preseason” #1 pick in the meac and that if i were coach broadway, i’d be telling my guys that “preseason predictions don’t mean jack”? and then you quoted me to say that you would tell them the exact opposite and for them to prove the predictors right? that’s why i asked, where is bluehaze because based on that video it sounds as if coach broadway just might have agreed with me or more appropriately, i should say that i agree with him... Actually that was me who said that and I still believe that. They did say that it needed to be proven "on the field", which is the common denominator in our approaches.
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