Post by bluehaze on Nov 21, 2007 9:07:25 GMT -5
No big moves seem imminent with A&T football
By Rob Daniels
Staff Writer
Wednesday, Nov. 21, 2007 3:00 am
Football coach Lee Fobbs hasn’t had much reason to signal No. 1 in his two seasons at N.C. A&T. His record is 0-22. But at least some of the losses were closer this season.
A&T's slide
N.C. A&T's record in the past five seasons:
Season Overall MEAC
2003 10-3 6-1
2004 3-8 1-6
2005 3-8 2-6
2006 0-11 0-8
2007 0-11 0-8
GREENSBORO -- Maybe the most newsworthy development of N.C. A&T's football season was the lack of news. A second consecutive winless campaign came to an end Saturday, and it apparently has been met with patience rather than panic.
After head coaches were fired in 2002 and again in 2005, university officials suggested this week that they will endorse Lee Fobbs rather than undergo another revolution of leadership and personnel.
The Aggies, 0-11 overall and 0-8 in the MEAC, had more close calls (five) than blowout losses (four) this fall, and though that's nothing to hang a banner about, it's at least some measure of progress from 2006, when the team held the lead for less than three of the 660 minutes it played.
"I definitely feel we're moving forward," said athletics director Dee Todd, who fired George Small and replaced him with Fobbs in late 2005. "Obviously, there were games we were in. What we lacked was quality depth."
And that, Todd said, is best built and sustained with continuity.
The Aggies' losing streak has reached 27 games, the fourth-longest in the history of the NCAA's second-highest division and the longest by a school with a semblance of football tradition. That has caused angst in some corners -- enough to prompt Stanley F. Battle, the university's new chancellor, to offer a cryptic statement on the topic Monday.
"We have experienced a very difficult football season this year," Battle said. "The review of all athletics programs is well under way. There is considerable room for improvement in all athletics at A&T. I fully support our football program.
"A&T appreciates your consistent and continued support for our athletic programs and our student-athletes."
Nothing that vague can be called an overwhelming endorsement, but it doesn't seem to herald imminent change, either.
Small's departure was followed by predictable roster turnover. The attrition was so grave that Fobbs couldn't conduct a traditional spring intrasquad scrimmage in 2006 -- the first sign that a fix would not be quick. Conventional wisdom says at least three full recruiting classes are required to repair a mass exodus.
If 2006 was a disaster, then 2007 was one long act of frustration. The Aggies lost four games they led in the fourth quarter, and they saw a comeback bid in another game end with an interception thrown from inside the N.C. Central 10-yard line.
A&T did improve considerably on offense. A line with some experience opened enough holes to spring junior Michael Ferguson for 1,169 yards, the fourth-highest rushing total in school history. Ferguson and the bulk of the line are expected to return in 2008, and that's a nice start.
The Aggies' offensive need is an intermediate passing game. The decision to alternate quarterbacks Shelton Morgan and Herb Miller probably was more about the lack of a clear top choice than a philosophical bent, and it wouldn't hurt to see one excel next spring.
That won't be the quarterback's job entirely. This season's top two wide receivers are seniors, which puts a premium on adding an immediate-impact guy -- perhaps a junior college player -- between now and August.
The Aggies' top five tacklers were juniors. Collectively, the unit gave up an average of 5.93 yards per play this season -- still too high but at least an improvement from the 7.03 yards of 2006.
"I think we will turn the corner next year," Todd said.
Fobbs, who hit the recruiting road this week, knows he'll need to sustain as well as sign players. The Aggies' attrition rate was better than the MEAC average after last season, and that's a minimum component for long-term improvement.
Todd said the football team has improved its academic performance under Fobbs' leadership, a trend that goes hand-in-hand with player retention. The coach, whose career has taken him to insanely competitive environments such as Alabama and Texas A&M, knows the losing streak will be foremost on Aggies' minds until it is snapped.
The home schedule might have six games next year. Its final composition -- specifically whether the series against Central will be continued in the aftermath of a brief postgame scuffle this year -- remains in the hands of the university's administration.
"People want results and not excuses," Fobbs said after the season-ending loss to South Carolina State. "We want the same thing. We want to win as much as our fans do, and it's time we showed it."
By Rob Daniels
Staff Writer
Wednesday, Nov. 21, 2007 3:00 am
Football coach Lee Fobbs hasn’t had much reason to signal No. 1 in his two seasons at N.C. A&T. His record is 0-22. But at least some of the losses were closer this season.
A&T's slide
N.C. A&T's record in the past five seasons:
Season Overall MEAC
2003 10-3 6-1
2004 3-8 1-6
2005 3-8 2-6
2006 0-11 0-8
2007 0-11 0-8
GREENSBORO -- Maybe the most newsworthy development of N.C. A&T's football season was the lack of news. A second consecutive winless campaign came to an end Saturday, and it apparently has been met with patience rather than panic.
After head coaches were fired in 2002 and again in 2005, university officials suggested this week that they will endorse Lee Fobbs rather than undergo another revolution of leadership and personnel.
The Aggies, 0-11 overall and 0-8 in the MEAC, had more close calls (five) than blowout losses (four) this fall, and though that's nothing to hang a banner about, it's at least some measure of progress from 2006, when the team held the lead for less than three of the 660 minutes it played.
"I definitely feel we're moving forward," said athletics director Dee Todd, who fired George Small and replaced him with Fobbs in late 2005. "Obviously, there were games we were in. What we lacked was quality depth."
And that, Todd said, is best built and sustained with continuity.
The Aggies' losing streak has reached 27 games, the fourth-longest in the history of the NCAA's second-highest division and the longest by a school with a semblance of football tradition. That has caused angst in some corners -- enough to prompt Stanley F. Battle, the university's new chancellor, to offer a cryptic statement on the topic Monday.
"We have experienced a very difficult football season this year," Battle said. "The review of all athletics programs is well under way. There is considerable room for improvement in all athletics at A&T. I fully support our football program.
"A&T appreciates your consistent and continued support for our athletic programs and our student-athletes."
Nothing that vague can be called an overwhelming endorsement, but it doesn't seem to herald imminent change, either.
Small's departure was followed by predictable roster turnover. The attrition was so grave that Fobbs couldn't conduct a traditional spring intrasquad scrimmage in 2006 -- the first sign that a fix would not be quick. Conventional wisdom says at least three full recruiting classes are required to repair a mass exodus.
If 2006 was a disaster, then 2007 was one long act of frustration. The Aggies lost four games they led in the fourth quarter, and they saw a comeback bid in another game end with an interception thrown from inside the N.C. Central 10-yard line.
A&T did improve considerably on offense. A line with some experience opened enough holes to spring junior Michael Ferguson for 1,169 yards, the fourth-highest rushing total in school history. Ferguson and the bulk of the line are expected to return in 2008, and that's a nice start.
The Aggies' offensive need is an intermediate passing game. The decision to alternate quarterbacks Shelton Morgan and Herb Miller probably was more about the lack of a clear top choice than a philosophical bent, and it wouldn't hurt to see one excel next spring.
That won't be the quarterback's job entirely. This season's top two wide receivers are seniors, which puts a premium on adding an immediate-impact guy -- perhaps a junior college player -- between now and August.
The Aggies' top five tacklers were juniors. Collectively, the unit gave up an average of 5.93 yards per play this season -- still too high but at least an improvement from the 7.03 yards of 2006.
"I think we will turn the corner next year," Todd said.
Fobbs, who hit the recruiting road this week, knows he'll need to sustain as well as sign players. The Aggies' attrition rate was better than the MEAC average after last season, and that's a minimum component for long-term improvement.
Todd said the football team has improved its academic performance under Fobbs' leadership, a trend that goes hand-in-hand with player retention. The coach, whose career has taken him to insanely competitive environments such as Alabama and Texas A&M, knows the losing streak will be foremost on Aggies' minds until it is snapped.
The home schedule might have six games next year. Its final composition -- specifically whether the series against Central will be continued in the aftermath of a brief postgame scuffle this year -- remains in the hands of the university's administration.
"People want results and not excuses," Fobbs said after the season-ending loss to South Carolina State. "We want the same thing. We want to win as much as our fans do, and it's time we showed it."
Hell it's b-ball time any way......!!!!!