I didn't write this...

[DOOMS]

www.news-record.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061010/NEWSREC0105/610100310/1022/GTCOM

A&T should play Elon and not run scared


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I'll miss the N.C. A&T-Elon football game because it was not only for backyard bragging rights, but it had developed into an intense rivalry that fans could appreciate.

My first question is why A&T isn't renewing the game. Was it to play N.C. Central in front of a packed crowd? You wouldn't have to drop Elon. All you would need to do is add Central, which would give an extra home game when you travel to Winston-Salem State....

[Aggie Monster]

Damn!!!!

but its the truth.

[A&T AGGIE 96]

I don't really care either way. Keep Elon, or dump them...playing them doesn't excite me any more then playing CS. Sounds to me like someone is pissed Elon got dropped, they'll just have to get over it.

I know I'm not sorry there gone. As a A&T football fan I don't give a flip about Elon...and I'm also welling to bet the AD is not getting tons of emails or questions in person about Elon not being on the schedule.

Most Aggies I know are glad to see them go.

[AggiePride]

One of the benefits of the game is that is cheap. WE always talk about how the Athletic department is broke. Why not keep?

[DECKS]

I wish we would keep the game as well! Short traveling distance and a SoCon team that will reciprocate.

[DOOMS]

I've only become interested in their program since 34-7. Before then I had barely heard of Elon and only found out later they have a couple of NAIA national championships under their belt. Since then I've avidly followed their program. Right now they are moving the ball and being very competitive. Clearly it will be years before we're able to compete with them again. I shudder to think what will happen when we play them this year.

I'm not for this we're running scared talk. It's childish talk to me. What I do know is that the complaint appears to be that they do not come in large numbers to our stadium while we fill theirs up. I posted this in another thread: Make them the first game of the season and make it at night. We will get at least 15,000. Winston and Central are going to sell out either way so there's no need to play them first. Put them on the coldest, rainiest day of the year when you need something to prop up attendance.

Like AggiePride said, they're right up the street. It costs five bucks to drive there. Charleston Southern is going to lose us money and strength of schedule points.

For us to be disinterested in the game, I see a whole lot of our black asses at the game when we play them at their spot. A lot more than I'll see in Charleston.

In my opinion we are hurting ourselves by cancelling this game. Fobbs could learn a whole lot from Lembo. Hayes played Coach Moore at Appalachian until he could beat him and even though we took a whooooole lot of lumps I know Hayes would've loved to keep playing him because Hayes wanted to compete with the best. Is Elon the best? Hell no, but they are going to be on a par with the best in the next three years (the best being the defending national champions).

I read where our "goal" was the division I-AA national championship. Unfortunately every decision that comes from our athletic department of late seems to state our goal is mediocrity.

[Bornthrilla]

Charleston SC is a better road trip destination than Burlington, NC.

Last year I had my honeymoon in Hilton Head which is not to far from Charleston. If we can commit to schedule our visit to Charleston Southern around the week of November 5 every other year, then I will just celebrate my anniversary during this game.

[DOOMS]

That's great...

for you

What about, I dunno, the football program?

[Bornthrilla]

Why does what's best for me and what's best for the football program have to be mutally exclusive?

Hell, I recommend that all Aggie newlyweds have their honeymoon in Charleston so we can all celebrate our annivesaries together.

Aint no fun if the homies can't have none.

[BigtimeAggie]

I agrre with others on the board
We should keep Elon on the schedule. The price is right and playing Southern Conference team help our schedule strength and gets us ready for the playoffs.
I like the idea of playing them to start out the season.
I think you could move the WSSU game around still make money

I also agree

[BigtimeAggie]

I agrre with others on the board
We should keep Elon on the schedule. The price is right and playing Southern Conference team help our schedule strength and gets us ready for the playoffs.
I like the idea of playing them to start out the season.
I think you could move the WSSU game around still make money

I also agree

[TOPPDOGG]

I don't think we should keep them on the schedule. Sure it's a game against a school from a I-AA power conference. The travel costs are non-existent. They benefit from our game much more than we did.

They would invite their African-American basketball recruits and other prospective students to campus on the weekend they played us. The idea was to convince the kids that this is what campus would feel like. On the other hand they only brought a few hundred spectators to our campus. They have the audacity to hold tailgate parties away from campus and shuttle bus to our stadium. Talk about a slap in the face!

Elon needs us for their attendance, revenue and atmosphere for their athletes. We don't need Elon for a damn thing. Perhaps it would've been wiser to schedule another I-AA that's a little closer than Charleston Southern.

[TOPPDOGG]

Oh yeah even though we've been down lately we still have a 4-3 advantage against them. It's kind of hard to say we're running from them.

[DOOMS]

Well, we also own a pretty nice advantage over Central. Since we lost they claim we're running scared. You know that's what people do. I've seen fools on this board claim Appalachian ran from us cause we beat them once in six tries. People always claim pwcs don't want to play hbcus because they are scared. Scared of what? That the water boy will sprain his ankle returning a blocked punt for a touchdown?

As incorrect as the statement is people still make the statement.

[aggiejazz]

I was asked by the writer of the letter that was printed in the News and Record concerning A&T dropping Elon from its football schedule to set the record straight in Blue Death Valley. First the title that N&R used was not his. N&R used their editorial right to change the title. Second N&R did not print his whole letter.

Mr. Abrams is a graduate of A&T, former NC High School Allstate and Shrine Bowl football player. He did not play football at A&T. His football playing career ending after high school. He is an avid Aggie football fan and his family has had season tickets forever and a day. Mr. Abrams watch about three of this fall preseaon football practice and was the first person to tell me that it was most likely that A&T will not win a game this season. He and his family was part of the 4,200 that watch last Saturday's game. Below is his entire letter he faxed to the N&R and he also faxed to me this past Monday. I retyped it to place on the site.



A&T’s A.D. Cherry Picking Football Opponents

In October 5th sports section I learned that A&T was not renewing the series with Elon. I’ll miss that game because it was not only for backyard bragging rights but it had developed into an intense rivalry that fans could appreciate. Now my first question is why? Was it to play NCCU in front of a stadium packed crowd? You wouldn’t have to drop Elon all you would need to do is add NCCU, which would give you an extra home game when you travel to WSSU. Was Elon dropped to add a Division I opponent for a huge payday? No…Elon was dropped to play no other than the power of all football powers, Charleston Southern. What type of crowd will they bring to Greensboro when you only average 3000 people per home game? Is this your best idea on how to generate revenue? Sounds like someone was looking for a weekend getaway.

South Carolina State is going to play the University of South Carolina in 2007 & 2010, Clemson in 2012 and Georgia Tech in 2014. Even Elon has moved forward by scheduling South Florida for $300,000.00 and future dates with ACC opponents while our A.D. wants to “selectively choose” opposition. I guess that means playing some you have a fair shot at beating which only leaves Prairie View and Savannah State, but since Prairie View has beaten Southern University that only leaves Savannah State!

The first point is this, football has to learn how to stand on its own, you can’t cherry pick opposition, the better your opponent the more you will be able to learn from them because they will magnify your weaknesses and mistakes. You can’t run scared, play a D-I school take your lumps, enhance the department, you’ll be better off in the long run. Look at the leverage the coaches will have in recruiting when they can tell 4 and 5 star players that Texas, Nebraska, Miami, Michigan, etc… are on future schedules!

The last point is football has to support itself; men’s tennis or men’s basketball or your other athletic programs’ budget should not have to suffer because of football. It’s not fair to the coaches who are out there hustling to make their programs nationally competitive only to be derailed because their budget is being reduced. The people it hurts the most are the student athletes because it lets them know how they are really viewed by the A.D.’s office…and that’s the sad part about it.


Concerned Alum,
Norman Abrams