2004 SWAC Preview
(Forum Discussion     SWACFootball.com Top Ten)

The 2004 season will be the season of new beginnings with new faces and names. The SWAC has changed a little bit since season’s end. Some coaches were let go by teams while one coach ended his era on his own terms. The SWAC only has two coaches that have been there over 5years; Pete Richardson of Southern and Johnny Thomas of Alcorn. Will the current coaching situation in the SWAC mean that Southern and Alcorn will meet in the SWAC Championship (SCG) due consistencies of their coaching? I really don’t know but I wouldn’t bet against it.

The eastern division is once again wide open with three teams with legitimate chances to win the SCG; Alabama State, Alcorn State, and Alabama A&M. ASU’s quarterback Tarvious Jackson returns with 2342 passing yards and a better understanding of how the offense flows. The defense is the key this year as the Hornets gave up 25.2 points a game last year. That number will need to improve if ASU expects to be in the Championship game this year. The biggest plus for the Hornets is that head coach Charles Coe is now in his second season and the “interim” label is removed from his title.

Last year the SWAC saw a late surge from an unlikely team in Alcorn State. Alcorn went on a five game winning streak, which started with beating the current SWAC champion Southern, 36-34. The key to the turn around was quarterback Donald Carrie. Carrie turnovers slowed and the offense picked up giving them a chance late in the season to play for the championship. This year will be a little different for Alcorn. Running backs Andrew Burks and Sidney Dumas are lost due to graduation so a new running back must help carry the load of the running game. Expect the Braves to throw the ball more this season and rely on the arm of Donald Carrie to take them to SCG.

Alabama A&M went 8-4 on the year but missed going to the championship game because of a lost to Alcorn State late in the season. A great season but disappointing in the eyes of the Bulldogs who claim the three team media dominated SWAC (Grambling, Southern, and Jackson State) needs to respect them. The Bulldogs quest for respect begins every year with the same goal of winning the SWAC Championship. The problem that keeps getting in the way the lack of offense the bulldogs have. This year will be no different. With the lost of speedster Jeremiah Bonds in the backfield due to graduation the Bulldogs need to find a running attack to help the struggling quarterbacks Johnny Keith and Tim Robinson.  Keith started to mature last year but still needs to take over the leadership of the team. A&M’s chances rest on the arm of Keith and the defense that is good year in and year out.

The biggest but predictable disappointment last year was the performance of Jackson State. The Tigers went from being contenders every year to being the butt of all the SWAC jokes. Some say the cause of it was the coaching and play calling of James Bell. Others say it was the lack of leadership Bell gave towards his team. Either way it goes the fans and people observing could see that the Tiger’s morale was destroyed due to lack of leadership. It’s now a new season and the outlook appears even dimmer than last year. Robert Kent needs to be replaced at quarterback, and the offensive line needs to be improved and the defense needs to step up and perform. Bottom line is that this will be another year being the butt of all jokes if the Bell doesn’t take control of this team and make the right decisions.

Mississippi Valley State entered last season as if they were making a comeback. Head coach Willie Totten did a media blitz to sell tickets and talk about how good his team was. I myself even bought into it. Well this year I’m not buying it. The Delta Devils will be improved from last year but not a contender. The one bright side for the Delta Devils is that the SWAC has had some change over in coaching positions and they could steal a win here and there.

During the off-season, the western division suffered a great lost when Grambling head coach Doug Williams resigned and took an office job with the Tampa Bay Bucs. Offensive coordinator Melvin Spears now directs the Tigers ship. The offensive scheme will not change much but the question is what kind of defense will the Tigers have this season. The lack of defense has been a thorn in the side of Grambling that they just can’t shake. Even though the offense has out scored most teams to win three out of the last four SWAC championships, the Tigers fans are little worried about their team this year. The good news is Bruce Eugene was left with a sour taste in his mouth last year losing to Southern and the chances to play in the SCG end of the season last year.

SWAC champs Southern suffered big blow during the off-season losing Alfred Ard, the last remaining starting receiver, to the MLB Baseball draft. In addition, the Jags will start the season with a new quarterback Thomas Ricks. The plus side to this season is that Jags return running back Kenneth Peoples and the whole offensive line.  The Jags will focus on the running attack early in the season to groom Ricks. The Jags will need Peoples to have 1500-yard rushing season in order to repeat as SWAC Champs.

Texas Southern is mystery as new head coach, former Bowie State defensive coordinator, Steve Wilson, takes over Tigers. With that said the Tigers will probably not be improved from last year due the fact the Wilson is a defensive coach and the Tigers need a boost in the offensive category.

UAPB situation is not any better this year but some would say anything is better that Lee Hardman as head coach. New head coach Maurice "Mo" Forte has a big task at hand to restore the Golden lions program.  Don’t expect much from Forte because he was fired for failing to turn around the Norfolk State Spartans. This is a similar situation, but with less pressure.

Prairie View is with out a doubt the worst team in the SWAC this year. The Panthers start the season once again with a new head coach and high hopes. The Program has been set back a couple years what progress it did make during the Dorsey years. All is almost lost from that era but the knowledge of what kind of fans the Panthers have waiting for a good team. The Panther fans are the best-kept secret in the SWAC. Once the program awakes the SWAC will have another powerhouse. Some say that day will never come and I just say it will one day.

It’s my belief that Southern will once again come away with the crown beating Alcorn in the SCG. The SWAC has had too much change over for me to go against stable Pete Richardson and Johnny Thomas. While other coaches will be trying to figure out what type of team they will be this year Richardson and Thomas both already know, a running team in Southern and a passing team in Alcorn. Richardson’s team will win because Pete is a better coach and a tough running game this year should prove to be the key ingredients to winning in the SWAC this year.      (forum discussion)