Week 3 Progress Report
9/22/04 by  SWACFootball.com

It’s that time again fans. Week 3 progress reposts are now here and with many surprises. Prairie View is 2-1 and looks more discipline. Powerhouse Grambling is looking for an identity with a new quarterback due to the injury of Bruce Eugene. The SWAC is shaping up to be very interesting in the next couple of weeks. (Forum Discussion)

Alabama A&M
Record: 2-1 Grade: C

The Bulldogs are in trouble this year. The reason is because the defense is not up to A&M standards and the offense still hasn’t come around. Many people saw this coming and preached that the Bulldog’s offense needs to improve in order to win in the SWAC year in and year out. Well, the day has come and the offense has not progressed and the team will suffer because of it.

On the bright side, the East is still open and couple of wins here and there could put A&M in a good position at the end of the season.

Alabama State
Record: 2-0 Grade: A

The Hornets at the moment, are the best team in the SWAC. The rushing attack they possess is powerful and is used to perfection. Quarterback Tarvious Jackson has come around to be a great leader and manages the game well. The Hornets have to keep the turnovers down to keep the winning ways going.

The Hornets most important games of the year is Alcorn State and Southern. Getting a win against the Braves and Jags will make a strong case for the Hornets to win the SWAC and go undefeated.

Alcorn State
Record: 2-1 Grade: B+ 

The Braves had wake up call last week against Howard. The wake up call said “You are not good enough to just show up and win.” The lost came at a  prefect time for the Braves. It will make them focus more on this weeks game to make sure they are well prepared. Alcorn will be playing one of the best teams in the SWAC. In order to send a message to the rest of the teams in the SWAC they need to defeat Alabama State.

The facts are that The Braves just might be pretenders. The games won are against short-handed Grambling and overrated North Carolina A&T. The lost to Howard shows that the Braves just might not be that good after all. This week's game against Alabama State will tell the truth.

UAPB
Record: 1-1 Grade: D+

UAPB is another mystery. They destroyed Mississippi Valley in week one only to lose to Bethune-Cookman in week two with a horrible performance.  Now... what confused me, was Bethune-Cookman losing to Grambling, which most people had written off for the year. Now with that said does any one know what kind of team the Golden Lions have?

I know one thing; the Golden Lions are not that good and they will not have a winning season.

Grambling State
Record: 1-2 Grade: C+ 

The Tigers got hit hard at the beginning season with an injury to  Bruce Eugene, losing him for the year with a knee injury.  After that many people said, “Well, that’s it, the season is over” These people seemed right when they lost to Alabama A&M.

Now the Tigers have quieted some critics by beating a good Bethune-Cookman team. Many people on SWACFootball.com Forum said that Tigers would be a better team without Bruce Eugene because they will be more balanced. The Tigers played better when the number of passes thrown are below 40 attempts. Now the running attack isn’t great but at least the attempt to be balanced, gives the Tigers a better chance of winning.

Jackson State
Record: 0-3 Grade: C-

JSU is not that bad of a team and will surprise a couple teams this year. The Tigers will need to score over 20 points in order to some ball games.  Scoring in the SWAC is important. Most teams in the SWAC can put up 25 points minimum in a game and some put that up in a quarter.

One of the teams that the Tigers could surprise is Southern. As we know, when two rivals play, records are throw out the window. Look for JSU to play well and might even steal a win in New Orleans. Unfortunately, Jackson State fans will find this might be the highlight of the season.

MVSU
Record: 0-3 Grade: D

Valley is progressing but not fast enough in order to keep up with the SWAC. Some people might say that the Delta Devils will never be a powerhouse they once was. I say this to those people; “Yes they will and I know how.”

Valley needs to establish a balanced running attack. Run the ball first and pass second. Sometimes you need to go back to the basics.

Prairie View
Record: 2-1 Grade: D+

The Panthers are improved from last year and will win some more games this year but they will not have a winning season. Now with that said, the Panthers might beat UAPB and MVSU to finish the year 4-7.

That is good progression. The Panthers will need some time, but I believe they will be in good shape in a couple of years.

Southern
Record: 2-1 Grade: B

Southern is playing inconsistent right now, by playing well in only two games, one against McNesse State and the other against Prairie View. The Jags will have to dodge many landmines throughout the season. Landmines meaning, the teams that are better than their records. Rival Jackson State falls in this category as well as Alabama A&M. A lost to either one of the teams will send the Jags in a must win situation through the rest of the season.

Quarterback Thomas Ricks will need to play smarter and let the game come to him. The Jags success will rest in the game management abilities of Ricks. The running game is good enough to bail him out when he’s struggling. The coaching staff needs to recognize this and when in doubt run behind the best offense line in the SWAC.  They will carry you to the SCG.

Texas Southern
Record: 0-3 Grade: F

TSU lost to P.V. and that is when their season was over. The players have quit and so have the fans. 

(Forum Discussion)