Karsceal Turner – I Got NEXT!
Blow out was the word for the day Saturday. First, I suffered a blowout of my rear passenger tire on route to Municipal Stadium in Daytona Beach. I was flushing down I-95 South when I felt the familiar sound and feel of a blown tire. I safely reached the exit ramp and pulled over to the curb.
When I took a look at my tire the thing was shredded (there will be many references to the word “shredded” throughout this column. Anyway, I dialed AAA and waited for them to come and set me straight. Justin of AAA Roadside Rescue was glad to place my donut spare on for me, about an hour later, I was again on my way the stadium. You ask if I could change a spare by my damn self? Well Certainly I can silly rabbit, HOWEVER, the reason I pay for AAA is so THEY can come and do it. ( I was sitting in the A/C listening to Earth Wind & Fire), get AAA folks.
Bethune-Cookman University’s home opener was electric. Since it was “Church and Community Day,” many of the area clergymen were in attendance getting their five minutes of fame before Sunday services the next day. In addition the entire freshman class of B-CU led the team onto the field. What happened next was a travesty if you’re a fan of the Panthers of Virginia Union. You know I was glad to meander over to the other side of the field for a shot of those Panther cheerleaders since they neglected to bring the “Marching Panthers”….all 12 of them. Just clowning Panthers’ fans. However, had they brought their band, they would have been torn to shreds by the “Marching Pride” of B-CU, yeh yeh, I’m biased. Hell, I’m still paying back bloody student loans.
The shredding begins
I’ll tell you like this, Virginia Union University, sure as hell could have used some AAA. The Panthers got Shredded 66-7 by a Wildcat team whose, defense and special teams scored early, followed by a Wildcat offense which posted its fourth 60-point game of the Brian Jenkins era.
Erik Williams and Nick Addison both had picks in the first half. The defense smelled blood and wanted to send a message. Jameson Wright recovered a VU punt blocked by Jocelyn Borgela Jr. at the Panther 16, setting up a 20-yard Jonathan Cagle field goal five minutes into the contest.
Williams’ “pick six” plus Quentin Williams’ 5-yard rush – set up by a 44-yard catch by Eddie Poole – which pushed B-CU’s lead to 17-0 in the first stanza. those miscues resulted in a soft cushion for the Cats early on. I swear, every time I turned around it was TD Wildcats! VUU to finally awakened with 8:04 remaining in the first half when Damon Kelly’s one-yard run capped off a 65-yard march.
The Wildcats weren’t done, they drove 68-yards march spurred by Isidore Williams’ 47-yard romp to set up a one-yard trot by Cary White with 6:09 left. B-CU led 38-7 at halftime. By this time I have made my way to the pressbox and that fantastic juicy barbecued bird. You know I crushed it.
After a rousing performance by the “Marching Pride” under direction of Mr. Donovan Wells, a brother of Phi Beta Sigma, and led by Mr. Michael “It’s Showtime” Crane, my Kappa brother. Yo Nupe! Yep, I’m doing shout-outs, when you get your column, do it YOUR way. Speaking of shout-out, Dr. Edison Jackson, President of B-CU promised to make time for me. I’d like to do a quick timeline on him….as if it would be easy, the man has been Coast to coast revitalizing Black Colleges since before I became the pen-wielding scribe that I am. But I digress, back to football action.
The shredding continues…
Wide-out Jontavious Carter hauled in a 16-yarder from Jackie Wilson then a 22-yarder from Broderick Waters, which pushed B-CU’s lead to 52-7 after three quarters. Truly my mind began to wander away from this debacle.
B-CU has three Quarterbacks on the depth chart. All three passed for a TD. Quentin
Williams was 4-5 in passing with one interception and 73 yards passing, Jackie Wilson was 5-4 for 55 yards, and Broderick Waters was good on 4-8 passing for 54. Talk about efficiency at signal-caller position, talk about scoring at least 14 in every quarter?.. whew!
The wide receivers corps for the Cats was equally effective. Nine receivers hauled in a pass totaling a respectable 182 yard and three touchdowns. Drexler Dixon’s 12-yard run and Michael Jones’ 16-yard touchdown from Williams concluded the shredding session.
The end of the shredding
When the dust settled there was shredded Panther fur scattered across Larry Kelly Field. Sorry, I left before the alma mater. Me and my donut tire were already at home in Ormond Beach beating the keyboard. Soo here’s the wrap up folks, B-CU is now 9-4 all-time against the CIAA. Yep VUU is a Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference member. They are actually 1-1 against VUU, meaning The Panthers beat them once. It was 1953 was not even a twinkle in my father’s eye but VUU beat the Wildcats 13-zip. One thing I’ve learned about this team. They believe in vengeance and redemption. I think its coming folks. It’s coming.
The non-conference journey continues when B-CU travels to Miami to take on anther Panthers team. This time it’s Florida international University of Conference USA. The FIU football team fell to UCF in its home opener by a 38-0 score on Friday night at Alfonso Field at FIU Stadium. You can bet they’ll be primed and ready for some Wildcat Butt. (it’s too early in the season for cursing). In any case I’ll be in Miami to watch B-CU take on another opponent they can beat. Yep, I’m all over the place again for the 2013 football season, this is my trash-talk sports column. It’s entitled “I Got NEXT!” Be peace.
