Karsceal Turner – I Got NEXT!
Don’t sleep on Division II teams folks. Let that be the lesson for us as we recap Bethune-Cookman’s 7-3 defeat of Lane College on a barely soggy day in September.
Yeap, Bethune-Cookman University faithful thought it was going to be a breeze when the Dragons, “straight outta” Jackson, Tennessee and the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference came to Daytona with about 15 fans and their 50-member band. Hey, say what you want about the size of Lane’s band. I remember remarking about their size to B-CU band percussion instructor (and fellow Kappa Man), Pedro Orey only to be reminded “we were once that size” by Orey.
That was a true statement, but so was the statement the Marching Wildcats made in their first home performance on Larry Kelly field at Municipal Stadium.
Fans likely were also looking for a bigger statement from the Wildcats in their home opener but it simply was not to be. I can understand the difficulty in being super hype for this game. Earlier that week, the Wildcats received a stanch reminder that there is more to life than football.
Diona McDonald, 19, and Timesha Carswell, 21 both music majors at B-CU were shot to death this past Thursday. A third victim, Micah Parham, 20 is currently in grave condition at Halifax Medical Center.
The murders sent ripples throughout the entire Bethune-Cookman Family, including yours truly. The coward who committed these atrocities, 27-year-old York Zed Bodden, was arrested in Miami awaiting extradition to Daytona Beach but was found hanging in his cell. The coward was never made to pay for his crimes, may he burn eternally in Hades.
Sims wins first home game
Head coach Terry Sims, who is in his first year at the helm of the Wildcats program in Daytona Beach, earned his first collegiate victory as a head coach, taking down Grambling on the road by a thrilling 56-53 decision last Saturday. Overall, in his first year at the helm in Daytona Beach, Sims holds a career record of 2-1. After that close call against Grambling, fans certainly expected a thrashing of Lane.
Another Division II program set the stage for upsets as Marcus Hampton ran for 121 yards and a touchdown and Chowan beat Delaware State 31-30 for that program’s first win over a Division I opponent. What I saw from B-CU was an inability to put the nail in the coffin. They had to grind and earn everything but lacked the discipline to slay the Dragons.
Anthony Jordan’s 9-yard second quarter touchdown romp was the lone Bethune-Cookman score. The graduate – playing as a senior on the field – rushed for 74 yards, while redshirt senior quarterback Quentin Williams went 14-of-19 for 168 yards through the air
Jordan’s score was set up by a 33-yard Michael D. Jones run and a 28-yard Williams to Frank Brown connection on a six-play, 81-yard drive that made 7-0 with 9:23 remaining in the first half. The Wildcats put up 395 total yards of offense and suffered eight penalties for 144 yards in the contest.
Redshirt senior quarterback Quentin Williams was 14-of-19 for 168 yards through the air.
Defensively, B-CU was guided by Robert Way and Taivon Smith with nine tackles each while linebacker Atreyu Farrior was good for 1.5 sacks.
B-CU Head Coach Terry Sims won his home coaching debut with the win. Sims remarked on how the Wildcat defense fared.
Play to caliber of opponent not playing class
“We knew the defense was going to have those ‘bend but don’t break moments’ with nine new guys, and it will take us a bit to get everything together,” Head Coach Terry Sims said. “We’ll take the win but we’ll continue to work to play more disciplined, detailed football,” he added.
B-CU Athletic Director Lynn Thompson gave a broad perspective of the game, the incidents earlier that week, and the caliber of Division II football teams.
“That was a tough team we played.” Thompson related. Some smaller programs look to this as their Super Bowl. We knew what we were getting into with this game. It is difficult to get a non-conference team to come to Daytona Beach and we knew what we were up against.
“People don’t recognize the talent that Division II schools possess and how bigger programs must play up to the competition despite their playing class. B-CU lost focus more than a few times,” Thompson added.
“This has been a very tough week for B-CU. It challenged us in ways that showed in the ballgame. Credit to our team several of them attended classes with the fallen females. Coach Sims, dealt with a difficult situation.
It actually was a few plays from being blown wide open by B-CU. Defense won the game. We were physical but Lane knew what they were doing. This should have been a blow-out but this was a very good football team we played. B-CU is now 9-0 against Lane College.
Thompson also remarked that this game was played on one of the university’s two themed games. “We have not yet lost on “Church and Community Day”, He chuckled.
About Lane College
Lane College, located in Jackson, Tennessee on approximately 55 acres, is a small, private, co-educational, church-related institution that provides a liberal arts curriculum leading to baccalaureate degrees in the Arts and Sciences. The College admits persons regardless of color, sex, religion or national origin.
The College was founded by individuals who were committed to assuring that newly freed slaves would be able to “read, write, and speak correctly.”
In 1882, one of the nation’s early Black Church denominations founded what has since evolved into Lane College. Now referred to as The Christian Methodist Episcopal (CME) Church, the organization was originally named the Colored Methodist Episcopal (CME) Church in America when it formed in 1870. Among its top priorities was the establishment of schools to educate the newly freed Negroes following the Civil War.
Lane College played a significant role in reducing the rate of illiteracy among blacks in the South in fewer than fifty years. Enrollment 2,000 member of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC)
Lane enjoys the solid advantages accruing from a 133-year tradition of educational progress, the College is more confident in its future than ever before. The faculty and staff, under the leadership of President Logan Hampton, have employed a collaborative approach to establishing a revived culture of student-centered, technology-enhanced teaching and learning.
Jacoby Jones, of the former Super Bowl Champion Baltimore Ravens was drafted out of Lane College by the Houston Texans in 2007, he was traded to Baltimore and is known for two memorable plays in the 2012 NFL Playoffs. One a 70 yard touchdown reception and a 109-yard kickoff return for a touchdown in Super Bowl XLVII, the longest play in Super Bowl history. Yep, Lane College produced a good five NFL players.
Yes, they brought their band
You’ll excuse me for being very bias towards the band of my alma mater. I held in grins as I observed Lane College’s “1000 WATTS OF SOUND” from their “Quiet Storm Marching Band” filing into the visitor’s side of Municipal Stadium. But look here. What they lacked in size and sound, they made up for with heart. This played their hearts out while performing to the few Dragon faithful who made the game along with the Marching Wildcats, who were standing in their usual spot facing Bethune-Cookman fans.
B-CU musicians were model citizens as Lane performed its halftime routine, which also included members of its dance team (I have no idea what they were called) Dammit man, but I was impressed with their style, grace, and figures. Like I said, Lane College’s band had heart, I appreciated them making the trek to Daytona Beach for the clinic the Marching Cats put on them.
And then….the Pride came marching in. One could scarcely believe it was this bands first appearance on their home field. Mr. Donovan Wells and staff did an excellent job (as usual).
Thus ends this recap of what I saw during Bethune-Cookman’s not so glamorous win against Division II opponent Lane College. B-CU now prepares for the Savannah State University Tigers, who come to town September 26 to open Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) play at Municipal Stadium on. Kickoff is slated for 4 p.m.
