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INSIDE MOREHOUSE, SEPTEMBER 2008
PLAYING FAST, HARD AND SMART
Maroon Tigers Football Team Looks to Better Last Year's 7-3 Record
By ADD SEYMOUR JR.
Last year, a 7-3 record after pre
dictions of a last-place finish in the
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic
Conference (SIAC) turned the
Morehouse Maroon Tiger football
team into the surprise squad of the
conference.
That won’t happen this year.
Conference coaches picked the
Maroon Tigers to finish fourth in the
10-team SIAC in 2008, so there will
be no sneaking up on opponents this
year, said head football coach Rich
Freeman. The now-roaring Maroon
Tigers are a known commodity and
opposing teams have taken note. But
Freeman isn’t losing sleep over that.
“I just think a man pretty much
controls his own destiny,” Freeman
said. “If we lock down and play fast,
hard and smart, then we can be suc
cessful against anybody.”
The fast, hard and smart mantra
- along with heavy doses of disci
pline - continues to be the theme for
Freeman’s squad heading into his
second year at Morehouse. It will be
much more noticeable on offense,
where offensive coordinator Leon
Murray stalled a no-huddle scheme
that will keep defenses on their heels.
Christian Sterling returns as quar
terback, but he will be pushed by
transfers Gerald Cook from Ten
nessee State and William Brack from
Jackson State. They will be throwing
to senior James Steadman, who leads
the wide receiver corps. Junior Ra-
mone Harewood and senior Nate
Nobles lead an offensive line that re
turns all of its starters.
Head coach Rich Freeman and offensive coordinator Leon Murray have installed a no-huddle offense that will look to move the chains this season.
On defense, pre-season Division II
All-American linebacker Jeffrey
Cargile leads a sting)' unit that yielded
the second-fewest average points per
game in the SIAC last season.
“We’re returning nine of 11
starters on defense,” Freeman said.
“And of those two new players, we
feel like we have upgraded. We’re
looking for our defense to get
even better.”
Senior punter Micah Streiff also
returns to anchor the special teams.
Streiff and Cargile were named to
the SIAC pre-season All-Conference
squad. Second-teamers included
Steadman, Harewood, Nobles,
senior defensive lineman Mario
Lane and senior defensive back
Derrick Scott.
After kicking off the season with
a 7-3 loss at Benedict, the Maroon
Tigers start a tough September
schedule with a visit to Fort Valley
State on Sept. 6 followed a week later
by the season’s first home game at
B.T. Harvey Stadium against Lane.
The Tigers visit Miles on Sept. 20 and
then play Prairie View A&M in the
Angel City Classic in Los Angeles on
Sept. 27. ■
TIGER NOTES:
Morehouse will play before a
national television audience
at least twice this season.
ESPN-U will televise the
Maroon Tigers game live at
Fort Valley State on Sept. 7
and on taped-delay on Oct. 11
for the Tuskegee-Morehouse
Classic in Columbus, Ga.
The Maroon Tigers will be
playing in three "classic"
football games this year: The
Palmetto Capital City Classic
on Aug. 30 at Benedict,
the Angel City Classic in
Los Angeles against Prairie
View A&M and the Oct. 11
Morehouse-Tuskegee Classic
in Columbus, Ga.
w 00
FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
AUGUST
30th
Benedict College* (Palmetto Capital City Classic)
Columbia, S.C.
4 p.m.
SEPTEMBER
7th
Fort Valley State University*
Ft. Valley, Ga.
2 p.m.
13th
Lane College*
Atlanta, Ga.
7 p.m.
20th
Miles College*
Birmingham, Ala.
6 p.m.
27th
Prairie View A&M University (3rd Annual Angel City Classic)
Los Angeles, Calif.
2:30 p.m.
OCTOBER
nth
Tuskegee University* (73rd Annual Tuskegee-Morehouse Classic)
Columbus, Ga.
2 p.m.
18th
Clark Atlanta University*
Atlanta, Ga.
2 p.m.
25th
Albany State University* (Homecoming)
Atlanta, Ga.
2 p.m.
NOVEMBER
1st
Stillman College*
Tuscaloosa, Ala.
5 p.m.
8th
Kentucky State University*
Atlanta, Ga.
1 p.m.
BOLD denotes home games * denotes Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference games
