Who's No. 1?
June 12, 2005
By Nick Deriso
nderiso@thenewsstar.com
It's a central issue in football, this idea of being No. 1.
Fans argue over it, while statisticians furiously calculate yardage and tackles. We set our sights a little lower, taking the question more literally.
Who actually wore No. 1 on their jerseys? We looked for players from Grambling State, we stumbled upon some singular stories, as well:
--Kicker Brian Morgan, who sported '1' from 2001-04, was only the latest in a long line of GSU kickers to use that number.
None was perhaps more intriguing than Gilad Landau, a multiple all-Southwestern Athletic Conference team member from Netanya, Israel, who was a former Israeli Army veteran. He had not played or even seen a football game before coming to the United States and enrolling in Grambling.
Landau's senior season in 1994 included a game played after the observance of Yom Kippur, a day of atonement in which Jews are prohibited from eating or drinking. The weakened Landau had to be given fluids intravenously.
He finished at Grambling with Division I-AA records for extra points attempted and made - conference records that still stand.
Morgan's just-finished four-year stay was stellar, too. A three-time all-SWAC selection, he is the conference record holder in most field goals made in a single season with 18 and in a career with 50.
Surprisingly, Landau (1990-94) is not the only Middle Eastern kicker to share the number and position. His tenure was followed by Palestine-born Ayman Nawash (1995-97), a kicker who prepped at East Jefferson in New Orleans.
· Landau's No. '1' stat: Gilad won the first-ever Ernie Davis Award - given by the Leukemia Foundation to a Division I-AA player in recognition of character and integrity through adversity - in 1992 as a sophomore.
Not the only '1': Receiver Scotty Anderson, a key component in two titles after the 2000-01 seasons, was drafted by Detroit in the fifth round and played for the Lions until 2003. The Jonesboro product's school records include those for most receiving yards and touchdowns in a career, most catches as a sophomore and longest reception.
Other '1's: Ardashir Nobahar, another No. 1 who kicked in 1985-86, holds the SWAC record for longest field goal, a 54-yarder. ... Nobody was No. 1 in 1975, 1978-79, and 1990.
Showing posts with label Scotty Anderson. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Scotty Anderson. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 04, 2007
Friday, October 20, 2006
Grambling greats: Sammy White
MAKEUP CALL
GSU's White will finally land in SWAC Hall of Fame
December 6, 2004
By Nick Deriso
nderiso@thenewsstar.com
GRAMBLING - On first glance, interim Grambling State coach Melvin Spears had a common response: "Sammy White is not in the SWAC Hall of Fame?"
Doug Williams, who played with White at GSU, has been saying the same thing for years.
That changes on Friday, when this Richwood High product - now GSU's offensive coordinator - receives the Southwestern Athletic Conference's highest honor.
For the unassuming White, it's a dramatic moment.
"I guess you play these games, and you really play for the love of it," said White, a two-time all-SWAC first-team member in 1973 and '75. "Then, if you do pretty good and something special-like happens, it's an honor and blessing."
Induction ceremonies will be held during the SWAC Hall of Fame dinner at the Birmingham-Jefferson County Convention Center in Birmingham, Ala.
"When we discovered that he wasn't in the hall," said Spears, "we immediately nominated him. I went down the list and I could not believe Sammy's name wasn't there. Not just because of what he accomplished here, but he went on to great things."
White's best season at GSU was his last, when he was named the conference's co-offensive player of the year as a senior. He would eventually pull down 37 passes for 802 yards and 17 touchdowns from the young Williams.
"It was a comfortable environment to go into," White said of Grambling, just more than 30 miles down the road from where he played high school ball. "I got to play with Coach Williams in my third year. He came in throwing the ball so hard - 65, 70 yards on a line drive. We had to sit down and talk to him, to tell him: `You've got to give us a chance, throw something we could run under.' He came right in, though, and was a top-flight quarterback from day one."
That connection would be rekindled when Williams gave White a coaching job at GSU years later.
"There's no one who deserves it more," Williams said of the honor. "I don't think, coming into Grambling, that I could have been as productive without him. He had a quiet leadership on that team. And he made plays."
White was also able to reunite in Grambling with three older players from his youth in Richwood, south of Monroe - Matthew Reed, Charlie Smith and Amos Augustine.
"I never played with them in high school, but I got that chance there," said White. "I would watch them on Friday nights back at Richwood - just dreaming I could so some of those things."
He could: White's teams won three SWAC titles for former coach Eddie Robinson. He was then drafted in the second round by Minnesota - not that White was expecting it.
"A lot of people sit around watching television today," he said. "I said to myself: `It'll happen if it will happen.' They had to come out on campus to find me. I never thought of myself as The Guy. I always played just to be one of the best guys. If it didn't happen, I wasn't going to fall out about it."
White was a three-time All-Pro selection over 11 seasons in Minnesota. He set Vikings team records for receiving yards, touchdowns and yards in a game for a rookie that stood until Randy Moss broke through in 1998.
A career highlight was White's five-reception, 77-yard performance in the 1977 Super Bowl loss to Oakland, one that included an 8-yard score. Even as the 2004 season began, White - who earned a spot on the Vikings' 25th anniversary team - remained ranked No. 5 all-time for points scored in Minnesota.
Still, it's likely that White's very demeanor, his easy-going style and friendly way, have pushed him under the radar. Even he admits that.
"When I was playing," White said, "it was just for the love of the game."
In fact, the one time anybody can remember White celebrating, disaster struck.
A seven-catch, 210-yard performance with two scores in a 1976 win over the Detroit Lions was marred when he fumbled another potential score while celebrating too early.
"Over my whole career," White admitted and chuckled, "that was my biggest celebration, holding the ball up - and it was one that cost me a touchdown. It didn't pay off at all."
Williams hired White to coach receivers at GSU in 1998, and the team flourished - including a stellar 2002 season that saw this offense ranked first in the nation for passing and scoring offense in Division I-AA.
"Nobody was better with those players," Williams said. "He showed by example."
Spears promoted White to offensive coordinator during this past off-season, after Williams departed for the NFL and Spears took over as interim head coach.
"If you did not know who Sammy White was, you'd never think he played in the National Football League," Spears said. "He's just a down-home guy. But he does a great job as this team's offensive coordinator."
Awards like this one get White to reminiscing about his former coach at GSU, the legendary Robinson - a man who meant so much to the player as a young man.
"You have to think about Coach Robinson. I always said one of the great things about my career was that I had great coaches, all the way back to high school. Eddie Robinson just took us to another level, with his teaching. He talked about being a good football player but also about being a good person."
White's 102 points for the Tigers in 1975 wasn't bested until Walter Dean scored 110 in 1991. Only five players in GSU history have scored more points in a single season; two others have tied White.
"There was nothing flashy," said Spears. "He just executed, week in and week out."
In the past 45 seasons in Grambling, only six players - including Pro Football Hall of Famer Charlie Joiner - have bested White's senior-year average of 21.7 yards per reception. His 17 touchdowns in 1975 rank third all time, though White is tied with four others.
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Five Questions with Grambling's Sammy White
Sunday, July 23, 2006
Grambling State and Richwood product Sammy White made his mark at every level, winning titles in high school and college, then becoming a cornerstone of the Minnesota Vikings franchise. Recognition has come in the form of SWAC Hall of Fame induction last year and then a spot on the Vikings' All-1970s Team recently compiled by Eric Krupka of RealFootball365.com. Today, White has fashioned Division I-AA's most prolific passing attack as the offensive coordinator at GSU. But questions loom with the graduation of Bruce Eugene, a three-year starter. News-Star sports editor Nick Deriso asks them:
Give me your scouting report on Grambling's quarterback situation with Bruce gone.
Brandon (Landers, a Carroll product and former SWAC freshman of the year) has a strong arm and he's gotten better with the scheme, after a year behind Bruce. He's still lacking some film work, but the way I see it right now, he's the frontrunner. (Sophomore Houston product) Larry Kerlegan is very instinctive. He plays more with his legs than his arm right now, though. And with the receivers we've got, we need a big arm.
Talking about big arms, the buzz on the yard has been about Desmond Brentley, that Pittsburgh prep signee.
Brentley does have a really good arm. He looks to pick up on our scheme very quickly. But in our offense, it's just tough to start right out of high school. You have to do a whole lot of reads when it comes to the opposing defenses. They tell you where to go. All those years we had Bruce, and he still had his best year after sitting out (with a knee injury in 2004). He got to experience the game as a coach, and he became more patient. He became more of a student of the game. They all have to work on that.
Henry Tolbert and Clyde Edwards, your top receivers, both return. How do you fit in a talent like (Georgia Tech transfer) LeKeldrick Bridges?
You'll have to account for everybody, and that means guys like Bridges will get some numbers. But guys like Bridges will actually make it easier for Henry and Clyde to have big days. Even if other teams double-team them, they both have such a drive for the ball. They are going to try to make a play. Those two will still be productive, no matter what happens.
Your 10 seasons in Minnesota included rookie of the year honors and a Super Bowl appearance. What was it like to be named to the Vikings' All-1970s Team?
It really feels good, knowing that you were appreciated. It means so much when they still show you love after your playing days are over. I just got a card from a guy to sign that talked about old-time players, and how different things are. We played 100 percent every play, for the love of the game. There's a new breed today.
The Vikings let Daunte Culpepper go, and he ended up in Miami — with one of your former teammates (Mike Mularkey, once a Minnesota tight end) as his offensive coordinator. What do you make of that?
I pull for them to get in the playoffs every year, but letting Daunte get away? Not only is he an experienced, starting quarterback, but you put any kind of receivers around him, and that guy is a big plus for your team. These days, the passing game opens up the running game in the NFL. He'll be fine in Miami; they're putting together a good team down there. But it's unfortunate for the Vikings.
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GSU's great provider
South side of Monroe has been talent pipeline
February 6, 2006
By Nick Deriso
nderiso@thenewsstar.com
GRAMBLING - James Harris grew up right around the corner from Sammy White.
Who lived down the way from Lane Howell. Who lived near a street that would eventually produce a flinty talent named Brandon Landers.
Who shares a zip code with Desmond Lenard.
The south side of Monroe sent them all to Grambling State, in an unbroken storyline that continued through last week's National Signing Day.
"I grew up in that neighborhood," said Sammy White, a Richwood product who played and now coaches at GSU as offensive coordinator. "It gives me great joy to see where these guys progress and how they move along."
In 1965, a Carroll High product was quarterback at Grambling. Forty years later, Landers is likely to follow Harris into the role.
White was a star wingback for former GSU coach Eddie Robinson - after winning both football and basketball titles at Richwood in the early 1970s. Lenard, Carroll's wingback last season, committed to Grambling after earning All-Northeast honors as a kick returner.
Derrick Wilhite, a 2006 signee out of Wossman, contributes to a legacy that includes ex-Wildcats assistant Lee Fobbs, a former player under Robinson, and current defensive back Bakari Guice.
"There's no question that the south side of Monroe has added to that Grambling mystique," said GSU coach Melvin Spears. "From the Howells to James Harris to Goldie Sellers and on down to Brandon Landers - our freshman sensation in '04."
Landers shot to conference freshman of the year honors in relief of injured quarterback Bruce Eugene, then redshirted last year when Eugene returned for a final season of eligibility.
"I think this is a good place for finding highly skilled athletes - and that's true at many inner-city schools," said Carroll coach Jesse Smith Sr., who is also a Grambling product.
"There is a lot of talent in this area. I think that through the years, we've proven that."
Carroll's connection to GSU goes deeper than the head coach.
Back in 2001, current Bulldogs assistant Levi Washington Jr. led all receivers in yards as Grambling won the second of three straight SWAC titles. The team uses an offense patterned on GSU's, as well.
So, it's perhaps no surprise that Carroll split end Jesse Smith Jr. joined Lenard in signing with Grambling last week - along with teammates Derrick Johnson and Xavier Lee, both of whom play linebacker.
In the end, though, all three of the southside schools - notably Richwood and, more recently, Wossman - have been an important thread through the tapestry of Grambling's football legacy.
"It's great coming from that tradition," said Landers. "I'd like to have that same impact - not only as a player, but as an individual."
Harris, perhaps the south side's most legendary product, led Grambling to 31-9-1 record between 1965-68, winning a conference title every single year. He was voted the team's most valuable player his final two seasons.
But Landers reminds, Harris' most important contribution came after he left Grambling.
Harris would become the first black athlete to be drafted as a quarterback. His NFL career - which included stops in Buffalo, Los Angeles and San Diego - was capped by an MVP performance in the 1974 Pro Bowl.
Harris later moved into even more rarified air, working in the front offices of Baltimore and currently Jacksonville as one of the NFL's highest ranking black executives.
Smith said Grambling provided a platform in that journey, and for the scores of southside youths who followed him.
"Anytime you've got a kid who goes on and does well, that's an example that you can stir these kids with," said Smith. "It makes them understand that you can dream and it can happen."
Carroll's Lane Howell, a two-way lineman for Robinson, was the first of three brothers to star at Grambling, beginning in 1960. Michael, a cornerback nicknamed "Trackdown," followed two seasons later. Delles, another defensive back, would arrive seven seasons later - but by then the family had moved to California.
Grambling won its first Southwestern Athletic Conference title with Lane up front, establishing a 23-5-2 mark between 1960-62. Michael's 1964 squad went 9-3, winning the Sugar Cup over Bishop before falling in the Orange Blossom Classic.
One of Michael's teammates that season was cornerback Goldie "Spider" Sellers, a Winnsboro native who eventually moved to the south side and played for Richwood.
In 2004, White joined Harris in the SWAC Hall of Fame, recognition for a career that included three conference championships and co-offensive player of the year honors in 1975 at Grambling.
"It was passed down to me," said White, later an NFL rookie of the year at Minnesota. "James Harris and Delles took me to a Grambling basketball game when I was in junior high. I was always around it. There were other places I could have played, but this was the only place I was ever going."
Quarterback Matthew Reed, born in Winnfield, would prove so dominant at Richwood that he once threw nine touchdowns in a single game. Later, he was named Grambling's MVP as a junior, then made All-America as a senior in the early 1970s.
White grew up idolizing Amos Augustine and Charlie "Tank" Smith at Richwood, then played after them at Grambling. Between 1968-71, former Carroll guard Solomon Freelon Jr. protected Harris, Reed and Frank Holmes.
White says many of those greats called a neighborhood known as Bryant's Addition home. He still scouts for talent there, giving another generation the Grambling road map out of one of the area's most impoverished communities.
"The thing about it is, we thought we were pretty good - and these guys could be that too," said White. "It's all about hard work."
Landers, for his part, says he can't account for the staggering impact such a small geographic area has had on Grambling. But, when he's home, he sees the next group working to get there.
"If you ride around, you see little kids out playing in empty lots and at the rec centers - and that's year-round," said Landers. "They're playing everything too, just like we did. Football, basketball, baseball. With small schools, you've got guys going both ways, playing all sports. That makes you better. Who knows? One of those kids could follow me someday."
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White makes nice move up
Dedication to GSU earns receivers coach promotion to offensive coordinator.
March 22, 2004
By NICK DERISO
nderiso@thenewsstar.com
GRAMBLING - Sammy White, one of Richwood High's greatest products, has been named offensive coordinator at Grambling State by interim coach Melvin Spears.
To think, White - who was later all-conference at GSU then a three-time All-Pro with the Minnesota Vikings - wasn't even in football a few years ago. He was selling cars at a local dealership.
But then former GSU coach Doug Williams - who had thrown so many of the touchdown passes that White caught in college - called.
"It's a big fairy tale," White said. "When I quit professional football (in 1985), I thought I was done competing. Coach Williams, Coach Spears and I, we've been able to revitalize this program. It was quite an accomplishment. But to be named offensive coordinator? It's just a dream come true."
White was promoted from receivers coach, where he has shepherded the record-breaking Grambling State careers of current Detroit Lions wideout Scotty Anderson and Tramon Douglas - the SWAC's career leader in receiving yards.
"He's a guy I've always admired," Spears said. "For him to be here, from the standpoint of the legends he's worked with - Coach Robinson, Coach Williams, Bud Grant, Ahmad Rashad, Fran Tarkenton - it's going to be a blessing for our players."
An assistant as Williams added three SWAC titles to the 17 that former GSU coach Eddie Robinson won while a head coach at GSU, White was also part of three Black College National and SWAC championships as the wingback in Robinson's classic run-oriented Wing T formation.
That doesn't mean the basic offensive philosophy will change, White said.
"Our running backs have good size and strength - and to shorten the game is always a good idea," he said. "But Coach Spears is the head coach, so we'll still take our shots."
Grambling State's offense broke more than a dozen school records last season, finishing at No. 1 among every Division I-AA school in passing and scoring.
A first choice among Grambling greats
White was one of Williams' first hires when taking over in 1998 as the first new coach at GSU since Robinson came on board in 1941.
"I've got a lot of respect for Sammy," said Williams, who was a teammate of White's at Grambling State from 1974-75. Williams resigned in February after six seasons at GSU to take an executive position in personnel with Tampa Bay, the club that drafted him in the first round of the 1978 NFL Draft.
"He's come a long way from when we first started coaching together," Williams said. "Over the past two or three years, Sammie has been a vital part of our success. One thing is, you've got to listen to Sammie. He's been there. His input has been crucial. He's been creative and important. The kids like him. He's more of a teacher. He shows them how it's to be done."
GSU receiver Moses Harris said White's personal touch has been of vital importance to the SWAC's most dangerous passing attack.
"With that hands-on approach, people pick it up more quickly," said Harris, who will be one of GSU quarterback Bruce Eugene's top targets this season. "I think promoting Coach White is a great decision. Knowing that everybody is comfortable with each other gives me a lot of confidence for this year."
Upholding the Robinson legacy
White was a two-sport star at Richwood, helping to lead the Rams to a Class 3A state hoops title, alongside current Grambling State basketball coach Larry Wright.
But he found his greatest successes on the gridiron.
White, a first-team All-SWAC selection in 1973 and '75, was named the SWAC's co-offensive player of the year as a senior. He caught 37 passes for 802 yards and 17 touchdowns, all from Williams, that year.
He went on to become an integral part of a Vikings team that reached the Super Bowl after the 1976 season, the 1977 NFC championship - and then the divisional playoff round both a year later and in 1982.
A highlight for White was his 8-yard scoring reception against Oakland in Super Bowl XI in Pasadena, Calif. A lowlight came the same day, when the Raiders' Jack Tatum knocked off White's helmet in a crushing blow that has been included on countless highlight reels.
White's 906 yards as a rookie in 1976 stood as a Minnesota team record until Randy Moss eclipsed it in 1998. His all-time team mark for touchdowns and yards-in-a-game by a rookie were also finally bested by Moss during the same year.
This promotion for White means that Spears - a graduate of Alcorn State - has two Grambling State graduates and former assistants as his top advisors. Defensive coordinator Tom Lavigne also played for Robinson and was an assistant at GSU in the early 1980s.
"Sammy falls into line with a whole list of greats who've been through here," Spears said. "He upholds the Robinson legacy - meaning Coach Rob will still have a significant part in this program."
White and the former Penny Fortner have two children, Sammie III and Samantha.
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ONE ON ONE WITH ... SAMMY WHITE
Sunday, August 1, 2004
As a three-time All-Southwestern Athletic Conference honoree, Sammy White's legacy at Grambling State was secure, long before he was named offensive coordinator this past spring. White was selected in the second round of the NFL draft, and was named NFL rookie of the year in 1976 after gaining more yards and scoring more touchdowns than any other NFC receiver. But he's not one for laurel resting. White and the rest of the Grambling State football staff are at the Tennessee Titans' training camp today, where they will learn new techniques in coaching - and get a look at how one of White's greatest students, Tramon Douglas, is doing. Douglas, who now holds most of the meaningful receiving records at GSU, signed an undrafted rookie contract with the Titans in April. White talks with News-Star sports editor Nick Deriso about losing Douglas - and getting started on his first season at the helm of the Grambling State offense:
Do you miss Tramon already?
Sure. But he's moved on - hopefully to bigger and better things. With (sophomore receiver) Tim Abney's groin injury, that's two of the bullets in our offensive gun now missing. Aaron Johnson, who returned kicks last year, has had a tough time coming back - breaking his leg two years ago seemed to really get into his head. But he has come out and really had a good spring. Aaron can fill in for Tim, along with (converted junior running back) Henry Tolbert.
Who else is coming on among your receivers?
Paul Hardiman - the redshirt freshman. He catches the ball well. Last year, he just had to get a little stronger, a little more physical. Then there's Tolbert: He's a utility guy; you can put him on the line or in the backfield. Looking at Henry's body now, it looks like he's ready to do anything. He's got good speed, and good knowledge of the game.
You guys are loving Clyde Edwards, the freshman from Westbury High in Houston.
He has shown that he knows what he's doing. If he can come in with this kind of knowledge and ability, it says a lot about his coaching in high school.
Most fans figure a one-time halfback in Eddie Robinson's legendary Wing-T will bring more balance to this offense.
Balance is a goal. As a coordinator, I know balance is what keeps a defense guessing. If you can keep them guessing, then nine times out of 10, you come out ahead. They are off balance. Hopefully, with the size of the offensive linemen (who average, White says, more than 300 pounds) that we have, our running game should be easy to establish. If they take a few steps forward, you ought to be able to get some yardage! (Laughs.)
Is (junior running back) Ab Kuuan your ace in the hole then? Am I revealing trade secrets?
He's an every-down back. But we are also hoping to get him into the five-receiver sets. If we get him into that, then it's a nice trick. We can shift around, and that would be another big plus for our offense. Make no mistake, though, I would love to establish the run. I'm a fan of the play-action pass. If you can run the ball, you can do that. If you can't run the ball, then that's called a straight drop! (Laughs.)
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Williams, White share in GSU family history
October 30, 2003
By NICK DERISO
nderiso@thenewsstar.com
Though they are sideline partners now - and were, of course, former college teammates - Grambling State's Doug Williams and receivers coach Sammy White played for bitter rivals in the NFL.
Williams was drafted in the first round of the 1978 draft by Tampa Bay, while White was picked in the second round in 1976 and played for Minnesota.
"He was a couple of years ahead of me," Williams says of their time playing for Eddie Robinson in the 1970s at GSU. "But we ended up in the same division, so we played twice a year."
White was a Vikings receiver from 1976-85, while Williams played for division foe Tampa Bay from 1978-82. That meant 10 meetings between them in all - with Williams holding the slight career edge at 5-4.
"You don't always want to rehash it - because he was in a situation with a team that wasn't always as good," White says. "My situation was totally different: I came onto a team that had a bunch of Hall of Famers."
While Fran Tarkenton was leading Minnesota to the Super Bowl, the Buccaneers started 0-26 as an expansion franchise - before Williams arrived.
Even so, "my first win came against them - at Tampa," Williams says. Score: 16-10, in 1978. "We always had some good battles, the five years I was there."
Williams' best showing against White's Vikings was 1979, when the two teams split the wins by a total of just three points. The Bucs went on to the NFC championship game before falling to the Los Angeles Rams.
Current Tampa Bay coach Jon "Gruden used to catch balls with me on Sunday - along with (current Bucs general manager) Rich McKay," Williams says. "I still pull for them."
The truth is, though, that the best of White's Vikings teams were from the period just before Williams came out of Grambling State.
With White leading all receivers as a rookie, Minnesota advanced to the Super Bowl in 1976 - falling to Oakland. The Vikings also played through to the NFC championship the next year, losing to Dallas.
"I kind of felt bad for him, because he didn't come into a situation like that," White says.
They reminisce, Williams says, about players from back then, but rarely about their team's contests against one another. Not that they don't remember: "One game, I had 486 yards on them - and still lost," Williams says, laughing.
The 2003 version of both teams appear to be headed to the playoffs, with Minnesota becoming the last unbeaten team to fall just last Sunday. Tampa Bay - Super Bowl champs in 2002 - beat Dallas to remain in second place in the NFC South.
White still keeps up, too. "You're always going to watch a team that you went to war with," White says. "There was a family atmosphere up there. It is now and it always has been."
GSU's White will finally land in SWAC Hall of Fame
December 6, 2004
By Nick Deriso
nderiso@thenewsstar.com
GRAMBLING - On first glance, interim Grambling State coach Melvin Spears had a common response: "Sammy White is not in the SWAC Hall of Fame?"
Doug Williams, who played with White at GSU, has been saying the same thing for years.
That changes on Friday, when this Richwood High product - now GSU's offensive coordinator - receives the Southwestern Athletic Conference's highest honor.
For the unassuming White, it's a dramatic moment.
"I guess you play these games, and you really play for the love of it," said White, a two-time all-SWAC first-team member in 1973 and '75. "Then, if you do pretty good and something special-like happens, it's an honor and blessing."
Induction ceremonies will be held during the SWAC Hall of Fame dinner at the Birmingham-Jefferson County Convention Center in Birmingham, Ala.
"When we discovered that he wasn't in the hall," said Spears, "we immediately nominated him. I went down the list and I could not believe Sammy's name wasn't there. Not just because of what he accomplished here, but he went on to great things."
White's best season at GSU was his last, when he was named the conference's co-offensive player of the year as a senior. He would eventually pull down 37 passes for 802 yards and 17 touchdowns from the young Williams.
"It was a comfortable environment to go into," White said of Grambling, just more than 30 miles down the road from where he played high school ball. "I got to play with Coach Williams in my third year. He came in throwing the ball so hard - 65, 70 yards on a line drive. We had to sit down and talk to him, to tell him: `You've got to give us a chance, throw something we could run under.' He came right in, though, and was a top-flight quarterback from day one."
That connection would be rekindled when Williams gave White a coaching job at GSU years later.
"There's no one who deserves it more," Williams said of the honor. "I don't think, coming into Grambling, that I could have been as productive without him. He had a quiet leadership on that team. And he made plays."
White was also able to reunite in Grambling with three older players from his youth in Richwood, south of Monroe - Matthew Reed, Charlie Smith and Amos Augustine.
"I never played with them in high school, but I got that chance there," said White. "I would watch them on Friday nights back at Richwood - just dreaming I could so some of those things."
He could: White's teams won three SWAC titles for former coach Eddie Robinson. He was then drafted in the second round by Minnesota - not that White was expecting it.
"A lot of people sit around watching television today," he said. "I said to myself: `It'll happen if it will happen.' They had to come out on campus to find me. I never thought of myself as The Guy. I always played just to be one of the best guys. If it didn't happen, I wasn't going to fall out about it."
White was a three-time All-Pro selection over 11 seasons in Minnesota. He set Vikings team records for receiving yards, touchdowns and yards in a game for a rookie that stood until Randy Moss broke through in 1998.
A career highlight was White's five-reception, 77-yard performance in the 1977 Super Bowl loss to Oakland, one that included an 8-yard score. Even as the 2004 season began, White - who earned a spot on the Vikings' 25th anniversary team - remained ranked No. 5 all-time for points scored in Minnesota.
Still, it's likely that White's very demeanor, his easy-going style and friendly way, have pushed him under the radar. Even he admits that.
"When I was playing," White said, "it was just for the love of the game."
In fact, the one time anybody can remember White celebrating, disaster struck.
A seven-catch, 210-yard performance with two scores in a 1976 win over the Detroit Lions was marred when he fumbled another potential score while celebrating too early.
"Over my whole career," White admitted and chuckled, "that was my biggest celebration, holding the ball up - and it was one that cost me a touchdown. It didn't pay off at all."
Williams hired White to coach receivers at GSU in 1998, and the team flourished - including a stellar 2002 season that saw this offense ranked first in the nation for passing and scoring offense in Division I-AA.
"Nobody was better with those players," Williams said. "He showed by example."
Spears promoted White to offensive coordinator during this past off-season, after Williams departed for the NFL and Spears took over as interim head coach.
"If you did not know who Sammy White was, you'd never think he played in the National Football League," Spears said. "He's just a down-home guy. But he does a great job as this team's offensive coordinator."
Awards like this one get White to reminiscing about his former coach at GSU, the legendary Robinson - a man who meant so much to the player as a young man.
"You have to think about Coach Robinson. I always said one of the great things about my career was that I had great coaches, all the way back to high school. Eddie Robinson just took us to another level, with his teaching. He talked about being a good football player but also about being a good person."
White's 102 points for the Tigers in 1975 wasn't bested until Walter Dean scored 110 in 1991. Only five players in GSU history have scored more points in a single season; two others have tied White.
"There was nothing flashy," said Spears. "He just executed, week in and week out."
In the past 45 seasons in Grambling, only six players - including Pro Football Hall of Famer Charlie Joiner - have bested White's senior-year average of 21.7 yards per reception. His 17 touchdowns in 1975 rank third all time, though White is tied with four others.
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Five Questions with Grambling's Sammy White
Sunday, July 23, 2006
Grambling State and Richwood product Sammy White made his mark at every level, winning titles in high school and college, then becoming a cornerstone of the Minnesota Vikings franchise. Recognition has come in the form of SWAC Hall of Fame induction last year and then a spot on the Vikings' All-1970s Team recently compiled by Eric Krupka of RealFootball365.com. Today, White has fashioned Division I-AA's most prolific passing attack as the offensive coordinator at GSU. But questions loom with the graduation of Bruce Eugene, a three-year starter. News-Star sports editor Nick Deriso asks them:
Give me your scouting report on Grambling's quarterback situation with Bruce gone.
Brandon (Landers, a Carroll product and former SWAC freshman of the year) has a strong arm and he's gotten better with the scheme, after a year behind Bruce. He's still lacking some film work, but the way I see it right now, he's the frontrunner. (Sophomore Houston product) Larry Kerlegan is very instinctive. He plays more with his legs than his arm right now, though. And with the receivers we've got, we need a big arm.
Talking about big arms, the buzz on the yard has been about Desmond Brentley, that Pittsburgh prep signee.
Brentley does have a really good arm. He looks to pick up on our scheme very quickly. But in our offense, it's just tough to start right out of high school. You have to do a whole lot of reads when it comes to the opposing defenses. They tell you where to go. All those years we had Bruce, and he still had his best year after sitting out (with a knee injury in 2004). He got to experience the game as a coach, and he became more patient. He became more of a student of the game. They all have to work on that.
Henry Tolbert and Clyde Edwards, your top receivers, both return. How do you fit in a talent like (Georgia Tech transfer) LeKeldrick Bridges?
You'll have to account for everybody, and that means guys like Bridges will get some numbers. But guys like Bridges will actually make it easier for Henry and Clyde to have big days. Even if other teams double-team them, they both have such a drive for the ball. They are going to try to make a play. Those two will still be productive, no matter what happens.
Your 10 seasons in Minnesota included rookie of the year honors and a Super Bowl appearance. What was it like to be named to the Vikings' All-1970s Team?
It really feels good, knowing that you were appreciated. It means so much when they still show you love after your playing days are over. I just got a card from a guy to sign that talked about old-time players, and how different things are. We played 100 percent every play, for the love of the game. There's a new breed today.
The Vikings let Daunte Culpepper go, and he ended up in Miami — with one of your former teammates (Mike Mularkey, once a Minnesota tight end) as his offensive coordinator. What do you make of that?
I pull for them to get in the playoffs every year, but letting Daunte get away? Not only is he an experienced, starting quarterback, but you put any kind of receivers around him, and that guy is a big plus for your team. These days, the passing game opens up the running game in the NFL. He'll be fine in Miami; they're putting together a good team down there. But it's unfortunate for the Vikings.
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GSU's great provider
South side of Monroe has been talent pipeline
February 6, 2006
By Nick Deriso
nderiso@thenewsstar.com
GRAMBLING - James Harris grew up right around the corner from Sammy White.
Who lived down the way from Lane Howell. Who lived near a street that would eventually produce a flinty talent named Brandon Landers.
Who shares a zip code with Desmond Lenard.
The south side of Monroe sent them all to Grambling State, in an unbroken storyline that continued through last week's National Signing Day.
"I grew up in that neighborhood," said Sammy White, a Richwood product who played and now coaches at GSU as offensive coordinator. "It gives me great joy to see where these guys progress and how they move along."
In 1965, a Carroll High product was quarterback at Grambling. Forty years later, Landers is likely to follow Harris into the role.
White was a star wingback for former GSU coach Eddie Robinson - after winning both football and basketball titles at Richwood in the early 1970s. Lenard, Carroll's wingback last season, committed to Grambling after earning All-Northeast honors as a kick returner.
Derrick Wilhite, a 2006 signee out of Wossman, contributes to a legacy that includes ex-Wildcats assistant Lee Fobbs, a former player under Robinson, and current defensive back Bakari Guice.
"There's no question that the south side of Monroe has added to that Grambling mystique," said GSU coach Melvin Spears. "From the Howells to James Harris to Goldie Sellers and on down to Brandon Landers - our freshman sensation in '04."
Landers shot to conference freshman of the year honors in relief of injured quarterback Bruce Eugene, then redshirted last year when Eugene returned for a final season of eligibility.
"I think this is a good place for finding highly skilled athletes - and that's true at many inner-city schools," said Carroll coach Jesse Smith Sr., who is also a Grambling product.
"There is a lot of talent in this area. I think that through the years, we've proven that."
Carroll's connection to GSU goes deeper than the head coach.
Back in 2001, current Bulldogs assistant Levi Washington Jr. led all receivers in yards as Grambling won the second of three straight SWAC titles. The team uses an offense patterned on GSU's, as well.
So, it's perhaps no surprise that Carroll split end Jesse Smith Jr. joined Lenard in signing with Grambling last week - along with teammates Derrick Johnson and Xavier Lee, both of whom play linebacker.
In the end, though, all three of the southside schools - notably Richwood and, more recently, Wossman - have been an important thread through the tapestry of Grambling's football legacy.
"It's great coming from that tradition," said Landers. "I'd like to have that same impact - not only as a player, but as an individual."
Harris, perhaps the south side's most legendary product, led Grambling to 31-9-1 record between 1965-68, winning a conference title every single year. He was voted the team's most valuable player his final two seasons.
But Landers reminds, Harris' most important contribution came after he left Grambling.
Harris would become the first black athlete to be drafted as a quarterback. His NFL career - which included stops in Buffalo, Los Angeles and San Diego - was capped by an MVP performance in the 1974 Pro Bowl.
Harris later moved into even more rarified air, working in the front offices of Baltimore and currently Jacksonville as one of the NFL's highest ranking black executives.
Smith said Grambling provided a platform in that journey, and for the scores of southside youths who followed him.
"Anytime you've got a kid who goes on and does well, that's an example that you can stir these kids with," said Smith. "It makes them understand that you can dream and it can happen."
Carroll's Lane Howell, a two-way lineman for Robinson, was the first of three brothers to star at Grambling, beginning in 1960. Michael, a cornerback nicknamed "Trackdown," followed two seasons later. Delles, another defensive back, would arrive seven seasons later - but by then the family had moved to California.
Grambling won its first Southwestern Athletic Conference title with Lane up front, establishing a 23-5-2 mark between 1960-62. Michael's 1964 squad went 9-3, winning the Sugar Cup over Bishop before falling in the Orange Blossom Classic.
One of Michael's teammates that season was cornerback Goldie "Spider" Sellers, a Winnsboro native who eventually moved to the south side and played for Richwood.
In 2004, White joined Harris in the SWAC Hall of Fame, recognition for a career that included three conference championships and co-offensive player of the year honors in 1975 at Grambling.
"It was passed down to me," said White, later an NFL rookie of the year at Minnesota. "James Harris and Delles took me to a Grambling basketball game when I was in junior high. I was always around it. There were other places I could have played, but this was the only place I was ever going."
Quarterback Matthew Reed, born in Winnfield, would prove so dominant at Richwood that he once threw nine touchdowns in a single game. Later, he was named Grambling's MVP as a junior, then made All-America as a senior in the early 1970s.
White grew up idolizing Amos Augustine and Charlie "Tank" Smith at Richwood, then played after them at Grambling. Between 1968-71, former Carroll guard Solomon Freelon Jr. protected Harris, Reed and Frank Holmes.
White says many of those greats called a neighborhood known as Bryant's Addition home. He still scouts for talent there, giving another generation the Grambling road map out of one of the area's most impoverished communities.
"The thing about it is, we thought we were pretty good - and these guys could be that too," said White. "It's all about hard work."
Landers, for his part, says he can't account for the staggering impact such a small geographic area has had on Grambling. But, when he's home, he sees the next group working to get there.
"If you ride around, you see little kids out playing in empty lots and at the rec centers - and that's year-round," said Landers. "They're playing everything too, just like we did. Football, basketball, baseball. With small schools, you've got guys going both ways, playing all sports. That makes you better. Who knows? One of those kids could follow me someday."
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White makes nice move up
Dedication to GSU earns receivers coach promotion to offensive coordinator.
March 22, 2004
By NICK DERISO
nderiso@thenewsstar.com
GRAMBLING - Sammy White, one of Richwood High's greatest products, has been named offensive coordinator at Grambling State by interim coach Melvin Spears.
To think, White - who was later all-conference at GSU then a three-time All-Pro with the Minnesota Vikings - wasn't even in football a few years ago. He was selling cars at a local dealership.
But then former GSU coach Doug Williams - who had thrown so many of the touchdown passes that White caught in college - called.
"It's a big fairy tale," White said. "When I quit professional football (in 1985), I thought I was done competing. Coach Williams, Coach Spears and I, we've been able to revitalize this program. It was quite an accomplishment. But to be named offensive coordinator? It's just a dream come true."
White was promoted from receivers coach, where he has shepherded the record-breaking Grambling State careers of current Detroit Lions wideout Scotty Anderson and Tramon Douglas - the SWAC's career leader in receiving yards.
"He's a guy I've always admired," Spears said. "For him to be here, from the standpoint of the legends he's worked with - Coach Robinson, Coach Williams, Bud Grant, Ahmad Rashad, Fran Tarkenton - it's going to be a blessing for our players."
An assistant as Williams added three SWAC titles to the 17 that former GSU coach Eddie Robinson won while a head coach at GSU, White was also part of three Black College National and SWAC championships as the wingback in Robinson's classic run-oriented Wing T formation.
That doesn't mean the basic offensive philosophy will change, White said.
"Our running backs have good size and strength - and to shorten the game is always a good idea," he said. "But Coach Spears is the head coach, so we'll still take our shots."
Grambling State's offense broke more than a dozen school records last season, finishing at No. 1 among every Division I-AA school in passing and scoring.
A first choice among Grambling greats
White was one of Williams' first hires when taking over in 1998 as the first new coach at GSU since Robinson came on board in 1941.
"I've got a lot of respect for Sammy," said Williams, who was a teammate of White's at Grambling State from 1974-75. Williams resigned in February after six seasons at GSU to take an executive position in personnel with Tampa Bay, the club that drafted him in the first round of the 1978 NFL Draft.
"He's come a long way from when we first started coaching together," Williams said. "Over the past two or three years, Sammie has been a vital part of our success. One thing is, you've got to listen to Sammie. He's been there. His input has been crucial. He's been creative and important. The kids like him. He's more of a teacher. He shows them how it's to be done."
GSU receiver Moses Harris said White's personal touch has been of vital importance to the SWAC's most dangerous passing attack.
"With that hands-on approach, people pick it up more quickly," said Harris, who will be one of GSU quarterback Bruce Eugene's top targets this season. "I think promoting Coach White is a great decision. Knowing that everybody is comfortable with each other gives me a lot of confidence for this year."
Upholding the Robinson legacy
White was a two-sport star at Richwood, helping to lead the Rams to a Class 3A state hoops title, alongside current Grambling State basketball coach Larry Wright.
But he found his greatest successes on the gridiron.
White, a first-team All-SWAC selection in 1973 and '75, was named the SWAC's co-offensive player of the year as a senior. He caught 37 passes for 802 yards and 17 touchdowns, all from Williams, that year.
He went on to become an integral part of a Vikings team that reached the Super Bowl after the 1976 season, the 1977 NFC championship - and then the divisional playoff round both a year later and in 1982.
A highlight for White was his 8-yard scoring reception against Oakland in Super Bowl XI in Pasadena, Calif. A lowlight came the same day, when the Raiders' Jack Tatum knocked off White's helmet in a crushing blow that has been included on countless highlight reels.
White's 906 yards as a rookie in 1976 stood as a Minnesota team record until Randy Moss eclipsed it in 1998. His all-time team mark for touchdowns and yards-in-a-game by a rookie were also finally bested by Moss during the same year.
This promotion for White means that Spears - a graduate of Alcorn State - has two Grambling State graduates and former assistants as his top advisors. Defensive coordinator Tom Lavigne also played for Robinson and was an assistant at GSU in the early 1980s.
"Sammy falls into line with a whole list of greats who've been through here," Spears said. "He upholds the Robinson legacy - meaning Coach Rob will still have a significant part in this program."
White and the former Penny Fortner have two children, Sammie III and Samantha.
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ONE ON ONE WITH ... SAMMY WHITE
Sunday, August 1, 2004
As a three-time All-Southwestern Athletic Conference honoree, Sammy White's legacy at Grambling State was secure, long before he was named offensive coordinator this past spring. White was selected in the second round of the NFL draft, and was named NFL rookie of the year in 1976 after gaining more yards and scoring more touchdowns than any other NFC receiver. But he's not one for laurel resting. White and the rest of the Grambling State football staff are at the Tennessee Titans' training camp today, where they will learn new techniques in coaching - and get a look at how one of White's greatest students, Tramon Douglas, is doing. Douglas, who now holds most of the meaningful receiving records at GSU, signed an undrafted rookie contract with the Titans in April. White talks with News-Star sports editor Nick Deriso about losing Douglas - and getting started on his first season at the helm of the Grambling State offense:
Do you miss Tramon already?
Sure. But he's moved on - hopefully to bigger and better things. With (sophomore receiver) Tim Abney's groin injury, that's two of the bullets in our offensive gun now missing. Aaron Johnson, who returned kicks last year, has had a tough time coming back - breaking his leg two years ago seemed to really get into his head. But he has come out and really had a good spring. Aaron can fill in for Tim, along with (converted junior running back) Henry Tolbert.
Who else is coming on among your receivers?
Paul Hardiman - the redshirt freshman. He catches the ball well. Last year, he just had to get a little stronger, a little more physical. Then there's Tolbert: He's a utility guy; you can put him on the line or in the backfield. Looking at Henry's body now, it looks like he's ready to do anything. He's got good speed, and good knowledge of the game.
You guys are loving Clyde Edwards, the freshman from Westbury High in Houston.
He has shown that he knows what he's doing. If he can come in with this kind of knowledge and ability, it says a lot about his coaching in high school.
Most fans figure a one-time halfback in Eddie Robinson's legendary Wing-T will bring more balance to this offense.
Balance is a goal. As a coordinator, I know balance is what keeps a defense guessing. If you can keep them guessing, then nine times out of 10, you come out ahead. They are off balance. Hopefully, with the size of the offensive linemen (who average, White says, more than 300 pounds) that we have, our running game should be easy to establish. If they take a few steps forward, you ought to be able to get some yardage! (Laughs.)
Is (junior running back) Ab Kuuan your ace in the hole then? Am I revealing trade secrets?
He's an every-down back. But we are also hoping to get him into the five-receiver sets. If we get him into that, then it's a nice trick. We can shift around, and that would be another big plus for our offense. Make no mistake, though, I would love to establish the run. I'm a fan of the play-action pass. If you can run the ball, you can do that. If you can't run the ball, then that's called a straight drop! (Laughs.)
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Williams, White share in GSU family history
October 30, 2003
By NICK DERISO
nderiso@thenewsstar.com
Though they are sideline partners now - and were, of course, former college teammates - Grambling State's Doug Williams and receivers coach Sammy White played for bitter rivals in the NFL.
Williams was drafted in the first round of the 1978 draft by Tampa Bay, while White was picked in the second round in 1976 and played for Minnesota.
"He was a couple of years ahead of me," Williams says of their time playing for Eddie Robinson in the 1970s at GSU. "But we ended up in the same division, so we played twice a year."
White was a Vikings receiver from 1976-85, while Williams played for division foe Tampa Bay from 1978-82. That meant 10 meetings between them in all - with Williams holding the slight career edge at 5-4.
"You don't always want to rehash it - because he was in a situation with a team that wasn't always as good," White says. "My situation was totally different: I came onto a team that had a bunch of Hall of Famers."
While Fran Tarkenton was leading Minnesota to the Super Bowl, the Buccaneers started 0-26 as an expansion franchise - before Williams arrived.
Even so, "my first win came against them - at Tampa," Williams says. Score: 16-10, in 1978. "We always had some good battles, the five years I was there."
Williams' best showing against White's Vikings was 1979, when the two teams split the wins by a total of just three points. The Bucs went on to the NFC championship game before falling to the Los Angeles Rams.
Current Tampa Bay coach Jon "Gruden used to catch balls with me on Sunday - along with (current Bucs general manager) Rich McKay," Williams says. "I still pull for them."
The truth is, though, that the best of White's Vikings teams were from the period just before Williams came out of Grambling State.
With White leading all receivers as a rookie, Minnesota advanced to the Super Bowl in 1976 - falling to Oakland. The Vikings also played through to the NFC championship the next year, losing to Dallas.
"I kind of felt bad for him, because he didn't come into a situation like that," White says.
They reminisce, Williams says, about players from back then, but rarely about their team's contests against one another. Not that they don't remember: "One game, I had 486 yards on them - and still lost," Williams says, laughing.
The 2003 version of both teams appear to be headed to the playoffs, with Minnesota becoming the last unbeaten team to fall just last Sunday. Tampa Bay - Super Bowl champs in 2002 - beat Dallas to remain in second place in the NFC South.
White still keeps up, too. "You're always going to watch a team that you went to war with," White says. "There was a family atmosphere up there. It is now and it always has been."
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
Bayou Classic 2002
GSU's Williams stays busy in Classic week
November 30, 2002
By Nick Deriso
nderiso@thenewsstar.com
He admits, with some relish, to being a busy man.
Mostly, it seems, Grambling coach Doug Williams has been busy answering the door. He was just starting to warm to his subject - the words tumbling out like a solo, the thoughts connecting underneath like a rhythm.
Then it came, again. The knocking.
This being Bayou Classic week, football can occasionally be the least of his concerns.
"Bruce Eugene," Williams said, trying to start over. Knock, knock.
Williams settled back down into his chair. "Yeah," he yelled.
The door opened, this time bringing someone with something that needed signing. Outside Williams' office, there was a noisy war room of assistant coaches and players.
This uproar seems to be both natural and enjoyable to Williams. It hadn't been any quieter inside. Watching him talk, I had a memory of Keith Jarrett - who sometimes will become so engrossed in a piano solo that he'll actually come up off the piano bench.
Jazz will do that. Football, at least for Williams, does too. (Rarely moreso than this year, I'd guess.) Even before this latest interruption, there were only rare moments of stillness. Talking about his team, Williams leaned forward. He swung around. He looked about in wonder, sometimes.
His body language spoke of an enthused realization: How far they'd come! There would be no laurel resting for the winners of the 2001 Bayou Classic, though. An angry gunmetal sky and the occasional sharp droplet of rain wouldn't stop offensive coordinator Melvin Spears from running the Tigers through their paces.
Earlier he had appeared, determined to get the team up and running in a nearby gym. "We won't be playing outside anyway," Spears said, and chuckled.
The reason for all this furious activity: Grambling's biggest game of the year gets bigger every year. There were SWAC lists to fax over, travel details to iron out, national media arrangements to be made, rosters and conference calls and hotel reservations.
Meaning, sometimes there's very little football. So, it's obviously an enjoyable break for Williams, this simple talk of emerging young stars, and tough contests won, and the stringing together of championships - and, yeah, that time I cautiously picked Jackson State to win.
They didn't, of course. Grambling, we know now, would not lose a game after August. This is all the more surprising when you consider that the Tigers had leaked out most of a starting lineup through graduation.
But Williams (knock, knock) can't get on a good (ring, ring) improvisational run. At one point, the phone behind his desk and the cell phone on his hip had jumped to life at nearly the exact same moment. His trains of thought were jackknifing so badly that the conversation had to be continued after lunch.
"Busy?" he said to one caller, chuckling. "I'm busier than a one-armed wallpaper hanger."
Each of Williams' visitors passes under a single rough-hewn word, fashioned from black electrical tape over the door. "WIN," it shouts.
Williams said he hopes to do that this year, even as he reminisced a little. He played in the first Bayou Classic, a 1974 win earned out in the open of Tulane Stadium. "It was," Williams said, like a low trombone pull, "football, then."
Not anymore. In one half hour, Williams took three, six, 12 calls - an insistent jangle that would have made John Coltrane wince.
The enormity of an event like this might overwhelm someone else. After all, the alumni at Grambling would accept a one-win season every year … if that win was against Southern.
But Doug Williams, it's clear, likes this furious bebop - the never-ebbing flow of a busy Bayou Classic week. His broad smile says: The wallpaper will get hung.
Nick Deriso is sports editor at The News-Star, 411 N. Fourth St., Monroe, La., 71201. You can contact him at 362-0234 or at nderiso@thenewssstar.com.
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SUn again puts the heat on GSU
December 1, 2002
By Nick Deriso
nderiso@thenewsstar.com
NEW ORLEANS - The morning forecast here called for rain. What followed for Grambling State was an afternoon of pain.
Ominous fog hung over the top of the Superdome early Saturday. A light drizzle fell at an angle, pushed by sharply cold winds.
The Tigers would have to weather their own storm inside: Another slow start in a season that has seen several. That proved all the opening a hungry Southern team needed, as the Jaguars got up early and then ran away with the game. The Jaguars moved ahead in the overall Bayou Classic series by one game.
This complacent-looking Tiger team - coming off five straight games where it scored 34 or more points - made it easier by putting up just 3 points in the first half.
Coach Doug Williams stood in the Grambling end zone, an hour before kickoff, watching the Tigers go through their pre-game progressions. He might have seen the clouds building, even then.
"One thing we tried to warn them was that this is a very emotional football game," Williams said. "We had to get the upper hand. But they got it - and they got the momentum on their side. They played a hell of a ballgame."
With a trip to the conference championship game secured, another GSU squad fell into an age-old trap: Overlooking an always well-coached Southern team.
"It seems," said senior defensive lineman Willie Gray, "that we play down to the competition." Grambling simply didn't have the fire and emotion that Southern did, even before the Jaguars' canny on-side kick to start the game. The Jaguars were whooping it up, feeding off a partisan crowd that streamed in early.
That seemed to be the difference - as the Tigers couldn't get anything going. They couldn't even get a break. Kicker Colby Miller's third extra-point try hit the goal post, yet it still tumbled in. Later, Gray could only shake his head at the thought.
This game was an opportunity lost for a team that should have played better. The Jaguars knew it. Southern linebacker Lendrick Francois hugged a visibly emotional Eugene at midfield after the game: "Y'all are just getting started," he said. "Get you a ring."
That clearly was first and foremost on the minds of the Grambling players - and, right or wrong, it cost them this huge in-state game.
Tramon Douglas said as much: "You've got to move on. Our main goal was to get to the championship."
Southern's 6-0 lead at the end of first quarter was particularly deceptive. The score doesn't indicate how decisively the Jaguars were winning, while GSU wandered.
Case in point: The Tigers muffed their first kickoff reception, ending up inside the GSU 10. Next, Eugene had to scramble to recover a fumble on the snap. Five plays later, another mishandled snap gave the ball back the Jaguars.
No points were being added with this furious to-and-fro. But Southern was clearly gathering itself for a late-game run.
"We turned the ball over - and Southern capitalized," Douglas said. "We were a little out of sync."
The Tigers had a brief resurgence, as Eugene came alive with two TD tosses in the third. But each was answered by a Southern countermove.
The final turning point came when Eugene had a tipped pass intercepted, just as the Tigers had pulled to within a touchdown.
"It was big, momentum-wise," Eugene said, of the tip. "But that's the way it goes."
He paused. "That's the way it goes."
He's right: A Bayou Classic series tied at 14 apiece after 29 years vividly illustrates the evenly matched nature of this contest.
Anyone can win, regardless of record. Especially if you spot them the momentum.
That happened on an dark and stormy Saturday, as Southern - a team that reached .500 with the win - handed the three-time SWAC West champs their first loss since opening week.
Before the Tigers could get their umbrellas opened, a Bayou Classic victory was draining away in rivulets.
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GSU's Eugene breaks passing mark
The Tigers' signal-caller has 40 TD passes on the regular season
December 1, 2002
By NICK DERISO
nderiso@thenewsstar.com
NEW ORLEANS - Grambling quarterback Bruce Eugene came into the Bayou Classic needing just one touchdown to tie Doug Williams's 1977 record of 38 scoring throws in a season.
He didn't much care.
"I don't think about the accolades when I am on the field," he said, after Grambling fell 48-24. "All the accolades are good, but when I'm on the field, it's just me and my 11 guys."
While Eugene moved the chains for the Tigers early, more often than not it was on the ground. A memorable first-quarter play had a Southern defender's helmet popping off after he tried to tackle Eugene. The sophomore quarterback then rumbled for the Tigers' initial first down.
That wasn't getting Eugene any records, however. And it wasn't winning the game for Grambling. Eugene was worried about the second part: "Stats don't mean anything," he said. "The only thing that matters is the score."
Near misses in the first half included a key drop by Thyron Anderson with 3:31 left that looked like a sure TD.
Eugene finally hit Tramon Douglas early in the third quarter, a strike that pulled Grambling to within a nine points. He then threw well for several series, but great defensive plays by Southern kept Eugene stuck at 38 TD passes - until deep into the third quarter.
An 18-yard touchdown to senior wide reciever D.J. Clay with 6:12 left finally pushed Eugene past Williams.
"I broke it," a clearly dejected Eugene said, with little joy. "But a record is only good if you come out a winner - and we came out a loser. So I can't enjoy the record."
He tacked on another pass to Gershone Jessie that made it 40 TDs overall.
"I'm glad for Bruce Eugene," Williams said - though, he added: "I wish he didn't throw any and we had won."
The performance puts the finishing touches on a stunning statistical season, one that saw an avalanche of GSU records tumble.
Douglas passed the school marks for receiving touchdowns, receptions for a junior, and receptions and receiving yards in a season. All of those records were previously held by Scotty Anderson.
Eugene also broke the GSU record for most passing yards as a sophomore, set in 1993 by Kenneth Nord. He passed Williams' 1977 mark for passing yards in a season, too.
Eugene holds the school records for most passes attemped, most passes completed and most passing touchdowns in a season - again, surpassing Williams.
"I think Bruce Eugene deserves everything he's gotten this year - and will get," Williams said.
Time is on their side: A history of lengthy Classics continued Saturday, with the first quarter alone lasting 51 minutes.
The second quarter clocked in at 52 minutes, followed by a 25-minute halftime show. The 63-minute third quarter led to a 50-minute fourth, for a grand total of 4 hours and 8 minutes.
Injury report: A tough season for Southern quarterback Quincy Richard continued. He briefly left the game with 5:15 left in the third after a nasty hit by GSU's Terry Cooper.
The junior had already been knocked out of two previous Southern games - against Tulane and, in the season opener, against Nicholls State.
Ironically, Richard lost his redshirt in 1999's Bayou Classic, when he came in for an injured Terrence Levy.
Tiger tidbits: Grambling appeared in never-before-seen uniforms. The Tigers' jerseys and pants were white; the numbers were black with gold trim. "I like the new threads," said receiver Tramon Douglas, "but I don't like what we did in them today." Stripes on the hips and shoulder pads were similar to the University of Miami's uniform. ... As the home team this year, Southern's band appeared before the game and performed the National Anthem. ... Three scouts from the New Orleans Saints attended the game, looking for prospective young players.
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Williams dominates All-Time Bayou Team
December 1, 2002
By NICK DERISO
nderiso@thenewsstar.com
Grambling State football coach Doug Williams received the most votes for the All-Time Bayou Classic Team from Grambling after polling ended Saturday.
Votes were taken online at thenews-star.com's Bayou Classic page; visitors were allowed to vote multiple times.
Members of the All-Time Tiger Team, along with other selections, are:
· Quarterback: Williams, 75.3 percent; Randy Hymes, 17.3 percent; Clemente Gordon, 6.2 percent; and Mike Williams, 1.2 percent.
· Receivers (two): Scotty Anderson, 60.4 percent; Sammie White, 45.5 percent; Levi Washington, 36.4 percent; Nate Singleton, 20.8 percent; Jake Reed, 16.7 percent; Robert Woods, 13.2 percent; Silas Payne, 5.7 percent; and Ellis Spears, 1.5 percent.
· Running back: Wayne Hill and Brad Hill tied, each with 50 percent of the vote.
· Tight end: Andrew Glover, 72.3 percent; Mike Moore, 27.7 percent.
· Special teams: Trumaine Johnson, 62.2 percent; Kalvin Pearson, 17.8 percent; Ardashir Nobahar, 11.1 percent; Frank Bailey, 6.7 percent; and Lawrence Richmond, 2.2 percent.
· Cornerbacks (two): Calvin Spears, 79.1 percent; Everson Walls, 61.7 percent; Albert Lewis, 38.3 percent; and Thomas Griffin, 20.9 percent.
· Linebackers (two): Robert Taylor, 91.8 percent; Robert Pennywell, 60.5 percent; Terrance Dukes, 39.5 percent; and Valmond Brown, 8.2 percent.
· Also receiving votes: linebacker Fred Collins Jr.; tight end Tracey Green; quarterback Kendrick Nord; cornerbacks James Hunter, Ivan Geralds, Ivan Webb and Shane Oubre; running backs Walter Dean, Eric Gant and Robert Parham; wide recievers Dwight Scales, Fred Jones and Calvin Nicholas; and special teams players Bennie Thompson, Keith Smyre, Gerald Broadway, Jorge Rosales, Brandon Simpson and Dwayne Jupiter.
November 30, 2002
By Nick Deriso
nderiso@thenewsstar.com
He admits, with some relish, to being a busy man.
Mostly, it seems, Grambling coach Doug Williams has been busy answering the door. He was just starting to warm to his subject - the words tumbling out like a solo, the thoughts connecting underneath like a rhythm.
Then it came, again. The knocking.
This being Bayou Classic week, football can occasionally be the least of his concerns.
"Bruce Eugene," Williams said, trying to start over. Knock, knock.
Williams settled back down into his chair. "Yeah," he yelled.
The door opened, this time bringing someone with something that needed signing. Outside Williams' office, there was a noisy war room of assistant coaches and players.
This uproar seems to be both natural and enjoyable to Williams. It hadn't been any quieter inside. Watching him talk, I had a memory of Keith Jarrett - who sometimes will become so engrossed in a piano solo that he'll actually come up off the piano bench.
Jazz will do that. Football, at least for Williams, does too. (Rarely moreso than this year, I'd guess.) Even before this latest interruption, there were only rare moments of stillness. Talking about his team, Williams leaned forward. He swung around. He looked about in wonder, sometimes.
His body language spoke of an enthused realization: How far they'd come! There would be no laurel resting for the winners of the 2001 Bayou Classic, though. An angry gunmetal sky and the occasional sharp droplet of rain wouldn't stop offensive coordinator Melvin Spears from running the Tigers through their paces.
Earlier he had appeared, determined to get the team up and running in a nearby gym. "We won't be playing outside anyway," Spears said, and chuckled.
The reason for all this furious activity: Grambling's biggest game of the year gets bigger every year. There were SWAC lists to fax over, travel details to iron out, national media arrangements to be made, rosters and conference calls and hotel reservations.
Meaning, sometimes there's very little football. So, it's obviously an enjoyable break for Williams, this simple talk of emerging young stars, and tough contests won, and the stringing together of championships - and, yeah, that time I cautiously picked Jackson State to win.
They didn't, of course. Grambling, we know now, would not lose a game after August. This is all the more surprising when you consider that the Tigers had leaked out most of a starting lineup through graduation.
But Williams (knock, knock) can't get on a good (ring, ring) improvisational run. At one point, the phone behind his desk and the cell phone on his hip had jumped to life at nearly the exact same moment. His trains of thought were jackknifing so badly that the conversation had to be continued after lunch.
"Busy?" he said to one caller, chuckling. "I'm busier than a one-armed wallpaper hanger."
Each of Williams' visitors passes under a single rough-hewn word, fashioned from black electrical tape over the door. "WIN," it shouts.
Williams said he hopes to do that this year, even as he reminisced a little. He played in the first Bayou Classic, a 1974 win earned out in the open of Tulane Stadium. "It was," Williams said, like a low trombone pull, "football, then."
Not anymore. In one half hour, Williams took three, six, 12 calls - an insistent jangle that would have made John Coltrane wince.
The enormity of an event like this might overwhelm someone else. After all, the alumni at Grambling would accept a one-win season every year … if that win was against Southern.
But Doug Williams, it's clear, likes this furious bebop - the never-ebbing flow of a busy Bayou Classic week. His broad smile says: The wallpaper will get hung.
Nick Deriso is sports editor at The News-Star, 411 N. Fourth St., Monroe, La., 71201. You can contact him at 362-0234 or at nderiso@thenewssstar.com.
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SUn again puts the heat on GSU
December 1, 2002
By Nick Deriso
nderiso@thenewsstar.com
NEW ORLEANS - The morning forecast here called for rain. What followed for Grambling State was an afternoon of pain.
Ominous fog hung over the top of the Superdome early Saturday. A light drizzle fell at an angle, pushed by sharply cold winds.
The Tigers would have to weather their own storm inside: Another slow start in a season that has seen several. That proved all the opening a hungry Southern team needed, as the Jaguars got up early and then ran away with the game. The Jaguars moved ahead in the overall Bayou Classic series by one game.
This complacent-looking Tiger team - coming off five straight games where it scored 34 or more points - made it easier by putting up just 3 points in the first half.
Coach Doug Williams stood in the Grambling end zone, an hour before kickoff, watching the Tigers go through their pre-game progressions. He might have seen the clouds building, even then.
"One thing we tried to warn them was that this is a very emotional football game," Williams said. "We had to get the upper hand. But they got it - and they got the momentum on their side. They played a hell of a ballgame."
With a trip to the conference championship game secured, another GSU squad fell into an age-old trap: Overlooking an always well-coached Southern team.
"It seems," said senior defensive lineman Willie Gray, "that we play down to the competition." Grambling simply didn't have the fire and emotion that Southern did, even before the Jaguars' canny on-side kick to start the game. The Jaguars were whooping it up, feeding off a partisan crowd that streamed in early.
That seemed to be the difference - as the Tigers couldn't get anything going. They couldn't even get a break. Kicker Colby Miller's third extra-point try hit the goal post, yet it still tumbled in. Later, Gray could only shake his head at the thought.
This game was an opportunity lost for a team that should have played better. The Jaguars knew it. Southern linebacker Lendrick Francois hugged a visibly emotional Eugene at midfield after the game: "Y'all are just getting started," he said. "Get you a ring."
That clearly was first and foremost on the minds of the Grambling players - and, right or wrong, it cost them this huge in-state game.
Tramon Douglas said as much: "You've got to move on. Our main goal was to get to the championship."
Southern's 6-0 lead at the end of first quarter was particularly deceptive. The score doesn't indicate how decisively the Jaguars were winning, while GSU wandered.
Case in point: The Tigers muffed their first kickoff reception, ending up inside the GSU 10. Next, Eugene had to scramble to recover a fumble on the snap. Five plays later, another mishandled snap gave the ball back the Jaguars.
No points were being added with this furious to-and-fro. But Southern was clearly gathering itself for a late-game run.
"We turned the ball over - and Southern capitalized," Douglas said. "We were a little out of sync."
The Tigers had a brief resurgence, as Eugene came alive with two TD tosses in the third. But each was answered by a Southern countermove.
The final turning point came when Eugene had a tipped pass intercepted, just as the Tigers had pulled to within a touchdown.
"It was big, momentum-wise," Eugene said, of the tip. "But that's the way it goes."
He paused. "That's the way it goes."
He's right: A Bayou Classic series tied at 14 apiece after 29 years vividly illustrates the evenly matched nature of this contest.
Anyone can win, regardless of record. Especially if you spot them the momentum.
That happened on an dark and stormy Saturday, as Southern - a team that reached .500 with the win - handed the three-time SWAC West champs their first loss since opening week.
Before the Tigers could get their umbrellas opened, a Bayou Classic victory was draining away in rivulets.
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GSU's Eugene breaks passing mark
The Tigers' signal-caller has 40 TD passes on the regular season
December 1, 2002
By NICK DERISO
nderiso@thenewsstar.com
NEW ORLEANS - Grambling quarterback Bruce Eugene came into the Bayou Classic needing just one touchdown to tie Doug Williams's 1977 record of 38 scoring throws in a season.
He didn't much care.
"I don't think about the accolades when I am on the field," he said, after Grambling fell 48-24. "All the accolades are good, but when I'm on the field, it's just me and my 11 guys."
While Eugene moved the chains for the Tigers early, more often than not it was on the ground. A memorable first-quarter play had a Southern defender's helmet popping off after he tried to tackle Eugene. The sophomore quarterback then rumbled for the Tigers' initial first down.
That wasn't getting Eugene any records, however. And it wasn't winning the game for Grambling. Eugene was worried about the second part: "Stats don't mean anything," he said. "The only thing that matters is the score."
Near misses in the first half included a key drop by Thyron Anderson with 3:31 left that looked like a sure TD.
Eugene finally hit Tramon Douglas early in the third quarter, a strike that pulled Grambling to within a nine points. He then threw well for several series, but great defensive plays by Southern kept Eugene stuck at 38 TD passes - until deep into the third quarter.
An 18-yard touchdown to senior wide reciever D.J. Clay with 6:12 left finally pushed Eugene past Williams.
"I broke it," a clearly dejected Eugene said, with little joy. "But a record is only good if you come out a winner - and we came out a loser. So I can't enjoy the record."
He tacked on another pass to Gershone Jessie that made it 40 TDs overall.
"I'm glad for Bruce Eugene," Williams said - though, he added: "I wish he didn't throw any and we had won."
The performance puts the finishing touches on a stunning statistical season, one that saw an avalanche of GSU records tumble.
Douglas passed the school marks for receiving touchdowns, receptions for a junior, and receptions and receiving yards in a season. All of those records were previously held by Scotty Anderson.
Eugene also broke the GSU record for most passing yards as a sophomore, set in 1993 by Kenneth Nord. He passed Williams' 1977 mark for passing yards in a season, too.
Eugene holds the school records for most passes attemped, most passes completed and most passing touchdowns in a season - again, surpassing Williams.
"I think Bruce Eugene deserves everything he's gotten this year - and will get," Williams said.
Time is on their side: A history of lengthy Classics continued Saturday, with the first quarter alone lasting 51 minutes.
The second quarter clocked in at 52 minutes, followed by a 25-minute halftime show. The 63-minute third quarter led to a 50-minute fourth, for a grand total of 4 hours and 8 minutes.
Injury report: A tough season for Southern quarterback Quincy Richard continued. He briefly left the game with 5:15 left in the third after a nasty hit by GSU's Terry Cooper.
The junior had already been knocked out of two previous Southern games - against Tulane and, in the season opener, against Nicholls State.
Ironically, Richard lost his redshirt in 1999's Bayou Classic, when he came in for an injured Terrence Levy.
Tiger tidbits: Grambling appeared in never-before-seen uniforms. The Tigers' jerseys and pants were white; the numbers were black with gold trim. "I like the new threads," said receiver Tramon Douglas, "but I don't like what we did in them today." Stripes on the hips and shoulder pads were similar to the University of Miami's uniform. ... As the home team this year, Southern's band appeared before the game and performed the National Anthem. ... Three scouts from the New Orleans Saints attended the game, looking for prospective young players.
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Williams dominates All-Time Bayou Team
December 1, 2002
By NICK DERISO
nderiso@thenewsstar.com
Grambling State football coach Doug Williams received the most votes for the All-Time Bayou Classic Team from Grambling after polling ended Saturday.
Votes were taken online at thenews-star.com's Bayou Classic page; visitors were allowed to vote multiple times.
Members of the All-Time Tiger Team, along with other selections, are:
· Quarterback: Williams, 75.3 percent; Randy Hymes, 17.3 percent; Clemente Gordon, 6.2 percent; and Mike Williams, 1.2 percent.
· Receivers (two): Scotty Anderson, 60.4 percent; Sammie White, 45.5 percent; Levi Washington, 36.4 percent; Nate Singleton, 20.8 percent; Jake Reed, 16.7 percent; Robert Woods, 13.2 percent; Silas Payne, 5.7 percent; and Ellis Spears, 1.5 percent.
· Running back: Wayne Hill and Brad Hill tied, each with 50 percent of the vote.
· Tight end: Andrew Glover, 72.3 percent; Mike Moore, 27.7 percent.
· Special teams: Trumaine Johnson, 62.2 percent; Kalvin Pearson, 17.8 percent; Ardashir Nobahar, 11.1 percent; Frank Bailey, 6.7 percent; and Lawrence Richmond, 2.2 percent.
· Cornerbacks (two): Calvin Spears, 79.1 percent; Everson Walls, 61.7 percent; Albert Lewis, 38.3 percent; and Thomas Griffin, 20.9 percent.
· Linebackers (two): Robert Taylor, 91.8 percent; Robert Pennywell, 60.5 percent; Terrance Dukes, 39.5 percent; and Valmond Brown, 8.2 percent.
· Also receiving votes: linebacker Fred Collins Jr.; tight end Tracey Green; quarterback Kendrick Nord; cornerbacks James Hunter, Ivan Geralds, Ivan Webb and Shane Oubre; running backs Walter Dean, Eric Gant and Robert Parham; wide recievers Dwight Scales, Fred Jones and Calvin Nicholas; and special teams players Bennie Thompson, Keith Smyre, Gerald Broadway, Jorge Rosales, Brandon Simpson and Dwayne Jupiter.
Sunday, August 20, 2006
Grambling's 80 years of football
G-RIFFIC TALENTWeb poll allows GSU fans to select best of the best
April 17, 2006
By Nick Deriso
nderiso@thenewsstar.com
GRAMBLING — Grambling resident Ray Higgins' grandfather, Milton "Twenty" Douglas, was on the local college's first football team, organized 80 years ago.
Originally known as the Colored Industrial and Agricultural School, Grambling fielded this initial squad under the leadership of R.W.E. Jones, the school's second president.
No, Eddie Robinson wasn't Grambling's first head football coach — a common mistake, Higgins notes, chuckling. It might seem that way since Robinson coached nearly 60 of those years.
Higgins is celebrating that long history of football at Grambling — both by highlighting its storied accomplishments and adjusting a few misconceptions — on a fan-operated Web site called www.GramblingStateUniversity.com. There, he's informally polling fans across the nation to assemble a list of the program's Top 80 all-time players.
"The great thing has been talking with people from different eras about Grambling's history," said Higgins, a booster who graduated from Grambling Lab and then GSU. "If you weren't around, you might have heard the legends, but you may not have seen these particular players. It's been fun."
Jones would coach the football team until 1932, a period that saw the creation of the school marching band, a signature element in the Grambling myth. (Higgins himself became a part of that tradition during his years at GSU.)
There followed a trio of two-year tenures for Ira Smith, Joe Williams and Osiah Johnson. Emory Hines then took over as coach for a six-year period before the long and celebrated "Eddie Rob" era began.
Jones hired the 21-year-old Robinson in 1940 after a standout playing career at the now-defunct Leland College. The rest, as they say, is history.
Robinson coached countless student athletes over what would eventually become a 57-year career, with more than 300 going on to play in the NFL. In the 1971 preseason alone, 43 former GSU players were in pro camps.
Robinson, in fact, began re-writing the record books in his second season.
Fred Hobdy and Dan Washington, who both later worked for Robinson, were members of the 1942 squad now known as the "un" team — having established an undefeated, untied and even unscored upon record that year.
Hobdy then coached the ends on Robinson's historic 1955 crew, which went 10-0 on its way to Grambling's first national black college championship. The team also produced the first of Robinson's four Pro Football Hall of Famers, Willie "Thumper" Davis.
Grambling, then a member of the Midwestern Conference, would join the Southwestern Athletic Conference in 1959 where Robinson won 17 titles (to go with eight more national black college championships) before retiring in 1997. His final tally was 408 wins, best in college football.
Robinson would be inducted into the College Hall of Fame, along with former players Paul "Tank" Younger, Gary "Big Hands" Johnson and Doug Williams — who succeeded him as coach at Grambling.
Williams, a quarterback on SWAC title teams in 1974 and '77, then established a 52-18 mark — winning three more conference championships — during his subsequent six-year stint. Current GSU coach Melvin Spears has added another 17 wins, including the most recent SWAC football title, and six losses.
Besides Robinson's undefeated 1942 and '55 squads, GSU has posted a staggering eight one-loss seasons — in 1956, 1960, 1967, 1974, 1977 and 1992 under Robinson, before Williams' Tigers did it in 2001 and Spears followed last season.
GSU's .699 all-time winning percentage is behind only Yale's .709 historically in all of Division I-AA.
So how to decide who among these towering giants to include in a Top 80 from Grambling's eight decades of football?
Is the starting quarterback Williams or James "Shack" Harris — who was a conference champion in every year he started in the late 1960s? What about the recently departed Bruce Eugene, who now holds every significant Grambling passing record?
"I tried to set it up based initially on names I knew," Higgins said. "There are presented 10 names at a time, starting with the most obvious. People have now begun talking about names that were omitted and giving reasons why others should be on. So, the lists have been growing."
There are embarrassments of riches everywhere.
Over the years, Grambling defensive lines have boasted Davis, Johnson, Junious "Buck" Buchanan and Ernie "The Big Cat" Ladd. Former defensive backs Willie Brown, Albert "Snow" Lewis and Everson "Cubby" Walls join them as members of the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame.
Wingbacks Frank Lewis and Sammy White played in three Super Bowls, while Charlie Joiner's bust can be found in Canton.
"There is such a rich history in this 80 years of Grambling football that it's a subject where you can continually go back and look at different names," said Higgins, whose site is not officially affiliated with GSU.
Higgins typically asks that visitors register to view GramblingStateUniversity.com's message boards, but has made the Top 80 poll open to anyone.
"Alumni, friends and family can gather and discuss this player or that one and the things they did," he said. "Hopefully, in the end, we'll have given people a chance to remember some of these accomplishments. They make me proud to be a Gramblinite."
**
GRAMBLING80: Top 80 Players
As Grambling gears up for a celebration of its first 80 years of football, I’ve compiled my own Top 80 all-time GSU players - with help from Ray Higgins, whose fan-operated http://www.gramblingstateuniversity.com/ Web site is polling fans on the subject.
Considered with a careful focus on a player’s collegiate career, these are my suggestions for the best of the best over Grambling’s first eight decades on the gridiron.
* *- My Elite 8 are given fuller biographical sketches; this list is presented in alphabetical order.
1. Aldrich Allen: Two-time All-SWAC first-team linebacker in 1978-79, as Grambling won consecutive conference titles. Was also named to the American Football Coaches Association I-AA Coaches’ All-America Team in 1979.
2. Scotty Anderson: Holds school record for receptions and touchdowns in a career and catches by a senior. The last GSU player of 17 total to receive a Senior Bowl invite, Anderson led all scorers in 1999-2000 and helped the Tigers to two titles in 2000-01.
3. Herman Arvie: A first-team All-SWAC offensive tackle in 1992, Arvie was part of an offensive line that eventually helped Eric Gant to a trio of 1,000-yard rushing seasons. He was also named second-team All-America by the Sports Network in 1992.
4. Willie Armstrong: A three-time All-Southwestern Athletic Conference running back, from 1968-70, a period that saw Grambling win the third of three SWAC titles with quarterback James “Shack” Harris in 1968.
5. Garland Boyette: He earned first-team All-SWAC and Little All-America honors in 1961. Named to the All-time HBCU team at middle linebacker by Pop Culture, he’s the uncle of Ernie Ladd, another of the Top 80.
6. Willie Brown: So deep was Grambling’s roster in 1959-62, the only NFL player to intercept a least one pass in 16 consecutive seasons never played cornerback. Still he lettered all four years at split end and outside linebacker, and GSU won a title.
7. JUNIOUS ‘BUCK’ BUCHANAN: From his sophomore season onward, this tackle was given a trio of both All-America and all-conference honors while helping Grambling to a 23-5-2 record and its first SWAC title in 1960. Former coach Eddie Robinson would recall Buchanan’s dominance, even in practice.
“If we went to the right,” Robinson once recalled, “he would tackle us. If we went to the left, he would tackle us. If we went right at him, he would tackle us. Boy, he was really tough.”
Buchanan passing away in 1992 after a long bout with lung cancer, and was posthumously inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1996.
8. Frank Cornish: An All-America and first-team All-SWAC tackle in 1965, as Grambling won the first of four consecutive conference crowns.
9. WILLIE DAVIS: A two-time black college All-America defensive tackle in 1954-55, Davis anchored Grambling’s first national black college championship team — the 10-0 squad from 1955.
“Willie had hitting power,” former coach Eddie Robinson once recalled. “He was our captain, an outstanding leader.”
Davis, who worked his way to legendary status for Lombardi’s Green Bay Packers and then in the business world, would become GSU’s second SWAC Hall of Famer in 1977.
10. Walter Dean: The first SWAC player to win the Walter Payton Award, Dean was also the conference’s offensive player of the year in 1990. No senior has ever run for more than his 1,401 yards. He was also first-team all-conference in 1989, when GSU won the SWAC.
11. Steve Dennis: Still holds the school record for picks in a career, with 27 between 1969-72. A first-team All-SWAC DB in 1971-72, as GSU won the first and second of four consecutive conference titles, Dennis earned All-America honors in 1972.
12. Alphonse Dotson: Said to be Grambling’s first All-America first-teamer, Dotson received the honor from the Consensus All American-Newspaper Enterprise Association. He was a first team All-SWAC tackle in 1964, and honorable mention in ’63.
13. Tramon Douglas: Broke Scotty Anderson’s once-thought unassailable receiving numbers over two all-conference seasons beginning with 2002’s SWAC championship campaign. Still holds records for receptions and receiving yards in a season.
14. Henry Dyer, pictured at right: Grambling’s leading runner in both 1963 and the SWAC title season of ’65, Dyer was the school’s first documented 1,000-yard rusher. He was named first-team All-SWAC at fullback from ’63-65, and scored 30 times in his final two years.15. Bruce Eugene: Eugene left Grambling with school records for career and season yards, scores and completions, two conference championships and the Division I-AA mark for touchdowns in a year - a record that had stood for since 1984.
16. Lee Fobbs: Playing from 1968-72, Fobbs rose to All-SWAC status at fullback during his junior and senior seasons, adding All-America honors in 1972, as Grambling won the second and third of four consecutive SWAC championships between 1971-74.
17. Solomon Freelon: Freelon was a first-team All-SWAC guard in 1971, a year after being named second-team as a junior. He would become one of just 12 Grambling players invited to the Blue-Gray All-Star Classic after GSU’s 1971 SWAC title.
18. Eric Gant: A two-time All-SWAC first teamer beginning in 1991, Gant is one of only 17 Grambling players ever invited to the Senior Bowl. Still holds school records for yards in season (1,417 in 1992) and yards in a career (3,795).
19. John “J.D.” Garrett: Led Grambling in rushing in 1962, and in scoring for the 1962 and ’63 seasons as both a runner and a kicker - scoring 130 total points over those two campaigns. Was first-team all-conference every season from 1961-63.
20. Clemente Gordon: SWAC offensive player of the year in 1989, as Grambling won the SWAC, Gordon was also first team in 1988. He passed for more than 5,000 yards during those two seasons, for 50 touchdowns and just 17 picks.
21. Jerry Gordon: After averaging 15 yards per catch on a 711 yard season, Gordon earned first-team SWAC honors in 1981. That followed second-team recognition in 1980 - as Grambling won a conference title.
22. Joe Gordon: The SWAC’s defensive player of the year in 1979, Gordon was also named to the AFCA I-AA Coaches’ All-America Team that year.
23. Leonard Griffin: Earned a valuable invite to the Blue-Gray All-Star Classic in 1985 after GSU won the conference title. An honorable-mention All-SWAC end, Griffin later served as a strength and conditioning assistant in the program.
24. JAMES ‘SHACK’ HARRIS: Harris passed for 4,128 yards and 43 touchdowns as Grambling went 24-5-1 between 1965-68, winning three straight SWAC titles.
Former “Coach (Eddie) Robinson had the utmost confidence in me that I could play, and that meant a lot, knowing how he felt,” Harris said. “Eddie Robinson is perhaps the greatest person that I’ve ever been around.”
In his senior season alone, Harris passed for 1,972 yards and 21 touchdowns on only 225 attempts. He was first-team All-SWAC in 1967-68, and also earned SWAC Hall of Fame honors.
25. Mike Harris: Led team in interceptions both in 1975 and ’76; his 10 picks in ’75 are second all time for one season. One of three members of the 1977 squad to be invited to the East-West Shrine Game – including Carlos Pennywell and Doug Williams.
26. Wayne Hill: Led Grambling in rushing for three seasons beginning in 1984, winning one SWAC title and gaining more than 2,000 yards. He was named second-team All-SWAC in 1985 and honorable mention in 1986.
27. Fred Hobdy: A guard on Grambling’s renowned “un” team in 1942, which went unbeaten, untied and unscored upon, Hobdy returned from the war to coach the ends - he was an assistant on 1955’s undefeated squad - before becoming Louisiana’s most successful college hoops coach ever.
28. Autry Lane Howell: A two-way lineman for Robinson, was the first of three brothers to star for Eddie Robinson, beginning in 1960. Grambling won its first Southwestern Athletic Conference title with Lane up front, establishing a 23-5-2 mark between 1960-62.
29: Michael Howell: A cornerback nicknamed “Trackdown,” Michael followed brother Lane two seasons later. His 1964 squad went 9-3, winning the Sugar Cup over Bishop before falling in the Orange Blossom Classic.
30. James “Hound” Hunter: A first-team All-SWAC honoree in 1974-75, he helped Grambling to the ’74 SWAC title. Hunter was the team leader in picks for two years, pulling down 16 passes in 1973-74. His 8 in 1974 still ranks fourth all time at GSU.
31. Randy Hymes: Led Grambling to its first two Southwestern Athletic Conference titles in six seasons, beginning in 2000. He would pass for more than 4,400 yards and 33 touchdowns, seventh all time at Grambling.
32. GARY ‘BIG HANDS’ JOHNSON: He still holds the school record for most tackles in a career, with 367 between 1971-74 as GSU won four straight SWAC titles.
In his senior season of 1974 alone, Johnson had 134 tackles, 89 unassisted, and was named the team’s Most Valuable Player. That led to coveted invites to both the East-West Shrine Game and the Senior Bowl — and Johnson was named Most Valuable Player in both.
Johnson earned first-team All-SWAC in 1972-74 and then 1997 induction into the College Football and SWAC halls of fame.
33. Stone Johnson: So fast he won the 1960 NAIA national 200-meter title, Johnson was a wingback and punter (averaging 36 yards per kick) on Grambling’s first SWAC title team. He also competed as a sprinter in the Olympics, before suffering a neck fracture during an NFL preseason game. He died 10 days later.
34. Trumaine Johnson: The 1980 and '82 SWAC offensive player of the year (when he had 1,000 yards and averaged 14 yards a catch), Johnson was also first-team All-SWAC in 1981. Grambling won the conference championship in '80. His 16 scores that season is still tied for fifth-best in school history.
35. CHARLIE JOINER: Led all Grambling receivers from 1966-68, gaining 2,066 yards, on the way to a trio of conference titles. An amazing 78 of quarterback James “Shack” Harris 289 career completions at Grambling were made by the steady Joiner, who led the team in touchdowns in 1966-67.
“Charlie goes all out,” former coach Eddie Robinson once noted. “Beating the man, that’s where he excelled.”He was named first-team All-SWAC three times and given Outstanding Offensive Player awards in the 1968 Little Rose Bowl.
Induction to the SWAC Hall of Fame followed in 1996.
36. Fred Jones: GSU’s best receiver during the 1987-89 seasons, collecting a total of 2,000 yards as well as a SWAC title in his senior campaign. He also led Grambling in scoring in ’88 with 10 touchdowns, and earned first-team All-SWAC honors in ’88-89.
37. Ernie “Big Cat” Ladd: At 6'9" and 315 pounds, arguably the biggest GSU star ever. A first-team all-league defensive lineman in 1960, as Grambling won its first-ever Southwestern Athletic Conference championship.
38. Gilad Landau: His 188 career-total in PATs was a state record. An All-SWAC first-team kicker in 1992-93, Landau earned All-America honors in 1993 from the Sports Network.
39. Melvin Lee: As quarterback of the offensive line at center on Grambling’s undefeated 1955 championship squad, Lee must have impressed former coach Eddie Robinson. He then worked for the next 40 seasons as an assistant, tinkering and perfecting Robinson’s fabled Wing-T offense.
40. Albert “Snow” Lewis: Was first-team All-SWAC at cornerback in 1981-82, after leading the team in interceptions in 1981 with seven. A stellar performance earned him a starting position by popular vote in 2002 on the 50th anniversary All-Time Senior Bowl team.
41. FRANK LEWIS: A do-anything player who led Grambling in receiving in 1969-70 and in rushing in 1969, as well. He scored 28 touchdowns in his junior and senior seasons, averaging 18.65 yards per catch.
“I played with Frank and I don’t know if I have ever seen a better athlete than Frank,” former GSU quarterback James “Shack” Harris said. “I don’t know of anything that Frank couldn’t do.”
Lewis was named first-team all-conference as a junior and senior, and was second-team as a sophomore when Grambling won the SWAC in 1968.
42. Clifton McNeil: Led all Grambling receivers in 1961 and again in 1963, averaging 16 yards per catch.
43. John Mendenhall: A first-team All-Southwestern Athletic Conference defensive end in 1971, he helped GSU to a SWAC title that year. He was then one of just 17 Grambling players ever invited to the Senior Bowl.
44. Larry Metevia Sr.: A first-team All-Southwestern Athletic Conference center in 1966, as Grambling won the second of four consecutive SWAC titles, and the first with quarterback James “Shack” Harris.
45: Michael Moore: Led all Grambling receivers in 1976-77, winning a SWAC title as a senior. His 60 receptions in 1977 still ranks in GSU’s top 10 all time and his 1,112 that year is in the top 5.
46. Brian Morgan: Holds most of GSU’s significant kicking records, including field goals in a career and most points scored by kicking at Grambling. Named first-team All-SWAC in 2001 and ’03, winning three conference titles.
47. Edward “Bo” Murray: A critical piece of Grambling’s 1955 undefeated team, the then-redshirt sophomore won the Orange Blossom Classic on scoring runs of 75 and 8 yards. He also kicked the extra point on his winning TD, beating Florida A&M 28-21.
48. Kendrick Nord: Nord passed for 6,600 yards in 1993-95, beating Alcorn in an epic Robinson Stadium battle and also winning a SWAC title as a senior. His .523 completion percentage has only been bested twice in 25 seasons.
49. Robert Parham: Grambling’s leading rusher from 1978-80, he amassed 2,700 yards over that span as GSU won three consecutive SWAC titles. He was a first-team all-conference running back in each of those seasons.
50. Elfrid Payton: Perhaps Grambling’s hardest hitter ever, this linebacker led the school as a senior in 1989 with 20 tackles for a loss, 13 quarterback sacks and two fumble returns. He was named the team's Most Outstanding Player in both 1988-89.
51. Carlos Pennywell: A first-team All-Southwestern Athletic Conference receiver during Doug Williams’ final season at the helm, Pennywell helped Grambling to the 1977 SWAC title. He was named first-team all-conference that year as a senior and led Grambling in scoring in 1976.
52. Robert Pennywell: This Pennywell was a first-team All-SWAC linebacker in 1974-75, as Grambling won its ninth Southwestern Athletic Conference title in ’74.
53. Woody Peoples: A first-team All-Southwestern Athletic Conference offensive guard in 1964, as the tandem of Henry Dyer and Leroy Carter led the rushing attack.
54. Jake Reed: A first-team All-SWAC honoree in 1990, and second-team in 1989, Reed led all Grambling receivers as a senior with 954 yards and a 20-yard average per catch. He was invited to the Senior Bowl in 1990, one of just 17 from Grambling to receive that honor.
55. Andre Robinson: Helped GSU to three straight SWAC championships from 1977-80; was named the Bayou Classic’s MVP in 1980. As a senior, was a consensus All-America selection by AP, Kodak, The Sporting News and Sheridan; was also the SWAC’s Defensive Player of the Year.
56. Jerry “Gray Ghost” Robinson: A two-time first-team All-Southwestern Athletic Conference halfback from 1960-61, a stint that included Grambling’s first-ever SWAC title in 1960. Led all Grambling rushers over those two seasons, running for 1,300 yards.57. Virgil Robinson: A first-team All-Southwestern Athletic Conference running back in 1970, Robinson led all Grambling rushers that season with 884 yards.
58. Robert Salters: Named to American Football Coaches Association Division I-AA Coaches’ All-America Team in 1979. His eight interceptions that season still ranks fourth all time at Grambling.
59. Mike Saint Clair: Named All-SWAC in 1975 and honorable mention in 1974, as Grambling won a conference title.
60. Goldie “Spider” Sellers: Earned All-Southwestern Athletic Conference honors in 1965 as Grambling won its second SWAC title ever.
61. Dwight Scales: Grambling’s top receiver in 1973-74, with more than 800 yards and a 22-yard average per catch. Grambling won SWAC titles both seasons.
62. Charles “Tank” Smith: Grambling’s leading receiver in 1972, as the Tigers won the second of four consecutive Southwestern Athletic Conference championships.
63: Raymond “World” Smith: A two-time first-team All-SWAC offensive tackle in 1989-90 as running back Walter Dean builds his resume for an eventual Walter Payton Award, recognizing Division I-AA’s best offensive threat.
64. Robert “Big Bird” Smith: A three-time first-team all-conference defensive end, beginning in his sophomore season of 1981. Grambling would win the 1983 SWAC title.
65. Keith Smyre: Still holds school records for longest punt (89 yards in 1974), as well as most punts in a game, most punts in a season and most yards punted in a career.
66: Richard Stebbins: A running back speedster who excelled in track events, he competed with “Bullet” Bob Hayes in U.S. Olympic events in the 1960s.
67. Ernest “Monster” Sterling: A lineman on multiple SWAC title teams, Sterling would then put in more than two decades as an assistant at Grambling. He is also one of just two coaches who stayed on when Doug Williams succeeded Robinson.
68. Robert Taylor: A two-time All-Southwestern Athletic Conference first-team linebacker in 2000-01, Taylor was also given first team I-AA All-American honors by the American Football Coaches Association in 2001.
69. Roosevelt Taylor: One of 13 Grambling players taken in the 1963 NFL draft, and one of four future All-Pros. He played safety at Grambling during the period before integration when most GSU second-teamers were potential starters.
70. Bennie Thompson: A first-team All-Southwestern Athletic Conference defensive back in 1984, and second team in 1983 as GSU won the SWAC title.
71. Rodney Tureaud: Led all Grambling rushers in 1972 with 1,137 yards, the first GSU 1,000 rusher in seven seasons. He was named SWAC offensive player of the year.
72. Everson “Cubby” Walls: Still holds the school record for most interceptions in a season, 11 set in 1980. Was All-SWAC that season.
73. Dan H. Washington: A member of Eddie Robinson’s first squad, as well as its subsequent “un” team in 1941 – which went unbeaten, untied and unscored upon. Washington then served as team trainer for 45 years before his death in 1996 at age 74.
74. Sammy White: Inducted into the SWAC Hall of Fame in 2005 in recognition of a collegiate career that included two school-leading years for receptions in 1973 and 1975 - and a co-offensive player of the year award as a senior. White was also first-team All-SWAC in ’73.
75. DOUG WILLIAMS: Williams, who established school passing marks that stood for nearly 25 years, started quickly — winning a SWAC title as a redshirt freshman in 1974.
“I was blessed to have some veterans around me and Coach Robinson ran a conservative offense that didn’t put too much pressure on me,” Williams said.
He would win another SWAC championship as a senior in 1977, earning second-team All-SWAC honors in 1975 and then offensive player of the year honors in his final collegiate campaign. A Heisman Trophy finalist, Williams would be inducted into the SWAC and College halls in 2001.
76. Mike Williams: Williams, brother and successor at quarterback to Doug, won SWAC titles in 1978-80 and was named first-team all-conference as both a junior and senior. He threw for 3,700 yards and 46 touchdowns at Grambling.
77. Willie Williams: Punted for 4,200 yards over three seasons beginning in 1962, averaging 36 yards per attempt. He also played defensive back, where he was named first-team All-Southwestern Athletic Conference in 1964.
78. Robert Woods: A first-team All-SWAC receiver in 1977, he led all Grambling scorers with 14 touchdowns as GSU won its final conference title with Doug Williams at quarterback.
79. PAUL ‘TANK’ YOUNGER: Despite playing from 1945-48, still holds GSU record for career points with 369. His 86-yard blast against Morgan State in 1946 also remains the school’s longest non-scoring run.
In all, Younger scored 60 touchdowns — at the time a collegiate record, and still tops at Grambling — during his storied career under Eddie Robinson. Named black college player of the year in 1949, he was the first Grambling player inducted into the SWAC Hall of Fame, in 1973.
Younger — who died just days after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks — had entered the College Football Hall of Fame in 2000.
80. Willie Young: A two-time All-Southwestern Athletic Conference first-team offensive guard in 1964-65, as Grambling won its second SWAC title.
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