Oh wait, I meant to type who we are not going to boo...in fact, we are going to make notes of every positive thing they do, write them on note cards, and send them to the locker room at half-time with pre-filled blank get-well cards for any injuries we may have missed when they happened live and didn't have time to write out get-well notes...and then after the game, we will cheer equally loud for each team, making sure every other fan is clapping for the opposite team so no one's feelings get hurt, and then we will ask them if it is ok to leave our seats and return home, where we will read at least 100 pages of classic literature before eating, and certainly will not operate machinery until we have personally reviewed our fan behavior and the behavior of those around us, relatives, and neighbors who we have seen at least once in the past 7 months, and report any suspect behavior and especially anyone who boo's to Joe Paterno or the estate of Mother Theresa (does she have an estate?)
So maybe I have a bit of time on my hands, but I got to thinking yesterday, what exactly is a Norfolk State. Yes, it is a blatant attempt to rip off the classic tale of asking the precise definition of what exactly is a Rutgers…but what fun it would be to dig into the history of the storied football program of Norfolk State, who they are, where they come from…(with thanks and non0cited information from the Norfolk St Athletics web site, the city of Norfolk web site, wiki, the New York Times, and the Washington Post, and the AP and UPI wires…see, I am a journalist sort of…)
Norfolk is one of the oldest cities in our country, established in 1682, which I believe is the last time Temple had a winning football season. Some famous people who are from this Virginia mecca of commerce are Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), Venus Flytrap (Tim Reid), Bob Saget, and Wayne Newton. It is part of the Hampton Raods region in Virginia, which is the cities of Norfolk, Newport News, and Virginia Beach, as well as the body of water that makes up the harbor of Hampton Roads.
Norfolk State the School was formerly known as the Norfolk State Unit of Virginia Union University, but in 1942 became an independent entity and was known as Norfolk Polytechnic College (aka Norfolk Tech). Then Norfolk Tech bounced into the realm of Virginia State College, lost it polytechnic status, and settled in to being Norfolk State College. And of course, as all colleges aspire to be, it then grew into being Norfolk State University. Enrollment as of last year was 6,238 students. The most popular majors are business, nursing, psychology, biology, and music education.
Their official colors are green and gold and their mascot is a Spartan. They play in one of my favorite conferences outside the Big East, the MEAC. The Spartans have fielded a team since 1938 and they have been to the post-season once and played only one game, their heyday way back in 1984. It was Willard Bailey’s first season as head coach, and it was a dream season. Cruising to the CIAA championship with 10 wins and only one loss, ranked 6th in the polls and hosting 8th ranked Towson State in their in the first round of their first time ever in the Division II NCAA playoffs. The game featured the nations number one passing attack from Towson against the vaunted Norfolk State defense that was particularly stingy against the run, coming into the game giving only 47.3 rushing yards a game, which ranked them number one against the run in the nation. So what happened? Well, six Norfolk turnovers in the form of a blocked punt, fumbles and interceptions stymied their offense, and somehow against the solid Spartan defense, Towson found a way to pound out an uncanny 295 yards of rushing offense. The final score was a result of a furious Norfolk comeback attempt in the fourth quarter, led by quarterback Willie Gillus, who tossed a touchdown pass to Leonard Hopkins, and running back Raynard Ravels. But it was too little too late as Towson took a 31-21 victory. (Towson went on to lose in the next round 45-3 at the hands of eventual national champion Troy State) The 1984 team holds the distinction of having the most wins (10) and the longest winning streak (8) in school history. Anthony Johnson, a SBN 1st team all-American in 1984, set the record that year for the most rushing attempts in a game (43 versus Howard) and for a season (310). Glenn Jones, a defensive back, was drafted with the first pick of the ninth round of the 1985 draft, and Bruce Manley, another defensive back was a free-agent signee with the Seattle Seahawks. But that was it for that run…the next few seasons went steadily downhill, 6-4 in ’85, 4-6 in ’86, and 4-7 in ’87. Coach Bailey tried to right the ship, but eventually the program went in a different direction after a 3-7 campaign in 1992.
Other than that, their big guys were Aaron Sparrow, a quarterback with numerous records, and Kevin Talley a 1-AA defensive player of the year and all-american linebacker who set the NCAA record with 195 tackles in a seaon and once had 30 tackles in one game (overachiever anyone?) Eventually went to the Quad City Steamwheelers of AFL2 fame, but as far as I can tell, he hasn’t played in a game in a few years. There is someone else named Kevin Talley who is a death metal drummer, but apparently these two have no relation, but I can’t confirm that.
So, now, I guess, all that’s left is the massacre that is going to take place at homecoming this week. I hope people can get over the bad press from last week over the rudeness of the SOME not ALL of the fans. I guess it is a sign of the times though. With more success comes more everything, fans, scrutiny, the need to fill newspaper and web spaces...wait a minute, that's me too, because I am sucked into talking about it. I like a victim.
Go RU.
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