With a roster now consisting of over 20 student athletes the Sabers are the first all black rugby team in the entire nation. Since its creation in 2012, the team, led by Anthony Stewart and Seifuddin Saafir has grown into a force that is ready to compete for the division title in the near future.

“We started in 2012 and each year we keep making progress and this is our best year yet, Stewart said. “We are currently 5-1 and getting ready to play the team we lost against for the championship.”

The team, which had as little as five athletes show up to practices at a time in 2012, has now grown into a formidable group of dedicated individuals thriving to get better. The team now has an impressive 28-man roster, which continues to grow yearly.

Due to the history of Rugby not including many African Americans, this group takes on a different approach that no other team in the nation can truly relate to.

“Being black in general, I always kind of carried that underdog mentality on my back,” Stewart said. “There’s always someone who is going to be rooting against you.”

Stewart, a junior at Morehouse College has been playing Rugby for the past eight years and has a vision for the game well beyond his personal career.

“If you look at Rugby internationally there are many black people who play the sport,” Stewart said. “I would love to teach and pass my knowledge of this sport down to the next generation of young African Americans coming up.”

Saafir, a senior at Morehouse College has been one of the most dedicated student athletes on campus and is appreciative of the journey he’s been apart of with the club.

“The fact that we have had this longevity is a blessing,” Saafir said. “I just thank God that we’ve been able to have this level of success so far. Being the first all black rugby team in the nation, the odds were certainly against us.”

Stewart and Saafir much to the agreement of many of their teammates would like to start Urban Youth Leagues’ for Rugby soon after they graduate from Morehouse College.

“I want to foster kids into a sport that teaches you discipline and command of yourself,” Martin said. “If you look at rugby on a global level there are many people of color who are playing in so many different fascists. If we can take that and apply a Morehouse mentality to it, the sky is the limit.”

Morehouse College, like many other black institutions were never built on a strong understanding or support of a sport like Rugby, many cite the fact that the sport never gained popularity within the African community. However, something special is arising at Morehouse where Saafir and Stewart have little worry about the future of the program.

“Its been a thought in my mind about what might happen to the program when I leave, but not plausible,” Saafir said. “We are working very hard to make sure the program continues to prosper.”

“We have guys in every class,” Martin said. “We take this very seriously. Guys from my high school talk about wanting to attend Morehouse and be apart of this team. We have a program that is literally fostering the youth.”

In the immediate aftermath of an already successful season, Martin and Saafir solely want to see Morehouse College actually begin to get on board and provide the club with extra publicity moving forward.

“We are bringing publicity and money to Morehouse without any real acknowledgment or backing from the school yet,” Saafir said.  “We only need publicity. We want to be known as a real school sport and become established. That will help attract more student-athletes to the program and campus moving forward.”

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Malcolm Banks

Sports Editor

Malcolm.Banks@morehouse.edu

Although their record has them ranked No. 2 in the East in the SIAC conference, head coach Grady Brewer feels like they are better than their record.

“We really expect to be 16-0 at this point,” coach Brewer said. “But things happen during the season that we didn’t expect.”

Some of those things include All-Conference players Tyrius Walker and Tyrone Brown not being on the court. Walker has been out the last 11 games for personal reasons and Brown has missed the last four outings. Robert Askew is another rotation player who missed the first seven games with an ankle injury.

With three of the top players from last season out at different points during the season, the Tigers looked elsewhere for someone to lead the team. That leader came in the form of Ayinde Russell, freshman guard from Atlanta, Ga.

Over the last six games, Russell has averaged 23 points per game while leading his team on a five game win streak. He’s averaging 14.5 points on the season and is leading the team in assists with 31. He’s 10th in the conference in scoring, 9th in 3pt made per game, and 5th in Free throw PCT.

“This is exactly how I envisioned my first season at Morehouse,” Russell said. “Because I believe through high school I always had the mentality for the next level which was college, and it’s showing. I came out of high school with a chip on my shoulder.”

Russell was named Newcomer of the Week on Jan 25, 2016. Russell is not the only Tiger to win weekly honors this season: Michael Hall was named Player of the Week and Anthony Farrar named Newcomer of the Week on Nov 30, 2015 and Brown was named player of the week Jan 18, 2016.

Russell has not had to carry the load by himself. Senior Center Robert Askew has been there to share the load with 13.1 points and 9.1 rebounds per game in the last nine matchups.

One big key for Morehouse’s success this season has been the defense as it has been better this year than it was last year.

A season ago, the Tigers were ranked No. 13 in steals, No. 7 in blocks, and No. 1 overall in scoring defense. This season they are currently No. 8 in steals, No. 4 in blocks, and No. 3 in scoring defense.

“Defense is a point of emphasis for us,” coach Brewer said. “We know that we can show up every night playing defense. Regardless whatever you do offensively, if they don’t score, we don’t lose, so that’s the mentality we created the last two years.”

This comes after the Tigers came up short last year in the tournament after losing a close game to the Benedict Tigers. Coach Brewer said he had one message for his team.

“Remember this feeling, you never want to feel like this again.”

After defeating the Benedict Tigers on February 2, 2016 coach Brewer feels this team has a good chance at a post season run.

“This team has the capability of winning a championship.”

The Tigers have five games left in the season and their next matchup is against Claark Atlanta University on Feb. 13.

It all began with consecutive victories over Johnson C. Smith, 77-70, and Fayetteville State, 66-59. This week, the Tigers open their home schedule with 7 p.m. games in Forbes Arena on Friday against Fisk University and on Tuesday, Nov. 24, against West Georgia.

The team is looking to improve on their 15-11 record last year and No. 2 seed in the conference tournament. The Tigers will need to perform better at the end of close games because seven of the team’s 11 losses were decided by five points or less.

With only one senior departing due to graduation, look for the Tigers to capitalize on the returning veteran leadership and experience from the tough losses.

“You want your seniors to take charge of the locker room,” coach Grady Brewer said. “They know the rights and wrongs of the game. You can never have too much experience.”

The team will boast eight seniors, with All-SIAC center Tyrone Brown and guard Javarius Gay hoping to leave Morehouse with something along with a degree – a championship ring.

The team also has a group of young talent, players who want to create their own legacy.

Sophomore Tyrius Walker had a standout first year, taking home the SIAC Freshman of the Year award and leading the team in scoring (13.8 per game), assists (72) and steals (32). During the offseason, Walker diversified his game to overcome the upcoming defensive plans against him, and so far he has averaged 17 ppg.

“My main focus is on team goals because without them, I wouldn’t have accomplished what I have today,” Walker said. “I’ve had this feeling all summer of winning the championship.”

Brewer recruited four freshmen that he believes can make an “immediate impact to the team” – forwards Omar Alston (10 points against Fayetteville State) and Gerrell Dickson, along with guards Ayinde Russell and Anthony Farrar (11 points, four rebounds and four steals against Johnson C. Smith).

There is much optimism for the upcoming season as Morehouse College pushes to gain more respectability in the athletics department. Expectations are high for all of the sports teams.

“As the athletic director, I am anticipating a banner year with accolades across the board,” Andre Pattillo said. “The combination of returning athletes and recruits will be the key to their success.”

Behind every great sports team is an even greater fan base. The energy from the fans fueled multiple come-from-behind victories and buzzer beaters last season. To increase crowd participation, committees across campus plan to continue sponsoring events and giveaways during home games.

Brandon Sanders

Contributing Writer

Brandon.Sanders@morehouse.edu

“I hope going through losing about five or six games by four points or less gives us that experience to learn how to finish,” Morehouse head coach Grady Brewer said. “The first game of the season we lost by one with five seconds on the clock and in the semis by two with 20 seconds left, so having better execution down the stretch can hopefully lead to more victories.”

Shooting guard Austin Anderson was the team’s only graduating senior, so Morehouse returns almost the entire roster from last season led by preseason All-Conference selections point guard Tyrius Walker and center Tyrone Brown. Walker had a stellar freshman year, leading the team in per game scoring (13.8), assists (2.9) and steals (1.4). However, Morehouse is going to need the 6-foot-1-inch guard to lead in more than just stats if the team hopes to make another strong push into the postseason.

“Knowing me, it is my job to be a coach on the floor,” Walker said. “I want to help the freshmen coming in get adjusted to the pace of the college game and also get guys in proper position to help us execute in games.”

Last year Brown led Morehouse in rebounds per game (7.5) and finished second in points per game (9.7) while serving as the team’s defensive anchor. The 6-foot-9-inch center will lead a deep rotation of big men that features fellow seniors Robert Askew (7.1 ppg.) and Michael Hall (6.3 ppg.), who look to provide more scoring, physicality and toughness in the paint.

“Hopefully having another year again will help guys know one another and play off each other’s strengths and weaknesses,” Brewer said. “It’s a plus for us being able to have all that length and we want to make sure we rebound the ball, and have good fundamentals to go along with that.”

The Maroon Tigers are projected to finish third in the East Division of the SIAC and open up their season Nov. 14 against Johnson C. Smith University, which defeated Morehouse last year after overcoming a 20-point deficit. The team hopes to rely on a strong defense that held opponents to 38 percent shooting and 28 percent from the 3-point line. The opener against the Golden Bulls provides the perfect opportunity to assess just how much they have grown since last season.

“This is the most important game of the season for us,” Brewer said. “We want to play together and for each other, and if we win every half we will win every game.”

Maroon Tiger Basketball Hopes for Fast Start This Season

Lee Williams Jr.

lee.williams@morehouse.edu

(313) 575-9399

According to ESPN, the odds were 300-1 in favor of top-ranked Serena Williams against unseeded Italian tennis player Roberta Vinci in last week’s 2015 U.S. Open semifinals.

Statistics clearly favored Williams over Vinci: 69 singles titles compared to nine, a 732-122 record to 508-353. Additionally, Williams had won the last four Grand Slams over two seasons whereas Vinci did not make it past the second round in any of those tournaments. To make matters worse, in four previous meetings between them, Williams won every match without giving up a set in any of them.

Reasonably few believed Vinci had a chance of defeating the unquestioned best female tennis player in the world who was aiming to achieve the first calendar year Grand Slam since Steffi Graf in 1988. Vinci even doubted herself, as would anybody in that predicament. She was thought of as a mere bump in the road for Williams, however that bump in the road ended up wrecking William’s chance at history.

“When I wake up, I say, I have a semifinal today,” Vinci said to ESPN. “I did not expect that I would win.”

According to USA Today, Serena entered the semifinal on a 33-match Grand Slam winning streak whereas Vinci had 30 wins in total this season.

Vinci understood how important this match was. “It’s an incredible moment for me,” Vinci said to ESPN in a post-match interview. “It’s amazing, it’s like a dream, I’m in the final, and I beat Serena.

“I think this is the best moment of my life.”

Vinci was even seen apologizing at one point in the match. “For the American people, for Serena, for the Grand Slam, and everything, but today is my day. Sorry guys.” Vinci said.

Vinci’s game plan for beating the No. 1-ranked women’s tennis player seemed pretty simple.

“Try to put the ball on the court,” Vinci said. “Don’t think about Serena on the other court, and run, don’t think, run, and then I won.”

Williams also acknowledged Vinci’s incredible performance against her.

“I thought she played the best tennis in her career,” Williams said during a post-match interview. “You know, she’s 33, and you know, she’s going for it at a late age. So that’s good for her to keep going for it and playing so well.”

When Vinci played 26^th-ranked Flavia Pennetta on Saturday, it was the first major finals appearance for both of the Italian women. Without Williams there was an apparent drop in popularity; tickets for Saturday’s final hit $1,500 on Stub-hub recently. Before the Vinci-Pennetta match, they could be bought for as little as $62. It was a very small price to pay to see Pennetta win her first Grand Slam title at 33, and then shock the tennis world by announcing that she will retire after this season.

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Renny Robinson

Contributing Writer – Sports

Renardo.robinson@morehouse.edu

For all of the greatness of Morehouse academics, the same cannot be said about the often overlooked sports teams on campus. With the National Collegiate Athletic Association cracking down on Morehouse with a 3-year probation that began on July 15, the odds seem to still be turned against the College’s athletics.

According to a report issued by the NCAA Division II Committee on Infractions on July 15, Morehouse College was punished for actions during the 2010-2014 academic years that allowed 29 student athletes to compete even though the individuals did not meet the NCAA progress-toward-degree requirements or simply weren’t in good academic standing.

The report stated that these situations occurred because Morehouse “improperly allowed three remedial courses to be used in the calculation of student-athletes’ fulfillment of credit hours …” The report stated that football, basketball, cross country, golf and baseball players were involved, with 21 of the 29 being football players. The student athletes involved were not named.

Once the issue was brought to Morehouse’s attention in 2013, the College conducted its own investigation and took actions to report the issue directly to the NCAA enforcement staff. The NCAA described the penalties for the infractions as “three years of probation, a $5,000 fine and a vacation of wins in which ineligible student-athletes competed.”

Vacating wins means that the wins will be deleted from the team’s records but not added to opponents’ records.

With the punishment in place, Morehouse College is ready to continue moving past the issue and into the right direction.

Following the College and NCAA investigations, a July 15 Morehouse press release said that the following actions throughout campus have taken place. A new compliance officer, academic advisor Ravenell DuPree, has been hired. A compliance task force has been created, which is made up of both faculty and staff, and finally, there will be mandatory technology and training for all athletics staff, faculty and student athletes.

The NCAA also required other measures that Morehouse agreed to. Morehouse teams still will be eligible to qualify for the Division II playoffs.

In the press release, the 11th president of Morehouse College, John Silvanus Wilson, spoke briefly about the probation and process.

“Morehouse College’s requirements for good academic standing are higher than the minimum requirements for the NCAA,” he stated. “It is those higher standards to which we hold our student athletes.”

The majority of the students involved in the violations during the four-year period have gone on to graduate from Morehouse or study at other colleges. There also are students that were involved with the violations who still attend Morehouse. Morehouse’s press release said that those students who have athletic eligibility left have been reinstated and now can participate on teams.

Dr. Timothy Sams, the vice president of Student Development at Morehouse, gave his thoughts on the issue.

“We take seriously the grooming of our student athletes,” Sams said in the press release. “Athletic competition and scholarship are key components of character development and that of the student in full. To that end, we are committed to ensuring that our student athletes have accurate data upon which they can rely in assessing their progress toward pursuing a degree at Morehouse, as well as their eligibility to participate in collegiate athletics.”

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Malcolm Banks

Sports Writer, The Maroon Tiger

Malik Turner

Sports Writer, The Maroon Tiger

That fan was later identified as Gregory Murrey, an Alpharetta, Ga., native who was hospitalized and pronounced dead later that night, according to a statement by the Atlanta Braves.

“Gregory ‘Ace’ Murrey was a husband, father, grandfather, son, brother, and friend to many,” his family said in a statement to CNN. “He dearly loved his family, Atlanta, and the Atlanta Braves. Greg was a season ticket holder with the same seats for 23 years. The night Greg passed away, he was doing one of his favorite things – watching the Braves.”

The Atlanta Braves organization addressed the stunning and unfortunate events involving Murrey shortly after the game was completed.

“The Atlanta Braves are deeply saddened by the loss of Greg Murrey at last night’s game,” the team said in a statement. “Greg was a valued and longtime season ticket holder and an incredibly passionate Braves fan. This tragic loss is felt throughout Braves Country, and the thoughts and prayers of the entire Braves organization continue to go out to his family and friends.”

This type of accident, which Atlanta police did not believe was caused by foul play, isn’t the first time Turner Field has dealt with fatal events.

In what was ruled a suicide during the 2013 season, a man jumped from 85 feet in the upper levels of the field all the way to his death. In a 2011 game between the Braves and Rangers, a fan fell to his death as he reached out with his glove trying to catch a baseball that was fouled into the stands. The fan lost his balance, flipped over the railing and crashed head first into an outfield scoreboard.

In the same 2011 season, a man who was under the influence died while attempting to slide down a railing at Coors Field during a Colorado Rockies home game.

A fatal event is the last thing anyone is expecting to occur while at a Major League Baseball game. The league has yet to make any changes to safety specifically in the upper balconies. However, if this becomes a more frequent trend, look for changes to be made.

—

Malcolm Banks

Sports Editor

Banks812@gmail.com

Young, who is 26 and 10 years into his professional career, has only made it to the fourth round in a Grand Slam tournament twice, his first appearance coming in 2011. Earlier this year, in the other three major tournaments, he did not make it past the second round.

This comes as a surprise to some considering his success in the Junior Championships. Young won his first singles tournament at 14 in the Chanda Rubin American ITF Junior Classic held in Texas.

“Usually it’s somebody older winning those tournaments, like a 16, 17, or 18-year-old,” Atlanta sportscaster Sam Crenshaw said. “He’s 14, He’s not big enough to do that.”

Young’s success in Juniors Tennis did not end there. He went on to win enough tournaments that eventually skyrocketed him to being ranked the No. 1 junior tennis player in the world, according to Crenshaw.

With Young’s success in junior tennis, people have wondered why he has not been as successful in professional tennis. Crenshaw, who is a friend of the Young family, believes he knows why he is not.

“His parents signed for him to go pro and threw him out there,” Crenshaw said. “They keep putting him in big tournaments and he’s blown off the court. He’s being entered into pro tournaments he’s not physically prepared for.”

Young has shown some upside lately, making it to the fourth round of the U.S. Open before ultimately losing to No. 5-ranked Stan Wawrinka, someone he beat once before.

“He’s definitely a different player than I played in 2011,” Young said to U.S. Open.

Young still feels like he has room for improvement.

“If I can keep doing this and build upon it, I don’t know what can happen,” Young said in a U.S. Open press conference. “Hopefully it will be at least winning, and that’s what I want to do.”

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Renny Robinson

Contributing Writer – Sports

Renardo.Robinson@morehouse.edu

Coming into the series, there wasn’t a clear-cut favorite to hoist The Commissioner’s Trophy. The Mets, led by a young nucleus of star pitchers that included Matt Harvey and Jacob deGrom, had just impres- sively defeated the L.A. Dodgers and Chicago Cubs.

The Royals, representing the American League, battled through the Houston Astros and the talented, offensive-minded Toronto Blue

Kansas City, a team constructed on a good balance of youth and veterans, was able to overcome the Mets’ starting pitchers by being dis- ciplined and aggressive at the plate. The series had the potential to go the distance, but turned on a number of crucial mistakes by the Mets.

Mets closer Jeurys Familia was a dominant force all season for the club, boasting 43 saves and a 1.83 era. However, his dominance during the season didn’t show, where he set a record by blowing three saves in a single World Series.

Daniel Murphy had proven to be the hottest hitter in the postsea- son before falling into a slump, batting only .150 in the Series. He alsocommitted a season-altering error in the eighth inning of Game 4, where he allowed the tying run to score on what should have been a routine out.

Kansas City star Salvador Perez earned the Most Valuable Player honor in the series, becoming the rst catcher to do so since Pat Borders in 1992.

“You guys know what we do all season,” Perez told Fox News reporters. “We never quit. We never put our heads down. We never think about, OK, the game is over. No, always compete to the last out. And that’s what we did tonight.”
Perez did give credit to Mets pitcher Matt Harvey for throwing “a tre- mendous Game.”

However, that could not last through the ninth inning when Har- vey walked Lorenzo Cain and gave up a double to Eric Hosmer. This led to the Royals tying the
game 2-2 in the ninth and eventually pulling away in the 12th inning.

Much credit is deserving of the Royals as they rallied in two games in which they trailed in the ninth inning, and one where they trailed in the eighth, capitalizing on every mistake the Mets committed. Kansas City, which stood a victory away of winning the World series last year against the San Francisco Giants, has now completed the ultimate mission, bringing the city its rst championship in 30 years.

Malcolm Banks

Sports Section Editor

Banks812@gmail.com

The club started out with only its two founding members, former students Jalani Traxler and Stephen O’Reilly-Pol. Today, the team competes through the Georgia Rugby Union and maintains a core group of 30 players who participate in matches and tournaments all over the state of Georgia, boasting wins against Division 1 level competition such as Georgia Tech and Georgia State.

Although the Sabers have managed to find success in a short amount of time, the road to reach this level was not easy.

“We had problems that would challenge any new organization,” junior Anthony Stewart said. “Getting people from an HBCU where you don’t see rugby played to come out and experience something new and see the validity in it was definitely a challenge.”

Merging the culture of Morehouse College and the game of rugby itself was a crucial element when it came down to recruiting new members to join the team.

“I just wanted people to understand that rugby is not a sport where we go out there and kill each other like savages with no pads,” junior Elijah Brewer said. “It’s such a rich culture and brotherhood within the rugby community. It is a lot like Morehouse.”

The team manages to raise the bar for their success every year by defeating programs that have been around for decades. This year, the Sabers face a step up in competition with scheduled matches against the University of Alabama, Georgia State and Texas Christian University. Despite these new challenges, the team has the goal of a state championship in its sights as they gear up for the upcoming season.

“We want a state championship,” Brewer said. “We have so many new people this year who are embracing the culture of rugby, along with the returning members of the team, I feel like this is our year.”

With much of the Saber core consisting of upperclassmen, players hope that younger team members will be able to carry the rugby movement and continue to break down the social and culture barriers.

“I want to see the rugby team become a point of pride for Morehouse,” Rowe said. “I want people to know that this is what Morehouse is all about, taking a group of African American kids into a new field and dominating at it the way that we’re taught to do here.”

Lee Williams Jr.

Contributing Writer

Lee.Williams@morehouse.edu