Manager: Ticket sales strong
T. Scott Boatright, Reporter
12-12-2008
Last year, a solid crowd of 43,236 packed into Legion Field to watch Grambling State and Jackson State battle it out for the Southwestern Athletic Conference football championship.Don’t be surprised to see those numbers increase Saturday as the G-Men get a shot at a championship rematch against JSU.
Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. in Birmingham, Ala., and the game will be televised on ESPN Classic.
Grambling enters the contest riding a red-hot nine-game win streak, but best of all, the G-Men won Bayou Classic XXXV with a 29-14 win over Southern.
That puts the G-Men, and their fans, in a much better position than last year when Southern won the Bayou Classic 22-13 before Jackson State took the SWAC title with a 42-31 win over the Black and Gold Tigers.
“It’s funny, because even though that wasn’t a bad crowd last year, Grambling probably didn’t travel as many as usually because we lost the (Bayou) Classic,” said former GSU interim athletics director and baseball coach Wilbert Ellis as he prepared to leave with the football team Thursday morning. “That’s the way it works — if Grambling doesn’t win the Classic, the disappointment carries over to the SWAC championship.
“But we won the Bayou Classic this year, so everyone is excited. Jackson always brings a good crowd, and this year we will too, so this is going to be a big one. The fact that it’s a rematch from last year’s championship makes it even bigger.”
GSU ticket officer manager Ada Joseph said Ellis’ beliefs are bearing out.
“Sales are going pretty good — we’re busier than we were at this time last year,” Joseph said. “We won the (Bayou) Classic — that’s the thing. If we do that, then our fans will make that trip for the championship game.”
GSU Bookstore manager Rosalyn Lewis said Grambling gear has been flying off the shelves this week.
“A lot of people are buying stuff they can wear to the championship game,” Lewis said. “I know we’ve got at least two bus loads of students headed to the game. It’s created a lot of excitement after winning the Bayou Classic.”
But not all of the Black and Gold nation will be making the more than six-hour drive east down I-20 for this year’s championship. Longtime GSU supporter Louis Wright is one of those faithful followers who’ll be keeping up with the game from his living room.
“If it was closer I’m sure I’d go, but Birmingham is so far off, it’s almost out of SWAC territory,” Wright said. “I know a lot of fans wish it was more centrally located inside the conference, like Jackson (Miss.). Shreveport would be good, too. It’d be a neutral site and fairly close for the Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi schools and (Arkansas) Pine Bluff.”
Lewis, Porter honored
Former GSU and NFL football star Frank Lewis and former assistant coach Doug Porter took center stage Thursday night in Birmingham, Ala., as they were inducted into the Southwestern Athletic Hall of Fame.
Porter was the position coach for Lewis, who played wingback under legendary coach Eddie Robinson.
Porter also served as head coach at Mississippi Valley State, along with non-SWAC schools Howard and Fort Valley State.
Lewis scored 42 touchdowns for GSU between 1967-70, departing with school records for career receiving yards (1,541) and touchdown catches (18). He earned All-SWAC accolades in 1968-70 and received a third-team AP All-America honors.
— T. Scott Boatright
Showdown in Birmingham
Who: Grambling State vs. Jackson State
When: Saturday, 1 p.m.
Where: Legion Field, Birmingham, Ala.
Records: GSU 10-2, 7-2 SWAC; JSU 7-4, 6-1
Want to go?
Tickets for the contest range from $25 for adults to $20 for students and can be purchased until 4 p.m. today at both schools’ ticket offices. For more information, call the GSU Ticket Office at 274-2625 or the SWAC Office at 205-251-7573.
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