Hayes ready to play, signs with Titans

Former Winston-Salem State defensive end recently signed with the NFL's Tennessee Titans.
Photo courtesy of Winston-Salem State Athletics.

As reported in today's Winston-Salem Journal by John Dell, former Winston-Salem State defensive end William Hayes has signed with the Tennessee Titans and will be in camp on time. The four-year deal looks to be worth about $3 million, including a $500,000 signing bonus.

Hayes looks to be the backup at DE behind former All-Pro Javon Kearse based on his performance in the Titan's mini-camps. Given Kearse's history of injuries, don't be surprised if Hayes sees the field alot this year. If he can soak up some knowledge from the vets on the team, he could be a steal as a fourth-round pick. He's got 4.6 speed, which you can't teach at that position. He also lived up to the nickname, "Big Plays" in his senior season at WSSU, leading the nation with seven forced fumbles, and recovering two of them for touchdowns.

Five questions facing the Rams in '08

Winston-Salem State's Michael Scarbrough breaks away from North Carolina A&T defenders in last season's game. (Photo courtesy of WSSU Athletics)

Winston-Salem State's 2008 football season is still two months away, but there are alot of questions that need to be answered by then.

1. Where will the offense come from? The Rams lost their two biggest playmakers last year in Jed Bines and Monte Purvis. Purvis led the team in all passing categories and was second in rushing to Bines, who finished with 925 yards.

2. Who will start at QB? Jarrett Dunston and Justin Sherrod are the only two candidates with experience behind the center at the college level, but the Ram's could also go with true freshman Branden Williams. Redshirt Freshman Tienne Jefferson is also thought to be in the mix.

3. Will the defense hold up? The defense took heavy hits, most notably DE William Hayes, LB Thad Griffin and DB Nate Biggs.

4. Can Brandon McRae come back at full-strength? McRae led the Rams in rushing as a redshirt freshman in '06, but injured his knee last season. If he's 100 percent, the Rams rushing game is set.

5. Can the kicking game be counted on? Placekicker Matt Mitchell hit a game-winning field goal early last season as a freshman, and then went through a slump and made just one more field goal the rest of the way.

MEAC heading to W-S

For at least the next three years, Winston-Salem will host a Divsion I conference tournament. According to a report by the Winston-Salem Journal http://www2.journalnow.com/content/2008/may/25/sources-meac-chooses-winston/?news, sources say the Mid-Eastern Athletic Confernce (MEAC) will call Winston home. The MEAC is a conference made up of historically black colleges up and down the east coast. Winston-Salem State has been accepted into the college and will be eligible to compete for a title in the 2009-10 tourney.

The tournament, held in Raliegh the past three seasons, continues to grow but lacks the luster and prestige, not to mention the revenue of the Central Intercoliegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) tournament. After attending the MEAC earlier this year, this looks to be a great move for both the confernce and the city. The Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Colesium seats about 14,000, which is more ideal for a tournament its' size than the RBC Center which holds around 20,000. Although Winston isn't known (positively) for its' night life, I'm pretty sure that the tournament could bring some promoters to the area. This looks like a win-win situation.

Just when you think you've heard it all...

Photo by rivals.com

How trifling is this guy? According to Rivals.com(http://collegefootball.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=806250)Florida defensive back Jamar Hornsby is being accused of credit card theft and fraudulent use of a credit card. The worst part of it all is the card is the card belonged to a young woman who died in an accident that also claimed the live of his teammates, redshirt freshman Michael Gibson, last October.

I know times are hard, but using a dead person's credit card from an accident that also took the life of one of your teammates? That's low. Florida coach Urban Meyer has said that they guy is no longer a part of the program. I hope these allegations aren't true, but if they are he gets no sympathy here.

LB comes back to NC

Courtesy of Remembertheaba.com -Larry Brown in his first pro coaching gig in Charlotte with the ABA's Carolina Cougars.

So by now most of you've heard that the Charlotte Bobcats (What do you mean? Yes we do have an NBA Franchise) hired Larry Brown as new head coach. Have to confess, I've kinda got mixed feelings about this one. I think LB's resume will command respect from the Bobkitties, but will his personality negate that? Remember how he and Iverson went back and forth in front of the media in Philly?

Hopefully after winning an NBA 'chip with the Pistons and after that disasterous year with the Knicks, LB will take a little more subdued approach in the Queen City. I know one thing, LB's hire can't do anything but help the Bobcats' image in Charlotte. Reading the boards online after every Bobcat article since the team's inception, I can't recall a time when race did not come up in the conversation. Not to call LB an affirmative action hire, but alot of people feel like Bob Johnson is a racist and only hires black people. (Funny thing, I've never heard anybody critique how many African-Americans are in Jerry Richardson's office, but that's another story.)

I just hope Larry stays around long enough to get the Bobcats headed in the right direction. Something tells me that Brown is biting at his chomp to apply for that Dallas job.

Michael Jordan Shatters Backboard

This is incredible. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes. MJ never ceases to amaze me. The most amazing thing is that I've never heard of this. First God gives us light, now Youtube. Thanks God:)

http://youtube.com/watch?v=te-8MJ84834

Prediction: WSSU's Hayes will be drafted this weekend

Photo by Garrett Garms- Winston-Salem State defensive end William Hayes has a great shot at being drafted this weekend.

Good story about Winston-Salem State's DE William Hayes on the sports page of today's Winston-Salem Journal.http://www2.journalnow.com/content/2008/apr/22/a-waiting-game/?sports

Hayes has an excellent shot at getting drafted. A couple of times this past season I heard scouts raving about Hayes' speed and ability to get to the ball. A scout from the Giants was impressed with him during halftime of the game against Hampton. And this was before he got two sacks in the second half. He has the combination of size (6'3, 275 lbs) and speed (6.2 seconds in the 40) that scouts covet for a DE-LB hybrid player . If he lands in the right system, (New England, Pittsburg maybe?) he could be a steal. Look for him to go anywhere from the fourth to the sixth round.