Diamond Jenkins
Staff Writer
The year 2011 has been a good one for Jackson State University football, and marks the 100th year of a great tradition of football at the university.
Fans and players hope this will continue on Saturday, Nov. 19, at the 19th Annual Capital City Classic, which will be held at 1 p.m. at the JSU Veterans Memorial Stadium.
The JSU Tigers and Alcorn State University Braves will compete for the yearly bragging rights in this football game.
Last year, neither Jackson State nor Alcorn State had the best football records due to questionable seasons. But, this year the football teams hope to redeem themselves in all aspects of the game.
Even without division titles on the line both teams hate to lose to the other. Jackson State is especially hoping to win this battle and has something to prove since the Tigers have lost fice of the last seven games to the Braves.
JSU Head Football Coach Rick Comegy is expecting game day excitement and plans to have his Tigers ready to play.
“(Alcorn) is coming ready to play and we got to get ready to play. We can not take this team lightly,we can not think of a 9-2 season without beating them,” said Comegy. “It’s going to be one of those type of games, and I’m going to make sure that we are serious about our plans and what we plan on doing. If we do that, it’ll be a successful season and if we don’t do that then we’ll just have to settle for the same type of season we had last year and this team doesn’t want to do that.”
JSU Quarterback Casey Therriault from Wyoming Park, Mich. who will be playing his last game as a JSU Tiger against Alcorn, promises to do his part to play sharp and leave the stadium a winner.
“We actually believe that a lot of times we beat ourselves and we’ll do things to kind of hurt ourselves so I guess we need to make sure we don’t make mistakes and play sharp. We feel confident and comfortable knowing if we do that we will win the game,” said Therriault.
The Captial City Classic is undoubtedly an exciting game for Tiger fans, and an extended celebration of the college experience.
Several pre-game events are held as part of the Classic, beginning with a Coaches Luncehon were members of both university teams brag about who will win. The Miss Capital City Classic Pageant showcases talent from both ASU and JSU resulting in an ambassador to promote the Classic. Also included is a big Tiger pep rally, kickoff reception, and tailgating, ‘Drive To Stay Alive’, and two concerts.
Mallory Brewer, a freshman mathematics major from Canton, Miss. said, “I always try to attend the classic. It’s always fun and I get to watch Alcorn get beat by us.”
Katilya Hamilton, a senior computer engineering major from Jackson, Miss., said: “Even though this is my last year at Jackson State, this will not be my last year going to the game. It is a fun filled and most dynamic event in Jackson and it shows when all the fans come out to support.”
A concert including headlining performances by award winning rapper Plies and Grammy nominated singer, Miguel, will culminate the CCC festivities. The concert will take place in the Lee E. Williams Athletics and Assembly Center. Tickets are $10. The concert begins at 8 p.m.
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