Coach LeDawn Gibson has FAMU women off to 2-1 start so far this season

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (Nov. 24) - The Florida A&M Women's Basketball team will head
to South Florida for a Monday night court clash with the University of Miami
basketball team. Tipoff will be 7:00 p.m. on the Coral Gables campus.

Florida A&M is off to a 2-1 start so far, with one more game against Alabama
State (Saturday, Nov. 29 at 7 p.m.) in Tallahassee on tap before their trek to
the Magic City.

New coach LeDawn Gibson has led the Lady Rattlers to wins over Albany (Ga.)
State, 64-46 and Savannah (Ga.) State, 48-34, with a heartbreaking 71-69 road
loss at Central Florida this past Friday the only blemish on the record.

FAMU led UCF virtually the entire game, holding a 10-point lead with eight
minutes to go, before the Knights rallied to overtake the Lady Rattlers in the
final minute.

The FAMU women feature an interesting mix of veterans, led by Gibson, who
fashioned a sizzling 300-plus win resume at Winter Haven High School, leading
them to three state titles, eight regional crowns and six Final Four berths.

Gibson's crew is leaning heavily on the senior trio of guard Deidra Jones, and
forwards Stephanie Foster and Denise Tate for leadership in the early going.

Jones, a 5-10 native of Powder Springs, Georgia, who averages 11.5 points an 8.0
rebounds per game. is a slashing, guard who will drive the lane in traffic, or
shoot from outside.

Foster, a 6-0 wing player, who is an honor student from Columbus, Ohio, can play
a big guard, or take small forwards off the dribble to the glass, is scoring at
a 7.0 per game clip while pulling down 5.0 rebounds per game.

Tate, a 6-1 native of Cleveland, Ohio, was the second-leading rebounder in the
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference a year ago, and has become the consummate
rebounding artist for FAMU, averaging 12.5 rebounds per game so far, while
scoring a modest 4.5 points per game.

Other FAMU players of note include Jacksonville freshman Qiana Donald, a 6-0
guard/forward who is averaging 12.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game; diminutive
sophomore guard Jarquella Woods, a 5-1 sparkplug from Columbus, Georgia, is a
three-point threat, averaging 8.0 points per game; 6-1 freshman guard/forward
Antonia Bennett, a product of Lakeland, is averaging 6.5 points and 6.0 rebounds
per game, plus senior Melissa Daniels, a 6-4 post player from Jasper, Florida,
who is averaging 5.4 rebounds per game.

Here's a link to video coverage of a woman and her family living in a foreclosed, vacant home in Miami. http://www.local10.com/video/18149053/index.html

It's radical. Check it out. In this economy, how many more times might we see this happen?

It's great to read something positive about kids in our community, especially when that kid is an athlete and a scholar. Miami Herald reporter Andre' C. Fernandez featured Central running back Brandon Gainer in an article that ran on Thanksgiving Day. Young Gainer has overcome odds and has become a catalyst the school's football team. In addition to his coaches, he has a supportive family and is already being scouted by major college teams.

As a junior with a 4.0 GPA, the sky is the limit for Gainer. He can continue his studies after high school on either an academic or athletic scholarship.

Let's spread this good news about this young man and congratulate him if you see him in person.

© 2008, Blogging Black Miami, www.bloggingblackmiami.com

Vote for this blog for Best Pop Culture Blog and Best Blog About Stuff in the 2009 Bloggers Choice Awards.

Well, it seems the revenge match of the year will be settled on Saturday night, 7:30 pm, at FIU stadium. Miami Central will meet Miami Nortwestern in the Region 4-6A semi-finals and Blogging Black Miami will be there.

The Bulls suffred their only loss in what seems like forever at the hands of the Rockets during their last meeting. This game will be tense from the pre-game warm-up until the final whistle blows. The winner of this match-up will likely claim to be the next winner of the state 6A crown.

We'll see what's up on Saturday night; until then, GO ROCKETS! Nothing's changed as far as our support on this blog. We don't have to be objective. Don't hate. LOL

Oh, yeah, the Miami Central Alumni will tailgate starting at 5; look for the green Central tent. Bulls fans can holler back and let us know of their planned celebrations; we'll post them. It's all love no matter how the game goes down.

© 2008, Blogging Black Miami, www.bloggingblackmiami.com

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Congratulations to Miami-Dade County Commissioner Dennis Moss who was elected chair of the commission by fellow members. He won by 8-5 over Commissioner Jose “Pepe” Diaz who was elected vice chair.

Moss represents the southernmost portion of Miami-Dade County and has served on the board since 1993. He has been very supportive of many community initiatives and has made sure several businesses and services were provided for the people in his District.

Dr. Solomon C. Stinson returns to head the Miami-Dade county School Board with his election as Chair, a position he has held several times. He reassumes this leadership during more of the most critical times in the history of the public school system. Congratulations, Dr. Stinson. Congratulations are also in order for Dr. Marta Perez who was elected vice chair.

© 2008, Blogging Black Miami, www.bloggingblackmiami.com

Vote for this blog for Best Pop Culture Blog and Best Blog About Stuff in the 2009 Bloggers Choice Awards.

November 4, 2008

ORANGE BOWL and its YOUTH FOOTBALL ALLIANCE PARTNERS WITH

FOOD FOR THE POOR TO PROVIDE HURRICANE RELIEF IN HAITI

MIAMI LAKES, Fla. (www.orangebowl.org) – Three hurricanes and a tropical storm rolled through the Caribbean during hurricane season and wreaked havoc on Haiti, bringing floods and more than 300 deaths. Enter the Orange Bowl Committee and its Orange Bowl Youth Football Alliance (OBYFA) presented by Burger King.

To help the recovery effort, the OBYFA is teaming up with Food for the Poor, Inc., Miami-Dade County, and 1800-Pack-Rat. The nonprofit agency needs canned meat, canned fish, dry beans, bottled water, first-aid items, personal hygiene items and blankets for storm victims.

Food for the Poor’s mission is to provide food, housing, health care, education, water projects, micro-enterprise development assistance and emergency relief to the poorest of the poor.

“Not only are we helping those in serious need of assistance, but the children participating in OBYFA will learn a wonderful life lesson in the importance of giving back and helping others,” Orange Bowl Committee Youth Sports Manager Jose Regalado said. “Through this program we hope that it will also help the kids realize that there’s more to life than just football and cheerleading.”

The OBYFA’s Giveback endeavor begins on Nov. 8 at 1:30 p.m. with a kickoff at Golden Glades’ Carol City Complex for awareness of the program, which is then followed by three collection periods during its league members’ Super Bowls. On Sunday, the OBYFA, in conjunction with Miami-Dade County and the County’s Fire and Police departments, will set up at the park to explain the significance of the program, while allowing the kids to see firefighting and police equipment up close.

“Miami-Dade County is honored to partner with the Orange Bowl Committee to support our neighbors in the Caribbean,” Barbara J. Jordan, Vice-Chairwoman of the Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioners said.

OBYFA parks will be in competition to see which park can provide the most donated items. The winning park receives a pizza party, courtesy of the OBC. The collection culminates at the OBYFA Championships, played for the first time this year at Florida International University’s brand new stadium on Dec. 13 and 14.

Miami-Dade County is collaborating with the OBYFA in collecting the items with its own representatives assisting in the efforts. The relief supplies will be stored in bins donated to each park hosting the leagues’ Super Bowls by 1-800-Pack-Rat from the hours of Noon-4 p.m.

The OBYFA Giveback times and dates are as follows:

• Miami Xtreme Youth Football Super Bowl
  • Curtis Park, Nov. 22-23

• National Youth Football League of America Super Bowl
  • Traz Powell Stadium, Nov. 29-30

• Dick Conley Memorial Youth Football League Super Bowl
  • Harris Field, Nov. 22

• OBYFA Championships
  • Florida International University Stadium, Dec. 13-14

In addition to this initiative, the Orange Bowl Committee and the OBYFA have a busy Festival season ahead of them. For the first time ever, the Spirit of the Orange Bowl competition will be held along with the OBYFA Junior Fan Fest, which are both on the weekend of the OBYFA Championships on Dec. 13 and 14. The Spirit of the Orange Bowl takes the All-Star teams from each winning park at the OBYFA Cheer and Dance Championships on Nov. 9 to compete against each other -- the winner getting a chance to perform at various other Orange Bowl Festival events, such as the MetroPCS Orange Bowl Basketball Classic on Dec. 28. 

The Orange Bowl Committee, which this year hosts both the 75^th annual FedEx Orange Bowl on Jan. 1, 2009 and the FedEx BCS National Championship game on Jan. 8, 2009, has long generated diverse youth sports competition and strong community outreach each year by funding an array of grants, community programs and scholarships that benefit thousands of South Florida youth.. To commemorate its 75^th anniversary, and as a “thank you” for the support given to the Orange Bowl Festival and game from its inception, the OBC is leaving a Legacy Gift of $2.5 million to the South Florida community. The gift has been matched by the City of Miami, which is partnering with the Committee to construct a youth sports/high school football stadium, track and other improvements at Moore Park, located at 765 NW 36^th Street in Miami, site of the first Palm Festival, predecessor of the FedEx Orange Bowl.

Homeless folks in Miami are resorting to old-fashioned ingenuity and using new-fangled laws. Squatters legally inhabit abandoned foreclosed properties in the Liberty City and Buena Vista areas of Miami. For those a part of a new housing initiative by Max "Take Back the Land" Rameau, utilities have been turned on --- again, legally. Read The Miami New Times story on Squatters. With the economy still on a downward spiral, there are likely to be more of such housing takeovers. 

© 2008, Blogging Black Miami, www.bloggingblackmiami.com

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Our friends at The Westside Gazette have informed us of an impending story on the removal of female football official, Annice Canady. from the team officiating this weekend's Florida Classic in Orlando. Canady is a Fort Lauderdale resident and would have made history as the first female judge at that game. Remember that the Florida Classic draws the largest crowd in black college football and is broadcast live on television. The Classic is actually one of the largest draws in college football, period.

On Wednesday, November 19, Canady was notified that she would not be needed to officiate the game. Canady's family and friends from around the nation were already on their way to Orlando for the momentous occasion. To add insult to injury, it is alleged that one of the coaches asked that she be removed. No, we don't know which coach or he would have been put on blast on this blog.

Stay tuned for coverage by The Westside Gazette if the allegations prove factual. We will reserve our opinion until that time; just be on the lookout.

© 2008, Blogging Black Miami, www.bloggingblackmiami.com

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The local high school football rivalry is heating up again.  Miami Northwestern defeated Columbus 21-6  last night at FIU Stadium. Congrats to the Bulls, thus the setup for a match against Central next Friday, 7:30 pm at either Dolphin Stadium or Traz Powell Stadium.

The Bulls are still smarting from the last meet-up with Central that spoiled their perfect record. When all is said and done, the student-athletes are to be commended for their performance.

Northwestern's coach Rolle is my "li'l brother" but I must root for my Rockets.

© 2008, Blogging Black Miami, www.bloggingblackmiami.com

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It's shocking but not unique as one would think. Pembroke Pines teen, Abraham Biggs, Jr. died by an overdose of a combination of drugs. Biggs was despondent as he was watched and egged on by many on the bodybulding.com site on Justin.tv.

It is reported that some viewers on the site did not take Biggs seriously because he'd threatened suicide before. Others encouraged him not to. Hours passed before the site owner was contacted. He traced Biggs' location and notified police. When police arrived, Abraham Biggs, Jr. was dead.

Allegedly, Biggs had relationship issues. He was known to spend countless hours on the internet. This so sad.

Biggs, 19, was a student at Broward College where his father is a professor. His suicide note included an apology to his parents and acknowledgement of how they were good to him.

This situation generates so many questions. What could have been so serious in this young man's life to cause him to do that? How could people watch and participate in this tragedy for hours? Can criminal charges be files against the folks who egged him on?

Please pray for strength and Peace for the Biggs family and for the uplift of Abraham's soul. Ashe'.

From Click10.com:

SUICIDAL TEENS: KNOW THE SIGNS

 Teen Suicide

 Information From SAVE.org

FIND HELP

 Broward 211

 Switchboard Miami

 Suicide Prevention Lifeline