The University of Tennessee has had a lot of success when it comes to their athletic programs.

However, John Currie, the Volunteers Executive Associate Athletic Director, didn’t stop by the Orangeburg Touchdown Club to talk about that primarily.

Instead, his message reached out to younger athletes reminding them that what they do in school as well as what they learn on the field could take them a long way.

“The opportunity to play football,” he said, “to play high school football and maybe the opportunity to play college football ... those are all special opportunities. If you look at where this game leads to, this game can lead you a lot of places. There are a lot of great places and there are some not-so-great places depending on how you handle the success that you have. If you really maximize that opportunity to transition where you are now to the next level academically and/or athletically, you’ll get to better places.”

Currie stressed the importance of doing well academically for athletes by reminding the audience that only a small number of athletes are drafted in professional sports. Currie also touched on football at Tennessee including the progress of local athletes DeAngelo Willingham and William Brimfield.

He even shared a story about how a 40-year tradition turned to into a leadership opportunity for defensive back Eric Berry. The sophomore noticed that the managers were washing the helmets a few days before the Volunteers were scheduled to play UCLA. Berry left the managers only to return ten minutes later with junior defensive back Demetrice Morley. Together, they washed the helmets for 90 minutes.

“The greatest thing about this story to me,” Currie said, “is that those two teammates are from two completely different backgrounds. One guy, Eric Berry, showed his other teammate an example of how to treat other people.”

Prior to Currie approaching the podium, SCSU head coach Oliver “Buddy” Pough gave the weekly Bulldogs report at the Cinema. The Bulldogs, thanks to a four-touchdown effort by Travil Jamison, handed Hampton their first conference defeat to the tune of 35-13.

“It was a great win for us,” Pough said. “It does make us the first team in our league. The only thing about that is it only makes us that as long as we can continue to win.”

They did hand the Pirates their first conference loss of the season, but the Bulldogs encountered a few key injuries in that win. To thicken the plot even more, SCSU faces Delaware State, a team that has been a problem for them in recent years.

“It’s kind of hard to even talk about,” Pough said in reference to their recent losses to the Hornets. “They’ve hurt us so bad. One of the TV guys for the game on Saturday said ‘This is kind of a trap game for you, Coach. You’ve had a big game at Hampton and Delaware’s not playing to good.’ I said I don’t think that we could ever look over Delaware.”

Edisto’s Kamrie Connell returned to the Cinema as this week’s Offensive Player of the Week. With 330 yards of total offense and four touchdowns, he lifted the Cougars to a 34-13 win against Wade Hampton. Orangeburg Prep’s Thacker Staley earned the Defensive Player of the Week honors. The Indians’ linebacker recorded 14 tackles in OP’s 12-0 shutout over Porter-Gaud.

n T&D Sports Writer Emery Glover can be reached by e-mail at eglover@timesanddemocrat.com or by phone at 803-533-5532. Check out his blog, Cover 2, at www.TheTandD.com.

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