LORMAN — Alcorn State University released the Braves’ tentative 2010 football schedule on Tuesday, and head coach Earnest Collins can breath a little easier not only when he sees the teams the Braves are playing, but who they aren’t.

Unlike last season, when Alcorn opened its season on the road against Bowl Subdivision teams Southern Miss and Central Michigan — and lost those two games by a combined 100-0 — the Braves will open up the 2010 season at Mississippi Valley State on Sept. 18.

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That could change, however, as Collins said the school is trying to find an opponent to come to Lorman and play Alcorn on Sept. 4.

Alcorn currently has four games scheduled at Jack Spinks Stadium. If the Braves are able to find an opponent to play them on Sept. 4, that would give them five home games only one year after they played just three games in Lorman.

“We’re excited we have more home games this year,” Collins said. “We’d prefer to get a team to come in here on Sept. 4 and then leave the 11th open.”

If the Braves are unable to find an opponent to play them on Sept. 4, they would play their first home game on Sept. 25 against Alabama State.

Other home games are Oct. 9 against Texas Southern, which is homecoming, Oct. 21 against Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Oct. 30 against Southern.

Alcorn is the designated home team in the Capital City Classic against Jackson State this season, but the game will be played in Jackson as usual.

The major change on the schedule is the lack of Bowl Subdivision opponents.

While last year’s team had to face two such teams, this year’s team will only have to face one, and it won’t be a long road trip.

The Braves will face off against Mississippi State in Starkville for the first time ever on Oct. 2

Collins is glad to see the 2010 edition of the Braves won’t have to open against two Bowl Subdivision teams like last year.

“Sometimes when you start out playing opponents like that, it’s not that you think you can’t win, you’re just outmanned,” Collins said. “Sometimes you take those games because you have to supplement your (athletic) budget, but it can hurt you. We lost one of our best players against Central Michigan in the last five minutes of the game. That could happen in any game, but when you take a pounding the whole game, you can lose some good people.”

Another change this year is getting Grambling State back on the schedule.

The Braves will travel Grambling, La., on Oct. 16 to take on the Tigers.

Collins is glad to play Grambling, but he wishes the game were in Lorman.

“The one thing I don’t like about it is we have to go back down there and play them and we did that in 2008,” Collins said. “I thought they should come here. But that’s the way the contract was done. We’ll go down there and play it.”

But at the end of the day, Collins said it doesn’t matter who is on the schedule. The team just has to go out and win every game in front of it.

“We’re just going to take it one game at a time,” Collins said. “We’re going to prepare and expect to win. We can complain if it’s a home or road game, but at the end of the day it’s a football game.”

Jeff Edwards
The Natchez Democrat
http://www.natchezdemocrat.com/news/2010/mar/24/alcorn-state-releases-2010-football-schedule/