Aug. 31, 2005

Charleston, SC - The best part about a football game on SCETV? No TV timeouts.

"That's the best thing we have going for us," says Keith Galloway, producer of ETV Sports. "I'm just like everyone else: TV timeouts drive me crazy. A two-hour game all the sudden becomes 3-1/2 hours. But we don't have to worry about that."

South Carolina's public television network is televising four games this season, featuring some of the state's best small college matchups, including three involving The Citadel. The Bulldogs' opener against Charleston Southern on Saturday will be shown on SCETV's digital South Carolina channel, and replayed at midnight on regular ETV stations.

Home games with Furman and Wofford will be simulcast both on the digital channel and regular ETV stations. The SCETV games give The Citadel five TV games this season, including the Sept. 10 game at Florida State on ESPNU and the Oct. 22 game at Georgia Southern on Comcast/Charter Sports Southeast.

"I think it's great and I'm very happy about it," said Citadel athletic director Les Robinson said. "For instance, our game at Furman (Oct. 15) will be on the Armed Forces Network, so it will go all around the world. And add to that, South Carolina is open that weekend and Clemson is playing on Thursday.

"So we'll be one of the few games in the state that weekend, so that will help our viewing audience. It's a great deal for us."

It's also a good deal for SCETV, said Galloway.

"We just started getting into the sports business a couple of years ago," Galloway said. "We've been doing the state high school championships for years, and last year did a lot of high school games. This year, we decided we'd try to do small college, in-state games, rivalries like Charleston Southern and The Citadel.

"The response has been very good, very positive. A lot of people are surprised at how well we do the games. A lot of our staff, me included, work for ESPN and Fox doing games on the weekends, so we have a lot of experienced guys." The SCETV games will be simulcast on the digital South Carolina Channel and on regular ETV stations. Play-by-play man Emerson Phillips, analyst Stacy Hough and sideline reporter Rebecca Ferrara will work the games.

-- Revenge Game -- Furman opens its bid for a Division I-AA national title on Thursday at 20th-ranked Jacksonville State, a team it whipped, 49-7, in last year's playoffs.

"That doesn't sound good, does it?" Furman coach Bobby Lamb said Tuesday. "They are a good team, and they've had all year to brew over what happened last year. We'd like to play them in a different slot other than the first game, but that's what we've got."

-- SoCon Ready? -- Many observers regard Big South champ Coastal Carolina as a natural choice for the Southern Conference, which has just eight football schools and 11 for basketball after the departure of East Tennessee State. Elon coach Paul Hamilton, whose team faces Coastal on Saturday, has no doubt the Chanticleers are ready for SoCon football.

"No question at all," Hamilton said of the Chants, whose weak schedule kept them out of the I-AA playoffs despite a 10-1 record last year. "You look at the program and the level they are playing at, the quality of their athletes. Look at the commitment, the resources they've put into football. There is no doubt they can play in this league right now."

Coastal's beefed-up schedule also includes App State, defending national champ James Madison and South Carolina State.

-- Extra points -- Wofford coach Mike Ayers faces his alma mater, Division II power Georgetown (Ky.) on Saturday ... Presbyterian QB Zach Ellis (24-33, 251, 4 TDs) and S Chad Burgess (9 tackles, 2 interceptions) were named South Atlantic Conference players of the week ... Former Citadel QB Mazzie Drummond is a senior H-back for Newberry, which hosts Virginia Union on Saturday.

POWER POLL

Ranking the state's small college teams:

Team This week Comment

1. Furman (0-0) at Jacksonville State Popular pick to win I-AA title

2. Wofford (0-0) Georgetown Coach Ayers faces alma mater

3. S.C. State (0-0) at Alabama State Co-MEAC champs a year ago

4. Coastal Carolina (0-0) at Elon Are Chants ready for prime time?

5. The Citadel Charleston Southern Will this coach stick with Dogs?

6. Chas. Southern at The Citadel Winning mark next step for Bucs

7. Presbyterian (1-0) Fayetteville State Impressive in opening win

8. Newberry (0-0) Virginia Union Opener wiped out by hurricane

9. N. Greenville (0-1) at Cumberland Lost opener 27-26 to Va.-Wise

10. Benedict (0-1) at Savannah State Lost opener 20-17 to Morehouse

11. Allen (0-0) Concordia NAIA club 3-6 in debut in '04