Golden Bears ready to complete turnaround
When Miles faced Albany State on Oct. 3, the Golden Bears were a team still searching for its identity.
On that day, as the Golden Bears had done several times during the season to that point, a first-half lead turned into second-half disappointment as the Golden Rams left Albert J. Sloan-Alumni Stadium with a 29-16 win.
Now, six weeks later, the two teams will battle again - this time at Cramton Bowl in Montgomery - with a lot more at stake as they play for the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championship Saturday at 6 p.m. The Golden Bears - almost to a man - have felt that this is where the team is supposed to be, even when others doubted them.
"We've been working too hard this season. Nobody counted on us to be here, so we've had to show people that we deserve to be here," said senior linebacker
Rodrick Holloman.
Earlier this season, there was some question as to whether Holloman was right. From week-to-week, head coach
Reginald Ruffin did not know who was going to be his starting quarterback, who to lean on at tailback, and - even worse - what kind of production he was going to get from any of them.
"It all starts with the No. 1 guy, which is the quarterback. We struggled at the beginning of the year," Ruffin said. "But the guys have kept battling. They've worked hard and haven't complained. As a coach, you just have to take your hats off to them."
The starting quarterback now is junior
David Whipple. He came into the season as the leader for the starting spot but ceded it to sophomore
Vincent Davis. After those two shuffled in and out of the starting lineup to less-than-impressive results, senior
John McDowell took over and had a monster effort in a win over Central State.
But the following week in practice, McDowell injured his hand and Whipple was back in the driver's seat. The offense has gone full throttle ever since.
In the loss to Albany State, Whipple started and was 11-of-23 for 143 yards with one touchdown pass and two interceptions. He only rushed for 19 yards on eight carries.
Since he returned to the starting lineup on Oct. 17 against Kentucky State, he has completed more than 63 percent of his passes for 621 yards and four touchdowns.
"Whip has been getting comfortable in the pocket. That's been his biggest test all year is to be comfortable in the pocket and not get out there and run, " Ruffin said. "We're excited that (quarterbacks) Coach (Aaron) James and (offensive coordinator) Coach (Rodney) Bivens have done a good job keeping him in the pocket and making his reads. That's been great for us."
When Whipple does get out on the run, he has been exceptional. He's fifth in the conference in rushing yards and had gone over the century mark the last three games, the last a 174-yard effort against Tuskegee that clinched the SIAC West Division crown.
The change in Whipple's performance has mirrored the entire team and the quarterback said that there is a big coincidence in that.
"The first few games, we were second guessing ourselves," Whipple said. "As the season has come along, we know what we have. We know what type of talent we have. Now, we're just trying to bring (the championship) to the house."
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