2015-2016 Annual Report Clark Atlanta University Athletics
2015-2016 Annual Report Clark Atlanta University Athletics
WWW.CLARKATLANTASPORTS.COM
CLARK ATLANTA UNIVERSITY NAMES LIN DAWSON ATHLETICS DIRECTOR
ATLANTA, Ga. - Clark Atlanta University (CAU) President Ronald A. Johnson today announced the appointment of J. Lin Dawson as the institution’s new Athletics Director, effective Wednesday, Nov. 18. The former New England Patriot brings more than 20 years of administrative, academic and entrepreneurial experience to the CAU program. Dawson comes to Clark Atlanta from Elizabeth City State University in Elizabeth City, N.C., where he has served as interim director of Athletics since 2013. In this new role, he will oversee the University’s NCAA Division II athletic program compliance, budgeting, operations, advancement, student-athlete recruitment and professional staffing and development. He also will serve as a member of the President’s Executive Cabinet.
Dawson attended North Carolina State University and earned the B.S. degree in speech and communications from Northeastern University in Boston, Mass. He completed the MBA degree in human resource management/learning and knowledge management from Walden University in 1993, and is presently a Ph.D. student in Regent University’s School of Business and Leadership’s organizational leadership program. “In Lin Dawson, we have found an individual of unimpeachable character who personifies the highest ideals of sportsmanship, competitiveness, academic excellence and administrative effectiveness,” President Johnson said. “His career path and record of servant leadership enliven our aim to mobilize for the future by producing student athletes who are well rounded, successful on the field and in the classroom and fully capable of applying the values of fair play, mental and physical discipline and hard work to their pursuit of academic, personal and career goals.” Dawson, who in 1981 was drafted in the eighth round by the New England Patriots, filled the first-string tight end position and was an integral offensive presence for 10 seasons, including1986 AFC Championship and Super Bowl XX appearances. Following his NFL career, he was among the nation’s first to design and implement leadership diversity programs for collegiate athletic programs and professional sports, elevating programming in more than 40 major universities and professional sports. Dawson’s reputation as an efficient program builder is well-deserved. While director of athletics at North Carolina Central University (NCCU) (2000-2003), he initiated the Life Skills Program for student-athletes, increased athletic scholarships by 40 percent, eliminated a previous administration’s budget deficit and maintained the conference’s best corporate partnership program. As Grambling State University’s (GSU) athletics director and special assistant to the president (2008-2011), he was awarded the Commissioner’s Cup for having the best athletic program in the Southwestern Athletic Conference in 2010 and increased corporate sponsorship revenues by 400 percent. His teams won several conference championships, including National Black Champions in Football (2009). He also initiated a new fundraising program resulting in increased alumni and fan support, and he created the Port City Football Classic, which produced net revenues of $700,000 in its first year. His leadership experience also includes service as associate athletics director at VCU (2005-2006) and associate director of training and education at Northeastern University (1991-1994). As a former student-athlete for the NC State Wolfpack, Dawson was a four-year starter and member of the 1979 ACC Championship Team. His many awards include commendations from: The White House, the Anti-Defamation League, National Football League, NCAA Division IA Athletic Directors Association, The Peter F. Drucker Foundation, The Boston Herald American and the National Consortium for Academics and Sports. An ordained minister, Dawson and his wife of 30 years, Margo, have three adult children.
FOOTBALL
Fall Sports
2015 Record: 1-8 Overall | 1-3 SIAC Clark Atlanta football wrapped up the first season under the new coaching regime with a 1-8 (1-3 SIAC East) record. The season opened Sept. 5 at Tuskegee with a 26-0 loss; in the effort Joshua Tate started his senior season with three blocked kicks, one interception, and one broken up pass.
Clark Atlanta Adds 11 To Roster On National Signing Day
ATLANTA, Ga. - National Signing Day saw 11 decided to commit to Clark Atlanta University and become members of the Panther football program. The 2016 Signing Class marks the initial class signed by head coach Kevin Ramsey and his staff. The newly signed players are listed as follows:
NAME POS P/K CAU began the season with an 0-6 mark before Ty Woods Nathan Lang DE claiming the lone victory of the season on the road at Benedict; 24-3. In the highest-scoring Paul Coleman OL game of the season for the Panthers, Mathew Johnathan Sanders FS Vincent threw for 234 yards while Jaha McCortney Laye TE Cray led the team in rushing (122 yards) and JeVaro Hardy II QB receiving (88). After Vincent connected with Kamari Jackson Ath Daryl Minor for an 8-yard score right before Christopher Bouie TE halftime, McCray broke loose for 98-yards Trayvus Johnson OL early in the second half to open up a 14-point Cameron Jones OL lead. Dereck Adams SS
HT / WT Hometown 5’11 / 175 Montgomery, Ala. 6’1 / 240 Moultrie, Ga. 6’1 / 275 Montgomery, Ala. 6’1 / 180 East Point, Ga. 6’2 / 225 LaGrange, Ga. 6’2 / 205 Jacksonville, Fla. 6’1 / 175 Brundidge, Ala. 6’3 / 230 Moultrie, Ga. 6’3 / 255 Moultrie, Ga. 6’0 / 300 Milledgeville, Ga. 5’10 / 182 Atlanta, Ga.
Clark Atlanta is coming off a 1-8 season in 2015 and will be building towards late-season improvements. The 2016 schedule is in the process of being finalized and will be released in the upcoming weeks.
Two more losses, home versus Albany State and on the road at DI Samford, wrapped the 2015 season. Post season awards piled in for Tate as he was named All-SIAC First Team, Second Team NCAA Division II All-Super Region Two, and Division II Honorable Mention All-American. Tate, a senior from Memphis, Tenn., concluded his career with 123 tackles, eight interceptions, and 20 pass break-ups with his final season intercepting five passes and braking up ten more.
THOUGHTS BY HEAD COACH KEVIN RAMSEY When asked regarding the focus off the recruiting efforts: “We had to put the pieces together much like a puzzle. We needed to make sure everything fit together they way we need it to.” “One of the needs that we feel really happy about is the punter, Ty Woods, he fills a need that we had last season.” On the quality of the students that were signed: “These kids have high Grade Point Averages and will perform well in the classroom. We are looking forward to seeing how the grasp the playbook and grow within our system.” When asked about the overall recruiting effort: “The coaches put in a lot of hard work and effort on the recruiting trail. This is our first class as a staff and we have the foundation to move forward in a winning direction.”
Fall Sports
CAU Wins 2015 SIAC Women’s Cross Country Title; Men Place Fifth
ROCK HILL, S.C. - Clark Atlanta University won the 2015 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) women’s cross country championship, Sunday morning on the campus of Winthrop University. The Panthers finished the 5k race with a team score of 51 points to claim the title. Benedict, who won the title last year, was named the runner-up with 66 points and Albany State was third with 72 points. Curshonne Johnson was the top finisher for CAU, placing third with a time of 20:58.02. The men’s team placed fifth overall with Tracy Ham (28:27:81) scoring the best finish with a seventh place effort.
VOLLEYBALL
2015 Record: 14-14 Overall | 11-7 SIAC Clark Atlanta volleyball, led by former player Brittany Black, utilized a 6-2 SIAC Crossover record to post 11 wins in conference play. CAU turned in an impressive 3-0 victory versus Paine College on Senior Day. HOW IT HAPPENED: With her eighth kill of the night, Cori Smith surpassed 1,000 career kills on her Senior Night. Smith topped the match in kills, 19, and aces, five, and held the team-high with seven digs.
OTHER TIMES (Women): Tamera Julkes (21:41.44) was seventh. Cynthia Smith (22:06.55) placed 12th. Breanna Hopkins (22:25.52) finished 14th. D’Yanna McCaskill (22:31.46) was one spot behind in 15th. Khayla Williams (23:17.01) placed 23rd. Sanley Richemond (23:39.93) was 26th.
Briana Aldridge tallied five digs and one assist in her final home match. Once the season advanced to the SIAC Championship from Birmingham, Ala., Clark Atlanta picked up the opening round victory over Tuskegee; 3-2. On Day 2, CAU lost to Claflin before defeating Benedict to eliminate the Tigers. The season ended on the third and final match of Day 2 to Albany State, 3-0. OTHER TIMES (Men): Richard James (29:23.08) finished 16th. Kilan Pace (32:04.15) finished 32nd. Moses Kilpatrick (33:24.61) placed 38th. Christian Sutton (33:48.07) ended the day in 43rd. Collin Smith (33:57.43) was one spot behind in 44th.
Smith added another honor as she was named All-SIAC First Team. A native of Kansas City, Kan., led the Panthers in kills (274), kills per set (3.43), attacks (675). She also sat second in digs (120), third in aces (33), fourth in blocks (26). In her four-year career at CAU, Smith totaled 1,034 kills and 102 service aces and 129 blocks.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Winter Sports
MEN’S BASKETBALL
2015-16 Record: 6-12 Overall | 4-12 SIAC
2015-16 Record: 9-20 Overall | 7-11 SIAC
Clark Atlanta lost the final eight regular season games in women’s basketball before a first round loss in the SIAC Championship to Central State; 79-51. CAU won the opening game of the season at Saint Leo, 79-78, before picking up 35 points from Mykala Jones in a loss to Florida Southern in the SSC/SIAC Challenge. The Panthers won four straight games after the Christmas break by defeating Mobile, Lane, LeMoyne-Owen, and Central State. The final win of the season came ina home game versus Stillman, 86-66, on Jan. 21.
After opening on a seven game losing streak, CAU defeated Young Harris at Epps Gymnasium for the first victory of the season on Dec. 12. The regular season ended with Clark Atlanta winning three consecutive games versus Morehouse, Paine, and Benedict.
Jones posted the two highest scoring efforts in the SIAC with 37 points at Fort Valley on Jan. 25 to go with the 35 points versus FSC. Siera Bubb led the team with seven double-doubles, including a 21 point 20 rebound effort versus Lane at home on Jan. 02. Bubb followed up two days later with 22 rebounds against LeMoyne-Owen.
CAU had one honoree on the All-SIAC team as Jones was selected to the First Team. Jones, from Augusta, Ga., led the conference in scoring with 20.6 points per game while leading Clark Atlanta in points 22-of-26 games. She wrapped up the regular season with 964 career points in two seasons after transferring in from South Carolina State. Nationally, Jones ranked No. 6 in FT attempts made (157) ,No. 9 in both FT attempts (192) & points per game (20.6).
In the final three games of the season - at Benedict, at Claflin, and in the first round of the SIAC Championship - Damien Enoch led the Panthers in scoring and rebounds in each of the games. During the season, Enoch tallied eight double-doubles with six coming in SIAC competition.
Enoch scored a season-best 27 points for the Panthers at Paine on Feb. 1 while also tallying 14 rebounds as a single-game best versus Florida Tech on Nov. 13. Tim Sanders ended the season ranked No. 8 Nationally in Steals/Game (2.38) and No. 29 in total steals (57). After the season ended, Clark Atlanta opted to make a change in head coach by naming former NBA player and coach Darrell Walker as head coach.
DARRELL WALKER NAMED NEW COACH OF CLARK ATLANTA MEN’S BASKETBALL
ATLANTA, Ga. - Former NBA player and head coach Darrell Walker has been named as the next head coach of the Clark Atlanta University men’s basketball program.
Walker will be embarking on his first collegiate coaching opportunity with more than a decade of NBA coaching experience, including 56 victories as a head coach in the league. Walker has also headed up teams in the WNBA and CBA. Beyond his professional coaching experience, Walker was an All-American player at the University of Arkansas under legendary coach Eddie Sutton. After playing out his days with the Razorbacks, Walker was selected with the No. 12 overall pick in the 1983 NBA Draft by the New York Knicks. Over a professional playing career spanning 10 seasons, Walker was able to end his career as a member of the NBA Champion Chicago Bulls in the 1992-93 season. During a playoff series his rookie season in New York, Walker set franchise bests for steals in a playoff game (seven) and series (15). As a player with the Washington Bullets (now Wizards) from 1987-91, Walker dished out 1,707 assists to sit eighth on the franchise career assist chart. He also ranked in the top-5 for guards in rebounding for three consecutive seasons and also had a season where he was in the top-10 in the NBA in assists per game. Walker is a graduate of the University of Arkansas with a B.S. in Human Resources. His time at UA was commemorated in 2008 as he was inducted into the Hall of Honor by ranking among the all-time Razorbacks leaders in assists (10th) and steals (fourth). He has also been named to the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame (2003). Coaching Timeline: 1995-96 1996-98 1999-00 1999-00 2000 2004-08 2008-11 2011-14
Toronto Raptors Toronto Raptors Rockford Lightning Washington Wizards Washington Mystics NO / OKC Hornets Detroit Pistons New York Knicks
Assistant Coach Head Coach Head Coach Head Coach Head Coach Assistant Coach Assistant Coach Assistant Coach
BASEBALL
Spring Sports
SOFTBALL
2016 Record: 12-31 Overall | 8-12 SIAC
2016 Record: 11-29 Overall | 7-15 SIAC
Clark Atlanta baseball surpassed the previous best school mark for wins in a season of nine (done three times - 1974, 2013, and 2014 - with 12 wins that included a season ending sweep over LeMoyne-Owen. The season was the second for coach Kentaus Carter and saw the team improve from one win in 2015.
Coach Lawanda Pearson completed his 12th season leading the Clark Atlanta softball team with a second-consecutive season record of 11-29.
In 2016, the newcomer-duo of Kendall Washington (0-5; 11.67 ERA) and Ajada Cofield (6-16; 5.15 ERA) joined Shalonda Woods The roster was spotlighted with the play of sev- (2-6; 8.83) to anchor the pitching effort for the eral freshman. MIchael Haywood, Jr. finished Panther pitching staff. As a collective unit, the second on the team in batting average, .361, CAU pitchers threw 231.1 innings with a 6.84 while posting the best on base percentage, .467, ERA while striking out 84 batters with 25 comand led the team in RBI with 23. Haywood also plete games. pitched in eight games, with seven starts, posting a 1-1 record. The offense was paced by All-SIAC Second Team selection Sharnitra Woods. Woods led Jason Howell batted in the middle of the lineup CAU in most offensive categories; including all season and hit .319 - good for third on the batting average (.471), hits (49), RBI (52), and team while leading the team in slugging perhomeruns (13). Jessica Vason posted the seccentage, .457, and triples with three. ond-best batting average (.367), while leading the team by scoring 36 runs and stealing 11 Freshman made up the top three in homeruns bases to go with 10 doubles and two complete on the season with Jordan Johnson hitting five games as a pitcher (2-0; 0.58 ERA). ahead of two each for Haywood and Howell. The trio were the only players with multiple Clark Atlanta celebrated seniors Tamera Green, homeruns on the season. Johnson excelled Briana Aldridge, Asia Nelson, Ashley Neldefensively at shortstop while also pitching son, Ingrid Sims, Zhandria Usher, and Ki’esha in relief - appearing in 21 games (19 in relief) Young before a doubleheader versus Talladega and posting all four saves on the season for the College on Apr. 19. The Panthers wrapped up Panthers. the season with a pair of losses from the SIAC Championship to Tuskegee (9-3) and Albany Malcolm Seabrooks, a junior, played in 41 State (10-2). games with all starts, and led Clark Atlanta in batting average, .368, and hits, 50, while posting team a best in hitting streak, 11 in-a-row. On Apr. 17 the Panthers defeated Benedict College in the final game of the series. In the nine inning victory, Clark Atlanta picked up the victory from Jezreel Moore. Moore had gone more than two seasons without a win on the mound after posting an 0-9 mark as a sophomore in 2015 and entering the game 0-12 in 2016. Moore retired 17 batters in-a-row at one point in the game. He returned to the mound a week later and won the final game of the 2016 season versus LOC and tallied five complete games in 19 starts.
TENNIS
Spring Sports
TRACK & FIELD
2016 Record: 11-12 Overall | 10-5 SIAC
Women 4th at SIAC | Men 10th at SIAC
Clark Atlanta wrapped the season by winning the Third Place match versus Stillman, 5-4, from the SIAC Championship from Jonesboro, Ga.
ROCK HILL, S.C. - Clark Atlanta ended the 2016 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) with a fourth place effort from the women’s team taking fourth place and the men ending the meet in tenth place. Curshonne Johnson ended the meet being named Co-MVP of the Women’s Meet.
In the end of Feb. Clark Atlanta wrapped first SIAC Round Up with a 4-1 mark by defeating Albany State, LeMoyne-Owen, Lane, and Spring Hill.
HOW IT HAPPENED (WOMEN’S MEET): Curshonne Johnson claimed the lone victory for Clark Atlanta by winning the 3,000 Steeplechase (12:36.22). Johnson added runner-up finishes in the 5,000 and 10,000 Meters along with a fourth place finish in the 1,500 Meters.
The second round up held from Mobile, Ala. saw the Panthers go 4-2 with wins over the same four teams - Spring Hill, Lane, Albany State, and LeMoyne-Owen.
Jazmine Bowser placed in the top-5 in all three jumps along with a fourth place finish in the Heptathlon.
The SIAC post season awards recognized the Panthers with a few selections. Keva Godfrey was named as the SIAC Coach of the Year while Tori Pradier and DiAndrea Galloway were named to the First Team while the Second Team had doubles selections of Pradier/ Avern Gumbs and Galloway/Vonnick Boyogueno. Pradier played all but one match as the No. 1 Singles entry and tallied a 8-4 record overall. Galloway ascended from the No. 4 entry to end the year at No. 2 with a 8-4 mark from the No. 2 Singles slot. Pradier and Gumbs teamed up for 18 matches going 10-8, including winning five in-a-row during the season. Galloway and Boyogueno paired 18 times finishing the season with a mark of 11-7 and winners of their last three matches.
MEET FINALISTS (WOMEN’S MEET): 400 Meters: Cynthia Smith (6th Place), D’Yanna McCaskill (7th Place), Breanna Hopkins (8th Place) 800 Meters: Smith (8th Place) 1,500 Meters: Curshonne Johnson (4th Place), Smith (6th Place), Brandi McNeal (9th Place) 5,000 Meters: Johnson (2nd Place), Tamera Julkes (5th Place), Sanley Richemond (11th Place) 10,000 Meters: Johnson (2nd Place), Julkes (4th Place), Richemond (9th Place) 400 Hurdles: McCaskill (3rd Place) 3,000 Steeplechase: McNeal (2nd Place), Julkes (8th Place) 4x400 Relay: 4th Place - 3:55.00 High Jump: Jazmine Bowser (5th Place) Long Jump: Bowser (4th Place), Lanique Ellis (18th Place) Triple Jump: Bowser (2nd Place) Shot Put: Shahara Mitchell (2nd Place), Tori Williams (12th Place), Emani Jones (16th Place) Discus: Mitchell (9th Place), Williams (12th Place), Jones (13th Place) Hammer Throw: Krystal Bobo (3rd Place), Jones (7th Place), Mitchell (9th Place) Javelin: Mitchell (5th Place), Bobo (14th Place), Jones (17th Place) Heptathlon: Bowser (4th Place) HOW IT HAPPENED (MEN’S MEET): Kilan Pace finished in the top-5 twice with a runner-up in the 400 Hurdles and a fifth place in the Long Jump. MEET FINALISTS (MEN’S MEET): 1,500 Meters: Tracy Ham (12th Place) 110 Hurdles: De’Andre Borders (7th Place) 400 Hurdles: Kilan Pace (2nd Place) 3,000 Steeplechase: Ham (10th Place) Long Jump: Pace (5th Place) Shot Put: Edregas O’Neal (9th Place), Rudolph Durant (18th Place) Discus: O’Neal (11th Place) Hammer: Michael Pritchett (9th Place), Darius Preyer (10th Place) Javelin: Christian Vincent-Lovell (14th Place)
All-SIAC Selections FOOTBALL Joshua Tate
TENNIS First Team
WOMENS CROSS COUNTRY
All-SIAC Team Curshonne Johnson Tamera Julkes MENS CROSS COUNTRY Tracy Hamm WOMEN’S BASKETBALL Mykala Jones BASEBALL Malcolm Seabrooks Jordan Johnson SOFTBALL Sharnitra Woods
All-SIAC Team
First Team
First Team Second Team
Second Team
All-Americans FOOTBALL Joshua Tate
First Team Singles
Tori Pradier DiAndrea Galloway Second Team Doubles Tori Pradier / Avern Gumbs DiAndrea Galloway / Vonnick Boyogueno TRACK & FIELD
Men’s Second Team Kilan Pace - 400 Hurdles Women’s First Team Curshonne Johnson - 3,000 Steeple Jazmine Bowser - Long Jump Shahara Mitchell - Shot Put Women’s Second Team Tamera Julkes - 10,000 Meters VOLLEYBALL Cori Smith
First Team
NEW ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF MEMBERS (SWAC) - including three years at Grambling State University as its Director of Compliance and Operations. He also spent two years at Florida A&M as the Senior Associate Athletic Director for Operations and Compliance. Huff was instrumental in helping restructure their athletic programs. Both schools were premier universities in Historically Black College and University (HBCU) athletics.
Cliff Huff Sr. Associate AD for Compliance
As a student-athlete, Huff had a legendary career, earning numerous conference, regional, and national honors. He was a standout for the Blue Bears where he was noted as a three-time MVP. He still holds several school records, including holding the school record in the decathlon where he met the 1984 USA Olympic Trial standard.
Academic Enhancement Advisor, Game Operations Director, and Track & Field Coach. With experience at both the NCAA Division I and NCAA Division II levels, Huff ’s wealth of knowledge and experience will make him a welcome addition to Clark Atlanta University.
Huff is a 1985 graduate of Livingstone College and was inducted into the Livingstone College Athletics Hall of Fame in the fall of 2006. In the spring of 2014 he was inducted into the CIAA Conference Hall of fame and the in 2015 the E.A. Laney HS Hall of Fame..
Much of Huff ’s career was spent at his alma mater, Livingstone College, where he contributed to Blue Bears athletics in nearly every way possible. During his career, Huff has spent time as a student-athlete, a coach, sports information and administrator with Livingstone College. Huff spent 11 years as the Director of Athletics at Livingstone College. During his tenure, he earned several honors, including being named the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) Athletic Director of Year and earning the Jeannette Lee Athletic Achievement Award in 1997 and 1998. In 1998, he received the Commissioner’s Special Recognition Award. He also served as the First Vice-President of the CIAA Conference Offices from 200507 and the President of the CIAA Athletic Director’s Association from 1999-2002.And a member of the CIAA Basketball Tournament Committee from 1999-2007. As a coach that Huff made his largest impact on the Blue Bears program and career. After taking over the program in 1991, Huff guided the development of the 2004 NCAA Division II men’s 200m dash national champion and the runner up in the 400m run. The 2014and 2015 Women’s 4X100 relay runners-up and the 2002 and 2014 Women’s Indoor 60 meter NCAA runner-up. In addition, he also guided the development of 60 NCAA Division II All-Americans, 103 All-CIAA performers and 28 CIAA individual champions. He was a coach with the 2015 CIAA indoor Champion at WSSU and his teams were CIAA runners-up 19 times with five Livingstone College teams finishing among the top 25 in the NCAA Division II national rankings. As a coach, Huff was named the CIAA Coach of the Year four times. Huff was also honored as one of the CIAA 100 Greatest Athletes & Coaches. He was honored as No. 55 on the prestigious list. Prior to joining the staff at CAU, Huff has spent time at Winston-Salem State and at NCAA Division I schools in both the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) and the Southwestern Athletic Conference
James Vallone Sports Information Bachelor of Science University of West Georgia, 2012 Sport Management Master of Science Delta State University, 2015 Sport & Human Performance James Vallone joins the Panthers after a stint at SIAC-rival Stillman College, having previously served at Delta State University in Cleveland, Miss. where he spent time as the primary contact for Statesmen football, baseball, tennis, and swimming while obtaining his Master’s degree in Sport Administration. While at DSU, Vallone was a voting member for the New South Intercollegiate Swim Conference and remains a voting member for the National Collegiate Baseball Writers South Region Division-II Poll.
Rick Flateau Head Athletic Trainer Rick Flateau, MS, ATC – is in his eighteenth year of being a Certified Athletic Trainer and currently serves as the Head Athletic Trainer and oversees the Sports Medicine Program at Clark Atlanta University. Flateau received his undergraduate degree from the University of West Alabama in 1997 followed by his Master’s Degree from Georgia State University in 2003. Flateau is a Licensed Athletic Trainer by the State of Georgia Department of Health and a Certified Athletic Trainer by the National Athletic Trainers’ Association Board of Certification. He has also been a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the American College of Sports Medicine and is a member of the National Athletic Trainers’ Association, Southeastern Athletic Trainers’ Association and Georgia Athletic Trainers’ Association. Flateau is married to the former Stephanie Huff, a native Georgian, and they have two children, Sydney and Owen.
Prior to his time at DSU, Vallone was Sports Information Director at Shorter University during the 2012-2013 school year as the school transitioned from NAIA to NCAA Division II while playing in the Gulf South Conference. While at Shorter, Vallone was responsible for the coverage for all 19 sports, including the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) national champions Men’s Basketball and Women’s Indoor Track and Field along national runners-up in Volleyball and Softball and Women’s Outdoor Track and Field. Before taking over at the Rome, Ga. school, Vallone worked in the Athletic Communications department at the University of West Georgia, where he graduated with a bachelor of science in Sport Management in July 2012. During his time at the Carrollton, Ga., school he was recognized with Dean’s List honors each of his final three semesters. Vallone has also gained championship event experience having worked with the Southeastern Conference (SEC) with the football championship in 2011 from Atlanta, Ga. and the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) on the football national championship as part of the Rome, Ga. Host Committee serving as Media Coordinator for the event. Prior to enrolling at UWG, he spent over a decade in the Information Technology field as a Network Administrator for one of the country’s top furniture retailers where he maintained the network infrastructure for over 100 retail locations in 16 states. He is married to the former Annie Wilson of Sharpsburg, Ga. , who works in the Information Technology industry in the Atlanta Area with a specialty in Quality Assurance and Testing. A passionate sports fan, Vallone favors football collegiate and professional - with rooting interests in Notre Dame and the Green Bay Packers. When baseball season begins, he can be found cheering on the New York Yankees.
Nine Panthers Named to SIAC All-Academic Teams; Commissioner’s All-Academic Team Announced ATLANTA, Ga. - Four hundred and forty-seven student-athletes were named to the Commissioner’s All-Academic Team for maintaining at least a 3.0 or better cumulative grade point average throughout the 2015-16 academic year. Nine Panthers from five sports were selected to the All-Academic Teams. Highlighting the list is 2016 class valedictorian Austin Casillas with a 3.94 GPA as a Biology major. Name Austin Casillas Darrell Fambro Justin Daniels Tyler Williams Vonnick Boyogueno Tori Pradier Cynthia Smith Asia Nelson Tenicia Winston
Sport Football Football Football Volleyball Tennis Tennis Women’s Track & Field Softball Softball
Class Grad. Jr. Jr. Jr. Grad. Sr. Sr. Sr. Jr.
Major Biology Engineer/Computer Science Mass Media Arts Mass Media Arts Accounting Accounting Social Work Social Work Business Admin.
GPA 3.94 3.86 3.83 3.79 3.76 3.68 3.78 3.78 3.44
One hundred and nine student-athletes were placed on the All-Academic Team in their respective sport. Student-athletes with a 3.2 or higher were considered for All-Academic Team honors. The number of student-athletes selected in each sport is determined by the number of positions usually involved in that sport.
CLARK ATLANTA EXPANDS SOCIAL MEDIA COVERAGE
ATLANTA, GA - Clark Atlanta University has announced expanded coverage with social media for the 11 Panther sports. These additions will allow followers the ability to follow the sport they desire. Fans can choose to follow one, or all sports, along with the athletic department as a whole. The new additions are sport specific Twitter pages, along with Snapchat. Each team will take care of their Twitter account with Tweets and Retweets relating to that sport. Snapchat and Instagram will be utilized as a way to reach the student body and draw additional views to ClarkAtlantaSports.com. The official hashtag is #CAUPanthers with each sport also having a hashtag as a secondary statement. Here are the accounts: Team Athletic Department Baseball Men’s Basketball Football Women’s Basketball Softball Tennis Volleyball Cross Country/Track & Field
Twitter Hastag @caupanthers #CAUPanthers @caubaseball #CAUBaseball @CAU_MBasketball #CAUMHoops @CAU_Football #CAUFootball @CAU_WBasketball #CAUWHoops @CAU_Softball #CAUSoftball @CAU_Tennis #CAUTennis @CAU_Volleyball #CAUVolleyball @CAU_xctf #CAU_xctf
Instagram cauathletics Periscope @caupanthers
LOGO | ATHLETIC STYLE GUIDE primary mark
panther head
Alternate Mark 1
Alternate mark 2
wordmark
verbiage
Clark Atlanta University CAU Panthers Clark Atlanta University Department of Athletics Clark Atlanta Athletics Booster Association (CAABA) color information Black
Grey | PMS 432 | Hex Code 444F51
Red | PMS 186 | Hex Code CE1126
LOGO | ATHLETIC STYLE GUIDE university SEAL
color logo e
us o t n
sio
is er m
sp
ire u q e
r
WHITEOUT Logo
Blackout logo
Logo options
WWW.CLARKATLANTASPORTS.COM
CLARK ATLANTA UNIVERSITY NAMES LIN DAWSON ATHLETICS DIRECTOR
ATLANTA, Ga. - Clark Atlanta University (CAU) President Ronald A. Johnson today announced the appointment of J. Lin Dawson as the institution’s new Athletics Director, effective Wednesday, Nov. 18. The former New England Patriot brings more than 20 years of administrative, academic and entrepreneurial experience to the CAU program. Dawson comes to Clark Atlanta from Elizabeth City State University in Elizabeth City, N.C., where he has served as interim director of Athletics since 2013. In this new role, he will oversee the University’s NCAA Division II athletic program compliance, budgeting, operations, advancement, student-athlete recruitment and professional staffing and development. He also will serve as a member of the President’s Executive Cabinet.
Dawson attended North Carolina State University and earned the B.S. degree in speech and communications from Northeastern University in Boston, Mass. He completed the MBA degree in human resource management/learning and knowledge management from Walden University in 1993, and is presently a Ph.D. student in Regent University’s School of Business and Leadership’s organizational leadership program. “In Lin Dawson, we have found an individual of unimpeachable character who personifies the highest ideals of sportsmanship, competitiveness, academic excellence and administrative effectiveness,” President Johnson said. “His career path and record of servant leadership enliven our aim to mobilize for the future by producing student athletes who are well rounded, successful on the field and in the classroom and fully capable of applying the values of fair play, mental and physical discipline and hard work to their pursuit of academic, personal and career goals.” Dawson, who in 1981 was drafted in the eighth round by the New England Patriots, filled the first-string tight end position and was an integral offensive presence for 10 seasons, including1986 AFC Championship and Super Bowl XX appearances. Following his NFL career, he was among the nation’s first to design and implement leadership diversity programs for collegiate athletic programs and professional sports, elevating programming in more than 40 major universities and professional sports. Dawson’s reputation as an efficient program builder is well-deserved. While director of athletics at North Carolina Central University (NCCU) (2000-2003), he initiated the Life Skills Program for student-athletes, increased athletic scholarships by 40 percent, eliminated a previous administration’s budget deficit and maintained the conference’s best corporate partnership program. As Grambling State University’s (GSU) athletics director and special assistant to the president (2008-2011), he was awarded the Commissioner’s Cup for having the best athletic program in the Southwestern Athletic Conference in 2010 and increased corporate sponsorship revenues by 400 percent. His teams won several conference championships, including National Black Champions in Football (2009). He also initiated a new fundraising program resulting in increased alumni and fan support, and he created the Port City Football Classic, which produced net revenues of $700,000 in its first year. His leadership experience also includes service as associate athletics director at VCU (2005-2006) and associate director of training and education at Northeastern University (1991-1994). As a former student-athlete for the NC State Wolfpack, Dawson was a four-year starter and member of the 1979 ACC Championship Team. His many awards include commendations from: The White House, the Anti-Defamation League, National Football League, NCAA Division IA Athletic Directors Association, The Peter F. Drucker Foundation, The Boston Herald American and the National Consortium for Academics and Sports. An ordained minister, Dawson and his wife of 30 years, Margo, have three adult children.
FOOTBALL
Fall Sports
2015 Record: 1-8 Overall | 1-3 SIAC Clark Atlanta football wrapped up the first season under the new coaching regime with a 1-8 (1-3 SIAC East) record. The season opened Sept. 5 at Tuskegee with a 26-0 loss; in the effort Joshua Tate started his senior season with three blocked kicks, one interception, and one broken up pass.
Clark Atlanta Adds 11 To Roster On National Signing Day
ATLANTA, Ga. - National Signing Day saw 11 decided to commit to Clark Atlanta University and become members of the Panther football program. The 2016 Signing Class marks the initial class signed by head coach Kevin Ramsey and his staff. The newly signed players are listed as follows:
NAME POS P/K CAU began the season with an 0-6 mark before Ty Woods Nathan Lang DE claiming the lone victory of the season on the road at Benedict; 24-3. In the highest-scoring Paul Coleman OL game of the season for the Panthers, Mathew Johnathan Sanders FS Vincent threw for 234 yards while Jaha McCortney Laye TE Cray led the team in rushing (122 yards) and JeVaro Hardy II QB receiving (88). After Vincent connected with Kamari Jackson Ath Daryl Minor for an 8-yard score right before Christopher Bouie TE halftime, McCray broke loose for 98-yards Trayvus Johnson OL early in the second half to open up a 14-point Cameron Jones OL lead. Dereck Adams SS
HT / WT Hometown 5’11 / 175 Montgomery, Ala. 6’1 / 240 Moultrie, Ga. 6’1 / 275 Montgomery, Ala. 6’1 / 180 East Point, Ga. 6’2 / 225 LaGrange, Ga. 6’2 / 205 Jacksonville, Fla. 6’1 / 175 Brundidge, Ala. 6’3 / 230 Moultrie, Ga. 6’3 / 255 Moultrie, Ga. 6’0 / 300 Milledgeville, Ga. 5’10 / 182 Atlanta, Ga.
Clark Atlanta is coming off a 1-8 season in 2015 and will be building towards late-season improvements. The 2016 schedule is in the process of being finalized and will be released in the upcoming weeks.
Two more losses, home versus Albany State and on the road at DI Samford, wrapped the 2015 season. Post season awards piled in for Tate as he was named All-SIAC First Team, Second Team NCAA Division II All-Super Region Two, and Division II Honorable Mention All-American. Tate, a senior from Memphis, Tenn., concluded his career with 123 tackles, eight interceptions, and 20 pass break-ups with his final season intercepting five passes and braking up ten more.
THOUGHTS BY HEAD COACH KEVIN RAMSEY When asked regarding the focus off the recruiting efforts: “We had to put the pieces together much like a puzzle. We needed to make sure everything fit together they way we need it to.” “One of the needs that we feel really happy about is the punter, Ty Woods, he fills a need that we had last season.” On the quality of the students that were signed: “These kids have high Grade Point Averages and will perform well in the classroom. We are looking forward to seeing how the grasp the playbook and grow within our system.” When asked about the overall recruiting effort: “The coaches put in a lot of hard work and effort on the recruiting trail. This is our first class as a staff and we have the foundation to move forward in a winning direction.”
Fall Sports
CAU Wins 2015 SIAC Women’s Cross Country Title; Men Place Fifth
ROCK HILL, S.C. - Clark Atlanta University won the 2015 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) women’s cross country championship, Sunday morning on the campus of Winthrop University. The Panthers finished the 5k race with a team score of 51 points to claim the title. Benedict, who won the title last year, was named the runner-up with 66 points and Albany State was third with 72 points. Curshonne Johnson was the top finisher for CAU, placing third with a time of 20:58.02. The men’s team placed fifth overall with Tracy Ham (28:27:81) scoring the best finish with a seventh place effort.
VOLLEYBALL
2015 Record: 14-14 Overall | 11-7 SIAC Clark Atlanta volleyball, led by former player Brittany Black, utilized a 6-2 SIAC Crossover record to post 11 wins in conference play. CAU turned in an impressive 3-0 victory versus Paine College on Senior Day. HOW IT HAPPENED: With her eighth kill of the night, Cori Smith surpassed 1,000 career kills on her Senior Night. Smith topped the match in kills, 19, and aces, five, and held the team-high with seven digs.
OTHER TIMES (Women): Tamera Julkes (21:41.44) was seventh. Cynthia Smith (22:06.55) placed 12th. Breanna Hopkins (22:25.52) finished 14th. D’Yanna McCaskill (22:31.46) was one spot behind in 15th. Khayla Williams (23:17.01) placed 23rd. Sanley Richemond (23:39.93) was 26th.
Briana Aldridge tallied five digs and one assist in her final home match. Once the season advanced to the SIAC Championship from Birmingham, Ala., Clark Atlanta picked up the opening round victory over Tuskegee; 3-2. On Day 2, CAU lost to Claflin before defeating Benedict to eliminate the Tigers. The season ended on the third and final match of Day 2 to Albany State, 3-0. OTHER TIMES (Men): Richard James (29:23.08) finished 16th. Kilan Pace (32:04.15) finished 32nd. Moses Kilpatrick (33:24.61) placed 38th. Christian Sutton (33:48.07) ended the day in 43rd. Collin Smith (33:57.43) was one spot behind in 44th.
Smith added another honor as she was named All-SIAC First Team. A native of Kansas City, Kan., led the Panthers in kills (274), kills per set (3.43), attacks (675). She also sat second in digs (120), third in aces (33), fourth in blocks (26). In her four-year career at CAU, Smith totaled 1,034 kills and 102 service aces and 129 blocks.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Winter Sports
MEN’S BASKETBALL
2015-16 Record: 6-12 Overall | 4-12 SIAC
2015-16 Record: 9-20 Overall | 7-11 SIAC
Clark Atlanta lost the final eight regular season games in women’s basketball before a first round loss in the SIAC Championship to Central State; 79-51. CAU won the opening game of the season at Saint Leo, 79-78, before picking up 35 points from Mykala Jones in a loss to Florida Southern in the SSC/SIAC Challenge. The Panthers won four straight games after the Christmas break by defeating Mobile, Lane, LeMoyne-Owen, and Central State. The final win of the season came ina home game versus Stillman, 86-66, on Jan. 21.
After opening on a seven game losing streak, CAU defeated Young Harris at Epps Gymnasium for the first victory of the season on Dec. 12. The regular season ended with Clark Atlanta winning three consecutive games versus Morehouse, Paine, and Benedict.
Jones posted the two highest scoring efforts in the SIAC with 37 points at Fort Valley on Jan. 25 to go with the 35 points versus FSC. Siera Bubb led the team with seven double-doubles, including a 21 point 20 rebound effort versus Lane at home on Jan. 02. Bubb followed up two days later with 22 rebounds against LeMoyne-Owen.
CAU had one honoree on the All-SIAC team as Jones was selected to the First Team. Jones, from Augusta, Ga., led the conference in scoring with 20.6 points per game while leading Clark Atlanta in points 22-of-26 games. She wrapped up the regular season with 964 career points in two seasons after transferring in from South Carolina State. Nationally, Jones ranked No. 6 in FT attempts made (157) ,No. 9 in both FT attempts (192) & points per game (20.6).
In the final three games of the season - at Benedict, at Claflin, and in the first round of the SIAC Championship - Damien Enoch led the Panthers in scoring and rebounds in each of the games. During the season, Enoch tallied eight double-doubles with six coming in SIAC competition.
Enoch scored a season-best 27 points for the Panthers at Paine on Feb. 1 while also tallying 14 rebounds as a single-game best versus Florida Tech on Nov. 13. Tim Sanders ended the season ranked No. 8 Nationally in Steals/Game (2.38) and No. 29 in total steals (57). After the season ended, Clark Atlanta opted to make a change in head coach by naming former NBA player and coach Darrell Walker as head coach.
DARRELL WALKER NAMED NEW COACH OF CLARK ATLANTA MEN’S BASKETBALL
ATLANTA, Ga. - Former NBA player and head coach Darrell Walker has been named as the next head coach of the Clark Atlanta University men’s basketball program.
Walker will be embarking on his first collegiate coaching opportunity with more than a decade of NBA coaching experience, including 56 victories as a head coach in the league. Walker has also headed up teams in the WNBA and CBA. Beyond his professional coaching experience, Walker was an All-American player at the University of Arkansas under legendary coach Eddie Sutton. After playing out his days with the Razorbacks, Walker was selected with the No. 12 overall pick in the 1983 NBA Draft by the New York Knicks. Over a professional playing career spanning 10 seasons, Walker was able to end his career as a member of the NBA Champion Chicago Bulls in the 1992-93 season. During a playoff series his rookie season in New York, Walker set franchise bests for steals in a playoff game (seven) and series (15). As a player with the Washington Bullets (now Wizards) from 1987-91, Walker dished out 1,707 assists to sit eighth on the franchise career assist chart. He also ranked in the top-5 for guards in rebounding for three consecutive seasons and also had a season where he was in the top-10 in the NBA in assists per game. Walker is a graduate of the University of Arkansas with a B.S. in Human Resources. His time at UA was commemorated in 2008 as he was inducted into the Hall of Honor by ranking among the all-time Razorbacks leaders in assists (10th) and steals (fourth). He has also been named to the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame (2003). Coaching Timeline: 1995-96 1996-98 1999-00 1999-00 2000 2004-08 2008-11 2011-14
Toronto Raptors Toronto Raptors Rockford Lightning Washington Wizards Washington Mystics NO / OKC Hornets Detroit Pistons New York Knicks
Assistant Coach Head Coach Head Coach Head Coach Head Coach Assistant Coach Assistant Coach Assistant Coach
BASEBALL
Spring Sports
SOFTBALL
2016 Record: 12-31 Overall | 8-12 SIAC
2016 Record: 11-29 Overall | 7-15 SIAC
Clark Atlanta baseball surpassed the previous best school mark for wins in a season of nine (done three times - 1974, 2013, and 2014 - with 12 wins that included a season ending sweep over LeMoyne-Owen. The season was the second for coach Kentaus Carter and saw the team improve from one win in 2015.
Coach Lawanda Pearson completed his 12th season leading the Clark Atlanta softball team with a second-consecutive season record of 11-29.
In 2016, the newcomer-duo of Kendall Washington (0-5; 11.67 ERA) and Ajada Cofield (6-16; 5.15 ERA) joined Shalonda Woods The roster was spotlighted with the play of sev- (2-6; 8.83) to anchor the pitching effort for the eral freshman. MIchael Haywood, Jr. finished Panther pitching staff. As a collective unit, the second on the team in batting average, .361, CAU pitchers threw 231.1 innings with a 6.84 while posting the best on base percentage, .467, ERA while striking out 84 batters with 25 comand led the team in RBI with 23. Haywood also plete games. pitched in eight games, with seven starts, posting a 1-1 record. The offense was paced by All-SIAC Second Team selection Sharnitra Woods. Woods led Jason Howell batted in the middle of the lineup CAU in most offensive categories; including all season and hit .319 - good for third on the batting average (.471), hits (49), RBI (52), and team while leading the team in slugging perhomeruns (13). Jessica Vason posted the seccentage, .457, and triples with three. ond-best batting average (.367), while leading the team by scoring 36 runs and stealing 11 Freshman made up the top three in homeruns bases to go with 10 doubles and two complete on the season with Jordan Johnson hitting five games as a pitcher (2-0; 0.58 ERA). ahead of two each for Haywood and Howell. The trio were the only players with multiple Clark Atlanta celebrated seniors Tamera Green, homeruns on the season. Johnson excelled Briana Aldridge, Asia Nelson, Ashley Neldefensively at shortstop while also pitching son, Ingrid Sims, Zhandria Usher, and Ki’esha in relief - appearing in 21 games (19 in relief) Young before a doubleheader versus Talladega and posting all four saves on the season for the College on Apr. 19. The Panthers wrapped up Panthers. the season with a pair of losses from the SIAC Championship to Tuskegee (9-3) and Albany Malcolm Seabrooks, a junior, played in 41 State (10-2). games with all starts, and led Clark Atlanta in batting average, .368, and hits, 50, while posting team a best in hitting streak, 11 in-a-row. On Apr. 17 the Panthers defeated Benedict College in the final game of the series. In the nine inning victory, Clark Atlanta picked up the victory from Jezreel Moore. Moore had gone more than two seasons without a win on the mound after posting an 0-9 mark as a sophomore in 2015 and entering the game 0-12 in 2016. Moore retired 17 batters in-a-row at one point in the game. He returned to the mound a week later and won the final game of the 2016 season versus LOC and tallied five complete games in 19 starts.
TENNIS
Spring Sports
TRACK & FIELD
2016 Record: 11-12 Overall | 10-5 SIAC
Women 4th at SIAC | Men 10th at SIAC
Clark Atlanta wrapped the season by winning the Third Place match versus Stillman, 5-4, from the SIAC Championship from Jonesboro, Ga.
ROCK HILL, S.C. - Clark Atlanta ended the 2016 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) with a fourth place effort from the women’s team taking fourth place and the men ending the meet in tenth place. Curshonne Johnson ended the meet being named Co-MVP of the Women’s Meet.
In the end of Feb. Clark Atlanta wrapped first SIAC Round Up with a 4-1 mark by defeating Albany State, LeMoyne-Owen, Lane, and Spring Hill.
HOW IT HAPPENED (WOMEN’S MEET): Curshonne Johnson claimed the lone victory for Clark Atlanta by winning the 3,000 Steeplechase (12:36.22). Johnson added runner-up finishes in the 5,000 and 10,000 Meters along with a fourth place finish in the 1,500 Meters.
The second round up held from Mobile, Ala. saw the Panthers go 4-2 with wins over the same four teams - Spring Hill, Lane, Albany State, and LeMoyne-Owen.
Jazmine Bowser placed in the top-5 in all three jumps along with a fourth place finish in the Heptathlon.
The SIAC post season awards recognized the Panthers with a few selections. Keva Godfrey was named as the SIAC Coach of the Year while Tori Pradier and DiAndrea Galloway were named to the First Team while the Second Team had doubles selections of Pradier/ Avern Gumbs and Galloway/Vonnick Boyogueno. Pradier played all but one match as the No. 1 Singles entry and tallied a 8-4 record overall. Galloway ascended from the No. 4 entry to end the year at No. 2 with a 8-4 mark from the No. 2 Singles slot. Pradier and Gumbs teamed up for 18 matches going 10-8, including winning five in-a-row during the season. Galloway and Boyogueno paired 18 times finishing the season with a mark of 11-7 and winners of their last three matches.
MEET FINALISTS (WOMEN’S MEET): 400 Meters: Cynthia Smith (6th Place), D’Yanna McCaskill (7th Place), Breanna Hopkins (8th Place) 800 Meters: Smith (8th Place) 1,500 Meters: Curshonne Johnson (4th Place), Smith (6th Place), Brandi McNeal (9th Place) 5,000 Meters: Johnson (2nd Place), Tamera Julkes (5th Place), Sanley Richemond (11th Place) 10,000 Meters: Johnson (2nd Place), Julkes (4th Place), Richemond (9th Place) 400 Hurdles: McCaskill (3rd Place) 3,000 Steeplechase: McNeal (2nd Place), Julkes (8th Place) 4x400 Relay: 4th Place - 3:55.00 High Jump: Jazmine Bowser (5th Place) Long Jump: Bowser (4th Place), Lanique Ellis (18th Place) Triple Jump: Bowser (2nd Place) Shot Put: Shahara Mitchell (2nd Place), Tori Williams (12th Place), Emani Jones (16th Place) Discus: Mitchell (9th Place), Williams (12th Place), Jones (13th Place) Hammer Throw: Krystal Bobo (3rd Place), Jones (7th Place), Mitchell (9th Place) Javelin: Mitchell (5th Place), Bobo (14th Place), Jones (17th Place) Heptathlon: Bowser (4th Place) HOW IT HAPPENED (MEN’S MEET): Kilan Pace finished in the top-5 twice with a runner-up in the 400 Hurdles and a fifth place in the Long Jump. MEET FINALISTS (MEN’S MEET): 1,500 Meters: Tracy Ham (12th Place) 110 Hurdles: De’Andre Borders (7th Place) 400 Hurdles: Kilan Pace (2nd Place) 3,000 Steeplechase: Ham (10th Place) Long Jump: Pace (5th Place) Shot Put: Edregas O’Neal (9th Place), Rudolph Durant (18th Place) Discus: O’Neal (11th Place) Hammer: Michael Pritchett (9th Place), Darius Preyer (10th Place) Javelin: Christian Vincent-Lovell (14th Place)
All-SIAC Selections FOOTBALL Joshua Tate
TENNIS First Team
WOMENS CROSS COUNTRY
All-SIAC Team Curshonne Johnson Tamera Julkes MENS CROSS COUNTRY Tracy Hamm WOMEN’S BASKETBALL Mykala Jones BASEBALL Malcolm Seabrooks Jordan Johnson SOFTBALL Sharnitra Woods
All-SIAC Team
First Team
First Team Second Team
Second Team
All-Americans FOOTBALL Joshua Tate
First Team Singles
Tori Pradier DiAndrea Galloway Second Team Doubles Tori Pradier / Avern Gumbs DiAndrea Galloway / Vonnick Boyogueno TRACK & FIELD
Men’s Second Team Kilan Pace - 400 Hurdles Women’s First Team Curshonne Johnson - 3,000 Steeple Jazmine Bowser - Long Jump Shahara Mitchell - Shot Put Women’s Second Team Tamera Julkes - 10,000 Meters VOLLEYBALL Cori Smith
First Team
NEW ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF MEMBERS (SWAC) - including three years at Grambling State University as its Director of Compliance and Operations. He also spent two years at Florida A&M as the Senior Associate Athletic Director for Operations and Compliance. Huff was instrumental in helping restructure their athletic programs. Both schools were premier universities in Historically Black College and University (HBCU) athletics.
Cliff Huff Sr. Associate AD for Compliance
As a student-athlete, Huff had a legendary career, earning numerous conference, regional, and national honors. He was a standout for the Blue Bears where he was noted as a three-time MVP. He still holds several school records, including holding the school record in the decathlon where he met the 1984 USA Olympic Trial standard.
Academic Enhancement Advisor, Game Operations Director, and Track & Field Coach. With experience at both the NCAA Division I and NCAA Division II levels, Huff ’s wealth of knowledge and experience will make him a welcome addition to Clark Atlanta University.
Huff is a 1985 graduate of Livingstone College and was inducted into the Livingstone College Athletics Hall of Fame in the fall of 2006. In the spring of 2014 he was inducted into the CIAA Conference Hall of fame and the in 2015 the E.A. Laney HS Hall of Fame..
Much of Huff ’s career was spent at his alma mater, Livingstone College, where he contributed to Blue Bears athletics in nearly every way possible. During his career, Huff has spent time as a student-athlete, a coach, sports information and administrator with Livingstone College. Huff spent 11 years as the Director of Athletics at Livingstone College. During his tenure, he earned several honors, including being named the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) Athletic Director of Year and earning the Jeannette Lee Athletic Achievement Award in 1997 and 1998. In 1998, he received the Commissioner’s Special Recognition Award. He also served as the First Vice-President of the CIAA Conference Offices from 200507 and the President of the CIAA Athletic Director’s Association from 1999-2002.And a member of the CIAA Basketball Tournament Committee from 1999-2007. As a coach that Huff made his largest impact on the Blue Bears program and career. After taking over the program in 1991, Huff guided the development of the 2004 NCAA Division II men’s 200m dash national champion and the runner up in the 400m run. The 2014and 2015 Women’s 4X100 relay runners-up and the 2002 and 2014 Women’s Indoor 60 meter NCAA runner-up. In addition, he also guided the development of 60 NCAA Division II All-Americans, 103 All-CIAA performers and 28 CIAA individual champions. He was a coach with the 2015 CIAA indoor Champion at WSSU and his teams were CIAA runners-up 19 times with five Livingstone College teams finishing among the top 25 in the NCAA Division II national rankings. As a coach, Huff was named the CIAA Coach of the Year four times. Huff was also honored as one of the CIAA 100 Greatest Athletes & Coaches. He was honored as No. 55 on the prestigious list. Prior to joining the staff at CAU, Huff has spent time at Winston-Salem State and at NCAA Division I schools in both the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) and the Southwestern Athletic Conference
James Vallone Sports Information Bachelor of Science University of West Georgia, 2012 Sport Management Master of Science Delta State University, 2015 Sport & Human Performance James Vallone joins the Panthers after a stint at SIAC-rival Stillman College, having previously served at Delta State University in Cleveland, Miss. where he spent time as the primary contact for Statesmen football, baseball, tennis, and swimming while obtaining his Master’s degree in Sport Administration. While at DSU, Vallone was a voting member for the New South Intercollegiate Swim Conference and remains a voting member for the National Collegiate Baseball Writers South Region Division-II Poll.
Rick Flateau Head Athletic Trainer Rick Flateau, MS, ATC – is in his eighteenth year of being a Certified Athletic Trainer and currently serves as the Head Athletic Trainer and oversees the Sports Medicine Program at Clark Atlanta University. Flateau received his undergraduate degree from the University of West Alabama in 1997 followed by his Master’s Degree from Georgia State University in 2003. Flateau is a Licensed Athletic Trainer by the State of Georgia Department of Health and a Certified Athletic Trainer by the National Athletic Trainers’ Association Board of Certification. He has also been a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the American College of Sports Medicine and is a member of the National Athletic Trainers’ Association, Southeastern Athletic Trainers’ Association and Georgia Athletic Trainers’ Association. Flateau is married to the former Stephanie Huff, a native Georgian, and they have two children, Sydney and Owen.
Prior to his time at DSU, Vallone was Sports Information Director at Shorter University during the 2012-2013 school year as the school transitioned from NAIA to NCAA Division II while playing in the Gulf South Conference. While at Shorter, Vallone was responsible for the coverage for all 19 sports, including the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) national champions Men’s Basketball and Women’s Indoor Track and Field along national runners-up in Volleyball and Softball and Women’s Outdoor Track and Field. Before taking over at the Rome, Ga. school, Vallone worked in the Athletic Communications department at the University of West Georgia, where he graduated with a bachelor of science in Sport Management in July 2012. During his time at the Carrollton, Ga., school he was recognized with Dean’s List honors each of his final three semesters. Vallone has also gained championship event experience having worked with the Southeastern Conference (SEC) with the football championship in 2011 from Atlanta, Ga. and the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) on the football national championship as part of the Rome, Ga. Host Committee serving as Media Coordinator for the event. Prior to enrolling at UWG, he spent over a decade in the Information Technology field as a Network Administrator for one of the country’s top furniture retailers where he maintained the network infrastructure for over 100 retail locations in 16 states. He is married to the former Annie Wilson of Sharpsburg, Ga. , who works in the Information Technology industry in the Atlanta Area with a specialty in Quality Assurance and Testing. A passionate sports fan, Vallone favors football collegiate and professional - with rooting interests in Notre Dame and the Green Bay Packers. When baseball season begins, he can be found cheering on the New York Yankees.
Nine Panthers Named to SIAC All-Academic Teams; Commissioner’s All-Academic Team Announced ATLANTA, Ga. - Four hundred and forty-seven student-athletes were named to the Commissioner’s All-Academic Team for maintaining at least a 3.0 or better cumulative grade point average throughout the 2015-16 academic year. Nine Panthers from five sports were selected to the All-Academic Teams. Highlighting the list is 2016 class valedictorian Austin Casillas with a 3.94 GPA as a Biology major. Name Austin Casillas Darrell Fambro Justin Daniels Tyler Williams Vonnick Boyogueno Tori Pradier Cynthia Smith Asia Nelson Tenicia Winston
Sport Football Football Football Volleyball Tennis Tennis Women’s Track & Field Softball Softball
Class Grad. Jr. Jr. Jr. Grad. Sr. Sr. Sr. Jr.
Major Biology Engineer/Computer Science Mass Media Arts Mass Media Arts Accounting Accounting Social Work Social Work Business Admin.
GPA 3.94 3.86 3.83 3.79 3.76 3.68 3.78 3.78 3.44
One hundred and nine student-athletes were placed on the All-Academic Team in their respective sport. Student-athletes with a 3.2 or higher were considered for All-Academic Team honors. The number of student-athletes selected in each sport is determined by the number of positions usually involved in that sport.
CLARK ATLANTA EXPANDS SOCIAL MEDIA COVERAGE
ATLANTA, GA - Clark Atlanta University has announced expanded coverage with social media for the 11 Panther sports. These additions will allow followers the ability to follow the sport they desire. Fans can choose to follow one, or all sports, along with the athletic department as a whole. The new additions are sport specific Twitter pages, along with Snapchat. Each team will take care of their Twitter account with Tweets and Retweets relating to that sport. Snapchat and Instagram will be utilized as a way to reach the student body and draw additional views to ClarkAtlantaSports.com. The official hashtag is #CAUPanthers with each sport also having a hashtag as a secondary statement. Here are the accounts: Team Athletic Department Baseball Men’s Basketball Football Women’s Basketball Softball Tennis Volleyball Cross Country/Track & Field
Twitter Hastag @caupanthers #CAUPanthers @caubaseball #CAUBaseball @CAU_MBasketball #CAUMHoops @CAU_Football #CAUFootball @CAU_WBasketball #CAUWHoops @CAU_Softball #CAUSoftball @CAU_Tennis #CAUTennis @CAU_Volleyball #CAUVolleyball @CAU_xctf #CAU_xctf
Instagram cauathletics Periscope @caupanthers
LOGO | ATHLETIC STYLE GUIDE primary mark
panther head
Alternate Mark 1
Alternate mark 2
wordmark
verbiage
Clark Atlanta University CAU Panthers Clark Atlanta University Department of Athletics Clark Atlanta Athletics Booster Association (CAABA) color information Black
Grey | PMS 432 | Hex Code 444F51
Red | PMS 186 | Hex Code CE1126
LOGO | ATHLETIC STYLE GUIDE university SEAL
color logo e
us o t n
sio
is er m
sp
ire u q e
r
WHITEOUT Logo
Blackout logo
Logo options
