COMMISSIONER'S REPORT

The 2001-2002 Athletic Season has started off where 2000-2001 left off. Last season, was one of the best in CIAA History. This year with exciting endings to the Fall Sports Season, we can turn our sights to CIAA Basketball and Spring Sports.

EXCITING EVENTS UPCOMING!!!

This year, we are excited about the prospects of the CIAA Tournament Men's Final being televised by ESPN. We are currently in negotiations with the network, and hope to find out the status soon. Additionally, please pick up the February edition of Ebony Magazine. The CIAA will have a multi-page article in the February issue. Also, HBO's Real Sports hosted by Bryant Gumbel is considering doing a feature on the CIAA Basketball Tournament. The CIAA keeps raising the bar!!!

2001 CIAA FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP

The 2001 CIAA Football Season was as exciting of a season that this conference has ever seen. The race for the Championship Berths went down to the wire with Virginia Union clinching the Eastern Division Title with a last minute victory over upstart Fayetteville State. Winston-Salem State completed a fantastic season by winning the Western Division Title by one game over FSU.

Playing in front of more than 10,000 at Bowman-Gray Stadium, Virginia Union survived a Winston-Salem State comeback to win their first CIAA Football Championship since 1986, 31-24. With the Panthers up 31-10, the Rams made a courageous run by narrowing the margin to seven with 9:00 to play, but VUU staved off WSSU. VUU will play in the Pioneer Bowl on December 22^nd in Atlanta.

We continue to be excited about the growth of this game which for the second consecutive year finished with a profit. We are currently negotiating with the City of Winston-Salem to keep the game there for the next three years. The Game continues to grow, and we believe it will become one of the outstanding classics in black college football in upcoming years.

Additionally, we are appreciative of Mel Blount who served as speaker for our Football Awards Banquet. The former Southern University Great preached to all who were in attendance about having faith and being a good citizen. Indeed, Mel Blount is a role model for everyone. At the Awards Banquet, we introduced our first All-Community Works Team made up of student-athletes from each member institution who have performed outstanding community service. The team then visited Brenner's Children's Hospital and Reynolds Park Community Center. We are also proud of our All-CIAA Cheerleading Team which performed at Carver High School, and the All-CIAA Band.

NCAA Division II Playoffs

Four conferences are represented in the South Region: Gulf South; SIAC; CIAA; and South Atlantic. All of the conference champions were represented with the exception of CIAA. The Gulf South which had three teams in the playoffs in 2000, had their second place team, Central Arkansas, 9-2, selected over CIAA Champion Virginia Union. Once again, the championship game rationale should have worked. Two highly-ranked teams meeting in an end-of-season playoff, and the winner having their strength-of-schedule bolstered (See Bowl Championship Series). Winston-Salem State entered the Championship Game ranked #4 (discounting Tuskegee who was not eligible) and Virginia Union was ranked #6 in the South Region. Virginia Union defeated Winston-Salem and only moved up to #5. This was VUU's sixth consecutive win. Meanwhile, Central Arkansas lost on the last weekend of the season and finished in second in the Gulf South. Central Arkansas was ranked #3 entering the weekend of November 10^th, and only fell one place to #4. Winston-Salem State fell all the way from #4 to #9 after the loss to VUU.

We asked the South Region Committee to provide us an explanation regarding Central Arkansas' selection over Virginia Union. We were told that Central Arkansas had more quality losses than Virginia Union. If losses become an integral criteria, then perhaps the selection process should be revisited. We believe this explanation is in total disregard of the selection criteria listed in the NCAA Division II Football Handbook. The criteria are the following:

1)Primary Criteria (in no specific order):

1. Head-to-head competition (VUU and Central Arkansas (UCA) did not play)

2. Common Opponents (VUU and UCA did not share any common opponents)

2)Secondary Criteria (in no specific order):

1. Conference Standing (VUU (1^st) and UCA (2^nd) edge VUU.

2. Late Season Performance (last four games) (VUU (4-0) and UCA (3-1) edge VUU.

3. Opponents' records: VUU losses combined record of 10-10 and UCA was 19-2 edge UCA.

4. Records against ranked teams. (VUU (2 wins over WSSU) and UCA (1 win vs. Delta State) edge VUU.

If you consider these criteria, and examine the records of CIAA Champion Virginia Union, and Gulf South runner-up Central Arkansas, we believe our concern regarding the selection process is valid.

CIAA BOWLING AND VOLLEYBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS

The CIAA launched its first season in Women's Bowling. As part of CIAA Women's Sports expansion which includes Women's Tennis in Spring 2002, Bowling caught on fire quickly around the CIAA. The Bowling Championships were held at Raleigh Capital Lanes on November 5-6. The Championship was thrilling and came down to a climatic finish. The match was decided by a final tie breaker 5^th baker game between North Carolina Central and Virginia State University. The Lady Eagles pulled out Game 5 175-156 over Virginia State to win the first conference Bowling Championship. Congratulations to the Lady Eagles!!!

The CIAA Volleyball Championship was just as thrilling with Saint Augustine's defeating its cross-town rival, Shaw for the 2001 Title. Saint Augustine's went on to represent the CIAA in the Division II playoffs but fell in a hard-fought match to Indiana University-Pennsylvania in the first round. Congratulations to the Lady Falcons!!!

CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS

Congratulations to Saint Augustine's who swept both Men's and Women's 2001 CIAA Championships. I would like to personally congratulate George Williams in regards to his outstanding program at SAC. Congratulations to Katerina Glosova of NCCU, who repeated as CIAA Champion, and Alhaji Alhassan of SAC who repeated as men's champion. Alhassan went on to capture the NCAA South Atlantic Cross-Country Title.

2001-2002...SO FAR, SO GOOD!!!

The CIAA Fall Season was outstanding. We look forward to culmination of the year when Virginia Union battles the SIAC Champions in the Pioneer Bowl in the Georgia Dome on December 22^nd. We would also like to congratulate NCCU's Katerina Glosova, who was named 2001 South Atlantic Region Division II Female Student-Athlete of the Year.

We are still actively recruiting companies to join our corporate partnership group. Cingular Wireless, State Farm among others are looking at joining the CIAA ranks.

Once again, we at the conference office wish you a Happy New Year, and see you in Raleigh in February!!!