LITTLE ROCK — BASEBALL
UAPB head coach out
Arkansas-Pine Bluff Coach Michael Bumpers has been let go by the university about a month before the start of classes.
Yet Golden Lions Athletic Director Skip Perkins said the timing of Bumpers’ firing is “nothing particular.”
“No incident, nothing bad,” Perkins said.
Bumpers led the Golden Lions to the Southwestern Athletic Conference Tournament as a No. 2 seed in 2009, the highest tournament seeding in program history. But Arkansas-Pine Bluff slipped in 2010, going 9-16 in SWAC play and making the tournament as the fourth and final seed from the SWAC West Division.
Bumpers returned an experienced team for 2010, but the Golden Lions struggled for the season’s first half. Kevin Edwards, a 19-year old sophomore left-hander who was expected to be a part of Arkansas-Pine Bluff’s weekend rotation, died in a one-car accident over Thanksgiving break near his home in Matteson, Ill.
Perkins said Bumpers’ won-loss record wasn’t the sole factor, and implied that more needed to be done by the program in a fundraising capacity. The university announced plans two years ago to build an on-campus baseball and softball facility after a donation by former Pine Bluff High and current Los Angeles Angels outfielder Torii Hunter, but construction has been slow as the program seeks additional funds.
“Raising funds for the facility is very, very important,” Perkins said. “You don’t have the luxury of just coaching and then shutting it down.”
There is still movement in the Division I coaching carousel - SWAC member Alabama A&M recently hired former Centenary Coach Ed McCann - and Perkins said he’s confident he can find qualified candidates.
“We’re flexible,” Perkins said. “We’re looking for a coach who knows how to recruit to Pine Bluff. This was a baseball mecca for many years.” - Doug Crise
FOOTBALL
Riles says yes to Razorbacks
Receiver/linebacker Jervohnte Riles dreamed of playing for Arkansas as a child, and on Tuesday night, he took a step toward fulfilling that dream by making an oral commitment to the Razorbacks.
Riles, of Bessemer (Ala.) Jess Lanier, chose the Razorbacks over scholarship offers from South Carolina, Mississippi, Memphis and Southern Mississippi.
Riles, 6-4, 211 pounds, 4.52 seconds in the 40-yard dash, said he hasn’t visited Arkansas but plans to attend the Hogs’ opening game against Tennessee Tech on Sept. 4 in Fayetteville.
“I’ve liked Arkansas for a long time,” said Riles, who reports being recruited to play receiver at Arkansas. “It’s been a dream school since I was little. I like them because they throw the ball a lot. I know I can go to school and get the ball. I have good ball skills, good speed, soft hands and run good routes.”
Arkansas’ lead recruiter of Riles, linebackers coach Reggie Johnson, is straightforward, according to Riles.
“Coach Johnson is a good coach, and he’ll look after you,” said Riles, who claims a 38-inch vertical jump. “He’ll tell you the way it is, and if you’re wrong, he’ll let you know. From my experience, he’s a real nice guy.”
Riles is Arkansas’ 13th commitment for the 2011 recruiting class. Oral commitments are nonbinding.
- Richard Davenport
Reddies staff shaken up
Henderson State Coach Scott Maxfield announced changes in his staff Tuesday, including the hiring of former Southern Arkansas defensive coordinator Carey Baker as co-defensive coordinator and the departure of defensive line coach Clint Smith.
Baker, a former Tennessee fullback, has been defensive coordinator at the University of Charleston in West Virginia since 2005.
At Henderson State, Baker will share defensive responsibilities with longtime assistant Matt Gordon, who was shifted to defensive line coach with Smith leaving to go into private business in Kansas.
In other staff responsibility changes, Maxfield said Reddies assistant Coy Campbell will be the outside receivers coach and Robert Espinoza will coach inside receivers.
Baker began his coaching career in 1993 at SAU as a graduate assistant and became the Muleriders’ defensive coordinator in 2000, helping them reach the NCAA Division II playoffs in 2003. In between his stints as SAU graduate assistant and defensive coordinator, he coached at Southern Mississippi and Georgia Southern.
MISCELLANEOUS
Arkansas State associate AD stepping down
Julie Lessiter, associate athletic director of student services and senior women’s administrator at Arkansas State, will resign her position effective Aug. 6.
Lessiter will leave Arkansas State to take the role of associate vice chancellor for academic affairs at LSU-Shreveport, according to a news release sent out by ASU on Tuesday. Lessiter was in her second year with the Arkansas State athletic department after spending the previous 13 months working at the LSU Health Sciences Center at Shreveport.
In Tuesday’s news release, ASU Athletic Director Dean Lee said Lessiter “came to ASU during a period of transition and helped the department move forward.”
ASU said a national search will begin immediately for Lessiter’s replacement.
ASU’s Lee, coaches to speak to chamber
Arkansas State Athletic Director Dean Lee and Red Wolves coaches will speak to the Jonesboro Regional Chamber of Commerce today at the chamber’s July Power Breakfast. The breakfast will be held at the Holidome on Caraway Road in Jonesboro beginning at 6:45 a.m., and ASU’s representatives are expected to discuss the coming athletic seasons.
TENNIS
UALR women earn ITA all-academic honors
UALR’s women have earned the Intercollegiate Tennis Association All-Academic Team honor for the eighth consecutive season after posting a cumulative 3.79 grade-point average. The Trojans’ Nathalia Garay, Yana Kakovkina, Rebecca Van Den Houte, and Anne Weijenborg each earned ITA Scholar-Athlete honors.
Former UCA players named to all-decade team
Former Central Arkansas players Maja Kovacev and Milica Radovic were named to the Gulf South Conference All-Decade Team. Kovacev (2003-2006) was a first team selection, while Radovic (2003-2005) was named to the second team.
Sports, Pages 25 on 07/28/2010