BIRMINGHAM, Ala. My second consecutive two days in October at the annual SWAC men’s and women’s basketball media days (Oct. 6 for women’s, Oct. 7 for men’s) were as good as my first time.
We had the choice to go to Chicago for the Big Ten media days or down south to one of the premier HBCU conferences in the country: a Power 4 conference with only three Black head coaches, compared with a smaller league where 23 of 24 coaches and all 24 players in attendance are Black.
The choice was clear.
MBB preseason poll
Bethune-Cookman (1), Southern (2), Alabama A&M (3), FAMU (4), Prairie View A&M (5), Jackson State (6), Alabama State (7), Grambling State (8), Texas Southern (9), Alcorn State (10), Arkansas-Pine Bluff (11), Mississippi Valley State (12)
WBB preseason poll
Southern (1), Alabama A&M (2), Alabama State (3), Alcorn State (4), Arkansas-Pine Bluff (5), Grambling State (6), FAMU (7), Jackson State (8), Bethune-Cookman (9), Texas Southern (10), Mississippi Valley State (11), Prairie View A&M (12)
At last week’s SWAC media sessions, this veteran Black reporter had almost total unrestricted access to coaches and players, unlike the Big Ten setup, which resembles press briefings.
All conference head coaches plus two student-athletes from each team expressed their preseason optimism for the upcoming 2026-27 basketball seasons.
Cue that “Law & Order” sounder. Here are their stories:
The Players
“We have a team of people who’s going to work hard, who’s all bought into the same plan, same goals. So, we have a good-looking squad this year, and we’re just going to be a lot of dogs on the court,” said Alabama A&M junior guard Vanessa Wimberly.
“I feel good about the season, especially about myself, because I know what I’m gonna bring to the team, and I know how I can lead and bring my energy,” said Bethune-Cookman (B-C) senior guard Jameel Morris. “I know everybody on my team wants to be playing in March and that’s been the goal since day one.”
The Coaches
“I’m in my sixth year now as athletic director and the head coach,” said B-C Men’s Basketball Coach Reggie Theus on his club’s preseason top ranking. “When I got here, we were picked last. The last two years, we’ve been picked first. So, something’s going right.”
Alabama State Women’s Coach Johnetta Hayes stressed, “It’s definitely going to be more competitive for the conference. I think that we should definitely be one of the top teams in the conference based on our size, our ability to rebound and score.”
Four SWAC teams will make five visits to The Barn for non-conference matchups at Minnesota: Southern (MBB Nov. 12; WBB Nov. 7), Texas Southern (MBB Dec. 16), Alcorn State (MBB Dec. 20) and Grambling State (WBB Dec. 20).
“I was always taught one way you can improve is by playing people who might be considered better,” declared Southern Women’s Coach Carlos Funchess.
Alcorn State’s Jake Morton added, “I’m excited about it. We don’t charter, so it’s a very, very challenging trip to get out there. I think for my team and my program is to see how much we’ve improved against a similar opponent.”
Credit: Charles Hallman/MSR
First-year SWAC coaches include Demetria Frank (Bethune-Cookman women’s) and Mike Davis (Mississippi Valley State men’s).
“I think that my kids embrace the challenge every single day to want to be better and to understand the standard that I’m setting,” said Frank.
Davis is the only SWAC head coach who has coached a team in the national championship game (Indiana, 2002), and he has led his programs to nine NCAA Tournament appearances in 24 seasons as a head coach.
The Commish
“It is always exciting to get basketball kicked off,” SWAC Commissioner Dr. Charles McClelland told MSR in a short sit-down interview. “I’m very, very excited not only for our men’s basketball opportunities but women’s basketball as well.”
Finally …
The SWAC announced in September “a significant expansion of SWAC TV,” which will now be available on leading streaming services, including Prime Video, Amazon Fire TV, Google TV, Plex, Xumo Play and Dingo TV, with its dedicated free, ad-supported streaming television (FAST) channel.
SWAC programming can now reach millions of viewers nationwide, who will have access to live sporting events, original programming and additional content from the SWAC’s 12 member schools and 18 conference-sponsored sports.
“This expansion places the Southwestern Athletic Conference in a unique position within the collegiate athletics landscape,” McClelland said in a press release.
The SWAC has partnered with Triple B Media to operate and distribute the SWAC TV FAST channel across participating platforms, and will complement the conference’s existing SWAC TV distribution.
Charles Hallman welcomes reader responses at challman@spokesman-recorder.com.
Copyright © Charles Hallman