Basketball players at SouthernUniversity have been trying to get in contact with their head coach. They have not beensuccessful.
Trayvean Scott, former guard for the Jaguars expressedhis bitter feelings about the lack of or no communication from Jag’s coachMichael Grant.
Grant (26-31 at Southern) wasone of three finalists for a job at Youngstown State. The job was awarded to Jerry Slocum, Gannon head coach onTuesday. Gary Edwards, head coachIndiana University of Pennsylvania was the third prospect.
Grant would give no furtherdetails about his future plans or how he felt about not being granted the topposition at Youngstown located in Ohio.
“I’ve already instructed thechancellor (Edward Jackson) and the board (Southern University Board ofSupervisors) that I wouldn’t comment anymore on Youngstown State. I’ve got no more comments aboutthat. I’m going to do my job andto the best of my abilities.”
Grant had been tight-lippedabout the job offering with the team.
“Even though my college careeris over with,” said senior small forward Jarvis Vaughn, “he’s still my coach –he should have told us about that.”
Also, players were not happyabout the way Grant mouthed off in the media about their defeats.
“I’m not happy about the way heplayed me in the newspaper (The Advocate, Baton Rouge),” Scott said. “What happened in the locker room staysin the locker room. I don’t likethe way he talked about his players in the papers. To me whenever we wasn’t winning it wasthe players, when we won it was something he (Grant) said.”
Vaughn’s feelings were the sameabout Grant. Vaughn added that hedidn’t like the way Grant handled things at the end of the season — like nothaving a final team meeting to send his seniors off and how there was no equal playing field atpractices.
In an article reported by JohnVargo for the Tribune Chronicle, Grant was quoted,”If I can sign a contract today, Iwould. And I would have two assistants that would sign quickly too,” Grant said.
“I do have people in mind thatare willing to come in and sign right away. Once you keep adding players along with that, not low majorplayers, but some good mid-major, solid players that can be competitive in thisleague, we can be competitive. Winningis contagious. Once you start winning, it continues and continues andcontinues. We want to make sure we bring good players in there,” Grant said
Neither Scott nor Vaughn saidthey have spoken to Grant since the Jaguars last game this season. Southern fell 54-50 to Alabama State inthe semifinals of the Southwestern Athletic Conference Championship tournamenton March 11.
After the last game playersreported that Grant didn’t even ride the team bus back to campus.
Off the court, Vaughn said thatonly certain athletes could say things.
”We couldn’t say too much without getting talked about in themedia, or on campus,” Vaughn said. ”A coach is supposed to be like a father figure.”
Grant insisted that therelationship between the players was good.
“Everything is fine, we’re justmoving forward,” the 42-year-old coach said. “Everything is fine. That’s their (naysayers) opinion. Iknow the deal. That’s rumors.”
The players’ relationship withGrant was not always sour.
They added that things did notfall apart until the end of the season.
“Toward the end of the year hewasn’t on the same page with us,” Scott said.
Their leader reportedly alwayshad his office door open ready to talk to people. Grant would put down business he was occupied with at themoment to give people the time of day. He also always answered or returned all phone calls. Even about the bad press he has beenreceiving lately.
“It was a whole lot of goodthings and it was a whole lot of bad things,” Vaughn said.
At the beginning of the 2004-05season the Jaguars were picked to finish second in the SWAC preseason rankingsand instead finished in sixth.
Grant, in his second year, wastrying to make a turnaround for the Jaguars 14-15 this season and 12-16 lastyear. Both were losing seasonsunder Grant.
Grant also fired assistant coachDerek Thompson and kept assistant Elwyn McRoy Jr. The players said Thompson was the one they would go totalk to and trust. There was alsotalks about the way that Thompson found out that he wasfired.
Thompson said on a local radio show that there was a letter on his desk andstill no face to face meeting between he and Grant. Thompson stated that he is stilltrying to meet with Grant and thathis calls have not been returned.
