Jackson State Football Coach Fired

By Kendrick Marshall
Black College Wire

James Bell at a recent game.

Jackson State University football fan Curtis Burroughs waited nearly three years for his beloved alma mater to make changes in the football program.

The 20-year Tiger fan had to wait less than 15 minutes to witness a change in the coaching ranks.

At an Oct. 31 press conference, Athletic Director Roy Culberson announced the firing of head coach James Bell, effective immediately.

"It's been long overdue," Burroughs said. "Now, hopefully this program will be able to turn it around."

During Bell's time as head coach and defensive coordinator, the Tigers posted a 8-23 record and were a disappointing 2-9 at home.

Bell was hired in December 2002 to replace Robert Hughes, who was fired after three consecutive 7-4 seasons.

Prior to arriving at Jackson State, Bell had 20 years' experience as a college assistant, but his only head coaching stint was at Chavez High School in Houston, where the team posted a 1-9 record.

Even though the team had made improvements in the classroom, ultimately it was the lack of improvement on the field that mattered most to the athletic department and fans.

"While Bell has made significant improvements in the overall football program during the past 2 1/2 years, we believe that this decision is in the best interest of Jackson State, its fans and alumni," Culberson said.

Bell was in the final year of a three-year contract that will pay him $85,000 per season through Dec. 31.

Quarterbacks coach Daryl Jones is to serve as interim head coach for the Tigers' final three games of the season.

A major factor in the decision on Bell's status was the plummeting attendance at home games, where Jackson State had led all of Division 1-AA for several years.

"It was a tough decision," Culberson said. "It was not about W's and L's, it was about the lack of attendance and the lack of support from the community that played a major role in this decision."

Culberson said not only did the constant losses affect the fans and players, but they were damaging a once-proud football tradition.

The announced attendance for the Oct. 29 game against the University of Arkansas Pine-Bluff was only 2,831, compared with an attendance of 25,600 at the same game in 2001.

In the season before Bell was hired, Jackson State's average attendance at home games was 20,970.

"It's been very boring around here," Ralph Johnson, a Jackson State ticket office employee, said. "It is hard when you can't even sell 500 tickets to a home game."

Kendrick Marshall, a student at Jackson State University, is editor of the Blue & White Flash.

Posted Nov. 2, 2005