[11/29/03]The air was filled with mixed emotions for the Alcorn State faithful last Saturday.

On the one hand, there was the disappointment of missing out on the Southwestern Athletic Conference championship game. On the other, there was the joy of beating archrival Jackson State for the first time since 1994 and of even being in position to miss out on the SWAC championship game.

It wasn’t long ago that the Braves were the joke of the SWAC. In 2000, they suffered through the school’s first winless season since 1958 and endured a 17-game losing streak that spanned three seasons.

Since then, however, they have turned into championship contenders. The 49-25 win over JSU in the Capital City Classic capped Alcorn’s third straight 6-5 season, the first time in a decade it had accomplished the feat.

It was also the second time in those three seasons that the Braves had a shot at the East title heading into the JSU game. They didn’t win either time, but have re-established themselves as championship contenders.

“It’s proved to everybody that we belong and we’re very serious about representing the East Division of the SWAC in the championship game,” Alcorn coach Johnny Thomas said after beating JSU. “We had to come out and prove to the world and prove to black college football and the SWAC that we need to be in the championship game.”

Thomas added that there wasn’t any personal vindication in getting the Braves back to contender status. During the long losing streak in 2000, many Alcorn fans and alumni called for his dismissal.

“It’s not ever personal with me. It’s always a hard work ethic, believing in God, believing in players and my coaches,” Thomas said. “We got it done and that’s what makes it feel special.”

It wasn’t an easy trip out of the darkness for the Braves. Last season, they started 6-2 before injuries took their toll and led to a 6-5 finish. This year, early-season losses mounted and forced Alcorn to climb out of a 1-4 hole at the start of the year.

They routed Prairie View, 66-0, to end a four-game losing streak before dropping a 23-20 heartbreaker to Texas Southern. The next week, they rallied to upset Southern 36-34 and start a late-season charge.

Alcorn won its last five games three of them by a touchdown or less and capped the string with the rout of JSU.

“We were playing good football. We were running the football, throwing the football and playing good defense. It seems like in the last four or five minutes of the fourth quarter we’d find a way to self-destruct,” Thomas said. “Compared to the first half of the season, we’ve been executing in the last part of the game.”

The late-season charge also gives the Braves positive momentum.

About half of an experienced defense returns, and quarterback Donald Carrie will be back for his senior year. Carrie threw for 2,826 yards and 24 touchdowns this season, and capped the year by rushing for three TDs and throwing for three more in the win over JSU.

Carrie averaged 235 yards passing per game for the season. Over the last five games, however, he averaged 289 yards and threw 14 TDs.

Most of Carrie’s top receivers are back next season, including Corvin Johnson who led the team with 50 catches for 749 yards and eight TDs.

Alcorn’s biggest hole on offense will be in the running game. Only one of the team’s top three rushers, Robert Lester, will be back next year.