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TACKLING TENORS - WHETHER HITTING TACKLE DUMMIES ON THE FIELD OR HIGH NOTES IN THE CHOIR, THESE AGGIES HAVE FOUND PRACTICE PAYS OFF
Greensboro News & Record (NC) - Sunday, April 25, 2004
Author: NANCY H. MCLAUGHLIN Staff Writer

Genesis Baptist Church has seen its share of choirs. But nothing quite like the visitors rising from the congregation last Sunday. The muscular young men, clad in blue-and-gold A&T jerseys, sang their way from the pews to the choir stand, stomping and clapping to the old gospel hymn "Trouble in My Way."

"I know what they're thinking - 'What's up with the jerseys? Is this a joke?"' said Keir Thomas, a sophomore strong safety from Winston-Salem.

It's no joke. Blue-and-gold No. 30 isn't the only jock in this choir - N.C. A&T's football team is the choir. The young men and their coaches made up one of the featured choirs celebrating the fourth anniversary of the Brothers of Praise gospel group at Genesis last Sunday. The church nearly erupted when the choir was introduced to a standing ovation.

"The football team?!" exclaimed churchgoer Chrisie Gray, 40, an A&T alum. "That's wonderful!"

Yvonne Dewar, 55, raised her hands toward heaven.

"I think it's wonderful that a group of young men like that would be in church on a Sunday afternoon praising God," Dewar said. "It gives me hope for this world."

And here's the real surprise - these guys can sing.

Thomas, who battles giants on the football field with 186 pounds of raw physical strength, brings people to their feet at Genesis with his tenor solo of "Amazing Grace."

"Wow," said Jamison Gilyard, a 16-year-old sophomore at Smith High School. "They're good."

On the field, they're known as "Blue Death," but people are starting to see a new side of the imposing athletes. It's something the college athletes are just rediscovering themselves.

It all began last fall, when the 100-member team and its coaches visited Mount Zion Baptist Church and ended up with most at the altar reconnecting with their Christian faith or accepting Jesus as their savior for the first time.

"The tears wouldn't stop flowing," said Alonzo Lee, A&T assistant football coach and team chaplain.

It was College Day, the second Sunday in August, and the sanctuary was infused with the excitement of students returning for the fall semester. Cheers of "Aggie Pride" had already loudly reverberated throughout the sanctuary, drowning out all others, during a roll call of local colleges, including UNCG and Bennett.

Then came the reality check. The church put on a play showing college students confronted with various pressures.

In one, two friends are on the way to Bible study when one talks the other into going to a nightclub instead. In another, a young woman is trying to seduce her boyfriend, who wants to wait until marriage.

In the third, a young man who had given up smoking marijuana is talked into trying it one more time.

One of the young girls dies and ends up standing before God - a representation of what could happen to any of them.

By the end of the play, people were sobbing in the audience, some standing, hands clasped, in prayer.

"It's like they put a mirror up for a lot of people," said Ricky Bennett, a freshman defensive end from Raleigh.

What began as a trickle of young people moving toward the altar quickly became a flood, including a few of the football players. Before long, just about every one of them was headed to the altar, along with their coaches.

"God had already been dealing with me about the college lifestyle," said sophomore Lammon Ringgold , a 6-foot-1-inch, 240-pound inside linebacker from Aberdeen. "I felt as though I needed to be prayed over. I felt I needed help to improve my behavior. One of the characters said how they were 'back-slidden,' and it made me think of myself."

Instead of going on with his sermon, Bishop George Brooks closed his Bible and asked those who wanted prayer, who wanted to build a relationship with Jesus, to step forward. Then he stepped away from the microphone.

"He said, 'I don't want to mess up what God has done,' " Bennett remembered.

"When we walked out of there we were a closer-knit group," Bennett said. And more reflective.

"After you practice five or six days a week and you have to go to study hall or classes, it would be easy to sleep past noon on Sunday," Bennett said. "Instead, guys are up saying, 'Let's go to church.' "

Many players were already spiritual, having grown up in households in which the church was the foundation of the family, said Ivan Larrymore, a sophomore quarterback from Saint Matthews, S.C.

"When you think about football players you don't think about emotions ... but there are some good hearts on this team," Larrymore said.

Before the experience at Mount Zion, the coaches had already tried instilling in the players that though they wanted them to do their best on the field with the talents God gave them, they also wanted them to know more - which is how they ended up together in church.

"They really care about us as people, not just football players," said Larrymore, a first-year transfer from Virginia Tech. "They say there is something greater than football. When we pray, when we say the Lord's Prayer as a team, coach Lee says, 'Don't just say it, mean it from your heart.'

"I didn't get that at Virginia Tech."

Lee says he is seizing the opportunity that comes with his job. Men are often uncomfortable telling each other they love and care for them, but often that's what they need to hear.

"I see 100 young men every day and can have an impact on them ... and I don't want to miss this chance," Lee said.

The weeks after the church visit found them on the football field, in front of thousands of cheering fans. But the urge to do more with their spiritual side was strong.

At the same time Lee was planning to put together a football choir just like the one he began back at Hampton University, where he was defensive coordinator and linebacker coach before coming to A&T in the same positions.

The idea soon clicked.

When Lee announced his intentions to start a choir, nearly 30 players showed up. Most were like Bennett, who, as a youngster, had been in the children's choir at his church.

"I used to hate it so much because I was always the biggest person - I was like 'Ma, I don't want to sing in the choir,' " said Bennett, who is 6 feet 1 and 235 pounds. "Now I fit right in."

Rico Watkins, a junior quarterback from Tulsa, Okla., handles a microphone with confidence during team performances. He grew up in a family of singers and ministers. He sings lead on "Let's Hide Behind the Mountain," an old gospel tune.

"Singing on this choir is much like scoring in front of a large crowd - only in the stadium, the cheers come from people who want you to whip the other team. In church, it's the people whose souls you have touched," Watkins said.

Lee says he believes the choir has made the team stronger. Under new coach George Small, the team ended the year as champions - with a 10-3 record, a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference championship and an appearance in the Division I-AA playoffs.

"I believe that our experiences this past fall was the start of building the faith that catapulted us through the championship season," Lee said.

The choir also provided an outlet for their grief when teammate Herbert Dixon was shot and killed at a nightclub near his hometown in April. The choir performed at his memorial service.

"His death had a great effect on us," Lee said. "Herbert was well-loved, and those guys felt the loss. They poured their hearts into those songs. It was for him."

It was the first time the group had performed on campus and the first time many of their classmates had heard them sing.

"We're a great football team and a good choir - we've had people stop us on campus and say, 'I can't believe how good you sounded,' " said sophomore quarterback Marshal Glenn of Charlotte. "It's because we sing what we believe, so it comes from the heart."

The players practice an hour a week and have been invited to sing at several local churches and events. They see themselves as role models for aspiring athletes and others.

"It says to young kids that, yes, on the field you have to be tough, but in the game of life you need God on your side," said Ringgold, the linebacker.

But don't look for halos in their lockers, Ringgold said.

"We're still young," Ringgold said. "I guess it's that we'll make bad choices, but we're trying."

Contact Nancy H. McLaughlin at 373-7049 or nmclaughlin@news-record.com