Hardie, Claiborn Named To 2007 Pre-season All-MEAC Team

Virginia Beach, VA---Rudy Hardie and Thomas Claiborn have been named to the 2007 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference first team as voted by the conference head coaches and sports information directors.

Hardie, a 6-1, 270-pound senior from Hartford, CT, is coming off the best season of his career, collecting 54 tackles, including 22 tackles for losses, 10 sacks and 3 forced fumbles.

A former walk-on, Hardie capped off the 2006 season by being named to the All-MEAC first team as well as to the Sheridan Broadcasting Network (SBN) Black College All-American team.

Hardie's dominance was part of the reason the Bison defense ranked in the Top 10 statistical categories nationally and among the best in the MEAC.

Claiborn, a 5-10, 178-pound senior cornerback from Pittsburg, PA, came out of nowhere to emerge as one of the top cornerbacks in the conference.  Plagued by injuries through most of his career at Howard, he was inserted in the starting lineup in the second game of the season and helped solidify the secondary by turning in his best season by recording 57 tackles, breaking up seven passes, picking off the first interception of his career and recovering two fumbles, one in which was returned 70 yards for a TD.

Travis Harmon, Randall White, Robert Dowdy and Endor Cooper were all named to the second team.  Harmon, a 6-2, 285-pound senior center from Miami, FL, was one of the keys to the Bison strong 4-1 finish that featured a ball-control attack.

White is a 6-3, 305-pound junior guard from Greensboro, NC, who missed all of last season, but was generally regarded as one of the top up-and-coming offensive linemen in the MEAC before his injury in 2005.

Dowdy, a 6-2, 220-pound senior linebacker from Fayetteville, NC, has quietly been on the most consistent linebackers in the MEAC.  In 2006, he finished fourth on the team in tackles with 69, including six tackles for losses, a sack and an interception, the first of his career.

Cooper, a 6-3, 245-pound junior from Woodbridge, VA overcame two challenges to have the best season of his career.  After missing all of the 2005 season with an injury, Cooper was moved from linebacker to defensive end.  The pass rush extraordinaire quickly made the transition by recording 50 tackles, 11 of which resulted in losses, 8.5 sacks and two recovered fumbles in nine games.

The Bison were picked to finish eighth in the nine-team conference despite returning several starters from a team that finished strong, winning four of its last five games.

"(Former head coach) Rayford Petty laid a good foundation and we have all the keys to work with," said new Bison head coach Carey Bailey.  "Our defensive line will continue to be the rock and we hope to have a steady offense with quarterback Brian Johnson returning."

Players return on August 8 and the season opener is September 8 vs rival Hampton in Greene Stadium at 1 pm.