NSU on TV tonight twice

Move over Jack Bauer, there are Demons we’ll be watching tonight!

Former Northwestern State star and current Dallas Desperados WR/DB Jermaine Jones will play tonight on ESPN2 at 7 p.m. CT, when the Dallas Desperados (6-0) host the Philadelphia Soul (4-1).

This will be the second of three appearances that Dallas will make in the regular season on Russell Athletic ESPN Arena Football Monday. The third game will be on Monday, June 25th at 9 p.m. CT, when they face the Colorado Crush.

Jones, in his fifth season of Arena Football, leads his team in tackles with 35, and has 3 interceptions. The Morgan City native was the 1998 Southland Conference Player of the Year and runner-up in voting for the Buck Buchanan Award given to the national defensive player of the year in Division I-AA football. He was a consensus All-America selection.

At 8:30 on ABC, there’s NSU graduate Erin Parker on “The Bachelor.” Last week, the 2004 accounting graduate (she graduated with honors, cum laude, by the way) was the last of 15 contestants to receive one of 12 roses, signifying an invitation to remain in the chase for the affections of U.S. Navy Lt. Andy Baldwin. The Logansport native, now a financial analyst in Dallas, will try to stay in the game tonight. The field started with 25 women hoping to be “the one.”

It remains to be seen if she can make it as far as former Demon football player Lanny Lawrence did three years ago, when he got down to the final four before getting an unkind cut. To recall that entertaining saga, check out the link below:

Click here

Doug Ireland, SID

Coach Hatch back in hoops action

Former Demon basketball standout Gayle Hatch (1960-62), best known as one of America’s foremost weight training experts, has been named strength and conditioning coach of the LSU men’s basketball team.

Maybe in between directing workouts, he might give the Tigers some memories of his 44-point game, second best in Demon history, on Dec. 13, 1961 against Kentucky Wesleyan. In that performance, he sank 18 of 21 shots – an amazing 85.7 percent, stil the best in school history by a player with at least 11 attempts.

“Coach Hatch,” as he is universally known (and I mean universally), reached the pinnacle of his coaching career in 2004. He was named the head coach for the 2004 USA Olympic Weightlifting Team competing in Athens, Greece.

Coach Hatch is a member of several weightlifting and strength and conditioning halls of fame. He was also included in an exhibit of prominent native Americans at the Smithsonian museum in Washington.

Some of his pupils have been the strength and conditioning coaches for national champion football teams at Miami, Tennessee and LSU.

The Baton Rouge resident is a member of the NSU Graduate N Club Hall of Fame and the Long Purple Line, is a recipient of the Nth Degree and was honored with the creation of the Gayle Hatch Basketball Scholarship supporting Demon basketball. He keeps a close eye on the current-day Demons and stays in touch with head coach Mike McConathy.

Hatch has been a friend and advisor to LSU basketball coaches Dale Brown and John Brady, and received a Final Four ring for his efforts in 2006.

Brown was a catalyst for creating the NSU basketball scholarship in Coach Hatch’s name a couple of years ago. He also spearheaded a tribute dinner for Coach Hatch prior to the Athens Olympic Games.

Stork report: one more Moore

Talk about timing: Amy Moore, wife of Demons’ assistant basketball coach Jeff Moore, managed to wait until the end of the college basketball season to give birth to their first child.

Gracie Ann was 7 pounds, 3-ounces and 19-inches long when she arrived Wednesday morning in Bossier City, where Mom has been a third grade teacher. The family will relocate to Natchitoches later this spring.

Dad reports his entire universe has been turned upside down. Everybody is doing great.

Demons in Canada

The Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League informed us Friday that they are signing former Demon offensive lineman Woodly Telfort for the 2007 season. The news led us to wonder about the status of the Demons in Canada.

Telfort started for the Demons in 2005, the only season at Northwestern for the South Carolina transfer. Last year, Telfort played with the Grand Rapids Rampage of the Arena Football League.

Another recent Demon player continuing his career in Canada is Toby Zeigler. Zeigler was picked up by the Edmonton Eskimos after finishing his four-year career in Natchitoches as the all-time leader in all-purpose yardage and receptions and all-time receiving yardage.

Former Northwestern linebacker, Jamal Johnson is the senior Demon representative in the CFL. While at NSU, Johnson was named All-Southland Conference in both of his seasons and SLC Defensive Player of the Year in 2004. Preparing for his third season with the British Columbia Lions, Johnson was a special teams contributor for the Grey Cup champions last season, recording 12 tackles, forcing a fumble, and recovering a fumble for a 39-yard touchdown.

We’ll keep an eye on these former Demons as they try to make a name for themselves on the Great White North.

Brian Seiler, Intern-Marketing/SID

Nall moves up with the Bills

The Buffalo Bills’ trade of star linebacker Takeo Spikes to the Philadelphia Eagles was a boost to the career of former Demon quarterback Craig Nall.

Also in the trade this week, Buffalo sent their No. 2 quarterback and former starter Kelly Holcomb to Philly. That moves Nall, a record-setting passer who led the 2001 Demons into the national playoffs, into the backup spot behind former Tulane quarterback J.P. Losman.

Losman established himself as the starter with a strong finish to the season. Nall was looking good in preseason until he hurt a hamstring, and missed a lot of action before coming back with a couple of impressive outings that had a lot of media thinking he was the No. 2 or maybe even a threat to push Losman at the beginning of last season.

Now he’s the guy who will be in the bullpen for the Bills in 2007.

Doug Ireland, SID