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GSU student still missing, car found

Tuesday, 07 April 2009 04:22 Darryl Smith
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Run Date:  10/09/08


The family and friends of a missing GSU student are asking for help to locate her.

Michelle McMullen went home to Harrisburg, Pa., during the weekend of Sept. 26 to drop off her 6-year-old son Jayden to be cared for by her family. McMullen left on Sunday, Sept. 28, at around 9 p.m. to return to the area. McMullen was to have returned to GSU around Monday evening to go to classes and work on Tuesday, according to her father Michael McMullen.

However, Michelle didn't show up to work or to her classes, prompting the family to file a missing persons report.

Michelle, a business major, was last seen wearing blue jeans and a white T-shirt.

After a week of looking for clues, Michelle's 2002 Honda Accord was found yesterday (Wednesday) in Hagerstown, Md. "It was parked two blocks off the Interstate (81)," her father said. "It was kind of out in the middle of nowhere."

Michael said the police haven't determined any immediate signs of foul play. Michelle's cell phone was still in the car.

He also said that the police saw no blood in the car. "We are not sure what that means yet," he said. "(The police) are going to do a forensics investigation tomorrow."

News of Michelle's disappearance spread quickly, as local news media have aired or run the story through their respective outlets.

"We need to continue to push our efforts," Michael said. "Someone may have seen her. I don't want people to just read; I want them to respond."

Fliers with Michelle's information hit the campus early this week, and the Voter Empowerment team were also handing out fliers. MaDonna Awotwi, Michelle's best friend, has formed a Facebook group entitled, "Help Find Michelle Shelby McMullen" to help with efforts.

In the Facebook group, pictures have been added, showing the various ways Michelle wears her hair. In a Christmas picture, Michelle is posing with her son, Jayden.

"He's very concerned," Michael said of Jayden. "He's only six years old, but he knows something is wrong."

After news of Michelle's disappearance, the McMullen family was swamped with support, something Michael greatly appreciates.

"We continue to express our appreciation to people that are showing their concern and interest," Michael said.

"We are thankful for that and glad people continue to work with us."
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Student dies in weekend crash

Tuesday, 07 April 2009 04:22 Darryl Smith
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Run Date:  10/16/08

Grambling State is reeling after the loss of a kinesiology student over the weekend, as he was returning to the area from his home in Madison Parish. Christopher "Chico" Dunn died on Sunday after an early morning accident.

Dunn and his best friend Milton Jones Jr. were on their way back to the area from Madison Parish. On their way back, the car veered off-road and crashed into a tree. Both lost their lives from the accident.

The news shocked many students.

"I'm still in shock," said Shantoya Johnson. "He was a good dude. I remember him always having a smile on his face. We were all supposed to graduate at the same time."

Known for dressing fresh and clean, Dunn, also known as Mr. Swagger, was loved by many of his friends. After news of his death spread across campus, his wall was filled with memories.

"God only takes the best and ready ones," wrote Adrienne Griffith. "Chico was a great and sweet man. … He always had a smile on his face, no matter what. He will be greatly missed, but never forgotten."

As Dunn matriculated through his curriculum, he became friends with more and more people, spreading his warm smile to others.

"Chico was the most loyal and trusted friend that you can ask for," said Janet D. Jackson, a good friend. "He was warm and lovable when he came around."

Dunn's funeral is scheduled for Friday at 11 a.m. at Greater One Christian Fellowship Church in Delhi. Jones' funeral is scheduled for Saturday at 1 p.m. at the same church.

An avid Christian, Dunn was a family man, according to Jackson.

"He loved his parents, especially his mother," she said. "He just loved to have a good time and relax. He was very friendly."

No matter what trouble Dunn seemed to have, it was erased away by a smile that brought out the happiness in others.

"The fondest memory I have of him is cracking jokes and making people laugh," said Ashley Alford, his cousin. "He was always positive and cheerful."

When asked if she wanted to add something else, Johnson paused for a moment to gather her thoughts.

"We're going to miss him."
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Commentary: Students should appreciate the struggle of others

Tuesday, 07 April 2009 04:21 Darryl Smith
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Run Date:  10/23/08

Man, kids these days have it made.

It's amazing how much wiser I've become in the past four years, matriculating through Grambling State. As I've gotten used to the way things used to be, I'm noticing more and more students are not appreciating where this university is now.

When I first arrived at GSU in the summer of 2003, I was placed in Pinchback Hall on the sixth floor. Many of you don't know what Pinchback Hall is, so let me explain. Pinchback Hall was the equivalent of a slum high-rise.

You never knew what could malfunction in Pinchback. One day, the fire alarm would go off all morning, and the next day the elevator would break down, making you have to walk up and down the stairs. I remember when I had to take my first shower in Pinchback. I was literally disgusted by the conditions and opted to wait until I went home the next day.

But today, there are no towering high rises in Grambling. The last one is in its final phase of destruction, and now students have Tiger Village. I wish I could've lived in Tiger Village while I was matriculating through GSU.

To my dismay, I am shocked to see that students actually don't like the dorms. If students did, then they wouldn't tear them up or trash the dorms. They wouldn't break fences designed to protect them from would-be intruders.

Yet, students, for some reason, do these things, leaving the administrators shaking their heads. The sad thing is that the administrators are pretty lenient on punishments to the perps doing these activities.

So, this is my call to any administrator: Punish these idiots.

I wish Pinchback, Wheatley, Martha Adams and Jones still stood. We could place these fools in those dorms and let them tear them up. Maybe we would've saved money on demolishing them.

I don't want to come back to GSU in five years and see the dorms are raggedy or nearing destruction. I don't want to hear the same complaints that other students and I made when we first got here. I don't want to see holes in the walls and broken elevators.

Unfortunately, I fear that this will be the case. Even as President Judson and crew erect these new buildings, I fear idiots will be the downfall of them. While I know buildings don't make an institution, the quality of the dorms surely does attract top students to an institution.

I'm anxiously awaiting the opening of Dunbar Hall. It's looking very nice on the outside and seems to be a pretty big and more than suited to current needs. Once this is finished, I will tour the building, snapping my photos of a dream that will become a reality.

However, my question is will the students truly appreciate it? Will they tear it down like they did Drew Hall and are doing to Tiger Village? Will the building even last 10, 20, 30 years under the constant attacks from its inhabitants?

Those are questions I'll have to wait to have answered.
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2K Sports give gamers stiff b-ball challenge

Tuesday, 07 April 2009 04:21 Darryl Smith
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Run Date:  10/23/08

Like a true 2K geek, I quickly ran to the nearest gaming store and bought NBA 2K9. For the first time in a long time, I bought a GameStop video game that actually still had the plastic wrapper on it. Of course, I'm excited. I played 2K8, when it was still relevant and thoroughly enjoyed it.

As I put the game into my XBox 360, I waited with the anticipation of a 5-year-old on Christmas morning as the game loaded. The opening sequence was pretty cool, by the way, making the NBA team logos move around instead of their generic sitting-still sequence.

Being the type of gamer I am, I always pick a weak team to improve on during an Association. Instead of jumping into that mode, I decided to play an exhibition with a created player. I added myself into the game and decided to play with the Memphis Grizzlies.

After being thumped thoroughly, I decided to download a roster update and delete myself from the game. I quickly played a game with the Denver Nuggets against a poor Memphis Grizzlies team that sucked without me (at least I thought they did).

The point that I'm trying to make is that NBA 2K9 is not your ordinary basketball game. It's a lot harder, as I was getting whipped on the Pro setting. Yes, embarrassing. Don't worry, I finally beat a team, blowing them out by 20 points. But that was only because they weren't on point that game.

The graphics of NBA 2K9 are awesome. Some of the faces are hits and misses, but they will do for now. The arena floors (after the update) show the reflections of the lights. Players' sweat drip and glisten off their body, showing who's working hard and who's a benchwarmer.

The animations are better, flowing more fluidly than its predecessor. I love how players will get fouled, and their teammates will come help them up. At times, the player who committed the foul will help the guy up. Little things like this make this game work for me.

I didn't get a chance to get deep into Association mode. One killer thing for me is the Salary Cap. While it makes the game "realistic," it also makes it hard to rebuild a team. Not many teams (only one had a real salary cap space the last time I played) are able to accept trades, as it would break the rules.

One feature I did get into was the Slam Dunk Contest. It has a mediocre difficulty, and the judges do take points off if you aren't original. I also found it funny to see Kobe Bryant try to dunk over a car only to come up short and crash to the ground.

Despite its many glitches highlighted on YouTube, NBA 2K9 is a great buy for a basketball fan. However, you must have XBox Live to get rid of most of the glitches. The living roster, which keeps player ratings and rosters current, also includes patches for those insane glitches. If you are a basketball fan, go cop NBA 2K9 and enjoy winning - or losing - like I did.
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Lady Tigers win epic showdown on ESPNU to remain undefeated

Tuesday, 07 April 2009 04:21 Darryl Smith
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Run Date:  10/30/08


For six straight years, they have been one of the best to ever grace the court in the SWAC's West Division. As this season winds down, the Lady Tigers volleyball team is looking to make it seven years straight that they have held the division title.

However, before they could do that, they had to defeat an undefeated Prairie View A&M Panthers team, a team that wanted revenge. Last year, the Lady Tigers knocked the Lady Panthers out of the SWAC Tournament in a fierce match-up that went five sets, deflating their chances to defend their 2006 championship.

This year, the Lady Tigers only needed four sets to fully dispose of the Lady Panthers. The first set went to GSU 25-15. However, in the second set, the Lady Tigers ran into trouble, dropping the set 20-25.

"We stopped hitting the ball and stopped passing," said Coach Kim Young.

Young quickly corrected her squad's errors, as they won the next set 25-14. The final set went down to the wire, with both teams trading points and errors, letting the set be tied at 23-all.

However, the Lady Tigers pulled out the win, scoring the next two points to win the match.

"They went in with a strong mindset, and we won," said Young of the last night's game. "We played together and we stayed positive with each other and we pulled through a victory."

After hearing of their victory, Marcus Evans was ecstatic.

"I love what they are doing," he said. "Hands down, they are the truth!"

Long road ahead

It's been a long road for the Lady Tigers volleyball squad. It's been a decade since they last captured the SWAC Championship, a '97 team that Young was on. Since then, Ala. A&M has won seven of the last ten volleyball SWAC Championships.

However, that hasn't fazed the team.

"We feel like we're number one," said Latisha Stennis, "All of the hard work pays off."

Indeed it has. As of Oct. 26, the Lady Tigers are ranked number 1 in the NCAA Division I in aces per set. They also have four players ranked in the top 100 for the aces per set category.

With the season nearing its end, the Lady Tigers are prepared for one goal.

"All our hard work is starting to come together by us being undefeated in the SWAC," said Kayla Tiangco-Williams. "We're just trying to keep the momentum going. We are trying to go into the SWAC Tournament undefeated. Hopefully, we'll come out as SWAC Champs."

That goal may be a lot harder than it looks. Last year, the Lady Tigers were one win away from winning the SWAC title, only to see Alabama A&M dominate them in the final match, winning 3-0. However, the Lady Tigers aren't looking into the past, as they are trying to prove that they are the best team.

"At practice, Coach tells us that we have to play together as a team," said Stennis.

"I feel like we have a great opportunity of winning the SWAC Tournament this year."

With Grambling State hosting the SWAC Tournament this year in the Assembly Center and an undefeated streak on the line, the Lady Tigers are feeling the pressure, but are still as cool as the other side of the pillow.

"It's safe to say we have a bull's eyes on the back of our jerseys," said Tiangco-Williams. "We're confident in ourselves. We're trying to win the SWAC Championship."

Fans are also ready for the championship to return to GSU.

"It's good that the team is 'rolling like an 18-wheeler' and aiding Grambling in reaching the Commissioner's Cup," said Alonzo Marish, one of the trainers for the team.

Stennis said that the team is prepared to come out as victors in the SWAC Tournament.

"As long as we play our game, as long as we strive to be the better team, we'll come out on top."
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