Alaribe ready to step up 
 
By MIKE POTTER : The Herald-Sun
mpotter@heraldsun.com
Aug 23, 2007 : 9:43 pm ET 

Azubike Alaribe has been waiting for this chance his entire college career. 

N.C. Central's 6-5, 286-pound senior offensive tackle from Raleigh Millbrook was on one of the best offensive lines in Division II football last season, as the Eagles went 11-1 and were named Black College Football national champions. 

With their move up in classification to the Football Championship Subdivision this season, the Eagles won't be in the running for any Division II honors this time. But they do have a chance to retain that national title. 

The defense of that will begin Saturday at 6 p.m. when the Eagles visit Albany (Ga.) State in the season opener for both teams. 

NCCU walloped the Golden Rams 20-0 in the season opener last year in Durham, but it was a result that shocked just about everyone outside the Eagles' football team. The Eagles' first win in three tries in the series did not slow Albany State's run of conference championships, as they finished 7-4 and won the SIAC for the fourth straight season. 

NCCU, of course, cannot defend the CIAA title it won last year. But Saturday's game, to be shown live on CSTV, matches the 2006 champions of the only two conferences of Historically Black College in Division II. 

Last season, most of the headlines from the Eagles offensive line went to scrappy senior center Robert Duncan -- who is now an assistant coach at Riverside High -- and hulking senior tackle Sam Funches. But Alaribe (pronounced Ah-zoo-bee-kay Ah-lah-ree-bay), who was CIAA all-rookie three seasons ago and is back with fellow line starters Carlos Hardy and Gabriel Manns, said he's ready to step up his game even more. 

"I think the guys who came in as freshmen when I did really bonded well from the start," said Alaribe, who has played three seasons with a combined record of 29-5. "Everybody got to be really close both on and off the field. 

"We lost some outstanding linemen from last season, but the guys who replaced them are really doing a good job." 

First-year NCCU coach Mose Rison, who was the Eagles' offensive coordinator last season in his first year with the program, said he was impressed with Alaribe the first time they met. 

"He's just an outstanding person," Rison said. "He was one of the first players I met in the interview process [in 2006]. He and Robert Duncan and Sam Funches were in the lobby, and he said, 'We hear you might be the new offensive coordinator. Welcome.' 

"He had an outstanding off-season, and I had a chance to see him a lot in the weight room. He got a lot stronger in the off-season, and now he's more physical. He's obviously intelligent. I expect him to go out and do a great job for us on Saturday." 

Alaribe, who was a two-way lineman for Millbrook, said he picked NCCU after also having contacts from several teams around the state, including North Carolina A T. His older brother Osita, who finished his career as a defensive end for the Aggies in 2004, is an assistant coach at Ouachita Baptist. 

"I saw him play in the Aggie-Eagle Classics and wanted to play in that game," Azurike Alaribe said. "NCCU kept recruiting me. 

"Osita is always rooting for me except when we play the Aggies." 

Alaribe said he would love to retain the black national championship, and Saturday's game almost certainly is a must win in that effort. 

"I think we're ready mentally and physically," Alaribe said. "We just have to stop worrying about the heat. If we can win the first game, it can really get us going." 

NOTES -- CSTV is on cable channel 327 in Durham. ... All NCCU games will be broadcast on WRJD (1410-AM) this season. ... The Eagles' first home game will be on Sept. 2 against in-state rival Fayetteville State.