Breaking News: Alabama A&M Bulldogs Head Coach Connell Maynor Has been Fired After Breaking the Contract Agreement

Connell Maynor is beginning his fourth season as the head coach of the Hampton University football program.

Maynor is a veteran of the game with over 20 years of football experience both as a player and coach — most recently as the offensive architect of the back to back HBCU national titles at Winston-Salem State. He is the 20th head coach in the history of Hampton University football.
The 2016 Pirates finished 5-6 overall and 5-3 in MEAC play to tie for third with South Carolina State.  Hampton snapped an eight-game losing skid to the Bulldogs with a 28-26 win at Armstrong Stadium and had wins in four out of five games down the stretch of the season.
Senior wide receiver Rashawn Proctor was named First Team All-MEAC in 2016 making it the third straight year that the Pirates had a first team receiver.  Joining Proctor in post-season honors were running back Yahkee Johnson, tight end Jack Willenbrock, offensive lineman Johnny Cruz and punter Christian Faber-Kinney on the second team.  Earning third team All-MEAC was quarterback Jaylian Williamson, linebacker Devin Vandyke and defensive back Brendan Cole.
2015 saw the Pirates double their win total from 2014, going 6-5 overall for the program’s first winning season since 2011. Hampton went 5-3 in MEAC play last season, including wins over Howard, Delaware State, Morgan State, Florida A&M, and Savannah State.

Four Pirates were named First Team All-MEAC in 2015: wideout Twarn Mixson, offensive lineman Torrian White, defensive end Miles Grooms, and punter Christian Faber-Kinney. In addition, Mixson was named A BoxToRow and SBN Sports All-American.

Other Pirates to earn All-MEAC honors were quarterback David Watford and offensive lineman Michael Young (Second Team), as well as running back Christopher Dukes, defensive lineman Charles Owens, linebacker Joshua Thorne, and return specialist Darius Banks (Third Team).

The Pirates went 3-9 in 2014, Maynor’s first season, and his first win as a Div. I head coach came on Sept. 20 when Hampton defeated Miles College 34-30. Maynor’s first year also saw the Pirates upset then-nationally ranked Bethune-Cookman 40-35 on national television, a game that knocked the Wildcats out of contention for the conference title.

Hampton also defeated Delaware State 23-0, giving Maynor his first shutout win as a Div. I head coach. It was the first time since 2009 that Hampton had shut out an opponent.

The Pirates were second in the MEAC in total offense in their first season under Maynor, averaging 381.9 yards per game – including a MEAC-best 218.8 yards per contest in the air. In addition, Hampton was fifth in the MEAC in rushing offense, to the tune of 163.2 yards per game.

Hampton was second in the MEAC in first downs and fourth in pass efficiency.

Mixson and Faber-Kinney were First Team All-MEAC selections in Maynor’s first season, and Faber-Kinney was also a VaSID Second Team All-State selection. Running back Jorrian Washington, offensive lineman Kory Alpichi, and Thorne were Second Team All-MEAC selections.

Offensive lineman Ronald Rose and Grooms were named Third Team All-MEAC, giving the Pirates seven All-Conference honorees in Maynor’s first season.

Maynor, a former standout football student-athlete at both Winston-Salem State and North Carolina A&T, has developed a reputation as one of the game’s brightest offensive minds, and he brings to Hampton a sterling resume and championship pedigree.

In four years at WSSU, Maynor went 45-6 overall and 29-2 in CIAA play. He won three straight CIAA championships and made three straight appearances in the NCAA Div. II playoffs. In 2011, the Rams made it to the national semifinals, before appearing in the Div. II national championship game in 2012.

WSSU won HBCU national championships in both 2011 and 2012.

He was also named CIAA Coach of the Year in 2011 and 2012, as well as earning Boxtorow HBCU Coach of the Year, Pigskin Club of Washington, D.C. CIAA Coach of the Year, Black College Sports Page BAAD Team Coach of the Year, and Don Hansen Football Gazette Super Region One Coach of the Year.

Maynor was also named the 2011 Sheridan Broadcasting National HBCU Coach of the Year.

Maynor brings more than two decades of football experience both as a coach and as a player in the intercollegiate and professional ranks and is the proud owner of 10 championships, six as a player and four as a coach.

Maynor went to WSSU by way of Fayetteville State, where he spent 10 seasons as a member of the Broncos’ award-winning football staff, most recently serving as both the quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator, where he helped to lead FSU to four CIAA title game appearances and three CIAA Championships (2002, 2003 and 2009).

In addition to his collegiate coaching responsibilities, Maynor served as the offensive coordinator for the Arena Football League’s Philadelphia Soul from 2006-2008 where he helped to lead the Soul to the Arena Bowl XXII World Championship in 2008.

Under his leadership the Soul ranked first in scoring offense (62 points per game), touchdowns (132), touchdown passes (102), and red zone efficiency (85 percent) in 2008 en route to an Arena Bowl title.

Maynor’s successes have come not only as a coach, but as a player as he has earned six championships as an athlete.

The starting quarterback for the Rams’ 1987 CIAA championship football team under then-head coach and current-WSSU Director of Athletics William “Bill” Hayes, Maynor was named to the All-CIAA team as a freshman after passing for 1,071 yards.

After following Hayes to North Carolina A&T, Maynor was named First-Team All-MEAC in both 1990 and 1991. In addition, Maynor was named the MEAC Offensive Player of the Year and was honored as the 100% Wrong Club Player of the Year in both 1990 and 1991 en route to leading the Aggies to the 1991 MEAC championship.

In 2014, Maynor was inducted into the North Carolina A&T Sports Hall of Fame.

A veteran of 12 years in the Arena Football League (AFL), Maynor is a four-time AFL World Champion, having led the Tampa Bay Storm to the 1993 and 1994 World Championships — in addition to quarterbacking the Orlando Predators to the 1998 and 2000 World Championship titles. For his effort, Maynor was named the Arena Bowl Most Valuable Player in 2000.

A veteran of both the CIAA and the MEAC, Maynor has extensive experience at the both the Division I and Division II levels, and he has demonstrated extensive recruiting acumen, which will immediately help him at Hampton University as he prepares to lead the Pirates back to glory.

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