July 12, 2005

Elizabeth City State University Chancellor Mickey L. Burnim and Rocky Mount Mayor Frederick Turnage proudly announce the 7th annual Down East Viking Football Classic will be held at 6 p.m. September 24, 2005, in Rocky Mount, North Carolina. This year's classic will match up the Elizabeth City State University Vikings and the St. Augustine's College of Raleigh, North Carolina. The game between two Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association teams will end with the presentation of the Turnage Cup, an esteemed trophy bearing the name of the winning team.

The Down East Viking Football Classic features ECSU Football Coach Waverly Tillar and St. Augustine's College Football Coach Michael Costa. Tillar is in his third year of leadership for the Vikings. He has one trophy (2003) from this classic to his credit. Coach Michael Costa, of St. Augustine College's, is making his first appearance as a head football coach at the Down East Viking Football Classic. However, Costa is a familiar face at ECSU and the two teams have played on previous occasions. Relevant points of interest follow:

* Coach Michael Costa was an assistant coach at ECSU 1998-2001, as the defensive coordinator.

* Coach Costa and ECSU head coach Waverly Tillar were both assistant coaches on the ECSU football staff for two seasons (2000-2001)

* Since Saint Augustine's resurrected their football program in 2002, the Vikings and Falcons have clashed three times. In 2002 the Vikings defeated the Falcons 12-6 in at Roebuck Stadium in front of a Homecoming crowd.

* In 2003 the Falcons got revenge in Raleigh, shutting out ECSU 7-0.

* In Elizabeth City in 2004 the Falcons earned their second straight shut out over the Vikings downing ECSU 22-0.

For more information about the Down East Viking Football Classic, contact Elizabeth City State University Athletics Department at 252/335-3388 / 1-800-690-3385 or go to www.ecsu.edu/specialevents/devfc/index.html.