BY JOHN DEVLIN, Special to The Post and Courier
ORANGEBURG — There is a sense of history in the air as the South Carolina State football program prepares for its centennial jubilee.
And the Bulldogs are hoping to do justice to their "100 years of football" theme.
Winning a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference championship and earning a trip to the Football Championship Subdivision (former Division I-AA) for the first time since 1982 is at the top of the list, of course.
But S.C. State is also entering a new era in terms of scheduling, lining up big-time opponents for the first time. The Bulldogs open the season in Colorado Springs against Air Force on Sept. 1, but the game every SCSU fan is eagerly anticipating is the Sept. 15 date at Williams-Brice Stadium against the University of South Carolina Gamecocks.
"Getting games against big-name schools has been the plan since I came here," said Bulldogs coach Buddy Pough.
"Playing against South Carolina has been a dream for a lot of people associated with this school. And we were very fortunate to get Air Force to open the season. That trip is going to be a great experience for our kids."
And, Pough said, this season is just the beginning. The Bulldogs will take on the likes of Clemson, Georgia Tech and Central Florida in the future.
"It makes sense for us to play teams of that caliber now because we're finally at a point talent-wise where we feel we can at least be competitive against top-level schools," said Pough.
On the field, the Bulldogs must be more focused than a year ago. Up and down all season, S.C. State finished with an unsatisfying 7-4 overall record and a second-place tie with Delaware State in the MEAC standings behind Hampton.
"We played so poorly early, ugly really, and then we got back on track for a while, and beat Hampton," said Pough.
"Then, we lose to Delaware State (10-9) and that cost us the conference championship. That was the toughest loss I've ever experienced, and the season was a real disappointment because we thought we were on our way."
Pough realizes the first three games will be telling, if not in terms of wins and losses.
"We have Bethune-Cookman in between Air Force and South Carolina, and right now that's the most important game of the season," said the sixth-year S.C. State boss.
The bottom line is simple enough: the time is now.
"I'm just going to call a spade a spade," said Pough.
"We have the most talent we've had since I've been here. We have size, speed, experience and pretty good depth at most positions. So, in my mind the only acceptable thing is for us to win the conference and make it to the playoffs.
"Anything less than that, well, there's no telling what I might do. We've had great support from the university and our fans, and it's time we paid them back."
Offensively, the Bulldogs should run the ball with authority again, even though DeShawn Baker (3,687 career rushing yards) and two-time All-America tackle Clyde Reed have graduated.
Four starters return up front, including Lowcountry products Nate Richardson and Derrell Pringle, and young runners Will Ford and Jonathan Woods have already proven they can do the job. The fleet Ford was the MEAC rookie of the year as a true freshman last year.
The passing game should be much better. Cleveland McCoy, a fifth-year senior and a three-year starter, is at last comfortable with the offensive system that caused so many transition problems last season, and is looking to have a career year.
The young and talented receiving corps of Terrance Smith, Tre' Oliver, Dusten DuBose and Phillip Morris should give McCoy the kind of deep-threat options he hasn't had since Tavarus Morgan graduated in 2004.
Defensively, the Bulldogs are loaded at linebacker and in the secondary, but inexperienced up front. Linebacker/safety Marshall McFadden and linebacker David Erby are definite all-conference candidates.
ORANGEBURG — There is a sense of history in the air as the South Carolina State football program prepares for its centennial jubilee.
And the Bulldogs are hoping to do justice to their "100 years of football" theme.
Winning a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference championship and earning a trip to the Football Championship Subdivision (former Division I-AA) for the first time since 1982 is at the top of the list, of course.
But S.C. State is also entering a new era in terms of scheduling, lining up big-time opponents for the first time. The Bulldogs open the season in Colorado Springs against Air Force on Sept. 1, but the game every SCSU fan is eagerly anticipating is the Sept. 15 date at Williams-Brice Stadium against the University of South Carolina Gamecocks.
"Getting games against big-name schools has been the plan since I came here," said Bulldogs coach Buddy Pough.
"Playing against South Carolina has been a dream for a lot of people associated with this school. And we were very fortunate to get Air Force to open the season. That trip is going to be a great experience for our kids."
And, Pough said, this season is just the beginning. The Bulldogs will take on the likes of Clemson, Georgia Tech and Central Florida in the future.
"It makes sense for us to play teams of that caliber now because we're finally at a point talent-wise where we feel we can at least be competitive against top-level schools," said Pough.
On the field, the Bulldogs must be more focused than a year ago. Up and down all season, S.C. State finished with an unsatisfying 7-4 overall record and a second-place tie with Delaware State in the MEAC standings behind Hampton.
"We played so poorly early, ugly really, and then we got back on track for a while, and beat Hampton," said Pough.
"Then, we lose to Delaware State (10-9) and that cost us the conference championship. That was the toughest loss I've ever experienced, and the season was a real disappointment because we thought we were on our way."
Pough realizes the first three games will be telling, if not in terms of wins and losses.
"We have Bethune-Cookman in between Air Force and South Carolina, and right now that's the most important game of the season," said the sixth-year S.C. State boss.
The bottom line is simple enough: the time is now.
"I'm just going to call a spade a spade," said Pough.
"We have the most talent we've had since I've been here. We have size, speed, experience and pretty good depth at most positions. So, in my mind the only acceptable thing is for us to win the conference and make it to the playoffs.
"Anything less than that, well, there's no telling what I might do. We've had great support from the university and our fans, and it's time we paid them back."
Offensively, the Bulldogs should run the ball with authority again, even though DeShawn Baker (3,687 career rushing yards) and two-time All-America tackle Clyde Reed have graduated.
Four starters return up front, including Lowcountry products Nate Richardson and Derrell Pringle, and young runners Will Ford and Jonathan Woods have already proven they can do the job. The fleet Ford was the MEAC rookie of the year as a true freshman last year.
The passing game should be much better. Cleveland McCoy, a fifth-year senior and a three-year starter, is at last comfortable with the offensive system that caused so many transition problems last season, and is looking to have a career year.
The young and talented receiving corps of Terrance Smith, Tre' Oliver, Dusten DuBose and Phillip Morris should give McCoy the kind of deep-threat options he hasn't had since Tavarus Morgan graduated in 2004.
Defensively, the Bulldogs are loaded at linebacker and in the secondary, but inexperienced up front. Linebacker/safety Marshall McFadden and linebacker David Erby are definite all-conference candidates.
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