Long’s time coming: Pough, SCSU offense changes to suit former Mr. Football

Malcolm Long stood straight and kept his chin high.

At South Carolina State’s media day early Friday, the sophomore was a popular topic of discussion and rightfully so. With Cleve McCoy graduated, it’s time for the former South Carolina “Mr. Football” to start living up to expectations.

“I’m nervous but excited and happy all at the same time,” Long said. “When it all comes out, I’m just going out and trying to have fun. I’m not going to try to impress anybody. I’m going to try to help my team win a MEAC Championship.”

He might not be trying, but Long has definitely impressed S.C. State head coach Oliver “Buddy” Pough. If he succeeds in the new offensive schemes dreamed up by Pough and Howard Feggins, SCSU fans will join the ranks of the impressed soon enough.

SEE BULLDOGS VIDEO: S.C. State Scrimmage Highlights on Aug. 9, 2008

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Six questions SCSU football must answer in 2008

Call it the post-Centennial season for the South Carolina State football team.

Last year was a season-long celebration for the Bulldogs as they commemorated a 100-years of football. The only thing missing was a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference championship - a goal which has eluded the Bulldogs the past two seasons. As S.C. State embarks on the start of fall practice today, it is once again a preseason favorite looking to live up to lofty expectations. Despite returning 44 letter winners and the conference’s top offensive player in running back William Ford, the Bulldogs also find themselves looking to answer several questions entering the Aug. 30 season-opener at Central Florida:

IS THE “LONG” WAIT OVER?

From the moment quarterback Malcolm Long stepped on the S.C. State campus, high expectations have encircled him. His performance in spot duty against Howard when he threw two touchdowns and was 5-for-8 passing for 172 yards only increased the anticipation for the day when he would take the reins from quarterback Cleveland McCoy.

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"More than ever": Pough excited as SCSU reports, prepares for practice

Oliver “Buddy” Pough won’t be having a fun-filled Friday. Instead, Pough will spend the day checking 85 to 90 South Carolina State football players in, running through a little orientation and then comes the paperwork. “It’s a necessary evil,” Pough said Thursday evening. “Our compliance people have to get them to sign all types of paperwork. Our equipment people have to do all types of stuff. There is plenty to do. We have a full day ahead of us.”

The bright side? Get Friday’s paperwork and Saturday’s early-morning physical tests out the way, and around 4 p.m. Saturday afternoon the Bulldogs can hit the field for their first fall practice of the 2008 season. Excited?

SCSU Bulldogs vs. Norfolk State University Spartans in 2007 (Mark's Digital Photography)

“More than ever,” Pough said without pause. “This is a new team, new kinds of faces. We have people moving around different places ... experiments to see how they will work. Marshall (McFadden) is moving up, Terrence (Smith) is moving over (from wide receiver to defensive back), and our quarterbacks ... I want to see how they are going to react to being the guys.

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S.C. State Bulldogs: Long's time coming

Photo: #7 - QB Malcolm Long leads a pack of inexperienced signal callers into the Bulldogs Spring training sessions.

For sophomore quarterback Malcolm Long, the time is now.

Since the arrival last fall of the former South Carolina "Mr. Football" winner out of Gaffney, South Carolina State fans have anticipated the day he would take the reins as the starter. The glimpses of potential Long exhibited during spot appearances late in the season only added to the hype.

Now that record-setting quarterback Cleveland McCoy has graduated, the Bulldogs have essentially handed Long the keys to the offense. It's a responsibility Long is anxious to seize hold of and guide in the direction of a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference championship.

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Hendrick leaves SCSU for South Florida

Photo: Coach Oliver "Buddy" Pough have the "for hire" sign out for three great assistant coaches.

For the third time in four years, South Carolina State will be seeking a new defensive coordinator.
Defensive coordinator John Hendrick, who arrived at SCSU following a five-year stint as Benedict head football coach, has been hired as the new defensive tackles coach at South Florida. The University of Pittsburgh graduate, who was a former All-Big East Defensive Lineman, joins a fledgling Football Bowl Subdivision program which made great strides last season in reaching as high as number two in the Bowl Championship Series rankings.

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