2019 NCAA Division I College Football Team Previews: South Carolina State Bulldogs
South Carolina State Bulldogs
Location: Orangeburg, South Carolina
Coach: Oliver “Buddy” Pough (125-71), 18th Season at South Carolina State
Stadium: Oliver C. Dawson Stadium (Capacity: 22,000)
CSJ Projections:
6th: MEAC
13th: HBCU
8th: South Carolina
91st: FCS
221st: Division I
2018 In A Sentence: A tough 1-4 start for “Buddy” Pough‘s Bulldogs gave way to a great 4-1 stretch with a home win over Howard and a big road win vs. Florida A&M. A heartbreaking 21-16 loss to North Carolina Central caused SCSU to finish under .500.
Biggest Shoes to Fill: DE Damu Ford was one of the few seniors that are graduating from this Bulldog team. He had 16 tackles for loss and 3 1/2 sacks, and the Bulldogs will miss his disruption of opposing offenses.
Key Player: It’s no coincidence that SCSU’s fortunes improved parallel to the development of QB Tyrece Nick. The Johnston, South Carolina native scored 2 TDs in the Bulldog’s first four games, and 15 TDs in their next seven. The redshirt junior should only get better this season – definitely one to watch in the MEAC.
Fearless Prediction: The young Bulldogs are an interesting MEAC wild-card this season. They seem to have a good chance to improve over their 5-6 record from last season. But can they leapfrog the bigger dogs in the conference to make a run at the Celebration Bowl?
Chuck has been writing about Lehigh football since the dawn of the internet, or perhaps it only seems like it. He’s executive editor of the College Sports Journal and has also written a book, The Rivalry: How Two Schools Started the Most Played College Football Series.
Reach him at: this email or click below:
