South Carolina State Bulldogs
Overall Rank: #31
#2 MEAC
South Carolina State Team Page
2010 Record: (9-3, 7-1)
2010 Postseason: FCS Playoffs
Coach: Buddy Pough (76-29 at South Carolina State, 76-29 overall)
Returning Leaders:
Rushing: Asheton Jordan, RB, 642 yards
Passing: Derrick Wiley, QB, 103 yards
Receiving: Tyler McDonald, WR, 333 yards
Tackles: Donovan Richard, LB, 93
Sacks: Patrick Washington, DE, 8.0
Interceptions: Darius Drummond, S, 4
South Carolina State ended the 2010 campaign in a three-way tie for the conference title with Florida A&M and Bethune-Cookman. The Bulldogs and Bethune-Cookman both made it to the playoffs, but with the MEAC in flux, it may be more difficult for two teams to make the field of 20 this time around. There are a lot of coaching changes around the conference and the addition of Savannah State and North Carolina Central should water down the conference a little bit.
Strengths:
Coach Buddy Pough has built a superb defense at South Carolina State. The unit ranked second in the entire FCS in total defense and fourth in scoring defense. With eight starters returning, the unit should be very strong again in 2011. The departure of linebacker David Erby is a huge concern, but there is enough talent around to replace all of his production. It all starts up front where defensive end Patrick Washington led the Bulldogs with 8.0 sacks in 2010. Add Ronell Ferguson and Cortney Ingram to the front line and running against SCSU will be difficult. Without Erby, the linebackers have a few questions that need to be addressed, but senior Donovan Richard is certainly ready to take over the leadership role left behind by Erby. Younger players will have to fill in around him. The secondary is in good hands with Dominique Ellis. Christian Thompson is also an experienced senior who will again start in the secondary. Darius Drummond made some big plays during his freshman campaign and led the team with four interceptions. His development and knack for making big plays could be of great importance.
Weaknesses:
The defense will have to do a lot this year with so many questions on offense. They will need to create turnovers and give the new quarterback solid field position so SCSU can slug out some victories. Malcolm Long led SCSU to three straight playoff appearances during his three years as a starter. His replacement will be figured out in the fall as Derrick Wiley, Tedarius Wiley and Richard Cue look to take over the job. However, the job will not be easy now that Lennel Elmore, the team’s star wideout, appears to be ineligible for the 2011 campaign. Tyler McDonald, Trey Williams and tight end Antuanne Kerr are all quality receivers, but none of them have the break away ability that Elmore had. The team’s top rusher is also gone, but Coach Pough has options with Asheton Jordon and Devin Wherry. Jordon rushed for 642 yards last season and made five trips to the end zone. The biggest issue for the offense could be on the line. Johnny Culbreath and Josh Harrison are off in the NFL and Juavahr Nathan and Jake Johnson are the only starters returning. Tristan Bellamy is pretty much the only other player who saw any significant action on the line and the holes and much of the depth will have to be filled by freshmen and inexperienced linemen.
The Bottom Line:
The defense will be fine, but the loss of Elmore will have a negative effect on field position as he was a fine kick returner on top of being a great receiver. The questions surrounding the offense will be answered. The team will find a quarterback and they have enough quality receivers and running backs to replace the departed players, but the offensive line will be young and far less talented than they were a year ago. That will make the new quarterback far less effective and put a ton of pressure on the defense to win games. And even this defense cannot win every game against the better teams in the MEAC.
Projected Postseason: none
2010 Team Stats:
Rushing Offense: 184.25 (28th in nation, 2nd in conference)
Passing Offense: 164.83 (91, 4)
Total Offense: 349.08 (60, 2)
Scoring Offense: 30.50 (23, 2)
Rushing Defense: 91.42 (4, 1)
Pass Defense: 117.58 (1, 1)
Total Defense: 209.00 (2, 1)
Scoring Defense: 15.33 (4, 1)
Turnover Margin: .08 (54, 3)
Sacks: 3.25 (5, 1)
Sacks Allowed: 1.17 (21, 2)
Madness 2011 FCS Football Recruit Rankings:
#18 Chris Manns
#26 Dominique Cooper
#28 Julius Pendergrass
#41 Deion Walker
#94 Justin Hughes
#100 Jalen Simmons
