The Savannah State Tigers football team represents

Savannah State University ) , established = , closed = , type = Public historically black university , parent = University System of Georgia , academic_affiliation = Space-grant , endowment ...

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

. The Tigers are members of the

Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. Formed in 1913, it consists mostly of historically black co ...

(SIAC). The football team is traditionally the most popular sport at Savannah State and home games are played at Ted A. Wright Stadium in

Savannah, Georgia Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia and is the county seat of Chatham County, Georgia, Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the Kingdom of Great Br ...

. After moving to the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

Division I FCS The NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), formerly known as Division I-AA, is the second-highest level of college football in the United States, after the Football Bowl Subdivision. Sponsored by the National Collegiate Athletic ...

in 2000, the Tigers compiled a record of 80–137. While in the FCS, the team competed in the

Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) is a collegiate athletic conference whose full members are historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in the Southeastern and the Mid-Atlantic United States. It participates in the National C ...

. In 2019, the Tigers moved back to

NCAA Division II NCAA Division II (D-II) is an intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environmen ...

and rejoined the SIAC. Savannah State has played football since 1902, though they did not field a team in 1943 to 1945. Through the

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

season, the Tigers have compiled an all-time record of 491–567–18 (.465). The program's largest margin of victory was 87 points in an 87–0 victory over

Miles College Miles College is a private historically black college in Fairfield, Alabama. Founded in 1898, it is associated with the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church (CME Church) and a member of the United Negro College Fund. History Miles College bega ...

in 1992. The largest margin of defeat was 98 points against Bethune-Cookman College in 1953 (Bethune-Cookman 98, Savannah State 0). Prior to a game against the

Florida State Seminoles The Florida State Seminoles are the athletic teams representing Florida State University located in Tallahassee, Florida. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level (Football Bowl Subdivis ...

in 2012, the Seminoles were installed as 70.5 point favorites, reportedly making Savannah State the biggest underdogs in any college football game ever.Brooks, Matt
Savannah State is biggest underdog in college football history against Florida State
''WashingtonPost.com.'' Retrieved September 6, 2012. The team regularly participates in one or more black football classics each season, including the CSRA Football Classic and the

Joe Turner Classic Joe or JOE may refer to: Arts Film and television * ''Joe'' (1970 film), starring Peter Boyle * ''Joe'' (2013 film), starring Nicolas Cage * ''Joe'' (TV series), a British TV series airing from 1966 to 1971 * ''Joe'', a 2002 Canadian animated ...

. The team has previously participated in the Gateway Classic, the Miami Classic, the

Palmetto Capital City Classic Palmetto (meaning "little palm") may refer to: Palms Several small palms in the Arecaceae (palm tree) family: *in the genus ''Sabal'': **Bermuda palmetto, ''Sabal bermudana'' **Birmingham palmetto, ''Sabal'' 'Birmingham' **Dwarf, or bush palme ...

, and the

Circle City Classic The Circle City Classic is an annual American football game featuring two historically black colleges/universities (HBCUs) and played in Indianapolis, Indiana. The event was established in 1984 and has been played every year except 2020, when i ...

Conference affiliations

No team: 1916–1922, 1924, 1943–1945 On September 8, 2010, Savannah State University was confirmed as a full member of the

(MEAC), making the Tigers eligible to participate in all conference championships and earn the conference's automatic berth to NCAA postseason competition in all sponsored sports.

Conference championships and NCAA playoff appearances

The Tigers were Southeastern Athletic Conference champions in 1938, 1948, 1950, and 1956. The team's only NCAA playoff appearance occurred in 1992. The Tigers, led by Head Coach Bill Davis, were defeated by

Jacksonville State University Jacksonville State University (JSU) is a public university in Jacksonville, Alabama. Founded in 1883, Jacksonville State offers programs of study in six academic schools leading to bachelor's degree, bachelor's, master's degree, master's, educati ...

in the first round of the

Division II playoffs, 41-16.

Season-by-season records

I-AA

MEAC The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) is a collegiate athletic conference whose full members are historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in the Southeastern and the Mid-Atlantic United States. It participates in the National C ...

I-AA

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independ ...

SIAC (

Division II)

Division III In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Association football *Belgian Thir ...

NAIA Southeastern

Notable players and coaches

Some notable Savannah State football players and coaches include:

References

External links

* {{Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football navbox 1902 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state) American football teams established in 1902