The South Carolina State Bulldogs football team represents

South Carolina State University South Carolina State University (SCSU or SC State) is a public, historically black, land-grant university in Orangeburg, South Carolina, United States. It is the only public, historically black land-grant institution in South Carolina, is a memb ...

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 Bulldogs play in the

NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision 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 ...

(FCS) as a member of 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 ...

(MEAC). A historically dominant football program, the Bulldogs lead the MEAC in conference championships. The school has produced four players enshrined in the

Pro Football Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, , the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of professional football, including players, coach ...

including

Harry Carson Harry Donald Carson (born November 26, 1953) is a former American football middle linebacker who played his entire professional career for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). Carson was inducted into the College Football Ha ...

Deacon Jones David D. "Deacon" Jones (December 9, 1938 – June 3, 2013) was an American professional football player who was a defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for the Los Angeles Rams, San Diego Chargers, and the Washington Redskins. H ...

Marion Motley Marion Motley (June 5, 1920 – June 27, 1999) was an American professional football player who was a halfback and linebacker for the Cleveland Browns in the All-America Football Conference (AAFC) and National Football League (NFL). He was a ...

, and

Donnie Shell Donnie Shell (born August 26, 1952) is a former American Football strong safety for the Pittsburgh Steelers in the National Football League between 1974 and 1987. Shell was a member of the Steelers famed Steel Curtain defense in the 1970s. Shell ...

. Other legendary Bulldog players include Robert Porcher,

Shaquille Leonard Darius Shaquille Leonard (born July 27, 1995) is an American football linebacker for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at South Carolina State and was drafted in the second round of the 2018 ...

Charlie Brown Charles "Charlie" Brown is the principal character of the comic strip ''Peanuts'', syndicated in daily and Sunday newspapers in numerous countries all over the world. Depicted as a "lovable loser," Charlie Brown is one of the great American ar ...

and Orlando Brown Sr. among others. Legendary former SC State Coach

Willie Jeffries Willie E. Jeffries (born January 4, 1937) is a former American football player and coach. He served as the head football coach at South Carolina State University for 19 seasons in two stints, five seasons at Wichita State University, and five sea ...

became the first African American Head Coach of a predominantly white

Division I-A The NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), formerly known as Division I-A, is the highest level of college football in the United States. The FBS consists of the largest schools in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). As ...

football program, when he was hired to coach the Wichita State football program in 1979. Jeffries is enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame.

History

Classifications

*1946–1972: NCAA College Division *1967–1969: NAIA *1970–1978: NAIA Division I *1973–1977: NCAA Division II *1978–present: NCAA Division I–AA/FCS

Conference memberships

*1907–1938: Independent *1939–1970:

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 c ...

*1971–present:

South Carolina State vs. In-State NCAA Division I schools

Championships

National Championships

The Bulldogs have been awarded the

black college football national championship The black college football national championship is a national championship honor that, since 1920, has been regularly bestowed upon the best football teams among historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) within the United States. Histo ...

five times in program history.

Conference Championships

*denotes co-champions

Division I-AA/FCS Playoffs results

The Bulldogs have appeared in the I-AA/FCS playoffs six times with a record of 2–6.

Bowl game results

The Bulldogs have appeared in 14 bowl games, with a record of 7–7.

Professional Football Hall of Fame members (Canton, Ohio)

College Football Hall of Fame members

Alumni in the NFL

Over 40 South Carolina State alumni have played in the NFL, including: *

Phillip Adams Phillip Adams, Philip Adams, or Phil Adams may refer to: Sports * Phillip Adams (American football) (1988–2021), American football cornerback * Phillip Adams (sport shooter) (born 1945), Australian pistol shooter * Phil Adams (cricketer) (born 1 ...

* Orlando Brown Sr. *

Rafael Bush Rafael Bush (born May 12, 1987) is a former American football safety who played nine seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at South Carolina State and was signed by the Atlanta Falcons as an undrafted free a ...

Barney Bussey Barney Bussey (born May 20, 1962) is a former American football safety. Bussey was born in Lincolnton, Georgia. He attended high school at Lincoln County High School in Lincolnton where he was a major reason behind Lincoln County's defensive su ...

Barney Chavous Barney Lewis Chavous ( ; born March 22, 1951) is a former American football defensive end in the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted in the second round (36th overall) of the 1973 NFL Draft by the Denver Broncos after playing college ...

* Anthony Cook * Cobie Durant *

John Gilliam John Rally Gilliam (born August 7, 1945) is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He has owned a number of businesses, and for two years he worked for a radio station in ...

* Javon Hargrave * Dwayne Harper * Antonio Hamilton * Temarrick Hemingway * Willie Holman *

* William Judson *

Angelo King Angelo King (born February 10, 1958) is a former American football linebacker in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys and Detroit Lions. He played college football at South Carolina State University. Early years King attended Col ...

* James Lee *

Marshall McFadden Marshall Maquel McFadden (born August 4, 1986) is a former gridiron football linebacker who last played for the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He was signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers to a reserve/future contract on Jan ...

Kimario McFadden Kimario McFadden (born April 13, 1991) is a Canadian football safety/linebacker for the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football at South Carolina State University. He signed as an undrafted free agent w ...

* Ervin Parker * Robert Porcher * Joe Thomas * Christian Thompson * Chatrick "Chuck" Darby

Rivalries

SC State has maintained heated rivalries with the North Carolina A&T Aggies, Florida A&M Rattlers, and Bethune-Cookman Wildcats.

NCAA Record

On November 19, 2016, Joe Thomas Sr., father of

Green Bay Packers The Green Bay Packers are a professional American football team based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The Packers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. It ...

linebacker Joe Thomas, became the oldest player to play in an NCAA Division I game. At 55 years of age, Thomas Sr. had one carry for three yards as a running back in a contest versus Savannah State.

References

External links

* {{Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football navbox American football teams established in 1907 1907 establishments in South Carolina