Chennis Berry, in his first season as head coach of the South Carolina State Bulldogs, led the team to its first victory of the 2024 season.
Berry was hired after Oliver “Buddy” Pough retired at the end of the 2023 season. Pough, who had been head coach of the bulldogs since 2002, is the winningest coach in SC State history with a 146-87 overall record and a 112-42 mark in conference play.
Despite a strong comeback attempt by The Citadel, the Bulldogs secured the win 23-20, setting a new game record with 421 total yards.
Graduate-transfer quarterback Eric Phoenix spearheaded the offense, passing for 204 yards on 19 of 24 attempts with one touchdown, ending the game with a 79.1% completion rate.
Benedict transfer Deondra Duehart led the rushing attack with 128 yards on 18 carries, contributing to the team’s 217 total rushing yards. Senior Justin Brown-Smith recorded five receptions for 94 yards, while sophomore Benedict transfer Caden High had six catches for 49 yards and a touchdown. The Bulldogs excelled offensively, earning 26 first downs and maintaining a 36:13 time of possession. They converted more than 50% of their third-down attempts and successfully converted their only fourth-down attempt.
Defensively, Benedict transfer Daythan Peterson led the team with six solo tackles with one being a tackle for loss. He was joined by teammate Jadin Jones, who had four solo tackles among his six total tackles.
Berry previously expressed confidence in his former players at the MEAC coaches conference, saying, “It’s football, man! Like I told the guys this morning, ‘You belong.’”
The Bulldogs will face the Georgia Southern Eagles in an away game on Saturday at 6 p.m. The Eagles, who are coming off a road win against Nevada, aim to improve their record to 2-1. Winning against Georgia Southern would mark the first time the program won two games in their first three since the 2019 season, in which they finished 8-3 and 6-2 in conference play.
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