ORANGEBURG, S.C. — The
Thomas Howard era in
Savannah State University football got off to a rough start with the Tigers starting the 2026 season with a 87-0 road loss to South Carolina State, in a game played on Saturday evening at Oliver C. Dawson/Willie Jeffries Field.
It was the season opener for both squads.
The game pitted head coaches from both schools with ties to their opponents.
Howard spent the 2019-20 season as the South Carolina State defensive coordinator/linebacker coach while Bulldog head football coach Chennis Berry was a All-SIAC offensive tackle for Savannah State in 1994.
The crowd of 12,000 saw the Bulldogs lead 21-0 after one quarter of play and take a 52-0 advantage into intermission.
South Carolina State scored twice in the third quarter and added three touchdowns in the fourth quarter.
As a team, SSU had 117 yards of offense with 75 rushing and 42 passing. The offensive line did not allow a sack.
Christian Burks earned the start at quarterback and finished the contest completing five of 14 passes for 34 yards and a interception.
Fabian Walker went 2-for4 for eight yards.
Walker was the Tigers leading rusher with 16 yards while
Isaiah Davis ran for 13 yards and
Rodney Hill picked up a dozen yards.
Elijah Stephens caught two passes for 18 yards, including a 14-yard pickup from Banks in the third quarter.
Jahziah Avilez returned a pair of kickoffs for 38 yards while
Trenton Rhodes had eight kick returns for 139 yards which included a 30-yard return in the second quarter.
Chase Butler punted the ball eight times and had a long of 46 yards.
Cameron Leonard paced the defense with a game-high seven tackles and had one pass breakup while
Antonio Vazquezwas in on five stops and had one tackle for loss.
Savannah State (0-1) will have two weeks to prepare for their home and conference opener with Albany State (0-1) on September 12 at Theodore A. Wright Stadium at 6 p.m.
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ABOUT THE SOUTHERN INTERCOLLEGIATE ATHLETIC CONFERENCE (SIAC)
The SIAC is a NCAA athletic conference consisting primarily of Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) with headquarters in downtown Atlanta, Georgia. The SIAC includes 15 member institutions (Albany State University, Allen University, Benedict College, Central State University, Clark Atlanta University, Edward Waters University, Fort Valley State University, Kentucky State University, Lane College, LeMoyne-Owen College, Miles College, Morehouse College, Savannah State University, Spring Hill College, and Tuskegee University), which are located within a contiguous seven-state footprint (Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, South Carolina, Tennessee and Ohio). The SIAC sponsors nine men's and eight women's sports and is a proud member of the NCAA Division II. For more information, visit
www.thesiac.com.