Three thoughts on South Carolina State’s decisive victory over Florida A&M

South Carolina State pulled off a dominant victory over Florida A&M in the Orange Blossom Classic, 31-13. In a game halted by two weather delays, the Bulldogs maintained their energy and put together a dominant defensive attack that stifled a usually potent Quinn Gray offense. As we move into the second week of the season, we’re learning more about both teams and areas where both can improve.

While South Carolina State showed its trademark dominance on defense, questions remain on offense, particularly at quarterback. For Florida A&M, they have to figure out how to deal with an aggressive pass rush and run defense as Gray looks to bring back a winning culture in Tallahassee.

South Carolina State’s D-Line overwhelmed Florida A&M’s offense

South Carolina State did exactly what I expected. They followed the trend of Chennis Berry’s teams from Benedict and also his first two years at South Carolina State: a stout offensive line and a stout defensive line. But the problem Florida A&M had to solve throughout the game was how they would respond to the pressure the Bulldogs applied with their front four.

The game reminded me of what Berry’s Benedict College team did to Gray’s Albany State Rams in the 2023 SIAC Championship, where the Tigers beat Albany State 47-10. That Benedict defense wouldn’t let Albany State do anything on the ground or through the air. Plus, the passing game was pretty ineffective, with the Rams’ three quarterbacks only getting 59 yards on five completions. And, ironically enough, that was Quinn Gray’s first year at Albany State.

Florida A&M QB1 Isaiah Knowles is really good at making a quick diagnosis of the defensive scheme and how a defense is playing him. We’ve seen him do that incredibly well in his time at Albany State, and also last week against Albany State. But South Carolina State is just a different level when it comes to their ability to pressure the quarterback and terrorize the opposing offensive line. Knowles is normally efficient, but he couldn’t get a clean pocket to handle the defense the way we’ve seen him do before. He finished the game seven-for 22 with only 94 yards passing. The run game wasn’t much better, as they finished with -1 yards.

South Carolina State is a special team on defense, but could this be a sign of what’s to come for Florida A&M as they maneuver through the rest of their schedule, particularly against SWAC contenders like Alabama State, Jackson State, and Southern University under Marshall Faulk? Quinn Gray’s coaching staff has a lot to reassess after watching the film.

South Carolina State’s passing game didn’t impress me

A lot of people wrote off South Carolina State’s victory over Savannah State as an aberration. They used Savannah State’s Division II status to argue that the win should be overlooked, no matter how dominant the Bulldogs looked, even after they took out their starting unit. I still believe that the Savannah State win showed tremendous proof of concept for what South Carolina State can be on both offense and defense.

South Carolina State’s defense was locked in, even holding the Rattlers to -1 yard rushing once the clock expired, but the offense was a different story. Mason Pickett Hicks is an electric running back and finished the game with 17 carries for 210 yards and 12.4 yards per carry. South Carolina State will need to figure out their quarterback situation before they advance into MEAC play in mid-October.

Keely Watson certainly has talent at the quarterback position, but he threw two interceptions, with one of them being an overthrow of his receiver. Over the past two seasons, South Carolina State featured solid quarterback play, with Eric Phoenix emerging as one of the best players in HBCU football in 2023 for the Bulldogs and William Atkins IV holding down the offense under center in 2025. Even when Atkins struggled in the Celebration Bowl and ultimately left with an injury, Ryan Stubblefield put together a 234-yard, two-touchdown performance with one interception, along with one rushing touchdown that helped South Carolina State make a resounding comeback against Prairie View A&M.

Whether Watson can join the stable of talented quarterbacks that have played under Chennis Berry since he started his dominant run at Benedict College in 2022 remains to be seen, but the talent is certainly visible for Watson. He’s a talented passer with a competent ability to move his legs to make plays. As the season rolls on, will questions at quarterback ultimately be a detriment to South Carolina State’s chances of winning the MEAC for a third consecutive season? Many HBC fans and prognosticators had similar questions about South Carolina State’s offense last season, and they ultimately came together once it was time for conference play. Whether that will work out this season remains to be seen.

The Bulldog running back room is the real MVP

South Carolina State’s rushing attack, though, was incredibly potent throughout the game. All four of the team’s touchdowns came from the rushing attack. Mason Pickett-Hicks had a thrilling 58-yard touchdown on the second play of the game and finished with two touchdowns. Ronnie Robinson subbed in at quarterback for Watson in portions of the game and had impressive scrambles.

Bulldog veteran running back Josh Shaw has also punched in two touchdowns in the short-yardage game. Shaw is pivotal to South Carolina State’s running back room, as he’s one of the longest-tenured players on the roster. Shaw was on the team during Buddy Pough’s last two seasons as head coach of the Bulldogs before his retirement, joining the team in 2022.

He decided to stick around and play under Chennis Berry, providing a reliable and consistent threat in the short-yardage game. While South Carolina State’s offense has seen talented quarterback play over the past two seasons, the running back room clearly is going to be the star of the show this time around. Teams will certainly have to account for that when they game plan against South Carolina State.

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