GAME PREVIEW: Savannah State at Albany State

THE GAME
Savannah State will travel to Southwest Georgia to face Albany State. Both squads enter the contest coming off of impressive wins. Savannah State won their Homecoming game with a 24-16 victory over Morehouse while Albany State knocked off previously unbeaten Benedict 31-3.  SSU and the Golden Rams have been playing each other since 1932, making  ASU one of the Tigers’ oldest rivalries. This Saturday will be the 67th time the teams have met on the gridiron. Albany State holds the series lead, 47-17-2.

GAME INFORMATION

Savannah State (4-4, 3-3 SIAC) vs. Albany State (7-1, 6-0 SIAC)

Date: Saturday, November 1st

Time: 3:00pm

Location: ASU Coliseum | Albany, Georgia

BROADCAST INFORMATION

Channel: ESPN+

Broadcast Link: https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/99476d11-9952-4293-b7de-c1174bb8fa09

Live Stats Link: https://asugoldenrams.com/sidearmstats/football/summary

COACHES

Savannah State: Aaron Kelton, 4th Season (Record At SSU: 16-21)

Albany State: Quinn Gray, Sr., 3rd Season (Record At ASU: 19-10)

WEATHER

Saturday’s contest is forecasted to be played under sunny skies in Southwest Georgia, with a high of 71° and a low of 43°. Winds will blow northeast at 4 mph.

KELTON’S QUOTE

We have a very big challenge this week going to Albany State. They are the best team in our conference and they are talented and very well coached. We have to play a complete game and play with great energy and execution to win the game.

GAME CAPTAINS
Captains for the Albany State game are linebacker Uchenna Nwoha, wide receiver Elijah Stevens and wide receiver Cinsere Clark 

LAST WEEK

Savannah State’s defense dominated in the Tigers 24-16 Homecoming win over Morehouse. SSU held the Maroon Tigers to -20 rushing yards, had ten sacks and intercepted four passes. Morehouse led 6-3 at the half but Savannah State went ahead in the third quarter with David Gardner, Jr. running for a touchdown and Jadon Adams throwing a touchdown to Josiah Benson for a 17-6 advantage. A RaShawn Truell to Braylon Fowler touchdown play put the Tigers ahead 24-6 before Morehouse attempted a late comeback. Truell passed for 129 yards and a touchdown, Gardner ran for 49 yards and a touchdown, Fowler caught four passes for 51 yards and a score while Darrian Bell led the defense with nine tackles.

LAST YEAR

On November 2, 2024, Savannah State knocked off Albany State 28-26 at T. A. Wright Stadium and in the process, snapped a three-game losing skid to the Golden Rams. The Tigers led 21-7 after one quarter of play but only led 21-19 at the half. A touchdown by SSU late in the third quarter gave the Tigers a 28-19 lead but the Golden Rams would not go quietly, scoring a touchdown with a little over three minutes remaining in the contest to make the score 28-26. The back breaking play for Albany State came with less than a minute remaining as Savannah State punted the ball away, but an ASU player muffed punt allowing the Tigers to recover and run out the clock en route to the two point victory. Jordan Springs caught two passes for 15 yards and Joseph Hampton had seven carries for 20 yards. Gary Davis, Jr. had six tackles and Xavier Esquillen added five tackles, one tackle for loss, one sack, one forced fumble and one pass breakup.

SAVANNAH STATE/ ALBANY STATE CONNECTION

Albany State cornerback coach Glenn Davis was an assistant on the Savannah State staff for two seasons. Davis was with the Tigers from 2017-18 where his cornerback unit helped the defense finish third nationally among FCS teams in passing yards allowed and first in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.

COMMON OPPONENTS

Savannah State and Albany State have four common opponents: Kentucky State, Allen, Benedict and Fort Valley State.

POLL WATCHING

Savannah State is ranked #9 in the latest BOXTOROW HBCU D2 Football Coaches Poll

FOR THE RECORD BOOKS

Defensive lineman Xavier Esquillen set a new school record with five sacks in the Tigers Homecoming win over Morehouse. He also had six tackles, one pass breakup and one forced fumble. Esquillen broke the record of four sacks that was set by Jamaal Zanders in 2000 against South Carolina State. The Charlotte, North Carolina native was also named the SIAC Defensive Player of the Week.

BACK TO SOUTHWEST GEORGIA

Linebacker Anthony Chatmon is the only player on the Savannah State roster from Albany, Georgia but several others hail from the southwest Georgia. Linebacker Gary Davis, Jr. is from Cairo, wide receiver Elijah Stephens is from Ashburn, defensive back Brandon Lane is from Valdosta, offensive lineman Kahleem Murphy is  from Bainbridge, defensive lineman Kason Hodges is from Americus and offensive lineman Keshawn Palmore hails from Moultrie.

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

In the latest, NCAA Division II statistics, Savannah State is ranked #1 in fumble recoveries (13), #5 in rush defense (72.4), #7 in total defense (255.6) and team sacks (3.50), #8 in turnovers gained (20), #11 in blocked punts (2), #12 in defense third down conversion percentage (.29), #13 in blocked kicks (4), #14 in time of possession (33:15) and #15 in first down defense (124). Individually, Darrian Bell is #2 in solo tackles (6.25), #13 in fumble recoveries (2) and #28 in total tackles (9.3), John “Wesley” Bentley is #2 in fumble recoveries (3), Kevin Stokes, Jr. is #3 in punt returns for touchdowns (1), Xavier Esquillen is #4 in sacks (1.25) and #28 in tackles for loss 91.38), James Shellman, IV is #5 in blocked kicks (2), Jimmy Tran is #7 in field goals per game (1.38) and Joseph Hampton is #16 in combined kick returns (476).

TIGER LEADERS

Darrian Bell is the leader of the SSU defense with 74 tackles, 9  tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles and 2 fumble recoveries. Fellow linebacker Tavare Brewton has 33 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, 1 forced fumble and 1 fumble recovery. Other defensive standouts include John “Wesley” Bentley (29 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 3 fumble recoveries), Gary Davis, Jr. (26 tackles, 4  tackles for loss, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble), Xavier Esquillen (26 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, 10 sacks, 1 fumble recovery, 3 quarterback hurries), Tony Rountree Jr. (23 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss, 4 sacks ) and Ameer Phillips (20 tackles, 7 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, 1 forced fumble). Running back Joseph Hampton averages 4.7 yards per carry and has 313 yards and 4 touchdowns while Cinsere Clark has 36 catches for 455 yards and 4 touchdowns and Arik Gilbert has 19 receptions for 258 yards and 1 touchdown. Christian Burks and Fabian Walker have combined to pass for 1,177 yards, 5 touchdowns and 9 interceptions with Burks contributing  634 yards, 2 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. RaShawn Truell has added 175 passing yards, 1 touchdown and 3 interceptions. Lucas Edenfield has punted 44 times and has averaged 40.45 yards per kick, including a long of 69 yards while Jimmy Tran made made all 14 extra point attempts and has been successful on 11 of 16 field goal tries, including a long of 42 yards.

SCOUTING ALBANY STATE

The Golden Rams are ranked 23rd in the latest AFCA Division II Coaches Poll. ASU averages 37.4 points and 431.3 yards per game while the defense yields 11.8 points and 276.5 yards per night.

Quarterback Isaiah Knowles is the leader of the offense and has thrown for 1,119 yards, 12 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. Tiant Wyche is the leading rusher with 656 yards and 7 touchdowns while Savannah native Aljhanod Thomas has ran for 527 yards and 3 touchdowns. Jamill Williams has caught 22 passes for 342 yards and 4 touchdowns, Omari Stewart has 315 receiving yards and 2 touchdowns, Corey Petty has 229 receiving yards and 3 touchdowns and Javion Jackson has 226 receiving yards and 1 score. Linebacker Andrew Ruffin anchors the offense with 29 tackles and 3,5 tackles for loss. Lineman Derrick Drayton has 21 tackles, 11 tackles for loss and 6 sacks and defensive back Robert Floyd has contributed 22 tackles and 11 pass breakups.

Stay Connected

For complete coverage of Savannah State University Athletics, follow the Tigers on social media @SavStateTigers on Facebook, Instagram, and X (Formerly Known As Twitter), or visit the official online home of SSU Athletics at http://ssuathletics.com.