September 2nd, 2025 5:00pm
Last Week’s Lookback (SIAC teams in bold)
Albany State 51 Shaw 7
Game Totals
Albany State--487 yds 27 first downs/Passing 176 yds 1 td 0 int/Rushing 311 yds 5 td
Shaw--189 yds 12 first downs/Passing 132 yds 1 td 2 int/Rushing 57 yds
Kentucky State 34 Central State 24
Game Totals
Kentucky State--432 yds 17 first downs/Passing 302 yds 3 td 0 int/Rushing 130 yds 1 td
Central State--316 yds 11 first downs/Passing 118 yds 1 td 2 int/Rushing 198 yds 2 td
Valdosta State 31 Clark Atlanta 28
Game Totals
Valdosta State--423 yds 18 first downs/Passing 235 yds 1 td 1 int/Rushing 188 yds 3 td
Clark Atlanta--355 yds 18 first downs/Passing 234 yds 2 td 0 int/Rushing 121 yds 2 td
Johnson C. Smith 45 Morehouse 9
Game Totals
Johnson C. Smith--512 yds 28 first downs/Passing 303 yds 3 td 1 int/Rushing 209 yds 4 td
Morehouse--327 yds 15 first downs/Passing 274 yds 1 td 4 int/Rushing 53 yds
Benedict 10 Fayetteville State 0
Game Totals
Benedict--254 yds 14 first downs/Passing 143 yds 1 td 0 int/Rushing 111 yds
Fayetteville State--282 yds 21 first downs/Passing 175 yds 0 td 0 int/Rushing 107 yds
West Alabama 27 Fort Valley State 17
Game Totals
West Alabama--333 yds 20 first downs/Passing 132 yds 0 td 1 int/Rushing 201 yds 3 td
Fort Valley St--217 yds 12 first downs/Passing 0 td 1 int/Rushing 140 yds 1 td
Morehead State 38 Allen 31
Game Totals
Moorehead St--414 yds 17 first downs/Passing 219 yds 1 td 0 int/Rushing 195 yds 3 td
Allen--416 yds 31 first downs/Passing 309 yds 2 td 0 int/Rushing 107 yds 2 td
Edward Waters 41 Savannah State 14
Game Totals
Edward Waters--317 yds 20 first downs/Passing 220 yds 2 td 0 int/Rushing 97 yds 1 td
Savannah State--236 yds 10 first downs/Passing 137 0 td 1 int/Rushing 99 yds 2 td
Virginia Union 45 Miles 3
Game Totals
Virginia Union--556 yds 29 first downs/Passing 181 yds 2 td 0 int/Rushing 375 yds 4 td
Miles--249 yds 16 first downs/Passing 199 yds 0 td 2 int/Rushing 50 yds
Tuskegee 20 Winston-Salem State 17
Game Totals
Tuskegee--240 yds 19 first downs/Passing 154 yds 2 td 1 int/Rushing 86 yds
Winston-Salem State--292 yds 11 first downs/Passing 169 yds 2 td 1 int/Rushing 123 yds
Week 1 Matchups
Albany State (1-0,0-0) at Kentucky State (1-0,1-0)
Albany State enters conference play coming off of an explosive opening weekend where they defeated Shaw 51-7. Offensively, they were led by their returning quarterback Isaiah Knowles who threw for 169 yards, one touchdown and no picks. He also found paydirt with his legs, rushing for 46 yards and two touchdowns. He was helped out by sophomore tailback Tiant Wyche, who gained 137 yards on 14 carries and crossed the pylon twice himself. Defensively, Albany State was able to hold Shaw to 189 yards and only 2.7 yards per play.
Kentucky State had a much more competitive game with conference foe Central State. Trailing 16-10 in the third quarter, Kentucky State answered the bell with 24 unanswered points to take a 34 -16 lead midway through the fourth quarter. They held on for a ten-point win. KSU played two quarterbacks who were both quite proficient. Denim Johnson completed 11 of 18 passes for 107 yards and a touch while Torrence Bardell finished six of eight with 195 yards and two scores. On the defensive side of the ball, they had four different defenders register at least six tackles. Lawrence McConnel led the way for the Thorobreds, garnering 9 tackles. As a unit, KSU held Central State to 11 first downs.
While it’s still early, this is a big game for both teams to cement a great start in the conference standings.
PREDICTION
Albany State 38 Kentucky State 23
Florida Memorial (0-1) (NAIA) at Clark Atlanta (0-1, 0-0)
The Panthers almost pulled off a major upset against perennial D2 powerhouse Valdosta State. Clark Atlanta took a 28-21 lead late in quarter number three before falling 31-28. But the Panthers have a lot of positives to take away. They showed great balance on offense with 28 rushing attempts and 30 passing attempts. Quarterback Zy McDonald was able to complete five passes for 20 or more yards. Carter Mason was able to tally eight tackles, a sack and 1.5 tackles-for-loss. Their opponent this week comes to Atlanta, Georgia from Miami, Florida off the heels of a 49-35 loss. Florida Memorial was able to move the ball pretty well last week, but gave up a hefty number of points and yards.
I expect this one to get ugly, and to get ugly quickly.
PREDICTION
Clark Atlanta 55 Florida Memorial 10
Lincoln (Mo) (1-0) at Lane (0-0, 0-0)
Lincoln (Mo) won their opening game against Lincoln (Ca) 55-6. This will be Lane’s opening contest. I predicted this contest in my first column while writing the preview for the Dragons. I’ll keep my prediction the same.
PREDICTION
Lane 34 Lincoln (Mo) 17
Miles (0-1, 0-0) at Edward Waters (1-0, 1-0)
What an intriguing matchup we have here. Miles is coming off of a 45-3 thumping at the hands of Virginia Union. VUU is ranked just inside of the top 20 and is coming off of a CIAA championship season. Certainly, Miles didn’t lose to a subpar team, but I don’t think many thought it would be that one-sided. This is a great opportunity for the Golden Bears to bounce back and get their SIAC season started on the right foot. Experienced quarterback Kam Ivory is going to have alleviate some stress off of the defense by taking care of the football. Edward Osley and Jonero Scott combined for 16 carries and 65 yards. That number must improve against Edward Waters. Defensively, VU carved up Miles mainly on the ground as the Golden Bears relinquished a whopping 375 yards and four rushing scores.
Edward Waters had a very impressive road win over Savannah State to the tune of 41-14. EWU created four turnovers in a game that was more defensive than the score would indicate. Typically, when you score 40 plus points you garner more than 317 yards of offense. The Tigers from Florida took advantage of every opportunity and cruised to victory. The Tigers from EWU were very feisty defensively in holding SSU to 236 yards and only 10 total first downs. Noah Bodden, the Southern university transfer looked the part at quarterback for EWU. He completed two-thirds of his passes for 220 yards and two touchdowns.
I think Miles is much better than they showed a week ago against VUU. I also believe that Edward Waters victory was a little inflated because of a defensive and special teams’ touchdown. However, I do think Edward Waters is a good team and they have a lot of momentum heading home to welcome defending SIAC champion Miles into town. I expect a hard fought battle here.
PREDICTION
Edward Waters 17 Miles 14
Livingstone (0-1) at Allen (0-1, 0-0)
Allen showcased a tremendous effort in their road opener against FCS opponent Morehead State. The Yellow Jackets came up just short, losing 38-31. On the offensive side of the ball, returning quarterback Jamir Dismukes completed 26 of 38 passes for 309 yards and two touchdowns. While not dominant on the ground, Allen was able to eclipse the 100 yard mark, rushing for 107 yards as a team along with two scores. Allen had a tough day defensively against a very good offense, but Tyreshon Freeman did lead the Yellow Jackets with 11 tackles.
Livingstone is coming off of a 39-10 road loss to Charleston.
Last season when these two got together in Salisbury, NC, Livingstone was able to get a tight home win over Allen, 23-21. After playing one game apiece, Allen looks like they may get some revenge on their home turf.
PREDICTION
Allen 38 Livingstone 17
Shorter (0-1) at Savannah State (0-1, 0-1)
Savannah State opened up their season hot as a firecracker for the first six minutes. They surged out to an early 14-0 lead over Edward Waters. But a kickoff return for a touchdown and a fumble return for a touchdown by Edward Waters and the Tigers were knotted. Fast forward a few more hours and SSU lost 41-14. That game flipped fast and Savannah State had that deer in the headlights look. I believe they are better than what they put on the field during the opening weekend. Momentum seemed to go against them this past Saturday and they didn’t handle adversity well. The good news for the Tigers is they’ll get another home game to try and enjoy the sweet taste of victory. The offense only managed 236 total yards, but I thought Joseph Hampton ran the ball well and ran it very hard. He finished with 56 yards on only 10 carries and also got into the endzone. I’d like to see a bigger dose of Hampton against Shorter. Defensively, SSU only gave up 317 yards of total offense. The defense played much better than the final score might suggest.
Shorter has struggled on the gridiron over the years and they lost their home opener to Anderson 34-7. Shorter only averaged 1.6 yards per carry against Anderson and had marginal success through the air. Michael Rich Jr. completed 12 of 23 passes for 115 yards with one touchdown and a pick. Savannah State has an opportunity this week to show people what they’re really capable of. I think they will.
PREDICTION
Savannah State 31 Shorter 3
Central State (0-1, 0-1) at Tuskegee (1-0, 0-0)
The Golden Tigers had a tough fight on their hands to open the season in the Red Tail Classic. They beat a feisty Winston-Salem State team 20-17 in front of near capacity crowd at the famous Cramton Bowl in Montgomery, Alabama. The defense was their calling card as WSS managed only 11 first downs and less than 300 yards of offense. Masiah Wells led the charge for Tuskegee while disrupting WSS’s offense with three solo tackles, two tackles-for-loss and two sacks. Tuskegee struggled moving the ball against WSSU but their offense made plays when they needed too. What the Golden Tigers lacked in big plays they made up with clutch timing; producing 19 first downs on just 240 total yards of offense.
Central State finished last in the SIAC a season ago but the Marauders showed some fight in their conference and season opener against Kentucky State. CSU took a 16-10 lead into halftime and fought to the very end losing a competitive game, 34-24. Central State had two running backs hit the 100-yard mark. Dai’Vontay Young gained 110 yards on nine carries while Jaden Bossie landed right at 100 yards on 17 carries. Quarterback Tison Hill completed 65 percent of his passes, but two costly interceptions hurt the Marauders winning effort.
Defensively Dominique Davis II had an impressive 14 tackles, but as a defensive unit they yielded 432 total yards to the Thorobreds. They’re going to have to improve defensively to stay in the game with Tuskegee this weekend.
PREDICTION
Tuskegee 27 Central State 10
Season Predictions Record
Last Week 7-3
Overall 7-3