Coastal Carolina-South Carolina State Matchup Preview

No. 1/3 Coastal Carolina (1-0) at South Carolina State (1-0)

When: 6 p.m. Saturday

Where: Oliver C. Dawson Stadium, Orangeburg

TV/Online: None

Radio: WSEA-FM 100.3

Weather Forecast: 76 degrees and cloudy with a 20-percent chance of rain

Series History: Coastal Carolina leads 4-0

Last Meeting

Coastal Carolina has never lost to South Carolina State and handled business rather convincingly last September with a 30-3 win at Brooks Stadium.

The Chanticleers jumped out to a 16-point lead in the first quarter, including a 29-yard fumble return for touchdown by defensive end Roderick Holder, and never looked back.

The Chants held the Bulldogs to 370 offensive yards, and offensively running back De’Angelo Henderson had a career-best 171 rushing yards and two touchdowns in 20 carries.

Chanticleers Breakdown

It’s been an interesting week for the Chants …

After holding off Furman, 38-35, in its season opener last Saturday night in Greenville, Coastal Carolina moved up to No. 1 in the FCS Coaches poll and No. 3 in the STATS media poll.

They also had starting senior defensive tackle Marcus Crowder walk away from the program, informing coaches he no longer wanted to play football. The coaches have downplayed any concerns about how that will impact the defense, with experienced junior Jabarai Bothwell ready to take over that spot, but the unit nonetheless has something to prove this week after giving up 525 yards of offense to Furman.

Bulldogs Breakdown

South Carolina State dominated in its season opener, winning 35-7 against Arkansas-Pine Bluff in the MEAC/SWAC Challenge.

The Bulldogs earned a 336-191 edge in total offensive yards, notched five sacks on defense and held Arkansas-Pine Bluff to just 1-of-18 on third down conversions.

That said, they were playing an Arkansas-Pine Bluff team that went just 4-7 in 2014 and was picked to finish last in its division in the 2015 SWAC preseason poll.

This week will bring a much tougher test.

South Carolina State’s standout defensive tackle Javon Hargrave (4.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks last weekend) figures to be a matchup problem for most teams, but nobody ever really shuts down the Coastal Carolina offense. So the Bulldogs will need improved quarterback play – be it from junior Adrian Kollock Jr. (5-of-12 for 40 yards and two interceptions last week) or true freshman Caleb York (11-of-20 for 123 yards) – and can’t repeat the five turnovers they had last week if they are to challenge for an upset Saturday night.

Key Matchup

South Carolina State’s Javon Hargrave vs. Coastal Carolina’s offensive line: The 6-foot-2, 295-pound Hargrave is worth reiterating. Not only did the hulking defensive tackle have his way last weekend against Arkansas-Pine Bluff, he did the same last season to the Chants while tallying 10 total tackles, four tackles for loss and two sacks last September in Brooks Stadium. Coastal Carolina’s rebuilt offensive line played well last week – giving up only one sack – and drew praise from the coaches and other offensive personnel, but this will be a different kind of test.

Spotlight Players

Coastal Carolina running back De’Angelo Henderson: After totaling 129 receiving yards and 95 rushing yards last week at Furman, Henderson will look to be a multi-faceted force yet again for the Chants. And remember, he had his highest single-game rushing total of last season (172 yards) against S.C. State.

Coastal Carolina wide receiver Bruce Mapp: It’s hard to be obscured in a game while totaling seven catches for 77 yards and two touchdowns, but with Henderson and quarterback Alex Ross having such big games last Saturday, Mapp’s season-opening performance didn’t get the attention it probably deserved. He’ll look to do more of the same this week and continue to assert himself as one of the top receivers in the entire FCS.

Coastal Carolina defensive tackle Jabarai Bothwell: The experienced junior takes over as a starter on the defensive line with senior Marcus Crowder leaving the program this week. Bothwell’s role doesn’t change drastically as he as already playing a lot of snaps, but with less depth up front now, his contributions will be even more key.

S.C. State defensive tackle Javon Hargrave: One more mention for Hargrave, who is that important to the Bulldogs’ hopes Saturday night. Last season the defensive force finished with 16 sacks, 23.5 tackles for loss and 55 total tackles.

S.C. State running back Jalen Simmons: Simmons was one of four S.C. State players serving a one-game suspension last week for involvement in a fight with Norfolk State last season. He led the Bulldogs on the ground last season with 1,082 rushing yards and nine touchdowns and will presumably be available against the Chants.

S.C. State quarterback Adrian Kollock Jr.: Kollock threw two interceptions last week and lost significant playing time to true freshman Caleb York. There’s no telling how the Bulldogs will use their quarterbacks Saturday night, but Kollock completed 15-of-26 passes for 227 yards and one interception last season against the Chants.

Scouting Reports

CCU offensive coordinator Dave Patenaude: “I think that they’re really athletic. They have good speed in their rush package, overall very good athletically. [Hargrave] is a really good player inside. He was a load for us last year. He’s one of the best defensive tackles in the country so we have to make sure that we have him taken care of. And then schematically they do a lot of different stuff – they do a really good job of mixing things up and they give you a bunch of different looks, they give you different looks on third down. So it’s a much different preparation than it was for Furman. We practiced a lot of the stuff during camp so it’s not a totally new preparation; it’s just kind of polishing up some of the stuff we went over during camp.”

CCU defensive coordinator Clayton Carlin: “I think they have two very good quarterbacks. They played the true freshman this past weekend and he did a real, real good job. He certainly didn’t play like a true freshman. I was impressed with him. They have good skill and they have experience at the skill positions and they give you a variety of things to defend, so it will be a challenge.”

Notes

▪ In addition to senior defensive tackle Marcus Crowder leaving the program this week, the Coastal Carolina defense will be without another key contributor as senior nickel Datarius Allen is expected to miss the game with a sprained ankle.

Allen, who had two total tackles with a tackle for loss last week before injuring himself in the fourth quarter, has split time at that nickel spot with junior C.J. Thompson, who will likely take on a bigger role Saturday night.

▪ Senior fullback/special teams contributor Andre Johnson is also out this week after sustaining a concussion in the win at Furman. ...

South Carolina State has a couple of regulars who are familiar to football fans in Horry County.

Senior tight end Temarrick Hemingway (North Myrtle Beach High School) had two catches for 33 yards in the team’s opener last week, sophomore wide receiver Mykal Moody (Conway High School) caught one pass and sophomore defensive end Cordell Brown (Myrtle Beach High School) had three tackles.

▪ The two previous meetings between Coastal Carolina and South Carolina State in Orangeburg were both close games as the Chants won 24-23 in 2005 and 27-20 in 2013.

By The Numbers

2

South Carolina State was picked second in the MEAC’s preseason poll while receiving four first-place votes.

8

Coastal Carolina is riding a Big South-record road winning streak with eight consecutive victories away from home.

13

The Chanticleers have won 13 straight games against teams from the MEAC. Overall, they are 20-1 all-time against the league.

53

Quarterback Alex Ross has 53 career touchdown passes and needs one more to pass Tyler Thigpen for the Coastal Carolina record.

105

The Chants rank 105th among FCS teams – with just seven teams worse – in passing yards allowed after giving up 365 yards through the air last week at Furman.

Prediction

Coastal Carolina, 31-21

South Carolina State’s defense should slow the Chants down enough to make this a competitive game, but running back De’Angelo Henderson should again be a difference maker with his potential to turn any opening into a game-changing big gain. Also, a fired-up Coastal Carolina defense looking to bounce back from last week, should do a better job against the Bulldogs’ unsettled quarterback situation.

This story was originally published September 11, 2015 at 6:56 PM with the headline "Coastal Carolina-South Carolina State Matchup Preview."