The Citadel Bulldogs football

The Citadel Bulldogs
2016 The Citadel Bulldogs football team
First season	1905
Athletic director	Jim Senter
Head coach	Brent Thompson 1st year, 10–2 (.833)
Stadium	Johnson Hagood Stadium
Field	Sansom Field
Year built	1948
Seating capacity	21,000
Field surface	Natural Grass
Location	Charleston, South Carolina
Conference	Southern Conference
All-time record	487–546–32 (.472)
Bowl record	1–0 (1.000)
Playoff appearances	5
Playoff record	2–5
Conference titles	4 (1961, 1992, 2015, 2016)
Colors	Citadel Blue and White[1]
Fight song	"The Fighting Light Brigade"
Mascot	Bulldog
Marching band	The Regimental Band and Pipes
Website	citadelsports.com

The Citadel Bulldogs Football represent The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina in the NCAA Division I FCS. The Bulldogs play in the Southern Conference, as they have since 1936. The Bulldogs are coached by Brent Thompson, who was hired on January 19, 2016 to replace Mike Houston, who departed on January 18, 2016 for James Madison.^[2][3][4]

Facilities

The Bulldogs first recorded stadium was College Park, located in the northeast corner of Hampton Park in Charleston, South Carolina. This field predated the current College Park at the same site, which is used as a practice facility for The Citadel Bulldogs baseball. Due to increasing attendance and the poor state of the stadium, the Bulldogs moved to the original Johnson Hagood Stadium in 1927. This stadium was replaced with the current Johnson Hagood Stadium in 1948.

Home stadium

The Bulldogs play their home games in Johnson Hagood Stadium, which lies just to the south of The Citadel's gates in Charleston. Johnson Hagood is a 21,000 seat stadium, in which The Citadel routinely ranks in the top 25 in attendance at the FCS level. In 2001, the Altman Athletic Center opened in the south end zone, complete with new home and visitor's locker rooms, official's locker rooms, and an upstairs hospitality area for donors. In 2008, The Citadel completed a re-construction of the west stands and West Side Tower. The stands contain reserved premium seats and bleacher seats, while the tower, shared with the South Carolina National Guard, contains twelve suites, a club level, and state of the art press box. During preparation for construction, workers discovered the remains of sailors from failed test runs of the H.L. Hunley. These remains were reinterred in Magnolia Cemetery in Charleston.

Beginning in 2012, The Citadel implemented a points system for parking and seat selection in Johnson Hagood Stadium, joining many large programs who use similar systems. The program is designed to reward long-time and large donors to The Citadel athletics by giving them preference in selecting seat and parking locations.^[5]

In 2016, The Citadel determined that lead paint needed remediation on the east (visitor's) side of the stadium. The work resulted in the entire east side being closed for the first game of the 2016 season and some sections being opened for subsequent games. The capacity was thus 10,500 for the first game and about 15,000 for later games.^[6][7][8] The Board of Visitors decided to fully renovate the east side of the stadium, announcing that decision on December 2, 2016.^[9]

Practice and on-campus facilities

Practices are held at the Maybank Triplets Practice Facility, an artificial turf field at the north edge of campus. The Bulldogs utilize Seignious Hall, located across from McAlister Field House for weightlifting, locker rooms, team meeting and video space, and academic tutoring. The Citadel Sports Medicine Department also utilizes Seignious Hall. ^[10]

Coaches and staff

Coaches from The Citadel have often been targeted for larger programs. Notable former head and assistant coaches at The Citadel include Bobby Ross, Charlie Taaffe, Ellis Johnson, Frank Beamer, Al Davis, and Ralph Friedgen.^[11]

Head Coaches^[12]

Name	First Year	Final Year	No. Seasons
Syd Smith	1905	1905	1
Ralph Foster	1906	1908	3
Sam Costen	1909	1910	2
Louis LeTellier	1911	1912	2
George Rogers	1913	1919	4
Harvey O'Brien	1916	1921	5
Carl Prause	1922	1929	8
Johnny Floyd	1930	1931	2
Tatum Gressette	1932	1939	8
Bo Rowland	1940	1942	3
J. Quinn Decker	1946	1952	7
John D. McMillan	1953	1954	2
John Sauer	1955	1956	2
Eddie Teague	1957	1965	9
Red Parker	1966	1972	7
Bobby Ross	1973	1977	5
Art Baker	1978	1982	5
Tom Moore	1983	1986	4
Charlie Taaffe	1987	1995	9
Don Powers	1996	2000	5
Ellis Johnson	2001	2003	3
John Zernhelt	2004	2004	1
Kevin Higgins	2005	2013	9
Mike Houston	2014	2015	2
Brent Thompson	2016		1

Current Staff

The current coaching staff at the Citadel is:^[13]

Name	Position
Brent Thompson	Head Coach
Lou Conte	Quarterbacks and B Backs/Offensive Coordinator
Blake Harrell	Inside Linebackers/Defensive Coordinator
Joel Taylor	Safeties/Pass Defense Coordinator
Brian Rucker	Wide Receivers
J. P. Gunter	Special Teams Coordinator/Slot Backs
Ron Boyd	Offensive Line
Orlando Mitjans	Cornerbacks
Roy Tesh	Defensive Line
Scott Yielding	Recruiting Coordinator/Defensive Line

Seasons and results

Conference championships

The Citadel has claimed 4 championships in the Southern Conference. The 2015 title was the first co-championship in school history.

• 1961
• 1992
• 2015
• 2016

Postseason appearances

Following the 1960 season, the Bulldogs played in the 1960 Tangerine Bowl defeating Tennessee Tech 27-0. Conference champion VMI did not participate in bowl games. The Bulldogs declined a bid to play in the 1961 Tangerine Bowl.

The Bulldogs appeared in the FCS Playoffs in 1988, 1990, 1992, 2015, and 2016, posting a 2–5 record. They lost in the first round twice to Georgia Southern and in the Quarterfinals to Youngstown State in 1992 after defeating North Carolina A&T in the first round. They defeated Coastal Carolina in the first round of the 2015 playoffs, and fell to Charleston Southern in the second round. In 2016, they fell in the second round to Wofford after earning a first round bye.

Rivalries

The Citadel's primary rivals are the VMI Keydets football and Furman Paladins football. The game with VMI is known as the Military Classic of the South. The Citadel and Furman have been heated, annual rivals since both joined the Southern Conference in 1936. The Citadel is 150-183-9 all-time against in-state opponents.

Opponent	Wins	Losses	Ties	First meeting	Last Citadel win	Last Opponent win
VMI	40	30	2	1920	2016	2003
Furman	36	58	3	1913	2016	2013

Record vs. Current SoCon opponents

Excludes Furman and VMI, listed above.

East Tennessee State returns to the SoCon in 2016.

Opponent	Wins	Losses	Ties	First meeting	Last Citadel win	Last Opponent win
Chattanooga	18	29	2	1926	2016	2015
East Tennessee State[lower-alpha 1]	10	15	0	1966	2016	2003
Mercer[lower-alpha 2]	9	4	1	1906	2016	1931
Samford	6	4	0	1989	2016	2014
Western Carolina	24	16	1	1972	2016	2014
Wofford	43	28	1	1916	2016	2016[lower-alpha 3]

1. East Tennessee State did not sponsor football from 2004–2014
2. Mercer did not sponsor football from 1941–2012
3. The Bulldogs lost a 2016 matchup in the second round of the FCS Playoffs.

Record vs instate opponents

Division 1, non-SoCon only

Opponent	Wins	Losses	Ties	First meeting	Last Citadel win	Last Opponent win
Charleston Southern	5	5	—	2002	2012	2015[lower-alpha 1]
Clemson	5	31	1	1909	1931	2013
Coastal Carolina	1	1	—	2014	2015[lower-alpha 2]	2014
Presbyterian	50	11	1	1915	2010	1979
South Carolina	8	40	3	1905	2015	2011
South Carolina State	4	0	0	1989	2001	none

1. The Bulldogs lost a 2015 matchup in the second round of the FCS Playoffs.
2. The Bulldogs won a 2015 matchup in the first round of the FCS Playoffs.

Bulldogs in the Pros

Many Citadel alumni have played in various professional leagues, including the National Football League, Canadian Football League and Arena Football League. Sixteen players have been drafted in the NFL Draft and AFL Draft, and other players have signed as undrafted free agents. Likely the most famous Citadel alumni in professional football are Running back Stump Mitchell and broadcaster Paul Maguire. Currently, Andre Roberts is a member of the Detroit Lions and Cortez Allen recently played with the Pittsburgh Steelers for 5 seasons.^[14]

National Football League Draft Year Name Round Overall Team 1939 Andy Sabados 13 111 Chicago Cardinals 1959 Pete Davidson 14 165 Los Angeles Rams 1960 Harry Rakowski 15 169 Los Angeles Rams 1960 Joe Davis 17 194 Chicago Cardinals 1969 Jim McMillan 16 415 Baltimore Colts 1970 John Small 1 12 Atlanta Falcons 1977 Brian Ruff 11 304 Baltimore Colts 1981 Stump Mitchell 9 226 St. Louis Cardinals 1987 Greg Davis 9 246 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 1995 Travis Jervey 5 170 Green Bay Packers 2005 Nehemiah Broughton 7 222 Washington Redskins 2010 Andre Roberts 3 88 Arizona Cardinals 2011 Cortez Allen 4 128 Pittsburgh Steelers

American Football League Draft Year Name Round Overall Team 1960 Wayne Stewart Los Angeles Chargers 1960 Joe Davis Los Angeles Chargers 1960 Paul Maguire Los Angeles Chargers 1960 Pete Davidson Los Angeles Chargers 1960 Harry Rakowski Buffalo Bills 1964 Vince Petno 8 63 Oakland Raiders

Individual honors

All-Americans
This list includes selected First Team All-Americans at The Citadel^[15]

Year	Name	AFCA	AP	Walter Camp	Sports Network/STATS	Football Gazette
1976	Brian Ruff
1985	Jim Gabrish
1986	Scott Thompson
1988	Carlos Avalos
1990	J. J. Davis
1991	Lester Smith
1992	Lester Smith
	Carey Cash
	Terrence Forney
	Lance Hansen
1994	Levi Davis
1995	Brad Keeney
1997	Carlos Frank
2008	Andre Roberts
2012	Mike Sellers
2015	Tyler Renew
	Dee Delaney

Retired Jerseys

14 - Jack Douglas
15 - Lester Smith
35 - Stump Mitchell
51 - Brian Ruff
59 - Marc Buoniconti
66 - John Small

Future schedules

This represents the most recent verified future non-conference games. The current season schedule can be found at 2016 The Citadel Bulldogs football team.

2017

Date	Opponent	Location
Sept. 2	Newberry	Charleston, SC
Sept. 9	Presbyterian	Charleston, SC
Nov. 18	Clemson	Clemson, SC

2018

Date	Opponent	Location
Nov. 17	Alabama	Tuscaloosa, AL
TBA	Charleston Southern	Charleston, SC

2019

Date	Opponent	Location
Aug. 31	Georgia Tech	Atlanta, GA
TBA	Charleston Southern	Charleston, SC

2020

Date	Opponent	Location
TBA	Charleston Southern	Charleston, SC

2021

Date	Opponent	Location
TBA	Charleston Southern	Charleston, SC

References

1. "Brand Toolbox: Colors - The Citadel - Charleston, SC". Citadel.edu. Retrieved 2016-04-08.
2. Jeff Hartsell (January 9, 2014). "The Citadel introduces new football coach Mike Houston". Post and Courier. Charleston, SC. Retrieved January 9, 2014.
3. Kevin Bilodeau (January 18, 2016). "Mike Houston leaves The Citadel for James Madison". WCSC-TV. Retrieved January 18, 2016.
4. Kevin Bilodeau (January 19, 2016). "The Citadel names Brent Thompson as new head coach". WCSC-TV. Retrieved January 19, 2016.
5. "Priority Points System". The Citadel. Retrieved 2012-05-12.
6. Jeff Hartsell (August 29, 2016). "Citadel considers tearing down visitors' side at Johnson Hagood Stadium". Post and Courier. Charleston, SC. Retrieved October 12, 2016.
7. Jeff Hartsell (September 9, 2016). "Citadel football returns to (half of) Johnson Hagood Stadium". Post and Courier. Charleston, SC. Retrieved October 12, 2016.
8. Jeff Hartsell (October 11, 2016). "Citadel home at last, with nation's best 4 road wins". Post and Courier. Charleston, SC. Retrieved October 12, 2016.
9. Jeff Hartsell (October 11, 2016). "Citadel Notes: Stadium's east side to be renovated; Georgia Tech on 2019 schedule". Post and Courier. Charleston, SC.
10. 2011 Citadel Football Media Guide. e-digitaleditions.com. p. 7. Retrieved 2012-03-24.
11. 2011 Citadel Football Media Guide. e-digitaleditions.com. pp. 10–11. Retrieved 2012-03-24.
12. 2011 Citadel Football Media Guide. e-digitaleditions.com. p. 142. Retrieved 2012-03-24.
13. Jeff Hartsell (January 17, 2014). "Citadel football welcomes back Maurice Drayton as defensive coordinator". Post and Courier. Charleston, SC. Retrieved January 18, 2014.
14. 2011 Citadel Football Media Guide. e-digitaleditions.com. p. 12. Retrieved 2012-03-24.
15. 2011 Citadel Football Media Guide. e-digitaleditions.com. p. 133. Retrieved 2012-08-14.