Football 9/2/2026 6:43:00 PM

Battle of Champions Takes National Scale at Black Hall of Fame Classic

ALBANY, Ga. – The Golden Rams takes to the national airwaves in its longest road trip of the fall season. It is a battle of 2025 Conference champions when Albany State clashes with Johnson C. Smith in the Black College Football Hall of Fame Classic in Canton, Ohio.

The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Champs Golden Rams will line up against the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association title team Golden Bulls live Sunday afternoon, Sept. 6, in a 4 p.m. kick-off nationally on The NFL Network.

Champions Meet for First Time
     Featuring two of the top perennial teams of the SIAC and CIAA, it will be remarkably the inaugural meeting between the two top 2025 programs, who went a combined 22-4 a year ago.
     ASU (12-2) ran through the SIAC ranks with an 8-0 mark before it hoisted the trophy following a 22-16 win over Benedict College. The Golden Rams didn't stop there. ASU took care of both Valdosta State (35-30) and Benedict (14-12) before it was clipped by Newberry College in final eight, 31-24.
     Johnson C. Smith (10-2) earned its spot in the CIAA Championship with a 6-1 regular season before it bested Virginia Union (45-21) for the title. The Bulls run in the NCAA DII playoffs was not as long as the Bobcats of Frostburg State prevailed, 21-17, in the First Round.

Bowser Seeks First ASU Win Against Flowers
     After he faced his ASU predecessor last weekend, Golden Ram head coach David Bowser's coaching connections continue in Week 1.
     Bowser meets his former Head Coach he coached under in JCSU's Maurice Flowers. Bowser was part of Flowers' JCSU staff back in 2023 as the Special Assistant to the Head Football Coach, Director of Player Personnel, and Linebackers Coach.
     Both the Rams and Bulls seek their first 2026 victories. ASU fell in a close 20-7 final at Florida A&M, while Johnson C. Smith lost in a 32-10 decision at Benedict College.
     Over the last three years counting last weekend, Flowers has posted a 25-9 overall record and 3-2 against SIAC foes.

Rams Hang Tough Against Rattlers
     The third The David Bowser era opened with grit and some encouraging plays in the 2026 football season opener. Albany State held tough and gave host Florida A&M all it could want for the first 51 minutes before it fell by a 20-7 margin on the gridiron.
Florida A&M put the first points on the board on its second drive and never trailed. The Golden Ram defense came up with some big plays to highlight the promising outing, including a 4^th-and-goal sack after have the team's punt blocked ending the previous possession. ASU found paydirt with 4:20 left in the game when Vinson Berry hit Exavior Sherrod from seven yards away for what would be the 20-7 final.
"I felt we matched the physicality of FAMU. It was a very physical game," noted Bowser. "But we made more mental mishaps – in regards to the first ball game. We needed to play someone else to see what we needed to work on."
In the one-score game the majority of the night, the Rattlers outgained the Golden Rams, 260-163. ASU completed 14 passes for 160 yards, while it only gained three positive yards on 37 carries due to 10 sacks by the home team.
Berry came off the bench to complete 5 of 10 passes for 38 yards and the lone touchdown, while starter Jeffrey Davis amassed 122 yards on nine of 12 pass attempts. Jaquan Graham pulled in five passes for 83 yards, including grabs of 29 and 21 yards in the opening drive of the second half. Malachi Eaford had three catches for 25 yards and Duke Timmons caught two balls for 19 yards. Sherrod's lone reception was the seven-yard score. Jayden Threat led the ground game with 26 yards on eight rushes.
Defensively, the ASU unit gave up only 260 yards on 57 plays including eight tackles for loss and a trio of sacks. D'avary Weeks paced the group with seven stops and a sack, while both Rontavion Scott and Derrick Drayton recorded six tackles to go with one and two tackles for loss. Avery Hall and Jimmy Dawson rounded out the defense with the other two sacks.
"Now, our defense played outstanding. We converted and got some stops," Bowser pointed out. "We need to clean up some things on the special teams with our decision making."
Bowser continued, "Overall, we had a lot of missed opportunities. We played both quarterbacks on offense – Vince gave us a spark late and JD had good drives. Collectively, we have to improve things."
After the ASU punt was blocked late in the second quarter, Dawson made sure FAMU didn't come away with any points off it. On 4^th-and-Goal from the 3-yard line, Dawson took down his former teammate in the Rattlers' QB Isaiah Knowles for a 7-yard loss and turnover on downs.
  Down 7-0 at half, the Golden Ram offense put together its best drive of the night to that point. Davis hit Graham from 29 and 21 yards in an 11-play, 65-yard drive. ASU, though, came up empty when Jonathan Rodriguez's 32-yard field goal attempt was blocked.
  The ASU defense continued to be solid as it bent but didn't break as FAMU added a 17-yard and a 37-yard field goal for a 13-0 total with 12:29 left.
The two foes exchanged touchdowns over the final nine minutes, including ASU's 74-yard on 14 play drive.

Tigers Pull Away from Bulls with Final 16 Points
     After Johnson C. Smith pulled to within 16-10 on the opening second-half drive, Benedict answered with the final 16 points of the day. The home Tigers connected on back-to-back field goals in the ensuing five minutes before a touchdown with 50 seconds left in the third quarter sealed the outcome.
     The two offenses tore up the ground with a combined 797 yards in 123 plays. JCSU rushed for 287 yards on 44 carries while only throwing for 75 yards through the air from QB Parker McQuarrie.
     Allen University transfer Fabian Duncan rumbled for 183 yards on 22 carries with his team's lone touchdown. He also pulled in two passes for 19 yards. Kamaro Edmonds had a solid running game himself with 16 rushes for 99 yards. Defensively, Rossie Grimes posted 12 tackles, while Vincent Hill added nine stops and a tackle for loss.

Rams Play in Georgia for First Time
            The Rams stay on the road for the third of four to open the 2026 season by going to the east coast of Georgia for the first contest in the state. ASU faces rival Savannah State in a 6 p.m. kick-off on Saturday night, Sept. 12.

-GoldenRams-

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Players Mentioned

#82 Malachi Eaford: WR; 6' 3"; Sophomore

#6 Isaiah Knowles: QB; 5' 11"; Graduate Student

#91 Derrick Drayton: DE; 6' 2"; Redshirt Senior

#0 Jimmy Dawson: LB; 6' 2"; Redshirt Sophomore

#84 Exavior Sherrod: TE; 6' 3"; Redshirt Freshman

#5 Rontavion Scott: S; 5' 10"; Redshirt Junior

#46 Jonathan Rodriguez: K/P; 5' 9"; Redshirt Freshman

#10 Vinson Berry: QB; 6' 2"; Junior

#18 Jaquan Graham: WR; 5' 8"; Junior

#17 Avery Hall: DL; 6' 1"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#82 Malachi Eaford
: 6' 3"; Sophomore
: WR

#6 Isaiah Knowles
: 5' 11"; Graduate Student
: QB

#91 Derrick Drayton
: 6' 2"; Redshirt Senior
: DE

#0 Jimmy Dawson
: 6' 2"; Redshirt Sophomore
: LB

#84 Exavior Sherrod
: 6' 3"; Redshirt Freshman
: TE

#5 Rontavion Scott
: 5' 10"; Redshirt Junior
: S

#46 Jonathan Rodriguez
: 5' 9"; Redshirt Freshman
: K/P

#10 Vinson Berry
: 6' 2"; Junior
: QB

#18 Jaquan Graham
: 5' 8"; Junior
: WR

#17 Avery Hall
: 6' 1"; Junior
: DL