THE GAME
Savannah State University is back in the friendly confines of Theodore A. Wright Stadium as they wrap up their two-game home stand against the Yellow Jackets of Allen University.
 
The Tigers are still trying to find their way this season as they look to give head coach Thomas Howard his first win while Allen enters the game after a BYE week. The Yellow Jackets lost a close game to Albany State on September 19 at home by a score of 32-28.
 
The series between Savannah State and Allen began in 1915 and this will be the 15th meeting. The Yellow Jackets lead the overall series 9-5.

GAME INFORMATION:
Allen (2-2, 1-1 SIAC) vs. Savannah State (0-4, 0-3 SIAC)
Date: Saturday, October 3rd
Time: 6:00pm
Location: Theodore A. "Ted" Wright Stadium | Savannah, Georgia
Game Notes: https://ssuathletics.com/documents/2026/9/30/2026_SSU_Football_Game_Notes_vs._Allen.pdf

GAME THEME:
Saturday's contest is designated as Military Appreciation/Cancer Awareness Day, presented by the College of Science and Humanities (COSH) and the Hyundai College of Education (HCOE)

TICKET INFORMATION:
All Tickets MUST Be Purchased Online At SSUAthletics.com/Tickets

WEATHER INFORMATION:
Saturday's forecast for Savannah does show thunderstorm chances in the area. Temperatures are expected have a high of 83° and a low of 74° with a 62% chance of thunderstorms. Winds will be blowing East Southeast at 6mph.

BROADCAST INFORMATION:
Live Stream: Savannah State Sports Network
Broadcasters: Terry Hines (Play-By-Play), Curtis Foster (Color Commentary

SAVANNAH STATE SPORTS NETWORK
Savannah State will have five of their home football contests live streamed on the Savannah State Sports Network with veteran SSU broadcasters Terry Hines (Play-By-Play) and Curtis Foster (Color Commentary). The Savannah State Sports Network can be found at: https://siacnetwork.tv/ssutigers/.

THOMAS HOWARD SHOW
Catch the "Thomas Howard Show" each Wednesday during the football season on YouTube. Hear directly from the Head Tiger as he breaks down the latest Tiger football action, previews the upcoming matchup, and takes you inside the program. Catch the latest episode HERE.
 
COACH HOWARD ON ALLEN
We know they (Allen) are going to come right at us. They got them big boys up front and they have a little running back in the backfield that is going to come flying out of those gaps.
 
We have to do a great job of being sound of what we do and continuing to do what we do.
 
I think the things they do on offense are exciting because defensively, we want to try to get after you and make you have to deal with us.
 
LAST WEEK
Savannah State held a lead through three quarters, but Miles College scored 10 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to rally past the Tigers, 25-17, in a game played at Theodore A. "Ted" Wright Stadium on September 26, 2026.
 
RaShawn Truell threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to Carter Payne in the first quarter and added a 5-yard touchdown pass to Cinsere Clark early in the second quarter to help the Tigers go into intermission with a 14-12 lead.
 
SSU was held out of the end zone in the third quarter but did earn three points on a Joshua Woodley 24-yard field goal as they carried a 17-15 advantage into the final period before the Golden Bears scored the final 10 points of the contest.
 
Truell completed 9-of-26 passes for 128 yards and two touchdowns for Savannah State. Payne caught two passes for 35 yards and a touchdown, while Clark finished with two receptions for 29 yards and a score. Tristan Sizemore added two receptions for 37 yards.

KJ Debruce provided a spark on the ground, rushing 11 times for a game-high 82 yards. Savannah State finished with 210 yards of total offense, including 128 through the air and 82 on the ground.

Defensively, freshman Kaiden Stanciel led Savannah State with a game-high 12 tackles, including 10 solo stops and a tackle for loss. Zamarian Williams added nine tackles and a tackle for loss, while Kevin Stokes, Jr. finished with six tackles.

Terrell Gordon, Jr. recorded an interception for the Tigers, while Anthony Wilson registered Savannah State's lone sack. Jeffrey Jefferson Jr. was key on special teams with a blocked punt and a 27-yards punt return.
 
LAST YEAR AGAINST ALLEN
Savannah State defeated Allen 23-20 in overtime on October 11, 2025 at E. K. McClendon Stadium at Fairfield Central High School in Winnsboro, South Carolina. The Tigers trailed 6-3 at the end of the first quarter but two touchdown runs by Joseph Hampton and a field goal by Jimmy Tran gave SSU a 20-12 halftime edge. Savannah State went scoreless in the second half while the Yellow Jackets added eight points to tie the game and send it to an extra period. Tran hit a 25-yard field goal in the Tigers first possession while Allen fumbled the ball on the first play of their overtime possession and it was recovered by Darrian Bell to give SSU the win. Bell ended the game with a school record 23 tackles for the defense while Hampton ran for 107 yards and two touchdowns for the offense. Fabian Walker added 192 passing yards for the Tigers.
 
SAVANNAH STATE/ALLEN CONNECTION
Savannah State head football coach Thomas Howard was the defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach at Allen (2003-05). He also served one year as the assistant athletic director/compliance coordinator and two years as the school's academic adviser/recruiting coordinator.; When Thomas Howard was a defensive back at Morehoiuse, Allen head coach Cedric Pearl was the Maroon Tigers offensive line coach during the 2001 season; Allen associate head coach/defensive coordinator Gary Harper was the Savannah State defensive coordinator in 2002, and later associate head coach from 2003-2006; Before becoming the Savannah State head women's basketball coach, Phillip Wallace, Jr. served as the Allen athletics director from 2024-25.
 
COMMON OPPONENTS
Savannah State and Allen have four common opponents: Albany State, Benedict, Morehouse and Edward Waters.
 
Both teams have already played and lost to Albany State. ASU beat Savannah State 49-17 on September 12 and the Golden Rams beat Allen 32-28 on Sept. 19.
 
Edward Waters beat SSU 55-30 on Sept. 19 and the EWU Tigers will play Allen on November 7. Savannah State will face Morehouse on October 10 and will play Benedict on Oct. 31. Allen will play Benedict on Oct. 10 and Morehouse on Oct. 31.
 
YOU CAN GET ANYWHERE FROM HERE
Former Savannah State wide receiver Antonio Johnson is the founder, President and CEO, and sole owner of GlobalKynect Solution, a firm specializing in cybersecurity, project management, and intelligence operations.

The Estill, South Carolina native served as a U.S. Army Senior Officer for more than 23 years. As a combat veteran, he has held numerous assignments including being a member of the U.S. Army Inspector General Intelligence Oversight Division, and a voting member on a NATO baseboard planning committee, as well as providing oversight on Kandahar Airfield infrastructure projects. In these positions, he has had experience with conducting systemic and regulatory inspections of programs including information, physical, personnel, technical and industrial security, threat reporting and awareness, operations security and information assurance. He has analyzed security and intelligence oversight trends, as well as overseeing $100 million in infrastructure projects; the development of a strategic plan to deploy an additional 30,000 U.S. troops into Afghanistan; and the construction of a $60 million Division Headquarters in a combat zone.
 
Johnson, who played for the Tigers from 1987-89, holds a Bachelor of Arts in Marketing from Savannah State University and has extensive experience in intelligence operations, information assurance, industrial security, exercise planning, large-scale project management, intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance integration, international/regional experience, training and development, recruiting, investigations, and management.
 
WHAT'S IN A NAME
There are 9 sets and 21 total players on the team that share the same last name.
 
Three sets players have the last names of Brown (Cameron, Kendarius & Prince), Davis (Isaiah, Stephen & Clint) and Smith (Amaari, Cory & Bryce).
 
Six sets of players have the last name of Clark (Cinsere & Jahmarri), Hill (Rodney & Anthony), Jones (Arnez & Camron), Stokes (Jadahrien & Kevin), White (Akeem & Emmanuel) and Wilson (Anthony & Giovanni).
 
LEGACY TIGER
While coaching at Allen, Coach Howard had the opportunity to coach Calvin Leonard before the program shut down. Leonard transferred to Savannah State and played for the Tigers from 2006-08 and led SSU in tackles in 2008 with 89. Now, Howard is coaching Cameron Leonard, who is Calvin's son, at SSU.
 
CATCHING ON
Wide receiver Cinsere Clark had a team-leading 50 receptions last season for 641 yards and 4 touchdowns. After four games this season, he has 13 receptions for 112 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Clark was the first SSU player to have at least 50 catches in a single season since 2010 when Simon Heyward caught 56 passes for 423 yards and 6 touchdowns
 
SSU PLAYERS FROM THE PALMETTO STATE
Savannah State has five players who list South Carolina as their home. 
 
Defensive back Jeffrey Jefferson Jr. is from Summerville (Fort Dorchester HS), tight end Kevin Cobbs is from Ridgeville (Ashley Ridge HS), offensive lineman Dakarai Sumter is from Hopkins (Lower Richland HS), offensive lineman Jonathan Orr is from Hardeeville (Ridgeland Academy) and defensive lineman Michael Bennett hails from Cross (Cross HS).
 
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
Savannah State is ranked in the top 50 in several categories in the latest Division II statistics rankings. 
 
The Tigers are ranked #11 in blocked punts (1), #17 in fewest penalty yards (190), #20 in team tackles for loss (7.3), #26 in fewest penalty yards per game (47.50), #28 in red zone offense (0.900), #34 in fewest penalties (24), #39 in kickoff return defense (16.80), #42 in fewest penalty per game (4) and #50 in blocked kicks (1).
 
Individually, Trenton Rhodes is ranked #6 in combined kick returns (371) and and Jadahrien Stokes is ranked #31 in fumble recoveries (1).
 
TIGER LEADERS
The leader of the Savannah State offense is sophomore quarterback RaShawn Truell. He has completed 41 of 88 passes for 538 yards, 6 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. Freshman running back KJ Debruce has carried the pigskin 14 times for 82 yards and senior wide receiver Cinsere Clark has 13 receptions for 112 yards and 2 touchdowns. Other offensive weapons include running backs Rodney Hill, Prince Brown and Elijah Stephens, wide receivers Tristan Sizemore, Trenton Rhodes and Carter Payne along with quarterbacks Christian Burks and Fabian Walker.
 
Anchoring the Tiger defense is freshman linebacker Kaiden Stanceil who has 25 tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss and freshman defensive back Zamarian Williams who has 19 tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss. Adonis Brazil is the top defensive lineman with 13 tackles, 3 tackles for loss and 2 sacks. Other top defenders are defensive backs Reggie Troutman, Kevin Stokes, Jr., Clint Davis III and Terrell Gordon, Jr., linebacker Cameron Leonard and defensive linemen Jamari Hinton and Akeem White.
 
Chase Butler averages 37.84 yards per punt and Joshua Woodley has made all 3 field goal attempts and 6 of 7 extra point attempts. On kick returns, Kenny Gladden averages 25 yards per return while Jahziah Avilez averages 19 yards per return and Trenton Rhodes averages 17.57 yards.
 
SCOUTING ALLEN
The Yellow Jackets were 6-5 overall and 5-3 in the SIAC a year ago and were predicted to finish 6th this season in the conference. Allen enters the game having received votes in the latest Division II Black College Football Poll. Defensive back Aeron Gresham, tight end Michael Bowman and offensive linemen Ashton Morris, Zyrus Craft and Chance Bush were all named to the Preseason All-Conference team.
 
Allen's offense averages 34.75 points and 410.5 yards a game. Their balanced offense gets 161 yards on the ground and 248.75 through the air. Javis Floyd leads the SIAC in rushing with 508 yards and 8 touchdowns while Deveon Williams to the top pass catcher with 20 receptions for 401 yards and 3 scores. Brent Upshaw engineers the Allen offense with 63 completions on 112 attempts for 954 yards, 8 touchdowns and 4 interceptions.
 
On the defensive side of the ball, linebacker Jayshawn Smalls has 26 tackles, 5 tackles for loss and 2 sacks while fellow linebacker Carson Pritchett has 21 stops. In the trenches, Brian Dennis has 15 tackles and 3 tackles for loss, Zanias Rosemond has 11 tackles and defensive end Jadarius Cherry has chipped in 9 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and 2 sacks. The secondary is led by Joseph King (18 tackles), Nicholas Payne (16 tackles) and Javon Jamison (11 tackles). Allen surrenders 23.25 points and 405 yards per outing.

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.