# 2024 Charleston Southern Buccaneers football team

The 2024 Charleston Southern Buccaneers football team represented Charleston Southern University as a member of the Big South–OVC Football Association during the 2024 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by Gabe Giardina in his second season as head coach. The Buccaneers played their home games at Buccaneer Field in Charleston, South Carolina. They finished the season 1–11, 0–8 in Big South–OVC play to finish in last place.

## Preseason
### Preseason poll

The Big South-OVC Conference released their preseason poll on July 17, 2024. The Buccaneers were picked to finish sixth in the conference.
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
| 1 | UT Martin | 61 (5) |
| 2 | Eastern Illinois | 53 (2) |
| 3 | Southeast Missouri State | 51 (2) |
| 4 | Tennessee State | 41 |
| 5 | Gardner-Webb | 40 |
| 6 | Charleston Southern | 27 |
| 7 | Tennessee Tech | 24 |
| 8 | Lindenwood | 18 |
| 9 | Western Illinois | 9 |

### Transfers
#### Outgoing

| Player | Position | New school |
| Brian Cooey | P | Ball State |
| Bryce Llewellyn | DB | Eastern Michigan |
| Darius Meeks | OL | Grambling State |
| King Walker | DL | North Carolina Central |
| Jamel Johnson | DB | Temple |
| Garret Cates | LS | USF |

#### Incoming

| Player | Position | Previous school |
| Kason Hooks | DB | Army |
| Chris Rhone | WR | Coastal Carolina |
| David Portu | DL | Coastal Carolina |
| Robert Wilson | DB | Grambling State |
| Rob McCoy | QB | Sacred Heart |
| Justin Waters | LB | Stonehill |

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| August 31 | 6:00 p.m. | The Citadel* | Buccaneer FieldN. Charleston, SC | ESPN+ | L 21–22 | 5,831 |
| September 7 | 6:00 p.m. | at No. 15 Furman* | Paladin Stadium Greenville, SC | ESPN+ | W 24–20 | 8,377 |
| September 14 | 2:00 p.m. | at Richmond* | Robins Stadium Richmond, VA | FloSports | L 0–38 | 6,522 |
| September 28 | 6:00 p.m. | at Tennessee State | Hale Stadium Nashville, TN | ESPN+ | L 9–13 | 1,853 |
| October 5 | 4:00 p.m. | Western Illinois | Buccaneer FieldN. Charleston, SC | ESPN+ | L 20–31 | 4,015 |
| October 12 | 2:00 p.m. | at Lindenwood | Harlen C. Hunter StadiumSt. Charles, MO | ESPN+ | L 14–29 | 2,765 |
| October 19 | 4:00 p.m. | No. 8 Southeast Missouri State | Buccaneer FieldN. Charleston, SC | ESPN+ | L 13–26 | 3,105 |
| October 26 | 2:30 p.m. | at Tennessee Tech | Tucker Stadium Cookeville, TN | ESPN+ | L 23–28 | 5,498 |
| November 2 | 2:00 p.m. | Gardner–Webb | Buccaneer FieldN. Charleston, SC | ESPN+ | L 14–17 | 1,977 |
| November 9 | 2:00 p.m. | No. 19 UT Martin | Buccaneer FieldN. Charleston, SC | ESPN+ | L 14–40 | 3,614 |
| November 16 | 1:00 p.m. | at Eastern Illinois | Ernest W. Spangler StadiumCharleston, IL | ESPN+ | L 13–16 $^{OT}$ | 1,895 |
| November 23 | 1:30 p.m. | at Florida State* | Bobby Bowden FieldTallahassee, FL | ACCNX/ESPN+ | L 7–41 | 43,711 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from STATS Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Eastern time |||||||

## Game summaries
### The Citadel

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bulldogs | 0 | 3 | 12 | 7 | 22 |
| Buccaneers | 7 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 21 |
at Buccaneer Field • North Charleston, SC
* Date: Saturday August 31, 2024
* Game time: 6:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 87 °F (31 °C) • Wind: N at 9 miles per hour (14 km/h)
* Game attendance: 5,831
* Referee: Branden McCain
* TV announcers (ESPN+): Justin Biegel (play-by-play) and Jack DeLongchamps (analyst)
| Statistics | CIT | CHSO |
| First downs | 20 | 19 |
| Total yards | 360 | 383 |
| Rushing yards | 190 | 93 |
| Passing yards | 170 | 290 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 10–17–0 | 20–25–0 |
| Time of possession | 32:11 | 27:49 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| The Citadel | Passing | Johnathan Bennett | 10/17, 170 yards |
| The Citadel | Rushing | Corey Ibrahim | 16 carries, 68 yards |
| The Citadel | Receiving | Dervon Pesnell | 3 receptions, 86 yards |
| Charleston Southern | Passing | Rob McCoy | 20/25, 290 yards, TD |
| Charleston Southern | Rushing | Rob McCoy | 12 carries, 40 yards |
| Charleston Southern | Receiving | Chris Rhone | 5 receptions, 90 yards |

### at No. 15 Furman

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Buccaneers | 6 | 8 | 7 | 3 | 24 |
| No. 15 Paladins | 0 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 20 |
at Paladin Stadium • Greenville, SC
* Date: Saturday September 7, 2024
* Game time: 6:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny, 75 °F (24 °C)
* Game attendance: 8,377
* Referee: Brian Holland
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
| Statistics | CHSO | FUR |
| First downs | 14 | 20 |
| Total yards | 257 | 336 |
| Rushing yards | 114 | 101 |
| Passing yards | 143 | 235 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 12–23–0 | 18–35–2 |
| Time of possession | 27:53 | 32:07 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Charleston Southern | Passing | Rob McCoy Jr | 12/23, 143 yards, 2 TD |
| Charleston Southern | Rushing | Autavius Ison | 19 carries, 90 yards, 1 TD |
| Charleston Southern | Receiving | Noah Jennings | 7 receptions, 97 yards, 2 TD |
| Furman | Passing | Trey Hedden | 12/25, 193 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT |
| Furman | Rushing | Myion Hicks | 14 carries, 68 yards, 1 TD |
| Furman | Receiving | Ben Ferguson | 3 receptions, 108 yards |

### at Richmond

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Buccaneers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Spiders | 7 | 14 | 14 | 3 | 38 |
at E. Claiborne Robins Stadium • Richmond, VA
* Date: Saturday September 14, 2024
* Game time: 2:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny
* Game attendance: 6,522
* Referee: Jeremy DeAngulo
* TV announcers (FloSports/MSN): TBD
| Statistics | CHSO | RICH |
| First downs | 10 | 18 |
| Total yards | 131 | 370 |
| Rushing yards | 39 | 213 |
| Passing yards | 92 | 157 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 11–24–2 | 13–15–0 |
| Time of possession | 26:12 | 33:48 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Charleston Southern | Passing | Zolten Osborne | 10/19, 81 yards, 2 INT |
| Charleston Southern | Rushing | Autavius Ison | 13 carries, 49 yards |
| Charleston Southern | Receiving | Quay Kindell | 2 receptions, 26 yards |
| Richmond | Passing | Kyle Wickersham | 10/12, 128 yards, 1 TD |
| Richmond | Rushing | Zach Palmer-Smith | 21 carries, 80 yards, 2 TD |
| Richmond | Receiving | Nick DeGennaro | 5 receptions, 71 yards, 1 TD |

### at Tennessee State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Buccaneers | 0 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 9 |
| Tigers | 0 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 13 |
at Nissan Stadium • Nashville, TN
* Date: Saturday September 28, 2024
* Game time: 6:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Rain, 67 °F (19 °C)
* Game attendance: 1,853
* Referee: Drew Myers
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
| Statistics | CHSO | TNST |
| First downs | 17 | 11 |
| Total yards | 309 | 206 |
| Rushing yards | 219 | 101 |
| Passing yards | 90 | 105 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 4–12–0 | 12–25–0 |
| Time of possession | 41:29 | 18:31 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Charleston Southern | Passing | Kaleb Jackson | 4/12, 90 yards |
| Charleston Southern | Rushing | Autavius Ison | 33 carries, 157 yards |
| Charleston Southern | Receiving | Chris Rhone | 2 receptions, 39 yards |
| Tennessee State | Passing | Draylen Ellis | 12/24, 105 yards, 1 TD |
| Tennessee State | Rushing | Jordan Gant | 5 carries, 40 yards, 1 TD |
| Tennessee State | Receiving | Bryant Williams | 5 receptions, 49 yards, 1 TD |

### Western Illinois

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Leathernecks | 14 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 31 |
| Buccaneers | 0 | 13 | 0 | 7 | 20 |
at Buccaneer Field • North Charleston, SC
* Date: Saturday October 5, 2024
* Game time: 4:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny, 81 °F (27 °C)
* Game attendance: 4,014
* Referee: John Kellermeier
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
| Statistics | WIU | CHSO |
| First downs | 17 | 21 |
| Total yards | 329 | 431 |
| Rushing yards | 132 | 325 |
| Passing yards | 197 | 106 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 17–23–1 | 9–17–2 |
| Time of possession | 23:28 | 36:32 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Western Illinois | Passing | Nathan Lamb | 17/23, 197 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT |
| Western Illinois | Rushing | Cameren Smith | 25 carries, 101 yards, 1 TD |
| Western Illinois | Receiving | Elijah Aragon | 10 receptions, 129 yards, 1 TD |
| Charleston Southern | Passing | Rob McCoy Jr | 9/17, 106 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT |
| Charleston Southern | Rushing | Autavius Ison | 29 carries, 229 yards, 2 TD |
| Charleston Southern | Receiving | Noah Jennings | 4 receptions, 44 yards, 1 TD |

### at Lindenwood

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Buccaneers | 0 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
| Lions | 10 | 10 | 3 | 6 | 29 |
at Harlen C. Hunter Stadium • St. Charles, MO
* Date: Saturday October 12, 2024
* Game time: 2:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny, 83 °F (28 °C)
* Game attendance: 2,765
* Referee: Brad Carrell
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
| Statistics | CHSO | LIN |
| First downs | 8 | 25 |
| Total yards | 197 | 392 |
| Rushing yards | 98 | 240 |
| Passing yards | 99 | 152 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 15–29–2 | 12–25–1 |
| Time of possession | 19:35 | 40:25 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Charleston Southern | Passing | Rob McCoy Jr | 14/23, 98 yards, 2 INT |
| Charleston Southern | Rushing | Autavius Ison | 14 carries, 77 yards |
| Charleston Southern | Receiving | Chris Rhone | 4 receptions, 46 yards |
| Lindenwood | Passing | Nate Glantz | 12/25, 152 yards, 1 INT |
| Lindenwood | Rushing | Nate Glantz | 18 carries, 103 yards |
| Lindenwood | Receiving | Jeff Caldwell | 2 receptions, 52 yards |

### No. 8. Southeast Missouri State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 8 Redhawks | 6 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 26 |
| Buccaneers | 0 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 13 |
at Buccaneer Field • North Charleston, SC
* Date: Saturday October 19, 2024
* Game time: 4:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny, 71 °F (22 °C)
* Game attendance: 3,105
* Referee: Gabriel Tomlin
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
| Statistics | SEMO | CHSO |
| First downs | 28 | 12 |
| Total yards | 415 | 255 |
| Rushing yards | 80 | 108 |
| Passing yards | 335 | 147 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 32–55–0 | 12–18–0 |
| Time of possession | 33:43 | 26:17 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Southeast Missouri State | Passing | Paxton DeLaurent | 32/55, 335 yards, 1 TD |
| Southeast Missouri State | Rushing | Jacorey Love | 12 carries, 65 yards |
| Southeast Missouri State | Receiving | Tristan Smith | 7 receptions, 90 yards |
| Charleston Southern | Passing | Kaleb Jackson | 9/15, 125 yards, 2 TD |
| Charleston Southern | Rushing | Autavius Ison | 11 carries, 44 yards |
| Charleston Southern | Receiving | Chris Rhone | 6 receptions, 98 yards, 2 TD |

### at Tennessee Tech

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Buccaneers | 7 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 23 |
| Golden Eagles | 3 | 16 | 0 | 9 | 28 |
at Tucker Stadium • Cookeville, TN
* Date: Saturday October 26, 2024
* Game time: 2:30 p.m.
* Game weather: Cloudy, 72 °F (22 °C)
* Game attendance: 5,498
* Referee: Zach Erdmann
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
| Statistics | CHSO | TTU |
| First downs | 15 | 16 |
| Total yards | 335 | 343 |
| Rushing yards | 122 | 168 |
| Passing yards | 213 | 175 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 14–29–2 | 9–16–0 |
| Time of possession | 31:25 | 28:35 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Charleston Southern | Passing | Kaleb Jackson | 14/29, 213 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT |
| Charleston Southern | Rushing | Tyson Greenwade | 24 carries, 95 yards, 1 TD |
| Charleston Southern | Receiving | Chris Rhone | 3 receptions, 129 yards, 1 TD |
| Tennessee Tech | Passing | Dylan Laible | 9/16, 175 yds, 2 TD |
| Tennessee Tech | Rushing | Jalen Mitchell | 15 carries, 94 yards |
| Tennessee Tech | Receiving | D.J. Linkins | 3 receptions, 106 yards, 1 TD |

### Gardner–Webb

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Runnin' Bulldogs | 0 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 17 |
| Buccaneers | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 |
at Buccaneer Field • Charleston, SC
* Date: Saturday November 2, 2024
* Game time: 2:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny, 82 °F (28 °C)
* Game attendance: 1,977
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
| Statistics | GWEB | CHSO |
| First downs | 24 | 13 |
| Total yards | 346 | 222 |
| Rushing yards | 124 | 94 |
| Passing yards | 222 | 128 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 19–29–0 | 13–27–1 |
| Time of possession | 37:04 | 22:56 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Gardner–Webb | Passing | Tyler Ridell | 17/24, 212 yards, 1 TD |
| Gardner–Webb | Rushing | Edward Saydee | 25 carries, 86 yards, 1 TD |
| Gardner–Webb | Receiving | Taylor Shields | 4 receptions, 65 yards, 1 TD |
| Charleston Southern | Passing | Kaleb Jackson | 13/27, 128 yards, 1 INT |
| Charleston Southern | Rushing | Tyson Greenwade | 15 carries, 68 yards, 1 TD |
| Charleston Southern | Receiving | Noah Jennings | 4 receptions, 53 yards |

### No. 19 UT Martin

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 19 Skyhawks | 16 | 3 | 14 | 7 | 40 |
| Buccaneers | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
at Buccaneer Field • North Charleston, SC
* Date: Saturday November 9, 2024
* Game time: 2:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny, 75 °F (24 °C)
* Game attendance: 3,614
* Referee: Brandon McCain
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
| Statistics | UTM | CHSO |
| First downs | 21 | 12 |
| Total yards | 491 | 209 |
| Rushing yards | 237 | 94 |
| Passing yards | 254 | 115 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 13–26–0 | 14–27–3 |
| Time of possession | 33:06 | 26:17 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| UT Martin | Passing | Kinkead Dent | 13/26, 254 yards, 2 TD |
| UT Martin | Rushing | Patrick Smith | 15 carries, 123 yards |
| UT Martin | Receiving | DeVonte Tanksley | 5 receptions, 128 yards, 2 TD |
| Charleston Southern | Passing | Rob McCoy Jr | 12/23, 97 yards, 3 INT |
| Charleston Southern | Rushing | Autavius Ison | 14 carries, 42 yards |
| Charleston Southern | Receiving | Noah Jennings | 6 receptions, 52 yards |

### at Eastern Illinois

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
| Buccaneers | 0 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 13 |
| Panthers | 0 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 16 |
at O'Brien Field • Charleston, IL
* Date: Saturday November 16, 2024
* Game time: 1:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny, 50 °F (10 °C)
* Game attendance: 1,895
* Referee: Zach Erdmann
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
| Statistics | CHSO | EIU |
| First downs | 11 | 17 |
| Total yards | 201 | 232 |
| Rushing yards | 125 | 64 |
| Passing yards | 76 | 168 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 10–19–0 | 17–26–2 |
| Time of possession | 27:05 | 27:34 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Charleston Southern | Passing | Rob McCoy Jr. | 7/13, 52 yards |
| Charleston Southern | Rushing | Autavius Ison | 12 carries, 42 yards |
| Charleston Southern | Receiving | Chris Rhone | 1 reception, 18 yards |
| Eastern Illinois | Passing | Pierce Holley | 17/23, 168 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT |
| Eastern Illinois | Rushing | MJ Flowers | 22 carries, 73 yards, 1 TD |
| Eastern Illinois | Receiving | Quenton Rogers | 5 receptions, 66 yards |

### at Florida State (FBS)

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Buccaneers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| Seminoles (FBS) | 0 | 17 | 14 | 10 | 41 |
at Doak Campbell Stadium • Tallahassee, FL
* Date: Saturday November 23, 2024
* Game time: 1:30 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny, 64 °F (18 °C)
* Game attendance: 43,711
* Referee: Stuart Mullins
* TV announcers (ACCNX/ESPN+): Shawn Kenney (play-by-play) and Forrest Conoly (analyst)
| Statistics | CHSO | FSU |
| First downs | 18 | 20 |
| Total yards | 275 | 415 |
| Rushing yards | 57 | 175 |
| Passing yards | 218 | 240 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 22–32–1 | 16–23–0 |
| Time of possession | 33:05 | 26:55 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Charleston Southern | Passing | Kaleb Jackson | 22/32, 218 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT |
| Charleston Southern | Rushing | Autavius Ison | 13 carries, 28 yards |
| Charleston Southern | Receiving | Chris Rhone | 3 receptions, 60 yards |
| Florida State | Passing | Luke Kromenhoek | 13/20, 209 yards, 3 TD |
| Florida State | Rushing | Kam Davis | 9 carries, 39 yards |
| Florida State | Receiving | Ja'Khi Douglas | 3 receptions, 82 yards, 1 TD |