# Albany State Golden Rams football

The Albany State Golden Rams football team represents Albany State University (ASU) in the sport of American football. The Golden Rams compete in the Division II of the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) and in the East Division of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC). They play their home games at Albany State University Coliseum on the university's Albany, Georgia, campus, and are currently led by coach Quinn Gray Sr.
In 2003, the Golden Rams played Fayetteville State in the Pioneer Bowl. Albany State won, 52–30.
The Albany State Golden Rams were named the 2010 SBN Black college Football National Champions.
Former Golden Rams players that have played in the NFL include current Indianapolis Colt Grover Stewart, former Golden Rams head coaches Mike White and Dan Land, Steve Carter, Kenneth Gant, Arthur Green, Jeff Hunter, Keyon Nash, Clarence Benford III and Chris Sheffield.
Rapper Rick Ross played briefly for the Golden Rams during the mid 1990s.

## Rivalries
### Fort Valley State University

The rivalry began in the first meeting of the two schools in 1945, when FVSU beat ASU, 27–21. The two schools did not play each other in 1946 and 1947. While the rivalry between the two teams spans more than half a century, Fountain City Classic officials moved the game to Columbus in 1990 to attract more corporate support. FVSU leads the series 44–39–4.
Fort Valley State won their last meeting in 2022, 31–21.

## Head coaches

| Coach | Seasons | Years | Games | W | L | T | Pct. |
| Forrest Kirkpatrick | 4 | 1945–1948 | 16 | 2 | 12 | 2 | .188 |
| Chris Roulhoc | 2 | 1949–1950 | 18 | 6 | 9 | 3 | .417 |
| Obie O'Neal | 17 | 1951–1967 | 146 | 79 | 57 | 10 | .575 |
| Bobby Lee | 2 | 1968–1969 | 17 | 5 | 12 | 0 | .294 |
| Willie Parker | 1 | 1970 | 10 | 4 | 6 | 0 | .400 |
| Hampton Smith | 24 | 1971–1976, 1982–1999 | 251 | 157 | 90 | 4 | .633 |
| Whitney L. Van Cleve | 3 | 1977–1979 | 31 | 12 | 17 | 2 | .419 |
| Willie Williamson | 2 | 1980–1981 (first 3 games in 1981) | 14 | 4 | 10 | 0 | .286 |
| John Wright | 1 | 1981 (last 7 games) | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | .000 |
| Mike White | 15 | 2000–2014 | 163 | 112 | 51 | 0 | .687 |
| Dan Land | 2 | 2015–2016 | 19 | 11 | 8 | 0 | .579 |
| Gabe Giardina | 4 | 2017–2022 | 54 | 37 | 17 | 0 | .685 |
| Quinn Gray | 1 | 2023–present | 11 | 6 | 5 | 0 | .545 |

## Championships
### SEAC

3: 1955, 1959, 1960

### SIAC

16: 1984, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2010, 2013, 2021

### SIAC East Division

2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2018, 2019, 2021

### Black college national

2003, 2004, 2010

## Postseason
### Bowl games

| Season | Bowl | Opponent | Result |
| 1946 | Coconut Bowl | Bethune–Cookman | L 0–32 |
| 1952 | Tropical Bowl | Bethune–Cookman | L 0–54 |
| 2003 | Pioneer Bowl | Fayetteville State | W 52–30 |

### NCAA Division II playoffs

| Season | Coach | Playoff | Opponent | Result |
| 1993 | Hampton Smith | First Round | Hampton | L 7–33 |
| 1994 | Hampton Smith | First Round | Valdosta State | L 7–14 |
| 1995 | Hampton Smith | First Round | North Alabama | L 28–38 |
| 1996 | Hampton Smith | First Round | Valdosta State | L 28–38 |
| 1997 | Hampton Smith | First Round Quarterfinal | Southern Arkansas Carson-Newman | W 10–6 L 22–23 |
| 2004 | Mike White | Second Round Quarterfinal | Arkansas Tech Valdosta State | W 42–24 L 24–38 |
| 2005 | Mike White | First Round | Central Arkansas | L 20–28 |
| 2006 | Mike White | First Round | Newberry | L 28–34 |
| 2007 | Mike White | First Round | Catawba | L 35–66 |
| 2008 | Mike White | First Round | Tusculum | L 22–34 |
| 2009 | Mike White | First Round | West Alabama | L 22–24 |
| 2010 | Mike White | Second Round Quarterfinal | Wingate Delta State | W 30–28 L 7–28 |
| 2011 | Mike White | First Round | North Greenville | L 14–63 |
| 2021 | Gabe Giardina | First Round | West Georgia | L 7–23 |

## All-Americans

| Year | Player | Pos | Team | Publication | Award |
| 1978 | Mike White | DT | 3rd Team | AP Little All-America | |
| 1984 | Steve Carter | WR | Honorable Mention | AP Little All-America | |
| 1995 | Antonio Leroy | RB | 3rd Team | AP Little All-America | |
| 2004 | Rodney Magwood | OL | 2nd Team | AP Little All-America | |
| 2004 | Walter Curry | DL | 2nd Team | AP Little All-America | |
| 2004 | Walter Curry | DL | 1st Team | Daktronics | |
| 2005 | Alton Pettway | DL | 2nd Team | AP Little All-America | |
| 2006 | Alton Pettway | DL | 1st Team | AFCA | |
| 2006 | Alton Pettway | DL | 1st Team | AP Little All-America | |
| 2006 | Alton Pettway | DL | 1st Team | Daktronics | |
| 2011 | Jamarkus Gaskins | LB | 1st Team | Daktronics | DPOY |
| 2011 | Jamarkus Gaskins | LB | 1st Team | AP Little All-America | |
| 2013 | Dexter Moody | DB | Honorable Mention | Beyond Sports Network | |
| 2014 | Jarvis Small | RB | 3rd Team | Beyond Sports Network | |

## NFL draft picks

| Draft | Player | Pos | Team | Round | Pick |
| 1968 | Frank Brown | DE | Dallas Cowboys | 8th | 211 |
| 1969 | Joe Walker | DE | Boston Patriots | 9th | 214 |
| 1970 | Willie Dixon | DB | Buffalo Bills | 10th | 238 |
| 1974 | Art Cameron | TE | Buffalo Bills | 10th | 241 |
| 1974 | Eddie Wilson | WR | Atlanta Falcons | 11th | 277 |
| 1975 | Greg Wells | OL | New York Jets | 16th | 405 |
| 1975 | Lester Sherman | RB | Denver Broncos | 17th | 433 |
| 1976 | Jeremiah Cummings | DE | Baltimore Colts | 14th | 394 |
| 1979 | Mike White | DL | Cincinnati Bengals | 4th | 84 |
| 1979 | Curtis Bunche | DL | Philadelphia Eagles | 7th | 185 |
| 1982 | George Thompson | WR | Dallas Cowboys | 11th | 295 |
| 1989 | Jeff Hunter | DE | Phoenix Cardinals | 11th | 291 |
| 1990 | Kenneth Gant | DB | Dallas Cowboys | 9th | 221 |
| 2002 | Keyon Nash | DB | Oakland Raiders | 6th | 189 |
| 2017 | Grover Stewart | DL | Indianapolis Colts | 4th | 144 |

### Undrafted

Players that went undrafted but spent at least one season on a team's active roster.
* Steve Carter: Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1987)
* Arthur Green: New Orleans Saints (1972)
* Dan Land: Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1987), Los Angeles/Oakland Raiders (1989–1997)
* Chris Sheffield: Pittsburgh Steelers (1986–1987), Detroit Lions (1987)