# 2012 Savannah State Tigers football team

The 2012 Savannah State Tigers football team represented Savannah State University in the 2012 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Tigers were members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC). This was the second season under the guidance of head coach Steve Davenport. The Tigers played their home games at Ted Wright Stadium and they finished the 2012 season with a 1–10 record (0–8 in the MEAC) to finish last in the conference.

## Coaches and support staff

| Name | Type | College | Graduating year |
| Steve Davenport | Head coach | Georgia Tech | 1990 |
| Greg Lester | Assistant head coach/Outside Receivers coach | Georgia Tech | |
| Terance Mathis | Offensive coordinator/Inside Receivers coach | New Mexico | 1990 |
| Thomas Balkcom | Defensive backs coach | Georgia Tech | |
| William Bell | Running backs coach | Georgia Tech | |
| Mitch Doolittle | Linebackers coach | Presbyterian College | 2006 |
| Saeed Khalif | Defensive coordinator/defensive line coach | Georgia Tech | 1988 |
| Tony Haynes | Quarterbacks coach | Webber International | 2005 |
| Broderick Jones | Offensive line coach | Ole Miss | 2005 |

## Media

Radio flagship: WHCJ Broadcasters: Toby Hyde (play-by-play), Curtis Foster (analyst)

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 1 | 7:00 pm | at No. 19 Oklahoma State* | Boone Pickens StadiumStillwater, OK | FCS | L 0–84 | 55,784 |
| September 8 | 6:00 pm | at No. 6 Florida State* | Doak Campbell StadiumTallahassee, FL | ESPN3 | L 0–55 | 71,126 |
| September 22 | 7:00 pm | North Carolina Central | Ted Wright StadiumSavannah, GA | | L 33–45 | 3,415 |
| September 29 | 1:00 pm | at Howard | William H. Greene StadiumWashington, D.C. | | L 9–56 | 2,955 |
| October 6 | 7:00 pm | Morgan State | Ted Wright StadiumSavannah, GA | | L 6–45 | 1,978 |
| October 13 | 6:00 pm | at Florida A&M | Bragg Memorial StadiumTallahassee, FL | | L 3–44 | 12,561 |
| October 20 | 2:00 pm | Edward Waters* | Ted Wright StadiumSavannah, GA | | W 42–35 | 4,269 |
| October 27 | 2:00 pm | at Hampton | Armstrong StadiumHampton, VA | | L 13–21 | 5,500 |
| November 3 | 2:00 pm | at Norfolk State | William "Dick" Price StadiumNorfolk, VA | | L 21–33 | 16,269 |
| November 10 | 5:00 pm | Bethune-Cookman | Ted Wright StadiumSavannah, GA | | L 7–49 | 3,683 |
| November 17 | 1:00 pm | at South Carolina State | Oliver C. Dawson StadiumOrangeburg, SC | | L 13–27 | 10,011 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Eastern time |||||||

## Game summaries
### Oklahoma State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Savannah State | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oklahoma State | 35 | 14 | 21 | 14 | 84 |
at Boone Pickens Stadium, Stillwater, Oklahoma
* Game time: 7 pm EST
* Game weather: Sunny, 21% humidity
* Game attendance: 55,784
* Referee: David Alvarez
* TV: Fox College Sports

### Florida State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Savannah State | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Florida State | 35 | 13 | 7 | 0 | 55 |
at Doak Campbell Stadium, Tallahassee, Florida
* Game time: 6:00 pm EST
* Game weather: Rain, lightning delay, game was terminated
* Game attendance: 71,126
* Referee: Walter Davenpor
* TV: ESPN3
For their second game of the season, the Tigers traveled to Tallahassee, Florida to face the #6 ranked Seminoles of Florida State. This was the first meeting between these teams. Prior to the game, the Seminoles were installed as 70 1/2 point favorites, reportedly making Savannah State the biggest underdogs in any college football game ever.
The Seminoles held the Tigers scoreless, winning 55–0. Florida State scored 35 points in the first quarter, with a 61-yd touchdown pass from EJ Manuel to Rodney Smith, a 6-yard touchdown run from Chris Thompson, an 8-yd touchdown pass from E.J. Manuel to Greg Dent, a 9-yd touchdown pass from E.J. Manuel to Kelvin Benjamin, and a 5-yd touchdown run from Devonta Freeman. Florida State added another thirteen points in the second quarter as the result of a 19-yard touchdown run from James Wilder, Jr. and another 1-yd touchdown run from James Wilder, Jr. with a subsequent failed point-after-attempt from kicker Dustin Hopkins, ending his streak of 145 consecutive extra point attempts. Florida State scored another seven points in the third quarter as the result of a 19-yd touchdown pass from Jacob Coker to Kelvin Benjamin.
The Seminoles totaled 413 yards of offense in the game, with 167 rushing yards and 246 passing yards while holding Savannah State to just 28 total yards of offense. The victory improved Florida State's all-time record against the Tigers to 1-0.
The game was delayed by lightning in the area in the second quarter and later called with 8:59 left in the third quarter, again due to weather.

### North Carolina Central

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| North Carolina Central | 3 | 7 | 28 | 7 | 45 |
| Savannah State | 7 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 33 |
at Ted Wright Stadium, Savannah, Georgia
* Game time: 7 p.m.
* Game weather: Clear
* Game attendance: 3,415
* Referee: Darrell Davis

### Howard

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Savannah State | 0 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 9 |
| Howard | 7 | 21 | 28 | 0 | 56 |
at William H. Greene Stadium, Washington, D.C.
* Game time: 1 p.m.
* Game weather: Partly Sunny
* Game attendance: 2,955
* Referee: Donnell Leathers

### Morgan State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Morgan State | 7 | 7 | 24 | 7 | 45 |
| Savannah State | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
at Ted Wright Stadium, Savannah, Georgia
* Game time: 7 p.m.
* Game weather: Partly Sunny
* Game attendance: 1,978
* Referee: Kelvin Thorpe

### Florida A&M

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Savannah State | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Florida A&M | 13 | 10 | 14 | 7 | 44 |
at Bragg Memorial Stadium, Tallahassee, Florida
* Game time: 6 p.m.
* Referee: Flemon Williams

### Edward Waters

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Edward Waters | 14 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 35 |
| Savannah State | 14 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 42 |
at Ted Wright Stadium, Savannah, Georgia
* Game time: 2 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny
* Game attendance: 4,269
* Referee: Andre Lowe
Antonio Bostick threw for four touchdowns and ran for two as the Tigers defeated NAIA Edward Waters College for the first win of the season. Bostick finished the game with 319 yards passing.

### Hampton

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Savannah State | 3 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 13 |
| Hampton | 0 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 21 |
at Armstrong Stadium, Hampton, Virginia
* Game time: 2 p.m.
* Game weather: Cloudy, Windy & Rain
* Game attendance: 5,500
* Referee: Clement Hall

### Norfolk State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Savannah State | 0 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| Norfolk State | 17 | 7 | 6 | 3 | 33 |
at Price Stadium, Norfolk, Virginia
* Game time: 2 p.m.
* Game weather: Partly sunny
* Game attendance: 16,269
* Referee: D. Leathers

### Bethune-Cookman

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bethune-Cookman | 7 | 28 | 7 | 7 | 49 |
| Savannah State | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
at Ted Wright Stadium, Savannah, Georgia
* Game time: 5 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny, Fair
* Game attendance: 3,683
* Referee: Steve Kinny

### South Carolina State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Savannah State | 7 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 13 |
| South Carolina State | 10 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 27 |
at Dawson Stadium, Orangeburg, South Carolina
* Game time: 1 pm
* Game weather: Cold and Windy
* Game attendance: 10,011
* Referee: Andre Lowe
South Carolina State defeated the Tigers 27-13 in the season finale for both teams. The Bulldogs led 13-7 at halftime and pushed the lead to 20-7 with 6:21 left in the third quarter. The Tigers scored on a 10-yard pass from Victorian Hardison to Dylan Cook with 1:39 left in the third to pull the Tigers within a score, 20-13, but missed the extra point. The Bulldogs blocked an SSU punt which put them in scoring position from the Tigers 20-yard line to seal the victory for the bulldogs. The Tigers defense was led by Wayne Burden who had 11 tackles (10 solo) and 3 tackles for loss.