Blazers have rich history of playoff successes
Published 3:00 pm Thursday, December 19, 2024
- After being rumored as an early candidate, Valdosta State head coach David Dean was not named the head coach of Kennesaw State University's new football program.
VALDOSTA — Hello again, Division II national championship game. It’s Valdosta State, here for another visit.
The Blazers and the title game should be on a first-name basis by now. VSU’s athletics website currently has “Not our first Rodeo,” and that is quite correct. This is the seventh championship by Valdosta State in the past 21 years.
Saturday, the Blazers aim for their fifth crown in McKinney, Texas, where they take on Ferris State for the big trophy. The contest will be broadcast on ESPN2 at 2 p.m. ET. As always, it will be broadcast on the radio at 92.1, WDDQ FM.
This also won’t be VSU’s first rodeo with Ferris State. The two have met twice previously in D2 championships. Kerwin Bell’s Blazers won 49-47 in 2018, with Ferris getting revenge in 2021, 58-17.
Ferris State is 13-1 this season to Valdosta State’s 13-0. The only team to topple the Bulldogs in ’24 was Pittsburg State in the opener, 19-3.
The first Valdosta State team to reach the national playoffs was Hal Mumme’s in 1994, 12 years after the program began. They won their first ever playoff game over Albany State, but faltered in the second round to North Alabama.
Becky Taylor/Valdosta Daily Times
It’s a touchdown reception for Bama Adams, coming from Fabian Walker, in the national semifinal in 2004 versus West Chester. One week later, the Blazers won football title No. 1 over Pittsburg State.
After national tourney appearances in 1996 and 2001, the Blazers of Chris Hatcher in 2001 seemed poised to be the team to make the big leap, especially after a dismantling of No. 1 Delta State, 70-12. But they were shocked in the first round by Catawba.
One year later, the 2002 team made the big leap, getting by Texas A&M-Kingsville in the semifinals and matching up with Grand Valley State in the championship. The speed of one David Kircus was too much to overcome, and VSU was denied, 31-24.
Hatcher made the first round in 2003, then saw the Blazers explode again. VSU only lost once, to Albany State in the opener, then had to overcome a big deficit to overtake the Rams in the playoffs. Valdosta State demolished West Chester in the semis, 45-21, then went back to Braly Stadium at North Alabama to try again.
VSU again fell into an early hole against Pittsburg State, but an interception and a crunching hit by Calvin English on the runback changed the momentum of the game. The Blazers got a first down on a fake punt to seal it, 36-31.
David Dean took over for Hatcher, making his first playoff appearance in 2007. He made it count.
The one-loss Blazers won a road semifinal at California (Pennsylvania),, 28-24. In the championship game, Michael Terry scored on a one-yard touchdown run with 22 seconds remaining to pull off a 25-20 win over Northwest Missouri State. Willie Copeland threw for 257 yards and a touchdown.
Second round appearances happened in 2008 and 2010 before Dean’s Blazers made another run in 2012.
Sporting two losses, they marched through the playoffs. They won in the cold of Minnesota State, 35-19, in the semifinals. One week later, Winston-Salem State was no match. VSU was up 21-0 at halftime and went on to win 35-7.
Becky Taylor/Valdosta Daily Times
Willie Copeland fires a pass during a 2007 national tournament game against North Alabama. The players won that, and the rest of the playoffs, beating Northwest Missouri in the championship game.
Matt Pierce brought back the opening kickoff 96 yards to set the tone and from there, Cayden Cochran figured in three touchdowns and the Blazer defense came up with six turnovers.
Valdosta State made the quarterfinals in 2014 and made the second round in 2015.
Amazingly, only one VSU team has finished a season undefeated (this could year could be the second). That was 2018, when Kerwin Bell’s high-powered offense averaged 52 points per game and were only held under 44 once. That was the semifinal, a 30-24 against Notre Dame (Ohio).
Bell’s squad met an equally wild Ferris offense, needing to stop a two-point conversion try with 40 seconds left to win 49-47. Rogan Wells had five touchdown passes and caught another.
Coronavirus wiped out the 2020 VSU campaign, but under head coach Gary Goff, they found the title game again, once more versus Ferris State. This one didn’t end as well for the Blazers at 58-17.
With Tremaine Jackson at the helm, the Blazers reached the quarterfinals in 2023, but fell to Lenoir-Rhyne on a very wet and rainy afternoon. Jackson’s team has been determined not to falter again, setting up the championship game rematch set for Saturday.
