2018 Savannah State Tigers football team

The 2018 Savannah State Tigers football team represented Savannah State University in the 2018 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Tigers were members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC). They were led by third-year head coach Erik Raeburn and played their home games at Ted Wright Stadium. They finished the season 2–8, 1–6 in MEAC play to finish in last place.

2018 Savannah State Tigers football
ConferenceMid-Eastern Athletic Conference
Record2–8 (1–6 MEAC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorBill Rychel (3rd season)
Defensive coordinatorChad Williams (3rd season)
Home stadiumTed Wright Stadium
Seasons
← 2017
2019 →
2018 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 12 North Carolina A&T $   6 1     9 2  
Bethune–Cookman   5 2     7 5  
Florida A&M   5 2     6 5  
South Carolina State   4 3     5 6  
Howard   4 3     4 6  
North Carolina Central   3 4     5 6  
Morgan State   3 4     4 7  
Norfolk State   2 5     4 7  
Delaware State   2 5     3 8  
Savannah State   1 6     2 8  
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from STATS Poll

This season marked the Tigers' final season playing in Division I as they rejoined Division II after the season.[1]

On December 9, head coach Erik Raeburn was fired.[2] He finished as Savannah State with a three-year record of 8–23.

Preseason

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MEAC preseason poll

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In a vote of the MEAC head coaches and sports information directors, the Tigers were picked to finish in eighth place.[3]

Predicted finish Team
1 North Carolina A&T
2 Howard
3 North Carolina Central
4 Bethune–Cookman
5 Florida A&M
6 Norfolk State
7 South Carolina State
8 Savannah State
9 Morgan State
10 Delaware State

Preseason All-MEAC Teams

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The Tigers had five players selected to the preseason all-MEAC teams.[4]

Personnel

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Coaching staff

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Shawn Quinn - Defensive Coordinator/Linebacker Coach

Schedule

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DateTimeOpponentSiteTVResultAttendance
August 308:00 p.m.at UAB*ESPN L 0–5227,124
September 86:00 p.m.at No. 22 (FBS) Miami (FL)*ESPN3L 0–7760,307
September 151:00 p.m.at Howard* Cancelled[a]
September 224:00 p.m.at Florida A&MESPN3L 13–3116,644
September 296:00 p.m.Bethune–CookmanESPN3L 20–355,018
October 66:00 p.m.Charleston Southern*
  • Ted Wright Stadium
  • Savannah, GA
ESPN3W 23–32,970
October 136:00 p.m.Morgan State
  • Ted Wright Stadium
  • Savannah, GA
ESPN3L 11–182,655
October 273:00 p.m.Norfolk State 
  • Ted Wright Stadium
  • Savannah, GA
ESPN3W 32–37,812
November 32:00 p.m.at Delaware StateESPN L 6–251,563
November 101:00 p.m.No. 14 North Carolina A&T
  • Ted Wright Stadium
  • Savannah, GA
ESPN3L 12–284,788
November 171:30 p.m.at South Carolina StateESPN3L 17–217,365
  • *Non-conference game
  •  Homecoming
  • Rankings from STATS Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Eastern time

[7]

Despite also being a member of the MEAC, the game vs Howard will be considered a non-conference game and will have no effect on the MEAC standings.[8]

  1. ^ This game was originally postponed in anticipation of Hurricane Florence, until being cancelled on November 16, 2018.[5][6]

Game summaries

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At UAB

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1 2 3 4 Total
Tigers 0 0 0 0 0
Blazers 7 21 10 14 52

At Miami (FL)

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1 2 3 4 Total
Tigers 0 0 0 0 0
No. 22 (FBS) Hurricanes 7 21 21 28 77

At Florida A&M

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1 2 3 4 Total
Tigers 7 0 0 6 13
Rattlers 0 3 14 14 31

Bethune–Cookman

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1 2 3 4 Total
Wildcats 7 14 14 0 35
Tigers 7 7 0 6 20

Charleston Southern

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1 2 3 4 Total
Buccaneers 0 3 0 0 3
Tigers 7 7 0 9 23

Morgan State

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1 2 3 4 Total
Bears 3 8 7 0 18
Tigers 0 3 8 0 11

Norfolk State

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1 2 3 4 Total
Spartans 0 3 0 0 3
Tigers 7 10 7 8 32

At Delaware State

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1 2 3 4 Total
Tigers 0 0 0 6 6
Hornets 3 10 2 10 25

North Carolina A&T

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1 2 3 4 Total
No. 14 Aggies 7 14 0 7 28
Tigers 0 0 6 6 12

At South Carolina State

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1 2 3 4 Total
Tigers 3 14 0 0 17
Bulldogs 0 7 7 7 21

References

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  1. ^ "SSU moves to Division II Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference". Savannah State University. Retrieved December 29, 2018.
  2. ^ "Savannah State fires Erik Raeburn as head football coach". www.hbcusports.com. HBCU Sports. December 9, 2018. Retrieved December 9, 2018.
  3. ^ "North Carolina A&T State Picked To Win 2018 MEAC Championship". Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. July 27, 2018.
  4. ^ "NCAT's Raynard, NCCU's Reynolds Headline 2018 All-MEAC Preseason Football Team". Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. July 25, 2018.
  5. ^ "Hurricane Florence Forces Postponement Of Howard/Savannah State Football Game". www.ssuathletics.com. Savannah State Athletics. September 12, 2018. Retrieved September 29, 2018.
  6. ^ "SSU versus Howard Football Game Canceled". www.ssuathletics.com. Savannah State Athletics. November 16, 2018. Retrieved December 15, 2018.
  7. ^ Schedule
  8. ^ "SSU Releases 2018 Football Schedule". www.ssuathletics.com. Savannah State Athletics. April 11, 2018.