Kennesaw State Owls football
The Kennesaw State Owls football represents Kennesaw State University in college football. The team began play in 2015 as a member of the Big South Conference at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision level. The head coach of the Owls is Brian Bohannon, and plays at Fifth Third Bank Stadium in Kennesaw, Georgia.
| Kennesaw State Owls | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
 | |||
| First season | 2015 | ||
| Athletic director | Milton Overton | ||
| Head coach | Brian Bohannon 5th season, 48–15 (.762) | ||
| Stadium | Fifth Third Bank Stadium (Capacity: 8,318) | ||
| Location | Kennesaw, Georgia | ||
| NCAA division | Division I FCS | ||
| Conference | Big South Conference | ||
| All-time record | 48–15 (.762) | ||
| Conference titles | 2 (2017, 2018) | ||
| Colors | Black and Gold[1] | ||
| Fight song | The KSU Fight Song | ||
| Mascot | Scrappy the Owl | ||
| Website | KSUOwls.com | ||
History
Planning stages (2007–2009)
Kennesaw State had considered adding an American football team at various points in its history. The school had concluded a feasibility survey which affirmed it would be possible to have Division I football. On November 9, 2007, a survey was administered by the Student Government with 77.6 percent of respondents voting in favor of starting a football program. Participation in the survey was supposed to be restricted to enrolled students only; however, due to a design flaw, anyone could take the survey an unlimited number of times.[2][3][4][5][6]
Building stages (2009–2013)
In December 2009, KSU President Daniel S. Papp appointed a football exploratory committee headed by legendary University of Georgia coach, Vince Dooley. The committee announced a highly favorable recommendation for the creation of a football program at KSU in a 137-page report[7] on September 15, 2010 in a press conference at the KSU Convocation Center.
KSU athletic director Vaughn Williams stated that KSU was targeting fielding a team for the 2014 season playing at the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level formerly known as I-AA.[8] KSU presented its plans for the football program to the State Board of Regents on February 13, 2013, and on February 14, KSU officially announced that the State Board of Regents had accepted their proposal for the football team. The school started the football program with the 2015 season.[9]
KSU is currently affiliated with the Atlantic Sun Conference for sports but since that conference does not sponsor football, the school would have to either play as an independent or find a new conference to join, either for all sports or as a football associate.[10] On September 3, 2013, KSU announced that it will be joining the Big South Conference as a football-only member to begin play in the 2015 season.[11] In 2016, the Atlantic Sun and Big South agreed to an alliance between the two conferences where football-playing schools in both conferences will be part of one Big South conference for the sport. North Alabama, which will join the Atlantic Sun, will become the second such school in the Atlantic Sun under this alliance.
Brian Bohannon is the first football coach at Kennesaw State.[12]
Year-by-year results
- Statistics correct as of the end of the 2019–20 college football season
| NCAA Division I FCS champions | Conference Champions |
| Year | NCAA Division | Conference Division | Overall | Conference | Coach | Final Ranking | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Games | Win | Loss | Pct. | Games | Win | Loss | Pct. | Standing | STATS | Coaches' | ||||
| 2015 | FCS | Big South Conference | 11 | 6 | 5 | .545 | 6 | 2 | 4 | .333 | T–5th | Brian Bohannon | – | – |
| 2016 | FCS | Big South Conference | 11 | 8 | 3 | .727 | 5 | 3 | 2 | .600 | T–3rd | Brian Bohannon | – | – |
| 2017 | FCS | Big South Conference | 14 | 12 | 2 | .857 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 1.000 | 1st | Brian Bohannon | 8 | 9 |
| 2018 | FCS | Big South Conference | 13 | 11 | 2 | .846 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 1.000 | 1st | Brian Bohannon | 2 | 2 |
| 2019 | FCS | Big South Conference | 14 | 11 | 3 | .786 | 6 | 5 | 1 | .833 | 2nd | Brian Bohannon | 15 | 9 |
FCS Playoffs results
The Owls have appeared in the FCS Playoffs three times. Their record is 4–3.
| Year | Round | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | First Round Second Round Quarterfinals | Samford Jacksonville State Sam Houston State | W 28–17 W 17–7 L 27–34 |
| 2018 | Second Round Quarterfinals | Wofford South Dakota State | W 13–10 L 17–27 |
| 2019 | First Round Second Round | Wofford Weber State | W 28–21 L 20-26 |
Future non-conference opponents
| 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| at Kent State | at Kent State | at Georgia Tech | vs Wofford | vs Furman | vs Missouri State |
| vs Alabama State | at Alabama State | at Wofford | at Samford | at Jacksonville State | |
| at Missouri State | vs Tarleton State | vs Shorter | |||
| vs Shorter | vs Samford |
References
- Kennesaw State University Athletics Style Guide (PDF). Retrieved April 9, 2017.
- "SGA survey goes live". KSU Sentinel. Retrieved 2007-11-14.
- "News at KSU - Kennesaw State Eyeing Football Program". kennesaw.edu.
- "News at KSU - Kennesaw State launches Football Exploratory Committee". kennesaw.edu.
- "Dooley leading Kennesaw State football quest". ajc.com.
- "Vince Dooley to help start Kennesaw State football". The Augusta Chronicle.
- "News at KSU". kennesaw.edu.
- "News at KSU - Kennesaw State football would be about 'branding'". kennesaw.edu.
- "Kennesaw State says it's ready for some football". ajc.com.
- "News at KSU - Commentary: KSU football may be coming, but when?". kennesaw.edu.
- "Kennesaw State joining Big South for football". ajc.com.
- https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/former-georgia-tech-assistant-brian-bohannon-to-become-1st-football-coach-at-kennesaw-state/2013/03/24/8c26274c-94f7-11e2-95ca-dd43e7ffee9c_story.html