By Dan Ryan
BCUAthletics.com
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - The boxing afficiendo that he is, Bethune-Cookman Head Football Coach Brian Jenkins would normally use a sweet science metaphor about upcoming games, such as Ali-Frazier or "Thrilla in Manilla."
That won't work here. Nothing rhymes with Orangeburg. So Jenkins resorted to the still very effective 'Cat and Dog' description for Saturday's B-CU at South Carolina State showdown in the Palmetto State. Kickoff is slated for 6 p.m. with a tape-delayed ESPNU broadcast.
"It's going to be a cat-and-dog fight, and everybody knows when a cat and a dog get into a fight it's going to be very serious," said Jenkins. "South Carolina State is another championship-caliber team. We feel we're a top-level team.''
B-CU's 38-28 victory over Alabama State in the MEAC/SWAC challenge has already set a tone for the season.
"That was one of the best football games of the year so far," Jenkins said. "It was good to see us play at the level we played and give as much as effort we did. That game had everything you could experience, highs, lows, fighting back and holding on."
Now comes a key showdown with the Bulldogs, a 33-6 victor over Georgia State last Thursday, which could shape the early Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference and NCAA Playoffs race. Jenkins is looking forward to facing Bulldog Head Coach Oliver "Buddy" Pough once again.
"I know Buddy, and I know Buddy's a competitor, and Buddy's going to have his team ready now and I'm not looking past that," Jenkins said. "I'm not letting that big smile and that jolly old laugh fool me; that's not going to happen. Buddy is preparing for war and I know that, and that's the type of guy he is and I understand that."
Jenkins even kidded that he might let Pough select B-CU's starting quarterback.
"Well it is open," Jenkins said. "I might call Buddy and ask him who would he like us to start and then go from there. We might see Quentin Williams. (Wide receiver David) Blackwell might end up backup at quarterback, but it is an open question. It's a scenario that hopefully will have itself worked out by game time."
Led by then-quarterback, now-quarterbacks coach Matt Johnson on the last trip to Orangeburg, the Wildcats shutout SCSU, 14-0, snapping a 21-game MEAC winning streak for the Bulldogs, then two-time defending champions. It was truly a signature win in Jenkins' first season at the helm.
The visiting team has won both meetings of the Jenkins era, primarily because the home team has committed more turnovers. Jenkins is looking to correct the miscues that created challenges in game one.
"We had a lot of mistakes against Alabama State, a lot of mishaps, and alignment and assignment problems,'' Jenkins said. "We have to get that corrected because the next team we're going against is just as good or even better."
