Charleston Southern Buccaneers football

History

The Charleston Southern football team began as a club football team in 1989 before moving to NCAA Division III status in 1991, which is a non-scholarship division. After NCAA rule changes required all sports to be in the same division, the Buccaneers moved from Division III to Division I in 1993, as the other campus programs were Division I. This caused some challenges for the new program, as they faced off with more established and better funded programs. In 1996, the Bucs went 1–10 with a lone win versus West Virginia State. Wins were scarce, and in 1997, head coach David Dowd hired defensive coordinator Todd Knight from Gardner-Webb University. The two coaches oversaw a slow improvement that began with a large recruiting class in 1997 with 34 scholarships being offered. That team would struggle to a 1–9 record with a lone win over Tusculum College. The opening game was a 30–7 loss to top 10 ranked East Tennessee State, followed by a heart-breaking loss at then No. 22 ranked South Carolina State. In that game, the Buccaneers led 12–6 with less than 1:30 to play, with SC State driving inside the 40 yard line. On fourth and short, CSU hit the SC State QB to cause a fumble which the Bucs recovered and began to run with, only to then fumble the ball back, and SC State would score the game winning touchdown on the ensuing drive. The 1997 team struggled to recover from that loss. A tragic loss off the field was part of that season, as freshman running back Kevin Keyes was murdered near his hometown of Goose Creek, SC.

The 2000 Buccaneers team beat Liberty for the first time 25–0 and lost to Samford in overtime to finish the season at 5–6.

Jay Mills era (2003–2012)

Jay Mills came to Charleston Southern from Harvard University. He had previously spent time coaching at several other places, including Boise State, Notre Dame, and Minnesota-Morris. His system shifted from CSU's traditional power based, pro-style offense to a spread offense. Several starters were dismissed from the team for various situations, and most of the coaching staff was changed. His first season considered a disaster, as the Bucs stumbled to a 1–11 record, with a lone win over West Virginia State. The season included blowout losses to The Citadel, Gardner Webb, VMI, James Madison, and Coastal Carolina. However, Coach Mills used the 2003 season to break-in a freshman quarterback named Colin Drafts. While this was a difficult season of transition, it provided the groundwork for a remarkable turnaround, and the emergence of one of the most prolific offensive players in CSU and Big South Conference history. In 2004, CSU saw a game against The Citadel canceled due to a looming hurricane. The Bucs were able to post a 5–5 record, the first non-losing season in CSU history. Quarterback Colin Drafts began to emerge as a star player as did running back Travis Mays and linebacker Joshua Mitchell. Wideout Eddie Gadson would also progress from walk-on to All Big South Conference in one season.

Jamey Chadwell era (2013–2016)

Jamey Chadwell became head coach after the retirement of Jay Mills following the 2012 season. The program reached new heights with the most wins in a season (10) in 2013, a win over national FCS power Appalachian State, back-to-back conference championships in 2015 and 2016, four straight wins over The Citadel, and two home wins over Coastal Carolina. In 2016, the Buccaneers took five-time reigning FCS champion North Dakota State into overtime, but eventually succumbed in a tough 24–17 loss. While the loss was hard on the team, it showed the progress and maturity of a once-small football program. In 2017, Jamey Chadwell accepted a position at Coastal Carolina which resulted in Mark Tucker taking over the head coaching position. CSU had been consistently ranked in the FCS top 25 under Chadwell's tenure.

Mark Tucker era (2017–2018)

Former quarterbacks coach Mark Tucker took over the football program in January 2017 after the departure of head coach Jamey Chadwell. Following several coaching changes and a strong recruiting class, Tucker hoped to have continued success with the Buccaneers. CSU followed up the 2016 campaign with a 6–5 record in 2017. Following a 5–6 season in 2018, Mark Tucker resigned as the head coach on December 7, 2018. He compiled an 11–11 overall record.

Autry Denson era (2019–2022)

Notre Dame running backs coach Autry Denson was named head coach in January 2019. He was relieved of his duties following the 2022 season, after a 2–8 finish.

Gabe Giardina era (2023–present)

After finishing a five-season stint at Albany State with an overall record of 37–17, Gabe Giardina was named Charleston Southern's sixth head football coach in program history in November 2022. In his first year, he led the Buccaneers to a 4–7 record.

Conferences

Classifications

• 1991–1992: NCAA Division III
• 1992–present: NCAA Division I-AA/FCS

Notable former players

• Charles James
• Maurice Price
• Chuck Grier

Championships

Conference championships

† Co-champions

NCAA Division I-AA/FCS playoffs results

The Buccaneers have appeared in the NCAA Division I Football Championship playoffs two times. Their record is 1–2.

Rivalries

The Citadel

These two schools first met on the football field in 2002 and became a rivalry under former head coach, Jamey Chadwell. The Buccaneers won four in a row under Chadwell including two wins in 2015, as CSU took down The Citadel in the NCAA Division I Second Round Playoffs at Buccaneer Field. Under head coaches Mark Tucker and Autry Denson, the Bucs won once and lost twice to the Bulldogs.

Citadel leads the series 8–6.

• 2024 – Citadel @ CSU – L, 21–22
• 2021 – CSU @ Citadel - W, 38–21
• 2019 – CSU @ Citadel - L, 13–22
• 2018 – CSU @ Citadel - L, 14–43
• 2015 – Citadel @ CSU – W, 14–6 (NCAA Division I FCS Playoffs [Second Round])
• 2015 – CSU @ Citadel – W, 33–20
• 2014 – Citadel @ CSU – W, 20–18
• 2013 – CSU @ Citadel – W, 32–29
• 2012 – CSU @ Citadel – L, 14–49
• 2007 – CSU @ Citadel – L, 14–35
• 2006 – CSU @ Citadel – W, 38–35
• 2005 – CSU @ Citadel – L, 14–28
• 2003 – CSU @ Citadel – L, 10–64
• 2002 – CSU @ Citadel – L, 19–53 (First Meeting)

Coastal Carolina

These two schools first met on the football field in 2003 and it has been a rivalry since Charleston Southern defeated Coastal Carolina 34–27 in 2005 to win a share of the Big South Championship that Coastal had already clinched. CSU got the first shutout of the series with their 24–0 win in 2008. In 2015, Coastal Carolina, then ranked No. 1 nationally, were defeated by the No. 19 ranked Buccaneers 33–25, giving Charleston Southern the sole lead in the Big South Conference.

Coastal Carolina leads the series 9–6.

• 2025 – CSU @ Coastal – L, 0–13
• 2016 – CSU @ Coastal – **W, 59–58 **
• 2015 – Coastal @ CSU – W, 33–25
• 2014 – CSU @ Coastal – L, 22–43
• 2013 – Coastal @ CSU – W, 31–26
• 2012 – CSU @ Coastal – L, 20–41
• 2011 – Coastal @ CSU – L, 38–45
• 2010 – CSU @ Coastal – L, 3–70
• 2009 – Coastal @ CSU – W, 30–23
• 2008 – CSU @ Coastal – W, 24–0
• 2007 – Coastal @ CSU – L, 2–41
• 2006 – CSU @ Coastal – L, 17–31
• 2005 – Coastal @ CSU – **W, 34–27 **
• 2004 – CSU @ Coastal – L, 28–56
• 2003 – Coastal @ CSU – L, 14–48 (First Meeting)

Charleston Southern vs In-State NCAA Division I schools

Charleston Southern vs. FBS teams

Future non-conference opponents

Announced schedules as of January 13, 2026.

References

References

1. Vowles, Joshua. (January 14, 2019). "Notre Dame Football: Autry Denson is officially announced as the new head coach for Charleston Southern".
2. (November 14, 2022). "Sources: Charleston Southern, former Notre Dame great Autry Denson parting ways". Football Scoop.
3. "CSU Football Season Ends with 70-3 Loss at Coastal Carolina :: CSUsports.com".
4. "Charleston Southern Buccaneers Football Future Schedules". FBSchedules.com.