COLUMBIA -- When it comes to Benedict College football, “Big Stan” can refer to two people.

There’s Stan Conner, who’s entering his second season as Tigers’ head coach, and then there’s 6-3, 350-pound offensive guard Stanley Wright.

The Holly Hill native has not only been a mainstay for Benedict, playing all three positions (center, tackle and guard) on the offensive line, but also a positive influence.

“He’s a talent,” Conner said. “Stan is concerned about being at the top of his game and he’s a leader both on and off the field.

“And it’s not always vocal. He works. He comes to practice and when he’s out there, he’s always doing what he supposed to do. He’s one of the guys who does a lot of communicating on the line and that’s why we’ll move him sometime. We had to move him to center one time. He’s a guy that if we need somebody, we’ll put Stan there.”

Wright will have extra motivation for tonight’s game. Not only is he playing before family and friends in Orangeburg and at a place that offerred him a scholarship out of Holly-Hill-Roberts High School, but also in front of NFL scouts who Conner said will use footage of this game to determine his pro prospects.

“Anytime HBCU Division II players get to play against a Division I school, it helps them a lot because on a Division II level, you’re supposed to dominate the competition,” Wright said. “But a lot of recruiters want to see what you do when you play against competition on other levels. So this would be a good opportunity.”

Looking to spoil Wright and the Tigers’ visit is a Bulldog defense which more than held its own in last week’s 17-0 loss to Football Bowl Subdivision foe Central Florida. In watching S.C. State’s defense on film, particularly the defensive line, Wright was impressed with the team’s pursuit and quickness to the ball.

“The defensive line hustles a lot and they play team ball,” Wright said. “We can’t let them outwork us.”

Wright said the offensive line is in better shape than last year and called this week’s practices some of the most intense he’s experienced at Benedict.

“Right now, we’re just trying to stay focused,” he said. “The tempo in practice has been real fast. We’ve been picking up the tempo and working real hard.”

The same could be said for the Bulldogs’ offense coming off its first season-opening shutout in 20 years and first scoreless game since 1993. S.C. State offensive coordinator Joe Blackwell believes his team’s struggles had more to do with facing an experienced Central Florida defense with 10 returning starters and is pleased with what he’s seen in practice this week.

“I think the thing we’re going to look for is execution, that’s the key,” Blackwell said. “We told our guys we’ll worry about us. We don’t worry about other people. No matter who we play. We told them that last week. We want to execute. We want to run the plays we run, block them the way we’re supposed to block them and everybody just do their job. We had a good camp. We’ve had good practices. We’re farther than we’ve ever been, but we want to see us play well.”

Blackwell expects to see quarterback Malcolm Long play better in his second career start and the offensive line to play with more consistency.

Along with better execution, Blackwell said it’s important to get running back Will Ford going after his career-low 32-yard effort against the Knights.

“There’s kind of a sense of urgency,” he said. “You’ve got a kid that’s argubly one of the best running backs on this level and you want to get him going running the football. We want to get that going. That will open up our play-action game. That will make our throwing game a lot easier.”

S.C. State has won the last nine meetings against Benedict, the last three by a margin of 43.3 points.

Benedict College (1-0) at South Carolina State (0-1) 6 p.m.

AT STAKE:

It’s the latest renewal of a longstanding rivalry between South Carolina’s two historically black college football programs which dates all the way back to 1927. This is the first meeting between the Bulldogs and Tigers since the 2004 Palmetto Capitol City Classic. S.C. State has won the last nine meetings.

LAST YEAR’S RECORDS:

SCSU (7-4, 6-2 in the MEAC); Benedict College (2-9, 1-6 in the SIAC)

LAST OUTING:

S.C. State lost 17-3 to Central Florida (FBS); Benedict def. Morehouse 7-3

LAST MEETING

Won by S.C. State 51-0 (2004)

FIRST SEASON OF FOOTBALL

S.C. State (1907), Benedict College (1911)

SERIES RECORD:

S.C. State leads 25-8

HEAD COACHES & RECORDS:

SCSU’s Oliver “Buddy” Pough (47-22 overall, 33-12 MEAC), 7th season; Benedict College’s Stan Conner (2-9 overall) 2nd season

DID YOU KNOW:

SCSU head football coach Oliver “Buddy” Pough led Fairfield-Central to a Class 3-A title in 1996 ... As an assistant coach for 11 seasons at Alabama A&M, Conner was a part of four Southwestern Athletic Conference Eastern Divisional championships and an outright conference title in 2006 ... Pough is 3-0 against Benedict College and has won those games by an average of 43.3 points ... Benedict College’s last victory against S.C. State took place during the 1961 season by a 6-0 score ... The last time Benedict College played at Oliver C. Dawson Stadium in 1999, a stadium-record 24,577 fans watched as S.C. State won 26-23. The Tigers were coached at the time by former Bulldog fullback Tony Felder ... SCSU has three former players (Deacon Jones, Marion Motley and Harry Carson) inducted in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, more than all the Palmetto State’s Football Bowl Subdivision, Football Championship Division and Division II programs combined ... Benedict College is still seeking its first winning season since reinstating football in 1995 ... Under Pough, the Bulldogs are 42-6 when leading or tied at halftime and 4-16 when trailing ... Benedict College has five players from The T&D Region in Wright (Holly Hill), offensive linemen Deymound Wright (St. Matthews) and John Stewart (Denmark), defensive back Larry Behling (Bamberg) and wide receiver Marquis Benjamin (Denmark)

Sheridan BroadcastingFootball Top 10 Poll

Network Black College

1. Tuskegee

2. Delaware State

3. Norfolk State

4. South Carolina State

5. Hampton

6. Albany State

7. Southern

8. Grambling

9. Jackson State

10. Tennessee State

n T&D Senior Sports Writer Thomas Grant Jr. can be reached by e-mail at tgrant@timesanddemocrat.com or by phone at 803-533-5547. Discuss this and other stories on-line at TheTandD.com.

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