By: David Beall
KENNESAW, Ga. – The No. 8 Kennesaw State football team is set to open the spring 2021 season Saturday against Shorter University, marking the first game the Owls have played in 448 days, the longest stretch between games in program history.
The Rundown
Opponent: Shorter University
Date: Saturday, Feb. 27
Site: Fifth Third Bank Stadium
Kickoff: 1 p.m.
TV: ESPN+
Radio: TuneIn App
Tickets: SOLD OUT
Parking: Click Here
Game Notes: KSU
Top Storylines
• KSU is looking to open the season with a victory for the second straight year and is eyeing its fourth straight victory in its home opener. The Owls are 4-1 all-time in home openers and 2-3 in season openers.
• The Owls are 7-1 all-time against teams from the state of Georgia, including 1-0 against Shorter, an 18-10 victory against the Hawks during the inaugural season in 2015.
• Kennesaw State is 27-5 all-time in Fifth Third Bank Stadium, including winning 18 of its last 19 regular season home games.
• Kennesaw State is going for its 13th consecutive non-conference regular season home win Saturday against Shorter, a streak that dates back to the beginning of the 2016 season.
• KSU returns seven of 11 starters on defense that ranked No. 3 in the country last year, while eight starters return on offensive for the top rushing attack in the nation.
• Dating back to week 2 of the 2017 season, Kennesaw State has won 34 of its last 40 games for an 85.0 winning percentage.
• KSU is one of five teams in the country to win a playoff game in each of the last three seasons, joined by North Dakota State, JMU, UNI and Weber State. The Owls are also one of nine programs to appear in each of the last three FCS Playoffs.
• Kennesaw State and North Dakota State are the only FCS program to post 11-plus wins in each of the last three seasons.
• Kennesaw State is in search of its third Big South Conference championship in the last four seasons and its fourth consecutive FCS Playoffs appearance this spring.
• The Owls are looking to join Coastal Carolina as the only programs in league history to make the playoffs in four consecutive seasons.
• The Owls have dominated the Big South during the last three years, winning 15 of their last 16 conference games and doing so by a 31.6 average margin of victory.
• Prior to the fall 2020 season being canceled, Kennesaw State was the Big South Conference preseason favorite for the fourth consecutive year, but, as voted by the league's media and head coaches, the Owls are now picked second in the conference behind Monmouth heading into the spring campaign.
The Best in League History
•
Bryson Armstrong enters the year as the Big South Preseason Defensive Player of the Year, the only player to capture the honor three times in his career. He heads into his senior season as the most decorated player in school history, including coming off consensus All-America honors last year.
Back Like He Never Left
• After seeing his 2019 season cut short due to injury,
Isaac Foster heads into 2021 as the Big South Preseason Offensive Player of the Year. Through seven games in 2019, he was one of the most dynamic running backs in the country, averaging 14.9 yards per carry and 162.3 all-purpose yards per game.
Minute Men
• In their first five seasons of competition, the Owls have 51 scoring drives of one minute or less, including a program-best 17 last season. During the 2019 season, KSU had multiple scoring drives under one minute in five different games.
One-Timer
• The Owls have 29 one-play scoring drives in program history, including 18 in the last 27 games. KSU recorded a program-best three one-play touchdown drives at Missouri State during the 2019 season.
Owls Own The Big South
• In just five years of existence, Kennesaw State and head coach
Brian Bohannon have four all-time playoff wins - tying the record by both a league member and head coach. Former member Coastal Carolina and its head coach, Joe Moglia, also collected four playoff victories.
• Bohannon is seventh in Big South history with 48 career coaching wins and became the fastest Big South coach to win 45 games when he reached the benchmark with KSU's 38-35 win over Campbell on Nov. 9, 2019.
The Total Package
• Kennesaw State has led the Big South Conference in total defense each of the last three seasons and has finished in the top five in the nation in total defense each of the last two years.
• KSU was the only defensive unit in the county in 2019 to rank in the top five in total defense (2) and rushing defense (5), allowing just 88.9 yards per carry on the ground.
• In five years as a program, the Owls have never ranked outside the top 20 in the country in total defense, including back-to-back seasons inside the top five.
What a Rush
• Kennesaw State's spread option ground attack has become the most explosive rushing attack in all of FCS football, leading the nation in rushing yards per game two of the last the three seasons, including a program-record 352.9 rushing yards per game in 2018.
• In its first five years of existence, the Owls led the Big South in rushing yards per game in all five seasons and have ranked in the top three in the country each of the last four seasons.
For more information on Kennesaw State athletics, follow @KennesawStFB on Twitter or like Kennesaw State Football on Facebook and Instagram.
