CHARLESTON COLLEGE FOOTBALL RECAP
Charleston College Football Recap: CSU Falls by 3, The Citadel Drops SoCon Opener
Football is officially back for Charleston’s two Division I programs.
Charleston Southern and The Citadel both opened their 2026 seasons on the road this past weekend, and both returned home looking for their first victory. But the final scores only tell part of the story.
Charleston Southern came within three points of stealing a conference road win at Lindenwood, falling 20-17 after mounting a fourth-quarter comeback. The Citadel, meanwhile, suffered a 42-14 loss to Southern Conference rival Wofford despite finishing the night with more total offense and significantly more time of possession than the Terriers.
Charleston Southern’s comeback falls just short at Lindenwood
Charleston Southern opened its season Thursday night in St. Charles, Missouri, with a conference matchup against Lindenwood.
The Buccaneers struck first when Matt Rolader connected on a 50-yard field goal early in the second quarter. After Lindenwood answered with a field goal of its own, CSU appeared to be threatening for more before the game’s biggest momentum swing.
With Charleston Southern inside the Lindenwood 20-yard line and only seconds remaining before halftime, Isaac Edwards intercepted quarterback Lek Powell and returned it 85 yards for a touchdown.
Instead of potentially entering halftime with the lead, Charleston Southern suddenly trailed 10-3.
Lindenwood stretched the advantage to 17-3 in the third quarter, but the Buccaneers refused to disappear.
Powell connected with Mekhi Campfield for a four-yard touchdown on fourth down to begin the fourth quarter. After another Lindenwood field goal made it 20-10, CSU drove 80 yards in 10 plays, with Powell finding Hunter Green for a 14-yard touchdown with 2:03 remaining.
That cut the deficit to just three.
Charleston Southern never got another possession, however, as Lindenwood picked up the first downs it needed to run out the clock and secure the 20-17 victory.
There was plenty for CSU to build on
The final score may have been disappointing, but Charleston Southern was hardly overwhelmed.
The Buccaneers actually outgained Lindenwood 315-312 and finished with 19 first downs compared with Lindenwood’s 16. The difference was turnovers: CSU committed two while Lindenwood finished with none.
In his first start for Charleston Southern, Powell completed 18 of 32 passes for 208 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.
Dwayne Wright led the rushing attack with 58 yards on 11 carries, while KD Dorsey paced CSU receivers with 46 yards. Campfield caught five passes for 44 yards and a touchdown.
Defensively, Steve Zayachkowsky delivered one of the strongest performances of the night, recording 10 tackles and two sacks.
The takeaway for CSU is fairly straightforward: the Buccaneers showed they could compete on the road, but two turnovers — particularly the 85-yard interception return — proved enormously costly.
The Citadel’s final score doesn’t tell the entire story
Two nights later, The Citadel began its season with an important Southern Conference game at Wofford.
The Bulldogs lost 42-14.
Looking strictly at that score, you might assume Wofford dominated the game from beginning to end.
The statistics paint a stranger picture.
The Citadel actually outgained Wofford 351-341, ran 69 offensive plays compared with Wofford’s 57 and possessed the ball for more than 35 minutes. The Bulldogs also rushed for 227 yards.
Yet Wofford won by four touchdowns.
How?
The Bulldogs repeatedly gave the Terriers opportunities to score without having to travel the length of the field.
Mistakes changed the game
Wofford led only 7-0 late in the first quarter when a Citadel punt was blocked and returned 33 yards for a touchdown, immediately making it 14-0.
The Bulldogs later received a massive opportunity when Temarcus Elam intercepted Wofford quarterback JT Fayard and returned the ball 67 yards to the Wofford 32.
The Citadel drove all the way to the 2-yard line.
Instead of converting that takeaway into points, however, the Bulldogs fumbled, and Wofford recovered.
Wofford eventually carried a 21-0 lead into halftime.
The Citadel came out of the locker room with its best possession of the game, putting together a 12-play, 75-yard drive that consumed 7:32 and ended with a four-yard touchdown run from Sebastien Boyle.
Suddenly, it was 21-7.
But Wofford immediately responded with its own 75-yard touchdown drive. Less than a minute later, Quentin Hayes was intercepted, giving the Terriers possession at The Citadel’s 8-yard line. Wofford needed only three plays to score again and extend the lead to 35-7.
At that point, the game was effectively out of reach.
The Bulldogs did find success on the ground
Quarterback Quentin Hayes led The Citadel with 91 rushing yards on 18 attempts while also completing 12 of 20 passes for 88 yards.
Gavin Garcia added 68 rushing yards, and Boyle scored both Citadel touchdowns.
The Bulldogs also intercepted Wofford twice, including Elam’s 67-yard return. J’hari Mosley led The Citadel defense with eight tackles and also recorded an interception.
There are encouraging numbers buried inside the loss.
The Citadel moved the football, controlled possession and generated defensive takeaways.
But a blocked punt touchdown, two lost fumbles, an interception and missed opportunities following takeaways created a scoring margin that was far larger than the difference between the two offenses.
What’s next for Charleston’s college football teams?
Neither program gets much relief in Week 2.
Charleston Southern travels to Georgia Southern on Saturday, Sept. 5, for a 7 p.m. kickoff at Paulson Stadium. The game will stream on ESPN+.
The Citadel heads to Charlotte to face the 49ers Saturday at 3:30 p.m., also on ESPN+.
And there’s already a much bigger local storyline waiting one week later.
On Saturday, Sept. 12, Charleston Southern and The Citadel meet at Johnson Hagood Stadium for the second official edition of the Lowcountry Boil Bowl.
That means both Charleston programs have one more opportunity to find their footing before bragging rights become part of the equation.
Opening weekend ended 0-2 for Charleston college football.
The road to changing that record begins Saturday.
