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GAME TIME
Morgan State will travel to face Georgia Southern in the season opener on Saturday (Sept. 3) at Allen E. Paulson Stadium ((capacity 25,000) in Statesboro, Georgia. The Bears open the 2022 season under the leadership of head coach Damon Wilson. Georgia Southern completed the 2021 season with a 3-9 overall mark and were 2-6 in the Sun Belt Conference (SBC) play. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. and will be broadcast by ESPN3 and WEAA
, 88.9FM.
GAME COVERAGE
ESPN3 (online) | Click Here | Danny Waugh (play-by-play), Cole Neely (analyst) and Emily Grace McWhorter (sideline reporter)
RADIO: WEAA, 88.9 FM is the flagship station for the Morgan State Bears ... Lamont Germany will call the play-by-play with Renard Stubbs in the booth. The game will be broadcast live on 88.9 FM and streamed on WEAA.org, HSRN.com and on SIriusXM 386 and 988 on the SiriusXMmobile app.
LIVE STATS: www.gseagles.com | Click Here
SOCIAL NETWORKS
Fans can keep up-to-date with all MSU Athletics via twitter at Twitter.com/MorganStBears and @MorganStateFootball. You can also become a fan of the Bears on Facebook at Facebook.com/MorganStateBears.
TICKETS
Season ticket plans—which include a ticket to all five home games, including homecoming start at only $120. Premium seats and the football/basketball Bear Pass are both now available for purchase by calling 443.885.1522 or visiting MSU Student Center Athletics Ticket Office during business hours (Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.), or click 2022 MSU Ticket Information.
THE SERIES
The teams will meet for the first time in program history.
THE COACHES
• Damon Wilson was announced as the Bears' 23rd head football coach on June 10, 2022 and previously spent 13 seasons as the head coach at Bowie State University where he achieved three straight Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) conference championship 2010-12.
• Clay Helton, who led USC to a Rose Bowl title in 2016, was named the 11th full-time head coach in the Georgia Southern modern football era on Nov. 2, 2021. He is in his first season as the Eagles head coach.
A WIN WOULD ...
... give Damon Wilson his first win as MSU's head coach.
... improve the Bears' record to 1-0 against Georgia Southern in school history.
... mark MSU's first non-conference win since defeating Virginia-Lynchburg 59-26 on Nov. 16, 2019 at Hughes Stadium.
... mark MSU's first road non-conference win since defeating N.C. A&T 16-13 on Sept. 22, 2018.
QUICK HITS
• The 2022 Morgan State Bears will be under the leadership of head coach Damon Wilson. Wilson, the 23rd coach in school history, comes to Morgan after serving for 13 seasons as the head football coach at Bowie State. There, he achieved three straight Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) conference championships, in 2021, 2019 and 2018; five NCAA playoff berths; and three CIAA Coach of the Year honors.
• The Bears have a number of QBs who are competing to be the starting signal-caller. Carson Baxter, a 6-3, 205-pound transfer from Western Kentucky, is battling sophomores Antoine "Duce" Taylor (6-1, 180) and Malcomb Brown (6-4, 225).
• The Bears return pair of running backs from last season's team ... RB Alfonzo Graham (Baltimore, Md.) led the team with 506 yards on 54 carries and scored 5 TDs, while RB Jabriel Johnson (Baltimore, Md.) finished 125 carries for 469 yards with two TDs.
• Morgan State has a number of offensive lineman as they enter the 2022 season ... The Bears have 15 OL listed on the roster and will be led by veteran G Marvin Atuatasi (6-1, 305) and T Chris Anthony (6-4, 290).
• LB Lawrence Richardson led the Bears in 2021 with 68 tackles (40 solo), 5.5 tackles for loss and a sack ... FCS-focused podcast/website The Bluebloods recently named Richardson to its 26-member preseason All-MEAC team
• Elijah Williams excelled as a linebacker for the Bears during his freshman season .. he was the Bears' third leading tackler a season ago in which he recorded 52 stops (30 solo) with a team-high 8.5 tackles for loss and two sacks ... the new coaching staff has converted him to defensive end.
• 2021 Preseason All-MEAC First Team selection Jae-Veyon Morton, aka. Knock, returns as a veteran and one of the top corners in the league. The 5-9 senior from Detroit finished the 2021 season ranked T-No. 4 in the conference in passes defended (8) and No. 9 in tackles with 63, averaging 5.7 per game. The junior also added an interception and a pair of tackles for loss on the season.
A GLANCE AT THE EAGLES
• FBS member Georgia Southern finished the 2021 season with a 3-9 overall record and went 2-6 in the Sun Belt Conference (SBC).
• The Eagles took the fifth spot in the Sun Belt's East Division, voted on by coaches and selected media who cover the league.
• Four Georgia Southern football players have been voted to the Preseason All-Sun Belt squad. Sixth-year defensive lineman Justin Ellis and redshirt junior defensive back Derrick Canteen were named to the second team on the defensive side of the ball. Redshirt senior punter Anthony Beck II was named to the second team as was sixth-year senior receiver Amare Jones as an all-purpose player.
• Sixth-year QB Kyle Vantrease is expected to be under center for the Eagles this fall. The 6-2, 225 pounder transferred from Buffalo where he started in 10 games last season. He completed 161 of 262 passes for 1,861 yards and eight touhdowns on the season. He also rushed for 115 yards and three scores.
• Dillon Springer (6-1, 255) is a standout defensive lineman for the Eagles. He started in all 12 games last season and posted 29 tackles, including 7.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks, along with five quarterback hurries and one forced fumble.
• Georgia Southern junior running backs Gerald Green and Jalen White were named candidates for the 2022 Doak Walker Award. The award is given to the nation's best running back, and Michigan State tailback Kenneth Walker III won it in 2021. Green (Columbus, Ga.) had 75 rushes for 423 yards and five touchdowns last season while White (Daleville, Ala.) carried the ball 68 times for 383 yards and four touchdowns. Both are expected to have a much larger role in the Eagle offense this season.
A LOOK AHEAD
• Saturday, Sept. 10th will mark the 27th meeting in the series that began with a 34-7 Morgan Sate win at Towson on Sept. 1, 1979.
• Towson handed the Bears a 31-0 loss at Hughes Stadium on Sept. 4, 2021.
• The Tigers hold an 20-6 advantage in the series vs. MSU.
• The Tigers have won 8 of the last 9 meetings against Morgan State since 2005, including the last three matchups.
• MSU's last win against Towson was on Sept. 26, 2009 at Hughes Stadium under Bears head coach Donald Hill-Eley ... QB Carlton Jackson engineered a 12-play, 86 yard drive that culminated with a 26-yard touchdown pass to Lamont Bryant in the second quarter to put the Bears ahead and the defense kept turning the Tigers back for a 12-9 victory.
PRESEASON PICKED 6TH
Morgan State was picked to finish sixth (6th) in the MEAC standings, according to the poll of the conference head coaches and sports information directors.
• South Carolina State University has been picked to win the MEAC Football Championship as the Bulldogs topped the league's annual preseason poll for 2022.
PRESEASON ALL-MEAC PLAYERS
• The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference announced the selections for the 2022 Preseason All-MEAC team. Senior Jae'Veyon Morton has been named to the All-MEAC First Team, which is voted on by the league's coaches and sports information directors.
• Morton is one of 25 players named to the Preseason All-MEAC First Team and is the lone representative for the Bears. No other Morgan players were named to any of the other teams.
BEARS OPEN 123rd SEASON OF FOOTBALL SINCE 1898
MSU enters its 123rd season of football and will open the 2022 campaign under head coach Damon Wilson, set to enter his first year at the helm.
RETURN MEN
The 2022 Morgan State Bears return 16 starters - eight (8) on offense and eight (8) on defense.
CAMPAIGNING FOR SUCCESS
The Bears enter the 2022 season looking to post their first winning season since going 6-5 in 2009. MSU's 7-6 record in 2014 was vacated.
NON-CONFERENCE PLAY
The Bears will open the 2021 campaign against four non-conference opponents. MSU opens the season in the 'Battle for Greater Baltimore' at home against Towson (Sept. 4), followed by a pair of road trips versus Tulane (Sept. 11), and Sacred Heart (Sept. 18). The Bears will have a bye week before hosting Saint Francis (Oct. 16). The Bears will cap the season with a road matchup with Univ. of Albany (Nov. 13) followed by a season finale home game versus Georgetown (Nov. 20).
BEARS OPEN 44th SEASON IN MEAC
The Bears will open its 44th season in the MEAC when they host Norfolk State for the conference opener on Oct. 8 ... it will also mark Morgan's Homecoming.
• The Bears opened the 2021 MEAC schedule with a 27-0 loss against Howard (Oct. 8) at Greene Stadium in Washington, D.C.
• The Bears kicked off its first season in the MEAC in 1971. Morgan State withdrew from the conference at the end of the 1979-80 fiscal year, before returning to the MEAC in 1984.
MSU LEGEND EARL "PAPA BEAR" BANKS
Earl "Papa Bear" Banks was a legendary head coach at Morgan State University,
• In 1960, Banks took over the head coaching position at Morgan State from 2011 Trailblazer Award winner, Edward Hurt.
• In his 14 seasons as head coach, he would lead the Bears to six CIAA titles, one CIAA Northern Division championship and one Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference title. Banks had an overall record of 96-31-2 after he retired from coaching 1973 and produced three undefeated seasons from 1965 through 1967.
• He guided Morgan State to four bowl games, winning the 1965 Orange Blossom Classic and the 1966 Tangerine Bowl.
• He was named the American Football Coaches Association's recipient of the 2018 Trailblazer Award. The award was presented, posthumously, at the 2019 AFCA Convention in San Antonio, Texas.
FOLLOW MORGAN STATE ATHLETICS IN CYBERSPACE
There are many ways to keep up with MSU athletics online and on the go:
• Visit www.morganstatebears.com, the official web site of Bears athletics, for news, schedules, stats, bios and more.
• Follow us on social media:
Facebook: /MorganStateBears
Twitter: @MorganStBears
Instagram: /MorganStateBears
ABOUT MORGAN
Morgan State University, founded in 1867, is a Carnegie-classified high research (R2) institution offering nearly 140 academic programs leading to degrees from the baccalaureate to the doctorate. As Maryland's Preeminent Public Urban Research University, and the only university to have its entire campus designated as a National Treasure by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Morgan serves a multiethnic and multiracial student body and seeks to ensure that the doors of higher education are opened as wide as possible to as many as possible. For more information about Morgan State University, visit www.morgan.edu.
