Buddy Pough’s days may be over coaching at SC State, but he still has the title of interim athletics director for at least a few more weeks.
After Saturday’s 44-17 victory over Norfolk State, Pough began to turn his attention to finding a replacement to patrol the sidelines.
“We would like to have someone in here (coaching) within the next week or two,” Pough said Monday at his season-ending press conference. “Exactly how long it takes, there’s no specific timetable, but the quicker the better. We would like to put both positions (head coach and AD) in place between now and the first of the year.”
SC State football coach and athletics director Buddy Pough stands with his family at the beginning of the game against Norfolk State Saturday, Nov. 18. Pough was honored for his 22-year career as the Bulldog head coach.
SC State is in an advantageous position with the number of players eligible to return to next year’s team. The Bulldogs led the MEAC in rushing this season and currently have a league leader on the roster in Juwarn Howell. Josh Shaw is 10th in rushing and Tyler Smith of Gaffney is 13th. All three will be sophomores next year.
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In addition, the team is scheduled to return its entire starting offensive line, along with its leading receiver.
The landscape of college football has changed, and now, in the era of the transfer portal, Pough knows it could be a struggle to keep all of this talent in Orangeburg while the program is in flux.
“I just tell our players, you signed with the university, not the coach,” Pough said. “I’ve had a few (players) say they signed to play for me, but at the same time, I’m going to hire a guy with very similar kinds of morals, values and character to what we’ve had in the time we’ve been here. It won’t be much different. As a matter of fact, it will be an upgrade from me.”
Pough has already said he will remain a part of the university where he spent four years as a player, 10 years as an assistant and 22 years as the head coach, amassing 151 victories.
“I’ll be right there, cheering (our new coach) on and trying to do everything I can to make this the best place it can be,” Pough said. “I want (our players) to be supported and loved. The key is to give our guys a good sound place to play, enjoy themselves and do well in school. I want to continue to do that in a way that’s above average.”
COLLECTION: Coach Buddy Pough’s final season at SC State
South Carolina State head football coach Buddy Pough announced his retirement before the start of the 2023 season. Look back at his final season as leader of the Bulldogs.
South Carolina State head football coach Buddy Pough announced Thursday he will be retiring at the end of the 2023 football season.
SC STATE FOOTBALL
SC State head football coach Buddy Pough said there are increments of improvement as the Bulldogs prepare to face Georgia Tech Saturday in Atlanta.
Lake City High School athletics director Matt Apicella made a special presentation at the Orangeburg Touchdown Club Thursday.
South Carolina State is a quarter-way through its football season, and for many supporters, the results have not measured up to expectations.
With nearly a quarter of its schedule gone, South Carolina State football is turning the page and preparing for its home opener against The Citadel Saturday.
South Carolina State will have had two weeks to celebrate its first win, a 31-10 victory over The Citadel, before welcoming Virginia-University Lynchburg to Orangeburg Saturday.
Tennessee Tech head football coach Dewayne Alexander told a group of media Wednesday that he is excited about getting the opportunity to coach against Buddy Pough Saturday in Orangeburg.
There is no more room for error as SC State prepares to face last season’s co-champion Howard Saturday in Orangeburg.
On behalf of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) we recognize the accomplishments of Head Coach Oliver “Buddy” Pough.
On Dec. 12, 2001, South Carolina State University held a press conference to announce the hiring of Oliver “Buddy” Pough as new head football coach.
Buddy Pough wanted to see his guys on the front page. Not himself. His guys.
They sneak up on you, the years do. One day, you’re young and trying to figure out your goals in life – work, family, accomplishments …
‘You are the best!’
Coach Buddy Pough has been a S.C. State football icon since he came to the school in 2002, but aside from his championship wins and time on the sidelines, Pough has also left a mark as a key member of Orangeburg’s Touchdown Club.
I have truly been blessed to be a small part of Coach Buddy Pough’s journey as head coach of the South Carolina State Bulldogs.
When you cover sports in Orangeburg, there’s no way you can do so without running into Buddy Pough.
Buddy was the beat reporters’ dream. Win or lose, he made it interesting, he made it memorable and he made it fun.
With nearly 50 years in the coaching profession, SC State head football coach Buddy Pough has experienced success on just about every level.
In my 50-plus years of chronicling the great athletics legacy at South Carolina State University, I have enjoyed great relationships with dozens of coaches and hundreds of student-athletes.
It has been said that if you love the people you lead, your leadership effectiveness will dramatically improve.
“He’s a perfect fit for this program,” said former S.C. State head football coach Willie Jeffries about his successor Oliver “Buddy” Pough.
With the seconds ticking away, South Carolina State’s players poured out onto the field to celebrate a 27-24 homecoming victory over Howard Saturday in Orangeburg.
SC State head football coach Buddy Pough made it clear he has no intention of staying on as the school’s permanent athletics director.
The South Carolina State 1973 football team – the first Bulldog squad of legendary head coach emeritus Willie Jeffries – will celebrate its 50-year reunion on Friday, Nov. 10, during a 7:30 p.m. banquet at the Bulldog Lounge of the Kirkland W. Green Student Center on campus.
Nov. 11 has been declared Buddy Pough Day in honor of South Carolina State head football coach Oliver “Buddy” Pough.
As the South Carolina State football team prepares for its season finale in Norfolk Saturday, head coach Buddy Pough is beginning to prepare for a life without football.
The Orangeburg Touchdown Club dedicated its final meeting of the 2023 season to out-going SC State Head Football Coach Buddy Pough.
As he flipped through a 2002 media guide (his first year as head coach), Pough’s face lit up at the names and pictures of former colleagues and opponents. When asked what he would tell his former self about coaching, he paused.
“Take care of yourself and the program,” Pough finally said. “I had no idea I would be here 20-plus years. This is what it’s all about, the players the bands … this is HBCU … all the things that go around the game are really something special. To think about where we’ve been and where we came from is not much different, but at the same time it is.”
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