Series Notes:
The Webber International Warriors return to Johnson Hagood Stadium for the second consecutive season and only the second football matchup in the two schools' history. Falling to the Bulldogs last season, 76-0, the Warriors marked the first shutout for The Citadel since defeating Elon, 21-0, in 2005. The 76 points also set a modern day record for points scored in a game for the Bulldogs. The second game of the 2007 season, the win over WIU marked the first 2-0 start for the Bulldogs since 1997 when they went on to finish 6-5. The Citadel totaled 28 points in the first quarter, followed by 17 points in both the second and third quarters, and 14 in the fourth. The Bulldogs finished with 514 yards of total offense.

The “White Out”
The Citadel will kick-off their 2008 season with the “White Game” against Webber International, sponsored by AT&T and presented by Jones Ford. The tag of Saturday's game encourages Bulldog fans to come out dressed in white (one of two primary school colors), with the goal that the entire stadium will be filled with the one color in support of the Bulldog team. The Corps of Cadets, coaching and athletic department staffs will be wearing white “We Believe” hats, while they will also be for sale to fans at the game. “We Believe” is the slogan for 2008 Bulldog Football.

Bulldog Alert!
The Citadel Foundation, in conjunction with the Athletics Department, unveiled the Bulldog Monument in the plaza of the newly renovated Johnson Hagood Stadium on Friday evening. The monument, located on the corner of Hagood Avenue and Congress Street, is positioned to guard the Corps of Cadets as it gazes protectively toward The Citadel campus. The statue, which stands 10-feet tall on its pedestal, was funded by The Citadel Class of 1968 and was unveiled in a special private ceremony on Friday evening.

The monument was approximately a year in the making and measures 8'x5.5', weighing 600 to 800 pounds. The Citadel Bulldog Monument does not have a name; however, it is a replica of The Citadel's live mascot, “Boo.”

New Voice
Bulldog Football fans will have a new voice on the airwaves this season as Darren Goldwater, who has done play-by-play for The Citadel Baseball for the past five years, will take over as the official “Voice of the Bulldogs.”

The Citadel Athletics Department, in conjunction with Kirkman Broadcasting, promoted Goldwater to the position after Robby Robinson, who was the “Voice of the Bulldogs” for the past eight years, accepted a position at Virginia Commonwealth as an associate athletics director for sponsorship and broadcast services.

Goldwater has served five seasons with Bulldog Baseball, while working as the producer and co-host of Bobby Hartin's FanTalk on ESPN 910 The Team. He also spent four years as the play-by-play announcer for Lowcountry high school football, including last year's ESPN Radio High School Game of the Week and the CSS Shrine Bowl broadcast.

Former Citadel Director of Athletics Walt Nadzak, who spent 15 years as head football coach at the University of Connecticut and Juniata College, has joined The Citadel football broadcast team as the color analyst.

Nadzak replaces Glenn Seale, who will not return for the 2008 season, and will be teamed with play-by-play announcer Darren Goldwater.  Nadzak has broadcast football games previously on the Southern Conference Network and on Comcast.

He is a 1957 graduate of Denison University and earned his masters in 1968 from Xavier University.  Nadzak was the Kodak NCAA District II Coach of the Year in 1973 having led Juniata to the NCAA Div. III national championship game, and is a member of the Denison Athletic Hall of Fame, the Ambridge (PA) Athletic Hall of Fame and the Western Pennsylvania/Beaver County Athletic Hall of Fame.

The Citadel Sports Network, in conjunction with Kirkman Broadcasting, enters its 24th year broadcasting Bulldog Football on the radio.  The Citadel Sports Network's flagship station is ESPN Radio 910 The Team and is distributed statewide from The Team's studio's in Charleston.

The Bulldog Broadcast Partner Stadium Show begins 60 minutes before kickoff of each game statewide on the six station network that includes affiliates in Greenville, Columbia and now Myrtle Beach. The show includes player and coaches interviews as well as up to the minute scores from games around the country.  

2008 Network Affiliates

    City    Station    Frequency
    Charleston    WTMZ    910 AM
    Greenville    WLFJ    660 AM
    Collumbia     WQXL    1440 AM
    Sumter    WDXY    1240 AM
    Georgetown    WXJY    93.7 FM
    Myrtle Beach    WXJY    1050 AM

Bulldogs Enter Season in Top 25
For the first time in approximately 15 years, the Bulldogs will kick-off the season ranked in the FCS (formerly Division I-AA) Top 25. The Citadel falls among the top 25 in four preseason polls, ranking as high as 16.

The Sports Network ranked the Bulldogs 23rd in the FCS with Appalachian holding the top spot. Wofford is ranked at No. 13, Elon at 15, and Georgia Southern at 17. The poll is dominated by three major leagues -- the Southern Conference, as well as the Colonial Athletic Association and the Missouri Valley Football Conference. The FCS Coaches Poll also ranked the Bulldogs at No. 23.

The Phil Steele's Top 25 Poll gave the Bulldogs the best ranking, while five other Southern Conference Schools also earned spots in the top 25. The Citadel ranked 24th in the 2008 Consolidated Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) Preseason rankings by College Sporting News; while the AnyGivenSaturday.com (AGS) Poll, the first released national poll each year, ranked the Bulldogs 21st.

Bulldogs Picked to Finish Sixth; Reese Lone First Team Pick
The Citadel Football team is expected to finish sixth in the conference, according to both preseason coaches and media polls released at the 2008 Southern Conference Football Rouser in July. Picked to win the conference title again this year is Appalachian State, followed by Elon in second, Wofford in third, and Georgia Southern and Furman in the fourth and fifth places, respectively, according to the coaches poll. The media agreed for first, second, and sixth through 10th places; however, they ranked Georgia Southern third, followed by Wofford and Furman in fourth and fifth places.

Defensive lineman Terrence Reese earned first team SoCon honors, while wide receiver Andre Roberts, offensive lineman Dan DeHaven, defensive lineman Kevin McCaskill and punter Mark Kaspar were all named to second teams.

Coach Higgins' thoughts on the team SoCon ranking:
“After losing a record-setting quarterback and running back, as well as the second, third, and fourth leading receivers plus our top three defensive players, I can see how the coaches chose us as the sixth ranked team in the Southern Conference. Also knowing that so many of our opponents have a great deal of players coming back makes it even more challenging.”


Underrated?
While The Citadel plays in the toughest conference in the FCS, it was no surprise that the Bulldogs were picked to finish sixth in the SoCon, although ranked in the top 25. However, All-American Andre Roberts placed on the preseason second team was a bit of a surprise to many Bulldog fans.

Roberts, who broke the school record for the most receptions in a single season with 78, finished third in receptions per game (7.09/gm) in Southern Conference standings. He also finished fourth in receiving yards per game (96.4) and third in punt return yards per game (10.7). The only receiver ahead of Roberts in the 2008 SoCon standings who is returning for the 2008 season is Elon's Terrell Hudgins.

FCS Preseason All-America
Bulldog wide receiver and 2007 All-American Andre Roberts was named to the All-America preseason team by The Sports Network. Roberts was listed as a preseason second-team selection, the only Bulldog to make the lists. The Southern Conference had six athletes represented on the teams.

The 5-11, 175-pound receiver from Columbia had a breakthrough season in 2007. The 2008 team captain set a school record with 78 catches for 1,060 yards and 10 touchdowns in a season. Roberts assisted the Bulldogs in setting season records for most points (434), most passing yards (2,703) and most passing touchdowns (22).

Roberts Named to Walter Payton Watch List
Roberts was named to the Walter Payton Award Watch List Thursday, as announced by The Sports Network. Roberts joins a list of 15 other offensive players around the country named to the watch list, while it marks the second consecutive year that a cadet-student-athlete from The Citadel has been named to the Walter Payton Award Watch List. Quarterback Duran Lawson was a candidate for the award last season prior to suffering a career-ending injury at Georgia Southern on Oct. 27.

The watch list, which features two other Southern Conference student-athletes, will be revised in early October and once again for a final time in early November. The three finalists will be announced on Monday, Dec. 1.


Tough Shoes to Fill
Bulldog fans witnessed the conclusion of a record-breaking career by quarterback Duran Lawson in 2007. His limitless ability to run or throw the ball in the toughest of environments, Lawson will go down in the history books as one of the best quarterbacks all-time at The Citadel. Finishing his career as the school's all-time leading passer, Lawson finished his four-year career with 537 rushing and 5,376 passing yards despite missing the last three games of the 2007 season due to injury. In his absence, redshirt freshmen Bart Blanchard was forced to step up in the starting role. Holding his ground, Blanchard led the Bulldogs in a tough matchup against then two-time defending national champion Appalachian State, losing to the No. 9 ranked Mountaineers, 45-24. His best performance, however, came in a 42-31 victory over Elon when Blanchard recorded 370 passing yards the third best passing performance all-time at The Citadel. Claiming a victory in two of the last three matchups, Blanchard will be looked upon to fill the shoes of Lawson and continue to lead the Bulldog squad as he gets the starting nod for the 2008 season.

Time Changes
The NCAA has implemented a rule change in the play clock for 2008. The play clock will be set at 40 seconds when the ball is dead on every play. It will be set at 25 seconds for the following:
    1. Penalty Administration
    2. Charged Team Timeout
    3. Media Timeout                          
    4. Injury Timeout    
    5. Measurement                                                              
    6. Change Of Possession
    7. Following A Kick Down
    8. Score
    9. Start Of Each Period
    10. Start Of A Team's Series In Extra Period
    11. Instant Replay Review
    12. Other Administrative Stoppage

Also, when a ball carrier goes out of bounds, the play clock will stop only until the ball is set for play, except for the final two minutes of each half when the clock starts on the snap of the next play.

Seeing Double
If you think you are seeing double on the football field, it may confuse you even more once you hear the names of two freshmen players from Roebuck, S.C. Twins Christian and Christopher Graham are the next set of twins who will take the field for the Bulldogs this season. The brothers, from Dorman High School, walked on the team for the 2008 season in the running back (Christian) and defensive back (Chris) positions. The last set of twins on the Bulldog team was Cale and Cliff Conant, who both wrapped up their football careers in 2006.

Class of 2012
There is no question that the Class of 2012 will be represented in blue and white as the Bulldogs take the field in their season-opener against Webber International. Impressed with this year's freshmen class, Coach Higgins and his staff will look for several freshmen to step up and have an opportunity to play in the “White Out” game. The strong safety position is being held down by true freshmen, as Rod Harland received the starting role with Demontrelle Smith as his backup. Freshman Chris Hammett will backup redshirt senior Dwight House in the free safety position, while true freshmen defensive backs Jeremy Buncum and DeAndre Smith are also listed in this week's two-deep.

New Name at JHS
Bulldog fans will have a new name to tag along with Johnson Hagood Stadium. With the renovation and opening of the new stadium will come the naming of the natural grass field. The playing field will now be known as Sansom Field, named after William B. Sansom, Class of '64. The Citadel Board of Visitors approved the playing surface to be known as the William B. Sansom Field after he made a generous donation to the stadium revitalization project. The dedication of the field will not take place until Homecoming on Nov. 15, but the name change will take place with the opening of the facility on Aug. 30.   

Best in 15 Years
The Bulldogs wrapped up the 2007 season with their first winning record in 15 years. Finishing 7-4 overall and 4-3 in the SoCon, the finale marked the first time since 1992 (when The Citadel won the SoCon Championship) that they recorded a seven-win season.

A total of 17 school records were broken, while four others were tied. Among the highlights were the most points scored in modern day history with 76 against Webber International, a total of 641 offensive yards in a 54-51 overtime win against Furman and a 70-28 victory at VMI in the Military Classic of the South.

Higgins Signs Five-Year Extension
The Citadel football head coach Kevin Higgins has signed a five-year contract extension that will keep him at the helm of Bulldog Football through 2013.  In 2007, Higgins led the Bulldogs to their first winning season in 15 years. Tying for third place in the Southern Conference, The Citadel concluded the season 7-4, marking the first seven-win season since the Bulldogs won the SoCon Championship in 1992. Since joining the staff in 2005, Higgins improved the Bulldogs from 4-7 overall and 2-5 in the conference to 7-4 and 4-2, including an impressive performance at No. 7 Wisconsin last season.

Under Higgins' leadership, standout quarterback Duran Lawson broke the school's all-time passing record in 2007 with a career total of 5,376 yards despite two seasons being cut short due to injury. Higgins also recruited and coached the Bulldogs' first associated press All-American selection since 1992 in then-sophomore wide receiver Andre Roberts. In 2007, four Bulldogs earned first team All-Southern Conference honors, while Higgins himself was selected as a finalist for the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year award.