Five Storylines For Samford's Week 2 Matchup Against The Citadel
By Steve Irvine
BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA - September 5, 2025
THE CITADEL AT SAMFORD
SITE, KICKOFF: Pete Hanna Stadium, 2:30 p.m. CT
RECORD: The Citadel 0-1; Samford 0-1
Five storylines
Can Samford live up to their “word of the week”? Samford head coach Chris Hatcher said “the word of this week was to eliminate. We need to eliminate explosive plays and self-inflicted wounds.” That covers all three areas of the game as Samford ventures into Southern Conference play for the first time this season. Hatcher said he thought his defense played well on early downs but the explosive plays were costly in West Georgia’s 34-3 win over Samford. But there was some positives on the defensive side. “We tackled the football at a very high level, especially being the first game of the season,” Hatcher said.
Can the special teams avoid costly blunders? Special team mistakes directly led to 10 West Georgia points. The first one – a muffed punt by returner CJ Evans that West Georgia recovered at the Samford 12-yard line – led to the first points of the game. The defense stepped up to limit West Georgia to a field goal. Samford then allowed a kickoff return for a touchdown at the beginning of the second half, which changed the course of the game. Samford needs to play a clean game in special teams against The Citadel.
Will the Samford offense have success this week? Winning games is tough without a running game. The Bulldogs never got started on the ground, rushing for 24 net yards on 28 carries. Samford had 22 yards lost on four sacks. CJ Evans had 23 yards on seven carries and his 10-yard run was the longest rush of the game for the Bulldogs. Getting the running game moving on Saturday is important to complement a passing game that was efficient but not explosive in the opener. Quincy Crittendon and freshman Brady Stober were a combined 32-of-44 for 247 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions. Wide receiver Preston Bird was a bright spot with 11 catches for 95 yards in the game. Bird had 18 catches total as a freshman last season. The Citadel gave up 519 yards (263 passing, 256 rushing) in a 38-0 loss to FCS top-ranked North Dakota State. So, Samford should have the opportunity for success.
How many passes will The Citadel throw? It’s certainly a run-first mentality for The Citadel, which averaged 43 rushes and 21 passes per game last season. The Citadel threw the ball just six times last week, completing two for 22 yards, but also had five called passing plays results in sacks. The Citadel gained 151 yards rushing but only netted 104 yards on the ground after the five sacks and seven tackles for loss. In last year’s 28-11 win over Samford, The Citadel had 166 yards on 46 carries with all four touchdowns on the ground. The Citadel was efficient throwing the all against Samford, completing 11-of-18 passes for 134 yards.
Will the atmosphere at Pete Hanna Stadium match last week’s season opener? Hatcher said a crowded student section was one of the biggest student turnouts he’s seen in his 11 seasons. Building on that is important with Samford opening SoCon play at home. “Well, I hope we have a big crowd at the game,” Hatcher said. “I hope everybody understands that this is a (new) team and they're learning to play the game. And we're going to put it all together this week. It is nice to be back at home. We have a lot of road games this upcoming season. We've got to take advantage of being at home. Playing an early conference game, you've got to be on your toes a little bit more.”