“This is probably one of the most competitive and balanced schedules we’ve had in our three seasons”, said Wilson. “Our first five games will give us a good indication as to where the Bulldogs should fair towards the end of the season.”
Bowie State University will kick off its 10-game, 2012 season with a Saturday, September 1st home game against Assumption College in Bulldogs Stadium. The Bulldogs rolled to a relatively easy 28-7 season opening road victory over the Greyhounds last season. Assumption, a member of the Northeast-10 Conference finished with a 4-6 record in 2011.
The Bulldogs travel to Columbia (S.C.) for a Thursday (September 6th) night non-conference contest against Benedict College in week two. Bowie State hosted Benedict in the Bulldogs’ home opener last season, beating the Tigers 31-14. The Tigers (2-8 in 2011) are members of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC).
Bowie State welcomes the Fighting Falcons of Fairmont State College to Bulldogs Stadium – Saturday (September 15th). The Fighting Falcons defeated Bowie State last season by the score of 49-20 at Fairmont State and lead the series 2-0. Fairmont State finished the year with a 7-4 overall record.
Saint Augustine’s College (4-6 in 2011) returns to the Bowie State schedule for the first time since the 2003 campaign. Bowie State will make their first trip to Raleigh since the inaugural Falcons / Bulldogs game in 2002. The Bulldogs and Falcons meet in the George Williams Complex on the SAC campus – Saturday (September 22nd). Bowie State edged the Falcons 14-6 in 2003 and leads the series 2-0.
The defending CIAA Champions and NCAA semifinalist of Winston-Salem State University bring their high-powered offense to Bowie State Saturday (September 29th). The Rams and Bulldogs have not met on the gridiron since 2004 with BSU squeezing out a 7-6 home victory over WSSU. Winston-Salem State leads the overall series 12-5 and ended their 2011 season with a 13-1 record.
Bowie State travels to Murfreesboro (N.C.) to take on Chowan University – Saturday (October 6th). The Hawks tallied a 3-7 record last season and beat the Bulldogs 38-35 in BSU’s 2011 season finale. The series is tied 1-1 with the Bulldogs winning the inaugural (2010) game by a score of 59-19.
The Bulldogs will celebrate Homecoming 2012 against the Trojans of Virginia State University on Saturday (October 13th). Virginia State beat Bowie State last season, capturing a stunning 28-21 overtime win. Virginia State holds a 17-8 series advantage over Bowie State. The Trojans finished second in the CIAA North with a record of 5-5.
Bowie State hits the road following Homecoming, making stops at Virginia Union University (Saturday, October 20th) and Lincoln University of Pennsylvania (Saturday, October 27th). The Bulldogs dropped a tough 32-29 nationally televised decision against VUU’s Panthers last. Bowie State trails in the overall series (10-17-1). Virginia Union placed third overall in the conference’s Northern Division and ended the year with a 5-5 record. Lincoln (2-8 in 2011) lost 22-10 to Bowie State last season and BSU leads the series 3-0.
Bowie State will close out the regular season at home on Saturday (November 3rd) against the Vikings of Elizabeth City State University. ECSU’s Vikings downed the Bulldogs 23-12 last year and finished the season as conference runner-up with a record of 8-4. The Vikings hold a slim 15-14 series advantage against the Bulldogs.
Specific home theme days and final game times for all games will be released at a later date.
