Kennesaw State will create more history Saturday with its first home game of its inaugural season when the Owls play Edward Waters College.
Coach Brian Bohannon said while the team is excited to finally play at home, they want to win.
“There’s no better way to make history than to win ballgames,” Bohannon said. “It’s going to be a special moment Saturday at 4:00 to run out of the tunnel for the first time in school history in our stadium with our home crowd.”
Bohannon said the decision to play Edward Waters was made when he first became coach in 2013. He said he was looking for young and newly operational teams, similar to Kennesaw State.
The Edward Waters football program is a member of the NAIA Division I. The team was revived in 2001 after 34 years of inactivity. Bohannon said despite the team’s recent return, they are a “multiple” threat on offense and defense.
“They’ve done a little bit of everything on offense,” Bohannon said. “Defensively … you only see that the first few snaps then you’re going to see multiple looks. Pressures, blitzes and a lot of man coverage.”
Bohannon said a notable facet of the Edward Waters offense is the athletic ability of the team based on their high-scoring season. This season they’ve defeated the University of Faith 76-7 and University of God’s Chosen 57-8 while most recently coming off a loss Saturday to Morehouse 51-7.
Bohannon said he’s prepared his team for the perfect opportunity Edward Waters has to make a name for themselves this weekend.
“What’s scary about those athletes is when they get energized by that environment versus maybe some environments they’ve been in,” Bohannon said. “If I’m them and I’m coaching down there right now (the game is) sold out and has a great environment. What a better opportunity for this football team to come and make a name for themselves? The table’s set if I’m down there coaching right now.”
With the excitement from the community, fans and players’ families surrounding the first home game, Bohannon said he’s also prepared his team to not let the “circumstances” surrounding the game impact their jobs on the field.
“What matters is what we do when the whistle’s blown and when the ball’s snapped,” Bohannon said. “I know these guys are going to be ready to go and they’re going to come out and play with a lot of energy, effort and enthusiasm. I don’t question that at all.”
Defensive lineman Mason Harris said while he’s excited for his first walk through the tunnel at Fifth Third Bank Stadium, his three seasons at the University of South Carolina taught him to blocking out distractions when he’s on the field.
“Once you get on the football field you don’t really notice (the crowd),” Harris said. “You’re focused on what you have to do, but I feel it’s going to be just as crazy (as South Carolina).”
Running back Chaston Bennett said he feels confident that the team is prepared for Saturday’s matchup.
“(We’re) taking it one day at a time,” Bennett said. “We’ve been seeing the same thing because we’re running the same offense as us. So we’ve been practicing against this for a while.”
Bohannon said although there’s a lot of room for improvement on offense, he wants to keep Saturday’s strategies simple.
“Honestly, that’s kind of how we have to be right now,” Bohannon said. “Just concentrate on getting better with what we do and how we do it on both sides of the ball.”
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