Why people are overreacting to Savannah State's 87 point loss

Perhaps the biggest story this week happened in a game many weren't even paying attention to. Chennis Berry and the reigning HBCU champion South Carolina State Bulldogs opened their season at home against Savannah State. Aside from Savannah State being Chennis Berry's alma mater, there was nothing truly important to note. South Carolina State was expected to win and win big. But no one expected 87 points.

South Carolina State's dominance was awe-inspiring. They were simply bigger, quicker, faster, and more skilled than South Carolina and Savannah State's new unit under first-year head coach Thomas Howard. Everything seemed to click for the Bulldogs throughout the matchup. Jokes about the score spread quickly across social media, and understandably so. But the tone of the conversation around the game shifted to a place where things stopped being funny.

Many sports fans unfamiliar with HBCU football started using Savannah State's showing as an indictment of the program and a way to say change was needed, even though change had already happened with Thomas Howard's hire. Some people spread lies about Savannah State, even though they didn't know the Tigers moved back to the SIAC and Division II athletics in 2019. The rhetoric started to become destructive and even conspiratorial at certain points, with allegations of Berry being turned down in interviews with Savannah State and the loss being a debt repaid for being overlooked, festering.

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When HBCU stories break containment, Misinformation starts to happen, and the institutions involved get hurt, so we have to set the record straight.

In all honesty, Savannah State should not have been playing South Carolina State in Thomas Howard's first game leading the program. A lot of people have limiting views of Division II football, treating it as a sub-quality subdivision of college football instead of giving it the reverence that it deserves for producing some of the best players in both the FCS and FBS. Some of the best Division II programs have challenged and tested solid Division I programs so much that some schools no longer schedule specific Division II programs. The classification of Division II is not a scarlet letter.

But Savannah State simply is not equipped to match up against the HBCU national champion of Division 1. Between scholarship allocation and experience, they were outmatched and likely should have played an out-of-conference Division 2 opponent, such as other teams in the SIAC, or potentially an FCS opponent more in line with Savannah State's trajectory as a program. Lost in the conversation about the 87-point win is the fact that Chennis Berry-led teams are just that good.

To the uninitiated, South Carolina State's dominance over the Tigers is a blight on Savannah State's football program, but many have to understand the history that Berry has made over the past few seasons. To the uninitiated, South Carolina State's dominance over the Tigers is a blight on Savannah State's football program, but many have to understand the history that Berry has made over the past few seasons.

Below is a snapshot of some of his signature victories during his time at Benedict and South Carolina State.

South Carolina State (2024 & 2025 seasons)

Chennis Berry is creating the resume of an HBCU coaching legend. He has multiple conference championships. He now has a Celebration Bowl victory under his belt. All he truly needs is an FBS victory over a Group of Five program and potentially a successful appearance in the FCS playoffs to truly cement his legacy in HBCU football. It already is cemented in many ways, which is why the result of Saturday's game should shock no one.

In his two coaching stops, Chinsbury orchestrates these types of victories. He recruits the players that can resoundingly overpower programs that don't have the same level of talent. He gets his teams to believe and ultimately finish the job and not play up or down to their competition. They play consistently at every point. South Carolina State itself is a model of consistency in HBCU football.

From Willie Jeffries, Bill Davis, Buddy Pough, and now Chennis Berry. The program is the epitome of excellence in HBCU football. The program has produced four Pro Football Hall of Fame members and countless other NFL standouts, such as Shaquille Leonard, Javon Hargrave, and Cobe Durant. South Carolina State is the standard, which is again why this win isn't shocking.

When FCS HBCUs lose to teams like Ohio State, as Grambling did last season, it's widely understood why. No one called for the firing of Micky Joseph for losing 70 to 0 early last season. They just accepted it as it was, and Joseph moved on to have a phenomenal season, improving their record from the 2024 season. Why can't the same reverence be given to a dominant program like South Carolina State and a transcendent coach like Berry?

Losing to South Carolina State isn't a reason that Thomas Howard should be fired or proof of a failing football program. While the loss was indeed bad and there's no defending 87 points, proper context needs to be applied for the betterment of Savannah State and their ability to recruit players in the future.

South Carolina State is the equivalent of Ohio State and other dominant, championship-winning programs in the HBCU football space. If you don't come correct, you might as well stay home, and that's what all the folks talking about this game need to understand.