Albany State gearing up for NCAA Division II playoff game at home against West Georgia

The Albany State football team’s journey in the NCAA Division II Football Playoffs begins Saturday.

As the No. 4 seed in the Super Region 2 Bracket, the Golden Rams (10-1) will host West Georgia (8-2), which is in the playoffs for the first time since 2018. The winner of the 1 p.m. kickoff earns a shot at No. 1 seed Valdosta State on Nov. 27.

ASU already has accomplished plenty this season, including breaking two long droughts. Its SIAC championship was the program’s first since 2013, and its NCAA playoff appearance is its first since 2011.

The SIAC championship last weekend was sweet after losing in the conference title game in both 2018 and 2019. The Golden Rams dismantled Miles College 31-0 in this year’s championship game, racking up 342 yards of offense and holding Miles to 132. Quarterback Dionte Bonneau threw for 180 yards, and Marcuis Fulks (75 rushing yards) and Issaiah McCray (69 rushing yards) stood out in the ground game. Joe Shorter hauled in a 67-yard touchdown pass from Bonneau, and Ralph Lovett had two catches for 59 yards.

Stephan Pierre, the SIAC Defensive Player of the Year and SIAC Overall Player of the Year, finished with a game-high nine tackles. Malik Barnes had five tackles while James Hawkins and Anthony Harvey had four tackles each.

After the win, ASU’s players and coaches found out Sunday that they earned a home game and a matchup with West Georgia.

“It didn’t matter who we got picked to play,” said ASU linebacker and Albany native Antonio Leroy. “We are excited and blessed to be able to play on Saturday because a lot of guys will be home watching instead of playing. We are so excited.”

The Golden Rams are fired up about the opportunity in the playoffs, particularly at home.

“I am so excited for our team, for our fans and our community,” Albany State head coach Gabe Giardina said. “We have worked really hard to get to this point and it is always special when you get a championship and get into the tournament. We earned our way into this. It shows that people from around the country have seen what we’ve done and that we earned that respect.”

Joe Whitfield