David Bowser new head man at Albany State
ALBANY, GA. — Albany State President, Dr. Robert Scott, and Director of Athletics, Dr. Kristene Kelly, announced last Wednesday the appointment of David Bowser as the University’s next head football coach.
Bowser brings more than two decades of experience in collegiate athletics as a coach, administrator, and program builder at the NCAA Division II level.
Most recently, Bowser served as special assistant, director of player personnel and linebackers coach to Head Football Coach Maurice Flowers at Johnson C. Smith, where he played a key role in helping the Golden Bulls win their first CIAA championship this season, the first for the program in five decades.
Bowser will be replacing departed Golden Rams’ Head Coach Quinn Gray who resigned after leading Albany State to new heights in three years at the helm. Gray, who was named new head coach last week at Florida A&M, compiled a 24-11 mark during his tenure including a 20-4 record vs. SIAC competition. He made two SIAC title game appearances, taking the 2025 title and setting a program record with 12 wins during a 12-2 outcome this season. Gray’s 2025 team, as the top ranked team in Super Region II, won two NCAA Div. II playoff games to reach the national quarterfinals.
Prior to Johnson C. Smith, Bowser served as Athletic Director and Head Football Coach at Saint Augustine’s, where he led the department through a period of significant operational change. He spent nearly two decades at Fayetteville State, serving as associate head coach and linebackers coach, where he was part of multiple CIAA championship teams and helped develop student-athletes who advanced to professional football careers.
Attendance Matters! Jackson State leads FCS again, Classics top black college list again
Jackson State continued its streak of five years leading the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) in home attendance and was again a major factor in the largest attended black college games in 2025 (see STAT CORNER) with four of its home dates drawing over 20,000 fans.
According to the FCS, the Tigers attracted an average of 28,733 fans for five home games to lead all FCS programs for the fifth straight season. Southern finished third averaging 22,051 for its five home dates with Norfolk State fifth (21,211) and Alabama State seventh (20,618) giving black colleges four of the top 10.
The numbers for Alabama A&M (11th, 14,111), Florida A&M (12th, 14,093), South Carolina State (15th, 12,702) and North Carolina A&T (18th, 12,282) give HBCUs eight of the top 20 spots.
The largest Jackson turnout was for its Nov. 22 match up with in-state rival Alcorn State, often referred to as the “Soul Bowl,” that drew 44,097 fans. JSU also had the second largest homecoming attendance with the 44,000 it drew for its October 11 date vs. Alabama State.
Only Norfolk State, whose numbers increased substantially under first-year head coach Michael Vick, had better attendance at homecoming for the 47,273 on hand for its Oct. 25 date vs. South Carolina State.
Classic games continued as the highest attended black college contests. The Oct. 25 Magic City Classic the annual battle of Alabama State and Alabama A&M led the attendance numbers for the fourth straight season with 69,372 in attendance. The Nov. 29 Bayou Classic pitting Louisiana rivals Southern and Grambling State was second (63,000) with the Sept. 27 State Fair Classic at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas between Grambling and Prairie View A&M drawing 61,139.
There were 21 games that drew over 20,000 fans with an average of 37,485 fans per games for those contests. There were 19 homecoming games that topped 10,000 fans with an average of 21,803 between them.
BLACK COLLEGE FCS ATTENDANCE NUMBERS
1 Jackson State 28,733
2 Montana 26,464
3 Southern 22,051
4 Montana State 21,877
5 Norfolk State 21,212
6 Tarleton State 20,841
7 Alabama State 20,618
11 Alabama A&M 14,111
12 Florida A&M 14,093
15 S. C State 12,702
18 N.C. A&T 12,282
36 N.C. Central 8,262
38 Grambling State 8,002
40 Alcorn State 7,724
42 Texas Southern 7,481
51 Prairie View A&M 6,672
52 Ark.-Pine Bluff 6,657
53 Bethune-Cookman 6,640
54 Howard 6,538
55 Tennessee State 6,224
67 Hampton 5,245
76 Miss. Valley State 4,822
88 Morgan State 4,119
102 Delaware State 3,389
December Madness! – The Transfer Portal
Below is a list of outstanding 2025 black college football players who have entered the Transfer Portal.
• Andrew Body, Jr., QB, Alabama State – The 2025 SWAC offensive player and BCSP FCS offensive player of the year entered the portal last week. The talented 6-foot, 205-pound Corpus Christi, Texas native led the SWAC with 2,112 passing yards (264.0 ypg.) and 24 TDs with just one interception while completing 70.3 percent of his passes. He also led the SWAC in rushing yards per game (708 yards, 88.5 ypg.) with four TDs in just eight games in his second year with the Hornets after a year at Texas Southern. He missed the last five games with a shoulder injury this season, his second year at ASU with an injury-plagued season.
• Ahmad Miller, R-So., RB, Jackson State – Miller (6-0, 207), who was the SWAC rushing leader with 1,054 rushing yards – the only SWAC runner to top 1,000 rushing yards – announced his decision in early December. Miller’s 6.4 yards per carry was second behind Body’s (8.3 ypc.) among SWAC leaders and he ran for six TDs. The Whitehaven, Ms. native was named to the All-SWAC first team.
• Isaiah Knowles, Gr., QB, Albany State – Knowles (5-11, 180, Tampa, FL) announced his decision on Dec. 8. He spent three seasons at ASU after beginning his career at Navy. He was the 2025 SIAC offensive player of the year in 2025 after passing for 2,151 yards, 18 TDs with six interceptions and leading the Golden Rams to the SIAC championship and NCAA Div. II postseason. In 26 career games, Knowles recorded 5,585 passing yards on 63% completions, passing for 60 touchdowns to 17 interceptions. He also rushed for 577 yards and 11 touchdowns.
• James Jones, Jr., RB, Delaware State – Jones (6-2, 205), a Baltimore native, announced his decision last week. He averaged a whopping 9.8 yards per carry en route to amassing 971 yards and nine TDs for the Hornets. His yardage numbers were second-best in the MEAC to teammate Marquis Gillis’s 1,217 yards. The tandem propelled DSU to the top of FCS team rushing stats at 291 yards per game. James had nine rushing touchdowns including a 90-yarder against Southern Connecticut State, a 76-yarder vs. Norfolk State and a 68-yarder vs. Morgan State. He played one year at Louisiana-Monroe.
• Jyzaiah Rockwell, Jr., WR, Prairie View A&M – One week after hauling in six catches for 77 yards including a 14-yard TD pass in Prairie View’s 40-38 four overtime loss to South Carolina State in Celebration Bowl X, the Panthers’ leading receiver announced his decision to enter the portal. The 6-2, 214-pound Rockwell from McKinney, Tx., topped the SWAC with 74 catches while his 1,161 receiving yards were second best and eight TD receptions tied for second. His 5.3 receptions per game led the league and his 82.9 yards per game were second. Rockwell had three 100-yard games with his best coming against Alabama A&M where he pulled in eight catches for 183 yards (22.8 ypc.) with TD receptions of 39, 27 and 9 yards.
• Fabian Duncan, So., RB, Allen – Duncan (5-10, 210), a Charlotte, N.C. native, decided to return to his hometown to join the CIAA champion Golden Bulls of Johnson C. Smith. Duncan is coming off an historic season for the Yellow Jackets where he was named the SIAC’s overall player of the year, topping the league with 1,301 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns. Duncan averaged 118.3 rushing yards per game to only finish behind Virginia Union’s Curtis Allen in rushing yards, rushing yards per game, touchdowns and scoring average.
