By: Kenneth Harrison Jr.

TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services

The Kennesaw State Owls are flying high after beating Samford 24-10 Saturday. KSU (4-1) is ranked fourth in the most recent national FCS poll.

Senior quarterback Chandler Burks threw a touchdown pass and ran for two scores in the win. Burks led the team with 55 rushing yards. Shaquil Terry rushed for 47 yards and Jake McKenzie had 36 yards on the ground.

The Owls only had 66 passing yards and no receiver had more than one catch. The game stats were surprisingly close for both teams. Samford had 272 yards and KSU had 286 yards.

The Bulldogs had 19 first downs and the Owls had 18. The biggest difference was turnover margin, Samford had one and KSU did not turn the ball over.

Head coach Brian Bohannon has been the coach since the program started. He was a longtime assistant coach under Paul Johnson at Georgia Southern, Navy and Georgia Tech.

“We took a step forward to playing the kind of football we’re capable of playing here,” Bohannon said. “We didn’t beat ourselves. We didn’t play perfect, but we made some strides in all three phases.”

The only loss on the season came in the first game against an FBS team, Georgia State. The Owls almost won that game but fell 24-20.

The success Kennesaw State is having is amazing considering they just started playing football in 2015. They have never had a losing season and their record has improved every year.

Last season they won the Big South conference and made the FCS Playoffs for the first time. They advanced to the quarterfinals and lost to No. 5 Sam Houston State 34-27.

The Owls run a triple option offense and at the FCS level, it can be very successful. It makes me wonder if Kennesaw State is a legitimate national contender.

The top ranked team is the defending national champions, North Dakota State (4-0) and they have been the most dominant team in the past decade. They have won 6 national championships since 2011.

The Bison are going to be a very tough team to overcome. They are coming off a win over No. 3 South Dakota State 21-17.

James Madison (4-1) is the second ranked team in the country. The only loss came against NC State in a close 24-13 game. The Dukes won the national title in 2016 so they know how to win.

KSU begins Big South conference play October 6^th at home against Presbyterian. The Blue Hose are one of the better teams in the conference. Campbell and Monmouth are also two very good conference opponents.

Charleston Southern and Gardner-Webb should be easy wins for the Owls. The season finale is home against No. 8 Jacksonville State. This will be the toughest test in FCS play and the result will have big implications for seeding in the playoffs.

For the season to be considered a success, they will need to advance further in the playoffs. That means they will have to get to the semifinals and I think that is a very realistic goal.