CHARLESTON, SC — Charleston Southern football will return to the gridiron in 2023 with six home games and a road trip against an ACC opponent, the Buccaneers announced Monday afternoon in conjunction with the Big South unveiling its roster of league competitions as part of the merger with the Ohio Valley Conference.
“We are all looking forward to next year’s football schedule, which is both challenging and exciting,” said sporting director Jeff Barber. “New teams are coming to Charleston to play as part of the merger of the Big South Conference and Ohio Valley Conference and also in the non-conference segment with William and Mary. Having six home games this fall will be great for our team, lettermen, students, alumni and fans. We also welcome back North Greenville, a game originally planned for Covid year.”
EARLY AND OFTEN
Three of the first five weeks of the season see Charleston Southern at Buccaneer Field when the season kicks off with a special Thursday night affair under the lights on the last day of August. North Greenville travels to the Lowcountry for this competition before William & Mary make their first ever trip to Charleston Southern two weeks later. This competition is the first meeting between the two sides. Kennesaw State is the last nonconference opponent the Bucs will host on the last day of September.
STREET AGAINST ACC
The Bucs will play their first street contest of the 2023 campaign in Clemson, South Carolina against Clemson on Sept. 9 in the first meeting with the Tigers in program history. Clemson earned a berth in the Capital One Orange Bowl against Tennessee in the Battles of the Oranges. The Tigers ranked 13th in the final AP poll and were ranked 12th in the final AFCA coach poll.
ABOUT THE BIG SOUTH-OHIO VALLEY CONFERENCE ASSOCIATION
In February 2022, the Big South Conference and the Ohio Valley Conference announced the formation of a union of their football member institutions to begin with the 2023 NCAA Division I football season and to have an initial term of at least four years. The unique agreement combines the two conferences’ football membership to provide NCAA championship access and stability for the multisport conferences. In founding the association, the Presidents of each of the multisport conferences pointed to the similarities of the OVC and the Great South, with their complementary geographies and intercollegiate sports philosophies, as key to enabling this association.
Association schools include Bryant University (Smithfield, RI), Charleston Southern University (Charleston, SC), Eastern Illinois University (Charleston, IL), Gardner-Webb University (Boiling Springs, NC), Lindenwood University (St. Charles, MO), Robert Morris University (Moon Township, PA), Southeast Missouri State University (Cape Girardeau, MO), Tennessee State University (Nashville, TN), Tennessee Technological University (Cookeville, TN) and the University of Tennessee at Martin (Martin, TN).
The 10 combined teams in 2023 (6 – OVC, 4 – Big South) will play a six-game conference schedule as prior scheduling commitments prevented opportunities for additional Big South OVC games in year one.
HEART OF THE CONFERENCE SCHEDULE
After bye week, new Big South member Lindenwood makes his first trip to the Lowcountry to open the October 14 conference before the Bucs are sent to Martin, Tenn. for an affair with UT Martin the following week. Charleston Southern then returns home to host Bryant and Tennessee State on back-to-back home affairs in back-to-back weeks, the final two of the regular season.
SIX HOME MATCHES
The last time Charleston Southern played six regular-season home games was in 2014. The following season, six home games were also played at Buccaneer Field, but the sixth came in the FCS Playoffs when the Bucs hosted Lowcountry rivals The Citadel.
CLOSING THE STREET MAP
CSU’s final two away games of 2023 will be in two different states as a trip to Robert Morris marks the first trip after back-to-back home games before the regular season concludes with a trip to Big South defending champion Gardner-Webb.
FURTHER INFORMATION FOLLOWS
Kick-off times for the remaining games will be announced as they become available, along with ticket information. Please note that all game times are subject to change at any time.
2023 CHARLESTON SOUTHERN FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
Aug. 31 – North Greenville – 6 p.m
9 September – at Clemson – TBD
16 September – William & Mary – 4pm
September 23 – in Western Carolina – TBD
September 30 – Kennesaw State – 6 p.m
7 Oct – Bye
14 Oct – Lindenwood – 4pm*
Oct 21 – at UT Martin – TBD*
Oct 28 – Bryant – 4pm*
Nov 4 – State of Tennessee – 4pm*
Nov 11 – at Robert Morris – TBD*
Nov 18 – at Gardner-Webb – TBD*
Home games in bold played at Buccaneer Field
* – Conference game
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