The Citadel is trying to rebound from one of the worst football seasons in school history

The 2020-21 season was one of the hardest in The Citadel’s history, and for reasons the team could do little to control.

The team was hit with a wave of injuries and COVID-related opt-outs, playing some games with as few as 38 total players available. By the end of the spring continuation in April, the Bulldogs had seen a program-record ten-game losing streak and finished with a 2-10 record.

But with a normal football schedule in the fall and a hefty 123-player roster, Citadel head coach Brent Thompson is confident his team can run it back in a better way.

“Where we are right now heading into the season just makes me feel that much better about it,” Thompson said. “And then having the spring season the way that it was, it wasn’t completely ideal for us. But in the long run, I think it’s going to work out well for us.”

Can’t-miss game

▪ at East Tennessee State, Oct. 9

Upon closer inspection, Citadel’s 10-game losing streak last season wasn’t as bad as it looks, with three of those losses coming at the hands of FBS teams, and three others being decided by one possession, including a 28-21 loss to ETSU in March.

This season, that contest will be played in October as the second game in the Bulldogs’ SoCon schedule. With a replenished roster and as clean a slate as possible, Thompson’s squad could use a solid win against the Buccaneers to prove that those kinds of squeaker losses are behind them, as well as proving that the team’s fight has remained after a grueling 2020-21 season.

“That’s a long time to be together, a long time to be playing football,” said Thompson on last season’s attrition. “So we had to get the hunger to play football back again, which I thought we did. We came back in June ready to go.”

A successful season is ...

What “success” looks like for the Citadel next year is difficult to define. The Bulldogs are coming off one of their worst runs in history. On the other hand, prior to last season, Thompson had never lost more than six games in a season at the head of the team.

As such, a successful season entails a return to normality. Shooting for a .500 finish and being in the top half of the SoCon — including wins in those close games they lost last season — would show that, even if the team isn’t winning conference titles, The Citadel is still a formidable in-league competitor.

Citadel’s top players to watch

Citadel football schedule

This story was originally published August 28, 2021 at 7:00 AM.