S.C. State coaches talk up area's importance

Coming off one of the best -- and perhaps most surprising -- seasons in the history of South Carolina State athletics, the Bulldogs celebrated their 2008-09 achievements and pushed for more of Augusta's talent at the 13th annual "Bulldogs Nite Out in the CSRA" Alumni Club meeting Tuesday at Julian Smith Casino.

Football coach Buddy Pough and basketball coach Tim Carter made the trip from Orangeburg, S.C., in hopes of rallying support and recruiting more of the Garden City crop.

"We've had good players from here for a long time," said Pough, an S.C. State alumnus who is entering his eighth season as the Bulldogs' coach. "(Augusta) is almost like an in-state area because of the fact that they're so close and we've got a lot of South Carolina State people here."

Last year, S.C. State won its first outright Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football title since 1994 and made its first postseason appearance since 1982 while boasting seven area players on its roster.

"There are so many good programs in this area," Pough said. "You look over at Aiken, and you have Aiken (High School) and South Aiken and then on this side, you have schools like Josey and Laney."

The men's basketball team surprised many by finishing second in the conference during the regular season before being upset in the conference tournament semifinals. That team featured center Josh Jackson from South Aiken, who averaged 6.8 points a game.

Former Laney product and junior college transfer Rondrico Hightower signed on to play next season.

"Augusta has been good to us," said Carter, entering his third season.

Attracting local players to S.C. State is especially meaningful to Glenn Hills athletic director James Quarles. The football standout and 1978 graduate was inducted into the S.C. State Athletics Hall of Fame in 2002. He is president of the school's alumni association and hopes events such as Tuesday's will lead more area athletes to follow in his footsteps.

"Without a doubt, this a big part of our recruiting: to get kids from the Augusta-area to attend South Carolina State," Quarles said.

Reach Joey Jones at (706) 823-3304 or joey.jones@augustachronicle.com.