With the Johnson C Smith University (JCSU) football program turning a winning corner in 2023, the Golden Bulls want to add their name to the elite Division II football programs in the Charlotte Metro Area. And while JCSU is still building itself into a consistent winner, a Division II NCAA rule change allowed the Golden Bulls to schedule a joint practice/scrimmage session with a Charlotte Metro school that’s become a fixture in the DII playoffs, the Wingate Bulldogs.
In January of 2023, the NCAA Division II delegates approved a measure allowing teams to scrimmage against other four-year universities during the spring ball period. The scrimmage has to occur on or after the 10th day of the spring practice period and it specifies that a student-athlete’s participation in such a scrimmage does not trigger the use of a season of competition.
“This proposal provides opportunities for an enhanced collegiate experience in Division II football, where student-athletes can now participate against another team in the spring that they normally wouldn’t get to,” said Andy Peterson, director of athletics at Northwest Missouri State.
For JCSU, it allows them to get some live ball, full-contact action against another team during the spring, a time in which they would usually just be competing against themselves, not against one of the top DII teams in the Charlotte Metro Area.
“When you have an opportunity to go against a team that’s a championship-caliber team that has won SAC championships and went to the playoffs… When you have a chance to go toe to toe with them man… whew, I’m at a loss for words for what that can do for our program,” said Johnson C Smith head coach Maurice Flowers.
“It’s just a great opportunity to go against a quality program, and a championship program, and a program that honestly, is where we’re trying to be.”
JCSU VS WINGATE SPRING SCRIMMAGE PHOTO GALLERY
Located 30 minutes outside of Charlotte, NC, the Wingate University football program has been to the Division II playoffs in four of the last five seasons. Finishing 8-3 in 2023, as winners of seven of its final eight games and losing three games by 14 total points.
The joint practice/scrimmage between Johnson C Smith University and Wingate began like any regular season game with both teams going through their usual pregame warmups. But once the full contact sessions began, the energy in Irwin Belk Stadium went to another level.
“They’re a very, very good program, and, you know, our young men were very excited to see someone other than themselves, and with what we’re trying to build here at JCSU is a program that knows how to handle themselves the right way on and off the field, in the classroom, and also in an event like this, I mean, because emotions were running high, and, I mean you could just feel it in the air, it was a different type of vibe out there.” Said Coach Flowers of the joint practice with Wingate.
‘We wanna show that we belong, that we’re a good football team, and the only way we can do that is to go toe to toe with good football teams and that’s what Wingate is.”
HBCU Gameday has been following the JCSU football program for a docuseries titled “Brick x Brick | Changing the Culture at Johnson C Smith.” Giving HBCU football fans a “hard-knocks style” look at what changing the culture of a football program looks like.
From grueling 5 am practices to game-day triumphs, Brick x Brick showcases the hard work, determination, and spirit that aimed to change the culture of a program with a challenging past.