South Carolina State Head Football Coach Oliver "Buddy" Pough Will Be Honored By The South Carolina State Employees Association

ORANGEBURG, SC – South Carolina State head football coach Oliver "Buddy" Pough will be honored by the South Carolina State Employees Association (SCSEA) during the group's 76th annual meeting May 14, 2022 in Columbia.

The annual meeting will begin at 9 a.m. at the SCSEA's Auditorium, located at 421 Zimalcrest Drive, and will be preceded by a 7:30 a.m. closed business meeting for association members only.

The meeting will include presentations by State Treasurer Curtis M. Loftis Jr. and Peggy Boykin, Director of the Public Employee Benefit Authority, as well as entertainment by stand-up comedian Paul Snyder.

Persons wishing to attend may purchase or reserve tickets at www.scsea.com or by calling 803-765-0680. Tickets are $20 each and seating is limited.

Pough, who is in his 21st season as SC State head football coach, guided the Bulldogs to an undefeated Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference record (5-0), the league championship and a 31-10 victory over Jackson State and Coach Deion Sanders in the Dec. 18 Celebration Bowl in Atlanta. With the win, SC State was named the Historical Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) National Champion by Box-to-Row Coaches Poll and other outlets ranking Black college football.

It was the second national title for Pough, the winningest coach in SC State football history, who also guided his team to a national championship in 2009. In 20 previous seasons at the helm of the SC State football program, the Orangeburg native and SC State alum has compiled an overall record of 142-80, including a 109-38 MEAC worksheet.

Named MEAC Coach of the Year for a second consecutive season in 2021, Pough's teams have won or shared eight league titles during his tenure, and participated in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) playoffs four times.

During his long tenure at SC State, Pough has earned a number of other coaching honors and has coached numerous players who have gone on to careers in the National Football League, including Indianapolis Colts linebacker Darius Leonard and Philadelphia Eagles nose tackle Javon Hargrave, two of the highest-paid defensive players in the league.

Pough and his wife, Josie, are the parents of two sons and two granddaughters.