CHAMPIONS—JOHNSON C. SMITH UNIVERSITY, WITH HEAD COACH MAURICE FLOWERS AND JCSU PRESIDENT DR. VALERIE KINLOCH HOLDING THE TROPHY. (PHOTO BY MIKE PATTON)
THE COURIER TRAVELS TO CANTON TO CAPTURE…BLACK COLLEGE FOOTBALL—THE TRADITION, THE PAGEANTRY, THE BANDS
Johnson C. Smith University, the HBCU that’s in the heart of Charlotte, North Carolina, has a lot of love for the Georgia-based Albany State Golden Rams. JCSU head coach Maurice Flowers is familiar and friendly with Albany State’s coaching staff and its university leadership.
But on Sunday, Sept. 6, 2026, the JCSU Golden Bulls called its 27-7 takedown on the football field of Albany State as not personal, just business.
SOME OF THE JOHNSON C. SMITH CHEERLEADERS…
See, JCSU began the 2026 football season with a bad loss to Benedict College, 32-10, Aug. 29. Flowers told the New Pittsburgh Courier that his team had to right the ship in Canton, Ohio, the site of the Black College Football Hall of Fame Classic between JCSU and Albany State, Sept. 6.
“We didn’t play Johnson C. Smith football last week, we didn’t play good offense, good defense, good special teams, and we pride ourselves on being a fundamentally sound team,” Flowers said. “For the last three years, we’ve played some pretty good football, and the team that played last week, that wasn’t us. We have 60 new players, 10 new starters on the defense that’s been in the top 10 the last three years, but we don’t use that as an excuse. When you put on that uniform, there’s a certain standard you have to play to, and we didn’t do that last week, but we rebounded pretty good today.”
Johnson C. Smith running back Fabian Duncan had three rushing touchdowns; 144 rushing yards total on 21 carries. He was named offensive player of the game.
When JCSU hoisted the trophy as the winner of the 2026 Black College Football Hall of Fame Classic, its president, Dr. Valerie Kinloch, had a chance to hoist the heavy trophy, too. She has a Pittsburgh connection—she was formerly the dean of the University of Pittsburgh School of Education, and she was honored as a Courier “Woman of Excellence” in 2018.
In an exclusive interview, Dr. Kinloch told the Courier that she’s leading an upward transformation of JCSU, which includes “sustaining our operations, embracing our alumni, our students…our surrounding community, and we are building up,” she said. “I’m excited to be here with our football players, our scholar athletes, and together, we will transform this institution for years and years to come.”
JCSU RECEIVER REGINALD BRIGMAN (PHOTO BY MIKE PATTON)
SOME OF THE ALBANY STATE CHEERLEADERS…
