JC Smith’s football mission: ‘Finish the deal’ in 2025

DONALD WATKINS | THE CHARLOTTE POST

Preseason All-CIAA defensive end Lamone Hill (4) is one of the top returnees to a Johnson C. Smith squad that went 8-2 in 2024, which tied for the best record in school history.

Maurice Flowers has no problem with Johnson C. Smith placing second in the CIAA preseason football poll.

Conference coaches picked Virginia Union – winner of the last two CIAA titles – first, followed by the Golden Bulls, who opened 2024 predicted to finish fourth and finished with a school record eight-game win streak before losing their final two games. An expected second-place finish – the highest in JCSU history – doesn’t merit resentment.

“Not at all,” said Flowers, who is going into his fourth season as Golden Bulls coach. “It’s not that huge a deal, and why would we be picked first? We haven’t won a championship. I’m not disappointed to be ranked [second], an honor that we’ll take for what it is because last year I think we made some history, too.

“I believe preseason No. 4 [was the] first time in school history, so to be thought of No. 2? Yes. Upset at not being No. 1? Not at all, because we have not at Johnson C. Smith University won a football championship since 1969, so if you haven’t done that, why would you be favored to even finish the deal?”

The Golden Bulls, who garnered 101 points in the coaches’ poll to Virginia Union’s 103, have a roster capable of advancing to the CIAA title game for the first time since 1972. Under Flowers, JCSU has gone from lightweight doormat to rising power that spent three weeks in the national Division II rankings for the first time in 2024, rising as high as No. 16. 

“When you’re building a program from the beginning through every phase, you just know that every Saturday people are looking to beat you, or think they can beat you, or have done it and have no reason to think that you can stop them from winning the game,” Flowers said. “Johnson C. Smith is longer known as a stat game … so it's up to us at Johnson C. Smith to be a formidable opponent every single week and give ourselves a chance to win.”

The Golden Bulls’ roster is built to succeed, starting with an experienced returning cast led by preseason All-CIAA picks receiver Brevin Caldwell, who obliterated school records for receptions (85) and receiving yards (1,090) in 2024 and defensive end Lamone Hill, who tallied 23 tackles and 3.5 sacks. 

“We think we’ve got a talented roster, probably the most talented roster there’s been at Johnson C. Smith,” Flowers said. 

The transfer portal helps. The Golden Bulls remade the defense by switching Quavaris Crouch, a former five-star recruit at Harding High, from running back to linebacker, where he was second-team All-Big 10 at Michigan State to pair with Vincent Hill, an All-SIAC pick at Tuskegee in 2023. 

Defensive end Quentin Williams, a Mallard Creek High graduate who transferred from Miami (Fla.) and Cam Williams, a second-team All-SIAC cornerback at Miles College (Ala.), are newcomers.

The offense has new playmakers in quarterback with Kelvin Durham, an All-SIAC pick who played for Flowers at Fort Valley State. Another transfer, receiver Armone Harris, set Clark Atlanta single-season records for receptions (75), receiving yards (1,004), and touchdowns (14) as the Panthers advance to the SIAC title game.

Kamarro Edmonds (86 carries, 455 yards, three touchdowns in 2024) inherits the top running back role from Crouch. Avante George (99 carries, 406 yards, 2 TDs) and Antonio Crim, a transfer from UNC Pembroke, are in the rotation. 

The offensive line lost four starters from last season, but their replacements were rotation players who gained experience in backup or part-time starter roles.

“We played a lot of guys that are now starting,” Flowers said. “You like that guys that are playing don’t have to play more than they used to. They've got experience.”

After missing out on the playoffs last year, JCSU is motivated to add a new chapter to the program’s history. The pieces are in place to earn a berth to the CIAA title game, but nothing’s guaranteed in a conference where six of its 11 teams posted winning records.

“Virginia Union, a two-time champion, they deserve every preseason ranking that they received because they've done it back-to-back years,” Flowers said. … “The CIAA [as a] conference is tough from top to bottom, and you have to bring it every week. It’s a testament to the league.”

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