Clayton State University ready to kickoff Club Football

(August 27, 2024) - For many Lakers students, alumni, and community supporters, the dream of a CSU football team has been teased in the past by “Still Undefeated” T-shirts, the “Team Builder” feature in college football video games, and generally ... just verbal desire to one day have a team of their own take to the gridiron.

Well, for those who thought the day would never come ... thanks to Clayton State Club Sports, it’s finally happening.

Clayton State Club Football will officially kickoff its inaugural game on Saturday, September 14, versus the Southwest Florida Tech Seahawks – the back-to-back champions of the Gulf Division.

The historic game will be held at Morrow High School at 7 p.m.

For Clayton State President Dr. Georj Lewis, an avid football fan from southwestern Pennsylvania, the launch of a university club football team has already proven to be a big success – all before the first snap has even been hiked.

“It’s really about students persisting and graduating,” Lewis said. “This is an opportunity for 40-80 men to engage in an activity that can connect them more to the institution, to their studies, and to each other. If it helps them be more successful, I am all for it.”

Lewis laughed when confessing that the announcement of the team has also made its way to colleagues of his outside of the Clayton State community.

And they, too, are ready for some football.

“I was in a meeting and someone said, ‘hey, I heard you have a football team!’” Lewis said. “You have to continue to tell them it’s a club sport ... but they don’t care! You can’t help but love the game.”

Questions about “the game” have seemingly followed Director of Athletics Jermaine Rolle everywhere since he first arrived on campus in 2023.

While his initial interests were solely focused on the university’s already established programs, it was when he first began speaking to then-Gordon State Head Football Coach Kevin Adkins that the reality of launching a club program really began to take shape.

After discussing pay-to-play funding, living arrangements, and meal availability for players, Rolle said the gears really began cranking.

“I reached out to Dr. [Don] Stansberry and said, ‘I think I have an intriguing proposition,’” Rolle said. “From that point, we talked about it, went through various scenarios, and a ton of meetings, and even more phone calls.”

Rolle further said that Gordon State was also contacted to keep everything clear and “above board” on both sides, should a Clayton State team be approved by Student Affairs.

“We really took the due diligence and went through the necessary steps before it was a go,” Rolle said. “Once we felt like we’d put a structure and plan in place, we gave the go-ahead.”

Stansberry, the vice president of Student Affairs, applauded Rolle in his collaborative efforts to help establish the institution’s first-ever club football program – particularly in getting the team off the ground and running in under a year.

Like both Lewis and Rolle, Stansberry is excited to see Lakers Football finally come to life in September 2024 – 55 years after the school’s doors first opened.

“This creates an opportunity for students that we didn’t have before,” Stansberry said. “It creates a different engagement opportunity for us and brings in school pride for our students and alumni – something to rally around just like we have with basketball and soccer.”

Stansberry is also excited at the prospect of where the university’s club sports programs will go following opening kickoff.

But something he and Lewis both agree on is that this is just the beginning of options that students will have moving forward.

“Football isn’t going to be only club sport,” Stansberry said. “Our goal is to get students connected with something. Here’s an athletic team, a student organization, passionate about their research and football. We know all of that contributes to a student’s sense of belonging, which is directly related to retention and student success.”

Stansberry also said that for many students, football is their identity and a part of who they want to be not just as students, but as people.

And for those on the roster that he’s spoken to, the anticipation is to be the first-ever team to don their uniforms and lead Laker Nation on the gridiron is beyond contagious.

“The guys I’ve met are super excited about it,” Stansberry said. “They have been attending events, promoting it at the Student Org Fair ... we’ve got the commitment.”

Both Stansberry and Rolle also expressed the great partnership that has been further established between CSU Athletics and the Division of Student Affairs, saying they believe it will lead to greater school spirit and opportunities for both the university and community.

And for fans who’ve been waiting seemingly forever, Rolle said he’s most excited to see everything come together on gameday when everyone’s collective efforts and passion will result in a Clayton State football team finally taking the field.

"It's the start of a new legacy at Clayton State,” Rolle said. “Our alumni and student body, for years, have been asking for this. It’s going to be a great boost for Clayton State. I’m very curious to see where this goes and where we take it as an institution."

For more Club Football content, follow @claytonstatefb on Instagram.