Football | 4/16/2025 5:09:38 PM

ORANGEBURG, SC – South Carolina State recently retired head football coach and current interim Athletics Director for the Bulldogs, will be among five persons inducted into the South Carolina Football Hall of Fame (SCFHOF) Thursday (Apr.17) during a special enshrinement ceremony at the Hotel Hartness (125 Halston Avenue) in Greenville, SC. The evening begins with a 5 p.m. reception, followed by a 6 p.m. buffet dinner, with the program set to begin at 7.

Pough, an Orangeburg native and SC State alum, is the all-time winningest football coach in Bulldog athletic history. Over 22 seasons, he guided his teams to 146 wins, eight MEAC titles, and five HBCU Football National Championships, capping his legacy with a 2021 Celebration Bowl Championship. Pough played offensive line four seasons at SC State and later was an assistant coach at the school where he earned both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree.

He will become the ninth Bulldog to enter the prestigious SCFHOF, and will be joined in the 2024 Class by Troy Brown (Barnwell, SC / Blackville-Hilda High School/Marshall University / New England Patriots), Coach Jim Carlen Legacy Inductee/Former South Carolina Head Coach and Athletic Director), Duce Staley (West Columbia, SC/Airport High School/University of South Carolina/NFL Star and Coach), and Jim Stuckey (Clemson All-American/Cayce, SC/Airport High School/Clemson University/San Francisco 49ers).

Previous SC State inductees include Coach Willie Jeffries, Harry Carson, Donnie Shell, all in the inaugural 2013 class; David “Deacon’ Jones, 2014; Charlie Brown, 2017; Robert Porcher, 2020; Dwayne Harper, 2021; and John Gilliam, 2022.