2021 Samford Bulldogs football team

The 2021 Samford Bulldogs football team represented Samford University in the 2021 NCAA Division I FCS football season as a member of the Southern Conference (SoCon). The Bulldogs were led by seventh-year head coach Chris Hatcher and played their home games at Seibert Stadium in Homewood, Alabama.

2021 Samford Bulldogs football
Conference	Southern Conference
Record	4–7 (3–5 SoCon)
Head coach	Chris Hatcher (7th season)
Offensive coordinator	Mitch Stewart (1st season)
Offensive scheme	Air raid
Defensive coordinator	Nick Benedetto (2nd season)
Base defense	4–2–5
Home stadium	Seibert Stadium

2021 Southern Conference football standings

	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 9 East Tennessee State $^		7	–	1					11	–	2
Mercer		6	–	2					7	–	3
Chattanooga		5	–	3					6	–	5
Western Carolina		4	–	4					4	–	7
Furman		4	–	4					6	–	5
VMI		4	–	4					6	–	5
Samford		3	–	5					4	–	7
The Citadel		3	–	5					4	–	7
Wofford		0	–	8					1	–	10
$ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from STATS Poll

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 2	7:00 p.m.	Tennessee Tech*	Seibert Stadium Homewood, AL	ESPN+	W 52–14	3,177
September 11	6:00 p.m.	at UT Martin*	Graham Stadium Martin, TN	ESPN+	L 27–33	5,869
September 18	2:30 p.m.	at Western Carolina	Bob Waters Field at E. J. Whitmire Stadium Cullowhee, NC	ESPN+/Nexstar	W 42–37	9,060
September 25	2:00 p.m.	No. 15 East Tennessee State	Seibert Stadium Homewood, AL	ESPN+	L 48–55 OT	2,106
October 2	5:00 p.m.	at Mercer	Moye Complex Macon, GA	ESPN+	L 42–45	11,137
October 16	12:30 p.m.	at Wofford	Gibbs Stadium Spartanburg, SC	ESPN+	W 27–24	5,291
October 23	12:00 p.m.	Chattanooga	Seibert Stadium Homewood, AL	ESPN+	L 13–55	3,131
October 30	12:30 p.m.	at No. 18 VMI	Alumni Memorial Field Lexington, VA	ESPN+	L 45–46	5,000
November 6	2:00 p.m.	The Citadel	Seibert Stadium Homewood, AL	ESPN+	W 35–14	4,011
November 13	11:00 a.m.	at Florida*	Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Gainesville, FL	SECN+/ESPN+	L 52–70	70,098
November 20	12:00 p.m.	Furman	Seibert Stadium Homewood, AL	ESPN+	L 34–41	2,673
*Non-conference game Rankings from STATS Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

Game summaries

Tennessee Tech

See also: 2021 Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles football team

Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles at Samford Bulldogs – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Golden Eagles	0	7	7	0	14
Bulldogs	14	3	21	14	52

at Seibert Stadium, Homewood, Alabama

• Date: September 2
• Game time: 7:00 p.m. CDT
• Game weather: Sunny and clear, 83 °F (28 °C)
• Game attendance: 3,177
• Referee: Bruce Austin
• TV: ESPN+
• Box score, Recap

Game information

First quarter SAM – Michael Vice 24-yard pass from Liam Welch (Zach Williams kick), 6:50. Bulldogs 7–0. Drive: 5 plays, 79 yards, 1:21. SAM – Montrell Washington 62-yard punt return (Zach Williams kick), 3:49. Bulldogs 14–0. Second quarter SAM – Zach Williams 24-yard field goal, 7:28. Bulldogs 17–0. Drive: 16 plays, 57 yards, 3:58. TNTC – Justin Oden 10-yard pass from Davis Shanley (Hayden Olsen kick), 2:25. Bulldogs 17–7. Drive: 8 plays, 75 yards, 5:03. Third quarter TNTC – David Gist 3-yard run (Hayden Olsen kick), 9:25. Bulldogs 17–14. Drive: 11 plays, 75 yards, 5:35. SAM – A. J. Toney 8-yard pass from Liam Welch (Zach Williams kick), 6:18. Bulldogs 24–14. Drive: 12 plays, 69 yards, 3:02. SAM – DeMarcus Ware II 10-yard run (Zach Williams kick), 4:31. Bulldogs 31–14. Drive: 3 plays, 56 yards, 0:50. SAM – Ty King 7-yard pass from Liam Welch (Zach Williams kick), 0:39. Bulldogs 38–14. Drive: 5 plays, 75 yards, 1:26. Fourth quarter SAM – Jay Stanton 1-yard run (Zach Williams kick), 14:34. Bulldogs 45–14. Drive: 2 plays, 2 yards, 0:26. SAM – Jai'Rus Creamer 11-yard pass from Liam Welch (Zach Williams kick), 7:58. Bulldogs 52–14. Drive: 10 plays, 43 yards, 4:03.

Statistics	TNTC	SAM
First downs	14	22
Total yards	231	475
Rushing yards	69	105
Passing yards	162	370
Turnovers	1	0
Time of possession	33:53	26:07

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Tennessee Tech	Passing	Davis Shanley	19/34, 159 yards, TD, INT
	Rushing	David Gist	17 rushes, 72 yards, TD
	Receiving	Quinton Cross	8 receptions, 57 yards
Samford	Passing	Liam Welch	33/44, 370 yards, 4 TD
	Rushing	DeMarcus Ware II	8 rushes, 32 yards, TD
	Receiving	Montrell Washington	8 receptions, 170 yards

At Florida

See also: 2021 Florida Gators football team

Samford Bulldogs at Florida Gators – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulldogs	21	21	0	10	52
Gators	14	21	21	14	70

at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, Gainesville, Florida

• Date: November 13
• Game time: 11:00 a.m. CST/12:00 p.m. EST
• Game weather: Rain, 64 °F (18 °C)
• Game attendance: 70,098
• Referee: Lee Hedrick
• TV announcers (ESPN+/SECN+): Mike Couzens and Dustin Fox
• Box score, Recap

Game information

First quarter SAM – Montrell Washington 1 yard pass from Liam Welch (Zach Williams kick), 10:26. Bulldogs 7–0. Drive: 13 plays, 75 yards, 4:34. FLA – Malik Davis 6-yard run (Chris Howard kick), 6:56. Tied 7–7. Drive: 9 plays, 65 yards, 3:30. SAM – Michael Vice 58-yard pass from Liam Welch (Zach Williams kick), 4:53. Bulldogs 14–7. Drive: 7 plays, 75 yards, 2:03. FLA – Ja'Markis Weston 9-yard pass from Emory Jones (Chris Howard kick), 4:02. Tied 14–14. Drive: 2 plays, 55 yards, 0:40. SAM – Jay Stanton 40-yard pass from Liam Welch (Zach Williams kick), 1:25. Bulldogs 21–14. Drive: 7 plays, 79 yards, 2:30. Second quarter FLA – Emory Jones 31-yard run (Chris Howard kick), 14:19. Tied 21–21. Drive: 5 plays, 75 yards, 2:06. SAM – Liam Welch 4-yard run (Zach Williams kick), 10:02. Bulldogs 28–21. Drive: 3 plays, 44 yards, 0:50. FLA – Dameon Pierce 1 yard run (Chris Howard kick), 8:10. Tied 28–28. Drive: 5 plays, 78 yards, 1:46. SAM – Montrell Washington 98-yard kickoff return (Zach Williams kick), 7:55. Bulldogs 35–28. Drive: 3 plays, 5 yards, 1:49. SAM – Liam Welch 10-yard run (Zach Williams kick), 3:17. Bulldogs 42–28. Drive: 8 plays, 87 yards, 2:42. FLA – Nay'Quan Wright 45-yard pass from Emory Jones (Chris Howard kick), 1:03. Bulldogs 42–35. Drive: 8 plays, 78 yards, 2:06. Third quarter FLA – Malik Davis 48-yard pass from Emory Jones (Chris Howard kick), 12:34. Tied 42–42. Drive: 5 plays, 85 yards, 2:19. FLA – Kemore Gamble 7-yard pass from Emory Jones (Chris Howard kick), 6:12. Gators 49–42. Drive: 9 plays, 70 yards, 4:19. FLA – Dameon Pierce 13-yard pass from Emory Jones (Chris Howard kick), 1:24. Gators 56–42. Drive: 5 plays, 52 yards, 2:33. Fourth quarter SAM – Montrell Washington 23-yard pass from Liam Welch (Zach Williams kick), 13:59. Gators 56–49. Drive: 7 plays, 75 yards, 2:25. SAM – Zach Williams 33-yard field goal, 11:59. Gators 56–52. Drive: 10 plays, 36 yards, 1:58. FLA – Kemore Gamble 18-yard pass from Emory Jones (Chris Howard kick), 9:03. Gators 63–52. Drive: 6 plays, 78 yards, 2:49. FLA – Dameon Pierce 24-yard run (Chris Howard kick), 5:37. Gators 70–52. Drive: 4 plays, 35 yards, 2:05.

Statistics	SAM	FLA
First downs	28	30
Total yards	530	717
Rushing yards	114	253
Passing yards	416	464
Turnovers	1	0
Time of possession	28:51	31:22

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Samford	Passing	Liam Welch	33/52, 400 yards, 3 TD, INT
	Rushing	Liam Welch	16 rushes, 65 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Montrell Washington	10 receptions, 124 yards, TD
Florida	Passing	Emory Jones	28/34, 464 yards, 6 TD
	Rushing	Emory Jones	10 rushes, 86 yards, TD
	Receiving	Kemore Gamble	6 receptions, 122 yards, 2 TD