| 2017 Kennesaw State Owls football | |
|---|---|
| | |
Big South champion | |
FCS Playoffs Quarterfinals, L 27–34 vs. Sam Houston State | |
| Conference | Big South Conference |
| Ranking | |
| STATS | No. 8 |
| FCS Coaches | No. 9 |
| Record | 12–2 (5–0 Big South) |
| Head coach |
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| Offensive coordinator | Grant Chesnut (3rd season) |
| Offensive scheme | Flexbone option |
| Defensive coordinator | Brian Newberry (3rd season) |
| Base defense | 4–2–5 |
| Home stadium | Fifth Third Bank Stadium |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 8 Kennesaw State $^ | 5 | – | 0 | 12 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Monmouth ^ | 4 | – | 1 | 9 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Charleston Southern | 3 | – | 2 | 6 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Liberty * | 2 | – | 3 | 6 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Presbyterian | 1 | – | 4 | 4 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Gardner–Webb | 0 | – | 5 | 1 | – | 10 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 2017 Kennesaw State Owls football team represented Kennesaw State University in the 2017 NCAA Division I FCS football season. They were led by third-year head coach Brian Bohannon and played their home games at Fifth Third Bank Stadium in Kennesaw, Georgia as third-year members of the Big South Conference. [1] They finished the season 12–2, 5–0 in Big South play to win the Big South conference championship. [2] The Owls received the Big South's automatic bid to the FCS Playoffs, their first trip to the playoffs in school history. [3] [4] In the first round of the playoffs, the Owls defeated Samford in a rematch of their only regular season loss and marked the school's first ever playoff win. [5] In the second round, the Owls upset No. 3 seed Jacksonville State to advance to the quarterfinals. [6] In the quarterfinals, despite a furious second half comeback, they lost to Sam Houston State. [7]
On January 9, 2018, head coach Brian Bohannon was named the American Football Coaches Association's Coach of the Year. [8] [9]
| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 31 | 7:00 p.m. | at No. 19 Samford * | ESPN3 WPCH | L 23–28 | 4,908 | ||
| September 9 | 7:00 p.m. | Tennessee Tech * | BSN WPCH | W 27–14 | 8,418 | ||
| September 16 | 8:00 p.m. | at Alabama State * | ASAA | W 20–14 | 11,000 | ||
| September 30 | 3:30 p.m. | North Greenville * |
| WPCH | W 38–34 | 6,161 | |
| October 7 | 7:00 p.m. | Texas Southern * |
| WPCH | W 48–3 | 6,743 | |
| October 14 | 6:00 p.m. | at Liberty | ESPN3 | W 42–28 | 17,726 | ||
| October 21 | 7:00 p.m. | Gardner–Webb |
| ESPN3 | W 17–3 | 6,954 | |
| October 28 | 2:00 p.m. | at Presbyterian | WPCH | W 28–0 | 2,804 | ||
| November 4 | 2:00 p.m. | at Montana State * | No. 25 | WPCH | W 16–14 | 16,337 | |
| November 11 | 3:30 p.m. | Charleston Southern | No. 23 |
| ESPN3 | W 38–0 | 6,224 |
| November 18 | 2:00 p.m. | Monmouth | No. 22 |
| ESPN3 | W 52–21 | 6,808 |
| November 25 | 2:00 p.m. | No. 14 Samford* | No. 18 |
| ESPN3 | W 28–17 | 5,516 |
| December 2 | 2:00 p.m. | at No. 2 Jacksonville State * | No. 18 | ESPN3 | W 17–7 | 17,412 | |
| December 9 | 8:30 p.m. | at No. 5 Sam Houston State * | No. 18 | ESPN3 | L 27–34 | 5,725 | |
| |||||||
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Owls | 0 | 10 | 0 | 13 | 23 |
| •No. 19 Bulldogs | 0 | 7 | 14 | 7 | 28 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Golden Eagles | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 14 |
| •Owls | 10 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 27 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| •Owls | 0 | 17 | 3 | 0 | 20 |
| Hornets | 0 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crusaders | 7 | 9 | 7 | 11 | 34 |
| •Owls | 14 | 7 | 7 | 10 | 38 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tigers | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| •Owls | 10 | 24 | 7 | 7 | 48 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| •Owls | 7 | 21 | 7 | 7 | 42 |
| Flames | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 | 28 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runnin' Bulldogs | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| •Owls | 0 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 17 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| •Owls | 0 | 14 | 14 | 0 | 28 |
| Blue Hose | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| •No. 25 Owls | 7 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 16 |
| Bobcats | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 14 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buccaneers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| •No. 23 Owls | 7 | 14 | 3 | 14 | 38 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hawks | 7 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| •No. 22 Owls | 14 | 21 | 10 | 7 | 52 |
This victory clinched the Owls' first ever postseason bid.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 14 Bulldogs | 3 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
| •No. 18 Owls | 0 | 21 | 7 | 0 | 28 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| •No. 18 Owls | 0 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 17 |
| No. 2 Gamecocks | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 18 Owls | 7 | 3 | 3 | 14 | 27 |
| •No. 5 Bearkats | 14 | 10 | 3 | 7 | 34 |
| Week | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Final |
| STATS FCS | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | 25 | 23 | 22 | 18 | 8 |
| Coaches | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | 25 | 23 | 21 | 16 | 9 |