Week 2 Preview: Charleston Southern at Coastal Carolina

The Coastal Carolina Chanticleers opened their 2025 campaign with a humbling 48-7 loss to Virginia. Saturday’s tilt with Charleston Southern provides an opportunity for the Chants to bounce back and regroup against an in-state FCS opponent ahead of conference play.

Both programs are looking for their first win after disappointing starts to the season. Saturday’s matchup also carries a bit of familiarity, as Charleston Southern represents the Big South— the same FCS conference Coastal Carolina once called home before making the jump to the Sun Belt.

Coastal Carolina

Coastal Carolina was outplayed on all sides of the ball, with Virginia grabbing momentum in the second quarter and carrying it all the way until the final whistle.

Their struggles were largely self-inflicted. Head coach Tim Beck emphasized in his postgame press conference that it was a disappointing performance with plenty to improve on.

“We beat ourselves in so many areas… It’s technique, it’s fundamentals, some guys not doing the job they’re asked to do,” Beck said.

The Chanticleers managed just one conversion on 14 third-down attempts and committed three turnovers over the course of the game, only totaling 254 yards on offense.

The lone spark for Coastal Carolina came from junior running back Ja’Vin Simpkins, who broke through for an 8-yard touchdown run in the third quarter.

This is a team still finding its rhythm with a roster full of new faces. As Beck noted, it’s not how you start but how you finish—and that’s why there are 12 weeks of football, not just one.

With that being said, the Chanticleers will put the loss in the rearview and shift their focus to Saturday’s matchup with the Charleston Southern Buccaneers.

In his press conference this week, Beck pointed a key factor heading into this week is trusting the coaching staff. He stressed the importance of being more patient, letting plays develop rather than forcing action and playing in a hurry.

“We had some mental busts in terms of assignments, technique, and fundamentals in the game that hurt us,” he said.

Charleston Southern

The Chanticleers aim to put more trust in their coaching against a Charleston Southern team that is also coming off a lopsided loss, falling 45-3 to Vanderbilt in Week 1.

The Buccaneers are led by sophomore quarterback Zolten Osborne, who so far has completed 50% of his career passes with four touchdowns against seven interceptions.

Osborne threw for 54 yards, one interception and also lost a fumble against a talented Vanderbilt defense, struggling to find any rhythm in the passing game.

Junior Isaiah Gordon led the team in rushing with eight carries for 28 yards, including an 11-yard rush.

Head coach Gabe Giardina mentioned in his press conference on Tuesday that he was proud of the way his team competed and was pleased with how they were able to settle down after the first half and play more composed football.

“I just like the look in our guys’ eyes throughout the game—the sideline was great, they were into it the whole time. The sidelines making checks, the quarterbacks that played did a good job of getting us in the right plays. They all made plays, which was a good thing,” Giardina said.

Charleston Southern also comes into the matchup on an 11-game losing streak, with their last win dating back to Sept. 7 2024, against Furman.

Chanticleer quarterback, MJ Morris, has a chance to reset and bounce back against a Buccaneers defense that has shown vulnerabilities early this season.