Stadium A. J. McClung Memorial Stadium Location Columbus, Georgia, United States | ||
The 2010 Fountain City Classic was the 21st annual Fountain City Classic American football game featuring Fort Valley State University and Albany State University, two of Georgia's historically black universities. The game was played at A. J. McClung Memorial Stadium in Columbus, Georgia on November 6, 2010.
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The matchup
Leading up to the 2010 Classic, both teams achieve high hopes during the 2010 season on verge of high expectations for the Fountain City Classic match-up. Prior to the game, Fort Valley State University Wildcats, then, maintained an 8-1 overall record (7-1 SIAC) ranked second in the SIAC and seventh in NCAA Division II Super Regional Two, while Albany State University Golden Rams maintained undefeated season (then, 9-0 overall record, 8-0 SIAC) and was ranked first in the SIAC and first in NCAA Division II Super Regional Two. In addition to Classic bragging rights, the winner of the game also wins the 2010 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) Title and would represent the conference in the Pioneer Bowl on December 4, 2010.
With this year’s game billed as the “The Showdown before Sundown,” Wildcat senior, offensive center Collin Cordell used the Fountain City Classic Luncheon earlier in the Classic week as the forum to guarantee that at the end of Saturday’s dual the Wildcats would be the team left standing. Along with his teammates, Cordell and the Wildcats delivered on that guarantee. For the past six seasons, ASU had won the annual rivalry and they held an overall Fountain City Classic won/loss record of 15-4 over FVSU. However, in the previous match-up of the 2009 Fountain City Classic, Fort Valley State Wildcats upset the Albany State Golden Rams with a blow-out 35-13 victory on November 7, 2009. With the victory, the Wildcats snapped the Golden Rams seven straight Classic victories head-to-head matchups, earning their first win over ASU since 2001.(as of 2010)
In the game
After a scoreless first half, Fort Valley went up 7-0 on a 29-yard fumble recovery by the Fort Valley Wildcats defense. Albany State answered right back with a quick score, by scoring a touchdown on an 8-yard pass with five minutes left in the third to make it 7-6 after ASU’s missed PAT.
Then ASU struck again with that 53-yarder shortly into the fourth to take a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.
ASU, extended the lead 12-7 with 10:45 left in the fourth, tried to take time off the clock late in the game to secure the victory. They primarily ran the ball, which took up most of the clock, but didn’t leave them in good field position. They ended up having to punt it at their own 20-yard line. Shortly later, Fort Valley blocked the punt and recovered the ball, gaining possession on ASU’s 10-yard line with 32 seconds left on the clock. But three incomplete passes and a penalty later, the Wildcats had one last shot to win it at the 20-yard line with seven seconds left. FVSU offense rapidly moved the field with an 8 yard pass — but it was too late when time ran out, securing the Golden Rams the 2010 Fountain City Classic and the SIAC champions.
Aftermath
Albany State University made a late-game stand to win a grind-it-out contest against Fort Valley State, 12-7, to win its first SIAC Championship since 2006 and finished the regular season undefeated (10-0 overall, 9-0 in the SIAC). It’s the fourth time in school history the team has posted 10 wins without a loss, and the second under head coach Mike White. It’s also the school’s 14th SIAC Championship and fifth under White. Not only did the Rams’ defense not allow the Wildcats — the No. 1 scoring team in the conference coming into the game, averaging 34.1 points per contest — to score against them, they stopped Fort Valley (8-2, 7-2) on a crucial possession in the final seconds with the game on the line. With the victory, the Albany State Golden Rams finished undefeated in the regular season (10-0 record) and secured a first round bye and homefield advantage throughout the NCAA Division II playoffs before facing defeat against Delta State University in the third round on December 11, 2010.