CHARLESTON, S.C. – Charleston Southern scored on six of its first seven possessions and dominated defensively to roll to a 57-7 win over Kentucky State on Saturday at Buccaneer Field. The victory was CSU's eighth straight at home and fourth consecutive in a home opener.

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CSU (1-1) avoided any thought of a letdown by running the football and stonewalling Kentucky State's (0-1) offense. The Bucs tallied 405 yards rushing and 527 yards of total offense while recording six sacks and nine tackles-for-loss in limiting the Thorobreds to 141 yards.

Sophomore Kelan Fraise returned a punt 70 yards for a touchdown and senior Darius Hammond ripped off three long returns to spark the Bucs' special teams.

CSU head coach Jamey Chadwell was pleased to see his team set the tone from the outset against an overmatched opponent. The focus was where it needed to be in the aftermath of the hoopla surrounding the overtime loss at five-time defending FCS national champion North Dakota State.  

"It was great to get a win and get that smell of disappointment off of us," Chadwell said. "We had some guys get some playing time and a lot of younger guys stepped up. We fought through some injuries but I was happy with the overall effort today. It's a good win and we needed that."

CSU recorded 359 first half yards on just 28 plays, overwhelming Kentucky State with its bevy of playmakers at running back. Mike Holloway sandwiched a pair of touchdown runs around a Ben Robinson score to stake the Bucs to a 22-0 first quarter lead. Fellow senior Alan Barnwell sped untouched for a 70-yard touchdown to push CSU's edge to 29-0 at the 12:30 mark of the second quarter. Barnwell led the stable of runners with 108 yards on only four attempts.

"Barnwell really had a great camp but is just behind some really good players," Chadwell said. "It was great for him to get out there and get some reps and he showed what he's capable of."

Redshirt freshman quarterback Shane Bucenell performed well in his debut, leading three touchdown drives in relief of Kyle Copeland. Bucenell reached the end zone on a three-yard keeper to give CSU a 36-0 advantage and then threw a dart to Jared Scotland for an 84-yard touchdown to continue the onslaught. Scotland caught the pass at the 40-yard line and broke a pair of tackles on his way to the longest play of the day.

Redshirt freshman London Johnson took the reins at quarterback in the second half and showcased his ability in the option game, carrying ten times for 67 yards. Johnson evaded a tackle in the backfield before sprinting for a 33-yard score to account for the final 57-7 margin. Ronnie Harris and Chanin Hamilton got their hands on the football for the first time their college careers as well to help the Bucs pile up 8.6 yards per carry.

"We've got some depth at running back and at kick and punt returner," Chadwell said. "Shane and London came in and played well which is important because we're going to need them at some point this season. A big positive from today is we had a lot of guys get game experience and you can't replicate that in practice."

The Bucs' defense was tenacious throughout the afternoon with Reginal Harris' 42-yard second quarter touchdown run the only thing preventing a shutout. Corbin Jackson totaled seven tackles to pace CSU in that department for the second straight week. Mike Taylor notched a team-high 1.5 sacks, while Joey Maxberry, D.J. Curl, Gerald Turner and Craig Johnson also got to the quarterback. D'Andre Streat recovered a fumble to give the Bucs their second forced turnover of the year.

CSU visits Florida State next Saturday for a 12:30 p.m. kickoff in Tallahassee. The game will be televised on Fox Sports South.