Bethune-Cookman football: 2024 schedule, Week 1 depth chart vs. USF

Back in April, Raymond Woodie Jr. said the wait wouldn’t last very long, that Bethune-Cookman football season was right around the corner.

Now, it’s here.

The Wildcats kick off their 2024 campaign, Year 2 under coach Woodie, against South Florida Saturday in Tampa. It’s one of their two contests against Football Bowl Subdivision opponents this year, with the other coming against Western Michigan next month.

It also serves as a homecoming for Woodie, a native of Palmetto, Florida, and a former USF assistant from 2013-2016. The game is slated for 7 p.m. and will air on ESPN+.

During Woodie’s first season in charge of his alma mater, Bethune-Cookman went 3-8. It returns only 51 players from that roster this fall after hitting the transfer portal and high school recruiting trails hard.

The Wildcats were picked to finish fifth in the Southwestern Athletic Conference’s East Division in the preseason poll.

Let’s take a look at their schedule and season-opening depth chart.

Bethune-Cookman 2024 football schedule

* SWAC game; # at Camping World Stadium in Orlando

B-CU home games

The Wildcats will host five home games at Daytona Stadium this year, the most since 2015.

They welcome Mercer and Clark Atlanta to Daytona Beach for non-conference matchups. Alabama State, Jackson State and Grambling State visit during the SWAC calendar.

Jackson State is the 2024 homecoming game.

Bethune-Cookman Week 1 depth chart

Offense

Quarterback

1. Micah Bowens (5-11, 190 pounds, redshirt junior)
2. Tylik Bethea (6-6, 230, graduate student)

Running back

1. Jouvensly Bazil (5-10, 190, grad.)
2. Courtney Reese (5-8, 165, grad.)

Wide receiver

WR:

1. Kobe Stewart (6-3, 190, jr.)
2. Omari Stewart (5-10, 175, jr.)

WR:

1. Maleek Huggins (5-11, 180, r-jr.)
2. Jostein Clarke (6-3, 200, r-senior)

WR:

1. Javon Ross (5-10, 165, freshman)
2. Lorenzo Jenkins (6-3, 185, r-sophomore)

Tight end

1. Thomas Nance (6-3, 270, grad.)
2. Marcus Velez (6-6, 250, r-jr.)

Left tackle

1. Cameron Vaughn (6-7, 320, sr.)
2. Isaiah Maumalanga (6-5, 290, r-jr.)

Left guard

1. Antuan Wells (6-3, 330, r-jr.)
2. Melvin Puckett (6-3, 310, fr.)

Center

1. Christian Loving (6-3, 315, r-jr.)
2. Amir Hodzic (6-3, 320, jr.)

Right guard

1. Christopher McAlpin (6-3, 305, r-sr.)
2. David Poutasi (6-1, 315, so.)

Right tackle

1. Trevaris Hammond (6-3, 290, sr.)
2. Teki Shoats (6-4, 260, fr.)

Defense

Defensive end

DE:

1. Dallaz Corbitt (6-5, 240, grad.)
2. Ejike Brown (6-1, 260, so.)

DE (Jack):

1. Orin Patu (6-4, 240, grad.)
2. Jeremy Greaves Jr. (6-1, 245, so.)

Defensive tackle

DT:

1. Adrian Hall (6-1, 265, r-jr.)
2. Jeffson Lafontant (6-3, 290, so.)

DT (Nose):

1. Ebenezer Dibula (603, 275, r-sr.)
2. Earl Miller Jr. (6-4, 290, jr.)

Linebacker

Middle:

1. Tramayne Mejia-Paster (6-2, 225, grad.)
2. Dearis Thomas (6-0, 200, r-so.)

Weakside:

1. Kevin Washington Jr. (6-0, 220, jr.)
2. Malik Stinnett (6-1, 200, so.)

Nickel

1. Stephen Sparrow (6-0, 203, jr.)
2. Shelton Quarles Jr. (6-0, 195, sr.)

Cornerback

CB:

1. Johnny Harris III (6-2, 190, jr.)
2. Matthew McKenzie (6-3, 190, fr.)

CB:

1. Andrew Volmar (6-1, 185, sr.)
2. Terrance Alexander (5-11, 185, r-jr.)

Safety

Free safety:

1. Raymond Woodie III (6-0, 190, grad.)
2. Joshua Thornhill (6-0, 175, r-jr.)

Strong safety:

1. Antwone Watts (6-1, 205, jr.)
2. Shawn Russ Jr. (6-0, 190, r-fr.)

Special teams

Kicker

1. Cade Hechter (6-2, 225, so.)
2. Anthony Frederique (5-10, 205, r-sr.)

Punter

1. Anthony Frederique (5-10, 205, r-sr.)
2. Max Tulen (6-3, 185, so.)

Long snapper

1. Clayton Thomas Jr. (6-2, 225, r-jr.)
2. Christian Loving (6-3, 315, r-jr.)

Holder

1. Nahseem Deas (6-3, 195, fr.)
2. Max Tulen (6-3, 185, so.)

Kick returner

KR1:

1. Darnell Deas (5-10, 190, r-sr.)
2. Terry Lindsey (5-11, 185, r-sr.)

KR2:

1. Jouvensly Bazil (5-10, 190, grad.)
2. Shawn Russ Jr. (6-0, 190, r-fr.)

Punt returner

1. Darnell Deas (5-10, 190, r-sr.)
2. Jouvensly Bazil (5-10, 190, grad.)

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Bethune-Cookman football: 2024 schedule, Week 1 depth chart vs. USF