Bohannon excited about jumping into first ASUN season

CUMBERLAND — Kennesaw State football coach Brian Bohannon said his team is one of firsts.

The Owls first took the field in 2015, won their first game and won their first conference championship a couple of years later. Since then, there have not been a whole lot of firsts to have — until now.

“We’ve only played seven seasons of football.” Bohannon said Friday during the inaugural ASUN Conference Media Day at the Omni Hotel in The Battery Atlanta. “Everything was about making history — winning the first game, winning the first conference game, winning this, doing it for the first time, leaving a legacy — and here we are doing it again, having another opportunity in the ASUN to do something that hasn’t been done. It’s new. It’s a challenge, and you have a chance to be the first.

After leaving the Big South Conference, in which Kennesaw State had an associate membership for football, this year’s group of Owls have a chance to win their first ASUN title, and it is something Bohannon and the team is looking forward to.

“We’re all about making history,” defensive lineman Travis Bell said. “We take pride in it.”

Kennesaw State, which is coming off an 11-2 season, its third Big South title and a second-round Football Championship Subdivision playoff appearance, was were joined Friday by its new conference brethren — Jacksonville State, North Alabama, Central Arkansas, Austin Peay and Eastern Kentucky.

Bohannon was excited about the opportunity to appear in front of the conference media for two reasons.

“What an awesome event in an awesome place,” he said. “The best thing about it is it took me only 15 minutes to get here today, to the home of the Braves, Truist Park, the Battery, the Omni and the inaugural ASUN Conference Media Day, which is phenomenal.

“Media day is great. No, I’m not telling the truth. Media day is just something you have to do, but I’ll tell you about media day, When media day comes, you know the next thing up is fall camp. Then, the next thing up is the season.”

This will be the first season for Kennesaw State in the ASUN, but the second season for others. Jacksonville State — which will be leaving the conference after this season to join Conference USA — Central Arkansas and Eastern Kentucky all played last season as representatives of the conference.

The ASUN will once again team with the Western Athletic Conference to form an alliance allowing for an automatic bid into the FCS playoffs to be awarded. How that team will be determined has not yet been decided.

Kennesaw State will begin fall practice Aug. 1 and open the season one month later at Samford.