Pressure will always do one of two things: bust pipes or build diamonds. Regarding the Benedict College Men's Football Team, it brought the team another diamond ring for the second year in a row. From kickoff in September to the final horn in November, Benedict imposed their will on opposing teams with an average margin of victory of 33 points. Coach Berry's squad exceeded the expectations of the preseason prediction and closed out the regular season at a perfect 11-0. While the Tigers may have a pair of twins sitting in their trophy case, a couple of transfer students are celebrating their first SIAC title.

Following the championship game, we were able to catch up with DL Marcus Davis as well as QB Aeneas Dennis to get more insight into their path to the top.

From as early as the summertime, Marcus Davis could tell that there was something special brewing in Columbia, SC. "Guys were just excited to get to work early in the morning and had an urge to be students of the game. Nobody was going through the motions. It also helped that our coaches were just as adamant about building genuine relationships with us outside of football." Marcus adapted fast to the hungry locker room culture that he got immersed in. The team's "1-0" motto stuck out to him immensely. "People may think that 1-0 means you only win on Saturday, which is far from the truth. It means you win the wakeup time, in meetings, and during team stretch. Going 1-0 forces you to win the moment. It brings an attention to detail that is contagious."

This wasn't Davis' first rodeo of playing football at an HBCU. The graduate transfer journey began in the CIAA at St. Augustine University in Raleigh, NC. Marcus's discomfort with transferring to such a powerhouse school motivated him to pull the trigger and choose Benedict. "I wanted to grow as a man and a player. Leaving the CIAA and going to one of the top teams in SIAC was something I knew would be a challenge. With me going into my final year of eligibility, I wanted to ensure I was maximizing my potential as an athlete and an individual.”

Similar to Marcus, Aeneas had to make a big decision on his future football career. He not only had to decide where to play football, but also if he still wanted to play the game at all.

As a December graduate, Dennis had plans to transfer to another school for the spring semester. Instead, after not receiving any acceptance letters from the schools of his choice, Dennis accepted a full-time job offer at PT Solutions in Georgia. Two months into his corporate career, Coach Gary Howard made the call to convince the former Shorter University QB to consider life in the Purple and Gold. After taking a visit to Benedict, Aeneas was sold.

"It was one of those situations where I came to the campus and felt at home,“ he says. “I ended up committing a week after the visit. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me. Having the chance to enter a championship program and be the starting QB was something I was willing to show up and show out for."

Dennis came and delivered at a high level for the reigning champions, although you wouldn't know if you judged it off of what Aeneas describes as his best memory of the season. "My favorite moment from this season was honestly my worst game. I accounted for three turnovers, but I had great teammates behind me. Seeing how the guys rallied around me, supported me, and still went and balled out despite my terrible game was amazing."

Dennis left it all on the field for his team when it counted most. In the championship game against Albany State, Dennis accounted for 374 yards and three total touchdowns.

Two guys had to make two tough decisions for their lives. Ultimately, their sacrifices paid dividends in the form of new hardware. As one of the teams at the pinnacle of HBCU football, You can only assume that more transfers are on their way to Coach Berry and the Benedict Tigers in efforts to continue re-writing history and build upon the foundation of their dynasty in making.