The Tennessee State Tigers completed 2023 at 6-5, which was the program’s first winning season since 2017. However, the Tigers dropped their last three games, somewhat tainting what was shaping up to be a special year
This was a fact not lost on TSU head coach Eddie George, who recognized the disappointment that accompanied how the later portion of the season played out. He also remains optimistic about the future of the TSU football program.
“We are a six-win team, with a couple of opportunities here and there. We could have had a special year, but we still had a special year, with our first winning season since 2017,” George said after the 35-0 loss to Tennessee Tech. “In order for us to break through to go from a pretty good team to an elite team, this is [capitalizing on those opportunities ] what we need to address, and it will be addressed.”
George further acknowledged the program had moved in the right direction but made it clear there was still more improvement needed for Tennessee State to make the jump to a championship-caliber program.
“We’ve made some strides, but not enough to where we can compete for a championship,” he said.”What’s stopping us, what’s preventing us [ from being that elite team] are all the small things that don’t require talent.”
“We’ve established a standard, a set of expectations that wasn’t there when I first got here. That’s the big win, and I think guys have really bought into that.”
George noted that as the program has progressed, he too, has grown as a coach from year one to year three. He said he learned to embrace the “power of positivity” and to have a “perspective of optimism.”
When asked if the losses at the end of the season could still be a springboard for the program into 2024, George remained hopeful.
“Absolutely,” he said.
