Tennessee State’s 2024 football schedule will include a significant step up in weight class.
The Tigers are slated to play at North Dakota State on Sept. 7, according to the schedule posted on the school’s athletic website.
The Bison have won nine of the last 13 FCS national championships since 2011, including five straight from 2011-2015.
Speaking with The Tennessean in 2023, Tennessee State athletics director Mikki Allen confirmed the two schools were in talks about a home-and-home agreement.
“North Dakota State in the FCS landscape is a premier program; they’ve had a rich tradition and a lot of success there,” Allen told Tennessean college sports writer Mike Organ. “For us, we’ve always said since coach (Eddie) George has taken over we want to be in a situation where we put our kids in front of the best. They’re hungry to play teams like North Dakota State, teams that have high-talented kids. So we’re excited about the opportunity.”
In addition to North Dakota State, TSU will face a string of HBCU opponents starting with Mississippi Valley State on Aug. 31, 2024, at Nissan Stadium in the 26th John A. Merritt Classic. Tennessee State will reportedly pay Mississippi Valley State $100,000 for that game.
The Tigers will also face Arkansas-Pine Bluff in the Southern Heritage Classic on Sept. 14 and then at Howard on Oct. 19.
