By: Deja Harrison, Sports Information Staff
GRAMBLING, La I The Grambling State University football team will open up Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) play on Saturday as they take on Alabama State. Kick-off from ASU Stadium is set for 5 p.m.
Grambling State will broadcast the game on the Grambling State Sports Radio Network. The Tigers' broadcast crew of Santoria Black, Ossie Clark, Leon Thomas and Nick Harrison will call all of the action. The game can be heard in Ruston (La.) (KPCH 99.3 FM – the Peach) and will be streaming online at www.gsutigers.com.
Grambling State (0-2) comes into the competition with a 31-9 season opener loss against Louisiana-Monroe and a 20-14 loss to Louisiana Tech the following week in the Buddie Bowl. In two games, GSU quarterback Geremy Hickbottom has completed 44-of-71 of his passes (62 percent) with no interceptions. Of the top eight starting quarterbacks in the SWAC, Hickbottom is the only quarterback to have not thrown an interception.
On Saturday Sept. 7, the Louisiana Tech game, senior safety Danquarian Fields Fields suffered a severe injury to his right leg in the first quarter. Fields was airlifted from Ruston to Shreveport to have emergency surgery.
"When you lose a guy that's played that much football you lose a lot of experience in the back-end," said head coach Broderick Fobbs. "A guy that gets everyone lined up and communicates with those guys and the secondary. Dan Fields will be missed. We have several guys that we can play, we just have to have the next man up type of mentality. Our coaching staff does a great job of preparing all of our players."
Last week was an open for the Tigers. "This open week was mainly about getting healthy, from our entire team aspect" GSU wide receiver Quintin Guice said. We had some guys with injuries, including myself, so we just use this week to get back on our feet, rest up and get our bodies back to one hundred percent."
Alabama State (1-2) has an experience advantage before opening SWAC play, with having played three games. In their season opener, they fell, 24-19, against UAB. The Hornets got their first victory in week 2, with a 38-31 victory over Tuskegee. Additionally, they fell 42-7 last week to Kennesaw State. ASU quarterback Kha'Darris Davis has completed 57.5 percent (50-of-87) with four interceptions.
Grambling State- Alabama State Connections
>These two teams will meet for the 42nd time, with Grambling State holding a 28-13 record against Alabama State
> Grambling State has won six of the last 10 matchups including last season's 34-0 victory in Grambling, La
>The Tigers are currently riding a four-game win streak against the Hornets, with Alabama State last earning a victo ry over GSU during the 2014 season (ASU, 27-23)
Up Next
Grambling State will take a trip to Dallas, Texas to take Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) opponent Prairie View A&M in the State Fair Classic. Kick-off from the Cotton Bowl on Sept. 21 is set for 4 p.m.
Tickets Still Available
Season tickets and single-game tickets are on sale at the GSU Ticket office and fans are encouraged to visit www.gsutigers.com or call the ticket office to purchase tickets. For more information on purchasing season tickets, call (318) 274-2625 or (318) 274-2629.
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