GRAMBLING, La. | The Grambling State University football team looks to win its second game in a row as the Tigers welcome East Texas A&M of the Southland Conference (SLC) to Eddie G. Robinson Memorial Stadium on Saturday. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. and will be broadcast on SWAC TV.
Saturday's game versus ETAMU (0-2) will be the second all-time meeting between the two programs. The Tigers and Lions met for the first time last season with Grambling State (2-1) pulling out a 35-28 win in overtime in Commerce, Texas.
Saturday's game will also be the first cross-conference FCS matchup of the season for both teams.
GSU won a dramatic overtime thriller 37-31 over Kentucky State last weekend. The Tigers rolled up 458 yards of total offense in the victory with starting QB accounting for four TDs (two passing and two rushing) while throwing for 228 yards and rushing for 99.
Redshirt-Freshman wide receiver
Keith Jones Jr. notched a career-high 96 receiving yards and two TDs on three receptions in the win.
Grambling State defensive back
Tyrell Raby forced a fumble in overtime, returning it 83 yards for the game winning touchdown. It was the third takeaway of the season for Raby.
East Texas A&M enters Saturday game following a bye week. The Lions opened the season with back-to-back games versus P4 opponents, falling to SMU 45-13 and No. 7 Florida State 77-3.
ETAMU is led offensively by quarterback Eric Rodriguez who has 223 yard passing and 2 INTs on 178-of-35 passing
RABY IS STILL BALLIN'
Grambling State defensive back
Tyrell Raby has burst onto the scene in his first season starting for the Tigers.
Raby currently leads the SWAC and sixth in the nation in interceptions (2). He's made interceptions against Langston and the top ranked Ohio State Buckeyes.
He's also GSU's leading tackler with 13.0 total tackles (9 solo).
Against Ohio State, he made 6.0 tackles with five solo stops and an INT. He was named the Jim Thorpe HBCU Defenisve Back of the Week.
Last weekend, he retunred a fumble 83 yards for the game winning touchdown in overtime versus Kentucky State.
Raby is a graduate student from Baton Rouge, La.
TRENCH WORK
Grambling State has perfromed well in the trenches on both sides of the football.
The GSU offensive line is currently tied for first in the SWAC in sacks allowed, giving up two sacks in its first three games.
GSU also ranks second in rushing offense, averaging 181.3 yards per game.
Defensively, the Tigers rank second in total sacks with seven.
BALANCED RUN GAME
Grambling State features a five running back rotation in the offensive backfield.
Byron Eaton Jr., Tre Bradford, Andre Crews, Tony Phillips Jr. and
Clyde McCelendon Jr. have all been used extensively in the offense.
Bradford leads the ground game for the Tigers, rushing for 119 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries.
TEASETT EMERGES
Replacing two-starter
Myles Crawley is
C'zavian Teasett and
Ashton Frye.
Teasett, a transfer from Southern Univeristy, has emerged as the starter. Last weekend, he completed 13-of-27 passes for 228 yards a two touchdowns in GSU's 37-31 overtime win over Kentucky State last weekend. He also ran for 99 yards a two TDs on nine carries in the victory as well.
For the season, Teasett is 42-of-67 for 493 yards, 5 TDs and one INT.
Frye has a seen a fair amount of action as well. He's 8-of-15 for 61 yards, a TD and an interception.
NEW FACES ON COACHING STAFF
Grambling State fans can expect to see a plethora of new coaches roaming the sidelines for the Tigers this season.
GSU welcomes
Erik Losey (Offensive Line),
WIllie Mack-Garza (Safeties),
Reggie Moore (Wide Recievers),
Aaron Tiller (Defensive Line),
Wyatt Anderson (Tight Ends) and
Alan Ricard (Special Teams) to the staff this season.
All of the new coaches bring Division I FCS experience to Grambling State this season.
DOMINANT AT EDDIE G. ROBINSON MEMORIAL STADIUM
Historically, Grambling State has been dominant at home
Since Robinson Memorial Stadium opened in 1983, GSU is 107-38-1 at home.
The Tigers have gone unbeaten at Robinson Memorial Stadium 13 times. The most recent unbeaten season at home was 2019.
GSU is 12-4 at home since 2021.
SOLID DEFENSE
Grambling State returns what's expected to be one of the most stout defensive units in the SWAC . The Tigers return a welth of experience to that side of the ball
Defensive back
Blake Davis, an preseason ALL-SWAC selection, brings experience and playmaking ability to the secondary this season.
Davis made 41 total tackles with 3.5 TFLs, three interceptions, two sacks, a fumble recovery and a blocked kick. Also roaming the secondary is
Quintin Talley, who is entering his fourth season at Grambling
Defensive End
Bryce Cage brings a menacing presence to the defensive line. Cage, who was named the Bayou Classic MVP for GSU last season, registered 49.0 tackles in 2024, with 11.0 tackles for loss and 4.0 sacks.
Isaac Washington moves from defensive end to defensive tackle this season. Last year, he was a force at a defenisve end, making 28.0 tottal tackles with 6.0 TFLs and 2.0 sacks.
The Linebacking corps features experience with
Jamal Jordan,
Marcellius Johnson,
Josh Darling and
Brenden Barley bring game experience into 2025.
Jamal Jordan, a sophomore from Shreveport, La., broke out of his shell near the end of the 2024 campaign. He earned SWAC Freshman of the Week honors, while Barley showcased his big play ability with 39.0 total tackles and tying for a team-high three interceptions.
PRESEASON RECOGNITION
Grambling State football players racked up preseason honors during the offseason.
The Tigers had four players earn spots of the Preseason All-SWAC Teams. Defensive end
Bryce Cage and punter
Johnny Schifano earned spots on the first team, while defensive back
Blake Davis and offensive lineman
Tahj Martin garnered second team recognition
Cage, Davis and Schifano also landed on national preseason watch lists.
Cage earned a spot on the Stats Perform FCS National HBCU Player of the Year watch list.
Davis was named to the Aeneas Williams award watch list, which is awarded to the nation's best HBCU defensive back.
Schifano was named to the FCS.
Punter of the Year watch list.
REPRESENTING "THE BOOT"
Grambling State roster features 50 players from the state of Louisiana.
THE TRANSFER PORTAL
GSU roster features 33 players who've transferred or had previous Division I FBS and FCS experience.
SWAC PREDICTIONS
Grambling State was picked to finish fifth in the SWAC West Division in the preseason projections. Southern was predicted to come in first and we followed by Alcorn State, Prairie View A&M and Texas Southern. Behind GSU was Arkansas-Pine Bluff.
