By: Curtis Ford, Associate AD for Athletic Communications
GRAMBLING, La. | The Grambling State Univeristy football team is set to face the defending College Football National Champion and No. 1 ranked Ohio State Buckeyes on Saturday afternoon at Ohio Stadium. Kickoff is slated for 3:30 p.m. and will be broadcast on Big Ten Network Jeff Levering on play-by-play, Jake Butt as analyst and Brooke Fletcher as the sideline reporter.
Saturday's game between the Tigers and Buckeyes will be the first all-time meeting between two of the nation's most storied football progams.
Game Preview:
GSU is coming off a season-opening 55-7 victory over Langston in the Shreveport Kickoff Classic. The Tigers held limited LU to 97 total yards of offense and six first downs. Offensively, the G-Men rolled up 474 yards of offense.
GSU's win over Langston marked the starting debut for quarterback
C'zavian Teasett who threw for 210 yards and three TDs on 20-of-25 passing.
Ashton Frye also saw action at QB, throwing for 44 yards and a TD on 6-of-8 passing.
GSU is 8-30 all-time versus current FBS opponents. The Tigers' most recent win over an FBS opponent was on Sept. 28, 1985, when the G-Men defeated Oregon State 23-6 in what was legendary head football coach Eddie Robinson's 323rd career win, tying him with Alabama head coach Paul "Bear" Bryant.
Grambling State's game at Ohio State will mark the first trip to a Power 4 program since 2023 when the Tigers faced in-state opponent LSU.
Ohio State enters Saturday's game fresh of a 14-7 win over No.1 Texas to open the season. The Buckeyes were led by starting QB Julian Sayin who threw for 126 yards and one TD on 13-of-20 passing.
The Buckeyes' head coach Ryan Day is in his seventh season and sports a 70-10 overall record with one national championship and two Big Ten titles.
NEW FACES SHINE
In GSU's season-opener versus Langston, the Tigers had multiple players make impacts in their debuts.
In total, seven G-Men scored their touchdowns as members of the Grambling State football team.
Byron Eaton Jr., Andre Crews, Tony Phillips Jr. Barron Miles, Tyson George, CJ Knighten and
Andrew Frazier all scored touchdowns.
Newcomer
Shayne Masonto forced a fumble in the the first quarter.
Tyrell Raby made the first interception of his Grambling State career, returning it 29 yards to the Langston 1-yard line and setting up a touchdown.
East Texas A&M transfer
Warren Robinson registered his first sack while wearing the black and gold.
NEW QUARTERBACKS
Replacing two-starter
Myles Crawley is
C'zavian Teasett and
Ashton Frye.
Both QBs had solid performances in the first game in the 2025 season
Teasett, a transfer from Southern Univeristy, completed 20-of-25 passes for 210 yards and three TDs in his Grambling Satte debut
Frye tossed a touchdown while throwing for 44 yards on 6-of-8 passing.
C'Zavian Teasett played in 10 games at Southern, throwing for 941 yards, 6 TDs and two INTs while completing 71-of-129 passes (55.04%). He shared starting duties with two other quarterbacks while at SU. Teasett earned SWAc Player of the Week honors in after throwing 316 yards and three touchdowns in a 42-10 victory over Savannah State on Sept. 7.
Grambling State fans can expect to see a plethora of new coaches roaming the sidelines for the Tigers this season.
NEW FACES ON COACHING STAFF
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.
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.
GRAMBLING STATE IN OHIO
Grambling State has played a total of four games in the state of Ohio. The Tigers are 3-1 all time in the Buckeye State.
1948 - Central State 0 Grambling State 7 Wilberforce, Ohio
1970 - Grambling State 27 Jackson State 7 Cleveland, Ohio
2004 - Grambling State 24 Bethune Cookman 23 Cincinnati, Ohio
2021 - Grambling State 16 Tennessee State 10 Canton, Ohio
REPRESENTING "THE BOOT"
Grambling State roster features 54 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
FOLLOW GRAMBLING ATHLETICS
Stay updated with Grambling State Athletics by following @GSU_Tigers on X, @gramblingathletics on Instagram, and /GramblingStateTigers1901 on Facebook, or by visiting gsutigers.com.
