It can be hard for fans to get up for games against FCS teams, especially when they’re the game after beating No. 1 Texas.
Nonetheless, Grambling State holds a lot of history in college football with their marching band and legendary head coach Eddie Robinson. That’s what makes them a noteworthy opponent, even if Ohio State is going to go deep into its bench in this game.
Grambling State is coming off a 55-7 season-opening win against Langston last Saturday. The Tigers’ defense held Langston to -32
rushing yards and 97 total yards of offense. Obviously, this isn’t Langston Grambling State is playing on Saturday.
Regardless, let’s look at the key players on the Grambling State Tigers, including two quarterbacks.
Quarterback: C’zavian Teasett and Ashton Frye
There’s a chance we’ll see two quarterbacks on the Tigers on Saturday. We’ll start with Czavian Teasett, who completed 20-of-25 passes for 210 yards and three touchdowns in the Tigers’ win on Saturday.
Teasett is a 6-foot-3, redshirt-sophomore quarterback from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and he previously played at Southern. He played two seasons at Southern, seeing extensive action in 2024, where he completed 71-of-129 passes for 941 yards and six touchdowns.
Frye saw limited action in Saturday’s game, but he completed six of eight passes for 44 yards and a touchdown. This is Frye’s second season with the Tigers, after playing in 2023 with Jacksonville State.
Four Players to Watch on Grambling State
1.Tre Bradford (RB)
Bradford played with the LSU Tigers for three seasons, and he’s one of five players who had six or more carries in Grambling State’s win on Saturday. He led the Tigers with 56 rushing yards on six carries while adding a touchdown and a 22-yard reception.
Bradford played in seven games in his three seasons at LSU, scoring both a rushing and receiving touchdown along the way.
2. Tyson George (WR)
George showed in his first college game that he can be a deep-ball threat, hauling in a 55-yard touchdown late in the first quarter. He finished with three receptions for 63 yards on Saturday.
3. Bryce Cage (LB)
Cage is in his second season with the Tigers, racking up four tackles and a 1.5 tackles for loss in their win Saturday. He also had two quarterback hits in Grambling State’s win.
In 2024, Cage had 49 tackles and 11 tackles for loss to go along with a sack and a forced fumble.
4. Markies Sykes (DL)
Sykes had a tackle for loss and a sack with another quarterback hit in Saturday’s win. He played the 2024 season at Houston Christian, racking up 21 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, and 3.5 sacks in 12 games.
Head Coach: Mickey Joseph (2nd Season, 6-7; 21-21 Record)
An interim head coach at Nebraska for nine games in 2022, Joseph was also the wide receivers coach at LSU in 2019. That Tigers team had wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson, and both of them are now playing on their second contracts in the NFL.
Joseph developed four wide receivers who were first or second-round draft picks in the 2020 and 2021 NFL Drafts.
This is Joseph’s second stint at Grambling State. He was the wide receivers and special teams coach from 2014-2015, winning a SWAC West championship in 2015.
As a player, Joseph starred at Nebraska from 1988-1991, leading the Cornhuskers to a 39-9-1 record, two Orange Bowl appearances, and a Fiesta Bowl appearance. He threw and rushed for double-digit touchdowns in 1990.
Defensive Coordinator: Jason Rollins (2nd Season)
Like Joseph, Rollins brings an extensive coaching background to Grambling State. He was the interim head coach at Southern in 2021, following two seasons as the defensive coordinator at UTSA and a stint as Tulane’s defensive coordinator in 2015.
Rollins has also been a special teams coordinator at Southern and Tulane.
Keys to the Game
1. Don’t give Grambling State any hope that they can win this game.
We don’t need any nervousness on Saturday, for we don’t want to experience anything like what the Team Up North Fans felt on Sept. 1, 2007.
2. Load management
Hopefully the Buckeyes get out to a big lead early, and the starters can then come out of the game rather quickly. It will be interesting to see how Ryan Day uses his depth chart on Saturday, and how far down the coaching staff goes with it.
3. Run the ball
Don’t worry about Grambling State allowing -32 rushing yards on Saturday. Ohio State will be able to run the ball at will — at least they should be able to — on Saturday.
4. Creating your own energy
Again, it can be challenging to replicate the same energy and urgency that the Buckeyes displayed last week against Texas. That’s where creating your own energy comes into play on Saturday.
After all, this game counts just as much as the others do.
Score Prediction: Ohio State 63 – Grambling State 7
This game shouldn’t be close. Grambling State may score a touchdown on Saturday, but the Buckeyes will best that by nearly 10 times as many touchdowns. The only reason this score may not be higher is that the starters won’t play the whole game.
