A year ago, Eddie George was facing the task of heading into his first season as a head coach at Tennessee State with zero games on any sideline.
You would never know that by just watching Tuesday’s Ohio Valley Conference Media Day. The former All-Pro running back sounded like a seasoned veteran after just one season under his belt. He spoke about his desire to elevate the program to a new level.
“It’s bigger than wins and losses, it’s bigger than just having accolades,” George said. “It’s more of a mission to enhance a program. We were having dinner last night and we’re talking about the potential of TSU, that it can thrive at a high level.”
Of course, Tennessee State football has thrived before. But Eddie George wants to make it consistent moving forward.
“It’s thrived before, we’ve had success before, but it must to be sustainable,” he said. “And we’re the forefathers to help bring to that to fruition. So when I’m gone 50 years from now, this thing is still moving along. This is just my part in terms of building a foundation.
George led TSU to a 5-6 record during the 2021 season – the program’s best record in half a decade. It was picked to finish fourth out of seven teams in the OVC this fall.
“It has to be built on a strong foundation of faith and trust, on wisdom on integrity,” George said. “And not just a flash in the pan.”
George made his debut at Tennessee State on the heels of Deion Sanders’ arrival at Jackson State. He says the two have had conversations early on about making the day-to-day part of the transition.
“We’re seeing a lot of attention for HBCUs – but it can’t be for two, three years,” George said. “It’s gotta be for the next 40 years. And we’ve got to put more money into the infastructure, more money into the maintenance, more money into nutrition.”