For the first time in nearly four years, Tennessee State has cracked the national football rankings.
The Tigers are No. 24 in the nation, according to the latest Football Championship Subdivision coaches poll released Monday. TSU was last ranked on Nov. 17, 2008, when it sat at No. 25. That year the Tigers went 8-4 and were ranked as high as 18th.
The Tigers are off to a 5-0 start for the first time since 2001 and are one of only 11 undefeated teams left in the FCS. They welcome a nationally ranked foe this Saturday when No. 16 Eastern Kentucky comes to Hale Stadium for a pivotal Ohio Valley Conference clash.
Under third-year head coach Rod Reed, TSU is just two years removed from a winless OVC season in 2010. Behind the fourth-ranked scoring defense (13.4 points per game) in the country, the Tigers have already matched their win total from last year.