The momentum has continued to build all season for the UT Martin Skyhawks and after three weeks on the road, they finally return home for Week 11.

*All stats are via ESPN via UT Martin, ESPN via Tennessee State, UTM Football and TSU Football.*

While football is a week-to-week sport and upsets happen, this Week 11 matchup could be UT Martin’s “easiest” of the season. The Tennessee State Tigers are 0-5 in conference play with an overall record of 2-7, dead last in the Ohio Valley Conference–Big South.

Overall, it has been a struggle this season for TSU. The team has had a freshman at the helm of the offense, and it has shown. In only three games this season the team has managed to score more than 21 points: Week 1 at home against the North Carolina A&T Aggies, a 24-21 win; Week 3 at home against the Alabama A&M Bulldogs, a 23-21 loss; and Week 8 at home against the Howard Bison, a 24-7 win. Like most young quarterbacks, TSU’s freshman Byron McNair has had an up-and-down season.

In that Week 8 win over Howard, McNair saw the first win of his young career as he threw for 174 passing yards and three touchdowns on 18 completions. Outside of that, it has been a rough year, as McNair has thrown four touchdowns to six interceptions, not including his three-touchdown game versus Howard.

The UT Martin secondary could be in for a big day against the struggling freshman—possibly a few interceptions. Keep an eye on the cornerback duo of senior JaMichael McGoy Jr., who has forced seven pass deflections and one interception, and junior LaMarion Pierce, who has two pass deflections and one interception.

The “strength” of this weak TSU offense has been the running back duo of senior Kendric Rhymes and freshman Zack Simmons-Brown.

Rhymes has been the workhorse back for the team; since getting the role as a starter, he has only seen two games with fewer than 11 touches. Rhymes had two 100-yard rushing games on the season in the team’s Week 1 win over NCAT—174 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns—and the Week 3 loss to Alabama A&M—111 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown. However, Rhymes suffered a toe injury early against the Western Illinois Leathernecks and is out for the remainder of the season.

Simmons-Brown has now stepped in as the team’s lead back. He has averaged at least four yards per carry in six out of nine games he has played this season–including two games at 7.9 yards per carry or higher. Like most of the TSU team though, Simmons-Brown has struggled to find the endzone with only two rushing touchdowns on the season, with the most recent one in a 28-12 loss against the SEMO Redhawks in Week 7. 

While there could be a world where Simmons-Brown has a field day, it is doubtful against a stout UT Martin front seven. In a shocker, star junior linebacker Keyshawn Johnson finds himself mentioned yet again. Johnson has been a menace to enemy teams’ backfields, whether it has been in the run or pass game–seven sacks, two forced fumbles and several tackles for loss, including a game winning tackle for loss against the Eastern Illinois Panthers this past week. Johnson is not the only linebacker Simmons-Brown will need to watch out for, though, as senior Shamari Weir tends to get into the backfield as well. 

Now what about TSU’s defense? Their sack leader is senior defensive end James Stewart at 3.5, who recently found himself in Week 10 versus the Lindenwood Lions’ backfield with a sack and a forced fumble, though his efforts were for little as the team lost 35-13. While UT Martin senior quarterback Jase Bauer has been relatively safe and secure with the ball–a completion percentage of 72.5 and only two thrown interceptions on the season–he will need to watch out for Tennessee State junior defensive back Byron Davis, who has recorded four pass deflections and two interceptions on the season. 

For the first time since Week 7, UT Martin will play at home at Hardy M. Graham Stadium. The team will host TSU on Nov. 8, 2025, at 1 p.m.