Why Eddie George isn't worried about Tennessee State committing a season high in penalties
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An unusually large number of penalty flags thrown against the Tennessee State football team last week did not throw up a red flag for coach Eddie George.
The Tigers committed a season-high 13 penalties for 89 yards, which played a factor in a 19-3 loss to previously winless Murray State.
It knocked the Tigers (3-5, 2-1) out of a second-place tie in the OVC standings with Saturday's (5 p.m., ESPN3) opponent No. 22 Southeast Missouri (6-2, 2-0) at Nissan Stadium. The loss also means Tennessee State has to win its last three games to post a winning record.
George said the fact that the problem with the penalties popped up for one game is not enough reason to panic. After watching video of the game, he believes the biggest problem was some movement made on the defensive front by the Racers, which knocked the Tigers' offensive line out of kilter and resulted in eight illegal procedure calls.
"We didn't have that issue earlier on; for whatever reason, we weren't on the same page and it set us back," George said. "A lot of it had to do with a lot of the shifting up front. Our guys were not locked in focusing on what they needed to do and that became an issue. and I expect to see that again this week. That's what I would do."
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TSU is the most penalized team in the OVC and ranks 119th in the FCS, averaging 8.9 penalties per game for 71.6 yards.
While it was a costly loss and snapped the Tigers' win streak at three games, George said he cut his team some slack because of its inexperience, especially on the offensive line.
"That's a part of the process of growing up and learning and becoming a team that's going to be competitive week in and week out," George said.
While the loss was a setback in the OVC race, the Tigers still have the top two teams left to play. After Saturday's game against SEMO, TSU plays No. 20 UT Martin (5-2, 3-0). Wins over both would leave the Tigers tied for first place.
"Anytime we line up against a quality opponent, we're going to try to win," George said. "We're focused on SEMO this week and UT Martin presents another challenge for us. We want to finish out the season strong and let the chips fall where they may."
Reach Mike Organ at 615-259-8021 or on Twitter @MikeOrganWriter.