TUSKEGEE, Ala. | Although the Tuskegee University Golden Tigers have played four conference opponents this season, this Saturday they will face a team from the West Division for just the second time as they play host to Stillman College inside Cleve L. Abbott Memorial Alumni Stadium.
 
The Golden Tigers (23 AFCA/22 D2football.com) have won the last three games in the series dating back to 2012, while winning six of the first seven to take a 9-1 series lead over Stillman. However, this is a new year for the teams and Tuskegee head coach Willie Slater understands how good Stillman can be.
 
"They play very good fundamental football with techniques," Slater said. "We have to play well and play hard if we plan on beating them. Hopefully our guys are getting up for the game."
 
Tuskegee (5-1, 4-0 SIAC, 1-0 West) is coming off a 35-7 victory over Morehouse in which they tied a school record with five interceptions, a record that was set back in 1986 against Miles. Redshirt freshman Darius Holmes led the way with a pair of interceptions to earn the BOXTOROW National Player of the Week, while redshirt sophomore Jonah McCutcheon added his team-leading fourth of the season.
 
"(Darius) Holmes has been doing a good job for us," Slater said. "It was good to see him get some interceptions, we have been waiting on that to happen. He did what we have been expecting him to do all year. He has been a starter for us all year and is a tremendous addition to our program."
 
For the first time this season, the Golden Tigers will have all three of the running backs listed on the depth chart healthy. In the first three games of the season, Dennis Norfleet and Kenno Loyal split time while Tyree Brooks was healing from a preseason injury. In the last three games, both Norfleet and Loyal have missed time but are both healthy this week.
 
"I believe in mass production," Slater said. "If one goes down, we are not going to lose because he goes down. The other guys will be ready to step in and that is what has been happening. I am not sure how it will work with all three of them healthy, but we will see."
 
The Golden Tigers (1 HSRN/6 BOXTOROW/6 SBN) appear in the top 10 statistically in the country in several categories –including blocked punts allowed (first), defensive touchdowns (third), passes intercepted (fourth), interceptions (fourth), yards per completion (ninth), red zone defense (second), scoring defense (sixth), and passing efficiency defense (seventh).
 
Although those stats are good to have, it is not the focus of this year's team.
 
"We don't focus on the past or the future," senior linebacker Jewell Ratliff. "We try to keep our eyes on the next opponent and what they will do. We take it from there day-by-day, and week-by-week. We let it come to us on Saturday and see how we play."
 
Stillman (3-2, 2-1 SIAC, 1-0 West) turned to Brett Standifer under center this season after an offseason injury to returning starter Josh Straughn. Through five games, Standifer leads the conference in completion percentage (.560) and passing yards per game (174.3 ypg), while ranking in the top three in three other categories and earning the SIAC Offensive Player of the Week earlier this season.
 
Meanwhile, as a team the Tigers rank near the top in several categories in the SIAC – both offensively and defensively – including kickoff return defense (first), passing offense (first), team passing efficiency (second) and sacks (second).
 
"We have a lot of success early," Tuskegee defensive coordinator Joseph Carter said. "We have learned how to handle that success. We are healthy as we can be at this point, but that is football. I am a believe in hard work and fundamentals, and executing those fundamentals and technique.
 
"Every week we go into the week looking to see what we have to do on defense, and what teams are doing different when they play us. That is our challenge going into a game, what is the game plan for us. They (Stillman) run a lot of different combinations, it will be a snap-by-snap adjustment. We will have to adjust to what we are seeing as the game goes on."
 
The game on Saturday will be the first of four consecutive games against the West Division, with divisional games counting towards who will represent the division in the SIAC Championship Game.
 
The game will be broadcast on the Tuskegee Sports Network, beginning with kickoff at 1 pm.
 
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