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Frankfort, Ky.— Kentucky State University football will embark on its final regular season road contest, with a 2 p.m. ET matchup against Tuskegee University at Abbott Memorial Alumni Stadium on Saturday. 
 
"Last week was big for us and our program," said head coach John L. Smith. "As we said from the start of the season, you have a group that buys in, a group you have to prove yourself to, and a group that will never buy in. We've eliminated some of those guys and lately, we've played better. Now we take on Tuskegee at their place, and they're a very tough team, but we've put ourselves in a position where we are playing for some of the marbles."
 
The Thorobreds (3-4, 3-1) are going into the weekend with momentum on their side, following consecutive wins against Fort Valley State University and Miles College. KSU currently sits alone in second place of the SIAC West Division. Before the season began, KSU was picked to finish at the bottom of the SIAC in the preseason polls.
 
The Golden Tigers (6-0, 4-0) lead the SIAC West Division standings with an undefeated record. Their most recent win came against Morehouse College at home, 28-19 on Oct. 8. In the same preseason poll, Tuskegee was picked to finish second.
 
Following Saturday's matchup, one of the two teams will hold first place in the SIAC West Division, controlling their fate with two games remaining on the schedule. A position TU has come a custom too, but for KSU this is uncharted territory.
 
KSU has never won or played in the SIAC Championship since joining the conference in 1997. During the program's first season with the SIAC, the Thorobreds' claimed the second seed, earning a spot in the Pioneer Bowl, winning 30-26 over Livingstone College. In the 18 years since KSU hasn't been able to finish higher than third place in the conference or the West Division standings. In 2004, the Thorobreds started the year off at 7-0, but critical injuries brought the season to an end with losses to MC and TU in the final three games.
 
Though the Thorobreds have had ups and downs throughout the 2016 campaign, offensively they continue to strive towards improvement. The KSU offense has finished with over 300 yards in each of their last two games. Against MC, the running game paved the way, rushing for over 270 yards with the stable of senior running backs Reginal Harris and Darmontre Warr, along with junior running back Lavelle Cloyd, and freshman quarterback Jules St. Ge.
 
"We've simplified a lot of our offense, and it has made a difference," said Smith. "When you have a freshman quarterback like we do, sometimes you have to do that, and as we've progressed, we've had some things here and there, leading to what some success over our last couple of games."
 
The defense continues to be a consistent component for the Thorobreds, as they have ranked in the top two in scoring defense, from within the conference, throughout the year.