ORANGEBURG, SC—The South Carolina State Bulldogs (5-3, 3-1 MEAC) will host the visiting Savannah State Tigers (0-8, 0-5 MEAC) in a pivotal Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference matchup Saturday (Nov. 1) at O.C. Dawson Stadium. Kickoff is 1:30 p.m.

SC State and Coach Buddy Pough are coming off a hard-fought 20-14 win over Bethune-Cookman, which entered last Saturday's showdown as the only MEAC team undefeated in league games.

The Bulldog victory put the league race into a virtual free-for-all as five teams enter today's competition with only one loss in MEAC games. SC State needs a win today to stay in the hunt for the league title and a berth in the FCS playoffs.

The Tigers and Coach Earl Wilson, III continued their struggles last week, losing 42-14 to NC Central, a squad that handed the Bulldogs a 48-35 home loss three weeks ago. With the loss, the Tigers remained winless at 0-8 overall and 0-5 in the MEAC. Pough's team is favorite to win today by all the prognosticators but strange things happen in football on Any Given Saturday, so Pough and his staff are making sure the Bulldogs do not look past the Tigers.
 
The Attraction
South Carolina State is celebrating Homecoming 2014. The university will welcome Alumni from all across the country who will be returning to the campus for a host of activities.
 
The Series
The Bulldogs and Tigers are meeting for the 13^th time. SC State enjoys a 12-1 edge in the rivalry. The only win for Savannah State in the series came by a 14-9 score at Orangeburg in 2001. The Bulldogs were victorious 45-9 at Savannah last season.  
 
The Coaches
SC State's Buddy Pough (SC State '75) is in his 13^th season as head coach at his alma mater and owns a 102-46 overall mark. He is 6-0 against Savannah State.
 
Earl Wilson III (Texas Tech '89) is in his second season as head coach at Savannah State. He is 1-19 as Tiger head coach and 0-1against the Bulldogs.