Tennessee State coach Eddie George says his son can't go to school at Jackson State, Michigan
Tennessee State football coach Eddie George has a couple of recruiting guidelines for his son, even if they are a little tongue-in-cheek.
George told The Tennessean on Friday that Eriq George, a senior defensive lineman at Montgomery Bell Academy in Nashville, mostly has the freedom to choose whatever school he would like, with two exceptions.
"He can't go to Jackson State," Eddie George said at his son's game in Nashville. "He's not going there or that team up north (Michigan, the rival school of Eddie George's alma mater, Ohio State). But I tell him to see all that's out there and ultimately trust your intuition, trust your gut."
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Eriq George, at 6-foot-2 and 260 pounds, has an offer from Marshall and is being recruited by several FCS schools, including Furman and TSU.
There's no love lost between TSU and JSU.
Jackson State announced in February that it was pulling out of the annual Southern Heritage Classic game against Tennessee State in Memphis following this year's matchup, citing scheduling conflicts related to the SWAC.
Tennessee State called Jackson State's decision to pull out of the matchup "an insensitive and irresponsible act," and the company that operates the game, Summitt Management Company, filed a lawsuit in March against JSU and the SWAC, accusing the school and conference of “wrongful interference with contractual relations" after the school dropped out of the 2023 and 2024 games.
Throw in the long-time playing history between the two schools, and the coaching name recognition of TSU's George and JSU's Deion Sanders − who exude a mutual respect from their playing days − and it produces a surging rivalry.
Eddie George did make a mini recruiting pitch to his son on Friday as part-Dad and part-coach.
"This is his deal, his process, his career," Eddie George said. "He knows what I'm doing (at TSU); he's around me everyday and he knows how he's going to get coached (if he chooses TSU). I tell him to go and see what's out there. Go where your heart's desire is."
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Eddie George says his son 'can't go to Jackson State' or Michigan
