What happens when you add Phillip Fulmer and Steve Spurrier?
You get the resurgence of East Tennessee State University football.
Twelve years after the program disbanded for financial reasons, the Bucs were back at media day for Southern Conference football Wednesday in Spartanburg, S.C., though still a year away from competing for a conference championship. They will be considered a Football Championship Subdivision independent program this year and return to Southern Conference action in the 2016 season.
Their first game this season is Sept. 3 at home against Georgia’s Kennesaw State University, which is launching its FCS program and will compete in the Big South Conference. While their own stadium is being built, the Bucs will play their home games at Kermit Tipton Stadium, the site of Steve Spurrier Field, where Johnson City’s Science Hill High School also plays its home games.
Tickets for the Bucs’ opener sold out in 24 hours.