Few football programs know what it’s like to come back from the dead, but the East Tennessee State Buccaneers are one of them. From 2003 to 2015, it was impossible to find cheap ETSU football tickets because the school had discontinued football. But after a hiatus of over a decade, the Buccaneers are back and on their way to being better than ever. They are quickly becoming one of the top programs at the FCS level, making last-minute ETSU football tickets in high demand.

Signs of Life

For much of its football history, East Tennessee State struggled to stand out, aside from an undefeated season in 1969. However, the program saw an uptick during the 1990s under head coach Mike Cavan. In 1996, Cavan led the Buccaneers to the 1-AA playoffs for the first time in program history. ETSU even won its first-ever playoff game to reach the playoff quarterfinals. The Buccaneers then put together winning seasons in four of the next five years, only to see the program halted in 2003.

Coming Back Strong

Roughly 10 years after the ETSU football program was discontinued, the university decided to bring it back with the Buccaneers returning to the field in 2015. Naturally, the first few seasons were a struggle for East Tennessee State and veteran coach Carl Torbush. But after Torbush retired following the 2017 season, Randy Sanders took over as head coach and got immediate results. In 2018, the Buccaneers were 8-4 and won a share of the Southern Conference regular-season title, the first conference championship in program history. That accomplishment coincided with ETSU returning to the FCS playoffs for the first time since 1996, creating hope for a bright future.