ETSU hosts Chattanooga Saturday, will collect donations for flood relief

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (WJHL) — East Tennessee State University will host rival Chattanooga at William B. Greene Jr. Stadium on Saturday. The two Southern Conference teams have a long history as adversaries, but they will work together to help those impacted by Hurricane Helene during this football season’s matchup.

The Rail Rivalry will kick off at 3:30 p.m. Saturday. The game will be ETSU’s first home conference game of the season.

The Bucs are 3-2 overall and 1-0 in conference play heading into the rivalry game. Last week, ETSU defeated The Citadel 34-17, putting the Blue and Gold in second place in the SoCon.

Chattanooga has had a rough start to the season and heads to Johnson City 1-3 after capturing its first victory over Portland State last week.

The game will be broadcast on ESPN+, and the Buccaneer Sports Network will also provide coverage before, during and after the game.

East Tennessee was decimated by flooding in late September that killed at least 11 people, according to the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency (TEMA) on Wednesday.

The ETSU and Chattanooga Athletic Departments have worked together to collect donations at Saturday’s game. Donation bins will be set up in the Food City Fan Zone in Lot 21 and at each entrance to the stadium.

Donations are also being accepted at Chattanooga’s campus throughout the week leading up to the game, and those will be delivered to ETSU on Saturday.

Fans can also make monetary donations at the concession stands inside William B. Greene Jr. Stadium. ETSU stated in a news release that all donations made stay in the Tri-Cities to help rebuild and assist those affected.

To learn more about ETSU’s flood relief efforts, click here.

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