The Lincoln Blue Tigers are focused on what they have do to win football games.
And while Texas College has lost all seven of it games by an average of 51 points, Lincoln is not overlooking the Steelers.
"We can't afford to do that for two reasons," Lincoln head coach Mike Jones said Friday morning. "We have one win this season, so we've got to worry about ourselves. The second thing is, you always respect the team you're playing against."
Lincoln (1-5) will look to snap a three-game losing streak when the Blue Tigers host Texas College (0-7) at 2 p.m. today for Homecoming in a non-conference matchup at Dwight T. Reid Stadium.
If Lincoln wins, it would be the Blue Tigers' first Homecoming victory since 2012 when they knocked off Nebraska-Kearney 34-27.
Today's game will be the second meeting between Lincoln and the Steelers. Texas College leads the series after claiming a 23-12 win against the Blue Tigers at home in 2004, meaning neither team knows much about the other.
"We're playing against a team that we don't know a lot about," Jones said. "We don't have a lot of film on them, but we've been going out there in practice and preparing and making sure we're doing what we're supposed to be doing in order to be successful."
The Blue Tigers hope this will be a game that gets them back on the right track.
Last week, St. Joseph took advantage of five turnovers to escape with a 28-20 win against Lincoln, handing the Blue Tigers their third straight loss of the season.
Lincoln rallied from a 14-0 deficit to tie the game, and pulled within 21-20 early in the fourth quarter, but the Pumas scored off an interception to earn the eight-point win.
Despite the loss, Jones was quick to point out some positives from the Week 6 game. The Blue Tigers scored their first defensive touchdown of the season, forced three fumbles and had two interceptions but came up short on the offensive end.
"We're getting the opportunity to get the ball. We've just got to keep doing that," Jones said. "We got what we wanted (on defense) with three turnovers. On offense we've just got to make sure we take care of the ball a little bit better."
Last week's game was indicative of the way Lincoln's season has gone all year.
Lincoln has outscored its opponents 233-181 and is averaging 38.83 points per game, while limiting opponents to 30.16, but those numbers haven't produced wins.
Still, the Blue Tigers have been competive in all of their games. Of Lincoln's five losses this season, four have been decided by nine points or less.
"There are some things we can build on," Jones said. "We're to the stage now where we're competing with everybody we're playing. We just have to get over the top."
Morris Henderson led the rushing attack for Lincoln last week, compiling 113 yards on 22 carries and a score. Backup quarterback Owen Jordan was just 8-of-21 for 79 yards with an interception.
Dennis Vinson saw his first action under center, completing 4-of-12 passes for 72 yards and a pick.
"We had talked about playing Dennis over the week," Jones said. "There had been a couple of games where we thought about putting him in, but we just didn't think he was quite ready. We just had to pull the trigger.
"First time playing, he struggled a little bit, but that happens when you're playing against a good football team and you're a freshman."
Jones was quick to point out that Jordan, who has been filling in for the injured Jacob Morris, will get his fifth straight start against Texas College, but Vinson will also get the opportunity to take some snaps.
"O.J.'s our starting quarterback," Jones said. "Dennis will play, we just have to make sure he is ready and hopefully he'll get the opportunity early to play with the packages we have in place."
Jumping out to a quick start, given Texas College's struggles this season, could be a possibility for the Blue Tigers. The Steelers are coming off a 47-6 loss to Bacon.
Texas College represents the second of three non-Great Lakes Valley Conference opponents for Lincoln this season. The Blue Tigers suffered a 49-48 loss in Week 1 in the final second to Langston, an NAIA team that rolled past Texas College with a 61-0 victory on Oct. 4.
Offensively, the Steelers utilize a four-quarterback system. Milton Harper and Curtez Griffin have combined to throw for 659 yards and four touchdowns to lead the attack under center
Phillip Callier has been one of Harper's and Curtez's favorite targets this year, hauling in 20 passes for 246 yards and a score. Callier also leads the ground attack for Texas College with 242 yards and two touchdowns on 34 carries.
For Jones, it all comes down to execution for the Blue Tigers to be successful against the Steelers - on both sides of the ball.
"We have to execute what we do," Jones said. "When we play well, we execute our offense, we execute our defense and we execute our special teams. We're just hammering our guys on - do what you're supposed to do on our side. What every (the opponents) do against us, we'll counter that."