It’s been a long and winding road for coach Larry Blakeney and Troy State’s football team the past two years – literally.

Since making the jump to Division I-A competition prior to the 2001 season, the Trojans have played eight of 24 games in their home stadium.

“It’s been tough,” Blakeney said. “I’d be less than truthful if I didn’t say that. But who we’re playing is what’s important.”

He meant it as a means of ignoring the game-day atmosphere on the road and concentrating on the opposing team. But it’s not as if the Trojans have been playing at venues without a noticeable home-field advantage.

In its inaugural season as a Division I-A program, Troy State played road games at Nebraska, Miami (FL), Mississippi State and Maryland. Nebraska and Miami squared off in the national championship game that year.

“It’s like playing in the twilight zone there in Nebraska,” Blakeney said. “It’s a sea of red and white.”

The trend continued through last year and into this season. The Trojans were blown out 41-5 Saturday at Kansas State and will travel to Minneapolis this weekend where they will face the Gophers at 7 p.m. Saturday in the Metrodome.

Not exactly a formula for instant success.

Playing against that level of competition was far from ideal for a program basically auditioning on college football’s grandest stage. But because of its need for sufficient financial support to establish itself as a worthy Division I-A program, Troy State became an immediate target of high-profile teams looking for nonconference buy-in games.

And so, like their historical namesakes before them, the Trojans became road-weary wanderers before they could even enjoy their new status.

“We’re a whipping boy right now, and we know that,” Troy State athletics director Johnny Williams said. “You’ve got to pay your dues to get into I-A.”

The Trojans do have a history of success in their program – something both Williams and Blakeney point to when considering their football future.

Troy State captured two national championships at the NCAA Division II level in 1984 and 1987, where it competed for most of the school’s history.

In 1993, the school’s administration decided to move up to the Division I-AA level.

“Basically, (the school) used the athletics department in building a brand name,” Williams said. “It was done to project a more national presence for our university.”

During the team’s eight-year run in I-AA, Blakeney guided the Trojans into the postseason seven times, where they twice reached the national semifinals.

It’s a program that has demonstrated the ability to win at every level, and one determined to use its difficult schedule as motivation rather than an excuse.

“I’ve got to believe it will be worth it,” Blakeney said. “If you beat somebody it’s definitely worth it and we’ve got that opportunity every week.”

Though the Trojans might have sacrificed a few victories on the football field, their effort has been rewarded with dollar signs to the athletics program.

Every big-time football team that invites Troy State to its stadium gives the visiting school a sizable check in return. Kansas State paid them $450,000 for last week’s game. Minnesota will pay the Trojans $275,000 for Saturday’s contest.

With the money, Williams has been able to engineer an $18 million renovation to the campus football field, renamed Movie Gallery Stadium. He also successfully funded $9 million worth of improvements to other athletics facilities.

“That just tells you the power of I-A football and what it can do for your school,” Williams said.

And the rewards don’t end there.

“The benefits of playing that kind of schedule are when you recruit,” Minnesota athletics director Joel Maturi said. “That helps draw younger people to your school versus another mid-major.”

There’s certainly plenty of young talent to draw toward the Troy State campus.

The school, located in Troy, Ala., is just 70 miles from the Florida border, widely considered the country’s most potent source of prep football talent.

After spending its first two seasons in Division I-A as an independent, Troy State will join the Sun Belt conference next year, where the team will be guaranteed eight conference games each season.

From there, the Trojans know things can only get easier.

“We’re very happy with our success so far,” Williams said. “We understand we’re going to take some lumps before we get there. But we look at this as a long-range plan.”

– Aaron Blake contributed to this report.