Georgia Southern turns its focus to Troy

Georgia Southern is coming off of an extended bye week as it has not played since Oct. 29.

With that extra week of rest, the Eagles worked on getting themselves healthy for the stretch run as they currently sit one game out of first place in the Sun Belt Conference standings. But they are not focused on the race for the conference title as they have turned their attention to Saturday's game at Troy.

"We are really turning all of our attention on Troy," Georgia Southern head coach Willie Fritz said. "They have done a real good job the last few weeks in particular. (They are) very talented. This going to be a heck of a challenge for us."

The Trojans are coming off of a blowout win over Louisiana-Monroe with a 51-point effort that was led by quarterback Brandon Silvers. Silvers passed for 326 yards and four touchdowns while not committing a turnover.

"I've been very impressed with their quarterback; he is very accurate. They have a bevy full of talented receivers. They do a good job of mixing up run, pass," Fritz said. "(Silvers) he can make all of the throws. He makes you defend the field not only vertically but horizontally, as well,"

The Eagles' secondary performed well in the team's last game against Texas State. The Eagles held Texas State to 87 yards passing and had two interceptions. Antonio Glover has been the leader on defense and is fifth in the nation with six interceptions. Glover will look to make an impact against Silvers and limit the deep throws that Troy has been successful on all season.

"With their offense, we just have to do a good job of staying over the top, not allowing an easy play for them," Fritz said. "They did that last week, one was a 75-yard pass on a one-play drive,"

The Eagles' offense is built on the ground game. Matt Breida has rushed for 1,158 yards, trailing only New Mexico State running back Larry Rose III for the Sun Belt's top spot. Wesley Fields as emerged as a solid option behind Breida and is coming off a 158-yard performance against Texas State.

"Offensively, it's always a challenge each week exactly how they are going to play us," Fritz said. "Everyone plays us a little bit differently, and hopefully, we do a good job of preparing with what we think we are going to see."

The Eagles need a win to stay alive in the Sun Belt Conference race. Their loss to Appalachian State has hurt their chances of repeating as Sun Belt champions, but they are focused on finishing out the season strong.

"We need to take care of our business. Obviously, when you get a loss, you're at the hands of someone else helping you out, but we just need to take care of our business," Fritz said. "The big thing about the game this weekend is that it is a conference game it counts as one just like all the other conference games. We have to play extremely well Saturday,"

This story was originally published November 13, 2015 at 3:52 PM with the headline "Georgia Southern turns its focus to Troy ."