Georgia Southern knows the battle up front will be big against Georgia

STATESBORO -- If Georgia Southern has any hopes of beating Georgia for the first time ever when the two meet Saturday night in Sanford Stadium, it is going to come down to its ability to stop the Bulldogs' running game.

Georgia Southern leads the nation in rushing with an average of 378.9 yards per game, but the Bulldogs are more balanced, averaging 202.4 yards rushing and 183.8 passing per game. The Eagles' air game is good for 64.1 yards per game, last among FBS teams.

The two teams meet for the sixth time ever at 7 p.m. on Saturday in Athens. This is the first meeting since 2012 when the Bulldogs (7-3) beat Georgia Southern (7-2) 45-14, the largest margin of victory in the series, which began in 1992. No game has been closer than 20 points.

While Georgia Southern's run game is more finesse out of its spread option attack, Georgia is more raw power as it sends out a trio of tailbacks who are big, strong and fast and bolstered by a large offensive line and fullbacks who resemble road graders.

"It's going to be a challenge, no question about it," junior nose tackle Jay Ellison said. "They're a good football team, obviously, but I think we're capable, too."

Ellison, who played at Harris County, and defensive tackle Darius Sapp, a sophomore from Valdosta, are two of the keys for the Eagles' defense.

Neither player will win any beauty contests based on stats -- Ellison has 20 tackles and Sapp 16 -- but defensive coordinator Jack Curtis wouldn't trade them for anyone in the Sun Belt Conference.

"They have a thankless job," Curtis said, "but they're outstanding at what they do.

"They keep those offensive linemen from getting to the linebackers. We've got speed at the linebacker positions and those guys make a lot of tackles. But they wouldn't be making them if it wasn't for the job Jay and Darius do."

Eagles linebackers Antoine Williams, Ironhead Gallon and Chris DeLaRosa all are having outstanding seasons, with Williams leading the team in tackles with 73 followed by Gallon's 61. DeLaRosa has 34.

"We're a squeeze-block team," Curtis said. "We're not an aggressive team because of our speed. Both of these guys play an important role in what we do.

"Jay and Darius both came in and played as true freshmen. We didn't have to 'grow' them. They're both big guys. The thing we have to do is keep them from growing bigger.

"A lot of our success on stopping the run is because of what they do up front."

Ellison is 6-foot-1 and 310 pounds while Sapp is the same height and 20 pounds heavier. By comparison, defensive ends Bernard Dawson (6-2, 248) and Ryan George (6-1, 244) are relative lightweights.

While Ellison said he was recruited by the Bulldogs, the soft-spoken Sapp didn't get a sniff from Georgia.

Both have high school teammates at Georgia. Ellison played with running back Tae Crowder and linebacker Jordan Jenkins. Sapp counts split end Malcolm Mitchell, tight end Jay Rome and offensive guard Dyson Simms as former teammates.

Sapp played at Valdosta for former Peach County head coach and ex-Eagles assistant Rance Gillespie. His older brother Dontavis played at Tennessee and signed with the Dallas Cowboys in 2014.

Neither is looking as this as a "grudge" game, although they are not oblivious to the fact they will be playing against a team they've followed since childhood.

"Their offensive line represents a big challenge," Sapp said. "They come off the ball really well, and they do a good job knocking linemen off the ball.

"Their running backs do a great job of reading their blocks, the wide receivers block well. They work well as a unit. That's the thing that impresses me the most."

While this is an important game for the Eagles and their players, Ellison and Sapp agree that there are bigger fish to fry in the big picture.

"We've got two games left in the conference," Ellison said. "Those are bigger games for us from the standpoint we still have a chance to at least tie for a conference championship, and we're playing to position ourselves for the best bowl possible."

This story was originally published November 18, 2015 at 10:03 PM.