Georgia Southern set for state showdown with Georgia State
Georgia Southern is preparing for an in-state showdown with Georgia State on Saturday at Paulson Stadium.
The Eagles are coming off of a 55-17 victory over South Alabama, while Georgia State enters the game riding a three-game winning streak and looking to become bowl eligible with a victory.
The two teams have gotten to this point in completely different ways. The Eagles lead the country in rushing after piling up 489 against South Alabama, and they average 379 yards per game.
The Panthers generally move the ball through the air. They are eighth in the country in passing, averaging 346 yards per game. Stopping Panthers quarterback Nick Arbuckle has been difficult. He has thrown for 3,814 and 23 touchdowns.
Arbuckle has thrown 10 interceptions, but in the Panthers’ five wins, Arbuckle has 10 touchdowns with just three interceptions.
“We just have to do a good job of staying over the top, not allowing a big play,” Georgia Southern head coach Willie Fritz said. “He is, without question, a really good quarterback. They do an excellent job of utilizing him.”
The Eagles are tied for 11th nationally with 16 interceptions. They are led by senior Antonio Glover, who has six and is tied for fifth.
The Eagles’ offense focuses on the run, while the Panthers have struggled to stop teams on the ground. They are giving up an average of 184 yards per game and 4.6 yards per carry. The Panthers have given up 16 touchdowns on the ground this season.
Eagles running back Matt Breida enters the game with 16 touchdowns and more than 1,400 yards, and he averages 8.7 yards per carry.
The Eagles are bowl eligible for the first time, and they are still in the hunt for an automatic bid for the conference championship. But they need Arkansas State to lose in order to force a three-way tie at the top with Appalachian State.
Georgia Southern beat Georgia State 69-31 last year.
“That was 2014 Georgia Southern and Georgia State teams. We are really concerned about this year,” Fritz said. “We don’t get into talking about past failures or successes.”
It will be the final home game for Georgia Southern and the first class of seniors to have an opportunity at a bowl. The Eagles will say farewell to 20 seniors in their final home game.
“Right now (the seniors) are 28-2, I believe, here at Paulson Stadium in their five years here,” Fritz said. “They have tremendous careers, and we obviously want to finish it out on a high note.”
This story was originally published December 4, 2015 at 5:40 PM with the headline "Georgia Southern set for state showdown with Georgia State ."