STATESBORO — For the second time this season, Georgia Southern has had a football game postponed by their opponent. However, this time it comes from Appalachian State, the Eagles, most hated rival.

The Mountaineers were forced to postpone the marquee matchup amid their battle with active coronavirus cases and contact tracing within the team.

This announcement comes less than a week after Appalachian State’s cancellation of their game against Louisiana. At that point, the Mountaineers had approximately 18 players test positive for COVID-19, but the current number of cases is currently unclear.

Dec. 12 has already been announced as the new date for the game, which means the Eagles will play eight consecutive weeks without an open date. In addition, if Georgia Southern finds themselves in the Sun Belt Championship, they will play a ninth consecutive week.

When asked about what options were on the table, Georgia Southern Athletics Director Jared Benko said nothing had been ruled out at this point. 

The possibilities discussed in Benko’s Wednesday press conference ranged from adding a twelfth game to the schedule to moving up the Coastal Carolina game to an earlier date, However, nothing has been decided as of yet.

In other Sun Belt news, the Coastal Carolina game against Louisiana has been postponed due to Hurricane Delta. This makes the possibility of moving the Coastal Carolina game up much more difficult logistically speaking.

As of this moment, Georgia Southern will now shift their focus to their Oct. 24 matchup on the road against Coastal Carolina.