Early Sunday morning, Head Coach Chad Lunsford announced that Offensive Coordinator Bob DeBesse was no longer apart of the program.

With this announcement, tight ends coach Doug Ruse will serve as the interim offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the remainder of the season.

“First off, I want to thank Bob DeBesse for his investment into the Georgia Southern football program,” Lunsford said in a Sunday afternoon press conference. “Bob has worked hard on and off the field to help our program succeed and I appreciate that.”

“At this time, I feel it’s in the best interest of our program to go in a different direction and make a change at the offensive coordinator spot,” Lunsford added.

Through 10 games this season, Georgia Southern is averaging 27 points, 267.7 rushing yards, and 101.3 passing yards per game. They sit in the bottom half of nearly every crucial offensive statistic.

Doug Ruse was Georgia Southern’s offensive coordinator for two seasons in 2014 and 2015. Under Ruse, the Eagles averaged 37.7 points per game and led the FBS in rushing both season. In his first season, Georgia Southern went 8-0 in conference and won a Sun Belt championship.

When asked about the search for a potential replacement, Lunsford emphasized the need for patience.

“I want to take my time with this. I want to make sure we’re setting ourselves up for success,” Lunsford said.