Ethan Smith, Advertising Manager
It finally seemed as if Georgia Southern had finally made it out of the ‘abyss’. The Eagles had a 17-14 lead with two minutes left in the game, and, thanks to Quarterback Conner Manning, the Eagles remained defeated.
Georgia State Quarterback Conner Manning threw for 319 passing-yards and two touchdowns, the most crucial being thrown to wide receiver Penny Hart to put the Panthers up 21-17, which would end up being the final score.
Hart had eight catches for around 191 receiving yards and the game winning touchdown for the Panthers. Wide receiver Roger Carter caught the other touchdown thrown by Manning. The run game was non-existent for Georgia State, having only 49 rushing-yards on 24 carries as a team.
As for Georgia Southern, Quarterback Shai Werts was uncharacteristically more active in throwing the ball this game. Werts had 28 pass attempts, completing 22 of those attempts for 147 passing-yards and a passing-touchdown. Werts also ran the ball 15 times for 63 rushing-yards and a rushing-touchdown as well. Running Back Wesley Fields added another 57 rushing-yards as well.
Wide receiver Malik Henry had eight receptions for 47 yards, while Myles Campbell another wide receiver had six receptions for 30 yards and a touchdown.
Three turnovers by the Georgia Southern offense eventually came back to bite them, but the defense of the Eagles stood out in not allowing Georgia State to convert off the turnovers. The only issue was that once again, Georgia Southern’s offense lacked consistency throughout the game, which eventually exhausted their own defense for being on the field so much; this was evidenced by the Panther’s in-game drive.
The Eagles move to 0-8, and 0-4 in Sun Belt Conference play, while the Panthers of Georgia State move to 5-3, with a 4-1 Sun Belt Conference record. The Eagles play on National TV @ Appalachian State on ESPNU Thursday Nov 9 at 7:30ET. Georgia Southern’s last home football game will be played on Nov. 18 vs South Alabama at 3:00 p.m. ET. For more Eagles athletics news, check out the athletic site and their Facebook and Twitter accounts, as many GSU sports start up soon. #GATA
