For the third consecutive year, Georgia Southern will be facing Arkansas State after having a bye week. However, this will be the first time the game isn’t being played on a Wednesday.

Here’s four things we already know about Saturday’s game:

Both teams have a loss to a top 5 team

The last time the Eagles took the field, it was against the No. 2 team in the country where they picked up their lone loss of the season. A week before, the Red Wolves traveled to Tuscaloosa to be on the losing end of a No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide 57-7 beatdown.

ASU’s wins have been closer than GS’, but they have also been to more respectable teams. The Red Wolves won close tests against No. 87 UNLV and No. 107 Tulsa to go with their comfortable victory over FCS Southeast Missouri.

GS is 1-2 against ASU

The two teams first met in the 1986 Division 1-AA national championship game. The 12-2 Eagles beat the Red Wolves in Tacoma, Washington 48-21 to claim back to back national champions.

Since then, the Eagles have lost the past two contests against the Red Wolves by a combined 19 points. In 2016, GS somehow let 0-4 ASU back into a game in Jonesboro where the Red Wolves had five turnovers. It was a disgrace for the Eagles and was the turning point for both teams’ seasons.

The next year in Paulson, GS let a 22-17 halftime deficit get away from them as they allowed three more wideopen touchdowns in the final 30 minutes.

This is the Sun Belt opener for both teams

GS won the Sun Belt in 2014 going 8-0 in conference games, which broke up ASU’s five consecutive conference championships. The Red Wolves have won a share of the Sun Belt title six times compared to the Eagles’ one Sun Belt title.

The Eagles are 2-2 in Sun Belt conference openers with the two losses coming to the Red Wolves who are 12-5 in conference openers since joining the Sun Belt in 2000.

GS is a four point underdog

The last time the Eagles were home underdogs was last season against South Alabama. The Jaguars were six point favorites, but GS obliterated the spread by winning 52-0.

The Eagles are also 3-0 against the spread this year, highlighted with covering the 32 point spread against Clemson by losing by 31. It was as close as a team could get, but a four point spread is a lot less to cover.

In comparison, ASU is 1-3 against the spread this year with the one win coming over Tulsa. The Red Wolves were 1.5 underdogs and won the game by nine.

Kickoff from Paulson Stadium is set for 6 p.m.

McClain Baxley, The George-Anne Sports Editor, gasports@georgiasouthern.edu