With help from the GS defense and disciplined ball control from the offense, the Eagles secured their third conference win against James Madison.

1st Half: Despite committing two turnovers in the first quarter, the Eagles’ defense held the Bulldogs scoreless during that period and recorded the first touchdown of the game on a 29-yard run by David Mbadinga, followed by a successful kick from Gavin Stewart.

Fans remained on their feet for nearly the entire first half as GS maintained their lead, scoring two additional touchdowns late in the second quarter. The first came from Derwin Burgess Jr. on a 5-yard pass from JC French, followed by a 15-yard touchdown pass from French to Tyler Fromm.

The Eagles led 21-0 at halftime, where the 2024 Georgia Southern Homecoming King and Queen were announced.

Homecoming Queen: Sarah Beth Bowen from the Epsilon Pi Chapter of Alpha Delta Pi
Homecoming King: Peyton Lewis from the Kappa Zeta Chapter of Kappa Sigma

The Homecoming Dutch and Duchess were announced last Thursday:
Homecoming Duchess: Reilly Dixon from the Delta Lambda Chapter of Kappa Delta
Homecoming Dutch: Bennett Waters from the Eta Zeta Chapter of Sigma Chi

2nd Half: Entering the third quarter, James Madison finally scored their first touchdown, cutting into the Eagles’ 21-point lead with an 11-yard interception return, making the score 21-7. The Eagles responded by extending their lead once again with a short pass from French to Elijah Walton.

As the final quarter began, JMU scored their second and final touchdown of the game, but the Eagles emerged victorious in their homecoming matchup, winning 28-14.

“I can’t say enough about the defensive front. We talked about how we needed to stop the run on early first and second downs,” said head coach Clay Helton. “First down efficiency and second down efficiency were key in this game.”

The Eagles will face off against Old Dominion this Thursday at 7 PM; the game can be streamed on ESPN2.