Saturday, October 11
Statesboro, GA
6 p.m.
Georgia Southern University
vs
Idaho
Georgia Southern Gameday vs. Idaho -- October 11
10/4/2014 2:37:00 PM | Football
Alumni and Fans return to Statesboro for Homecoming & Hall of Fame Weekend
 |  |
[2014 Eagle Football Schedule] [2014 Eagle Football News] [2014 Eagle Football Roster] [Head Coach Willie Fritz] [Coaching Staff]
PAULSON STADIUM PARKING & GATE INFORMATION [Game Day at Paulson]
STUDENT INFORMATION: [STUDENT ENTRY WITH ID] [STUDENT TAILGATE ZONE]
Arrive in your seats by 5:30 p.m. to enjoy the pre-game ceremony to honor the Georgia Southern Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2014.
GAME INFORMATION
Idaho (Sun Belt) at Georgia Southern (Sun Belt)
Site: Paulson Stadium, Statesboro, Georgia (capacity 25,000)
Date/Time: Saturday, October 11 // 6 p.m. ET
Tickets: Order tickets on line at GSEagles.com/fbtix, email tickets@georgiasouthern.edu or call 1-800-GSU-WINS
TV: ESPN3
Talent: Drew Fellios (pbp) and Forrest Conoly (analyst)
Radio: Georgia Southern Radio Network
Radio Flagship/Local: 103.7 FM & 102.1 WZAT
Georgia Southern Radio Network Affiliates
Audio Streaming: GSEagles.com
Radio Talent: Chris Blair (pbp); Terry Harvin '91 (analyst); Ryan Chambers (sideline)
Live Stats: GSEagles.com
Social Media: Twitter @GSAthletics_FB // Facebook.com/GSAthletics
Gameday Gear: Georgia Southern adidas Fan Zone // Shop Georgia Southern
PROMOTIONS
HOMECOMING WEEK
ATHLETICS HALL OF FAME
TEAM INFORMATION
Coaches: Idaho Coach Paul Petrino (1-16, 2nd year) / Coach Willie Fritz (180-69-1, 22nd year)
Statistics: Idaho // Georgia Southern
Rosters: Idaho // Georgia Southern
Media Guides: Idaho // Georgia Southern
Game Notes: Idaho // Georgia Southern
Conference Release: Sun Belt
SERIES INFORMATION
All-Time Series: Georgia Southern leads the all-time series 1-0
Last Time Out: The Eagles topped the Vandals 28-27 on Dec. 1, 1990 in the NCAA Division I playoffs en route to their fourth I-AA National Championship.
HASHTAG TRUE BLUE
Eagle fans are encouraged to use the following #hashtags on social media when watching and listening to their Eagles play this season:
#VANQUISHTHEVANDALS
#PACKPAULSON
#JOINTHEJOURNEY
#TRUEBLUE
#HAILSOUTHERN
#EAGLENATION
#GATA
INSIDE GEORGIA SOUTHERN FOOTBALL WITH WILLIE FRITZ –THIS THURSDAY NIGHT
The next edition of the weekly radio show "Inside Georgia Southern Football" with Coach Willie Fritz will air Thursday, October 8th from 7-8 p.m. Eastern Time from Big Show's Bar and Burgers on Lanier Drive across from Paulson Stadium. "Voice of the Eagles" Chris Blair and Coach Fritz will preview Georgia Southern's South Alabama game, discuss last Saturday's game vs, Georgia Tech and answer questions from the Eagle Nation. Fans can call 1-855-478-4040 or tweet to @GaSouthernRadio.com. The broadcast will be aired on affiliates of the Georgia Southern Radio Network with on-demand listening available on GSEagles.com.
LISTEN TO THE GAME ONLINE
An audio broadcast of Saturday's game vs. Idaho is available as part of GS All-Access on GSEagles.com with packages varying from a day to a full year. A single-day pass is $5.95 and content can be accessed on all Windows, OSX, iOS and Android devices. Eagle Football fans can catch all the action, as well as pre-game and post-game shows on the Georgia Southern Radio Network. The pre-game show begins two hours before kickoff with the complete listing of affiliates is available in the link above.
QUICK HITS
Both Georgia Southern and Idaho are in their first seasons as Sun Belt Conference members… The Eagles have 298 modern era program wins... Coach Fritz marked his 250th game as a head coach against New Mexico State Saturday and now has 180 total wins with a 72.2 winning percentage... Georgia Southern is 26-6 on Homecoming and has won its last four straight Homecoming games... This is the earliest Homecoming date for the Eagles since 2002 (W over VMI on Oct. 5)... The Eagles will wear their "Traditions" alternate uniforms Saturday, featuring an adidas lead-colored jersey textured across the shoulders and chest, with white numerals outlined in dark blue, paired with gray pants and gray socks... In games where alternate jerseys were worn, the Eagles are 2-0... Georgia Southern Defensive Line Coach Kevin Peoples and Coach Paul Petrino are both graduates of Carroll College, played for Coach Bob Petrino, Sr., and are from Butte, Mont.... A statistical adjustment from the New Mexico State game tipped the Eagles' total offense average to more than 500 yards per game, 500.5 to be exact... The Eagles are 3-0 in games played on October 11th... Prior to today's game, the Georgia Southern Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2014 will be inducted with three having football connections: supporter Wayne Murphy, Assistant Coach Patrick Spurgeon and cornerback Nay Young selected for inclusion for the biennial honors... Women's Soccer player Lindsey Grossman Blom, SoCon Female Athlete of the Year and three-time All-SoCon Volleyball selection Martina Veiglova-Mamuti and three-time Gymnastics All-American Danny Warbutton also will be inducted Saturday.
THE COACHES
Georgia Southern Head Coach Willie Fritz began his 22nd year as a head coach and his first as the leader of the Eagle Football program as it makes its FBS debut in 2014. The Shawnee Mission, Kansas, native has developed winning programs and cultivated success at each of his head coaching stops. He won two national championships at Blinn College, guided Central Missouri to 11 winning seasons and led Sam Houston State to back-to-back national championship appearances. He was selected as the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year at the FCS level in 2012 and was recognized nationally in 2011 as the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Coach of the Year. His 97-47 mark in 13 seasons as the Mules' head coach ranked Fritz as the winningest coach in the program's 118-year history where he was the only coach to ever win seven or more games in eight consecutive seasons.
Paul Petrino returned to the Idaho program where his coaching career started. The Butte, Mont., native guides the Vandal program into its first season in the Sun Belt after spending the 2013 season as an FBS Independent. The son of legendary coach Bob Petrino, Sr., both he and his brother Bobby, the head coach at Louisville, followed in their father's footsteps. Petrino played for his dad at Carroll College and spent 23 years as an assistant coach with stops at Utah State, Louisville, Illinois, Southern Mississippi, Arkansas, including a stint with the NFL's Atlanta Falcons. Now in his second season in Moscow, Idaho, Petrino took the Vandals against a schedule in 2013 that featured not only the eventual national champion, but a total of seven bowl teams, which included four teams that, at one time or another, were ranked among the nation's top 25.
THE IDAHO-GEORGIA SOUTHERN SERIES
Georgia Southern leads the all-time series 1-0 as the two teams have met only once previously, a 28-27 Eagle win on on Dec. 1, 1990 in the NCAA Division I playoffs en route to their fourth I-AA National Championship. Middle linebacker Eugene Hayes' recovery of a Vandal fumble at the Eagle 23-yard line halted a possible game-winning drive and the Eagles escaped with the one-point win, the smallest margin of victory for Georgia Southern in a postseason game.
30 YEARS OF PAULSON STADIUM
Georgia Southern leads the all-time series 1-0 as the two teams have met only once previously, a 28-27 Eagle win on on Dec. 1, 1990 in the NCAA Division I playoffs en route to their fourth I-AA National Championship. Middle linebacker Eugene Hayes' recovery of a Vandal fumble at the Eagle 23-yard line halted a possible game-winning drive and the Eagles escaped with the one-point win, the smallest margin of victory for Georgia Southern in a postseason game.
30 YEARS OF PAULSON STADIUM
The dedication of Allen E. Paulson Stadium on September 29, 1984 was a fitting end to years of planning and hard work as the Georgia Southern Football program built one of the finest football facilities in America. Thirty years later, there have been major changes with the recent construction of a new mid-deck, adding more than 6,000 additional seats and a new 50,000-square foot Football Operations Center in the east endzone. The $10 million Stadium expansion project is student-fee funded with private donations making possible the Eagle Football team's new headquarters.
One thing hasn't changed – winning. Georgia Southern has a remarkable 178-33 home record (84.4 winning percentage), ranked third in the nation, at Paulson Stadium and has won 91.7 percent of its postseason games (33-3).
ALL OR NONE
In three of the last four games, Georgia Southern has been a perfect 100 percent in fourth-down conversions, going 2-2 against both New Mexico State and Appalachian State and 1-1 at Georgia Tech. The Eagles did not have fourth-down situations in either the Savannah State or South Alabama games and are 5-6 overall (83.3 percent) for the season, a percentage that would tie for 10th in the national rankings.
STILL NUMBER ONE
With a second-straight game with 400 or more yards rushing, the Eagles maintained the best per-game rushing average in the nation. Georgia Southern's 419 yards against New Mexico State bumped the team average to 375.8 yards per game.
SEVEN GAMES IN THE STATE OF GEORGIA
The Eagles' seven games in the state of Georgia included three in the month of September for a 2-1 mark Georgia Southern picked up two wins at Paulson Stadium with loss coming at the hands of Georgia Tech in the first of two games this season in Atlanta. In October, the Eagles' welcome today's opponent Idaho for homecoming and then head to the Georgia Dome to play Georgia State. A second Thursday night home TV game, on October 30th, Halloween eve, brings Troy to town. Georgia Southern's season finale, against ULM, is senior night and set for November 29th.
EXPERIENCED COACHING STAFF
With 182 years of combined full-time coaching experience, this Georgia Southern coaching staff is the most experienced in the history of the program. Fritz and both his coordinators, Jack Curtis (Defense) and Doug Ruse (Offense), have more than two decades on the sidelines.
SAVING THE BEST FOR LAST
While Georgia Southern fans were eagerly anticipating the first game at the newly expanded Allen E. Paulson Stadium, Patrick Yarber had already made plans for today's game against Idaho. He became the first fan known to have attended games at all 125 FBS Stadiums, ending his list with a trip to Idaho's Kibbie Dome last fall. With Appalachian State, Old Dominion, and Georgia Southern all moving up for their first season in FBS this year, Yarber had to plan some additional trips.
Yarber completes his tour of the now-128 FBS stadiums in Statesboro at Georgia Southern's homecoming game today.
"I started in 1979. Last year marked the first time I got caught up," he said. "I realized at the Idaho game I had visited all 125 of the FBS stadiums. This year I had to add three more, which brings my total to 128. It's been such a blast everywhere I've been. I have met so many nice people along the way."
Yarber has made his journeys to these pigskin palaces over the last 35 years, starting with a Vanderbilt game in his hometown of Nashville, Tenn. He's traveled on more than 1,100 flights to see collegiate contests from coast-to-coast, with a mind crammed with details, facts and figures. He tells people he never leaves a game early because he doesn't know if it will be the last one he sees, and he means it literally.
Retinitis pigmentosa caused gradual loss to Yarber's peripheral vision beginning at the age of eight and, more recently, macular degeneration, has stolen his central vision. Legally blind, only about 20 percent of his sight remains. He uses binoculars to offset his "gun-barrel" vision and zero in on the plays and enjoys seeing the handoff between the quarterback and running backs. Yarber's vision loss has not dimmed his love for college football one bit.
"You don't need to see the game to enjoy it," Yarber stated. "I enjoy the game atmosphere. There's nothing like sitting in the stadium on a cool fall afternoon. I enjoy the tailgating, the band, the cheerleaders, the anticipation to do well, the excitement, and the gala atmosphere. I like a good game, being with the people, and having a good time."
There's one thing for sure, even though Yarber may miss some of the sights of Paulson Stadium, he won't miss any of the pride and pageantry of Eagle Nation.
One thing hasn't changed – winning. Georgia Southern has a remarkable 178-33 home record (84.4 winning percentage), ranked third in the nation, at Paulson Stadium and has won 91.7 percent of its postseason games (33-3).
ALL OR NONE
In three of the last four games, Georgia Southern has been a perfect 100 percent in fourth-down conversions, going 2-2 against both New Mexico State and Appalachian State and 1-1 at Georgia Tech. The Eagles did not have fourth-down situations in either the Savannah State or South Alabama games and are 5-6 overall (83.3 percent) for the season, a percentage that would tie for 10th in the national rankings.
STILL NUMBER ONE
With a second-straight game with 400 or more yards rushing, the Eagles maintained the best per-game rushing average in the nation. Georgia Southern's 419 yards against New Mexico State bumped the team average to 375.8 yards per game.
SEVEN GAMES IN THE STATE OF GEORGIA
The Eagles' seven games in the state of Georgia included three in the month of September for a 2-1 mark Georgia Southern picked up two wins at Paulson Stadium with loss coming at the hands of Georgia Tech in the first of two games this season in Atlanta. In October, the Eagles' welcome today's opponent Idaho for homecoming and then head to the Georgia Dome to play Georgia State. A second Thursday night home TV game, on October 30th, Halloween eve, brings Troy to town. Georgia Southern's season finale, against ULM, is senior night and set for November 29th.
EXPERIENCED COACHING STAFF
With 182 years of combined full-time coaching experience, this Georgia Southern coaching staff is the most experienced in the history of the program. Fritz and both his coordinators, Jack Curtis (Defense) and Doug Ruse (Offense), have more than two decades on the sidelines.
SAVING THE BEST FOR LAST
While Georgia Southern fans were eagerly anticipating the first game at the newly expanded Allen E. Paulson Stadium, Patrick Yarber had already made plans for today's game against Idaho. He became the first fan known to have attended games at all 125 FBS Stadiums, ending his list with a trip to Idaho's Kibbie Dome last fall. With Appalachian State, Old Dominion, and Georgia Southern all moving up for their first season in FBS this year, Yarber had to plan some additional trips.
Yarber completes his tour of the now-128 FBS stadiums in Statesboro at Georgia Southern's homecoming game today.
"I started in 1979. Last year marked the first time I got caught up," he said. "I realized at the Idaho game I had visited all 125 of the FBS stadiums. This year I had to add three more, which brings my total to 128. It's been such a blast everywhere I've been. I have met so many nice people along the way."
Yarber has made his journeys to these pigskin palaces over the last 35 years, starting with a Vanderbilt game in his hometown of Nashville, Tenn. He's traveled on more than 1,100 flights to see collegiate contests from coast-to-coast, with a mind crammed with details, facts and figures. He tells people he never leaves a game early because he doesn't know if it will be the last one he sees, and he means it literally.
Retinitis pigmentosa caused gradual loss to Yarber's peripheral vision beginning at the age of eight and, more recently, macular degeneration, has stolen his central vision. Legally blind, only about 20 percent of his sight remains. He uses binoculars to offset his "gun-barrel" vision and zero in on the plays and enjoys seeing the handoff between the quarterback and running backs. Yarber's vision loss has not dimmed his love for college football one bit.
"You don't need to see the game to enjoy it," Yarber stated. "I enjoy the game atmosphere. There's nothing like sitting in the stadium on a cool fall afternoon. I enjoy the tailgating, the band, the cheerleaders, the anticipation to do well, the excitement, and the gala atmosphere. I like a good game, being with the people, and having a good time."
There's one thing for sure, even though Yarber may miss some of the sights of Paulson Stadium, he won't miss any of the pride and pageantry of Eagle Nation.
Georgia Southern Athletics provides up-to-date information on all its sports through its official website, GSEagles.com, through social media channels facebook.com/GSAthletics, twitter.com/GSAthletics, iOS app Georgia Southern Eagles and Android app Eagles GATA.
Getting to know Kayla Cleaveland
Wednesday, February 04
The GATA Zone - Softball
Tuesday, February 03
Message from Athletic Director Chris Davis: Only For Southern 2026
Monday, February 02
The GATA Zone - Tennis
Thursday, January 15
