Football | 4/18/2015 5:20:00 PM
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2015 ScheduleSTATESBORO, Ga. – The Georgia Southern defense picked off two passes and recorded three sacks in the 30-play live portion of the Blue vs. White Football Spring Game Saturday afternoon at Paulson Stadium.
Steve Williams and
Zander Yost had the interceptions, while
Jamal Johnson recorded 1.5 sacks and
Chris DeLaRosa logged a sack. Darius Sapp was also in on a couple of tackles for loss.
It was either great defense or poor play calling as honorary coaches Leonard Bevill and school president Dr. Brooks Keel took turns calling plays for the offense. Each coach got to alternate calling five consecutive plays, and points were awarded for scores and plays over four yards, while points were subtracted for negative plays.
Keel had a nice comeback for a 6 to minus-1 win as Bevill called six straight plays that wound up getting negative yardage after opening a 4-1 early lead. Neither honorary coach called a play that went for a touchdown, and it's safe to say that neither should quit his day job.
Vegas Harley led the Eagle offense, rushing for 45 yards on eight carries and connecting with
Kameron Maye for a 28-yard completion.
"He's explosive, and he makes decisive decisions," said Georgia Southern coach
Willie Fritz. "He puts his foot in the ground, and boom, he takes off. I thought he did a good job."
Quarterbacks
Kevin Ellison and
Favian Upshaw and running backs
Matt Breida and
Alfred Ramsby did not participate in the live portion of the scrimmage on the decision of Fritz and his staff. Fritz said at the beginning of the spring that in an effort to keep them healthy, the group would not see live action during the 15 spring practice sessions.
They did compete in the non-live, situational segment of the spring game and looked good doing it. Upshaw tossed touchdown passes to
Montay Crockett,
Myles Campbell and
Thomas Banks, while Ellison connected with
Derek Keaton and
Jeff Ward for TD strikes.
"We just feel like we're throwing the ball better," said Fritz. "Technically, the guys are better. They are throwing the ball with spirals, and they have been more accurate. I think we're just a better passing team, and that's been a big-time point of emphasis for us this spring."
The Eagles do have one practice session left from their allotment for the spring, and Fritz said the Eagles will try to practice Monday in just helmets.
Following Monday, the countdown to fall camp begins.
Notes: The Smokin' Eagles won the second annual Tailgate Cook-Off… Members of the staff received their 2014 Sun Belt Championship rings from the Eagle football team before the action on the field began… The team received their rings after the game… Georgia Southern presented a check for over $5,776 to the Lone Survivor Foundation as part of the Military Appreciation Day game against Savannah State last season; the football team, GSU Bookstore and adidas partnered together to raise the money… Robert Rush won the drawing for the free UniFlame Gas Grill, courtesy of the Sun Belt Conference.
Season TicketsFootball season tickets for the 2015 campaign are on sale now, and fans can purchase them as well as parking by calling 1-800-GSU-WINS or by visiting the ticket office in the Cowart Building adjacent to Paulson Stadium (203 Lanier Drive). Ticket office hours are Monday-Friday from 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Season tickets and parking can also be purchased at the Coaches' Caravan events beginning April 21 in Emanuel County - VISA, MasterCard, AmEx and cash are accepted. Online sales for new season tickets and new parking begin May 1.
Despite six home games in 2015 compared to five in 2014, season ticket prices have stayed the same, and a majority of required annual donations to the Georgia Southern Athletic Foundation in order to purchase season tickets remain the same as well. Season tickets prices start as low as $75 for all six games, and seats that do not require a donation are available from $135-145 per seat.
Coaches CaravansGeorgia Southern Athletics will make 12 stops on its Coaches Caravan Tour this spring. To register, contact
Sally Scott at 912-478-5520 or swscott@georgiasouthern.edu.
Hear from Athletic Director
Tom Kleinlein, head football coach
Willie Fritz and a number of other coaches at a caravan stop near you. The first stop on the tour will be April 21, in Swainsboro.
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. Eagle fans can follow Coach
Willie Fritz's twitter account @CoachWEFritz. For tickets, call 1-800-GSU-WINS or visit GSEagles.com/tickets.
