
Photo by: Frank Fortune - Georgia Southern Athletics
GAME PREVIEW: Eagles Set to Open 2018 Campaign
8/27/2018 12:00:00 PM | Football
SCSU visits Paulson Stadium Saturday
The Georgia Southern football squad opens its 2018 season against South Carolina State in a non-conference match-up on Saturday, Sept. 1. Kick-off is set for 6:05 p.m. and the game will be broadcast online by ESPN+ and will be available via radio on the Georgia Southern Sports Network. Here's all you need to know about the game:
Game 1: Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018 • 6:05 PM
Location: Statesboro, Ga. (Allen E. Paulson Stadium; 25,000)
Records:
Georgia Southern: 0-0, 0-0 Sun Belt
South Carolina State: 0-0, 0-0 MEAC
Broadcast Information
Broadcast: ESPN+
PBP: Greg Talbott; Analyst: Danny Waugh
Radio: Georgia Southern Sports Network
PBP: Danny Reed; Analyst: Terry Harvin; Sidelines: Russ Brown
GS: GAME NOTES (PDF)
Inside The Series
Overall: Eighth Meeting (GS leads, 7-0) • 4-0 Home; 3-0 Away
Current Streak: GS, Won 7
Last Meeting: Nov. 27, 2010 (W, 41-16) - NCAA FCS First Round [Statesboro]
Facts Maybe Only We Find Interesting: Only four of the previous seven meetings have been in Paulson Stadium … The first game in the series came in 1985 and was played at Orangeburg's Dawson Stadium with the Eagles winning 43-30 … That game was the final regular season game in Georgia Southern's 1985 season, a season in which the Eagles went on to win their first of six NCAA Division I-AA national championships … The Eagles are 4-0 against the Bulldogs at Paulson Stadium … GS is 35-2 all-time against MEAC schools with the only two losses coming against Florida A&M … GS has won 15 straight games against MEAC opponents … GS has seven players from the state of South Carolina on its roster … New cornerbacks coach Cory Peoples coached for one season at SCSU, coming in 2016 … This is the first of three games against teams from the Palmetto State this season (Clemson, Coastal Carolina) … GS has won 20 straight games at home against non-conference opponents (including vacated wins and FCS Playoff games) dating back to a Nov. 18, 2006 overtime loss to end the season against Central Arkansas.
Countdown to Kickoff
10: GS has won 10 of its past 11 home openers and is 27-7-1 all-time in home openers, including 27-6 at Paulson Stadium.
9: This will be the just the ninth time in modern history - and the first since 2013 - that GS opens with two home games.
8: Players who scored all but eight of Georgia Southern's 29 touchdowns in 2017 are back in 2018.
7: The Eagles have won all seven previous contests played against South Carolina State.
6: Georgia Southern will have six home games for the first time since 2015.
5: This will be Georgia Southern's fifth season playing in both the FBS and Sun Belt Conference.
4: Only four of the previous seven games against South Carolina State have been played in Paulson Stadium.
3: This is the first of three games against teams from the Palmetto State this season (Clemson, Coastal Carolina).
2: Head coach Chad Lunsford hired two new coordinators in the offseason - Bob DeBesse and Scot Sloan.
1: GS has played seven teams from the Palmetto State in football and only have a losing record against one: Newberry at 4-5-1. Southern has winning records against Presbyterian, SCSU, The Citadel, Furman, Wofford and Coastal Carolina.
Game 1: Saturday, Sept. 1, 2018 • 6:05 PM
Location: Statesboro, Ga. (Allen E. Paulson Stadium; 25,000)
Records:
Georgia Southern: 0-0, 0-0 Sun Belt
South Carolina State: 0-0, 0-0 MEAC
Broadcast Information
Broadcast: ESPN+
PBP: Greg Talbott; Analyst: Danny Waugh
Radio: Georgia Southern Sports Network
PBP: Danny Reed; Analyst: Terry Harvin; Sidelines: Russ Brown
GS: GAME NOTES (PDF)
Inside The Series
Overall: Eighth Meeting (GS leads, 7-0) • 4-0 Home; 3-0 Away
Current Streak: GS, Won 7
Last Meeting: Nov. 27, 2010 (W, 41-16) - NCAA FCS First Round [Statesboro]
Facts Maybe Only We Find Interesting: Only four of the previous seven meetings have been in Paulson Stadium … The first game in the series came in 1985 and was played at Orangeburg's Dawson Stadium with the Eagles winning 43-30 … That game was the final regular season game in Georgia Southern's 1985 season, a season in which the Eagles went on to win their first of six NCAA Division I-AA national championships … The Eagles are 4-0 against the Bulldogs at Paulson Stadium … GS is 35-2 all-time against MEAC schools with the only two losses coming against Florida A&M … GS has won 15 straight games against MEAC opponents … GS has seven players from the state of South Carolina on its roster … New cornerbacks coach Cory Peoples coached for one season at SCSU, coming in 2016 … This is the first of three games against teams from the Palmetto State this season (Clemson, Coastal Carolina) … GS has won 20 straight games at home against non-conference opponents (including vacated wins and FCS Playoff games) dating back to a Nov. 18, 2006 overtime loss to end the season against Central Arkansas.
Countdown to Kickoff
10: GS has won 10 of its past 11 home openers and is 27-7-1 all-time in home openers, including 27-6 at Paulson Stadium.
9: This will be the just the ninth time in modern history - and the first since 2013 - that GS opens with two home games.
8: Players who scored all but eight of Georgia Southern's 29 touchdowns in 2017 are back in 2018.
7: The Eagles have won all seven previous contests played against South Carolina State.
6: Georgia Southern will have six home games for the first time since 2015.
5: This will be Georgia Southern's fifth season playing in both the FBS and Sun Belt Conference.
4: Only four of the previous seven games against South Carolina State have been played in Paulson Stadium.
3: This is the first of three games against teams from the Palmetto State this season (Clemson, Coastal Carolina).
2: Head coach Chad Lunsford hired two new coordinators in the offseason - Bob DeBesse and Scot Sloan.
1: GS has played seven teams from the Palmetto State in football and only have a losing record against one: Newberry at 4-5-1. Southern has winning records against Presbyterian, SCSU, The Citadel, Furman, Wofford and Coastal Carolina.
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