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STATESBORO - Georgia Southern University and head football coach Chad Lunsford have reached an agreement in principle to a re-working and extension of the coaching contract that will keep Lunsford in Statesboro through 2023, pending approval from the Board of Regents.

"I am very thankful for the opportunity and this platform at Georgia Southern," Lunsford said. "God has blessed my family and I'm honored to represent Georgia Southern University. Being the head football coach at Georgia Southern is something that I don't take lightly and look forward to continuing to work to help our team and university go from good to great. It's a dream to work with a program that has so much tradition and a fan base with so much passion. Tippy and I are so thankful to President Nickel and Athletic Director Tom Kleinlein for believing in the direction we are moving with this football program and we are so thankful for this contract extension. I'm so fortunate to have a great staff and awesome players around me and I can't wait to work with them for years to come. Hail Southern and No Place Else!"

In his first full season as the head coach, Lunsford was the architect of the biggest turnaround in the FBS, leading the Eagles from two wins in 2017 to a 10-3 mark and a Raycom Media Camellia Bowl victory in 2018. The Eagles finished the season receiving votes in both the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches Poll, both firsts for the program.

"This football team, led by Coach Lunsford and his staff, had incredible success this season," athletics director Tom Kleinlein said. "It was important that we continue to build on the success of this team by maintaining the current leadership of the program. I want to thank President Nickel and the Athletic Foundation for their hard work in assisting me throughout this process and I look forward to more continued success as Coach Lunsford builds on the success of 2018."

Under this agreement, the contracts of Lunsford, the 10 assistant coaches and several support staff members were re-worked to increase the salaries and restructure the incentive packages. In addition, a one-year extension was added to Lunsford's deal. The funds for these raises and bonuses come from external sources, mainly the contributions from donors to the Coaches' Continuity Fund set up through the Georgia Southern Athletic Foundation.

Financial terms of the agreement will be disclosed upon approval.
 

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About the Coaches' Continuity Fund
Generous donors have committed to supporting Georgia Southern University Athletics' coaches and student-athletes. The family, who wishes to remain anonymous, has challenged all of Eagle Nation to contribute to the sustainability of the Foundation and will match up to $750,000 in gifts made to the Coaches' Continuity Fund or any scholarship endowment that supports Georgia Southern student-athletes who play in one of the University's 17 Division-I varsity programs. The progress of the Matching Gift Challenge can be tracked here as the Foundation continues to accept donations until the goal is met.