STATESBORO – Wesley Kennedy III rushed for 91 yards and two touchdowns, and the Georgia Southern defense tallied 11 tackles for loss and five sacks to lead the Eagles to a 24-17 Sun Belt Conference victory over South Alabama Thursday night in Paulson Stadium.

With Georgia Southern (4-2, 2-2) trailing 17-10 late in the third quarter, Kennedy III scored the final two touchdowns of the game on runs of 14 and 15 yards. The Eagles had to withstand a final drive from South Alabama (3-3, 2-1) as the Jags drove down to the Georgia Southern 22 with 1:07 to play. 

On 4th-and-7, Desmond Trotter threw to Jalen Tolbert in the end zone with Eagle corner Derrick Canteen on the coverage. Tolbert made the catch and got a foot down inbounds, but Canteen stayed with the play and got his hand on the ball to strip it away from Tolbert as they went out of bounds. 

Eagles of the Game: 
Justin Ellis posted three tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks, and Raymond Johnson III collected four tackles and 1.5 sacks. Shai Werts rushed for 91 yards and threw for 95, while J.D. King ran for 74 yards and a score.

Key Moments: 
After South Alabama took a seven-point lead late in the third, Werts opened the ensuing Georgia Southern drive by airing it out to Malik Murray off a double move for a 38-yard gain. That play ignited a 75-yard scoring drive, capped by a 14-yard touchdown run by Kennedy III early in the fourth.

Sacks by Benz Josue and Justin Ellis on the Jags' ensuing drive helped the Eagles flip the field and take over on the South Alabama 47-yard line. Werts started the Eagles' drive with an 18-yard keeper, and four plays later, Kennedy III took a Werts' pitch, performed some wizardry near the sideline and cut back to the middle of the field for a 15-yard touchdown run and a 24-17 cushion with 8:02 remaining.

With the scored tied 10-10 early in the third quarter, Werts was intercepted by Keith Gallmon Jr. at the GS 42-yardline, but Darion Anderson made a hustle play and stripped Gallmon Jr. as he tried to return the pick. King recovered the fumble for GS, and the Eagles were able to keep South Alabama from gaining great field position in the tightly contested game.

Stats: Georgia Southern outgained South Alabama 80-4 in the fourth quarter before the Jags' final drive. GS outrushed the Jags 82 to minus 7 in the fourth and 250-64 for the game.

Notes: The Eagles run their all-time record against South Alabama to 7-0.

Scoring Plays:
USA – Diego Guajardo 54-yard FG – 10:07, 1st – 0-3
GS – Alex Raynor 29-yard FG – 10:09, 2nd – 3-3
GS – King 13-yard run – 6:05, 2nd – 10-3
USA – Desmond Trotter 3-yard pass to Brandon Crum – 2:50, 2nd – 10-10
USA – Trotter 12-yard pass to Jalen Tolbert – 1:39, 3rd – 10-17
GS – Kennedy III 14-yard run – 12:57, 4th – 17-17
GS – Kennedy III 15-yard run – 8:02, 4th – 24-17

Up Next: The Eagles play host to Troy Saturday, Nov. 7, at 1 p.m. in Paulson Stadium. The contest will be broadcast on ESPN3.