Georgia Southern Races Past Arkansas State 59-33

Saturday, October 2

Statesboro, GA

4:00 PM

Georgia Southern University

2-3 , 1-1

Arkansas State

1-4 , 0-1

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Arkansas St.

Georgia Southern

J.D. King ran for one of the Eagles' seven rushing touchdowns on the day.

10/2/2021 7:52:00 PM | Football

Box Score 2021 Football Season Presented by Morris Bank

The Eagles run for a season high 503 yards and score 35 straight points in the victory.

STATESBORO – Logan Wright ran 10 times for 208 yards and two touchdowns, and Georgia Southern rushed for 503 yards and seven touchdowns as the Eagles downed Arkansas State 59-33 for their first Sun Belt football win of the season Saturday afternoon in Paulson Stadium.

Eagles of the Game:
Jalen White had 14 carries for 157 yards and two touchdowns, and J.D. King ran 11 times for 85 yards and a touchdown. Justin Tomlin and Gerald Green both ran for touchdowns. The Georgia Southern defense intercepted four passes and recorded six sacks. Quin Williams, Tyrell Davis, Eldrick Robinson II and Najee Thompson had interceptions, and Williams returned his 22 yards for a touchdown.

Key Moments:
Trailing 19-17 late in the first half, the Eagles scored 14 points in 1:32 of game time. Wright rushed for a 41-yard touchdown, and then Robinson II picked off a James Blackman pass and returned it 31 yards to the Red Wolves' 32-yard line. Three plays later, King ran for a 12-yard score, and Georgia Southern led 31-19 at halftime.

The Eagles got the ball to start the second half and scored on their first possession. King's 34-yard gain on the ground set up a 6-yard touchdown run by Tomlin. Williams extended the margin with a pick-6 with 5:08 left in the third quarter as he intercepted Blackman along the sideline and rumbled 22 yards for a score and a 45-19 Georgia Southern lead.

Leading 17-10 in the second quarter, Georgia Southern was forced to punt from deep in its own end zone, but Anthony Beck II's kick deflected off the back of teammate C.J. Wright and through the back of the end zone for a safety.

Arkansas State (1-4, 0-1) got the ball at its own 47-yard line for the ensuing drive and benefited from a pass interference call on 3rd-and-6 before Blackman hit Corey Rucker for a 19-yard touchdown pass in the corner of the end zone. The PAT gave the Red Wolves a 19-17 lead, its first of the game.

On their first possession of the game, the Eagles (2-3, 1-1) set the tone, opting to go for it on 4th-and-1 from their own 29-yard line, and King came through with a 1-yard run. Four plays later, Wright took the handoff and went up the middle for a 59-yard touchdown run, his longest rush of the season.

Key Stats:
The Eagles recorded their first four takeaways of the season and scored 13 points off of the miscues, including a pick-6.

Notes:
- It was the most points Georgia Southern has scored since a 69-31 win at Georgia State in 2014.
- Wright became the first Eagle to run for 200-plus yards since Matt Breida ran for 205 against Texas State in 2015.
- The last time the Eagles scored 30-plus points in the first half was in 2017 when the Eagles scored 35 vs. South Alabama in Paulson Stadium.
- After getting outscored 55-0 in the third quarter by its opponents in its first four games, Georgia Southern outscored Arkansas State 14-0 today.

Scoring Plays:
GS – 1st, 06:32 – Logan Wright 59 yd rush (PAT good), 7-0
ASU – 1st, 03:25 – Blake Grupe 31 yd field goal, 7-3
GS – 1st, 01:03 – Alex Raynor 25 yd field goal, 10-3
ASU – 2nd, 13:21 – Corey Rucker 2 yd pass from James Blackman (PAT good), 10-10
GS – 2nd, 09:41 – Gerald Green 23 yd rush (PAT good), 17-10
ASU – 2nd, 06:41 – Safety, 17-12
ASU – 2nd, 04:38 – Rucker 19-yd pass from Blackman (PAT good), 17-19
GS – 2nd, 03:32 – Wright 41-yd rush (PAT good), 24-19
GS – 2nd, 02:00 – J.D. King 5-yd rush (PAT good), 31-19
GS – 3rd, 10:54 – Justin Tomlin 6-yd rush (PAT good), 38-19
GS – 3rd, 05:08 – Quin Williams 22-yd INT (PAT good), 45-19
GS – 4th, 14:47 – Jalen White 59-yd rush (PAT good), 52-19
ASU – 4th, 11:59 – Dahu Green 16-yd pass from Layne Hatcher (PAT good), 52-26
ASU – 4th, 09:13 – Lincoln Pare 13-yd pass from Hatcher (PAT good), 52-33
GS – 4th, 09:03 – White 47-yd rush (PAT good), 59-33

Next Up:
The Eagles open a two-game road stretch at Troy next Saturday. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ET on ESPN+.