On Saturday, Georgia State dropped to 0-6 in its homecoming game, losing to 35-28 to Troy (4-3).
However, the Panthers gave the Trojans all they could handle in Georgia State’s first ever Sun Belt Conference game.
Though we did not come away with a win, players and coaches alike can be confident that they competed well against a stout Sun Belt team like Troy.
Head Coach Trent Miles said, “I thought our team battled. I thought our team proved we belong in this conference.”
Miles pointed out that Georgia State was a FCS team a year ago that won only one game.
This year, however, the Panthers are an FBS team that took an established Sun Belt program down to the final minutes of the game.
“My hat’s off to Troy and to Coach Blakeney. He’s the dean of coaches in this conference…they’re an excellent football team,” Miles said.
Miles also said that while he was not happy with the result of the game, he was happy with his team’s performance.
Panthers quarterback Ronnie Bell finished the game with 22 of 50 with 370 yards, tying a school record of most touchdowns in a game with four touchdowns.
“Coming from the FCS, this gives us a lot of confidence. Coming to D-1 ball everybody’s talented,” Bell said. “We fought all four quarters, just the last five minutes of the game the tables turned,”
Bell was able to hook up on several big plays with wide receivers Albert Wilson and Robert Davis, a true freshman.
Wilson ended the game with 153 yards and two touchdowns on seven receptions.
He also had two long kick returns, one that went for 71 yards and one for 48 yards.
However, the Panthers were driving late in the fourth quarter when Bell threw an interception with 3:46 left, which was Georgia State’s only turnover of the game.
Troy capitalized shortly after with a game-winning 54 yard touchdown pass.
Meanwhile, Georgia State’s defense and special teams started out strong in the second half.
Linebacker Tarris Batiste recovered a fumble on the first play of the third quarter, which set up an 8 yard touchdown pass to Wilson at 12:29.
Linebacker Jarrell Robinson got an interception on the seventh play of the next drive.
However, Georgia State was unable to capitalize on that mistake.
After another successful defensive series, senior corner Demarius Matthews blocked a trojan punt, giving the panthers possession on Troy’s 31 yard line.
Matthews said, “I got a good jump on the ball… and I was able to get to the punter. I got the block and the offense was able to get down and score.”
On the very next play, Bell connected with Davis for the 31-yard touchdown strike, giving Georgia State a 21-14 lead with 7:09 left in the third quarter.
Throughout the game our defense stopped the Trojans twice on fourth down, and nabbed two interceptions and a fumble recovery.
But ultimately, it gave up over 600 yards of offense.
Troy’s time of possession was 34:03, almost ten minutes longer than Georgia State, and they ran over 100 plays. Having to be on the field for 100 plays left some defensive players winded.
Coach Miles said, “Well they ran 102 plays, and we ran 76…anytime you go that long, guys get a little tired… and it affects the play calling.”
Troy’s fast paced offense allowed them to wear down Georgia State with the running game.
The Trojans ended up with 249 rushing yards while the panthers gained only 52 yards on 26 rushes.
Miles said that while some parts of the defense may have gotten tired, sometimes they had to defend Troy’s run, and the Trojans ended up with a big pass.
“Part of it also is that you have to give Troy credit…they played very well,” Miles said.
Trojan quarterback Corey Robinson was able to get 350 yards and three touchdowns through the air, often looking for wide receiver Chris Williams.
Williams ended up with 152 yards on only four receptions, and he scored the game winning touchdown.
Another problem for Georgia State was that offensive line had some trouble keeping Troy out of the backfield. The Trojans racked up four sacks and two tackles for loss in the first half alone.
The Panthers’ offensive line was plagued with injuries throughout the game.
Starters Cade Yates, Ulrick John and Tim Wynn had to leave the game because of injuries.
Bell said, “A lot of guys went down on the offensive line, and a lot of backups were in but they got to be ready when the time comes.”
Miles pointed out that Georgia State played 15 true freshman, and was proud of how well they all played.
“Other than the loss, I’m not taking anything negative away from this. I mean, we’ve proven something today,” Miles said. “Don’t ever underestimate our disappointment with losing. We hate to lose…but we made big steps today.”
