Tra Barnett
Rich Von Biberstein

Football

Panthers Host South Alabama for Senior Day

GEORGIA STATE (6-4, 3-3) vs. SOUTH ALABAMA (1-9, 0-6)
Saturday, Nov. 23  |  2 p.m.  | Georgia State Stadium


TV: ESPN+. Announcers are Matt Stewart and Wayne Gandy.

RADIO: Georgia State Radio Network coverage will air on 92.9 The Game and WRAS 88.5 FM. Dave Cohen is in his 37th season as the play-by-play voice of Panther athletics. Harper LeBel joins him from the booth with Sam Crenshaw on the sideline. 

2019 RECORDS:
Georgia State: 6-4, 3-3 Sun Belt
South Alabama: 1-9, 0-6 Sun Belt 

SERIES: South Alabama leads 4-3

LAST MEETING: GSU 21, South Alabama 13, Oct. 26, 2017 at Georgia State Stadium

GSU HEAD COACH SHAWN ELLIOTT
Record at GSU:    15-19 (3rd year) / Career Record: 16-24 (4th year)

THE KICKOFF: 
Georgia State hosts its final home game of 2019 as South Alabama visits Georgia State Stadium for a 2 p.m. game on Senior Day.

> Last time out, Georgia State held a 21-7 lead on No. 24 Appalachian State in the first half before the Mountaineers scored two quick touchdowns just before the half and then pulled away for a 56-27 victory.

"Dan Ellington, our quarterback, was out there playing on sheer guts, trying to will his team to win against a great football team [against Appalachian State]," head coach Shawn Elliott said. "That young man is just remarkable. 

"We've got a football team that plays with great heart and great effort, and we're looking forward to hosting a much-improved South Alabama team in our house on Senior Day."

> Georgia State's offense ranks among the FBS leaders:
No. 7 Rushing (265.8 ypg)
No. 18 Total Offense (468.9 ypg)
No. 24 Scoring (35.1 ppg)
No. 11 3rd Down Conversions (49.4 percent)
No. 16 First Downs (247)

> Senior Tra Barnett leads the Sun Belt and ranks No. 7 in FBS with 120.8 yards rushing per game. His 1,208 yards and 10 touchdowns are GSU records, and he is the Panthers' first 1,000-yard rusher.

> With a school-record 242 yards rushing and two touchdowns vs. Troy, Barnett broke the Georgia State records for rushing yards in a game, season and career in the same game. 

> Barnett is Georgia State's career leader in rushing yards (1,911) and rushing touchdowns (17).

> A two-time Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Week and a member of the Watch List for the Manning Award, QB Dan Ellington averages 249.7 yards of total offense per game (1,901 passing/596 rushing) and has accounted for 24 touchdowns (19 passing/5 rushing). His 19 TD passes are secodn in the Sun Belt.

> The Panthers' top receivers are sophomore Cornelius McCoy (51 receptions, 537 yards, 4 TD) and redshirt freshman Sam Pinckney (36 receptions, 460 yards, 5 TD). 

> Tight end Aubry Payne has caught six touchdowns in nine games.

> The Panthers have rushed for 1,827 yards over the last six games (304.5 ypg), including 340 yards vs. Arkansas State, 350 vs. Coastal Carolina, 390 yards vs. Troy and a school-record 414 yards at ULM.

> Georgia State, which began playing football in 2010 and moved to FBS in 2014, is bowl eligible for the third time in five seasons. The Panthers played in their first bowl game in 2015 in the AutoNation Cure Bowl and then made a return trip to the Orlando, Fla., bowl in 2017, when GSU knocked off Western Kentucky for the first bowl win in school history.

> Georgia State has already broken several season records:
Points (351)
Touchdowns (46)
Rushing Yards (2,658)
Rushing TDs (26)

> Four different Panthers have recorded 100-yard games: RB Tra Barnett (6), RB Seth Paige (2), RB Destin Coates (1) and QB Dan Ellington (1).
> GSU set school records with 722 yards of total offense, 340 yards rushing (since broken twice), 39 first downs and 39:19 time of possession in its Oct. 5 win 52-38 win over Arkansas State.

> Senior defensive end Terry Thomas was named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District® football team for the second straight year. The biological science major maintains a 3.4 GPA.

> Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Brad Glenn, who has directed the Panthers' record-setting offense in his first season on the GSU staff, is among the 41 nominees for the Broyles Award as the nation's top assistant coach.

SENIOR DAY: Nineteen Panthers will be honored before their final game at Georgia State Stadium on Senior Day:
    
CB Khai Anderson, LT Hunter Atkinson, RB Tra Barnett, PK Barry Brown, S Trey Chapman, LB Ed Curney, TE Bryson Duckworth, QB Dan Ellington, WR Devin Gentry, LB Kendrec Grady, P Oliver Holdenson, CB Ben Hood, TE Camrin Knight, S Remy Lazarus, OL Chris Sibilia, RB Darius Stubbs, DE Terry Thomas, DE Jalen Wade, P Brandon Wright.
    
This class brought Georgia State its first bowl victory in 2017 and bowl eligibility again in 2019, while four fifth-year seniors (Anderson, Atkinson, Curney and Wright) were part of the Panthers' first bowl team in 2015, although none played in the game.

SERIES VS. SOUTH ALABAMA: South Alabama holds a 4-3 lead in the series, but the Panthers have won the last two games in Atlanta with a 21-13 victory on Oct. 26, 2017 in a Thursday night game at Georgia State Stadium and a 24-10 win in 2015 at the Georgia Dome.  
> GSU is 3-1 against the Jaguars in Atlanta.
> Five of the seven meetings have been decided by eight points or fewer.


 
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Players Mentioned

Khai Anderson

#4 Khai Anderson

CB
5' 10"
Redshirt Senior
Hunter Atkinson

#76 Hunter Atkinson

T
6' 5"
Redshirt Senior
Tra Barnett

#5 Tra Barnett

RB
5' 10"
Senior
Barry Brown

#94 Barry Brown

PK-P
6' 4"
Redshirt Junior
Trey Chapman

#22 Trey Chapman

S
5' 11"
Redshirt Junior
Destin Coates

#17 Destin Coates

RB
5' 11"
Sophomore
Ed Curney

#2 Ed Curney

LB
5' 11"
Redshirt Senior
Bryson Duckworth

#86 Bryson Duckworth

TE
6' 4"
Redshirt Junior
Dan Ellington

#13 Dan Ellington

QB
6' 3"
Senior
Devin Gentry

#14 Devin Gentry

WR
5' 10"
Senior
Kendrec Grady

#26 Kendrec Grady

ILB
6' 2"
Redshirt Junior
Oliver Holdenson

#48 Oliver Holdenson

P
5' 11"
Redshirt Senior

Players Mentioned

Khai Anderson

#4 Khai Anderson

5' 10"
Redshirt Senior
CB
Hunter Atkinson

#76 Hunter Atkinson

6' 5"
Redshirt Senior
T
Tra Barnett

#5 Tra Barnett

5' 10"
Senior
RB
Barry Brown

#94 Barry Brown

6' 4"
Redshirt Junior
PK-P
Trey Chapman

#22 Trey Chapman

5' 11"
Redshirt Junior
S
Destin Coates

#17 Destin Coates

5' 11"
Sophomore
RB
Ed Curney

#2 Ed Curney

5' 11"
Redshirt Senior
LB
Bryson Duckworth

#86 Bryson Duckworth

6' 4"
Redshirt Junior
TE
Dan Ellington

#13 Dan Ellington

6' 3"
Senior
QB
Devin Gentry

#14 Devin Gentry

5' 10"
Senior
WR
Kendrec Grady

#26 Kendrec Grady

6' 2"
Redshirt Junior
ILB
Oliver Holdenson

#48 Oliver Holdenson

5' 11"
Redshirt Senior
P