2024 Season Preview – Georgia Southern Eagles
2023 Record – 6-7; 3-5 Sun Belt
Bowl: VS. Ohio in Myrtle Beach Bowl (L 41-21)
2024 Schedule
- 8/31 – VS Boise State
- 9/7 – at Nevada
- 9/14 – VS South Carolina State
- 9/21 – at Ole Miss
- 9/28 – at Georgia State
- 10/12 – VS Marshall
- 10/19 – VS James Madison
- 10/24 – at Old Dominion
- 11/2 – at South Alabama
- 11/16 – VS Troy
- 11/23 – at Coastal Carolina
- 11/30 – VS Appalachian State
2023 Recap
The 2023 season started out pretty strong for Georgia Southern. It started off with wins against The Citadel out of the FCS and UAB. Even in their non-conference loss to Wisconsin, the Eagles took a 14-7 lead early in the fourth before it got away from them late. They finished the non-conference schedule with a 3-1 record.
Conference play started out well for the Eagles also. It started with a win over Coastal Carolina. After that they had a big loss at James Madison, but that was an understandable loss as the Dukes were the elite team of the Sun Belt. Georgia Southern bounced back with wins at home over Louisiana-Monroe and Georgia State to go to 6-2.
After the win over Georgia State, the floor fell out for Georgia Southern to end out the year. They would finish the regular season losing four straight. The closest of those games would be against Old Dominion. It was a game that went down to the wire with the Monarchs hitting a field goal as time expired to win 20-17. The last game of the season was an embarrassing 55-27 loss to Appalachian State.
Even with the losing streak and .500 record, the Eagles were able to make it to the bowl game. They played against Ohio in the Myrtle Beach bowl. It ended up being another losing effort. The team ended the season at 6-7, 3-5 in conference play.
2024 Preview
In 2023, 34 was the magic number. Georgia Southern was 6-0 when scoring more than 34 points and 0-7 when scoring less. The question is will they be able to keep the offense rolling this season. When you score that many points, quarterback play is key. Davis Brin threw for nearly 3800 yards, but he is gone. The question is who will be the new QB? There is a battle going on between last year’s backup JC French and Indiana transfer Dexter Williams.
There is a strong receiving core returning for the Eagles although leading receiver Khaleb Hood has moved on. Derwin Burgess Jr. leads the group coming back after leading the team with 6 touchdown receptions last season. Behind the line, leading back Jalen White returns after almost 900 yards in 2023.
Where Georgia Southern needs to improve most is on defense after giving up more than 30 points per game. There is a strong core coming back on that side of the ball. This starts with linebacker Marques Watson-Trent who had 122 tackles in 2023, including 13 tackles for loss.
Issac Walker returns on the line after recording 6 sacks a season ago. There was not much of a pass rush outside of Walker though. They also had thirteen interceptions showing that the secondary should also be strong.
2024 Projection
The non-conference schedule is tougher this season for Georgia Southern. It starts off with a home game against Boise State, a team that is always tough. Once they get past the Broncos, the next two games at Nevada and at home against South Carolina State out of the FCS are both winnable. Finally, the Eagles finish non-conference play at Ole Miss. Going 2-2 will be a good record going into conference play.
The Sun Belt is always a tough conference to play in and the Eagles have some tough opponents. The first two games at Georgia State and against Marshall are ones that can be won. They have to host James Madison though, a team that will likely be at the top of the division.
After that game there will be a three-game stretch that will determine the success of the Georgia Southern 2024 season. It starts off with two road games at Old Dominion and South Alabama. Then, a home game against Troy is next.
Finally, the last two games of the season are with two other teams that will be vying for the conference crown. First, a road game against Coastal Carolina is in place. Then, the final game of the season is against Appalachian State. Any way you slice it, I think this will be a slight step back for the Eagles this season.
Prediction – 4-8