After playing four road games in its first six games, the GS Eagles football team returns to the friendly confines of Allen E. Paulson Stadium Saturday when it hosts 25th-ranked James Madison. Kickoff is set for 4:02 p.m. and will be streamed online through ESPN+. The game will also be available via radio on the Georgia Southern Sports Network. Here's all you need to know about the game:
IMPORTANT LINKS
Tickets
Game Day Guide (PDF)
Game Day Stadium Map (PDF)
Parking (PDF)
Clear Bag Policy (PDF)
Game 7: Saturday, Oct. 15, 2022 • 4 PM
Location: Statesboro, Ga. (Allen E. Paulson Stadium; 25,000)
Promotions: FAMILY WEEKEND/TACKLING FOR A CURE
Records:
#25 James Madison: 5-0, 3-0 SBC
Georgia Southern: 3-3, 0-2 SBC
Broadcast Information
Broadcast: ESPN+ (online)
PBP: Danny Waugh; Analyst: Cole Neely; Sidelines: Emily Grace McWhorter
Radio: Georgia Southern Sports Network
PBP: Danny Reed (@GSEaglesVoice); Analysts: Terry Harvin (@TerryHarvin) and Russ Brown; Sidelines: Frank Sulkowski (@TheBigGuyWJCL)
Radio Affiliates (PDF)
GS: GAME NOTES (PDF)
Inside The Series
Overall Record GS leads, 7-1
In Statesboro GS leads, 4-0
In Harrisonburg GS leads, 3-1
At Neutral Never Met
Cignetti vs. GS Never Met
Helton vs. JMU Never Met
Helton vs. Cignetti Never Met
Current Streak GS, Won 7 (1986-92)
Last Meeting GS 24, JMU 17 (1992; Statesboro)
Longest GS Streak Seven (1986-present)
Longest JMU Streak One (1985)
Largest GS Win 19 points (1987 in Statesboro)
Largest JMU Win 15 points (1985 in Harrisonburg)
GS vs. current Sun Belt Members 64-62-1
GS vs. teams from Virginia 23-3
GS in state of Georgia 222-63-1
Of Note:
- Georgia Southern and James Madison played eight straight seasons from 1985 to 1992. After dropping the first game 21-6 at Bridgeforth Stadium, the Eagles have rolled off seven straight wins, although none were by more than 19 points.
- This will be the first of two straight games against teams from the Commonwealth of Virginia as the Eagles fly to ODU next week. GS is 23-3 all-time against teams from Virginia.
- Eagle defensive back Mari Wingard played for JMU head coach Curt Cignetti when the duo was at Elon in 2019.
- Sixth-year receiver Ezrah Archie played three seasons at JMU (2017-19) before transferring to Monmouth.
- Offensive analyst Bryan Schor was a Walter Payton Award finalist and All-American as a quarterback at James Madison, leading the Dukes to the 2016 FCS national title. Running backs coach Matt Merritt coached the running backs at JMU in 2019.
Countdown to Kickoff
10: Defensive back Wylan Free has posted back-to-back 10-tackle games.
9: Amare Jones is averaging over 9 yards per punt return this season.
8: Georgia Southern (6) and JMU (2) have combined to win eight of the 13 FCS national titles captured by members of the new Sun Belt East. Additionally, App State won three and Marshall won two.
7: After dropping the opener in 1985, Georgia Southern has won the past seven games against James Madison to take a 7-1 lead in the series.
6: Kyle Vantrease has thrown a touchdown in six straight games to set a new school record for consecutive games with a scoring pass.
5: Linebacker Marques Watson-Trent stands fifth in the conference with 51 tackles (8.5 stops per game).
4: The 25th-ranked Dukes will be the fourth team to come into Allen E. Paulson Stadium ranked by The Associated Press. Georgia Southern beat No. 25 App State at home in 2018 but fell to No. 21 Coastal Carolina and No. 14 BYU last year in Statesboro.
3: Last week marked just the third time in program history two GS receivers (Hood, 120; Singleton, 101) went for 100+ yards in the same game. It also happened against Furman in 1985 and against JMU in 1986.
2: This game will feature the top two scoring offenses in the Sun Belt Conference with JMU averaging 44.2 points per game and the Eagles averaging 37.0 points per game.
1: Kyle Vantrease now stands at No. 1 on the GS single-season passing list with 1,933 yards after throwing for 359 yards at Georgia State last week to pass the mark of 1,852 yards by Antonio Henton set in 2008.
Up Next:
Oct. 22 at Old Dominion - Norfolk, Va. - 3:30 p.m. - ESPN+