Georgia Southern takeaways fuel a 26-6 win at #CCU

CONWAY, SC — A week ago, the Troy Trojans played keep away from Georgia Southern by possessing the football for over 38 minutes to record a 28-20 victory, which put a dent in the Eagles’ Sun Belt Conference title hopes. Evidently, head coach Clay Helton liked what he saw from the Trojans.

On Saturday afternoon at Brooks Stadium, Georgia Southern held onto the football for nearly 39 minutes to methodically put away Coastal Carolina 26-6 on “Senior Day” in Conway. The win improved the Eagles to 7-4 overall and 5-2 in the league, right on the heels of division-leading Marshall. Meanwhile, the Chanticleers fell to 5-6 on the season and 2-5 in the Sun Belt, with next Saturday’s game at Georgia State offering one final chance to get bowl eligible.

Game Details Courtesy of Georgia Southern Media Relations: The Georgia Southern defense forced four turnovers and allowed just two field goals as the Eagles earned a hard-fought 26-6 win over Coastal Carolina Saturday afternoon at Brooks Stadium.

The Eagles scored on their first two drives, with Gavin Stewart hitting a 22-yard field goal and Marcus Sanders Jr. scoring on a 30-yard pass from JC French. The Chants got on the board late in the first quarter with a field goal before Stewart connected from 27-yards out to give the Eagles a 13-3 halftime lead.

Coastal broke off a 67-yard run on the first drive of the second half by Braydon Bennett, but the Eagle defense bowed up for a goal-line stand and forced a field goal. Stewart connected on a 36-yard field goal on the first play of the fourth quarter to increase the lead to ten.

The defense continued to shine, forcing two more turnovers, first a fumble recovery by Jacob Ferguson and then an interception by Dorrian Smith that set up a 2-yard touchdown run by Jalen White. Stewart iced the game late in the fourth quarter with his fourth field goal of the day. 

French led the offense with 294 passing yards and a touchdown, spreading the ball to nine different receivers. Derwin Burgess Jr. caught eight passes for 98 yards, and White rushed for 46 yards and a touchdown.

Coastal, which wraps up the regular season at Georgia State on Saturday, November 30th, held a 163-90 advantage on the ground, thanks in large part to Bennett’s 138-yard performance.

Box Score