Coastal Carolina at Georgia Southern Prediction
The Coastal Carolina Chanticleers will head down to Statesboro to face the Georgia Southern Eagles in Sun Belt play this Saturday from Allen E. Paulson Stadium on the NFL Network. This will be the tenth time Coastal Carolina and Georgia Southern cross paths, and the Eagles hold the head-to-head lead, 5-4, despite dropping three straight to the Chanticleers, including last year’s contest in Conway by four, 34-30.
Coastal Carolina Chanticleers Preview
Coastal Carolina comes in at 2-2 after losing to Georgia State at home, 30-17. The Chanticleers couldn’t overcome a two-score deficit at the break, and they’ll look to avoid falling into an early 0-2 record in conference play this weekend. The Coastal offense is scoring 31.5 ppg, while passing for 281.5 ypg, rushing for 133.8 ypg, and converting 50.9% of their third downs.
CCU Player Notes
• Grayson McCall had a solid outing versus Georgia State despite the final result, going 26/42 for 295 yards and a touchdown. The longtime Coastal QB has bounced back from a rough debut at UCLA, and he’ll have to rev things up facing the Georgia Southern aerial attack this weekend.
• Junior back Braydon Bennett totaled 56 yards last week, and he leads CCU with 131 yards rushing.
• Senior wideout Sam Pinckney remains effective on the outside, and after surpassing the 60-yard mark for third time in four games, he leads the team in receptions (21) and receiving yards (311).
• Sophomore receiver Jared Brown is right behind him with 20 catches for 208 yards.
• The CCU defense allows 20.0 points per game.
Georgia Southern Preview
Georgia Southern comes in at 2-1 after falling to Wisconsin in Madison by three touchdowns, 35-14. The Eagles went into the break tied with the Badgers, before the hosts' smothering defense began to alter the game, and they’ll now look to bounce back here against Ball State. The GA Southern offense is scoring 32.3 ppg, while passing for 463.3 ypg, rushing for 130.0 ypg, and converting 56.8% of their third downs.
GA Southern Player Notes
• Davis Brin had another strong outing in the win over Ball State, going 34/46 for 344 yards and four touchdown tosses. The former Tulsa quarterback is thriving in the Air Raid, and he’ll look to open conference play on a strong note in a return home. Brin is among the nation’s leaders with 1,289 passing yards, while having nine touchdowns to seven interceptions.
• Sophomore back O.J. Arnold scored in the first three contests, before totaling 102 yards last week versus BSU, and he leads the team in rushing with 256 yards on 31 touches.
• Junior wideout Derwin Burgess Jr. has caught six passes or more in each of the first four games, and he leads GASO in receptions (29) and receiving yards (310).
• Senior receiver Khaleb Hood has matched his energy with seven catches or more in three straight games, and he’s posting splits of 27/283/2.
• The GA Southern defense is allowing 18.2 ppg.
Coastal Carolina vs Georgia Southern Trends
• CCU is 3-1 against the spread, with a 1-3 O/U record.
• GASO is 3-1 ATS, with a 1-3 over/under record.
Corey’s Free Pick
Georgia Southern has looked good early on this season, and if you throw away the second half of the Wisconsin game, they’ve looked great. Coastal Carolina has delivered mixed results early on, but after dropping their conference opener at home, we have to wonder if they’ve taken a step back, and this will give the Eagles a chance to show there are new sheriffs in town. They have something special with Davis Brin at quarterback, and he may be able to pick apart a vulnerable CCU defense here at home with the threats they have outside. This should be a good game, and I like backing the hosting Eagles to take care of business in their Sun Belt opener.
