Georgia State got their football history off to a flying start on Thursday night with a 41-7 win over Shorter University. The Georgia Dome rocked for much of the first half, as Panther fans cheered every first that their team achieved.
The crowd of 30,237 was treated to a rollicking show of offense by their Panthers, who racked up 189 yards in the first half and a commanding 20-0 lead. State’s talent at the skill positions was evident as wide receiver Sidney Haynes and running backs Parris Lee and Travis Evans stood out against an out-manned Hawks defense.
The Panthers’ first series was cut short by a holding penalty after a first down was called back. However, Shorter committed an illegal participation penalty after the GSU punt, which gave the Panthers a first down on the Shorter 32. On the following play, the Hawks committed another foul, this time for pass interference.
After the automatic first down, GSU had the ball on the Shorter 17. A few plays later, Lee sprinted in from the four, and State had their first points and first touchdown in school history.
“When everybody buys into the culture, you get more done,” Said head coach Bill Curry. “But we didn’t know if we’d be ready for the moment of truth. We had to respond on game night.”
And they did. The Panthers dominated the final stats, rolling up 366 total yards and converting on all six chances in the red zone. Quarterback Drew Little, who Curry said after the game had won the quarterback battle, completed 13 of 17 passes for 135 yards and two touchdowns.
Curry, in his fourth head coaching job, enjoyed his first win at GSU.
“It feels really wonderful,” he said. “I’ve never been more proud of a group of young men.”
Captain and defensive back Brandon Jones loved the support he and his teammates got from the home crowd.
“Our fanbase was phenomenal,” said Jones. “Everybody was energized when we warmed up. The fans turned us up.”
With several firsts accomplished tonight in a successful debut, the Panthers can now focus on simply improving as a team. Now, the entire team has played in a college game, something that many of them hadn’t before tonight.
“I didn’t want to count the number of players who had never played in a college game,” said Curry. “I really didn’t want to know.”
“We’ll take this (win), look at parts of it (on film), and do better next time.
Next time will be next Saturday at home against Lambuth.
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