STATESBORO (AP) —
Georgia Southern had 540 yards total offense behind the play of quarterback Jaybo Shaw and running back Robert Brown to coast to a season-opening 48-3 win over Savannah State on Saturday night.
A crowd of 20,430 saw former Georgia Tech assistant Jeff Monken win in his debut as coach of the Eagles, who were 5-6 last season under Chris Hatcher.
Brown rushed for 122 yards and one touchdown on 20 carries to become the first Georgia Southern freshman to gain 100 or more yards in his debut since Adrian Peterson had 135 yards against Elon in 1998.
Shaw, who transferred from Georgia Tech for an opportunity for more playing time, had 65 yards and one touchdown rushing and completed 7 of 10 passes for 109 yards in three quarters of action.
Georgia Southern had 431 yards on the ground, averaging 7.1 yards per carry. The Eagles had six rushing TDs after getting no more than two in any game last year.
Monken spent 13 years as an assistant under Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson in stints at Georgia Southern, Navy and Tech. When hired, he vowed to return Georgia Southern to its triple option roots which produced a record six national championships in the former Division 1-AA.
Georgia Southern scored on all five of its first-half possessions, four drives on the Savannah State side of the field thanks to a stifling defense.
Adrian Mora, who had two field goals, kicked a 39-yard field goal to open the scoring, and Brown scored on a 2-yard run four minutes later. Shaw followed with a 1-yard run, Lamar Brown scored on a 6-yard run, and Mora kicked a 34-yard field goal to close out the first-half scoring with 18 seconds left.
The Eagles held the Tigers in check after an opening drive that produced 53 yards and two first downs on four plays. For the rest of the half, the Tigers had minus-30 yards on 17 plays. Savannah State finished the game with 172 yards total offense, led by senior running back Justin Babb’s 70 yards on 11 carries.
The Eagles sacked quarterback A.J. Defilippis four times for 40 yards in losses.
Local Sports
Georgia Southern runs over Savannah State 48-3
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