Darren Grainger
Ben Ennis

Football

Home Stretch Begins Saturday at 2 p.m. vs. Arkansas State

GEORGIA STATE (5-5, 4-2) vs. ARKANSAS STATE (2-8, 1-5)
Saturday, Nov. 20  |  2 p.m.  |  Center Parc Stadium
 
TV: ESPN3
RADIO: WRAS-FM 88.5
 
THE KICKOFF: Coming off the program's first-ever win over a ranked opponent, Georgia State returns home for its final two regular-season games, beginning Saturday vs. Arkansas State in a 2 p.m. game at Center Parc Stadium.
   
> Georgia State's 42-40 victory at No. 22/21 Coastal Carolina improves the Panthers to 5-5 overall and 4-2 in the Sun Belt. Arkansas State (2-8, 1-5), coached by former Tennessee head coach Butch Jones, picked up its first conference win last Saturday over ULM.
 
> The Panthers have won four of their last five games, with the only loss in that stretch a 21-17 defeat at No. 24 Louisiana in which GSU led until the final three minutes. Three of those four wins have been on the road.
 
> Georgia State is the ONLY FBS team in the nation to play four road games against ranked opponents this season.
 
> The Panthers No. 17 in FBS in rushing, averaging 215.7 ypg. 
 
> The running back tandem of Tucker Gregg (718 yds, 8 TD) and Jamyest Williams (577 yds, 6 TD) has the topped the 1,000-yard mark for the season, combing for 1,295 yards and 14 TDs. QB Darren Grainger adds 445 yards rushing.
 
> Georgia State is playing at home for the first time in a month after playing four of their last five games on the road. The Panthers have played just one home game (Oct. 23 vs. Texas State) since the first weekend in October. 
 
RANK THAT: After coming oh-so-close in games at No. 23 Auburn and No. 24 Louisiana, Georgia State broke through to earn the program's first-ever win over a ranked opponent, 42-40 at No. 22/21 Coastal Carolina.
 
> QB Darren Grainger, the Conway, S.C., native, passed for 198 yards and two touchdowns, including the go-ahead 2-yard TD pass to Terrance Dixon with five minutes left. RBs Jamyest Williams (83 yards, 1 TD) and Tucker Gregg (67 yards, 3 TD) combined for 150 yards rushing and four touchdowns.
 
> The Georgia State defense stopped Coastal's attempt at the game-tying 2-point conversion with 1:09 left as NG Thomas Gore tackled RB Shermari Jones shy of the goal line. The Panthers recovered the ensuing onside kick to preserve the win.
 
> Facing its fourth ranked opponent of the season GSU snapped Coastal Carolina's 12-game home winning streak and knocked the Chanticleers out of the polls after 22 straight weeks.
 
HOMETOWN HERO: Quarterback Darren Grainger is the Sun Belt Conference Offensive Player of the Week. Playing in his hometown of Conway, S.C., Grainger led the Panthers to their first-ever win over a ranked opponent in the 42-40 victory at No. 22/21 Coastal Carolina.
 
> Grainger passed for 198 yards on 18 completions with two TD passes while rushing for 29 yards. He directed four 75-yard touchdown drives.
 
> He threw the go-ahead touchdown pass with five minutes left. On 4th-and-goal at the 2-yard line, he hit Terrance Dixon for the score to give the Panthers a 35-34 lead.

 
THE SERIES: Arkansas State holds a 6-1 lead in the series, which began in 2013.
 
> Last year's game at Arkansas State was one of the highest-scoring games in Sun Belt annals as the Red Wolves won 59-52, and the teams combined for 1,192 yards of offense. Tucker Gregg rushed for 146 yards, and Sam Pinckney had six catches for 146 yards and three touchdowns.
 
> In Georgia State's 52-38 win in 2019 in Atlanta, the Panthers set school records with 722 yards of total offense, 99 plays, 39 first downs and 39:19 time of possession. The Panthers rushed for a then-school record 340 yards, while QB Dan Ellington passed for a career-high 382 yards.
 
TUCKER THE TRUCKER: Senior running back Tucker Gregg, known for his hard-nosed style, has trucked his way to 1,325 career rushing yards to rank No. 5 in GSU history.
 
> The former walk-on and Burlsworth Trophy nominee is third in the Sun Belt with 718 yards this season and fourth with eight rushing touchdowns.
 
> He tied the GSU record with three rushing touchdowns, along wih 67 yards, in the win at No. 22/21 Coastal Carolina.
 
> Gregg rushed for 99 yards at No. 24 Louisiana, including a 1-yard touchdown that gave GSU a 17-14 lead with five minutes left. He gained 48 yards on that drive alone.
 
> He rushed for 87 yards and two TDs in the Panthers' 21-14 win over Georgia Southern.
 
> Gregg rushed for a career-high 150 yards on 12 carries at No. 23 Auburn. He had a career-long 57-yard run to set up a score in the first quarter, and then a 50-yard TD run to put GSU ahead 24-10 late in the second quarter. He is the first Panther to have two runs of 50 or more yards in the same game.
 
QUA WITH THE PICK: Senior cornerback grabbed his seventh career interception in the win at No. 22/21 Coastal Carolina to tie the GSU career record originally set by current Green Bay Packer Chandon Sullivan.
 
> White returned his interception 36 yards to the 1-yard line to set up a touchdown that gave the Panthers their first lead in the game. He also had two pass breakups in the win.
 
> White is also GSU's career leader with 31 passes defended (interceptions plus pass breakups.
 
ROGER THAT: Super senior tight end Roger Carter is Georgia State's career leader in receptions (93), receiving yards (1,207) and touchdown receptions (12) by a tight end.
 
> Among all players, Carter is eighth in receiving yards, ninth in receptions and tied for fourth in touchdown receptions.
 
> Over the last three games, Carter has eight catches for 205 yards. He had three catches for 76 yards and a TD at No. 24 Louisiana and then three receptions for 70 yards in the win over No. 22/21 Coastal Carolina.
 
DOWN TO THE WIRE: Before breaking through against No. 21/22 Coastal Carolina, Georgia State held late leads at No. 23 Auburn and at No. 24 Louisiana.
 
> The Panthers led 24-19 at No. 23 Auburn until the Tigers scored the go-ahead touchdown on a fourth-down play with 45 seconds left.
 
> The Panthers rushed for 267 yards in the game, including a career-high 150 by Tucker Gregg.
 
> The GSU defense held Auburn to 167 yards rushing and did not allow an offensive touchdown until the game-winning drive.
 
> Georgia State took a 17-14 lead at No. 24 Louisiana on Tucker Gregg's 1-yard TD run with 5:25 left, but the Ragin' Cajuns won 21-17 on a touchdown with 2:32 to play.
 
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Players Mentioned

Roger Carter

#5 Roger Carter

TE
6' 2"
Senior
Terrance Dixon

#0 Terrance Dixon

WR
5' 7"
Redshirt Senior
Thomas Gore

#59 Thomas Gore

NG
6' 0"
Redshirt Sophomore
Tucker Gregg

#26 Tucker Gregg

RB
5' 10"
Senior
Sam Pinckney

#15 Sam Pinckney

WR
6' 4"
Redshirt Junior
Jamyest Williams

#21 Jamyest Williams

RB
5' 9"
Redshirt Senior
Darren Grainger

#3 Darren Grainger

QB
6' 4"
Redshirt Junior

Players Mentioned

Roger Carter

#5 Roger Carter

6' 2"
Senior
TE
Terrance Dixon

#0 Terrance Dixon

5' 7"
Redshirt Senior
WR
Thomas Gore

#59 Thomas Gore

6' 0"
Redshirt Sophomore
NG
Tucker Gregg

#26 Tucker Gregg

5' 10"
Senior
RB
Sam Pinckney

#15 Sam Pinckney

6' 4"
Redshirt Junior
WR
Jamyest Williams

#21 Jamyest Williams

5' 9"
Redshirt Senior
RB
Darren Grainger

#3 Darren Grainger

6' 4"
Redshirt Junior
QB