ATLANTA-- Georgia State put together a seven-play, 75-yard drive, and completed a 25-yard touchdown reception from Christian Veilleux to Ted Hurst to with :15 remaining in the ballgame to give the Panthers a 36-32 win over Vanderbilt on Saturday night at Center Parc Crdit Union Stadium.
" [Vanderbilt] was in man-to-man coverage and I felt like my quarterback would give me a chance," wide receiver Ted Hurst said, reflecting on the game-winning touchdown. "Coach put us in the right position and made the right calls tonight. We work those plays in practice and we were able to connect on the field today."
Tonight's win marks the first time the Panthers have defeated an SEC team since the 2019 upset at Tennessee. The win improved Georgia State's record to 2-1 on the season while the Commodores fell to 2-1.
Christian Veilleux led Georgia State's passing attack with 269 yards through the air, tossing three touchdowns and one interception. The signal caller also added one touchdown on the ground. Veilleux's most prolific target in the ballgame was Ted Hurst, who caught seven passes for 128 yards and two scores.
Freddie Brock totaled 96 yards to lead the Panthers' ground attack in the game, picking up 6.4 yards per carry along the way. Jordan Ford also tacked on 35 yards on the ground, picking up 5.8 yards per carry.
Kevin Swint showed out for the Georgia State defense, collecting eight tackles, 2.0 TFL, two sacks, two pass breakups, and one forced fumble. Izaiah Guy added one recovered fumble and Ted Hurst had in the win.
Georgia State converted on 56.2 percent of third-down attempts on the day.
"I have to commend our defense," Head coach McGee said. "That offense is a really hard offense to defend."
Defensively, Georgia State held up fairly well against the Vanderbilt rushing attack, holding the Commodores to 110 yards on the ground. In part because of that stellar defense, Georgia State runners out-gained their Vanderbilt counterparts 157-110.
How It Happened
Georgia State took a 3-0 lead over Vanderbilt after scoring the game's first points with 11:16 left in the first quarter.Vanderbilt then tied things up at 3-3 before the Panthers responded with a 33-yard touchdown reception from to to jump back in front 10-3.
After Vanderbilt tied the game at 10-12, Georgia State got on the scoreboard again with 10:22 left in the third quarter with a 45-yard field goal from to jump back ahead 15-10.The Panthers continued to build their lead, scoring again to go on top 22-10.
Georgia State kept building its advantage after Vanderbilt made it a 22-17 game, scoring again with 11:42 remaining in the fourth quarter make the score 29-17.The Commodores answered with 15 points to take the lead before the Panthers reclaimed it on a 25-yard touchdown pass from to , which brought the score to 36-32 in favor of Georgia State. Neither team scored again in the game.
Game Notes
» Georgia State outgained Vanderbilt 426-380, including a 157-110 advantage on the ground.
» Georgia State had their highest scoring quarter in the fourth period, when they put up 14 points.
» Georgia State converted 9 of 16 third downs while Vanderbilt was successful on 6 of 13.
» Swint led the Panthers with eight tackles.
» Georgia State won the time of possession battle 32:47 to 27:13.
The Panthers will celebrate the win with a bye-week before hosting in-state rival Georgia Southern on Sept. 28 at Center Parc Credit Union Stadium.
